Trailer Tongue Hinge with Five Shear Points
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current trailer tongue hinges are manufactured from dissimilar parts, leading to unequal load distribution and increased stress and wear, resulting in reduced strength and longevity, and are prone to breaking or cracking when made from cast steel.
Innovation Solution
A trailer tongue hinge device composed of two identical units with five shear points and made from mild steel, providing equal load distribution and increased strength, allowing the hinge to bend before breaking, thus enhancing its lifetime and safety profile.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If trailer tongue hinges are manufactured from dissimilar parts, then the hinge can be assembled with different components, but the load distribution becomes unequal and stress and wear increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies homogeneity by using two identical hinge units instead of dissimilar parts. Each unit is a mirror image of the other, ensuring symmetric load distribution. The identical construction of both units guarantees equal stress and wear distribution across the hinge assembly, directly resolving the reliability issue while maintaining assembly flexibility through the symmetric design.
2Strength
If trailer tongue hinges are made from cast steel, then the hinge has sufficient strength, but the hinge will break or crack when the steel fails
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the material parameter from cast steel to mild steel. This material substitution fundamentally alters the failure characteristics - mild steel exhibits ductile behavior with significant plastic deformation before failure, providing visible warning signs. This parameter change maintains sufficient strength while dramatically improving reliability by preventing sudden catastrophic failure.
3Device complexity
If trailer tongue hinges have only two shear points, then the hinge structure is simpler, but all stress and wear are concentrated at these two points
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies segmentation by dividing the load path into five distinct shear points instead of two. The symmetric dual-unit design creates multiple shear planes that distribute stress more evenly. This segmentation increases device complexity slightly but dramatically improves reliability by preventing stress concentration at any single point.
4Adaptability or versatility
If the hinge units are dissimilar, then the hinge can accommodate different configurations, but unequal load is exerted on either side causing increased wear
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses controlled asymmetry within a symmetric framework - each individual unit has asymmetric features for configuration flexibility, but the pair of units mirrors each other to ensure equal load distribution. This application of asymmetry at the component level while maintaining symmetry at the assembly level allows configuration adaptability while preventing unequal load distribution that would reduce lifetime.
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention provides an improved trailer tongue hinge device that is far superior to prior art trailer tongue hinges. The inventive trailer tongue hinge device is comprised of two identical parts, i.e., units, which impart an equal load on either side of the hinge device as well as five shear points and wear locations that spreads out stress and wear on the hinge device, rather than two shear points and wear locations encountered in the prior art. Further, the improved trailer tongue hinge device is manufactured from mild steel that is capable of bending long before it might break, which makes the inventive hinge device about three times stronger than prior hinges, thus imparting a much longer lifetime and safety profile compared to prior art hinges.