JP2000225867A - Column type shift device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To perform an excellent shift change operation even when a shift lever goes around a rear side of a steering wheel when operating the shift lever. SOLUTION: An angle θ2 that a shift rotary shaft 32 forms with a horizontal surface D is made larger than an angle θ1 that a steering column shaft 20 forms with the horizontal surface D. A plane including an oscillation locus of a shift lever 16 is inclined to a rotation surface of a steering wheel 12 in a prescribed angle front direction. As a result, as the shift lever 16 approaches an upper tip part of the steering wheel 12, the shift lever 16 moves in a direction away from the steering wheel 12 and operation space of the shift lever 16 is secured.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a column-type shift device, and more particularly to a column-type shift device capable of improving the operability of a column-type shift device for an automatic transmission vehicle when a shift is changed.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, automatic transmission vehicles (vehicles equipped with an automatic transmission, hereinafter referred to as AT vehicles) have been remarkably popularized. This means that the AT vehicle can be operated with a low degree of fatigue by simplifying the operation at the time of starting the vehicle and the operation at the time of acceleration / deceleration, and automatically selects the optimal gear ratio for the running state of the vehicle. This is because the fuel consumption can be improved by performing the above. In particular, when traveling in an area with a lot of traffic lights or an area with a lot of traffic, the above-mentioned merit is great. On the other hand, a column-type shift device has been conventionally used. Since this column type shift device is attached to the steering column, the space in the vehicle compartment can be used more effectively than a floor shift device arranged on the floor between the driver's seat and the passenger seat. Specifically, the driver seat can be made a bench seat or a walk-through. Further, since the shift operation can be performed near the steering wheel, the shift change operation can be changed from a large movement of the entire arm to a small movement, so that operability can be improved.

Further, in recent years, a column type shift device for AT vehicles which has the advantages of an AT and a column type shift device has begun to spread. FIGS. 2A and 2B are explanatory diagrams illustrating the operation of the column-type shift device 10 for an AT vehicle. The column-type shift device 10 is located on the side of the steering column 14 on which the steering wheel 12 is disposed (the left side of the steering column in the case of a right-hand drive vehicle,
In the case of a left-hand drive vehicle, a shift mechanism 18 including a shift lever 16 is provided on the right side of the steering column, and FIGS. 2 (a) and 2 (b) show those for a right-hand drive. The shift lever 16 is a shift knob 16 that can be gripped by a driver.
a and a shift arm 16b connecting the shift knob 16a and the shift mechanism 18. FIG. 3 shows a detailed structure of the shift mechanism 18. As shown in the figure, the shift lever 16 is centered on a shift rotation shaft 22 disposed on a second vertical plane B parallel to the first vertical plane A including the steering column shaft 20 which is the rotation center of the steering wheel 12. It is configured to be swingable.

[0004] Therefore, the shift lever 16 is shown in FIG.
As shown in (b), by swinging in the direction of arrow C and moving a shift cable 18a connected to a transmission (not shown), a shift position desired by the driver can be selected. In general, the position where the shift lever 16 is swung to the rightmost end (the uppermost side in FIG. 2A) is the parking (P) range position, from which the reverse (R) is sequentially turned in a counterclockwise direction. Range position,
The neutral (N) range position, the drive (D) range position, the second (2) range position, and the leftmost end (the lowermost side in FIG. 2A) are the low (L) range positions.

[0005] By the way, a column-type shift device 1 for an AT car
At 0, an erroneous operation prevention device is provided to prevent sudden start and unreasonable gear change. That is,
For example, when the vehicle operation state changes extremely, such as when moving from the P range to another range, when moving to the R range, or when moving to the L range, the shift is performed unless a predetermined operation is performed. The lever 16 cannot be moved. In order to release the shift lock, generally, the shift speed must be lower than a predetermined speed, a brake pedal must be depressed, and the like.
6 is swung about the select shaft 24 in a direction substantially perpendicular to the shift direction (the direction of the arrow C) (pulled toward the steering wheel 12 side) to get over the unevenness 26a of the detent plate 26 arranged on the shift track. By doing it. In this way, the driver is given a stepwise operation to alert the driver and prevent sudden start and unreasonable gear change.

[0006]

However, since the shift lever 16 of the conventional column type shift device 10 swings around a shift rotation shaft 22 which is offset in parallel to the side of the steering column shaft 20, it is not shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 2 (b), as the vehicle approaches the P range position, it wraps around the steering wheel 12. In this state, when the shift lever 16 is swung in the select direction (toward the steering wheel 12) to move the shift lever 16,
In particular, when the shift knob 16a comes very close to the steering wheel 12 (distance Y in FIG. 2A), the driver's hand for operating the shift lever 16 contacts the steering wheel 12, and the operability of the shift lever 16 is changed. Is significantly reduced. This inconvenience is caused by an increase in the number of devices (navigation device, audio device, various control switches, meters, etc.) around the steering wheel 12 due to the intellectualization of the vehicle, and the swing range of the shift knob 16a does not overlap with those peripheral devices. When the swing range of the shift knob 16a is moved to the upper end side of the steering wheel 12 in order to achieve this, it appears more prominently. JP-A-2-283531 discloses a structure in which only the tip of the shift lever swings in the select direction, but the inconvenience caused by the approach of the steering wheel and the driver's hand during a shift change is improved. Not done.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and provides a column-type shift device capable of performing a satisfactory operation even when the shift lever goes behind the steering wheel during a shift change operation. The purpose is to:

[0008]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is directed to a steering column fixed to a side of a steering column having a steering wheel rotatable around a steering column shaft at an end thereof, A column-type shift device comprising: a shift device that performs a shift operation of a transmission; and a shift lever that swings in a substantially circumferential direction and a substantially orthogonal direction of the steering wheel to operate the shift device. A shift rotation axis for swinging the steering wheel in a substantially circumferential direction of the steering wheel is a second rotation axis which is parallel to a first vertical plane including the steering column axis.
Wherein the angle formed by the shift rotation axis with the horizontal plane is larger than the angle formed by the steering column axis with the horizontal plane.

According to this configuration, since the angle formed by the shift rotation axis with the horizontal plane is larger than the angle formed by the steering column axis with the horizontal plane, the plane including the swing trajectory of the shift lever with respect to the rotation plane of the steering wheel is formed. Tilt forward by a predetermined angle. The shift lever moves away from the steering wheel as it approaches the upper end of the steering wheel. as a result,
Even when the shift lever goes behind the steering wheel at the time of the shift change operation, a large space between the shift lever and the steering wheel can be secured, and the shift change operation can be performed well.

[0010]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention (hereinafter referred to as embodiments) will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIGS. 1 (a) and 1 (b) are conceptual diagrams showing the configuration of a column-type shift device 30 (for a right-hand drive) according to an embodiment of the present invention. Since the basic configuration is the same as that of the conventional device shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the same reference numerals are given to the same members, and the description thereof will be omitted.

The column type shift device 30 is provided with a shift mechanism 18 for performing a shift change by operating a shift cable 18a (see FIG. 3) connected to a transmission.
And a shift knob 16a directly held by the driver, and a shift arm 16b connecting the shift mechanism 18 and the shift knob 16a. On the other hand, the steering wheel 12 is arranged at the upper end of the steering column 14 so as to be rotatable around a steering column shaft 20 as in the conventional case shown in FIGS. 2 (a) and 2 (b). The steering column shaft 20 is set at a predetermined angle θ1 with respect to the horizontal plane D on a first vertical plane A orthogonal to the horizontal plane D. The shift mechanism 18 of the column type shift device 10 for the right handle is fixed to the left side surface of the steering column 14. The basic structure of the shift mechanism 18 is also the same as that shown in FIG. 3, and the shift lever 16 swings in the shift change direction along the detent plate 26 (see FIG. 3), and the unevenness 26a of the detent plate 26 Swing in the select direction to release the shift lock by overcoming the shift lock. As a result, the shift lever 16 can sequentially select the P range position, the N range position, the R range position, the D range position, the 2 range position, and the L range position from the top side of the steering wheel 12 in a counterclockwise direction. I have.

A characteristic feature of this embodiment is that the pivot axis of the shift lever in the shift change direction, that is, the shift rotation axis is on a second vertical plane parallel to the first vertical plane including the steering column axis. And the angle formed by the shift rotation axis with the horizontal plane is larger than the angle formed by the steering column axis with the horizontal plane.

As shown in FIG. 1B, a shift rotation shaft 32, which is a pivot center of the shift lever 16, is a second vertical plane parallel to the left side of the first vertical plane A including the steering column shaft 20. B. As shown in FIG. 1A, the angle .theta.2 of the shift rotary shaft 32 with the horizontal plane D orthogonal to the first vertical plane A and the second vertical plane B is formed by the steering column shaft 20 with the horizontal plane D. The angle is set to be larger than the angle θ1 by a predetermined angle. Θ1
And θ2 differ depending on the type of vehicle, and when a tilt-up mechanism capable of appropriately selecting the angle (height) of the steering wheel 12 according to the driver's preference is provided, the angle θ1
And θ2 change in conjunction, but the relationship between θ2 and θ1 is
θ2−θ1> 0, for example, θ2−θ1 = 6 °.

When the angle θ2 becomes larger than the angle θ1, the value of FIG.
As shown in (a), the plane including the swing locus of the shift lever 16 in the shift change direction is inclined by θ2−θ1 from the rotation surface of the steering wheel 12. As a result, as the shift lever 16 swings toward the P range position, the shift lever 16 (shift knob 16a) moves away from the steering wheel 12. That is,
A large distance Z between the steering wheel 12 and the shift knob 16a in the P range position (the state in which the shift lever 16 is swung in the select direction) can be secured widely. That is, the shift lever 16 is
Even when swinging around the shift rotation shaft 32 located at a position eccentric from the steering wheel 12 and going around the back side of the steering wheel 12 as approaching the P range position, the distance between the steering wheel 12 and the shift lever 16 (shift knob 16a) is reduced. Since the driver can sufficiently secure the gear, the driver can grip the shift knob 16a sufficiently and easily, and can perform a favorable shift change operation.

As described above, the horizontal plane D of the shift rotation shaft 32
, The shift operability can be improved without changing the space between the steering wheel 12 and the instrument panel 28.

In this embodiment, the case of a right-hand drive vehicle is shown. However, in the case of a left-hand drive vehicle, the shift mechanism 18 is arranged on the right side of the steering column 14 and the shift lever 16 only projects rightward. , And the like are the same, and the same effect can be obtained.

[0018]

According to the present invention, since the angle formed by the shift rotation axis with the horizontal plane is larger than the angle formed by the steering column axis with the horizontal plane, the shift trajectory of the shift lever with respect to the rotation plane of the steering wheel is included. The plane tilts forward by a predetermined angle, and the shift lever moves away from the steering wheel as it approaches the upper end of the steering wheel. As a result, a large space between the shift lever and the steering wheel can be ensured even when the shift lever goes behind the steering wheel during the shift change operation, and the shift change operation can be performed satisfactorily.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram illustrating the configuration of a column-type shift device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a conceptual diagram illustrating the configuration of a conventional column-type shift device.

FIG. 3 is a conceptual perspective view illustrating a shift mechanism of a general column-type shift device.

[Explanation of symbols]

12 steering wheel, 14 steering column, 16 shift lever, 16a shift knob, 16b
Shift arm, 18 shift mechanism, 20 column shaft,
28 instrument panel, 30 column type shift device, 32 shift rotation axis, A first vertical plane, B second vertical plane, D horizontal plane, angle between θ1 horizontal plane D and steering column axis, θ2 horizontal plane D and shift rotation axis Angle.

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page F term (reference) 3D040 AA01 AA23 AB01 AC65 AD15 3J052 AA02 BA03 GA16 LA01 3J070 AA04 AA23 BA11 CC29 DA02 EA01

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A shift device fixed to a side of a steering column having a steering wheel rotatable around a steering column shaft at an end, and performing a shift operation of a transmission; and a shift device substantially in a circumferential direction of the steering wheel. A shift lever that swings in a substantially orthogonal direction to operate the shift device, wherein the shift rotation shaft that swings the shift lever in a substantially circumferential direction of a steering wheel includes the steering wheel. A column type arranged on a second vertical plane parallel to the first vertical plane including the column axis, wherein the angle formed by the shift rotation axis with the horizontal plane is larger than the angle formed by the steering column axis with the horizontal plane. Shift device.