Smart module with adjustable time of flight sensor
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing smart apparatuses, such as paper towel dispensers and waste bins, face challenges in efficiently integrating sensors with adjustable angular positions, leading to inconsistent installation and potential misalignment, which affects their functionality and ease of use.
Innovation Solution
A sensor assembly with a pivotally engaging mounting member, an adjustable member, and a locking mechanism allows for the angular position of the sensor to be selected and locked, enabling identical sensor assemblies to be used across various applications with different mounting surfaces, ensuring proper alignment and ease of installation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If sensors are mounted with fixed angular positions, then manufacturing is simplified, but adaptability to different mounting contexts is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The sensor housing is made dynamically adjustable through a pivotable mounting member that allows the sensor to be positioned at different angular orientations. The adjustment member enables movement between multiple angular positions, and the locking mechanism secures the selected position, transforming a static fixed-position design into a dynamic adjustable one.
Solution Approach 2:
The sensor assembly is designed as a universal component that can be adapted to various mounting contexts (horizontal surfaces, inclined lids, different angles) using the same basic structure. The combination of pivotable mounting member, adjustment member, and locking mechanism allows a single sensor assembly design to serve multiple applications with different angular requirements.
2Adaptability or versatility
If sensors are made adjustable, then adaptability to different contexts is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The sensor assembly is segmented into distinct functional components: the sensor housing, the pivotable mounting member, the adjustment member, and the locking mechanism. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function independently while maintaining overall simplicity. The modular structure makes the adjustment mechanism easier to understand and implement than a completely redesigned complex system.
3Productivity
If identical sensor assemblies are used across different applications, then manufacturing efficiency is improved, but installation precision may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The adjustment member allows the sensor housing to be preliminarily positioned at the correct angular orientation before final installation. The locking mechanism then secures this pre-positioned orientation, ensuring precise alignment is maintained during installation. This preliminary adjustment capability enables identical sensor assemblies to achieve precise alignment in different applications without requiring custom manufacturing for each application.
Data Source
AI summary
A sensor assembly including a sensor, a sensor housing that carries the sensor, a mounting member that pivotally engages with the sensor housing, an adjustment member for selecting an angular position of the sensor housing relative to the mounting member, and a locking mechanism for locking the sensor housing at the selected angular position relative to the mounting member. The adjustment member is moveable relative to the mounting member between a first location and a second location, and engages with the sensor housing to pivot the sensor housing about a pivot axis relative to the mounting member between a first angular position and a second angular position.