Wheeled Platform System with Segmented Drive and Folding Rails
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional mobile platforms are too large, heavy, and complex, making them difficult to maneuver and deploy by a single person, especially in confined spaces or over obstacles, and often require external power sources, which limits their usability in various industries.
Innovation Solution
A drivable platform system with independently operable wheels, collapsible design, and a drive system that allows for easy movement and deployment by a single person, featuring a transmission mechanism such as a chain or belt to rotate the wheels, and a brake system for safety and control.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If conventional mobile platforms are made large and heavy to support multiple workers and provide stability, then they can support more users and provide better stability, but they become difficult to maneuver and deploy by a single person, especially in confined spaces
Solution Approach 1:
The platform is divided into multiple detachable sections that can be assembled and disassembled easily. Each section can be maneuvered independently, allowing a single person to handle lighter components rather than moving the entire platform structure at once.
Solution Approach 2:
The platform incorporates movable components such as collapsible legs, adjustable support structures, and reconfigurable sections that can be dynamically adjusted during assembly and operation, enabling easy deployment and reconfiguration by a single user.
2Reliability
If conventional platforms are designed to be stable and robust, then they provide safety and support, but they become too heavy and complex to move up stairs or past obstacles
Solution Approach 1:
The platform structure is segmented into modular sections that can be separated and reconfigured to navigate obstacles such as stairs and narrow passages, while maintaining stability when assembled in the full configuration.
Solution Approach 2:
The platform employs dynamic, collapsible support structures that can be compressed for easy transport over obstacles and expanded to provide stable working surfaces when needed.
3Ease of operation
If platforms are motorized to enable easy movement, then mobility is improved, but they require external power sources and become more complex and expensive
Solution Approach 1:
The platform uses self-contained manual drive mechanisms where the user's physical effort directly powers the movement through integrated cranks and transmission systems, eliminating the need for external power sources while maintaining ease of movement.
4Ease of operation
If platforms are designed to be lightweight for easy handling, then they become easier to maneuver, but they may lack the strength to support users and tools
Solution Approach 1:
The platform utilizes composite materials that combine high strength-to-weight ratio properties, providing sufficient load-bearing capacity for users and tools while keeping the overall structure lightweight and easy to handle.
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 platform system is lightweight, easy to set up and take down, and can be moved through tight spaces and over obstacles without external power, enhancing mobility and safety for users in industries like construction and maintenance.
Implementation Method 1
a first transmission member configured to couple rotation of the first driver and the third driver; at least the first transmission member can comprise a chain engaging with a set of teeth on the first driver and with a set of teeth on the third driver
Implementation Method 2
a brake coupled with at least one of the first and second rails, with the brake being rotatable to a position braking movement of at least one of the first and second transmission members
Data Source
AI summary
Platform systems can support a user at an elevated position while being drivable or mobile via wheels and a drive system. Rail assemblies can be folded or collapsed so that the platform system can be carried by a user from one location to another. Hand controls are operable by the user from the elevated position to move the platform systems across a ground surface and can have automatic braking capability. Each side of the platform system can be independently driven, thereby allowing zero point turning and other fine control maneuvers. Structures at the base of the platform system can limit or prevent tipping or tilting. A cage system can help keep a user on the platform(s). Platforms can be collapsed or stowed with the rest of the platform system.