Steering Wheel Groove Design for Insert Positioning
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing methods for molding steering wheels with undercut grooves for sheathing reinforcement are complex and costly, often requiring specialized molds with sliders, limiting the freedom of insert positioning and increasing production expenses.
Innovation Solution
A steering wheel design featuring a first groove formed using a standard two-part mold without a slider, allowing a sheathing reinforcement with an undercut portion to be inserted along a separate direction, enabling easy formation and positioning of the insert, and potentially embedding the reinforcement in the groove.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If an undercut groove is formed in the molded body to receive sheathing reinforcement, then freedom of insert positioning is improved, but mold complexity and production cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The groove is divided into two functional parts: a first groove formed in the molded body that is demoldable using a standard two-part mold, and a second groove formed by the sheathing reinforcement itself which receives the insert. This segmentation allows each groove to be formed by simpler, less expensive molds while achieving the desired positioning freedom.
Solution Approach 2:
The sheathing reinforcement acts as an intermediary element that serves dual purposes: it provides structural support for the steering wheel and simultaneously forms the second groove to receive the insert. This eliminates the need for a complex mold to create the undercut groove, as the reinforcement itself creates the necessary geometry.
2Ease of manufacture
If a standard two-part mold is used to form the groove, then production cost is reduced, but the ability to receive undercut grooves is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The groove reception function is segmented between two components: the first groove in the molded body accepts the sheathing reinforcement, while the second groove formed by the reinforcement itself accepts the insert. This allows standard molds to be used for the first groove while the reinforcement creates the necessary undercut geometry for the second groove.
Solution Approach 2:
The sheathing reinforcement serves its own structural purpose while simultaneously creating the groove geometry needed to receive the insert. By using the reinforcement itself to form the second groove, the design eliminates the need for complex mold features and reduces manufacturing cost.
3Adaptability or versatility
If a three-part mold with slider is used to form undercut groove, then groove positioning freedom is improved, but manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The groove system is segmented into a first groove formed by a simple two-part mold and a second groove formed by the sheathing reinforcement. This segmentation allows the use of inexpensive standard molds while achieving the positioning freedom that would otherwise require expensive three-part molds with sliders.
Solution Approach 2:
The sheathing reinforcement serves as an intermediary that translates the simple geometry from the two-part mold into the complex undercut groove configuration needed for insert reception. This intermediary approach avoids the need for expensive mold modifications while achieving the desired design freedom.
Data Source
AI summary
A steering wheel configured to rotate about a steering axis, comprising a rim formed of a body molded onto a frame, the body having a first mold release axis, a first groove arranged in the body in a demoldable manner relative to the first mold release axis, a sheathing reinforcement arranged to be inserted into the first groove of the body and at least partially form a second groove, wherein the second groove is arranged to receive an insert in an insertion direction separate from the first mold release axis, and in that the sheathing reinforcement comprises at least one portion which is undercut relative to the first mold release axis.