DESC:FIELD
The present disclosure relates to vehicle frame structures. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to a front suspension mounted on the chassis of a vehicle.
DEFINITION
As used in the present disclosure, the following terms are generally intended to have the meaning as set forth below, except to the extent that the context in which they are used indicate otherwise.
Cradle: The term ‘cradle’ in this disclosure refers to, but is not limited to, a subframe which is fixedly attached to the chassis of the vehicle and carries components such as engine, gearbox, and the like.
Hard point: The term ‘hard point’ in this disclosure refers to, but is not limited to, a virtual point in an automobile which is a centre of ball joints and bushes. In an automobile, ball joints connect the control arms to the steering knuckle of a wheel.
Major diameter of thread: The major diameter of a thread is the diameter of the imaginary co-axial cylinder that just touches the crest of an external thread.
Minor diameter of thread: The minor diameter is the diameter of an imaginary cylinder that just touches the roots of an external thread.
BACKGROUND
The background information herein below relates to the present disclosure but is not necessarily prior art.
A cradle is a subframe usually used in an automobile chassis of the monocoque type, for mounting heavy and crucial components such as engine, gearbox, suspension, and so on. Fitment of a cradle on the vehicle chassis involves close tolerances. A cradle assembly is generally prone to misalignment during assembly. Since the cradle has the most critical joints, any misalignment between the cradle and the rest of the vehicle body leads to undesirable vibration and deteriorates ride and handling characteristics of the vehicle as well.
In case of body-on-frame type vehicle construction, engine, gearbox, suspension, and other such components are generally mounted on cross members of a ladder-type frame. In order to implement a cradle mounting arrangement in a body-on-frame type construction, additional fixtures are required at the assembly stage, which makes the assembly of the cradle with the rest of the chassis rather difficult. Moreover, variations in hard points are likely to creep in due to any variation in assembly of the cradle, again, leading to vibration and deterioration in ride and handling characteristics.
There is, therefore, felt a need of an arrangement for decking the cradle on the chassis frame which ameliorates the drawbacks as described hereinabove.
OBJECTS
Some of the objects of the present disclosure, which at least one embodiment herein satisfies, are as follows:
An object of the present disclosure is to provide an arrangement for decking the cradle on the chassis frame.
Another object of the present disclosure is to provide an arrangement for facilitating assembly of a cradle on a chassis of a vehicle, which allows ease of assembly.
Yet another object of the present disclosure is to provide an arrangement for facilitating assembly of a cradle on a chassis of a vehicle, which ensures repeatability of assembly.
Still another object of the present disclosure is to provide an arrangement for facilitating assembly of a cradle on a chassis of a vehicle, which ensures consistency in hard points in service.
Other objects and advantages of the present disclosure will be more apparent from the following description, which is not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.
SUMMARY
The present disclosure envisages an arrangement for decking a cradle on a chassis frame. The arrangement comprises a first set of holes configured on the cradle, a second set of holes configured on the chassis frame and a plurality of fasteners. The second set of holes is configured to be in line with the first set of holes when the cradle (20) is decked on the chassis frame (10). The plurality of fasteners is configured to be inserted into the first set of holes and extend from the first set of holes into a second set of holes, to securely deck the cradle on the chassis frame.
In an embodiment, each fastener is configured with a threaded lower body.
In another embodiment, the diametrical dimension of the first set of holes corresponds to the minor diameter of the threads of the fastener.
In yet another embodiment, the diametrical dimension of the second set of holes corresponds to the major diameter of the threads of the fastener.
In still another embodiment, the fastener is a dowel pin.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWING
An arrangement for decking the cradle on the chassis frame of the present disclosure will now be described with the help of the accompanying drawing, in which:
Figure 1 illustrates a schematic view of a cradle decked on a chassis of a vehicle;
Figure 2a illustrates a cradle fastened to the chassis;
Figure 2b illustrates a sectional view of the cradle of Figure 2a taken along plane B-B;
Figure 3a illustrates a top view of the cradle decked on the chassis; and
Figure 3b illustrates is a sectional view of the assembly of Figure 3a taken along plane A-A.
LIST OF REFERENCE NUMERALS
100 chassis
10 frame
20 cradle
30 fasteners
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Embodiments, of the present disclosure, will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawing.
Embodiments are provided so as to thoroughly and fully convey the scope of the present disclosure to the person skilled in the art. Numerous details are set forth, relating to specific components to provide a complete understanding of embodiments of the present disclosure. It will be apparent to the person skilled in the art that the details provided in the embodiments should not be construed to limit the scope of the present disclosure. In some embodiments, well-known processes, well-known apparatus structures, and well-known techniques are not described in detail.
The terminology used, in the present disclosure, is only for the purpose of explaining a particular embodiment and such terminology shall not be considered to limit the scope of the present disclosure. As used in the present disclosure, the forms “a”, “an” and “the” may be intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly suggests otherwise. The terms “comprises”, “comprising”, “including” and “having” are open-ended transitional phrases and therefore specify the presence of stated features, elements, modules, units and/or components, but do not forbid the presence or addition of one or more other features, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.
When an element is referred to as being “mounted on”, “engaged to”, “connected to” or ‘coupled to” another element, it may be directly on, engaged, connected or coupled to the other element. As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed elements.
The terms first, second, third, etc., should not be construed to limit the scope of the present disclosure as the aforementioned terms may be only used to distinguish one element, component, region, layer or section from another component, region, layer or section. Terms such as first, second, third etc., when used herein do not imply a specific sequence or order unless clearly suggested by the present disclosure.
Terms such as “inner”, “outer”, “beneath”, “below”, “lower”, “above”, “upper” and the like, may be used in the present disclosure to describe relationships between different elements as depicted from the figures.
An arrangement, of the present disclosure, for facilitating cradle (20) decking on a chassis frame (10) will now be described in detail with respect to Figure 1 through Figure 3b.
The arrangement comprises decking holes configured on both cradle (20) and frame (10), and a plurality of fasteners (30). The decking holes include a first set of holes configured on the cradle (20) at strategic locations on the cradle (20), and a second set of holes configured on the chassis frame (10). The second set of holes is configured to be in line with the first set of holes when the cradle (20) is decked on the frame (10). The fasteners (30) are configured to be inserted into the first set of holes, and extend from the first set of holes into the second set of holes to securely deck the cradle (20) on the chassis frame (10).
Each fastener (30) is configured with a threaded lower body. The diametrical dimension of the first set of holes is configured to correspond to the minor diameter of the threads of the fastener (30). The diametrical dimension of the second set of holes corresponds to the major diameter of the threads of the fastener (30). As a result, the head of the fasteners (30) rests in the cradle (20), while the bodies of the fasteners (30) lie in the chassis frame (10).
In an embodiment, the fasteners (30) are dowel pins.
Decking the cradle (20) on the chassis frame (10) with the help of the fastener (30), of the present disclosure, ensures that the cradle (20) can be re-decked on the chassis frame (10) repeatedly. Use of fasteners (30) facilitate elimination of the variations in the hard point of the vehicle, no matter how many times the cradle (20) is dismantled from and assembled back onto the frame (10) during the service life of the vehicle. Therefore, the riding and handling characteristics of the chassis frame (10) are not deteriorated due to repeated dismantling and decking of the cradle (20) on the chassis frame (10). Further, the need of a separate fixture for cradle (20) decking on the chassis frame (10), as required by conventional arrangements of decking the cradle (20), is eliminated.
The foregoing description of the embodiments has been provided for purposes of illustration and not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. Individual components of a particular embodiment are generally not limited to that particular embodiment, but, are interchangeable. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the present disclosure, and all such modifications are considered to be within the scope of the present disclosure.
TECHNICAL ADVANCEMENTS
The present disclosure described herein above has several technical advantages including, but not limited to, the realization of an arrangement to facilitate cradle decking on a chassis of a vehicle which:
• allows ease of assembly;
• ensures repeatability of assembly; and
• ensures consistency in hard points in service.
The foregoing disclosure has been described with reference to the accompanying embodiments which do not limit the scope and ambit of the disclosure. The description provided is purely by way of example and illustration.
The embodiments herein and the various features and advantageous details thereof are explained with reference to the non-limiting embodiments in the following description. Descriptions of well-known components and processing techniques are omitted so as to not unnecessarily obscure the embodiments herein.
The foregoing description of the specific embodiments so fully reveal the general nature of the embodiments herein that others can, by applying current knowledge, readily modify and/or adapt for various applications such specific embodiments without departing from the generic concept, and, therefore, such adaptations and modifications should and are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and range of equivalents of the disclosed embodiments. It is to be understood that the phraseology or terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation. Therefore, while the embodiments herein have been described in terms of preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that the embodiments herein can be practiced with modification within the spirit and scope of the embodiments as described herein.
The use of the expression “at least” or “at least one” suggests the use of one or more elements or ingredients or quantities, as the use may be in the embodiment of the disclosure to achieve one or more of the desired objects or results.
Any discussion of devices, articles or the like that has been included in this specification is solely for the purpose of providing a context for the disclosure. It is not to be taken as an admission that any or all of these matters form a part of the prior art base or were common general knowledge in the field relevant to the disclosure as it existed anywhere before the priority date of this application.
While considerable emphasis has been placed herein on the components and component parts of the preferred embodiments, it will be appreciated that many embodiments can be made and that many changes can be made in the preferred embodiments without departing from the principles of the disclosure. These and other changes in the preferred embodiment as well as other embodiments of the disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the disclosure herein, whereby it is to be distinctly understood that the foregoing descriptive matter is to be interpreted merely as illustrative of the disclosure and not as a limitation.
,CLAIMS:WE CLAIM:
1. An arrangement for decking a cradle (20) on a chassis frame (10), said arrangement comprising:
• a first set of holes configured on said cradle (20);
• a second set of holes configured on said chassis frame (10), said second set of holes configured to be inline with said first set of holes when said cradle (20) is decked on said chassis frame (10); and
• a plurality of fasteners (30) configured to be inserted into said first set of holes and extend from said first set of holes into a second set of holes, to securely deck said cradle (20) on said chassis frame (10).
2. The arrangement as claimed in claim 1, wherein each fastener (30) is configured with a threaded lower body.
3. The arrangement as claimed in claim 1, wherein the diametrical dimension of said first set of holes corresponds to the minor diameter of the threads of said fastener (30).
4. The arrangement as claimed in claim 1, wherein the diametrical dimension of said second set of holes corresponds to the major diameter of the threads of said fastener (30).
5. The arrangement as claimed in claim 1, wherein said fastener (30) is a dowel pin.