GB2315307A

GB2315307A - Shift knob assembly

Info

Publication number: GB2315307A
Application number: GB9714488A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Shinya Nakamura; Takashi Sakamaki; Kazuo Sato
Original assignee: Niles Parts Co Ltd
Current assignee: Niles Parts Co Ltd
Priority date: 1996-07-16
Filing date: 1997-07-09
Publication date: 1998-01-28
Anticipated expiration: 2017-07-09
Also published as: KR100286286B1; GB9714488D0; GB2315307B; KR980010687A; JPH1029440A

Abstract

A shift knob has a knob body 1, a hollow member 4 fitted into the knob body, and a push button 5, for operating a detent rod, and an electric switch 6, the button and switch being located in cylinders 4d and 4e of the hollow member. The push button 5 is prevented from being pulled out of cylinder 4d by stops 5a engaging stops 4f, and guide projections 5c on its outer periphery engage in guide grooves 4g formed in an inner wall of cylinder 4d. The knob body 1 includes a skeleton and a covering skin member 3. Member 4 has guide projections 4b which engage guide grooves (2m, Figure 3) in the knob body, and engagement portions which engage fastening portions (2g, 2h).

Description

SHIFT KNOB ASSEMBLY The present invention relates to a shift knob assembly e.g. for an automobile, and more particularly to a shift knob to which a hollow cylindrical member is fitted, the hollow cylindrical member having a switch and a push button assembled thereinto.

Japanese Utility Model Preliminary Publication No. 414858 discloses one type of shift knob assembly. A push button is fitted into a hollow cylindrical member which fits onto a shift knob. The push button is formed with a hole therein. The shift knob includes a shaft portion having a connection member formed on its top. The push button is connected to the shift knob by inserting the connection member into the hole in the push button.

The connection member fitted into the hole is disadvantageous in that the push button tends to pull out from the shift knob during a preparatory assembly stage before the shift knob can be installed into the car body and is therefore not efficient from the point of view of assembly operation.

A preferred embodiment of the present invention may provide a shift knob assembly where the push button is readily assembled.

According to the present invention, a shift knob assembly has a push button, a hollow cylinder member and knob body. The push button is used for operating a detent rod. The cylinder member holds the push button therein in such a way that the push button advances and retracts therethrough. The cylinder member fits onto the knob body.

The push button is formed with first stoppers on its periphery. The cylinder member has a first hollow cylinder member which is formed with second stoppers, the second stoppers abutting the first stoppers to prevent the push button from being pulled out of the first hollow cylinder when the push button advances through the first hollow cylinder.

Preferably, the push button is formed with a first longitudinal guide projection on its outer periphery and the cylinder member has a first longitudinal guide groove formed in an inner wall thereof, each of the guide grooves receiving a corresponding first longitudinal guide projection.

Preferably, the knob body includes a skeleton and a skin member which covers the skeleton; the skeleton has a first hole into which the first hollow cylinder is fitted; the first hollow cylinder has guide projections formed on the periphery thereof, engagement portions, and engagement straps; and the first hole has guide grooves which engage the guide projections, and fastening straps which engage the engagement portions or engagement straps.

The cylinder member preferably includes a second hollow cylinder for holding a switch knob of a switch therein.

Further scope of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description given hereinafter. However, it should be understood that the detailed description and specific example, while indicating preferred embodiments of the invention, are given by way of illustration only, since various changes and modification within the spirit and scope of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this detailed . -.

description.

The present invention will become more fully understood from the detailed description given hereinbelow and the accompanying drawings which are given by way of illustration only, and thus are not limitative of the present invention, and wherein: Fig. 1 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view illustrating a relevant portion of a knob body; Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along lines A-A of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is an elevation view of a skeleton with lead wires assembled thereto; Fig. 4 is a side view of the skeleton with a partial cross-sectional view; Fig. 5 is an enlarged side view of a two-cylinder member to which a push button and a switch are assembled; Fig. 6 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the two-cylinder member of Fig. 5; Fig. 7 is a rear view of the two-cylinder member to which the switch has been assembled; Fig. 8 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a relevant portion a switch assembled to the knob; Fig. 9 is a front view of the push button; Fig. 10 is a perspective view of a relevant portion of ~ the knob body; and Fig. 11 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of part B of Fig. 3.

A preferred embodiment of the invention will be described with reference to Figs. 1-11.

A body 1 of a shift lever knob includes a skeleton 2 and a skin member 3 that covers the skeleton 2. The skeleton 2 and skin member 3 are molded in an integral construction. The body 1 further includes a two-cylinder member 4, push button 5 that fits into the two-cylinder member 4, switch 6, detent rod (not shown), and coupling member (not shown).

The skeleton 2 is molded from a hard resin and has a grip 2a and hollow rod-like member 2b through which a shaft(not shown) extends. As shown in Fig. 1, the skeleton 2 is formed with an axial hole 2c extending longitudinally and located radially in the middle of the skeleton 2. The shaft extends through the axial hole 2c. The skeleton 2 is also formed with a lateral hole 2d. Part of this provides a push button housing space 2e that receives the two-cylinder member 4.

As shown in Fig. 3, the lateral hole 2d also provides a switch housing space 2f that receives a switch 6. Formed in the inner wall of the lateral hole 2d are a plurality of fastening portions 2g (Figs. 4 and 10) which engage engagement portions 4a of the two-cylinder member 4, and a plurality of fastening portions 2h (Figs.4 and 11) which engage fastening straps 4c (Fig. 5). The lateral hole 2d has guide grooves 2m into which guide projections 4b formed on the outer periphery of the two-cylinder member 4 are fitted.

The push button housing space 2e is a lateral hole that communicates with the axial hole 2c. As shown in Figs. 3, 10, and 11, it has the previously described fastening portions 2g and guide grooves 2m, and a projection 2k that fits one end of a spring 8 to place the spring 8 in position. The projection 2k is formed in the middle of the end wall of the housing space 2e.

The switch housing space 2f has support grooves 2j into which lead wires 7 are press-fitted. The lead wires 7 are connected to terminals 6a of the switch 6 shown in Fig. 6.

The fastening portions 2g are, for example, resilient tongue-shaped members each having a hole formed therein with which the engagement portion 4a is engaged. The fastening portions 2h are latches that are engaged with the holes 4h formed in the fastening strap 4c. The support groove 2j is, for example, a groove into which the end of the lead wire 7 is press-fitted.

The skin member 3 is made of, for example, polyvinyl chloride resin or a foam resin. The lead wires 7 are first assembled to the skeleton 2 and then the skin member 3 is applied to cover all around the grip 2a of the skeleton 2 and the hollow rod-like member 2b. The skin member 3 includes a grip skin 3a that covers the entirety of the grip 2a and a lead-wire skin 3b that covers the support groove 2n of the hollow rod-like member 2b.

The skin member 3 of the grip skin 3a gives a good grip feeling when the vehicle driver holds the body of the knob 1. The lead-wire skin 3b is molded together with the grip skin 3a in an integral construction. The lead-wire skin 3b plays two roles: first, it fixedly holds the lead wires 7 to the hollow rod-like member 2b, second, it serves as an insulator for the lead wires 7.

The two-cylinder member 4 having the switch 6 and push button 5 fitted thereinto is fixed to the skeleton 2 when the engagement portions 4a engage the fastening portions 2g and fastening straps 4c engage the fastening portions 2h as shown in Fig. 3. The two-cylinder member 4 is,a generally lid-like member that fits to the hole 2d, and includes a first hollow cylinder 4d and a second hollow cylinder 4e which are integral with each other as shown in Fig. 6. The first hollow cylinder 4d receives the push button 5 therein and the second hollow cylinder 4e receives the switch 6 therein.

As shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 6, the push button 5 is inserted into the first hollow cylinder 4d from behind and is held in position with the operating portion Sb projecting outwardly of the first hollow cylinder 4d. The first hollow cylinder 4d is formed with pull-out stoppers 4f in its inner wall near the opening through which the operating portion 5b projects. Thus, when the push button moves to project from the first hollow cylinder, the pull-out stoppers 4f abut the stoppers Sa of the push button 5. As shown in Figs. 6 and 9, the first hollow cylinder 4d is also formed with guide grooves 4g in the.inner wall which receive guide projections Sc of the push button 5 to guide the push button 5 straight into the knob body 1 when the push button 5 is depressed by the driver. The stoppers 5a may be shaped to act as both a guide projection and a stopper and the guide projections Sc may be shaped to act as both a guide and a stopper.

Likewise, the pull-out stoppers 4f and guide grooves 4g may be shaped integrally so that the integral construction acts as both a pull-out stopper and a guide groove.

As shown in Figs. 6-9, the hollow cylinder 4e serves as a case that houses the switch 6. A switch knob 6b is inserted into the second hollow cylinder 4e from behind so that the switch knob 6b projects outwardly of the second hollow cylinder 4e through a forward opening of the second hollow cylinder 4e. Then, a coil spring 6d is inserted into the switch knob 6b from behind so that a movable contact 6c is sandwiched between the spring 6d and the inner wall of the switch knob 6b. Then, an electrode plate 6e is assembled to the second hollow cylinder 4e close to a rear opening thereof. The forward opening of the second hollow cylinder 4e is circular in shape so as to conform to the shape of the switch knob 6b as shown in Fig. 7, and the rear opening is square in shape. Disposed below the second hollow cylinder 4e is a support plate 6h that supports a locking pin 6g urged by a flat spring 6f as shown in Figs. 7 and 8.

The pull-out stoppers 4f are stepped portions formed near the forward opening of the first hollow cylinder 4d as shown in Figs. 6 and 7. The pull-out stoppers 4f abut the stoppers 5a of the push button 5 urged by the spring 8. As shown in Fig. 7, a plurality of guide grooves 4g are formed in the inner wall of the first hollow cylinder 4d and abut the guide projections 5c.

The button 5 is an operating member for causing the detent rod inserted into the hollow rod-like member 2b to move so as to controllably swing the knob body 1. As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the push button 5 is formed with a hole 5d into which the end of the spring 8 loosely fits to urge the push button 5. The push button 5 is formed with a beveled surface 5e with which a connection portion(not shown) of the shaft is in pressure contact. The beveled surface 5e is on the underside of the push button 5 near the support hole 5d.

The switch 6 is a push-lock switch such as overdrive operating switch or hazard switch. Terminals 6a are metal conductors in one piece construction with fixed contact plates 6j as shown in Fig. 6 and are insert-molded in the electrode plate 6e. The switch knob 6b is a substantially cup-shaped insulating resin member and has a movable contact 6c at its inner bottom. The movable contact 6c is a flat spring.

that slides on the fixed contact plate 6j. The movable contact 6c engages the switch knob 6b and is fixed by the urging force of the coil spring 6d.

The coil spring 6d is mounted between the electrode plate 6e and the movable contact 6c so as to cause the switch knob 6b to return to its home position. The electrode plate 6e is a U-shaped member with two terminals 6a projecting therefrom and is bolted to the two-cylinder member 4. The flat spring 6f is a biasing member that causes a locking pin 6g to be in pressure contact with a heart cam 6k formed in the push button 5 as shown in Fig. 8.

The flat spring 6f is fastened to the support plate 6h. The support plate 6h is inserted into a part of the periphery of the second hollow cylinder 4e as shown in Figs. 7 and 8.

The lead wires 7 are, for example, thick copper wires as shown in Fig. 3 and one ends thereof are connected to the terminals 6a and the other ends are formed into terminals that project from the skeleton 2. The cover 9 is mounted to wrap around the hollow rod-like member 2b as shown in Figs.

3 and 4.

The assembly procedure and operation of the aforementioned construction of the invention will now be described.

First, the skeleton 2 is molded from a hard resin material. Then, two lead wires 7 are fittingly inserted into the skeleton 2 as shown in Fig. 3. Thereafter, the skin member 3 is molded from a soft resin to wrap over the grip 2a of the skeleton 2 and hollow rod-like member 2b.

The cover 9 is mounted so that the hollow rod-like member 2b extends through the cover 9.

Then, as shown in Fig. 8, the locking pin 6g is inserted into the flat spring 6f and support plate 6h and the support plate 6h is disposed on a part of the periphery of the second hollow cylinder 4e of the hollow,cylinder member 4.

The electrode plate 6e is mounted to the second hollow cylinder 4e to close the second hollow cylinder 4e after the switch knob..6b, movable strap 6c, and coil spring 6d have been assembled into the second hollow cylinder. Then, the electrode plate 6e is bolted, thereby completing the assembly of the switch 6. The push button 5 is inserted from the rear side of the first hollow cylinder 4d.

Then, the spring 8 is inserted into the hole 5d of the push button 5 with one end of the spring 8 engaging the projection 2k and subsequently the two-cylinder member 4 into which the switch 6 and push button 5 have been assembled is fitted into the hole 2d. The two-cylinder member 4 is fixedly mounted to the knob body 1 with the engagement portions 4a and fastening straps 4c engaging the fastening portions 2g and 2h, respectively. The terminals 6a are simply press-fitted into the lead wires 7 for electrical and mechanical connection, eliminating the need for soldering or the like.

The two-cylinder member 4 plays roles of a lid member for closing the hole 2d, a member for supporting the push button 5, and a case body for the switch 6, therefore saving the number of components and assembly time of the components. The two-cylinder member 4 is mounted to the knob body 1, thereby mounting the push button 5 and switch 6 to the knob body 1. This construction saves assembly time.

The push button 5 is prevented from being pulled out of the two-cylinder member 4 since the stoppers 5a formed on the periphery of the push button 5 abut the pull-out stoppers 4f. This construction facilitates the assembly of the push button 5 to the knob body 1 eliminating the . - possibility of the push button being pulled out of the knob body 1.

The push button 5 is formed with the guide projections Sc on its longitudinal peripheral surface, so that the guide projections Sc engage the guide groove 4g formed in the first hollow cylinder 4d. This construction guides the push button 5 straight into the hole 2d preventing the push button 5 from rotating as well as presenting an excellent feeling of operation. The end of the guide projections Sc abut the side wall of the guide grooves 4g near the opening of the first hollow cylinder 4d, thereby preventing the push button 5 from being pulled out of the first hollow cylinder 4d.

Claims

1. A shift knob assembly having a push button for operating a detent rod, a hollow cylinder member holding the push button therein so that the push button is adapted to advance and retract therethrough, and a knob body to which the hollow cylinder member is fitted, wherein the push button is formed with a first stopper on a part of its periphery; and the hollow cylinder member has a first hollow cylinder member which is formed with a second stopper, the second stopper abutting the first stopper to prevent the push button from being pulled out of the first hollow cylinder when the push button advances through the hollow cylinder member.

2. The assembly according to Claim 1, wherein the push button is formed with a first longitudinal guide projection on its outer periphery, and the hollow cylinder member has a first longitudinal guide groove formed in an inner wall thereof, the first longitudinal guide groove receiving the first longitudinal guide projection to guide the first longitudinal guide projection in the hollow cylinder member.

3. The assembly according to Claim 1 or Claim 2, wherein the knob body includes a skeleton and a skin member which covers the skeleton, the skeleton has a first hole into which the hollow cylinder member is fitted, and the first hollow cylinder has a second longitudinal guide projection formed on the periphery thereof, engagement portions, and an engagement straps, wherein the first hole has a second longitudinal guide groove which engages the second longitudinal guide projection, and fastening straps which engage the engagement portions or engagement straps.

4. The assembly according to Claim 1, 2, or 3 wherein the hollow cylinder member includes a second hollow cylinder for supporting a switch knob of a switch therein.

5. The assembly according to Claim 1, 2, 3 or 4 wherein the first hole includes a push button housing space into which the first hollow cylinder is inserted and a switch housing space by which the second hollow cylinder is received.

6. A switch knob assembly substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.