Composite Leaf Spring with Arc-Shaped Eyes and Clamping
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional leaf springs made of steel increase vehicle weight, and existing lightweight alternatives do not effectively distribute stress or reduce manufacturing costs.
Innovation Solution
A leaf spring configuration using composite materials with arc-shaped portions, clamping units, and central fastening, allowing for stress distribution and weight reduction while maintaining robustness, featuring adjustable gaps and symmetrically coupled plates for reduced manufacturing complexity and cost.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If steel material is used for leaf spring, then strength and robustness are improved, but vehicle weight increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies composite materials consisting of a base material (steel plate) and a reinforcing material (fiber reinforcement) to create a leaf spring that achieves high strength and robustness while reducing weight. The fiber reinforcement is embedded in the base material to form a composite structure that provides both strength and weight reduction benefits
2Weight of moving object
If composite material is used for leaf spring, then vehicle weight is reduced, but manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The leaf spring is divided into multiple plates (first leaf spring plate, second leaf spring plate, etc.) that can be manufactured separately and then assembled. This segmentation allows for simpler manufacturing of individual components while achieving weight reduction through the composite structure, and the modular approach can reduce overall manufacturing complexity
3Ease of manufacture
If stress concentration region is not addressed, then manufacturing is simpler, but robustness decreases due to stress concentration
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different structural characteristics to different regions of the leaf spring. The fiber reinforcement is strategically placed in regions prone to stress concentration (such as near the spring eyes and mounting points) to provide localized strength enhancement. This local quality approach ensures robustness where needed while maintaining manufacturing simplicity in other areas
Data Source
AI summary
A leaf spring may include: an upper plate provided with arc-shaped portions which are integrally formed on both end portions thereof, respectively, for forming spring eyes; a lower plate disposed to overlap a lower side of the upper plate and provided with arc-shaped portions which are integrally formed on both end portions thereof, respectively, and face the arc-shaped portions of the upper plate to form the spring eyes; clamping units installed to restrain the both end portions of the overlapped upper and lower plates from being separated from each other; and a central fastening unit configured to fasten central portions of the overlapped upper and lower plates.