Chassis arm with damper connection section and method for production of a chassis arm

Abstract

The invention relates to a chassis arm for a motor vehicle, having a first end section for connection to a chassis support, a second end section for connection at a wheel end, and a damper connection section exhibiting at least one bearing eye for connecting a damper. The bearing eye is assigned at least one installation aid with a support surface for the damper. The installation aid is formed integrally with the chassis arm, wherein the installation aid in the form of a tab is cut free from the base material of the chassis arm and converted to a body section of the chassis arm, and wherein at least a part of the tab is designed as a support surface for the damper. The invention also relates to a method for producing a chassis arm, in particular a spring control arm for a motor vehicle.

Claims

1. A chassis arm for a motor vehicle, comprising: a first end section configured to connect to a chassis support; a second end section configured to connect at a wheel end; and a damper connection section having at least one bearing eye for connecting a damper, wherein the at least one bearing eye is assigned at least one installation aid with a support surface for the damper, wherein the installation aid is formed integrally with the chassis arm, wherein the installation aid in the form of a tab is cut free from the base material of the chassis arm and converted to a body section of the chassis arm, wherein at least one section of the tab is configured to be the support surface for the damper, and wherein at least an end face of the tab or a part of the end face of the tab forms the support surface.

2. A chassis arm according to claim 1, wherein the support surface is in the form of a circular arc or an elliptical arc.

3. A chassis arm according to claim 1, wherein the end face of the tab next to the support surface comprises two edge sections bounding the support surface.

4. A chassis arm according to claim 1, wherein the tab has a converted section configured to be a support surface for the damper.

5. A chassis arm according to claim 1, wherein the support surface is substantially parallel or coaxial to a central axis of the at least one bearing eye.

6. A chassis arm according to claim 1, wherein the damper connection section comprises at least two bearing eyes opposite and aligned with one another, wherein each of the two bearing eyes is assigned a tab having a support surface allocated to the damper.

7. A chassis arm according to claim 6, wherein the two tabs are configured to be mutually mirror symmetrical.

8. A chassis arm for a motor vehicle, comprising: a first end section configured to connect to a chassis support; a second end section configured to connect at a wheel end; and a damper connection section having at least one bearing eye for connecting a damper, wherein the at least one bearing eye is assigned at least one installation aid with a support surface for the damper, wherein the installation aid is formed integrally with the chassis arm, wherein the installation aid in the form of a tab is cut free from the base material of the chassis arm and converted to a body section of the chassis arm, wherein at least one section of the tab is configured to be a support surface for the damper, and wherein at least the damper connection section, with the exception of the tab, is a substantially trough-shaped body comprising a base surface and two legs laterally bounding the base surface, and when at east one of the legs comprises the at east one bearing eye.

9. A chassis arm according to claim 8, wherein the tab bounds a recess formed in the base surface, and wherein the tab is configured to be converted to be substantially parallel to the leg exhibiting the at least one bearing eye.

10. The chassis arm according to claim 8, wherein the tab is configured to be a distance away from the leg exhibiting the at least one bearing eye, wherein the distance is in the range from greater than 0 to 60 mm.

11. A method for producing a chassis arm, the method comprising: cutting sheet metal to a blank; cutting at least one bearing eye for connecting a damper and at least one recess into the sheet metal before, during or after the cutting of the blank; and cutting out the recess so that at least one tab is cut free through the recess, and forming the blank into one trough-shaped component; wherein the at least one bearing eye is configured to connect to a damper, and wherein the blank formed into one trough-shaped component comprises one base surface and two legs laterally adjoining the base surface, so that the at least one bearing eye is arranged in one leg and the recess is arranged in the base surface, and wherein after cutting out the recess and shaping the trough-shaped component, the at least one tab is converted such that a part of the tab is configured to serve as a support surface for a damper to be connected to the at least one bearing eye.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the at least one tab is arranged in relation to the base surface exhibiting the recess of the trough-shaped component with a conversion angle in the range from 85 to 95.

13. The method according to claim 11, wherein the at least one tab is configured so that it has a flanged support surface configured to be a support surface for the damper.

14. The method according to claim 11, wherein the at least one tab is configured to be a distance in the range from greater than 0 to 60 mm away from the legs exhibiting the bearing eye.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) FIG. 1 a perspective view of a first exemplary embodiment of a trough-shaped chassis arm;

(2) FIG. 2 the chassis arm depicted in FIG. 1 in a plan view;

(3) FIG. 3 the chassis arm from FIGS. 1 and 2 before conversion of the cut free tabs in a plan view;

(4) FIG. 4a a cross-sectional view of the chassis arm along the section line A-A in FIG. 2;

(5) FIG. 4b a second embodiment of a trough-shaped chassis arm in a cross-sectional view similar to the cross-sectional view in FIG. 4a; and

(6) FIG. 4c a third embodiment of a trough-shaped chassis arm in a cross-sectional view similar to the cross-sectional view in FIG. 4a.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

(7) FIG. 1 shows a chassis arm 2 for a motor vehicle. The chassis arm 2 can also be referred to as a spring control arm or symbolically represents a spring control arm. The chassis arm 2 is made of a metal blank, which is formed into a substantially trough-shaped body. The chassis arm 2 has a first end section for connection to a wheel carrier and a second end section for connection to a chassis support. Between the two end sections 4 and 6, a damper connection section 8 is arranged for connection of a damper.

(8) The chassis arm 2 also comprises high-strength sheet metal, preferably sheet steel. The sheet metal or sheet steel used for its production preferably has a yield strength of more than 650 MPa. Particularly preferable is multiphase or complex phase steel which has, for example, a tensile strength of at least 800 MPa and a yield strength of at least 680 MPa. The sheet thickness of the chassis arm 2 is for example in the range of 1 to 4 mm, preferably in the range of 1.5 to 3 mm.

(9) The substantially trough-shaped chassis arm 2 has two legs 10 and 12 which bound a base surface 14 of the trough body.

(10) In the region of the damper connection section 8, the legs 10 and 12 have two aligned bearing eyes 16 and 18 in the form of through holes. The bearing eyes 16 and 18 are preferably realised as circular through holes. The bearing eyes 16 and 18 serve to connect the damper to the chassis arm 2. The bearing eyes 16 and 18 are each assigned an installation aid designed in the form of a converted tab 20 and 22. In this case, the tabs 20 and 22 extend substantially parallel to the legs 10 and 12 of the trough-shaped chassis arm 2. At their end faces or ends, the tabs 20 and 22 each have a support surface 20.1 and 22.1, whereby the support surfaces 20.1 and 22.1 are preferably bounded laterally by substantially mutually parallel edge sections 20.2 and 22.2 (see in particular FIG. 3). The edge sections 20.2 and 22.2 terminate at the end face of the tabs 20 and 22 respectively, in the form of substantially rectilinear edges, whereby these edges border the support surface 20.1 or 22.1 respectively. The support surface 20.1 or 22.1 is formed substantially in the form of an elliptical arc in the embodiment of the chassis arm 2 shown in FIGS. 1 to 3. Alternatively, the support surface 20.1 or 22.1 may each be in the form of a circular arc. The respective support surface 20.1 or 22.1 can also be referred to as concave edge or concave damper stop. The substantially rectilinear edges of the edge sections 20.2 and 22.2 of the respective tab 20 lie, for example, on a common alignment line.

(11) The legs 10 and 12 of the chassis control arm 2 run continuously from the first end section 4, with which the suspension link 2 can be connected to a wheel carrier, to the second end section 6, with which the chassis arm 2 can be connected to a chassis support, such as a rear axle. The first end section 4 is fork-shaped and has two mutually aligned through holes 24 and 26.

(12) The second end section 6 is also fork-shaped and has mutually aligned slots 28 and 30, which serve to connect the chassis arm 2 to a chassis support.

(13) Between the second end section 6 and the damper connection section 8, a narrowed intermediate section 32 is formed, in which the distance between the two legs 10 and 12 is less than at the two end sections 4 and 6 and at the damper connection section 8. The intermediate section 32 of the chassis arm 2 has two mutually aligned through holes 34, on which further components can be connected with the chassis arm 2.

(14) The legs 10 and 12 of the trough-shaped body have on their surface a flange or collar 10.1, 12.1 which is bent outwards. These collars 10.1, 12.1 are each designed continuously between the two end sections 4 and 6. The width of the collars 10.1 and 12.1 changes along the legs 10, 12. The largest width of the collars 10.1 and 12.1 occurs in the area of the narrowed intermediate section 32. From there, the width of the collars 10.1 and 12.1 decreases in the direction of the end sections 4 and 6.

(15) As can be seen in particular from FIG. 2, the base surface 14 of the chassis arm 2 has niche-like recesses 36 and 38 at the areas associated with the first end section 4 and the second end section 6. In addition, in the base surface 14 of the chassis arm 2, an opening is cut out as a recess 40, which serves to reduce the weight of the chassis arm 2 and the formation of the tabs 20 and 22. Two further openings 42 and 44 introduced into the base surface 14 serve for fastening additional components, as a passage for a fluid line and/or as an access opening for an adjustment means or tool.

(16) In FIG. 3, the chassis arm 2 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 is shown before the conversion of the tabs cut free in the base surface 14 in plan view.

(17) It can be seen that the recess 40 is formed in the base surface 14 such that the tabs 20 and 22 perform their desired functionality as installation aids for the damper simply by conversion. The tabs 20 and 22 are preferably converted by an angle of approximately 90 relative to the base surface 14. Such a conversion angle can be inferred in particular from the cross-sectional view of the trough-shaped chassis arm 2 shown in FIG. 4a.

(18) FIG. 4b shows a second exemplary embodiment of the trough-shaped chassis arm 2 in a cross-sectional view. In contrast to the first exemplary embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 4a, the tabs 20 and 22 in the second embodiment have converted sections 20.3 and 22.3, which serve as a stop or as support surfaces 20.1 and 22.1 for the damper. The converted sections 20.3 and 22.3 are converted to the outside. Preferably, the converted sections 20.3 and 22.3 are converted outwards with an angle of approximately 90 in relation to the sections of the tabs 20 and 22 extending substantially parallel to the legs 10 and 12.

(19) In FIG. 4c, a third embodiment of the trough-shaped chassis arm 2 is shown in cross-sectional view. In contrast to the embodiment shown in FIG. 4b, the tabs 20 and 22 have sections 20.3 and 22.3 converted inwards, which serve as a stop or as support surfaces 20.1 and 22.1 for the damper. It is preferred that the converted sections 20.3 and 22.3 are converted inwards at an angle of approximately 90 with respect to the sections of the tabs 20 and 22 extending parallel to the legs 10 and 12.

(20) The embodiment of the chassis arm according to the invention is not limited to the exemplary embodiments shown in the drawing. On the contrary, numerous variants are conceivable which make use of the invention specified in the claims even in the case of embodiments deviating from described exemplary embodiments. In particular, the support surfaces acting as installation aids can be provided by differently shaped tabs.