Fiber-Composite Wheel Hub Joint for High-Torque Transmission
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vehicle wheel assemblies, particularly those with fiber composite material hubs, face challenges in torque transmission due to limited strength and risk of damage from boreholes, leading to inefficient and costly connections with limited torque capacity and increased material stress.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle wheel assembly design featuring variable surface profiles on the wheel hub and carrier elements for a positive connection in the circumferential direction, allowing for a large-area tangential form-fitting connection with reduced material stress and higher torque transmission, using features like stepped, tooth-shaped, or wavy profiles and press fits to enhance stability and power transmission.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If dowel pin connections are used to connect the carrier element to the wheel hub, then the connection can be manufactured with conventional methods, but the torque transmission capacity is limited and the complexity of manufacturing increases due to multiple connecting parts and boreholes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple separate connecting parts (dowel pins, blind holes, bearing spacers, end caps) into a single integrated connection interface. The carrier element and wheel hub are connected directly through complementary surface profiles without requiring separate fastening components, thereby reducing device complexity while maintaining ease of manufacture.
Solution Approach 2:
The connection interface serves multiple functions simultaneously: it provides torque transmission, axial positioning, and radial fixation. The surface profiles are designed to perform all these functions in a single connection structure, eliminating the need for multiple specialized components and reducing overall connection complexity.
2Reliability
If multiple boreholes are drilled in the wheel hub for dowel pin connections, then the carrier element can be securely attached, but the strength of fiber composite material hubs is reduced and the risk of damage increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the harmful boreholes from the connection design. Instead of drilling holes through the wheel hub that compromise fiber composite material strength, the connection is established through external surface profiles that contact each other tangentially. This removes the source of structural weakness while maintaining connection security.
Solution Approach 2:
The surface profiles act as an intermediary connection mechanism that transfers torque without requiring direct penetration into the hub structure. The tangential contact between profiles provides the necessary mechanical interlocking while preserving the integrity of the fiber composite material.
3Power
If the surface profiles of the joining sections are designed for positive connection in the circumferential direction, then torque transmission is improved and material stress is reduced, but the manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by designing specific surface profile features (such as stepped, tooth-shaped, or wavy profiles) only in the critical circumferential contact zones. These localized features provide the necessary mechanical interlocking for torque transmission without requiring high precision across the entire surface, thereby reducing overall manufacturing precision requirements while maintaining power transmission capability.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
The invention relates to a vehicle wheel arrangement which has a wheel (1) with a wheel hub (4) and at least one support element (5) for mounting the wheel (1) on a vehicle part and/or for the arrangement of a force transmission unit. According to the invention, it is provided that the wheel hub (4) has at least one joining section (6), which, in the joining state of the vehicle wheel arrangement, corresponds with a joining section (6) of the support element (5), wherein the surface profiles (7, 7.1, 7.2) of the joining sections (6) are designed in such a manner that, in the joining state of the vehicle wheel arrangement, the wheel hub (4) and the support element (5) are connected to each other in a form-fitting manner at least in the circumferential direction of the wheel hub axis (R). The invention also relates to a method for producing a vehicle wheel arrangement with a wheel hub (4) composed of a fibre composite material and with at least one support element (5).