Tapered Pull Buoy with Elastic Ankle Cuffs for Swimming Stability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current pull buoys for swimming are inconvenient, as they often require frequent adjustments, fail to maintain a snug fit, and do not effectively immobilize or streamline the legs, leading to difficulties in swimming techniques such as turning and maintaining aerodynamics.
Innovation Solution
A pull buoy designed with a tapered waist portion and adjustable straps that can be placed between the thighs, upper calves, or ankles, providing a secure and ergonomic fit to prevent rotation and slipping, allowing for easy kicking off in different directions while maintaining leg immobilization and aerodynamics.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the pull buoy is designed as a figure-eight shaped float held between thighs, then the buoy can be positioned on the swimmer, but it requires frequent adjustments and is difficult to keep in place
Solution Approach 1:
The pull buoy is divided into two separate ankle cuffs that can independently secure to each ankle, allowing the device to be distributed along the length of the legs rather than concentrated between the thighs. This segmentation enables easier placement and removal while maintaining secure positioning during swimming.
Solution Approach 2:
The pull buoy transitions from a between-thighs positioning (horizontal dimension) to an ankle-cuff positioning (vertical dimension along the leg). This dimensional change allows the buoy to secure to the swimmer in a different spatial location, improving both ease of placement and stability during movement.
2Ease of operation
If the ankle buoy has openings on the outside of each ankle cylinder, then the swimmer can easily insert or remove ankles, but the buoy does not provide a snug fit and allows ample freedom of movement
Solution Approach 1:
The ankle cuffs are constructed from flexible material that can stretch to accommodate the ankle during insertion, then contracts to provide a snug, secure fit during swimming. This flexible shell design eliminates the need for large openings while maintaining ease of insertion and removal.
Solution Approach 2:
The pull buoy utilizes elastic properties of the material to change the dimensional parameters of the ankle cuff - stretched during insertion for ease of operation, then contracted during use to provide a precise, snug fit that minimizes ankle freedom while maintaining comfort.
3Ease of operation
If the pull buoy is positioned far to the tail end of the body at the ankles, then the ankles can be secured, but it creates an unnatural ballast that increases difficulty to keep legs aerodynamically streamlined
Solution Approach 1:
The pull buoy provides flotation force (counteracting weight) at the ankle position, which compensates for the natural sinking tendency of the legs. This counterbalancing effect allows the legs to remain elevated and streamlined behind the body, reducing aerodynamic drag while maintaining secure ankle positioning.
Solution Approach 2:
The pull buoy converts the harmful effect of leg sinking (which creates drag) into a beneficial effect by using flotation force to elevate and streamline the legs. The very property of buoyancy that lifts the legs also reduces aerodynamic resistance, turning a potential stability issue into a performance advantage.
4Reliability
If both ankles are cuffed with the ankle buoy, then the buoy stays in place, but it creates difficulty when the swimmer turns around and kicks off a wall
Solution Approach 1:
The ankle cuffs are designed with dynamic characteristics - secure enough to maintain buoy position during swimming, but allowing sufficient flexibility and movement range for the swimmer to perform turns and kick off walls. The flexible material accommodates the dynamic range of motion required for swimming maneuvers while preventing excessive displacement during steady swimming.
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 pull buoy effectively secures itself to the swimmer's legs, preventing rotation and slipping, allowing for improved swimming technique and reduced effort in maintaining position during turns and changes in direction, enhancing overall swimming efficiency and comfort.
Implementation Method 1
a flotation component, such as for a pull buoy, can be sized and shaped to be placed between the legs of a swimmer
Implementation Method 2
This tapering of the waist portion provides better ergonomics and counteracts the rearward pressure of water flow as the swimmer moves forward in the water
Data Source
Figure 1A~2
Figure 1B~1C
Figure 1D~1E
AI summary
A flotation component, such as for a pull buoy, can be sized and shaped to be placed between the legs of a swimmer. The flotation component can include one or more features to assist in maintaining the flotation component in place while the swimmer is swimming. A pull buoy including the flotation component also can include an internally routed strap that assists in fastening the flotation component to at least one leg. A pull buoy including the flotation component can include a waist portion having a lateral diameter that decreases from one end to the opposite end.