Displaceable Face Panel Trim with Guideway Storage
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current door trim panel map pocket designs in autonomous vehicles lack flexibility, forcing users to compromise on storage needs, especially in ride-share scenarios where personal belongings need to be stored securely and within reach.
Innovation Solution
A trim panel apparatus with a displaceable face panel that includes a guideway with a latching slot and positioning rack, allowing the panel to be configured in various deployed positions using pivot pins and teeth, and featuring a retention lip and storage hook for enhanced storage functionality.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a fixed map pocket design is used, then the structure is simple and easy to manufacture, but the storage flexibility and adaptability are limited
Solution Approach 1:
The face panel is transformed from a fixed structure to a movable one, capable of sliding along the guideway between a closed position (covering the storage compartment) and an open position (providing access). This dynamic configuration allows the same structure to serve multiple functions: secure storage when closed and easy access when open, thereby resolving the contradiction between security and accessibility without adding complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The door trim panel is divided into distinct functional components: the stationary trim panel body, the movable face panel, and the guideway system. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently - the face panel for mobility, the guideway for controlled movement, and the body for structural support - while working together to provide both simplicity and flexibility
2Ease of operation
If a movable face panel with guideway is added, then storage flexibility and accessibility are improved, but the device complexity and manufacturing difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The face panel incorporates self-latching features through the interaction between the guideway slots and the panel's positioning elements. When the panel reaches the desired position along the guideway, it automatically engages and locks without requiring additional actuators, motors, or complex control systems. This self-latching mechanism provides easy operation while minimizing manufacturing complexity by eliminating the need for powered locking systems
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple deployment positions are provided, then user needs are better met, but the structural complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of providing multiple discrete storage compartments or panels, the invention allows a single face panel to achieve multiple functional configurations by moving along the guideway in one dimension. The panel can be positioned at different locations along the guideway to create various storage and access configurations, effectively using positional variation in one dimension to provide the versatility of multiple structures
Data Source
AI summary
A apparatus includes a trim panel and a displaceable face pane. The trim panel includes a storage compartment and a guideway having a latching slot and a positioning rack. The displaceable face panel has a trunnion received for sliding movement along the guideway.