Steering column with composite fibre elements produced in a braiding method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9365233-B2
Application number	US-201314386625-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 11, 2013
Priority date	Mar 20, 2012
Publication date	Jun 14, 2016
Grant date	Jun 14, 2016

Abstract

The invention relates to a steering column for a motor vehicle, comprising a steering spindle mounted rotatably in a steering spindle bearing unit, and comprising a guide bracket for connecting the steering spindle bearing unit to a body of the motor vehicle, wherein at least one component of the steering column is formed at least in part from a fiber-reinforced composite material, wherein a component has a thin-walled braided core which corresponds to the shape of the subsequent component, is formed from a thermoplastic material, and is braided with a fiber material, wherein the braided core is produced in an injection molding method and contains functional elements molded therein.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method of producing a steering column for a motor vehicle, comprising:
forming a braided core from at least one of a thermoplastic or thermosettable polymer by an injection molding method, the braided core having substantially a geometry corresponding to a component of the steering column;
coupling the braided core to an auxiliary core configured to improve ease of handling the braided core;
braiding a second set of fibers around the braided core after the coupling of the braided core to the auxiliary core, the second set of fibers being suitable for use as a composite fiber material;
curing at least one of a synthetic resin or a thermoplastic material at least between the braided core and the braided second set of fibers so as to materially integrally connect the braided core and the second set of fibers; and
removing the auxiliary core after said curing the at least one of the synthetic resin or the thermoplastic material.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the braided core is a series of integrally connected and formed braided cores, and wherein after said curing step, further comprising separating said series of integrally connected and formed braided cores into individual braided core components.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein said component of the steering column is a longitudinal component having a substantially U-shaped cross section including at least a partially open longitudinal side, and wherein after said curing step, further comprising removing at least a portion of both the braided second set of fibers and the at least one cured synthetic resin or thermoplastic material from the at least partially open longitudinal side.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the braided core includes a plurality of functional elements integrally formed therein.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein said forming the braided core comprises:
inserting the functional elements of at least one of a stamped metal tab or a bent strip into a mold configured to produce the braided core; and
injection molding the braided core around at least a portion of the at least one stamped metal tab or the bent strip so as to integrally form a single unitary body.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein said braiding comprises laying individual fiber strands around the functional elements onto the braided core, such that the functional elements project between the individual fiber strands of the fiber material and above an outer surface of the braided core.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein the functional elements are oriented, with respect to the braided core, so as to lie parallel to and between at least a portion of the fiber strands following said step of braiding the second set of fibers around the braided core.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein fiber strands from the second set of fibers that are braided onto the braided core are oriented at angles of between about 20° and about 85° with respect to a longitudinal axis of the component following the braiding step.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein an angle of the fiber strands relative to the longitudinal axis of the component following the braiding step varies within a range of between about 20° and about 85°.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the braided core includes a plurality of functional elements integrally formed therein, wherein the functional elements in a region in which the functional elements pass through the composite fiber material, are arranged at angles of between about 20° and about 85° relative to the longitudinal axis of the component.

Assignees

• Heitz Thomas
• Regner Sebastian
• Schacht Arne
• Thyssenkrupp Presta Ag

Inventors

• Heitz Thomas
• Regner Sebastian
• Schacht Arne

Classifications

• B62D1/16 Primary

  Steering columns · CPC title

• B29C45/14

  incorporating preformed parts or layers, e.g. injection moulding around inserts or for coating articles {(B29C45/1671 takes precedence)} · CPC title

• D04C3/40

  for making tubular braids by circulating strand supplies around braiding centre at equal distances · CPC title

• B29C45/1671

  with an insert · CPC title

• B29C2045/1692

  one layer comprising fibres · CPC title