Tow Hook Mounting Structure for Curved Vehicle Frames
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing tow hook mounting structures for vehicles with curved frames fail to effectively manage energy absorption during frontal impacts, as they are designed for axial crush and not bending deformation, leading to high crash pulses.
Innovation Solution
A robust tow hook mounting structure with weld nuts and high-strength bolts aligned in the vehicle's longitudinal direction, which remains fixed to the frame, initiating controlled bending deformations in the curved frame to absorb crash energy and reduce high crash pulses.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the tow hook mounting structure is designed for axial crush to absorb energy, then it works well for straight frames, but it cannot achieve effective energy absorption for curved frames
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the deformation mode parameter from axial crush to bending deformation. The tow hook mounting structure is specifically designed to induce bending deformation in the curved frame during impact, with the backup structure positioned to create bending moments that utilize the frame's curved geometry for energy absorption.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of allowing the tow hook to detach (conventional approach), the patent inverts the approach by designing a non-detachable mounting structure that remains fixed during impact. This inversion enables the structure to actively manage bending deformations in the curved frame rather than passively detaching.
2Ease of operation
If the tow hook is detachably fixed to the front rail, then it can purposefully detach during high-end impact events, but axial crush is not attainable for curved frames
Solution Approach 1:
The patent inverts the conventional detachable design by creating a non-detachable mounting structure. The tow hook is permanently fixed using multiple attachment bolts and weld nuts, ensuring it remains attached during impact events to actively manage bending deformations in the curved frame.
Solution Approach 2:
The mounting structure is pre-configured with specific geometric relationships and structural configurations that automatically induce favorable bending deformations in the kick-down area during impact, without requiring active control or detachment mechanisms.
3Reliability
If the tow hook remains fixed during impact, then bending deformations can be managed in the curved frame, but the mounting structure must withstand both towing loads and crash loads
Solution Approach 1:
The mounting structure uses a composite approach combining multiple attachment bolts, weld nuts, and a backup structure made from high-strength materials. This composite construction distributes and withstands both towing tensions and crash impact loads simultaneously.
Solution Approach 2:
The mounting structure is segmented into multiple components (attachment bolts, weld nuts, backup structure) that work together to distribute loads. The multiple attachment points and structural elements share the mechanical stresses from both towing and impact events.
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 enables controlled bending deformations in the curved frame, effectively reducing crash pulses by distributing impact energy and maintaining towing strength, thus enhancing safety and compatibility.
Implementation Method 1
The bolts have a greater diameter and possess a higher shear strength than conventional bolts. Particularly, the shear capacity of the selected bolts is higher than both the towing capacity and the collision crash load of the vehicle.
Implementation Method 2
The frame reinforcement to which the tow hook is attached is welded to the front tip of the curved frame. The attachment bolts are aligned in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle.
Implementation Method 3
The inventive tow hook mounting structure is configured so as to generate high bending moments that trigger favorable bending deformations in the kick down area of the frame in which the structure functions as a backup arrangement in an impact event and reduces high crash pulses.
Implementation Method 4
The combined bending capacity of the curved frame and frame reinforcement is enough to support the offset load at the tow hook to overcome the bending capacity and to initiate bending deformation at the frame kick down in the back up structure.
Data Source
AI summary
The disclosed inventive concept provides a robust tow hook mounting structure for use with vehicles having curved frames in which the tow hook remains fixed to the vehicle during a front end impact event. The structure includes weld nuts aligned in a vehicle longitudinal direction. A frame reinforcement to which the tow hook is attached is welded to the front tip of the curved frame. Mounting bolts are aligned in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle to secure the tow hook and the tow hook reinforcement to the frame weld nuts. The shear capacity of the mounting bolts is higher than the towing capacity and the crash load during an impact event. The structure generates high bending moments that trigger favorable bending deformations in the kick down area of the frame in which the structure functions as a backup arrangement in an impact event and reduces high crash pulses.