Weight Plate Locking Fork With Through-Bore Fingers
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
The existing weight plates with locking cartridges can inadvertently uncouple from the center post during heavy lifting exercises, leading to accidental detachment from the weightlifting equipment.
Innovation Solution
A weight plate design featuring a locking cartridge with a rotatable toggle lever switch arm and a curved fork with elongated fingers that extends into a finger locking cavity, ensuring secure engagement with the center post and preventing unintentional detachment by providing structural reinforcement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a locking fork is used to couple the weight plate to the center post, then the weight plate can be selectively attached and detached, but the locking fork may become inadvertently uncoupled during heavy lifting exercises
Solution Approach 1:
The locking mechanism is divided into two independent engagement points: the locking fork engages the center post at one location, while the elongated fingers extend through the center bore hole to engage the center post at a second location. This segmentation ensures that if one engagement point experiences stress or misalignment, the other maintains the connection, preventing inadvertent uncoupling during exercise.
Solution Approach 2:
The locking mechanism transitions from a single-plane engagement to a multi-dimensional engagement. The locking fork engages the center post laterally, while the elongated fingers extend through the center bore hole to engage the center post axially. This engagement at two different locations and orientations creates a more reliable connection that resists both lateral and axial forces during exercise.
2Reliability
If the fork fingers extend completely through the center bore hole into the finger locking cavity, then structural reinforcement is provided to prevent inadvertent detachment, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The center post serves multiple functions: it provides the primary engagement point for the locking fork, acts as a structural support element, and serves as the second engagement point for the elongated fingers that extend through the center bore hole. This multi-functionality reduces the need for additional separate components, maintaining simplicity while achieving reliable dual-point engagement.
Solution Approach 2:
The elongated fingers of the locking fork are nested within the center bore hole, which itself is centered on the center post. This nested arrangement allows the locking mechanism to engage the center post at two different locations without requiring separate mounting structures or additional complex assembly, achieving reliability through a streamlined design.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
A weight plate (1) for physical fitness weight lifting equipment so that the weight plate (1) may be coupled to other weight plates and lifted in a stack. The weight plate (1) includes a pivotal switch arm (24) having a first end (28) at which to receive a pushing force to cause the switch arm (24) to rotate and an opposite end (32) at which a fork (36) is carried. A post (50) runs through a center bore hole (3) of the weight plate (1). The weight plate (1) also includes an intermediate channel (16) and a locking cavity (48) that are aligned with one another at opposite sides of the bore hole (3). When the pivotal switch arm (24) is rotated to a locked position, the fork (36) is rotated through the intermediate channel (16), into surrounding engagement with the center post (50), and completely through the bore hole (3) for receipt by the locking cavity (48) by which the weight plate (1) is reliably coupled to the post (50).