Planetary Carrier Welding Structure for Stiffness Matching
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing planetary carrier designs face challenges in reducing costs and matching the stiffness of the carrier plate to the pinion gear, leading to potential pitching issues and assembly errors, especially when changing the configuration or welding method.
Innovation Solution
A planetary carrier design featuring a pair of holding members with a connection part that extends axially and includes a fragile part on the second holding member, allowing for welding without inserting the connection end into an attachment hole, reducing weight and cost, and adjusting stiffness through the fragile part to match the pinion gear's stiffness.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If the connection end of the leg part is inserted into the attachment hole of the carrier base and welded from the opposite side of the carrier plate, then the planetary carrier can be assembled, but the cost increases and the configuration becomes complex
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of inserting the connection end into the attachment hole and welding from the opposite side, the patent inverts the approach by having the connection end face the second holding member directly for welding, eliminating the need for insertion and opposite-side welding operations
Solution Approach 2:
The patent removes the attachment hole from the second holding member, extracting this complex feature entirely. The connection end simply faces and welds to the second holding member without requiring any hole or insertion mechanism
2Ease of manufacture
If the configuration of the planetary carrier or welding method is changed to reduce cost, then the cost decreases, but it becomes difficult to match the stiffness of the carrier plate to the pinion gear, causing pitching in the tooth surface
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by providing a fragile part at a specific location on the second holding member (at the end part in the circumferential direction in the region to which the connection end is connected). This localized feature allows strain release only where needed, maintaining stiffness matching without requiring complex overall configuration changes
Solution Approach 2:
The fragile part changes the stiffness parameter of the second holding member locally, allowing the carrier plate stiffness to match the pinion gear stiffness even with the simplified welding configuration. This parameter modification prevents pitching while keeping the design simple
3Reliability
If a new pinion gear is prepared in accordance with the stiffness of the planetary carrier, then the stiffness matching is achieved, but the cost increases and assembly errors may occur
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of changing the pinion gear, the patent changes the stiffness parameter of the planetary carrier by introducing the fragile part. This allows stiffness matching while using the same pinion gear, reducing cost and eliminating assembly errors
Solution Approach 2:
The fragile part creates a strain release mechanism that copies the effect of having a perfectly matched stiffness system, allowing the use of standard pinion gears without requiring custom-made components for each stiffness variation
Data Source
AI summary
A planetary carrier includes first and second support hole parts that support a pinion shaft on which a pinion gear is provided from both sides in an axial direction. The planetary carrier includes a first holding member and a second holding member. The first holding member includes a connection end that extends in an axial direction toward a second holding member and that is connected to and faces the second holding member. The second holding member includes a fragile part formed on an end part in a circumferential direction in a region to which the connection end is connected.