Surrogate Battery Component for Vibration-Stable Test Connections
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Pre-production testing of electrically-powered equipment often faces issues with electrical testing wires/sensors becoming dislodged due to environmental conditions, especially in mobile equipment, leading to data loss and repeated test sequences.
Innovation Solution
A surrogate component with a body comprising two shells and a wiring harness that maintains continuous electrical contact by routing data and power lines through exit holes, allowing it to mimic a battery and maintain connections during stationary or non-stationary testing modes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional testing wires/sensors are used to connect to equipment under test, then electrical testing can be performed, but the wires/sensors become dislodged due to environmental conditions (shock and vibration)
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a surrogate component as an intermediary device that replaces traditional testing wires/sensors. This surrogate component maintains electrical contact through a rigid body structure with connection interfaces, acting as a mediator between the test equipment and the device under test. The intermediary structure prevents direct wire dislodgement by providing a stable mechanical interface that can withstand shock and vibration environments.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the equipment has mobile capability and operates in moving mode, then testing can be performed in realistic conditions, but the complexity of maintaining electrical contact increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the electrical contact maintenance problem from the moving equipment system by using a surrogate component that consolidates all connection interfaces into a single rigid body. This extraction allows the complex wiring and connection management to be isolated in the surrogate component rather than being distributed throughout the moving equipment, simplifying the overall system while maintaining mobile testing capability.
3Reliability
If testing wires/sensors become dislodged, then environmental testing can be completed, but data collection is lost and test sequences must be repeated
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies beforehand cushioning by designing a surrogate component with a robust rigid body structure and multiple connection interfaces that are pre-configured to withstand environmental stresses. The connection interfaces are designed with appropriate mechanical strength and positioning to prevent dislodgement before it can occur, ensuring continuous data collection without requiring test sequence repetitions.
Data Source
AI summary
A surrogate component for a test system is described that includes a body having a first shell, a second shell coupled to the first shell, and a wiring harness. The first shell includes a plurality of exit holes and the second shell includes a first connection interface and a second connection interface. The wiring harness passes through at least one of the plurality of exit holes of the first shell and includes at least one data communication line coupled to the first connection interface and at least one power line coupled to the second connection interface.