JP2000352427A - Coil spring type torque limiter or clutch and hinge mechanism - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To always apply a constant torque value in one direction by winding a coil spring with an inside diameter smaller than the outside diameter of an inner ring in the inner ring to rotate freely when the inner ring is rotated in the direction of loosening the spring and providing a mechanism for preventing reverse rotation. SOLUTION: A coil spring 5 with an inside diameter smaller than the outside diameter of an inner ring 4 is wound round the inner ring 4, when the turning force in the direction of X reverse to the winding direction of the spring 5 is applied to the inner ring 4, the spring 5 is loosened, a rolling element 8 of a one-way clutch mechanism 6 is moved in the direction of a spring 10 in a wedge-shaped storing space 9 of an outer ring 7 by the frictional force with the inner ring 4, and the inner ring 4 is rotated by designated torque determined in the winding state of the spring 5. Subsequently, when the turning force in the direction of X is release, the spring 5 is about to return to the initial winding state to rotate the inner ring 4 in the direction reverse to the direction of X, but the rolling element 8 is instantaneously moved in the space 9 to the narrow side by elastic force of the spring 10 to bite between the inner ring 4 and a wall forming the space 9, whereby the inner ring 4 is kept from being rotated in the direction reverse to the direction of X. Accordingly, long-life and low-cost mechanism can be obtained.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a coil spring type torque limiter or clutch or a hinge mechanism used for a paper feed mechanism of a color printer, a ticket issuing machine, and the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A coil spring type torque limiter or clutch has characteristics such as stable torque, simple structure and low cost, and thus is often used for a paper feeding mechanism of a color printer, a ticket issuing machine, and the like. Was. However, such a coil spring type torque limiter or clutch has a predetermined torque value in a state in which a coil spring in which a coil spring is wound around an inner ring or a shaft is turned by a certain amount by turning the inner ring or the shaft in a direction in which the coil spring is loosened. Therefore, the coil spring always has a force to return to the tightened state. That is, since the coil spring type torque limiter or clutch exhibits a return phenomenon peculiar to the coil spring type, it cannot be used in a position requiring positioning.

[0003]

Accordingly, the present invention provides a one-clutch function that can fix a coil spring type torque limiter or a coil spring of a clutch in a state where the coil spring is loosened by a predetermined amount. It is an object of the present invention to provide a coil spring type torque limiter or clutch which always gives a constant torque value and does not rotate in other directions, and a hinge mechanism using the same.

[0004]

Means for Solving the Problems In order to solve the above problems, a first invention is to wind a coil spring having an inner diameter smaller than the outer diameter of the inner ring or shaft around the inner ring or shaft, In a coil spring type torque limiter or clutch that generates a predetermined slip torque when the inner ring or shaft is turned in the direction in which the coil spring is loosened, the inner ring or shaft runs idle when the inner ring or shaft rotates in the direction in which the coil spring is loosened. And a one-way clutch mechanism for preventing the inner ring or shaft from rotating in a direction opposite to the direction in which the coil spring is loosened.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in one aspect, one end of the coil spring is coupled to a housing that rotatably supports the inner ring or the shaft, and the one-way clutch mechanism is A coil spring type torque limiter or clutch comprising an inner ring or shaft, a plurality of rolling elements, and an outer ring having a plurality of wedge-shaped storage spaces for accommodating the rolling elements, wherein the outer ring is fixed to the housing. Is what you do.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, one end of the coil spring is coupled to a housing that rotatably supports the inner ring or the shaft, and the one-way clutch mechanism is A coil spring type torque limiter or clutch comprising an inner ring or a shaft, a plurality of rolling elements, and a part of the housing having a plurality of wedge-shaped storage spaces for storing the rolling elements.

[0007] In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, a fourth aspect of the present invention provides a method for preventing oil from flowing to the inner ring or shaft between the coil spring wound around the inner ring or shaft and the one-way clutch mechanism. A coil spring type torque limiter or clutch provided with an annular body is provided.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a hinge mechanism using a coil spring type torque limiter or a clutch according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the pair of the coil spring type torque limiters are provided. It is an object of the present invention to provide a hinge mechanism characterized in that both the limiter and the clutch are turned in opposite directions to make the inner ring or the shaft common or coupled to another common shaft.

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS First Embodiment FIG.
An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.
In these figures, a housing 1 includes a housing body 2 and a shield plate 3 for closing an open side of the housing body.
The inner ring or shaft 4 is rotatably supported at both ends by the housing 1. A coil spring 5 formed by winding a round wire or a square wire such as a piano wire in a coil shape is wound with an inner diameter smaller than the outer diameter of the inner ring or the shaft 4, and is wound around the inner ring or the shaft 4. I have. The hook portion 5a at one end of the coil spring 5 is locked to the inner wall of the housing body 2, and the other end is generally free.

Reference numeral 6 denotes a one-way clutch mechanism, which is composed of an outer ring 7, which is tightly fitted to an inner wall of a part of the housing body 2, a rolling element 8 composed of a roller or a ball, and a part of the inner ring or the shaft 4. The outer race 7 has a general structure as shown in FIG. 3 and includes six wedge-shaped storage spaces 9 for storing six rolling elements 8. Wedge-shaped storage space 9
Are normal, and springs 10
Is arranged. What is important here is that the coil spring 5 of the torque limiter mechanism and the one-way clutch mechanism 6 are connected via the housing body 2, and the inner ring or shaft 4 is used as a common inner ring or shaft. Reference numerals 11 and 11 denote side wall plates, which can be omitted, and a collar 12 is for preventing oil on the coil spring 5 side from leaking to the one-way clutch mechanism 6 side. 4 so that there is no gap between them. The flange 12 may be made of metal, but is preferably made of synthetic resin in terms of cost and assembly.

FIG. 2 shows a structure of the AA cross section of FIG. 1 as viewed from the direction of the arrow, and FIG. 3 shows a structure of a cross section of BB as viewed from the direction of the arrow. In FIG. 2, when the inner ring or shaft 4 is turned in the direction opposite to the winding direction of the coil spring 5, that is, when a rotational force is applied in the direction indicated by arrow X, the inner ring or shaft 4 in FIG. And This direction is a direction in which the coil spring 5 is loosened, and the six rolling elements 8 shown move the wedge-shaped storage space 9 formed in the outer ring 7 in the direction of the spring 10 by frictional force between the inner ring or the shaft 4. That is, since the inner ring or the shaft 4 moves to the wide side of the wedge-shaped storage space 9, the inner ring or the shaft 4 can rotate in the arrow X direction.

Therefore, when a rotational force in the direction indicated by arrow X is applied to the inner ring or shaft 4, the inner ring or shaft 4 rotates in the direction indicated by arrow X, the coil spring 5 is loosened, and the coil spring 5 is tightened. The inner ring or shaft 4 rotates with respect to the housing 1 at a predetermined torque determined in the state.

Next, when the rotational force in the direction indicated by the arrow X given to the inner ring or the shaft 4 is released, the loosened coil spring 5 attempts to return to the initial tightened state.
An attempt is made to rotate the inner ring or shaft 4 in a direction opposite to the direction indicated by the arrow X in the figure. However, the rolling element 8 in the one-way clutch mechanism 6 instantaneously moves the wedge-shaped storage space 9 to the narrow side with the help of the elastic force of the spring 10 to form the wedge-shaped storage space 9 for the inner ring or shaft 4 and the outer ring 7. And the inner ring or shaft 4 does not rotate in the direction opposite to the direction indicated by the arrow X in the figure. Therefore, the return phenomenon of the inner ring or the shaft 4 due to the coil spring 5 is prevented.

In the above-described embodiment, the outer ring is provided separately from the housing body 2 in the one-way clutch mechanism 6. However, a structure in which the housing body 2 is provided with the wedge-shaped storage space 9 in advance may be used. Then, the side wall plates on both sides can be omitted.

The structure of the embodiment described above is used as a coil spring type torque limiter for limiting a torque value by being incorporated into a rotating mechanism, or as a coil spring type clutch. By combining two reverse torque limiters or clutches in the reverse direction, a hinge mechanism having a long life, low cost, and high positioning accuracy can be obtained.

An embodiment of such a hinge mechanism will be described with reference to FIG. A and B are coil spring type torque limiters or clutches as described above.
Spring 5 and one-way clutch mechanism 6
Are arranged so as to be opposite to each other. According to this structure, the coil spring type torque limiter or clutch A rotates the common shaft 4 for rotation in a certain direction, and the coil spring type torque limiter or clutch B has its one-way clutch mechanism 6 in a biting state. , The coil spring torque limiter or clutch B rotates with the common shaft. Conversely, for rotation in the other direction, a coil spring type torque limiter or clutch B
Rotate the common shaft, and the coil spring torque limiter or clutch A rotates with the common shaft 4.

Accordingly, the attachment 13 fixed to the housing main body 2 of the coil spring type torque limiter or the clutches A and B is provided by a separate member (not shown) requiring a hinge mechanism by using the hole 13a provided in the attachment 13. ), The separate members can rotate relative to one another within a certain angle range or stop at a certain position. Reference numeral 14 denotes a coil spring type torque limiter or a contact preventing member for preventing opposing side surfaces of the clutches A and B from contacting each other to increase friction, but this is not always necessary. Reference numerals 15 and 15 denote coil spring type torque limiters or stoppers for preventing the clutches A and B from falling off from the common shaft 4, but this is not always necessary.

[0018]

As described above, according to the present invention, by adding a one-clutch function of idling in the direction of loosening the coil spring of the coil spring type torque limiter or clutch, it is always constant in one direction. The present invention can provide a coil spring type torque limiter or clutch having a long life, a low cost, and a simple mechanism that does not rotate in the other direction and that does not rotate in other directions, or a hinge mechanism using the same.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a view showing one embodiment of a coil spring type torque limiter or clutch according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a view of an AA cross section of FIG. 1 viewed from the direction of the arrow.

FIG. 3 is a view of a cross section taken along line BB of FIG. 1 viewed from a direction of an arrow.

FIG. 4 is a view showing one embodiment of a hinge mechanism according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... housing 9 ...
Wedge-shaped accommodation space 2 ・ ・ ・ Housing body 10 ・ ・ ・
Spring 3 ... Shield plate 11 ...
Side wall 4 ・ ・ ・ Inner ring or shaft 12 ・ ・ ・
Collar for oil stop 5 ... Coil spring 13 ...
Attachment 6 ・ ・ ・ One-way clutch mechanism 14 ・ ・ ・
Contact prevention member 7 ・ ・ ・ Outer ring 15 ・ ・ ・
Stopper 8: rolling element

Claims (5)

[Claims] A coil spring having an inner diameter smaller than the outer diameter of the inner ring or shaft is wound around the inner ring or shaft, and when the inner ring or shaft is turned in a direction in which the coil spring is loosened in this state, a predetermined value is obtained. In a coil spring type torque limiter or clutch that generates a sliding torque, the inner ring or the shaft idles when the inner ring or the shaft rotates in a direction in which the coil spring is loosened, and the inner ring or the shaft rotates in a direction opposite to the direction in which the coil spring is loosened. A coil spring type torque limiter or a clutch, comprising a one-way clutch mechanism for preventing the occurrence of a shock. 2. The coil spring according to claim 1, wherein one end of the coil spring is coupled to a housing that rotatably supports the inner ring or the shaft, and the one-way clutch mechanism connects the inner ring or the shaft with a plurality of rolling elements and the rolling elements. A coil spring type torque limiter or clutch, comprising an outer ring having a plurality of wedge-shaped storage spaces for housing, the outer ring being fixed to the housing. 3. The coil spring according to claim 1, wherein one end of the coil spring is coupled to a housing that rotatably supports the inner ring or shaft, and the one-way clutch mechanism connects the inner ring or shaft with a plurality of rolling elements and the rolling elements. A coil spring type torque limiter or clutch comprising a part of the housing having a plurality of wedge-shaped storage spaces for housing. 4. The oil pump according to claim 1, wherein the inner ring or the shaft between the coil spring wound around the inner ring or the shaft and the one-way clutch mechanism has an annular body for stopping oil flow. Coil spring type torque limiter or clutch. 5. A hinge mechanism using the coil spring type torque limiter or clutch according to claim 1, wherein both of the pair of coil spring type torque limiters or clutches are turned in opposite directions so that the inner ring or A hinge mechanism comprising a common shaft or a connection to another common shaft.