Underwater Wing With Soft Outer Body And Hard Support Structure
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Solution Overview
Problem
Hydrofoils used in water sports pose risks of injury and damage due to high mechanical demands and costs associated with improper handling, particularly in rental scenarios where users have limited experience.
Innovation Solution
A hydrofoil design featuring a soft outer body made of materials with lower hardness for injury protection and a support structure of higher hardness materials, such as fiber-reinforced plastics, to maintain hydrodynamic performance and absorb forces, with a mast mount for attachment and optional guide elements for active control.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If the hydrofoil is made of hard materials to meet high mechanical requirements and absorb hydrodynamic forces, then the strength and hydrodynamic performance are improved, but the risk of injury to athletes and damage to the hydrofoil increases
Solution Approach 1:
The hydrofoil employs different materials with different hardness properties in different regions: a soft outer body material (first type) for injury protection and a hard support structure material (second type) for strength. This local differentiation allows the foil to be soft where it contacts users and hard where it needs structural integrity, resolving the contradiction between strength and safety.
Solution Approach 2:
The hydrofoil uses a composite structure combining two materials of different types and hardness levels. The outer body is made of a softer material (e.g., polyurethane, elastomer) while the support structure uses a harder material (e.g., fiber-reinforced plastic, metal). This composite approach allows simultaneous achievement of injury protection and structural strength.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If the outer body is made of soft material for injury protection, then the risk of injury is reduced, but the ability to absorb extreme hydrodynamic forces is insufficient leading to warping
Solution Approach 1:
The hydrofoil is segmented into two functional parts: an outer body and an internal support structure. The outer body is made of soft material for safety, while the embedded support structure provides the rigid framework needed to resist hydrodynamic forces and maintain the foil's shape and performance characteristics.
Solution Approach 2:
The support structure acts as an intermediary element between the soft outer body and the water. It transfers the hydrodynamic forces from the outer body to the rigid support structure, which then absorbs these forces without excessive deformation, preventing warping while allowing the outer body to remain soft for safety.
Data Source
AI summary
An underwater wing for a water sports apparatus, having an outer shaped body forming the profile of the wing and consisting of a material of a first type with a first hardness, and including at least one mast receiving portion arranged in the underwater wing. The underwater wing additionally includes a supporting structure consisting of at least one material of a second type with a second hardness, and the shaped body is molded onto the supporting structure and completely encloses the supporting structure, the second hardness being greater than the first hardness.