Adjustable Dashboard Crossbar Assembly for Automotive
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing dashboard cross members for motor vehicles, designed with two distinct axial sections to optimize strength, complicate assembly and mounting operations due to the need for precise alignment and fixing.
Innovation Solution
A dashboard cross member with adjacent ends that can adjust along multiple axes, featuring screw fastening, interlocking elements, and adjustable connections to A-pillars, allowing for easy mounting and enhanced impact resistance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If two distinct axial sections are connected to optimize strength, then the dashboard cross member becomes light and strong, but the assembly and mounting operations become complicated
Solution Approach 1:
The cross member is divided into two separate axial sections (first section and second section) that can be manufactured independently and then assembled together. This segmentation allows each section to be optimized for strength while maintaining overall structural integrity, resolving the contradiction between strength and ease of assembly.
Solution Approach 2:
The connection between the two sections incorporates adjustment capability along at least one adjustment axis perpendicular to the transverse axis. This dynamic adjustment feature enables easy alignment and assembly during mounting operations, while the interlocking elements provide rigid connection for strength when assembled.
2Strength
If two distinct axial sections are connected to optimize strength, then the dashboard cross member becomes light and strong, but the mounting on the body becomes complicated
Solution Approach 1:
The fixing means serve multiple functions: they connect the two sections together, allow adjustment during assembly, and provide mounting capability to the vehicle body through A-pillar connections. This multi-functionality simplifies the overall mounting process while maintaining the strength benefits of segmented construction.
Solution Approach 2:
The adjustment capability along the adjustment axis allows for parameter changes in the relative position of the two sections during mounting. This flexibility compensates for manufacturing tolerances and simplifies the mounting process on the vehicle body, resolving the contradiction between strength and ease of manufacture.
3Ease of operation
If adjustable connections are added to facilitate easy mounting, then assembly becomes easier, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The adjustment and fixing functions are extracted into a separate, dedicated fixing means component that connects the two sections. This separation allows the main cross member sections to remain simple structural elements while the complexity of adjustment mechanisms is isolated to the fixing means, reducing overall system complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The fixing means act as an intermediary component between the two axial sections, providing the adjustment capability and connection function. This intermediary structure simplifies the overall design by concentrating the complexity in a single, manageable component rather than distributing it throughout the entire cross member structure.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2~4
AI summary
The crossbar of the present invention is of the type that extends substantially axially along a transverse axis (Y-Y) of the automobile, and comprises a first axial segment (12) and a second axial segment (14) separate from each other and extending as an extension of each other. According to an aspect of the invention, the first segment (12) and the second segment (14) include adjacent ends (16, 18) bearing in a planar manner against each other substantially along the transverse axis (Y-Y). The crossbar includes an attachment means for said adjacent ends (16, 18) that permit an adjustment of the relative position of said adjacent ends along at least one adjustment axis (X-X, Z-Z) substantially perpendicular to the transverse axis (Y-Y).