JP6759746B2 - Steering device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a steering device mounted on an automobile or the like. More specifically, in a steering device configured to be equipped with an outer column and an inner column so that the telescopic position (position in the vehicle front-rear direction) of the steering wheel can be adjusted according to the physique and driving posture of the driver, the outer column and Regarding the structure that limits the relative movement of the inner column.

In the steering device whose telescopic position of the steering wheel can be adjusted, a structure that restricts the movement of the steering column is adopted.

For example, in the steering device described in Patent Document 1 below, the member welded and fixed to the steering column comes into contact with the bolt of the lock lever shaft to limit the axial movement of the steering column.

Further, in Patent Document 2 below, the tip of the screw shaft of the screw screwed into the outer column is inserted into an elongated hole formed in the inner column which is long in the axial direction, so that the outer column and the inner column rotate relative to each other. Is blocking.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2006-240327 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2006-205956

When a member that restricts the relative movement of the outer column and the inner column is attached to the inner column, if welding is used as in Patent Document 1, the inner column, which requires accuracy, may be deformed by the influence of welding heat. Further, when a member that restricts relative movement is attached to the inner column by caulking, the inner column may be deformed due to stress during caulking.

Further, when a member that restricts the relative movement of the outer column and the inner column is attached to the inner column, if bolt tightening is used as in Patent Document 2, a tapped part is prepared or a portion where the bolt is screwed is prepared. Work such as cutting the tap is required. As a result, there is a problem that the manufacturing cost increases due to the increase in manufacturing labor.

In view of such problems, it is an object of the present invention to provide a steering device that is easy to assemble and can suppress an increase in manufacturing cost.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention
A steering shaft that transmits steering force and
An outer column that has a guide groove extending in the axial direction and rotatably supports the steering shaft.
An inner column in which the front side portion of the vehicle is fitted in the outer column and rotatably supports the steering shaft together with the outer column so as to enable relative movement in the axial direction.
It has a movable side stopper that is housed in the guide groove portion, attached to the inner column, and limits the telescopic adjustment range by contacting the fixed side stopper at a predetermined position during telescopic adjustment.
The inner column is formed with a first hole penetrating in the radial direction and a second hole penetrating in the radial direction .
The movable side stopper is inserted into the first hole and is fixed to the core metal and the core metal that transmits the load when contacting the fixed side stopper to the inner column, and the core metal is fixed from the inner column. It has a core holder to prevent it from coming off,
The core metal retainer extends radially inwardly, possess the inserted locking claw to the second hole,
The core metal retainer provides a steering device characterized in that it is formed of a resin .
As a result, it is possible to provide a steering device that is easy to assemble and can suppress an increase in manufacturing cost. Further, it is possible to prevent an abnormal noise from being generated when the core metal retainer comes into contact with the fixed side stopper.

In the present invention, preferably, the first hole and the second hole are arranged side by side in the axial direction.
The second hole is formed on the side of the fixed-side stopper with respect to the first hole.
Further, in the present invention, the first hole and the second hole are preferably formed as one hole .
This facilitates the processing of the inner column.
Further, preferably, in the present invention, the first hole and the second hole are continuous in the axial direction.

Further, preferably, in the present invention, the guide groove portion is a bottomed groove formed to the rear end of the vehicle on the radial inside of the outer column.
The fixed-side stopper is formed integrally with the blocking portion and a blocking portion inserted from the radial outer side to the radial inner side of the outer column through a third hole formed through the guide groove portion in the radial direction. It has a base portion fixed to the outer peripheral surface of the outer column.
This eliminates the need to form an opening in the outer column for attaching the movable stopper to the inner column, and increases the rigidity of the outer column.

Further, preferably in the present invention, the movable side stopper has an energizing member fixed to the core metal or the core metal retainer and in contact with the core metal and the outer column.
As a result, the inner column and the outer column can be electrically connected, and an energization path from the steering wheel to the vehicle body can be secured.

Further, preferably in the present application, the energizing member is elastically deformed and is in contact with the guide groove portion at a predetermined pressure.
As a result, the backlash between the movable side stopper and the outer column can be reduced, and the energizing member can be surely contacted with the outer column.

Further, in the present application, the core metal retainer is preferably integrally molded with the core metal.
As a result, the number of parts can be reduced and the increase in manufacturing cost can be suppressed.

According to the steering device of the present invention, it is possible to provide a steering device that is easy to assemble and can suppress an increase in manufacturing cost.

It is a perspective view which looked at the steering mechanism using the steering apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this application from an oblique front. It is a vertical sectional view of the steering apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this application. It is sectional drawing in the cut surface of III-III shown in FIG. 2 of the steering apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this application. FIG. 5 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a part of the cross-sectional view shown in FIG. 3 of the steering device according to the embodiment of the present application. It is an enlarged sectional view which enlarged a part of the vertical sectional view shown in FIG. 2 of the steering apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this application. It is a perspective view which shows the inner column and the movable side stopper of the steering apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this application. (A) shows the state before assembling the movable side stopper, and (b) shows the state after assembling the movable side stopper and attaching it to the inner column. It is a perspective view which shows the movable side stopper of the steering apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this application. (A) shows the state seen from the lower side of the vehicle right rear, (b) shows the state seen from the upper side of the vehicle left rear, and (c) shows the state seen from the lower side of the vehicle left front. There is. It is a perspective view which shows the movable side stopper attached to the inner column of the steering apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this application. (A) shows a state seen from the lower side in front of the vehicle, (b) shows a state seen from the lower side in front of the left front of the vehicle, and (c) shows a state seen from the upper side in the rear left rear of the vehicle. It is sectional drawing in the IX-IX cut plane shown in FIG. 4 of the steering apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this application.

Hereinafter, an embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a steering device used for a tilt / telescopic adjustable rack-assisted electric power steering mechanism (hereinafter, simply referred to as a steering mechanism) will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the description, the front-back, left-right, and up-down are indicated by arrows in the drawing, and the position and direction of each member will be described along the arrows. These directions coincide with the direction of the vehicle when the steering device is mounted on the vehicle.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a steering mechanism 1 using the steering device 2 according to the embodiment of the present application as viewed diagonally from the front. As shown in FIG. 1, the steering device 2 of the present embodiment is rotatably supported by a steering column and transmitted to the steering gear 103 from the steering shaft 3 and the intermediate shaft 102 that transmit the steering force from the steering wheel 101. By reciprocating the rack shaft (not shown) to the left and right by the steering force, the front wheels are steered via the left and right tie rods 104 connected to the rack shaft.

FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view of the steering device 2 according to the embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 2, the steering device 2 is an aluminum alloy die-cast molded product constituting an intermediate portion, and is attached to a tubular outer column 10 and a vehicle body 100, and is tilted to hold a vehicle rear side portion of the outer column 10. The center axis is centered by the bracket 12, the inner column 11 fitted inside the vehicle rear side of the outer column 10, the electric assist mechanism 4 attached to the vehicle front side of the outer column 10, the inner column 11 and the electric assist mechanism 4. The main component is a steering shaft 3 that is supported so as to be able to rotate.

(Steering column)
The steering column is configured to expand and contract in the axial direction from the outer column 10 and the inner column 11. The outer column 10 is formed with a holding cylinder hole 13 having an inner diameter slightly larger than the outer diameter of the inner column 11 along the axial direction, and the vehicle front side portion of the inner column 11 is inside the holding cylinder hole 13. It fits.

A resin coating with a low coefficient of friction is applied to the outer peripheral surface of the inner column 11 where it fits with the holding cylinder hole 13, so that the inner column 11 has a relatively small tightening friction force at the time of a secondary collision described later. Move to the front side of the vehicle against it.

As shown in FIG. 2, a pivot boss 22 holding a steel pipe collar 21 in a boss hole 22a penetrating in the left-right direction is formed in the upper part of the front side of the housing 5 of the electric assist mechanism 4. In the outer column 10, the front end portion 10f extending outward in the radial direction is fixed to the housing 5 by a bolt 56. The electric assist mechanism 4, the outer column 10, the inner column 11, and the steering shaft 3 are rotatably attached to the vehicle body 100 by a pivot bolt (not shown) that has passed through the pivot boss 22.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing a III-III cut surface shown in FIG. 2 of the steering device 2 according to the embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, a guide groove portion 25 having a pair of left and right guide walls 23 and 24 projecting upward and extending in the front-rear direction of the vehicle is formed on the upper portion of the outer column 10. The guide groove portion 25 is a bottomed groove that covers the upper side (diameter outside), and is formed to the rear end of the vehicle on the radial inside of the outer column 10. As shown in FIG. 2, a slit portion 26 that penetrates in the radial direction, extends in the front-rear direction (axial direction), and has an open rear side is provided in the lower portion of the outer column 10.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the outer column 10 having a cross section shown in FIG. 3 and a member housed inside the outer column 10. A pair of clamp portions 10a and 10a projecting downward are formed in the lower portion of the outer column 10 on the rear side of the vehicle. The pair of clamp portions 10a and 10a are perforated with through holes 28 for tightening bolts penetrating in the left-right direction (vehicle width direction). As shown in FIG. 3, a tightening bolt 81 of a tilt / telescopic adjusting mechanism 80, which will be described later, is passed through the through hole 28. The tightening portion 10g (see FIG. 4) of the outer column 10 that tightens the inner column 11 by the tilt / telescopic adjustment mechanism 80 described later extends further toward the rear side of the vehicle from the clamp portion 10a. A substantially U-shaped deformation suppressing portion 10c is integrally formed at the lower end of the tightening portion 10g extending to the rear side of the vehicle (see FIG. 2). The deformation suppressing portion 10c increases the rigidity of the vehicle rear side portion of the tightening portion 10g, so that when the tightening portion 10g is tightened by the tilt / telescopic adjustment mechanism 80 described later, the vehicle rear side of the tightening portion 10g is the vehicle. Prevents deformation too much compared to the front side.

As shown in FIG. 2, a ball bearing 29 that rotatably supports the upper steering shaft 62 constituting the vehicle rear side portion of the steering shaft 3 is fitted inside the rear end portion of the inner column 11.

(stopper)
FIG. 5 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing the periphery of the movable stopper 30 in the vertical cross-sectional view shown in FIG. 2 of the steering device 2 according to the embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 5, a movable side stopper 30 housed in the guide groove portion 25 of the outer column 10 is mounted on the upper portion on the front side of the inner column 11. The relative rotation between the outer column 10 and the inner column 11 is prevented by the engagement between the inner side surface of the guide groove 25 and the movable stopper 30.

A fixed-side stopper 33 having an L-shaped cross section is attached to the vehicle rear side portion of the guide groove portion 25. The fixed-side stopper 33 is formed integrally with the plate-shaped base portion 33a screwed into the upper surface of the guide groove portion 25 (outer peripheral surface of the outer column 10) and screwed, and is formed on the vehicle front side portion of the base portion 33a. It has a plate-shaped blocking portion 33b extending downward through a hole (third hole) 25c penetrating the guide groove portion 25 in the radial direction. When the telescopic adjustment is performed on the rear side of the vehicle, the blocking portion 33b is brought into contact with the movable side stopper 30, so that the telescopic adjustment range on the rear side of the vehicle is indicated by the reference numeral “TAr” in FIGS. 2 and 5. ) Is restricted.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing an inner column 11 and a movable side stopper 30 of the steering device 2 according to the embodiment of the present application. FIG. 6A shows a state before assembling the movable side stopper 30, and FIG. 6B shows a state after assembling the movable side stopper 30 and attaching it to the inner column 11. The movable side stopper 30 includes a core metal 59 formed of a metal material, a resin core metal retainer 60 attached to the core metal 59, and an energizing member 58 attached to the core metal 59 and the core metal retainer 60. Have. Although the core metal 59 and the core metal retainer 60 are shown separately in FIG. 6A, the core metal retainer 60 may be integrally molded with the core metal 59.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a movable side stopper 30 of the steering device 2 according to the embodiment of the present application. (A) shows the state seen from the lower side of the vehicle right rear, (b) shows the state seen from the upper side of the vehicle left rear, and (c) shows the state seen from the lower side of the vehicle left front. There is.

The core metal 59 has a substantially quadrangular plate-shaped portion 59a and a rectangular parallelepiped convex portion 59b protruding downward from the center of the plate-shaped portion 59a.

The core metal retainer 60 has a surrounding portion 60a surrounding the outer edge portion of the plate-shaped portion 59a of the core metal 59, and a locking claw 60b extending downward (inward in the radial direction) from the central portion of the surrounding portion 60a on the rear side of the vehicle. ing. The locking claw 60b has a plate shape arranged perpendicular to the axial direction, and gradually increases in thickness from the lower end of the rear side surface of the vehicle to the middle portion in the vertical direction to form an inclined surface, and forms an inclined surface on the upper portion thereof. It has protrusions that form a generally horizontal surface.

The energizing member 58 extends downward on both the left and right sides of the core metal retainer 60 across the upper side of the core metal 59 and the core metal retainer 60 in the vehicle width direction, sandwiches the core metal retainer 60, and bends downward at the center of the core metal. It has a fixing portion 58a in contact with the plate-shaped portion 59a of the 59, and sliding contact portions 58b, 58c, 58d, 58e extending from both ends of the fixing portion 58a in the front-rear direction of the vehicle, respectively. The energizing member 58 can be formed from a conductive material such as metal.

As shown in FIG. 6A, a hole 11b (first hole) formed through the inner column 11 on the vehicle front side in the radial direction and a hole 11b arranged side by side on the vehicle rear side of the hole 11b. An arranged hole 11c (second hole) is formed. The holes 11b are formed in a substantially square shape. The hole 11c is formed in a rectangular shape that is long in the vehicle width direction.

After assembling, the movable side stopper 30 can be easily attached to the inner column 11 by inserting the convex portion 59b of the core metal 59 into the hole 11b and inserting the locking claw 60b of the core metal retainer 60 into the hole 11c. .. The movable side stopper 30 is attached to the inner column 11 before the inner column 11 is inserted into the outer column 10. The fixed-side stopper 33 shown in FIG. 5 is screwed to the outer column 10 after inserting the inner column 11 to which the movable-side stopper 30 is attached into the outer column 10. Instead of the fixed-side stopper 33, a portion of the outer column 10 that comes into contact with the movable-side stopper 30 may be formed integrally with the outer column 10 to serve as a fixed-side stopper. In this case, an opening is provided through the guide groove 25 of the outer column 10 in the vertical direction (diameter direction), the inner column 11 is inserted into the outer column 10, and then the movable stopper 30 is inserted through the opening to insert the inner column. It may be attached to 11.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a movable side stopper 30 attached to the inner column 11 of the steering device 2 according to the embodiment of the present application. (A) shows a state seen from the lower side in front of the vehicle, (b) shows a state seen from the lower side in front of the left front of the vehicle, and (c) shows a state seen from the upper side in the rear left rear of the vehicle. FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing an IX-IX cut surface shown in FIG. 4 of the steering device 2 according to the embodiment of the present application.

As shown in FIG. 9, the sliding contact portions 58b, 58c, 58d, 58e of the energizing member 58 are elastically deformed between the core metal retainer 60 and the guide walls 23, 24, and are formed on the inner walls 25a, 25b of the guide groove portions 25, respectively. They are in contact with each other at a predetermined pressure.

Electrical components such as a horn and an airbag are attached to the steering wheel 101 of an automobile, and since most of these electrical components are body grounds, it is necessary to secure an energization path from the steering wheel 101 to the vehicle body 100. However, when the low friction material coating is applied to the inner peripheral surface of the outer column 10 or the outer peripheral surface of the inner column 11 as described above, the energization path is passed through the contact surface between the inner column 11 and the outer column 10 by the coating. It becomes difficult to energize. Further, when the spline fitting portion of the steering shaft 3 is coated with a resin as described later, the resin coating makes it difficult to energize the steering shaft 3 through the energization path via the spline fitting portion. Therefore, the conductive current-carrying member 58 comes into contact with the core metal 59 in contact with the inner column 11 and the guide groove portion 25 of the outer column 10, thereby electrically connecting the inner column 11 and the outer column 10 from the steering wheel 101. It is assumed that an energization path to the vehicle body 100 is secured. Further, the sliding contact portions 58b, 58c, 58d, 58e are elastically deformed and come into contact with the inner walls 25a, 25b of the guide groove portion 25 at a predetermined pressure to close the backlash between the outer column 10 and the movable side stopper 30. ing.

(Tilt bracket)
As shown in FIG. 3, the tilt bracket 12 has an upper plate 71 extending in the left-right direction and left and right side plates 72 and 73 welded to the lower surface of the upper plate 71. The upper plate 71 is fastened to the vehicle body 100 with bolts or the like. The distance between the left and right plates 72 and 73 is set to be slightly larger than the width of the outer column 10 in the left-right direction in the free state. The left and right plates 72 and 73 are formed with elongated holes 72a and 73a for tilt adjustment. The tilt adjusting elongated holes 72a and 73a are formed in an arc shape centered on the pivot boss 22 described above.

As shown in FIG. 3, a tilt / telescopic adjustment mechanism 80 provided for tilt adjustment and telescopic adjustment of the steering column is provided below the tilt bracket 12. The tilt / telescopic adjustment mechanism 80 is tightened according to the user's operation by the tightening bolt 81 inserted from the left into the through hole 28 for the tightening bolt formed in the clamp portions 10a and 10a of the outer column 10. And release it, thereby fixing the tilt / telescopic position and releasing it.

As shown in FIG. 3, the tightening bolt 81 rotates integrally with the operating lever 82, which is rotated by the driver, between its head and the left side plate 72 of the tilt bracket 12. The movable cam 83 and the fixed cam 84 whose right end is non-rotatably engaged with the elongated hole 72a for tilt adjustment are fitted on the outside. An inclined cam surface having a complementary shape is formed on the opposite end surfaces of the fixed cam 84 and the movable cam 83. The fixed cam 84 and the movable cam 83 mesh with each other and come close to each other in response to the rotation of the operating lever 82 to release the tightening by the tightening bolt 81, and repel each other to move away from each other to generate tension in the tightening bolt 81. And tighten.

As shown in FIG. 3, between the left and right side plates 72 and 73 of the tilt bracket 12 and the outer column 10, the left and right ends of the tightening bolt 81 are engaged with the locking arms extending to the left and right from the lower stopper 50 described later. Each of the two friction plates 85 and the intermediate friction plate 86 whose left and right end plate portions 86a and 86b are sandwiched between the two friction plates 85 on both the left and right sides are externally fitted. The friction plate 85 is engaged with the lower stopper 50 as described above, and the holding of the inner column 11 by the outer column 10 is reinforced by increasing the friction surface.

As shown in FIG. 2, the friction plate 85 is provided with an elongated hole 85a extending in the front-rear direction in order to allow relative movement with the tightening bolt 81 in a state where the tightening is released and to enable telescopic adjustment. Has been done. The intermediate friction plate 86 has a shape in which a round hole through which a tightening bolt 81 passes is formed in the center of a square plate-shaped member, and a pair of left and right end plate portions that are in surface contact with the friction plate 85 are connected by a connecting plate portion. There is.

As shown in FIG. 3, on the outside of the right side plate 73, the pressing plate 87 and the thrust bearing 88 are fitted onto the tightening bolt 81, and these are other than the nut 89 screwed into the male screw 81a of the tightening bolt 81. It is tightened together with the members of.

(Lower stopper)
As shown in FIG. 2, a lower stopper 50 of an aluminum alloy die-cast molded product that is loosely fitted in the slit portion 26 is mounted on the lower surface of the front side portion of the inner column 11. At the front end of the lower stopper 50, a buffer holding portion 52 having a substantially L-shaped cross section cut in the axial direction and the vertical direction is formed so as to project downward, and a rubber buffer block 53 is formed in the buffer holding portion 52. It is held.

The buffer block 53 abuts on the front end portion of the slit portion 26 to limit the telescopic adjustment range forward of the inner column 11 (indicated by the reference numeral “TAf” in FIG. 5).

The lower stopper 50 is fixed to the inner column 11 by a pair of front and rear resin pins 51. At the time of the secondary collision, when the buffer block 53 collides with the front end portion of the slit portion 26, the resin pin 51 breaks and the lower stopper 50 falls off from the inner column 11. As a result, the inner column 11 is allowed to move further forward, and the range indicated by the symbol "CP" can be moved, thereby alleviating the impact of the secondary collision.

(Steering shaft)
As shown in FIG. 2, the steering shaft 3 includes a lower steering shaft 61 and an upper steering shaft 62 that are spline-coupled to each other in the steering column so as to enable telescopic adjustment, and a lower steering shaft 61 via a torsion bar 44. It is composed of a connected output shaft 39. The steering shaft 3 is rotatably supported by a ball bearing 29 fitted in the rear portion of the inner column 11 and ball bearings 37 and 38 fitted in the housing 5 of the electric assist mechanism 4.

The lower steering shaft 61 can be molded from a steel round bar by rolling or broaching, and has a male spline 61a on the outer periphery of the latter half. On the other hand, the upper steering shaft 62 can be molded by drawing or broaching a steel pipe as a material, and has a female spline 62a that fits into the male spline 61a of the lower steering shaft 61 on the inner circumference of the front half portion. ..

The male spline 61a of the lower steering shaft 61 is coated with a resin to prevent rattling with the female spline 62a of the upper steering shaft 62. A low friction material coating can be used instead of the resin coating.

A serration 62b is formed at the rear end of the upper steering shaft 62 to which the boss 101a of the steering wheel 101 (shown by a broken line in FIG. 2) fits outward.

<Action of the embodiment>
As shown in FIG. 3, when the driver rotates the operation lever 82 to the tightening side, the mountain of the inclined cam surface of the movable cam 83 rides on the mountain of the inclined cam surface of the fixed cam 84, and the tightening bolt 81 is placed on the left side. While pulling to, push the fixed cam 84 to the right. As a result, the left and right side plates 72 and 73 tighten the clamp portions 10a and 10a of the outer column 10 from the left and right to limit the movement of the steering column in the tilt direction, and at the same time, the outer column 10 tightens the inner column 11. And the frictional force generated in the friction plate 85 restrict the axial movement of the inner column 11.

On the other hand, when the driver rotates the operation lever 82 in the release direction, the left and right side plates 72 and 73 of the tilt bracket 12 having a wider interval in the free state than the width of the outer column 10 are elastically restored as described above. As a result, both the restriction on the movement of the outer column 10 in the tilt direction and the restriction on the movement in the axial direction of the inner column 11 are released, and the user can adjust the position of the steering wheel 101.

In this state, the user moves the steering wheel 101 to the rear side of the vehicle by the axial distance between the movable side stopper 30 and the fixed side stopper 33, as indicated by the reference numerals “TAR” in FIGS. 2 and 5. Can be done. When the movable stopper 30 reaches a predetermined position (a position moved rearward by "TAr") by telescopic adjustment to the rear side of the vehicle, the movable stopper 30 comes into contact with the blocking portion 33b of the fixed stopper 33. The load received by the movable stopper 30 when it comes into contact with the fixed stopper 33 is transmitted from the core metal 55 to the inner column 11.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the hole (second hole) 11c into which the locking claw 60b of the core metal retainer 60 is inserted is the hole (first hole) into which the convex portion 59b of the core metal 59 is inserted. ) 11b, the movable side stopper 30 is arranged on the side that comes into contact with the fixed side stopper 33. Therefore, the portion of the inner column 11 (crossing portion 11d) between the holes 11b and 11c does not receive the load from the core metal 59 when the movable side stopper 30 comes into contact with the fixed side stopper 33. If the holes 11b and 11c are arranged interchangeably, the load transmitted from the core metal 59 to the inner column 11 is applied to the crossing portion 11d between the holes 11b and 11c, and the crossing portion 11d is easily damaged. The same can be said when the holes 11b and 11c are arranged side by side in the circumferential direction. In this case, when the inner column 11 rotates in either direction about the central axis and the movable stopper 30 is pressed against the guide groove portion 25 of the outer column 10, the inner column between the holes 11b and 11c is pressed. The column 11 portion is not preferable because the movable stopper 30 receives the load from the outer column 10.

According to the embodiment described above, it is possible to provide a steering device that is easy to assemble and can suppress an increase in manufacturing cost.

In the description of the above-described embodiment, specific explanations have been given to help the understanding of the present invention, but the present invention is not limited to these, and changes, improvements, and the like can be made.

For example, although the above embodiment applies the present invention to a column-assisted electric power steering device, it can naturally be applied to other steering devices such as a rack-assisted electric power steering device. Further, a fixed side stopper is provided on the vehicle front side portion of the outer column, a second hole is arranged on the vehicle front side of the first hole, and a locking claw of the movable side stopper is arranged on the vehicle front side of the core metal. As a result, the range of telescopic adjustment to the front side of the vehicle may be limited.

Further, the specific configuration and shape of the steering column, the tilt / telescopic adjustment mechanism 80, the movable side stopper 30, and the like can be appropriately changed without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

For example, the locking claw 60b is not limited to that of the above embodiment, as long as it is inserted into the hole 11c formed in the inner column 11 to prevent the movable side stopper 30 from coming off from the inner column 11. It may have such a shape. Further, the energizing member 58 may be any as long as it electrically connects the inner column 11 and the outer column 10, and may be in direct contact with, for example, the inner column 11. The movable side stopper 30 does not have to have the energizing member 58.

Further, the shape and mounting method of the fixed side stopper 33 are not limited to those of the above embodiment, and a portion that comes into contact with the movable side stopper 30 is formed in the guide groove portion 25 after the inner column 11 is inserted into the outer column 10. All you need is.

Further, it is also possible to form the first hole 11b and the second hole 11c as one axially continuous hole without providing the crossing portion 11d between the first hole 11b and the second hole 11c of the inner column 11. Good. For example, it may be a long hole extending from the axial front end of the first hole 11b to the axial rear end of the second hole 11c.

1 Steering mechanism 2 Steering device 3 Steering shaft 4 Electric assist mechanism 5 Housing 10 Outer column 10a Clamp part 10c Deformation suppression part 10f Front end part 10g Tightening part 11 Inner column 11b, 11c Hole 11d Crossing part 12 Tilt bracket 13 Holding cylinder hole 21 Color 22 Pivot boss 22a Boss hole 23, 24 Guide wall 25 Guide groove 25a, 25b Inner wall 25c Hole 26 Slit 28 Through hole 29 Ball bearing 30 Movable side stopper 33 Fixed side stopper 33a Base 33b Blocking part 37, 38 Ball bearing 39 Output Shaft 44 Torsion bar 50 Lower stopper 51 Resin pin 52 Buffer holding part 53 Buffer block 56 Bolt 58 Energizing member 58a Fixed part 58b, 58c, 58d, 58e Sliding contact part 59 Core metal 59a Plate-shaped part 59b Convex part 60 Core metal holder 60a Enclosure Part 60b Locking claw 61 Lower steering shaft 61a Male spline 62 Upper steering shaft 62a Female spline 62b Serration 71 Upper plate 72 Left plate 72a Tilt adjustment slot 73a Right plate 73a Tilt adjustment slot 80 Tilt / telescopic adjustment mechanism 81 tightening Attached bolt 81a Male screw 82 Operation lever 83 Movable cam 84 Fixed cam 85 Friction plate 85a Long hole 86 Intermediate friction plate 87 Press plate 88 Thrust bearing 89 Nut 100 Body 101 Steering wheel 101a Boss 102 Intermediate shaft 103 Steering gear 104 Tie rod

Claims (8)

A steering shaft that transmits steering force and
An outer column that has a guide groove extending in the axial direction and rotatably supports the steering shaft.
An inner column in which the front side portion of the vehicle is fitted in the outer column and rotatably supports the steering shaft together with the outer column so as to enable relative movement in the axial direction.
It has a movable side stopper that is housed in the guide groove portion, attached to the inner column, and limits the telescopic adjustment range by contacting the fixed side stopper at a predetermined position during telescopic adjustment.
The inner column is formed with a first hole penetrating in the radial direction and a second hole penetrating in the radial direction .
The movable side stopper is inserted into the first hole and is fixed to the core metal and the core metal that transmits the load when contacting the fixed side stopper to the inner column, and the core metal is fixed from the inner column. It has a core holder to prevent it from coming off,
The core metal retainer extends radially inwardly, possess the inserted locking claw to the second hole,
A steering device characterized in that the core metal retainer is made of resin . The first hole and the second hole are arranged side by side in the axial direction.
The steering device according to claim 1, wherein the second hole is formed on the side of the fixed-side stopper with respect to the first hole. The steering device according to claim 1 or 2 , wherein the first hole and the second hole are formed as one hole . The steering device according to claim 3, wherein the first hole and the second hole are continuous in the axial direction. The guide groove portion is a bottomed groove formed to the rear end of the vehicle on the radial inside of the outer column.
The fixed-side stopper is formed integrally with the blocking portion and a blocking portion inserted from the radial outer side to the radial inner side of the outer column through a third hole formed through the guide groove portion in the radial direction. The steering device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the steering device has a base portion fixed to an outer peripheral surface of the outer column. The steering according to any one of claims 1 to 5 , wherein the movable side stopper is fixed to the core metal or the core metal retainer, and has an energizing member in contact with the core metal and the outer column. apparatus. The steering device according to any one of claims 1 to 6 , wherein the energizing member is elastically deformed and is in contact with the guide groove portion at a predetermined pressure. The steering device according to any one of claims 1 to 7 , wherein the core metal retainer is integrally molded with the core metal.

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