Automotive Sonar Assembly With Unequal-Interval Clamping
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Automated assembly of automotive sonars with internal elements is costly and prone to misalignment, leading to reduced efficiency and yield.
Innovation Solution
The automotive sonar assembly method involves a sensor with unequal interval clamping parts, a front cover with corresponding clamping parts, and a terminal seat with positioning parts, all assembled using a carrier with specific grooves and limiting features, ensuring precise alignment and reducing misalignment during automated assembly.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If automated assembly methods are used for sonars with internal elements, then assembly speed is improved, but misalignment occurs and cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The sensor assembly includes self-aligning features where the sensor housing has a positioning protrusion that fits into a corresponding positioning groove in the terminal seat, allowing the assembly to self-correct alignment during automated assembly without requiring complex alignment mechanisms
Solution Approach 2:
A carrier fixture is introduced as an intermediary device that holds multiple components (sensor, front cover, terminal seat) in predetermined positions during assembly, ensuring precise alignment while enabling automated assembly processes
2Productivity
If complex automated assembly equipment is used, then assembly efficiency is improved, but equipment cost and development difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The design incorporates self-guiding features such as tapered positioning surfaces and complementary geometric shapes on the sensor, front cover, and terminal seat that automatically guide components into correct alignment during assembly, eliminating the need for complex alignment sensors and actuators in the automated equipment
Solution Approach 2:
The front cover and sensor housing feature asymmetric clamping surfaces with specific geometric profiles that ensure unidirectional assembly and prevent misalignment, allowing simple automated pick-and-place equipment to achieve precise assembly without complex positioning systems
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
An automotive sonar (1) includes a sensor (100), a front cover (200) and a terminal seat (300). The sensor (100) includes a plurality of front cover clamping parts (124), and the front cover clamping parts (124) are arranged at unequal intervals along a circumference; the front cover (200) includes a plurality of sensor clamping parts (220), and the sensor clamping parts (220) are suitable for clamping with the front cover clamping parts (124); the terminal seat (300) includes a terminal seat body (310) and a connecting terminal (320), wherein the terminal seat body (310) forms a front opening (318) and an accommodating space (316), the accommodating space (316) is communicated to the front opening (318), and suitable for accommodating at least a part of the sensor (100), the connecting terminal (320) is configured in the accommodating space (316). The disclosure further provides an assembly method suitable for the automotive sonar (1).