Vehicle Input Device Custom Decorative Plate
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Vehicle control knobs lack customization options for high-end market demands, as existing designs are typically made from fixed materials and cannot be easily customized without excessive manufacturing costs.
Innovation Solution
An input device with a transparent top cover that encloses a customizable decorative plate, allowing for various materials to be used, including sensitive ones, which are protected from direct touch and air degradation, enabling end-user selection and wide-ranging customization.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If control knobs are made from fixed plastic materials with printed labels, then manufacturing costs are controlled, but customization options are limited and appearance cannot be easily adapted to end-user demands
Solution Approach 1:
The control knob is divided into separate components: a base structure and a decorative plate that can be independently selected and assembled. This segmentation allows the decorative plate to be customized from various materials (wood, metal, glass, stone) while the base structure remains standardized for efficient manufacturing, resolving the contradiction between customization and manufacturing ease
Solution Approach 2:
The base structure serves as a universal platform that can accommodate multiple types of decorative plates with different materials and designs. The standardized mounting mechanism allows the same base to work with various custom-made decorative plates, enabling versatility without increasing manufacturing complexity of the core component
2Adaptability or versatility
If decorative materials are made visible and accessible, then customization appearance is achieved, but materials are exposed to direct touch and air degradation
Solution Approach 1:
A transparent cover acts as an intermediary element between the user and the decorative plate. This cover allows the decorative material to be visible and selectable while physically protecting it from direct touch and exposure to air, thereby maintaining both customization freedom and material durability
Solution Approach 2:
The transparent cover functions as a protective thin film that encloses the decorative plate. This shell-like structure provides physical protection against degradation from air and touch while maintaining optical transparency to preserve the aesthetic and customization value of the decorative material
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3
Figure 4~5
AI summary
The disclosed subject matter generally relates to an input device adapted for being installed in a vehicle for providing control of an electronic vehicle system which provides for using a visible decorative plate as a background surface of almost any material selected according to an end-user's demand. Accordingly, the inventors realized an input device with improved ability for customizing the appearance of the input device in line with end-user's demand by allowing a transparent top cover to delimit an inner volume in which a custom-made decorative plate is used as a background for instructive symbols. Since the decorative plate is arranged below the transparent top cover, the decorative plate is advantageously not reachable from outside the inner volume, but still visible through the top transparent cover. Thus, the decorative plate is well protected from direct touch and air degradation, which enables a wide range of decorative plate materials including materials that may be sensitive to touch and air contact.