JP2003291620A - Car height adjusting device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To adjust the height of an automobile with ease and at a low cost by utilizing the existing shock absorber as it is. <P>SOLUTION: In the existing shock absorber 7, a coil spring 13 is fitted between a spring receiver 9 and an upper mount 12, and a cylinder 15 with a piston 14 is secured between the coil spring 13 and the shock absorber 7. The car height is adjusted by adjusting height of the piston 14 by adjusting the pressure in the cylinder 15. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vehicle height adjusting device used for automobiles, motorcycles and the like.

2. Description of the Related Art The following shock absorbers are known for use in automobile suspensions.

As shown in FIG. 6, a general shock absorber 51 is composed of an upper mount 52 for holding a coil spring 54, a lower seat 53, and a damper portion 55.

The coil spring 54 has a natural frequency, and if the natural frequency matches the cycle of unevenness of the road surface or the natural vibration of the vehicle body, the vehicle body will not stop shaking during running, and the shaking will increase and the vehicle will operate. This will reduce the tropism and riding comfort. Therefore, the unnecessary movement is absorbed by the hydraulic pressure in the damper portion 55 of the shock absorber 51.

However, in this shock absorber 51, the vehicle height of the automobile cannot be adjusted only by damping the coil spring 54 described above.

As shown in FIG. 7, a shock absorber 61 for adjusting the vehicle height includes an upper mount 62 for holding a coil spring 64 and a lower seat 63.
And a damper portion 65, a female screw 66 is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the damper portion 65.

The lower seat 63 is screwed to the female screw 66 of the damper portion 65, and the lock nut 67 is screwed to the lower side of the lower seat 63. The lower seat 63 is screwed along the female screw 66. By raising and lowering 63 and the lock nut 67, the vehicle height of the automobile is adjusted.

However, in the case of the shock absorber 61, once the setting is made by the lock nut 67, the vehicle height cannot be adjusted at any time according to the road surface condition and the like.

As shown in FIG. 8, a so-called air suspension 71 is known which uses an airbag 72 to raise and lower the vehicle height of an automobile at any time. According to the air suspension 71, the user can easily and quickly adjust the height of the automobile, but due to the structure using the airbag 72,
The inconvenience that the vehicle tends to break down and that the riding comfort is generally flexible, and that the riding comfort is likely to be uncomfortable when the vehicle is equipped with the air suspension 71 to a certain height or is lowered from the standard vehicle height. is there. And, as described above, the air suspension 71 has a problem that the price is high although it is easy to break down.

Recently, as shown in FIG. 9, an air cylinder 81 has been known as a device for adjusting the vehicle height at any time. However, the same problem as that of the air bag 72 is encountered. is there.

In addition to the above, in the case of the air suspension using the vehicle height adjusting shock absorber 61, the air bag 72 or the air cylinder 81 shown in FIG. 7, the shock absorber 61 itself, which is originally installed, is to be replaced. Therefore, there is a problem in that the mounting work is troublesome and the labor cost is high, and the air suspension itself is expensive as described above.

An object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle height adjusting device that can basically use the shock absorber that has been installed from the beginning as it is.

[0012]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, a spring receiver is provided on an outer periphery of a damper portion of a shock absorber, and an upper mount is attached to an upper portion of a rod protruding upward from an upper portion of the damper portion. In a vehicle height adjusting device in which a coil spring is fitted between a spring receiver and a cylinder, a cylinder having a piston is mounted between the coil spring and the shock absorber, and a rod through hole is provided in each of the cylinder and the axial center of the piston. It is what has been.

A second aspect of the present invention relates to an automobile including the vehicle height adjusting device according to the first aspect.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the automobile, a compressor, a reserve tank for storing compressed air from the compressor, and a pressure regulator for adjusting the amount of compressed air flowing from the reserve tank into the cylinder of the vehicle height adjusting device. Is further included.

A fourth aspect of the present invention relates to a shock absorber with a cylinder, wherein a cylinder having a piston is integrally provided on an upper portion of a damper, and rod through holes are formed at respective axial center portions of the piston and the cylinder.

According to a fifth aspect of the shock absorber of the fourth aspect, both the piston and the cylinder have a substantially bottomed cylindrical shape with an opening at the bottom, and the piston is fitted over the upper part of the damper part to form the bottom part of the piston. By allowing a fluid to be press-fitted between the upper side and the lower side of the bottom of the cylinder, the cylinder moves up and down with respect to the piston.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a bottomed cylindrical cylinder having a bottom opening and an opening edge bent inward, wherein the bottom also has a bottomed cylindrical piston. The present invention relates to a vehicle height adjusting cylinder, in which an abutting portion with which the opening edge abuts is provided in an upper portion of the piston.

In the present invention other than the third aspect, air or oil is introduced into the cylinder.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

First, the overall structure of a vehicle equipped with a vehicle height adjusting device will be described. As shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle 1 includes a compressor 2, a reserve tank 3 in which air from the compressor 2 is stored, and an interior of the vehicle. Pressure regulator 4 having a valve mechanism whose opening degree is changed by operating the switch 10 in
And a cylinder 5 in which the amount of compressed air flowing in is adjusted by the pressure adjuster 4. The cylinder 5 is
It is used in each embodiment described later.

It should be noted that the pressure regulator 4 may be provided only one for the entire automobile 1, two for the front wheels and two for the rear wheels, or may be provided for each of the four wheels.

(Embodiment 1)

As shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, in the vehicle height adjusting device of this embodiment, a spring receiver 9 is provided on the outer periphery of the damper portion 8 of the shock absorber 7, and protrudes upward from the upper portion of the damper portion 8. The upper mount 12 is attached to the upper part of the rod 11, and the coil spring 1 is provided between the upper mount 12 and the spring receiver 9.
3 is fitted, and a cylinder 15 having a piston 14 is mounted between the coil spring 13 and the shock absorber 7, and the cylinder 15 and the piston 1
Rod through-holes 16a and 16b are provided in the axial center portions of 4 respectively.
Is provided.

A female screw (not shown) is formed on the upper end of the rod 11 of the shock absorber 7, and the rod 1
The upper end of the rod 1 is projected to the upper side of the upper mount 12 through a central hole (not shown) of the upper mount 12, and the nut 17 is screwed to the protruding portion 11a, whereby the upper end of the rod 11 is On the upper mount 1
2 is attached.

Each of the piston 14 and the cylinder 15 has a substantially bottomed cylindrical shape with an open bottom.
4 is fitted on the upper part of the damper part 8, and the piston 14
The cylinder 15 is moved up and down with respect to the piston 14 by allowing the fluid to be press-fitted between the upper side of the bottom portion 14a and the lower side of the bottom portion 15a of the cylinder 15.

The piston 14 has an inclined portion 14b extending obliquely outward and upward from the bottom portion 14a and the inclined portion 14b.
A vertical portion 14c extending upward from the bottom portion 14c
The housing portion 19 for the bump rubber 18 attached to the upper portion of the rod 11 of the shock absorber 7 is formed by the a, the inclined portion 14b, and the vertical portion 14c.

The cylinder 15 has a recess 21 for accommodating the bump rubber 18 in the bottom portion 15a, and the recess 21 is sized to be accommodated in the bump rubber accommodating portion 19 of the piston 14.

Further, an inlet / outlet port 15b for compressed air is formed in the upper portion of the side wall of the cylinder 15, and when compressed air is pressed in through the inlet / outlet port 15b, the compressed air is accommodated in the recess 21 of the cylinder 15 and the bump rubber of the piston 14. Part 1
9, and as a result, as shown in FIG. 2, the cylinder 15 rises in cooperation with the spring force of the coil spring 13, and the vehicle height of the automobile increases accordingly.

In the above case, since the lower opening of the cylinder 15 is provided with the opening edge 15c which is bent inward, when the cylinder 15 is raised, the opening edge 1
5c abuts on the inclined portion 14b of the piston 14 so that the rise of the cylinder 15 is restricted within a certain range. In this case, the inclined portion 14b serves as a contact portion with respect to the opening edge 15c of the cylinder 15.

On the other hand, when the compressed air escapes from the inlet / outlet port 15b, the cylinder 15 is lowered and the vehicle height is lowered as shown in FIG.

In the figure, 10 is an upper mount 13.
Shows the mounting bolt of.

(Embodiment 2)

Unlike the first embodiment, the vehicle height adjusting device of the present embodiment is such that the vehicle height adjusting shock absorber 31 and the coil spring 32 are configured separately from each other, as shown in FIG. That is, the lower end portion 31a of the shock absorber 31 is attached to the arm 33 of the suspension device, the upper end portion 31b of the shock absorber 31 is attached to the vehicle body 34 side, and the coil spring 32 is attached at a position adjacent to the shock absorber 31. Has been done.

Reference numeral 30 in the drawing denotes an automobile tire.

Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the shock absorber 31 has a piston 3 on the upper portion of its damper portion 36.
7 is integrally provided with a cylinder 38, and each of the piston 37 and the cylinder 38 has a substantially bottomed cylindrical shape with its lower portion opened, and the rod through holes 39a. 39b is formed.

The piston 37 is fitted over the damper portion 36, and an abutting portion 41 is formed on the outer surface of the piston 37 near the upper end thereof.
A raised portion 42 is formed on the peripheral portion of the rod through hole 39a above the bottom portion 37a.

An opening edge 43 that is bent inward is formed in the lower portion of the cylinder 38, and a raised portion 44 is formed in the peripheral portion of the rod through hole 39b below the bottom portion 38a of the cylinder 38. A fluid inlet / outlet 45 is formed at a portion near the upper end of the.

When the compressed air is not press-fitted from the inlet / outlet 45 between the upper side of the bottom 37a of the piston 37 and the lower side of the bottom 38a of the cylinder, the ridge 42 of the piston 37 is formed.
And the raised portion 44 of the cylinder 38 come into contact with each other, and the vehicle height of the automobile is lowered.

As shown in FIG. 5, the bottom portion 3 of the piston 37 is
In a state in which compressed air is press-fitted from the inlet / outlet 45 between the upper side of 7a and the lower side of the bottom 38a of the cylinder 38, the cylinder 38 rises and finally the opening edge 43 of the cylinder 38 is opened.
Comes into contact with the contact portion 41 of the piston 37 and the cylinder 38
Is regulated.

According to the vehicle height adjusting device of the present invention and the vehicle using the same, the vehicle height can be adjusted by using the existing shock absorber as it is without replacing the shock absorber itself as in the prior art. .

Similar to the conventional vehicle height adjustment, the vehicle height can be appropriately changed depending on the road surface condition and the degree of bending of the road to perform smooth driving, and air parts such as a bumper spoiler attached to the vehicle body of the vehicle can be used. In addition to being in contact with the road surface and not being damaged, when the car is parked, the height of the car is minimized and the distance between the road surface and the car body is made extremely narrow so that the jack under the car body cannot be inserted. Theft can also be prevented.

Further, in the vehicle height adjusting device of the present invention, since the cylinder having the piston is mounted between the shock absorber and the coil spring, the cylinder and the coil spring cooperate to adjust the vehicle height. The advantage is that

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overall configuration of a vehicle including a vehicle height adjusting device according to each embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing a vehicle height adjusting device according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing a state in which the cylinder is lowered in the same embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a front view showing a vehicle height adjusting device according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a state where the cylinder is raised in the same embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a front view showing a conventional general shock absorber.

FIG. 7 is a front view showing a conventional example of a shock absorber having a vehicle height adjusting function.

FIG. 8 is a front view showing another conventional example of the vehicle height adjusting device.

FIG. 9 is a front view showing still another conventional example of the vehicle height adjusting device.

[Explanation of symbols]

7: Shock absorber 8: Damper part 9: Lower seat 11: Rod 12: Upper mount 13: Coil spring 14: Piston 15 :: Cylinder 16a, 16b: Rod through hole

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A shock absorber is provided with a spring receiver on an outer periphery of a damper part, an upper mount is attached to an upper part of a rod protruding upward from an upper part of the damper part, and a coil spring is provided between the upper mount and the spring receiver. A vehicle height adjusting device in which a cylinder having a piston is mounted between a coil spring and a shock absorber in the fitted vehicle height adjusting device, and rod through holes are respectively provided in the cylinder and the axial center portion of the piston. 2. An automobile provided with the vehicle height adjusting device according to claim 1. 3. The compressor according to claim 2, further comprising a compressor, a reserve tank for storing compressed air from the compressor, and a pressure regulator for adjusting the amount of compressed air flowing into the cylinder of the vehicle height adjusting device from the reserve tank. Automobile. 4. A shock absorber with a cylinder, wherein a cylinder having a piston is integrally provided on an upper part of the damper, and rod through holes are formed in respective axial center portions of the piston and the cylinder. 5. The piston and the cylinder each have a substantially bottomed tubular shape with an opening at the bottom, and the piston is fitted on the upper part of the damper part, and is between the upper bottom part of the piston and the lower bottom part of the cylinder. The shock absorber with a cylinder according to claim 4, wherein the cylinder moves up and down with respect to the piston by allowing the fluid to be press-fitted therein. 6. A bottomed cylindrical cylinder having a bottom opening and an opening edge bent inward, wherein a bottomed cylindrical piston having the same bottom is also housed therein. A cylinder for adjusting vehicle height, wherein an abutting portion with which the opening edge abuts is provided on an upper portion of the piston.