Fastener Clip With Offset Legs For Vehicle Panel Attachment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional fasteners fail to securely attach vehicle body panels to chassis with varying curvature and thickness, leading to noise issues and vibration, and do not accommodate production tolerances, resulting in wear and loss of sealing over time.
Innovation Solution
A fastener clip assembly with laterally offset legs and wings featuring engagement regions and a carrier for enhanced support and flexibility, allowing for low insertion force and high extraction force, adaptable to different sheet metal thicknesses and curvatures, and capable of dampening vibrations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If conventional fasteners are used to attach body panels to chassis, then the attachment structure is simple, but the fastener provides equal insertion and extraction force and cannot accommodate variations in sheet metal thickness and curvature
Solution Approach 1:
The fastener clip incorporates a dynamic engagement region with laterally offset legs that can flex and adapt to different sheet metal thicknesses and curvatures. The legs are positioned at different lateral distances from the central axis, allowing the engagement region to conform to varying geometries while maintaining secure attachment.
Solution Approach 2:
The fastener is divided into multiple functional segments including a carrier, engagement region with laterally offset legs, and wings. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function independently, with the legs providing adaptability and the carrier providing structural support.
2Reliability
If conventional fasteners with stepped arms are used, then manufacturing is simplified, but the fastener allows movement within step ranges resulting in wear and noise generation
Solution Approach 1:
The engagement region incorporates flexible elements that allow continuous adjustment rather than discrete stepped positions. This flexibility eliminates movement within step ranges, preventing wear and noise while maintaining manufacturing feasibility through forming processes.
Solution Approach 2:
The laterally offset legs are designed with curved surfaces that engage the slot, allowing continuous contact and distribution of wear across the curved surface rather than at discrete points, reducing noise and vibration.
3Force
If conventional fasteners are used, then the fastening process is simple, but the fastener does not provide differential insertion and extraction force characteristics
Solution Approach 1:
The engagement region is designed with laterally offset legs that create preliminary engagement resistance during insertion, controlling the insertion force. The same structure provides increased extraction force by requiring deformation of the legs to disengage, achieving the desired force differential.
Solution Approach 2:
The wings are designed to deform and engage the slot before the main body of the fastener is fully inserted, creating a preliminary anchoring action that controls insertion force and facilitates subsequent full engagement.
4Reliability
If conventional fasteners are used, then the fastener structure is simple, but the fastener does not adequately secure panels under vibration and environmental conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The fastener combines multiple functions into a single integrated structure: the carrier provides structural support, the engagement region with laterally offset legs provides adaptability and vibration damping, and the wings provide insertion control and additional anchoring. This merging enhances reliability without requiring multiple separate components.
Solution Approach 2:
The fastener is constructed from materials with different properties distributed throughout the structure, such as metal carrier for strength and polymer engagement regions for vibration damping and corrosion resistance, creating a composite structure that addresses multiple environmental challenges.
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 fastener clip assembly securely attaches body panels with reduced noise and wear, accommodating various environmental conditions and production tolerances, improving long-term reliability and safety while minimizing assembly costs and worker injuries.
Implementation Method 1
capable of dampening vibrations
Implementation Method 2
Fastener clip over a carrier secured with hooks
Data Source
AI summary
A fastener clip system including a carrier and a fastener clip configured to fit over the carrier. The fastener clip includes at least one wing, where the at least one wing is configured to engage a slot in a surface, and one or more hooks that are configured to secure the fastener clip to the carrier. The hooks are configured to engage corresponding retaining ledge underctus on the carrier.