Telescopic Support Bar Locking and Damping for Safe Inner Tube Retraction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional retractable support bars face challenges in easy assembly and effective buffering to prevent accidental inner tube falls, which can cause harm, due to complex safety ejector installation and interference buffering mechanisms.
Innovation Solution
The design incorporates a torsion spring, pivot device, sliding block, and elastic damping device with a steel ball and spring, allowing for easy assembly and providing a cushioning interference effect by slowing the inner tube's descent when falling.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a safety ejector with tension spring is used to prevent accidental inner tube falls, then safety is improved, but assembly complexity and time increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the safety function from the complex safety ejector mechanism and integrates it directly into the button structure. The button itself becomes the safety device through its positioning holes that align with inner tube holes, eliminating the need for separate safety ejectors and tension springs, thus reducing assembly complexity while maintaining safety.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the safety function with the button operation. The button's latching portion and positioning holes are integrated with the locking mechanism, so that the same component that locks the inner tube also provides safety prevention. This consolidation reduces the number of parts and assembly steps while improving reliability.
2Reliability
If a safety ejector with tension spring is used to prevent accidental inner tube falls, then safety is improved, but assembly time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the time-consuming safety ejector installation step by extracting the safety function and embedding it in the button design. The button's integrated positioning holes and latching mechanism provide safety without requiring separate installation of safety components, significantly reducing assembly time.
Solution Approach 2:
The button structure is designed to be self-sufficient for safety functions. The positioning holes in the button automatically align with and engage the inner tube holes without requiring additional safety components or assembly steps, making the safety feature self-installing and eliminating time loss.
3Reliability
If conventional interference buffering is used to slow inner tube descent, then safety is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the buffering function with the existing button and mount structures. The elastic element is integrated into the mount, and the button's movement through positioning holes provides the buffering action during inner tube descent, eliminating the need for separate interference buffering mechanisms and reducing structural complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses the button and elastic element as intermediaries to provide buffering during inner tube descent. Instead of complex interference mechanisms, the elastic element acts as a mediator that absorbs impact energy, while the button's positioning holes guide and control the descent, simplifying the overall structure while maintaining safety.
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 ensures the inner tube is securely locked and easily assembled, preventing accidental falls and providing a cushioning effect that slows its descent, enhancing user safety without the complexity of prior art designs.
Implementation Method 1
The torsion spring is mounted in the mounting through hole
Implementation Method 2
The elastic damping device is mounted in the receiving hole of the mount, comprising a steel ball and a spring
Implementation Method 3
The spring has one end thereof stopped by the sliding block and an opposite end thereof stopped against the steel ball
Implementation Method 4
The pivot device is inserted through the two supporting pieces of the mount, the mounting through hole of the button and the torsion spring to secure the button to the mount for allowing the button to be turned about the pivot device
Data Source
AI summary
An upright support bar includes a mount disposed at the pivotal joint between an outer tube and an inner tube, a button pivoted to the mount and providing an actuation end, a finger grip and a latching portion so arranged that when the actuation end is biased downward, the latching portion is engaged in one of a series of holes of the inner tube, and a sliding block with a locking piece mounted on the mount movable relative to the mount between a first position where the locking piece is abutted against the finger grip to lock the button and a second position where the locking piece is released from the finger grip to unlock the button.