Adjustable Vehicle Pedal Set for Flexible Stroke Paths
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing pedal sets in motor vehicles require a wide stroke for fluid pressure buildup, constraining the driver's position and necessitating complex reconfiguration for varying the pedal movement trajectory.
Innovation Solution
A pedal set with adjustable guides and sliders allowing for various movement trajectories, including small strokes and flexible positioning, combined with a remote or mechanical back-up braking system.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a wide pedal stroke is used to allow fluid pressure buildup, then the operating fluid can reach the required pressure level, but the driver's position becomes constrained and the pedal movement trajectory cannot be easily varied
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the traditional mechanical lever-pivoting system with a parallel mechanism comprising multiple links and sliders moving along guides. This substitution allows the pedal to achieve the necessary fluid pressure buildup through a more flexible mechanical arrangement that does not require a wide arc-of-circumference stroke, thereby maintaining driver positioning flexibility while ensuring reliable braking actuation
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs a dynamic parallel mechanism where the pedal's movement trajectory can be adjusted by modifying the guides' orientations and positions. This dynamic adaptability allows the system to optimize the pedal stroke path for different driving positions and preferences, enabling fluid pressure buildup without constraining the driver's position while varying the pedal movement trajectory as needed
2Device complexity
If the pedal is constrained to move along an arc of circumference through a fixed pivoting point, then the mechanical structure is simple, but the driver's position inside the cockpit is constrained and reconfiguration is complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the traditional single-lever pedal mechanism into multiple independent links (first link, second link, third link) that move in parallel. Each link is guided by separate guides with adjustable orientations, allowing the pedal to follow a customized trajectory. This segmentation enables trajectory flexibility without requiring complex reconfiguration of a monolithic lever system
Solution Approach 2:
The parallel mechanism design serves multiple functions: it maintains mechanical simplicity through standardized link-and-guide components while simultaneously enabling trajectory adjustment for different driver positions and preferences. The universal applicability of the adjustable guides allows the same basic mechanism to adapt to various driving configurations without complex reconfiguration
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables maximum flexibility in driver positioning and simplified reconfiguration, providing different driving experiences and ensuring reliable braking even in system failures.
Implementation Method 1
a spring interposed between the vehicle body and the lever in a position other than the fixed pivoting point and designed to allow the pedal to spring back once the driver's action ceases
Implementation Method 2
The operation of the command member causes the pressure increase of the operating liquid in the fluidic lines and the consequent pressure increase in the chambers housing the brake callipers. This pressure increase causes the pads to move from the relative rest positions to the relative operating positions
Data Source
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AI summary
A pedal set (1, 1') for a motor vehicle (2, 2') is described as comprising a support body (15), a pedal (16) which can be operated by a driver, a guide (21) defined by the support body (15) and a slider (22) which can slide within the guide (21, 21') and is operatively connected to the pedal (16).