Lifting Bellows Thread Ply Winding Angles
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing lifting bellows for vehicles are complex, expensive, and heavy due to the need for multiple components and metal bead cores, making them costly and inefficient to produce.
Innovation Solution
A hose-shaped elastomer main body with embedded reinforcing thread plies at specific winding angles, end covers, and clamping elements, allowing for a lightweight and simple construction that balances forces under pressure, enabling efficient load lifting with minimal components.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If traditional rolling bellows or concertina bellows with metal bead cores are used, then structural strength is ensured, but device complexity and manufacturing cost increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts and removes the complex metal bead core structure from the bellows design. Instead of using traditional metal reinforcement, the patent employs thread plies integrated directly into the elastomer matrix, eliminating the need for separate metal components and their associated assembly complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention uses composite materials by combining thread plies with elastomer matrix to create a reinforced bellows structure. This composite approach provides the necessary structural strength without requiring separate metal bead cores, thereby simplifying the overall device construction while maintaining load-bearing capacity.
2Strength
If traditional metal bead cores are used in bellows production, then structural integrity is maintained, but manufacturing cost and production complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention merges the reinforcement function and the bellows structure into a single integrated component. The thread plies are embedded within the elastomer matrix during manufacturing, combining what were previously separate elements (metal bead cores and elastomer housing) into one unified structure that is easier and cheaper to produce.
Solution Approach 2:
By using composite materials consisting of thread plies and elastomer, the invention achieves structural integrity without the need for expensive metal bead cores. This composite construction reduces material costs and simplifies the manufacturing process while maintaining the necessary strength and durability.
3Reliability
If traditional bellows designs with multiple components are used, then functional requirements are met, but weight increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention merges multiple traditional components (bellows body, reinforcement elements, and sealing structures) into a single integrated elastomer component with embedded thread plies. This consolidation eliminates the weight of separate metal parts and reduces the overall component count, resulting in a significantly lighter assembly that maintains full functional performance.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention employs a flexible elastomer shell structure that replaces heavy metal components. The elastomer main body with embedded thread plies provides the necessary structural support and flexibility without the weight penalty of traditional metal constructions, enabling weight reduction while preserving functional reliability.
4Length of moving object
If winding angle is reduced to increase lifting travel, then extension capability improves, but structural strength may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The composite material construction with embedded thread plies in the elastomer matrix provides the necessary structural strength to accommodate reduced winding angles. This composite structure allows the bellows to achieve greater extension and lifting travel while maintaining adequate strength, as the thread plies reinforce the elastomer to handle the increased mechanical demands of larger excursions.
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 solution results in a lightweight, cost-effective lifting bellows with increased lifting travel and height capabilities, requiring less installation space and using fewer, simpler components, while maintaining force equilibrium under internal pressure.
Implementation Method 1
the forces which act on the ends are in balance with the forces which are absorbed by the bellows wall and there is an equilibrium of forces
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to a lifting bellows (1), for example for axle-lifting apparatuses of vehicles. The invention is based on the object of creating a lifting bellows (1) which is lightweight and of simple construction and which can be produced inexpensively. The object is achieved by virtue of the fact that the lifting bellows (1) has at least one hose-shaped elastomer main body (2) with an elastomer matrix and has reinforcing supports (6, 7) embedded in the elastomer matrix, two end covers (3, 3A) and two clamping elements (4), wherein the reinforcing support (6, 7) of the main body (2) is built up from at least two thread plies (6, 7), wherein each thread ply (6, 7) is arranged, in the non-loaded state, at a winding angle (11A, 11B) with respect to the circumferential direction, the absolute value of which winding angle (11A, 11B) is less than 35.3°, wherein the two winding angles (11A, 11B) have virtually the same absolute value but different signs, and that the end covers (3, 3A) are each connected at both ends to the main body (2) in an air-tight fashion by means of the clamping elements (4).