Wedge-Tapered Tile Strip for Sloping Shower Floor Transitions
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing tile strips for shower floors are limited in height-adjustability and angle adaptability, making it difficult to match the angle of the shower floor with the tile strip and account for desired tile thickness, resulting in inaccuracies in the transition between horizontal and sloping surfaces.
Innovation Solution
The tile strip features a base strip and decorative strip that taper wedge-like in the longitudinal direction, allowing for easy height adjustment and angle adaptation, with a clamping fit and optional adhesive and sealing membrane for secure placement, and can be constructed from separate parts for flexibility in length and installation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a flat decorative strip is placed in a U-shaped holder with limited height adjustment, then the tile strip can be installed on a shower floor, but the height-adjustability range is very limited and the angle adaptability is poor
Solution Approach 1:
The base strip and decorative strip are designed with wedge-like tapering in the longitudinal direction, enabling dynamic height adjustment by sliding the decorative strip along the base strip. This dynamic structure allows continuous height variation and angle adaptation, resolving the limitation of fixed or limited adjustment ranges in conventional tile strips.
Solution Approach 2:
The wedge-like shape of the base strip and decorative strip enables parameter changes in height and angle through simple longitudinal sliding. By changing the position of the decorative strip along the tapered base strip, both height and inclination angle are simultaneously adjusted, providing versatile adaptability without complex mechanisms.
2Manufacturing precision
If the tile strip uses a fixed height and angle design, then the manufacturing is simple, but it is difficult to match the angle of the shower floor and account for desired tile thickness
Solution Approach 1:
The adjustable design allows the tile strip to be customized for different shower floor angles and tile thicknesses after manufacturing. The wedge-like structure enables precise positioning at various heights and angles, achieving high installation accuracy without requiring multiple pre-manufactured variants.
Solution Approach 2:
A single base strip design with wedge-like tapering can serve multiple functions: it accommodates different decorative strip positions for height adjustment, adapts to various shower floor inclination angles, and works with different tile thicknesses. This universal design eliminates the need for multiple specialized components.
3Adaptability or versatility
If separate left-hand and right-hand base strip embodiments are provided, then the tile strip can fit both sides of a sloping shower floor, but the device complexity and inventory requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The base strip is designed with asymmetric wedge-like tapering that is symmetric in function but asymmetric in orientation. The same base strip can be installed in either left-hand or right-hand configurations, providing bidirectional adaptability without requiring separate mirror-image variants.
Solution Approach 2:
A single universal base strip design with appropriate wedge-like geometry can be used for both left-hand and right-hand sides of a shower floor. The decorative strip can be positioned and tilted to match the required angle on either side, eliminating the need for separate left and right embodiments.
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a tile strip, comprising: - a base strip of substantially L-shaped cross-section, wherein the base strip has a bottom surface and an upright surface; - a decorative strip of substantially U-shaped cross-section arranged over the upright surface of the base strip, wherein the height of the upright surface of the base strip and that of the decorative strip taper in wedge-like manner in longitudinal direction.