Patent Application
20180326804
The present application claims priority to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2017-0058213, filed on May 10, 2017, the entire contents of which is incorporated herein for all purposes by this reference.
The present invention relates to a bushing, and more, to a suspension system to which an optimally harmonized bushing is applied by forming bushing design elements, which are not matched with each other, at a double compression ratio.
Generally, a bushing includes elastic bodies, to which rubber is applied, for relative movement of connecting components.
Therefore, a vehicle to which a cross member (or sub-frame), a step bar (or stabilizer bar), a suspension arm (or lower arm or upper arm) or the like, which require relative movement, is applied requires a fastening portion using a bushing, and the application of the bushing improves riding and handling (R & H), noise, vibration, harshness (NVH), and durability of the vehicle.
The bushing applied to the fastening portion (or input point) of the suspension arm is configured as a suspension bushing that ensures stiffness in a radial direction and a circumferential direction (torsional direction) with respect to a movement of the suspension system, improving the R & H, the NVH, and the durability of the vehicle. Examples of the suspension bushing include a saddle bushing and a solid bushing that match the R & H with the NVH and the durability.
For example, the saddle bushing is configured for an external pipe, an internal pipe, and an intermediate pipe, and includes rubber vulcanized between the external pipe and the internal pipe in a state of wrapping the intermediate pipe. Therefore, the saddle bushing has a high single part weight and manufacturing processing cost due to the intermediate pipe requiring maintenance of vulcanization and surface cleanliness. However, the saddle bushing has improved durability due to excellent fatigue durability while having improved R & H performance due to an increase in lateral stiffness of the bushing in a radial direction (P direction) and a reduction in torsional friction in a circumferential direction (R direction) of the bushing.
For example, the solid bushing includes the external pipe and the internal pipe, and includes rubber vulcanized between the external pipe and the internal pipe. Therefore, the solid bushing has the reduced R & H performance due to an increase in torsional friction in the circumferential direction (R direction) of the bushing and a reduced durability due to a reduced fatigue durability when compared to the saddle bushing. However, the solid bushing has an advantage of reducing the size and reducing the weight, reduced manufacturing processing costs of the bushing when compared to the saddle bushing.
The information disclosed in this Background of the Invention section is only for enhancement of understanding of the general background of the invention and should not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that this information forms the prior art already known to one skilled in the art.
The suspension bushing is a component which has difficulty optimizing a structure thereof in that the R & H, the NVH, and the durability, which are design elements not correlated with each other, needs to be harmonized to meet the performance.
The following Table 1 shows the design elements applied to the suspension bushing.
The above Table 1 shows the difficulty in designing and developing the suspension bushing that satisfies mutual harmonics performance due to multiple conflicting situations of required performance, weight, and costs. Considering a process of performing a durability test after manufacturing to satisfy a selection of design elements and performance tuning, a selection of design elements that do not satisfy the durability performance leads to a delay or impossibility of mass production of products or may be one cause of field claims.
Furthermore, since the suspension bushing is a component to be common and incorporated irrespective of a vehicle model, the harmonization of design elements not matched with each other needs to be performed in consideration of various characteristics of each vehicle model, which makes the design and development difficulties more difficult.
Considering the above-mentioned aspects, the present invention can solve bulge characteristics for forming convex protrusions even in a change in a stepwise compression ratio of an elastic body according to a change in a magnitude of an applied bushing indentation load and can reduce a size of a bushing while ensuring durability performance with greatly improved fatigue durability because the elastic body is in a compressed state even in a large behavior of a suspension and ensuring R & H performance by adding a clamp shape to an opened cross section to reduce torsional stiffness.
Various aspects and exemplary embodiments of the present invention are directed to providing a suspension system to which a double compression ratio type bushing configured to be applied to a suspension arm of various specifications as a common component by changing one bushing from a low compression ratio to a high compression ratio is applied.
Other various aspects of the present invention can be understood by the following description, and become apparent with reference to the exemplary embodiments of the present invention. Also, it is obvious to those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains that the objects and advantages of the present invention can be realized by the means as claimed and combinations thereof.
In accordance with various exemplary embodiments of the present invention, a bushing may include an elastic compression portion configured to form a primary compression ratio due to a compressive deformation by a primary press-fitting load and be pressed by a secondary compression ratio greater than the primary compression ratio by a secondary press-fitting load greater than the primary press-fitting load, wherein the elastic compression portion may include an elastic body formed such that on opened cross section to be a secondary surface contact is rubbed by a bushing behavior without a bulge phenomenon by a volume dispersion in a state in which it is pressed by the primary press-fitting load to be the primary surface contact and then is pressed by the secondary press-fitting load.
The elastic compression portion may be formed at both end portions of the elastic body, respectively and may form the opened cross section by configuring a difference (La−Lb) between a radial stiffness length La and a torsional stiffness length Lb of the elastic body to be 20 to 30%, and the secondary compression ratio may be configured to be 170 to 260% as compared to the primary compression ratio.
The opened cross section may include clamp-shaped cross-section portions continuously forming the primary compression ratio and the secondary compression ratio and a clamp notch cross-section portion extending from the clamp-shaped cross-section portions to solve the bulge phenomenon due to the secondary compression ratio and remove a stress concentration therein.
The clamp notch cross section portion may be formed as an opened region at a notch portion of the clamp-shaped cross-section portions, and may have any one of a ‘U’-shaped cross section, a circular cross section, an oval cross section, and/or a polygonal cross section.
The upper clamp-shaped cross-section portion may be expanded at an upper opening angle above a notch virtual central line formed by the clamp notch cross-section portion to form a length of an upper rubber adhering portion and the lower clamp-shaped cross-section portion may be expanded at a lower opening angle less than the upper opening angle under the notch virtual central line K-K to form a length of a lower rubber adhering portion.
The length of the upper rubber adhering portion may include an upper opening surface forming the upper opening angle and an upper connecting surface extending from the upper opening surface at an angle different from the upper opening angle, and a length of the lower rubber adhering portion may include a lower opening surface formed at a length out of the upper connecting surface while forming the lower opening angle and a lower connecting surface extending from the lower opening surface at an angle different from the lower opening angle. An angle formed by the upper connecting surface and an upper surface of the elastic compression portion may be configured to be less than an angle formed by the opening surface and the upper surface and an angle formed by the lower connecting surface and a lower surface of the elastic compression portion may be configured to be less than an angle formed by the opening surface and the lower surface.
The elastic body may be provided between the internal pipe and the external pipe and may be vulcanized to integrate the internal pipe and the external pipe. The external pipe may wrap the internal pipe and left and right end portions of the internal pipe may protrude at both sides of the external pipe. Each of the left and right end portions may be wrapped with the elastic body to form the elastic compression portion.
In accordance with various exemplary embodiments of the present invention, a suspension system may include: a suspension arms configured to have bushing holes formed at left and right sides thereof and a bushing configured to be integrated with an internal pipe wrapped with an external pipe by vulcanization, including an elastic body formed at left and right sides thereof, the elastic body having left and right elastic compression portions that has a clamp-shaped cross section increasing a compression ratio in a response to an increase in a press-fitting load, and have the external pipe press-fitted in the bushing hole.
The internal pipe may be provided with a shaft hole bored therein and may have a total length protruding at both sides of the external pipe in a state in which it is wrapped with the external pipe. The elastic body may determine a torsional stiffness length to be 0.70 to 0.80 of a radial stiffness length when a clamp width interval of the left elastic compression portion and the right elastic compression portion is configured to be the radial stiffness length and clamp forming locations of the left elastic compression portion and the right elastic compression portion are configured to be the torsional stiffness length.
The suspension arm may have a structure in which a board is bent to extend to a knuckle of a wheel and a vehicle body and the bushing is provided with a connection portion between the suspension arm and the knuckle and a connection portion between the suspension arm and the vehicle body.
The methods and apparatuses of the present invention have other features and advantages which will be apparent from or are set forth in more detail in the accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein, and the following Detailed Description, which together serve to explain certain principles of the present invention.
It should be understood that the appended drawings are not necessarily to scale, presenting a somewhat simplified representation of various features illustrative of the basic principles of the invention. The specific design features of the present invention as disclosed herein, including, for example, specific dimensions, orientations, locations, and shapes will be determined in part by the particularly intended application and use environment.
In the figures, reference numbers refer to the same or equivalent parts of the present invention throughout the several figures of the drawings.
Reference will now be made more specifically to various embodiments of the present invention(s), examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described below. While the invention(s) will be described in conjunction with exemplary embodiments, it will be understood that the present description is not intended to limit the invention(s) to those exemplary embodiments. On the other hand, the invention(s) is/are intended to cover not only the exemplary embodiments, but also various alternatives, modifications, equivalents and other embodiments, which may be included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
Referring to
The internal pipe 10 is configured of a hollow pipe having a shaft hole 11, and the external pipe 20 is configured of a hollow pipe having a vulcanizing region 21 filled with the vulcanized elastic body 30 in a state in which the internal pipe 10 is inserted into the external pipe 20. A length of the internal pipe 10 is greater than a length of the external pipe 20, and the external pipe 20 is coupled at a location where right and left end portions of the internal pipe 10 protrude to left and right sides of the external pipe 20. Furthermore, each material of the internal pipe 10 and the external pipe 20 includes steel or a similar material, and a thickness thereof is determined and matched with design durability.
The elastic body 30 forms an elastic compression portion 31 so that compressive deformation of 7% to 18% occurs, and the elastic compression portion 31 is configured of left and right elastic compression portions 31-1 and 31-2 that are formed at left and right sides of the elastic body 30 using an opened cross section. The material of the elastic body 30 includes rubber, and each of the left and right elastic compression portions 31-1 and 31-2 has the same structure opened outwards by a clamp-shaped cross section (or V-shaped cross section). Furthermore, the elastic body 30 wraps the left and right end portions of the internal pipe 10 protruding to both sides of the external pipe 20 while being wrapped with the external pipe 20 so that each of the left and right elastic compression portions 31-1 and 31-2 extend to the locations of the left and right end portions.
Referring to the layout of
For example, the radial stiffness length La and the torsional stiffness length Lb are determined to have the following stiffness effective length relationship.
Difference in stiffness effective length: La−Lb=20˜30%,Lb=(0.70˜0.80)*La
In the above Equation, “*” refers to a product of two values.
Therefore, when the clamp width interval between the left and right elastic compression portions 31-1 and 31-2 is determined to be the radial stiffness length La, and the clamp forming locations of the left and right elastic compression portions 31-1 and 31-2 are determined to be the torsional stiffness length Lb, the elastic body 30 sets the difference La−Lb between the radial stiffness length La and the torsional stiffness length Lb to be 20 to 30% so that the clamp-shaped cross section (or V-shaped cross section) is formed in an opened cross section or the torsional stiffness length Lb is set to be 0.70 to 0.80 of the radial stiffness length La. As a result, the relationship between the radial stiffness length La and the torsional stiffness length Lb helps to improve the R & H and the durability performance by reducing the torsional friction in the torsional direction as compared to a solid bushing having the same size while ensuring the R & H and the durability performance by making a radial load support force after the primary and secondary compression process using the press fitting equal to or greater than that of the saddle bushing.
Referring to the detailed structure of
For example, the clamped notch cross-section portion 33 is a ‘U’-shaped cross section rounded to a radius of 0.5 mm. As a result, the clamp notch cross-section portion 33 is formed in a state in which a notch portion from which the clamp-shaped cross section (or V-shaped cross section) of the upper clamp-shaped cross-section portion 34 and the lower clamp-shaped cross-section portion 37 initiates is kept open outwards, improving a stress concentration of the notch portion due to the compression deformation.
Therefore, when the elastic compression portion 31 is compressed and deformed by 7% to 18%, the clamp notch cross-section portion 33 relieves the stress concentration in a response to the increase in the compression ratio while facilitating an adhesion between the upper clamp-shaped cross-section portion 34 and the lower clamp-shaped cross-section portion 37 without the bulge phenomenon and a volume dispersion function, improving the fatigue durability. A shape of the clamp notch cross-section portion 33 may be a circle, an oval, or a polygon that may relieve the stress but the size thereof is changed according to a size of the bushing 1, the compression ratio of the elastic body 30, and the load direction applied in the assembled state as variables.
For example, the upper clamp-shaped cross-section portion 34 is divided into an upper opening surface 35 and an upper connecting surface 36 and is inclined upward at an acute angle Aupper with respect to the notch virtual central line K−K of the clamp notch cross-section portion. The upper opening surface 35 extends upwards from the clamp notch cross-section portion 33 at the opening angle Aupper with respect to the notch virtual central line K−K while the upper connecting surface 36 is connected to the upper surface of the elastic compression portion 31 by being bent downwardly from the upper opening surface 35 at an angle less than the opening angle Aupper, forming at least two step angle. Furthermore, the lower clamp-shaped cross-section portion 37 is divided into a lower opening surface 38 and a lower connecting surface 39 and inclined downward at an opening angle Alower of an acute angle. The lower opening surface 38 extends downwardly from the clamp notch cross-section portion 33 at the opening angle Alower while the lower connecting surface 39 is connected to a lower surface of the elastic compression portion 31 by being bent upward having an angle less than the opening angle Alower, forming at least two step angle.
Meanwhile, the upper surface of the elastic compression portion 31 refers to the portion vulcanized to the external pipe 20 and the lower surface of the elastic compression portion 31 refers to the portion vulcanized to the internal pipe 10. In the present case, an angle formed by the upper connecting surface 36 and the upper surface is configured to be less than the angle formed by the upper opening surface 35 and the upper surface, and at the same time the angle formed by the lower connecting surface 39 and the lower surface is configured to be less than the angle formed by the lower opening surface 38 and the lower surface. The opening angle Aupper at which the upper opening surface 35 is formed with respect to the notch virtual central line K−K is configured to be greater than the opening angle Alower at which the lower opening surface 38 is formed with respect to the notch virtual central line K−K.
Therefore, the angle relationship imparted to the right elastic compression portion 31-2 is configured to increase the durability and obtain the volume dispersion induction to the upper clamp-shaped cross-section portion 34 and the lower clamp-shaped cross-section portion 37 when the elastic body 30 is compressed and deformed from a low compression of 7% to a high compression ratio of 12 to 18%.
The left elastic compression portion 31-1 formed at a location opposite to the right elastic compression portion 31-2 is also configured of the upper clamp-shaped cross-section portion 34 including the clamp notch cross-section portion 33, the upper opening surface 35, and the upper connecting surface 36 and the lower clamp-shaped cross-section portion 37 including the lower opening surface 38 and the lower connecting surface 39, wherein the structure and action thereof is the same as or substantially the same as those of the right elastic compression portion 31-2.
Therefore, the elastic body 30 forms the radial stiffness for a radial load support and the torsional stiffness for the reduction in the torsional friction in the state in which the upper and lower clamp-shaped cross-section portions 34 and 37 of the left and right elastic compression portions 31-1 and 31-2 are in contact with each other after the press-fitting process. Therefore, the bushing 1 can ensure the improved R & H and the durability performance due to the reduction in the torsional friction more than the solid bushing having the same size while ensuring the improved R & H and the durability performance due to the radial load support function more than the saddle bushing having the same size after the compression process by the double compression ratio function of the elastic body 30. Accordingly, the bushing 1 can achieve compactness in size having the reduced diameter and length while maintaining the same performance as the saddle bushing or the solid bushing. For example, experimentation confirms that the radial load support function and the torsional friction reduction function are equivalent to those of the saddle bushing or the solid bushing in the state in which the diameter of the bushing 1 is reduced to approximately 70 to 80% as compared to the saddle bushing or the solid bushing.
Referring to
The bushing 1 includes the internal pipe 10 and the external pipe 20 and the elastic body which is vulcanized therebetween and forms the double compression ratio from 7% (low compression) to 12 to 18% (high compression) due to the action of the elastic compression portion 31. Therefore, the bushing 1 is the same as or substantially the same as the bushing 1 described with reference to
The suspension arm 110 has a structure in which a board is bent in a rectangular cross section so that a bushing hole for press-fitting the bushing 1 is formed at both end portions thereof, and t diameter of the bushing hole is reduced to approximately 70 to 80% as compared to the saddle bushing hole or the solid bushing hole to match a reduced diameter D of the bushing 1. Therefore, the suspension arm 110 can reduce the width to approximately 70 to 80% while shortening a total length Lspan by the bushing hole having the reduced diameter of both end portions thereof.
As shown in
For example, as an example of the right elastic compression portion 31-2 of
In terms of the increase in durability against rubber expansion during the bushing compression process and the volume dispersion induction after the bushing compression process, the effects obtained from the angle relationship formed by the upper/lower opening surfaces 35 and 38 and the upper/lower connecting surfaces 36 and 39 of the left and right elastic compression portions 31-1 and 31-2 are as follows.
For example, in terms of the increase in durability, the angle formed by the upper connecting surface 36 and the upper surface is set to be less than the angle formed by the upper opening surface 35 and the upper surface, and at the same time the angle formed by the lower connecting surface 39 and the lower surface is set to be less than the angle formed by the lower opening surface 38 and the lower surface. As a result, the left and right elastic compression portions 31-1 and 31-2 enable the durability of the elastic body 30 to be increased even in the rubber expansion state of a line portion of an end portion of a rubber bonding portion vulcanized to the external pipe 20. In terms of the volume dispersion induction, the opening angle Aupper at which the upper opening surface 35 is formed with respect to the notch virtual central line K−K is set to be greater than the opening angle Alower at which the lower opening surface 38 is formed with respect to the notch virtual central line K−K. As a result, after the bushing compression process, the left and right elastic compression portions 31-1 and 31-2 enables the volume dispersion induction of the elastic body 30 through the adhering portion of the rubber of the right elastic compression portion 31-2 vulcanized to the internal pipe 10 having a length longer than that of the adhering portion of the rubber of the right elastic compression portion 31-2 vulcanized to the external pipe 20.
Therefore, the left and right elastic compression portions 31-1 and 31-2 may impart the radial load support function with the radial stiffness and the torsional friction reduction function with the torsional stiffness in the surface-contact state of the upper clamp-shaped cross-section portion 34 and the lower clamp-shaped cross-section portion 37. When the elastic body 30 is compressed and deformed from the low compression ratio of 7% to the high compression ratio of 12 to 18%, the increase in durability and the volume dispersion induction effect to the upper clamp-shaped cross-section portion 34 and the lower clamp-shaped cross-section portion 37 can be obtained. As a result, the bushing 1 can ensure the improved R & H and the durability performance due to the reduction in the torsional friction more than the solid bushing having the same size while ensuring the improved R & H and the durability performance due to the radial load support function more than the saddle bushing having the same size after the compression process by the double compression ratio function of the elastic body 30.
Accordingly, the bushing 1 can achieve compactness in size having the reduced diameter and length while keeping the same performance as the saddle bushing or the solid bushing. For example, experimentation confirmed that the radial load support function and the torsional friction reduction function are equivalent to those of the saddle bushing or the solid bushing in the state in which the diameter of the bushing 1 is reduced to approximately 70 to 80% as compared to the saddle bushing or the solid bushing.
As described above, the bushing 1 according to the present exemplary embodiment solves the bulge phenomenon by dispersing the stress concentration by the volume dispersion during the press-fitting process while forming the primary and secondary compression ratios having different sizes matching the primary and secondary press-fitting loads by the left and right elastic compression portions 31-1 and 31-2 of the clamp-shaped cross section (V-shaped cross section). Accordingly, the bushing 1 can be made into a common component using characteristics changed from the low compression ratio to the high compression ratio. The suspension system 100 may be configured as the suspension arm 110 using the low compression bushing 1 to which the primary compression ratio is applied and the high compression bushing 1 to which the secondary compression ratio is applied and therefore can be variously configured.
The bushing applied to the suspension system of the present invention has the double compression ratio to realize the following actions and effects.
First, it is possible to facilitate the bushing design by harmonizing the bushing design elements not matched with each other by the change in the double compression ratio of the elastic body. Second, the performance harmonization of the R & H, the NVH and the durability by the double compression ratio may be achieved. Third, since the components share common use with the double compression ratio, it can be applied irrespective of the vehicle model when being applied to a real car. Fourth, the fatigue durability for ensuring driving and durability is greatly improved at the double compression ratio from 7% (low compression) to 12 to 18% (high compression) during the press-fitting process for the suspension arm. Fifth, it is possible to eliminate the bulge phenomenon when changing from the low compression ratio to the high compression ratio by applying the cramp or the V-cut closure structure, and to greatly prolong the durability life by eliminating the bulge phenomenon. Sixth, it is possible to improve the R & H performance by setting the width interval and the forming position of the cramp of the elastic compression portion to reduce the bushing torsional friction. Seventh, the weight reduction can be achieved at the high compression ratio ranging from 12 to 18%, and the reduction in the size of the suspension arm can include the reduction in the size as compared to the saddle bushing. Eighth, the weight and cost of the bushing and the suspension arm can be achieved by reducing the size.
For convenience in explanation and accurate definition in the appended claims, the terms “upper”, “lower”, “up”, “down”, “upwards”, “downwards”, “internal”, “outer”, “inside”, “outside”, “inwardly”, “outwardly”, “internal”, “external”, “front”, “rear”, “back”, “forwards”, and “backwards” are used to describe features of the exemplary embodiments with reference to the positions of such features as displayed in the figures.
The foregoing descriptions of specific exemplary embodiments of the present invention have been presented for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed, and obviously many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings. The exemplary embodiments were chosen and described to explain certain principles of the invention and their practical application, to enable others skilled in the art to make and utilize various exemplary embodiments of the present invention, as well as various alternatives and modifications thereof. It is intended that the scope of the invention be defined by the Claims appended hereto and their equivalents.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-2017-0058213 | May 2017 | KR | national |
