Motor Vehicle Door Lock Weight Reduction via Latch Housing Bridge
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current motor vehicle door latches face challenges in achieving weight reduction while maintaining safety standards, particularly under tensile forces during crash simulations, as they are designed with heavy steel components to withstand bending stresses and forces.
Innovation Solution
The motor vehicle door latch design eliminates the bridging component between the two lateral components on the latch case, with the latch housing functioning as a bridging substitute component, allowing for weight reduction without compromising safety by absorbing tensile forces and maintaining the functionality of the locking mechanism.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a solid body latch case with bridging component is used, then safety and control of bending stresses are improved, but weight increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the bridging component from the latch case structure. The latch case is designed without the additional bridging element that would connect the lateral components, extracting this unnecessary part to reduce weight while maintaining safety through the inherent strength of the latch housing and proper distribution of forces in the locking mechanism.
Solution Approach 2:
The latch case is segmented into functional areas with the latch housing providing the necessary structural support. Instead of a fully solid body construction with bridging components, the structure is divided such that the latch housing and lateral components work together to distribute and manage bending stresses and forces during impact, achieving safety without excessive weight.
2Strength
If the latch case is designed as a solid body, then control of bending stresses and forces during impact is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The bridging component is extracted from the latch case design, simplifying the overall structure. The latch case is realized without this additional element, reducing device complexity while the latch housing and lateral components are designed to handle bending stresses and impact forces through their geometric configuration and material properties.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of making the entire latch case a solid body with uniform high strength, the patent applies local quality by designing the latch housing and lateral components with specific geometric features and material selections that provide necessary strength control of bending stresses only where required, rather than throughout the entire structure.
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to a motor vehicle door lock, comprising a lock case (1) and also comprising at least one locking mechanism (2, 3) supported in the lock case (1), which locking mechanism consists essentially of a rotary latch (2) and a pawl (3). In addition, a lock housing (5) connected to the lock case (1) is realized. The lock case (1) is mostly L-shaped in the cross-section. In addition, the lock case (1) describes a locking-mechanism plane (G) and an end-plate plane (S) different from the locking-mechanism plane. The end-plate plane (S) is equipped with a bridge part (7), which spans at least one inlet opening (E), and two side parts (6). According to the invention, the lock case (1) is equipped with merely the two side parts (6) bordering the inlet opening (E), without a bridge part. In contrast, the lock housing (5) acts completely or partially as a bridge part (7).