Cone Adaptor for Ball Joint Studs in Suspension Systems
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Ball joint assemblies in vehicular applications face challenges when anchoring members are made from softer materials like aluminum, as they struggle to withstand high stresses and often result in NVH issues and reduced surface-to-surface contact, making them difficult to produce in high volumes.
Innovation Solution
A ball and socket joint assembly with a stud having a ball portion and a shank with a thread form, featuring an annular, loose piece adaptor with a frustoconical exterior surface and a spheroidal female interior surface, which provides enhanced stress distribution and load-carrying capabilities with reduced slippage, accommodating softer material anchor points.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Weight of moving object
If aluminum or other softer materials are used for anchoring members to reduce vehicular weight, then weight is reduced, but the material cannot withstand localized and concentrated stresses during normal vehicular operations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by providing a hard coating on the ball joint stud that is localized to the regions subject to high stress. The coating material has different properties than the base metal, creating a dual-material structure where the soft base material provides weight reduction while the hard coated regions provide stress resistance. This resolves the contradiction by making different parts of the same component have different material properties optimized for their specific functional requirements.
2Adaptability or versatility
If prior art designs are used for ball joint assemblies with softer anchoring members, then softer material anchoring is enabled, but NVH issues occur and surface-to-surface contact is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies spheroidality by providing a spheroidal seating surface on the ball joint stud that mates with a corresponding spheroidal recess in the anchoring member. This curved surface contact geometry distributes loads more evenly across the interface, increasing surface-to-surface contact area compared to flat or point contacts. The spherical geometry naturally accommodates the softer material while maintaining stable contact, reducing NVH issues caused by intermittent or poor contact.
3Ease of manufacture
If prior art designs are used for ball joint assemblies, then basic functionality is achieved, but production on a high volume basis is difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies segmentation by dividing the ball joint assembly into distinct modular components: the ball joint stud with its specific coating, the anchoring member with its spheroidal recess, and the fastening elements. This modular design allows each component to be manufactured independently using optimized processes, then assembled through standardized interfaces. The segmentation enables parallel production streams and simplifies quality control, making high-volume production more feasible compared to integrated or custom-fitted designs.
Data Source
AI summary
A ball joint assembly (28) for a vehicular steering or suspension application includes a cap-like housing (42) in which is captured the articulating ball portion (32) of a stud (30). A shank (34) extends from the ball portion (32), outwardly from the housing cap (42), to provide a connection and anchoring interface for the suspension member (16) or other anchoring component. The connection interface with the anchoring suspension member (16) is characterized by a specially designed surface which is convenient to machine, provides increased surface-to-surface contact area, and provides additional advantages such as improved stress distribution and NVH benefits. A washer-like cone adaptor (54) mates with a specially formed adaptor interface region (48) on the stud (30). On its outer surface, the adaptor (54) has a broad tapering feature (56) designed to seat in a complementary-shaped receiving flare (58) in the anchoring suspension member (16). The mating contact region between the adaptor (54) and the stud (30) is formed with spherical or spheroidal curvatures, or by single or multiple step configurations.