Wheel-Mounted Carpet Protector for Even Load Distribution
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing carpet protectors are often bulky, heavy, and not securely attached to furniture legs, leading to uneven weight distribution and potential damage to carpets when moving furniture, as they do not effectively prevent scratching or sliding issues.
Innovation Solution
A wheel-mounted carpet protector made of semi-rigid material that deforms to fit the shape of a furniture leg's wheel, distributing the load evenly across the carpet and maintaining contact with the sidewall to prevent damage, while being lightweight and easy to move.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional carpet protectors are used, then they provide some protection, but they are bulky, heavy, and cumbersome
Solution Approach 1:
The carpet protector uses a thin film structure made of flexible material that can conform to the wheel shape, eliminating the need for bulky traditional mat designs while maintaining protective function through the thin flexible barrier between wheel and carpet
Solution Approach 2:
The material properties are changed from rigid/bulky traditional materials to flexible thin-film materials with appropriate friction characteristics, allowing the protector to be both lightweight and effective at preventing carpet damage while maintaining wheel contact
2Reliability
If traditional carpet protectors are used, then they provide protection, but they must be moved to protect larger floor space
Solution Approach 1:
The protector attaches to the furniture wheel itself, allowing the wheel to move the protector automatically as the furniture is relocated, eliminating the need for manual handling of separate bulky mats while maintaining continuous carpet protection
3Reliability
If traditional carpet protectors are used, then they are placed on the floor, but furniture can slide off leading to sudden force shifts
Solution Approach 1:
The carpet protector is nested within or attached to the wheel structure itself, creating a integrated system where the wheel and protector move together as one unit, preventing the wheel from sliding off the protector and eliminating sudden force shifts during furniture movement
4Reliability
If traditional carpet protectors are used, then they rest on the floor, but they do not securely attach to furniture legs
Solution Approach 1:
The carpet protector and wheel are merged into a single integrated component, eliminating the need for separate attachment mechanisms between protector and furniture leg while ensuring secure connection through the unified wheel-protector structure
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 wheel-mounted carpet protector effectively prevents carpet damage by evenly distributing the weight of furniture, allowing easy movement without causing harm to the carpet, and is fabricated from durable yet economical materials.
Implementation Method 1
a semi-rigid material that is configured to deform to a shape corresponding to that of a received wheel, wherein contact between the received wheel and the sidewall is maintained
Implementation Method 2
a lower surface of the wheel-mounted carpet protector distributes the load of the furniture evenly across the floor surface
Data Source
AI summary
A wheel-mounted carpet protector configured to receive a wheel. The wheel-mounted carpet protector includes a housing which includes a base and a sidewall. The base includes an upper surface and a lower surface. The sidewall includes an inner surface. The upper surface of the base and the inner surface of the sidewall define a cavity, wherein the cavity receives a wheel of a furniture leg. The lower surface of the base slidably engages with a carpet such that the wheeled furniture is capable of freely sliding across the carpet without damaging the carpet. In some embodiments, the cavity includes a channel that the wheel rests on such that the wheel is centered within the wheel-mounted carpet protector to provide an even distribution of force along the lower surface of the base.