Patent Application
20240253716
This application claims priority to German Patent Application No. 10 2023 102 126.5, filed Jan. 30, 2023, the content of such application being incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.
The invention relates to a body part holder arrangement for fastening vehicle attachment elements to a carrier element by means of at least one clamping system consisting of a chamber element and a pin element. The invention also relates to a method for mounting a vehicle attachment element by means of such a body part holder arrangement. It should be noted in this context that the term vehicle attachment element can include both individual vehicle attachment parts, such as a fender, as well as vehicle modules, such as front or rear vehicle modules.
In principle, it is known to fasten vehicle attachment elements, for example, body parts, interior parts or also functional parts, for example, lighting elements, in a friction-locking, positive-locking and/or in a material-locking manner to a corresponding carrier element. From US patent application US 2013/0 193 713 A1, which is incorporated by reference herein, it is also known to connect such vehicle attachment elements with the corresponding carrier element via a clamping system. Although the vehicle attachment elements should be releasably arranged on the carrier element, a replacement in the event of maintenance or due to a customer request in light of a confined space and the thus restricted accessibility is very complex and therefore costly. In addition, transmission systems for data or even media must be decoupled and disassembled in a complex manner.
An object of the invention is therefore to provide a body part holder arrangement or a method for the arrangement of a vehicle attachment element, which avoids the above-mentioned disadvantage in a simple and cost-efficient manner.
This object is achieved by means of a body part holder arrangement according to aspects of the invention, that the clamping system is configured as a zero point clamping system that can be actuated by a clamping medium, wherein the zero point clamping system in the mounted state is disconnected from clamping media, wherein the zero point clamping system comprises an interface in a clamping medium circuit, which, in the mounted state, can be connected to a connecting element on the vehicle attachment element, such that the zero point clamping system can be used for vehicle data or vehicle medium transmission. This makes it easy to release and, if necessary, replace the body part holder arrangement in a simple way, namely by applying a clamping medium. In addition, the zero point clamping system may be used for vehicle data or vehicle medium transfer. An example of this is the data transfer for assistance systems, such as a pedestrian protection system, sensor or also camera arrangements in the vehicle attachment element of the motor vehicle.
A particularly advantageous embodiment is characterized in that the interface in the chamber element or pin element and the associated connecting element is provided accordingly in the pin element or chamber element. As a result, no additional interfaces or connecting elements need to be provided and the existing elements of the zero point clamping system can be used.
In a particularly advantageous manner, the zero point clamping system can be electrically actuated. In this case, the zero point clamping system can be provided in an inductive, optical or electrical conduit system as a clamping medium circuit, via which the vehicle data transmission takes place, wherein the carrier element comprises corresponding inductive, optical or electrical interfaces or connecting devices.
Alternatively, the zero point clamping system may be hydraulically or pneumatically actuatable. In this case, the zero point clamping system in a hydraulic or pneumatic conduit system can be provided as a clamping medium circuit, via which vehicle media transfer takes place, wherein the carrier arrangement comprises corresponding hydraulic or pneumatic interfaces or connecting elements.
In a particularly advantageous embodiment, the pin element is arranged on the vehicle attachment element and the chamber element is arranged on the carrier element. This makes it particularly easy to perform actuation of the chamber elements, for example via permanently installed data transmission, pneumatic or hydraulic lines.
Advantageously, the pin element is integrally connected to the vehicle attachment element. For example, it can be cast directly during a casting process or printed with a 3D print part. However, it can also be subsequently molded to the vehicle attachment element.
In a particularly advantageous embodiment, the chamber elements of a vehicle attachment element are arranged in the clamping medium circuit, whereby the vehicle attachment element can be released by simply applying exactly one clamping medium source.
The invention is also solved by a method for attaching a vehicle attachment element by means of a body part holder arrangement according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that, in a first step, the at least one chamber element arranged on the carrier element is applied with a clamping medium in the clamping medium circuit, in a second step, the associated pin element is inserted and thus the vehicle attachment element is precisely arranged, in a third step, the chamber element is disconnected from the medium and thus the pin element is mechanically clamped to a stop, and, in a fourth step, the interface of the clamping medium circuit is activated. To advantageously release the vehicle attachment element, in a fifth step, the at least one interface is deactivated and, in a sixth step, the at least one chamber element is actuated by the clamping medium.
The invention is explained in more detail with reference to a drawing. The figures show:
A method for mounting the vehicle attachment elements 4, 6 by means of the body part holder arrangement 12, 14 now takes place as follows: In a first step, the chamber elements 24, 26, 28, 30 arranged on the carrier element 8, 10 are powered and thereby actuated by a power source via the electrical conduit system 34. In a second step, the pin elements 16, 18, 20, 22 are guided into the respective chamber elements 24, 26, 28, 30 and thus the respective vehicle attachment elements 4, 6 are precisely arranged. In a third step, the chamber element is then de-energized and the zero point clamping systems 32 are mechanically locked. In a fourth step, the interface 42 of the clamping medium circuit 34 is then activated and in this way a sensor element not further shown is connected to the electrical conduit system 34 for data transmission. In order to replace the vehicle attachment elements 4, 6 at a later date, the at least one interface 42 must be deactivated in a fifth step and the chamber elements (24, 26, 28, 30) must be actuated by the clamping medium in a sixth step.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 2023 102 126.5 | Jan 2023 | DE | national |
