Three-Rail Slide Assembly with Elastic Locking for Compact Thickness
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional slide rail structures, whether ball-bearing or friction-type, have a large thickness, which is not suitable for compact applications such as cabinets.
Innovation Solution
A slide rail assembly design featuring an inner rail, middle rail, and outer rail with a locking device made of an elastic material, allowing for adjustable length extension and retraction by means of a latching and locking mechanism, enabling a compact and thinner profile.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If ball-bearing structure or friction-type structure is adopted, then sliding function is achieved, but thickness becomes large
Solution Approach 1:
The slide rail assembly is divided into three separate rails (inner rail, middle rail, outer rail) that can move independently relative to each other. This segmentation allows each rail to be thinner while collectively providing the full sliding function, resolving the contradiction between achieving proper sliding operation and reducing overall thickness.
Solution Approach 2:
The three rails are nested within each other, with the inner rail inside the middle rail, and the middle rail inside the outer rail. This nesting arrangement allows the sliding mechanism to fit within a compact thickness while maintaining the necessary sliding functionality through the nested rails moving relative to one another.
2Length of stationary object
If compact design is implemented, then thickness is reduced, but length adjustment capability is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The locking device incorporates an elastic member that can dynamically change its locking state between locked and unlocked positions. This dynamic capability allows the slide rail assembly to be compact in normal operation while still providing length adjustment capability when needed, as the elastic locking mechanism can be actuated to enable extension or retraction of the nested rails.
Solution Approach 2:
The elastic member changes its physical state (locked/unlocked) based on applied force, allowing the assembly to transition between a compact configuration and an extended configuration. This parameter change in the locking state enables both compact thickness and length adjustability without compromising either feature.
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 design achieves a compact and thinner slide rail assembly, suitable for applications like cabinets, by allowing the rails to adjust their length effectively, reducing overall thickness and enhancing usability in space-constrained environments.
Implementation Method 1
a locking device (22) fixedly connected to the second body (21), wherein the locking device (22) is made of an elastic material
Data Source
AI summary
A slide rail assembly includes an inner rail, a middle rail slidably coupled to the inner rail, and an outer rail slidably coupled to the middle rail. The inner rail includes a first body and a latching member. The latching member extends from the first body to the middle rail. The middle rail includes a second body and a locking device. The locking device is fixedly coupled to the second body. The locking device defines a latching hole configured to receive the latching member so that the middle rail moves together with the inner rail relative to the outer rail to extend to a designated position and length of the slide rail assembly.