Modular Waterslide Bowl Trough Segmentation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional waterslide bowls lack a guiding structure, resulting in inconsistent rider paths and reduced capacity due to variability in ride duration, as riders may traverse the bowl once, twice, or more times, affecting the uniformity of the experience and the number of riders that can use the waterslide.
Innovation Solution
A waterslide bowl design featuring a trough made of multiple sets of trough sections with distinct radii, forming a continuous, curved path from entrance to exit, allowing for a fixed rider path and reducing the number of molds required, thereby lowering fabrication costs. The design can include a single trough or multiple troughs that nest together for increased capacity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a continuous trough is molded in the bottom of the bowl to guide the rider, then a fixed rider path is achieved, but a large number of individually-shaped segments are required increasing manufacturing complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The trough is divided into multiple identical or substantially identical segments that can be attached together to form the complete trough structure. Each segment has the same cross-sectional shape and dimensions, allowing them to be manufactured using a single mold rather than requiring multiple different molds for differently-shaped segments.
Solution Approach 2:
The identical segments serve multiple positions in the trough assembly, with each segment performing the same guiding function regardless of its location. This universality allows a single mold design to produce all segments needed for the complete trough, simplifying manufacturing while maintaining the fixed rider path.
2Ease of operation
If elements forming a partial trough are used to capture riders, then rider guidance is achieved, but hazards in the form of fins or edges are introduced
Solution Approach 1:
The trough is constructed from multiple identical segments that together form a complete, continuous guiding structure. This complete enclosure eliminates exposed fins or edges that would otherwise be present with partial trough elements, providing rider guidance without hazards.
Solution Approach 2:
Multiple trough segments are attached together to form a unified, continuous trough structure that completely encloses the rider path. This merging of segments eliminates gaps, fins, or edges between individual elements, providing smooth guidance without harmful protrusions.
3Manufacturing precision
If many differently-shaped trough sections are used to form the trough, then a fixed path is created, but the number of molds required increases fabrication costs
Solution Approach 1:
The trough is segmented into multiple identical or substantially identical sections that can be manufactured using a single mold. This segmentation allows the complex fixed-path geometry to be achieved through repetition of a simple, standardized segment design rather than requiring multiple different molds for differently-shaped sections.
Solution Approach 2:
The same trough segment design is copied and repeated multiple times to form the complete trough structure. This copying approach allows the fixed path geometry to be maintained through precise replication of the segment shape and position, while requiring only one mold for production.
Data Source
AI summary
A waterslide bowl has a fixed rider path from entrance to exit. The bowl comprises a trough which is made of a plurality of sets of trough sections, attached together, in which the trough sections of a given set are the same, permitting the rider surface of the bowl to be made from trough sections having a small number of different shapes. This reduces the number of molds that would otherwise be required to make the trough sections. The waterslide bowl may also have two or more separate troughs, nested together.