Slimfold Table Nesting Structure for Compact Folding
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional folding tables are bulky, heavy, and difficult to carry, lacking enhanced functional options and efficient folding mechanisms.
Innovation Solution
A slimfold table design where legs and cross braces fold laterally outside the central leaves, allowing for a compact collapse, with heat-resistant surfaces and additional features like edge receptacles for versatile use, enabling easier transport and storage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If conventional folding tables are designed with traditional folding mechanisms, then they provide basic portability, but they become bulky and heavy, making them difficult to carry and store
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies nesting by placing legs laterally outside the edges of central leaves, and cross braces laterally outside the legs, creating a nested arrangement where smaller components are positioned within the envelope of larger ones. This allows the table to collapse to a compact size where leaves, legs, and cross braces occupy overlapping lateral spaces, significantly reducing the folded volume while maintaining structural integrity and ease of folding operation.
2Strength
If the table structure is simplified for easier folding, then portability improves, but the load-bearing capacity and structural strength are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the table into distinct functional components: central leaves for the tabletop surface, lateral legs for support, and cross braces for structural reinforcement. Each segment is optimized independently - the leaves provide the necessary surface area and strength, the legs provide vertical support with lateral positioning, and the cross braces provide additional rigidity. This segmentation allows the complex folding mechanism to be broken into manageable parts that can be folded independently, maintaining overall structural strength while enabling portability.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the table is designed for compact folding, then storage and transport improve, but functional versatility and additional features are limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates multiple functional features into the compact table structure: edge receptacles are integrated into the lateral legs to hold beverages, bottles, or condiments; the central leaves provide a stable surface for food preparation and serving; the folding mechanism itself enables both compact storage and easy deployment. This multi-functionality allows the table to serve various purposes at outdoor events without requiring additional separate items, maintaining versatility while preserving compact folded dimensions.
Data Source
AI summary
A slimfold table has a plurality of legs, at least one table leaf, an inner cross brace, and an outer cross brace. The plurality of legs, the at least one table leaf, the inner cross brace, and the outer cross brace are movable from a deployed condition to a nested condition. The deployed condition has the plurality of legs all generally parallel each other and spaced apart by the inner and outer cross braces, with the at least one table leaf generally orthogonal the legs. The nested condition has the plurality of legs all generally parallel and adjacent to each other and to the inner and outer cross braces and to the at least one table leaf, with the legs and the at least one table leaf nested within the inner cross brace and the inner cross brace nested within the outer cross brace.