Recessed Tow-Hook Bracket for Pedestrian Safety
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Solution Overview
Problem
Protruding tow-hooks on vehicles pose a risk to pedestrians and often fail to meet regulatory requirements for pedestrian safety, such as GTR 9 and NCAP standards, as they can cause excessive knee shear impact during collisions.
Innovation Solution
A tow-hook assembly with a bracket and brace configuration that recesses the hook within the bumper beam, allowing it to be accessible while minimizing protrusion, thus preventing contact with pedestrians and adhering to safety regulations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the tow-hook protrudes from the bumper beam, then the hook is easily accessible for towing operations, but it poses a safety risk to pedestrians by causing excessive knee shear impact during collisions
Solution Approach 1:
The tow-hook assembly is nested within the bumper beam structure. The bracket is positioned inside the bumper beam, and the hook extends only partially through the opening, with its critical protruding portion recessed within the bumper beam's outer surface, allowing accessibility while eliminating pedestrian injury risk
Solution Approach 2:
The bumper beam structure is designed with different local properties: the bracket mounting area provides structural support and anchoring, the opening area allows hook access, and the recessed area contains the hook's protruding portion to eliminate safety hazards while maintaining functional accessibility
2Object-affected harmful factors
If the tow-hook is recessed within the bumper beam, then pedestrian safety is improved by reducing knee shear impact, but the hook's accessibility and strength for towing may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The towing function is segmented between the hook portion (which provides the attachment point) and the bracket portion (which provides structural support and anchoring). The bracket is secured to the bumper beam's inner surface with mounting features, ensuring that the recessed hook maintains full towing strength through the distributed load path
Solution Approach 2:
The bracket acts as an intermediary between the hook and the bumper beam structure. It provides a secure mounting interface with mounting features that distribute loads, ensuring the recessed hook maintains full towing capability while the bumper beam structure protects the hook from pedestrian impact
3Object-affected harmful factors
If a bracket and brace configuration is used to recess the hook, then pedestrian safety and regulatory compliance are improved, but the device complexity increases compared to a simple welded tow-hook
Solution Approach 1:
The bracket and brace components are merged into a single integrated assembly that is pre-configured during manufacturing. This integrated assembly includes the bracket with mounting features and the brace with the hook, reducing on-site assembly complexity while maintaining the safety benefits of the recessed configuration
Data Source
AI summary
A tow-hook assembly may include a vehicle frame and a bumper arranged thereon, and a tow-hook assembly configured to attach to the vehicle bumper and provide a tow-hook. The assembly may include a bracket defining an opening configured to receive the tow-hook, and a brace attached to a backside of the bracket and including a projection extending through the opening to the opposite side of the bracket.