Driveshaft Plunging Assembly with Outer-Housing Plug Stopper
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional plunging assemblies in driveshafts face challenges in implementing a stop function for the inner shaft without compromising its strength, particularly due to complex structures and difficulties in machining stop rings, which can lead to shaft breakage under torsional torque.
Innovation Solution
A plunging assembly with an outer housing featuring a bore and a mounting hole, utilizing a plug member with a shock absorbing portion, fastening portion, and connecting portion, where the plug member is inserted into the mounting hole and has an inclined surface to prevent movement by the inner shaft, ensuring effective stop function without weakening the inner shaft.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If stop rings are provided at both ends of the inner shaft to limit the behavior of the plunging unit and inner shaft, then the plunging assembly can achieve reliable stop function, but the structure becomes complicated and machining becomes difficult because grooves for seating of the stop ring at both ends of the inner shaft must be formed
Solution Approach 1:
The stop ring is extracted from the inner shaft and relocated to the outer housing. The outer housing now carries the stop ring that limits the plunging unit's movement, while the inner shaft is freed from the complex groove machining requirements. This extraction resolves the contradiction by maintaining the stop function while simplifying the inner shaft structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The plunging unit serves as an intermediary element that transmits the stop function from the outer housing to the inner shaft. The stop ring on the outer housing limits the plunging unit's movement, which in turn limits the inner shaft's movement through the mechanical coupling of the plunging mechanism, eliminating the need for stop rings directly on the inner shaft.
2Reliability
If grooves are formed to mount a stop ring on the inner side of the inner shaft to limit inner shaft movement, then the stop function is achieved, but the inner shaft can be broken even at a small torsional torque due to the weakened structure
Solution Approach 1:
The stop ring is extracted from the inner shaft and mounted on the outer housing instead. This removes the harmful grooves from the inner shaft, preserving its structural integrity and torsional strength while maintaining the stop function through the outer housing's stop ring that limits the plunging unit's movement.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of mounting the stop ring on the inner shaft as in conventional designs, the stop ring is inverted to be mounted on the outer housing. This inversion allows the stop function to be achieved while preserving the inner shaft's strength, as the stop ring now constrains the plunging unit rather than requiring direct attachment to the inner shaft.
3Ease of operation
If stop rings are mounted on the inner shaft to limit plunging unit behavior, then the relative movement is controlled, but the machining difficulty increases because grooves must be formed at both ends of the inner shaft
Solution Approach 1:
The stop ring mounting function is extracted from the inner shaft and transferred to the outer housing. This eliminates the need to machine grooves at both ends of the inner shaft, significantly reducing machining complexity while maintaining effective control of the plunging unit's movement through the outer housing's stop ring.
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 limits the inner shaft's movement while maintaining its strength, preventing damage from torsional torque and ensuring reliable operation by using a plug member that is securely fastened and shock-absorbing, thus enhancing the driveshaft's performance.
Implementation Method 1
a shock absorbing portion located in the bore; a fastening portion inserted into the mounting hole; and a connecting portion connecting the shock absorbing portion and the fixing portion
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3~4
Figure 5(a)~6
AI summary
A plunging assembly of a driveshaft includes: an outer housing having a bore having a plurality of outer ball grooves extending in a longitudinal direction; an inner shaft being disposed to be able to undergo relative movement in the longitudinal direction in the bore of the outer housing and having a plurality of inner ball grooves that are paired respectively with the outer ball grooves to form a plurality of ball tracks; a plunging unit connecting the outer housing and the inner shaft to allow a plunging motion and a rotational power transmission between the outer housing and the inner shaft; and a stopper that is provided in the bore of the outer housing to limit relative movement of the inner housing and the inner shaft in a direction in which the inner shaft is inserted into the bore. The outer housing has a mounting hole communicating with the bore, and the stopper is a plug member that is inserted into the mounting hole in a state that a frontal end portion thereof is exposed to the bore.