JP2000087829A - Engine starter device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To realize an engine starter device without requiring a one-way clutch or the like, capable of meshing a pinion gear with a ring gear, quickly detaching the pinion from the ring gear after starting an engine, reduced in weight, size and cost with high reliability. SOLUTION: When a key switch is closed in an engine stopped condition, the motor 11 of a starter 10 and a hold coil 25a of an electromagnet 25 are energized to rotate, and an output shaft 12 when a tube 16 and a pinion 18 are advanced to a ring gear 3 side to collide due to thrust by helical splines 12a, 16a, a pinion pressing spring 19 is compressed to mitigate impact force. A hold member 17 is attracted to a coil case 25b by electromagnetic force of the coil 25a to impede the tube 16 from returning to the original position. When a rotational speed is increased higher than a prescribed value by starting the engine with the pinion 18 meshed with the gear 3, the motor 11 is stopped by interrupting carrying a current to the motor 11 and the hold coil 25a, the tube 16 and the pinion 18 are returned to a mutually separated condition by a tube return spring 24.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an engine starter, and more particularly, to an engine starter that detects an engine speed and performs start control.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In order to start an engine, it is necessary to rotate a crankshaft of the engine by a starter (engine starter) until the engine reaches a minimum rotation speed at which the engine starts rotating by itself. However, after the start of the engine, the starter is rotated at a high speed from the engine until the driver releases the key switch of the automobile and the engagement between the pinion of the starter and the ring gear is released.

At this time, in order to prevent the motor of the starter from rotating at a high speed and being damaged, a one-way clutch for transmitting rotational power only when cranking the engine with the starter is provided between the motor and the pinion. Provided.

As such a starter, for example, an inertial sliding type starter disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-9099 is used.

[0005]

However, the above-described conventional one-way clutch has a large outer diameter and a large weight.
Further, the magnet shift type starter requires a lever for moving the one-way clutch in the ring gear direction together with the pinion at the time of starting, and a magnet switch for driving this lever.

For this reason, the existence of the one-way clutch, the lever for driving the clutch, and the magnet switch for driving the lever has made it difficult to reduce the size and weight of the starter and to reduce the cost.

The present invention has been made in view of these points. An object of the present invention is to eliminate the need for a one-way clutch, a lever for driving the clutch and a magnet switch for driving the lever, and to provide a pinion and a pinion. An object of the present invention is to realize a small, lightweight, inexpensive, and highly reliable engine starting device that can mesh with a ring gear and that allows the pinion to be quickly separated from the ring gear after the engine is started.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is configured as follows. (1) A ring gear for transmitting a rotational force to an engine, a motor for generating a rotational force for starting the engine, and meshing with and releasing from the ring gear are possible. An engine starter having an axially slidable pinion; a rotation detecting means for detecting the number of revolutions of the engine; the output shaft and the pinion slidably engaged with the output shaft in an axial direction; At the start of rotation, the rotational power is transmitted from the output shaft to the pinion, and the tube that moves the pinion in the direction of the ring gear and meshes with each other, controls the operation of the motor, and is detected by the rotation detecting means. Control means for releasing the engagement between the pinion and the ring gear when the engine speed exceeds a predetermined speed; , Comprising a.

An engine rotation detecting means, a tube,
A control means for controlling the operation of the motor and releasing the engagement between the pinion and the ring gear when the rotation speed of the engine becomes equal to or higher than a predetermined rotation speed, thereby providing a one-way clutch, a lever for driving the clutch, A magnet switch for driving this lever can be omitted, and a small, lightweight, inexpensive and highly reliable engine starter can be realized.

(2) Preferably, in the above (1),
The output shaft and the tube are engaged by a first helical spline, the tube and the pinion are engaged by a second helical spline, and when the drive torque of the motor acts on the output shaft, The torsion angle of the first helical spline is set so that a thrust for moving the pinion in the direction meshing with the ring gear is generated, and the torsion angle of the second helical spline is:
A direction is set opposite to the twist angle of the first helical spline, and a spring is provided between the tube and the pinion. The spring presses the pinion in the direction of the ring gear with respect to the tube. ing.

(3) Preferably, in the above (1), a holding means for holding the meshing between the pinion and the ring gear is further provided, and the holding means is provided with the pinion and the ring gear by the control means. Is released from the engagement.

(4) Also, preferably, in the above (3), the holding means stops the first holding member rotatably provided on the tube and the movement of the first holding member. A second holding member.

(5) Preferably, in the above (4), the second holding member is provided near an outer periphery of the pinion.

[0014]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an engine starting device according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG.
A ring gear 3 is attached to a crankshaft 2 of a power transmission unit of the engine 1, and the rotation speed of the ring gear 3 is detected by a rotation sensor 4, and the rotation speed of the engine 1 is detected from the detected rotation speed. . The starter 10 is mounted on the engine 1 with bolts. This starter 10
Is provided with a motor 11 for generating power and a pinion 18 for transmitting the power of the motor 11 to the engine 1.

Reference numeral 30 denotes a controller. The controller 30 includes an input port 301 for receiving output signals from the rotation sensor 4 and the key switch 5, and a memory (ROM) 30 for receiving signals from the input port 301.
2 in accordance with the control program stored in the memory (RA
M) a central processing unit (CPU) 304 interconnected with the 303 for performing data processing, and an output port 305 for transmitting an output signal of the CPU 304 to the outside.

An output signal from the output port 305 is supplied to a starter control relay 40 for controlling the starter 10.

FIG. 2 is a schematic longitudinal sectional view showing the structure of the starter 10 in the above-described engine starting device, FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a tube 16 described later, and FIG. 2, 3 and 4, the starter 1
0 of the output shaft 12 of the motor 11
4 is supported by a bearing portion 14b provided on the nose portion 14a and a bearing portion 15a of the rear bracket 15. Also,
On the output shaft 12, a tube 16 and a pinion 18 are slidably supported. The holding member 17 is rotatably supported in the groove 16 g of the tube 16.

The output shaft 12 and the tube 16 are connected to each other by a first helical spline 12a formed on the outer peripheral surface of the output shaft 12 and a first helical spline 16a formed on the inner peripheral surface of the tube 16. It is slidably engaged in the axial direction.

The tube 16 and the pinion 18 are
A second helical spline 16b formed on the outer peripheral surface of the tube 16 and a second helical spline 16b formed on the inner peripheral surface of the pinion 18
It is slidably engaged in the axial direction by the helical spline 18a.

First helical splines 12a and 16a
The twist angles of the first helical splines 12a and 16a are set so that when the drive torque of the motor 11 acts on the output shaft 12, a thrust is generated in the tube 16 to move the pinion 18 in the direction meshing with the ring gear 3. You. The torsion angles of the second helical splines 16b and 18a are different from those of the first helical splines 12a and 16a.
It is set in the direction opposite to the twist angle of a.

Between the outer peripheral surface of the tube 16 and the inner peripheral surface of the pinion 18, a second helical spline 16b,
A pinion pressing spring 19 is provided between the surfaces on which the 18 a is not formed, and the pinion 18 is pressed toward the ring gear 3 by the spring force of the pinion pressing spring 19.

The holding member 17 extends in the axial direction of the output shaft 12.
The electromagnet 25 (the second holding member) is located at a position facing the (first holding member) at a fixed distance and near the outer periphery of the movement range of the collar portion 18 b of the pinion 18 when the pinion 18 moves on the output shaft 12. 2 holding members). A holding coil 25a is wound around the electromagnet 25.

Engine starter mounting part (not shown)
Is fitted to the spigot portion 14c of the front bracket 14, and the starter 10 is fixed to the starter mounting portion by bolts through the bolt holes 14e of the flange portion 14d of the front bracket 14. Thereby, the starter 10
Is mounted on the engine 1.

Reference numeral 20 denotes a tube clip, 21 denotes a pinion stopper, 22 denotes a shaft clip, 23 denotes a tube stopper, 24 denotes a tube return spring, and 25b denotes a coil case of the holding coil 25a.

FIG. 5 is a schematic circuit diagram of the engine starting device. In FIG. 5, the circuit of the engine starter includes a starter 10, a controller 30, a battery 50, and a starter control relay 40 for selecting whether to supply a current to the starter 10.

Next, the operation of the engine starting device configured as described above will be described. 1 to 5, a central processing unit (CPU) 304 detects, based on a signal from a rotation sensor 4, that the engine 1 is in a stopped state and in this state, the driver has turned on a key switch 5 of the automobile. Then, an output signal is sent from the output port 305 to the starter control relay 40, and the starter control relay 40 is turned on. Thus, the motor 11 of the starter 10 and the holding coil 25a of the electromagnet 25 are energized.

When power is supplied to the motor 11 from the battery 50, the motor 11 and the output shaft 12 rotate, and the tube 16 and the pinion 18 are separated from the ring gear 3 by the axial thrust acting on the first helical splines 12a and 16a. Transfer to

Here, when the pinion 18 collides with the ring gear 3, the pinion pressing spring 19 is compressed, and the impact force is reduced. Further, when the teeth of the pinion 18 and the teeth of the ring gear 3 mesh with each other, an impact rotational torque is generated, but the second helical splines 16b and 18
Since the twist angle of a is set in the opposite direction to the twist angle of the first helical splines 12a and 16a, the thrust in the direction of compressing the pinion pressing spring 19 is applied to the pinion 18 on the second helical splines 16b and 18a. As a result, the pinion 18 moves while rotating toward the motor 11, and the impact rotational torque is reduced.

Next, as shown in FIG. 6, when the pinion 18 meshes with the ring gear 3 and the tube 16 moves to the maximum movement position, the holding member 17 is moved to the coil case 25b by the electromagnetic force of the holding coil 25a of the electromagnet 25. Sucked,
The tube 16 is prevented from returning to its original position.

When the pinion 18 meshes with the ring gear 3, the rotational power of the motor 11 is transmitted to the engine 1, and the engine 1 is started.

When the engine 1 is ignited and the rotational speed of the engine 1 instantaneously exceeds the rotational speed of the pinion 18, the ring gear 3 drives the pinion 18. At this time, the first helical splines 12a and 16
In a, a thrust is generated in a direction in which the tube 16 and the pinion 18 are separated from the ring gear 3 by the effect of the twist of the spline, and is in an axial direction proportional to the driving torque of the ring gear 3.

However, since the holding member 17 and the electromagnet 25 prevent the tube 16 from returning to the original position, that is, prevent the pinion 18 from separating from the ring gear 3, the pinion 18 meshes with the ring gear 3. It is held in the state where it was.

After the engine is started, when the rotation speed of the engine 1 detected by the rotation sensor 4 reaches a rotation speed at which the start of the engine 1 can be determined to be completed, for example, a rotation speed of 600 r / min or more, The controller 30 determines that 1 has started and turns off the starter control relay 40.

When the starter control relay 40 is turned off,
The power supply from the battery 50 to the motor 11 and the holding coil 25a of the electromagnet 25 is cut off, and the motor 11 stops,
The tube 16 and the pinion 18 are connected to the tube return spring 2.
With the spring force of 4, the pinion 18 and the ring gear 3 return to the original position, that is, as shown in FIG.

FIG. 7 is a schematic flowchart of the operation of the engine starting device for starting the engine. FIG.
When the controller 30 detects that the driver has turned on the key switch 5 of the vehicle while the engine 1 is stopped based on the output signal from the rotation sensor 4 (step S1), the controller 30 turns on the starter control relay 40. (Step S2), the motor 11 of the starter 10 and the electromagnet 25
To the holding coil 25a to start the rotation of the motor 11 (step S3).

When the motor 11 rotates, the tube 16 and the pinion 18 fly out toward the ring gear 3 by the axial thrust acting on the first helical splines 12a and 16a (step S4). Next, the pinion 18 is
When the tube 16 moves to the maximum movement position, the holding member 17 is attracted to the coil case 25b by the electromagnetic force of the holding coil 25a of the electromagnet 25, and the tube 16 is prevented from returning to the original position. The cranking is started (step S5).

When the rotation speed of the engine 1 detected by the rotation sensor 4 reaches a rotation speed at which the start of the engine 1 can be determined to be completed, for example, a rotation speed of 600 r / min or more (step S6). , Controller 30
Determines that the engine 1 has started, and turns off the starter control relay 40 (step S7). This allows
The energization between the motor 11 and the holding coil 25a of the electromagnet 25 is cut off.

The tube 16 and the pinion 18 are returned to their original positions by the spring force of the tube return spring 24, and the pinion 18 is separated from the ring gear 3 (step S8).
The start of the engine 1 is completed (step S9).

Then, the process returns to step S1 to detect whether or not the engine 1 has stopped, and thereafter executes the above-described steps S2 to S9.

As described above, according to the embodiment of the present invention, the one-way clutch of the starter 10, the lever for driving this clutch and the magnet switch for driving this lever are eliminated, and the starter 10 is reduced in size and weight. In addition, cost reduction can be achieved, and the axial impact force and the rotational impact torque when the pinion 18 meshes with the ring gear 3 can be reduced.

The starter according to the embodiment of the present invention can be reduced in weight by 700 to 750 g with a starter of about 1 kW as compared with a conventional starter requiring a one-way clutch or the like.

After the engine is started, the controller 30 determines that the engine 1 has started when the rotation sensor 4 detects the number of rotations at which the engine 1 can determine that the start of the engine 1 has been completed. The pinion 18 is moved to release the engagement with the ring gear 3. Thus, after the engine 1 is reliably started, the engagement between the pinion 18 and the ring gear 3 can be released.

Further, even if the driver turns on the key switch 5 by mistake after starting the engine 1, the pinion 18 is not transferred in the direction of the ring gear 3 while the engine 1 is rotating. . That is, in one embodiment of the present invention, the pinion 18 is configured to move in the direction of the ring gear 3 and mesh with the ring gear 3 only when the engine 1 is stopped, and the engine 1 is rotating. In the state, the starter control relay 40
Is not turned on and the motor 11 is not rotated, so that the pinion 18 is not transferred in the direction of the ring gear 3. This prevents the pinion 18 and the ring gear 3 from violently colliding with each other and causing the teeth of the pinion 18 or the ring gear 3 to be worn or damaged even if the key switch 5 is accidentally turned on after the engine is started. Can be.

In the above example, the pinion 1
8 is moved in the direction of the ring gear 3 and the condition for meshing with each other is set to the engine stopped state. However, it is effective to combine the above condition with other conditions, for example, depression of the brake pedal, wearing of the driver's seat belt, etc. It is.

[0045]

Since the present invention is configured as described above, it has the following effects. One-way clutch,
The pinion can be engaged with the ring gear without the need for a lever for driving this clutch and a magnet switch for driving this lever, and the pinion can be quickly disengaged from the ring gear after the engine is started. In addition, an inexpensive and highly reliable engine starting device can be realized.

Further, since the pinion 18 moves in the direction of the ring gear 3 and is engaged only when the engine is stopped, it is assumed that the key switch is accidentally turned on after the engine is started. In addition, it is possible to prevent the pinion and the ring gear from violently colliding with each other to wear or break the teeth of the pinion or the ring gear.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an engine starting device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a structure of a starter in the engine starting device according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the tube of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view of the tube of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a schematic circuit diagram of an engine starting device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of an operation of the engine starting device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is an operation flowchart of an engine start in the engine start device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1 engine 2 crankshaft 3 ring gear 4 rotation sensor 5 key switch 10 starter 11 motor 12 output shaft 16 tube 16a first helical spline 16b second helical spline 16g groove 17 holding member 18 pinion 18b brim 19 pinion pressing spring 20 tube clip 21 Pinion stopper 22 Shaft clip 23 Tube stopper 24 Tube return spring 25 Electromagnet 25a Holding coil 25b Coil case 30 Controller 40 Starter control relay 50 Battery

Claims (5)

[Claims] A ring gear for transmitting a rotational force to an engine, a motor for generating a rotational force for starting the engine, and meshing with and releasing from the ring gear, and an output shaft of the motor. An engine starter having a pinion that slides axially upward, a rotation detection unit that detects the number of revolutions of the engine, and the output shaft and the pinion are slidably engaged with the output shaft in the axial direction, At the start of rotation of the motor, while transmitting rotational power from the output shaft to the pinion, moving the pinion in the direction of the ring gear to engage with each other, controlling the operation of the motor and detecting the rotation detection means. When the rotation speed of the engine is equal to or higher than a predetermined rotation speed, the engagement between the pinion and the ring gear is released. Engine starting apparatus characterized by comprising: a control means. 2. The engine starter according to claim 1, wherein the output shaft and the tube are engaged by a first helical spline, and the tube and the pinion are engaged by a second helical spline. The twist angle of the first helical spline is set such that a thrust for moving the pinion in the direction meshing with the ring gear is generated when the drive torque of the motor acts on the output shaft. Is set in a direction opposite to the torsion angle of the first helical spline, and a spring is disposed between the tube and the pinion. The spring is based on the tube.
An engine starting device, wherein the pinion is pressed in the direction of the ring gear. 3. The engine starting device according to claim 1, further comprising holding means for holding the meshing between said pinion and said ring gear, said holding means being provided with said control means for meshing said pinion with said ring gear. An engine starting device wherein the holding of the engine is released. 4. The engine starting device according to claim 3, wherein said holding means includes a first holding member rotatably provided on said tube, and a second holding member for stopping movement of said first holding member. An engine starting device comprising: a holding member. 5. The engine starting device according to claim 4, wherein the second holding member is provided near an outer periphery of the pinion.