JP2005344835A - Operation dial - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an operation dial capable of easily performing damping force adjusting operation even if a mark is not visually confirmed one by one. <P>SOLUTION: This operation dial is composed of a plate 1, a dial body 5 rotatably abutting on an outside surface of the plate 1, a plurality of detent grooves a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h and i separately arranged at the same interval in the circumferential direction on the outside surface side of the plate 1 and formed one by one on the same diameter line, a pair of holes 13 and 14 oppositely formed along the diameter line on the back face side of the dial body 5 and detent balls 4a and 4b freely protrusively inserted and retreat while being energized in the respective holes by a spring 3. When rotating the dial body 5, the detent balls 4a and 4b are alternately fitted on by one to any one of the detent grooves. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an operation dial suitable for adjusting a damping force of a hydraulic shock absorber used in a vehicle suspension device or a rear cushion unit of a motorcycle.

  In general, in this type of hydraulic shock absorber, a valve such as an internal rotary valve is rotated via an external operation dial, and the damping force is adjusted while adjusting the opening area of the port of the rotary valve.

  For example, as this operation dial, the one disclosed in Patent Document 1 has been developed, and this operation dial is coupled to the outer end of the adjustment rod constituting the damping force adjustment mechanism. The adjustment rod rotates in conjunction with the rotation, and one of the orifices formed on the adjustment rod selectively opens into the oil chamber, and a damping force is generated according to the opening area of the selected orifice. ing.

For example, a mark corresponding to each orifice is provided on the operation dial, and a desired orifice is selected while observing the mark. When the orifice is selected, the operation dial is positioned by a detent mechanism. .
JP-A-8-247201 (summary, FIG. 1)

  The conventional operation dial is not particularly defective in terms of function, but it is desired to improve the following problems.

  That is, when the damping force adjusting mechanism and the operation dial provided on this mechanism are provided below the body of the automobile, below the rear wheel side frame of the motorcycle, or below the hydraulic shock absorber, a mark provided on the operation dial. Is difficult to see, and it is necessary for the rider to get off and look at the mark to check the operation dial and rotate the operation dial, which is troublesome and difficult to adjust.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an operation dial that can easily perform a damping force adjustment operation without visually recognizing the mark.

  In order to achieve the above object, the means of the present invention includes a dial body that rotatably contacts the outer surface of the plate, and an outer surface side of the plate that is spaced apart at equal intervals along the circumferential direction and is arranged on the same diameter line. A plurality of detent grooves formed one after the other, a pair of holes formed opposite to each other along the diameter line on the back side of the dial body, and a detent inserted into the holes while being urged by a spring. The detent balls are alternately fitted into one of the detent grooves one by one when the dial body is rotated.

  According to the present invention, the following effects can be obtained.

  (1) According to the invention of each claim, while listening to the sound that the detent ball fits and ticks when the dial body rotates, or while checking the vibration transmitted to the finger when the detent ball fits Since the position of the dial body can be confirmed, there is no need to look through the marks on the dial body one by one, making it easy to adjust the damping force and speeding up.

  (2) Similarly, since one of the two detent balls on the dial body side is alternately fitted in the detent groove, compared to the case where two detent balls are simultaneously fitted in each detent groove. Thus, the number of detent grooves can be halved. For this reason, the processing of the plate and the detent groove is facilitated, the strength of the plate is improved by the small number of detent grooves, the durability is high, and the occurrence of cracking of the plate can be minimized.

  (3) According to the invention of claim 3, since the play range is provided between the groove of the first group and the groove of the second group, the detent ball does not fit into the detent groove in this range, Passes smoothly without generating a noise. Therefore, after turning the dial body clockwise or counterclockwise and passing through the play range where no fitting of the detent ball occurs, it fits into the first or last detent groove of the first group groove or the second group groove. The position of the dial main body can be confirmed by confirming the clicking sound that is generated when the tapping is performed.

  (4) According to the invention of claim 4, the position of the dial body, in other words, the adjustment position of the damping force can be confirmed while visually recognizing the mark.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, in the embodiments of the present invention, an operation dial for adjusting a damping force of a hydraulic shock absorber used in a vehicle suspension device is described. It can also be used for adjusting the damping force of a rear cushion unit of a motorcycle, and can also be applied to an operation dial for adjusting the position of a general machine instrument that is not related to the damping force adjustment.

  FIG. 1 shows a hydraulic shock absorber B used in a vehicle suspension apparatus to which an operation dial A according to the present invention is attached. The hydraulic shock absorber B is movable in a cylinder 8 and in the cylinder 8 via a piston. The inserted stone rod 9, a cushion rubber 10 provided on the upper outer periphery of the piston rod 9, and a control rod 11 which is rotatably inserted into the piston rod 9 and provided with a valve such as a rotary valve at the tip. Yes.

  The operation dial A of the present invention is coupled to the outer end of the control rod 11 and rotates the control rod 11 via the operation dial A to adjust the opening area of the orifice and the long hole in the rotary valve at the tip. To adjust the damping force.

  As shown in FIGS. 2, 3, and 4, the basic configuration of the operation dial A of the present invention includes a plate 1, a dial main body 5 that rotatably contacts the outer surface of the plate 1, and the outer surface side of the plate 1. A plurality of detent grooves a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, i, which are spaced apart at equal intervals along the circumferential direction and formed one by one on the same diameter line, and the dial body 5 A pair of holes 13, 14 formed opposite to each other along the diameter line on the back side of the lens, and a detent ball inserted into each hole 13, 14 while being urged outward by springs 3, 3. 4a and 4b, and when the dial body 5 is rotated, the detent balls 4a and 4b are alternately fitted into any one of the detent grooves a to i.

  When the operation dial A is applied to a hydraulic shock absorber, it is coupled to the end of the control rod 11 as shown in FIG. 1 and is provided at the tip of the control rod 11 by rotating the control rod 11. The damping force is adjusted by switching the valve.

  The operation dial A is connected to the plate 1, the plug 2 coupled to the control rod 11 while being rotatably inserted into the center of the plate 1, and coupled to the outer end of the plug 2 to be rotatable on the outer surface of the plate 1. And a plurality of detent grooves a, b, c, d, e formed on the same diameter line and spaced apart at equal intervals along the circumferential direction on the outer surface side of the plate 1 , f, g, h, i, a pair of holes 13, 14 formed opposite to each other along the diameter line on the back side of the dial body 5, and springs 3, 3 in the holes 13, 14 outward The teddy tent balls 4a and 4b are inserted in such a manner that they can be moved in and out while being energized.

  When the dial body 5 is rotated, the detent balls 4 and 4 are alternately engaged with any one of the detent grooves a to i.

  What should be noted here is that, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the first group of grooves X including three or more odd numbers, for example, five grooves a, b, c, d, and e. The first group of grooves X and the second group of grooves Y, which are opposed to the first group of grooves X and have a smaller number than the first group of grooves, for example, four even-numbered second group of grooves Y. Two play ranges Z and Z that do not form a groove between the two are provided.

  Further, if necessary, the adjustment positions on the outer surface of the plate corresponding to the detent grooves a and e on both sides and the intermediate detent groove c in the first group of grooves Y, that is, positions corresponding to hard, medium and soft damping forces are displayed. Marks H, S, and M are attached.

  Hereinafter, the detailed structure of each member will be described. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the plate 1 is composed of an elliptical substrate, mounting holes 15 and 15 are formed on both sides, and a disk portion 16 is formed in the center. Rises and a plug insertion hole 17 is formed in the center of the disk portion 16.

  Further, a first group of grooves X, which are detent grooves a, b, c, d, e along the circumferential direction in the center of the disk portion 16 and close to the plug insertion hole 17, and a first group of grooves X A groove having an arbitrary width is not formed between the second group of grooves Y consisting of the detent grooves f, g, h, i along the circumferential direction, and the first and second groups of grooves X, Y. Two play ranges Z and Z are provided.

  On the diameter line corresponding to the detent grooves a, b and c, marks H and MS corresponding to hard, medium and soft damping forces are provided.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the plug 2 includes a half-shaped base portion 18 having a fitting groove 18 a, a flange 19 provided in the base portion 18, and a half having a screw groove 21, which stands in the center of the flange 19. And an insertion portion 20 made of a split rectangular parallelepiped.

  The dial body 5 is composed of a disk 22, and a hole is formed in the center of the disk 22 including a square groove 25 penetrating vertically, a screw hole 23 connected to the square groove 25, and an annular groove 24 connected to the screw hole.

  Further, the disk 22 has a pair of holes 13 and 14 that open toward the back side, and springs 3 and 3 and detent balls 4a and 4a are inserted into the holes 13 and 14, respectively. 4a is urged in the direction of being pushed out by springs 3 and 3.

  However, since the back surface of the dial body 5 is in contact with the outer surface which is the surface of the plate 1, the detent balls 4 a and 4 b do not jump out, and when the dial body 5 is rotated, one of the detent balls 4 a is pushed out and the detent groove 4 The dial body 5 is positioned by fitting to any one of a to i.

  A display plate 28 is fitted in the annular groove 23. In addition, marks made of arrows 26 and 26 are formed on the surface of the disk 22 at positions corresponding to the holes 13 and 14.

  The two detent balls 4a and 4b are arranged on the same diameter line, and when one detent ball 4a is fitted in one of the detent grooves, the other detent ball 4b is not fitted in the detent groove, It is only pushed into the hole 14 against the spring 3 and is in contact with the outer surface of the plate 1.

  For example, when one detent ball 4a is fitted in the detent groove c, the other detent ball 4b is in contact with the surface of the plate 1 between the detent grooves g and h.

  However, when the two detent balls 4a and 4b are in the play range Z and Z positions of the plate 1, both are pushed into the holes 13 and 14 and the tip portion comes into contact with the surface of the plate 1.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the end locking piece of the control rod 11 is fitted in the fitting groove 18 of the plug 2, and the plug 2 is rotatably inserted into the plug insertion hole 17 of the plate 1. 19 is engaged with the step portion of the plug insertion hole 17, and the insertion portion 20 penetrating upward through the plate 1 is fitted in the square groove 25 of the dial body 5.

  On the other hand, a screw 27 made of a screw, a bolt, or the like is inserted into the screw hole 23 of the dial body 5, and the screw 27 is screwed into the screw groove 21 of the insertion portion 20, so that the plate 1 is interposed via the screw 27. On the other hand, the dial body 5 is rotatably coupled and the rotational force of the dial body 5 is transmitted to the control rod 11.

  Next, the operation will be described. First, in the case of adjusting the damping force while visually checking using the marks 26 and 26 on the dial body side and the marks H and MS on the plate 1 side, FIG. 5 (a) (b) ( By rotating operation as shown in c). That is, when the dial body 5 is manually rotated and the arrows 26 and 26 are aligned with the arrow S, the damping force is set to soft (a), and when the arrow 26 is rotated 60 degrees and aligned with the mark M, the medium becomes medium. It is set (b), and is also set to hardware when the arrow 26 is aligned with the mark H (c).

  On the other hand, even if it is not based on visual observation as described above, it is possible to make adjustments while listening to a fitting sound that is fitted into any of the detent grooves a to i of the detent balls 4a and 4b and then clicks.

  That is, as shown in FIG. 6, when the dial body 5 is rotated by 15 degrees and the angle of the rectangular insertion portion 20 is set as shown in the drawing, the control rod 11 and the valve also rotate correspondingly. When there are nine detent grooves a to i, the number is switched to nine stages of soft, medium and hard.

  For example, in the soft case of FIG. 6, it is assumed that one detent ball 13 is fitted in the detent groove e and the other detent ball 14 is in the play range Z. In this state, the dial body 5 is rotated 15 degrees clockwise. , The other detent ball 14 is fitted into the detent groove i, and the one detent ball 13 is positioned in the middle of the detent grooves e and d and becomes soft at the second stage.

  In this manner, when the medium is medium, one detent ball 13a is fitted in the detent groove c, and the other detent ball 14 is positioned between the detent grooves h and g.

  Further, when hard, one detent ball 13 is fitted in the detent groove a, and the other detent ball 14 is positioned in the play range Z facing each other. When the two detent balls 13 and 14 are in the two play ranges Z and Z, the damping force is not adjusted and the free state is set.

  Thus, since the detent balls 13 and 14 are alternately fitted into the detent grooves a to i, for example, when switching to 9 steps, it is sufficient to form 9 detent grooves, and the two detent balls 13 and 14 are formed. The number of detent grooves is half as compared with the case where both are fitted at the same time. Therefore, the groove processing is easy, and the strength and durability of the plate 1 can be improved.

  By the way, as described above, when the fitting sound of the detent balls 13 and 14 is opened by the ear or the damping force is adjusted by the resistance transmitted to the finger, it is not known at which position the detent balls 13 and 14 are fitted.

  Therefore, when the first click and the fitting sound are generated by rotating clockwise from the play range Z where no fitting occurs, for example, when it is fitted into the detent groove e, the first stage soft state is entered. In the same way, when it is turned counterclockwise from the play range Z and a click and engagement sound is first generated, for example, when the detent ball 13 is fitted into the detent groove a, the hard state is set. Then, the dial body 5 is once returned to the play range Z and is rotated clockwise or counterclockwise from this state to sense and detect the position of software or hardware.

  Furthermore, the desired medium and soft positions can be detected by rotating in the same direction in several steps and counting the number of fitting sounds.

It is sectional drawing of the operation dial of the state attached to the hydraulic shock absorber. It is an expanded sectional view of the operation dial of FIG. It is a disassembled perspective view of an operation dial. (A) It is an enlarged plan view of a plate.

(B) It is a bottom view of a dial main body.
(A) (b) (c) is a top view when the operation dial is rotated by 60 degrees. FIG. 6 is a schematic plan view showing a dial position when nine steps are switched to soft, medium, and hard.

Explanation of symbols

1 plate 3 spring 4a, 4b detent ball 5 dial body 13, 14 hole a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, i detent groove

Claims (4)

A plate, a dial body that rotatably contacts the outer surface of the plate, and a plurality of detent grooves that are spaced apart at equal intervals along the circumferential direction on the outer surface side of the plate and formed one by one on the same diameter line; It consists of a pair of holes formed opposite to each other along the diameter line on the back side of the dial body, and a detent ball inserted in each hole while being urged by a spring. An operation dial characterized in that detent balls are alternately fitted into one of the detent grooves one by one. In the operation dial of the hydraulic shock absorber that is connected to the end of the control rod and adjusts the damping force by switching the valve provided at the tip of the control rod by rotating the control rod and the roll rod. A plug coupled to the control rod while being rotatably inserted, a dial body coupled to the outer end of the plug and rotatably abutting on the outer surface of the plate, and the same distance along the circumferential direction on the outer surface side of the plate And a plurality of detent grooves formed one by one on the same diameter line, a pair of holes formed opposite to each other along the diameter line on the back side of the dial body, and a spring in each hole. It consists of detent balls that are inserted freely while being energized, and the detent balls alternate one by one when the dial body rotates Operation dial in the hydraulic shock absorber is characterized in that so as to fit into any one of the above detent groove. The first group comprises three or more odd numbered first group grooves, and the even numbered second group grooves which are opposed to the first group grooves and are one fewer than the first group grooves. The operation dial according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a play range in which no groove is formed is provided between the first groove and the second group groove. The operation dial according to claim 4, wherein a mark for indicating an adjustment position is attached to an outer surface of the plate corresponding to the detent grooves on both sides and the intermediate detent grooves in the first group of grooves.

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