CN115593163A

CN115593163A - Suspension and automobile

Info

Publication number: CN115593163A
Application number: CN202110780070.3A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 刘坚雄; 樊义祥; 廖美颖; 丁都都; 邓伏栋; 张红业
Original assignee: Guangzhou Automobile Group Co Ltd
Current assignee: Guangzhou Automobile Group Co Ltd
Priority date: 2021-07-09
Filing date: 2021-07-09
Publication date: 2023-01-13

Abstract

The invention relates to a suspension and an automobile, wherein the suspension comprises a steering knuckle, a lower swing arm and a universal rotating unit; the lower swing arm comprises a control arm and a buffer arm, a first end of the control arm is connected to the steering knuckle through the universal rotating unit, and a second end of the control arm is used for being connected with a vehicle body; the first end of the buffer arm is connected to the steering knuckle through the universal rotating unit, and the second end of the control arm is used for being connected with a vehicle body; wherein, the buffer arm sets up in the place ahead of controlling the arm. According to the invention, the suspension and the buffer arm are arranged in front of the control arm, so that the space occupied by the rear end of the suspension can be reduced, the battery pack has a larger installation space, the automobile can be provided with a larger battery pack, and the cruising mileage can be improved. Meanwhile, the arrangement also provides possibility for shortening the wheel base, and is beneficial to the miniaturization design of the automobile.

Description

Suspension and automobile

Technical Field

The invention belongs to the technical field of automobiles, and particularly relates to a suspension and an automobile.

Background

Electric vehicles have been widely used in human lives, wherein the electric vehicles include a vehicle body, a front suspension mounted at a front end of the vehicle body, and a battery pack mounted on the vehicle body and located at a rear side of the front suspension.

The front suspension mainly comprises a steering knuckle and a lower swing arm, wherein the lower swing arm comprises a control arm and a buffer arm, the control arm and the buffer arm are both connected to the steering knuckle through a ball head structure, and one end of the control arm, which deviates from the steering knuckle, and one end of the buffer arm, which deviates from the steering knuckle, are both connected to a vehicle body through a bushing.

The steering arm is typically a straight rod-like structure with a length direction substantially parallel to the axis of the wheel for adjusting the steering performance of the wheel. The damping arm is generally disposed rearward of the steering arm for damping the vibration in the front-rear direction of the wheel. This arrangement causes the suspension to encroach on more space behind the vehicle body, resulting in less space for longitudinally mounting the battery pack.

Disclosure of Invention

The technical problem to be solved by the invention is as follows: the utility model provides a suspension and car to the problem that the suspension causes the vertical installation space of battery package less because of invading the more space in automobile body rear among the current car.

In order to solve the above technical problem, an embodiment of the present invention provides a suspension, including a knuckle, a lower swing arm, and a universal rotation unit; the lower swing arm comprises a control arm and a buffer arm, the buffer arm is positioned in front of the control arm in the front-rear direction of the automobile, the first end of the control arm is connected to the steering knuckle through the universal rotating unit, and the second end of the control arm is used for being connected with the automobile body; the first end of the buffer arm is connected to the steering knuckle through the universal rotating unit, and the second end of the control arm is used for being connected with a vehicle body.

Optionally, one side of the buffer arm, which faces away from the control arm, is provided with a concave structure for avoiding wheels connected to the steering knuckle.

Optionally, the universal rotation unit includes a first universal rotation mechanism and a second universal rotation mechanism; one end of the control arm is connected to a first area of the steering knuckle through the first universal rotating mechanism, so that the control arm can rotate in a universal mode relative to the steering knuckle; one end of the buffer arm is connected to a second area of the steering knuckle through the second universal rotating mechanism, so that the control arm can rotate in a universal mode relative to the steering knuckle; the second region of the knuckle is located outside the first region of the knuckle in the left-right direction of the vehicle.

Optionally, the height of the rotation center of the first universal rotating mechanism is greater than or less than the height of the rotation center of the second universal rotating mechanism.

The height difference between the rotation center of the first universal rotating mechanism and the rotation center of the second universal rotating mechanism is 20-30 mm.

Optionally, a distance between a rotation center of the first universal rotating mechanism and a rotation center of the second universal rotating mechanism in the front-rear direction of the automobile is 30mm to 35mm.

Optionally, the first universal rotating mechanism and the second universal rotating mechanism are both ball head structures.

Optionally, the suspension further comprises a shock absorber, and the lower end of the shock absorber is connected to the control arm; the shock absorber has a first mounting structure for mounting the air spring and a second mounting structure for mounting the coil spring.

In order to solve the above technical problem, an embodiment of the present invention further provides an automobile, where the automobile includes a body, wheels, and a suspension as described above; the suspension is connected to the vehicle body, and the wheel is connected to the knuckle.

Optionally, the vehicle body comprises a vehicle body and a front subframe mounted on the vehicle body, and the suspension is connected to the front subframe.

Optionally, the vehicle further includes an engine and a steering engine, and the front subframe has a first mounting area for mounting the engine and a second mounting area for mounting the steering engine, and the first mounting area is located in front of the second mounting area.

According to the suspension provided by the embodiment of the invention, the buffer arm is arranged in front of the control arm, so that the space occupied by the rear end of the suspension can be reduced, the battery pack has a larger installation space, an automobile can be provided with a larger battery pack, and the cruising mileage can be improved. Meanwhile, the arrangement also provides possibility for shortening the wheel base, and is beneficial to the miniaturization design of the automobile.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a suspension and a front subframe of an automobile according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The reference numerals in the specification are as follows:

10. a vehicle body; 101. a front subframe; 102. a first mounting area; 103. a second mounting area; 20. a suspension; 30. a steering machine; 40. a steering lever; 50. a first stabilizing tie rod; 60. a second stabilizing pull rod; 1. a knuckle; 2. a lower swing arm; 21. a manipulation arm; 22. a buffer arm; 221. a concave structure; 3. an upper swing arm; 4. a damping unit; 41. a shock absorber; 42. an air spring; 5. a universal rotation unit; 51. a first universal rotating mechanism; 52. and the second universal rotating mechanism.

Detailed Description

In order to make the technical problems, technical solutions and advantageous effects of the present invention more clearly understood, the present invention is further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are merely illustrative of the invention and do not limit the invention.

As shown in fig. 1, in one embodiment, the automobile includes a body 10 and two suspensions 20, wherein each of the two suspensions 20 is a front suspension 20, and the two suspensions are respectively connected to the left and right sides of the body. The two suspensions 20 may have the same structure, and the left suspension 20 is connected to the left front wheel and the right suspension 20 is connected to the right front wheel.

In addition, in one embodiment, the vehicle body 10 is a non-self-supporting vehicle body, and has a body 10 and a frame, wherein the frame has a main frame and a front subframe 101, the main frame is connected to the vehicle body, the front subframe 101 is connected to the main frame, and the two front suspensions 20 are respectively connected to the left and right sides of the front subframe 101.

As shown in fig. 1, in one embodiment, the suspension 20 includes a knuckle 1, a lower swing arm 2, an upper swing arm 3, a shock absorbing unit 4, and a universal swivel unit 5. Wherein, the knuckle 1 is used for being connected with the wheel, go up swing arm 3 and connect in the upper end of knuckle 1, the one end that deviates from knuckle 1 of going up swing arm 3 meets with preceding sub vehicle frame 101, lower swing arm 2 is connected at the lower extreme of knuckle 1 through universal rotation unit 5, the one end that lower swing arm 2 deviates from knuckle 1 also meets with preceding sub vehicle frame 101, the lower extreme of shock attenuation unit 4 is connected under on swing arm 2, the upper end of shock attenuation unit 4 is connected on the automobile body 10 body.

As shown in fig. 1, in one embodiment, the lower swing arm 2 includes a steering arm 21 and a buffer arm 22. A first end of the steering arm 21 is connected to the knuckle 1 via the universal swivel unit 5 so that the steering arm can rotate universally with respect to the knuckle 1, and a second end of the steering arm 21 is connected to the front subframe 101. A first end of the buffer arm 22 is connected to the knuckle 1 via the universal swivel unit 5 so that the steering arm can be rotated universally with respect to the knuckle 1, and a second end of the steering arm 21 is connected to the front sub-frame 101. In practical products, the second end of the steering arm 21 and the second end of the buffer arm 22 may be connected to the front subframe 101 through bushings, so that the steering arm 21 and the buffer arm 22 can rotate up and down relative to the front subframe 101.

As shown in fig. 1, in one embodiment, the steering arm 21 is a substantially straight rod-shaped structure, and the length direction thereof is substantially parallel to the wheel axis. The buffer arm 22 is provided in front of the steering arm 21, which is the front in the front-rear direction of the vehicle, that is, the front in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle. During operation, the control arm 21 is mainly used for adjusting the control performance of the wheel, and the buffer arm 22 is mainly used for buffering the vibration of the wheel in the front-rear direction. That is, compared with the existing suspension 20, the suspension 20 provided in this embodiment is a design manner in which the existing "buffer arm 22 is disposed behind the manipulation arm 21" is modified to "the buffer arm 22 is disposed in front of the manipulation arm 21", so that the space occupied by the rear end of the suspension 20 can be reduced, and thus, the battery pack has a larger installation space in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, and the vehicle can be provided with a larger battery pack, thereby improving the driving range. Meanwhile, the arrangement also provides possibility for shortening the wheel base, and is beneficial to the miniaturization design of the automobile. The buffer arm 22 is disposed in front of a wheel center, which is a point on the wheel axis and is located at the same distance from both end surfaces of the wheel.

As shown in fig. 1, the gimbal unit 5 further includes a first gimbal mechanism 51 and a second gimbal mechanism 52. A first end of the steering arm 21 is connected to a first region of the steering knuckle 1 via a first gimbal mechanism 51 to enable gimbal rotation of the steering arm 21 relative to the steering knuckle 1. The first end of the damping arm 22 is connected to a second region of the steering knuckle 1 by a second gimbal mechanism 52 to effect gimbal rotation of the damping arm 22 relative to the steering knuckle 1. The second region of the steering knuckle 1 is located outside the first region of the steering knuckle 1, i.e. the actuating arm 21 and the damping arm 22 are each connected at different positions of the steering knuckle 1. In addition, both the first universal swivel mechanism 51 and the second universal swivel mechanism 52 may adopt a ball head structure.

The ball head structures adopted by the first universal rotating mechanism 51 and the second universal rotating mechanism 52 are ball head structures in the prior art, and it is also the prior art that the steering knuckle 1 and the control arm 21 are connected through the ball head structures to realize universal rotation of the control arm 21 relative to the steering knuckle 1, and the steering knuckle 1 and the buffer arm 22 are connected through the ball head structures to realize universal rotation of the buffer arm 22 relative to the steering knuckle 1. In addition, it is also the prior art that the second end of the steering arm 21 is connected to the front subframe 101 through a bushing, and the second end of the steering arm 21 is connected to the front subframe 101 through a bushing, which are not the main point of the present embodiment, and therefore, the detailed description thereof will not be given.

As shown in fig. 1, in an embodiment, a side of the buffer arm 22 away from the control arm 21 is provided with a concave structure 221 to avoid the wheel connected to the knuckle 1 and avoid interference with the steering of the wheel. Compared with the existing suspension 20, the damping arm 22 in the present embodiment is equivalent to an inverted arrangement, that is, the damping arm 22 in the present embodiment can be structurally equivalent to the damping arm 22 in the existing suspension 20, so that the grinding tool for producing the damping arm 22 does not need to be newly developed during production, and the cost caused by product modification can be reduced.

In an embodiment, the height of the rotation center of the first universal swivel mechanism 51 is smaller than the height of the rotation center of the second universal swivel mechanism 52, that is, the height of the rotation center of the first universal swivel mechanism 51 relative to the ground is greater than the height of the rotation center of the second universal swivel mechanism 52 relative to the ground, where when the first universal swivel mechanism 51 and the second universal swivel mechanism 52 adopt a ball head structure, the rotation centers of the two are the spherical centers of the ball head structure. Therefore, the position change of the kingpin axis is nonlinear when the wheel rotates, so that parameters related to steering (such as kingpin caster angle, kingpin caster trail, kingpin offset and the like) form a nonlinear relation, and the steering sensitivity and the straight-line driving stability of the wheel are improved. In addition, by adopting the arrangement mode, the interference force arm can have smaller length (wherein the interference force arm is the distance between the wheel center and the axis of the king pin), and the improvement of the shaking of the steering wheel with unbalanced wheel dynamic, the braking deviation, the torque steering and the like is facilitated. In addition, the adoption of the arrangement mode can ensure that the longitudinal force flexibility is higher, improve the impact strength and aftershock and improve the riding comfort.

In one embodiment, the height difference between the rotation center of the first gimbal mechanism 51 and the rotation center of the second gimbal mechanism 52 is 20mm to 30mm. So that the steering sensitivity of the wheels and the stability of straight running can be further improved.

In addition, the inventors have found in long-term practice that: the greater the distance between the rotation center of the first gimbal mechanism 51 and the rotation center of the second gimbal mechanism 52 in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, the poorer the bilateral symmetry between the parameters related to the kingpin (such as the offset of the kingpin) when the wheel is turned to the left and the parameters related to the kingpin when the wheel is turned to the right, and the greater the difference between the aligning moments generated by turning the wheel to the left and turning the wheel to the right, which is detrimental to the steering sensitivity and aligning performance of the vehicle. In this regard, the inventors have optimized the spacing between the two when various factors such as production and assembly are combined. Specifically, in an embodiment, the distance between the rotation center of the first universal rotating mechanism 51 and the rotation center of the second universal rotating mechanism 52 in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle is 30mm to 35mm, so that on the premise of meeting production and assembly factors, when the wheel rotates left and right, the relevant parameters of the kingpin have good left and right symmetry, and the vehicle has good operation performance. When the automobile is normally placed, the Y-axis direction is parallel to a connecting line of wheel centers of two wheels in a three-dimensional coordinate system of the automobile, namely the Y-axis direction is also the left-right width direction of the automobile, and the Z-axis direction is the height direction of the automobile.

As shown in fig. 1, in an embodiment, the damping unit 4 includes a damper 41 and an air spring 42, the damper 41 is provided with a first mounting structure, and the damper 41 is connected with the air spring 42 through the first mounting structure, so that the suspension 20 can absorb vibration through the air spring 42. Wherein the first mounting structure may be a screw hole or the like provided at the upper end of the shock absorber 41 so that the air spring 42 may be bolted to the shock absorber 41. Further, the lower end of the damper 41 is connected to the manipulation arm 21 through a bushing.

In one embodiment, the shock absorber 41 is provided with a second mounting structure in addition to the first mounting structure, and the shock absorber 41 can be connected to the coil spring through the second mounting structure, so that the suspension 20 can absorb vibration through the coil spring. The second mounting structure includes an upper limit structure and a lower limit structure, the coil spring is sleeved on the shock absorber 41, and two ends of the coil spring respectively abut against the upper limit structure and the lower limit structure. Wherein, the upper limit structure may be disposed on the push rod of the shock absorber 41, and the lower limit structure may be disposed on the cylinder of the shock absorber 41. In this way, whether the air spring 42 is used for damping or the coil spring is used for damping can be selected according to actual conditions, so that the adaptability of the shock absorber 41 can be improved.

The connection between the damper 41 and the air spring 42 and the connection between the damper 41 and the coil spring are both conventional connection methods. When the first mounting structure is designed to be a threaded hole, the threaded hole can be arranged on the upper limiting structure. When the first mounting structure adopts other existing designs, the first mounting structure may be arranged above the upper limiting structure.

As shown in fig. 1, in one embodiment, the vehicle is an electric vehicle, and in this case, the vehicle further includes an electric motor, a steering wheel, a steering gear 30, and a steering rod 40. The motor is mounted on the front subframe 101 for driving the wheels to rotate to effect forward travel of the vehicle. The steering gear 30 is mounted on the front sub frame 101 and is connected to one end of the steering rod 40, and the end of the steering rod 40 facing away from the steering gear 30 is connected to the knuckle 1 by a ball structure. After the automobile is assembled, the steering gear 30 is connected with the steering wheel, and when a driver operates the steering wheel, the left and right rotation of the wheels can be adjusted through the steering gear 30 and the steering rod 40, so that the advancing direction of the automobile is adjusted.

In one embodiment, the front subframe 101 has a first mounting area 102 and a second mounting area 103, the first mounting area 102 is located forward of the second mounting area 103, the motor is mounted on the first mounting area 102, and the steering gear 30 is mounted on the second mounting area 103. That is, the motor is positioned in front of the steering gear 30 after the automobile is assembled, so that the installation of the motor is not related to the steering gear 30, and the motor is not interfered by the steering gear 30 no matter the motor is arranged in a positive position or a negative position, thereby avoiding the problem of redevelopment of the motor caused by the fact that the motor needs to be arranged in a negative position (or in a positive position).

As shown in fig. 1, in an embodiment, the automobile further includes a first stabilizer link 50 and a second stabilizer link 60, one end of the first stabilizer link 50 is connected to the damping unit 4, the other end of the first stabilizer link 50 is connected to the second stabilizer link 60 through a ball, and the other end of the second stabilizer link 60 is connected to the front subframe 101.

It will be appreciated that the relevant design in the above embodiments may be replaced in other ways in actual production, for example:

in other embodiments, in addition to the ball-head structure, either one of the first and second universal rotating

mechanisms

51 and 52 may be replaced by another universal rotating mechanism such as a cross joint, a ball joint, or the like.

In other embodiments, the steering arm 21 and the buffer arm 22 may be integrated, and in this case, the first end of the buffer arm 22 may be fixed on the steering arm 21, that is, the first end of the buffer arm 22 may be connected to the steering knuckle 1 through the universal rotating unit 5 by connecting the steering arm 21 to the universal rotating unit 5.

In other embodiments, the frame may be a unitary frame, i.e., the main frame and the sub-frame are a unitary structure.

In other embodiments, the vehicle body 10 may be a load-bearing vehicle body, i.e., the frame and the vehicle body are a unitary structure.

In other embodiments, the vehicle may also be a hybrid vehicle, in which case the vehicle has both an electric motor and an internal combustion engine. Of course, the vehicle may be a fuel-powered vehicle, a gas-powered vehicle, or the like, and in this case, the electric motor may be replaced with an engine such as an internal combustion engine.

The above description is only for the purpose of illustrating the preferred embodiments of the present invention and is not to be construed as limiting the invention, and any modifications, equivalents and improvements made within the spirit and principle of the present invention are intended to be included within the scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A suspension is characterized by comprising a steering knuckle, a lower swing arm and a universal rotation unit;

the lower swing arm comprises a control arm and a buffer arm, the buffer arm is positioned in front of the control arm in the front-rear direction of the automobile, the first end of the control arm is connected to the steering knuckle through the universal rotating unit, and the second end of the control arm is used for being connected with the automobile body; the first end of the buffer arm is connected to the steering knuckle through the universal rotating unit, and the second end of the control arm is used for being connected with a vehicle body.

2. The suspension of claim 1 wherein the side of the damping arm facing away from the steering arm is provided with a recess for avoiding a wheel attached to the knuckle.

3. The suspension of claim 1, wherein the gimbal unit comprises a first gimbal mechanism and a second gimbal mechanism;

one end of the control arm is connected to a first area of the steering knuckle through the first universal rotating mechanism, so that the control arm can rotate in a universal mode relative to the steering knuckle;

one end of the buffer arm is connected to a second area of the steering knuckle through the second universal rotating mechanism, so that the control arm can rotate universally relative to the steering knuckle;

the second region of the knuckle is located outside the first region of the knuckle.

4. The suspension of claim 3, wherein the height of the center of rotation of the first gimbal mechanism is less than the height of the center of rotation of the second gimbal mechanism.

5. The suspension according to claim 4, wherein the height difference between the rotation center of the first gimbal mechanism and the rotation center of the second gimbal mechanism is 20mm to 30mm.

6. The suspension according to claim 3, wherein the distance between the rotation center of the first gimbal mechanism and the rotation center of the second gimbal mechanism in the front-rear direction of the vehicle is 30mm to 35mm.

7. The suspension of any one of claims 3-6, wherein the first and second gimbal mechanisms are each of a ball-head configuration.

8. The suspension of claim 1, further comprising a shock absorber having a lower end connected to the steering arm;

the shock absorber has a first mounting structure for mounting the air spring and a second mounting structure for mounting the coil spring.

9. An automobile, characterized in that the automobile comprises a body, wheels and a suspension according to any one of claims 1-8;

the suspension is connected to the vehicle body, and the wheel is connected to the knuckle.

10. The vehicle of claim 9, wherein said body includes a body and a front subframe mounted on said body, said suspension being connected to said front subframe;

the automobile further comprises an engine and a steering engine, wherein the engine is installed in a first installation area of the front auxiliary frame, the steering engine is installed in a second installation area of the front auxiliary frame, and the first installation area is located in front of the second installation area.