In any good product there is a fundamental philosophy and desire to improve what once was. The Enviropod is no excepiton.
In a series of themes ,Greg will explore the 4 fundamental areas of product re-development of the modern day Enviropod LittaTrap from the development of improvements from the somewhat ‘agricultural’ folded sheetmetal filterbox and cage design from 1996 to the latest 2021 generation modular composite Enviropod LittaTrap available today.
DESIGN
Static and hydrodynamic loads on pit inserts can be extreme, particularly when they are loaded with pollutants and have hydrodynamic forces from extreme weather events adding to the load. Re-development of the Enviropod LittaTrap bracket system involved detailed computer simulation of the cantilevered bracket assembly concept.
Finite Element Analysis or FEA is the computer simulation of a physical load being placed on a particular component or series of components. Through applying FEA to the computer modelled components were able to optimise a Nylon composite bracket assembly design capable of carrying loads in excess of 300Kg (660lbs.)
We were then able to build the other product components (filterbox, basket assembly etc.) into the computer model and stress test the complete assembly to find any pressure points requiring further development. The final result being a lightweight yet robust Catch Basin filter capable of withstanding the complex static and dynamic loads in stormwater runoff.
Designer Greg Yeoman comments “Designing with Finite Element Analysis allowed us to optimise the structural forms and materials, without the use of FEA we would have had to over design certain components to protect against failure. This would mean wasted materials and less efficient forms, ultimately leading to higher end costs. I think I had a pretty nervous grin on my face when we loaded up the injection moulded brackets for the first time, but it all checked out and to date we have not had any failures in the field”
Read Part Two on Materials here
