Steering Hub Unit with Vertical Abutment Shock Absorption
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional vehicle steering systems face challenges in dynamically adjusting wheel angles to balance stress distribution between inner and outer wheels, leading to suboptimal fuel economy, tire wear, and cornering performance, due to fixed steering geometries and complex, heavy mechanisms that compromise rigidity and reliability.
Innovation Solution
A turning function-equipped hub unit with a compact design, featuring a hub unit main body, a unit support member, and a turning actuator, which includes an abutment part that engages only under excessive impact loads to absorb external forces, allowing independent wheel toe angle adjustment and varying wheel angle geometries based on travel speed, thereby improving stability and reducing stress concentrations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If steering geometries are changed by relatively moving knuckle arm and joint part, then steering geometry adaptability is improved, but device complexity and space requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The supplementary turning actuator is nested within the hub unit structure, with the actuator body disposed in the inner peripheral part of the wheel. This nesting approach allows the steering geometry adjustment mechanism to be integrated into the existing wheel assembly without requiring additional external space, thereby improving steering geometry adaptability while avoiding increased device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of changing steering geometry by moving components in the horizontal plane (knuckle arm and joint part relocation), this invention introduces vertical dimension movement by displacing the hub unit itself in the vertical direction. This dimensional change enables steering geometry adjustment through a different spatial approach that avoids the complexity of traditional horizontal movement mechanisms.
2Force
If large force is provided to change vehicle geometries at knuckle arm position, then steering geometry change effectiveness is improved, but motor actuator size and space requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention changes the direction of force application from horizontal (at knuckle arm level) to vertical (at hub unit level). By moving the hub unit vertically, the actuator can apply force in the vertical dimension where space is more available, allowing for a more compact actuator design while still achieving effective steering geometry changes through the vertical displacement of the entire hub assembly.
3Volume of moving object
If hub unit is made compact to fit in limited space, then space utilization is improved, but rigidity and strength against external shock force decrease
Solution Approach 1:
The hub unit incorporates a supplementary turning actuator that can dynamically adjust wheel angles in response to travel conditions. This dynamic adjustment capability allows the compact hub unit to maintain optimal performance by actively compensating for the reduced structural mass, thereby preserving rigidity and shock resistance despite the compact design.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the operational parameters of the wheel assembly by introducing active angle adjustment through the supplementary turning actuator. By dynamically changing wheel angles based on travel conditions, the compact hub unit can optimize its mechanical properties and stress distribution, effectively compensating for the reduced size and maintaining adequate strength against external shock forces.
4Device complexity
If fixed steering geometry is used, then device simplicity is improved, but fuel economy and tire wear performance deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The hub unit incorporates a supplementary turning actuator that dynamically adjusts wheel angles based on travel conditions such as speed and steering input. This dynamic adjustment optimizes the steering geometry in real-time, improving fuel economy and reducing tire wear by ensuring optimal wheel contact and stress distribution, while maintaining relatively simple implementation through integration into the existing hub structure.
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is a turning function-equipped having a reduced size and having improved strength to an external shock force and improved reliability. The turning function-equipped hub unit includes: a hub unit main body; a unit support member; and a turning actuator. The unit support member is provided to a chassis frame component. The unit support member includes an abutment part with which a part of the hub unit main body is brought into abutment in a vertical direction during non-normal time, the abutment part being separated from the hub unit main body in the vertical direction during normal time, and the non-normal time in which the abutment is caused, is a time when an impact load equal to or greater than a predetermined value acts on the hub unit main body in the vertical direction due to an external force from the wheel.