JP2003065419A - Slide mechanism and power slide device for sheet - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a slide mechanism equipped with a feeding mechanism consisting of a feed screw 8 and a train of slits a smooth movement of which is assured. SOLUTION: The feeding mechanism of this slide mechanism is given a torque by a motor for sliding an upper rail 3 relative to a lower rail 4 and is composed of the feed screw 8 and the train of slits with which the feed screw 8 is put in engagement, wherein the thread form of the screw 8 is narrowing so that the tooth width shortens as going toward the tooth tip, and an energizing means 24 is provided to energize the feed screw 8 toward the train of slits.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a slide mechanism provided with a lower rail and an upper rail which are relatively movable in the longitudinal direction, and a feed mechanism for receiving a rotational force from a motor and sliding the upper rail with respect to the lower rail. The present invention relates to a slide device for a seat provided with a pair of such slide mechanisms.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a prior art of such a slide device for a seat, there is one disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-138804. In this technique, a worm is rotatably supported on an upper rail, and a slit row formed on the bottom surface of a lower rail is meshed with the worm to enable sliding movement of the upper rail.

In this prior art, the rotation directions of the worms provided on the left and right rails are opposite, and the slit rows formed in the corresponding lower rails have the opposite inclinations. It is said that. For example,
In FIG. 2, the slit row of the upper rail is upward and upward as it goes to the right in the figure, and the slit row on the upper and lower sides of the figure is downward and rightward. In this way, by adopting the slit rows that are inclined in mutually symmetrical directions in the rails located in the left-right direction (direction indicated by X in FIG. 2), it is intended to suppress rattling in the left-right direction.

[0004]

In the case of adopting the above-mentioned structure, when the left and right upper rails and the left and right lower rails both behave as if they were completely rigid bodies,
Although a structure with less rattling can be achieved, rigidity cannot be completely obtained, and rattling occurs separately for the left and right feeding mechanisms including the feed screw and the slit row, which causes a problem in operation.

An object of the present invention is to provide a slide mechanism having a feed mechanism composed of a feed screw and a slit array, which can reduce play between the two, and can be installed side by side like a power slide device for a seat. Even when it is applied to each of the slide mechanisms, it is to obtain a power slide device for a seat that can smoothly move when the seat moves in the front-rear direction.

[0006]

To achieve this object, the slide mechanism according to the present invention is characterized in that the feeding mechanism has a rotation axis in the longitudinal direction. A feed screw and a slit row in which the feed screw meshes are formed, and the thread of the feed screw is formed in a tapered shape in which the tooth width becomes shorter as it goes toward the tooth tip, and the feed screw of the slit row is formed. There is a biasing means for biasing in the direction.

In this structure, the feed screw is biased toward the slit row by the biasing means. That is, the feed screw is pushed deeply into the slits of the slit row. Since the tooth width of the feed screw becomes narrower toward the cutting edge and becomes wider toward the tooth bottom side, it is possible to reduce the gap between the thread and the screw thread at each slit, and at the biasing side. , Rattling is reduced. As a result, the upper rail can be moved smoothly.

Now, in the case of adopting the above configuration,
As described in claim 2, the feed screw is rotatably supported on the upper rail and fixedly supported in the longitudinal direction, the lower rail is provided with the slit row, and the lower rail is substantially U-shaped upward. It is preferable that a lower rail main body of a mold and a pair of flange portions projecting into an inner space of the lower rail main body are provided, and the slit row is formed in the flange portion.

In this structure, in order to perform the feeding operation between the flange portion projecting into the inner space of the lower rail main body and the feed screw, the feed screw is provided on the slit row side provided on one flange portion side. By biasing, there is no play between the flange portion on the biasing side and the feed screw, and smooth feeding can be realized.

Further, in the above construction, as described in claim 3, the biasing means rotatably supports the feed screw, and the bush supported on the upper rail is provided on one side. It is preferable that the spring urges the slit array side.

In order to bias the feed screw toward the slit row, a bush supporting the feed screw is attached to the slit row side.
By urging using the spring, it is possible to obtain a slide mechanism that uses the bush in a fixed state and realizes a smooth feed with less rattling by an easily available spring.

Now, as described in claim 4,
A pair of the slide mechanisms described so far are provided side by side, and the upper rail is attached to the seat, and the lower rail is attached to the base, respectively.By configuring a power slide device for the seat, a smooth and stable seat is provided. We were able to obtain a power slide mechanism for a seat that enables movement.

[0013]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION A power slide device 1 for a seat of the present application will be described below with reference to the drawings. 1 is a side view of the power slide device 1 of the present application attached to a seat 2, FIG. 2 is a plan view, and FIG. 3 is a front view.
FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of a main part. Further, FIG. 5 is a side cross-sectional view of the main part centering on the feeding mechanism referred to in the present application,
FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a transmission configuration near the motor, FIG. 7 is a sectional view showing a sliding configuration between the upper rail and the lower rail, and FIG. 8 is a further detailed sectional view of the feeding mechanism. In addition, FIG.
8 is a sectional view taken along line YY of FIG. 8, and FIG. 10 is taken along line ZZ of FIG.
FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a meshing structure of a feed screw and a slit.

As can be seen from these figures, the device 1
Is a pair of left and right power slide mechanisms 5 of the present application each including an upper rail 3 and a lower rail 4 arranged side by side in the width direction of the seat 2. The power source of the power slide device 1 is the motor 6, and as shown in FIGS. 2 and 6, the output reduced by the reduction mechanism 7 directly connected to the motor 6 is the feed screw 8 provided on the upper rail 3.
Is transmitted via the rotary cable 9 and the rotation of the feed screw 8 about the axis allows the upper rail 3 to move relative to the lower rail 4 and the seat 2 to move in the front-rear direction. Here, the feed screw means a screw having an inclination (advance angle (γ shown in FIGS. 11 and 12)) on the pitch cylinder.

As can be seen from these figures, the pair of left and right upper rails 3 provided in the pair of left and right slide mechanisms 5 arranged side by side have their seat mounting portions 3A interposed therebetween.
It is fixed to the seat 2. Further, the pair of left and right upper rails 3 are connected via a motor support bracket 10, and both upper rails 3 and the motor support bracket 10 are integrally moved together with the seat 2 in the front-rear direction.

On the other hand, the lower rails 4 provided on the pair of left and right slide mechanisms 5 arranged side by side are individually fixed to the vehicle floor 12 via fixing brackets 11.

As shown in FIGS. 2, 3, 4, and 6, a drive body case 13 is attached to an intermediate portion of the motor support bracket 10. The drive body case 13 accommodates the motor 6, a worm 14 directly connected to the output shaft of the motor 6, and a worm wheel 15 that meshes with the worm 14, and the worm wheel 15 has a quadrangle at both shaft ends. The holes 15a are provided so that the rotational force decelerated from both ends can be taken out.

As for the feed screw 8 provided in each of the slide mechanisms 5, as shown in FIG. 5, a square hole 8a is provided in the input portion thereof so as to be able to receive the rotational force.

Square hole 15a of the worm wheel 15
An inner shaft 9a of a rotary cable 9 is inserted between the inner shaft 9a and the square hole 8a of the feed screw 8 so that the rotational drive can be transmitted between them. Incidentally, the rotary cable 9 has an inner shaft 9a penetrating through the outer tube 9b, and both are configured to be flexible. As shown in the figure, the rotary cable 9 is fed into the upper rail 3 via a notch portion 16 provided in the upper rail 3.
Therefore, in the structure of the present application, the rotational force reduced by the speed reduction mechanism 7 (consisting of the worm 14 and the worm wheel 15) directly connected to the motor 6 and increased in torque is directly supplied by the rotary cable 9 to the left and right feed screws. 8
And is used for moving the upper rail 3. The rotary cable 9 transmits rotation at the same speed by converting the rotation axial direction. In the embodiment shown in these figures, the rotation direction of the pair of left and right feed screws 8 is opposite as shown in FIG.

The main transmission structure up to the power slide mechanism 5 has been described above. The features of the slide mechanism will be described below. Regarding the moving structure between the lower rail 4 and the upper rail 3, the feed screw 8 that is rotatable with respect to the upper rail 3 and is fixedly supported in the longitudinal direction of the rail, and the slit row 17 provided in the lower rail 4. In between, the feed mechanism 18 referred to in the present application is configured, and the configuration in which the upper rail 3 can slide is adopted.

As shown in FIG. 4, a pair of sliding members 19 are interposed between the upper rail 3 and the lower rail 4, and the upper rail 3 is slidable with respect to the lower rail 4. There is. Further, as can be seen from the sectional views of FIGS. 3 and 7, the upper rail 3 is supported in the inner space of the lower rail 4.

The lower rail 4 is, as shown in FIG.
The lower rail main body 4a has an upward U-shape (U-shape), and a pair of left and right flange portions 20 projecting from the vicinity of the upper end of the lower rail main body 4a. The flange portion 20 includes an inward flange portion 20a extending toward the inner space from both ends of the substantially U-shaped lower rail body, and a downward flange extending downward from an inner end of the inward flange portion 20a. Part 20b,
Further, the downward flange portion 20b is configured to include an outward flange portion 20c extending outward from the lower end. Here, the inner side means a direction toward the lateral center axis X side of the lower rail 4, and the outer side means a direction away from the central axis X.

A slit row 17 is formed on the pair of left and right flange portions 20 of the lower rail 4. The shape of each slit 170 will be described later in detail in relation to the feed screw 8.

To give an example of a method of processing the lower rail 4, a sheet metal having a predetermined shape is prepared, a slit row 17 having a predetermined shape is formed at a predetermined position, and a bending operation along the longitudinal direction is performed at a plurality of portions. Thus, the desired lower rail 4 can be easily obtained. The same applies to the upper rail 3 basically.

As shown in FIG. 7, the upper rail 3 has a first upper rail member 3a having a predetermined folded portion 30 at the end of a flat plate, and a folded portion 30 at the end.
Is provided and is integrated with the second upper rail member 3b having the step portion 31 provided at a predetermined position. Here, the structure below the step portion 31 of the upper rail 3 is configured to be insertable between the flange portions 20 of the lower rail 4. In the present application, a portion of the upper rail 3 located between the pair of descending flange portions 20b is referred to as an inner side wall 32.

The folded-back portion 30 provided in the upper rail 3 is located in the flange inner space S1 formed in the flange portion 20 of the lower rail 4 in a state where the assembling is completed. The first empty space d1 and the second empty space d2 shown are selected to be relatively small. By adopting such a structure, even if a pair of left and right flange portions of the lower rail 4 are opened for some reason, the upper rail 3 is in a predetermined position on the lower rail 4 so that the lower rail 4 is excessively expanded. Can be prevented. In the present application, such a configuration is referred to as expansion suppressing means. Actual free space d1, d2
Is set to about 1 mm. Here, the overall width of the lower rail 4 is about 40 mm, and the interval between the descending flange portions 20b is selected to be about 20 mm.

Next, the structure of mounting the feed screw 8 to the upper rail 3 and the features of the arrangement in the slide mechanism will be described. The feed screw 8 is supported between the inner side walls 32 of the upper rail 3 via the screw support bracket 100 as shown in FIG. In the assembled state, the lead screw 8 has a majority of its lower rail 4
Within the internal space S2.

This screw support bracket 100
Is configured to serve as a support for the casing 22 for guiding the rotary cable, and is configured to be attachable to the step portion 31 of the upper rail 3 from below. As shown in FIG. 4 and FIG. In the cutout hole 160 formed in a part of the side wall 32 in the longitudinal direction, the end portion in the longitudinal direction (T portion in FIG. 8) is the inner side wall 3.
It is configured to abut on the end face of the No. 2. In addition, the left and right side portions of the feed screw in the screw support bracket 100 are open, and at the same time, a part of the bottom surface corresponding to that portion is cut out. The reason for adopting this structure is that, in the present application, the feed screw 8 is meshed with the slit rows 17 provided in the pair of left and right flange portions 20, and therefore the diameter D1 of the feed screw 8 is set as shown in FIG. This is because the width is made larger than the width of the upper rail 3 (width W1 between the inner side walls 32). In order to realize this configuration, the screw support bracket 100 that supports the feed screw 8
A part of the descending wall portion of is formed in a downward spread shape.

The feed screw 8 is provided with a pair of bushes 23, and the screw support bracket 100 is provided.
Is arranged at a predetermined position. Now, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 9, the feed screw 8 and the screw support bracket 100 are provided.
A spring 24 is provided at a predetermined position with the feed screw 8 in the slit row 17 provided in one flange portion 20 (in FIG. 9, the flange portion located on the right side in the figure). The spring 24 is configured to be biased. The spring 24 has an arcuate shape with hooks provided at both ends, and has a structure in which a central portion is brought into contact with the bush 23 and both ends are hooked on the screw support bracket 100 to exert a biasing force.

By adopting this structure, it is possible to secure the depth of biting of the feed screw 8 into the slit row 17, and it is possible to eliminate backlash. Therefore, the bush 23
Is selected to be smaller than the width W1 between the inner side walls 32, and the spring 24 urges it to have flexibility in the width direction.

With the above structure, the feed screw 8 having a relatively large diameter is rotatably fixedly supported on the upper rail 3, protrudes beyond the notch hole 160 of the upper rail 3, and is fitted to the pair of left and right flange portions 20. It becomes possible to mesh with the slit row 17 provided. Further, with respect to the slit row 17 provided on the one flange portion 20, the amount of biting becomes large. Now, as shown in FIG. 11, the screw formed on the feed screw 8 will be described. The screw thread (tooth shape) is trapezoidal. On the other hand, regarding the slit row 17, each slit 170 includes a pair of longitudinal edges 170a along the longitudinal direction of the rail, which is the traveling direction of the feed screw 8, and a pair of orthogonal edges orthogonal to the longitudinal direction. 170b with a rectangular opening slit. The opening width (w in FIG. 11) in the longitudinal direction is formed so that feed screws opposite in the twisting direction can engage with each other by changing their postures, as shown in FIG. 11 (FIG. 11 (a) ( In (b), the feed screws whose twisting directions are opposite (the inclinations are equal) have the same slit 170.
Corresponds to the state of meshing with). As a result, in the present application, the lower rail 4 can be commonly used on the left and right sides.

[Other Embodiments] (a) The object to which the slide mechanism of the present invention is attached is not limited to the object that moves the seat in the front-rear direction and the positioning thereof, but any object that slides can be applied.
In the present application, the side to which the lower rail is attached is referred to as the base. (B) In the above embodiment, the thread formed on the feed screw has a trapezoidal shape, but may have a triangular shape. That is, it is sufficient that the toothed portion has a tapered shape in which the tooth width becomes shorter toward the cutting edge. (C) In the above embodiment, a rectangular slit shape was adopted. However, for example, in the center side portion where the slit is close to the rotation axis of the feed screw, the distribution width in the rail longitudinal direction is different. The shape may be narrower in the central width than the portion. An example of such a case is shown in FIG. (A) In (b), it corresponds to different twisting directions (the inclination is the same), and if the center side portion is smoothly projected in this way (this protruding position is indicated by E), As a result, the feed screw engages at a position close to the rotation axis (a deep position as a screw thread), and in the present application, the lower rail can be shared while achieving smooth sliding. Now, in such a power slide structure, the thread shape of the feed screw is triangular or trapezoidal, and with respect to the left and right slide mechanisms, each slit forming the slit row is arranged in the longitudinal direction of the rail, which is the traveling direction of the feed screw. It suffices that the slit central axes C are orthogonal to each other and that the slit central axis C has an opening edge that is positioned in the longitudinal direction. (D) In the urging means for urging the feed screw toward the slit row, in the above embodiment, the feed screw is provided at one end portion in the axial direction of the feed screw, but it may be provided at both ends. good.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view of a power slide device for a seat attached to a seat.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a power slide device for a seat.

FIG. 3 is a front view of a power slide device for a seat.

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of essential parts.

FIG. 5 is a side sectional view of the main part centering on the feeding mechanism.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a transmission configuration near a motor.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing a sliding configuration of an upper rail and a lower rail.

FIG. 8 is a more detailed sectional view of the feeding mechanism.

9 is a sectional view taken along line YY of FIG.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a meshing structure of a feed screw and a slit.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram of a meshed state of a slit row composed of rectangular slits and a feed screw.

FIG. 12 is an explanatory view of a meshing state of a slit and a feed screw, which is a slit having a central slit.

[Explanation of symbols]

Power slide device for 1 seat 2 sheets 3 Upper rail 4 Lower rail 5 Slide mechanism 6 motor 7 Reduction mechanism 8 lead screw 9 Rotary cable 10 Motor support bracket 11 Fixed bracket 12 Vehicle floor 16 Notch 17 slit rows 18 Feeding mechanism 19 Sliding material 20 Flange 20a Inward flange part 20b descending flange part 20c outward flange part 24 spring 30 Folding part 31 steps 32 Inner side wall 100 screw support bracket 160 notch hole

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Inventor Hideo Nihonmatsu             Aichi, Kariya City, Aichi Prefecture             Inside Engineering Co., Ltd. F term (reference) 3B087 AA02 BA02 BB03 BC17                 3J062 AB21 AC07 BA40 CD47

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A slide mechanism comprising a lower rail and an upper rail that are relatively movable in a longitudinal direction, and a feed mechanism that slides the upper rail with respect to the lower rail by receiving a rotational force from a motor. The mechanism is composed of a feed screw having a rotation axis in the longitudinal direction and a slit row in which the feed screw is meshed, and the screw thread of the feed screw is formed in a tapered shape in which the tooth width becomes shorter toward the tooth tip. And a slide mechanism including a biasing unit that biases the feed screw in the direction of the slit row. 2. The feed screw is rotatably mounted on the upper rail and fixedly supported in the longitudinal direction, the lower rail includes the slit row, and the lower rail is a substantially U-shaped lower rail main body facing upward.
The slide mechanism according to claim 1, further comprising a pair of flange portions projecting into an inner space of the lower rail body, wherein the slit row is formed in the pair of flange portions. 3. The slide mechanism according to claim 2, wherein the biasing means is a spring that rotatably supports the feed screw and biases a bush supported by the upper rail toward one of the slit rows. . 4. A power slide device for a seat, comprising a pair of the slide mechanisms according to claim 1, wherein the upper rail is attached to a seat and the lower rail is attached to a base. .