Watch Strap Pin Concealment via Cover Extraction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing watch designs with replaceable straps have poor maintainability and a low-quality outward appearance due to the visibility of the pin from below.
Innovation Solution
A watch design that incorporates a pin housed in a groove on the bottom surface of the connecting block, covered by a separate cover, allowing for easy removal and replacement of the strap while maintaining a clean and aesthetically pleasing appearance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of repair
If the pin is housed in a groove formed in the bottom surface of the connecting block, then the maintainability is improved by facilitating pin removal and replacement, but the outward appearance quality deteriorates because the pin becomes visible from below
Solution Approach 1:
The disturbing element (the visible pin and groove) is extracted from the main structure by introducing a separate cover component. The cover is formed separately from the connecting block and is attached to conceal the groove and pin from below, thereby removing the aesthetic defect without altering the underlying functional structure that enables easy pin replacement.
Solution Approach 2:
The connecting block assembly is segmented into distinct functional components: the connecting block itself (providing structural support and pin housing), the cover (providing aesthetic concealment), and the pin (providing the replacement function). This segmentation allows each component to fulfill its specific role independently - the cover can be designed solely for appearance while the connecting block maintains its replacement functionality.
2Shape
If a cover is added to conceal the groove and pin, then the outward appearance quality is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The cover acts as an intermediary component that mediates between the functional requirement (visible pin groove for easy replacement) and the aesthetic requirement (clean appearance). This simple intermediary element reconciles the contradiction by providing concealment without complicating the core replacement mechanism, as the cover is merely attached to the existing connecting block structure.
3Shape
If the cover covers the whole length of the groove, then the outward appearance is maximized by fully concealing the pin, but the ease of operation deteriorates by making the operating part inoperable from outside
Solution Approach 1:
The cover is designed with non-uniform local quality - it provides full concealment over most of the groove length to maintain aesthetic appearance, but deliberately includes an opening at the position corresponding to the operating part. This localized modification allows the cover to fulfill its primary aesthetic function while creating a specific access point that preserves the operability of the pin replacement mechanism.
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 solution enhances the maintainability of the watch by facilitating easy pin removal and replacement, while ensuring the watch maintains a high-quality outward appearance by concealing the pin and groove.
Implementation Method 1
The pin includes an elastic body pressing the ends to enable the ends to be translated in an axial direction
Data Source
AI summary
A watch according to an embodiment, whose strap is replaceable, improves in maintainability and ensures that outward appearance is not of low quality. The watch according to an embodiment includes an exterior case having a pair of strap-attaching parts with insertion holes formed so as to face each other; an elastic pin formed of a built-in elastic body, having both ends inserted in the insertion holes of the pair of strap-attaching parts, and thereby being held by the strap-attaching parts; a connecting block disposed at one end of a strap and having a bottom surface with a groove formed therein, the connecting block connecting the strap to the exterior case by the pin held by the strap-attaching parts being housed in the groove; and a cover covering the groove housing the pin. An operating part to be operated to shorten both ends of the pin so that the pin is removable from the strap-attaching parts is formed on a side surface of the pin. The cover leaves a position corresponding to the operating part open so that the operating part is operable from outside with the pin housed in the groove.