Wear-Resistant Buffer Stopper for Higher Energy Absorption
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing buffer stoppers in steering gears face challenges in increasing absorbable energy without altering characteristics, particularly when space is limited, and suffer from wear issues that affect reaction force and displacement, leading to decreased performance.
Innovation Solution
A buffer stopper with a rubber elastic body and a wear-resistant sheet made of elastic cloth surrounding the buffer body, which contacts the housing's inner surface during radial expansion and deformation, preventing wear and enhancing compression reaction force.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Use of energy by moving object
If the volume of the buffer body is increased to increase absorbable energy amount, then the absorbable energy amount increases, but the permissible space is severely limited due to the structure of the apparatus
Solution Approach 1:
The invention uses a composite structure combining a rubber elastic body with a wear resistant sheet having different material properties. The rubber elastic body provides energy absorption through elasticity, while the wear resistant sheet provides friction control and prevents direct contact between the buffer body and housing, enabling enhanced energy absorption within limited space.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the friction parameters by introducing a wear resistant sheet with specific friction characteristics. This allows control over the interaction between the buffer body and housing, enabling optimization of energy absorption efficiency without increasing the buffer body volume.
2Use of energy by moving object
If a rubber elastic body having a high spring constant is used to increase absorbable energy amount in limited space, then the absorbable energy amount increases, but the spring constant is limited and sufficiently high reaction force cannot be obtained
Solution Approach 1:
The composite structure of the rubber elastic body combined with the wear resistant sheet creates a system where the frictional interaction between the sheet and housing contributes additional reaction force, supplementing the elastic reaction force and enabling sufficiently high total reaction force within limited space.
3Force
If the outer peripheral surface of the buffer body contacts the inner peripheral surface of the housing to secure compression reaction force, then the reaction force increases, but the outer peripheral surface of the buffer body is worn by repeatedly sliding
Solution Approach 1:
The wear resistant sheet acts as an intermediary between the buffer body and the housing. It transfers the compressive load from the buffer body to the housing through friction, providing the necessary reaction force while preventing direct contact and wear between the buffer body and housing surfaces.
Solution Approach 2:
The wear resistant sheet functions as a flexible thin film that surrounds the buffer body, allowing radial expansion and deformation while maintaining contact with the housing to transmit compressive forces, thereby protecting the buffer body from wear.
4Reliability
If the outer peripheral surface of the buffer body is prevented from wearing by contacting the housing, then the reaction force is secured, but the transition point in the characteristic line moves to the large displacement side, decreasing reaction force in predetermined displacement
Solution Approach 1:
The wear resistant sheet changes the friction parameters of the system, creating a controlled frictional interaction that maintains reaction force in the predetermined displacement range while preventing wear. The sheet's material properties are selected to optimize both wear resistance and force characteristics.
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
The solution increases absorbable energy while preventing wear and maintaining characteristic stability, ensuring effective shock absorption and prolonged component life by managing spring constant and reducing wear-related deterioration.
Implementation Method 1
the buffer body 103 integrally provided between the metal rings 101 and 102 and containing a rubber elastic body (rubber material or synthetic resin material having rubber-like elasticity)... reduces a shock by the compression and deformation in the axial direction of the buffer body 103
Implementation Method 2
The magnitude of the absorbable energy amount can be expressed as the area of a hatched region between the characteristic line of the buffer body 103 and the horizontal axis... the reaction force is plotted on the vertical axis and the displacement amount is plotted on the horizontal axis
Implementation Method 3
there is a concern of causing changes in characteristics in which the outer peripheral surface of the buffer body 103 is worn by repeatedly sliding with the inner peripheral surface 202a of a large-diameter cylindrical portion 202 of the housing 200
Implementation Method 4
the outer peripheral surface of the buffer body 103 is worn by repeatedly sliding with the inner peripheral surface 202a
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2~3
Figure 4
AI summary
This invention provides a buffer stopper (1) capable of increasing an absorbable energy amount without causing changes in characteristics due to wear of a buffer body (13). In order to achieve the object, the buffer body (13) containing a rubber elastic body disposed between an end surface (21a) formed in a housing (2) and an end surface (31a) formed in a shaft (3) which is relatively movable in the axial direction with respect to the housing (2) and a wear resistant sheet (14) which is provided so as to surround the outer peripheral surface of the buffer body (13) and which can contact an inner peripheral surface (22a) of the housing (2) by expansion and deformation in the radial direction of the buffer body (13) are provided.