Mud Flap Retrofit Kit for Reduced Fender Structures
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Modern pickup truck and van construction with reduced fender structure makes it difficult to install third-party mud flaps effectively, leading to improper positioning and potential contact with the roadway due to lack of specific fitment for various vehicle makes.
Innovation Solution
A mud flap installation kit with strategically positioned apertures and flat clips that align and clamp the mud flap to the fender, ensuring a predetermined optimal position, utilizing bolt and nut assemblies to secure the mud flap to the vehicle, with kits designed for specific vehicle makes or fender configurations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If universal mud flap kits are used to accommodate various vehicle makes, then adaptability is improved, but manufacturing precision and positioning accuracy deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by creating vehicle-specific mud flap kits with precisely engineered aperture positions and clip configurations tailored to each vehicle make's unique fender geometry. This allows optimal positioning for each specific application while maintaining the overall system's adaptability across different vehicle types through modular kit design.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the universal mud flap concept into separate vehicle-specific kits, where each kit is customized for a particular vehicle make. This segmentation allows precise positioning for each vehicle type while maintaining adaptability through the modular nature of the kits, resolving the contradiction between universality and precision.
2Weight of moving object
If less fender structure is used to reduce vehicle weight and assembly complexity, then weight and ease of manufacture are improved, but mud flap installation capability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces flat clips as intermediary fastening elements that bridge the gap between the reduced fender structure and the mud flap. These clips engage with existing fender features (such as reinforcement ribs or mounting tabs) to provide secure attachment points without requiring substantial fender structure, thus maintaining both weight reduction and installation capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the attachment parameters by utilizing existing fender reinforcement features rather than requiring traditional large-scale fender structures. By adapting the mounting system to work with the simplified fender design parameters (using clips that engage with existing features), the patent enables mud flap installation while maintaining the weight reduction benefits of the simplified structure.
Data Source
AI summary
A method of installing a mud flap onto a vehicle having a fender which has a contour, so that the mud flap is in a predetermined position. A mud flap installation kit is used. This kit has a mud flap that defines a set of at least three apertures positioned along a curve that parallels the fender contour and a set of flat clips equal in number to the apertures, each flat clip having a bolt and a leaf, defining a leaf aperture. Each flat clip bolt is threaded through a mud flap aperture and a leaf aperture. Then the mud flap is aligned so that each of the apertures is a predetermined distance from the fender, thereby placing the mud flap in the predetermined position. Finally, the flat clips are used to clamp the mud flap to the fender.