JP2009113573A - Gear-shift device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a gear-shift device with good operability by allowing a driver to shift gears by placing the finger on a recess part or a protrusion part provided for operation by the. <P>SOLUTION: The gear-shift device is provided with a shift lever 5 for operating a gear position of a transmission. The shift lever 5 is arranged in an instrument panel so as to be protruded therefrom. A shift knob 5A placed in the shift lever 5 is provided with a recess or protrusion part 5c for placing the finger at a rear face when viewed from a driver. An arbitrary number of the recesses or protrusions 5c may be formed in an arbitrary shape. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a shift device for switching a travel range of an automatic transmission mounted on a vehicle such as an automobile.

Conventionally, a shift device is generally provided in a center console provided between the left and right front seats. However, in recent years, a steering wheel has been used to enhance the layout by expanding the space in the vehicle interior. The thing of the structure provided around is proposed.
For example, Patent Document 1 proposes a technique in which a shift device is provided on a part of an instrument panel.
JP-A-5-246260

By the way, in the shift device, it is desired to realize a light operation of the shift lever by a finger.
However, in the shift device described in Patent Document 1, since the shape of the shift knob provided on the shift lever is a hand grip shape, it is not suitable for performing a shift operation with a finger, and operability. Was bad.

  This invention is made | formed in view of this situation, and makes it a subject to provide the shift apparatus excellent in operativity.

  In order to achieve the above object, a shift device of the present invention is a shift device having a shift lever for operating a shift state of a transmission, and the shift lever is arranged and protrudes on an instrument panel. The shift knob provided in the shift lever is provided with a concave portion or a convex portion for finger hooking operation on the back surface side when viewed from the driver.

  According to this shift device, the shift lever is arranged and protruded on the instrument panel, and the shift knob provided on the shift lever has a recess or protrusion for finger-hanging operation on the back side as viewed from the driver. Since the portion is provided, the shift operation can be performed by suitably placing (attaching) a finger on the concave portion or the convex portion. In particular, the vertical operation is easy to perform. Therefore, a shift device with excellent operability can be obtained.

  In addition, since the shift lever is arranged and protrudes on the instrument panel, as described above, the shift operation performed by placing a finger on the concave portion or the convex portion, for example, the hand operating the steering wheel is placed in front of the instrument. This can be done simply by extending it toward the shift knob of the ment panel, and a smooth shifting operation can be realized. In addition, the position of the shift lever can be easily grasped without visual observation, and the shift lever can be easily operated while ensuring the front view.

  According to the present invention, a shift device with excellent operability can be obtained.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings as appropriate.
FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a substantially entire configuration of an instrument panel in which a shift device according to an embodiment of the present invention is arranged, FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a position at which the shift device is arranged, and FIG. 3 is a steering hanger. It is a perspective view which shows the attachment state with respect to a beam. In the following, “front and rear”, “left and right”, and “up and down” are based on the state in which the shift device 1 is attached to the vehicle body. In the following, the shift device 1 applied to the vehicle body of an automobile will be described, but this is not intended to limit the vehicle to which the shift device 1 is attached.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the shift device 1 is disposed at the right end portion 11 b ′ of the meter visor 11 b of the instrument panel 11 provided in front of the front seat (not shown) of the vehicle body, and is provided in the shift device 1. Further, the shift lever 5 protrudes toward the driver M (driver's seat, see FIG. 6, the same applies hereinafter). The meter visor 11b has a meter display unit 11a such as a speedometer and a tachometer, and a hazard lamp switch 11d and an ignition switch 11e are provided below the shift lever 5. The meter display unit 11a is provided with a display unit 11a 'that displays the current range of the shift device 1. In the present embodiment, the display portion 11a ′ is located on the left side of the shift lever 5 on the opposite side of the steering rim 20a as viewed from the driver M (visible through the inside of the steering rim 20a). Are arranged as follows. That is, the steering rim 20a is arranged so as not to interfere with the visual observation of the display unit 11a 'by the driver M.

  In the present embodiment, the right end portion 11b ′ of the meter visor 11b on which the shift device 1 (shift lever 5) is disposed is positioned outside the steering wheel 20 as viewed from the driver M, as shown in FIG. ing. In this example, the shift lever 5 is configured to be positioned in the region R1 above the central axis O of the steering wheel 20. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the steering wheel is viewed from the driver M. The shift lever 5 may be disposed so as to be located outside the center 20, that is, in a region below the central axis O of the steering wheel 20. Further, the shift device 1 is not limited to the one located outside the steering wheel 20 when viewed from the driver M, and may be provided on the instrument panel 11. For example, when viewed from the driver M, it may be provided at a position overlapping the steering rim 20a or inside the steering rim 20a.

  The instrument panel 11 is attached to a steering hanger beam assembly 10 (hereinafter referred to as “hanger assembly 10”) shown in FIG. 3 and is provided in front of the front seat of the vehicle body. The hanger assembly 10 has both end portions 10A in the vehicle width direction (only the left side shown) coupled to a front pillar that forms left and right side walls of the vehicle body (not shown). The first steering hanger beam 12 extending in the vehicle width direction is disposed substantially parallel to the rear side of the first steering hanger beam 12 so as to cover the entire width of the passenger compartment on the front seat side (partially shown). And the first and second steering hanger beams 12 and 13 are connected to each other by a column mounting bracket 14 at a front position substantially in the center of the driver's seat. ing.

  The left end portion of the second steering hanger beam 13 is formed to be one step higher upward, and constitutes an attachment portion 13a for attaching the shift device 1. The right end portion of the mounting portion 13a and the first steering hanger beam 12 are connected and reinforced by an intermediate stay 12a.

The column mounting bracket 14 has a rear portion divided into two forks 14a and 14b, and a mounting member 22 of the steering column 21 is fixed by a bolt (not shown) so that a part thereof is inserted into a recess 14c formed therebetween. Has been.
A steering shaft 23 is rotatably supported on the steering column 21, and a steering wheel 20 is attached to a front end portion of the steering shaft 23 on the driver seat side.

  A center frame 13b for supporting a front portion of a center console (not shown) is provided below the second steering hanger beam 13.

  As shown in FIG. 4B, the shift device 1 includes a main body 2, an escutcheon cover 3 having a gate groove (not shown), and a shift lever 5 that is inserted through the escutcheon cover 3 and is movably provided. And is attached to the attachment portion 13a of the hanger assembly 10 via the attachment bracket 15.

The shift device 1 of the present embodiment is applied to an automatic transmission (not shown), and an automatic transmission (not shown) that controls a shift operation signal corresponding to a shift operation by a shift-by-wire method to switch the range of the automatic transmission. Transmit to the machine controller. A shift position sensor (not shown) for detecting a shift position and a transmission device (not shown) for transmitting a shift operation signal are provided inside the main body 2. The escutcheon cover 3 is attached in a state of covering the rear end portion of the main body portion 2, and as shown in FIG. 2, an opening portion 11c (shown by an arrow) provided at the right end portion 11b ′ of the meter visor 11b of the instrument panel 11 Part) is exposed to the driver's seat side. As shown in FIGS. 5A and 5C, a shift lever 5 is inserted and disposed on the rear surface of the escutcheon cover 3 through a gate groove (not shown). The shift lever 5 has a shift knob 5A at its tip. In this embodiment, the side (right side) on which the shift lever 5 is disposed on the rear surface of the escutcheon cover 3 is a step surface 11c ₂ formed one step lower, and such a step surface 11c ₂ is formed. it allows a gap S formed between the front 5a of the stepped surface 11c ₂ and the shift knob 5A is so widened. The gap S functions as a space for making it easier to put a finger to be operated on the back side of the shift knob 5A when the shift lever 5 described later is operated.

As shown in FIG. 5B, the rear left side portion 11c ₁ of the escutcheon cover 3 has shift positions (shifts such as a reverse range “R”, a neutral range “N”, a drive range “D”, etc. corresponding to the gate groove. Pattern) is displayed.

  As shown in FIG. 5A, the shift lever 5 has a support shaft 6 inserted and held in an inclined state with respect to the escutcheon cover 3, and the support shaft 6 is connected to the main body 2 (FIG. 4B). ))), For example, the lower end side thereof is supported by a pivot or the like so as to be three-dimensionally rotatable. Note that the support shaft 6 is inclined in a direction away from the central axis O (see FIG. 3) (a direction toward the right side of the vehicle body), whereby the shift knob 5A fixed to the tip of the support shaft 6 is also in the same direction. It will be inclined.

  In the shift device 1 according to the present embodiment, the shift lever 5 includes a momentary mechanism that automatically returns to the home position H by a biasing force of a spring or the like (not shown) when the hand is released. Note that the shift lever 5 may be held in the drive range “D” or the like even if the hand is released by a lock mechanism or the like (not shown).

  The shift knob 5A is attached to the support shaft 6 and protrudes from the right end portion 11b 'of the meter visor 11b so as to bulge out toward the driver M side (driver seat side not shown) as shown in FIG. It is streamlined. As shown in FIGS. 5A to 5C, the shift knob 5A includes a front portion 5a, a bulging portion 5b bulged from the front portion 5a toward the right rear portion 5b ′, and a right rear portion 5b ′. The projection 5c and the side recesses 5d and 5d are formed to face the front portion 5a, and the projection 5c and the side recesses 5d and 5d are viewed from the driver M as a shift knob 5A. It is formed so as to be opposed to the rear surface of the escutcheon cover 3 so as to be positioned on the back surface side (front surface side). That is, the convex portion 5c and the side concave portions 5d, 5d for finger-hanging operation are formed at a position that is approximately on the rear surface side (front surface side) of the bulging portion 5b, and the convex portion 5c enters between the fingers and fits. Is configured to do.

As shown in FIG. 5A, the side concave portions 5d and 5d are formed in a curved concave shape that substantially conforms to the bulging curved shape of the bulging portion 5b in plan view. Further, as shown in FIG. 5C, the side recesses 5d and 5d are provided so as to be distributed up and down by the projection 5c in a side view, and as they go from the right rear part 5b ′ to the front part 5a. Each is formed to be wide. On the contrary, the convex portion 5c is formed so as to become narrower from the right rear portion 5b ′ toward the front portion 5a in a side view.
In the present embodiment, the side recesses 5d and 5d have the same shape at the top and bottom, but may be configured to have different shapes.

  As shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, the mounting bracket 15 extends to the front plate 15a, the left leg portion 15d extending to the left side of the front plate 15a, and the right side of the front plate 15a. The first right leg portion 15b and the second right leg portion 15c are fixed to the attachment portion 13a by the left leg portion 15d and the first and second right leg portions 15b and 15c. The left leg portion 15d and the second right leg portion 15c are fixed to the rear surface of the mounting portion 13a by using bolts 15d ′ and 15c ′, and the first right leg portion 15b is fixed to the upper surface of the mounting portion 13a by two bolts 15e. Fixed using '. Here, the left leg portion 15d is formed longer than the second right leg portion 15c, so that when the attachment bracket 15 is attached to the attachment portion 13a, the plate surface of the front plate 15a faces rightward. It is made to be inclined.

  The main body 2 of the shift device 1 is fixed to the front plate 15a by three bolts 15a '(only two are shown in FIG. 4B). Here, as described above, since the front plate 15a is inclined so that the plate surface faces the right side, the shift device 1 fixed to the front plate 15a is also fixed in a state inclined toward the right side. . That is, as shown in FIG. 3, the shift device 1 is fixed in a state inclined toward the direction away from the central axis O.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the shift device 1 including such a shift lever 5 is an area outside the steering wheel 20, for example, above the central axis O of the steering wheel 20 as viewed from the driver M. The shift lever 5 is disposed at the right end 11b ′ of the meter visor 11b so that the shift lever 5 is located in a region R1 indicated by hatching in the drawing. Therefore, when viewed from the driver M, the shift lever 5 does not overlap the steering wheel 20. Thereby, it is easy to grasp the position of the shift lever 5. Further, since the shift lever 5 is disposed outside the steering wheel 20 when viewed from the driver M, the window washer fluid operation is often provided in an area overlapping the steering wheel 20 when viewed from the driver M. The switch 26 (see FIG. 7, operation switches provided from the column cover 24, or the blinker lamp operation switch 26, etc., see FIG. 2) or the like does not get in the way when the shift lever 5 is operated, and the operability is improved. Is done.

  Further, since the shift lever 5 is disposed in an area outside the steering wheel 20, for example, the area R1, when operating the shift lever 5, the hand holding the steering rim 20a as it is as shown in FIG. Fingers that operate on the convex portion 5c and the side concave portions 5d and 5d (see FIGS. 5A and 5C) on the rear surface side (front surface side) of the shift knob 5A simply by extending toward the right end portion 11b ′ of the meter visor 11b. Can be multiplied. At this time, the convex part 5c enters between the fingers, and the operability of the shift lever 5 is good.

  FIG. 8A is a side view showing the operating direction when operating the shift lever 5, and FIG. 8B is a side view showing how the finger is engaged with the shift knob 5A. As shown in FIG. 8A, the operating direction of the shift lever 5 is a vertical direction indicated by arrows X1 and X2 in the figure and a left direction indicated by arrow Y1 in the figure. Here, in the right direction indicated by the arrow Y2 in the figure, the shift lever 5 is moved in the process of returning to the momentary position (home position H, see FIG. 2). In the example shown in FIG. 8B, the index finger F2 and the middle finger F3 are hung on the upper side recess 5d of the shift knob 5A, and the ring finger F4 and the little finger F5 are hung on the lower side recess 5d. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the shift knob 5A may be operated with different fingers. Further, the bulging portion 5b can be operated with the thumb F1.

  Here, the operation | movement at the time of operating the shift lever 5 based on the shift position (shift pattern) shown in FIG. 2 is demonstrated. For example, when operating from the home position H to the drive range “D”, in FIG. 8A, the shift lever 5 is moved in the arrow Y1 direction while the shift lever 5 is lowered in the arrow X2 direction. Then, the shift lever 5 is moved from the home position H to the neutral range “N”, and the shift lever 5 is further lowered to the drive range “D” in the arrow X2 direction in the figure. As a result, a request for the drive range “D” is detected by the shift device 1, and a signal is transmitted from the main body unit 2 to an automatic transmission control unit (not shown) that controls switching of the range of the automatic transmission. As a result, the range of the automatic transmission is switched to the drive range “D”. When operating the reverse range “R”, the shift lever 5 is moved from the home position H to the neutral range “N”, and further moved to the reverse range “R”. The series of operations at this time is “down”. , “Horizontal” and “upper”, it is more difficult to operate than the shift operation to the drive range “D” which is “lower”, “horizontal” and “lower”.

Then, when the shift lever 5 is moved to the drive range “D”, the finger on the shift knob 5A is released. Then, the shift lever 5 moves reversely (moves sequentially in the X1, Y2, and X1 directions) through the gate groove that has been moved by the urging force of a spring or the like (not shown), and returns to the home position H by the momentary mechanism. That is, the movement of the shift lever 5 in the right direction is formed by the urging force of the momentary mechanism, and thus the shape of the shift knob 5A is easy to move in the left direction (operation direction).
In this way, a desired range can be obtained by simply extending the hand holding the steering rim 20a to the meter visor 11b of the instrument panel 11 and placing the finger on the shift knob 5A to move the shift lever 5 in a predetermined direction. it can.

  According to the shift device 1 of the present embodiment described above, the shift lever 5 is disposed and protrudes from the instrument panel 11, and the shift knob 5 </ b> A provided on the shift lever 5 is viewed from the driver M. Since the convex portion 5c and the side concave portions 5d and 5d for finger hooking operation are provided on the back side (front side), the finger is suitably hung (attached) to the convex portion 5c and the side concave portions 5d and 5d. Shift operations can be performed. In particular, the vertical operation can be suitably performed. Therefore, the shift device 1 excellent in operability can be obtained.

  Further, as viewed from the driver M in the driver's seat, the shift lever 5 is disposed and protrudes in a region outside the steering wheel 20, for example, the region R1 of the instrument panel 11, so that, as described above, The shift operation performed by placing a finger on the convex portion 5c and the side concave portions 5d, 5d can be performed only by extending the hand operating the steering wheel 20 toward the shift knob 5A of the front instrument panel 11, for example. And a smooth shift operation can be realized. In addition, the position of the shift lever 5 can be easily grasped without visual observation, and the shift lever 5 can be easily operated while ensuring a front view.

FIG. 9A is a view showing a modified example of the shift lever 5. In this modified example, side convex portions 5d ′ and 5d ′ are formed on the back surface side of the shift knob 5B so as to sandwich the concave portion 5c ′. In other words, the unevenness is formed opposite to that of the shift knob 5A (see FIG. 8), and the upper part 5f and the lower part 5f have a depth.
In such a shift knob 5B, for example, as shown in FIG. 9B, the middle finger F3 is inserted and hooked into the concave portion 5c ′, and the index finger F2 is hooked (attached) to the upper side convex portion 5d ′. At the same time, the shift knob 5B can be operated conveniently and lightly by hooking (attaching) the ring finger F4 and the little finger F5 to the lower side convex portion 5d ′. Note that the shift knob 5B may be operated with a finger different from this. Further, the bulging portion 5b can be operated with the thumb F1.

In the above-described embodiment, the left-hand drive automobile is described. However, the present invention is also applicable to a right-hand drive automobile. In this case, for example, as shown in FIG. 2, a region R <b> 2 indicated by hatching in the drawing, which is outside the steering wheel 20 as viewed from the driver M, for example, above the central axis O of the steering wheel 20. The shift lever 5 can be configured to be located at the (left end portion 11b ″ of the meter visor 11b).
Further, the number of the convex portions 5c and the side concave portions 5d formed and the number of the concave portions 5c′-side convex portions 5d ′ can be arbitrarily set, and the shapes thereof can also be arbitrarily selected.

It is explanatory drawing which shows the substantially whole structure of the instrument panel by which the shift apparatus which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention is arrange | positioned. It is explanatory drawing which shows the position where a shift apparatus is arrange | positioned. It is a perspective view which shows the attachment state with respect to a steering hanger beam. (A) (b) is explanatory drawing which shows the attachment structure of a shift apparatus. (A) is a plan view of the shift lever, (b) is a rear view of the shift lever, and (c) is a left side view of the shift lever. It is explanatory drawing which shows the positional relationship of a shift lever. It is explanatory drawing which shows the positional relationship of a shift lever. (A) is the side view which shows the operation direction at the time of operating a shift lever, (b) is the side view which showed the engagement condition of the finger with respect to a shift knob. (A) is the side view which shows the operation direction at the time of operating the shift lever of a modification, (b) is the side view which showed the degree of finger engagement with respect to a shift knob.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Shift apparatus 2 Main-body part 3 Escussion cover 5 Shift lever 5A Shift knob 5B Shift knob 5a Front part 5b Expansion part 5b 'Right rear part 5c Protrusion part 5d Side recessed part 5c' Concave part 5d 'Side convex part 11 Instrument panel 11b Meter visor 11b' Right end 11b Part 15 Mounting bracket 20 Steering wheel 20a Steering rim 40 Airbag device 41 Airbag F Initial position M Driver O Center shaft

Claims (1)

A shift device having a shift lever for operating a shift state of a transmission,
The shift lever is
It is arranged on the instrument panel and protrudes,
The shift knob provided on the shift lever is provided with a concave portion or a convex portion for finger-hanging operation on the back side as viewed from the driver.

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