JP2004217126A - Steering device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a steering device with its responsivity improved while keeping its vibration damping function. <P>SOLUTION: Between a housing 8 of a steering device body and a vehicular body 10, a damping alloy bush 11 is provided as a supporting member. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an automobile steering device.
[0002]
[Prior art]
2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a manual steering device, generally, a housing is attached to a vehicle body via an elastic body (rubber or the like) (for example, see Patent Documents 1 and 2). Due to the presence of the elastic body, kickback from the road surface can be reduced, and disturbance vibration such as shimmy and flutter that causes self-excited vibration of the steering system can be attenuated. Such an elastic body support structure having a vibration damping function is traditionally applied similarly to an electric power steering device.
[0003]
[Patent Document 1]
JP-A-2002-302052 (pages 3 and 4, FIG. 5)
[Patent Document 2]
JP-A-8-230693 (pages 3 and 4, FIG. 1)
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In the conventional steering device as described above, the response of the torque transmission system between the steering wheel (steering member) and the steered wheels is slightly impaired due to the elasticity of the elastic body. That tendency was strong. Accordingly, a direct feeling, that is, a feeling of unity with the vehicle behavior and the driver cannot be sufficiently obtained. However, in general, the vibration damping function and the responsiveness have contradictory properties, and it is not a good idea to increase the responsiveness at the expense of the vibration damping function.
[0005]
In view of the above-described conventional problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a steering device with improved responsiveness while maintaining a vibration damping function.
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
A steering device according to the present invention includes a steering device main body for turning steered wheels based on rotation of a steering member, and a vibration damping alloy interposed between a housing of the steering device main body and a vehicle body and supporting the steering device main body. And a support member made of the same.
In the steering apparatus configured as described above, relatively small-amplitude disturbance vibration from the road surface is transmitted to the support member, and is attenuated by the property of the damping alloy. Therefore, occurrence of shimmy and flutter is prevented. When a force is transmitted to the steered wheels by operating the steering member, the force is also applied to the support member, but hardly deforms and supports the housing as a rigid body (alloy). Therefore, excellent responsiveness can be obtained.
[0007]
Further, the steering device of the present invention, a steering device body having a friction to attenuate disturbance vibration, from the steering member to the steered wheels via the torque detector, and from the torque detector to the steered wheels, A rigid support member interposed between the housing of the steering device main body and the vehicle body and supporting the steering device main body may be provided.
In the steering device configured as described above, relatively small amplitude disturbance vibration from the road surface is attenuated by friction of the steering device body. Therefore, occurrence of shimmy and flutter is prevented. When a force is transmitted to the steered wheels by operating the steering member, the force is also applied to the support member, but is hardly deformed and supports the housing as a rigid body. Therefore, excellent responsiveness can be obtained.
The support member may be made of a vibration damping alloy. In this case, since the vibration from the road surface is absorbed by both the friction and the support member, the vibration can be further attenuated.
[0008]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing a configuration of a steering device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The steering device 1 is of a rack and pinion type, and includes a steering wheel (steering member) 2, a pinion 3 connected to the steering wheel 2, a rack shaft 4 that meshes with the pinion 3 and slides left and right, A tie rod 5 connected to both ends of the rack shaft 4 and a knuckle arm 6 connected to the tie rod 5 and driving a steered wheel 7 are provided. The housing 8 accommodates the pinion 3 rotatably and accommodates the rack shaft 4 slidably. The components (2 to 6, 8) constituting the steering device body are supported by the vehicle body 10 by attaching the bracket 9 fixed to the housing 8 to the vehicle body 10.
[0009]
FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line II-II in FIG. In the figure, a hole 9a is formed in a bracket 9, into which a bush 11 made of a vibration damping alloy (for example, aluminum zinc alloy) as a support member is inserted. Damping alloys have the property of attenuating vibrations into thermal energy over a wide frequency range. Further, it is a rigid body that hardly deforms even when a force is applied (the deformation amount in normal steering is 0 to 10 μm). The bush 11 has a small-diameter cylindrical portion 11a inserted into the hole 9a and a large-diameter flange portion 11b abutting on the end of the bracket 9, and a through hole 11c is formed at the center. The bracket 9 is fixed to the vehicle body 10 by inserting the bolt 12 into the hole 11c and screwing it to the vehicle body 10. Here, the bush 11 and the bolt 12 are in direct contact with the vehicle body 10, and the bracket 9 and the vehicle body 10 do not directly contact with each other, and there is a gap between them.
[0010]
In the steering device 1 configured as described above, the rotation of the steering wheel 2 causes the pinion 3 to rotate, and the rack shaft 4 meshing with the pinion 3 slides. As a result, the steered wheels 7 are steered via the tie rods 5 and the knuckle arms 6. Of the disturbance from the road surface, relatively small-amplitude vibration is transmitted from the bracket 9 to the bush 11, where it is attenuated due to the properties of the damping alloy. Therefore, occurrence of shimmy and flutter is prevented.
On the other hand, when a force is transmitted to the steered wheels 7 by operating the steering wheel 2, a force is also applied to the bush 11, but the bush 11 is hardly deformed and supports the housing 8 as a rigid body. Therefore, the responsiveness is not impaired by the presence of the bush 11, and excellent responsiveness can be obtained.
[0011]
FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically illustrating a configuration of an electric power steering device as a steering device 1A according to a second embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, a torsion bar 12 is provided between the steering wheel 2 and the pinion 3, and a known torque detector 13 for detecting a steering torque based on a twist angle of the torsion bar 12 is provided. Further, a motor 14 for generating a steering assisting force for driving the pinion 3 based on the output of the torque detector 13 is provided. The respective parts (2 to 6, 8, 12 to 14) constituting the steering device main body are supported by the vehicle body 10 by attaching the bracket 9 to the vehicle body 10 as in the first embodiment. However, a normal rigid body (iron-based metal) which is not a vibration damping alloy is used for the bush 11 in the first embodiment.
Other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment.
[0012]
The steering apparatus 1A in the second embodiment, with respect to the friction between the torque sensor 13 to the steering wheel 7 (the so-called unsprung friction), which not dare reduced to the minimum, but rather a certain amount of friction F ₀ Is configured to allow. The friction _{F 0} of the fixed amount, for example, 1.5～2.0Nm.
[0013]
In the steering device 1A according to the second embodiment configured as described above, the pinion 3 rotates via the torsion bar 12 by the rotation of the steering wheel 2, and the rack shaft 4 meshing with the pinion 3 slides. The torque detector 13 drives the motor 14 according to the torsion angle of the torsion bar 12 to generate a steering assist force. As a result, the steered wheels 7 are steered via the tie rods 5 and the knuckle arms 6. Of the disturbance from the road surface, the vibration having a relatively small amplitude is changed to heat energy by the friction F0 and attenuated. Therefore, occurrence of shimmy and flutter is prevented.
On the other hand, when a force is transmitted to the steered wheels 7 by operating the steering wheel 2, a force is also applied to the bush 11, but the bush 11 is hardly deformed and supports the housing 8 as a rigid body. Therefore, the responsiveness is not impaired by the presence of the bush 11, and excellent responsiveness can be obtained.
[0014]
Note that, similarly to the first embodiment, the bush 11 made of a damping alloy can be employed in the second embodiment. In this case, since the vibration from the road surface is absorbed by both the friction and the bush 11, the vibration can be further attenuated.
[0015]
【The invention's effect】
According to the steering apparatus of the present invention configured as described above, the vibration can be attenuated by friction or by the support member that is a damping alloy, and the responsiveness can be increased by supporting the damping alloy or rigid body. Responsiveness can be improved while maintaining the vibration damping function.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing a configuration of a steering device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line II-II in FIG.
FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically showing a configuration of an electric power steering device as a steering device according to a second embodiment of the present invention.
[Explanation of symbols]
1,1A Steering device 2 Steering wheel (steering member)
7 Steering wheel 8 Housing 10 Body 11 Bush (supporting member)
13 Torque detectors 2 to 6, 8, 12 to 14 Steering device body

Claims (3)

A steering device body that steers steered wheels based on rotation of the steering member;
A steering device, comprising: a support member made of a vibration damping alloy that is interposed between a housing of the steering device main body and a vehicle body and supports the steering device main body. Steering the steered wheels from the steering member via a torque detector, between the torque detector to the steered wheels, a steering device body having friction to attenuate disturbance vibrations,
A steering device, comprising: a rigid support member interposed between a housing of the steering device main body and a vehicle body and supporting the steering device main body. The steering device according to claim 2, wherein the support member is made of a vibration damping alloy.

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