Snowboard Spatula Core Extension for Weight and Vibration Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional ski tips are heavy and rigid, leading to instability at high speeds and increased vulnerability to damage, especially during ski touring and handling.
Innovation Solution
A gliding board with a spatula-shaped front end featuring a multilayer structure comprising a core, upper and lower reinforcements, and a gliding sole, where an end insert extends the core, making the spatula lighter and more flexible, thus reducing weight and enhancing stability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If the spatula is made with the same structure as the body of the ski, then the structural integrity is maintained, but the weight increases and flexibility decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by making the spatula structure different from the body. The spatula uses a lighter core material (expanded polystyrene or polyurethane foam) compared to the wood or composite core in the body, while the reinforcement layers extend beyond the core to provide localized strength where needed. This allows the spatula to be lighter while maintaining sufficient structural integrity for its specific function of cutting through snow.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses composite materials in the spatula construction, combining a lightweight foam core with fiberglass or carbon fiber reinforcement layers. This composite structure provides both the weight reduction and the necessary strength, resolving the contradiction between lightweight construction and structural integrity.
2Strength
If the spatula is made rigid to maintain stability, then structural strength is improved, but vibration damping decreases and maneuverability worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the physical parameters of the spatula by using a foam core material that is inherently more flexible than traditional solid cores. The reinforcement layers are strategically positioned to provide strength where needed while allowing the spatula to flex and dampen vibrations. This parameter change resolves the contradiction between structural strength and vibration stability.
3Ease of operation
If the spatula is made lighter to improve maneuverability, then ease of operation is improved, but structural strength and damage resistance decrease
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the reinforcement structure by extending the reinforcement layers beyond the core material in the spatula region. This segmentation allows the lightweight foam core to provide maneuverability while the extended reinforcement layers provide damage resistance and structural strength where the spatula is most vulnerable to impacts and stresses.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution results in a lighter, more manageable, and stable gliding board that better dampens vibrations and resists stresses during use and handling, reducing the risk of damage.
Implementation Method 1
the insert gives flexibility to the spatula so that the latter better dampens vibrations, in particular in turns, such a spatula thus increasing the stability of the gliding board
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3
Figure 4
AI summary
This board, whose front end is shaped like a tip (4), comprises a multilayer structure including at least one core (23), an upper reinforcement (263) positioned above the core (23), and a lower reinforcement (273) positioned below the core (23). The upper (263) and lower (273) reinforcements extend forward along the board, beyond the core (23). An insert (42) implanted at the front of the core, between the upper and lower reinforcements (263, 273), forms the core of the tip (4).