JP2009144875A - Ball bearing for clutch release bearing device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a ball bearing for a clutch release bearing device that efficiently suppresses a rise in internal pressure while ensuring a sealing performance. <P>SOLUTION: A ball bearing 12 is used in a clutch release bearing device 1 mounted to an FR vehicle. A seal member 18 on the rear side is composed so that its outer peripheral end part is mounted and fixed to the inner-diameter face 23 of an outer ring 14 while a gap 29 is formed between its inner peripheral end part and the outer-diameter face 24 of an inner ring 15. A seal valve 27 is provided on the external end face 26 of the seal member 18 on the rear side. The seal valve 27 is brought into axial contact with the outer end face 28 on the front side of a bearing cover 40 internally fitted to the rear-side end part of the inner ring 15. The seal valve 27 is integrally provided with the seal member 18 on the rear side by using nitrile rubber such as hydrogenated nitrile rubber (H-NBR) or heat-resistant nitrile rubber as a material. In addition, the seal valve 27 has a shape that the outer diameter to get the inner diameter expanded from the ball side toward the counter-ball side, while the wall thickness is gradually reduced from the ball side toward the counter-ball side. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a ball bearing of a clutch release bearing device incorporated in a clutch device of a vehicle including an automobile.

  The clutch release bearing device is used to transmit or cut power from the engine to the transmission by operating a clutch pedal in a manual vehicle (MT vehicle) or the like, and is interposed between the engine and the transmission. .

  When shutting off the power from the engine to the transmission, the clutch release bearing device is moved in the axial direction and the clutch disc is separated from the flywheel. The clutch release bearing device is pushed and pulled in this direction of axial movement. It can be roughly divided into types. The push type moves the engine axially when the power from the engine is cut off, and the pull type moves the transmission axially. Such a clutch release bearing device includes a ball bearing.

  When a deviation occurs between the engine-side shaft center and the transmission-side shaft center, the ball bearing moves in the radial direction in accordance with the deviation and automatically aligns both shaft centers.

  FIG. 5 illustrates a direct cylinder type (hydraulic push type) clutch release bearing device. The clutch release bearing device (hereinafter referred to as a bearing device) 101 includes a cylindrical outer main body 102, a fixed component 103, a piston 104, and a ball bearing (hereinafter referred to as a bearing) 112 for a clutch release bearing device as main parts. And

  The outer body 102 is attached and fixed to the casing 122 on the transmission side (right side in the drawing), and has a cavity 108 extending on the engine side (left side in the drawing). On the inner peripheral side of the cavity 108, an annular piston 104 and an annular fixed component 103 are arranged in this order.

  The fixed component 103 includes a guide tube 105 extending in the axial direction, and the engine side extends to the outside of the outer body 102. The piston 104 is arranged so as to be movable in the axial direction with respect to the fixed component 103, and is supported by a piston support tube 113 interposed between the piston 104 and the fixed component 103. A preload spring 121 is disposed on the outer peripheral surface of the piston 104. The preload spring 121 is configured to cooperate with the inner ring 115 of the bearing 112 and acts between the fixed component 103 and the piston 104 to apply a preload to the bearing 112 to the engine side.

  The outer body 102 has a concave groove 110 formed on an inner peripheral surface 109 thereof, and a radial edge 111 formed by extending a transmission side end portion of the guide tube 105 radially outward is fitted into the concave groove 110. Has been.

  The radial edge 111, the cavity 108, and the piston 104 constitute a hollow variable volume chamber 106. The variable volume chamber 106 is filled with a control fluid such as oil, and the inside of the cavity 108 is pressurized and depressurized by the control fluid. The variable volume chamber 106 is connected to a control hydraulic pressure generator (not shown).

  The bearing 112 mainly includes an outer ring 114 and an inner ring 115, and a torque transmission ball 116 interposed between the outer ring 114 and the inner ring 115. The engine-side end (the left side in the drawing) of the outer ring 114 extends radially inward to form a flange 119, and the engine-side end of the inner ring 115 extends radially inward to form a flange 120. . The flange portion 119 of the outer ring 114 is always in contact with the diaphragm spring 130 by the preload spring 121.

  As shown in FIG. 6 which is an enlarged view of the bearing 112, the outer ring 114 and the inner ring 115 are sealed by two seal members (117, 118). The seal member (117, 118) Leakage of a lubricating component such as grease enclosed in the inside of 112 is prevented from leaking to the outside, and entry of foreign matter from the outside into the inside of the bearing 112 is prevented (see Patent Document 1).

When power is transmitted from the engine to the transmission, the outer ring flange 119 of the bearing 112 and the diaphragm spring 130 are always in contact with each other, thereby causing the clutch disk (not shown) to be in close contact with the flywheel (not shown). This is possible by setting Further, when the power from the engine to the transmission is cut off, the control fluid in the variable volume chamber 106 is pressurized by a control hydraulic pressure generator (not shown), and the piston 104 is set in the engine so that the volume of the variable volume chamber 106 increases. It is possible by displacing to the side. In this case, since the bearing device 101 moves in the axial direction toward the engine and the outer ring flange portion 119 of the bearing 112 presses the diaphragm spring 130, the clutch disk (not shown) is pulled away from the flywheel (not shown), The power from the engine to the transmission is cut off.
JP 2006-189086 A

  Now, the inner peripheral ends of the seal members (117, 118) of the bearing 112 shown in FIG. 5 are in radial contact (radial contact) with the outer diameter surface 124 of the inner ring 115 so as to be slidable. Therefore, the adhesion at the contact portion between the seal member (117, 118) and the outer diameter surface 124 of the inner ring 115 is increased, so that when the bearing internal pressure rises, the seal member (117, 118) releases the internal pressure of the bearing 112. The internal pressure of the bearing 112 rises excessively.

  In this case, the seal member 117 on the engine side is restricted by the flange portion 119 of the outer ring 114 even if the seal member 117 on the engine side tries to escape from the inside of the bearing 112 to the outside of the bearing (engine side) due to an increase in the internal pressure of the bearing 112. It does not come off and jump out. However, the transmission-side seal member 118 does not have a restricting portion such as the flange portion 119 of the outer ring 114 on the bearing outer side (transmission side). With this, there is a possibility that the lubricating component enclosed in the bearing 112 leaks to the outside.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a ball bearing for a clutch release bearing device that can efficiently suppress an increase in internal pressure while ensuring sealing performance.

  A ball bearing for a clutch release bearing device of the present invention for solving the above problems is a ball bearing of a clutch release bearing device mounted on a vehicle and interposed between an engine and a transmission, and includes an outer ring and an inner ring, A torque transmitting ball interposed between the outer ring and the inner ring, and a seal member that seals between the outer ring and the inner ring, and an outer peripheral end of the seal member is attached and fixed to an inner diameter surface of the outer ring, A gap is formed between the inner peripheral end of the seal member and the outer diameter surface of the inner ring, and an axial contact is made on the outer end surface of the seal member so as to be slidable with a mating member facing the seal member in the axial direction. In addition, a seal valve having a shape that expands from the ball side toward the opposite ball side is provided. Here, “axial contact” means axial contact.

  In this case, when the bearing internal pressure rises, the seal valve releases the contact state with the counterpart member with the internal pressure. Thereby, it becomes possible to ventilate the inside and outside of the bearing, and the air inside the bearing is guided to the seal valve and discharged to the outside, so that an excessive increase in the bearing internal pressure can be prevented.

  Further, since the seal valve is slidably axially contacted with the mating member facing the seal member, the adhesion with the mating member is lower than when the seal valve is brought into radial contact with the mating member. Therefore, when the bearing internal pressure rises, it is easy to release the bearing internal pressure by releasing the contact state with the mating member with the internal pressure. Since the outer peripheral end of the seal member is fixedly attached to the inner diameter surface of the outer ring, even if the bearing internal pressure rises, it does not deviate from the mounting position with respect to the outer ring and the inner ring.

  Further, the seal valve has a shape that expands from the ball side toward the antiball side. In this case, the seal valve is easy to open from the inside of the bearing to the outside, and therefore, when the bearing internal pressure rises, it is easy to release the bearing internal pressure by releasing the axial contact with the counterpart member.

  If the mating member is a fixing member that is attached and fixed to the inner ring, the seal valve is brought into axial contact with the outer end surface of the fixing member. Further, when the mating member is an extended portion in which the inner ring end is extended radially outward, the seal valve is brought into axial contact with the side surface of the extended portion.

  Even if the seal valve provided on the outer end face of the engine-side seal member is in axial contact with the mating member facing the engine-side seal member, the seal valve cannot be placed in the ventilation path when the bearing internal pressure is released, If it is difficult to provide a seal valve for the seal member, it is preferable to provide the seal valve on the outer end face of the transmission-side seal member.

  The seal valve is desirably provided integrally with the seal member. In this case, since it is not necessary to use a separate part as the seal valve, the number of parts can be reduced, thereby reducing the cost required for producing the bearing. In addition, since the number of processing steps for the seal member can be reduced, the workability of the seal member (which means ease of processing and work efficiency during processing) is improved.

  The seal valve is preferably made of nitrile rubber such as hydrogenated nitrile rubber (H-NBR) or heat-resistant nitrile rubber. In this case, the seal member can be provided with water resistance and wear resistance.

  Further, it is desirable that the seal valve gradually reduce the wall thickness from the ball side toward the antiball side. In this case, since the thin portion of the seal valve is a part that makes axial contact with the mating member, the adhesion between the seal valve and the mating member is lowered. Further, the portion of the seal valve that is in axial contact with the mating member is thin, so that it is easily elastically deformed by the bearing internal pressure. For the above reasons, if the seal valve is gradually reduced in thickness from the ball side to the antiball side, it will be easy to release the contact state with the mating member when the bearing internal pressure rises. Release efficiency is greatly improved.

  When the seal valve provided on the outer end face of the seal member is brought into axial contact with the mating member facing the seal member in the axial direction as in the ball bearing for the clutch release bearing device of the present invention, the bearing internal pressure is increased by the operation of the bearing device. Even if it rises, the seal valve releases the axial contact with the mating member due to the internal pressure. In this case, air can be vented inside and outside the bearing, and the air inside the bearing is guided to the seal valve and discharged to the outside, so that an excessive increase in the bearing internal pressure can be prevented. As a result, it is possible to prevent the seal member from coming off the bearing due to an increase in bearing internal pressure and jumping out to the outside, and leakage of the lubrication component enclosed inside the bearing caused by the seal member coming off from the bearing to the outside. Can be prevented. Since the seal valve is normally in contact with the mating member, the lubricating component enclosed in the bearing does not leak outside through the seal valve.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the description overlapping with the prior art shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 is simplified or omitted.

  FIG. 2 shows a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 shows a direct cylinder type clutch release bearing device that is mounted on an FR vehicle (a vehicle in which an engine is mounted in front and is driven by a rear wheel) and that includes a ball bearing for a clutch release bearing device according to the present invention. It is shown. The bearing device 1 includes a cylindrical outer main body 2, a fixed component 3, a piston 4, and a ball bearing 12 as main parts.

  The outer body 2 is attached and fixed to the casing 22 on the transmission side (right side in the drawing: hereinafter referred to as the rear side), and has a cavity 8 extending to the engine side (left side in the drawing: hereinafter referred to as the front side). On the inner peripheral side of the cavity 8, an annular piston 4 and an annular fixed part 3 are sequentially arranged.

  The fixed component 3 includes a guide tube 5 extending in the axial direction, and the front side extends to the outside of the outer body 2. The piston 4 is disposed so as to be movable in the axial direction with respect to the fixed component 3, and is supported by a piston support tube 13 interposed between the piston 4 and the fixed component 3. A preload spring 21 is disposed on the outer peripheral surface of the piston 4. The preload spring 21 is configured to cooperate with the inner ring 15 of the bearing 12.

  The outer body 2 has a concave groove 10 formed on the inner peripheral surface 9 thereof, and a radial edge 11 formed by extending the rear side end of the guide tube 5 radially outward is fitted into the concave groove 10. Has been.

  The radial edge 11, the cavity 8, and the piston 4 constitute a hollow volume variable chamber 6, and a control fluid such as oil is sealed in the volume variable chamber 6. Is pressurized or depressurized. The variable volume chamber 6 is connected to a control hydraulic pressure generator (not shown).

  The main part of the bearing 12 includes an outer ring 14 and an inner ring 15, and a torque transmission ball 16 interposed between the outer ring 14 and the inner ring 15. The front side end portion of the outer ring 14 extends radially inward to form a flange portion 19, and the front side end portion of the inner ring 15 extends radially inward to form a flange portion 20. Note that the flange portion 19 of the outer ring 14 is in a state of being in constant contact with the diaphragm spring 30 by the preload spring 21.

  As shown in FIG. 1 which is an enlarged view of the bearing 12, the space between the outer ring 14 and the inner ring 15 is sealed by two seal members (17, 18). The seal members (17, 18) prevent leakage of lubricating components such as grease enclosed in the bearing 12 to the outside, and entry of foreign matter from the outside into the bearing 12.

  The outer peripheral ends of the seal members (17, 18) are fixedly attached to the inner diameter surface 23 of the outer ring. For this reason, even if the internal pressure of the bearing 12 rises, the seal members (17, 18) do not deviate from the mounting positions with respect to the outer ring 14 and the inner ring 15.

  The inner peripheral end of the front seal member 17 is slidably contacted with the outer diameter surface 24 of the inner ring 15, and the inner peripheral end of the rear seal member 18 and the outer diameter surface 24 of the inner ring 14 are in contact with each other. A gap 29 is formed between them.

  The seal member 18 on the rear side is provided with a seal valve 27 on the outer end face 26 thereof. The seal valve 27 has a shape in which an inner diameter and an outer diameter are increased from the ball side toward the opposite ball side, and the thickness is gradually decreased from the ball side toward the opposite ball side.

  The seal valve 27 is provided integrally with the seal member 18. In this case, since it is not necessary to use the seal valve 27 as a separate part, the number of parts can be reduced, thereby reducing the cost required for producing the bearing 12. Moreover, since the processing man-hour of the sealing member 18 can be reduced, the workability of the sealing member 18 is improved.

  Further, since the rear seal member 18 including the seal valve 27 is made of nitrile rubber such as hydrogenated nitrile rubber (H-NBR) or heat-resistant rubber, it has water resistance and wear resistance. The front-side seal member 17 is also made of nitrile rubber such as hydrogenated nitrile rubber (H-NBR) or heat-resistant rubber, similar to the rear side.

  The seal valve 27 is a front-side outer end surface of a bearing cover 40 (fixed member fitted inside the rear-side end of the inner ring 15), that is, a counterpart member facing the rear-side seal member 18 on the opposite side in the axial direction. (Hereinafter referred to as the outer end surface) 28 is brought into axial contact.

  In this case, when the bearing device 1 operates and the internal pressure of the bearing 12 rises, the seal valve 27 releases the axial contact with the outer end surface 28 of the bearing cover 40 by this internal pressure. As a result, the inside and outside of the bearing 12 can be ventilated, and the air inside the bearing 12 is guided to the seal valve 27 and discharged to the outside, so that an excessive increase in the internal pressure of the bearing 12 can be prevented. . As a result, it is possible to prevent the rear-side seal member 18 from coming off the bearing 12 and jumping out to the outside due to the increase in internal pressure of the bearing 12, and the bearing 12 generated by the rear-side seal member 18 coming off from the bearing 12. It is also possible to prevent leakage of the lubricating component enclosed in the interior to the outside. Since the seal valve 27 is normally in contact with the outer end surface 28 of the bearing cover 40, the lubricating component enclosed in the bearing does not leak out from the seal valve 27 to the outside. Further, the front-side seal member 17 is restricted by the flange portion 19 of the outer ring 14 even if the front-side seal member 17 is detached from the bearing 12 due to an increase in the internal pressure of the bearing 12 and comes out to the outside.

  The seal valve 27 in axial contact with the outer end face 28 of the bearing cover 40 has lower adhesion than when the seal valve 27 is brought into radial contact with the outer end face 28 of the bearing cover 40. Therefore, when the internal pressure of the bearing 12 rises, the seal valve 27 easily releases contact with the outer end surface 28 of the bearing cover 40 that is the counterpart member by the internal pressure, and efficiently releases the bearing internal pressure.

  Further, since the seal valve 27 has a shape that increases in diameter from the ball side toward the antiball side, the seal valve 27 is easy to open from the inside of the bearing 12 to the outside. For this reason, when the internal pressure of the bearing 12 rises, the seal valve 27 can easily release the bearing internal pressure by releasing the axial contact with the outer end surface 28 of the bearing cover 40.

  Further, the seal valve 27 is gradually reduced in thickness from the ball side toward the antiball side, so that the rear side end portion, which is the thinnest part of the seal valve 27, is axially formed on the outer end surface 28 of the bearing cover 40. Will be in contact. For this reason, the adhesiveness between the seal valve 27 and the outer end face 28 of the bearing cover 40 is extremely low, and the portion of the seal valve 27 that is in axial contact with the bearing cover 40 is thin, and thus is easily elastically deformed. For the above reason, the rear side end portion of the seal valve 27 that is in axial contact with the outer end surface 28 of the bearing cover 40 can easily release the axial contact with the outer end surface 28 of the bearing cover 40 when the internal pressure of the bearing 12 increases. The release efficiency of the internal pressure of the bearing 12 is greatly improved.

  Even if the seal valve provided on the outer end surface of the front side seal member is in axial contact with the mating member facing the front side seal member, the seal valve cannot be disposed in the ventilation path when the bearing internal pressure is released, When it is difficult to provide a seal valve on the engine-side seal member in order to secure a space, a seal valve may be provided on the outer end surface of the rear-side seal member as in this embodiment.

  In the case of the bearing 12 of the present embodiment, a seal valve is provided on the outer end surface of the front-side seal member 17, and this seal valve is opposed to the front-side seal member 17 on the opposite side in the axial direction, that is, the outer ring. 14 is in axial contact with the side surface on the ball side of the flange portion 19, the air passage when the bearing internal pressure is released, that is, in the gap 31 between the flange portion 19 of the outer ring 14 and the flange portion 20 of the inner ring 15. The seal valve cannot be arranged. This means that even if the internal pressure of the bearing 12 rises, the internal pressure of the bearing 12 cannot be released by the seal valve. Therefore, in the present embodiment, a seal valve 27 is provided on the outer end face 26 of the seal member 18 on the rear side.

  FIG. 3 shows a second embodiment of the present invention. In the present embodiment, parts having the same portions and functions as those in the first embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof is omitted.

  In this embodiment, in the bearing 62 provided in the bearing device 51, the seal valve 27 provided on the outer end face 26 of the rear seal member 18 is extended by extending the rear end of the inner ring 14 radially outward. An axial contact is made with the side surface 36 on the ball side of the setting portion 35. In this case, as in the first embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, even if the internal pressure of the bearing 62 increases, the seal valve 27 releases the internal pressure of the bearing 62, thereby preventing an excessive increase in the internal pressure of the bearing 62. can do. As a result, it is possible to prevent the rear-side seal member 18 from coming off the bearing 62 and jumping out to the outside, and the lubrication component sealed inside the bearing 62 caused by the rear-side seal member 18 coming off from the bearing 62 can be prevented. Leakage to the outside can also be prevented. Since the shape and thickness of the seal valve 27 are the same as those of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1, detailed description thereof is omitted, and FIG. 4 shows an enlarged view of the bearing 62 shown in FIG. It was.

  Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, this is merely an example, and can be arbitrarily changed within the meaning and contents described in the claims.

  For example, in the embodiment described here, the seal valve is provided on the outer end surface of the seal member on the rear side. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the seal and the seal valve can be used as long as the functions and effects of the present invention can be obtained. The valve may be provided only on the outer end face of the front-side seal member, or may be provided on the outer end face of the front-side seal member and the outer end face of the rear-side seal member.

  In the embodiment described here, the mating member is a bearing cover or an extended portion of the inner ring. However, the mating member is not limited to this, and the mating member is not particularly limited as long as the seal valve can be in axial contact. It is not something. The seal valve may be separated from the seal member.

  Furthermore, although description in a figure is abbreviate | omitted, this invention can also be applied also to the ball bearing for pull type clutch release bearing apparatuses.

It is an enlarged view of the ball bearing shown in FIG. It is sectional drawing which shows the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is an enlarged view of the ball bearing shown in FIG. It is sectional drawing which shows the clutch release bearing apparatus provided with the ball bearing for conventional clutch release bearing apparatuses. It is an enlarged view of the ball bearing shown in FIG.

Explanation of symbols

1, 51 Clutch release bearing device (direct cylinder type)
12, 62 Ball bearing 14 Outer ring 15 Inner ring 16 Torque transmitting balls 17, 18 Seal member 19 Outer ring flange 20 Inner ring flange 23 Outer ring inner diameter surface 24 Inner ring outer diameter surface 26 Outer end surface (rear side seal member)
27 Seal valve (rear seal member)
28 Outer end face (bearing cover)
29 Rear side clearance 31 Front side clearance 35 Inner ring extending portion 36 Side surface (inner ring extending portion)

Claims (7)

A ball bearing of a clutch release bearing device mounted on a vehicle and interposed between an engine and a transmission, comprising an outer ring and an inner ring, a torque transmission ball interposed between the outer ring and the inner ring, an outer ring and an inner ring And a sealing member for sealing between
The outer peripheral end of the seal member is attached and fixed to the inner diameter surface of the outer ring, a gap is formed between the inner peripheral end of the seal member and the outer diameter surface of the inner ring, and the outer end surface of the seal member is A clutch release comprising a seal valve that is slidably axially contacted with a counterpart member that is axially opposed to the seal member, and that has a shape that expands from the ball side toward the opposite ball side. Ball bearings for bearing devices.   2. The ball bearing for a clutch release bearing device according to claim 1, wherein the mating member is a fixing member fixedly attached to the inner ring, and the seal valve is in axial contact with an outer end surface of the fixing member.   2. The ball for a clutch release bearing device according to claim 1, wherein the mating member is an extending portion in which an end portion of the inner ring extends radially outward, and the seal valve is in axial contact with a side surface of the extending portion. bearing.   The said seal valve is a ball bearing for clutch release bearing apparatuses as described in any one of Claims 1-3 provided in the outer side end surface of the seal member by the side of a transmission.   The ball bearing for a clutch release bearing device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the seal valve is provided integrally with the seal member.   The ball bearing for a clutch release bearing device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the seal valve is made of nitrile rubber.   The ball bearing for the clutch release bearing device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the seal valve has a wall thickness gradually decreased from the ball side toward the antiball side.

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