Retractable Trailer Hitch Ball Rod for Parking Clearance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing attachment devices for vehicles often hinder maneuvers like reversing and parking due to their design, which can lead to incorrect reliance on distance measuring devices and potential accidents.
Innovation Solution
The attachment device features a swivel storage unit and a swivel storage body that can be rotated around vertical and horizontal axes, allowing the ball rod to be lowered and steered to hide under the vehicle, thus avoiding protrusion and enhancing safety.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the trailer hitch extends beyond the rear bumper to provide accessible coupling, then the coupling ball is easily accessible for towing operations, but the hitch protrudes beyond the vehicle's fixed rear end causing distance measuring devices to give incorrect signals and creating safety hazards
Solution Approach 1:
The trailer hitch is designed with dynamic positioning capability, allowing it to switch between an extended operating position where the coupling ball is accessible behind the bumper and a retracted parking position where it is concealed beneath the vehicle. This dynamic adjustment resolves the contradiction by providing accessibility when needed while eliminating protrusion during normal vehicle operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The hitch system is divided into separable components including the pivot bearing unit, pivot bearing body, and ball rod that can move independently. This segmentation allows the coupling ball to be positioned separately from the main vehicle structure, enabling it to extend behind the bumper for accessibility while being retractable to avoid interfering with distance measuring devices.
2Ease of operation
If the trailer hitch remains extended for easy access, then coupling operations are convenient, but maneuvering in tight spaces and parking become difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The hitch system transitions from a static extended position to a dynamic system that can retract. The ball rod can be moved between an operating position extending behind the bumper for convenient coupling and a parking position retracted beneath the vehicle, allowing the system to adapt to different operational requirements including tight maneuvering and parking scenarios.
3Ease of operation
If the coupling ball is positioned behind the bumper for accessibility, then towing operations are facilitated, but the hitch creates harmful effects by causing accidents due to driver reliance on incorrect distance signals
Solution Approach 1:
The system is designed to automatically retract the coupling ball beneath the vehicle when not in active use, before the vehicle enters situations where distance measuring accuracy is critical. This preliminary retraction action prevents the harmful effect of drivers relying on incorrect distance signals from the extended hitch.
Solution Approach 2:
The coupling ball is extracted from the fixed rear position and made movable through the ball rod mechanism. This extraction allows the coupling ball to be removed from the space behind the bumper when not needed, eliminating the source of the harmful effect while preserving accessibility when required for towing operations.
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a trailer hitch (101) for attachment to the rear of a vehicle. The trailer hitch (101) comprises a pivot bearing unit (103) connectable to a vehicle part (102) and a pivot bearing body (104). A ball rod (107) is also provided, which is pivotally connected to the pivot bearing body (104) and has a coupling ball (108). Furthermore, the trailer hitch (101) includes a drive device (109) by means of which the ball rod (107) can be moved from an operating position (110), in which the coupling ball (108) is located behind the rear of the vehicle, to a parking position (111), and vice versa, in which the coupling ball (108) is located below the vehicle.Furthermore, a cam guide (113) is provided by means of which the pivot bearing body (104) can be moved both translationally in the vertical direction and rotationally (105) during the transfer from the operating position (110) to the parking position (111) and vice versa, wherein a cam block (114) is arranged on or in the pivot bearing unit (103) or the pivot bearing body (104), and a cam track (115) cooperating with the cam block (114) is arranged on or in the pivot bearing body (104) or the pivot bearing unit (103). The trailer hitch also has at least one locking device (116) by means of which the pivot bearing body (104) and the ball rod (107) can be locked in the parking position (111) and/or in the operating position (110). According to the invention, it is provided that the cam block (114) is movable in a direction perpendicular to the first pivot axis (105).