JP2006281974A - Torsion beam type rear suspension - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To secure a sealability of a bearing part of a sensor unit while securing a lateral rigidity of a rear wheel by a simple constitution. <P>SOLUTION: The torsion beam type rear suspension 1 provided with a trailing arm 2 with a pair of left and right hollow cylindrical shapes has a flange 5 for fixing a hub unit on the rear end of the trailing arm 2, and the flange 5 for fixing the hub unit is provided with an extension part 5a extending upward. An ABS sensor 34 is mounted on the extension part 5a. The bearing part 28 of the hub unit 25 is sealed by outer side and inner side seal members 30, 31. A water drainage channel 37 extending downward is formed in the lowest position of a surface 28b seated on the flange 5 for fixing the hub unit in a hub bearing mounting part 28 of the hub unit 25. Water flowing into the hub unit 25 through the water drainage channel 37 is discharged to the outside. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a torsion beam type rear suspension.

  The torsion beam type suspension includes a torsion beam extending in the vehicle width direction and a pair of left and right arms extending in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body, and has a structure in which an end of the torsion beam is connected to a central portion in the longitudinal direction of the arm. The torsion beam type suspension is typically widely used in the rear suspension of small FF vehicles. In this case, generally, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, the front end of the arm is connected to the vehicle body, A trailing arm type with a wheel attached to the rear end is adopted.

In addition, a sensor ring is provided on a vehicle wheel in association with a hub for mounting the vehicle wheel, as shown in Patent Document 2, and a sensor main body, for example, an ABS sensor is provided in association with the sensor ring.
No. 2001-321846 JP-A-6-247267

  The rear wheel attached to the rear end of the trailing arm of the torsion beam type suspension is a driven wheel. Therefore, the hub unit is fixed to the hub unit fixing flange on the rear end of the trailing arm, and the rear wheel is connected to the hub of this hub unit. The wheel is fixed. The hub unit includes a ball bearing for making the rear wheel rotatable. In addition, an ABS sensor unit is incorporated in the hub unit, for example, for ABS control.

  The ABS sensor is sensitive to iron powder and iron sand, and for this reason, it is important to ensure the sealing performance at the location where the ABS sensor unit is installed. On the other hand, in order to improve the running performance of a vehicle incorporating a torsion beam type suspension, it is desirable to adopt a hub unit mounting structure that can ensure lateral rigidity. For the most suitable structure, it can be said that it is most preferable to mount the hub unit in alignment with the trailing end of the trailing arm. However, in this design, it is difficult to select the part where the ABS sensor is installed. Become.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a torsion beam type rear suspension that has a simple configuration but can secure the lateral rigidity of a rear wheel and can ensure the ease of mounting a sensor body.

According to the present invention, such a technical problem is
A trailing arm having a pair of left and right hollow cylinders that extends in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body, is supported so that the front end can swing up and down with respect to the vehicle body, and the rear wheel is rotatably supported at the rear end;
A torsion beam extending in the vehicle width direction and having a longitudinal section connected to a longitudinal center portion of the trailing arm, and a torsion beam having a closed cross section and an irregular cross section by pressing a hollow pipe In the type rear suspension,
A hub unit fixing flange provided at a rear end of the trailing arm;
A hub unit fastened to the hub unit fixing flange,
The hub unit includes a hub for attaching a rear wheel, a hub unit fastening portion for fixing the hub unit to the hub unit fixing flange,
A ball bearing portion including an inner race integral with the hub, an outer race integral with the hub unit fastening portion, and a plurality of ball bearings disposed between the inner race and the outer race;
A seal member provided on the ball bearing portion, for sealing the ball bearing portion;
A sensor ring provided at the inner end of the inner race;
A sensor body arranged facing the sensor ring,
The sensor body is attached to the hub unit fixing flange, and the hub unit fastening portion is provided with a drain groove extending downwardly formed on a surface seated on the hub unit fixing flange. This is achieved by providing a torsion beam type rear suspension.

  That is, the present invention is mainly characterized in that the mounting portion of the sensor body is secured by using the rear end of the cylindrical trailing arm. That is, paying attention to the hub unit fixing flange provided in the rear end opening of the cylindrical trailing arm, the first feature is that the sensor main body is attached to the hub unit fixing flange. In addition, in order to fix the hub unit to the hub unit fixing flange, a drain groove extending downward is provided on the surface where the hub unit fastening portion is seated on the hub unit fixing flange, and the hub unit is passed through the drain groove. The second feature is that water that has entered the inside is discharged to the outside. Note that the ball bearing portion inside the hub unit is sealed by a seal member.

  Such a feature is typically that the sensor unit is installed at a position where the hub unit is displaced upward with the hub unit being slightly offset upward with respect to the rear end of the trailing arm. It is realized with. Specifically, according to the present invention, since the hub unit is fixed to the hub unit fixing flange provided at the rear end of the trailing arm, the lateral rigidity can be ensured. In addition to this, typically, by extending the hub unit fixing flange upward and fixing the sensor body to this extension, it is possible to attach the sensor body while avoiding interference with the trailing arm. Therefore, the sensor body can be easily attached. Even if rainwater or the like enters the inside of the hub unit, it can be discharged to the outside through a drain groove that is located at the lowest position of the hub unit fastening portion and extends downward, so that water accumulates inside the hub unit. Thus, it is possible to prevent the sensor ring and the sensor body facing the sensor ring from being adversely affected.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view of a right end portion of a torsion beam suspension applied to a rear wheel of a vehicle. The torsion beam type rear suspension 1 has a pair of left and right trailing arms 2 extending in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body and a torsion beam 3 extending in the vehicle width direction. Each end of the trailing arm 2 is attached to the longitudinal central portion 2a of the torsion beam 3. By welding, a pair of trailing arms 2 are connected to both ends of the torsion beam 3.

  Similar to the structure disclosed in Patent Document 1 (2001-321846), the torsion beam 3 has a closed cross section and a deformed cross section formed by pressing a hollow pipe. The shape of the odd-shaped cross section is, for example, a U shape that is open downward. At the longitudinal end portion of the torsion beam 3, the U-shaped cross section has a wide opening. , The opening of the U-shaped end face is narrowed. That is, the torsion beam 3 has a shape that gradually widens from the central portion in the longitudinal direction toward the end when viewed in plan, and the longitudinal end of the torsion beam 3 has a rear end compared to the front end. It has an inclined shape so as to be located outward in the width direction.

  The trailing arm 2 extending in the front-rear direction of the vehicle body has an eye 4 at the front end thereof, and the eye 4 is swingably supported by the vehicle body via a bush (not shown). The trailing arm 2 has a hollow cylindrical shape at the rear side from the eye 4, and a hub unit fixing flange 5 is welded to the rear end opening. The hub unit fixing flange 5 will be described later.

  As can be understood from FIG. 1, the trailing arm 2 has a curved shape that is concave outward in the vehicle width direction in a plan view. That is, when the trailing arm 2 is viewed in plan, the front portion 2b from the eye 4 to the front end of the central portion 2a extends obliquely inward in the vehicle width direction from the eye 4 toward the central portion 2a. The central portion 2a extends slightly inwardly in the vehicle width direction from the front end toward the rear end, and the rear portion 2c from the rear end of the central portion 2a to the hub unit fixing flange 5 extends from the central portion 2a to the hub. It has a shape extending greatly inclined outward in the vehicle width direction toward the unit fixing flange 5. The trailing arm 2 also has a shape extending obliquely upward from the central portion 2a toward the hub unit fixing flange 5.

  In the torsion beam type rear suspension 1, a spring seat 6 is disposed at a corner portion between the rear portion 2 c of the trailing arm 2 and each longitudinal end portion of the torsion beam 3.

  The spring seat 6 is formed by press forming a steel plate, and the spring seat 6 has a bottom wall 7. The torsion beam type rear suspension 1 includes a coil spring 8, and a mounting seat for the coil spring 8 is provided at the rear portion of the main bottom wall portion 7 a of the bottom wall 7 extending almost horizontally.

  The bottom wall 7 has an inclined portion 7 b that is partitioned from the main bottom wall portion 7 a by a bend line, that is, a bead 9, and the inclined portion 7 b is positioned to face the rear end portion of the trailing arm 2. That is, the bend line (bead) 9 extends straight in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body, and the front end thereof joins the middle portion in the longitudinal direction of the rear portion 2 c of the trailing arm 2. An inclined portion 7 b of the spring seat 6 extends obliquely upward from the bead 9 outward in the vehicle width direction, and an outer end edge in the vehicle width direction is in contact with the trailing arm 2.

  As described above, the mounting seat of the coil spring 8 is provided at the rear portion of the bottom wall 7 of the spring seat 6, and the rear portion of the bottom wall 7 includes an inclined portion 7 b fixed to the trailing arm 2 and The bead 9 substantially increases the rigidity. Therefore, the rigidity of supporting the spring seat 6 with respect to the coil spring 8 can be ensured without preparing another reinforcing member.

  The spring seat 6 has no flange on the outer edge in the vehicle width direction, and the outer edge in the vehicle width direction is welded to the trailing arm 2 in almost the entire region. That is, the outer edge 10 in the vehicle width direction of the bottom wall 7 including the inclined portion 7b of the spring seat 6 has a shape along the side surface of the rear portion 2c of the trailing arm 2, and the outer edge 10 of the spring seat 6 is It is welded to the trailing arm 2 over the entire area. Since the outer edge in the vehicle width direction in which the spring seat 6 is welded to the trailing arm 2 has no flange, the spring seat 6 moves to the trailing arm 2 as the spring seat 6 is welded to the trailing arm 2. Can be reduced.

  The spring seat 6 has a vertical flange 13 that extends across the rear edge and the inner edge 12 in the vehicle width direction. That is, the vertical flange 13 includes a first flange portion 14 extending in the front-rear direction along the inner edge of the bottom wall 7, and a second flange extending in the vehicle width direction along the rear edges of the main bottom wall portion 7a and the inclined portion 7b. The first and second flange portions 14 and 15 are continuous, and are formed by bending the spring seat 6 upward.

  The first flange portion 14 extending in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body has a relatively small height dimension, while the second flange portion 15 positioned at the rear end portion of the spring seat 6 and extending in the vehicle width direction has a height dimension thereof. Is set relatively large. That is, the spring seat 6 is designed so that the rigidity of the part adjacent to the torsion beam 3 is relatively low, and the rigidity of the part adjacent to the mounting seat of the coil spring 8 is relatively high.

  As described above, the first flange portion 13 extending in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body along the inner edge of the bottom wall 7 has a relatively low height, and the front end portion 14a of the first flange portion 14, that is, A portion adjacent to the torsion beam 3 extends upward and forward, and has a shape in which a front end edge thereof is in contact with the torsion beam 3. That is, the front end portion 14 a of the first flange 14 has a shape in which the upper edge is enlarged upward, and the front end edge has a curved shape cut out along the rear side surface of the torsion beam 3. The front end edge of the first flange 14 is fixed to the torsion beam 3 by welding, and the lower part is not fixed to the torsion beam 3.

  As described above, the upper edge of the front edge of the first flange 14 is welded to the torsion beam 3, and the upper part welded to the torsion beam 3 extends obliquely outward in the vehicle width direction toward the front. The extending direction L1 is preferably substantially parallel to the axis L2 of the eye 4 of the trailing arm 2, that is, the virtual line L3 orthogonal to the swing axis of the trailing arm 2. Moreover, it is preferable that the front end edge of the first flange 14 has a shape in which the upper part rides on the upper surface of the torsion beam 3. According to this, since the spring seat 6 is fixed in a state of being hooked on the torsion beam 3, the support of the spring seat 6 by the torsion beam 3 can be ensured.

  The front end edge of the main bottom wall portion 7a of the spring seat 6 has no flange, and extends in the vehicle width direction along the longitudinal end of the trailing arm 2. The front end edge 16 of the main bottom wall portion 7a is preferably located at a slight distance from the trailing arm 2. In this embodiment, the trailing edge 16 is provided between the spring seat 6 and the trailing arm 2. An elongated gap 17 extending along the arm 2 is formed.

  The vertical flange 13 formed along the inner edge and the rear edge of the spring seat 6 will be further described. The vertical flange 13 is a second flange portion 15 that is continuous with the first flange portion 14 having a relatively small height. Has a relatively large height dimension. The outer end edge in the vehicle width direction of the second flange portion 15 is positioned to face the side surface of the trailing arm 2 and is formed in a curved shape along the side surface of the trailing arm 2. That is, the outer edge in the vehicle width direction of the second flange portion 15 has no flange, and the outer edge in the vehicle width direction of the second flange portion 15 is welded to the trailing arm 2.

  In the drawing, reference numeral 18 denotes a damper mounting bracket, and the damper mounting bracket 18 is welded to the rear surface of the second flange 17 on the vehicle body. A tube type damper 19 is attached to the damper mounting bracket 18.

  The torsion beam type rear suspension 1 is preferably provided with an opening 20 as a means for reducing rigidity at the front end portion of the spring seat 6, that is, the front end portion of the main bottom wall portion 7a. It is preferable to extend in the vehicle width direction substantially parallel to the longitudinal direction of the torsion beam 3.

  FIG. 2 shows a hub unit fixing flange 5 at the rear end of the trailing arm 2 and a hub unit 25 bolted to the hub unit fixing flange 5. The hub unit 25 has a hub 27 that is rotatably mounted via a bearing portion 26 as in the prior art, and a rear wheel (not shown) is fastened to the hub 27 by bolts and nuts. FIG. 2 is a view of the right rear wheel portion as viewed from the front.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the hub unit 25 has a hub unit fastening portion 28, and the hub unit fastening portion 28 is fastened to the hub unit fixing flange 5 by bolts and nuts. The bearing portion 26 includes an outer race 28a integrated with the hub unit fastening portion 28, and a plurality of ball bearings 29 (FIG. 4) interposed between the inner race 27a integrated with the hub 27, and the outer race 28a. Between the inner race 27a and the inner race 27a, an outer seal member 30 and an inner seal member 31 for sealing the bearing portion 26 including the ball bearing 29 from inside and outside are disposed. A sensor ring 33 is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the inner end flange portion of the inner race 27 a integrated with the hub 27.

  The upper portion of the hub unit fixing flange 5 has substantially the same outer contour as the outer contour of the hub unit fastening portion 28, and the lower portion of the hub unit fixing flange 5 is a part of the rear end opening of the trailing arm 2. Covers the bottom or bottom (Fig. 2). That is, the hub unit fixing flange 5 has a shape that covers the lower part of the rear end opening of the trailing arm 2 and extends upward from the upper end of the trailing arm 2. The opening is in an open state at the top. The ABS sensor 34 to be assembled to the hub unit 25 is attached to the upper extension 5 a of the hub unit fixing flange 5, and the ABS sensor 34 is positioned facing the sensor ring 33. Reference numeral 35 in FIG. 2 indicates a cable extending from the ABS sensor 34. On the surface 28b of the hub unit fastening portion 28 of the hub unit 25 that is seated on the hub unit fixing flange 5, a drainage vertical groove 37 that extends downward is formed at the lowest position as shown in FIG. ing.

  In the above embodiment, as best understood from FIG. 2, the hub unit 25 is disposed in a state slightly offset upward from the rear end of the trailing arm 2, and the hub unit fastening portion 28, that is, the hub unit is arranged. The vehicle width direction inner end opening 25 is covered with the hub unit fixing flange 5 and the rear end of the trailing arm 2. The ABS sensor 34 is attached to the extension 5a extending upward of the hub bearing fixing flange 5 for fixing the hub bearing. Therefore, the ABS sensor 34 and the sensor ring 33 are sealed by the hub unit fixing flange 5 and the trailing end of the trailing arm 2, and the installation position of the ABS sensor 34 does not interfere with the trailing end of the trailing arm 2. Needless to say, since the ABS sensor 34 is attached to the extension 5a extending upward from the rear end of the trailing arm 2, the ABS sensor 34 can be easily attached.

  Further, when water enters the inside of the hub unit 25, the water is immediately discharged to the outside through the drainage vertical groove 37 (FIG. 3) extending downward from the lowest position of the hub unit fastening portion 28. As a result, it is possible to prevent water from accumulating inside the hub unit 25 and adversely affecting the ABS sensor 34 and the sensor ring 33.

FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view showing only a right side portion of a torsion beam type rear suspension. It is a figure which shows the state attached to the hub bearing fixing bracket of the rear end of a trailing arm with a hub unit. It is a perspective view of a hub unit. It is a fragmentary figure which shows the ball bearing part inside a hub unit.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Torsion beam type rear suspension 2 Trailing arm 3 Torsion beam 5 Hub unit fixing flange 5a Upper extension part of hub unit fixing flange 25 Hub unit 26 Bearing part 27 Hub 27a Inner race 28 Hub unit fastening part 28a Outer race 28b Hub unit fastening 29 Seating on the unit fixing flange in the part 29 Ball bearing 30 Outer seal member 31 Inner seal member 33 Sensor ring 34 ABS sensor (sensor body)
37 Drainage vertical groove

Claims (2)

A trailing arm having a pair of left and right hollow cylinders extending in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body, supported at the front end so as to swing up and down with respect to the vehicle body, and rotatably supporting the rear wheel at the rear end;
A torsion beam extending in the vehicle width direction and having a longitudinal cross section connected to a central portion in the front-rear direction of the trailing arm and a torsion beam having a closed cross section and an irregular cross section by pressing a hollow pipe In the type rear suspension,
A hub unit fixing flange provided at a rear end of the trailing arm;
A hub unit fastened to the hub unit fixing flange,
The hub unit includes a hub for attaching a rear wheel, a hub unit fastening portion for fixing the hub unit to the hub unit fixing flange,
A ball bearing portion including an inner race integral with the hub, an outer race integral with the hub unit fastening portion, and a plurality of ball bearings disposed between the inner race and the outer race;
A seal member provided on the ball bearing portion, for sealing the ball bearing portion;
A sensor ring provided at the inner end of the inner race;
A sensor body arranged facing the sensor ring,
The sensor body is attached to the hub unit fixing flange, and the hub unit fastening portion is provided with a drain groove extending downwardly formed on a surface seated on the hub unit fixing flange. A torsion beam type rear suspension. By fixing the hub unit fastening portion to the hub unit fixing flange, the inner end opening of the hub unit in the vehicle width direction is covered with the hub unit fixing flange and the rear end of the trailing arm. The torsion beam type rear suspension according to claim 1.

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