Adjustable Sneeze Guard Filler Bracket for Gap Closure Retrofit
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current sneeze guard assemblies face challenges such as complexity in design and assembly, requirement of multiple tools and personnel for installation, gaps between panels allowing exposure of food to airborne contaminants, and the need for extensive replacement when parts are damaged, leading to inefficiencies and increased costs.
Innovation Solution
An adjustable filler bracketing assembly that can be easily installed or retrofitted to close gaps between sneeze guard panels, featuring a cylindrical housing with adjustable components and fasteners, allowing for positional adjustment and secure attachment to elongated support members, thus enhancing the security and aesthetics of sneeze guard assemblies while minimizing labor and parts required.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional sneeze guard assemblies are designed with multiple components for support and panel attachment, then the structural strength and reliability are improved, but the device complexity and assembly difficulty increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple functions into a single integrated bracket assembly that simultaneously provides structural support, panel attachment, and gap-filling capabilities. The bracket integrates mounting holes for support members, attachment mechanisms for panels, and an extended body to fill gaps, eliminating the need for separate components and reducing assembly complexity while maintaining structural integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The bracket assembly is designed with universal applicability to work with various support member configurations and panel types. The standardized bracket design with adjustable features can be used across different sneeze guard installations, reducing the need for multiple specialized components and simplifying both design and assembly processes while ensuring reliable structural performance.
2Ease of manufacture
If sneeze guard panels are installed with standard spacing, then the manufacturing and installation process is simplified, but gaps between panels expose food to airborne contaminants
Solution Approach 1:
The bracket assembly incorporates an adjustable extended body that can be positioned at various heights and angles to fill gaps between panels. This dynamic adjustment capability allows the gap-filling function to adapt to different panel spacing configurations while maintaining the simplicity of the overall installation process, as the adjustable portion can be configured to eliminate gaps without requiring custom manufacturing.
3Reliability
If entire sneeze guard assemblies are replaced when parts are damaged, then the reliability and safety are maintained, but the loss of time and resources increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The bracket assembly is designed as a modular, replaceable component that can be independently removed and replaced without affecting the entire sneeze guard assembly. The bracket separates the filler function from the main support structure and panels, allowing damaged brackets to be quickly swapped out while leaving the rest of the assembly intact, thereby reducing replacement time and resource waste while maintaining food safety through reliable gap closure.
4Adaptability or versatility
If location dependent uprights are used to support sneeze guard panels, then the adaptability to different configurations is improved, but the quantity of components and assembly effort multiply
Solution Approach 1:
The bracket assembly serves multiple functions simultaneously: it attaches panels to support members, fills gaps between panels, and adapts to various configurations through its adjustable extended body. This multi-functional design eliminates the need for multiple specialized components that would otherwise be required to achieve the same adaptability, reducing the total quantity of parts while maintaining configuration flexibility.
Data Source
AI summary
A filler bracket assembly for closing gaps in new or existing sneeze guard assemblies is disclosed. The filler bracket assembly includes dual housings which fit together to provide a cylindrical housing central aperture having an internal diameter sized to receive and affix to a sneeze guard elongated support member. A cap portion is sized to fit on top of the slotted cylindrical housing, and together with gaskets and the filler sneeze guard panel, be affixed thereto by at least one fastener. The split cylindrical housing components allow for easy retro-fit adaptation of a filler bracket assembly to existing, installed sneeze guard assemblies.