EP0725216A2 - Starter - Google Patents
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- Publication number
- EP0725216A2 EP0725216A2 EP96105895A EP96105895A EP0725216A2 EP 0725216 A2 EP0725216 A2 EP 0725216A2 EP 96105895 A EP96105895 A EP 96105895A EP 96105895 A EP96105895 A EP 96105895A EP 0725216 A2 EP0725216 A2 EP 0725216A2
- Authority
- EP
- European Patent Office
- Prior art keywords
- pinion
- ring gear
- gear
- rotation
- pinion gear
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Granted
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Classifications
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- F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
- F02—COMBUSTION ENGINES; HOT-GAS OR COMBUSTION-PRODUCT ENGINE PLANTS
- F02N—STARTING OF COMBUSTION ENGINES; STARTING AIDS FOR SUCH ENGINES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- F02N15/00—Other power-operated starting apparatus; Component parts, details, or accessories, not provided for in, or of interest apart from groups F02N5/00 - F02N13/00
- F02N15/02—Gearing between starting-engines and started engines; Engagement or disengagement thereof
- F02N15/04—Gearing between starting-engines and started engines; Engagement or disengagement thereof the gearing including disengaging toothed gears
- F02N15/06—Gearing between starting-engines and started engines; Engagement or disengagement thereof the gearing including disengaging toothed gears the toothed gears being moved by axial displacement
- F02N15/067—Gearing between starting-engines and started engines; Engagement or disengagement thereof the gearing including disengaging toothed gears the toothed gears being moved by axial displacement the starter comprising an electro-magnetically actuated lever
Definitions
- This invention relates to a starter for starting an engine of a motor vehicle.
- This invention was made in view of the above situation, and has as an object the provision of a starter of which the simplicity and durability of the pinion rotation regulating mechanism is improved.
- a starter of the present invention when a pinion regulating means abuts with a pinion and rotation of an output shaft moves the pinion to a ring gear side and the pinion abuts with a ring gear, the pinion regulating means itself bends and allows the pinion to rotate gradually and mesh with the ring gear and consequently there is no generation of abrasion powder and a simple constitution with few parts can be adopted.
- the pinion is rotatable by at least 1/2 the pinion gear pitch and it is possible to reliably regulate the rotation of the pinion.
- axial grooves on the pinion moving means are made more numerous than the pinion gear number, and the pinion can easily engage with the axial grooves.
- the the pinion regulating means need only hold the pinion with the small force required to regulate the rotation of the pinion, the pinion regulating means can be moved to the pinion side by a magnet switch by way of a cord-shaped member, and the freedom with which the magnet switch can be disposed can be increased.
- the pinion regulating means itself can attain pinion return prevention when the pinion has meshed with the ring gear, and the number of parts can be made small and the assembly can be simplified.
- the pinion regulating means itself integrally comprises urging means for urging the movement to the opposite side to the pinion, by switching the magnet switch OFF the pinion regulating means automatically moves away from the pinion, and the number of parts can be made small and the assembly can be simplified.
- the limiting means makes the rotation of the output shaft slow and the pinion is moved to the ring gear side slowly, and it is not necessary to make the rigidity of the pinion regulating means itself strong, and it is possible to make the shock of when the pinion abuts with the ring gear small.
- the regulating portion can reliably bend.
- the washer is heat-treated simultaneously with the pinion, and it is possible to dispense with a process for making the hardness of the washer above a predetermined value.
- the regulating portion By the movement of the plunger of the magnet switch, by causing the regulating portion to abut with the pinion while causing the elastic portion to deform, while causing the regulating portion to abut with the pinion, and when the plunger returns, by the elastic force of the elastic portion, the regulating portion can be reliably moved away from the pinion.
- the starter can be generally divided into a housing 400 containing a pinion 200 which meshes with a ring gear 100 mounted on an engine (not shown) and a planetary gear speed reduction mechanism 300, a motor 500, and an end frame 700 containing a magnet switch 600. Inside the starter, the housing 400 and the motor 500 are separated by a motor spacer wall 800, and the motor 500 and the end frame 700 are separated by a brush holding member 900.
- a pinion gear 210 which meshes with the ring gear 100 of the engine is formed on the pinion 200.
- a pinion helical spline 211 which mates with a helical spline 221 formed on an output shaft 220 is formed around the inner surface of the pinion gear 210.
- a flange 213 of greater diameter than the external diameter dimension of the pinion gear 210 is formed in circular form.
- a number of projections 214 greater than the number of outer teeth of the pinion gear 210 are formed around the entire outer circumference of this flange 213. These projections 214 are for a regulating claw 231 of a pinion rotation regulating member 230 which will be discussed later to mate with.
- a washer 215 is bent onto the outer peripheral side of an annular portion 216 formed on the rear end of the pinion gear 210 and thereby disposed rotatably and unable to come off in the axial direction on the rear surface of the flange 213.
- the pinion gear 210 is urged toward the rear of the output shaft 220 at all times by a return spring 240 consisting of a compression coil spring.
- the return spring 240 not only urges the pinion gear 210 directly but in this embodiment urges the pinion gear 210 by way of a ring body 421 of a shutter 420 which opens and closes an opening portion 410 of the housing 400 and will be further discussed later.
- the pinion rotation regulating member 230 constituting pinion moving means is a sheet spring member wound through approximately 3/2 (i.e., 1.5) turns of which approximately 3/4 turns is a rotation regulating portion 232 of long axial sheet length and high spring constant and the remaining approximately 3/4 turns is a return spring portion 233 constituting urging means of short axial sheet length and low spring constant.
- a regulating claw 231 which constitutes a regulating portion extending in the axial direction and which mates with the multiple projections 214 formed in the flange 213 of the pinion gear 210 is formed at one end of the rotation regulating portion 232.
- the rotation regulating portion 232 is provided with a straight portion 235 which extends vertically.
- This straight portion 235 is vertically slidably supported by two supporting arms 361 mounted projecting from the front surface of a center bracket 360. That is, the straight portion 235 moving vertically causes the rotation regulating portion 232 to move vertically also.
- a sphere 601 of the front end of a cord-shaped member 680 (for example a wire), which will be further discussed later, for transmitting the movement of the magnet switch 600, which will be further discussed later, is in engagement with the position 180° opposite the regulating claw 231 of the rotation regulating portion 232.
- the end portion side of the return spring portion 233 has a large curvature of wind and one end portion 236 of the return spring portion 233 abuts with the upper surface of a regulating shelf 362 mounted projecting from a front surface of a lower portion of the center bracket 360.
- the cord-shaped member 680 is transmitting means for transmitting the movement of the magnet switch 600 to the regulating claw 231, and the movement of the magnet switch 600 pulls the rotation regulating portion 232 downward and causes the regulating claw 231 to engage with the projections 214 on the flange 213 of the pinion gear 210.
- the return spring portion 233 bends.
- the pinion gear 210 advances along the helical spline 221 on the output shaft 220.
- the pinion gear 210 abuts with the ring gear 100 and the advance of the pinion gear 210 is obstructed, further rotational force of the output shaft 210 causes the pinion rotation regulating member 230 itself to bend and the pinion gear 210 rotates slightly and meshes with the ring gear 100.
- the regulating claw 231 disengages from the projections 214, the regulating claw 231 drops in behind the flange 213 of the pinion gear 210, the front end of the regulating claw 231 abuts with the rear surface of the washer 215 and prevents the pinion gear 210 from retreating under the rotation of the ring gear 100 of the engine.
- the pinion rotation regulating member 230 although it is one spring member, performs the three operations that are the operation of regulating the rotation of the pinion gear 210 and advancing the pinion gear 210, the operation of dropping in behind the pinion gear 210 and preventing the pinion gear 210 from retracting, and the operation of returning the rotation regulating portion 232. That is, because a plurality of operations are carried out by one part, the number of parts in the starter can be reduced and the assemblability can be improved.
- the pinion rotation regulating member 230 because the projecting parts of the projections 214 of the pinion gear 210 are more numerous than the teeth of the pinion gear 210, can easily engage with the projections 214.
- the pinion rotation regulating member 230 need only be held with the small force required to regulate the rotation of the pinion gear 210, it is possible to move it to the pinion gear 210 side by means of the magnet switch 600, using the cord-shaped member 680, and consequently it is possible to increase the freedom with which the magnet switch 600 is disposed.
- the pinion rotation regulating member 230 itself can prevent the pinion gear 210 from returning when the pinion gear 210 has meshed with the ring gear 100, and the number of parts can be made small and the assembly can be simplified.
- the pinion rotation regulating member 230 itself integrally comprises the return spring portion 233 constituting urging means urging to the opposite side to the pinion gear, by switching the magnet switch 600 OFF, the pinion rotation regulating member 230 automatically moves away from the pinion gear 210 and the number of parts can be made small and the assembly can be simplified.
- the pinion rotation regulating member 230 By part of the pinion rotation regulating member 230 having the regulating claw 231 constituting the bar-like elastic regulating portion, the pinion rotation regulating member itself can reliably bend.
- the washer 215 being rotatably held on the end surface of the pinion gear 210, even when the pinion gear 210 is over-run by the ring gear 100 and rotates at high speed, because the washer 215 is rotatable with respect to the pinion gear 210, the abutting portion of the regulating claw 231 constituting the regulating portion is not worn much, and the durability can be increased.
- the pinion stopping ring 250 is fixed in a circular groove of rectangular cross-section formed around the output shaft 220.
- This pinion stopping ring 250 is a piece of steel of rectangular cross-section processed into a circular shape; a substantially S-shaped corrugation 251 (an example of engaging means) is formed at each end, and the convex portion of one is in engagement with the concave portion of the other and the convex portion of the other is in engagement with the concave portion of the first.
- the planetary gear speed reduction mechanism 300 is speed reducing means for reducing the rotational speed of the output shaft 220 relative to motor 500, which will be further discussed later, and increasing the output torque of the motor 500.
- the planetary gear speed reduction mechanism 300 is made up of a sun gear 310 formed on the front-side outer periphery of the armature shaft 510 (discussed later) of the motor 500, a plurality of planetary gears 320 which mesh with this sun gear 310 and rotate around the circumference of the sun gear 310, a planet carrier 330 which rotatably supports these planetary gears 320 around the sun gear 310 and is formed integrally with the output shaft 220, and an internal gear 340 which is of a cylindrical shape meshing with the planetary gears 320 at the outer periphery of the planetary gears 320 and is made of resin.
- the overrunning clutch 350 supports the internal gear 340 rotatably in one direction only (only the direction in which it rotates under the rotation of the engine).
- the overrunning clutch 350 has a clutch outer 351 constituting a first cylindrical portion integrally formed in the front side of the internal gear 340, a circular clutch inner 352 constituting a second cylindrical portion formed in the rear surface of the center bracket 360 constituting a fixed side covering the front of the planetary gear speed reduction mechanism 300 and disposed facing the clutch outer 351, and a roller 353 accommodated in a roller housing portion formed inclined to the inner surface of the clutch outer 351.
- the center bracket 360 is shown in detail in Fig. 4 through Fig. 6 and is disposed inside the rear end of the housing 400.
- the housing 400 and the center bracket 360 are linked by a ring spring 390 having one end engaged with the housing 400 and the other end engaged with the center bracket 360 and are arranged in such a way that the rotational reaction received by a clutch inner 352 constituting the overrunning clutch 350 is absorbed by the ring spring 390 and the reaction is not directly transmitted to the housing 400.
- two supporting arms 361 which hold the pinion rotation regulating member 230 and a regulating shelf 362 on which the lower end of the pinion rotation regulating member 230 is loaded are mounted on the front surface of the center bracket 360.
- a plurality of cutout portions 363 which mate with convex portions (not shown in the drawings) on the inner side of the housing 400 are formed around the center bracket 360.
- the upper side cutout portions 363 are used also as air passages for guiding air from inside the housing 400 into a yoke 501.
- a concave portion 364 through which the cord-shaped member 680 (discussed later) passes in the axial direction is formed at the lower end of the center bracket 360.
- the planet carrier 330 is provided at its rear end with a flange-like projecting portion 331 which extends radially in order to support the planetary gears 320.
- Pins 332 extending rearward are fixed to this flange-like projecting portion 331, and these pins 332 rotatably support the planetary gears 320 by way of metal bearings 333.
- the planet carrier 330 has its front end rotatably supported by a housing bearing 440 fixed inside the front end of the housing 400 and a center bracket bearing 370 fixed inside an inner cylindrical portion 365 of the center bracket 360.
- the housing 400 supports the output shaft 220 with the housing bearing 440 fixed in the front end of the housing 400 and also is provided with a water barrier wall 460 which in order to minimize the incursion of rainwater and the like through the opening portion 410 minimizes the gap at the lower part of the opening portion 410 between the outer diameter of the pinion gear 210 and the housing 400. Also, two slide grooves extending axially are provided at the lower part of the front end of the housing 400, and a shutter 420 which will be further discussed later is disposed in these slide grooves.
- the shutter 420 consisting of a resinous member (for example nylon) is mounted on the output shaft 220 and comprises a ring body 421 sandwiched between the return spring 240 and the pinion gear 210 and a water-barrier portion 422 which opens and closes an opening portion 410 in the housing 400.
- the operation of the shutter 420 is such that when the starter starts to operate and the pinion gear 210 shifts forward along the output shaft 220 the ring body 421 shifts forward together with the pinion gear 210. When this happens, the water-barrier portion 422 integral with the ring body 421 shifts forward and opens the opening portion 410 of the housing 400.
- the ring body 421 When the starter stops operating and the pinion gear 210 shifts backward along the output shaft 220, the ring body 421 also shifts backward together with the pinion gear 210. When this happens, the water-barrier portion 422 integral with the ring body 421 also shifts backward and closes the opening portion 410 of the housing 400. As a result, the shutter 420, which constitutes opening and closing means, by means of the water-barrier portion 422 prevents rainwater and the like which is splashed by the centrifugal force of the ring gear 100 from getting inside the housing 400 when the starter is not operating.
- the motor 500 is enclosed by a yoke 501 having a through hole 503, motor spacer wall 800, and a brush holding member 900 which will be discussed later.
- the motor spacer wall 800 houses the planetary gear speed reduction mechanism 300 between itself and the center bracket 360, and also fulfills the role of preventing lubricating oil inside the planetary gear speed reduction mechanism 300 from getting into the motor 500.
- the motor 500 is made up of an armature 540 comprising the armature shaft 510 and an armature core 520 and armature coils 530 which are mounted on and rotate integrally with this armature shaft 510, and fixed poles 550 which rotate the armature 540, and the fixed poles 550 are mounted around the inside of the yoke 501.
- armature coils 530 For the armature coils 530, in this embodiment shown in detail in Fig. 7, multiple (for example 25) upper layer coil bars 531 and the same number of lower layer coil bars 532 as these upper layer coil bars 531 are used, and 2-layer-winding coils wherein the respective upper layer coil bars 531 and the lower layer coil bars 532 are stacked in the radial direction are employed.
- the upper layer coil bars 531 and lower layer coil bars 532 are paired, and the ends of the upper layer coil bars 531 and the ends of the lower layer coil bars 532 are electrically connected to constitute ring-shaped coils.
- the upper layer coil bars 531 are made of a material having excellent electrical conductivity (for example copper), and are each provided with an upper layer coil arm 533 which extends axially in parallel with the fixed poles 550 and is held in the outer sides of slots 524 and two upper layer coil ends 534 which are bent inward from both ends of the upper layer coil arm 533 and extend in a direction orthogonal to the axial direction of the armature shaft 510.
- a material having excellent electrical conductivity for example copper
- the upper layer coil arm 533 and the two upper layer coil ends 534 may be a member integrally molded by cold casting, may be a member shaped by bending in a press into a U-shape, or may be a member formed by joining an upper layer coil arm 533 and two upper layer coil ends 534 made as separate parts by a joining method such as welding.
- the lower coil bars 532 are made from a material having excellent electrical conductivity (for example copper), and each comprise a lower layer coil arm 536 which extends axially in parallel with respect to the fixed poles 550 and is held in the inner sides of slots 524 and two lower layer coil ends 537 which are bent inward from the ends of this lower layer coil arm 536 and extend orthogonal to the axial direction of the armature shaft 510.
- a material having excellent electrical conductivity for example copper
- the lower layer coil arm 536 and the two lower layer coil ends 537 may be a member integrally molded by cold casting, may be a member shaped by bending in a press into a U-shape, or may be a member formed by joining a lower layer coil arm 536 and 2 lower layer coil ends 537 made as separate parts by a joining method such as welding.
- Insulation between the upper layer coil ends 534 and the lower layer coil ends 537 is secured by insulating spacers 560, and insulation between the lower layer coil ends 537 and the armature core 520 is secured by an insulating ring 590 made of resin (for example nylon or phenol resin).
- resin for example nylon or phenol resin
- the yoke 501 is a cylindrical body formed by rolling a steel plate, and around it are formed a plurality of concave grooves 502 extending axially and sunk toward the inner circumference. These concave grooves 502, as well as disposing through bolts, are used for positioning fixed poles 550 around the inner circumference of the yoke 501.
- permanent magnets are used for the fixed poles 550 and, as shown in Fig. 8, they comprise a plurality of (for example 6) main poles 551 and inter-pole poles 552 disposed between these main poles 551.
- Field coils which generate magnetic force by electrical current flow may be used instead of permanent magnets for the fixed poles 550.
- the main poles 551 are positioned by the ends of the inner sides of channel grooves 502 in the above-mentioned yoke 501, and are fixed in the yoke 501 by fixing sleeves 553 disposed around the inside of the fixed poles 550 with the inter-pole poles 552 disposed between the main poles 551.
- the magnet switch 600 as shown in Fig. 1, Fig. 9 and Fig. 10, is held in a brush holder 900 which will be discussed later, is disposed inside an end frame 700 which will be discussed later, and is fixed so as to be substantially orthogonal to the armature shaft 510.
- electrical current drives a plunger 610 upward, and two contacts (a lower movable contact 611 and an upper movable contact 612) which move together with the plunger 610 are sequentially caused to abut with the head portion 621 of a terminal bolt 620 and an abutting portion 631 of a fixed contact 630.
- a battery cable not shown in the drawings is connected to the terminal bolt 620.
- the magnet switch 600 is structured inside a magnet switch cover 640 which is cylindrical and has a bottom and is made from magnetic parts (for example made of iron).
- the magnet switch cover 640 is for example a pliable steel plate press-formed into a cup shape, and in the center of the bottom of the magnet switch cover 640 there is a hole 641 through which the plunger 610 passes movably in the vertical direction. Also, the upper opening of the magnet switch cover 640 is closed off by a stationary core 642 made of a magnetic body (for example made of iron).
- the stationary core 642 consists of an upper large diameter portion 643, a lower middle diameter portion 644, and a still lower small diameter portion 645, and the stationary core 642 is fixed in the upper opening of the magnet switch cover 640 by the outer periphery of the large diameter portion 643 being caulked to the inner side of the upper end of the magnet switch cover 640.
- the upper end of an attracting coil 650 is fitted around the middle diameter portion 644.
- the upper end of a compression coil spring 660 which urges the plunger 610 downward is fitted around the periphery of the small diameter portion 645 of the stationary core 642.
- the attracting coil 650 is attracting means which generates magnetism when a current flows through it and attracts the plunger 610, and the attracting coil 650 is provided with a sleeve 651 which has its upper end fitted to the middle diameter portion 644 of the stationary core 642 and covers the plunger 610 slidably in the vertical direction.
- This sleeve 651 is made by rolling up a non-magnetic thin plate (for example copper plate, brass, stainless steel), and insulating washers 652 made of resin or the like are provided at the upper and lower ends of this sleeve 651.
- a thin insulating film (not shown in the drawings) made of resin (for example cellophane, nylon film) or paper, and around that insulating film is wound a predetermined number of turns of a thin enamel wire, whereby the attracting coil 650 is constituted.
- the plunger 610 is made of a magnetic metal (for example iron) and has a substantially cylindrical shape comprising an upper small diameter portion 613 and a lower large diameter portion 614.
- the lower end of the compression coil spring 660 is fitted to the small diameter portion 613, and the large diameter portion 614, which is relatively long in the axial direction, is held slidably vertically in the sleeve 651.
- a plunger shaft 615 extending upward from the plunger 610 is fixed to the upper end of the plunger 610.
- This plunger shaft 615 projects upward through a through hole provided in the stationary core 642.
- An upper movable contact 612 is fitted around the plunger shaft 615 above the stationary core 642 slidably vertically along the plunger shaft 615.
- This upper movable contact 612 is limited by a stopping ring 616 fitted to the upper end of the plunger shaft 615 so that it does not move upward of the upper end of the plunger shaft 615.
- the upper movable contact 612 is vertically slidable along the plunger shaft 615 between the stopping ring 616 and the stationary core 642.
- the upper movable contact 612 is urged upward at all times by a contact pressure spring 670 consisting of a sheet plate spring fitted to the plunger shaft 615.
- the upper movable contact 612 is made of a metal such as copper having excellent conductivity, and when both ends of the upper movable contact 612 move upward they abut with the two abutting portions 631 of the fixed contact 630.
- the lead wires 910a of a pair of brushes 910 are electrically and mechanically fixed to the upper movable contact 612 by caulking or welding or the like.
- the end portion of a resistor member 617 constituting a plurality of (in this embodiment, two) limiting means is inserted and electrically and mechanically fixed in a groove portion of the upper movable contact 612.
- the lead wires 910a are electrically and mechanically fixed to the upper movable contact 612 by caulking or welding, but the upper movable contact 612 and the lead wires 910a of the brushes 910 may alternatively be formed integrally.
- the resistor member 617 is for rotating the motor 500 at low speed when the starter starts to operate, and consists of a metal wire of high resistance wound through several turns.
- a lower movable contact 611 located below the head portion 621 of the terminal bolt 620 is fixed by caulking or the like to the other end of the resistor member 617.
- the lower movable contact 611 is made of a metal such as copper having excellent conductivity, and when the magnet switch 600 stops and the plunger 610 is in its downward position abuts with the upper surface of the stationary core 642, when the resistor member 617 moves upward along with the movement of the plunger shaft 615, before the upper movable contact 612 abuts with the abutting portion 631 of the fixed contact 630 it abuts with the head portion 621 of the terminal bolt 620.
- the lower surface of the plunger 610 is provided with a recess portion 682 which accommodates a sphere 681 provided at the rear end of the cord-shaped member 680 (for example a wire).
- a female thread 683 is formed on the inner wall of this female thread 683.
- a fixing screw 684 which fixes the sphere 681 in the recess portion 682 is screwed into this recess portion 682. This fixing screw 684 is also used to perform adjustment of the length of the cord-shaped member 680, by adjusting the extent to which the fixing screw 684 is screwed into the female thread 683.
- the length of the cord-shaped member 680 is adjusted so that when the plunger shaft 615 moves upward and the lower movable contact 611 abuts with the terminal bolt 620 the regulating claw 231 of the pinion rotation regulating member 230 mates with the projections 214 of the outer periphery of the pinion gear 210.
- the female thread 683 and the fixing screw 684 constitute an adjusting mechanism.
- this regulating claw 231 of the pinion rotation regulating member 230 can be reliably moved by the cord-shaped member 680.
- the durability can be increased.
- the length of the cord-shaped member 680 can be easily adjusted.
- the lead wires 910a of the brushes 910 are directly connected to the upper movable contact 612, heat generated at the brushes 910 is efficiently radiated via the lead wires 910a, the upper movable contact 612 and the terminal bolt 620 from the battery cable connected to the terminal bolt 620 and positioned outside the starter, and increases in the life of the brushes 910 can be attempted.
- the plunger shaft 615 of the magnet switch 600 is disposed substantially orthogonal to the motor axis, compared to a case wherein the plunger shaft 615 of the magnet switch 600 is disposed axially, the axial direction dimension of the starter can be shortened and the stroke through which the plunger shaft 615 is required to pull the cord-shaped member 680 can be set small, and further downsizing of the magnet switch 600 can be attempted.
- the plunger 615 of the magnet switch 600 is disposed orthogonal with respect to the axial direction of the armature shaft 510, only the diametral direction length of the magnet switch 600 adds to the axial direction length of the overall starter, ,and the build of the whole starter is not made large.
- the magnet switch 600 is housed inside the end frame 700, it does not readily suffer damage from water and the like which has entered through the opening 410 in the housing 400.
- the end frame 700 is a magnet switch cover made of resin (for example phenol resin), and accommodates the magnet switch 600.
- Spring holding pillars 710 which hold compression coil springs 914 which urge the brushes 910 forward are mounted projecting from the rear surface of the end frame 700 in correspondence with the positions of the brushes 910.
- the compression coil springs 914 are disposed radially outward with respect to the axial direction of the plunger 610 of the magnet switch 600.
- the terminal bolt 620 is a steel bolt which passes through the end frame 700 from the inside and projects from the rear of the end frame 700 and has at its front end a head portion 621 which abuts with the inner surface of the end frame 700.
- the terminal bolt 620 is fixed to the end frame 700 by a caulking washer 622 being attached to the terminal bolt 620 projecting rearward of the end frame 700.
- a copper fixed contact 630 is fixed to the front end of the terminal bolt 620 by caulking.
- the fixed contact 630 has one or a plurality of (in this embodiment, two) abutting portions 631 positioned at the top end of the inside of the end frame 700, and these abutting portions 631 are mounted so that the upper surface of the upper movable contact 612 which is moved up and down by the operation of the magnet switch 600 can abut with the lower surfaces of the abutting portions 631.
- the spring length of the compression coil springs 914 can use the radial direction length of the magnet switch 600, a suitable spring stress and load can be set, and the life of the compression coil springs 914 can be greatly increased.
- the brush holder 900 as well as the roles of separating the inside of the yoke 501 and the inside of the end frame 700 and rotatably supporting the rear end of the armature shaft 510 by way of the brush holder bearing 564, also fulfills the role of a brush holder, the role of holding the magnet switch 600, and the role of holding a pulley 690 which guides the cord-shaped member 680.
- the brush holder 900 has a hole portion not shown in the drawings through which the cord-shaped member 680 passes.
- the brush holder 900 is a spacing wall made of a metal such as aluminum molded by a casting method and, as shown in Fig. 12 through Fig. 14, has a plurality of (in this embodiment, two upper and two lower) brush holding holes 911, 912 which hold the brushes 910 in the axial direction.
- the upper brush holding holes 911 are holes which hold brushes 910 which receive a plus voltage, and these upper brush holding holes 911 hold the brushes 910 by way of resin (for example nylon, phenol resin) insulating cylinders 913 (Fig. 13 is a cross-section taken along XIII-XIII of Fig. 12, and Fig. 14 is a cross-section taken along XIV-XIV of Fig. 12).
- the lower brush holding holes 912 are holes which hold brushes 910 connected to ground, and these lower brush holding holes 912 hold the respective brushes 910 directly therein.
- the brushes 910 are urged against the upper layer coil ends 534 at the rear ends of the armature coils 530 by the compression coil springs 914.
- the lead wires 910a of the upper brushes 910 are electrically and mechanically joined by a joining method such as welding or caulking to the upper movable contact 612 which is moved by the magnet switch 600.
- the lead wires 910a of the lower brushes 910 are caulked and thereby electrically and mechanically joined to a concave portion 920 formed in the rear surface of the brush holder 900.
- a pair of lower brushes 910 are provided, one lead wire 910a is connected to the pair of lower brushes 910, and the middle of the lead wire 910a is caulked in the concave portion 920 formed in the rear surface of the brush holder 900.
- Two seats 930 with which the front side of the magnet switch 600 abuts and two fixing pillars 940 which hold the periphery of the magnet switch 600 are formed on the rear side of the brush holder 900.
- the seats 930 are shaped to match the external shape of the magnet switch 600 in order to abut with the magnet switch 600, which has a cylindrical exterior.
- a pulley holding portion 950 which holds a pulley 690 which converts the direction of movement of the cord-shaped member 680 from the vertical direction of the magnet switch 600 into the axial direction thereof is formed on the lower side of the rear side of the brush holder 900.
- the voltage of the battery 20 is impressed on the terminal bolt 620, and the voltage of the terminal bolt 620 is transmitted through the lower movable contact 611 ⁇ the resistor member 617 ⁇ the upper movable contact 612 ⁇ the lead wires 910a to the upper brushes 910. That is, the low voltage passing through the resistor member 617 is transmitted through the upper brushes 910 to the armature coils 530. Because the lower brushes 910 are constantly grounded through the brush holder 900, a current flows at low voltage through the armature coils 530 constituted in coil form by the paired upper layer coil bars 531 and lower layer coil bars 532. When this happens, the armature coils 530 generate a relatively weak magnetic force, this magnetic force acts on (attracts or repels) the magnetic force of the fixed poles 550, and the armature 540 rotates at low speed.
- the planetary gears 320 of the planetary gear speed reduction mechanism 300 are rotationally driven by the sun gear 310 on the front end of the armature shaft 510.
- the planetary gears 320 exert a rotational torque through the planet carrier 330 on the internal gear 340 in the direction which rotationally drives the ring gear 100, the rotation of the internal gear 340 is limited by the operation of the overrunning clutch 350. That is, because the internal gear 340 does not rotate, the rotation of the planetary gears 320 causes the planet carrier 330 to rotate at low speed.
- the pinion gear 210 When the planet carrier 330 rotates, the pinion gear 210 also rotates, but because the pinion gear 210 has its rotation limited by the pinion rotation regulating member 230 the pinion gear 210 advances along the helical spline 221 on the output shaft 220.
- the shutter 420 also advances, and opens the opening portion 410 of the housing 400.
- the advance of the pinion gear 210 causes the pinion gear 210 to mesh completely with the ring gear 100 and then abut with the pinion stopping ring 250.
- the regulating claw 231 disengages from the projections 214 of the pinion gear 210 and after that the front end of the regulating claw 231 drops to the rear side of the washer 215 disposed on the rear side of the pinion gear 210.
- the upper movable contact 612 abuts with the abutting portion 631 of the fixed contact 630 as shown in Fig. 15B.
- the battery voltage of the terminal bolt 620 is directly transmitted through the upper movable contact 612 ⁇ the lead wires 910a to the upper brushes 910. That is, a high current flows through the armature coils 530 consisting of the upper coil bars 531 and the lower coil bars 532, the armature coils 530 generate a strong magnetic force and the armature 540 rotates at high speed.
- the rotation of the armature shaft 510 is slowed and has its rotational torque increased by the planetary gear speed reduction mechanism 300 and rotationally drives the planet carrier 330.
- the front end of the pinion gear 210 abuts with the pinion stopping ring 250 and the pinion gear 210 rotates integrally with the planet carrier 330. Because the pinion gear 210 is meshing with the ring gear 100 of the engine, the pinion gear 210 rotationally drives the ring gear 100 and rotationally drives the output shaft of the engine.
- the upper movable contact 612 moves away from the abutting portion 631 of the fixed contact 630, and after that the lower movable contact 611 also moves away from the head portion 621 of the terminal bolt 620, and the flow of current to the upper brushes 910 is stopped.
- the plunger 610 being returned downward causes the lower movable contact 611 to abut with the upper surface of the stationary core 642 of the magnet switch 600, and the lead wires of the upper brushes 910 conduct electrical current in the order the upper movable contact 612 ⁇ the resistor member 617 ⁇ the lower movable contact 611 ⁇ the stationary core 642 ⁇ the magnet switch cover 640 ⁇ the brush holder 900.
- the upper brushes 910 and the lower brushes 910 short-circuit through the brush holder 900.
- inertial rotation of the armature 540 generates an electromotive force in the armature coils 530.
- the axial grooves 213 with which the regulating claw 231 of the pinion rotation regulating member 230 engages are more numerous than the gear number of the pinion gear 210, it can easily engage with the axial grooves.
- the pinion rotation regulating member 230 need only hold the pinion gear 210 with the small force required to regulate the rotation of the pinion gear 210, the pinion rotation regulating member 230 can be moved to the pinion gear 210 side by the magnet switch 600 by way of the cord-shaped member 680, and the freedom with which the magnet switch 600 is disposed can be increased.
- the regulating claw 231 of the pinion rotation regulating member 230 itself can attain the pinion return prevention when the pinion gear 210 has meshed with the ring gear 100, and the number of parts can be made small and the assembly can be simplified.
- the pinion rotation regulating member 230 itself integrally comprises the return spring portion 233 constituting urging means for urging the movement to the opposite side to the pinion gear 210, by switching the magnet switch 600 OFF, by means of the spring portion 233, the pinion rotation regulating member 230 moves away from the pinion gear 230, and the number of parts can be made small and the assembly can be simplified.
- the resistor member 617 constituting limiting means makes the rotation of the output shaft 220 slow and the pinion gear 210 is moved to the ring gear 100 side slowly, it is not necessary to make the rigidity of the pinion rotation regulating member 230 strong, and it is possible to make the shock when the pinion gear 210 abuts with the ring gear 100 small.
- the washer 215 is heat-treated simultaneously with the pinion gear 210, it is possible to dispense with a process for making the hardness of the washer 215 above a predetermined value.
- the regulating claw 231 can be reliably moved away from the pinion gear 210 side.
- the magnet switch 600 in embodiment 1 is disposed parallel to the motor 500 and the pinion rotation regulating member 230 is operatively linked with the magnet switch 600 through the wire 680.
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Abstract
Description
- This application is based upon and claims priority from Japanese Patent Applications No. 5-332955 filed December 27, 1993 and No. 6-222321 filed September 19, 1994, with the contents of each document being incorporated herein by reference.
- This invention relates to a starter for starting an engine of a motor vehicle.
- Among conventional starters there are those wherein the rotation of a motor is transmitted through a pinion to a ring gear as shown in U.S. Patent No. 1, 941, 698 or No. 2, 342, 632. In the former, a starter wherein by causing a regulating member to abut with the outer circumferential portion of the pinion, by means of the rotation of a shaft rotated by a motor, by friction between the regulating member and the pinion, the pinion is advanced to the ring gear side and the pinion and the ring gear are caused to mesh is mentioned. In the starter of the latter, by causing a pin of a regulating member to engage with a tooth portion of the pinion, the pinion is prevented from rotating, the pinion is caused to advance to the ring gear side, and the pinion and the ring gear are caused to mesh.
- However, when the pinion is caused to mesh with the ring gear side, when the pinion does not mesh with the ring gear and the ring gear abuts with the end surface of the pinion, in conventional starters, although further rotational force of the motor causes the pinion to overcome the friction between the regulating member and the pinion and rotate slightly and the pinion meshes with the ring gear, because frictional force is used, there are problems such as setting of the initial frictional force and that abrasion powder adheres to the sliding surfaces and consequently the durability is poor.
- Also, in the latter conventional technology, when the ring gear abuts with the end surface of the pinion, there is the problem that the regulating member suddenly moving through the pitch of the tooth portion of the pinion causes an impact between the pinion and the ring gear, and another constituent member such as a spring is necessary so that the regulating member passes over the tooth peaks of the pinion.
- This invention was made in view of the above situation, and has as an object the provision of a starter of which the simplicity and durability of the pinion rotation regulating mechanism is improved.
- According to a starter of the present invention, when a pinion regulating means abuts with a pinion and rotation of an output shaft moves the pinion to a ring gear side and the pinion abuts with a ring gear, the pinion regulating means itself bends and allows the pinion to rotate gradually and mesh with the ring gear and consequently there is no generation of abrasion powder and a simple constitution with few parts can be adopted.
- Further, the pinion is rotatable by at least 1/2 the pinion gear pitch and it is possible to reliably regulate the rotation of the pinion.
- Further, axial grooves on the pinion moving means are made more numerous than the pinion gear number, and the pinion can easily engage with the axial grooves.
- The the pinion regulating means need only hold the pinion with the small force required to regulate the rotation of the pinion, the pinion regulating means can be moved to the pinion side by a magnet switch by way of a cord-shaped member, and the freedom with which the magnet switch can be disposed can be increased.
- Further, the pinion regulating means itself can attain pinion return prevention when the pinion has meshed with the ring gear, and the number of parts can be made small and the assembly can be simplified.
- The pinion regulating means itself integrally comprises urging means for urging the movement to the opposite side to the pinion, by switching the magnet switch OFF the pinion regulating means automatically moves away from the pinion, and the number of parts can be made small and the assembly can be simplified.
- Until the pinion abuts with the ring gear the limiting means makes the rotation of the output shaft slow and the pinion is moved to the ring gear side slowly, and it is not necessary to make the rigidity of the pinion regulating means itself strong, and it is possible to make the shock of when the pinion abuts with the ring gear small.
- By part of the pinion regulating means having a bar-like elastic regulating portion, the regulating portion can reliably bend.
- By holding the washer rotatably on the end surface of the pinion, even when the pinion is over-run by the ring gear and rotates at high speed, because the washer is rotatable with respect to the pinion, there is little wear on the abutting portion of the regulating portion, and the durability can be increased.
- The washer is heat-treated simultaneously with the pinion, and it is possible to dispense with a process for making the hardness of the washer above a predetermined value.
- By the movement of the plunger of the magnet switch, by causing the regulating portion to abut with the pinion while causing the elastic portion to deform, while causing the regulating portion to abut with the pinion, and when the plunger returns, by the elastic force of the elastic portion, the regulating portion can be reliably moved away from the pinion.
- In the accompanying drawings:
- Fig. 1 is a sectional side view showing the first embodiment of a starter of the present invention;
- Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a pinion rotation regulating member;
- Figs. 3A and 3B are a front view and a partial sectional side view of a pinion rotation regulating member fitted to a pinion part;
- Fig. 4 is a rear view of a center bracket;
- Fig. 5 is a sectional side view of a center bracket;
- Fig. 6 is a front view of a center bracket;
- Fig. 7 is a sectional side view of an armature;
- Fig. 8 is a front view of a yoke;
- Fig. 9 is an exploded perspective view of a plunger and contact points of a magnet switch;
- Fig. 10 is a perspective view showing a plunger of a magnet switch;
- Fig. 11 is a sectional view of an end frame and a brush spring;
- Fig. 12 is a front view of a brush holder;
- Fig. 13 is a sectional view taken along the line XIII-XIII in Fig. 12;
- Fig. 14 is a sectional view taken along the line XIV-XIV in Fig. 12.
- Figs. 15A through 15C are electrical circuit diagrams in which the operating state of a pinion is shown; and
- Fig. 16 is a sectional view of th second embodiment of the present invention.
- Next, the starter of this invention will be described based on the first embodiment shown in Fig. 1 through Fig. 15.
- The starter can be generally divided into a
housing 400 containing apinion 200 which meshes with aring gear 100 mounted on an engine (not shown) and a planetary gearspeed reduction mechanism 300, amotor 500, and anend frame 700 containing amagnet switch 600. Inside the starter, thehousing 400 and themotor 500 are separated by amotor spacer wall 800, and themotor 500 and theend frame 700 are separated by abrush holding member 900. - As shown in Fig. 1 and further in detail in Figs. 3A and 3B, a
pinion gear 210 which meshes with thering gear 100 of the engine is formed on thepinion 200. - A pinion
helical spline 211 which mates with ahelical spline 221 formed on anoutput shaft 220 is formed around the inner surface of thepinion gear 210. - On the opposite side of the
pinion gear 210 from the ring gear 100 aflange 213 of greater diameter than the external diameter dimension of thepinion gear 210 is formed in circular form. A number ofprojections 214 greater than the number of outer teeth of thepinion gear 210 are formed around the entire outer circumference of thisflange 213. Theseprojections 214 are for a regulatingclaw 231 of a pinionrotation regulating member 230 which will be discussed later to mate with. A washer 215 is bent onto the outer peripheral side of anannular portion 216 formed on the rear end of thepinion gear 210 and thereby disposed rotatably and unable to come off in the axial direction on the rear surface of theflange 213. - By the rotatable washer 215 being mounted on the rear surface of the
flange 213 of thepinion gear 210 in this way, when a pinionrotation regulating member 230 which will be discussed later drops in behind thepinion gear 210, the front end of a regulatingclaw 231 of the pinionrotation regulating member 230 abuts with the washer 215. As a result, the rotation of thepinion gear 210 does not directly abut with the regulatingclaw 231 of the pinionrotation regulating member 230, and the washer 215 rotates relatively and thepinion gear 210 is prevented from being worn by the regulatingclaw 231 of the pinionrotation regulating member 230. - The
pinion gear 210 is urged toward the rear of theoutput shaft 220 at all times by areturn spring 240 consisting of a compression coil spring. Thereturn spring 240 not only urges thepinion gear 210 directly but in this embodiment urges thepinion gear 210 by way of aring body 421 of ashutter 420 which opens and closes anopening portion 410 of thehousing 400 and will be further discussed later. - The pinion
rotation regulating member 230 constituting pinion moving means, as shown in Fig. 2 and Figs. 3A and 3B in detail, is a sheet spring member wound through approximately 3/2 (i.e., 1.5) turns of which approximately 3/4 turns is arotation regulating portion 232 of long axial sheet length and high spring constant and the remaining approximately 3/4 turns is areturn spring portion 233 constituting urging means of short axial sheet length and low spring constant. - A regulating
claw 231 which constitutes a regulating portion extending in the axial direction and which mates with themultiple projections 214 formed in theflange 213 of thepinion gear 210 is formed at one end of therotation regulating portion 232. This regulatingclaw 231, as well as mating with theprojections 214 of thepinion gear 210, in order to increase the rigidity of the regulatingclaw 231, is formed axially long and is bent radially inward into a cross-sectional L-shape and is bar-like. - The
rotation regulating portion 232 is provided with astraight portion 235 which extends vertically. Thisstraight portion 235 is vertically slidably supported by two supportingarms 361 mounted projecting from the front surface of acenter bracket 360. That is, thestraight portion 235 moving vertically causes therotation regulating portion 232 to move vertically also. - Also, a
sphere 601 of the front end of a cord-shaped member 680 (for example a wire), which will be further discussed later, for transmitting the movement of themagnet switch 600, which will be further discussed later, is in engagement with the position 180° opposite the regulatingclaw 231 of therotation regulating portion 232. - The end portion side of the
return spring portion 233 has a large curvature of wind and oneend portion 236 of thereturn spring portion 233 abuts with the upper surface of aregulating shelf 362 mounted projecting from a front surface of a lower portion of thecenter bracket 360. - The operation of the pinion
rotation regulating member 230 will now be explained. The cord-shapedmember 680 is transmitting means for transmitting the movement of themagnet switch 600 to the regulatingclaw 231, and the movement of themagnet switch 600 pulls therotation regulating portion 232 downward and causes the regulatingclaw 231 to engage with theprojections 214 on theflange 213 of thepinion gear 210. At that time, because theend portion 236 of thereturn spring portion 233 is in abutment with theregulating shelf 362 for position regulating, thereturn spring portion 233 bends. Because the regulatingclaw 231 is in engagement with theprojections 214 on thepinion gear 210, when thepinion gear 210 starts to be rotated by way of thearmature shaft 510 of themotor 500 and the planetary gearspeed reduction mechanism 300, thepinion gear 210 advances along thehelical spline 221 on theoutput shaft 220. When thepinion gear 210 abuts with thering gear 100 and the advance of thepinion gear 210 is obstructed, further rotational force of theoutput shaft 210 causes the pinionrotation regulating member 230 itself to bend and thepinion gear 210 rotates slightly and meshes with thering gear 100. When thepinion gear 210 advances, the regulatingclaw 231 disengages from theprojections 214, the regulatingclaw 231 drops in behind theflange 213 of thepinion gear 210, the front end of the regulatingclaw 231 abuts with the rear surface of the washer 215 and prevents thepinion gear 210 from retreating under the rotation of thering gear 100 of the engine. - As the movement of the
magnet switch 600 stops and the cord-shapedmember 680 stops pulling therotation regulating portion 232 downward, the action of thereturn spring portion 233 causes therotation regulating portion 232 to return to its original position. - In this way, the pinion
rotation regulating member 230, although it is one spring member, performs the three operations that are the operation of regulating the rotation of thepinion gear 210 and advancing thepinion gear 210, the operation of dropping in behind thepinion gear 210 and preventing thepinion gear 210 from retracting, and the operation of returning therotation regulating portion 232. That is, because a plurality of operations are carried out by one part, the number of parts in the starter can be reduced and the assemblability can be improved. - Also, when the pinion
rotation regulating member 230 abuts with thepinion gear 210 and by means of the rotation of theoutput shaft 220, while moving thepinion gear 210 to thering gear 100 side, thepinion gear 210 abuts with thering gear 100, because the pinionrotation regulating member 230 itself bends and rotates thepinion gear 210 slightly and causes it to mesh with the ring gear, there is no production of abrasion powder and there are few parts and the construction can be made simple. - Also, the pinion
rotation regulating member 230, because the projecting parts of theprojections 214 of thepinion gear 210 are more numerous than the teeth of thepinion gear 210, can easily engage with theprojections 214. - Because the pinion
rotation regulating member 230 need only be held with the small force required to regulate the rotation of thepinion gear 210, it is possible to move it to thepinion gear 210 side by means of themagnet switch 600, using the cord-shapedmember 680, and consequently it is possible to increase the freedom with which themagnet switch 600 is disposed. - Also, the pinion
rotation regulating member 230 itself can prevent thepinion gear 210 from returning when thepinion gear 210 has meshed with thering gear 100, and the number of parts can be made small and the assembly can be simplified. - Furthermore, because the pinion
rotation regulating member 230 itself integrally comprises thereturn spring portion 233 constituting urging means urging to the opposite side to the pinion gear, by switching themagnet switch 600 OFF, the pinionrotation regulating member 230 automatically moves away from thepinion gear 210 and the number of parts can be made small and the assembly can be simplified. - By part of the pinion
rotation regulating member 230 having the regulatingclaw 231 constituting the bar-like elastic regulating portion, the pinion rotation regulating member itself can reliably bend. - Also, by the washer 215 being rotatably held on the end surface of the
pinion gear 210, even when thepinion gear 210 is over-run by thering gear 100 and rotates at high speed, because the washer 215 is rotatable with respect to thepinion gear 210, the abutting portion of the regulatingclaw 231 constituting the regulating portion is not worn much, and the durability can be increased. - The pinion stopping ring 250 is fixed in a circular groove of rectangular cross-section formed around the
output shaft 220. This pinion stopping ring 250 is a piece of steel of rectangular cross-section processed into a circular shape; a substantially S-shaped corrugation 251 (an example of engaging means) is formed at each end, and the convex portion of one is in engagement with the concave portion of the other and the convex portion of the other is in engagement with the concave portion of the first. - The planetary gear
speed reduction mechanism 300, as shown in Fig. 1, is speed reducing means for reducing the rotational speed of theoutput shaft 220 relative tomotor 500, which will be further discussed later, and increasing the output torque of themotor 500. The planetary gearspeed reduction mechanism 300 is made up of asun gear 310 formed on the front-side outer periphery of the armature shaft 510 (discussed later) of themotor 500, a plurality ofplanetary gears 320 which mesh with thissun gear 310 and rotate around the circumference of thesun gear 310, aplanet carrier 330 which rotatably supports theseplanetary gears 320 around thesun gear 310 and is formed integrally with theoutput shaft 220, and an internal gear 340 which is of a cylindrical shape meshing with theplanetary gears 320 at the outer periphery of theplanetary gears 320 and is made of resin. - The overrunning
clutch 350 supports the internal gear 340 rotatably in one direction only (only the direction in which it rotates under the rotation of the engine). The overrunningclutch 350 has a clutch outer 351 constituting a first cylindrical portion integrally formed in the front side of the internal gear 340, a circular clutch inner 352 constituting a second cylindrical portion formed in the rear surface of thecenter bracket 360 constituting a fixed side covering the front of the planetary gearspeed reduction mechanism 300 and disposed facing the clutch outer 351, and a roller 353 accommodated in a roller housing portion formed inclined to the inner surface of the clutch outer 351. - The
center bracket 360 is shown in detail in Fig. 4 through Fig. 6 and is disposed inside the rear end of thehousing 400. Thehousing 400 and thecenter bracket 360 are linked by aring spring 390 having one end engaged with thehousing 400 and the other end engaged with thecenter bracket 360 and are arranged in such a way that the rotational reaction received by a clutch inner 352 constituting the overrunningclutch 350 is absorbed by thering spring 390 and the reaction is not directly transmitted to thehousing 400. - Also, two supporting
arms 361 which hold the pinionrotation regulating member 230 and aregulating shelf 362 on which the lower end of the pinionrotation regulating member 230 is loaded are mounted on the front surface of thecenter bracket 360. Further, a plurality ofcutout portions 363 which mate with convex portions (not shown in the drawings) on the inner side of thehousing 400 are formed around thecenter bracket 360. The upperside cutout portions 363 are used also as air passages for guiding air from inside thehousing 400 into ayoke 501. Also, aconcave portion 364 through which the cord-shaped member 680 (discussed later) passes in the axial direction is formed at the lower end of thecenter bracket 360. - The
planet carrier 330 is provided at its rear end with a flange-like projectingportion 331 which extends radially in order to support theplanetary gears 320.Pins 332 extending rearward are fixed to this flange-like projectingportion 331, and thesepins 332 rotatably support theplanetary gears 320 by way of metal bearings 333. - The
planet carrier 330 has its front end rotatably supported by ahousing bearing 440 fixed inside the front end of thehousing 400 and a center bracket bearing 370 fixed inside an innercylindrical portion 365 of thecenter bracket 360. - The
housing 400 supports theoutput shaft 220 with thehousing bearing 440 fixed in the front end of thehousing 400 and also is provided with awater barrier wall 460 which in order to minimize the incursion of rainwater and the like through theopening portion 410 minimizes the gap at the lower part of theopening portion 410 between the outer diameter of thepinion gear 210 and thehousing 400. Also, two slide grooves extending axially are provided at the lower part of the front end of thehousing 400, and ashutter 420 which will be further discussed later is disposed in these slide grooves. - The
shutter 420 consisting of a resinous member (for example nylon) is mounted on theoutput shaft 220 and comprises aring body 421 sandwiched between thereturn spring 240 and thepinion gear 210 and a water-barrier portion 422 which opens and closes anopening portion 410 in thehousing 400. The operation of theshutter 420 is such that when the starter starts to operate and thepinion gear 210 shifts forward along theoutput shaft 220 thering body 421 shifts forward together with thepinion gear 210. When this happens, the water-barrier portion 422 integral with thering body 421 shifts forward and opens theopening portion 410 of thehousing 400. When the starter stops operating and thepinion gear 210 shifts backward along theoutput shaft 220, thering body 421 also shifts backward together with thepinion gear 210. When this happens, the water-barrier portion 422 integral with thering body 421 also shifts backward and closes theopening portion 410 of thehousing 400. As a result, theshutter 420, which constitutes opening and closing means, by means of the water-barrier portion 422 prevents rainwater and the like which is splashed by the centrifugal force of thering gear 100 from getting inside thehousing 400 when the starter is not operating. - The
motor 500 is enclosed by ayoke 501 having a throughhole 503,motor spacer wall 800, and abrush holding member 900 which will be discussed later. Themotor spacer wall 800 houses the planetary gearspeed reduction mechanism 300 between itself and thecenter bracket 360, and also fulfills the role of preventing lubricating oil inside the planetary gearspeed reduction mechanism 300 from getting into themotor 500. - The
motor 500, as shown in Fig. 1, is made up of anarmature 540 comprising thearmature shaft 510 and anarmature core 520 and armature coils 530 which are mounted on and rotate integrally with thisarmature shaft 510, and fixedpoles 550 which rotate thearmature 540, and the fixedpoles 550 are mounted around the inside of theyoke 501. - For the armature coils 530, in this embodiment shown in detail in Fig. 7, multiple (for example 25) upper layer coil bars 531 and the same number of lower layer coil bars 532 as these upper layer coil bars 531 are used, and 2-layer-winding coils wherein the respective upper layer coil bars 531 and the lower layer coil bars 532 are stacked in the radial direction are employed. The upper layer coil bars 531 and lower layer coil bars 532 are paired, and the ends of the upper layer coil bars 531 and the ends of the lower layer coil bars 532 are electrically connected to constitute ring-shaped coils.
- The upper layer coil bars 531, as shown in Fig. 7, are made of a material having excellent electrical conductivity (for example copper), and are each provided with an upper
layer coil arm 533 which extends axially in parallel with the fixedpoles 550 and is held in the outer sides ofslots 524 and two upper layer coil ends 534 which are bent inward from both ends of the upperlayer coil arm 533 and extend in a direction orthogonal to the axial direction of thearmature shaft 510. The upperlayer coil arm 533 and the two upper layer coil ends 534 may be a member integrally molded by cold casting, may be a member shaped by bending in a press into a U-shape, or may be a member formed by joining an upperlayer coil arm 533 and two upper layer coil ends 534 made as separate parts by a joining method such as welding. - The lower coil bars 532, like the upper coil bars 531, are made from a material having excellent electrical conductivity (for example copper), and each comprise a lower
layer coil arm 536 which extends axially in parallel with respect to the fixedpoles 550 and is held in the inner sides ofslots 524 and two lower layer coil ends 537 which are bent inward from the ends of this lowerlayer coil arm 536 and extend orthogonal to the axial direction of thearmature shaft 510. The lowerlayer coil arm 536 and the two lower layer coil ends 537, like the upperlayer coil bar 531, may be a member integrally molded by cold casting, may be a member shaped by bending in a press into a U-shape, or may be a member formed by joining a lowerlayer coil arm 536 and 2 lower layer coil ends 537 made as separate parts by a joining method such as welding. - Insulation between the upper layer coil ends 534 and the lower layer coil ends 537 is secured by insulating
spacers 560, and insulation between the lower layer coil ends 537 and thearmature core 520 is secured by an insulatingring 590 made of resin (for example nylon or phenol resin). - The
yoke 501, as shown in Fig. 8, is a cylindrical body formed by rolling a steel plate, and around it are formed a plurality ofconcave grooves 502 extending axially and sunk toward the inner circumference. Theseconcave grooves 502, as well as disposing through bolts, are used for positioningfixed poles 550 around the inner circumference of theyoke 501. - In this embodiment permanent magnets are used for the fixed
poles 550 and, as shown in Fig. 8, they comprise a plurality of (for example 6)main poles 551 andinter-pole poles 552 disposed between thesemain poles 551. Field coils which generate magnetic force by electrical current flow may be used instead of permanent magnets for the fixedpoles 550. - The
main poles 551 are positioned by the ends of the inner sides ofchannel grooves 502 in the above-mentionedyoke 501, and are fixed in theyoke 501 by fixingsleeves 553 disposed around the inside of the fixedpoles 550 with theinter-pole poles 552 disposed between themain poles 551. - The
magnet switch 600, as shown in Fig. 1, Fig. 9 and Fig. 10, is held in abrush holder 900 which will be discussed later, is disposed inside anend frame 700 which will be discussed later, and is fixed so as to be substantially orthogonal to thearmature shaft 510. - In the
magnet switch 600, electrical current drives aplunger 610 upward, and two contacts (a lowermovable contact 611 and an upper movable contact 612) which move together with theplunger 610 are sequentially caused to abut with thehead portion 621 of aterminal bolt 620 and anabutting portion 631 of afixed contact 630. A battery cable not shown in the drawings is connected to theterminal bolt 620. - The
magnet switch 600 is structured inside amagnet switch cover 640 which is cylindrical and has a bottom and is made from magnetic parts (for example made of iron). Themagnet switch cover 640 is for example a pliable steel plate press-formed into a cup shape, and in the center of the bottom of themagnet switch cover 640 there is ahole 641 through which theplunger 610 passes movably in the vertical direction. Also, the upper opening of themagnet switch cover 640 is closed off by astationary core 642 made of a magnetic body (for example made of iron). - The
stationary core 642 consists of an upperlarge diameter portion 643, a lowermiddle diameter portion 644, and a still lowersmall diameter portion 645, and thestationary core 642 is fixed in the upper opening of themagnet switch cover 640 by the outer periphery of thelarge diameter portion 643 being caulked to the inner side of the upper end of themagnet switch cover 640. The upper end of an attractingcoil 650 is fitted around themiddle diameter portion 644. The upper end of acompression coil spring 660 which urges theplunger 610 downward is fitted around the periphery of thesmall diameter portion 645 of thestationary core 642. - The attracting
coil 650 is attracting means which generates magnetism when a current flows through it and attracts theplunger 610, and the attractingcoil 650 is provided with asleeve 651 which has its upper end fitted to themiddle diameter portion 644 of thestationary core 642 and covers theplunger 610 slidably in the vertical direction. Thissleeve 651 is made by rolling up a non-magnetic thin plate (for example copper plate, brass, stainless steel), and insulatingwashers 652 made of resin or the like are provided at the upper and lower ends of thissleeve 651. Around thesleeve 651 between these 2 insulatingwashers 652 there is wound a thin insulating film (not shown in the drawings) made of resin (for example cellophane, nylon film) or paper, and around that insulating film is wound a predetermined number of turns of a thin enamel wire, whereby the attractingcoil 650 is constituted. - The
plunger 610 is made of a magnetic metal (for example iron) and has a substantially cylindrical shape comprising an uppersmall diameter portion 613 and a lowerlarge diameter portion 614. The lower end of thecompression coil spring 660 is fitted to thesmall diameter portion 613, and thelarge diameter portion 614, which is relatively long in the axial direction, is held slidably vertically in thesleeve 651. - A
plunger shaft 615 extending upward from theplunger 610 is fixed to the upper end of theplunger 610. Thisplunger shaft 615 projects upward through a through hole provided in thestationary core 642. An uppermovable contact 612 is fitted around theplunger shaft 615 above thestationary core 642 slidably vertically along theplunger shaft 615. This uppermovable contact 612, as shown in Fig. 9, is limited by a stoppingring 616 fitted to the upper end of theplunger shaft 615 so that it does not move upward of the upper end of theplunger shaft 615. As a result, the uppermovable contact 612 is vertically slidable along theplunger shaft 615 between the stoppingring 616 and thestationary core 642. The uppermovable contact 612 is urged upward at all times by acontact pressure spring 670 consisting of a sheet plate spring fitted to theplunger shaft 615. - The upper
movable contact 612 is made of a metal such as copper having excellent conductivity, and when both ends of the uppermovable contact 612 move upward they abut with the two abuttingportions 631 of the fixedcontact 630. Thelead wires 910a of a pair ofbrushes 910 are electrically and mechanically fixed to the uppermovable contact 612 by caulking or welding or the like. Also, the end portion of aresistor member 617 constituting a plurality of (in this embodiment, two) limiting means is inserted and electrically and mechanically fixed in a groove portion of the uppermovable contact 612. - The
lead wires 910a are electrically and mechanically fixed to the uppermovable contact 612 by caulking or welding, but the uppermovable contact 612 and thelead wires 910a of thebrushes 910 may alternatively be formed integrally. - The
resistor member 617 is for rotating themotor 500 at low speed when the starter starts to operate, and consists of a metal wire of high resistance wound through several turns. A lowermovable contact 611 located below thehead portion 621 of theterminal bolt 620 is fixed by caulking or the like to the other end of theresistor member 617. - The lower
movable contact 611 is made of a metal such as copper having excellent conductivity, and when themagnet switch 600 stops and theplunger 610 is in its downward position abuts with the upper surface of thestationary core 642, when theresistor member 617 moves upward along with the movement of theplunger shaft 615, before the uppermovable contact 612 abuts with the abuttingportion 631 of the fixedcontact 630 it abuts with thehead portion 621 of theterminal bolt 620. - The lower surface of the
plunger 610 is provided with arecess portion 682 which accommodates asphere 681 provided at the rear end of the cord-shaped member 680 (for example a wire). Afemale thread 683 is formed on the inner wall of thisfemale thread 683. A fixingscrew 684 which fixes thesphere 681 in therecess portion 682 is screwed into thisrecess portion 682. This fixingscrew 684 is also used to perform adjustment of the length of the cord-shapedmember 680, by adjusting the extent to which the fixingscrew 684 is screwed into thefemale thread 683. The length of the cord-shapedmember 680 is adjusted so that when theplunger shaft 615 moves upward and the lowermovable contact 611 abuts with theterminal bolt 620 the regulatingclaw 231 of the pinionrotation regulating member 230 mates with theprojections 214 of the outer periphery of thepinion gear 210. Thefemale thread 683 and the fixingscrew 684 constitute an adjusting mechanism. - With such a construction, because with respect to the movement of the
plunger 610 of themagnet switch 600, via the cord-shapedmember 680, the pinionrotation regulating member 230 is moved to thepinion gear 210 side, conventional link mechanisms and levers and the like are not necessary and the number of parts can be reduced, and also even if thepinion gear 210 fails to move away from thering gear 100, bending in the cord-shapedmember 680 itself causes theplunger 610 to return to its original position, and the uppermovable contact 612 can move away from the fixedcontact 630. - Also, because all that is necessary is to cause the regulating
claw 231 of the pinionrotation regulating member 230 to engage with theprojections 214 on thepinion gear 210, this regulatingclaw 231 can be reliably moved by the cord-shapedmember 680. - By making the cord-shaped member 680 a wire, the durability can be increased.
- Also, by disposing the adjusting mechanism consisting of the
female thread 683 and the fixingscrew 684 between theplunger 610 and the cord-shapedmember 680 and screwing the fixingscrew 684 into thefemale thread 683, the length of the cord-shapedmember 680 can be easily adjusted. - Also, because the
lead wires 910a of thebrushes 910 are directly connected to the uppermovable contact 612, heat generated at thebrushes 910 is efficiently radiated via thelead wires 910a, the uppermovable contact 612 and theterminal bolt 620 from the battery cable connected to theterminal bolt 620 and positioned outside the starter, and increases in the life of thebrushes 910 can be attempted. - Furthermore, because the
plunger shaft 615 of themagnet switch 600 is disposed substantially orthogonal to the motor axis, compared to a case wherein theplunger shaft 615 of themagnet switch 600 is disposed axially, the axial direction dimension of the starter can be shortened and the stroke through which theplunger shaft 615 is required to pull the cord-shapedmember 680 can be set small, and further downsizing of themagnet switch 600 can be attempted. - Furthermore, because the
plunger 615 of themagnet switch 600 is disposed orthogonal with respect to the axial direction of thearmature shaft 510, only the diametral direction length of themagnet switch 600 adds to the axial direction length of the overall starter, ,and the build of the whole starter is not made large. - Furthermore, because the
magnet switch 600 is housed inside theend frame 700, it does not readily suffer damage from water and the like which has entered through theopening 410 in thehousing 400. - The
end frame 700, as shown in Fig. 11, is a magnet switch cover made of resin (for example phenol resin), and accommodates themagnet switch 600. -
Spring holding pillars 710 which holdcompression coil springs 914 which urge thebrushes 910 forward are mounted projecting from the rear surface of theend frame 700 in correspondence with the positions of thebrushes 910. - Also, the compression coil springs 914, as shown in Fig. 1, are disposed radially outward with respect to the axial direction of the
plunger 610 of themagnet switch 600. - The
terminal bolt 620 is a steel bolt which passes through theend frame 700 from the inside and projects from the rear of theend frame 700 and has at its front end ahead portion 621 which abuts with the inner surface of theend frame 700. Theterminal bolt 620 is fixed to theend frame 700 by acaulking washer 622 being attached to theterminal bolt 620 projecting rearward of theend frame 700. A copper fixedcontact 630 is fixed to the front end of theterminal bolt 620 by caulking. The fixedcontact 630 has one or a plurality of (in this embodiment, two) abuttingportions 631 positioned at the top end of the inside of theend frame 700, and these abuttingportions 631 are mounted so that the upper surface of the uppermovable contact 612 which is moved up and down by the operation of themagnet switch 600 can abut with the lower surfaces of the abuttingportions 631. - Further, the spring length of the
compression coil springs 914 can use the radial direction length of themagnet switch 600, a suitable spring stress and load can be set, and the life of thecompression coil springs 914 can be greatly increased. - The
brush holder 900, as well as the roles of separating the inside of theyoke 501 and the inside of theend frame 700 and rotatably supporting the rear end of thearmature shaft 510 by way of the brush holder bearing 564, also fulfills the role of a brush holder, the role of holding themagnet switch 600, and the role of holding apulley 690 which guides the cord-shapedmember 680. Thebrush holder 900 has a hole portion not shown in the drawings through which the cord-shapedmember 680 passes. - The
brush holder 900 is a spacing wall made of a metal such as aluminum molded by a casting method and, as shown in Fig. 12 through Fig. 14, has a plurality of (in this embodiment, two upper and two lower)brush holding holes brushes 910 in the axial direction. The upperbrush holding holes 911 are holes which hold brushes 910 which receive a plus voltage, and these upperbrush holding holes 911 hold thebrushes 910 by way of resin (for example nylon, phenol resin) insulating cylinders 913 (Fig. 13 is a cross-section taken along XIII-XIII of Fig. 12, and Fig. 14 is a cross-section taken along XIV-XIV of Fig. 12). The lowerbrush holding holes 912 are holes which hold brushes 910 connected to ground, and these lowerbrush holding holes 912 hold therespective brushes 910 directly therein. - In this way, by holding the
brushes 910 by means of thebrush holder 900, there is no need to provide the starter with independent brush holders. As a result, the number of parts in the starter can be reduced and assembly man-hours can be reduced. - The
brushes 910 are urged against the upper layer coil ends 534 at the rear ends of the armature coils 530 by the compression coil springs 914. - The
lead wires 910a of theupper brushes 910 are electrically and mechanically joined by a joining method such as welding or caulking to the uppermovable contact 612 which is moved by themagnet switch 600. Thelead wires 910a of thelower brushes 910 are caulked and thereby electrically and mechanically joined to aconcave portion 920 formed in the rear surface of thebrush holder 900. In this embodiment a pair oflower brushes 910 are provided, onelead wire 910a is connected to the pair oflower brushes 910, and the middle of thelead wire 910a is caulked in theconcave portion 920 formed in the rear surface of thebrush holder 900. - Two
seats 930 with which the front side of themagnet switch 600 abuts and two fixingpillars 940 which hold the periphery of themagnet switch 600 are formed on the rear side of thebrush holder 900. - The
seats 930 are shaped to match the external shape of themagnet switch 600 in order to abut with themagnet switch 600, which has a cylindrical exterior. The two fixingpillars 940, with themagnet switch 600 in abutment with theseats 930, by having their rear ends caulked to the inner side, hold themagnet switch 600. - A
pulley holding portion 950 which holds apulley 690 which converts the direction of movement of the cord-shapedmember 680 from the vertical direction of themagnet switch 600 into the axial direction thereof is formed on the lower side of the rear side of thebrush holder 900. - Next, the operation of the starter described above will be explained with reference to the electrical circuit diagrams Figs. 15A through 15C.
- When a
key switch 10 is set to the start position by a driver as shown in Fig. 15A, electricity flows from a battery 20 to the attractingcoil 650 of themagnet switch 600. When current flows through the attractingcoil 650, theplunger 610 is pulled by the magnetic force produced by the attractingcoil 650, and theplunger 610 ascends from its lower position to its upper position (from right to left in Fig. 15A). - When the
plunger 610 starts to ascend, together with the ascent of theplunger shaft 615 the uppermovable contact 612 and the lowermovable contact 611 ascend, and the rear end of the cord-shapedmember 680 also ascends. When the rear end of the cord-shapedmember 680 ascends, the front end of the cord-shapedmember 680 is pulled down, and the pinionrotation regulating member 230 descends. When the descent of the pinionrotation regulating member 230 causes the regulatingclaw 231 to mate with theprojections 214 of the periphery of thepinion gear 210, the lowermovable contact 611 abuts with thehead portion 621 of theterminal bolt 620. The voltage of the battery 20 is impressed on theterminal bolt 620, and the voltage of theterminal bolt 620 is transmitted through the lowermovable contact 611 → theresistor member 617 → the uppermovable contact 612 → thelead wires 910a to the upper brushes 910. That is, the low voltage passing through theresistor member 617 is transmitted through theupper brushes 910 to the armature coils 530. Because thelower brushes 910 are constantly grounded through thebrush holder 900, a current flows at low voltage through the armature coils 530 constituted in coil form by the paired upper layer coil bars 531 and lower layer coil bars 532. When this happens, the armature coils 530 generate a relatively weak magnetic force, this magnetic force acts on (attracts or repels) the magnetic force of the fixedpoles 550, and thearmature 540 rotates at low speed. - When the
armature shaft 510 rotates, theplanetary gears 320 of the planetary gearspeed reduction mechanism 300 are rotationally driven by thesun gear 310 on the front end of thearmature shaft 510. When theplanetary gears 320 exert a rotational torque through theplanet carrier 330 on the internal gear 340 in the direction which rotationally drives thering gear 100, the rotation of the internal gear 340 is limited by the operation of the overrunningclutch 350. That is, because the internal gear 340 does not rotate, the rotation of theplanetary gears 320 causes theplanet carrier 330 to rotate at low speed. When theplanet carrier 330 rotates, thepinion gear 210 also rotates, but because thepinion gear 210 has its rotation limited by the pinionrotation regulating member 230 thepinion gear 210 advances along thehelical spline 221 on theoutput shaft 220. - Together with the advance of the
pinion gear 210, theshutter 420 also advances, and opens theopening portion 410 of thehousing 400. The advance of thepinion gear 210 causes thepinion gear 210 to mesh completely with thering gear 100 and then abut with the pinion stopping ring 250. Also, when thepinion gear 210 advances, the regulatingclaw 231 disengages from theprojections 214 of thepinion gear 210 and after that the front end of the regulatingclaw 231 drops to the rear side of the washer 215 disposed on the rear side of thepinion gear 210. - With the
pinion gear 210 advanced, the uppermovable contact 612 abuts with the abuttingportion 631 of the fixedcontact 630 as shown in Fig. 15B. When this happens, the battery voltage of theterminal bolt 620 is directly transmitted through the uppermovable contact 612 → thelead wires 910a to the upper brushes 910. That is, a high current flows through the armature coils 530 consisting of the upper coil bars 531 and the lower coil bars 532, the armature coils 530 generate a strong magnetic force and thearmature 540 rotates at high speed. - The rotation of the
armature shaft 510 is slowed and has its rotational torque increased by the planetary gearspeed reduction mechanism 300 and rotationally drives theplanet carrier 330. At this time, the front end of thepinion gear 210 abuts with the pinion stopping ring 250 and thepinion gear 210 rotates integrally with theplanet carrier 330. Because thepinion gear 210 is meshing with thering gear 100 of the engine, thepinion gear 210 rotationally drives thering gear 100 and rotationally drives the output shaft of the engine. - Next, when the engine starts and the
ring gear 100 of the engine rotates faster than the rotation of thepinion gear 210, the action of the helical spline creates a force tending to retract thepinion gear 210. However, the regulatingclaw 231 which has dropped to behind thepinion gear 210 prevents thepinion gear 210 from retracting, prevents early disengagement of thepinion gear 210, and enables the engine to be started surely. - When the engine starting causes the
ring gear 100 to rotate faster than the rotation of thepinion gear 210, the rotation of thering gear 100 rotationally drives thepinion gear 210. When this happens, the rotational torque transmitted from thering gear 100 to thepinion gear 210 is transmitted through theplanet carrier 330 to thepins 332 which support theplanetary gears 320. That is, theplanetary gears 320 are driven by theplanet carrier 330. When this happens, because a torque rotationally opposite to that during engine starting is exerted on the internal gear 340, the overrunningclutch 350 allows the rotation of thering gear 100. That is, when a torque rotationally opposite to that during engine starting is exerted on the internal gear 340, the roller 353 of the overrunningclutch 350 detaches to outside theconcave portion 355 of the clutch inner 352 and rotation of the internal gear 340 becomes possible. - In other words, the relative rotation with which the
ring gear 100 rotationally drives thepinion gear 210 when the engine starts is absorbed by the overrunningclutch 350, and thearmature 540 is never rotationally driven by the engine. - When the engine starts, the driver releases the
key switch 10 from the start position as shown in Fig. 15C and the flow of current to the attractingcoil 650 of themagnet switch 600 is stopped. When the flow of current to the attractingcoil 650 stops, theplunger 610 is returned downward by the action of thecompression coil spring 660. - When this happens, the upper
movable contact 612 moves away from the abuttingportion 631 of the fixedcontact 630, and after that the lowermovable contact 611 also moves away from thehead portion 621 of theterminal bolt 620, and the flow of current to theupper brushes 910 is stopped. - When the
plunger 610 is returned downward, the action of thereturn spring portion 236 of the pinionrotation regulating member 230 causes the pinionrotation regulating member 230 to return upward, and the regulatingclaw 231 moves away from the rear of thepinion gear 210. When this happens, thepinion gear 210 is returned rearward by the action of thereturn spring 240, the meshing of thepinion gear 210 with thering gear 100 of the engine is disengaged, and the rear end of thepinion gear 210 abuts with the flange-like projecting portion 222 of theoutput shaft 220. That is, thepinion gear 210 is returned to the position it was in before the starter was started. - Also, the
plunger 610 being returned downward causes the lowermovable contact 611 to abut with the upper surface of thestationary core 642 of themagnet switch 600, and the lead wires of theupper brushes 910 conduct electrical current in the order the uppermovable contact 612 → theresistor member 617 → the lowermovable contact 611 → thestationary core 642 → themagnet switch cover 640 → thebrush holder 900. In other words, theupper brushes 910 and thelower brushes 910 short-circuit through thebrush holder 900. Meanwhile, inertial rotation of thearmature 540 generates an electromotive force in the armature coils 530. Because this electromotive force is short-circuited through theupper brushes 910, thebrush holder 900 and thelower brushes 910, a braking force is exerted on the inertial rotation of thearmature 540. As a result, thearmature 540 rapidly stops. - In the starter of this embodiment as described with reference to Fig. 1, Fig. 2, Figs. 3A and 3B, when the pinion
rotation regulating member 230 constituting pinion regulating means abuts with thepinion 200 and the rotation of theoutput shaft 220 moves thepinion gear 210 to the ring gear side and thepinion gear 210 abuts with thering gear 100, the pinion regulating means itself bends and allows thepinion gear 210 to gradually rotate and mesh with the ring gear and consequently there is no generation of abrasion powder and a simple constitution with few parts can be adopted. - Also, because the
axial grooves 213 with which the regulatingclaw 231 of the pinionrotation regulating member 230 engages are more numerous than the gear number of thepinion gear 210, it can easily engage with the axial grooves. - Furthermore, because the pinion
rotation regulating member 230 need only hold thepinion gear 210 with the small force required to regulate the rotation of thepinion gear 210, the pinionrotation regulating member 230 can be moved to thepinion gear 210 side by themagnet switch 600 by way of the cord-shapedmember 680, and the freedom with which themagnet switch 600 is disposed can be increased. - Also, the regulating
claw 231 of the pinionrotation regulating member 230 itself can attain the pinion return prevention when thepinion gear 210 has meshed with thering gear 100, and the number of parts can be made small and the assembly can be simplified. - Furthermore, because the pinion
rotation regulating member 230 itself integrally comprises thereturn spring portion 233 constituting urging means for urging the movement to the opposite side to thepinion gear 210, by switching themagnet switch 600 OFF, by means of thespring portion 233, the pinionrotation regulating member 230 moves away from thepinion gear 230, and the number of parts can be made small and the assembly can be simplified. - Because until the
pinion gear 210 abuts with thering gear 100 theresistor member 617 constituting limiting means makes the rotation of theoutput shaft 220 slow and thepinion gear 210 is moved to thering gear 100 side slowly, it is not necessary to make the rigidity of the pinionrotation regulating member 230 strong, and it is possible to make the shock when thepinion gear 210 abuts with thering gear 100 small. - Also, by holding the washer 215 rotatably on the end surface of the
pinion gear 210, even when thepinion gear 210 is over-run by thering gear 100 and rotates at high speed, because the washer 215 is rotatable with respect to thepinion gear 210, there is little wear on the abutting portion of the regulatingclaw 231 of the pinionrotation regulating member 230, and the durability can be increased. - Furthermore, because the washer 215 is heat-treated simultaneously with the
pinion gear 210, it is possible to dispense with a process for making the hardness of the washer 215 above a predetermined value. - Also, by the movement of the
plunger 610 of themagnet switch 600, by causing the regulatingclaw 231 to abut with thepinion gear 210 while causing thereturn spring portion 233 constituting urging means to move, by means of the compression force of thereturn spring 233, the regulatingclaw 231 can be reliably moved away from thepinion gear 210 side. - In the second embodiment shown in Fig. 16, the
magnet switch 600 in embodiment 1 is disposed parallel to themotor 500 and the pinionrotation regulating member 230 is operatively linked with themagnet switch 600 through thewire 680. - While this invention has been described in connection with what is presently considered most preferred embodiments, this invention is not to be limited to the disclosed embodiments, but is meant to cover all modifications and equivalent arrangement within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.
Claims (5)
- A starter comprising:
an output shaft (220) having a helical spline (221);
a pinion transmittal member having a pinion (200) for meshing with a ring gear (100) of an engine and mounted on the output shaft axially movably through mating with the helical spline of the output shaft;
a motor (500) for rotating the output shaft thereby to move the pinion toward the ring gear for meshing with the ring gear;
a return prevention member (231) for restricting a return of the pinion from the ring gear when the pinion meshes with the ring gear; and
a slide member (215) disposed between the pinion transmittal member and the return prevention member. - A starter according to claim 1, wherein:
the slide member (215) is mounted on the pinion transmittal member. - A starter according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising:
a rotation regulation member (230) for regulating a rotation of the pinion by abutment with the pinion, the rotation regulating member being moved to a side of the pinion which is axially opposite to the ring gear when the pinion moves toward the ring gear by a predetermined distance thus working as the return prevention member. - A starter according to claim 1, wherein:
the return prevention member is formed in a bar shape extending axially and movable radially. - A starter according to claim 2, wherein:
the slide member includes a washer mounted rotatbly on the pinion transmittal member to keep the return prevention member stationary relative to the rotation of the pinion after meshing between the pinion and the ring gear.
Applications Claiming Priority (4)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
JP22232194 | 1994-09-19 | ||
JP222321/94 | 1994-09-19 | ||
JP22232194 | 1994-09-19 | ||
EP94118613A EP0702150B1 (en) | 1993-12-27 | 1994-11-25 | Starter |
Related Parent Applications (2)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
EP94118613A Division EP0702150B1 (en) | 1993-12-27 | 1994-11-25 | Starter |
EP94118613.2 Division | 1994-11-25 |
Publications (4)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
EP0725216A2 true EP0725216A2 (en) | 1996-08-07 |
EP0725216A3 EP0725216A3 (en) | 1996-10-09 |
EP0725216B1 EP0725216B1 (en) | 1998-02-25 |
EP0725216B2 EP0725216B2 (en) | 2004-09-01 |
Family
ID=16780528
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
EP96105895A Expired - Lifetime EP0725216B2 (en) | 1994-09-19 | 1994-11-25 | Starter |
Country Status (2)
Country | Link |
---|---|
EP (1) | EP0725216B2 (en) |
DE (2) | DE69409801T2 (en) |
Cited By (2)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
EP0836211A3 (en) * | 1996-10-09 | 1998-06-17 | Denso Corporation | Electromagnetic switch having variable magnetic resistance |
FR2864583A1 (en) | 2003-12-26 | 2005-07-01 | Valeo Equip Electr Moteur | Starter for motor vehicle, has friction tube with connection ring carrying friction plate and including locking pin for locking starter drive in axial working position during which plate is activated towards outside tube |
Families Citing this family (3)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
EP1332286A1 (en) | 2000-10-25 | 2003-08-06 | Robert Bosch Gmbh | Starting device for internal combustion engines |
DE10260846A1 (en) | 2002-12-23 | 2004-07-01 | Robert Bosch Gmbh | Electrical machine, in particular direct current machine |
DE102004041618B4 (en) * | 2004-08-27 | 2009-09-03 | Compact Dynamics Gmbh | Starter device for cranking internal combustion engines |
Citations (2)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US2332986A (en) * | 1942-07-02 | 1943-10-26 | Bendix Aviat Corp | Engine starting device |
DE2439981A1 (en) * | 1974-08-21 | 1976-03-04 | Bosch Gmbh Robert | I.C. engine starter motor pinion drive - has free wheel keeping pinion in mesh with flywheel when respective speeds are unequal |
-
1994
- 1994-11-25 DE DE1994609801 patent/DE69409801T2/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
- 1994-11-25 DE DE1994608687 patent/DE69408687T3/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
- 1994-11-25 EP EP96105895A patent/EP0725216B2/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
Patent Citations (2)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US2332986A (en) * | 1942-07-02 | 1943-10-26 | Bendix Aviat Corp | Engine starting device |
DE2439981A1 (en) * | 1974-08-21 | 1976-03-04 | Bosch Gmbh Robert | I.C. engine starter motor pinion drive - has free wheel keeping pinion in mesh with flywheel when respective speeds are unequal |
Non-Patent Citations (1)
Title |
---|
VDI-Richtlinie 2201 * |
Cited By (3)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
EP0836211A3 (en) * | 1996-10-09 | 1998-06-17 | Denso Corporation | Electromagnetic switch having variable magnetic resistance |
US6020650A (en) * | 1996-10-09 | 2000-02-01 | Denso Corporation | Electromagnetic switch having variable magnetic resistance |
FR2864583A1 (en) | 2003-12-26 | 2005-07-01 | Valeo Equip Electr Moteur | Starter for motor vehicle, has friction tube with connection ring carrying friction plate and including locking pin for locking starter drive in axial working position during which plate is activated towards outside tube |
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
DE69409801T2 (en) | 1998-08-13 |
EP0725216B2 (en) | 2004-09-01 |
DE69409801D1 (en) | 1998-05-28 |
EP0725216A3 (en) | 1996-10-09 |
DE69408687D1 (en) | 1998-04-02 |
DE69408687T2 (en) | 1998-06-18 |
DE69408687T3 (en) | 2005-05-19 |
EP0725216B1 (en) | 1998-02-25 |
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