The wind was still blowing; one corner of the drawing was held down by a magnet, while the other corner trembled slightly. Chen Hao stared at the drawing for a few seconds, then turned and walked to Nana's side.
“Review all the previous failure records,” he said. “But this time, don’t focus on how you pretend, focus on why you have to pretend like this.”
Nana's screen flashed, and data began scrolling. "Set filter criteria?"
“Let’s look at the design,” Chen Hao said, leaning against the workbench. “We’re looking for designs that don’t require clips, screws, or pressure strips. Are there any that allow the board to automatically attach itself when placed on top?”
Susan looked up: "Aren't you dreaming?"
"It's not that I want to look good." Chen Hao scratched the back of his head. "It's just that we tried it eight times, and it broke seven times because of the buckle. Since the buckle doesn't work, we might as well not use it at all."
Carl rummaged through his toolbox and pulled out a pair of old pliers, snapping at the rusty joints a few times: "The problem is, without clips, how do you secure it? Tie it with rope?"
"Let's see if there's a ready-made solution first." Chen Hao waved his hand. "Let Nana check her database. She has more information in her head than we've ever seen."
Nana has started searching. Three structural models pop up on the screen, with simple lines and no complicated interfaces.
“We discovered three unconventional connection methods,” she said. “The first uses magnetic edge closure; the second uses a rotary locking ring; and the third is a flexible, self-adaptive sealing system.”
"You're reading too fast, I can't understand you." Chen Hao waved his hand. "Speak like a human being."
“The third type does not require metal parts for fixing.” Nana enlarged one of the models, “It uses a soft frame to wrap the board, which is compressed and deformed during installation, and automatically springs back after being released, forming a tight fit.”
Susan leaned closer to look: "It's like... being stuffed into a rubber sleeve?"
“The accuracy rate is 91 percent,” Nana said.
“Wait a minute,” Carl suddenly interjected, “We have old tire scraps in our warehouse. If we cut them into circles, we can make soft rims. We can also peel off the waterproof membrane from the tent fabric and stick it inside as a sealing layer.”
"Right!" Chen Hao slammed his hand on the table. "Since these materials are just sitting idle anyway, why not try to make use of them?"
The four of them immediately got to work. Susan took out a measuring tape and measured the dimensions of the polycarbonate sheet, while Nana simultaneously adjusted the space reserved on the frame. Carl was in charge of cutting the tire material, the blade making a dull sound as it sliced through the thick rubber. Chen Hao, on the other hand, threaded several pieces of cable ties into the metal holes, preparing to use them as external reinforcement instead of screws.
"Before, I was thinking about how to tighten things up completely," Chen Hao muttered as he tied a knot. "Now it feels more like wrapping a rice dumpling."
Susan glanced at him: "You really think you're a chef."
"It's better than being a repairman." Chen Hao grinned. "I'm fixing this and that all day long, and by the end I'm practically falling apart."
The first sample took forty-five minutes to complete. It looked crooked overall, with unevenly joined adhesive strips at the corners and inconsistent tension in the pull straps. But at least it stood up.
“Next is the test.” Karl moved a metal plate to block the door gap. “I’ll simulate a Force 10 wind and blow it with a blower. Let’s see if it falls apart.”
He started the manual blower; the blades spun, and the airflow whirred against the window frame. The window frame wobbled slightly, and the zipper showed signs of stretching, but the overall structure remained intact.
"It's alright." Chen Hao reached out and touched the seam. "No air leaks in."
"We haven't tested the water tightness yet." Susan picked up the spray bottle, sprayed for ten minutes on a low intensity, and then switched to high pressure mode to spray the seam for three minutes.
The crowd gathered around to inspect it. Only two spots on the inner edge were slightly damp; the rest was completely dry.
"The problem lies here," Nana pointed to the joint of the adhesive strip, "It wasn't fully compacted, so there are gaps."
"Just add a pressing plate." Chen Hao picked up a small piece of sheet metal from the scrap pile, cut it into a cross shape, and pressed it onto the joint to fix it in place.
The second test was conducted with stronger winds and a faster current. Five minutes later, everyone gathered around to check, and the inside was still dry.
"It's done?" Karl's voice trembled slightly.
"At least it doesn't leak." Chen Hao pressed his palm against the gap and couldn't feel any airflow passing through. "It's a bit ugly, but it works."
Susan picked up a marker and wrote a new title on the bulletin board: "New Process Validation".
The following are six steps:
1. Cut the tire skin into a ring-shaped buffer layer.
2. Hot-pressed waterproof membrane as inner seal
3. Leave 0.5 cm of space for compression.
4. The boards naturally spring back and fit after being embedded.
5. External adjustable strap for fixation
6. Add cross-layered pressure plates at the joints to prevent leakage.
"That name is too long." Chen Hao frowned as he looked at the words "Elastic Fit Adaptive Sealing System." "What should we call it?"
“Wind shield,” Susan blurted out. “A shield to block the wind, sounds reliable.”
“Okay.” Chen Hao nodded. “From now on, we’ll call it ‘Wind Shield Structure’.”
Nana began generating an instruction manual, providing a simple diagram and explanation of tolerance ranges for each step. Susan, meanwhile, inventoried the remaining materials and calculated how many windows could be made.
“Using this method, the utilization rate of board number three can reach 85%,” she said. “Previously, it was at most 60%.”
"How long will it take?" Carl asked.
“The extra fifteen minutes per piece is mainly due to cutting and pressing,” Susan said, looking up after calculating. “But if the rework rate is zero, the overall efficiency is actually higher.”
“That means it can be promoted.” Chen Hao plopped down on the toolbox. “Finally, we don’t have to look at the wall of failure anymore.”
Carl picked up a piece of chalk and drew a simplified flowchart on the ground. "Tomorrow I can teach others to do it this way."
"No rush." Chen Hao waved his hand. "Print out this process first, one copy for everyone. Let's run three sets ourselves first, and only send them out after we've confirmed there are no problems."
Nana's document was ready to be printed after it was generated. Suddenly, Chen Hao remembered something.
“Wait a minute.” He stood up and pulled out a pile of old buckle parts from the corner. “Take all of these away, so no one can take them and misuse them. Now we only recognize pull straps and clamps.”
Susan squatted on the floor sorting rubber strips, while Carl continued refining the diagram. Only the low hum of the machines and the sound of scissors cutting through the material remained in the workshop.
Chen Hao stood in front of the control panel, holding a discarded metal clip in his hand. He looked at it for a long time before throwing it into the waste bin.
He turned to Nana and said, "Print out this process."
Press the print button, and the paper will be fed out slowly.
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