Slat Holder Guide Surface Prevents Jamming

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional slat holders for commercial vehicle superstructures often cause jamming and tilting issues when inserting or removing planar slats due to the protruding rivet heads, which complicate horizontal alignment and lead to undesirable longitudinal movements during driving.

Innovation Solution

A guide surface is introduced between the side walls of the supporting shell, opposite the end face of the slat, ensuring the slat contacts this surface rather than the rivet heads, preventing jamming by dividing the guide surface into multiple partial surfaces that maintain uninterrupted guidance and full-width contact with the vehicle's profile support.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If the slat holder uses rivet attachment with protruding rivet heads, then the supporting shell can be securely fastened to the profile support, but the slat ends get caught on the rivet heads causing jamming and tilting during insertion and removal

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvesecure fastening of supporting shellVSAvoidinsertion and removal of slats
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

A guide surface is introduced as an intermediary element between the rivet heads and the slat end. This guide surface, formed by deforming the supporting shell material, acts as a mediator that guides the slat into proper alignment and prevents contact with the protruding rivet heads, thereby eliminating jamming while maintaining secure fastening

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The guide surface is formed in advance on the supporting shell before slat insertion. By pre-shaping the material to create the guide surface, the system prepares the necessary alignment feature beforehand, ensuring that slats are guided correctly during insertion and preventing tilting before the slat even contacts the rivet heads

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

2Ease of operation

If the guide surface is formed by deforming the supporting shell material, then slat guidance is improved preventing jamming, but the contact area of the supporting shell on the profile support is reduced

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveslat guidance and alignmentVSAvoidcontact area of supporting shell
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSArea of stationary object

Solution Approach 1:

The deformation to create the guide surface is applied locally at specific corners of the supporting shell, not across the entire structure. This localized deformation approach creates the necessary guidance function while preserving the overall contact area between the supporting shell and the profile support, maintaining structural stability

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

Data Source

PatentEP2184221B2Bar holder for commercial vehicle trailers
Publication Date: 2016.09.14 F HESTERBERG & SOHNE
  • EP2184221B2 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP2184221B2 patent drawingFigure 2~3
  • EP2184221B2 patent drawingFigure 4~6

AI summary

A slat holder for commercial vehicle bodies is proposed, comprising an upwardly open support shell (5) that receives the end of a slat (6). The support shell consists of at least a base (10), side walls (11, 12) facing inwards and outwards, and a mounting wall opposite the end face of the slat, which is riveted or bolted to a vertical profile support (3) of the vehicle body. The screw or rivet passing through an opening in the mounting wall (13) bears against a support surface (17) on the inside of the mounting wall (13). To prevent the slat from tilting, especially at the protruding rivet heads, a guide surface (20) is proposed, arranged between the two side walls (11, 12) at the level of the rivet opening or higher. This guide surface faces the end face of the slat and projects towards it compared to the support surface (17).