Motor Vehicle Side Sill Segmentation for Assembly Adaptability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing side sill designs for motor vehicles are complex to produce and adapt to different design variants, particularly due to their large-format configuration, which limits material selection and complicates assembly, especially when accommodating varying drive concepts and vehicle designs such as electric vs. internal combustion engines, and poses challenges with underfloor energy store fastening.
Innovation Solution
The side sill is modularized into separate internal and bottom flange components connected via a flange connection, allowing for universal production of the internal part and adaptive design of the bottom flange specific to each variant, using different materials and preassembled structural units to simplify assembly and accommodate various vehicle configurations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If the side sill internal part and bottom flange are formed as a single large-format sheet metal component, then the cross section can be increased to improve static and dynamic loading resistance, but the production complexity increases and material selection is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The side sill is divided into separate components: a side sill internal part and a bottom flange, which are connected via flange connections. This segmentation allows each component to be produced independently with simpler processes while maintaining the overall structural strength through the connection interface.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention enables the use of different materials for the side sill internal part and bottom flange, allowing optimization of each component's material properties based on specific loading conditions and production requirements, rather than being constrained to a single material for the entire assembly.
2Stability of the object's composition
If the side sill is configured as a single large-format component, then structural integrity is improved, but adaptability to different design variants and drive concepts is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
By separating the side sill into modular components connected by flange connections, the invention enables different configurations and adaptations for various design variants (such as different drive concepts or vehicle types) while preserving the overall structural integrity through standardized connection interfaces.
3Strength
If the sheet metal component is of undercut configuration in the vehicle vertical direction, then the bottom flange can be pulled downward to increase cross section, but assembly complexity increases and fastening sockets require cutting of the reinforcing component
Solution Approach 1:
The separation of the bottom flange from the side sill internal part allows the bottom flange to be optimized for downward pull and cross-section increase without compromising assembly simplicity. The flange connection design enables assembly without requiring cutting of the reinforcing component, resolving the contradiction between cross-section optimization and assembly ease.
Data Source
AI summary
A side sill for a motor vehicle has a side-sill inner part assigned to a floor assembly, a bottom flange and a side-sill outer part which bounds a cavity of the side sill, in which a reinforcing part, which is fastened to the side-sill inner part, is arranged. In order to provide a side sill which is optimized in respect of simple manufacturing and installation and also needs-oriented design, and by which improved adaptability of the components to different construction variants is possible, the side-sill inner part and the bottom flange are designed as separate components which are connected to each other at least indirectly along a flange connection running in the direction of longitudinal extent of the side sill.