Spring-Preloaded Drum Line Magazine for Trailer Supply Lines
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing line magazines for semi-mounted trailers are prone to supply line damage due to hanging and breaking, especially when driving straight, and lack reliable pretensioning to prevent misorientation of the wedge connector during recoupling.
Innovation Solution
A line magazine with a spring-preloaded drum disk that retracts the supply line when driving straight and unwinds during curves, maintaining tension and preventing damage, while keeping the wedge connector oriented for correct recoupling.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the supply line is made sufficiently long to avoid breaking during curve negotiation, then the supply line can accommodate trailer swiveling, but the supply line hangs down and risks damage or breaking when driving straight
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the dynamics principle by implementing a spring-loaded cable drum that dynamically adjusts the supply line length. The spring mechanism automatically winds the supply line during straight driving to prevent hanging and damage, while allowing the supply line to unwind during curve negotiation to accommodate trailer swiveling. This dynamic adjustment resolves the contradiction between needing sufficient length for adaptability and preventing damage during straight driving.
2Force
If a spring-loaded cable drum with three cable segments and two connection sites is used to maintain tensile stress, then the supply line can be pretensioned, but the system becomes unreliable and prone to breakages
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the extraction principle by removing the problematic multi-segment cable design and replacing it with a single continuous supply line. The invention extracts only the essential function of pretensioning through the spring-loaded drum while eliminating the weak points created by multiple connection sites and segments. This single continuous line design maintains the necessary tensile stress for reliability while removing the failure points that caused breakages in previous designs.
3Ease of operation
If the wedge connector is allowed to move freely, then the connector can orient itself during coupling, but the connector may become wrongly oriented during recoupling without proper pretensioning
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the preliminary action principle by using the spring-loaded drum to maintain constant pretension on the supply line, which in turn keeps the wedge connector in a predetermined ready-to-enter position even when not coupled. This preliminary positioning action ensures that during recoupling operations, the connector is already correctly oriented and positioned, eliminating the risk of wrong orientation while still allowing free movement during the actual coupling process.
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 solution effectively prevents supply line damage and ensures the wedge connector is always ready for recoupling, enhancing operational availability and reducing vulnerability to corrosion.
Implementation Method 1
a drum disk (2) mounted in the housing (1) and able to rotate, wherein the drum disk (2) is preloaded by a spring element (3)
Data Source
AI summary
A line magazine for a supply line on a semimounted trailer with a king pin and a wedge connector pivoted on the king pin is described. The underlying problem of the invention was to provide a line magazine which prevents the supply line from hanging down in a mechanically simple way, while on the other hand it provides a constant pretensioning of the supply line. The problem is solved according to the invention with a line magazine that comprises a housing and a drum disk mounted in the housing and able to rotate, while the drum disk is preloaded by a spring element and the supply line engages by its front segment of line with the wedge connector and is led out from the housing by its rear segment of line in fixed manner.