Vehicle Compartment Fire Curtain with Synchronizing Weight Rod

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing vehicle compartmenting structures face challenges in maintaining fire safety during vehicle vibrations, braking, and banking, while also needing to be lightweight and allow smooth movement and emergency escape, with existing fire doors being unreliable in these conditions.

Innovation Solution

A partitioning fire protection curtain system with a weight rod and synchronizing mechanism, where the weight rod is attached to vertical mechanisms and a curtain roller, allowing controlled movement and reliable operation during emergencies, and featuring an adjustment mechanism to compensate for speed changes.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If fire doors are used for compartmentation, then fire safety is improved, but reliability under vehicle vibration and movement conditions deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvefire safety reliabilityVSAvoidoperation under vibration and movement
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The patent uses a flexible fire protection curtain instead of rigid fire doors. The curtain can be rolled up and down smoothly, adapting to vehicle vibrations and movements without mechanical failure. The flexible nature allows it to maintain fire compartmentation while being immune to the operational issues that plague rigid door systems in moving vehicles.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #30Flexible shells and thin films

Solution Approach 2:

The system transitions from static fire doors to a dynamic curtain system that can be easily raised and lowered. The curtain is stored horizontally around a roller and can be quickly deployed vertically when needed, providing adaptive fire protection that responds to emergency conditions while maintaining ease of operation during normal vehicle use.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

2Reliability

If traditional compartmentation structures are used, then fire protection is provided, but weight and complexity increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvefire compartmentationVSAvoidstructure complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The fire protection curtain is made from flexible fire-resistant material that can be easily stored and deployed. This replaces complex mechanical door assemblies with a simple curtain-roller system, significantly reducing structural complexity while maintaining effective fire compartmentation.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #30Flexible shells and thin films

Solution Approach 2:

The invention extracts the essential fire protection function from complex door mechanisms and implements it through a simple curtain system. By removing unnecessary mechanical components and retaining only the core fire separation function, the system achieves reliable compartmentation with minimal complexity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

3Reliability

If fire doors are used for compartmentation, then fire spread is prevented, but ease of movement and escape deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvefire spread preventionVSAvoidmovement and escape
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The flexible curtain can be quickly rolled up to allow smooth passenger movement between compartments during normal operation. In emergency situations, the curtain can be rapidly deployed to prevent fire spread, and its flexible nature ensures it doesn't impede evacuation while maintaining fire separation effectiveness.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #30Flexible shells and thin films

Solution Approach 2:

The dynamic curtain system allows the partition to transition between open (rolled up) and closed (deployed) states. This provides unobstructed movement during normal use while enabling rapid fire compartmentation when needed, vastly improving both ease of movement and emergency escape compared to fixed fire doors.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

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 system ensures reliable fire compartmentation, allows smooth movement and emergency escape, and maintains operation under varying vehicle conditions, including vibrations and banking, while being lightweight and preventing fire spread.

Implementation Method 1

a weight rod (6) has been arranged for gravitational lowering of the fire protection curtain (2) down to the passage

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectGravitation: Gravitation

Data Source

PatentEP3423163B1Construction for compartmentation of a vehicle
Publication Date: 2021.01.27 POLARTEKNIK OY
  • EP3423163B1 patent drawingFigure 1~3
  • EP3423163B1 patent drawingFigure 4~6
  • EP3423163B1 patent drawingFigure 7~8

AI summary

The invention relates to a structure (1) for compartmenting a vehicle. The presented structure (1) for compartmenting a vehicle features a compartmenting fire protection curtain (2). The fire protection curtain (2) is stored above a passage substantially horizontally around a curtain roller (7). In connection with the fire protection curtain (2), a weight rod (6) has been arranged for gravitational lowering of the fire protection curtain (2) down to the passage. On both sides of the passage there is a vertical mechanism to which the weight rod (6) is mounted at its ends. The structure (1 ) further includes a synchronizing mechanism for controlling the curtain roller (7) and vertical mechanisms to move in such a manner that as the curtain roller is rotating, the weight rod (2) moves in the vertical direction as both ends of the weight rod (2) move in the same direction at the same speed and vice versa.