Windscreen Wiper Arm Joint With Resilient Tongue Locking
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing windscreen wiper devices require complex machinery and additional tools for reliable and secure connection between the oscillating arm and wiper blade, making them difficult to assemble and disassemble, especially for those without specific skills.
Innovation Solution
A windscreen wiper device with a U-shaped oscillating arm and a joint part featuring a resilient tongue that engages in a correspondingly shaped hole, allowing for a bayonet connection that is easy to assemble and disassemble, using fewer parts and minimizing vertical movement, thus enabling secure and aesthetically attractive interconnection without complex machinery.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a resilient tongue with bayonet connection is used to connect the wiper blade to the oscillating arm, then the ease of assembly and disassembly is improved, but the reliability of the connection may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The resilient tongue is designed to be elastically deformable, allowing it to be pressed inward to disengage from the hole and spring back to engage automatically during assembly. This dynamic behavior enables tool-free installation and removal while maintaining a secure locked position during operation, resolving the contradiction between ease of operation and connection reliability.
2Strength
If the resilient tongue is made highly resilient to ensure secure engagement, then the connection strength is improved, but the risk of accidental disengagement increases
Solution Approach 1:
The hole in the oscillating arm is designed with an asymmetric shape that does not match the cross-section of the resilient tongue. The tongue can be compressed to a smaller cross-section to pass through the hole, but once engaged, the asymmetric geometry prevents the tongue from being accidentally pulled out, as removal would require deliberate compression force. This asymmetric design provides strong engagement while preventing accidental disengagement.
3Reliability
If complex machinery and additional tools are used to ensure reliable connection, then the connection reliability is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The resilient tongue is designed to perform both the connection and locking functions automatically through its elastic properties. During assembly, the tongue springs back to engage with the hole without requiring any additional tools or complex machinery. The same resilient tongue also provides the locking function through its asymmetric engagement with the hole, eliminating the need for separate locking mechanisms and reducing overall device complexity while maintaining reliability.
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 provides a reliable, secure, and easy-to-assemble windscreen wiper connection that allows users without specific skills to replace wiper blades, ensuring effective windscreen wiping while minimizing exposure to rain, dust, and UV light.
Implementation Method 1
The joint part comprises at least one resilient tongue engaging in a correspondingly shaped hole provided in the oscillating arm, wherein the resilient tongue is rotatable along an hinge axis between an outward position retaining the wiper blade onto the oscillating arm and an inward position releasing the wiper blade from the oscillating arm.
Data Source
AI summary
A windscreen wiper device is provided. The device comprises a connecting device pivotally connected to an oscillating arm about a pivot axis, with the interposition of a joint part. The joint part comprises at least one resilient tongue engaging a correspondingly shaped hole provided in the oscillating arm. The resilient tongue is rotatable along a hinge axis between an outward position retaining the wiper blade onto the oscillating arm and an inward position releasing the wiper blade from the oscillating arm. The oscillating arm has an at least substantially U-shaped cross-section at the location of its connection to the joint part and at least one leg of the U-shaped cross-section of the oscillating arm comprises an inwardly extending protrusion cooperating with a bottom surface of a side wall of the joint part near an extremity of the joint part facing away from the free end of the oscillating arm.