Wave Shaped Tolerance Absorbing Spacer for Automotive Socket Assembly
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Solution Overview
Problem
In the manufacturing of automotive sockets like ball joints and tie rod ends, controlling cumulative clearance among internal components is challenging due to varying dimensional tolerances, leading to inconsistent rotation and articulation torque characteristics and reduced life expectancy.
Innovation Solution
A wave-shaped or cylindrical tolerance absorbing spacer is pre-compressed to a plastic state during assembly, providing consistent and controlled internal clearance by compensating for cumulative axial component tolerances, with adjustable parameters such as wave amplitude, material thickness, and protrusion number to maintain desired operating clearance within a narrow range.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If traditional rigid spacers are used to control clearance, then manufacturing precision is improved, but adaptability to tolerance variation deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The spacer transitions from a rigid structure to a plastically deformable structure, changing its mechanical parameter from rigid to plastic state during assembly. This allows the spacer to adapt to varying component tolerances while maintaining precise clearance control after deformation.
Solution Approach 2:
The spacer is pre-deformed to a plastic state before final assembly, performing the tolerance compensation action in advance. This preliminary deformation ensures that the spacer is already adapted to the specific clearance requirements before the assembly is finalized.
2Manufacturing precision
If cumulative clearance is reduced to improve torque consistency, then rotation torque consistency is improved, but reliability deteriorates due to component compression
Solution Approach 1:
The spacer changes its physical state from rigid to plastically deformed, allowing it to reduce clearance to optimal levels without permanently compressing other components. The plastic deformation is localized to the spacer itself, preserving the integrity and reliability of the bearing and other critical components.
3Manufacturing precision
If tolerance compensation is increased to improve clearance consistency, then clearance uniformity is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of adding complex adjustment mechanisms or multiple components, the solution changes the fundamental parameter of the spacer from rigid to plastically deformable. This single parameter change enables automatic tolerance compensation without increasing assembly complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The plastically deformable spacer automatically compensates for tolerance variations through its own deformation during assembly, without requiring external adjustment mechanisms or complex control systems. The spacer serves itself to achieve clearance uniformity.
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 significantly reduces variation in clearance across and within production runs, enhancing the stability and consistency of rotation and articulation torque, while preventing the spacer from expanding and sticking in narrow passages, thus improving the assembly's performance and longevity.
Implementation Method 1
pre-compressed by an external tool prior to final assembly, to plastically deform said wave shaped tolerance compensating spacer
Data Source
AI summary
A tolerance absorbing spacer for controlling manufacturing dimensional tolerance variation in products made with multiple internal components, each requiring unique dimensional tolerance allowance. This component adjusts and compensates for the resulting overall cumulative component height variation within an assembly of components, sometimes referred to as “stack height” by compensating for the maximum to minimum range of possible assembly heights, compressing and yielding under applied external force until all excess internal clearance is removed, except for a small, and desirable remaining clearance. This component yields and becomes essentially fully plastic, to provide the necessary tolerance adjustment feature only after reaching a predetermined, minimum force which exceeds all applied forces the component could reasonably encounter in service use and below which, the tolerance absorbing spacer remains fully rigid.