Brazed Crimping Pins for Vehicle Lighting Heat Sinks
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for fixing a printed circuit on a heat dissipation device require thick metal sheets to achieve adequate pin height, leading to increased cost and weight due to the need for significant sheet thickness to produce pins of sufficient height through stamping.
Innovation Solution
A heat dissipation device with a metal support and crimping pins where the pins are brazed to the support, allowing for pins of greater height than the support thickness, and the assembly method involves aligning the pin base with the support face, applying brazing material, and soldering at a temperature below the melting point of the materials, enabling thinner sheets and reduced weight.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Length of stationary object
If thick sheet metal is used to create pins through stamping, then pin height is sufficient to hold the PCB, but cost and weight increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The pin is divided into two separate components: a thin metal support plate and a separate pin element. The pin is attached to the plate through brazing, allowing the pin to be tall and slender without requiring the entire structure to be thick. This segmentation enables the pin height to exceed the plate thickness, resolving the contradiction between achieving sufficient pin height and minimizing weight.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the manufacturing parameter from stamping (which requires thick material) to brazing (which allows thin material with attached protrusions). By using brazing instead of stamping, the metal support plate can be made much thinner while still achieving the required pin height through the attached pin element, significantly reducing weight and material cost.
2Length of stationary object
If thick sheet metal is used to create pins through stamping, then pin height is sufficient to hold the PCB, but material cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The pin structure is segmented into a thin base plate and a separate pin attachment. This allows the majority of the pin height to be achieved with minimal material in the plate itself, while the pin portion uses material only where structurally necessary. The result is a significant reduction in total metal material quantity compared to a solid thick plate.
Solution Approach 2:
The manufacturing process changes from stamping (requiring thick material) to brazing (enabling thin material with attached features). This parameter change allows the metal support plate to be made as thin as 0.5 mm while still achieving pin heights of 2.5 mm or more, dramatically reducing the quantity of expensive aluminum material required.
3Weight of stationary object
If thin sheet metal is used, then weight and cost are reduced, but pin height becomes insufficient to hold the PCB
Solution Approach 1:
The solution adds a vertical dimension to the thin plate by brazing a pin element that extends perpendicular to the plate surface. This allows the structure to achieve significant height (2.5 mm or more) while maintaining a minimal plate thickness (0.5 mm), effectively using the thin plate as a base rather than the primary height-providing element.
4Ease of manufacture
If stamping is used to create pins, then manufacturing is simple, but significant sheet thickness is required
Solution Approach 1:
The invention introduces brazing as an intermediary process that combines a simple thin plate with a separately formed pin. The brazing material acts as a mediator that bonds these two components, allowing the pin to be attached to the thin plate without requiring the plate itself to be thick. This intermediary process enables both manufacturing simplicity and thin material usage.
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
This solution allows for thinner sheets and reduced weight while maintaining a secure joint, and the crimping process establishes electrical contact with ground potential, enhancing heat dissipation and reducing material costs.
Implementation Method 1
said pin being sealed to a first face of the support by soldering
Implementation Method 2
heat dissipation device for a lighting device of a motor vehicle
Data Source
Figure 1~3
AI summary
The invention provides a heat dissipation device (100) for a lighting device in a motor vehicle, comprising a generally flat metallic support (110) and at least one crimping pin (120) for attaching a printed circuit board (10) of said lighting device to said support (110). According to the measurements of the invention, the dimensions of the crimping pins (120) are independent of the thickness of the support (110) of the heat dissipation device (100). Methods for assembling the crimping pins (120) to the support (110), and of a printed circuit board (10) to the crimping pins (120), are also provided.