Vehicle Lamp Outer Casing Rib Guide for Laser Welding Alignment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional laser welding methods for attaching outer lenses to vehicle lamp casings face challenges in achieving absolute accuracy and preventing misalignment, leading to potential water and dust ingress, which can degrade the lamps' performance and cause failures.
Innovation Solution
The design incorporates an outer lens with a rib structure and a casing having a supporting portion, where the laser beam emits energy to create a melting joint, ensuring accurate attachment and preventing misalignment through a rib guide, thereby forming a high-strength, airtight seal.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a conventional laser welding method is used to attach the outer lens to the casing, then the attachment can be made without jointing materials, but misalignment and inaccurate attachment occur leading to potential water and dust ingress
Solution Approach 1:
The rib structure is pre-formed on the outer lens and the supporting portion is pre-formed on the casing before the welding process. These preliminary structural features guide the alignment and positioning of the outer lens relative to the casing, ensuring accurate attachment before the laser welding actually occurs.
Solution Approach 2:
The rib structure acts as an intermediary element between the outer lens and the casing. It provides a mechanical guide and positioning feature that facilitates precise alignment during the laser welding process, mediating the connection between the two components to prevent misalignment.
2Weight of moving object
If the outer lens is made thin to reduce weight, then fuel efficiency improves, but the mechanical strength and sealing reliability of the attachment decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The rib structure incorporates curved or domed surfaces that distribute mechanical stresses more effectively than flat surfaces. This curvature provides structural reinforcement to the thin outer lens, maintaining sealing reliability and mechanical strength while keeping the lens thickness minimal for weight reduction.
Solution Approach 2:
The attachment structure is segmented into the rib portion and the supporting portion, creating distinct functional zones. The rib provides structural support and alignment, while the supporting portion provides the welding surface, allowing the thin outer lens to maintain both lightweight properties and reliable sealing.
3Ease of manufacture
If a fine concavo-convex shape is formed on the jointing surface to improve welding, then the laser beam can be emitted effectively, but misalignment and inaccurate attachment still occur
Solution Approach 1:
The fine concavo-convex shape is pre-formed on the jointing surface of the supporting portion before the welding process. This preliminary surface treatment ensures effective laser beam emission and absorption, while the overall alignment is controlled by the rib structure, combining welding effectiveness with positioning accuracy.
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 solution allows for confident attachment of the outer lens to the casing using a general laser welder, ensuring a high airtight structure and adequate mechanical strength while preventing misalignment, thus enhancing the durability and performance of vehicle lamps.
Implementation Method 1
emitting a laser beam L along the rib 12 of the outer lens 10 using a laser welder 60
Implementation Method 2
a melting joint portion 50 is formed to integrate the melting portion of the casing 20 into the melting region of the outer lens 10
Data Source
AI summary
An outer casing for vehicle lamps, a vehicle lamp and a manufacturing method for the outer casing and the vehicle lamp can include an outer lens having a rib located at a peripheral portion thereof and a casing having a supporting portion located so as to face the rib formed in a ring shape. The rib of the lens can include an end portion formed in a convex shape in a width direction thereof in accordance with a light energy distribution of a laser welder, and can be attached to the casing with confidence by utilizing the energy distribution. Thus, the vehicle lamp using the outer casing can incorporate various lamps with an airtight structure and an adequate mechanical strength while preventing misalignment between the outer lens and the casing, and the manufacturing method can provide the outer casing using similar manufacture equipment as compared with conventional methods.