JP2003039928A - Vehicle height maintaining device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a vehicle height maintaining device in a vehicle which can reliably prevent any settlement of a vehicle body over the predetermined value in stopping the vehicle when the vehicle body settlement caused by persons or cargoes thereon is predicted. SOLUTION: When the vehicle body settlement in stopping the vehicle is predicted, an advancing/retractable rod 15 provided on the vehicle body side is expanded toward a receiving member 14 provided on a suspension arm side, and moved to the vehicle body settlement preventive position. The predetermined vehicle height can be maintained by suppressing further vehicle body settlement by the abutting of the rod 15 on the receiving member 14 even when the load on the vehicle is increased and the vehicle body is settled.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vehicle height maintaining device for suppressing a vehicle body depression more than a predetermined amount to maintain a predetermined vehicle height when the vehicle body is expected to sink.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a vehicle height maintaining device for preventing a vehicle body from sinking due to an increase in the weight of a passenger, luggage, etc., for example, one disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-306837 has been proposed. . The vehicle height adjusting device described in this publication includes a pump chamber that constitutes a pumping mechanism that performs a self-pumping action on an elastic body that expands and contracts according to relative vertical movement of a vehicle body when the vehicle is running, and a reaction force on the elastic body. A hydraulic chamber serving as a source is provided, and the pump chamber can be communicated with the hydraulic chamber via the discharge valve and the flow passage, while allowing passage of oil from the pump chamber through the flow passage, but preventing backflow thereof. A check valve is provided, and an accumulator is connected between the check valve and the discharge valve in the flow path.

[0003]

However, since the vehicle height adjusting device in the above conventional example is configured to store pressure in the accumulator by the self-pumping action during traveling, when traveling on a good road or when the loaded load is small. The amount of pressure stored in the accumulator decreases due to the decrease in the amount of expansion and contraction of the expandable body according to the relative vertical movements of the vehicle body and suspension, which increases the load of personnel such as passengers and luggage when the vehicle is stopped. On the other hand, there is an unsolved problem that it is difficult to prevent the vehicle body from sinking and maintain a predetermined vehicle height, and the vehicle body may come into contact with a curb or the like on the road shoulder. Similarly, after the accumulated pressure of the accumulator is used when the vehicle is stopped, the accumulated pressure of the accumulator is insufficient even when the vehicle travels a short distance and is then stopped again.

In order to eliminate such insufficient storage of pressure in the accumulator, it is conceivable to increase the size of the accumulator. In this case, it is necessary to increase the size of the piston and the cylinder in response to the increase in size of the accumulator. Therefore, the size of the entire vehicle height adjusting device is increased, which causes additional problems such as an increase in cost and weight, and a reduction in layout.

Therefore, the present invention has been made by paying attention to the unsolved problems of the above-mentioned conventional examples, and it is possible to suppress the increase of cost and weight and the deterioration of layout, and to allow the vehicle body to be loaded by passengers or loaded with luggage. When the vehicle is expected to sink,
An object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle height maintaining device that reliably prevents a vehicle body from sinking and maintains a predetermined vehicle height.

[0006]

In order to solve the above problems, a vehicle height maintaining device according to claim 1 of the present invention is a vehicle height maintaining device disposed between a vehicle body side and a suspension arm side in a vehicle. In order to maintain a predetermined vehicle height, the vehicle body subsidence predicting means for predicting the vehicle body subsidence when the vehicle is stopped and the receiving member provided on one of the vehicle body side and the suspension arm side and provided on the other side when the vehicle body subsides A rod that is movable back and forth between a vehicle body squat prevention position and a vehicle body squat prevention release position; a drive mechanism that drives the rod between the vehicle body squat prevention position and the vehicle body squat prevention release position; A vehicle height maintenance control means for controlling the drive mechanism so that the rod moves from the vehicle body squat prevention prevention position to the vehicle body squat prevention position when the vehicle body squat is predicted. That.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, when the vehicle body subsidence prediction means does not predict the vehicle body subsidence when the vehicle is stopped,
The drive mechanism is not controlled by the vehicle height maintenance control means,
The rod is in the vehicle body subsidence prevention release position, and the tip of the rod does not come into contact with the receiving member due to a change in vehicle height during normal vehicle traveling. From this state, when the vehicle body subsidence prediction unit enters a state in which the vehicle body subsidence when the vehicle is stopped is predicted, the vehicle height maintenance control unit controls the drive mechanism to move the rod to the vehicle body subsidence prevention position. At this time, when the loaded weight of the vehicle is small, the rod does not come into contact with the receiving member because the vehicle body sinks less. However, when the vehicle body sinks significantly when the number of passengers increases or when luggage is loaded, the rod does not contact the receiving member. Contacts the receiving member to prevent further sinking of the vehicle body.
Further, when the load is large and the vehicle body is already sunk below the predetermined vehicle height, the rod is moved to the vehicle body sunk position to widen the distance between the vehicle body side and the suspension arm, thereby increasing the vehicle height to a predetermined vehicle height. Increase to high. At this time, the vehicle height maintaining height is preferably set so that the vehicle body does not come into contact with the road shoulders or curbs.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the vehicle height maintaining apparatus according to the first aspect, the drive mechanism converts a rotary drive source and a rotary motion of the rotary drive source into a linear motion, and thereby the rod. It is characterized in that it is constituted by a linear conversion means for driving the forward and backward. In the invention according to claim 2, since the rotational force of the rotary drive source is converted into a linear motion by the linear conversion means to move the rod forward and backward, the rod is moved from the vehicle body sinking prevention release position by rotating the rotary drive source forward, for example. The rod can be moved from the vehicle body squat prevention position to the vehicle body squat prevention release position by moving the rod to the vehicle body squat prevention position and conversely reversing the rotation drive source.

Further, the vehicle height maintenance device according to claim 3 is
In the invention according to claim 2, the linear conversion means includes a worm that is rotationally driven by the rotary drive source, and a worm wheel that is rotatably installed in a mounting bracket provided on the vehicle body side and that meshes with the worm. An outer cylinder, which is formed on the outer peripheral surface and is formed on the inner peripheral surface, into which the rod is screwed, and an engaging member that is fixed in the mounting bracket and that engages with the rod to prevent rotation. It is characterized by being.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, since the linear conversion means is provided with the worm gear, the force in the direction of returning the rod to the vehicle body subsidence prevention release position from the receiving member side while the rod is in the vehicle body subsidence prevention position. Even when the rotary drive source is stopped when the action is performed, the worm gear prevents the rod from retracting to the vehicle body sinking prevention release position side.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the vehicle height maintaining device according to any one of the first to third aspects of the invention, the rod has a spherical tip at its tip that abuts on the receiving member. It has a feature. In the invention according to claim 4, since the tip of the rod is formed in a spherical shape, the contact state with the receiving member is always maintained constant regardless of the positional relationship between the vehicle body side and the suspension arm side.

Still further, in the vehicle height maintaining device according to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the invention according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the receiving member is a slide table that is horizontally displaceable at a contact portion with the rod. It is characterized by having. In the invention according to claim 5, since the slide table is provided in the receiving member, the transmission of the prying input to the rod is suppressed by the slide table.

Further, a vehicle height maintaining device according to a sixth aspect is characterized in that, in the invention according to the fifth aspect, the receiving member includes an elastic member for returning the slide table to a central position. In the invention according to claim 6, since the slide table is returned to the center position by the elastic member, even if the slide table slides when coming into contact with the rod, the slide table is returned to the center position when the rod separates. It

[0014]

According to the vehicle height maintaining device of the first aspect,
When the vehicle body subsidence prediction means predicts the vehicle body subsidence when the vehicle is stopped, a rod provided on either the vehicle body side or the suspension arm side is driven to a vehicle body subsidence prevention position that maintains a predetermined vehicle height. Therefore, even if the vehicle body sinks below a predetermined vehicle height due to passenger riding or luggage loading, the rod comes into contact with the receiving member provided at the opposite position to reliably prevent the vehicle body sinking and maintain the predetermined vehicle height. The effect that it can be maintained is obtained.

Further, according to the vehicle height maintenance device of the second aspect, the drive mechanism is configured to convert the rotational movement of the rotational drive source into a linear movement to drive the rod forward and backward.
By controlling the rotational drive amount of the rotational drive source, the effect that the rod can be accurately advanced and retracted between the vehicle body squat prevention position and the vehicle body squat prevention release position is obtained. Further, according to the vehicle height maintenance device of the third aspect, since the linear conversion means of the drive mechanism is composed of the worm gear, it is impossible for the driven side to rotate the drive side, which causes an increase in the loading load. Even if the receiving member comes into contact with the rod due to the subsidence of the vehicle body and a force in the ascending direction is applied, the rod protruding to the vehicle body subsidence prevention position is not pushed back and the position is maintained, so that a predetermined vehicle height can be maintained. The effect is obtained.

Further, according to the vehicle height maintaining apparatus of the fourth aspect, since the tip of the rod that contacts the receiving member is formed into a spherical shape, the rod contacts the receiving member as the vehicle body sinks. When the contacting vehicle height is maintained, there is an effect that the rod tip slides more easily than in the case where the rod tip is flat, and the influence of the lateral force generated at the rod tip by the stroke of the suspension arm can be eliminated.

Further, according to the vehicle height maintaining device of the fifth aspect, the receiving member has a slide table which can be displaced in the horizontal direction at the contact portion with the rod, so that the receiving member does not sink when the vehicle body sinks. Accordingly, when the rod comes into contact with the receiving member and maintains the vehicle height, the slide table is also displaced according to the stroke of the suspension arm, and the effect of the lateral force generated at the tip of the rod can be absorbed.

Further, according to the vehicle height maintaining apparatus of the sixth aspect, since the receiving member is provided with the elastic member for returning the slide table to the central position, rattling of the slide table is suppressed and the slide table is separated from the rod. In this case, the effect that the slide table can be held at the center position to prepare for the next contact with the rod is obtained.

[0019]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, 1 is a vehicle body, 2 is a suspension arm for supporting wheels 3, and a vehicle height is provided between the vehicle body 1 and the suspension arm 2. A coil spring 4 that absorbs the change and a vehicle height maintaining mechanism 5 that suppresses a vehicle body sinking more than a predetermined amount and maintains the vehicle height are provided.

As shown in FIG. 2, the coil spring 4 is provided between a substantially cup-shaped support bracket 6 mounted on the vehicle body 1 side and a horizontal plane of a mounting base 7 mounted on the suspension arm 2. The coil axis is arranged in a direction perpendicular to the vehicle body. Further, a spring rubber sheet 8 is provided between the upper end of the coil spring 4 and the support bracket 6, and a lower spring receiver 9 fixed to the mounting base 7 is provided between the lower end of the coil spring 4 and the mounting base 7. Are installed respectively.

Further, inside the coil spring 4 in the lower spring receiver 9, a bracket 11 provided via a pedestal 10 installed in the lower coil spring receiver 9 and the coil spring 4 supported by the bracket 11 are provided.
Support bracket 6 when is contracted to the limit of contraction
A bump rubber 12 that abuts against the shock absorber 12 and absorbs a shock, and an expandable bellows-shaped dust cover 13 whose upper end is fixed to the bottom of the support bracket 6 and whose lower end is fixed to one end of the bump rubber 12 are provided. ing.

Further, the vehicle height maintaining mechanism 5 includes a receiving member 14 provided on the suspension arm 2 side and a two-dot chain line for maintaining a predetermined vehicle height when the receiving bracket 14 on the vehicle body side is brought into contact with the receiving member 14. The vehicle body sinking prevention position shown in
A rod 15 that is arranged to be movable back and forth between a vehicle body sinking prevention release position shown by a solid line and sufficiently separated from the receiving member 14, and a drive mechanism 16 that drives the rod 15 to move forward and backward with respect to the receiving member 14. Is equipped with. This predetermined vehicle height is
It is desirable to set the height so that the vehicle body does not contact the shoulders or curbs.

As shown in FIG. 3, the receiving member 14 includes a base plate 18 fixed to the center of the bracket 11 supporting the bump rubber 12 by a bolt 17, and a slide table 19 mounted on the base plate 18.
It is composed of a pressing member 20 for returning the slide table 19 to the center position. The slide table 19 is a ball 21 as a rolling element interposed between the base plate 18 and the slide table 19 so as to be horizontally displaceable. It is composed of a separator 22 to be held.

The pressing member 20 has a wide portion 20a whose one end is fixed to the inner peripheral surface of the bump rubber 12 and a slide table 19 which is formed to project at the other end of the wide portion 20a.
And a narrow portion 20b that engages with. Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the pressing members 20 are attached to the inner peripheral surface of the bump rubber 12 at regular intervals, for example, four pressing members 20 are attached,
The slide table 19 is configured to be pressed to the center position from all sides.

As shown in FIG. 2, the rod 15 has a large-diameter screw portion 15a having an external thread formed on the upper half thereof and a small-diameter portion 15b having a lower groove formed on the key groove 23. The tip end portion 15 whose abutting lower end is formed in a hemispherical shape
It has a configuration of c. The drive mechanism 16 is an electric motor 24 mounted on the support bracket 6 and configured by a step motor as an electric rotary drive source, and a linear conversion mechanism provided inside the support bracket 6 for converting rotational motion of the electric motor 24 into linear motion. And the electric motor 24,
A rotary encoder 26 that detects the rotation angle and the rotation direction is attached.

The linear conversion mechanism 25 includes a worm 27 that is rotationally driven by an electric motor 24 and a support bracket 6.
A worm wheel portion 28 that is internally provided in the worm 27 and that is formed on the outer peripheral surface and that engages the rod 15 with a female screw formed on the inner peripheral surface; And an engaging portion 30 that blocks the rotation of the rod 15.

Here, in the support bracket 6, a thrust bearing 31 and a radial bearing 32 are provided in order to enable a smooth rotational movement of the outer cylinder 29 when the electric motor 24 is rotationally driven.
And are installed internally. In addition, the engaging portion 30 includes the rod 15
Key groove 23 formed in the axial direction of the support bracket 6
A through hole 3 formed so that the rod 15 can penetrate therethrough.
3 and a parallel key 34 inserted and held so as to engage with the key groove 23 of the rod 15.
The rotation of the rod 15 is prevented by the engagement of the key groove 23 with the key groove 23, and only the forward / backward drive of the receiving member 14 is enabled.

The vehicle height maintaining mechanism 5 having the above structure is shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 2, the electric motor 24 is mounted so as to face the inside of the vehicle body at the position where the side member 35 and the cross member 36 are provided in the vehicle body, and one end of the support bracket 6 is attached to the cross member 36. The other is attached to the vehicle body 1. Then, the electric motor 24 of the drive mechanism 16 in the vehicle height maintenance mechanism 5 is drive-controlled by the control device 37 as shown in FIG.

The control device 37 detects a rotational speed of an output shaft of a transmission (not shown) to calculate a vehicle speed, a vehicle speed sensor 38, a door switch 39 for detecting an open / closed state of a door in the vehicle, and a locked state of the door. Door lock switch 40 for detecting the position, a select lever switch 41 for detecting the position of the select lever by the select lever, a parking brake switch 42 for detecting the operating state of the parking brake, and various detections detected by these various sensors 38 to 42. The controller 43 is provided with a signal and a rotation angle and a rotation direction of the electric motor 18 detected by the rotary encoder 20. The controller 43 executes the control processing of FIGS. 7 to 9 described later, and outputs a drive command to the electric motor 24 based on the calculated processing result to move the rod 15 to the vehicle body sinking prevention position and the vehicle body sinking prevention release. Drive back and forth between positions.

Next, the operation of the above-described embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart showing the vehicle body subsidence prediction processing procedure of FIGS. The controller 43 always executes the vehicle body subsidence prediction process in the vehicle shown in FIG. 7. In the vehicle body subsidence prediction processing, first, in step S1, the state of the vehicle height maintenance control flag F set by the vehicle height maintenance control start determination processing and the vehicle end maintenance control end determination processing of FIGS. Step S2
Move to.

In this step S2, the above-mentioned step S1
It is determined whether or not the vehicle height maintenance control flag F read in step 1 is reset to "0" indicating the stopped state of the vehicle height maintenance control. When the determination result is "F = 0", the process proceeds to step S3, the vehicle height maintenance control start determination process subroutine shown in FIG. 8 is executed, and then the process returns to step S1.
On the other hand, when the vehicle height maintenance control flag F is set to "1" indicating the execution state of the vehicle height maintenance control and "F = 1" is determined, the process proceeds to step S4 and the vehicle height maintenance control shown in FIG. 9 is performed. The subroutine of the control end judgment processing is executed, and step S1
Return to.

In the subroutine of the vehicle height maintenance control start determination processing shown in FIG. 8, first, in step S31, the vehicle speed detection signal V detected by the vehicle speed sensor 38 and the door switch 3 are detected.
9, door open / closed state detection signal, door lock state detection signal detected by door lock switch 40, select lever position detection signal detected by select lever switch 41, and parking brake switch 42 detected The parking brake operating state detection signal is read, and then the process proceeds to step S32.

In this step S32, the above-mentioned step S
Based on the vehicle speed detection signal V read in 31, it is determined whether "vehicle speed V = 0", that is, whether the vehicle is stopped. When the determination result is "vehicle speed V>0", that is, when the vehicle is traveling, the process proceeds to step S33, and the vehicle height maintenance control is "OFF".
Then, the process returns to step S1 shown in FIG. In the "OFF" state of the vehicle height maintenance control, the rod 15 is controlled to the vehicle body sinking prevention release position shown by the solid line in FIG. 2 and is in a state of being retracted into the support bracket 6, and the rod 15 is changed by the vehicle height change during traveling. It does not contact the receiving member 14.

On the other hand, if the result of determination in step S32 is "vehicle speed V = 0", that is, the vehicle is stopped, step S3
4, the door switch 3 in the vehicle is detected based on the door open / closed state detection signal read in step S31.
It is determined whether or not 9 is "open". When the determination result is "open", it is predicted that the vehicle body will sink due to the riding of passengers and the loading of luggage. Therefore, the process proceeds to step S35 and the vehicle height is maintained. The control is set to the "ON" state, the vehicle height maintenance control flag F is set to "1" in the following step S36, and then the process returns to the step S1 shown in FIG.

In the "ON" state of the vehicle height maintenance control, the controller 43 outputs a rotation direction signal and a drive pulse for moving the rod 15 from the vehicle body squat prevention prevention position to the vehicle body squat prevention position to the electric motor 24, and The rotation direction signal and the rotation angle pulse detected by the rotary encoder 26 are read, the rotation angle pulse is counted, and the count value is set to move the rod 15 from the vehicle body sinking prevention release position to the vehicle body sinking prevention position. When the number of pulses is reached, the output of the rotation direction signal and drive pulse to the electric motor 24 is stopped.

As a result, the electric motor 24 is normally rotated to rotate the outer cylinder 29 in the counterclockwise direction when viewed from above, and the rod 15 is moved to the vehicle body sinking prevention position shown by the chain double-dashed line in FIG. . In this state, the vehicle is in a state of being close to the receiving member 14, and when the vehicle body is submerged, the vehicle comes into contact with the receiving member 14 to suppress further vehicle body subsidence and maintain a predetermined vehicle height.

On the other hand, the determination result of step S34 is "closed".
If so, it is determined that the vehicle body subsidence due to the passenger riding and the loading of luggage is not predicted, and the process proceeds to step S37. In this step S37, in the step S3
Based on the door lock state detection signal read in 1, it is determined whether or not the door lock switch 40 in the vehicle is "off". If the door lock switch 40 is "off", the door is opened and the personnel associated therewith. Since the subsidence of the vehicle due to boarding and loading of luggage, etc. is predicted, the process proceeds to step S35.

On the other hand, if the result of the determination in step S37 is that the door lock switch 40 is "on", it is determined that door opening and vehicle body subsidence are not predicted, and the process proceeds to step S38. In this step S38, it is determined whether or not the select lever switch 41 operated by the driver is in the parking range "P" based on the select lever position detection signal read in step S31. Is "P", it is determined that the vehicle is expected to be stopped or parked for a long time, and the subsidence of the vehicle due to the riding of passengers and the loading of luggage is predicted, and the process proceeds to step S35.

On the other hand, when the result of the determination in step S38 is "other than P", it is determined that the vehicle may start traveling, and that the subsidence of the vehicle due to the riding of personnel and the loading of luggage is not predicted. , And proceeds to step S39.
In step S39, it is determined whether or not the parking brake switch 42 is "on" based on the parking brake operating state detection signal read in step S31. When the determination result is "on" Judging that a certain amount of stoppage and the accompanying subsidence of the vehicle due to the riding of personnel and the loading of baggage are expected,
Control goes to step S35.

On the other hand, when the result of the determination in step S39 is that the parking brake switch 42 is "off", it is highly likely that the vehicle will start running, and it is determined that the riding of passengers and the loading of luggage are not predicted. Then, the process proceeds to step S33. In the subroutine of the vehicle height maintenance control end determination processing shown in FIG. 9, first, in step S41.
Then, similar to the vehicle height maintenance control start determination processing, the vehicle speed detection signal V, the door open / closed state detection signal, the door locked state detection signal, the select lever position detection signal, and the parking brake operation state detection signal are detected. Read, and then the process proceeds to step S42.

In this step S42, the step S
Based on the vehicle speed detection signal read in 41, "vehicle speed V
> 0 ”, that is, it is determined whether the vehicle is traveling. When the determination result is“ vehicle speed V> 0 ”and it is determined that the vehicle is traveling, the process proceeds to step S43 and the vehicle height maintenance control is set to“ OF ”.
F "state, and in step S44 the vehicle height maintenance control flag F
Is reset to "0" and the process returns to step S1 in FIG.

On the other hand, when the result of the determination in step S42 is "vehicle speed V = 0", it is determined that the vehicle is stopped, the process proceeds to step S45, and the select lever position detection signal read in step S41 is read. Based on the above, it is determined whether or not the select lever switch 41 operated by the driver is other than "P" in the parking range and "N" in the neutral range (R, D, L, 2),
When the determination result is "other than P and N", it is determined that the vehicle may start, the process proceeds to step S46, and the opening / closing state of the door is determined based on the door opening / closing state detection signal. When the determination result is “open”, step S
After shifting to 49, the vehicle height maintenance control is turned to the "ON" state, the process returns to step S1 of FIG. 7, and when it is "closed", the process proceeds to step S43 to turn the vehicle height maintenance control to the "OFF" state.

When the result of the determination in step S45 is "P or N", the vehicle is not expected to start, so
In step S47, it is determined whether the parking brake switch 42 is "off" based on the parking brake operating state detection signal read in step S41. When this judgment result is "off", it is judged that the vehicle may start,
If it is "on", the vehicle is not expected to start, so the routine proceeds to step S48.

In this step S48, the step S
Based on the door lock state detection signal read by 41, it is determined whether or not the door lock switch 40 in the vehicle is "on", and when the determination result is "on", the vehicle may start. If it is "off", it is judged that the vehicle body sinking due to the opening of the door and the accompanying passenger's riding and loading of luggage is predicted. Control goes to step S49.

Therefore, assuming that the vehicle is now traveling with the vehicle height maintenance flag F being reset to "0", in this state, the process of FIG. 7 proceeds from step S2 to step S3. The vehicle height maintenance control start determination processing shown in FIG. 8 is executed. In this vehicle height maintenance control start determination processing, when "vehicle speed V>0", the vehicle height maintenance control is "OF".
Since it is in the F "state, the controller 43 stops outputting the rotation direction signal and the drive pulse to the electric motor 24 so that the rod 15 maintains the vehicle body sinking prevention release position. Support bracket 6
Since the vehicle is soaked in the vehicle, the rod 15 does not contact the receiving member 14 even if the vehicle height changes due to pitching, rolling, bouncing, etc., and the coil spring 4 absorbs the shock accompanying the vehicle height change. , Maintain the vehicle height.

After that, when the running vehicle is stopped, the vehicle speed becomes V = 0. Therefore, the process proceeds from step S32 to step S34 in FIG. 8 and includes not only the door for getting on and off but also the back door and the trunk lid. The open / closed state of the door, the open switch of the remote control door, and the operating state of the trunk opener switch are determined. This step S3
When the result determined in 4 is "closed", the process proceeds to step S37.

When it is confirmed that the door is locked, the select lever switch 41 is in a position other than parking or neutral (R, D, 2, L) and the parking brake switch 42 is released, the vehicle is reset. Since traveling is predicted, steps S37 to S33
And the vehicle height maintenance control is continued in the "OFF" state.

On the other hand, in the stopped vehicle, step S
If it is confirmed in 34 that the door is opened, the subsidence of the vehicle body is predicted due to the passengers getting on and loading of luggage.
Then, the vehicle height maintenance control is turned "ON", and then the vehicle height maintenance control flag F is set to "1" in step S35. At this time, the controller 43 controls the electric motor 24 to
A drive signal is output so that the rod 15 moves from the vehicle body sinking prevention release position to the vehicle body sinking prevention position. Therefore, when the vehicle body sinking is predicted when the vehicle is stopped, the rod 15 that has been recessed in the support bracket 6 approaches the receiving member 14 and moves to the vehicle body sinking prevention position by, for example, rotating the electric motor 24 forward. To do.

In this state, when the vehicle load is small, the vehicle body sinking is small, so that the rod 15 does not contact the receiving member 14, and the vehicle height is maintained by the coil spring 4. Further, when the vehicle body largely sinks due to an increase in the number of persons or loading of luggage, the rod 15 driven and controlled to the vehicle body sinking prevention position abuts the receiving member 14 to reliably prevent further vehicle body sinking. Avoid contact of the car body with the curbstones on the road shoulder.

Furthermore, since the vehicle body subsidence prevention release position is controlled while the vehicle is traveling, the vehicle that has been traveling with a large load and the vehicle body already sunk below a predetermined vehicle height stops, and the vehicle body subsidence is further reduced. If it is predicted, the vehicle height maintenance control start determination processing of FIG. 8 is executed, and when the vehicle height maintenance control is “ON”, the rod 15 extended toward the receiving member 14 is lowered. The drive amount is controlled up to the protrusion amount which is the vehicle body sinking prevention position even after the vehicle body 1 comes in contact with the receiving member 14 on the way, so that the vehicle body 1 approaching the suspension arm 2 is pushed up and returned to a predetermined vehicle height.

When the rod 15 is controlled to the vehicle body subsidence prevention position and the vehicle body 1 is supported by the contact with the receiving member 14 to raise the vehicle height, the rod 15 is prevented from the vehicle body subsidence from the receiving member 16 side. Although a force to return to the release position is generated, since the worm gear is inserted, the rod 15 is prevented from retracting to the vehicle body sinking prevention release position side even if the electric motor 24 is in the non-driving state. .

When the rod 15 sinks and comes into contact with the receiving member 16, a lateral force acts on the tip of the rod 15 as the suspension arm 2 strokes. It can be absorbed by the slide table 19 provided in the receiving member 14 and displaceable in the horizontal direction. Moreover, since the tip of the rod 15 has a hemispherical shape, a good contact relationship can be maintained even when the receiving member 14 is inclined from the horizontal plane.

On the other hand, even if the door of the stopped vehicle is closed, if the door is unlocked in step S37, it is predicted that the door will be opened and the passengers and the luggage will be loaded accordingly. After the shift, the vehicle height maintenance control is started. Further, even when the door of the stopped vehicle is closed and locked, when the driver selects the parking range with the select lever in step S38, the vehicle may be stopped or parked for a long time, and before traveling again. Since it is predicted that the personnel will get in and the luggage will be loaded, the process proceeds to step S35 and the vehicle height maintenance control is started.

Furthermore, even if the door of the stopped vehicle is closed and locked so that the driver does not select the parking range with the select lever, the driver selects the neutral range and sets the parking brake in step S39. If it is operated, there is a possibility that the vehicle will stop for a certain period of time, and it is predicted that passengers will be loaded and luggage will be loaded before starting traveling again. Therefore, the process proceeds to step S35, and vehicle height maintenance control is started. .

As described above, when the vehicle body subsidence is predicted and the vehicle height maintenance control is executed, the vehicle height maintenance control flag F is set to "1". Therefore, in the stopped vehicle, the step S2 shown in FIG. Since the process proceeds to step S4 when the vehicle height maintenance control flag F is determined, the vehicle height maintenance control end determination process is executed using the subroutine of FIG. Therefore, in the currently stopped vehicle in which vehicle body subsidence is predicted and vehicle height maintenance control is being executed, the driver has selected the parking range or the neutral range with the select lever, operates the parking brake, and the door lock is released. When the vehicle is released, the vehicle may be parked or parked for a long time, and it is predicted that the vehicle will sink due to the passengers getting in and the loading of luggage before restarting the vehicle. .

On the other hand, even if the vehicle continues to stop, if the driver selects a range other than the parking range and the neutral range (R, D, 2, L) with the select lever, the vehicle may run. , The following step S
At 46, the open / closed state of the door is determined. When the door is opened, the vehicle height is maintained because the vehicle sinking due to the passenger riding and luggage loading is predicted. Since the loading is not predicted, the vehicle height maintenance control is ended,
The vehicle height maintenance control flag F is reset to "0".

Further, even if the vehicle continues to be stopped and the driver selects the parking range and the neutral range with the select lever, the vehicle may restart when the parking brake is released. The process proceeds to step S46, and it is determined whether or not the vehicle height maintenance control is finished based on the open / closed state of the door. In addition, the vehicle continues to stop, the driver has selected the parking range and neutral range with the select lever,
Even if the parking brake is operated, the vehicle is predicted to start traveling even when the door lock switch 40 is in the on state and the door is locked, so the process proceeds to step S43, and it is determined whether or not the vehicle height maintenance control should be ended.

In the above embodiment, the rod 1
Although the case where 5 is provided on the vehicle body 1 side and the receiving member 14 is provided on the suspension arm 2 side has been described, the present invention is not limited to this, and they may be arranged in an upside down relationship. Further, in the above-described embodiment, the case where the linear conversion mechanism 25 of the drive mechanism 16 is configured by the worm gear has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this, and it may be configured by using a rack and a pinion. In this case, a lock mechanism such as a brake for preventing reverse rotation may be provided on the electric motor 24 side, or a lock mechanism may be provided on the rod 15 side.

Further, in the above embodiment, the case where the drive mechanism 16 is provided with the linear conversion mechanism 25 has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, an inner rotor type direct motor is provided, and It may be configured to prevent rotation of the threaded rod 15 and drive it back and forth. In this case as well, a lock mechanism such as a brake for preventing reverse rotation is provided on the direct motor side, or a lock mechanism is provided on the rod 15 side. It should be provided.

Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the case where the outer cylinder 29 and the rod 15 are screwed together has been described, but a ball screw may be applied instead of this. Further, in the above-described embodiment, the case where the engagement portion 30 that blocks the rotation of the rod 15 is engaged by using the parallel key 34 and the key groove 23 has been described, but the embodiment is not limited thereto. The cross-section of the small-diameter portion 15c of the rod 15 may be a polygonal shape such as a triangle or a quadrangle, and the through-hole 33 may be polygonal in accordance with the polygonal shape, and the rotation of the rod 15 may be prevented by engaging them.

Further, in the above embodiment, the case where the rod 15 screwed on the inner peripheral surface of the rotating outer cylinder 29 is structured so as to be prevented from rotating by the engaging portion 30 and driven forward and backward, is described. However, the rod 15 is slidably disposed on the rotating outer cylinder 29, and is provided with a male screw that is screwed into a female screw formed in the penetrating portion of the support bracket 6 to move back and forth. You may do it.

Further, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the drive mechanism 16 has been described as having a structure in which the linear force converting mechanism 25 converts the rotational force of the electric motor 24 into a linear motion to move the rod 15 forward and backward, but the present invention is not limited to this. Alternatively, the piston rod of the fluid pressure cylinder may be moved back and forth by supplying the fluid pressure generated by the pressure pump to the fluid pressure cylinder via the pressure control valve and the direction switching valve.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged sectional view showing a vehicle height maintaining mechanism.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing a receiving member.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged plan view showing a receiving member.

FIG. 5 is a plan perspective view showing an arrangement state of a vehicle height maintaining mechanism.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a control device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of a vehicle height maintenance control processing procedure executed by the controller according to the embodiment of the present invention.

8 is a subroutine showing an example of a vehicle height maintenance control start determination processing procedure executed in the vehicle height maintenance control processing of FIG.

9 is a subroutine showing an example of a vehicle height maintenance control end determination processing procedure executed in the vehicle height maintenance control processing of FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

5 Vehicle height maintenance mechanism 6 Support bracket 14 Receiving member 15 rod 16 Drive mechanism 19 slide table 20 Pressing member 23 keyway 27 Warm 28 Worm wheel section 29 outer cylinder 30 Engagement part 34 Parallel key 37 Control device 38 vehicle speed sensor 39 door switch 40 door lock switch 41 Select lever switch 42 Parking brake switch 43 controller

Continued front page    F-term (reference) 3D001 AA10 BA01 DA01 DA14 DA17                       EA05 EA07 EA09 EA22 EC07                       ED01

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A vehicle height maintaining device arranged between a vehicle body side and a suspension arm side of a vehicle, comprising vehicle body subsidence prediction means for predicting vehicle body subsidence when the vehicle is stopped,
Moves forward and backward between the vehicle body sinking prevention position and the vehicle body sinking prevention release position, which are provided on one of the vehicle body side and the suspension arm side and contact a receiving member provided on the other side when the vehicle body sinks to maintain a predetermined vehicle height. A free rod, a drive mechanism for driving the rod between a vehicle body subsidence prevention position and a vehicle body subsidence prevention release position, and a rod body subsidence prevention release position when the vehicle body subsidence prediction unit predicts vehicle body subsidence. And a vehicle height maintenance control means for controlling the drive mechanism so that the vehicle body sinking prevention position is reached. 2. The drive mechanism comprises a rotary drive source and a linear conversion means for converting the rotary motion of the rotary drive source into a linear motion to drive the rod back and forth. Item 1. The vehicle height maintenance device according to item 1. 3. The linear conversion means includes a worm that is rotatably driven by the rotary drive source and a worm wheel that is rotatably installed in a mounting bracket provided on the vehicle body side and that meshes with the worm on an outer peripheral surface thereof. It is composed of an outer cylinder which is formed on the inner peripheral surface and into which the rod is screwed, and an engaging member which is fixed in the mounting bracket and engages with the rod to prevent rotation. The vehicle height maintenance device according to claim 2, characterized in that. 4. The vehicle height maintaining device according to claim 1, wherein the rod has a spherical end at a tip end that abuts the receiving member. 5. The vehicle height maintaining device according to claim 1, wherein the receiving member has a slide table that is horizontally displaceable at a contact portion with the rod. 6. The vehicle height maintaining apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the receiving member includes an elastic member that returns the slide table to the center position.