JP2008056120A - Pedestrian protection device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a pedestrian protection device capable of easily lowering a hood panel even after the hood panel is lifted by using gas generated by a gas generator for a drive source and operating an actuator with a lock mechanism. <P>SOLUTION: The pedestrian protection device M1 has a lifting device U1 for lifting the hood panel 22 of a vehicle. The lifting device U1 has the actuator A1 comprising a piston cylinder mechanism using gas G generated during the operation of the gas generator 26 for a drive source. The actuator A1 has the lock mechanism R1 for lifting a piston rod 36 stored in the cylinder 31, lifting the hood panel 22 connected to the upper end side of the piston rod 36 and regulating the lowering movement of the lifted piston rod 36 when operated. The lifting mechanism U1 has a return mechanism C1 capable of lowering the piston rod 36 to return the lifted hood panel 22 to an initial position PDP before the lifting. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a pedestrian protection device configured to include a lifting device that lifts an end portion of a hood panel of a vehicle, and more specifically, a piston whose driving source is a gas generated when the lifting device operates a gas generator. The present invention relates to a pedestrian protection device that includes an actuator including a cylinder mechanism.

  Conventionally, as a pedestrian protection device, the end of the hood panel is raised and energy absorption during plastic deformation is used to receive the pedestrian with the hood panel itself, or the rear end side of the hood panel is raised. In some cases, an airbag for catching a pedestrian is projected from the raised gap (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

And as a raising device which raises the hood panel in such a pedestrian protection device, there is one constituted by an actuator using a gas generated when the gas generator is operated as a drive source so that it can be operated quickly. (For example, refer to Patent Document 2). This actuator is configured as a piston cylinder mechanism, is filled with gas generated by the operation of the gas generator, lifts the piston rod stored in the cylinder, and is connected to the upper end side of the piston rod. It was configured to raise the panel. Also, the actuator consisting of a piston cylinder mechanism regulates the downward movement of the raised piston rod with respect to the cylinder so as not to lower the hood panel after filling the cylinder with gas from the gas generator and raising the hood panel. A locking mechanism was built in. In addition, as the gas generator, a micro gas generator that ignites explosives or a gas generating agent by inputting an operation signal is used. In such a gas generator, a chemical reaction of the explosive combustion gas or the gas generating agent is used. The generated gas was used as a gas for moving the piston rod.
JP 2005-28931 A JP 2004-322735 A

  However, after the hood panel is lifted by operating the lifting device, the hood panel is lowered so as to widen the field of view and the vehicle is driven. Can not be lowered.

  The present invention solves the above-described problem, and uses a gas generated by a gas generator as a drive source and operates an actuator having a lock mechanism to raise a hood panel. However, it aims at providing the pedestrian protection apparatus which can descend | fall a food panel easily.

The pedestrian protection device according to the present invention is configured to include a lifting device that lifts the hood panel of the vehicle,
The ascending device is configured to include an actuator including a piston cylinder mechanism that uses a gas generated when the gas generator is operated as a drive source,
The actuator
The gas generated by the operation of the gas generator is filled in the cylinder, the piston rod stored in the cylinder is raised, and the hood panel connected to the upper end side of the piston rod is raised,
A pedestrian protection device configured to include a lock mechanism that restricts the downward movement of the raised piston rod relative to the cylinder,
The lifting device is mounted on a vehicle with a return mechanism that can move down with the piston rod or actuator so that the hood panel raised by the operation of the gas generator is returned to the initial position before the lift. And

  In the pedestrian protection device according to the present invention, the actuator of the lifting device fills the cylinder with the gas generated by the operation of the gas generator, lifts the piston rod stored in the cylinder, and moves it to the upper end side of the piston rod. Even if the connected hood panel is raised and the downward movement of the piston rod relative to the cylinder is restricted by the lock mechanism, if the return mechanism is operated, the piston rod itself will move downward or the actuator itself will be lowered. Since it moves, the hood panel can be returned to the position before ascending.

  Therefore, in the pedestrian protection apparatus according to the present invention, even after the gas generated by the gas generator is used as a drive source and the hood panel is raised by operating the actuator having the lock mechanism. The hood panel can be easily lowered, and the vehicle can be driven with a good visibility.

  And as a return mechanism, you may comprise so that the piston rod itself of an actuator may be moved down and a hood panel may be returned to the initial position before raising.

For example, the locking mechanism
A substantially spherical locking member disposed between the sliding portions of the piston rod and the cylinder;
Located on the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod or the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder, accommodates a locking material, allows the piston rod to move during the upward movement, and the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder or the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod during the downward movement And slides when the piston rod is moved downward so that the downward movement of the piston rod can be regulated so that the lock member is disposed in a wedge shape between the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod and the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder. A storage concave portion on the moving side of the locking material to be narrowed, and
The return mechanism may be configured as follows.

That is, the return mechanism is
The piston rod is arranged on the inner circumferential surface of the cylinder or the outer circumferential surface of the piston rod so as to be connected to the housing recess when the piston rod rotates about the axis, and the outer circumferential surface of the piston rod and the inner circumferential surface of the cylinder in the lock member A retractable recess for storing the lock material so that the piston rod can be moved downward,
An operating portion provided on the piston rod and capable of rotating the piston rod in a direction around the axis;
It comprises and comprises.

  In such a configuration, when the actuator is operated and the piston rod is raised, the hood panel is also raised. When the lock mechanism is actuated after the hood panel is raised, the lock member slides with the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder or the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod along with the downward movement of the piston rod, so that the space where the storage recess is narrowed. Since it moves to the side and is disposed in a wedge shape between the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod and the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder, the piston rod is locked and the downward movement of the piston rod is restricted. When the piston rod is raised, the lock member of the lock mechanism slides with the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder or the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod and moves to the wider side of the storage recess, so lock the piston rod. Without allowing the piston rod to rise.

  When the return mechanism is actuated after the hood panel is raised, if the operating portion is operated to rotate the piston rod in the direction around the axis and the retracting recess communicates with the storage recess, the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod The lock member that has been in pressure contact with the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder is accommodated in the retracting recess to avoid a pressure contact state between the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod and the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder.

  Therefore, the locked state of the piston rod is released, and the piston rod can be moved downward by the weight or its own weight of the hood panel or by using a slight pressing force, and is connected to the upper end side of the piston rod. The hood panel can also be moved downward to return to the initial position. In such a configuration, since the piston rod itself is lowered as compared with the configuration in which the actuator is moved downward, the return mechanism can be made compact.

  In the above case, the retracting recess provided in the actuator is formed in a step shape along the axial direction of the piston rod, and a plurality of linear portions that are along the axial direction of the piston rod and shifted in the circumferential direction, and the piston rod You may comprise and provide the level | step-difference part which connects between linear parts along the circumferential direction. In such a configuration, since the lowering of the piston rod is temporarily stopped by the step portion provided along the circumferential direction, it is possible to prevent the hood panel at the raised position from being lowered to the initial position at a stretch.

  Furthermore, in the above-described actuator, it is desirable to provide a plurality of lock members, a storage recess for storing the lock material, and a plurality of retracting recesses disposed so as to communicate with the storage recess. In such a configuration, when the lock mechanism is operated, the piston rod can be stably locked and the downward movement of the piston rod can be stopped. Of course, if the lock member and the recesses for storing the lock member are arranged radially evenly around the axis of the piston rod, the piston rod can be locked more stably. ,preferable.

In addition, the lock mechanism
A substantially annular elastically deformable lock ring disposed between the sliding portions of the piston rod and the cylinder and disposed to be reduced in diameter along the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod;
It is arranged on the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder, houses the lock ring, allows the piston rod to move during the upward movement, and slides with the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod during the downward movement. An annular groove having a downward movement side of the piston rod as a side for narrowing the space so as to be able to regulate the downward movement of the piston rod, arranged in a wedge shape between the outer peripheral surface and the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder,
A spring means that presses downward along the axial direction of the piston rod so as to reduce the diameter of the lock ring, and allows the inner peripheral surface of the lock ring to contact the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod;
In this case, the return mechanism may be configured as follows.

  That is, the return mechanism is constituted by a spring seat that supports the upper end side away from the lock ring of the spring means, and the spring seat is screwed downward with respect to the upper end side of the cylinder and disposed in the direction of removing from the cylinder. When the lock ring is loosened upward, the lock ring can be expanded in diameter so that the urging force of the spring means on the lock ring can be reduced.

  In such a configuration, when the actuator is operated and the piston rod is raised, the hood panel is also raised. When the lock mechanism is actuated after the hood panel is raised, the lock ring slides on the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod about to move downward, and the biasing force of the spring means is also applied, so that the lower side of the annular recess is narrowed. And is disposed in a wedge shape between the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod and the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder, the piston rod is locked and the downward movement of the piston rod is restricted. When the piston rod is raised, the lock ring of the lock mechanism slides on the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod and moves to the upper side where the space of the annular groove is wide against the biasing force of the spring means. The piston rod is allowed to rise without locking the piston rod.

  When the return mechanism is operated after the hood panel is lifted, the spring seat is rotated in a loosening direction so as to be removed from the cylinder, and if lifted, the urging force of the spring means holding the lock ring downward is reduced. The diameter of the lock ring is increased, and the pressure contact state between the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod of the lock ring and the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder can be avoided.

  Therefore, the locked state of the piston rod is released, and the piston rod can be moved downward by the weight or its own weight of the hood panel or by using a slight pressing force, and is connected to the upper end side of the piston rod. The hood panel can also be moved downward to return to the initial position. Further, in such a configuration, the piston rod itself is lowered as compared with the configuration in which the actuator is moved downward, so that the return mechanism can be made compact.

  In the case of the actuator described above, the lock ring has a conical surface having an outer peripheral surface parallel to the tapered surface of the inner peripheral surface of the annular groove, and the inner peripheral surface being parallel to the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod to be inserted. It is desirable to configure as a substantially annular shape having a trapezoidal shape and a slit penetrating the inner and outer circumferences. In such a configuration, the lock ring is provided with a slit to facilitate the deformation of the reduced diameter and the increased diameter, and the outer circumferential surface is parallel to the tapered surface of the annular groove, and the side where the space of the annular groove is narrow It is easy to slide and move to the wide side, and it is easy to secure a pressing surface that can obtain a large frictional resistance when locking the piston rod so that the inner peripheral surface is parallel to the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod it can. As a result, such a lock ring can be smoothly locked and unlocked.

Furthermore, the locking mechanism
A locking projection provided on the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod protruding from the cylinder;
When restricting the downward movement of the piston rod, the locking protrusion on the tip side is brought into contact with the lower surface side of the locking protrusion and locked. A locking piece disposed;
A stopper that supports the lower surface side of the lock piece so as to be able to restrict the downward rotation of the lock protrusion on the side of the lock protrusion when the lock protrusion is locked on the lock protrusion when the downward movement of the piston rod is restricted ,
An urging means for urging the lock piece that rotates upward to allow the piston rod to rise upward so as to contact the stopper;
The return mechanism is configured to rotate the locking projection side of the locking piece upward so as to release the locking state of the locking projection on the locking projection. A connected operation unit is provided.

  In such a configuration, when the actuator is actuated and the piston rod is raised, the hood panel is also raised, and when the lock mechanism is actuated after the hood panel is raised, the urging means is urged downward. Since the lock piece is brought into contact with the stopper on the lower surface side and supported by the stopper, the locking protrusion is brought into contact with the lower surface of the locking protrusion of the piston rod to be moved downward. The downward movement of the rod will be restricted. When the piston rod is raised, even if the upper surface side of the locking projection hits the locking projection of the locking piece, the locking piece rotates upward against the biasing force of the biasing means without locking the piston rod. The piston rod is allowed to rise.

  And at the time of the operation of the return mechanism after the hood panel is raised, the locked state can be released by operating the operating portion, rotating the lock piece upward, and releasing the locking projection from the locking projection, The piston rod can be moved down by the weight or weight of the hood panel or by using a slight pressing force. The hood panel connected to the upper end of the piston rod can also be moved down to It can be returned to the position. Further, even in such a configuration, the return mechanism can be configured more compactly because the piston rod itself is lowered compared to the configuration in which the actuator is moved downward.

  In the case of the actuator described above, if a plurality of locking projections are formed along the axial direction of the piston rod and the area where the plurality of locking projections are provided is widened, the piston rod will move upward and downward. Even in such a case, it is possible to arrange the locking projections of the locking pieces in the area where the locking projections are set to a large area. The downward movement of the rod can be stopped.

Furthermore, the locking mechanism
A lock claw having a locking edge that is attached to the periphery of the piston rod protruding from the cylinder so as to be pivotable in the vertical direction and can come into contact with the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod;
A biasing means for contacting the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod while biasing the locking claw of the lock claw to rotate downward;
And configured with
Lock claw
In order to allow the piston rod to move when the piston rod moves upward, it slides on the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod and rotates upward, and the locking edge can be arranged on the side away from the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod. ,And,
While the piston rod moves downward, the locking edge rotates into the piston rod's outer peripheral surface while rotating downward as the piston rod's outer peripheral surface descends. To stop the downward movement of the rod,
In the case of being arranged, the return mechanism is configured by providing an operation portion that is connected to the lock claw so that the locking edge side of the lock claw can be rotated upward.

  In such a configuration, when the actuator is operated and the piston rod is raised, the hood panel is also raised. When the lock mechanism is actuated after the hood panel is raised, the lock claw is already urged to rotate downward by the urging means, and the locking edge is brought into contact with the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod. Therefore, the downward movement of the piston rod is restricted by rotating downward with the downward movement of the piston rod, causing the engaging edge to bite into the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod and locking the rotation. be able to. When the piston rod is raised, the lock claw slides on the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod and rotates upward against the urging force of the urging means, and the locking edge portion is moved from the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod. Since it arrange | positions in the direction to leave | separate, the raise of a piston rod is accept | permitted without locking a piston rod.

  And at the time of operation of the return mechanism after the hood panel is raised, if the operating part is operated, the lock claw is rotated upward, and the locking edge part is separated to the direction side away from the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod, The locked state can be released, and the piston rod can be moved down by the weight and dead weight of the hood panel or by using a slight pressing force, and the hood panel connected to the upper end side of the piston rod is also available. Then, it can be moved downward to return to the initial position. Even in such a configuration, the piston rod itself is lowered as compared with the configuration in which the actuator is moved downward, so that the return mechanism can be configured in a compact manner.

  And in the case of the above-mentioned actuator, on the outer peripheral surface of the contact area with the engaging edge of the piston rod, if an uneven portion provided with continuous unevenness is provided so that the hooking resistance of the engaging edge can be increased, When the engaging edge bites into the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod, the uneven portion can bite into the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod without slipping, and the piston rod can be locked more quickly and smoothly. Can do.

Further, as the return mechanism, the actuator may be lowered, for example,
A mounting board attached to the body side of the vehicle;
A screw rod that is arranged along the vertical direction in the axial direction and that is held on the mounting substrate so as to be rotatable around the axis; and
A slider that holds the actuator so that the screw rod can be moved downward along the axial direction of the screw rod by screwing the screw rod and rotating the screw rod;
Can be provided.

  In such a configuration, if the screw rod is rotated to move the slider downward, the actuator can be lowered, and the hood panel connected to the upper end of the piston rod of the actuator is also moved downward, It can be returned to the initial position. Even if the rotation operation of the screw rod is stopped halfway, since the slider is screwed to the screw rod, the slider can be prevented from free fall.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. A pedestrian protection apparatus M1 according to a first embodiment is located near a rear end 22a of a hood panel 22 of a vehicle V as shown in FIGS. It is arranged on the lower surface side. The pedestrian protection device M1 includes a lifting device U1 that raises the rear end 22a of the hood panel 22 and the airbag device 10.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a sensor 6 capable of detecting or predicting a collision with a pedestrian is disposed on the front bumper 5 of the vehicle V, and a signal from the sensor 6 is input. When an operating circuit (not shown) detects or predicts a collision with the pedestrian of the vehicle V based on a signal from the sensor 6, the inflator 15 (see FIG. 3) of the airbag device 10 and the actuator A1 of the lifting device U1 And a gas generator 26 (see FIG. 5) as a driving source.

  Further, in the present specification, the front and rear and up and down directions are based on the direction that coincides with the front and rear and up and down of the vehicle V, respectively, and the left and right directions are the left and right directions when the rear side is viewed from the front side of the vehicle V. Based on direction.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the hood panel 22 is disposed so as to cover the upper part of the engine room in the vehicle V, and is provided by a hinge portion 23 disposed in the vicinity of the rear end 22 a on both side edges in the left-right direction. The vehicle 1 is connected to the body 1 of the vehicle V so that it can be opened and closed by opening it forward. The hood panel 22 is made of sheet metal made of aluminum (aluminum alloy) or the like, and includes an outer panel 22b on the upper surface side and an inner panel 22c that is positioned on the lower surface side and has higher strength than the outer panel 22b. As shown in FIG. 5, each hinge portion 23 includes a support plate 23 a that extends downward from the hood panel 22, and a hinge pin 23 b that extends from the support plate 23 a and has an axial direction along the left-right direction. Each hinge pin 23b is rotatably supported by the upper end of the piston rod 36 extending above the actuator A1 in the lifting device U1. The inner panel 22c of the hood panel 22 is configured to be much more easily plastically deformed than the inflator 15, although it has higher rigidity than the outer panel 22b.

  3 and 4, the airbag device 10 includes an airbag 11, an inflator 15 that supplies inflation gas to the airbag 11, a case 18 that houses the airbag 11 and the inflator 15, and the airbag 11. And an airbag cover 20 that covers the case 18 containing the inflator 15 so as to be openable.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the airbag 11 includes a gas inflow portion 12 having a substantially U shape that is horizontally long when inflation is completed, and is connected to an inflator 15 on the lower edge side. An inflow port 12a is formed. The airbag 11 projects rearward from the opening S between the cowl 8 and the rear end 22a of the hood panel 22 when the rear end 22a of the hood panel 22 is disposed at the raised position PUP by the operation of the lifting device U1. It is configured as follows. When the airbag 11 is completely inflated, the laterally inflated portion 12b that is long in the left-right direction of the gas inflow portion 12 covers the upper side of the lower end 3a of the front windshield 3 from the vicinity of the rear end 22a on the upper surface side of the hood panel 22. Further, the vertical expansion portion 12c of the gas inflow portion 12 extending rearward from the left and right ends of the lateral expansion portion 12b is configured to cover the front side of the left and right front pillars 4 and 4. The airbag 11 includes a plurality of attachment belts 13 that are connected to the case 18 so as to prevent lifting when the airbag 11 is inflated.

  The inflator 15 is attached and fixed to the case 18 using the attachment bracket 16 as being connected to the inflow ports 12a and 12a of the airbag 11.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the case 18 of the airbag device 10 is covered with an airbag cover 20 extending from the front end of the cowl louver 8 b of the cowl 8, and is disposed on the airbag cover 20 when the airbag 11 is inflated. The front and rear door portions 20a, 20a are pushed open so that the airbag 11 protrudes from the case 18.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the cowl 8 includes a cowl panel 8a having high rigidity on the body 1 side, and a cowl louver 8b above the cowl panel 8a. The cowl louver 8b is arranged so that the rear end side is connected to the lower part 3a side of the front windshield 3, and front pillars 4 and 4 are provided on the left and right sides of the front windshield 3 as shown in FIGS. It is arranged. As described above, the airbag 11 that has been inflated is laterally inflated from the vicinity of the rear end 22a on the upper surface side of the hood panel 22 above the cowl 8 from the vicinity of the lower 3a side of the front windshield 3. The portion 12b covers the front pillars 4 and 4, and the longitudinal expansion portion 12c covers the front side.

  The lifting device U1 is disposed below the rear ends 22a of the left and right edges of the hood panel 22 corresponding to the two locations of the hinge portion 23 of the hood panel 22, and as shown in FIGS. The actuator A1 includes a piston cylinder mechanism that uses a gas G generated during operation of the generator 26 as a drive source. Further, in the lifting device U1 of the first embodiment, the actuator A1 itself provided with the lock mechanism R1 is configured to include the return mechanism C1.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the actuator A <b> 1 of the first embodiment includes a cylinder 31 and a piston rod 36 slidably accommodated in the cylinder 31. The cylinder 31 accommodates the piston portion 37 of the piston rod 36 so as to slide on the inner peripheral surface 32 a of the cylindrical housing 32, and the piston 31 is inserted through the insertion hole 33 a of the cap 33 coupled to the upper end side of the housing 32. The rod portion 39 of the rod 36 is protruded upward. A gas generator 26 is disposed on the lower end side of the cylinder 31 with the cap 34 coupled to the lower end side of the housing 32 as an outer case 27. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 7, the actuator A1 has a hinge 31 near the rear end 22a of the hood panel 22 with the cylinder 31 held by a mounting bracket 51 attached to a mounting member 52 fixed to the body 1 side. 23 is arranged below 23.

  The gas generator 26 uses a micro gas generator, and a squib 28 is fitted into the bottom wall 27a of the outer case 27. The squib 28 has a lead wire 29 for inputting an electrical signal from a control circuit (not shown). Connected. When an electric signal from a control circuit (not shown) is input, the squib 28 burns a built-in explosive to generate a combustion gas, and the gas (combustion gas) G is transferred to the lower surface side of the piston portion 37 in the cylinder 31. Will be supplied.

  As shown in FIGS. 5, 7, and 8, the piston rod 36 includes a disk-shaped piston portion 37 and a rod portion 39 that extends upward from the piston portion 37 and connects the upper end to the hood panel 22. Has been. The piston portion 37 includes a concave groove 37a provided along the circumferential direction of the outer peripheral surface, and a piston ring 38 that is slidable with the inner peripheral surface 32a of the housing 32 of the cylinder 31 is disposed in the concave groove 37a. ing. The piston portion 37 moves upward using the gas G supplied into the cylinder 31 by the gas generator 26 as a drive source.

  On the upper end side of the rod portion 39, a shaft support portion 40 that rotatably supports the hinge pin 23b of each hinge portion 23 is disposed. Then, when the piston part 37 moves upward using the gas G supplied into the cylinder 31 by the gas generator 26 as a drive source, the rod part 39 of the piston rod 36 raises the rear end 22a of the hood panel 22. Thus, an opening S (see FIG. 3) through which the airbag 11 can be easily protruded is formed between the cowl 8 and the cowl 8. In addition, the rod part 39 connects the shaft support part 40 so that rotation is possible at the time of the action | operation of the return mechanism C1, in the state which connected the shaft support part 40 with the hinge part 23. FIG.

  In the actuator A <b> 1 of the first embodiment, a lock mechanism R <b> 1 that restricts the downward movement of the raised piston rod 36 relative to the cylinder 31 is built in the cylinder 31. In the case of the first embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 5, 6, 8, and 9, the lock mechanism R <b> 1 includes a spherical lock member 44 disposed at a sliding portion between the piston rod 36 and the cylinder 31, and a lock member. Storage recess 42 for storing 44.

  The housing recess 42 is located between the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod 36 and the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder 31, or between the outer peripheral surface 39 a of the rod portion 39 and the inner peripheral surface 33 b of the cap 33 in the first embodiment. It is arranged. Further, the storage recess 42 of the first embodiment is a space on the side where the lock member 44 that slides when the piston rod 36 moves downward on the inner peripheral surface 33b of the insertion hole 33a through which the rod portion 39 of the cap 33 is inserted. Are arranged in two places at point-symmetrical positions of the insertion hole 33a so as to have a trapezoidal cross section in the vertical direction so as to narrow the space.

  As shown in FIG. 9, each storage recess 42 has a depth dimension LN1 in the direction perpendicular to the axis of the piston rod 36 from the outer peripheral surface 39a of the rod portion 39 on the bottom surface 42a side of the narrow space, from the outer diameter dimension D1 of the lock member 44. The depth dimension LB1 in the direction perpendicular to the axis of the piston rod 36 from the outer peripheral surface 39a of the rod part 39 on the small and wide space ceiling surface 42c side is made larger than the outer diameter dimension D1 of the lock member 44. As shown in FIG. 6, the width dimension W <b> 1 in the direction around the axis of the piston rod 36 in each storage recess 42 is set to be slightly larger than the outer diameter dimension D <b> 1 of the lock member 44.

  Therefore, each locking member 44 slides with the outer peripheral surface 39a of the piston rod 36 when the piston rod 36 is lifted, as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. The piston rod 36 is allowed to rise. However, when the piston rod 36 is lowered, each locking member 44 slides with the outer peripheral surface 39a of the piston rod 36 and is disposed on the bottom surface 42a side of the storage recess 42 in the narrow space side. The piston rod 36 is disposed in a wedge shape between the outer peripheral surface 39a of the piston rod 36 and the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder 31 (tapered surface of the storage recess 42), and is regulated so as to stop the downward movement by locking the piston rod 36. To do.

  As shown in FIGS. 5 and 7, the return mechanism C <b> 1 of the first embodiment is configured to include a retracting recess 46 provided in the piston rod 36 and an operation unit 48.

  The retracting recess 46 is recessed in a mountain shape (right triangle shape) on the outer peripheral surface 39a of the rod portion 39 of the piston rod 36 (see FIGS. 6 and 10), and is formed along the axial direction of the piston rod 36. Formed from. The retracting recess 46 is arranged at two point-symmetrical positions around the axis of the piston rod 36 on the outer peripheral surface 39a of the rod part 39, and at a position raised when the actuator A1 is operated. When the piston rod 36 is rotated in the direction around the axis, the piston rod 36 is disposed at a position continuous with the storage recess 42 as shown in FIG. And even if the locking member 44 is disposed so that the shape of the rod portion 39 in the direction perpendicular to the axis contacts the bottom surface 42 a of the storage recess 42, the locking member 44 is connected to the retracting recess 46. The inner peripheral surface 46a and the taper surface 42b of the storage recess 42 are not in contact with each other.

  The operation portion 48 is formed in a hexagonal column shape so that it can be easily rotated by a tool such as a spanner, and is disposed in the vicinity of the shaft support portion 40 at the upper end of the rod portion 39.

  In the pedestrian protection device M1 according to the first embodiment, when an operation circuit (not shown) detects or predicts a collision with the pedestrian of the vehicle V based on a signal from the sensor 6, the gas generator of each ascending device U1. 26 and the inflator 15 of the airbag device 10 are operated.

  If the gas generator 26 of the ascending device U1 is operated to ignite the squib 28, the generated gas G pushes up the piston portion 37 of the piston rod 36 in the cylinder 31, as shown in FIGS. The rear end 22a of the hood panel 22 connected to the upper end of the rod portion 39 of the rod 36 is raised, and the hood panel 22 and the cowl 8 are connected to the rear end 22a as shown by a two-dot chain line in FIG. An opening S is formed between them. Moreover, if the inflator 15 of the airbag apparatus 10 operates, as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIGS. 1 to 3, the airbag 11 that has been folded and accommodated causes the gas from the inflator 15 to enter the gas inflow portion 12. Then, the airbag cover 20 is pushed open and protrudes from the case 18, and further expands so as to protrude above the front windshield 3 through the opening S. The airbag 11 that has been inflated is covered by the lateral inflating portion 12b from the vicinity of the rear end 22a on the upper surface side of the hood panel 22 above the cowl 8 to the upper surface side on the lower portion 3a side of the front windshield 3, The longitudinally expanded portion 12c covers the front side of the pillars 4 and 4 to catch the pedestrian moving backward, and the pedestrian is detected from the cowl 8, the lower portion 3a of the front windshield 3 and the front pillars 4 and 4. Can be protected.

  In the first embodiment, when the lock mechanism R1 is actuated after the hood panel 22 is raised, the lock member 44 of the rod portion 39 of the piston rod 36 that is going to move downward as shown by the solid line in FIG. It slides on the outer peripheral surface 39a, moves to the bottom surface 42a side of the lower side of the housing recess 42, and wedges between the outer peripheral surface 39a of the piston rod 36 and the tapered surface 42b on the inner peripheral surface side of the cylinder 31. Since it is arranged, the piston rod 36 is locked and the downward movement is stopped.

  During the upward movement of the piston rod 36, as described above, the locking member 44 of the locking mechanism R1 slides on the outer peripheral surface 39a of the piston rod 36 and moves toward the ceiling surface 42c side where the space of the storage recess 42 is wide. In order to move, the piston rod 36 is allowed to move upward without locking the piston rod 36.

  In the first embodiment, when the return mechanism C1 is actuated after the hood panel 22 is raised, the operating portion 48 is operated to rotate the piston rod 36 about the axis by 90 ° as shown in FIG. When the retracting recesses 46 are communicated with the respective storing recesses 42, the lock member 44 that is in pressure contact with the outer peripheral surface 39a of the piston rod 36 and the tapered surface 42b on the inner peripheral surface side of the cylinder 31 is transferred to the retracting recesses 46. By being housed, a pressure contact state between the outer peripheral surface 39a of the piston rod 36 and the tapered surface 42b on the inner peripheral surface side of the cylinder 31 is avoided.

  Therefore, the locked state of the piston rod 36 is released, and as shown in FIG. 11, the piston rod 36 can be moved downward by the weight or its own weight of the hood panel 22 or by using a slight pressing force. The hood panel 22 connected to the upper end side of the piston rod 36 can also be moved downward to return to the initial positions PDR and PDP.

  Therefore, in the pedestrian protection apparatus M1 of the first embodiment, the hood panel 22 is moved by using the gas G generated by the gas generator 26 as a drive source and operating the actuator A1 including the lock mechanism R1. Even after the lift, the hood panel 22 can be easily lowered simply by rotating the piston rod 36 in a predetermined direction, and the vehicle V can be run with a good visibility. it can.

  And in said pedestrian protection apparatus M1, since the piston rod 36 itself is lowered | hung compared with the structure which moves down with the actuator A1, return mechanism C1 can be comprised compactly.

  Further, in the lock mechanism R1 of the actuator A1 of the first embodiment, the lock member 44 slides with the outer peripheral surface 39a of the piston rod 36 about to move downward, and the bottom surface 42a side (downward) where the space of the storage recess 42 is narrowed. The piston rod 36 is arranged in a wedge shape between the outer peripheral surface 39a of the piston rod 36 and the inner peripheral surface (tapered surface) 42b of the cylinder 31, and is capable of restricting the downward movement of the piston rod 36. Even if the stroke of the upward movement of 36 varies, and the piston rod 36 stops at an arbitrary position, the downward movement of the piston rod 36 is quickly stopped when the downward movement after the upward movement is stopped. Can be made.

  Furthermore, in the actuator A1 of the first embodiment, the lock member 44, the storage recess 42 for storing the lock member 44, and the retreat recesses 46 arranged so as to be able to communicate with the storage recess 42 are arranged in correspondence with each other. It is installed. Therefore, when the lock mechanism R1 is activated, the piston rod 36 can be stably locked and the downward movement of the piston rod 36 can be stopped. Further, as in the first embodiment, the lock members 44 in the case where a plurality of lock members 44 are disposed and the storage recesses 42 for storing the lock members 44 are equally disposed radially in the direction around the axis of the piston rod 36. As a result, the piston rod 36 can be locked more stably.

  In the first embodiment, when the piston rod 36 is rotated about the axis so as to operate the return mechanism C1, if the hood panel 22 or the piston rod 36 is slightly lifted, the lock member 44 is operated. It is easy to avoid the pressure contact state between the outer peripheral surface 39a of the piston rod 36 and the tapered surface 42b on the inner peripheral surface side of the cylinder 31, and the piston rod 36 can be easily rotated.

  The return mechanism C1 is disposed on the left and right sides of the hood panel 22 corresponding to the actuator A1. When the piston rod 36 is rotated by operating the operation unit 48, the return mechanism C1 is flexible. You can use left and right separately.

  Furthermore, in the actuator A1 of the first embodiment, the retracting recess 46 formed of a groove is provided linearly along the axial direction of the piston rod 36, but the actuator A2 of the second embodiment shown in FIGS. A plurality of linear portions 46 b (46 b 1, 46 b 2, 46 b 3) that are displaced in the circumferential direction and along the axial direction of the piston rod 36, and linear portions 46 b 1, 46 b 2 along the circumferential direction of the piston rod 36. The concave grooves recessed in the mountain shape may be arranged in a step shape so as to provide a stepped portion 46c capable of sliding the lock member 44 by connecting the straight portion 46b2 and the straight portion 46b3.

  In the pedestrian protection apparatus M2 of the second embodiment, the retracting recess 46A is merely formed in a step shape, and each configuration of the return mechanism C2, the lock mechanism R2, the actuator A2, and the lifting device U2 is the first configuration. The configuration is the same as each configuration of the return mechanism C1, the lock mechanism R1, the actuator A1, and the lifting device U1 of the embodiment, and the airbag device 10 (not shown) is also provided.

  In the second embodiment, when the return mechanism C2 is operated, after the hood panel 22 is raised, the operating portion 48 is operated to rotate the piston rod 36 about the axis by about 90 ° as shown in FIG. If the lower end 46d (see FIG. 12) of the retracting recess 46A is communicated with each storage recess 42, the lock member that is in pressure contact with the outer peripheral surface 39a of the piston rod 36 and the tapered surface 42b on the inner peripheral surface side of the cylinder 31. 44 is accommodated in the straight line portion 46b1 at the lowermost end of the retracting recess 46A to avoid a pressure contact state between the outer peripheral surface 39a of the piston rod 36 and the tapered surface 42b on the inner peripheral surface side of the cylinder 31. Then, the piston rod 36 and the hood panel 22 are lowered so as to store the lock member 44 up to the upper end of the lowermost straight portion 46b1, and further, the lock member 44 is stored in the next straight portion 46b2. The operating portion 48 is rotated while sliding in the stepped portion 46c, the piston rod 36 is rotated in the direction around the axis, and the lock member 44 is disposed at the lower end of the linear portion 46b2 at the next stage. Next, the piston rod 36 and the hood panel 22 are lowered, and the lock member 44 is disposed up to the upper end of the straight portion 46b2, and as described above, the lock member 44 is sequentially formed on the step portion 46c and the straight portion 46b3. If the rotation operation and the lowering operation of the piston rod 36 are performed so as to pass through, the hood panel 22 can be returned to the initial position PDP before the ascent.

  In the second embodiment, in addition to the same operations and effects as in the first embodiment, a step provided along the circumferential direction on the outer peripheral surface 39a of the rod portion 39 of the piston rod 36 in the retracting recess 46A of the return mechanism C2. Since the lowering of the piston rod 36 is temporarily stopped by the portion 46c, it is possible to prevent the hood panel 22 at the raised position PUP from being lowered to the initial position PDP at a stretch.

  In the second embodiment, the return mechanism C2 is also disposed on the left and right sides of the hood panel 22 corresponding to the actuator A2, and the lock member 44 is accommodated in the straight portions 46b1, 46b2, 46b3. When the piston rod 36 is lowered, the left and right return mechanisms C2 may be alternately lowered to the left and right in correspondence with the respective straight portions 46b1, 49b2, 46b3, and the flexibility of the hood panel 22 , The hood panel 22 may be lowered with an arbitrary lowering amount instead of the same lowering amount.

  Further, in the actuators A1 and A2 of the pedestrian protection devices M1 and M2 of the first and second embodiments, the storage recess 42 for storing the lock member 44 is provided on the cylinder 31 side, and the retracting recesses 46 and 46A are on the piston rod 36 side. However, as in the pedestrian protection apparatus M3 of the third embodiment shown in FIGS. 15 to 20, the storage recess 65 for storing the lock member 67 of the lock mechanism R <b> 3 is provided as the piston portion of the piston rod 36. The retracting recess 69 of the return mechanism C3 may be disposed on the inner peripheral surface 61a of the housing 61 of the cylinder 31.

  In the pedestrian protection apparatus M3 of the third embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 15 to 18, the actuator A3 of the lifting device U3 for lifting the hood panel 22 is provided with the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod 36 and the inner periphery of the cylinder 31. A lock mechanism R3 having a spherical lock material 67 provided between the surface and the surface is provided. In this locking mechanism R3, a spherical locking member 67 is provided between the outer peripheral surface of the piston portion 63 that serves as a sliding portion between the piston rod 36 and the cylinder 31, and the inner peripheral surface 61a of the housing 61 in the cylinder 31. Is housed in a housing recess 65 provided on the piston 63 side. The storage recess 65 is provided with a substantially cylindrical extending portion 64 on the upper side of the recessed groove 63a into which the piston ring 38 is fitted in the piston 63, and the storage recess 65 is formed on the outer peripheral surface 64a of the extension 64. (See FIGS. 16 and 18). Further, the storage recess 65 is configured such that the upper side, which is the moving side of the lock member 67 that slides with the inner peripheral surface 61a of the cylinder 31 when the piston rod 36 moves downward, is the side that narrows the space, that is, the upper side is narrowed. The cross section in the vertical direction has a substantially triangular shape, and is disposed at two points symmetrical with respect to the axis of the piston rod 36.

  As shown in FIG. 18, each storage recess 65 has a depth dimension LN3 in the direction perpendicular to the axis of the piston rod 36 from the inner peripheral surface 61a of the housing 61 on the upper portion 65c side on the narrow space side, and an outer diameter D3 of the lock member 67. The depth dimension LB3 in the direction orthogonal to the axis of the piston rod 36 from the inner peripheral surface 61a of the housing 61 on the bottom surface 65a side of the smaller and wider space is slightly larger than the outer diameter dimension D3 of the lock member 67. Further, as shown in FIG. 16, the width dimension W <b> 3 in the direction around the axis of the piston rod 36 in each storage recess 65 is set to be slightly larger than the outer diameter dimension D <b> 3 of the lock member 67.

  Therefore, each of the lock members 67 slides with the inner peripheral surface 61a of the housing 61 and moves toward the bottom surface 65a side of the large space side of the housing recess 65 as shown by a two-dot chain line in FIG. Arranged to allow the piston rod 36 to rise. However, each locking member 67 slides with the inner peripheral surface 61a of the housing 61 when the piston rod 36 descends, and as shown by the solid lines in FIGS. It arrange | positions and is arrange | positioned like a wedge between the internal peripheral surface 61a of the housing 61, and the outer peripheral surface (taper surface) 65b of the piston rod 36, and locks the piston rod 36 and it controls so that a downward movement may be stopped.

  The return mechanism C <b> 3 includes a retracting recess 69 provided on the inner peripheral surface 61 a of the housing 61 and an operation unit 70 provided on the rod portion 39 of the piston rod 36.

  As shown in FIGS. 16 and 17, the retracting recess 69 is recessed in a mountain shape (right triangle shape) on the inner peripheral surface 61 a of the housing 61 of the cylinder 31, and extends along the axial direction of the cylinder 31 (piston rod 36). It is formed from the groove formed. The retracting recess 69 is disposed at two point-symmetrical positions with the axis of the cylinder 31 as the center, and the piston rod 36 disposed at the raised position during the operation of the actuator A3 is arranged around the axis. As shown in FIG. 19, it is arranged at a position continuous with the storage recess 65 when rotated. The retracting recess 69 has a shape in the direction perpendicular to the axis of the cylinder 31, and the locking material 67 is arranged on the inner peripheral surface 69 a of the retracting recess 69 even if the locking material 67 is disposed on the upper portion 65 c of the storage recess 65. And the taper surface 65b of the storage recess 65 are not dimensioned to be pressed against each other.

  The operation unit 70 is formed in a hexagonal column shape so as to be easily rotated by a tool such as a spanner, and is disposed in the vicinity of the shaft support unit 40 at the upper end of the rod unit 39.

  In addition, in 3rd Embodiment, except the said structure, it is the same as that of 1st, 2nd embodiment, and while providing the airbag apparatus 10, actuator A3 is piston rod by the gas G which generate | occur | produces in the gas generator 26. The piston portion 63 of 36 is slid and raised on the inner peripheral surface 61 a of the housing 61 of the cylinder 31, and the rear end 22 a of the hood panel 22 connected to the upper end of the rod portion 39 is raised. Further, if the hood panel 22 rises to the raised position PUP, the airbag 11 of the airbag device 10 completes the inflation, as in the first and second embodiments, near the rear end 22a of the hood panel 22 and the front. The pillars 4 and 4 are covered.

  In the third embodiment, when the lock mechanism R3 is actuated after the hood panel 22 is lifted, the lock member 67 housed in the housing recess 65 of the piston rod 36 that is going to move downward is provided on the housing 61 of the cylinder 31. As shown by the solid lines in FIGS. 17 and 18, it slides on the inner peripheral surface 61 a and moves to the upper narrowed side 65 c side of the housing recess 65, and the tapered surface 65 b and the cylinder 31 serving as the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod 36. Since the piston rod 36 is locked between the inner peripheral surface 61a and the inner peripheral surface 61a, the piston rod 36 is locked so that the downward movement is stopped.

  As described above, when the piston rod 36 is moved upward, the lock member 67 of the lock mechanism R3 slides on the inner peripheral surface 61a of the cylinder 31 and moves to the bottom surface 65a side where the space of the storage recess 65 is wide. Therefore, the piston rod 36 is allowed to move upward without locking the piston rod 36.

  In the third embodiment, when the return mechanism C3 is actuated after the hood panel 22 is lifted, the operation unit 70 is operated to rotate the piston rod 36 about the axis by 90 ° as shown in FIG. When the retracting recess 69 is communicated with each storage recess 65, the lock material 67 that is in pressure contact with the tapered surface 65 b on the outer peripheral surface side of the piston rod 36 and the inner peripheral surface 61 a of the cylinder 31 is brought into contact with the retracting recess 69. By being housed, a pressure contact state between the tapered surface 65b of the piston rod 36 and the inner peripheral surface 61a of the cylinder 31 is avoided.

  Therefore, the locked state of the piston rod 36 is released, and the piston rod 36 is moved by the weight or its own weight of the hood panel 22 or by using a slight pressing force as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. The hood panel 22 connected to the upper end side of the piston rod 36 can also be moved downward to return to the initial positions PDR and PDP.

  Therefore, the pedestrian protection apparatus M3 of the third embodiment also uses the gas G generated by the gas generator 26 as a drive source and operates the actuator A3 including the lock mechanism R3, so that the hood panel 22 is Even after the lift, the hood panel 22 can be easily lowered simply by rotating the piston rod 36 in a predetermined direction, and the vehicle V can be run with a good visibility. it can.

  And also in said pedestrian protection apparatus M3, compared with the structure which descend | falls with the actuator A3, since the piston rod 36 itself is lowered | hung, the return mechanism C3 can be comprised compactly.

  Also in this lock mechanism R3, when the piston rod 36 moves downward, the lock member 67 slides with the inner peripheral surface 61a of the cylinder 31 and moves to the upper portion 65c side where the space of the storage recess 65 is narrowed. 36 is arranged in a wedge shape between the tapered surface 65b on the outer peripheral surface side of 36 and the inner peripheral surface 61a of the cylinder 31 so that the downward movement of the piston rod 36 can be regulated. Even if there is variation and the piston rod 36 stops at an arbitrary position, the piston rod 36 can be quickly locked to stop the downward movement of the piston rod 36 when the piston rod 36 is lowered after the upward movement.

  In the third embodiment, similarly to the second embodiment, the retracting recess 69 is formed in a step shape along the axial direction of the piston rod 36, and along the axial direction of the piston rod 36 and in the circumferential direction. You may comprise by providing the several linear part which shifted | deviated, and the level | step-difference part which connects between linear parts along the circumferential direction of the piston rod 36. FIG.

  Further, with respect to the locking mechanism R3 of the third embodiment, when the piston rod 36 is moved downward, the locking member 67 surely slides with the inner peripheral surface 61a of the cylinder 31 and moves to the upper portion 65c side of the housing recess 65. In order to lock the piston rod 36, the lock member 67 is urged upward on the bottom surface 65 a of the storage recess 65 so that the lock member 67 is guided to the taper surface 65 b and can contact the inner peripheral surface 61 a of the cylinder 31. The piston rod 36 is provided with an urging means such as a polymer elastic body or a spring to be arranged, or with respect to the space on the bottom surface 65a side of the housing recess 65, the depth dimension LB3 is set to be approximately equal to the lock material 67. The piston rod 36 may be securely locked when the piston rod 36 is moved downward and when the piston rod 36 is moved downward.

  Furthermore, you may comprise like the pedestrian protection apparatus M4 of 4th Embodiment shown to FIGS. In the fourth embodiment, the actuator A4 of the lifting device U4 includes a lock mechanism R4 and a return mechanism C4 at the cap 71 portion on the upper end side of the cylinder 31. The lock mechanism R4 includes a lock ring 77, an annular groove 75 provided on the inner peripheral surface 71b side of the cap 71, and a coil spring 78 as a spring means for urging the lock ring 77 downward. Yes. The return mechanism C4 is provided with a spring seat 79 that is screwed into the upper end of the cap 71 and supports the upper end 78a of the coil spring 78.

  22 and 25, the cap 71 is formed with an insertion hole 71a through which the rod portion 73 of the piston rod 36 is inserted. The inner peripheral surface 71b of the cap 71 is narrowed down by narrowing the downward movement side of the piston rod 36. An annular groove 75 is formed. Further, a male screw 71c is threaded on the outer peripheral surface of the cap 71. As shown in FIGS. 21 and 24, an annular spring seat 79 is screwed into the male screw 71c and tightened to the upper surface side of the cap 71. Arranged.

  The spring seat 79 includes a ceiling wall 79a having an insertion hole 79b through which the rod portion 73 is inserted, and a cylindrical tube portion 79c extending downward from the outer peripheral edge of the ceiling wall 79a, and is formed on the inner peripheral surface of the tube portion 79c. The internal thread 79d corresponding to the external thread 71c of the cap 71 is threaded. The periphery of the insertion hole 79b on the lower surface side of the ceiling wall 79a is a part that supports the upper end 78a of the coil spring 78.

  As shown in FIGS. 21 to 23, the lock ring 77 has an annular shape on the outer peripheral surface 73 a of the rod portion 73 and the inner peripheral surface 71 b of the cap 71, which is between the sliding portions of the piston rod 36 and the cylinder 31. It arrange | positions between the taper surfaces 75a of the ditch | groove 75. FIG. The lock ring 77 is made of an elastically deformable metal material, a synthetic resin material, or the like, and as shown in FIG. It is configured in a shape having a slit 77e penetrating the inner and outer peripheries. The inner peripheral surface 77b of the through hole 77a is formed in a straight line so as to be parallel to the outer peripheral surface 73a of the rod portion 73, and the inner diameter d4 in a state where the pressing force is not applied to the lock ring 77 in the diameter reducing direction. Is set to be larger than the outer diameter D4 of the rod portion 73. The outer peripheral surface 77 c of the lock ring 77 is a tapered surface that is parallel to the tapered surface 75 a of the annular groove 75.

  The lock ring 77 has an upper surface 77d as a portion where the lower end 78b of the coil spring 78 supported at the upper end by the spring seat 79 is brought into contact. When the rod portion 73 is inserted and accommodated in the annular groove 75 of the cap 71, the lock ring 77 is pressed toward the lower narrow side of the annular groove 75 by the biasing force of the coil spring 78. The diameter is reduced, and the inner circumferential surface 77 b is configured to contact the outer circumferential surface 73 a of the rod portion 73.

  Therefore, as shown in FIGS. 24 and 25, by loosing the spring seat 79 upward in the direction of removing it from the cap 71, the urging force of the coil spring 79 is weakened, the lock ring 77 expands in diameter, and the inner peripheral surface 77b. Is separated from the outer peripheral surface 73 a of the rod portion 73.

  The pedestrian protection apparatus M4 of the fourth embodiment is the same as that of the first to third embodiments except for the structure described above, and includes an airbag device 10 and an actuator A4 of the lifting device U4 includes a gas generator. 26, the piston portion 37 of the piston rod 36 is slid and raised on the inner peripheral surface 32 a of the housing 32 of the cylinder 31, and the rear end 22 a of the hood panel 22 connected to the upper end of the rod portion 73. Is configured to raise. Further, if the hood panel 22 rises to the raised position PUP, the airbag 11 of the airbag device 10 completes the inflation, and the vicinity of the rear end 22a of the hood panel 22 or the front as in the first to third embodiments. The pillars 4 and 4 are covered.

  In the fourth embodiment, when the lock mechanism R4 is actuated after the piston rod 36 is moved upward, as shown in FIGS. 23 and 24, the lock ring 77 is moved to the outer peripheral surface 73a of the piston rod 36 to be moved downward. In addition to sliding, the biasing force of the coil spring 78 is also applied to move to the lower side where the space in the annular groove 75 narrows, and the outer peripheral surface 73a of the piston rod 36 and the tapered surface 75a serving as the inner peripheral surface side of the cylinder 31 Therefore, the piston rod 36 is locked so that the downward movement is stopped.

  During the upward movement of the piston rod 36, the lock ring 77 of the lock mechanism R4 slides on the outer peripheral surface 73a of the piston rod 36, and the biasing force of the coil spring 78 is applied as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. In order to move against the wide upper side of the space of the annular concave groove 75, the piston rod 36 is allowed to move upward without increasing the diameter and locking the piston rod 36.

  When the return mechanism C4 is operated after the piston rod 36 is moved upward, as shown in FIG. 25, if the spring seat 79 is rotated in a loosening direction so as to be removed upward from the cylinder 31, the lock ring 77 is reduced in diameter. The biasing force of the coil spring 78 that has been pressed to be reduced is reduced, and the lock ring 77 is expanded in diameter to the outer peripheral surface 73a of the piston rod 36 of the lock ring 77 and the inner peripheral surface (tapered surface) 75a of the cylinder 31. Can be avoided.

  Therefore, the locked state of the piston rod 36 is released, and the piston rod 36 is moved by the weight or its own weight of the hood panel 22 or by using a slight pressing force as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. The hood panel 22 connected to the upper end side of the piston rod 36 can also be moved downward to return to the initial positions PDR and PDP.

  Therefore, also in the pedestrian protection apparatus M4 of the fourth embodiment, the gas G generated by the gas generator 26 is used as a drive source and the actuator A4 including the lock mechanism R4 is operated to raise the hood panel 22. Even after the movement, the hood panel 22 can be easily lowered only by moving it upward in the direction of removing the spring seat 79, and the vehicle V can be run with a good visibility.

  And also in said pedestrian protection apparatus M4, compared with the structure which moves down with the actuator A4, the piston rod 36 itself is lowered, Therefore The return mechanism C4 can be comprised compactly.

  Also in the lock mechanism R4 of the actuator A4, the lock ring 77 slides on the outer peripheral surface 73a of the piston rod 36 about to move downward, and the biasing force of the coil spring 78 is also applied, so that the annular groove 75 is narrowed. The piston rod 36 is arranged in a wedge shape between the outer peripheral surface 73a of the piston rod 36 and the tapered surface 75a on the inner peripheral surface side of the cylinder 31, and is capable of restricting the downward movement of the piston rod 36. Even if there is a variation in the position where it stops after the upward movement, the piston rod 36 can be quickly locked and the downward movement of the piston rod 36 can be stopped when it descends after the upward movement.

  In the actuator A4 of the fourth embodiment, the lock ring 77 has an outer peripheral surface 77c parallel to the tapered surface 75a of the inner peripheral surface of the annular concave groove 75, and the piston through which the inner peripheral surface 77b is inserted. The rod 36 has a truncated cone shape parallel to the outer peripheral surface of the rod portion 73 and a substantially annular shape provided with a slit 77e penetrating the inner and outer periphery. Therefore, the lock ring 77 is provided with a slit 77e to facilitate the deformation of the reduced diameter and the expanded diameter. Further, the outer peripheral surface 77c is parallel to the tapered surface 75a of the annular groove 75, and the space of the annular groove 75 is reduced. It is easy to slide and move between a narrow lower side and a wide upper side. Further, the inner peripheral surface 77b is parallel to the outer peripheral surface 73a of the piston rod 36, and a large friction is generated when locking the rod portion 73 of the piston rod 36 so as to sandwich the rod portion 73. A pressing surface (inner peripheral surface) 77b that can obtain resistance can be easily secured. As a result, such a lock ring 77 can be smoothly locked and unlocked.

  Furthermore, you may comprise like the pedestrian protection apparatus M5 of 5th Embodiment shown to FIGS. In the fifth embodiment, the actuator A5 of the lifting device U5 includes a lock mechanism R5 and a return mechanism C5 in the vicinity of a portion of the piston rod 36 that protrudes upward from the cylinder 31. The lock mechanism R5 includes a locking projection 82, a lock piece 83, a stopper 87, and a torsion spring 85 as an urging means.

  As shown in FIGS. 27 to 29, the locking projection 82 is formed to project in a mountain shape on the outer peripheral surface 81 a of the rod portion 81 of the piston rod 36 projecting upward from the cylinder 31. A plurality of saw blades are formed along the axial direction of the piston rod 36. In the case of the embodiment, the lower surface 82a of the locking projection 82 is disposed along the substantially horizontal direction, and the upper surface 82b side is formed so as to incline from the vertical direction to the front side. When the downward movement of the piston rod 36 is restricted, the lock piece 83 is configured to lock the locking protrusion 82 by bringing the upper surface 83b of the locking protrusion 83a on the distal end side into contact with the lower surface 82a of the locking protrusion 82. The locking projection 83a is pivotally supported so as to be rotatable in the vertical direction along the axial direction of the piston rod 36. The lock piece 83 has a horizontal bar portion 89a at the center of the crankshaft 89 attached and fixed to the attachment hole 83d on the base portion side, and the portion of the attachment hole 83d is the center of rotation.

  The crankshaft 89 is provided with a crank portion 89b bent into a crank shape at both ends protruding from the side walls 86a and 86a, with a central horizontal bar portion 89a rotatably supported on the side walls 86a on both sides of the support bracket 86. Yes.

  The support bracket 86 has a U-shaped cross section that is fixed to the mounting member 52 to which the mounting bracket 51 that holds the actuator A5 is mounted, and a side wall that extends in the orthogonal direction of the bottom wall 86c from both edges of the bottom wall 86c. 86a, 86a. The bottom wall 86c serves as a stopper 87, and the stopper 87 is a locking piece when the locking projection 82 is locked in the locking projection 83a when the downward movement of the piston rod 36 is restricted by the upper surface 87a. The lock piece 83 is abutted and supported so that the downward rotation of the piston rod 36 toward the downward movement side on the locking protrusion 83a side of 83 can be restricted. The mounting hole 83d side, which is the base side of the lock piece 83, is formed in a cylindrical shape. When the lock piece 83 rotates upward away from the stopper 87, the lock piece 83 is The state where the rotation is restricted by interference with the bottom wall 86c is not brought about.

  The torsion spring 85 is disposed so as to be connected to the periphery of the through hole 86b through which the horizontal bar portion 89a of the crankshaft 89 is inserted in each side wall 86a and the horizontal bar portion 89a. 83a is urged downward to rotate so as to contact the stopper 87. Therefore, the torsion spring 85 allows the upward movement of the piston rod 36, and even if the lock piece 83 rotates on the locking convex portion 83a on the upper side, as shown by the solid line from the two-dot chain line in FIG. The lock piece 83 is urged and returned so as to contact the stopper 87.

  The return mechanism C5 includes an operation unit 90 disposed on the distal end side of the crank portion 89b of the crankshaft 89. The operating portion 90 grips and rotates the horizontal bar portion 89a of the crankshaft 89 in a predetermined direction (clockwise direction shown in FIG. 29), and rotates the locking projection 83a side of the lock piece 83 upward. It arrange | positions so that it can be made to detach | leave from the latching protrusion 82. FIG.

  The pedestrian protection device M5 of the fifth embodiment is the same as that of the first to fourth embodiments except for the structure described above, and includes an airbag device 10 and an actuator A5 of the lifting device U5 includes a gas generator. 26, the piston portion 37 of the piston rod 36 is slid and raised on the inner peripheral surface 32 a of the housing 32 of the cylinder 31 and the rear end 22 a of the hood panel 22 connected to the upper end of the rod portion 81. Is configured to raise. Further, if the hood panel 22 rises to the raised position PUP, the airbag 11 of the airbag device 10 completes inflating in the same manner as in the first to fourth embodiments, and the vicinity of the rear end 22a of the hood panel 22 or the front The pillars 4 and 4 are covered.

  In the actuator A5 of the fifth embodiment, when the lock mechanism R5 is actuated after the piston rod 36 is moved upward, the lock urged downward by the torsion spring 85 as shown in FIG. The piece 83 is supported in contact with the stopper 87 so as to prevent downward rotation, and in this state, the upper surface of the locking projection 83a is fixed to the lower surface 82a of the locking projection 82 of the piston rod 36 to be moved downward. Since 83b is contact | abutted, the downward movement of the piston rod 36 will be controlled.

  When the piston rod 36 is moved upward during the operation of the actuator A5, even if the upper surface 82b of each locking projection 82 hits the lower surface 83c side of the locking projection 83a of the locking piece 83, as shown in FIG. Reference numeral 83 rotates against the biasing force of the torsion spring 85 to the upper side, which is the upward movement side of the piston rod 36, and allows the piston rod 36 to move upward without locking the piston rod 36.

  When the return mechanism C5 is actuated after the piston rod 36 is moved upward, the operating portion 90 of the crankshaft 89 is operated to rotate the lock piece 83 upward as shown in FIG. If the projection 83a is detached from the locking projection 82, the locked state can be released.

  Therefore, the piston rod 36 released from the locked state is moved downward by the weight or the own weight of the hood panel 22 or by using a slight pressing force, as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. The hood panel 22 connected to the upper end side of the piston rod 36 can also be moved downward to return to the initial positions PDR and PDP.

  Therefore, also in the pedestrian protection apparatus M5 of the fifth embodiment, the gas G generated by the gas generator 26 is used as a drive source, and the actuator A5 including the lock mechanism R5 is operated to raise the hood panel 22. Even after the operation, the hood panel 22 can be easily lowered only by rotating the piston rod 36 upward, and the vehicle V can be driven with a good visibility.

  And also in said pedestrian protection apparatus M5, since the piston rod 36 itself is lowered | hung compared with the structure which moves down with the actuator A5, the return mechanism C5 can be comprised compactly.

  In the fifth embodiment, when the locking projection 83a side of the lock piece 83 is rotated upward when the return mechanism C5 is operated, the hood panel 22 and the piston rod 36 are slightly lifted so that the locking projection 83a If it is made not to contact the lower surface 82a of the locking projection 82 that has been locked, the lock piece 83 can be easily rotated.

  And in actuator A5 of 5th Embodiment, the latching protrusion 82 is formed in multiple numbers along the axial direction of the piston rod 36, and the area which provides these latching protrusions 82 is widened. Therefore, when the actuator A5 is actuated, even if there is a variation in the stroke of the piston rod 36 that moves upward, the locking protrusion 83a of the locking piece 83 can be arranged within the area where the locking protrusion 82 is formed as a large area. As a result, when descending after the upward movement, the piston rod 36 can be quickly locked and the downward movement of the piston rod 36 can be stopped.

  In the actuator A5 of the fifth embodiment, the structure in which the lock piece 83 is attached to the crankshaft 89 is shown. However, like the actuator A6 of the sixth embodiment shown in FIGS. The part 99a itself is a lock piece 93 that constitutes the lock mechanism R6, and the crank part 99b that extends from both ends of the horizontal bar part 99a and constitutes the operation part 100 of the return mechanism C6 is configured to abut against the stopper 97. May be.

  As shown in FIGS. 32 to 35, the lock piece 93 is provided with an upper surface 93b of the locking projection 93a on the distal end side on the rod 81 when the downward movement of the piston rod 36 is restricted, as in the fifth embodiment. As a structure for engaging the locking projection 82 by contacting the lower surface 82a of the locking projection 82, the locking projection 93a side can be rotated in the vertical direction along the axial direction of the piston rod 36, and the horizontal bar Both ends of the portion 99a are rotatably supported on the side wall 96a of the support bracket 96.

  The crankshaft 99 has an operation in which a central horizontal bar 99a is inserted into the through hole 96b so as to be rotatably supported on the side wall 96a of the support bracket 96, and bent into a crank shape at both ends protruding from the side walls 96a and 96a. A crank portion 99b also serving as the portion 100 is provided.

  The support brackets 96 that respectively support both ends of the horizontal bar portion 99a are L-shaped in cross section that is fixed to the mounting member 52 to which the mounting bracket 51 that holds the actuator A6 is mounted, and the bottom wall 96c and the bottom wall 96c And a side wall 96a extending from the edge in the orthogonal direction of the bottom wall 96c. The bottom wall 96c serves as a stopper 97, and the stopper 97 is locked by the upper surface 97a at the time of locking of the locking protrusion 82 at the locking projection 93a when the downward movement of the piston rod 36 is restricted. The crank portion 99b connected to the lock piece 93 is abutted and supported so that the downward rotation of the piston rod 36 on the locking projection 93a side of 93 can be restricted.

  In the case of the sixth embodiment, the urging means for urging the lock piece 93 so as to abut and support the stopper 97 is a tension coil spring 95 interposed between the bottom wall 96c and the crank part 99b. As shown in the solid line from the two-dot chain line in FIG. 35, the coil spring 95 can allow the upward movement of the piston rod 36 and the lock piece 93 rotates upward on the locking projection 93a side. The crank portion 95 extending from the lock piece 93 is urged and returned so as to contact the stopper 97.

  As described above, the return mechanism C6 includes the operation portion 100 that is disposed so as to protrude from the stopper 97 on the tip end side of the crank portion 99b of the crankshaft 99. If the operation unit 100 is gripped and lifted upward, the locking projection 93a side of the lock piece 93 can be rotated upward to be detached from the locking projection 82.

  The pedestrian protection device M6 of the sixth embodiment is the same as that of the fifth embodiment except for the structure described above, and includes the airbag device 10 and the actuator A6 of the lifting device U6 is a gas generator 26. The generated gas G causes the piston portion 37 of the piston rod 36 to slide up and move to the inner peripheral surface 32a of the housing 32 of the cylinder 31, and raises the rear end 22a of the hood panel 22 connected to the upper end of the rod portion 81. The configuration is to let Further, if the hood panel 22 rises to the raised position PUP, the airbag 11 of the airbag device 10 completes the inflation, and the vicinity of the rear end 22a of the hood panel 22 and the front pillar 4 as in the fifth embodiment. , 4 will be covered.

  In the actuator A6 of the sixth embodiment, when the lock mechanism R6 is actuated after the piston rod 36 is moved upward, the coil spring 95 is attached to the rotation side in the downward direction of the piston rod 36 as shown in FIG. The urged lock piece 93 is supported in contact with the stopper 97 through the crank part 99b so as to be prevented from rotating downward. Since the upper surface 93b of the locking projection 93a is brought into contact with the lower surface 82a of the locking projection 82, the downward movement of the piston rod 36 is restricted.

  When the piston rod 36 is moved upward during the operation of the actuator A6, as shown in FIG. 35, even if the upper surface 82b of each locking projection 82 hits the lower surface 93c side of the locking projection 93a of the locking piece 93, 93 rotates against the urging force of the coil spring 95 to the upper side which is the upward movement side of the piston rod 36 and allows the piston rod 36 to move upward without locking the piston rod 36.

  Then, when the return mechanism C6 is operated after the piston rod 36 is moved upward, the operating portion 100 of the crankshaft 99 is operated to rotate the lock piece 93 toward the upward movement side of the piston rod 36 as shown in FIG. Thus, the locked state can be released by releasing the locking projection 93a from the locking projection 82.

  Therefore, the piston rod 36 released from the locked state is moved downward by the weight or weight of the hood panel 22 or by using a slight pressing force, as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. The hood panel 22 connected to the upper end side of the piston rod 36 can also be moved downward to return to the initial positions PDR and PDP.

  Therefore, also in the pedestrian protection apparatus M6 of the sixth embodiment, the gas G generated by the gas generator 26 is used as a drive source, and the actuator A6 including the lock mechanism R6 is operated to raise the hood panel 22. Even after the operation, the hood panel 22 can be easily lowered only by rotating the piston rod 36 in a predetermined direction, and the vehicle V can be run with a good visibility. .

  And also in said pedestrian protection apparatus M6, since the piston rod 36 itself is lowered | hung compared with the structure moved down with the actuator A6, the return mechanism C6 can be comprised compactly.

  In the sixth embodiment as well, when the locking projection 93a side of the lock piece 93 is rotated upward during the operation of the return mechanism C6, the hood panel 22 and the piston rod 36 are slightly lifted to lock the locking projection 93a. If it is made not to contact the lower surface 82a of the locking projection 82 which has been locked, the rotation operation of the lock piece 93 can be easily performed.

  Furthermore, you may comprise like the pedestrian protection apparatus M7 of 7th Embodiment shown to FIGS. In the seventh embodiment, the actuator A7 of the lifting device U7 includes a lock mechanism R7 and a return mechanism C7 at the cap 101 portion on the upper end side of the cylinder 31. The lock mechanism R7 includes a lock claw 106 and a coil spring 111 as a biasing unit that biases the lock claw 106 so as to press it. The return mechanism C7 includes an operation unit 109 extending from the lock claw 106.

  As shown in FIGS. 38 and 40, the cap 101 is screwed into the upper end of the housing 32 of the cylinder 31 and coupled thereto, and has a bottom wall portion 102 having an insertion hole 102a through which the rod portion 39 of the piston rod 36 is inserted, And a cylindrical portion 103 extending in a substantially cylindrical shape from the outer peripheral edge of the wall portion 102. The cylindrical portion 103 is provided with a sliding hole 103a extending from the bottom wall portion 102 to the open end along the axial direction of the cylindrical portion 103 so as to penetrate the inner and outer periphery. Further, in the vicinity of the sliding hole 103a in the cylindrical portion 103 and the bottom wall portion 102 on the point symmetry side, a square hole-shaped support hole 103b penetrating the inner and outer periphery is disposed. Further, a female screw 103 c for screwing an annular spring seat 112 is threaded on the upper inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion 103.

  38 and 40, the spring seat 112 includes an insertion hole 112a through which the rod portion 39 of the piston rod 36 is inserted, and a male screw 112b corresponding to the female screw 103c of the cap 101 on the outer peripheral surface. The spring seat 112 is a part that supports the upper end 111 a of the coil spring 111 when the piston rod 36 is inserted and attached to the cap 101.

  The coil spring 111 urges the lock claw 106 to rotate downward with the vicinity of the support leg 108 as the rotation center O with the lower end 111b in contact with the lock claw 106.

  As shown in FIGS. 38 and 40, the lock claw 106 extends along the axial direction of the piston rod 36 on the cylinder 31 side around the rod portion 39 of the piston rod 36 protruding from the bottom wall portion 102 of the cap 101 of the cylinder 31. It is attached so that it can rotate in the vertical direction. Further, the lock claw 106 includes a locking edge 107 b that can abut on the outer peripheral surface 39 a of the piston rod 36. Specifically, the lock claw 106 includes a cylindrical main body 107, and an annular spring seat 107c is projected from the outer peripheral surface on the lower end side. Further, the lock claw 106 includes a support leg portion 108 and an operation portion 109 that protrude in the diameter direction from the position of the outer peripheral surface that is point-symmetric with respect to the spring seat 107c. The lower end 111b of the coil spring 111 is brought into contact with the upper surface of the spring seat 107c. The outer diameter D6 of the spring seat 107c is smaller than the inner diameter d6 of the cylindrical portion 103 of the cap 101.

  The support leg 108 is shaped like a quadrangular prism so that it can be inserted into the support hole 103b of the cap 101 with a gap. Note that when the support leg 108 of the lock claw 106 is pivoted in the vertical direction about the pivot center O, the outer peripheral surface of the spring seat 107c around the support leg 108 inserted into the support hole 103b is the support hole 103b. It will be in the state which rotates in the state contact | abutted to the periphery. Further, the operating portion 109 is a vertical bar portion that extends from the spring seat 107c as a T-shaped plate having a vertical bar portion 109a and a horizontal bar portion 109b that bifurcates in the orthogonal direction at the tip of the vertical bar portion 109a. When 109a inserts the support leg portion 108 into the support hole 103b and inserts the spring seat 107c of the lock claw 106 into the cylindrical portion 103 of the cap 101, the slide hole 103a is inserted into the horizontal bar portion 109b. It is configured so as to be positioned on the outer peripheral side of the cylindrical portion 103.

  Furthermore, the main body 107 includes an insertion hole 107a having an inner diameter d7 larger than the outer diameter D7 of the cylindrical rod portion 39 of the piston rod 36.

  Further, on the bottom wall portion 102 of the cap 101, a thick annular spacer 104 having a thicker support hole 103b side and a thinner slide hole 103a side is disposed. The spacer 104 includes an insertion hole 104a through which the rod portion 39 of the piston rod 36 is inserted. When the spacer 104 is disposed on the bottom wall portion 102 in the cylindrical portion 103 of the cap 101, the spacer 104 is fitted into the sliding hole 103a. An anti-rotation portion 104b projects from the outer peripheral side.

  When the lock claw 106 is assembled as the actuator A7, the upper edge on the side of the support leg 108 at the inner peripheral edge of the insertion hole 107a on the upward movement side of the piston rod 36 has a cross section with an acute angle (the embodiment). In this case, the outer peripheral surface of the rod portion 39 is locked and locked when the piston rod 36 moves downward.

  That is, the lock claw 106 is pressed to the spacer 104 side by the coil spring 111, and by adjusting the thickness of the spacer 104, the support leg 108 side is arranged higher upward, and the operation unit 109 side is arranged lower lower. The insertion hole 107a is inclined so as to intersect the axial direction of the rod portion 39 of the piston rod 36, and the locking edge portion 107b is brought into contact with the outer peripheral surface 39a of the rod portion 39.

  At this time, the lock claw 106 receives the urging force of the coil spring 111, the part of the support leg 108 inserted into the support hole 103 b is set as the rotation center O, and the locking edge 107 b is set to the piston rod 36. It will be in the state rotated to the downward movement side. In the state where the locking edge portion 107 b is in contact with the outer peripheral surface 39 a of the rod portion 39, the change in the thickness of the upper surface 104 c of the spacer 104 is large, and the lower surface 106 a of the lock claw 106 is changed to the upper surface 104 c of the spacer 104. The lower surface 106a is disposed with a clearance H (see FIG. 40) from the rotation stopper 104b side.

  The lock claw 106 urged by the coil spring 111 is moved in the axial direction of the rod portion 39 of the piston rod 36 from the rotation center O when the support leg portion 108 inserted into the support hole 103b is rotated. As the arrangement position along, the locking edge portion 107b is arranged at an upper position on the ascending movement side of the piston rod 36, and the length L7 of the radius portion 110 from the rotation center O to the locking edge portion 107b. Is set longer than the distance L6 from the rotation center O of the rod portion 39 in the direction perpendicular to the axis to the outer peripheral surface 39a of the rod portion 39 (see FIG. 40).

  Therefore, in the lock mechanism R7, when the piston rod 36 is moved downward, the lock claw 106 that makes the engaging edge 107b abut on the outer peripheral surface 39a of the rod portion 39 is accompanied by the downward movement of the rod portion 39. The support leg 108 is rotated downward about the rotation center O, and the length L7 of the radius portion 110 is a distance from the rotation center O in the direction orthogonal to the axis of the rod portion 39 to the outer peripheral surface 39a of the rod portion 39. Since it is longer than L6, the locking edge portion 107b (particularly, the upper end surface 107d side of the main body portion 107) is strongly bitten into the outer peripheral surface 39a of the piston rod 36 that slides into the cylinder 31, and the lock claw The piston rod 36 is locked so that the downward rotation of the piston rod 36 itself is stopped while the downward movement of the rod portion 39 itself of the piston rod 36 is also stopped.

  On the other hand, when the piston rod 36 is moved upward, the lock claw 106 slides the locking edge portion 107b (particularly on the inner peripheral surface 107e side of the insertion hole 107a) with the outer peripheral surface 39a of the piston rod 36, and the coil spring 111 is moved. Since the locking edge portion 107b is disposed on the side away from the outer peripheral surface 39a of the piston rod 36, the piston rod 36 is moved upward without being locked. Allow. Incidentally, when the piston rod 36 is moved upward, the lock claw 106 receives the urging force of the coil spring 111 in a well-balanced manner on the entire circumference of the spring seat 107 c, so that the axis of the insertion hole 107 a is aligned with the axis of the piston rod 36. The piston rod 36 can be smoothly moved up and down while being arranged in parallel and restrained from being caught.

  It should be noted that, at the beginning of the ascent of the piston rod 36 with the locking edge 107b in contact with the outer peripheral surface 39a, the edge 107f (see FIG. However, the inner diameter dimension d7 of the insertion hole 107a is larger than the outer diameter dimension D7 of the rod portion 39, and the support leg portion 108 extends from the support hole 103b. The edge portion 107f does not bite into the outer peripheral surface 39a of the rod portion 39 by jumping out to the inner peripheral side of the cap 101, and the upward movement of the piston rod 36 is not stopped. Further, the upward rotation about the rotation center O of the lock claw 106 accompanying the upward movement of the piston rod 36 is rotation in a direction in which the edge portion 107 f is separated from the outer peripheral surface 39 a of the rod portion 39. There is no risk of biting into the outer peripheral surface 39a.

  Moreover, in the pedestrian protection apparatus M7 of 7th Embodiment, except for said structure, while being provided with the airbag apparatus 10, the actuator A7 of the raising apparatus U7 is a gas generator. 26, the piston portion 37 of the piston rod 36 is slid and raised on the inner peripheral surface 32a of the housing 32 of the cylinder 31, and the rear end 22a of the hood panel 22 connected to the upper end of the rod portion 39. Is configured to raise. Further, if the hood panel 22 rises to the raised position PUP, the airbag 11 of the airbag device 10 completes inflating in the same manner as in the first to sixth embodiments, and the vicinity of the rear end 22a of the hood panel 22 or the front The pillars 4 and 4 are covered.

  In the actuator A7 of the seventh embodiment, when the lock mechanism R7 is actuated after the piston rod 36 is moved upward, the lock pawl 106 is previously provided with the coil spring 111 as shown in FIG. Since the engaging edge 107b is brought into contact with the outer peripheral surface 39a of the piston rod 36, the piston rod 36 is moved downward as shown in FIGS. Accordingly, it further rotates downward so that the engaging edge portion 107b bites into the outer peripheral surface 39a of the piston rod 36 and locks the rotation, so that the downward movement of the piston rod 36 can also be restricted.

  During the upward movement of the piston rod 36, as described above, the lock claw 106 slides on the outer peripheral surface 39a of the piston rod 36, and the coil spring 111 as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. Since the locking edge portion 107b is disposed on the side away from the outer peripheral surface 39a of the piston rod 36, the piston rod 36 is lifted without locking the piston rod 36. Allow movement.

  When the return mechanism C7 is actuated after the piston rod 36 is moved upward, the operation portion 109 is operated to rotate the lock claw 106 upward, and the locking edge portion 107b is moved to the outer peripheral surface 39a of the piston rod 36. The lock state can be released by separating it in the direction away from the direction.

  Therefore, the piston rod 36 released from the locked state is moved downward by the weight and weight of the hood panel 22 or by using a slight pressing force, as shown by a two-dot chain line in FIG. The hood panel 22 connected to the upper end side of the piston rod 36 can also be moved downward to return to the initial positions PDR and PDP.

  Therefore, also in the pedestrian protection apparatus M7 of the seventh embodiment, the gas G generated by the gas generator 26 is used as a drive source and the actuator A7 including the lock mechanism R7 is operated to raise the hood panel 22. Even after the operation, the hood panel 22 can be easily lowered only by rotating the lock claw 106 upward, and the vehicle V can be driven with a good visibility.

  And also in said pedestrian protection apparatus M7, since the piston rod 36 itself is lowered | hung compared with the structure which moves down with the actuator A7, the return mechanism C7 can be comprised compactly.

  Further, even in the lock mechanism R7 of the actuator A7 of the seventh embodiment, when the piston rod 36 moves downward, the locking edge portion 107b of the lock claw 106 immediately moves to the outer peripheral surface 39a of the piston rod 36 about to move downward. In this configuration, the piston rod 36 can be controlled to move downward as the lock pawl 106 stops rotating. Even if the position where the piston rod 36 stops after the upward movement varies, it can be quickly The downward movement of the piston rod 36 can be locked.

  Incidentally, like the actuator A8 of the lifting device U8 used in the pedestrian protection apparatus M8 of the eighth embodiment shown in FIG. 42, the rod of the piston rod 36 with which the locking edge 107b of the lock claw 116 in the lock mechanism R8 abuts. On the outer peripheral surface of the portion 119, continuous irregularities are provided in the contact region with the locking edge 107b by knurling, embossing, cutting, etc. so as to increase the catching resistance of the locking edge 107b. The uneven portion 120 may be provided.

  If comprised in this way, when the latching edge part 107b bites into the outer peripheral surface 119a of the piston rod 36, the uneven | corrugated | grooved part 120 can bite into the outer peripheral surface 119a of the piston rod 36 without slipping. Thus, the piston rod 36 can be locked more quickly and smoothly.

  Further, as in the eighth embodiment, the support leg 108 side that is the rotation center O of the lock claw 116 may be pivotally supported on the cylinder 103 side by the rotation pin 117.

  Further, like the return mechanism C9 in the pedestrian protection apparatus M9 of the ninth embodiment shown in FIGS. 43, 44, and 47, the actuator A9 itself is moved downward and the hood panel 22 disposed at the raised position PUP is moved up. It may be configured to return to the initial position PDP.

  In the actuator A9 of the ninth embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 44 and 46, the piston portion 122 having the concave groove 122a in which the piston ring 38 is mounted has a truncated cone-shaped extension on the upper surface side. The lock mechanism R9 provided with the installation portion 123 and provided in the actuator A9 is disposed between the extension portion 123 and the outer peripheral surface 123a of the extension portion 123 and the inner peripheral surface 32a of the housing 32 of the cylinder 31. A plurality of locking members 126 made of metal balls. In the case of the ninth embodiment, nine spherical lock members 126 are used (see FIG. 44).

  Then, as shown in FIG. 46, each lock member 126 is housed in a narrowed annular groove 124 formed between the outer peripheral surface 123a of the extending portion 123 and the inner peripheral surface 32a of the housing 32. Possible outer diameter dimension D9. The annular groove 124 has a depth dimension LB9 in the direction perpendicular to the axis of the piston rod 36 from the inner peripheral surface 32a of the cylinder 31 on the bottom face 124a side, slightly larger than the outer diameter dimension D9 of the lock member 126, and on the upper part 124c side. The depth dimension LN9 in the direction perpendicular to the axis of the piston rod 36 from the inner peripheral surface 32a of the cylinder 31 is made smaller than the outer diameter dimension D9 of the lock member 126. Therefore, each lock member 126 slides with the inner peripheral surface 32a of the housing 32 when the piston rod 36 moves upward, and as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 46, the bottom surface 124a on the wide space side of the annular groove 124. The piston rod 36 is allowed to rise. However, each lock member 126 slides with the inner peripheral surface 32a of the housing 32 when the piston rod 36 moves downward, and as shown by the solid lines in FIGS. 45 and 46, the upper portion of the annular groove 124 on the narrow space side. 124c is disposed between the tapered surface 124b of the annular groove 124 serving as the outer peripheral surface 123a of the extending portion 123 and the inner peripheral surface 32a of the housing 32 to lock the piston rod 36. The downward movement of the piston rod 36 is restricted.

  Further, the return mechanism C9 is provided corresponding to each actuator A9, and includes a mounting board 131, a screw rod 133, and a slider 136, as shown in FIGS. The mounting board 131 includes a vertical plate portion 131a attached to the body 1 side of the vehicle V, and a support plate portion 131b extending from the upper and lower ends of the vertical plate portion 131a in the lateral direction on the actuator A9 side. The screw rod 133 is held by the support plate portion 131b of the mounting substrate 131 such that the axial direction is arranged along the vertical direction and the shaft is rotatable in the direction around the axis. Near the upper and lower ends of the screw rod 133, an operation portion 134 made of a nut for holding the screw rod 133 on the upper and lower support plate portions 131b is attached so that it can be gripped when the screw rod 133 is rotated. . The operation unit 134 is fixed to the screw rod 133 using a set screw 135, and the upper and lower operation units 134 are abutted and supported on the upper and lower surfaces of the upper and lower support plate portions 131 b, thereby supporting the screw rod 133. The screw rod 133 is held by the support plate portion 131b while preventing the portion 131b from coming off. The slider 136 includes a screw hole 136a that is screwed into the screw rod 133 at an upper position between the support plate portions 131b and 131b, and can be moved downward along the axial direction of the screw rod 133 by the rotation of the screw rod 133. It is arranged. A mounting bracket 51 that holds the housing 32 of the cylinder 31 is fixed to the slider 136 using a predetermined mounting screw. The slider 136 is provided with sliding pieces 136b and 136b that slidably contact the vertical plate portion 131a of the mounting substrate 131 so as not to rotate when the screw rod 133 is rotated.

  In the pedestrian protection apparatus M9 of the ninth embodiment, when an operation circuit (not shown) detects or predicts a collision with the pedestrian of the vehicle V by a signal from the sensor 6, the gas generator 26 of each ascent device U9. And the inflator 15 of the airbag device 10 is operated. Then, the gas generator 26 of the lifting device U9 is operated to ignite the squib 28, and the generated gas G pushes up the piston portion 37 of the piston rod 36 in the cylinder 31, as shown in FIGS. If the rear end 22a of the hood panel 22 connected to the upper end of the rod portion 39 of the piston rod 36 is raised and the hood panel 22 rises to the raised position PUP, the airbag is similar to the first to eighth embodiments. The airbag 11 of the device 10 completes the inflation and covers the vicinity of the rear end 22a of the hood panel 22 and the front pillars 4 and 4.

  In the actuator A9 of the ninth embodiment, when the lock mechanism R9 is actuated after the piston rod 36 is moved upward, the lock member 126 is moved downward as shown by the solid lines in FIGS. Along with the inner circumferential surface 32 a of the housing 32, it is arranged on the upper space 124 c side on the narrow space side of the annular concave groove 124, and the outer circumferential surface 123 a (tapered surface 124 b) of the extending portion 123 and the housing 32. Since it is arranged in a wedge shape between the inner peripheral surface 32a and the piston rod 36 is locked to restrict the downward movement of the piston rod 36, the hood panel 22 is prevented from descending from the raised position PUP. In the lock mechanism R9, as described above (see the solid line in FIG. 43 and the two-dot chain line in FIG. 46) when the piston rod 36 is raised during the operation of the gas generator 26, the lock member 126 is attached to the housing 32. The piston rod 36 is allowed to rise without being locked because it is slid with the inner peripheral surface 32a and disposed on the bottom surface 124a side of the wide space of the annular groove 124.

  Thereafter, when the rear end 22a of the hood panel 22 is lowered to improve the field of view and the vehicle V is driven, the return mechanism C9 is operated. In the case of the ninth embodiment, if a tool such as a spanner is used to grasp the operation unit 134 and rotate the screw rod 133 in a predetermined direction, the screw rod 133 is moved to the position shown in FIGS. The engaged slider 136 can be moved downward. Then, by rotating the screw rod 133, the actuator A9 attached to the slider 136 can be lowered, and the hood panel 22 connected to the upper end side of the piston rod 36 of the actuator A9 is also moved downward, It is possible to return to the initial position PDP.

  Therefore, in the pedestrian protection apparatus M9 of the ninth embodiment, the gas G generated by the gas generator 26 is used as a drive source, and the actuator A9 including the lock mechanism R9 is operated to raise the hood panel 22. Even after the operation, the hood panel 22 can be easily lowered by the rotation operation of the screw rod 133, and the vehicle V can be driven with a good visibility.

  Each return mechanism C9 is disposed on both the left and right sides of the hood panel 22 corresponding to the actuator A9 in which the shaft support portion 40 is connected to the hinge pins 23b of the left and right hinge portions 23, and the screw rod 133 is rotated. Regarding the return mechanism C9 on both the left and right sides, the operation may be performed by rotating gradually in a plurality of times, or by using the flexibility of the hood panel 22, the slider 136 may be separately moved to the lowermost position. , It may be moved downward.

  In the return mechanism C9 of the ninth embodiment, the slider 136 can be prevented from free falling because the slider 136 is screwed into the screw rod 133 even if the rotation operation of the screw rod 133 is stopped halfway.

  Also in the lock mechanism R9 of the actuator A9 of the ninth embodiment, when the piston rod 36 is moved downward, the lock member 126 reliably slides on the inner peripheral surface 32a of the cylinder 31 and moves to the upper part of the annular groove 124. The lock member 126 is guided on the tapered surface 124b on the bottom surface 124a of the annular groove 124 so as to be able to contact the inner peripheral surface 32a of the cylinder 31 so that the piston rod 36 can be locked by moving to the 124c side. An urging means such as a polymer elastic body or a spring that urges 126 upward is provided, or the depth dimension LB9 of the space on the bottom surface 124a side of the annular groove 124 is substantially equal to that of the lock member 126. It is set to allow the piston rod 36 to move upward and to securely lock the piston rod 36 when the piston rod 36 moves downward. It may be configured to.

  In addition, in each embodiment, although the structure which attached the airbag apparatus 10 was illustrated, it raises without installing the airbag apparatus 10 so that the hood panel 22 can be plastically deformed and a pedestrian can be received and protected. You may comprise a pedestrian protection apparatus only from apparatus U1, U2, U3, U4, U5, U6, U7, U8, U9. Further, in this case, the position where the hood panel is raised is not limited to the rear end, and the lifting devices U1, U2, U3, U4, U5, U6, U7, U8, U9 are appropriately arranged on the front end side, the front and rear ends, etc. It may be arranged.

It is a side view of the vehicle carrying the pedestrian protection apparatus of 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a top view of the vehicle carrying the pedestrian protection apparatus of 1st Embodiment. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view along the vehicle front-back direction in the pedestrian protection apparatus of 1st Embodiment, and respond | corresponds to the III-III site | part of FIG. It is a top view of the airbag used for the pedestrian protection device of a 1st embodiment. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view of the actuator of the raising apparatus used for the pedestrian protection apparatus of 1st Embodiment. It is a schematic cross-sectional view of the actuator used for the pedestrian protection apparatus of 1st Embodiment, and respond | corresponds to the VI-VI site | part of FIG. It is a general | schematic disassembled perspective view of the actuator of 1st Embodiment. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the time of the raise of the piston rod in the actuator of 1st Embodiment. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view explaining the action | operation time of the locking mechanism of the actuator of 1st Embodiment. FIG. 12 is a schematic cross-sectional view when the return mechanism of the actuator of the first embodiment is operated, and corresponds to a portion XX in FIG. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view of the state which actuated the return mechanism of the actuator of 1st Embodiment and returned the piston rod to the initial position. It is a perspective view of the piston rod of the actuator used for the pedestrian protection apparatus of 2nd Embodiment. FIG. 15 is a schematic cross-sectional view when the return mechanism of the actuator of the second embodiment is operated, corresponding to the XIII-XIII portion of FIG. 14. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view of the state which actuated the return mechanism of the actuator of 2nd Embodiment, and returned the piston rod to the initial position. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view of the actuator used for the pedestrian protection apparatus of 3rd Embodiment. FIG. 16 is a schematic cross-sectional view of an actuator according to a third embodiment, corresponding to the XVI-XVI portion of FIG. 15. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the time of the raise of the piston rod of the actuator of 3rd Embodiment. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view explaining the time of the action | operation of the locking mechanism of the actuator of 3rd Embodiment. It is a schematic cross-sectional view explaining the time of the action | operation of the return mechanism of the actuator of 3rd Embodiment. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view explaining the state which operates the return mechanism of the actuator of 3rd Embodiment, and returns a piston rod to an initial position. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view of the actuator used for the pedestrian protection apparatus of 4th Embodiment. It is a schematic exploded perspective view which shows the principal part of the locking mechanism of the actuator of 4th Embodiment. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the time of the raise of the piston rod of the actuator of 4th Embodiment. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view explaining the time of the action | operation of the locking mechanism of the actuator of 4th Embodiment. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view explaining the time of the action | operation of the return mechanism of the actuator of 4th Embodiment. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view of the state which actuated the return mechanism of the actuator of 4th Embodiment, and returned the piston rod to the initial position. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view of the actuator used for the pedestrian protection apparatus of 5th Embodiment. It is a general | schematic disassembled perspective view which shows the principal part of the lock mechanism of the actuator of 5th Embodiment. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view explaining the time of the action | operation of the locking mechanism of the actuator of 5th Embodiment. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the time of the raise of the piston rod of the actuator of 5th Embodiment. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view explaining the state which operates the return mechanism of the actuator of 5th Embodiment, and returns a piston rod to an initial position. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view of the actuator used for the pedestrian protection apparatus of 6th Embodiment. It is a schematic exploded perspective view which shows the principal part of the lock mechanism of the actuator of 6th Embodiment. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the time of the raise of the piston rod of the actuator of 6th Embodiment. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view explaining the action | operation of the locking mechanism of the actuator of 6th Embodiment. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the state which actuated the return mechanism of the actuator of 6th Embodiment, and returned the piston rod to the initial position. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view of the actuator used for the pedestrian protection apparatus of 7th Embodiment. It is a general | schematic disassembled perspective view which shows the principal part of the locking mechanism and return mechanism of the actuator of 7th Embodiment. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the time of the raise of the piston rod of the actuator of 7th Embodiment. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view explaining the action | operation time of the locking mechanism of the actuator of 7th Embodiment. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the state which actuated the return mechanism of the actuator of 7th Embodiment, and returned the piston rod to the initial position. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the locking mechanism vicinity of the actuator used for the pedestrian protection apparatus of 8th Embodiment. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view of the raising apparatus used for the pedestrian protection apparatus of 9th Embodiment. It is a schematic exploded perspective view which shows the principal part of the raising apparatus of 9th Embodiment. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the time of the raise of the hood panel at the time of the action | operation of the raising apparatus of 9th Embodiment. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view explaining the action | operation time of the locking mechanism of the actuator of 9th Embodiment. It is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the state which actuated the return mechanism of the raising apparatus of 9th Embodiment, and returned the hood panel to the initial position.

Explanation of symbols

22 ... Food panel,
26 ... Gas generator,
31 ... Cylinder,
32a, 61a ... (inside of cylinder / housing) inner peripheral surface,
36 ... Piston rod,
37, 63, 122 ... piston part,
39, 73, 81, 119 ... rod part,
39a, 73a, 81a, 119a ... outer peripheral surface,
42.65 .. storage recess,
44, 67, 126 ... Lock material,
46, 46A, 69 ... evacuation recess,
46b, 46b1, 46b2, 46b3 ... straight line part,
46c: Stepped portion,
48/70/90/100/109/134 (operation part of the return mechanism),
75.124 ... annular groove,
77 ... Lock ring,
77b ... the inner peripheral surface (of the lock ring),
77c ... outer peripheral surface (of the lock ring),
77e ... Slit,
78 (Spring means) Coil spring,
79 ... Spring seat,
82 ... locking projection,
83.93 ... Lock piece,
83a, 93a ... locking projection,
85 ... (biasing means) torsion spring,
87/97 ... stopper,
95.111 (Biasing means) Coil spring,
106 · 116 ... Lock claw,
107b ... locking edge,
120 ... irregularities,
131 ... Mounting board,
133 ... Screw rod,
136 ... slider,
R1, R2, R3, R4, R5, R6, R7, R8, R9 ... Lock mechanism,
C1, C2, C3, C4, C5, C6, C7, C8, C9 ... return mechanism,
A1, A2, A3, A4, A5, A6, A7, A8, A9 ... Actuator,
M1, M2, M3, M4, M5, M6, M7, M8, M9 ... Pedestrian protection device,
V: Vehicle.

Claims (11)

Configured with a lifting device to raise the hood panel of the vehicle,
The lifting device is configured to include an actuator including a piston cylinder mechanism using a gas generated when the gas generator is operated as a drive source,
The actuator is
The gas generated by the operation of the gas generator is filled in a cylinder, the piston rod housed in the cylinder is raised, and the hood panel connected to the upper end side of the piston rod is raised. And
A pedestrian protection device configured to include a lock mechanism that restricts the downward movement of the piston rod that has been raised relative to the cylinder,
The lifting device is mounted on a vehicle with a return mechanism that can move down together with the piston rod or the actuator so as to return the hood panel raised by the operation of the gas generator to the initial position before the lifting. A pedestrian protection device characterized by that. The locking mechanism is
A substantially spherical locking member disposed between the sliding portions of the piston rod and the cylinder;
The piston rod is disposed on the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod or the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder, accommodates the locking material, allows the piston rod to move during the upward movement, and the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder during the downward movement or By sliding with the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod, the lock member is disposed in a wedge shape between the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod and the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder so that the downward movement of the piston rod can be regulated. In addition, a storage concave portion, on the side of narrowing the space, the moving side of the lock member that slides when the piston rod moves downward,
Configured with
The return mechanism is
The piston rod is disposed on the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder or the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod so as to be connected to the storage recess when the piston rod rotates in the direction around the axis, and the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod in the lock member A retreat recess that houses the lock member so that the piston rod can be moved downward, enabling avoidance of a pressure contact state with the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder,
An operating portion provided on the piston rod and capable of rotating the piston rod in an axial direction;
The pedestrian protection device according to claim 1, wherein the pedestrian protection device is provided.   The retracting recess is formed in a step shape along the axial direction of the piston rod, and along the axial direction of the piston rod and a plurality of linear portions shifted in the circumferential direction, and along the circumferential direction of the piston rod The pedestrian protection device according to claim 2, further comprising a step portion that connects the straight portions.   3. The lock member, a storage recess for storing the lock member, and a plurality of retracting recesses arranged to be communicated with the storage recess are provided in correspondence with each other. Item 4. The pedestrian protection device according to item 3. The locking mechanism is
A substantially annular elastically deformable lock ring disposed between the sliding portions of the piston rod and the cylinder and disposed to have a reduced diameter along the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod;
It is disposed on the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder, houses the lock ring, allows movement of the piston rod during upward movement, and slides on the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod during downward movement, thereby locking the lock A ring is arranged in a wedge shape between the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod and the inner peripheral surface of the cylinder, and the downward movement side of the piston rod is narrowed so that the downward movement of the piston rod can be regulated. An annular groove on the side,
A spring means that presses downward along the axial direction of the piston rod so as to reduce the diameter of the lock ring, and allows the inner peripheral surface of the lock ring to contact the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod;
Configured with
The return mechanism comprises a spring seat supporting an upper end side of the spring means away from the lock ring;
The spring means is disposed so as to be screwed downward with respect to the upper end side of the cylinder, and is capable of expanding the lock ring when loosened upward from the cylinder in the removal direction. The pedestrian protection device according to claim 1, wherein the pedestrian protection device is arranged so as to be able to reduce a biasing force to the lock ring.   The lock ring has an outer peripheral surface parallel to the tapered surface of the inner peripheral surface of the annular groove, and has a truncated cone shape in which the inner peripheral surface is parallel to the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod to be inserted, and The pedestrian protection device according to claim 5, wherein the pedestrian protection device is configured as a substantially annular shape having a slit penetrating the inner and outer peripheries. The locking mechanism is
A locking projection provided on a portion of the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod protruding from the cylinder;
When the downward movement of the piston rod is restricted, the locking projection on the tip side is brought into contact with the lower surface side of the locking projection and locked, and the locking projection side is pivotable in the vertical direction. A locking piece arranged to be supported;
The lower surface of the lock piece is capable of restricting the rotation of the lock piece to the lower side of the lock protrusion when the lock protrusion is locked in the lock protrusion at the time of restricting the downward movement of the piston rod. A stopper that supports the side,
An urging means for urging the lock piece that rotates upward to allow the piston rod to rise upward so as to contact the stopper;
Configured with
The return mechanism is coupled to the lock piece so that the locking projection side of the lock piece can be rotated upward so that the locking projection of the locking projection on the locking projection is released. The pedestrian protection device according to claim 1, comprising an operation unit.   The pedestrian protection device according to claim 7, wherein a plurality of the locking protrusions are formed along the axial direction of the piston rod. The locking mechanism is
Around the piston rod protruding from the cylinder, a lock claw that is attached so as to be pivotable in the vertical direction and has a locking edge that can contact the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod;
An urging means for urging the locking claw to rotate downward on the side of the locking edge and contacting the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod;
And configured with
The lock claw
A direction in which the piston rod slides with the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod and rotates upward so as to allow the piston rod to move during the upward movement of the piston rod, and the locking edge is separated from the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod. Can be placed on the side, and
During the downward movement of the piston rod, the locking edge is bitten into the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod while rotating downward as the outer peripheral surface of the piston rod is lowered, and the lock pawl is rotated. In order to stop and stop the downward movement of the piston rod,
Arranged,
The said return mechanism is provided with the operation part connected with the said lock claw so that the said locking edge part side of the said lock claw can be rotated upwards, It is comprised, It is comprised. Pedestrian protection device.   An uneven portion provided with continuous unevenness is formed on an outer peripheral surface of a contact area of the piston rod with the engaging edge portion so as to increase a catching resistance of the engaging edge portion. Item 10. The pedestrian protection device according to item 9. The return mechanism is
A mounting board attached to the vehicle body;
A screw rod that is arranged along the vertical direction in the axial direction and is held on the mounting substrate so as to be rotatable in the direction around the axis;
A slider holding the actuator so as to be able to move downward along the axial direction of the screw rod by screwing the screw rod and rotating the screw rod;
The pedestrian protection device according to claim 1, wherein the pedestrian protection device is provided.

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