Steering Column Bracket Relocation for Knee Safety
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional steering columns pose a high risk of serious knee injury to drivers in accidents due to the presence of a bracket that can collide with the knees, and existing solutions like foam plastic mounting are either space-constrained or increase production costs.
Innovation Solution
A steering column design that eliminates the need for a bracket near the driver's knees by incorporating a tilting and telescoping mechanism with a fixing unit, including hinge shafts, cams, and a needle bearing, allowing for controlled operations without a knee-proximal bracket.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a bracket is disposed at a lower portion of the steering column for telescoping operation, then the telescoping function is achieved, but the driver's knees may hit the bracket causing serious injury in an accident
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the harmful bracket from the lower portion of the steering column and relocates it to the upper portion. This removes the source of knee injury risk while preserving the telescoping function through the upper bracket's engagement with the telescoping guide hole.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the spatial dimension of the bracket's position from lower (near knees) to upper (away from knees). This dimensional relocation eliminates the harmful interaction between the bracket and driver's knees while maintaining the required telescoping functionality.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If foam plastic is mounted on the shroud to protect against knee injury, then injury protection is improved, but production costs increase and space is consumed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the foam plastic solution and replaces it with a structural design solution (upper bracket relocation). This eliminates the need for additional protective materials, reducing production costs and space consumption while achieving the same injury protection goal.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the approach from adding protective material (foam plastic) to changing the structural configuration (bracket position). This parameter change from material-based protection to geometry-based protection reduces manufacturing complexity and cost.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If the steering column structure is simplified to remove the bracket, then injury risk is reduced, but the telescoping and tilting operations may become unstable
Solution Approach 1:
The patent relocates the bracket to the upper dimension of the steering column, maintaining structural stability for telescoping and tilting operations while removing the bracket from the lower dimension where it would contact the driver's knees. This spatial reconfiguration preserves stability while eliminating injury risk.
Data Source
AI summary
A steering column includes a steering shaft connected to a steering wheel; a block, housing the steering shaft; a column tube, housing the block; a main housing, mounted at an exterior of the column tube, and including a telescoping guide hole for a telescoping operation, and a fixing portion for pressing the column tube; a tilt bracket mounted on the main housing and including a tilt guide hole for a tilting operation; a fixing unit combined with the block through the tilt bracket and the main housing, for fixing a position of the column tube; and an operation lever for controlling an operation of the fixing unit, the operation lever being disposed at an exterior of the tilt bracket and connected to the fixing unit.