Vehicle Attachment Alignment Element for Misalignment Compensation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing adjustment elements for positioning vehicle attachments cause damage to structural components due to continuous stress, leading to corrosion and wear, especially when maintaining tight tolerances and alignments.
Innovation Solution
An adjustment element with a movably mounted contact section and hinge connection, allowing the support surface to pivot relative to the adjustment section, transferring forces as a surface load and compensating for manufacturing tolerances and warped components.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If rigid connection elements are used to attach the attachment part to the structural part, then the attachment part is securely fixed, but the elements are damaged due to angular misalignment and force concentration
Solution Approach 1:
The adjustment element changes its geometric parameters (rotation angle and/or extension) to adapt to angular misalignment between the structural part and attachment part. This allows the rigid connection to be maintained while accommodating misalignment, preventing force concentration that would damage the elements.
Solution Approach 2:
The adjustment element introduces dynamic adaptability to the connection system by allowing rotation and/or extension. This dynamic capability enables the system to compensate for misalignment while maintaining secure fixation, resolving the contradiction between reliability and strength.
2Manufacturing precision
If the attachment part is positioned at a defined distance from the structural part, then proper spacing and alignment are achieved, but additional positioning mechanisms increase device complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The connection system is segmented into a structural part connection element, an adjustment element, and an attachment part connection element. This segmentation allows the adjustment element to specifically handle positioning and angular misalignment compensation, achieving precise positioning while keeping each component relatively simple.
Solution Approach 2:
The adjustment element acts as an intermediary between the structural part and attachment part. It provides the defined distance positioning and angular misalignment compensation without requiring complex positioning mechanisms in the other components, thus achieving manufacturing precision while limiting overall device complexity.
3Stress or pressure
If material-friendly force transmission is implemented, then the connection elements experience reduced stress, but the adjustment mechanism adds structural complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The adjustment element dynamically adapts its configuration (rotation and/or extension) to optimize force transmission paths. This dynamic adjustment distributes forces more evenly across the connection elements, reducing stress while maintaining a relatively simple mechanical structure compared to complex active control systems.
Solution Approach 2:
By changing geometric parameters (angle and/or length) of the adjustment element, the force transmission characteristics are optimized. This passive parameter adjustment achieves material-friendly force distribution without requiring complex active control mechanisms, balancing stress reduction with structural simplicity.
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to an adjustment element (10) with which an attachment (50) can be positioned on a structural part (42) of a vehicle. The adjustment element (10) is designed to hold the attachment (50) at a defined distance from the structural part (42) while transmitting force in a material-friendly manner and to compensate for any angular misalignment (W). The invention also relates to a lighting arrangement (28) for a vehicle with the adjustment element (10) and a corresponding method for mounting a lighting device (34) on the vehicle. Finally, a motor vehicle (32) with the lighting arrangement (28) is also part of the invention.