JP2008047550A - Rotating connector with rotation sensor - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a rotating connector with a rotation sensor capable of accurately detecting the rotating angle of a steering wheel. <P>SOLUTION: The rotating connector with the rotation sensor comprises a rotating connector 10 electrically connecting an electric component mounted to the steering wheel W, to the body side, and the rotation sensor 20 detecting the rotating angle of the steering wheel W. A mounting part of a combination switch bracket 5 and a stator 22 of the rotation sensor is provided with a cushioning material. A rotor 21 of the rotation sensor is directly mounted to a steering shaft S, and the rotor 11 of the rotating connector rotates following the rotor of the rotation sensor. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a rotation connector with a rotation sensor, which includes a rotation connector that electrically connects an electrical component mounted on a steering to the vehicle body side, and a rotation sensor that detects a rotation angle of the steering.

  In the conventional rotary connector, the drive of the steering is transmitted to the rotor of the rotary connector by a structure in which the protrusion protruding from the rotor of the rotary connector is fitted to the steering.

For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a configuration in which a rotation sensor is attached to the rotation connector to form a unit, and the steering angle of the steering is detected by the rotation sensor. 11, the rotor 51 of the rotary connector 50 is attached to the steering wheel W connected to the steering shaft S, and a rattling absorbing spring (not shown in FIG. 11). ) To connect the rotor 61 of the rotation sensor 60. That is, the driving torque of the steering W is transmitted to the rotor 61 of the rotation sensor 60 by attaching the rotor 61 of the rotation sensor 60 to the rotor 51 of the rotation connector 50. The rotor 61 and the stator 62 of the rotation sensor 60 are provided with sensing members, and the rotation angle is detected by the rotation of the rotor 61 of the rotation sensor 60.
JP 11-329649 A

  The output of the rotation sensor is used as, for example, information on beagle stability control that stabilizes the behavior while the vehicle is running, or is used for adjusting the hydraulic pressure of the power steering. Therefore, the output of the rotation sensor must be accurately measured.

  However, in the above-described configuration, rattling (play) between the steering shaft S and the steering wheel W, relative angular deviation between the rotors of the rotation connector 50 and the rotation sensor 60 by the rattling absorption spring, etc. It is conceivable that the deviation between the components between the steering shaft S, which is the measurement object, and the rotation sensor 60 is integrated and an accurate rotation angle cannot be detected.

  Hereinafter, the reason why a large detection error occurs particularly when the output of the rotation sensor 60 is detected via the rotary connector 50 will be described.

  The accuracy of the output signal of the rotation sensor 60 depends on the backlash of the rotor 61 and the stator 62 of the rotation sensor 60. That is, if the positions of the rotor 61 and the stator 62 are changed, the output signal naturally changes accordingly.

  Therefore, in order to obtain an accurate output, it is preferable that the relative position of the rotor 61 and the stator 62 of the rotation sensor 60 be always the same position. In order to obtain sufficient product characteristics, for example, the rotor 61 and the stator 62 are used. The clearance is suppressed to a very small clearance of ± 0.2 mm.

  On the other hand, the rotor 51 of the rotary connector 50 connected to the steering W is not required to be as accurate as the rotation sensor 60. Therefore, the rotation sensor 60 is usually provided at the connecting portion between the rotor 51 of the rotary connector 50 and the steering W. A clearance larger than the clearance between the rotor 61 and the stator 62 is provided, and the size thereof is generally about ± 0.5 mm (2.5 times that of the rotation sensor). On the other hand, if there is no clearance in the connecting portion, the dimensional accuracy of the connecting portion between the shaft S and the steering W and the connecting portion between the steering W and the rotary connector 50 must be very strict. Even if the member can be machined with this dimensional accuracy, assembly becomes difficult at this time, and there is a necessity that this connection portion should have a somewhat large clearance.

  Therefore, when the rotation sensor 60 detects the steering angle of the steering W via the rotor 51 of the rotary connector 50, the rotor 61 of the rotation sensor 60 also moves by this rattling. For this reason, the output signal of the rotation sensor 60 fluctuates by the amount of fluctuation with this backlash, making it impossible to detect the steering angle with high accuracy.

  Next, a further problem that occurs when the rotation sensor 60 detects the rotation angle of the steering wheel W via the rotary connector 50 will be described.

  As described above, the clearance between the rotor 61 of the rotation sensor 60 and the stator 62 is about ± 0.2 mm. Since the stator 62 of the rotation sensor 60 is attached to the combination switch bracket via the buffer member, the stator 62 can move to some extent according to the backlash of the rotor 61 of the rotation sensor 60. However, due to the clearance between the rotor 51 of the rotary connector 50 and the steering W, the rotor 61 of the rotation sensor 60 may move greatly and exceed the amount of backlash absorbed by the stator 62 of the rotation sensor 60. In such a case, the rotor 61 of the rotation sensor 60 may apply excessive lateral pressure to the stator 62, increasing the rotational torque of the rotor 61. In the worst case, the rotor 61 may not rotate and the steering angle may not be detected. .

  In addition, a cancel cam (not shown in FIG. 11) for operating the winker cancel mechanism is generally integrated with the rotor 51 of the rotary connector 50, and when the cancel mechanism operates, the cancel cam flips the cancel mechanism. While rotating. Therefore, in the conventional configuration, the vibration when the cancel mechanism is flipped is transmitted to the rotor 61 of the rotation sensor 60 connected only to the rotor 51 via the rotor 51 of the rotation connector 50, and the output of the rotation sensor 60. The signal could be adversely affected.

  An object of the present invention is to solve the above-described problems and to provide a rotation connector with a rotation sensor that can accurately detect the rotation angle of a steering wheel.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, a rotation connector with a rotation sensor according to the present invention includes a rotation connector that electrically connects an electrical component mounted on a steering wheel to the vehicle body side, a rotation sensor that detects a rotation angle of the steering wheel, and A cushioning material is provided at the mounting portion of the rotation sensor stator and the combination switch bracket so that the rotor of the rotation sensor can be directly attached to the steering shaft, and the rotor of the rotation connector follows the rotor of the rotation sensor. To rotate.

  The rotor of the rotation sensor is directly fitted on the steering shaft. Further, the rotor of the rotation sensor is fitted to the steering shaft so as not to be as loose as possible. That is, the rotation of the steering shaft is directly transmitted to the rotor of the rotation sensor instead of transmitting the rotation from the steering wheel to the rotation sensor side rotor via the rotation connector side rotor. With this structure, since the rotor of the rotation sensor is integrated (stiffened) with the steering shaft, the rotation angle of the steering shaft can be accurately detected by the rotation sensor.

  In addition, since the rotation connector with a rotation sensor is of a type to which the rotation sensor can be attached due to its structure, when the rotation sensor and the rotation connector can be manufactured in a series of processes, the rotor of the rotation sensor and the rotor of the rotation connector Can be integrated.

  At this time, two parts of the rotor of the rotary connector and the rotor of the rotation sensor become one part, and the member cost, mold cost, etc. can be reduced. Furthermore, since there is only one fitting portion with the steering shaft, assembly to the steering shaft is facilitated.

  In addition, by providing a cushioning material at the attachment portion between the stator of the rotation sensor and the combination switch bracket, it is possible to suppress backlash between the rotor and the stator of the rotation sensor and to increase the signal accuracy of the rotation sensor.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, a rotation connector with a rotation sensor includes a rotation connector that electrically connects an electrical component mounted on the steering to the vehicle body side, and a rotation sensor that detects a rotation angle of the steering. In addition, a cushioning material is provided at the attachment part of the stator of the rotation sensor and the combination switch bracket so that the rotor of the rotation sensor can be directly attached to the steering shaft, and the rotor of the rotary connector rotates following the rotation of the steering wheel. It is like that.

  Since the rotor of the rotary connector and the rotor of the rotation sensor are not connected, the vibration applied to the cancel cam and the rotor of the rotary connector when the winker cancellation mechanism is operated is not transmitted to the rotor of the rotation sensor, and is caused by the vibration. Generation of rotation angle detection error can be prevented.

  In terms of component assembly, the rotation connector and the rotation sensor can be individually assembled. That is, when these are unitized, it is only necessary to fit these stators together. Depending on the user's specifications, there is a type in which the rotation sensor cannot be mounted. However, if the rotation connector rotor and the rotation sensor rotor are separated, the rotation connector can be made of the same parts regardless of the presence or absence of the rotation sensor. , Parts can be shared.

  In addition, by providing a cushioning material at the attachment portion between the stator of the rotation sensor and the combination switch bracket, it is possible to suppress backlash between the rotor and the stator of the rotation sensor and to increase the signal accuracy of the rotation sensor.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the rotation connector with a rotation sensor which can detect the rotation angle of a steering with sufficient accuracy can be provided.

  Hereinafter, a rotation connector with a rotation sensor according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described.

  As shown in the external side view of FIG. 1 and the schematic cross-sectional view of FIG. 2, the rotary connector 1 with a rotation sensor according to the first embodiment of the present invention has a rotor 21 as a steering shaft (hereinafter simply referred to as “shaft”). ) The rotation sensor 20 fitted to S and the rotation connector 10 that accommodates the rotation sensor 20 are provided, and the rotor 21 of the rotation sensor 20 and the rotor 11 of the rotation connector 10 are mechanically coupled.

  Note that the rotor 11 and the stator 12 of the rotary connector 10 are made of resin, and a flat cable (not shown) is spirally housed inside the rotating connector 10 so that the steering wheel (hereinafter simply referred to as “steering”) W is accommodated. It plays the role of making an electrical connection between a mounted electrical component such as an airbag inflator and a vehicle body side wire harness (not shown). On the other hand, the rotation sensor 20 is used to detect an accurate steering amount of the steering W, and this detection signal is used for hydraulic control of the power steering or as one factor of beagle stability control (behavior control) while the vehicle is running. It is designed to be used.

  The stator 22 of the rotation sensor 20 is made of a metal member having a shielding effect such as aluminum or silver, and the rotation sensor 20 is provided with a locking projection (not shown). As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the combination switch bracket 5 The locking projections are fixed to the locking holes by locking the locking projections with a cushioning material. The stator 12 of the rotary connector 10 is also fixed to the stator 22 of the rotation sensor 20.

  On the other hand, the rotor 21 of the rotation sensor 20 includes a ring-shaped rotor sensing portion 21a and a stepped columnar rotor fixing portion 21b. The rotor fixing portion 21b is made of resin, and the reduced diameter portion 21c is fitted to the serration of the shaft S so as to rotate integrally with the rotation of the shaft S. The rotor sensing unit 21a is made of a ring member whose width is variable in the circumferential direction made of a conductive member such as iron, and the coil housed in the magnetic material core is disposed opposite to the ring member, and the ring member is By rotating, the generation degree of eddy current is converted into fluctuation of coil impedance, and this is detected and taken out as an angle signal.

  The rotor 21 of the rotation sensor 20 is attached to the shaft S with as little clearance as possible. Thereby, the rotor sensing part 21a of the rotation sensor 20 can be rotated with high accuracy, and detection with high accuracy can be performed.

  On the other hand, the combination switch bracket (not shown) is fixed to the shaft cover 6 (FIG. 3). However, the shaft cover 6 may be fixed with a slight shift with respect to the shaft S, or the fixed portion between the combination switch bracket and the shaft cover 6 may be shifted. Therefore, when the stator 22 of the rotation sensor 20 is attached to the combination switch bracket as it is, the combination switch bracket remains displaced with respect to the shaft S. For this reason, a cushioning material that absorbs this deviation is provided at the mounting portion of the stator 22 of the rotation sensor 20 and the combination switch bracket. As a result, the stator 22 is always arranged at the same position with respect to the shaft S.

  By having the above structure, the backlash of the rotor 21 and the stator 22 of the rotation sensor 20 can be suppressed, and the accuracy of the output signal of the rotation sensor 20 can be increased.

  The inner periphery of the rotor 11 of the rotary connector 10 is integrated with the outer periphery of the reduced diameter portion of the rotation sensor 20. Accordingly, since the rotation connector 1 with the rotation sensor has only one fitting portion with the shaft S, the rotation connector 1 with the rotation sensor can be easily assembled to the shaft S.

  Then, the form which attached the winker cancellation mechanism to this rotation connector 1 with a rotation sensor is demonstrated.

  FIG. 4 shows a structure in which a cancel cam 21 k is provided on the rotation sensor rotor 21. Since the rotation sensor rotor 21 is integrated with the shaft S as described above, even if the vibration due to the cancel cam 21k jumping up is transmitted to the rotation sensor rotor 21, the rotation sensor rotor 21 as in the conventional rotation sensor 60 is used. There is no inaccurate detection.

  FIG. 5 shows a structure in which a cancel cam Sk is provided on the shaft S. In this case, the vibration due to the jump of the cancel cam Sk is hardly transmitted to the rotation sensor rotor 21. Even if this vibration is transmitted, the detection of the rotation sensor does not become inaccurate unlike the conventional rotation sensor 60.

  Furthermore, although the structure is complicated, a member is extended from the rotor 11 of the rotary connector 10 to the lower part of the rotation sensor 20 as an equivalent structure with respect to the structure shown in FIG. The tip of the member may be used as a cancel cam. In this case, the vibration caused by the jumping up of the cancel cam is transmitted to the rotor 21 of the rotation sensor 20 via the rotor 11 of the rotary connector 10, but since the rotation sensor rotor 21 is integrated with the shaft S, it is the same as described above. The detection of the rotation sensor 20 does not become inaccurate.

  As described above, in the case of the rotary connector 1 with the rotation sensor according to the first embodiment of the present invention, the rotation sensor 20 accurately detects the steering angle of the steering wheel W and is adversely affected by the jumping up of the winker cancellation cam. I'm sorry.

  The stator 22 of the rotation sensor 20 may be directly attached to the combination switch bracket 5 or may be integrated with the stator 12 of the rotary connector 10 and attached to the combination switch bracket 5.

  Further, the rotor 21 of the rotation sensor 20 may be integrated with the rotor 11 of the rotary connector 10. Thus, the two parts of the stator 12 of the rotation connector 10 and the stator 22 of the rotation sensor 20 can be made into one part, and the two parts of the rotor 11 of the rotation connector 10 and the rotor 21 of the rotation sensor 20 can be made into one part. This has the advantage that the mold cost can be reduced.

  In the present invention, the rotation sensor 20 is not limited to the rotation sensor 20 of the detection principle according to the above-described embodiment, and rotation sensors of various principles can be used.

  Then, the rotation connector with a rotation sensor concerning the 2nd Embodiment of this invention is demonstrated. In addition, about the structure equivalent to the above-mentioned embodiment, a corresponding code | symbol is attached | subjected and detailed description is abbreviate | omitted.

  As shown in the schematic cross-sectional view of FIG. 6 and the detailed cross-sectional view of FIG. 7, the rotation connector 2 with the rotation sensor according to the second embodiment of the present invention includes a rotation sensor 40 in which the rotor 41 is fitted to the shaft S, The rotary connector 30 is provided with a rotation sensor 40 and a rotor 31 attached to the steering wheel W.

  The internal structure of the rotary connector 30 and the internal structure of the rotation sensor 40 are the same as those in the first embodiment.

  The stator 42 of the rotation sensor 40 is made of a metal member having a shielding effect such as aluminum or silver, and the rotation sensor 40 is provided with a locking projection (not shown). As shown in FIG. 7, the locking of the combination switch bracket 5 is performed. The locking projection is locked in the hole by way of a cushioning material.

  On the other hand, the rotor 31 of the rotary connector 30 is provided with a steering connection protrusion 31a formed integrally with the rotor 31. By connecting the protrusion 31a to the steering W (not shown in FIG. 7), the steering W The rotation is transmitted to the rotor 31 of the rotary connector 30.

  That is, unlike the first embodiment, the rotor 31 of the rotary connector 30 does not receive torque from the rotor 41 of the rotation sensor 40 but transmits torque from the steering W.

  The rotor 41 of the rotation sensor 40 includes a ring-shaped rotor sensing portion 41a and a stepped columnar rotor fixing portion 41b. The rotor fixing portion 41b is made of resin, and the reduced diameter portion 41c (FIG. 7) is fitted into the serration of the shaft S so as to rotate integrally with the shaft S.

  The rotor 41 of the rotation sensor 40 is attached to the shaft S with as little clearance as possible, so that highly accurate detection can be performed. In addition, a cushioning material that absorbs the displacement of the combination switch bracket with respect to the shaft S is provided at a portion where the stator 42 of the rotation sensor 40 and the combination switch bracket are attached. With these structures, the backlash between the rotor 41 and the stator 42 of the rotation sensor 40 can be suppressed, and the accuracy of the output signal of the rotation sensor 40 is increased.

  Since the rotation connector 2 with a rotation sensor according to the second embodiment of the present invention has the above configuration, the rotation connector 30 and the rotation sensor 40 can be individually assembled from the viewpoint of component assembly. . That is, when these are unitized, it is only necessary to fit these stators together. Depending on the user's specifications, there is a type in which the rotation sensor 40 cannot be attached. However, if the rotor 31 of the rotation connector 30 and the rotor 41 of the rotation sensor 40 are separated, the rotation connector 30 is not related to the presence or absence of the rotation sensor 40. They can be made with the same parts, and parts can be shared.

  Then, the form which attached the winker cancellation mechanism to this rotation connector 2 with a rotation sensor is demonstrated.

  FIG. 8 shows a structure in which a cancel cam 41 k is provided on the rotation sensor rotor 41. Since the rotation sensor rotor 41 is fitted and integrated with the shaft S as described above, even if the vibration due to the cancellation cam 41k jumping up is transmitted to the rotation sensor rotor 41, the rotation sensor rotor 41 is similar to the conventional rotation sensor 60. There is no inaccurate detection.

  FIG. 9 shows a structure in which a member extends from the rotor 31 of the rotary connector 30 to a position below the rotation sensor 40 and the tip of the member is a cancel cam 31k. In this case, the vibration caused by the jumping up of the cancel cam 31k is transmitted to the rotor 41 of the rotation sensor 40 via the rotor 31 of the rotary connector 30. Since the rotation sensor rotor 41 is integrated with the shaft S, the same as described above. In addition, the detection of the rotation sensor 40 does not become inaccurate.

  FIG. 10 shows a structure in which a cancel cam Sk is provided on the shaft S. In this case, vibration caused by the jumping up of the cancel cam Sk is hardly transmitted to the rotor 41 of the rotation sensor. Even if this vibration is transmitted, the detection of the rotation sensor does not become inaccurate unlike the conventional rotation sensor 60.

It is a side view of the rotation connector with a rotation sensor concerning a 1st embodiment of the present invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing of the rotation connector with a rotation sensor of FIG. FIG. 3 is a detailed sectional view of the rotary connector with a rotation sensor shown in FIG. 2. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows the state provided with the cancellation mechanism in the rotation connector with a rotation sensor concerning the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows the modification of FIG. It is a schematic sectional drawing of the rotation connector with a rotation sensor concerning the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 7 is a detailed sectional view of the rotary connector with a rotation sensor shown in FIG. 6. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows the state provided with the cancellation mechanism in the rotation connector with a rotation sensor concerning the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows the modification of FIG. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows another modification of FIG. It is a schematic sectional drawing of the conventional rotation connector with a rotation sensor.

Explanation of symbols

1 Rotation connector 2 Rotation connector with rotation sensor +
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 5 Combination switch bracket 6 Shaft cover 10 Rotation connector 11 Rotor 12 Stator 20 Rotation sensor 21 Rotor 21a Rotor sensing part 21b Rotor fixing | fixed part 21c Reduction diameter part 21k Cancel cam 22 Stator 30 Rotation connector 31 Rotor 31a Steering connection protrusion 31k Cancel cam 40 Rotation sensor 41 Rotor 41a Rotor sensing part 41b Rotor fixing part 41c Reduced diameter part 41k Cancel cam 42 Stator S Steering shaft Sk Cancel cam W Steering wheel

Claims (2)

In a rotary connector with a rotation sensor comprising: a rotary connector that electrically connects an electrical component mounted on the steering to the vehicle body side; and a rotation sensor that detects a rotation angle of the steering wheel.
A cushioning material is provided at the mounting portion of the rotation sensor stator and combination switch bracket,
A rotation with a rotation sensor, wherein the rotor of the rotation sensor is directly attached to a steering shaft, and the rotor of the rotation connector rotates following the rotor of the rotation sensor. connector. In a rotary connector with a rotation sensor comprising: a rotary connector that electrically connects an electrical component mounted on the steering to the vehicle body side; and a rotation sensor that detects a rotation angle of the steering wheel.
A cushioning material is provided at the mounting portion of the rotation sensor stator and combination switch bracket,
A rotation connector with a rotation sensor, wherein the rotor of the rotation sensor is directly attached to a steering shaft, and the rotor of the rotation connector rotates following the rotation of the steering. .

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