Exterior Door Handle Pivot Pin Fit Transition
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional exterior door handle arrangements for vehicles face issues with maintaining the door handle in the resting position without play while preventing frictional forces from impeding its return, often resulting in complex assemblies and unwanted noise during closure.
Innovation Solution
The exterior door handle arrangement features a hinge assembly with a pivot pin and guide groove that transitions from a clearance fit to a transitional and then interference fit during the pivoting movement, ensuring the door handle is securely held in the resting position without play, and incorporates an elliptical or polygonal cross-section pivot pin for improved vibration damping.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the hinge assembly uses a conventional pivot pin and guide groove configuration, then the door handle can pivot freely, but the door handle cannot be held in the resting position without play and friction forces impede the return movement
Solution Approach 1:
The hinge assembly dynamically changes the fit type between pivot pin and guide groove during the door handle's pivoting movement. In the swivel-out position, a clearance fit allows free movement; during return, it transitions to transitional fit; and in the resting position, it achieves interference fit for precise positioning. This dynamic adaptation resolves the contradiction between free movement and precise positioning.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the geometric parameters of the pivot pin and guide groove interaction by using an elliptical cross-section for the pivot pin. This allows the fit type (clearance, transitional, or interference) to vary depending on the angular position of the door handle, enabling both friction-free return movement and play-free resting position without additional components.
2Reliability
If the hinge assembly is designed to eliminate play in the resting position, then positioning accuracy improves, but the assembly complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention achieves precise positioning by changing the geometric parameters of existing components - specifically using an elliptical cross-section for the pivot pin instead of a conventional circular one. This parameter change enables the interference fit in the resting position without adding any additional components, mechanisms, or assembly steps, thus maintaining simplicity while achieving high positioning accuracy.
Solution Approach 2:
The elliptical cross-section of the pivot pin introduces asymmetry in the hinge assembly design. This asymmetric geometry allows the fit type to vary with the angular position of the door handle, creating clearance fit during extension and interference fit during retraction. This asymmetric approach achieves precise positioning without complex additional mechanisms.
3Reliability
If the pivot pin and guide groove have a tight fit to eliminate play, then positioning accuracy improves, but friction forces increase and impede return movement
Solution Approach 1:
The hinge assembly dynamically adjusts the interference level between pivot pin and guide groove based on the door handle's position. During the return movement (swivel-out to resting), the fit transitions from clearance to transitional, minimizing friction and enabling smooth movement. Only in the final resting position does the interference fit fully engage to eliminate play, thus resolving the contradiction between low friction during movement and high positioning accuracy at rest.
4Ease of manufacture
If conventional door handle arrangements are used, then assembly is simple, but buzzing sounds occur during door closure
Solution Approach 1:
The invention eliminates buzzing sounds by changing the geometric parameters of the pivot pin to an elliptical cross-section. This parameter change ensures that the door handle returns to a precise, consistent resting position without play, preventing the metallic knocking or buzzing sounds that occur with conventional circular pivot pins. The solution maintains assembly simplicity while eliminating the harmful noise.
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 solution provides a simple, cost-effective mechanism to maintain the door handle in the resting position without play, eliminates buzzing sounds during closure, and enhances vibration damping, ensuring smooth operation and reduced assembly complexity.
Implementation Method 1
the contour surfaces of the pivot pin and the guide groove which are operatively connected and define the pivot movement of the door handle are formed with a fit, in such a way that a clearance fit exists in the swivel-out position of the door handle, which transitions via a transitional fit into an interference fit during a pivoting movement into the resting position
Implementation Method 2
the pivot pin is formed with an elliptical cross-section, wherein its outer surface forms a contour surface that is operatively connected with parallel surfaces forming contour surfaces of the guide groove. This continuously changes the profile of the fit during the pivotal movement of the vehicle door, which results in improved vibration damping when closing the vehicle door
Data Source
AI summary
An exterior door handle arrangement for a motor vehicle door of a motor vehicle includes a door handle a bearing bracket, and a hinge assembly having a pivot pin and a guide groove receiving the pivot pin for the pivotable connection of the door handle to the bearing bracket, wherein for pivoting the door handle from a resting position into a swivel-out position the pivot pin located in the guide groove forms a pivot axis of the door handle. The contour surfaces of the pivot pin and the guide groove which are in operative connection and which determine the pivot movement of the door handle are designed with a fit, such that the door handle has in the swivel-out position a clearance fit which transitions via a transitional fit into a positive fit when a pivoting movement into to a resting position is made.