Water Floatable Bag Toss Target with Sloped Deck and Buoyancy
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional bag toss game target assemblies are not easily portable and are not suitable for use in water, as they are heavy, expensive to ship, and lack the stability of fixed targets when used on land.
Innovation Solution
A water floatable bag toss target with a positively sloped landing surface, a horizontal bottom surface, and a water-tight internal compartment structure that maintains buoyancy and stability, allowing it to simulate an ideal fixed target assembly both on land and in water, featuring a network of dowels for internal skeleton support and a specific Buoyancy Force to Mass ratio for consistent floating.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If traditional fixed target assemblies are constructed from plywood and wooden support structures to provide stability, then the target maintains rigidity and fixed position on land, but the target becomes heavy and difficult to transport
Solution Approach 1:
The target is divided into separate functional components: a rigid landing surface assembly (deck with hole and support structure) and a flotation assembly (separate buoyant elements). This segmentation allows the heavy rigid structure to be minimized while adding lightweight flotation components that provide stability in water without significantly increasing overall weight.
Solution Approach 2:
Flotation elements act as an intermediary between the rigid target structure and the water. These elements provide the buoyant force needed for water stability while being lightweight themselves, effectively mediating between the need for rigidity and the need for light weight in aquatic environments.
2Weight of moving object
If traditional target assemblies are made portable using lighter materials, then the target becomes easier to transport, but the target loses its fixed stability when used on land
Solution Approach 1:
The target transitions from a static land-based design to a dynamic water-adapted design. The flotation elements are selectively deployed - attached during water play to provide stability, and can be removed or detached for land-based play or storage, allowing the target to adapt its stability characteristics to the playing environment.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the target is designed to float in water, then the target becomes suitable for aquatic gameplay, but the target may become unstable or tilt improperly in the water
Solution Approach 1:
The flotation elements are strategically positioned at specific locations on the target structure - typically at corners or along edges - rather than uniformly distributed. This localized placement creates specific buoyant forces at key points that work together with the sloped deck geometry to maintain proper orientation and stability in water, preventing tilting and ensuring the landing surface remains appropriately angled.
4Weight of moving object
If the target structure is made lightweight for portability, then the target becomes easy to transport, but the target may lack the durability needed for repeated use
Solution Approach 1:
The target employs composite construction combining lightweight materials (such as plastic or aluminum for flotation elements and support components) with strategically placed rigid elements (wooden or metal reinforcement at stress points). This composite approach maintains overall light weight while providing localized strength and durability where needed for repeated handling and gameplay.
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 water floatable target provides a durable, lightweight structure that maintains horizontal orientation in water, allowing for effective gameplay while being easy to transport and store, and can accommodate Regulation Sized game bags without compromising buoyancy.
Implementation Method 1
an internal hollow compartment water-tight relative to the scoring box compartment and relative to an outside of the target
Implementation Method 2
Each of the left side, right side, front end and back end is configured to cause the landing surface to be positively sloped along its surface when moving from the front end toward the back end
Data Source
AI summary
A water floatable bag toss target, the target including a landing surface disposed overlying a bottom surface by a left side, a right side, a front end and a back end each joined to the landing surface and bottom surface. The landing surface is positively sloped along its surface when moving from the front end toward the back end and the bottom surface is oriented horizontally. A scoring hole is in the landing surface and communicating with a scoring box compartment located between the landing surface and the bottom surface. The scoring box compartment has compartment walls extending between the landing surface and the bottom surface and dividing an inside of the target into an internal hollow compartment and the scoring box compartment. The internal hollow compartment is water-tight relative to the scoring box compartment and relative to an outside of the target.