JP2006117159A - Link structure for stabilizer - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a link structure for a stabilizer not generating moment in a steering direction by the stabilizer. <P>SOLUTION: In the link structure of the stabilizer 1, a distal end of a stabilizer bar 2 is bonded to a knuckle KN side by a stabilizer link 3. The stabilizer link 3 is arranged three-dimensionally in parallel to a king pin axis and maintains the parallel state relative to the king pin axis even at steering by bonding it to a member not rotated relative to steering at the knuckle KN side. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a stabilizer link structure that prevents a stabilizer moment from being generated by a stabilizer.

During the turning of the vehicle, rolls are generated by centrifugal force, and stability is impaired. Therefore, the vehicle is provided with a stabilizer mainly on the front wheels (see Patent Document 1). The stabilizer includes a stabilizer bar, a central portion of the stabilizer bar is fixed to the vehicle body by a rubber bush, and both ends thereof are connected to a knuckle via a stabilizer link. When rolled during turning, the stabilizer bar is twisted and a restoring force against the twist is generated. By this restoring force, the outer ring side is lifted to suppress the roll.
JP-A-6-211027

  During turning, a stabilizer generates a moment in the steering direction with respect to the suspension. The moment in the steering direction acts in the direction of increasing or returning when the wheel is turned. In recent years, vehicles with a high center of gravity, such as minivans, have increased, and the spring constant of the stabilizer bar has been increasing. For this reason, the moment in the steering direction also increases and the influence on the steering system is at a level that cannot be ignored.

  In order to eliminate the moment in the steering direction, an arrangement has been proposed in which the distance (moment arm length) of the stabilizer link to the kingpin axis is zero. In general, the kingpin shaft often passes through the axle components and is related to the performance requirements of the suspension, etc., so the arrangement that the moment arm length is set to 0 is used to eliminate the steering moment caused by the stabilizer. It will never be done. In particular, in the case of the McPherson strut type, which is often employed as a lightweight and inexpensive suspension, it is very difficult to reduce the moment arm length to 0 because the placement of the absorber and the like becomes an obstacle and the degree of freedom of placement is limited. . In addition, since it affects the tuning of the steering characteristics of the suspension and power steering system, efforts are made to limit the stabilizer constant of the stabilizer bar or to eliminate the influence of the moment in the steering direction by tuning the steering system. However, it will be difficult to eliminate the impact of the increase in development man-hours and performance requirements.

  In view of the above, an object of the present invention is to provide a stabilizer link structure that prevents a moment in the steering direction from being generated by the stabilizer.

  The stabilizer link structure according to the present invention is a stabilizer link structure in which the tip of the stabilizer bar is coupled to the knuckle side by the stabilizer link, and the stabilizer link is arranged three-dimensionally parallel to the kingpin axis, The knuckle side is coupled to a member that does not rotate with respect to steering.

  In this stabilizer link structure, the stabilizer link is arranged parallel to the kingpin axis. Furthermore, in this link structure, the stabilizer link is coupled to a member that does not rotate with respect to steering on the knuckle side. By adopting such a link structure, the stabilizer link does not rotate with respect to steering, so that the parallel arrangement of the stabilizer link with respect to the kingpin axis can be maintained even during steering. For this reason, regardless of the steering state, the angle formed by the stabilizer link and the kingpin shaft is 0, and no moment in the steering direction is generated by the stabilizer. In this link structure, the stabilizer link may be connected to a member that does not rotate with respect to the steering, and thus can be realized with a simple configuration. Further, there is no need to limit the spring constant of the stabilizer bar or to tune the steering system.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to prevent the moment in the steering direction from being generated by the stabilizer.

  Embodiments of a stabilizer link structure according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  In the present embodiment, the stabilizer link structure according to the present invention is applied to a vehicle stabilizer including a McPherson strut type front suspension. In the stabilizer link structure according to the present embodiment, the stabilizer link is three-dimensionally parallel to the kingpin axis, and the stabilizer link is coupled to a member that does not rotate relative to the vehicle body in the suspension.

  With reference to FIGS. 1-4, the link structure of the stabilizer which concerns on this Embodiment is demonstrated. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a link structure of a stabilizer according to the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the connection destination of the stabilizer link in the suspension of FIG. FIG. 3 is an operation conceptual diagram of the stabilizer link structure of FIG. 1. FIG. 4 is a model diagram of the link structure of the stabilizer of FIG.

  Before describing the stabilizer link structure, the vehicle steering structure and suspension structure will be described. In the steering structure, steering torque input from a steering wheel (not shown) is transmitted to a steering gear box SG via a steering column (not shown). In the steering gear box SG, the rotational motion from the steering wheel is converted into a linear motion in the vehicle width direction and transmitted to the tie rod TL. The tie rod TL is coupled to the knuckle KN, and pushes and pulls the knuckle KN according to the linear motion. With this steering structure, when the driver inputs steering from the steering wheel, the front wheels are steered.

  In the suspension structure, the shock absorber SA also serves as a suspension strut. In the shock absorber SA, the tip (point A) of the absorber rod SAL is attached to the vehicle body, and the knuckle KN is coupled to the side surface of the absorber shell SAS. The lower end (point B) of the knuckle KN is attached to the lower arm LA by a ball joint. A coil spring CS is provided outside the shock absorber SA. The upper end of the coil spring CS is attached to the vehicle body, and the lower end of the coil spring CS is attached to the upper surface of the spring seat SS. Therefore, the spring seat SS is connected to the vehicle body via the coil spring CS. Further, a strut bearing SB is attached to the spring seat SS. The strut bearing SS is a bearing for allowing rotation in the steering direction, and an outer peripheral side thereof is attached to a lower surface of the spring seat SS, and an inner peripheral side thereof is attached to a side surface of the absorber shell SAS. In this suspension structure, the absorber rod SAL, the coil spring CS, and the spring seat SS cannot rotate with respect to the vehicle body, and the absorber shell SAS can rotate with respect to the vehicle body. Therefore, the absorber shell SAS rotates with respect to the steering, but the absorber rod SAL, the coil spring CS, and the spring seat SS do not rotate. An axis passing through the upper end (point A) of the shock absorber SA and the lower end (point B) of the knuckle KN is a kingpin axis KA (see FIG. 3). In this suspension structure, the shock absorber SA and the like move integrally with the knuckle KN and are rotatable with respect to the kingpin axis KA.

  The stabilizer 1 includes a stabilizer bar 2 that is a substantially U-shaped torsion bar, and suppresses rolls during turning by a restoring force against twisting of the stabilizer bar 2. The stabilizer bar 2 is attached to the vehicle body by rubber bushes 2a at two locations in the center. Each tip of the stabilizer bar 2 is connected to a spring seat SS which is a member integrated with the knuckle KN by a stabilizer link 3.

  The stabilizer link 3 is a rod-shaped member, and ball joints 3a are attached to both ends. One end of the stabilizer link 3 is coupled to the tip of the stabilizer bar 2 via a ball joint 3a. The other end of the stabilizer link 3 is attached to the bracket 4 via a ball joint 3a. The coupling position and coupling angle between the stabilizer link 3 and one end of the stabilizer bar 2 and the coupling position and coupling angle between the other end of the stabilizer link 3 and the bracket 4 are three-dimensionally parallel to the kingpin axis KA. Is set to be The stabilizer link 3 is connected to the spring seat 4 (and eventually the vehicle body) via the bracket 4 and therefore does not rotate with respect to the steering.

  The bracket 4 is plate-shaped and is an L-shaped member. The bracket 4 is attached to the lower surface on the outer peripheral side of the spring seat 4. As described above, the mounting position and mounting angle of the bracket 4 are set so that the stabilizer link 3 is three-dimensionally parallel to the kingpin axis KA.

  Thus, the stabilizer link 3 is three-dimensionally arranged parallel to the kingpin axis KA when not steered, and does not rotate even during steering, so that the parallel arrangement is maintained (see FIG. 3). Therefore, regardless of the steering state, the angle θ formed by the stabilizer link 3 and the kingpin axis KA is 0 (see FIG. 4). Therefore, no moment in the steering direction by the stabilizer 3 is generated. Incidentally, l shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 is the moment arm length, and the shock absorber SA and the coil spring CS exist on or near the kingpin KA, and therefore have a predetermined distance. In the link structure of the stabilizer 1, by making the angle θ to be zero, the moment arm length l is not zero, and no moment in the steering direction is generated.

  The operation of the stabilizer 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. When there is no steering input to the steering wheel by the driver, the stabilizer link 3 is parallel to the kingpin axis KA.

  When the vehicle turns due to steering input to the steering wheel by the driver, centrifugal force acts on the vehicle. This centrifugal force generates a roll load, and the suspension sinks on the outer ring side and extends on the inner ring side. Thereby, the stabilizer bar 2 is twisted. The stabilizer bar 2 generates a restoring force against the twist, and the restoring force is transmitted to the knuckle KN via the stabilizer link 3. As a result, the sunken outer ring side is lifted and the roll is suppressed.

  In response to this steering, the absorber shell SAS rotates, but the absorber rod SAL, the coil spring CS, and the spring seat SS do not rotate. Therefore, the stabilizer link 3 connected to the spring seat SS does not rotate. Therefore, the relative position of the stabilizer link 3 with respect to the kingpin axis KA does not change, and the parallelism with respect to the kingpin axis KA is maintained. As a result, no steering moment is generated by the stabilizer 1.

  According to the stabilizer 1, the stabilizer link 3 is arranged in parallel to the kingpin axis KA, and is controlled so as to maintain the relative positional relationship at the time of steering, so that a moment in the steering direction is not generated. Therefore, the stabilizer 1 does not affect the steering system. In order to realize this, the strut bearing SB is simply attached to the spring seat SS, and the stabilizer link 3 is attached to the spring seat SS via the bracket 4, and the number of components is hardly increased. Further, since it is not necessary to limit the spring constant of the stabilizer bar or perform tuning on the steering system, the development man-hours can be reduced and the performance requirements of the steering system can be achieved.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment which concerns on this invention was described, this invention is implemented in various forms, without being limited to the said embodiment.

  For example, in the present embodiment, the present invention is applied to the McPherson strut type, but the present invention can be applied to any type such as a double wishbone type in which a reaction force acts directly on the kingpin shaft.

  In the present embodiment, the stabilizer link is coupled to the spring seat. However, the stabilizer link may be coupled to a member that does not rotate with respect to steering on the knuckle side such as the outer peripheral surface of the strut bearing.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the stabilizer link is attached by a ball joint, but it may be any rotatable one such as a rubber bush.

  In the present embodiment, the angle θ between the stabilizer link and the kingpin shaft is a necessary condition, and the moment arm length l has a predetermined distance. However, as a matter of course, According to the structure, it is also effective for the layout when the moment arm length l = 0, which is a requirement for preventing the moment in the steering direction by the stabilizer.

It is a perspective view which shows the link structure of the stabilizer which concerns on this Embodiment. FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a connection destination of a stabilizer link in the suspension of FIG. 1. It is an operation | movement conceptual diagram in the link structure of the stabilizer of FIG. It is a model figure of the link structure of the stabilizer of FIG.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Stabilizer, 2 ... Stabilizer bar, 2a ... Rubber bush, 3 ... Stabilizer link, 3a ... Ball joint, 4 ... Bracket

Claims (1)

A stabilizer link structure in which the tip of the stabilizer bar is coupled to the knuckle side by a stabilizer link,
The stabilizer link structure is characterized in that the stabilizer link is three-dimensionally parallel to the kingpin axis and is coupled to a member that does not rotate with respect to steering on the knuckle side.

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