Drive Cable Longitudinal Ribs for Noise Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing drive cables for movable vehicle elements, such as those used in sliding-roof arrangements, suffer from noise issues due to wear of flocking materials and unintended noise from spiral toothing, which affect their long-term noise behavior and reliability.
Innovation Solution
The drive cable features longitudinal ribs along its periphery, which act as continuous guiding and contact lines to reduce rattling and center the cable in the guide, while being elastically deformable to accommodate gearwheel engagement, thereby minimizing noise and compensating for tolerances and production ripples.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Power
If a helical cable with spiral toothing is used for actuating the vehicle element, then the drive torque can be transferred from the drive motor to the movable vehicle element, but noise is generated due to wear of the flock and unintended noise from the spiral toothing
Solution Approach 1:
The cable body is segmented into multiple longitudinal ribs (at least three) that divide the cable's periphery into distinct guiding lines. This segmentation allows each rib to independently contact the cable guide, distributing the guiding function across multiple points and reducing noise from single-point contact and rattling.
Solution Approach 2:
The problematic flocking material is completely removed from the drive cable design. Instead of relying on flocking for noise reduction, the invention extracts this harmful element and replaces its function with the longitudinal ribs that provide guiding and centering without the wear and noise associated with flocking.
2Object-generated harmful factors
If the drive cable is provided with flock to reduce noise, then noise generated by actuating the drive cable is reduced, but the flock is subject to wear during the service life which negatively affects the noise behavior
Solution Approach 1:
The invention replaces the wear-prone flocking material with durable longitudinal ribs formed from the cable body itself or from robust plastic material. These ribs are designed to last the entire service life without degrading, eliminating the need for replacement or maintenance related to noise-generating wear.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the physical parameters of the cable surface by adding longitudinal ribs that create continuous guiding lines. This geometric modification transforms the cable's interaction with the guide from point-contact to line-contact, reducing noise without the wear issues of flocking.
3Power
If the spiral toothing is used for engagement with the drive gearwheel, then the drive torque can be transmitted, but the spiral can exhibit unintended noise behavior at defective points in the cable guide
Solution Approach 1:
The longitudinal ribs are provided in advance on the cable body to establish proper centering and guiding before the spiral toothing engages with the gearwheel. This preliminary guiding action ensures that the cable is properly positioned in the cable guide, preventing defective points from causing noise during torque transmission.
Solution Approach 2:
The longitudinal ribs act as an intermediary element between the cable and the cable guide, providing a stable guiding interface that mediates the interaction between the spiral toothing and the gearwheel. This intermediary guiding system prevents direct contact between defective guide points and the noise-sensitive spiral engagement.
4Ease of operation
If the longitudinal ribs are made from elastically or plastically malleable plastic, then the ribs can be deformed to enable gearwheel engagement, but the ribs must maintain their guiding function after deformation
Solution Approach 1:
The longitudinal ribs are made from elastically or plastically malleable plastic, allowing them to dynamically deform during gearwheel engagement and then recover or settle into a position that maintains their guiding function. This dynamic property enables the ribs to adapt to engagement requirements while preserving their primary guiding role.
Solution Approach 2:
The material parameters of the longitudinal ribs are specifically selected to allow controlled deformation during engagement while maintaining sufficient structural integrity to preserve the guiding function. The plastic material's elastic or plastic properties enable temporary parameter changes during engagement that do not compromise long-term guiding performance.
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 noise in the drive system by eliminating rattling edges, maintaining low friction, and ensuring consistent contact, thus enhancing the cable's noise behavior and durability over its service life.
Implementation Method 1
Due to the continuous guiding lines, the friction of the drive cable in a guide channel or a cable channel, respectively, is also low
Implementation Method 2
The ribs are formed from an elastically or plastically malleable plastic in a functional embodiment of the drive cable according to the invention. The ribs are therefore deformed and/or pushed aside as necessary when the drive gearwheel is engaged
Data Source
AI summary
A drive cable for actuating a vehicle element which is movable with respect to a vehicle design, which can have a cable body having a flexible cable core which is wrapped with a spiral, which follows a helical line so as to become engaged with a gearwheel. At least three longitudinal ribs or crosspieces can be formed along the periphery of the cable body, said drive cable being able to support itself in a cable guide via said longitudinal ribs which form at least mostly continuous guiding lines and contact lines of the drive cable, each having the same distance all around to the cable axis. Alternatively, an elastically or plastically malleable cable jacket can be provided which engages over the cable core and the spiral and which forms a cylindrical and rib-free peripheral surface of the cable when the cable core is stretched.