Bent-Metal Trolley Shelf Hooks for Even Load Distribution
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Solution Overview
Problem
Maintaining a pool of returnable transport trolleys is costly, especially when inferior quality items are added to avoid hiring, and existing shelves do not efficiently distribute loads, leading to potential damage and increased maintenance.
Innovation Solution
The shelf features hooks formed from a metal strip bent perpendicular to the plate, with notches and reinforcing material, allowing efficient metal use, robust construction, and even force distribution, and is designed to be easily manufactured and integrated with the trolley's posts.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional shelves are used in returnable transport trolleys, then the trolleys can be maintained in a pool, but the maintenance costs increase due to inferior quality items being added and uneven load distribution causing damage
Solution Approach 1:
The hook and the plate are merged into a single integrated component formed from a bent metal strip. This eliminates separate hook parts and simplifies manufacturing while ensuring robust construction that distributes loads evenly across the shelf structure, preventing damage and reducing maintenance costs.
Solution Approach 2:
The metal strip is bent into a specific three-dimensional configuration with notches positioned at predetermined locations. This geometric transformation creates a robust hook structure that efficiently distributes loads while maintaining ease of manufacture through a single-piece construction process.
2Strength
If hooks are formed from a metal strip bent perpendicular to the plate, then metal usage becomes efficient and construction is robust, but manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The metal strip is divided into functional segments: the plate portion, the bent hook portion, and the notches. This segmentation allows each part to be optimized for its specific function while maintaining overall structural integrity through the continuous metal strip construction.
Solution Approach 2:
The notches are pre-formed in the metal strip during the bending process, before the hook is installed in the trolley. This preliminary action ensures precise positioning and eliminates the need for separate notch-cutting operations, reducing manufacturing precision requirements while maintaining robust construction.
3Ease of manufacture
If the shelf design is simplified for easy manufacture, then production costs decrease, but load distribution may become uneven leading to damage
Solution Approach 1:
The bent metal strip structure serves multiple functions simultaneously: it provides the shelf plate, forms the mounting hooks, creates load-distributing notches, and ensures proper orientation. This multi-functionality achieves both manufacturing simplicity and even load distribution through a single integrated design.
Solution Approach 2:
The metal strip is bent perpendicular to the plate surface, transitioning from a two-dimensional flat structure to a three-dimensional form. This dimensional change creates hooks that extend vertically while maintaining even load distribution across the shelf, achieving both manufacturing ease and structural integrity.
Data Source
AI summary
A shelf for a trolley comprising a plate providing a surface for carrying goods, such as potted plants and flowers, and hooks for mounting the shelf in the trolley. One or more of the hooks are formed from a metal strip bent about an axis extending perpendicular to the central plane of the plate.