Vehicle Door Pin Reinforcement for Torsional Rigidity
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
The existing vehicle body rigidity enhancement technologies have not adequately addressed the torsional issues at the door opening portion, which is vulnerable during vehicle cornering, and the door is often overlooked in rigidity development.
Innovation Solution
A device that reinforces the connection between the vehicle body and door using a pin and holder matching structure, including a rigid pin and a buffer member made of thermoplastic elastomer, to absorb impacts and enhance torsional rigidity, with additional support points to prevent deformation during travel.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If the door is designed as a simple mounted part without additional reinforcement, then the device complexity is low, but the vehicle body rigidity at the door opening portion is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The door connection system is segmented into multiple independent reinforcement points: a first reinforcement structure at the door hinge portion and a second reinforcement structure at the door latch portion. This segmentation allows rigidity enhancement at specific vulnerable areas without requiring complete redesign of the entire door structure, thus improving vehicle body rigidity while controlling device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
Reinforcement is applied locally at the door hinge and latch portions where torsional stress is most concentrated, rather than uniformly across the entire door. The pin and holder structures are specifically positioned at these critical locations to provide targeted rigidity enhancement where needed most, minimizing unnecessary complexity in non-critical areas.
2Strength
If a rigid pin is press-fitted into the pin holder to reinforce connection, then the connection strength between door and vehicle body is improved, but the impact force during door operation increases
Solution Approach 1:
A buffer member is pre-installed within the pin holder at the door latch portion to cushion the impact force generated during door closing operations. This beforehand cushioning prevents the rigid pin from directly absorbing the full impact force, thereby maintaining strong connection while reducing peak impact forces on the door and vehicle body structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The buffer member acts as an intermediary element between the rigid pin and the pin holder, mediating the force transmission during door operation. It allows the rigid pin to maintain structural connection strength while the buffer member absorbs and distributes impact forces, preventing direct force transmission that would otherwise damage the connection or surrounding structures.
3Stability of the object's composition
If additional reinforcement structures are added to the door, then the torsional rigidity at the opening portion is enhanced, but the manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The pin holders and buffer members are pre-assembled at the vehicle body before door installation, and the rigid pins are pre-installed on the door panel. These preliminary actions allow the reinforcement structures to be integrated into the existing door and vehicle body assemblies without requiring complex post-assembly operations or specialized manufacturing processes, thus enhancing torsional rigidity while maintaining ease of manufacture.
Solution Approach 2:
The door and vehicle body structures are designed to self-reinforce through the pin and holder matching structures that utilize existing geometric features and mounting points. The reinforcement structures leverage the existing door panel thickness, hinge mounting locations, and latch mechanisms to provide torsional rigidity enhancement without requiring additional active components or complex assembly procedures, thereby maintaining manufacturing simplicity.
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
The solution effectively improves vehicle body rigidity, reduces road noise, enhances ride and handling performance, and increases side crashworthiness by providing additional support points between the door and vehicle body.
Implementation Method 1
a buffer member made of thermoplastic elastomer, to absorb impacts
Data Source
AI summary
A device for enhancing rigidity includes a pin holder configured to be provided at a door opening of a vehicle body or at a door provided at the door opening, and a rigid pin having a shape corresponding to the pin holder, the rigid pin configured to be provided at the door or at the door opening of the vehicle body and configured to be press-fitted into the pin holder when the door is closed at the door opening.