Non-metallic Rim with Protective Insert for Impact Energy Dissipation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Composite wheels made from fibre-reinforced plastics often suffer from structural integrity loss under high and sudden axial or radial loads, leading to tire deflation and safety concerns due to undetected damage, which requires entire rim replacement rather than repair.
Innovation Solution
A non-metallic rim design featuring a primary structural component with a protective insert, such as foam or honeycomb, and an outer layer bound by a polymer matrix, which absorbs and dissipates impact energy, and includes a sacrificial layer for early damage detection and improved manufacturing repeatability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If a composite wheel experiences very high and/or sudden axial or radial loads or impacts, then the structural integrity of the wheel is compromised, but the wheel maintains a lightweight structure
Solution Approach 1:
The rim is divided into multiple functional layers including a primary structural component, protective insert, outer layer, and polymer matrix. Each layer serves specific purposes: the primary structural component provides load-bearing capability, the protective insert absorbs impact energy, and the outer layer provides additional protection. This segmentation allows the wheel to maintain lightweight construction while improving impact resistance and structural integrity under high loads.
2Reliability
If damage occurs to the rim, then the entire rim needs to be replaced, but replacing the entire rim increases cost and complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The protective insert is positioned between the outer layer and the primary structural component to detect and indicate damage before it compromises the primary structural integrity. This preliminary damage indication system allows for early detection of impacts or structural issues, enabling timely inspection and replacement decisions without waiting for catastrophic failure.
Solution Approach 2:
The protective insert acts as a sacrificial or indicator element that can show damage without requiring replacement of the entire expensive primary structural component. By using a separate, potentially replaceable protective layer, the system enables cost-effective damage management where only the protective insert needs replacement rather than the entire rim assembly.
3Reliability
If damage goes undetected on rims, then safety problems occur, but detection methods increase complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The protective insert can be designed with visual indicators such as color changes or contrasting colors between layers to indicate damage. When the protective insert is damaged, the visual appearance changes, providing an obvious and simple method for detecting rim damage without requiring complex sensing or diagnostic systems. This maintains high safety through easy damage detection while avoiding increased system complexity.
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 design reduces stress concentration, enhances impact resistance, allows for early detection of damage, and improves safety by indicating when inspection is needed, while maintaining a lightweight structure suitable for high-performance vehicles.
Implementation Method 1
a protective insert is disposed between an axial outer face of the first flange and the primary structural component, wherein the protective insert comprises an insert selected from a foam and a honeycomb
Implementation Method 2
the primary structural component, bead seat, outer layer, and the protective insert are bound by a polymer matrix
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3A
AI summary
Herein is described a non-metallic rim for a wheel, the rim comprising: a barrel having first and second flanges extending radially outward from opposing edges of the barrel, and the barrel comprising a first bead seat and a second bead seat arranged axially inwardly, respectively, of the first and second flanges, wherein a primary structural component extends at least through the first flange and the barrel, the primary structural component being capable of bearing the majority of the radial and/or lateral load that, in use, would be borne by the rim a protective insert is disposed between an outer face of the first flange and the primary structural component and/or at least a portion of the first bead seat is spaced apart from the primary structural component and the primary structural component, bead seat and, if present, the protective insert are bound by a polymer matrix.