Watch Strap Attachment Device with Rotating Bar and Gutter Mechanism
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional attachment devices for timepieces and leather goods require tools for assembly and disassembly, making it impractical for users to change bracelets or clasps easily.
Innovation Solution
A fastening device with two elements, one featuring a bar and the other with opposing longitudinal openings, allowing rotation from an unhooked to a hooked position, enabling tool-free assembly and disassembly by articulating on the bar, with gutters having a slight size advantage and cylindrical housings for smooth rotation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If conventional bars or pins are used for attachment, then the structure is simple and reliable, but tool assembly and disassembly is required making it impractical for users
Solution Approach 1:
The attachment device is divided into two separate elements: a first element with a bar and a second element with two gutters. This segmentation allows the bar to be inserted into the gutters independently, enabling tool-free assembly while maintaining structural reliability. The segmented design resolves the contradiction by making the attachment mechanism user-friendly without requiring complex tool-based operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The attachment mechanism transitions from a static fixed connection to a dynamic rotational movement. The bar rotates within the gutters from an unhooked position to a hooked position, allowing easy attachment and detachment. This dynamic movement enables users to quickly assemble and disassemble the attachment without tools, improving ease of operation while keeping the device structure relatively simple.
2Reliability
If the longitudinal opening of gutters is made slightly smaller than the bar, then the fit is secure and reliable, but insertion requires slight force
Solution Approach 1:
The dimensional parameters of the gutter opening and bar are carefully optimized. The longitudinal opening is made slightly smaller than the bar diameter, creating a friction fit that ensures reliable attachment. This parameter optimization resolves the contradiction by achieving secure attachment without requiring excessive insertion force, as the slight interference fit provides reliability while the rotational movement facilitates easy insertion.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2a~2d
AI summary
The invention relates to a device for attaching two elements of a watch strap to allow the two elements to be attached or detached, the first element comprising at least one bar at one of its ends. According to the invention, the second element comprises two grooves, each having a longitudinal opening opposite each other, one of the two elements being able to move from a detached position in which one of the elements is oriented at a predetermined angle relative to the other element, to a detached position in which the two elements are coplanar after a rotation of one of the two elements relative to the other by a predetermined angle such that each groove is hinged on the bar and holds the two elements attached to each other.