Door Guide Profile With Hard Bearing Inserts for Rail-Free Sliding
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing guiding devices for public transport vehicle doors, particularly those with recirculating ball bearings, are costly, heavy, and require significant construction space due to their massive steel design, which is inefficient and expensive to manufacture.
Innovation Solution
A guiding device comprising a U-shaped longitudinal profile made from a less durable material like aluminum, with harder bearing members, such as steel, embedded within the profile to support rolling elements, eliminating the need for a guide rail and reducing weight and installation complexity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If a guide rail with recirculating ball bearings is used, then high load-bearing capacity and precise guidance are achieved, but the device becomes heavy and requires significant construction space
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the essential guiding function from the traditional guide rail structure by eliminating the guide rail itself and retaining only the bearing members (balls or rollers) that provide the necessary support and guidance. This extraction reduces weight while maintaining the core load-bearing and guiding functions.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of making the entire guide rail structure hard and durable, the patent applies hard bearing members only at the specific locations where load-bearing and guidance are needed. The carrier profile can be made from lighter materials while the localized bearing members provide the necessary strength and durability at critical points.
2Strength
If a guide rail with recirculating ball bearings is used, then high load-bearing capacity is achieved, but manufacturing costs increase due to complex production processes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the complex guide rail structure from the system, retaining only the essential bearing members. This simplification dramatically reduces manufacturing complexity and cost while preserving the load-bearing capacity through the use of standard bearing components.
Solution Approach 2:
The guiding device is segmented into a separate carrier profile and discrete bearing members. This segmentation allows for independent optimization of each component, enabling the use of cost-effective manufacturing processes for the carrier profile while using standardized, easily manufactured bearing members.
3Strength
If a massive steel guide rail design is used, then high load-bearing capacity is achieved, but the device requires significant construction space
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the essential bearing function from the massive guide rail structure, eliminating the space-consuming rail body while retaining the compact bearing members that provide the necessary load-bearing capacity in a minimal space footprint.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs a composite structure combining a carrier profile (which can be made from aluminum or other lightweight materials) with hard bearing members (steel balls or rollers). This composite approach achieves high load-bearing capacity in a compact configuration without requiring a massive steel structure.
4Reliability
If a guide rail structure is used, then guidance function is achieved, but the overall device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the essential guidance function from the complex guide rail assembly by removing the rail structure itself and retaining only the bearing members that provide guidance. This extraction simplifies the overall device structure while maintaining reliable linear guidance through the bearing members.
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 design significantly reduces manufacturing costs, weight, and construction space requirements while maintaining effective guidance, allowing for easier installation and maintenance.
Implementation Method 1
a slider, which at least partially reaches into the guiding track and is supported on rolling members in a linearly movable manner in the guiding track
Data Source
AI summary
A guiding device for a door system, in particular a sliding or pivot sliding door system of a public transport vehicle, includes: a longitudinal profile formed from a first material for attachment to a door portal, which has a guiding track, which is U-shaped in cross section, with a bottom surface and two side walls extending at right angles therefrom, a slider, which at least partially reaches into the guiding track and is supported on rolling members in a linearly movable manner in the guiding track, wherein a bearing member formed from a second material is disposed in the guiding track, which extends along the guiding track and on which the rolling members supporting the slider roll during a linear movement of the slider, the second material forming the bearing member is harder than the first material forming the longitudinal profile.