JP2013032073A - Telescopic steering device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To achieve a structure capable of stably holding an inner column, on the inner diameter side of an outer column.SOLUTION: The outer column 13d and a movable side bracket 22b are molded by integrally swelling by a hydroforming construction method. Respective protrusion parts 23a and 23a for constituting a support part 26 of the outer column 13d and an outer peripheral surface of the inner column 14c are allowed to abut only in three places in the circumferential direction. Long holes 31 (31a) long in the axial direction are arranged in an intermediate part in the width direction of a bottom part 29 of the movable side bracket 22b. A pair of slits 33 and 33 are also formed in two-place positions for sandwiching the long holes in the circumferential direction.

Description

  The present invention relates to an improvement in a telescopic steering device for adjusting the front-rear position of a steering wheel. Specifically, by improving the structure of the outer column that constitutes the steering column, a structure that can stably hold the inner column on the inner diameter side of the outer column is realized at low cost.

  The steering apparatus for an automobile is configured as shown in FIG. 7, and transmits the rotation of the steering wheel 1 to the input shaft 3 of the steering gear unit 2, and a pair of left and right tie rods 4 as the input shaft 3 rotates. 4 is pushed and pulled to give a steering angle to the front wheels. The steering wheel 1 is supported and fixed at the rear end portion of the steering shaft 5, and the steering shaft 5 is rotatably supported by the steering column 6 with the cylindrical steering column 6 inserted in the axial direction. Has been. Further, the front end portion of the steering shaft 5 is connected to the rear end portion of the intermediate shaft 8 via a universal joint 7, and the front end portion of the intermediate shaft 8 is connected to the input shaft 3 via another universal joint 9. Connected to.

  With such a steering device, a tilt mechanism for adjusting the vertical position of the steering wheel 1 and a telescopic mechanism for adjusting the front-rear position according to the physique and driving posture of the driver have been widely known. ing. In order to constitute the tilt mechanism, the steering column 6 is in the width direction with respect to the vehicle body 10 (the width direction is the width direction of the vehicle body and coincides with the left-right direction. Description and claims) The same is applied to the entire range.) The rocking displacement centering on the pivot 11 installed is supported. Further, the movable bracket fixed to the rear end portion of the steering column 6 with respect to the fixed bracket 12 supported by the vehicle body 10 is vertically and longitudinally (the longitudinal direction is the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body). This is the same throughout the present specification and claims). Among these, in order to constitute a telescopic mechanism that enables displacement in the front-rear direction, the steering column 6 has a structure in which an outer column 13 and an inner column 14 are telescopically combined to expand and contract, and the steering shaft 5 The outer tube 15 and the inner shaft 16 are combined with each other so as to be able to transmit torque and expand and contract by spline engagement or the like. The illustrated example also incorporates an electric power steering device that reduces the force required to operate the steering wheel 1 using the electric motor 17 as an auxiliary power source.

  In the case of a tilt mechanism or a telescopic mechanism, the position of the steering wheel 1 can be adjusted or fixed at the adjusted position based on the operation of the adjustment lever, except for the electric mechanism. For example, in Patent Document 1, as shown in FIGS. 8 to 9, the axial dimension of the cam device 20 is expanded and contracted and the cam member 21 is oscillated and displaced based on the rotation of the hook-shaped member 19 based on the adjusting lever 18. The structure to be made is described. In the case of this conventional structure, the movable bracket 22 fixed to the outer column 13a is engaged with and disengaged from the fixed bracket 12a based on the expansion / contraction of the cam device 20. Further, based on the rocking displacement of the cam member 21, whether the inner column 14a is slidable with respect to the outer column 13a is switched.

The outer columns 13 and 13a and the inner columns 14 and 14a constituting the steering device as described above are an inner peripheral surface near the front end of the outer columns 13 and 13a and a rear end of the inner columns 14 and 14a. The outer peripheral surface is fitted in a state where relative displacement in the axial direction is possible. When manufacturing the outer columns 13 and 13a, first, the outer column main body is formed by an aluminum die casting method. Thereafter, the inner peripheral surface of the outer column main body is cut and finished.
The movable bracket 22 is provided separately from the outer columns 13 and 13a, and is integrally connected and fixed to the outer columns 13 and 13a by welding.

  In the case of such a steering device, the cutting for accurately finishing the inner diameter of the outer columns 13 and 13a is troublesome and increases the processing cost. Further, since the inner peripheral surfaces of the outer columns 13 and 13a and the outer peripheral surfaces of the inner columns 14 and 14a are fitted over the entire circumference, the inner diameter accuracy of the outer columns 13 and 13a is not sufficient. The uneven contact occurs, and the inner columns 14 and 14a cannot be stably held on the inner diameter side of the outer columns 13 and 13a.

  Therefore, in Patent Document 2, a plurality of protruding portions protruding radially inward from the inner peripheral surface are formed at a plurality of positions in the circumferential direction of the inner peripheral surface of the outer column overlapping with the outer peripheral surface of the inner column, A structure is described in which the tip end portion (radially inner end portion) of each raised portion is brought into contact with the outer peripheral surface of the inner column.

  FIG. 10 shows the structure of the telescopic steering device described in Patent Document 2. When manufacturing the outer column 13b which comprises this telescopic steering apparatus, an outer column main body is first shape | molded by the aluminum die-casting method, the hydroforming method, etc. Thereafter, forging and broaching are performed at a plurality of circumferential positions (11 in the figure) of the outer circumferential surface of the outer column main body that overlap with the outer circumferential surface of the inner column 14b. Ridges 23, 23 projecting radially inward from the top are formed. Further, in the assembled state, the tips of the raised portions 23, 23 are brought into contact with the outer peripheral surface of the inner column 14b.

  In the case of the outer column 13b, it is only necessary to perform cutting (broaching or the like) only on the tip portions of the raised portions 23 and 23. For this reason, the machining cost can be reduced as compared with the case where the entire circumference of the inner circumferential surface of the outer column is cut. However, the method of forming the outer column 13b is different from the method of forming the raised portions 23, 23. For this reason, processing takes time and processing costs increase.

  Further, in order to stably support the inner column 14b on the inner diameter side of the outer column 13b without uneven contact or rattling, all the raised portions 23, 23 and the inner column It is preferable that the contact state with the outer peripheral surface of 14b is the same. However, when a large number of (11 in the illustrated example) raised portions 23, 23 are provided as in the outer column 13b, the processing for making the contact state the same is troublesome.

  FIG. 11 shows the structure of the outer column 13c shown in Patent Document 2 as well. The outer column 13c has a cylindrical shape formed by bending a plate-shaped material and welding circumferential end edges (upper end edges in FIG. 11) to each other. Further, support claws 24 and 24 are formed at three positions in the circumferential direction on the inner peripheral surface of the outer column 13c, which face the outer peripheral surface of the inner column 14b in the assembled state. Each of the support claw portions 24, 24 is formed by pressing the outer column 13c and bending it further radially inward from the inner peripheral surface of the outer column 13c.

  A movable bracket 22a is provided on a part of the outer peripheral surface of the outer column 13c in the axial direction. Each of the movable side brackets 22a is formed by forming the plate-shaped material, one end edge is continuous with the outer peripheral surface, and the other end edge is welded to the outer peripheral surface. It consists of 25.

  In the case of such an outer column 13c, the support claw portions 24, 24 are formed at substantially equal intervals at three locations in the circumferential direction. For this reason, the process for making the contact | abutting state of the front-end edge of all the support nail | claw parts 24 and 24 and the outer peripheral surface of the inner column 14b the same is easy. However, each of the support claw portions 24, 24 has a cantilever-like structure formed by bending inward in the radial direction from the inner peripheral surface of the outer column 13c. For this reason, it is difficult to secure rigidity for stably supporting the inner column on the inner diameter side of the outer column 13c.

Further, in the case of the telescopic steering devices having the conventional structures described above, if the axial dimension of the portion where the outer column and the inner column overlap in the radial direction becomes longer, the rigidity in the width direction of the movable bracket becomes higher and the deflection becomes greater. It becomes difficult. For this reason, it is necessary to change the operating force applied to the adjustment lever according to the axial dimension of the portion where the outer column and the inner column overlap in the radial direction. As a result, the operability of the adjusting lever is not stable, and there is a possibility that stable support rigidity (clamping force) cannot be applied to the inner column.
Incidentally, there is Patent Document 3 as a publication describing a technique related to the present invention.

JP 2001-322552 A JP 2008-302751 A JP 2006-255785 A

  In view of the circumstances as described above, the present invention can stably hold the inner column on the inner diameter side of the outer column and add it to the adjustment lever by devising the structure of the outer column that constitutes the steering column. The invention has been invented to realize a structure capable of obtaining stable operability without increasing the operating force at low cost.

The telescopic steering device of the present invention includes a steering shaft, a steering column, a fixed side bracket, a movable side bracket, a bowl-shaped member, and an adjustment lever.
Of these, the steering shaft is equipped with a steering wheel at the rear end.
The steering column includes an outer column and an inner column.
Of these, the outer column has a cylindrical shape capable of expanding and reducing at least a part of the inner diameter in the axial direction, and has a support portion for supporting the inner column on the inner peripheral surface.
The inner column is fitted and supported on the inner diameter side of the outer column by a support portion of the outer column so as to be capable of axial displacement. And the said steering shaft is rotatably supported in the inside.
The fixed side bracket has a pair of left and right support plate portions provided on a fixed portion in a state where the inner column of the outer column can be expanded and contracted from both sides in the width direction.
The movable bracket is provided in a part of the outer column constituting the steering column, and has a sandwiched portion that is sandwiched between the pair of support plate portions.
The flange-shaped member is inserted in the vehicle body side through hole formed at a position where the both support plate portions are aligned with each other and the column side through hole formed in the both sandwiched portions in the width direction. It is arranged. Then, with the rotation of the adjustment lever, the distance between the surfaces of the two support plate portions facing each other is enlarged or reduced.
The adjusting lever is provided at a base end portion of the bowl-shaped member, and expands or contracts the interval with rotation.

In particular, in the case of the telescopic steering device of the present invention, the movable side bracket has a bottom portion that makes the both sandwiched portions continuous in the width direction, and a long hole in the axial direction is formed in the middle portion in the width direction of the bottom portion. Form.
Then, at least one position of the bottom portion that is shifted in the width direction from the long hole is formed at the front end edge of the movable bracket, and at least a slit that overlaps the long hole and the width direction is formed To do.

When implementing the telescopic steering device of the present invention as described above, preferably, the outer column including a support portion for supporting the inner column is replaced with a hollow tube as in the invention described in claim 2. Form by inflating radially outward.
The movable bracket is swelled integrally with the outer column (hydroform method, press working, bulging, vacuum forming, air blow molding, explosion forming, etc.).
And the support part of the said outer column and the outer peripheral surface of the said inner column are made to contact | abut at three or more places of the circumferential direction.

Further, when the invention described in claim 2 is carried out, for example, as in the invention described in claim 3, the outer column including the support portion is formed by radially forming the hollow tube by the hydroforming method. Inflate to form.
The movable bracket is swelled and formed integrally with the outer column by a hydroforming method.

  Preferably, when carrying out the invention described in claim 2 or claim 3, it is preferable that the outer column support portion and the outer peripheral surface of the inner column are connected to each other as in the invention described in claim 4. Contact is made only at three places in the circumferential direction.

  Further, when the telescopic steering device of the present invention as described above is implemented, it is preferable that the inner peripheral surface of the support portion of the outer column is finished by cutting or pressing as in the invention described in claim 5. Apply.

  As described above, in the case of the telescopic steering device of the present invention, a long hole in the axial direction is formed in the intermediate portion in the width direction of the bottom portion of the movable bracket, and a slit is formed at a position shifted from the long hole in the width direction. Forming. For this reason, the rigidity regarding the width direction of the to-be-clamped part of a movable side bracket can be made small. As a result, even when the axial dimension of the portion where the outer column and the inner column overlap in the radial direction is long, stable operability can be obtained without increasing the operating force applied to the adjustment lever.

  In the case of the invention described in claim 2 or claim 3, the outer column including a support portion for supporting the inner column, and the movable side bracket provided integrally with the outer column, For example, it is integrally formed by bulging forming such as a hydroforming method. For this reason, even when the support portion is composed of a plurality of (three or more) raised portions, the processing cost can be reduced and a support portion having high rigidity can be obtained. Further, the movable bracket and the outer column are provided separately, and a troublesome fixing work such as welding is unnecessary.

  Further, in the case of the invention described in claim 4, the support portion provided on the inner peripheral surface of the outer column and the outer peripheral surface of the inner column overlapping with the support portion are brought into contact with each other at only three locations in the circumferential direction. I support it in the state. For this reason, the said support part can be reliably contact | abutted to the outer peripheral surface of the said inner column. Further, since there are only three contact points, it is easy to process to make the contact state equal in all the contact points.

  Further, in the case of the invention described in claim 5, the inner peripheral surface of the outer column support portion is subjected to finishing processing by cutting or pressing. For this reason, it is possible to stably support the inner column by the support portion while reducing the processing cost as compared with the case of cutting the entire outer peripheral surface of the outer column.

The top view (a) which shows the 1st example of the structure of the bottom part of an outer column and shows the 1st example of an embodiment of the present invention, and shows the 2nd example similarly (b) And a side view (c). Similarly, AA sectional drawing of FIG. Similarly, sectional drawing which shows the assembly state of a telescopic steering device. The second example of the embodiment of the present invention shows a side view (a) showing only the outer column, and a bottom view (b) showing a first example of the structure of the bottom of the outer column. The bottom view (c) which shows. Similarly, BB sectional drawing of FIG. Similarly, sectional drawing which shows the assembly state of a telescopic steering device. The partial cutting side view which shows an example of the steering device for motor vehicles incorporating the telescopic steering device. Vertical side view showing a first example of a conventionally known telescopic steering device CC sectional drawing of FIG. The figure similar to FIG. 9 which shows the 2nd example of the telescopic steering apparatus known conventionally. The front view which takes out only the outer column and shows the 3rd example.

[First example of embodiment]
1 to 3 show a first example of an embodiment of the invention corresponding to all the claims. The feature of the telescopic steering device of the present invention including this example is that the structure of the outer column constituting the steering column is devised. In addition to the telescopic mechanism for adjusting the front / rear position of the steering wheel 1 (see FIG. 7), the present invention provides a tilt mechanism for adjusting the vertical position in the same manner as the structure shown in FIGS. It can also be applied to structures with Further, the structure other than the characteristic part of the present invention and the operation method of the telescopic steering device are substantially the same as the structure of the conventionally known telescopic steering device, including the structure shown in FIGS. For the parts configured in the same manner as in the prior art, the illustration and description will be omitted or simplified, and hereinafter, the characteristic parts of this example will be mainly described.

The telescopic steering device of this example is similar to the telescopic steering device having the conventional structure described above, the steering shaft 5 (see FIG. 3), the steering column 6a, the fixed side bracket 12b, the movable side bracket 22b, and the bowl-shaped member. 19 and an adjustment lever 18.
Among these, the steering column 6a has the outer column 13d as the upper column on the steering wheel 1 side and the inner column 14c as the lower column on the side far from the steering wheel 1, as in the structure shown in FIGS. .

  Particularly in the case of the telescopic steering device of this example, the outer column 13d has a cylindrical shape in which at least a part of the inner diameter in the axial direction can be elastically expanded and contracted, and the inner column 14c is disposed on the inner diameter side of the outer column 13d. A support portion 26 is provided for fitting and supporting the displacement in the axial direction.

  Further, the support portion 26 is radially inward from the inner peripheral surface of the inner peripheral surface of the outer column 13d at three equally spaced positions in the portion overlapping the inner column 14c in the radial direction. It consists of ridges 23a, 23a formed in a state of projecting toward the direction. Further, in the outer peripheral surface of the outer column 13d, concave portions 27 and 27 that are recessed radially inward from the outer peripheral surface are formed at positions that align with the raised portions 23a and 23a in the circumferential direction. And the front-end edge (radial direction inner side edge) of each of these protruding parts 23a and 23a is contact | abutting with the outer peripheral surface of the said inner column 14c. As will be described later, the tips of the raised portions 23a and 23a are securely attached to the outer peripheral surface of the inner column 14c without increasing the processing accuracy of the raised portions 23a and 23a constituting the support portion 26. From the viewpoint of contact, the number of the raised portions 23a, 23a is preferably three in this example. However, the number of the raised portions 23a and 23a can be more than three (for example, two on the left and the right, for a total of four) in consideration of the balance of processing cost and the like. The positions where the raised portions 23a, 23a are formed are not limited to the circumferentially equidistant positions on the inner peripheral surface of the outer column 13d. However, it is not biased toward the semicircular side, but is distributed in a range exceeding the semicircular circumference. The support portion 26 is not constituted by the raised portions 23a, 23a, and the inner peripheral surface of the outer column 13d and the outer peripheral surface of the inner column 14c are continuously stretched in the circumferential direction ( The outer column 13d may have a structure in which the outer column 13d is fitted to the inner peripheral surface of the outer column excluding the portion provided with the movable bracket 22b. In this case, a finishing process by cutting or pressing is performed on the inner peripheral surface of the outer column 13d (a support portion 26) into which the inner column 14c is fitted, as necessary.

  Such an outer column 13d (including the support portion 26) applies a hydraulic pressure (for example, water pressure) to the inner peripheral surface of a metal tube that is a hollow member made of a steel plate or an aluminum alloy. It is molded by the hydroform method that plastically deforms outward in the direction. In the method of forming the outer column 13d by this hydroforming method, for example, the metal tube as a material is set in a mold having an inner surface shape corresponding to the outer surface shape of the outer column 13d to be enlarged. . Then, both ends of the metal tube are closed with a shaft pushing tool or the like, and a high hydraulic pressure is applied to the metal tube. By applying the hydraulic pressure, the diameter of the metal tube is increased outward in the radial direction until it is in close contact with the inner surface of the cavity of the mold, thereby forming the outer column 13d. Moreover, after shaping | molding by a hydroform construction method, the finishing process by cutting or press is given to the front-end | tip part of each protruding part 23a and 23a which comprises the said support part 26 as needed. The method of forming the outer column 13d is not limited to the hydroforming method, but may be press forming, bulging, vacuum forming, air blow forming, bulging forming such as explosive forming, or aluminum die casting.

Further, the movable side bracket 22b is formed integrally with the outer column 13d by the hydroforming method described above at the front end portion of the outer column 13d and fitted to the rear end portion of the inner column 14c. Yes.
In the case of this example, the movable side bracket portion 22b is provided so as to protrude upward from the front end portion of the outer column 13d, and is sandwiched between a pair of support plate portions 28 and 28 constituting the fixed side bracket 12b. And a pair of sandwiched plate portions 25a, 25a and a bottom portion 29 that can be expanded and contracted in the width direction.

  Of these, both of the sandwiched portions 25a and 25a are connected at one end to the upper ends of the raised portions 23a and 23a formed on the upper side of FIG. 2 among the raised portions 23a and 23a of the outer column 13d, The pair of support plate portions 28 and 28 are formed substantially parallel to each other. Further, column-side through holes 30, 30 that are long in the axial direction are formed at positions where the both sandwiched portions 25a, 25a are aligned with each other.

  Further, the bottom portion 29 is provided in a state in which the upper end edges of the both sandwiched plate portions 25a and 25a are continuous. Accordingly, the movable side bracket 22b has a box shape with the lower and front sides opened.

Further, at the center of the bottom portion 29 in the width direction, a long hole 31 that is long in the axial direction as shown in FIGS. , 31a.
Among these, the dimension in the axial direction of the long hole 31 shown in FIG. 1A is larger than the dimension in the axial direction of the column side through holes 30 and 30. That is, with respect to the axial direction, the long hole 31 has a rear end in the axial direction of the bottom portion 29 and an outer peripheral surface of the outer column 13d from the front side in front of the axial front ends of the column side through holes 30 and 30 of the bottom portion 29. Are formed up to the outer peripheral surface of the outer column 13d through a continuous portion 32 that is continuous.
on the other hand. The long hole 31a shown in FIG. 1B is aligned with the column side through holes 30 and 30 in the position in the axial direction. In any case, both the long holes 31 and 31a are formed in a state where the front end edge and the rear end edge are not opened.

  In addition, a pair of slits 33 and 33 are formed at two positions in the bottom 29 that sandwich the long holes 31 and 31a from both sides in the width direction {vertical direction in FIGS. 1A and 1B}. doing. One end of each of the slits 33, 33 opens at the front end edge (left side in FIG. 1) of the movable bracket 22b, and the middle part or the other end thereof overlaps with the elongated holes 31, 31a in the width direction. doing. The number, length, width, etc. of the slits 33, 33 are not limited to the structure of this example, and are necessary with respect to the width direction of the sandwiched portions 25a, 25a of the movable bracket 22b. It can be determined appropriately according to the rigidity. For example, only one of the slits 33 and 33 may be formed. It is also possible to form a slit having a width smaller than the width of both the slits 33 and 33. A plurality of slits having such a small width dimension may be provided in the width direction. Furthermore, the axial dimension of the slit can be increased, and the axial dimension of the portion where the slit and the long holes 31 and 31a overlap in the width direction can be increased.

  The method of forming the movable side bracket 22b integrally with the outer column 13d is not limited to the hydroform method, but includes press forming, bulge forming, vacuum forming, air blow forming, bulging forming such as explosion forming, or aluminum. Die casting method may be used. Further, the movable side bracket may be provided as a separate member from the outer column and connected and fixed by welding or screwing.

The outer column 13d constituting the telescopic steering device of this example is assembled in a state as shown in FIG. In the assembled state, when adjusting the position of the steering wheel 1 with respect to the front-rear direction, the adjustment lever 18 is rotated in a predetermined direction so that one end (see FIG. The space | interval regarding the width direction of the holding | suppressing nut 34 which is a pressing member provided in the left end) and the head 35 which is also a pressing member provided in the other end is expanded.
Then, the interval between the inner surfaces of the support plate portions 28, 28 is elastically expanded, and the inner surfaces of the support plate portions 28, 28 and the outer sides of the sandwiched portions 25a, 25a of the movable side bracket 22b. The surface pressure of the contact portion with the side surface is reduced or lost. Along with this, the surface pressure of the fitting portion between the support portion 26 of the outer column 13d and the outer peripheral surface of the inner column 14c is reduced or lost, and the outer column 13d and the inner column 14c are axially ( It becomes a state in which relative displacement is possible in the front-rear direction). As a result, the position of the steering wheel 1 in the front-rear direction can be adjusted.

  Further, after the position adjustment, if the adjustment lever 18 is rotated in the direction opposite to the predetermined direction, the distance between the holding nut 34 and the head 35 is reduced. Then, the space | interval of the inner surface of both the said support plate parts 28 and 28 shrinks, and the surface pressure of the contact part of the inner surface of these both support plate parts 28 and 28 and the outer surface of both said clamping parts 25a and 25a is reduced. Becomes larger. Accordingly, the surface pressure of the fitting portion between the support portion 26 of the outer column 13d and the outer peripheral surface of the inner column 14c increases. As a result, the steering wheel 1 is supported at the adjusted position.

  In this example, the outer column 13d is an upper column on the steering wheel 1 side, and the inner column 14c is a lower column on the side far from the steering wheel 1. However, the present invention is not limited to such a configuration, and the outer column can be a lower column and the inner column can be an upper column. In this case, the shape of the column side through hole of the movable bracket formed integrally with the outer column is not a long hole that is long in the axial direction, but a round hole through which the bowl-shaped member can be inserted.

  As described above, in the telescopic steering device of this example, the long holes 31 and 31a are formed in the bottom 29 of the movable bracket 22b, and the front end of the bottom 29 where the long holes 31 and 31a are not formed. By forming both the slits 33, 33, the rigidity in the width direction of the bottom portion 29 and the sandwiched portions 25a, 25a is lowered. Therefore, regardless of the axial length of the portion where the outer column 13d and the inner column 14c overlap in the radial direction, the adjusting lever 18 required to fix the two columns 13d and 14c. It is possible to stabilize the operability of the adjusting lever 18 so that the tightening torque does not vary greatly. As a result, stable support rigidity (clamping force) can be imparted to the inner column 14c.

  Further, the outer column 13d including the support portion 26 and the movable bracket 22b provided integrally with the outer column 13d are formed by a hydroforming method. For this reason, compared with the conventional structure shown to the said FIGS. 7-11, the reduction of processing cost can be aimed at.

  Further, the support portion 26 provided on the inner peripheral surface of the outer column 13d and the outer peripheral surface of the inner column 14c overlapping the support portion 26 are brought into contact with each other only at three locations in the circumferential direction. For this reason, without raising the processing precision of each protruding part 23a, 23a which comprises the said support part 26, these each protruding part 23a, 23a can be reliably made to contact | abut to the outer peripheral surface of the said inner column 14c.

  If the processing accuracy of the support portion 26 is not sufficient by the hydroform method alone, the tip of each raised portion 23a, 23a of the support portion 26 is subjected to finishing processing by cutting or pressing. However, in the case of this example, the number of these raised portions 23a, 23a is only three. For this reason, since it is sufficient that the diameters of the inscribed circles of the three raised portions 23a and 23a are the same in the axial direction, the finishing portion does not become much troublesome and the support portion 26 can The inner column 14c can be stably supported.

  Further, the raised portions 23a, 23a constituting the support portion 26 are formed in a mountain shape by a hydroforming method. Therefore, the rigidity for supporting the inner column 14c can be increased as compared with the conventional structure shown in FIG.

[Second Example of Embodiment]
4 to 6 show a second example of an embodiment of the invention corresponding to all claims. The movable bracket 22c constituting the telescopic steering device of this example is provided in a state of projecting downward from the front end portion of the outer column 13e. Such a movable side bracket 22c has a substantially symmetrical structure with respect to the radial direction (vertical direction) with respect to the movable side bracket 22b of the first example of the embodiment shown in FIGS. It consists of a pair of sandwiched plate portions 25b and 25b and a bottom portion 29a.

  Of these, the sandwiched plate portions 25b, 25b are provided in a state of being continuous downward from the main body portion of the outer column 13e, and are parallel to each other. The bottom portion 29a is provided in a state in which one end edges (the lower end edges in FIGS. 5 and 6) of the both sandwiched plate portions 25b and 25b are continuous in the width direction. In addition, the processing method of the outer column 13e and the movable bracket 22c is not limited to the hydroform method, as in the first example of the embodiment described above, but press processing, bulge processing, vacuum forming, air blow molding, An expansion molding such as explosion molding or an aluminum die casting method may be used.

  Similarly to the first example of the embodiment, column-side through-holes 30 and 30 that are long in the axial direction are formed in the portions where the sandwiched portions 25b and 25b of the movable bracket 22c are aligned with each other. Yes.

Further, at the center in the width direction of the bottom 29a of the movable side bracket 22c, the axial direction as shown in FIGS. Long slots 31b and 31c are formed.
Also, a pair of slits 33a and 33a are formed at two positions in the bottom portion 29a sandwiching the elongated holes 31b and 31c from both sides in the width direction {vertical direction in FIGS. 4B and 4C}. doing. One end of each of the slits 33a and 33a is opened at the front end edge (left side in FIG. 4) of the movable bracket 22c, and the middle portion or the other end portion overlaps with the elongated holes 31b and 31c in the width direction. doing.

  The outer column 13e constituting such a telescopic steering device of this example is assembled in a state as shown in FIG. With regard to the operation when adjusting the position of the steering wheel 1 (see FIG. 7) in the front-rear direction and the operation when fixing the steer wheel 1 at the position after the position adjustment in the assembled state, The first embodiment is substantially the same as the operation of the telescopic steering apparatus having the conventional structure shown in FIGS. Other structures, functions, and effects are the same as those of the first example of the embodiment.

Each of the above embodiments has been described with respect to a steering apparatus provided with only a telescopic mechanism for adjusting the front-rear position of the steering wheel. However, the present invention can be applied to a structure provided with a tilt mechanism for adjusting the vertical position of the steering wheel in addition to the telescopic mechanism.
Further, the front-rear direction of the outer column and the inner column constituting the steering column is not limited. The inner column may be on the rear side, and the outer column may be on the rear side.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Steering wheel 2 Steering gear unit 3 Input shaft 4 Tie rod 5 Steering shaft 6, 6a Steering column 7 Universal joint 8 Intermediate shaft 9 Universal joint 10 Car body 11 Axis 12, 12a, 12b Fixed side bracket 13, 13a, 13b, 13c, 13d , 13e Outer column 14, 14a, 14b, 14c Inner column 15 Outer tube 16 Inner shaft 17 Electric motor 18 Adjusting lever 19, 19a Hook-shaped member 20 Cam device 21 Cam members 22, 22a, 22b, 22c Movable brackets 23, 23a Raised part 24 Support claw part 25, 25a, 25b Clamped part 26, 26a Support part 27 Recessed part 28 Support plate part 29, 29a Bottom part 30 Column side through hole 31, 31a, 31b, 31c Long hole 32 Continuous part 33 , 33a Slit 34 Retaining nut 35 Head

Claims (5)

A steering shaft to which a steering wheel is mounted at the rear end;
At least a part of the inner diameter in the axial direction can be expanded and contracted, and the outer diameter of the outer column is fitted on the inner diameter side of the outer column by a support portion formed on the inner peripheral surface of the outer column so that the axial displacement is possible. A steering column consisting of a cylindrical inner column supported together, and rotatably supporting the steering shaft therein;
A fixed-side bracket having a pair of support plate portions provided in a fixed portion in a state where the inner column of the outer column can be expanded and contracted from both sides in the width direction;
A movable side bracket provided on a part of an outer column constituting the steering column and having a sandwiched portion sandwiched between the pair of support plate portions;
The both support plate portions are disposed in the width direction in a state where the vehicle body side through holes formed at positions where the both support plate portions are aligned with each other and the column side through holes formed in the both sandwiched portions are inserted. A hook-shaped member for expanding and contracting the distance between a pair of surfaces facing each other;
In a telescopic steering apparatus provided with an adjustment lever provided at a base end portion of the bowl-shaped member and expanding and contracting the distance between the pair of surfaces with rotation,
The movable side bracket has a bottom part that is continuous with respect to the width direction between the sandwiched parts,
A long hole in the axial direction is formed in the middle in the width direction of the bottom,
A slit that is opened at the front end edge of the movable-side bracket and at least part of which overlaps with the long hole in the width direction is formed at at least one position of the bottom that is shifted in the circumferential direction from the long hole. This is a telescopic steering device. An outer column including a support portion for supporting the inner column is formed by inflating a hollow tube radially outward,
The movable side bracket is formed by bulging integrally with the outer column,
2. The telescopic steering device according to claim 1, wherein a support portion of the outer column and an outer peripheral surface of the inner column are in contact with each other at three or more locations in a circumferential direction. The outer column including the support part is formed by inflating a hollow tube radially outward by a hydroforming method,
The telescopic steering device according to claim 2, wherein the movable side bracket is formed by bulging and forming integrally with the outer column by a hydroforming method.   The telescopic steering device according to any one of claims 2 to 3, wherein a support portion of the outer column and an outer peripheral surface of the inner column are in contact with each other only at three locations in a circumferential direction. The telescopic steering device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein a finishing process by cutting or pressing is performed on an inner peripheral surface of a support portion of the outer column.

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