Hinged Pedestal Vehicle Step With Attitude Link
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing foldaway steps for vehicles, such as pickup trucks, often lower in deployment, defeating the purpose of increased access due to high ground clearance, as they do not effectively elevate the user's position when transitioning from a stowed to a deployed position.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle step system with a hinged pedestal and attitude link that rotates outwardly from a horizontal stowed position to a vertical deployed position, maintaining a horizontal tread surface and incorporating a stop abutment to prevent over-rotation, along with a latch mechanism for easy operation, ensuring the step is stowed in a tucked position and deployed at a higher elevation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a foldaway step mechanism is used to provide access to vehicle load structures, then accessibility is improved, but the step lowers in deployment which reduces user advantage
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a dynamic linkage system consisting of a hinged pedestal, step stringer, and attitude link that automatically adjusts the step's position and orientation during deployment. The hinged pedestal rotates outwardly from horizontal to vertical, while the attitude link controls the step stringer's rotation to maintain proper tread orientation, creating a dynamic mechanism that achieves both accessibility and elevated user position
Solution Approach 2:
The invention transitions the step mechanism from a simple single-axis folding motion to a multi-dimensional deployment sequence. The hinged pedestal provides primary rotation in one dimension, while the attitude link introduces controlled rotation in another dimension, allowing the step to achieve both outward deployment and upward elevation simultaneously, thereby resolving the contradiction between accessibility and user height
2Shape
If the step is designed to move upwardly into deployed position, then user advantage is improved, but the mechanism complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The step mechanism is divided into distinct functional segments: the hinged pedestal for primary deployment motion, the step stringer for supporting the tread, and the attitude link for orientation control. This segmentation allows each component to perform a specific function, achieving upward movement and proper orientation through coordinated action of simple individual parts rather than a single complex mechanism
Solution Approach 2:
The attitude link serves as an intermediary component that mediates between the hinged pedestal's rotation and the step stringer's orientation. This intermediate element translates the pedestal's motion into controlled rotation of the step stringer, maintaining the tread's horizontal orientation while enabling upward movement, thereby achieving the desired effect without requiring direct complex coupling between the pedestal and stringer
3Object-affected harmful factors
If the step is stowed in a tightly tucked position, then aerodynamic efficiency is improved, but the stowage space requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The step mechanism is designed to nest tightly against the vehicle body when stowed. The hinged pedestal folds horizontally against the mounting surface, the step stringer aligns with the vehicle contour, and the entire assembly tucks into a compact configuration that minimizes both volume and aerodynamic profile, effectively nesting the step components together when not in use
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 step system provides improved access to vehicle load structures by maintaining a horizontal tread surface in the deployed position, enhancing user advantage and convenience by elevating the user's position, while being easily stowed and deployed with a push-button latch mechanism.
Implementation Method 1
A hinged pedestal has a first end pivotably mounted to the base and a free end, with the hinged pedestal being rotatable outwardly from a generally horizontal stowed position to a generally vertical deployed position
Implementation Method 2
An attitude link has a first end pivotably mounted to the base and a second end pivotably mounted to the step stringer. The attitude link controls relative rotation of the step stringer such that a generally planar tread surface, incorporated in the step and attached to the step stringer, is maintained in a horizontal orientation when the hinged pedestal is in its generally vertical deployed position
Implementation Method 3
the hinged pedestal deployed with the present step also includes a stop abutment, formed at the first end of the hinged pedestal, for preventing rotation of the pedestal outwardly beyond its generally vertical position when the step is in its deployed position
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicle step assembly uses hinged pedestals and attitude links to position step stringers and an attached step beam in a generally horizontal and elevated deployed position, while permitting a space-saving tucked-in stowed position.