Telescopic Steering Shaft Cage for Pull-Out Force Protection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing telescopic steering shafts face issues with high pull-out forces during misuse or accidents, leading to potential deformation and damage of the rolling body holding element, which can impair the telescopic adjustability and safety of the steering column.
Innovation Solution
A rolling body cage with a transfer element that extends axially between support surfaces to divert and absorb pull-out forces as compressive forces, providing increased rigidity and protection against deformation, and optionally reinforced with metallic materials for enhanced strength and stability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the rolling body holding element is used to absorb pull-out forces, then the telescopic adjustability is maintained, but the rolling body holding element may deform or damage under high loading
Solution Approach 1:
A transfer element is introduced as an intermediary component between the rolling body holding element and the stop elements. This transfer element absorbs the pull-out forces that occur during misuse or accidents, preventing these high loads from being transmitted to the rolling body holding element. The transfer element thus mediates the force transmission path, protecting the rolling body holding element while maintaining the telescopic adjustability function.
Solution Approach 2:
The force absorption function is segmented from the rolling body holding element and assigned to a separate transfer element. This segmentation allows the rolling body holding element to专注于 its primary function of maintaining telescopic adjustability, while the transfer element handles the secondary function of absorbing abnormal pull-out forces. This functional segmentation resolves the contradiction by separating the two competing requirements.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the steering shaft allows telescopic movement for adjustment, then the steering wheel position adjustability is improved, but the steering shaft becomes vulnerable to separation during misuse
Solution Approach 1:
Stop elements are pre-positioned on the inner and outer shafts to define the maximum travel path of the telescopic movement. These stop elements are arranged in advance to prevent the steering shaft from being pulled apart beyond the designed adjustment path. The preliminary positioning of these mechanical stops ensures that even during misuse or accidents, the steering shaft components cannot separate, thus protecting against separation while maintaining adjustability within safe limits.
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 shields the rolling body holding element from high loading, preventing deformation and ensuring the steering shaft's functionality and safety, even under extreme conditions, thereby enhancing the operating reliability and safety of the vehicle's steering system.
Implementation Method 1
The transfer element which joins together the support surfaces in an axially rigid manner is subjected to the pull-out force as a compression, and it transfers the applied compressive force between the stop elements of the hollow shaft and the stop elements of the inner shaft
Implementation Method 2
The rolling bodies can roll between the outer surface of the inner shaft and the inner surface of the hollow shaft in the direction of the longitudinal axis, so that a smooth rolling body-mounted axial adjustability of the inner shaft relative to the hollow shaft is realized
Implementation Method 3
the inner shaft has on its outside and the hollow shaft has on its inside mutually radially opposite groovelike rolling body running tracks extending in the direction of the longitudinal axis, between which the rolling bodies are arranged, and serving as form-fit elements to form a form fit acting with regard to a rotation about the longitudinal axis, joining together the hollow and the inner shaft with torque locking
Data Source
AI summary
A steering shaft may include a hollow shaft in which an inner shaft is arranged telescopically coaxially in an axial direction. A rolling body may be held in a form fit manner in a circumferential direction and configured to roll in the axial direction in a rolling body holding element of a rolling body cage disposed between the inner and hollow shafts, which is arranged in the axial direction between radially projecting stop elements of the hollow shaft and of the inner shaft. The rolling body cage may have end-face axial support surfaces that are oriented in the axial direction against the stop elements. The rolling body cage may have at least one transfer element extending axially between the end-face axial support surfaces.