JP2007263246A - Ultrasonic sensor, sensor device, and rolling bearing device with sensor - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an ultrasonic sensor improving mountability, a sensor device equipped with this ultrasonic sensor, and a rolling bearing device with the sensor. <P>SOLUTION: The sensor device mounted on a fixing side track member comprises the ultrasonic sensor detecting an echo of ultrasonic wave from a detected portion. A flange portion 58 for mounting having a substantially triangle shape viewed from an axial direction of a casing 51 is provided in an end of front plate side of the casing 51 of an ultrasonic sensor 2. A bolt inserting hole 59 is provided in each summit portion of this flange portion 58 for mounting. The ultrasonic sensor 2 is mounted on a fixing side track member 3 in such a way that a bolt 60 inserted into the bolt inserting hole 59 of each summit portion of the flange portion 58 for mounting is screwed into a female screw portion 3a provided in the fixing side track member 3. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a sensor device and a sensor-equipped rolling bearing device which are integrated with a rolling bearing and are suitable for detecting various types of information on the rolling bearing, and an ultrasonic sensor which is preferably used in these devices.

  In automobiles, various information is necessary to perform the control. Therefore, a fixed-side track member fixed to the vehicle body side, a rotation-side track member to which wheels are attached, and two members disposed between the two members. It has been proposed to provide a sensor device in a rolling bearing having a row of rolling elements.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 5, as an ultrasonic sensor, a cylindrical casing (61), a front plate (62) that closes one end opening of the casing (61), and a front plate (62) are contacted. A vibrator (63) provided in the housing, a backing material (64) filled in the housing (61), a cover (65) for closing the other end opening of the housing (61), and the housing (61) And a connector (66) provided on the connector and a lead wire (67) for connecting the connector (66) and the vibrator (63) are known.

As a method of attaching such an ultrasonic sensor, a method of sandwiching the sensor with a plate and holding it with a bolt is common, and this method requires parallelism between the front plate and the cover, and is difficult to manufacture. There was a problem that it was difficult to obtain an optimal pressing force. Therefore, Patent Document 1 proposes pressing the ultrasonic sensor with a spring.
JP 10-339722 A

  For example, in the above-described rolling bearing device with a sensor for an automobile, it is conceivable to use an ultrasonic sensor. However, in the ultrasonic sensor disclosed in Patent Document 1, the housing is mounted in the axial direction for disposing a spring. Since space is required and it is difficult to mount the bearing to the bearing so as to have a uniform surface pressure, there is a problem that the mountability is poor when used in a rolling bearing device with a sensor.

  An object of the present invention is to provide an ultrasonic sensor with improved mounting performance, a sensor device including the ultrasonic sensor, and a rolling bearing device with the sensor.

  An ultrasonic sensor according to the present invention is an ultrasonic sensor including a cylindrical casing, a front plate that closes one end opening of the casing, and a vibrator that is provided so as to contact the front plate. A mounting flange portion having a substantially triangular shape as viewed from the axial direction of the housing is provided at the end on the front plate side of the housing, and a bolt insertion hole is provided at each apex portion of the mounting flange portion. It is characterized by.

  In the ultrasonic sensor, an annular gap is provided between the outer periphery of the front plate and the inner periphery of the housing, and the front plate and the vibrator are interposed via an elastic backing material filled in the housing. It is preferable that the surface of the front plate is protruded by a predetermined amount from the end face of the mounting flange before mounting. If it does in this way, it will become possible to set it as the optimal pressing force in the bolting completion state in which the end surface of a front board and the housing | casing end surface become the same by setting protrusion amount appropriately.

  In addition, the backing material has entered a part of the annular gap between the front plate and the housing, and the end surface position of the backing material is positioned axially inward of the housing end surface, so that the housing end portion It is preferable that an annular groove capable of holding the contact medium is formed between the backing material and the backing material. In this way, the contact medium is held in the annular groove, so that a stable sensor function is exhibited over a long period of time.

  A sensor device according to the present invention includes a detected part composed of a movable body and a fixed body that are in contact with each other, an ultrasonic sensor that is attached to the fixed body and detects an ultrasonic echo from the detected part, and an output of the ultrasonic sensor. The ultrasonic sensor is as described above, and the bolt inserted into the bolt insertion hole at each apex portion of the mounting flange portion is provided in the fixed body, and thus is screwed into the screw portion. It is attached to a fixed body.

  In the above sensor device, the movable body may be a rolling element of a rolling bearing, and the fixed body may be a fixed ring of the rolling bearing. That is, a sensor device used in a rolling bearing includes an ultrasonic sensor attached to the fixed side of the rolling bearing, and a processing unit that processes the output of the ultrasonic sensor. The bolts inserted through the bolt insertion holes at the respective apex portions of the mounting flange portion are provided in the fixed body, and are thus attached to the fixed body by being screwed into the threaded portion. .

  As the rolling bearing, any rolling bearing such as a deep groove ball bearing, an angular ball bearing, a roller bearing, a needle bearing, or a thrust bearing can be used. Applicable.

  The ultrasonic sensor may be attached to a fixed ring of a rolling bearing. When the fixed ring is supported by a housing or the like, the ultrasonic sensor is held by the housing or the like, and the contact between the fixed ring and the housing or the like is achieved. You may make it face.

  Ultrasonic sensors are provided at a total of four locations, for example, the top, bottom, front, and rear of a rolling bearing. The arrangement of the ultrasonic sensors is not necessarily equal, and there may be only one ultrasonic sensor.

  A rolling bearing device with a sensor according to the present invention is a rolling bearing device with a sensor provided with a rolling bearing having a fixed side race member, a rotary side race member and a rolling element, and a sensor device. An ultrasonic sensor for detecting an echo of an ultrasonic wave from a contact portion between the fixed side raceway member and the rolling element, and a processing means for processing the output of the ultrasonic sensor. The bolts inserted into the bolt insertion holes at the respective apex portions of the mounting flange portion are provided in the fixed body, and are thus attached to the fixed body by being screwed into the screw portions.

  This sensor-equipped rolling bearing device may be used as a vehicle-equipped sensor-equipped rolling bearing device (hub unit) in which the fixed-side raceway member is attached to the vehicle body side and the rotation-side raceway member is attached to the wheel side. .

  According to the ultrasonic sensor of the present invention, the mounting flange portion having a substantially triangular shape when viewed from the axial direction of the housing is provided at the end of the housing on the front plate side, and each apex of the mounting flange portion. Since the bolt insertion hole is provided in the part, the ultrasonic sensor can be firmly fixed by tightening the bolts at three locations, and a spring or the like is not necessary for installation, which is necessary for the arrangement of the spring. Installation space can be saved.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a rolling bearing device with a sensor provided with the sensor device of the present invention. In the following description, left and right and top and bottom refer to left and right and top and bottom of the drawing.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a rolling bearing device with a sensor includes a rolling bearing (1), an ultrasonic sensor (2) attached to the rolling bearing (1), and a process for processing the output of the ultrasonic sensor (2). Means (not shown).

  The rolling bearing (1) includes an outer ring (fixed body) (3), an inner ring (4), a plurality of rolling elements (movable bodies) (5) disposed therebetween, and a cage (6). . Although not shown, the outer ring (3) is fixed to a housing or the like, and a rotating shaft or the like is fixed to the inner ring (4). The outer ring (3) and the housing may be integrated.

  The ultrasonic sensor (2) faces the contact surface (detected part) (D) between the rolling element (5) and the raceway groove of the outer ring (3) in a direction perpendicular to it and obtains an ultrasonic echo. As shown in FIG. 2, a cylindrical casing (51), a front plate (52) closing one end (lower end) opening of the casing (51), and a front plate (52) are provided. Vibrator (53), backing material (54) filled in the case (51), a cover (55) for closing the other end (upper end) opening of the case (51), and a case (51) Connector (56), lead wire (57) connecting connector (56) and vibrator (53), and end (lower end) of housing (51) on front plate (52) side And a mounting flange portion (58).

  The end surface (lower surface) (58a) of the mounting flange portion (58) is flush with the lower end of the housing (51), and the mounting flange portion (58), as shown in FIG. ) Is substantially triangular when viewed from the axial direction. A bolt insertion hole (59) is provided at each apex portion of the substantially triangular mounting flange (58). The ultrasonic sensor (2) is attached to the outer ring (3) by being screwed into the screw part (3a) because the bolt (60) inserted into each bolt insertion hole (59) is provided in the outer ring (3). Yes.

  The housing (51) is made of metal. The front plate (52) is made of ceramic and is adjusted so that its thickness is one half of the wavelength of the emitted ultrasonic wave. An annular gap (G) is provided between the outer periphery of the front plate (52) and the inner periphery of the housing (51).

  The vibrator (53) is made of piezoelectric ceramics such as PZT, and is bonded to the back surface (upper surface) of the front plate (52) with an adhesive such as epoxy resin. The backing material (54) is for attenuating the ultrasonic wave transmitted to the back side of the vibrator (53), and is formed of a synthetic resin such as an epoxy resin or rubber. The front plate (52) and the vibrator (53) are supported by the casing (51) via the backing material (54) by filling the casing (51) with the backing material (54). .

  FIG. 2 (a) shows a state before the ultrasonic sensor (2) is attached. Before the attachment, the front plate (52) has a surface (lower surface) (52a) whose mounting flange portion (58). It protrudes outward (downward) in the axial direction from the end surface (lower surface) (58a) of the. FIG. 2 (b) shows the mounting state of the ultrasonic sensor (2). Since the bolt (60) inserted into each bolt insertion hole (59) is provided in the outer ring (3), the threaded portion (3a) is shown. By being screwed into and tightened, the backing material (54) is elastically deformed, and the front plate (52) has its surface (52a) flush with the lower surface (58a) of the mounting flange (58). ing.

  Filling the backing material (54), part of the backing material (54) enters a part of the annular gap (G) between the front plate (52) and the housing (51), the end surface (54a) The position is set so as to be located inward (upward) in the axial direction from the lower surface (58a) of the mounting flange portion (58). Therefore, in the attached state shown in FIG. 2B, an annular groove (61) capable of holding the contact medium is formed between the end of the casing (51) and the backing material (54). The contact medium enhances the close contact state between the ultrasonic sensor (2) and the detected part (D) and propagates the ultrasonic wave well. The contact medium held in the annular groove (61) is the ultrasonic wave. By replenishing the boundary surface between the sensor (2) and the detected part (D), a stable sensor function is exhibited over a long period of time.

  When an electrical signal from a pulse transmitter (not shown) is applied to the vibrator (53) via the connector (56) and the lead wire (57), an ultrasonic wave is emitted from the vibrator (53), and this ultrasonic wave is It is sent to the detected part (D) via the front plate (52). Then, the reflected wave from the detected part (D) is received by the vibrator (53) via the front plate (52) and output.

  In addition, in the said embodiment, although the case where a sensor apparatus was provided in a ball bearing and used as a rolling bearing apparatus with a sensor was shown, the sensor apparatus by this invention should be used in combination with things other than a rolling bearing. Is also possible.

  Of course, the present invention can also be used in an automotive hub unit which is an application example of a rolling bearing other than a ball bearing or a rolling bearing device.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment when applied to a hub unit of an automobile will be described.

  The rolling bearing device with a sensor shown in FIG. 4 is used as a hub unit with a sensor for an automobile, and includes a hub unit (21) for an automobile and a sensor device (22).

  The hub unit (21) is arranged in two rows between a stationary race member (23) fixed to the vehicle body side, a rotary race member (24) to which wheels are attached, and both members (23) (24). A ball (25), which is a plurality of rolling elements, and a cage (26) for holding the rolling elements (25) in each row are provided.

  The fixed-side raceway member (23) has an outer ring (fixed ring) function of the bearing, and includes a cylindrical portion (31) in which two rows of outer ring raceways are formed on the inner peripheral surface, and a cylindrical portion (31 ) And a mounting flange portion (32) attached to the suspension device (vehicle body side portion) with a bolt.

  The rotating side raceway member (24) has a large diameter portion (34) having a first raceway groove (34a) and a small diameter portion (35) having an outer diameter smaller than the diameter of the first raceway groove (34a). The inner ring (33), and the inner ring (33), the inner ring (33), which has a small diameter part (35) and is fitted to the outer diameter, and the right side is in close contact with the left side of the large diameter part (34) (36) Near the right end of the inner shaft (33), there is provided a mounting flange portion (37) to which a plurality of bolts (38) for mounting the wheel are fixed. A raceway groove (36a) is formed on the right side of the inner ring (36) so as to be parallel to the raceway groove (34a) of the inner shaft (33). A sealing device (39) is provided between the right end portion of the fixed race member (23) and the inner shaft (33). A male screw is provided at the left end of the small diameter portion (35) of the inner shaft (33), and the inner ring (36) is connected to the inner shaft (33) by a nut (40) screwed to the male screw. It is fixed to. A cover (41) is covered with the left end portion of the fixed-side raceway member (23). Although not shown in the drawings, the inner ring and the inner shaft may be fixed by plastically deforming the end of the inner shaft.

  The sensor device (22) includes a plurality of ultrasonic sensors (Sti) (Sbi) (Sto) (Sbo) having the same configuration as the ultrasonic sensor (2) shown in FIGS. And processing means (not shown) for processing the outputs of the acoustic wave sensors (Sti) (Sbi) (Sto) (Sbo).

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view showing one embodiment of a sensor device according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view (along the line II-II in FIG. 3) showing the ultrasonic sensor according to the present invention. FIG. 3 is a plan view of the ultrasonic sensor according to the present invention. FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view showing another embodiment of the rolling bearing device with sensor according to the present invention. FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a conventional ultrasonic sensor.

Explanation of symbols

(1) Rolling bearing
(2) Ultrasonic sensor
(3) Outer ring (fixed body = fixed raceway member)
(4) Inner ring (rotating raceway member)
(5) Rolling body (movable body)
(21) Hub unit (rolling bearing)
(22) Sensor device
(23) Fixed track member
(24) Rotating track member
(25) Rolling elements (balls)
(51) Enclosure
(52) Front plate
(53) Vibrator
(58) Mounting flange
(58a) End face
(59) Bolt insertion hole
(60) Bolt
(61) Ring groove for holding contact medium
(Sti) (Sbi) (Sto) (Sbo) Ultrasonic sensor
(D) Contact surface (detected part)

Claims (7)

  In an ultrasonic sensor including a cylindrical housing, a front plate that closes one end opening of the housing, and a vibrator that is provided so as to contact the front plate, the ultrasonic sensor has an end on the front plate side of the housing. An ultrasonic sensor characterized in that a substantially triangular mounting flange portion is provided when viewed from the axial direction of the housing, and a bolt insertion hole is provided at each apex portion of the mounting flange portion.   An annular gap is provided between the outer periphery of the front plate and the inner periphery of the housing, and the front plate and the vibrator are supported by the housing via an elastic backing material filled in the housing. 2. The ultrasonic sensor according to claim 1, wherein a surface of the front plate is projected by a predetermined amount from an end surface of the mounting flange portion before mounting.   The backing material has entered a part of the annular gap between the front plate and the housing, and the end surface position of the backing material is positioned axially inward from the housing end surface, so that the housing end portion and the backing material The ultrasonic sensor according to claim 2, wherein an annular groove capable of holding a contact medium is formed between the material and the material.   A detection unit comprising a movable body and a fixed body that are in contact with each other, an ultrasonic sensor that is attached to the fixed body and that detects ultrasonic echoes from the detection unit, and a processing means that processes the output of the ultrasonic sensor The ultrasonic sensor according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the bolt inserted into the bolt insertion hole at each apex portion of the mounting flange portion is provided in the fixed body and is screwed into the screw portion. The sensor device is attached to a fixed body.   5. The sensor device according to claim 4, wherein the movable body is a rolling element of a rolling bearing, and the fixed body is a fixed ring of the rolling bearing. In a rolling bearing device with a sensor provided with a rolling bearing having a stationary race member, a rotating race member and rolling elements, and a sensor device,
The sensor device includes an ultrasonic sensor that is attached to the fixed-side track member and detects an ultrasonic echo from a contact portion between the fixed-side track member and the rolling element, and a processing unit that processes the output of the ultrasonic sensor, The ultrasonic sensor according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the bolt inserted into the bolt insertion hole at each apex portion of the mounting flange portion is provided in the fixed body and is screwed into the screw portion. This is a rolling bearing device with a sensor that is attached to a fixed body. 7. The sensor-equipped rolling bearing device according to claim 6, wherein the fixed-side raceway member is a hub unit with a sensor attached to the vehicle body side and the rotation-side raceway member is attached to the wheel side.

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