JP2000052937A - Wiper device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a wiper device which can constitute the frame with various kinds of size by changing the combination of the frame and apply even if the vehicle has a different size and layout. SOLUTION: This wiper device 10 is formed in a frame one body type provided with a hollow frame 42 for connecting a pair of pivot holders 12, 14 integrally. The hollow frame 42 is constituted by one set of divided frames 42A, 42B and the non-hollow installation parts 48, 49 with Japanese U letter shape section are polymerized each other and connected integrally by being tightened to a wiper motor 58 together. By preparing the divided frames 42A, 42B with a different length variously and changing its combination, many kinds of hollow frames 42 can be constituted by the few kinds of divided frames 42A, 42B and the most suitable hollow frame 42 can be constituted, even if a vehicle has a different size and layout.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a wiper device for wiping windshield glass of an automobile.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A wiper device for wiping a windshield glass of an automobile includes a wiper arm attached to a pivot shaft which reciprocates within a predetermined range by rotation of the pivot shaft, thereby wiping raindrops or the like on a windshield glass surface. I do.

[0003] In such a wiper device, the pivot shaft is rotatably supported by a wiper bracket having a pivot holder. The wiper bracket is fixed to a vehicle body (for example, a cowl panel or a suspension tower arranged below the windshield glass) by mounting bolts. In a vehicle having a pair of wiper arms and blades, pivot shafts are provided on both sides in the vehicle width direction, respectively.
The wiper brackets supporting these are also fixed to both sides of the vehicle body in the vehicle width direction. Further, there is a so-called frame-integrated wiper device in which these pair of wiper brackets are integrated with a frame as a support base for a wiper motor or the like (for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-175336).
No.).

In the wiper device disclosed in the above publication, a bracket is welded and fixed to a support pipe (pipe frame) that connects a pair of pivot holders to each other, and a wiper motor is attached and fixed to the bracket. Of the assembly. According to such a structure, a relatively simple and compact configuration can be achieved.

However, in a configuration in which the support pipe (pipe frame) is integrated as in the wiper device, the mounting positions of the pivot holders located at both ends of the support pipe to the vehicle body and the mounting position of the wiper motor are inevitable. (Uniquely). That is, there is no freedom in mounting the frame assembly (each pivot holder) to the vehicle body, and depending on the size of the vehicle (vehicle width dimension and mounting position), the position of the pivot holder fixed to both ends of the support pipe may not be suitable. In some cases, it is necessary to change the wiper motor mounting position, and there is a drawback in that various types of support pipes (that is, wiper devices) must be prepared for vehicles of different sizes or layouts.

[0006]

In view of the above facts, the present invention can form frames of various sizes by changing the combination of frames, and can be applied to vehicles having different sizes and layouts. It is an object of the present invention to provide a wiper device capable of performing such operations.

[0007]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a wiper apparatus comprising: a pair of pivot holders rotatably supporting a pivot shaft fixed to a vehicle body and having a wiper arm fixed to a tip thereof; A wiper device comprising: a hollow frame that connects holders to each other; and a drive source fixed to the hollow frame, wherein the hollow frame has a mounting flat seat surface to which the drive source is directly fixed. A mounting portion formed into a non-hollow U-shaped cross section by crushing one end of the connecting member, and a connecting portion formed in a circular cross section over a predetermined length from the other end of the hollow base material and connected to the pivot holder. , Respectively, and the mounting portions of the pair of divided frames overlap each other, and the pair of divided frames are connected and fixed to each other. , It is characterized in that.

In the wiper device according to the first aspect, the pivot holder rotatably supporting the pivot shaft is connected to each other by the hollow frame, and the drive source is directly fixed to the mounting portion (the mounting flat seat surface) of the hollow frame. Then, it is put into an assembled state as a whole and fixed to the vehicle body structural member below the windshield glass.

Here, in this wiper device, the hollow frame is constituted by a set of divided frames. This set of divided frames has a mounting portion having a mounting flat seat surface to which the drive source is directly fixed, and a hollow (annular cross-section) connecting portion connected to the pivot holder. The respective mounting portions of the divided frames overlap with each other, and the set of divided frames is connected and fixed to each other.

Therefore, the hollow frames are divided frames having different lengths (for example, those having different lengths such as connecting portions).
Are prepared in various ways, and the combination of these divided frames is changed to constitute one set of divided frames, so that many kinds of hollow frames can be constituted by a small number of kinds of divided frames. That is, an optimal hollow frame can be configured by changing the combination of the divided frames according to the size of the vehicle (the vehicle width dimension and the mounting position of the pivot holder).

As described above, in the wiper device according to the first aspect, hollow frames of various sizes can be configured by changing the combination of the divided frames, and can be applied to vehicles having different sizes and layouts. It is possible to do.

A wiper device according to a second aspect of the present invention is the wiper device according to the first aspect, wherein each of the mounting portions of the pair of divided frames has a mounting hole for fixing the driving source, The fixing of the drive source via the mounting hole enables the pair of divided frames to be connected and fixed together.

[0013] In the wiper device according to the second aspect, the drive source is fixed via the mounting hole provided in the mounting portion (mounting flat seat surface) of the divided frame. The connection and fixing of the divided frames to one another are made together. That is, a pair of divided frames are fastened together with the drive source and integrally connected and fixed. Therefore, the work of connecting the divided frames and the work of fixing the drive source to the hollow frame can be performed at the same time, and the working efficiency is greatly improved.

A drive source is fixed to the connecting portion of the pair of divided frames (that is, the overlapping portion between the mounting portions). The drive source (for example, the motor) itself has high rigidity. is there. Therefore, the connection portion is substantially reinforced by the high-rigidity drive source. In other words, the connecting portion of each divided frame (the overlapping portion between the mounting portions) is reinforced by fixing the driving source and has high rigidity. In this case, since the configuration does not use another new reinforcing material or the like for imparting rigidity, the number of parts and the weight do not needlessly increase.

[0015]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing the overall configuration of a wiper device 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a front view showing the overall configuration of the wiper device 10. It is shown. FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing a configuration of a main part of the wiper device 10.

The wiper device 10 includes a pair of pivot holders 12 and 14. The pivot holder 12 and the pivot holder 14 are formed symmetrically to the left and right, and have the same basic configuration. The pivot holder 12 is provided with a tubular portion 16, and the pivot holder 14 is provided with a tubular portion 18. These cylindrical portions 16 and 18 are formed in a cylindrical shape, and a pivot shaft 20 and a pivot shaft 22 are inserted therethrough and rotatably support them. Pivot levers 24 and 26 are fixed to the lower ends of the pivot shafts 20 and 22, respectively.
The pivot shafts 20 and 22 are rotated by swinging of the pivot levers 24 and 26. Also,
At the corners of the member of the pivot holders 12 and 14, mounting holes 2 are provided.
8, 30 are formed respectively. These mounting holes 2
The wiper device 10 is configured to be fixed to a vehicle body by mounting bolts inserted through the wipers 8 and 30.

The pivot shafts 12 and 14 have connecting shafts 3 on their side walls opposite to the mounting holes 28 and 30.
2, 34 are provided. Connection shaft 32, 34
Is a solid shaft (solid shaft) with a circular cross section,
The distal ends thereof are a connecting portion 36 and a connecting portion 38 which are fitted and connected to a hollow frame 42 described later. The connection shafts 32 and 34 are not limited to solid shafts having a circular cross section, but may be formed as hollow shafts having a circular cross section.

As shown in FIG. 3, the connecting portions 36 and 38
Each of the recesses 40 is formed. The connecting portion 36 of the pivot holder 12 and the connecting portion 38 of the pivot holder 14
Are connected to each other by a hollow frame 42.

The hollow frame 42 is composed of a pair of divided frames 42A and 42B. One longitudinal end of one of the divided frames 42A is connected to a connecting portion 44 corresponding to the connecting portion 36 of the connecting shaft 32.
It has become. The connecting portion 44 is formed in an annular cross section, fits into the connecting portion 36, and in this state, the connecting portion 44 is caulked in correspondence with the concave portion 40 to form the connecting portion 36.
It is configured to be connected and fixed to.

At the other end in the longitudinal direction of the divided frame 42A, a mounting portion 48 is formed. As shown in FIG. 4, the mounting portion 48 is formed in a non-hollow U-shaped cross section, and the upper surface thereof is a mounting flat seat surface 50. Further, the mounting portion 48 is formed with a pair of mounting holes 52 for fixing a drive source described later. This mounting hole 52
Penetrates the front and back sides of the mounting portion 48 (the mounting flat seat surface 50).

A gradual changing portion 54 is provided on one side in the longitudinal direction of the mounting portion 48 of the divided frame 42A. Here, FIGS. 5A to 5D show details of the gradually changing portion 54 in a cross-sectional view along the line AA to DD in FIG. As shown in each figure, the gradual change portion 54 is attached to the mounting portion 4.
8, the hollow portion is gradually changed from the non-hollow U-shaped cross-section to an annular cross-section.

On the other hand, the other divided frame 42B has basically the same structure as the divided frame 42A, and one end in the longitudinal direction is a connecting portion 46 corresponding to the connecting portion 38 of the connecting shaft 34. . The connecting portion 46 is formed in an annular cross section, fitted into the connecting portion 38, and in this state, the connecting portion 46 is caulked corresponding to the concave portion 40 and connected and fixed to the connecting portion 38. Has become.

A mounting portion 49 is formed at the other end in the longitudinal direction of the divided frame 42B. This mounting part 49
Similarly to the mounting portion 48 of the divided frame 42A, it is formed in a solid hollow U-shaped cross section, and the upper surface thereof is a mounting flat seat surface 51. In this case, the widthwise dimension of the mounting portion 49 (the mounting flat seating surface 51) is set in accordance with the dimension of the side wall facing gap of the U-shaped cross section of the mounting portion 48.
9 and the mounting portion 48 are made to be able to overlap each other.
Further, a pair of mounting holes 53 are formed in the mounting portion 49. The mounting hole 53 is provided in the mounting portion 49 (the mounting flat seat surface 5).
It penetrates both sides of 1).

A gradual change portion 56 similar to the gradual change portion 54 is provided on one side in the longitudinal direction of the mounting portion 49 of the divided frame 42B. The gradually changing portion 56 is formed by gradually changing the hollow shape from the non-hollow U-shaped cross section to an annular cross section from the mounting portion 49 to the connecting portion 46.

In the divided frame 42A and the divided frame 42B having the above-described structure, the respective mounting portions 48 and 49 are overlapped with each other, and are integrally connected and fixed together with a wiper motor 58 as a driving source described later to form the hollow frame 42. Make up.

Here, the hollow frame 42 having such a structure (a set of divided frame 42A and divided frame 42A
B) is formed by pressing a hollow base material (pipe material) having an annular cross section. That is, FIG.
As shown in (A), a hollow base material (pipe material) having an annular cross section
Using X, a predetermined portion is subjected to diameter expansion processing in advance to form an enlarged diameter portion Y whose diameter is increased. In this case, the diameter expansion processing can be performed by, for example, sizing. Thereafter, the enlarged diameter portion Y having been subjected to the diameter increasing process is pressed to form the mounting portions 48 and 49, the gradually changing portions 54 and 56.
Etc. are formed.

In particular, the aforementioned gradually changing portions 54 and 56 are formed simultaneously with the press working for forming the mounting portions 48 and 49. Further, the pair of mounting holes 52 and 53 of the mounting portions 48 and 49 described above are formed in the same process as the pressing process for forming the mounting portions 48 and 49.

The mounting portions 48, 4
In 9, a wiper motor 58 as a drive source is mounted on the mounting flat seat surface 50. The wiper motor 58 has a configuration in which a motor section 58A and a gear section 58B are provided integrally, and a pair of mounting feet 62 are formed to project from a housing 60 of the gear section 58B. This mounting foot 62
Mounting portion 48 of hollow frame 42 (divided frame 42A)
Is mounted on the mounting flat seating surface 50, and the bolt 64
Are the mounting holes 52 of the divided frame 42A and the divided frame 4
It is configured to pass through the mounting hole 53 of 2B and be fastened and fixed by a nut 66. That is, the wiper motor 58
By fixing to the hollow frame 42 (divided frame 42A), the divided frame 42A and the divided frame 42B constituting the hollow frame 42 are connected and fixed together.

The housing 60 of the wiper motor 58
Has a positioning pin 68 protruding toward its front side (the lower side in the drawing in FIG. 1 and the front side in the drawing in FIG. 2). And support is made.

As described above, the wiper device 10 has a so-called frame integrated structure in which the pair of pivot holders 12 and 14 are integrally formed with the hollow frame 42 as a support base for the wiper motor 58.

The output shaft 70 of the wiper motor 58 protrudes toward the back side of the housing 60 (the back side of the paper in FIG. 1, and the lower side of the paper in FIG. 2), and a crank arm 72 is attached to the tip thereof. . A link rod 76 and a link rod 78 are connected to a distal end of the crank arm 72 via a ball joint 74. One link rod 76 is connected to the pivot lever 24 of the pivot shaft 20 supported by the pivot holder 12.
Is connected via a ball joint 80, and the other link rod 78 is connected to the pivot lever 26 of the pivot shaft 22 supported by the pivot holder 14.
Via a ball joint 82. As a result, the wiper motor 58 operates and the crank arm 72
Is rotated, a driving force is transmitted through the link rods 76, 78 and the pivot levers 24, 26,
The pivot shafts 20 and 22 are configured to rotate.

Wiper arms and blades (not shown) are attached to the ends of the pivot shafts 20 and 22, respectively. The rotation of each of the pivot shafts 20 and 22 causes the wiper arms and blades to reciprocate within a predetermined range. I have.

Next, the operation of the present embodiment will be described.

In the wiper device 10 having the above-described configuration, the pivot holders 12 and 14 that rotatably support the pivot shafts 20 and 22 are connected to each other by the hollow frame 42, and the mounting portion 48 (the mounting flat seating surface) of the hollow frame 42. The wiper motor 58 is directly fixed to 50), and is in an assembled state as a whole. In this state, the positioning pins 68 provided on the housing 60 of the wiper motor 58 are positioned by fitting into the positioning holes on the vehicle body side, and the window is fixed by the mounting bolts inserted into the mounting holes 28 and 30 of the pivot holders 12 and 14. It is fixed to the vehicle body structural member below the shield glass.

Further, the operation of the wiper motor 58 causes the pivot shafts 20 and 22 to rotate, and the wiper arm and blade reciprocate in a predetermined range to wipe out raindrops and the like on the windshield glass.

Here, since the wiper device 10 employs the hollow frame 42 (that is, a pipe member having an annular cross section), the rigidity of the entire frame is inherently high and lightweight.

In this wiper device 10, the wiper motor 58 is directly fixed to the non-hollow, U-shaped cross-section mounting portions 48, 49 (mounting flat seat surface 50) formed in the hollow frame 42 (divided frame 48A). With this configuration, even if the wiper motor 58 is firmly fixed by the bolts 64 and the nuts 66, the mounting portions 48, 49 of the hollow frame 42
Is not deformed.

Further, since the wiper motor 58 is directly fixed to the mounting flat seating surface 50 (that is, the flat portion) of the mounting portion 48, the mounting angle of the wiper motor 58 with respect to the hollow frame 42 is stably determined. . Moreover,
The pivot holder 1 determined with respect to the vehicle body when caulking and fixing corresponding to the concave portion 40 of the connecting shafts 32 and 34
By rotating the hollow frame 42 about its axis in accordance with the mounting state of the two and 14, the angle of the mounting part 48 (the mounting flat seat surface 50) with respect to the vehicle body, that is, the adjustment of the mounting angle of the wiper motor 58 with respect to the vehicle body, and Can be set.

Further, in the wiper device 10, the hollow frame 42 is constituted by a set of divided frames 42A and 42B, and the divided frames 42A
The mounting portion 48 and the mounting portion 49 of the divided frame 42B overlap with each other, and the wiper motor 58 is fixed to one of the mounting flat seat surfaces 50.
2A and the divided frame 42B are connected and fixed to each other.

Accordingly, the hollow frame 42 is made up of divided frames 42A, 42B and the like having different lengths (for example, connecting frames 44 and 46 having different lengths, mounting holes 52 and 53).
Are formed, and the combination of these divided frames 42A and 42B is changed to form a set of divided frames 42A and 42B, so that various types of divided frames 42A and 42B can be used. Of the hollow frame 42 can be configured. For example, three types of one divided frame 42A are prepared, and the other divided frame 4A is prepared.
If three types of 2B are prepared, nine types of hollow frames 42 can be configured by changing these combinations. That is, the optimum hollow frame 42 can be configured by changing the combination of the divided frames 42A and 42B according to the size of the vehicle (the vehicle width dimension and the mounting positions of the pivot holders 12 and 14).

In this wiper device 10, the wiper motor 58 is mounted on the mounting frame 5 provided in the divided frame 42A.
2 and a bolt 64 that penetrates a mounting hole 53 provided in the divided frame 42B.
And the divided frame 42B are connected and fixed together. That is, a set of the divided frame 42A and the divided frame 42B are fastened together with the wiper motor 58 to be integrally connected and fixed. Therefore, the work of connecting the divided frames 42A and 42B and the work of fixing the wiper motor 58 to the hollow frame 42 can be performed at the same time, and the work efficiency is greatly improved.

A set of divided frames 42A, 42B
A wiper motor 58 is fixed to the connecting portion (i.e., the overlapping portion of the mounting portions 48 and 49), and the wiper motor 58 itself has high rigidity (the wiper motor 58 has a high rigid housing. ing). Therefore, the connection portion of the pair of divided frames 42A and 42B is substantially reinforced by the high-rigidity wiper motor 58. That is, the connecting portion of the divided frames 42A and 42B (the overlapping portion of the mounting portions 48 and 49) is reinforced by the wiper motor 58 being fixed, and has high rigidity. In this case, since the configuration does not use another new reinforcing material or the like for imparting rigidity, the number of parts and the weight do not needlessly increase.

As described above, in the wiper device 10 according to the present embodiment, the divided frames 42A and 42B
By changing the combination, hollow frames 42 of various sizes can be configured, and the present invention can be applied to vehicles having different sizes and layouts.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an overall configuration of a wiper device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view showing the overall configuration of the wiper device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing a configuration of a main part of the wiper device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing details of a mounting portion of a hollow frame included in the wiper device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view showing details of a gradually changing portion of the hollow frame included in the wiper device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a manufacturing process of the hollow frame of the wiper device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Wiper device 12 Pivot holder 14 Pivot holder 20 Pivot shaft 22 Pivot shaft 32 Connection shaft 34 Connection shaft 42 Hollow frame 44 Connection part 46 Connection part 48 Mounting part 49 Mounting part 50 Mounting flat seating surface 51 Mounting flat seating surface 52 Mounting hole 53 Mounting hole 58 Wiper motor (drive source)

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A pair of pivot holders rotatably supporting a pivot shaft fixed to a vehicle body side and having a wiper arm fixed to a tip, a hollow frame connecting the pivot holders to each other, and fixed to the hollow frame. The hollow frame is formed in a non-hollow cross-sectional U-shape by crushing one end of a hollow base material having a mounting flat seat surface to which the drive source is directly fixed. A pair of divided frames each having a mounting portion and a connecting portion formed in a circular cross section over a predetermined length from the other end of the hollow base material and connected to the pivot holder. A wiper device, wherein the mounting portions of the set of divided frames overlap each other, and the set of divided frames are connected and fixed to each other. 2. The mounting portion of each of the pair of divided frames has a mounting hole for fixing the driving source,
The wiper device according to claim 1, wherein the fixing of the drive source through the mounting hole allows the pair of divided frames to be connected and fixed to each other.