Load path redistribution field coupler
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing outdoor equipment, such as chairs and tents, often require significant framing that adds weight, making them cumbersome for ultralight trekking, and there is a need for multi-purpose structures that can reduce weight and enhance functionality.
Innovation Solution
A support connection hub that distributes a laterally applied load to one or more longitudinal load paths, allowing trekking poles or other frame segments to be repurposed as both chair and tent supports, reducing the need for dedicated framing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If significant framing is used in outdoor equipment, then structural strength and stability are improved, but weight increases making equipment cumbersome for ultralight trekking
Solution Approach 1:
The support connection hub is designed to serve multiple functions: it connects lateral support members for chair seating, longitudinal support members for tent structures, and provides load distribution between different directional forces. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for separate dedicated framing components for chairs and tents, reducing total equipment weight while maintaining structural strength.
Solution Approach 2:
The framing system is segmented into modular components (lateral support members, longitudinal support members, and the central hub) that can be independently configured. This allows the same basic components to be arranged differently for chair or tent applications, reducing the need for redundant framing materials.
2Stability of the object's composition
If dedicated framing is used for different outdoor equipment, then structural stability is improved, but device complexity and number of components increase
Solution Approach 1:
The support connection hub serves as a universal connector that stabilizes both chair and tent structures through a single component design. It receives both lateral support members (for chair seating stability) and longitudinal support members (for tent structural stability), eliminating the need for separate dedicated framing components for each equipment type.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention merges the functions of multiple dedicated framing systems into a single integrated support structure. The hub combines chair-supporting lateral members and tent-supporting longitudinal members into one unified system, reducing component count while maintaining the structural stability needed for both applications.
3Weight of moving object
If multi-purpose structures are used, then weight and complexity are reduced, but load distribution and structural integrity become more challenging
Solution Approach 1:
The support connection hub acts as an intermediary component that mediates between laterally applied loads (from chair seating) and longitudinally oriented support members (for tent structure). It distributes the laterally applied load to the longitudinal load paths through its cavity design, ensuring proper load transfer while maintaining structural integrity across different equipment configurations.
Data Source
AI summary
Apparatus and associated methods relate to distributing a laterally distributed load applied by a flexible surface to one or more longitudinal load paths. A support connection hub may, for example, include a first cavity extending longitudinally along a first axis and configured to receive a vertical support member at a bottom side of the support connection hub. The hub may, for example, include a second cavity extending across a top of the hub along a second axis orthogonal to the first axis. The second cavity may, for example, be horizontally and releasably receive a lateral support member orthogonal to the vertical support member such that the lateral rod is configured to support a flexible surface distributed along the lateral rod. Various embodiments may advantageously transfer a load from the flexible surface to the vertical rod along a load path substantially parallel to the first longitudinal axis.