Flanged Inner Ring Weight Reduction via Local Quality
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional flanged inner rings for wheel hub bearings face a trade-off between weight reduction and mechanical stress resistance, as lightening the rings by removing reinforcing boxes increases the axial thickness of radial arms to maintain strength, compromising their ability to withstand typical mechanical stresses.
Innovation Solution
A flanged inner ring design with a tubular body and a slim flange having a uniform basic axial thickness of 3 mm, with specific dimensional ratios between the flange, shoulder, and outer cylindrical surface, allowing for reduced weight while maintaining mechanical strength through optimized forging and material distribution.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Weight of moving object
If reinforcing boxes are removed to reduce weight, then weight is reduced, but axial thickness of radial arms must increase to maintain mechanical strength
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by implementing reinforcing boxes only in specific critical regions where mechanical stress is highest, rather than uniformly throughout the entire flange structure. This allows weight reduction in non-critical areas while maintaining strength where needed.
Solution Approach 2:
The flange is segmented into multiple functional zones: radial arms for mounting, reinforcing boxes for structural support, and reduced-thickness regions for weight savings. This segmentation allows optimized material distribution that balances weight reduction with mechanical strength requirements.
2Strength
If axial thickness of radial arms is increased to maintain strength, then mechanical strength is maintained, but weight reduction is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
Different regions of the flange have different axial thicknesses optimized for their specific functions. Radial arms have sufficient thickness for strength, while inter-arm regions have reduced thickness for weight savings, creating a non-uniform thickness distribution that optimizes the strength-weight ratio.
Solution Approach 2:
The flange employs a composite structural approach combining regions of high material density (radial arms with reinforcing boxes) and low material density (inter-arm regions), creating an optimized composite structure that achieves high strength-to-weight ratio.
3Ease of manufacture
If uniform basic axial thickness is used throughout the flange, then manufacturing is simplified, but weight cannot be optimized
Solution Approach 1:
The flange transitions from uniform thickness to variable thickness with local optimizations. The basic axial thickness provides a manufacturing baseline, while localized variations (reduced thickness in inter-arm regions, increased thickness in radial arms with reinforcing boxes) optimize weight without requiring completely complex manufacturing processes.
Data Source
AI summary
A flanged inner ring for wheel hub bearings is disclosed, wherein a tubular supporting body for the bearing is coaxial with an axis (X), and is provided with a flange, transverse to the axis (X), is provided with a plurality of threaded through holes distributed around the axis (X), and is axially delimited by an outer annular mounting surface and by an inner surface axially facing an outer ring of the bearing.