Modular TPMS Sensor With Replaceable Valve Stem Battery
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems (TPMS) require costly and time-consuming professional maintenance to replace batteries, which can be dangerous and inconvenient for users.
Innovation Solution
A modular TPMS sensor design with an externally replaceable battery, where the valve stem core secures the battery and a spring-loaded terminal connects/disconnects the sensor and battery, allowing battery replacement without removing the tire or deflating it.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the battery is integrated into the TPMS sensor, then the sensor can function continuously, but battery replacement becomes complex and requires professional assistance
Solution Approach 1:
The TPMS sensor is divided into separate functional modules: the sensor body, the battery, and the valve stem core. This segmentation allows the battery to be independently replaced without affecting the sensor or requiring professional service, resolving the contradiction between continuous operation reliability and ease of repair.
Solution Approach 2:
The battery is extracted from the traditional integrated sensor design and placed in the valve stem core, making it externally accessible and removable. This extraction enables users to replace the battery themselves without disassembling the sensor or requiring professional assistance, while the sensor remains permanently installed for continuous monitoring.
2Device complexity
If the battery is sealed inside the sensor, then the sensor structure is compact, but maintenance becomes time-consuming and costly
Solution Approach 1:
The valve stem core serves as an intermediary structure that houses the battery and provides external access to it. This intermediary design maintains the compact overall structure of the TPMS system while enabling quick battery replacement through the valve stem opening, eliminating the need for time-consuming sensor disassembly.
3Reliability
If professional mechanics are required to replace batteries, then battery replacement can be done safely, but it increases expense and reduces user autonomy
Solution Approach 1:
The design enables users to perform battery replacement themselves through the externally accessible valve stem core. The simple removal and insertion mechanism allows untrained users to safely replace batteries without professional assistance, combining user autonomy with safe and reliable operation.
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
Enables users to replace batteries easily and safely without professional assistance, reducing maintenance costs and time, while maintaining tire pressure monitoring functionality.
Implementation Method 1
The electrical connection may comprise a spring-loaded terminal configured to connect or disconnect the sensor and battery as the battery is inserted or removed from the valve stem
Data Source
AI summary
A modular TPMS sensor with an externally replaceable battery is disclosed. The valve stem facilitates battery replacement with a valve stem core designed to removably secure a battery within the valve stem and a sensor configured with an electrical connection designed to connect the sensor to power from the battery. The valve stem has an interior cavity configured to retain the valve stem core. The battery may be at least partially retained within the valve stem. The removable sensor may be configured to connect to an end of the valve stem distal from the valve stem core. The electrical connection may comprise a spring-loaded terminal configured to connect or disconnect the sensor and battery as the battery is inserted or removed from the valve stem through a valve stem end proximal to the valve stem core, permitting battery replacement without removing or deflating a tire configured with the sensor.