RvLock Cycle Tester
ABOUT
A custom-built automated cycle tester designed and fabricated in-house to validate RVLock door handle robustness. Built to simulate thousands of open and close cycles at realistic force levels — giving RVLock a rapid internal testing capability to address field failures from cyclic shock loading.
YEAR:
2025
ROLE:
Industrial Design, Design Engineering, Fabrication
PROCESS
THE PROBLEM
RVLock was experiencing field failures caused by cyclic shock loading — door handles degrading after thousands of open and
close cycles in real-world use. Identifying the root cause
required a way to replicate that loading repeatedly at
controlled force levels, but no internal testing capability
existed. External testing labs were slow and expensive, and
couldn't keep pace with the speed of design iterations needed
to solve the problem. A rapid, in-house solution was needed.
Atlas V1 (left) vs Atlas V2 (right)
PNEMATIC ARM SYSTEM
US20250109617A1
The locking system was redesigned around a linkage bar mechanism that locks the deadbolt and paddle simultaneously — improving security and simplifying internal assembly.
Linkage bar locks deadbolt and paddle in a single motion
8020 FRAME
FEA
Early iterations used flat-face-to-flat-face contact geometry. FEA revealed stress concentrations at the interface driving failure at 66 lbf. Pins were redesigned with an 11-degree angled contact face, distributing load into the exterior casting.
Early concept (left) showing stress concentrations exceeding yield strength. Optimized geometry (right) dispersing stress across the assembly.
RESULTS
With the Multi-Fit Adapter, RVLock could serve the full addressable market for the first time — capturing previously inaccessible customer segments. Amazon sales doubled and website sales increased 20%
The Atlas shipped as the first handle of its style in the category. Locking strength reached 500 lbf — a 7.5x improvement over the original 66 lbf — validated using a custom tensile test frame I designed and built in-house, fitted with a load cell to measure pull force directly on the mechanism. Results confirmed across multiple production samples.
Two patents were filed covering the work: US20250109617A1 — linkage bar locking system US20250109619A1 — Multi-Fit Adapter mechanism
