Windscreen Wiper End Joining Piece With Engagement Ramp
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing windscreen wiper end joining pieces face challenges in achieving a balance between low insertion force for easy installation and strong retention force, with a risk of breakage during assembly due to the use of resilient means like flexible tongues.
Innovation Solution
The end joining piece features an engagement ramp with an inclined surface that helps guide the longitudinal vertebra into a retracted position, reducing insertion force and enhancing retention by using flexible tongues that snap into a notch, distributing force effectively and minimizing breakage risks.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If resilient means (flexible tongues) are used to retain the windscreen wiper in the end joining piece, then retention force is improved, but insertion force increases and breakage risk worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The flexible tongue is designed to dynamically change its position during assembly - initially blocking the receipt receptacle to provide retention, then being displaced laterally by the engagement ramp to allow insertion. This dynamic behavior resolves the contradiction by providing strong retention force during assembly while allowing easy insertion once the tongue is displaced.
Solution Approach 2:
The engagement ramp applies force in a direction that displaces the flexible tongue laterally (in a second direction forming a non-zero angle with the insertion direction). This dimensional approach allows the tongue to move out of the insertion path, reducing insertion force while maintaining retention capability through the tongue's elastic return to its blocking position.
2Strength
If resilient means (flexible tongues) are used to retain the windscreen wiper, then retention force is improved, but reliability worsens due to breakage risk
Solution Approach 1:
The flexible tongue's dynamic displacement mechanism reduces the risk of breakage by allowing the tongue to move laterally under the action of the engagement ramp during insertion, rather than resisting the full insertion force statically. This dynamic response prevents excessive stress concentration that could lead to breakage.
Solution Approach 2:
The engagement ramp's inclination angle is specifically designed to exert a force that displaces the flexible tongue in a direction forming a non-zero angle with the insertion direction. This parameter optimization ensures the tongue is gently guided to the side, reducing impact forces and breakage risk while still providing effective retention.
3Strength
If the flexible tongue is positioned across the receipt receptacle for retention, then retention force is improved, but ease of operation worsens due to insertion difficulty
Solution Approach 1:
The engagement ramp acts as an intermediary element between the flexible tongue and the insertion force. It mediates the interaction by converting the longitudinal insertion force into lateral displacement of the tongue, allowing the tongue to move out of the way without directly resisting the insertion, thus facilitating easier assembly.
Solution Approach 2:
The flexible tongue is displaced from the primary insertion path into a lateral dimension through the action of the engagement ramp. This dimensional shift removes the tongue as an obstacle to insertion while preserving its retention function, as it can still block the receptacle in its displaced position or return to block it after insertion.
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
This design facilitates easy installation while ensuring strong and reliable retention of the windscreen wiper components, reducing the risk of breakage and maintaining efficient operation.
Implementation Method 1
resilient means within this joining piece, which resilient means are in the form of flexible tongues which are displaced mainly in a direction and in a first sense of retraction under the effect of the force exerted during the insertion of the windscreen wiper in the end joining piece, and which, once this putting into place has been carried out, thanks to their return to the original position by displacement in a second, opposite direction, exert a force of retention of the windscreen wiper within the end joining piece
Data Source
AI summary
An end joining piece (4) for a windscreen wiper for a glazed surface of a motor vehicle is disclosed. The end piece has at least a receipt receptacle (410) for receiving an end part of a longitudinal vertebra (20), and at least one flexible tongue (6a, 6b) which is configured to go from a first, position of rest, to a second, retracted position, by displacement in a first direction (F2a, F2b) during the insertion of the longitudinal vertebra in the receipt receptacle (410), the flexible tongue including an engagement ramp along which the vertebra is made to thrust, to provide the tongue with its second, retracted position. The engagement ramp (620a, 620b) has an inclination which is configured to exert on the longitudinal vertebra a force which tends to displace this vertebra in a second direction (F3a, F3b), which, together with the first direction of displacement, forms a non-zero angle.