Parking Locking Unit With Overpressure Valve for Hybrid Housing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing locking units for automatic transmission parking locks face challenges in managing high-pressure peaks, which require robust and expensive metal housings, making them costly and space-intensive, especially when using plastic materials that are less stable under such conditions.
Innovation Solution
A locking unit with a partially plastic housing and an integrated overpressure valve that opens to prevent excessive pressure, allowing for a volume-optimized and weight-optimized design, reducing the need for thick housing walls and enabling connection to hydraulic systems without additional fluid management.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If metal housing is used to withstand high pressure peaks, then strength and stability are improved, but cost and structural space increase
Solution Approach 1:
The housing is divided into two materials: metal sections where high strength is required (pressure-bearing areas) and plastic sections where weight reduction is beneficial. This segmentation allows the housing to withstand pressure peaks while reducing overall weight and cost.
Solution Approach 2:
The housing uses a composite construction combining metal and plastic materials. The metal provides necessary strength for pressure peaks, while the plastic reduces weight and manufacturing cost, creating an optimized hybrid structure.
2Strength
If housing wall thickness is increased to withstand pressure peaks, then strength is improved, but structural space and manufacturing cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The housing wall thickness is optimized by using different materials in different sections. Metal sections can have thinner walls while maintaining strength, and plastic sections are used where lower strength requirements allow for space optimization.
3Ease of manufacture
If plastic housing material is used, then cost is reduced and space is saved, but stability under pressure peaks deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The housing is segmented into metal and plastic sections based on functional requirements. Plastic is used in sections where high strength is not critical, reducing cost and improving manufacturability, while metal is used in pressure-critical areas.
Solution Approach 2:
The hybrid metal-plastic construction allows the housing to achieve the necessary strength characteristics through material selection in specific zones, while maintaining the cost and manufacturing advantages of plastic in appropriate sections.
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 effectively manages high-pressure peaks without increasing structural space, allowing for a cost-effective and lightweight locking unit that can be directly connected to hydraulic pumps, reducing wear and maintaining functionality with reduced housing thickness.
Implementation Method 1
Pressure peaks which may be several times greater than the operating pressure can be fed back from the hydraulic surroundings to the locking unit. Said pressure peaks may even amount to about 150 bar.
Data Source
AI summary
A locking unit for the parking lock of an automatic transmission, for locking the movement of a piston which is movable by a drive and which can be acted on with hydraulic pressure.