Active Air Flap Clutch Link for Twist Compensation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing active air flaps in vehicles experience aerodynamic loss due to twisting, which occurs when the rotational driving force is not properly transmitted to both ends of the drive shaft, causing gaps and reducing the flap's ability to block outside air effectively.
Innovation Solution
A clutch link is connected between the drive shaft and a drive link to ensure synchronized rotation, allowing the drive shaft to rotate further by an arbitrary angle after reaching a set angle, ensuring both ends of the flap rotate uniformly for complete closure and preventing gaps.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Length of moving object
If the drive shaft length is increased to rotate both ends of the flap, then the flap can be opened and closed, but the rotational driving force is not properly transmitted to the far end, causing twisting
Solution Approach 1:
The drive shaft is divided into two separate drive shafts, each responsible for rotating one end of the flap. This segmentation ensures that each drive shaft remains short enough to properly transmit rotational driving force without twisting, while collectively both drive shafts enable the full span of the flap to be controlled.
2Length of moving object
If the flap length is increased to block more air, then the air blocking performance is improved, but the rotational driving force decreases toward the far end, causing twisting
Solution Approach 1:
The flap is divided into two segments, each rotated by its own dedicated drive shaft. This allows the total flap length to be increased for better air blocking performance while each segment receives sufficient rotational driving force from its short drive shaft, preventing twisting and energy loss.
3Manufacturing precision
If the drive shaft rotates further by arbitrary angle after set angle, then the rotation loss is compensated, but the clutch link must rotate up to set angle first
Solution Approach 1:
The clutch link acts as an intermediary mechanism between the drive shaft and the flap. It first rotates with the drive shaft up to a set angle to engage properly, then allows the drive shaft to rotate further by an arbitrary angle to compensate for rotation loss. This intermediary structure enables precise angle control while compensating for mechanical losses.
Data Source
AI summary
An active air flap device for a vehicle is configured to prevent aerodynamic loss caused by the active air flap being twisted. The active air flap device for a vehicle has a structure in which a clutch link is connected between a drive shaft connected to an actuator and a drive link configured to rotate a flap to allow the drive shaft and the clutch link to rotate together to transmit a rotational driving force for opening and closing the flap to the drive link, allowing the clutch link to rotate up to a set angle and the drive shaft to further rotate by an arbitrary angle from the set angle to thereby compensate for a rotation loss in which another end portion of the flap rotates less than one end portion of the flap.