pod mount

constraints & criteria

  • Structural safety: Must support a 500 g overhead load with a 4× factor of safety to ensure safe operation

  • Aesthetics: Design must maintain a clean, premium appearance consistent with a stainless steel finish

  • Cable storage: Must accommodate 5 ft of flat cable within the housing without interference

  • Usability: Cable must be easy for the user to pull out and retract during normal use

purpose

The mount was designed to provide a sleek, stainless steel aesthetic while structurally supporting the combined load of the pod and attached wiring. In addition to load bearing, the design integrates internal cable management to conceal the connected cable and includes a dedicated housing capable of storing up to 5 ft of flat cable.

design

The body is fabricated from stainless steel, CNC-machined to create holes, slots, and finished surfaces before being formed into a trapezoidal overhang. An N42 neodymium magnet is press-fit into the interface hole and secured with a fastener to ensure reliable retention.

The cable housing incorporates a spiral channel design that allows the cable to press-fit into the grooves while remaining easy to pull out. Five cutout slots enable the cable to adjust to the length required by the user. The housing attaches to the mount using integrated magnets and features an annular snap-fit lid for quick attachment and removal. Draft angles, rounded edges, and uniform wall thickness were incorporated throughout the design to support injection molding

validation

FEA was performed to validate that the mount can withstand 4× the functional load to meet overhead safety requirements. Reliability testing was conducted through sustained operational load tests over extended time intervals. Additional vibration testing at maximum operating conditions was performed to assess stability and confirm that the pod does not rotate during use.

other conceptual design

design #1 : Rotational winding spool, spinning the inner center with a knob. Not used because the winding forces the exiting cable to twist at the center.

design #2: Rotational winding spool, spinning the outer housing. Not used because the winding requires the exit cable to rotate around the center, creating entanglements outside of housing.