Claims:We Claim:
1. An integrated trailing arm assembly (1) for a suspension system of a vehicle, the assembly (1) comprising:
an elongated body portion (2);
a sleeve mounting portion (3) integrally formed in a first end (2a) of the elongated body portion (2) for accommodating a pivot sleeve (4);
a bracket portion (5) integrally formed in a second end (2b) of the elongated body portion (2), the bracket portion (5) is defined with:
a wheel mounting bracket (6) and a spring seat bracket (7);
wherein, an axis of the wheel mounting bracket (6) and spring seat bracket (7) are in same imaginary vertical plane.

2. The assembly (1) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the wheel mounting bracket (6) extends upwardly from a base (5a) of the bracket portion (5).

3. The assembly (1) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the spring seat bracket (7) extends outwardly from a base (5a) of the bracket portion (5).

4. The assembly (1) as claimed in claim 1 comprises a damper bracket (8) thermally joined to a rear side (5c) of the bracket portion (5).

5. The assembly (1) as claimed in claim 1 comprises a twist beam (9) connectable to the elongated body portion (5).

6. The assembly (1) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the pivot sleeve (4) is thermally joined to the sleeve mounting portion (3).

7. The assembly (1) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the body portion (2) is configured as a channel with an open side (2c).

8. The assembly (1) as claimed in claim 7 comprises one or more reinforcement members (10) connectable to the elongated body portion (2) to reinforce the open side (2c).

9. The assembly (1) as claimed in claim 1 wherein elongated body portion (2) is defined with substantially square cross section.

10. The assembly (1) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the spring seat bracket (7) comprises a flat portion (7a) and a hub (7b) extending from the flat portion (7a) for accommodating a spring.

11. The assembly (1) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the wheel mounting bracket (6) is defined with a plurality of provisions (10) for connecting a wheel hub.

12. The assembly (1) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the trailing arm assembly (1) is formed by stamping process.

13. A suspension system of a vehicle comprising a trailing arm assembly (1) as claimed in claim 1.
, Description:TECHNICAL FIELD:

The present disclosure relates in general to a field of automobiles. Particularly but not exclusively, the disclosure relates to a rear twist beam suspension system for a vehicle. Further, embodiments of the disclosure disclose an integrated trailing arm of the rear twist beam suspension system for the vehicle.

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE

Generally, vehicles are employed with suspension systems for connecting wheels to a vehicle frame. The suspension system allows relative motion between the wheels and the vehicle frame and absorbs road disturbances during operation of the vehicle. The suspension system may be tuned based on type of the vehicle. For example, passenger vehicles such as cars, buses may be provided with soft suspension, while commercial and goods carrying vehicles may be employed with hard suspension. Suspension system is adapted to support road holding or handling and ride quality which are at odds with each other. The tuning of suspensions involves finding the right compromise and providing a balance between the two. It is important for the suspension to keep the wheels in contact with the road surface as much as possible for traction, and at the same time absorb all the ground forces acting on the vehicle. The suspension also protects the vehicle and any cargo or luggage placed in the vehicle from damage and wear.

In the modern vehicles such as passenger cars, the design of front and rear suspension of are made different to obtain better ride quality, and to improve performance of the vehicle. Generally, in such vehicles, the front suspension may be configured as independent suspension which allows independent movement of front wheel on each side to respond to road condition. The rear suspension in such vehicles may be configured as twist-beam type suspension.

The twist-beam suspension is a type of automobile suspension which may be configured generally in H shape. The twist beam suspension may include trailing arm for both the sides connected by a twist beam. The front side of each trailing arm may be attached to the body of the vehicle via rubber bushings, and the rear side of the trailing arm carries stub-axle assembly including wheel mounting bracket, spring seat, damper bracket and the like, on each side of the vehicle. The torsion bar or twist beam which acts as cross beam connects two trailing arms together, and provides the roll stiffness of the suspension, by twisting as the two trailing arms move vertically, relative to each other.

In the conventional rear twist beam type suspension systems for vehicle, the trailing arm may be formed as a circular tube to which all the child parts such as sleeve, wheel mounting bracket, spring seat, damper mounting bracket, and the like are joined by thermal joining process. However, in such convention systems there is always a compromise of thermal stresses, and part durability due to thermal joining in all the locations. Also, for securing the twist beam to the trailing arms, the twist beam may be welded to substantially central portion of on side of the trailing arm where vertical bending moment stresses are neutral. However, in such areas there may be high torsional loading which results from brake torque, vehicle roll and diagonal axle (wheel) walk. Therefore, welding at the such points may introduce a point of weakness where cracks may initiate. Furthermore, the large number of parts and associated welds associated may cause difficulty during fabrication, thereby leading to increased cost for the assembly.

In the suspension system of the vehicle, motion ratio or installation ratio of a mechanism may be used to describe the displacement and forces in the springs . The force in the spring may be vertical forces at the contact patch divided by the motion ratio, describes the amount of shock travel for a given amount of wheel travel. Mathematically it is the ratio of shock travel and wheel travel. Hence the installation ratio may dependent on the alignment of the wheel mounting bracket and spring seat bracket. Ideally the installation ratio must be 1 however in the conventional spring seat bracket, due to the improper alignment of wheel mounting bracket and spring seat the ratio is not even close to 1. There is improper alignment of wheel mounting bracket and spring seat bracket as they lies in different plane. Due to improper alignment or installation ratio not equal to 1, lateral and longitudinal stress are generated in the vehicle.

Due of high thermal, lateral and longitudinal stress there may be a failure of wheel mounting bracket, trailing arm, trailing arm bend etc. Also, the process involved in the manufacturing of prior know rear twist beam is hydro forming process which is may not be economical.

With the ongoing developments effort have been made to produce an integrated trailing arms for suspension. In some of the conventional arrangement, both first and second trailing arms are manufactured by process of casting and some of the child parts are welded to the casted trailing arm. However, the casted trailing arms may have certain limitations of dimensional accuracy and high cost. Also, in this prior art many parts are casted and welded which leads to failure of vital portions.

The present disclosure is directed to overcome one or more problems stated above, or any other limitations associated with the prior arts.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE
The one or more shortcomings of the prior art are overcome by an assembly as claimed and additional advantages are provided through the provision of assembly as claimed in the present disclosure. Additional features and advantages are realized through the techniques of the present disclosure. Other embodiments and aspects of the disclosure are described in detail herein and are considered a part of the claimed disclosure.

In a non-limiting embodiment of the disclosure, an integrated trailing arm assembly for a suspension system of a vehicle is provided. The assembly comprises an elongated body portion. A sleeve mounting portion is integrally formed in one end of the elongated body portion for accommodating a pivot sleeve. A bracket portion is also integrally formed in other end of the elongated body portion. The bracket portion is defined with a wheel mounting bracket and a spring seat wherein, an axis of the wheel mounting bracket and spring seat are in same imaginary vertical plane.

In an embodiment, the wheel mounting bracket extends upwardly from a base of the bracket portion, and the spring seat extends outwardly from the base of the bracket portion.

In an embodiment, a damper bracket thermally joined to a rear side of the bracket portion.
In an embodiment, the assembly comprises a twist beam connectable to the elongated body portion.
In an embodiment, the pivot sleeve is thermally joined to the sleeve mounting portion.
In an embodiment, the body portion is configured as a channel with an open side. Further, one or more reinforcement members are connectable to the elongated body portion to reinforce the open side.
In an embodiment, the elongated body portion is defined with substantially square cross section.
In an embodiment, the spring seat bracket comprises a flat portion and a hub extending from the flat portion for accommodating a spring.
In an embodiment, the wheel mounting bracket is defined with a plurality of provisions for connecting a wheel hub.
In an embodiment, the trailing arm assembly is formed by stamping process.
It is to be understood that the aspects and embodiments of the disclosure described above may be used in any combination with each other. Several of the aspects and embodiments may be combined together to form a further embodiment of the disclosure.

The foregoing summary is illustrative only and is not intended to be in any way limiting. In addition to the illustrative aspects, embodiments, and features described above, further aspects, embodiments, and features will become apparent by reference to the drawings and the following detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING FIGURES

The novel features and characteristic of the disclosure are set forth in the appended claims. The disclosure itself, however, as well as a preferred mode of use, further objectives and advantages thereof, will best be understood by reference to the following detailed description of an illustrative embodiment when read in conjunction with the accompanying figures. One or more embodiments are now described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying figures wherein like reference numerals represent like elements and in which:

Figure. 1 is a perspective view of a rear twist beam type suspension system with an integrated trailing arm assembly, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Figure 2 illustrates perspective view of the integrated trailing arm assembly with pivot sleeve and damping bracket mounted at one and other end of the body portion.
Figures 3 illustrates one end of the body portion of the integrated trailing arm assembly of Figure. 2.
Figures 4 illustrates perspective view of a pivot sleeve of the integrated trailing arm assembly of Figure. 2.
Figures 5 illustrates perspective view of the integrated trailing arm assembly of Figure. 2 showing a body portion, sleeve mounting portion and a bracket portion.
The figures depict embodiments of the disclosure for purposes of illustration only. One skilled in the art will readily recognize from the following description that alternative embodiments of the structures and methods illustrated herein may be employed without departing from the principles of the disclosure described herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The foregoing has broadly outlined the features and technical advantages of the present disclosure in order that the detailed description of the disclosure that follows may be better understood. Additional features and advantages of the disclosure will be described hereinafter which form the subject of the claims of the disclosure. It should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the conception and specific embodiment disclosed may be readily utilized as a basis for modifying or designing other mechanism for carrying out the same purposes of the present disclosure. It should also be realized by those skilled in the art that such equivalent constructions do not depart from the scope of the disclosure as set forth in the appended claims. The novel features which are believed to be characteristic of the disclosure, both as to its organization and method of operation, together with further objects and advantages will be better understood from the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying figures. It is to be expressly understood, however, that each of the figures is provided for the purpose of illustration and description only and is not intended as a definition of the limits of the present disclosure.

Embodiments of the present disclosure discloses an integrated trailing arm assembly for a suspension system of a vehicle. The rear suspension system such as twist-beam type suspension includes a trailing arm which supports sub-axle assemblies including wheel hub, suspension spring, damper, and the like. The trailing arm assembly may include a wheel mounting portion, spring seat, and a sleeve mounting portion. Conventionally, the trailing arms may be made in the form of tubes, and wheel mounting portion, spring seat, and a sleeve mounting portion may be thermally joined. However, such assembly may be prone for thermal stresses and may fail during operation. Also, the weight of the entire assembly would be considerably more. Thus, the trailing arm assembly of the present disclosure is configured as a lightweight integrated member.

Accordingly, the integrated trailing arm assembly of the present disclosure comprising an elongated body portion. A sleeve mounting portion integrally formed in one end of the elongated body portion for accommodating a pivot sleeve. The assembly also includes a bracket portion may also integrally formed in other end of the elongated body portion. The bracket portion is defined with a wheel mounting bracket and a spring seat wherein, an axis of the wheel mounting bracket and spring seat are in same imaginary vertical plane. The wheel mounting bracket extends upwardly from a base of the bracket portion and the spring seat extends outwardly from a base of the bracket portion. In an embodiment, the integrated trailing arm with an elongated body portion, sleeve mounting portion, and the bracket portion are formed by stamping process. Further, a damper bracket may be thermally joined to rear side of the bracket portion and the pivot sleeve is thermally joined to the sleeve mounting portion. The body portion is configured as a channel with an open side where one or more reinforcement members are connectable to the elongated body portion to reinforce the open side. The elongated body portion is defined with substantially square cross section. The twist beam may be thermally joined to the body portion and may be reinforced by the one or more reinforcement members.

The integrated trailing arm assembly according to embodiments of the present disclosure may be employed in any four-wheeler vehicles including commercial vehicles, light commercial vehicles, passenger cars, and the like.

The terms “comprises”, “comprising”, or any other variations thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that an assembly, device or method that comprises a list of components or steps does not include only those components or steps but may include other components or steps not expressly listed or inherent to such setup or device or method. In other words, one or more elements in a system or apparatus proceeded by “comprises… a” does not, without more constraints, preclude the existence of other elements or additional elements in the system or apparatus.

In the following description, the words such as upward, outward, front and rear are referred with respect to particular orientation of the assembly as illustrated in drawings of the present disclosure. The words are used to explain the aspects of the present disclosure and for better understanding. However, one should not construe such terms as limitation to the present disclosure, since the terms may interchange based on the orientation of the assembly.

Henceforth, the present disclosure is explained with the help of figures of integrated trailing arm assembly for a vehicle. However, such exemplary embodiments should not be construed as limitations of the present disclosure. A person skilled in the art can envisage various such embodiments without deviating from scope of the present disclosure. In the figures, the vehicle and complete suspension system is not shown for the purpose of simplicity.

Figure 1 is an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure which illustrates a perspective view of a rear twist beam type suspension system (100) for a vehicle. As illustrated in the figure 1 the rear twist beam suspension system (100) may include a pair of integrated trailing arm assemblies (1) which may be mirror images of each other, such that it will be understood that each trailing arm assembly (1) may include same features, except for the orientation of the features. Each of the trailing arm assembly (1) is having a wheel mounting bracket (6) for supporting the wheels of the vehicle by means of a wheel hub [not shown]. The trailing arm assemblies (1) also comprises an arrangement know as spring seat bracket (7) to support spring on the both side of the rear suspension system (100). The spring (not shown in figure) act as a damping means to absorb the shock generated due to uneven bounce. The whole integrated trailing arm assembly (1) may be mounted on the rear section of the vehicle. Each trailing arm assemblies (1) may be linked with a twist beam (9). The twist beam (9) provides stiffness to the trailing arm assembly (1) and transfers the load from one trailing assembly (1) to other at the time of turning of vehicle or due to uneven bounce.

The trailing arm assembly (1) according to embodiments of the disclosure may be referred as integrated trailing arm assembly. In the foregoing description, the term “trailing arm assembly” or “integrated trailing assembly” are interchangeably used in the present disclosure inferring to same term. Also, in the foregoing description, the term “elongated body portion” or “body portion” is simultaneously used in the present disclosure inferring to same term

Referring to figures 2-5, the integrated trailing arm assemblies (1) may include an elongated body portion (2) of a predetermined cross section. In an embodiment, the body portion (2) may be of square or rectangular cross section. The square cross section of the elongated body portion enhances the lateral and longitudinal stiffness of the body portion (2) thus increases the life of the whole assembly. The square cross section reduces the overall weight of the trailing arm (1) while maintaining strength in key stress areas of the trailing arm (1). The elongated body portion (2) comprises a one end also referred as first end (2a) and a second end (2b). A sleeve mounting portion (3) may be integrally formed or defined in the first end (2a) of the elongated body portion (2) for accommodating a pivot sleeve (4). In an embodiment, the pivot sleeve (4) may be thermally joined to the sleeve mounting portion (3). As an example, the thermal joining process may be welding.
As shown in Figure. 4, the pivot sleeve (4) may be defined with a cylindrical geometry having a hollow cross section which may be adapted to receive fasteners and bushings to connect the trailing arm assemblies (1) to the vehicle frame. In an embodiment of the present disclosure there is an integration of trailing arm (1), wheel mounting bracket (6) and spring seat bracket forming an integrated trailing arm assembly (1) where the trailing arm assembly (1) is formed by stamping process. The configuration of the trailing arm assembly (1) gives a comparatively better weight to stiffness ratio along with the reduced welding and welding related issues.
Referring to Figure. 5, a bracket portion (5) integrally formed in other end also referred as second end (2b) of the elongated body portion (2). The bracket portion comprising a base (5a), a front portion (5b) and a rear portion (5c). The front portion (5b) is integrally formed with the second end (2b) of the body portion (2). The bracket portion (5) is defined with a wheel mounting bracket (6) and a spring seat bracket (7). In an embodiment, the wheel mounting bracket (6) and a spring seat bracket (7) are formed such that an axis (A-A) of the wheel mounting bracket (6) and spring seat bracket (7) are in same imaginary vertical plane. Since the axis of wheel mounting bracket (6) and spring seat bracket (7) are same, the installation ratio i.e. ratio between shock travel and wheel travel may be approximately equal to 1, which is beneficial to the suspension system. Due to the presence of wheel mounting bracket (6) and spring seat bracket (7) in the same vertical plane, two or more vehicles suspension system may be manufactured on the same platform.
The wheel mounting bracket may be rectangular shaped body extending upwardly from a base (5a) of the bracket portion (5). The wheel mounting bracket (6) include a protrusion (6a) extending from the vertical face wherein the wheel hub is connectable to the protrusion (6a) [best shown in Figure. 2] of the wheel mounting bracket (6). At the corners of the vertical face of the wheel mounting bracket (6), pair of extended plate (6b; 6c) are provided in such a way that one plate (6a) is integrally aligned with the base portion (2) and other portion (6c) is attached with a damping bracket (8).
The wheel mounting bracket (6) may be defined with a plurality of provisions (10) for connecting a wheel hub by means of fasteners such as nut and bolt assembly. A damper bracket (8) may be thermally joined to rear side (5b) of the bracket portion (5) and may be positioned adjacent to the wheel mounting bracket (6). The damping bracket (8) comprises a rectangular plate (8a) along with pair of supports (8b) attached at the ends of the rectangular plate (8a) of the damping bracket (8) thermally joined with the other extended plate (6c) of the wheel mounting bracket (6).
The spring seat bracket (7) extends outwardly from a base (5a) of the bracket portion (5). The spring seat bracket (7) may be defined with a semi-circular shape comprising a flat portion (7a) and a hub (7b). The spring seat bracket (7) may include a wall portion (7c) along its periphery. The wall portion (7c) extends from the wheel mounting bracket (7) towards the first end (2a) body portion (2). The flat portion (7a) of the spring mounting bracket (7) comprises a plurality of holes (7d) to secure fasteners. The hub (7b) is extending from the flat portion (7a) and is configured to support a spring such as axial spring. The hub (7b) is an elongated body extending vertically from the bottom surface. The spring may be secured around the hub and act as a damper to absorb the shock.
The body portion (2) may be configured as a channel [best shown in Figure. 5] with an open side (2c). The open side (2c) may be adapted to be connect the twist beam (9). The open side (2c) may be reinforced by one or more reinforcement members (10). The one or more reinforcement (10) member may be connectable to the elongated body portion (2) through a thermal joining process, such that the open side may be closed to form a hollow structure. The one or more reinforcement members (10) reinforce the body portion (2) at corners, and at thermal joining locations and thus enhances the stiffens of the whole assembly (1).
In an embodiment of the disclosure, the integrated trailing arm assembly is simple in construction, less weight, and durable. It is to be understood that, the configuration of the integrated trailing arm assembly illustrated in figures are exemplary configurations. One skilled in the art may vary the configuration and such variations may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, it is intended that the present disclosure covers such modifications and variations provided they come within the ambit of the appended claims and their equivalents. Also, the bipolar plate assembly of the present disclosure may be employed in light commercial vehicles. However, one should not consider such application as limitation to the present disclosure.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMERALS

Rear View Suspension System 100
Integrated trailing arm assembly 1
Elongated body portion 2
First end of Body portion 2a
Second end of Body portion 2b
Open Side of Body portion 2c
Sleeve Mounting Portion 3
Pivot sleeve 4
Bracket Portion 5
Base of Bracket 5a
Front Side of Bracket 5b
Rear Side of Bracket 5c
Wheel mounting Bracket 6
Protrusion 6a
One Extended Plate 6b
Other Extended Plate 6c
Spring Seat Bracket 7
Flat Portion 7a
Hub 7b
Wall Portion 7c
Plurality of Holes 7d
Damper Bracket 8
Rectangular Plate 8a
Pair of Supports 8b
Twist Beam 9
Reinforcement Member 10
Provisions 11

Equivalents:
The embodiments herein and the various features and advantageous details thereof are explained with reference to the non-limiting embodiments in the description. Descriptions of well-known components and processing techniques are omitted so as to not unnecessarily obscure the embodiments herein. The examples used herein are intended merely to facilitate an understanding of ways in which the embodiments herein may be practiced and to further enable those of skill in the art to practice the embodiments herein. Accordingly, the examples should not be construed as limiting the scope of the embodiments herein.

The foregoing description of the specific embodiments will 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.

Throughout this specification the word “comprise”, or variations such as “comprises” or “comprising”, will be understood to imply the inclusion of a stated element, integer or step, or group of elements, integers or steps, but not the exclusion of any other element, integer or step, or group of elements, integers or steps.

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 documents, acts, materials, devices, articles and 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.

The numerical values mentioned for the various physical parameters, dimensions or quantities are only approximations and it is envisaged that the values higher/lower than the numerical values assigned to the parameters, dimensions or quantities fall within the scope of the disclosure, unless there is a statement in the specification specific to the contrary.

While considerable emphasis has been placed herein on the particular features of this disclosure, it will be appreciated that various modifications 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 modifications in the nature of the disclosure or the preferred embodiments 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