JP2001062750A - Device and method for installing coil spring - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To install a coil spring on a shock absorber readily and surely irrespective of the type of the coil spring. SOLUTION: The upper end part of the coil spring 2 is pressed against claws 42 and 43 by raising the shock absorber 1 to compress the coiled spring 2. Guides 46 and 47 are disposed on the side of the coil spring 2 to prevent the coil spring 2 from being pulled by either of the claws 42 and 43 when the claws 42 and 43 are extracted from the coil upper end part, coming off the concentric circle of an upper support 6. Thus, even for coil springs having the numbers of turns and material diameters different from each other, the coil spring compressing operation can be performed without adjusting the positions of the claws 42 and 43 of an assembly head. Also, adjustment of the positions of the claws 42 and 43 is not necessary according to the phase of a coil winding direction relative to the claws 42 and 43.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a device for assembling a coil spring to a shock absorber and a method for assembling the same.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 5 shows an example of a suspension mechanism for a front wheel of an automobile. This suspension mechanism is a so-called strut type suspension. One feature of the strut type suspension is that the shock absorber 1 and the coil spring 2 are arranged substantially coaxially.

FIG. 6 is a partial cross-sectional view of a strut-type suspension in which a shock absorber 1 and a coil spring 2 are connected. A flange 1a for mounting the lower end of the coil spring 2 is fixed to the outer tube of the shock absorber 1. The upper end of the coil spring 2 is in contact with an upper support 6 composed of the upper insulator 3, the upper seat 4, the insulator 5, and the like, and is in a state of being compressed by a predetermined pressure. The upper support 6 is connected to the piston rod 1b of the shock absorber 1 by a nut 7.
Is fixed to the upper end.

FIG. 7 shows a procedure for assembling the coil spring 2 to the shock absorber 1. First, as shown in FIG. 7A, the coil spring 2 is placed on the flange 1a of the shock absorber 1 positioned so as to face the vertical direction. At this time, the coil spring 2 is in a steady state, and the upper end of the coil is
b is located further above the upper end. In this state, the claws 8 are hooked on the coil middle part of the coil spring 2. Then, as shown in FIG. 7 (b), the claws 8, 8 are pushed down, and the coil spring 2 is compressed until the upper end of the coil is located below the upper end of the piston rod 1b.

Next, as shown in FIG. 7 (c), the upper support 6 is placed on the upper end of the piston rod 1b and fixed to the piston rod 1b with a nut 7. Finally, nail 8,
7, the upper end of the coil spring 2 is brought into contact with the insulator 5 provided below the upper seat 4 of the upper support 6 as shown in FIG. Then, the claws 8, 8 are extracted from the coil spring 2. According to the above procedure, the coil spring 2 can be assembled between the flange 1a and the upper support 6 in a state where the coil spring 2 is pressed and contracted at a predetermined pressure.

[0006]

In order to cope with recent common use of parts between other types of vehicles and diversification of suspension tuning for each destination, the shape of both ends of the coil is made common and the number of turns and the number of turns are reduced. A wide variety of coil springs having different material diameters have been used. However, in the conventional assembling procedure shown in FIG. 7, the work of compressing the coil spring 2 is performed by hooking the claws 8, 8 on the coil intermediate portion. It was necessary to adjust the position to match the coil. Further, even if the same coil spring is used, depending on the phase in the winding direction of the coil, the claws 8, 8 may be used.
Since the positional relationship between the coil and the coil is easily changed, it may be necessary to adjust the positions of the claws 8, 8 in accordance with the coil each time one assembling operation is performed.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to quickly and reliably assemble a coil spring to a shock absorber regardless of the type of the coil spring.

[0008]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a coil spring assembling apparatus, comprising: a shock absorber positioning means; and a coil mounted on a flange of the shock absorber positioned. An assembling head that can be opened and closed in the radial direction with respect to the spring, a driving means for bringing the assembling head and the flange closer to each other in the axial direction, and an upper end at the upper end of the piston rod of the shock absorber. Fixing means for fixing the support.

According to the present invention, the shock absorber is fixed by the positioning means, and the mounting head is closed above the coil spring mounted on the flange of the shock absorber. Then, the assembling head is brought into contact with the upper end of the coil by bringing the assembling head and the flange close to each other in the axial direction by the driving means. Further, the coil spring is compressed and the upper end of the coil is positioned below the piston rod end of the shock absorber, and then the upper support is placed on the piston rod upper end. Then, an upper support is fixed to the upper end of the piston rod by the fixing means. Thereafter, the assembling head is opened and the coil is pulled out from the upper end of the coil. The upper end of the coil is brought into contact with the upper support as the coil spring expands by its own elastic return force.

Further, according to the coil spring assembling apparatus of the present invention, the assembling head is located at the side of the coil spring and guides the extension direction of the coil spring in a desired direction. , With a guide. The guide determines the extension direction of the coil after the assembly head is pulled out from the upper end of the coil, and the upper end of the coil is reliably brought into contact with the lower surface of the upper support.

Further, in the coil spring assembling apparatus according to a third aspect of the present invention, the assembling head includes a claw that can be brought into contact with the entire upper end of the coil. Since the assembly head includes the claws, the material end of the coil spring is reliably pressed regardless of the phase between the material end of the coil spring and the assembly head, and the coil spring is reliably compressed.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a coil spring assembling method, comprising: fixing an outer tube of a shock absorber; placing the coil spring on a flange of the shock absorber; The upper end of the coil of the coil spring is compressed with a claw that opens and closes in the radial direction of the coil spring, an upper support is fixed to the upper end of the piston rod of the shock absorber, and a guide is attached to the side of the compressed coil spring. The pawl is opened while the extension is guided by the guide in a desired direction.

According to the present invention, the claw is brought into contact with the upper end of the coil spring mounted on the flange of the shock absorber, and the position of the claw is adjusted even for coil springs having different winding numbers and material diameters. Perform compression work without doing. And the upper end of the coil is located below the end of the piston rod of the shock absorber,
An upper support is fixed to the upper end of the piston rod. Subsequently, the claw is opened, and the claw is pulled out from the upper end of the coil, whereby the coil spring is extended by its own elastic restoring force. At this time, the guide guides the side of the coil spring, and the upper end of the coil is securely brought into contact with the upper support.

[0014]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Here, the same or corresponding parts as those of the prior art are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description is omitted.

FIG. 2 schematically shows a device for assembling a coil spring to a shock absorber (hereinafter, also simply referred to as an "assembly device") according to an embodiment of the present invention. The assembling device 9 includes a mounting seat 10 and a clamp 11 as positioning means for the shock absorber 1. Further, an assembling head 12 which can be opened and closed at a predetermined speed in the radial direction with respect to the coil spring 2 mounted on the flange 1a of the shock absorber 1 and which can contact the upper end of the coil,
It is installed on the frame 13. Also, the mounting head 12
Further, as a driving means for moving the flange 1a apart and close in the axial direction of the shock absorber 1, an elevating cylinder 14 for integrally moving the mounting seat 10 and the clamp 11 up and down is provided. The lifting cylinder 14 is also fixed to the frame 13. Furthermore, the piston rod 1 of the shock absorber 1
A nut runner 15 is provided as a fixing means for fixing the upper support 6 (see FIG. 6) to the upper end of "a".

Next, each of the above components will be described. The mounting seat 10 has a function as a collet chuck, for example. Then, the outer tube of the shock absorber 1 can be clamped from below, and at the same time, the shock absorber 1 can be centered.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the clamp 11. The clamp 11 is a rack in which arms 16 and 17 having clamp attachments 16 a and 17 a at their distal end portions are supported by sliders 18 and 19 so as to be parallel to each other and fixed to the arms 16 and 17.
An arm opening and closing mechanism for driving 20, 21 with a pinion 22 is provided. The pinion 22 is driven to rotate by a cylinder 24 fixed to a mount 23 for the sliders 18 and 19. The clamp attachments 16a and 17a hold the outer tube of the shock absorber (part slightly below the flange 1a). Therefore, the outer tube of the shock absorber 1 is supported at two points in the longitudinal direction by the mounting seat 10 and the clamp 11, and accurate positioning is performed.

As shown in FIG. 2, the mount 23 of the clamp 11 and the mount 25 of the mounting seat 10 are fixed to each other by a fixing member 26. In addition, the mounting base 25 is
Is connected to the cylinder rod 14a of the
Is extended, the mounting seat 10 and the clamp 11 are integrally raised, and the shock absorber 1 can be raised.

As shown in FIG. 2, the nut runner 15, which is a fixing means, is suspended by a spring balancer 26. The distal end of the nut runner 15 is supported by a bracket 28 that can move up and down in a vertical direction by a slider 27 (fixed to the frame 13). Note that a detent 29 of the upper sheet 4 (see FIG. 6) is also fixed to the bracket 28.

FIG. 4 is a plan view of the assembly head 12. The assembling head 12 includes an arm opening / closing mechanism that supports the arms 30 and 31 by sliders 32 and 33 so as to be parallel to each other, and drives the racks 34 and 35 fixed to the arms 30 and 31 by pinions 36. Then, the cylinder lot 38a of the cylinder 38 fixed to the mounting base 37 of the sliders 32 and 33 is pivotally attached to the crank 39 fixed to the pinion 36, and the pinion 36 is driven by the expansion and contraction of the cylinder 38. Further, cylinders 40 and 41 are fixed to the mounting base 37 so as to face each other. Note that the cylinders 40, 41 are located above the arms 30, 31.

Symmetrical claws 42, for contacting the upper end of the coil spring 2, are provided at the distal ends of the arms 30, 31.
43 are provided. The cylinder rods 40a and 41a of the cylinders 40 and 41 are provided with symmetrical guides 46 and 47 via symmetrical supports 44 and 45, respectively. The side shapes of the claws 42 and 43 and the guides 46 and 47 are shown in FIG. FIG. 4 shows a state in which only the cylinder 40 is extended and the guide 46 is advanced for convenience of explanation.
Actual expansion and contraction operations of the cylinders 40 and 41 are performed synchronously.

In FIG. 4, the cylinder rod 40a and a part of the support 44 are cut away to show the shape of the claw 42 located below the support 44. As shown, nail 42
Is divided into three blocks 42a, 42b and 42c in order to avoid interference with two guides 46 provided on the support 44, but has a substantially semicircular end shape as a whole. . The claw 43 has a similar structure. Although the claws 42 and 43 are shown in an open state, the arms 30 and 31 are closed to bring the claws 42 and 43 closer to each other in the radial direction of the coil spring 2 and abut on each other. Can be covered above.

Here, a procedure for assembling the coil spring 2 to the shock absorber 1 by the assembling device 9 will be described mainly with reference to FIG.

First, as shown in FIG. 1A, the shock absorber 1 is positioned by the mounting seat 10 and the clamp 11 (FIG. 2) so as to face the vertical direction. Then, the coil spring 2 is placed on the flange 1a. At this time, since the coil spring 2 is in a steady state, the upper end of the coil is located further above the upper end of the piston rod 1b. In this state, the arms 30 and 31 (FIG. 4) are operated to close the claws 42 and 43 and cover the upper part of the coil spring 2. An overall view of the assembling device 9 in the state of FIG. 1A is shown in FIG.

Subsequently, the cylinder 14 (FIG. 2) is extended,
The shock absorber 1 positioned by the mounting seat 10 and the clamp 11 is raised. Then, the upper end of the coil spring 2 is brought into contact with the claws 42 and 43. After this contact, the shock absorber 1 further continues to rise, and as shown in FIG.
The coil spring 2 is pressed and contracted until the upper end of b is located above the upper end of the coil.

Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 1C, the upper support 6 is placed on the upper end of the piston rod 1b.
The nut 7 is fastened to the piston rod 1b by the nut runner 15 (FIG. 2). At this time, the detent 29 (FIG. 2) prevents the upper sheet 4 from rotating together, so that the upper support 6
Can be performed smoothly.

Further, while maintaining the state of FIG. 1C, the cylinders 40 and 41 (FIG. 4) are extended to
The guides 46 and 47 are arranged on the side of the coil spring 2 that has been compressed as shown in FIG. And arms 30, 31
(FIG. 4) is opened, and the claws 42 and 43 are pulled out from the upper end of the coil.

The guides 46, 47 have guide surfaces for guiding the coil spring 2 in a desired extension direction. In the illustrated example, the guide surface is a surface extending in the vertical direction. When the claws 42, 43 are pulled out, the coil spring 2 is moved by the guide surfaces of the guides 46, 47.
The upper support 6 is prevented from being pulled off from the concentric circle of the upper support 6 by being pulled by any one of 2, 43. The coil spring 2, which has been released by the pawls 42 and 43, is extended by its own elastic restoring force, and the upper end of the coil is placed under the insulator 5 provided below the upper sheet 4 of the upper support 6.
Contact. At this time, since the extension direction of the coil spring 2 is controlled by the guides 46 and 47, the upper end portion of the coil can be reliably brought into contact with a predetermined contact portion of the insulator 5.

Finally, by shrinking the cylinders 40 and 41 (FIG. 4) and opening the guides 46 and 47, the shock absorber 1 is released.
The operation of assembling the coil spring 2 into the coil spring 2 is completed.

The operation and effect obtained from the embodiment of the present invention having the above configuration are as follows. First, the mounting seat 10
The upper end of the coil is pressed against the claws 42 and 43 of the assembling head 12 by raising the shock absorber 1 positioned by the clamp 11 by the elevating cylinder 14, so that the coil spring mounted on the flange 1a of the shock absorber 1 2 is compressed such that the upper end of the coil can be pressed. Therefore, even with a variety of coil springs having different numbers of windings and material diameters, the claw 4
The compression of the coil spring can be performed without adjusting the positions of 2, 43. Further, it is not necessary to adjust the positions of the claws 42 and 43 according to the phase of the coil in the winding direction with respect to the claws 42 and 43.

Further, by disposing the guides 46 and 47 on the side of the coil spring 1, the pawls 4 can be moved from the upper end of the coil.
When pulling out 2, 43, the coil spring 2 is driven by the claws 42, 43.
, And the upper support 6 can be reliably prevented from coming off the concentric circle. Then, the upper end of the coil of the coil spring 2 is securely brought into contact with a predetermined contact portion of the insulator 5. Therefore, it is possible to increase the reliability when assembling the coil spring 2 to the shock absorber 1. In addition,
In order to prevent the coil spring 2 from being pulled by any of the claws 42, 43, the friction coefficient at the contact surface between the claws 42, 43 and the coil spring 2 is reduced, and the shape of the claws 42, 43 is devised. When the claws 42 and 43 are released at a higher speed, the guides 46 and 47 are not required.

The claws 42 of the assembling head 12 are separated into three blocks 42a, 42b and 42c in order to avoid interference with the guide 46, but have a generally semicircular end shape as a whole. The claw 43 has a similar structure. And
The pawls 42 and 43 can cover the entire circumference of the coil upper end. Therefore, the material end of the coil spring and the claw 4
Irrespective of the phases of the coil springs 2 and 43, the material end of the coil spring can be reliably pressed and the coil spring 2 can be compressed. In the illustrated example, four guides 46 and 47 are provided in total, but the number and position of the guides can be freely set within a range in which the extension direction of the coil spring can be guided in a desired direction. It is possible to In this case, the shapes of the claws 42 and 43 are also changed according to the change in the number and position of the guides.

Further, when a mechanism is provided for mounting on the flange 1a of the shock absorber 1 so that the phase of the coil spring 2 with respect to the claws 42 and 43 in the winding direction is always constant, the entire upper end of the coil is provided. A claw that covers the circumference is not required, and a claw shape that can press the upper end of the coil at several points may be used.

In the embodiment of the present invention, the mounting head 12 is fixed to the frame 13 and the mounting seat 10 and the clamp 11 are moved up and down by the lifting cylinder 14. The structure in which the assembly head 12 is moved up and down by fixing the frame 11 to the frame 13 may be adopted.

[0035]

According to the present invention, the following effects are obtained. First, according to the coil spring assembling apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention, the coil spring can be quickly and reliably assembled to the shock absorber regardless of the type of the coil spring.

Further, according to the coil spring assembling apparatus according to the second aspect of the present invention, it is possible to increase the reliability when assembling the coil spring to the shock absorber.

Further, according to the coil spring assembling apparatus according to the third aspect of the present invention, the coil spring can be reliably compressed, and the speed and reliability of the assembling operation can be improved.

Further, according to the coil spring assembling method according to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the coil spring can be quickly and reliably assembled to the shock absorber regardless of the type of the coil spring.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a view showing a procedure for assembling a coil spring to a shock absorber by a coil spring assembling apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the entire coil spring assembling apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of a clamp of the coil spring assembling apparatus shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a plan view of an assembling head of the coil spring assembling apparatus shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing an example of a suspension mechanism for a front wheel of an automobile.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a coupling portion between a shock absorber and a coil spring of the front wheel suspension mechanism shown in FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a view showing a conventional procedure for assembling a coil spring to a shock absorber.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Shock absorber 1a Flange 1b Piston rod 2 Coil spring 6 Upper support 10 Mounting seat 11 Clamp 12 Assembly head 14 Elevating cylinder 15 Nut runner 42,43 Claw 46,47 Guide

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Shinji Toyama 1 Toyota Town, Toyota City, Aichi Prefecture Inside Toyota Motor Corporation (72) Inventor Kazuyuki Castle 36-1 Saigomae, Akita Oita-cho, Niwa-gun, Aichi Prefecture Chiaki Giken Inside the Technology Center Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Makoto Otsuka 36-1, Saigo-mae, Akita-shi, Oguchi-machi, Niwa-gun, Aichi Prefecture Inside the Technology Center, Chiaki Giken Co., Ltd. Address: TAMADIC Corporation Nagoya Business Headquarters (72) Inventor Masahiro Iwamoto 3-34 Tobe-cho, Minami-ku, Nagoya-shi, Aichi F-term within TAMADIC Corporation Nagoya Business Headquarters F term (reference) 3C030 CA17 CC07 3C031 EE27

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. Shock absorber positioning means,
An assembling head that can be opened and closed in the radial direction with respect to the coil spring mounted on the positioned flange of the shock absorber, and a driving means for bringing the assembling head and the flange closer in the axial direction. And a fixing means for fixing an upper support to an upper end of a piston rod of the shock absorber. 2. The shock absorber according to claim 1, wherein the assembling head includes a guide located at a side portion of the coil spring and guiding the extension direction of the coil spring in a desired direction. Coil spring assembling device. 3. The apparatus for assembling a coil spring with a shock absorber according to claim 1, wherein the assembling head includes a claw that can be brought into contact with the entire circumference of the upper end of the coil. 4. An outer tube of the shock absorber is fixed, a coil spring is mounted on a flange of the shock absorber, and an upper end of the coil of the coil spring is compressed with a claw that opens and closes in a radial direction of the coil spring. An upper support is fixed to an upper end portion of the piston rod of the shock absorber, and a guide is arranged on a side portion of the compressed coil spring, and the guide guides the extension direction of the coil spring in a desired direction by the guide. The method of assembling the coil spring to the shock absorber, characterized by opening the spring.