Wiper Adapter Safety Stop Prevents Blade Detachment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional wiper systems face reliability issues due to the risk of adapter locking stud failure, leading to unintended detachment of the wiper blade from the driving arm, which can impair the driver's view and complicate dismantling operations.
Innovation Solution
An adapter for connecting wiper blades to a driving arm, configured to pivot about a pivot pin, with maintaining means to secure the nominal position and translate to a safety position in case of failure, featuring a safety stop and lateral flanges to guide the arm, ensuring secure attachment and easy disengagement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If conventional locking studs are used to attach the adapter to the arm, then the attachment is simple and allows easy detachment, but the reliability is reduced due to risk of stud failure causing unintended detachment
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a safety stop feature that is pre-configured to engage if the locking mechanism fails. This preliminary safety measure ensures that even if the locking stud fails, the blade cannot detach completely, thus maintaining reliability while preserving ease of operation for intentional detachment.
Solution Approach 2:
The safety stop acts as a cushioning backup mechanism that is already in place before failure occurs. It provides a secondary restraint that prevents catastrophic detachment, effectively cushioning against the harmful effect of locking stud failure.
2Reliability
If guidance means are added to guide the arm in translation to prevent accidental detachment, then reliability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the guidance function with the existing safety stop feature. The safety stop not only provides backup retention but also guides the arm in translation during assembly and operation. This consolidation prevents accidental detachment while avoiding the need for separate guidance components, thus improving reliability without significantly increasing complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The safety stop is designed to serve multiple functions: it acts as a backup retention mechanism, a guidance feature for translational movement, and a stop for deliberate disengagement. This multi-functionality reduces the need for additional components, maintaining simplicity while enhancing reliability.
3Ease of operation
If cutouts are provided on the arms for guidance as in prior art, then translational guidance is achieved, but manufacturing precision requirements increase and manufacturing becomes more complicated
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the guidance function from the arm and relocates it to the adapter component. By providing guidance features on the adapter rather than requiring cutouts in the arm, the manufacturing complexity of the arm is reduced, while the adapter assumes the guidance responsibility. This extraction simplifies arm manufacturing without compromising guidance functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of modifying the arm with cutouts to provide guidance (as in prior art), the patent inverts the approach by providing guidance features on the adapter that interfaces with the arm. This reversal shifts the manufacturing complexity to the adapter, which is easier to manufacture with added features, while simplifying the arm component.
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to an adapter (9) for connecting a windscreen wiper blade (1) to a drive arm (3) of a wiper system, said adapter (9) being configured to be connected to a connector (8) with a degree of freedom in pivoting about an axis of articulation, said connector (8) being fixed to the blade (1), said adapter (9) comprising means for keeping in a nominal position of immobilization on the arm, said adapter (9) being configured to be immobilized, in a direction known as the direction of retraction, situated in a plane perpendicular to the axis of articulation, in a safety position, should said retaining means (20) fail. According to the invention, the adapter (9) is configured to be guided by the arm (3) in a translational movement, in said direction of retraction, from said nominal position to said safety position and/or to have a direction of deliberate disengagement from the arm starting from a position located between the two, nominal and safety positions. The invention also relates to an attachment device and to a wiper system comprising such an adapter.