Drive Shaft Support Arms and Frame Clamp for Horizontal Assembly
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Solution Overview
Problem
The installation of long drive shafts is cumbersome due to their unwieldy nature, requiring support in a horizontal orientation during assembly, which existing solutions fail to adequately address.
Innovation Solution
A drive shaft support device featuring an elongated support body with outwardly extending arms and a frame clamp that securely attaches to a vehicle's frame, allowing the drive shaft to be supported horizontally, facilitating easier installation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If drive shafts are supported horizontally during assembly, then installation ease is improved, but existing solutions fail to provide adequate support for long drive shafts
Solution Approach 1:
The support device is segmented into multiple functional components: an elongated support body for horizontal positioning, multiple support arms (at least three) spaced along the body for distributed support, and a frame clamp for secure attachment. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function efficiently while keeping the overall device manageable.
Solution Approach 2:
The elongated support body serves multiple functions: it provides the structural framework for mounting support arms, acts as a horizontal support surface for the drive shaft, and serves as the attachment point for the frame clamp. This multi-functionality reduces the number of separate components needed, simplifying the overall device while maintaining horizontal support capability.
2Stability of the object's composition
If multiple support arms are used to support long drive shafts, then support stability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The support arms are designed as separate, extractable components that can be independently adjusted and positioned along the elongated support body. This extraction principle allows the arms to be removed or repositioned based on the specific drive shaft length and installation requirements, providing stability when needed while reducing complexity when not required.
Solution Approach 2:
The support arms are pre-positioned at specific locations along the elongated support body at spaced intervals. This preliminary positioning ensures that when the device is assembled, the drive shaft is immediately supported at multiple points along its length, providing inherent stability without requiring complex adjustment mechanisms during installation.
3Productivity
If the drive shaft is supported horizontally, then assembly efficiency is improved, but the unwieldy nature of long drive shafts makes horizontal support difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The elongated support body acts as an intermediary between the frame clamp (attachment point) and the multiple support arms (support points). This intermediary structure provides a rigid horizontal platform that spans the length of the drive shaft, allowing the shaft to be supported horizontally without requiring direct manual handling of its entire length, thus improving both assembly efficiency and ease of operation.
Data Source
AI summary
A drive shaft support device that supports a drive shaft in a horizontal orientation during an assembly operation to a vehicle comprises an elongated support body and one or more drive shaft support arms that extend outward from the elongated support body. The one or more support arms include a mount portion that is mounted to the elongated support body and a support portion having a support surface that is configured to support the drive shaft thereon. A frame clamp is located at an end of the elongated support body and includes an upper support and a lower support that is spaced from the upper support to receive a frame portion of the vehicle therebetween and support the elongated body from the frame portion in the horizontal orientation.