Foam Engine Harness With Embedded Mounts For Cable Routing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing engine harnesses face challenges in stabilizing and routing multiple cables near internal combustion engines, particularly in large vehicles, due to vibrations and harsh environmental conditions, which can lead to cable damage and loose connections, compromising safety and performance.
Innovation Solution
A foam engine harness with embedded mounts featuring bracket sections and flanges with elongate slots provides secure centering and interlocking of cables along a defined path, using polymer materials for manufacturability and reduced weight, while a plug section with a plug element helps maintain alignment and facilitate assembly.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If a protective sleeve with metal plates is used to mount the engine harness, then the harness can be fixed to the engine, but the cables may still vibrate and move relative to each other causing damage from excessive loads or fatigue
Solution Approach 1:
The protective sleeve is segmented into multiple sections with individual cable channels, allowing each cable to be independently positioned and protected. This segmentation prevents cables from moving relative to each other while maintaining overall harness stability through the distributed mounting structure.
Solution Approach 2:
Cables are nested within individual channels of the protective sleeve, which itself is nested within the engine harness assembly. This nested structure provides multiple levels of protection and stabilization, preventing cable vibration and movement while maintaining compact positioning.
2Reliability
If cable bundles are protected with additional insolation layer, then protection against vibrations and rubbing is improved, but manufacturing complexity and precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The protective sleeve integrates multiple functions into a single component: it provides mechanical protection, cable routing guidance, vibration damping, and structural mounting capability. This merging eliminates the need for separate insolation layers and reduces manufacturing steps while maintaining comprehensive cable protection.
Solution Approach 2:
The protective sleeve utilizes composite material construction combining rigid sections for structural support and flexible sections for vibration damping and protection. This composite approach provides effective cable protection while simplifying manufacturing compared to multi-layer insolation systems.
3Adaptability or versatility
If engine harness covers large distances with many cables, then connectivity between components is achieved, but cable bundles become heavy and require additional design measures to prevent failure
Solution Approach 1:
The engine harness is divided into multiple protective sleeve sections, each managing a subset of cables. This segmentation allows for distributed weight distribution and enables modular assembly, reducing the effective weight burden at any single location while maintaining comprehensive cable coverage across large distances.
Solution Approach 2:
The protective sleeve structure organizes cables in a three-dimensional spatial arrangement with vertical and horizontal routing paths. This dimensional organization optimizes cable routing efficiency, reduces unnecessary cable length, and minimizes bundle weight while maintaining connectivity across the engine compartment.
4Area of stationary object
If cables are routed close to the engine for compact installation, then space utilization is improved, but cables are exposed to high temperature and hostile environment
Solution Approach 1:
Cables are nested within the protective sleeve that acts as a thermal barrier between the cables and the engine environment. This nested configuration allows close proximity to the engine for compact installation while the sleeve material provides thermal protection, reducing harmful thermal exposure to acceptable levels.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2A~2C
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AI summary
An engine harness (10) for guiding a plurality of cables (8) adjacent an internal combustion engine (5) operatively connected to an electrical system of a vehicle by said plurality of cables (8) along a cable path (800) between the internal combustion engine (5) and the electrical system, said engine harness (10) substantially manufactured of a polymer foam thereby providing a protective sleeve for the plurality of cables (8), said engine harness (10) further provided with at least one mount (200) for mounting to the internal combustion engine (5); wherein the at least one mount (200) comprises a bracket section (210) embedded in the polymer foam of the engine harness (10) and having at least two flanges (215, 216) extending from an outer surface of the engine harness (10) to an interior of the engine harness (10), and a plug section (260), having a plug element (265) extending outward from the outer surface of the engine harness (10) along a centerline (900) normal to the cable path (800), wherein said at least two flanges (215, 216) are arranged for centering the plurality of cables (8) with the cable path (800) in the engine harness (10); and wherein each flange (215, 216) of the at least two flanges (215, 216) comprises a plurality of elongate slots (201) for providing an interlocking structure that interlocks the mount (200) into the engine harness (10).