Bearing device for a control arm of a vehicle's wheel suspension

Abstract

Bearing device (10) for a control arm (100) of a wheel suspension of a vehicle, comprising a base body (20) with a bearing surface (22) for bearing contact of a bearing component (200) and a receiving section (24) for receiving the base body (20) on the handlebar (100), wherein the base body (20) has at least two spring elements (30) made of a metallic material, integrally formed with the base body (20), which, in order to provide different directions of action and different intensities of action or forces, not only have different directions but also different shapes and different geometric extensions, wherein each spring element (30) connects the bearing surface (22) to the receiving section (24) in a resilient and relatively movable manner.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a bearing device for a control arm of a wheel suspension of a vehicle and to a control arm for a wheel suspension of a vehicle with such a bearing device.

[0002] It is well known that vehicle wheel suspensions feature mechanical connections between the vehicle body and an associated wheel carrier, commonly referred to as control arms. Two or more control arms are often used, resulting in systems such as three-link joints, four-link systems, or five-link systems. All of these control arm systems have one thing in common: relative movement must be possible between the wheel carrier and the connection to the respective control arm. This is true for rigid and sprung axles, as well as for steered, sprung axles. To enable these relative movements, the control arms are equipped with separate rubber bearing components.

[0003] A disadvantage of the known solutions is that the separate rubber bearing components are relatively susceptible to wear. Due to the rubber material, they are subject to aging and thermal wear. Regarding the design of such separate bearing components, rubber is a complex material. It requires high manufacturing tolerances and exhibits secondary spring rates, making it impossible or very difficult to predict the exact spring and damping behavior of a separate rubber bearing component. This complexity in predictability must be taken into account with appropriate effort in the design of the entire control arm and / or wheel suspension.

[0004] The subsequently published DE 10 2017 213 739 A1 discloses a bearing device for a control arm of a vehicle's wheel suspension. The bearing device comprises a base body with a bearing surface for supporting contact with a bearing component and a receiving portion for receiving the base body on the control arm. Between the bearing surface and the receiving portion, the base body has at least one spring element, which resiliently and relatively movably connects the bearing surface to the receiving portion.

[0005] DE 20 2016 103 195 U1 discloses a bearing device for a control arm of a wheel suspension of a vehicle, comprising a base body with a bearing surface for bearing contact with a bearing component and a receiving portion for receiving the base body on the control arm, wherein the base body has at least two spring elements formed integrally with the base body between the bearing surface and the receiving portion, with different directions of action and different intensities of action or forces of action, wherein each spring element connects the bearing surface to the receiving portion in a resilient and relatively movable manner.

[0006] The object of the present invention is to at least partially remedy the disadvantages described above. In particular, the object of the present invention is to achieve improved storage behavior in a cost-effective and simple manner.

[0007] The above object is achieved by a bearing device having the features of claim 1 and a handlebar having the features of claim 6.

[0008] Features and details that are described in connection with the bearing device according to the invention naturally also apply in connection with the handlebar according to the invention and vice versa, so that with regard to the disclosure of the individual aspects of the invention, reference is or can always be made to each other.

[0009] According to the invention, a bearing device for a control arm in a wheel suspension of a vehicle is provided. Such a bearing device comprises a base body with a bearing surface for bearing contact with a bearing component. Furthermore, the base body is equipped with a receiving section for receiving the base body on the control arm. Between the bearing surface and the receiving section of the base body, at least two spring elements made of a metallic material are arranged. To provide different directions of action and different intensities of action or forces, these spring elements not only have different directions but also different shapes and different geometric extensions. These spring elements resiliently and relatively movably connect the bearing surface to the receiving section and are formed integrally with the base body.

[0010] According to the invention, a bearing device is no longer provided as a separate rubber bearing component for the handlebar, but rather is equipped with at least one spring element. This spring element is metallic or made of a metallic material.

[0011] The bearing device or base body is an integral or monolithic design between the spring element, the bearing surface and the receiving section.

[0012] Because the respective spring element, made of a metallic material, now connects the bearing surface to the receiving section in a resilient and relatively flexible manner, a number of disadvantages of conventional rubber bearing components can be overcome. In particular, this involves a significant reduction in thermal wear. Each individual spring element has a single or a small number of directions of action. Each spring element can thus provide its direction of action in a defined manner as the spring direction for the connection between the bearing surface and the receiving section.

[0013] The precise alignment of the direction of action of each spring element, as explained above, now allows for an exact prediction of the spring functionality and thus also of the force balance or relative mobility within the bearing device. This precise predictability allows for a simplified design of the entire control arm and the surrounding wheel suspension, in contrast to the complex materials used for bearing components made of rubber.

[0014] To ensure the combination of the bearing device with the link, on the one hand, and a supported component, on the other hand, the bearing surfaces can interact with a corresponding counter-bearing surface of the bearing component. These surfaces are preferably round surfaces or curved surfaces. The bearing surface is, in particular, a completely closed surface, so that a passage is created in the bearing surface for receiving a bearing component as a shaft to be supported. Similarly, the receiving section on the outside of the base body can also be designed as a curved or at least partially curved surface. However, it is also conceivable for the receiving section, as will be explained later with reference to a link according to the invention, to be formed integrally and / or monolithically with a base body of the link.In particular, with the additive manufacturing methods for handlebars explained later, even complex structures for the bearing device and in particular for the spring element can be provided in a simple and cost-effective manner.

[0015] The resilient and relatively movable connection between the bearing surface and the receiving section by means of the spring element is understood, in particular, as a force-transmitting connection. Thus, taking into account the spring force stored in the spring element, a force equilibrium for force transmission can be established between forces absorbed by a bearing component on the bearing surface and the equivalent forces transferred back to the control arm via the receiving section. The individual spring elements are equipped with a radial or essentially radial direction of action, particularly with respect to a wave-like shape of the bearing component.

[0016] In the bearing device according to the invention, the respective spring element is formed integrally with the base body, specifically from a metallic material. In other words, the base body with its three main components, namely the bearing surface, the receiving section, and the spring elements, is preferably manufactured compactly from a single material in an integral or monolithic manner. This production can be carried out in both a build-up and a dismantling manner. For example, additive manufacturing methods are just as conceivable as manufacturing methods using machining, laser cutting, or waterjet cutting. Both a build-up and a dismantling manufacturing method thus make it possible to provide even delicate and complex structures for the spring elements, so that even complex modes of action with complex directions of action for the individual spring effects of the spring elements can be implemented easily and cost-effectively.The choice of metallic material particularly clearly and advantageously continues the described advantages of temperature wear and aging and the avoidance of secondary spring types as well as the high tolerances.

[0017] In the bearing device according to the invention, at least two spring elements are arranged between the receiving section and the bearing surface, each having different directions of action and different intensities of action or forces of action. The at least two spring elements are, in particular, equipped with different radial directions of action. It should be noted that the two or more spring elements can be of equal or different lengths. In addition to the different directions of action, the spring elements also have different intensities of action or modes of action. This applies in particular to the spring preload of the individual spring elements or the spring characteristic curve of the individual spring elements. Different directions of action and different modes of action can be ensured in a simple and cost-effective manner by different and, in particular, complex designs of the spring elements.The individual directions of action are preferably arranged radially and / or tangentially to the bearing surface. Of course, angular alignments to the main direction are also conceivable.

[0018] A further advantage can be achieved if, in a bearing device according to the invention, the spring element has at least one damping element for damping the resilient relative movement caused by the spring element. Such additional damping can be provided, for example, using a rubber ring. While the spring elements exclusively provide a spring function through their resilient effect, a damping force can now be counteracted by means of a damping element. This creates a spring-damper combination in the area of ​​the bearing device which can be adjusted separately from one another with regard to both the spring effect and the damping effect. This, too, is only possible through the design of special spring elements as a force-transmitting connecting interface between the bearing surface and the receiving section.In addition to improving the damping behavior, this also enables improved sound decoupling, so that driving noise from the individual wheel suspensions in the interior of the vehicle only reaches the vehicle in a more dampened manner or can be completely blocked out.

[0019] It can also be advantageous if, in a bearing device according to the invention, the bearing surface is designed at least in sections as a plain bearing and / or has a plain bearing section. Desired rigidities can be combined in a radial and torsional manner. At the same time, a greater degree of freedom in the structural design is possible both for the individual components of the base body of the bearing device and for the alignment and design of the control arm and the wheel suspension. The sliding direction of the plain bearing or the plain bearing section is preferably aligned axially, which is accompanied by a corresponding circumferential or full-circumferential accommodation of the bearing surface for a shaft-like selected bearing component. The spring action can be limited in particular in a radial direction.

[0020] It can also be advantageous if, in a bearing device according to the invention, the base body, in particular the spring element, has a continuous or substantially continuous cross-section. This leads, in particular, to the possibility of extrusion-type production, e.g., in the form of an extrusion molding process. This continuous or substantially continuous cross-section is preferably related to an axial extent oriented along the extension axis of a shaft-shaped bearing component.

[0021] It is also advantageous if, in a bearing device according to the invention, at least two spring elements are provided with an asymmetrical alignment of the directions of action. Here, too, more than two spring elements, in particular three, four, or significantly more spring elements, are of course conceivable. An asymmetrical alignment of the direction of action automatically results in different functionalities of the different spring elements. This allows for particularly precise adaptation to the respective requirements. In particular, the spring elements are equipped with complex, preferably bionic structures. The individual directions of action are asymmetrical, preferably radially aligned.

[0022] The present invention also relates to a control arm for a wheel suspension of a vehicle. Such a control arm comprises at least one bearing device according to the invention. Thus, a control arm according to the invention offers the same advantages as those explained in detail with reference to a bearing device according to the invention.

[0023] A handlebar according to the invention can be further developed such that the bearing device, in particular the base body, is formed integrally with the handlebar. This represents a one-piece or monolithic design. In this case, an additive manufacturing process can be provided as a manufacturing option. Examples include laser sintering processes or similar processes.

[0024] Alternatively or in addition to the embodiment according to the preceding paragraph, it is also possible for a handlebar according to the invention to have the bearing device with the receiving section arranged in and / or on a counter-receiving section of the handlebar in a force-transmitting manner. In particular, the counter-receiving section completely or essentially completely encloses the receiving section. This allows the use and retrofitting of a bearing device according to the invention even in existing handlebar systems.

[0025] A further subject of the present invention is a manufacturing method that provides, in particular, an inventive link or a bearing device in an additive manner. Preferably, an additive manufacturing method is used in order to be able to provide even complex or bionic structures.

[0026] Further advantages, features, and details of the invention will become apparent from the following description, in which exemplary embodiments of the invention are described in detail with reference to the drawings. They show schematically: Fig. 1 an embodiment of a storage device according to the invention, Fig. 2 shows a further embodiment of a storage device according to the invention, Fig. 3 an embodiment of a storage device according to the invention.

[0027] Fig. 1 schematically shows how a bearing device 10 can be integrated into a handlebar 100 according to the invention. The handlebar 100 is partially shown here with its end, at which the bearing device 10 is provided. The bearing device 10 of this embodiment is equipped with a plurality of spring elements 30. At its inner end, each spring element has a force-transmitting contact section with the bearing surface 22. The bearing surface 22 is completely rounded, circular in cross-section, through which the bearing component 200 extends in a wave-like manner.

[0028] At the opposite outer end of each spring element 30 there is a force-transmitting connection via the base body 20 to the receiving section 24. This receiving section 24 is designed here in an integral or monolithic construction with the base body of the handlebar 100.

[0029] As in the Fig. 1, a wide variety of spring elements 30 are provided. The individual spring elements 30 not only have different directions, but also different shapes and different geometric extensions. This allows for a distinction to be made between the directions of action, the functionalities of action, and the forces acting on the individual spring elements 30. The manufacture of an embodiment according to Fig. 1 is provided in particular in an additive manner, so that the complex structures, in particular of the spring elements 30, can be achieved in a cost-effective and simple manner.

[0030] Fig. 2 shows an alternative embodiment to the possibility according to. Fig. 1. The design of the bearing device 10 is essentially identical and corresponds with regard to the individual components to the description of Fig. 1. However, here the bearing device 10 is formed separately as a separate component from the handlebar 100. It is clearly visible that the handlebar 100 is formed with a corresponding counter-receiving section 124, which is in planar and force-transmitting contact with the receiving section 24. Thus, the force-transmitting connection can be established by inserting the bearing device 10 between the latter and the handlebar 100, e.g., by pressing or shrinking. Retrofitting existing handlebars 100 is also possible here.

[0031] Fig.Figure 3 shows a further possibility, which particularly illustrates the great degrees of freedom in adapting to a wide variety of load and force systems. For example, a round bearing device 10 is shown, which has a receiving section 24 on its circumferential outer side. This can form a force-locking connection with a corresponding counter-receiving section 124 of a link 100 by being pressed in or shrunk in. On the inner side, the bearing surface 22 is again round in shape with a circular passage. For the force-transmitting connection between the bearing surface 22 and the receiving section 24, very complex but regular structures with different directions of action in the form of different spring elements 30 are arranged.This example demonstrates how the individual spring elements 30 can be combined with a wide variety of directions of action, effective functions, and effective forces to accommodate even complex and highly complex bearing problems. At the same time, this complexity remains unaffected for a simpler and more cost-effective design of the control arm 100 or the bearing components 200.

Claims

[1] Bearing device (10) for a control arm (100) of a wheel suspension of a vehicle, comprising a base body (20) with a bearing surface (22) for bearing contact with a bearing component (200) and a receiving section (24) for receiving the base body (20) on the handlebar (100), wherein the base body (20) has, between the bearing surface (22) and the receiving section (24), at least two spring elements (30) made of a metallic material which are formed integrally with the base body (20), which spring elements have not only different directions but also different shapes and different geometric extensions in order to provide different directions of action and different intensities of action or forces of action, wherein each spring element (30) connects the bearing surface (22) to the receiving section (24) in a resilient and relatively movable manner. [2] Bearing device (10) according to claim 1, characterized bythat the respective spring element (30) has at least one damping element (40) for damping the resilient relative movement by the respective spring element (30). [3] Bearing device (10) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the bearing surface (22) is designed at least in sections as a plain bearing and / or has a plain bearing section. [4] Bearing device (10) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the base body (20), in particular the respective spring element (30), has a continuous or substantially continuous cross-section. [5] Bearing device (10) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that spring elements (30) are provided with an asymmetrical alignment of the directions of action. [6] Control arm (100) for a wheel suspension of a vehicle, comprising at least one bearing device (10) with the features of one of claims 1 to 5. [7] Handlebar (100) according to claim 6, characterized by that the bearing device (10), in particular the base body (20), is formed integrally with the handlebar (100). [8] Handlebar (100) according to claim 6, characterized by that the bearing device (10) with the receiving section (24) is arranged in a force-transmitting manner in and / or on a counter-receiving section (124) of the handlebar (100).

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