System for the support and handling of objects
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing object handling systems, particularly in kitchen furniture, are cumbersome, prone to damage, and require structural modifications of the furniture, limiting their usability and space efficiency.
Innovation Solution
A cart system that can be inserted into and extracted from furniture, functioning as both an object support and transport device, with mechanisms for smooth transition between operating positions, allowing space-saving and compatibility with standard kitchen furniture.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a cart is placed in storage areas or abandoned in unsuitable places, then space is occupied, but the cart is subject to accidental impacts which could damage it or cause objects to fall
Solution Approach 1:
The cart is nested within the base furniture unit, with the cart body positioned inside the furniture cavity. The furniture structure serves as a protective enclosure for the cart, preventing accidental impacts from damaging the cart or causing objects to fall off. The cart can be freely withdrawn from and inserted into the furniture, maintaining reliability while avoiding harmful factors.
2Productivity
If a cart of considerable size is used, then it can handle and transport objects, but it becomes cumbersome for personnel working within the operating environment
Solution Approach 1:
The cart is designed to nest within the base furniture when not in use, reducing space occupation and eliminating obstruction to personnel movement. When needed, the cart can be freely withdrawn from the furniture for object handling tasks. This nesting arrangement maintains productivity while improving ease of operation by removing the cumbersome cart from the working environment when idle.
Solution Approach 2:
The cart is made movable relative to the furniture through wheeled movement mechanisms, allowing it to be dynamically positioned - inserted into or extracted from the furniture - depending on operational needs. This dynamic configuration enables the system to adapt between storage and handling modes, improving personnel mobility while maintaining object handling capability.
3Area of stationary object
If carts that can be retracted into base furniture are used, then space in the operating environment is saved, but profound adaptation of the structural features of the furniture is required, including removal of the plinth
Solution Approach 1:
The design allows the cart system to be universally applied to both furniture with and without plinths. The cart can be positioned with its bottom surface either on the floor (when plinth is present) or on the furniture's bottom surface (when plinth is removed). This multi-functional capability enables space savings without requiring profound structural adaptations to the furniture, as the system adapts to existing furniture configurations.
Data Source
AI summary
A system for supporting and handling one or more objects including a cart having a front (F) and a rear (R), and a furniture. The cart can be extracted along an extraction and insertion axis (X) in the direction from the front (F) towards the rear (R), from the furniture and can be inserted along the extraction and insertion axis (X) in the direction from the rear (R) towards the front (F), in the furniture. The cart comprises a frame, movement means of the frame, operatively connected to the latter in a movable or rotatable manner, which define, when the cart is inserted or partially inserted, a rest operating position (RP) in which they do not support and/or are not able to move the frame and, when the cart is extracted, at least one working operating position (WP) in which they support and/or are able to move the frame.