Height-Adjustable Connecting Means for Vehicle Floor Assembly
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing methods for assembling internal floors in vehicles, ships, and aircraft are time-consuming and require significant preparation due to the need for precise leveling and adjustment of non-rigid connecting elements, which are cumbersome and require long drying times for adhesives and self-leveling materials, leading to inefficiencies and delays in the installation process.
Innovation Solution
The introduction of height-adjustable connecting means with a lower and upper part linked by an incomplete mechanical connection, allowing for relative displacement perpendicular to the bearing walls, which compensates for structural height differences without pre-equipment with foreign elements, enabling easier and faster installation of internal floor elements.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If elastic connecting elements are fixed individually on the support structure, then vibration and noise damping is improved, but installation time and preparation time increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-assembling the elastic connecting elements with the floor panels before installation. The elastic elements are attached to the underside of floor panels in advance, allowing multiple panels to be prepared simultaneously. This eliminates the need for individual on-site installation of each elastic element, reducing preparation time from 5-12 hours while maintaining vibration and noise damping effectiveness.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the elastic connecting elements with the floor panels into a single pre-assembled unit. Instead of treating them as separate components requiring individual installation, the elastic elements are integrated with the panels they will support, creating a combined assembly that is installed as one unit. This reduces the number of separate installation steps and overall installation time.
2Strength
If connecting elements are fixed to the support structure, then structural support is provided, but they become obstacles that complicate operator movement and increase intervention time
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-assembling multiple floor panels with their elastic connecting elements into complete units before installation. This allows operators to work with larger, more manageable assemblies rather than individually positioning numerous small connecting elements, thereby improving ease of operation and reducing intervention time while maintaining structural support.
3Manufacturing precision
If individual leveling and adjustment of connecting elements is performed, then internal floor flatness is improved, but installation time and complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-assembling the elastic connecting elements with the floor panels in a controlled environment before installation. This allows for preliminary leveling and adjustment to be performed on complete panel assemblies rather than on individual connecting elements during installation, reducing on-site complexity while maintaining floor flatness precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the leveling and adjustment operations into the pre-assembly process. By combining the elastic connecting elements with the floor panels into unified assemblies, the leveling operations can be performed on the complete unit as a single entity, simplifying the complexity of multiple separate adjustment operations while achieving the required flatness.
4Manufacturing precision
If self-leveling material is poured over panels, then global flatness is achieved, but vehicle weight increases and drying time is required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by achieving the required flatness during the pre-assembly of floor panels with their elastic connecting elements, before installation in the vehicle. This preliminary leveling eliminates or reduces the need for subsequent self-leveling material applications, thereby avoiding the additional weight and drying time that would be required.
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
This method significantly reduces preparation and installation time by allowing for precise leveling and adjustment without the need for extensive leveling operations, enabling the internal floor to be installed in a shorter duration and achieving perfect flatness independent of the support structure's flatness, thus reducing overall project time and weight on the vehicle.
Implementation Method 1
Between said longitudinal beam and a support floor forming part of the chassis, there is an elastic material intended for the decoupling of oscillations, in particular acoustic oscillations
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a method for assembling elements of an internal floor (30) that are intended to be fixed to the support structure (10) of vehicles, in which: a) there is provided at least one section (9) having a lower bearing face (8) and an upper bearing face (7); b) said section is placed on said support structure and, with the aid of at least one heightwise positioning means (49), the heightwise position of said section is adjusted; c) said section is fixed to said support structure by way of first fixing means (40); d) there is provided a sufficient number of internal floor elements to cover the targeted floor surface area, each internal floor element is placed such that it rests on said upper bearing face of said section and each internal floor element is fixed by way of second fixing means (50). Said method is characterized in that said heightwise positioning means are combined with said first fixing means in order to obtain height-adjustable connecting means (41). Advantageously, said sections are pre-equipped with said height-adjustable connecting means.