JP2014227160A - Rack guide device and steering device including the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a rack guide device which achieves good overall assemblability.SOLUTION: A rack guide device 15 includes: a sealing member 20 which is fixed to an exterior opening end 19 of a storage part of a housing 17; and a rack guide 18. A compression coil spring 21 which biases the rack guide 18 to the rack shaft 8 side and a disc spring 22 are disposed between the sealing member 20 and the rack guide 18. The rack guide device 15 is provided with a holding member 24 which holds the disc spring 22 and frictionally engages with an inner periphery 352 of a recessed part 35 of the sealing member 20. The holding member 24 includes: a guide cylinder 37 which has a slit (a first slit 41) extending in, for example, an axial direction X1 and elastically reduces a diameter; and a seat plate 38 which receives a load of the disc spring 22.

Description

  The present invention relates to a rack guide device and a steering device including the same.

  Generally, a rack and pinion type steering device is provided with a rack guide device for suppressing backlash between the rack and the pinion. In the rack guide device, when the rack guide that slidably supports the rack shaft is worn, a compression coil spring interposed between the rack guide and the plug pushes the rack guide toward the rack shaft, The gap between the rack guide and the plug is compensated.

  In Patent Document 1, a disc spring is interposed in series with the compression coil spring between the rack guide and the plug. The disc spring is bent and absorbs an impact only when a large impact load is input.

JP 11-43055 A

  In FIG. 4 of Patent Document 1, there is a disc spring and an interposition member interposed between the compression coil spring and the disc spring (referred to as a second rack support in Patent Document 1) in a cylindrical portion provided in the plug. Contain) and hold. Specifically, the interposition member is held using the retaining rings engaged with the respective circumferential grooves of the inner periphery of the cylindrical portion that guides the outer diameter of the disc spring and the outer periphery of the interposition member, A disc spring is held between the member and the bottom of the cylindrical portion.

In patent document 1, in order to hold | maintain a disc spring and an interposed member in a plug, the complicated operation | work which fits a retaining ring in the surrounding groove | channel of both a plug and an interposed member is required. For this reason, there is a problem that the total number of assembling steps including the work of sub-assembling the unit including the plug increases, and the assemblability is poor.
An object of the present invention is to provide a rack guide device with good assemblability as a whole and a steering device including the same.

  In order to achieve the above object, the invention of claim 1 is directed toward the rack shaft side in the housing portion (16) formed in the housing (17) through which the rack shaft (8) meshing with the pinion shaft (7) is inserted. And a rack guide (18; 18P) which is slidably supported and supports the rack shaft so as to be slidable in the axial direction (Z1) of the rack shaft, and is provided on the opposite side of the housing portion from the rack shaft side. A sealing member (20) fixed to the outer opening end (19), and at least one disc spring interposed between the sealing member and the rack guide and biasing the rack guide toward the rack shaft. (22) and a holding member (24; 24P) that holds the disc spring and is frictionally engaged with an inner periphery of a recess (35; 29) provided in one of the rack guide and the sealing member. And the holding member is The outer periphery (39; 392P) having the first portion (391; 391P) frictionally engaging the inner periphery (352; 292P) of the portion and the second portion (392; 392P) guiding the inner diameter portion (22a) of the disc spring. 39P) provided with a guide cylinder (37; 37P), and the guide cylinder is provided with a slit (X1) extending in an axial direction (X1) or in a direction inclined with respect to the axial direction so as to enable elastic diameter reduction. A rack guide device (15; 15P) in which 41; 41P) is formed is provided.

In addition, although the alphanumeric character in a parenthesis represents the corresponding component etc. in embodiment mentioned later, this does not mean that this invention should be limited to those embodiment as a matter of course. The same applies hereinafter.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, the holding member has an annular seat plate (38;) that extends in the radial direction (Y1) from one end (371; 371P) in the axial direction of the guide tube and receives the load of the disc spring. 38P), and the seat plate may be formed with a second slit (42; 42P) continuous with the first slit (41; 41P) as the slit of the guide tube.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a holding member unit (SA1; SA1P) that includes the disc spring and the holding member and can be handled integrally. The diameter (D1) may be larger than the outer diameter (D2) of the second portion and larger than the inner diameter (D3) of the disc spring.
The invention of claim 4 provides a steering device (1) including the rack guide device.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, it is possible to easily adjust the elastic contraction amount of the guide cylinder of the holding member by increasing / decreasing the slit width, and to make the guide cylinder frictionally engage with the concave portion, so that the disc spring and the holding member Can be easily integrated into either one of the rack guide and the sealing member, and a unit (subassembly) that can be handled integrally can be configured. Therefore, the assembly property as a whole can be improved.

According to the invention of claim 2, the holding member receives the load of the disc spring by the seat plate provided at one end of the guide tube for guiding the inner diameter portion of the disc spring. The occurrence of wear can be suppressed.
According to the invention of claim 3, since the holding member unit including the disc spring and the holding member is configured, the assembly property as a whole is further improved.

  In addition, according to the invention of claim 4, it is possible to provide a steering device excellent in assemblability.

1 is a schematic diagram of a schematic configuration of a rack and pinion type steering device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. It is sectional drawing of the principal part of the steering device containing the rack guide apparatus of 1st Embodiment. It is an expanded sectional view of the important section of the rack guide device of a 1st embodiment. It is a perspective view of the holding member of a 1st embodiment. In 1st Embodiment, it is sectional drawing of the holding member unit (1st subassembly) containing a disk spring and a holding member. In 1st Embodiment, it is sectional drawing of the sealing member unit (2nd subassembly) containing a disk spring, a holding member, and a sealing member. It is an expanded sectional view of the principal part of the rack guide apparatus of 2nd Embodiment of this invention, and has shown the example of a change of 1st Embodiment of FIG. In 2nd Embodiment, it is sectional drawing of the holding member unit (1st subassembly) containing a disk spring and a holding member. In 2nd Embodiment, it is sectional drawing of the rack guide unit (2nd subassembly SA2) containing a disk spring, a holding member, a rack guide, etc. FIG.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
<First Embodiment>
Referring to FIG. 1, a steering device 1 includes a steering shaft 3 connected to a steering member 2 such as a steering wheel, an intermediate shaft 5 connected to the steering shaft 3 via a universal joint 4, and an intermediate shaft 5 A rack shaft 8 as a steered shaft extending in the left-right direction of the automobile having a pinion shaft 7 connected to the vehicle through a universal joint 6 and a rack 8a meshing with the pinion 7a provided in the vicinity of the end of the pinion shaft 7 And have. The pinion shaft 7 and the rack shaft 8 constitute a rack and pinion mechanism A as a steering mechanism.

  The rack shaft 8 is supported in a rack housing 9 fixed to the vehicle body through a plurality of bearings (not shown) so as to be linearly reciprocable along the axial direction Z1. Both end portions of the rack shaft 8 protrude to both sides of the rack housing 9, and tie rods 10 are coupled to the respective end portions. Each tie rod 10 is connected to a corresponding steered wheel 11 via a corresponding knuckle arm (not shown).

When the steering member 2 is operated and the steering shaft 3 is rotated, this rotation is converted into a linear motion in the axial direction Z1 of the rack shaft 8 by the pinion 7a and the rack 8a. Thereby, the turning of the steered wheel 11 is achieved.
Referring to FIG. 2 which is a cross-sectional view of the main part of the steering device 1, the pinion shaft 7 is constituted by a pinion housing 14 by a first bearing 12 made of, for example, a ball bearing and a second bearing 13 made of, for example, a cylindrical roller bearing. It is supported in a rotatable manner. The pinion 7 a of the pinion shaft 7 and the rack 8 a of the rack shaft 8 are meshed with each other in the pinion housing 14.

The steering device 1 is equipped with a rack guide device 15. The rack guide device 15 includes a housing 17 that forms a housing portion 16 formed of a circular hole and through which the rack shaft 8 is inserted. The rack guide device 15 is housed in the housing portion 16 so as to be able to advance and retract toward the rack shaft 8 side. And a rack guide 18 that slidably supports the back surface 8b.
The rack guide device 15 includes a sealing member 20 formed of a plug (plug) fixed to an external opening end 19 provided on the side opposite to the rack shaft 8 side in the housing portion 16, and a rack guide 18 and a sealing member. A compression coil spring 21 interposed between the member 20 and one or a plurality of disc springs 22 (which will be described according to a plurality of cases in the present embodiment) are provided. The rack guide device 15 includes a holding member 24 that holds the disc spring 22 and is frictionally engaged with the sealing member 20.

The housing 17 of the rack guide device 15 is integrally formed of a single material with the pinion housing 14, and is disposed on the opposite side of the rack shaft 8 from the pinion shaft 7. The pinion housing 14 and the housing 17 are manufactured by die casting, for example.
The rack guide 18 has a first surface 181 facing the rack shaft 8, a second surface 182 provided on the opposite side of the first surface 181, and an outer periphery 183 formed of a cylindrical surface. On the first surface 181 of the rack guide 18, a concave surface 25 having a shape that substantially matches the shape of the back surface 8 b of the rack shaft 8 is formed. A curved sliding contact plate 26 is attached along the concave surface 25, and the sliding contact plate 26 is in sliding contact with the back surface 8 b of the rack shaft 8. As the sliding contact plate 26, a plate having a low friction coefficient is preferably used. For example, a metal plate or a metal plate coated with a fluororesin can be used.

  An annular elastic member 28 such as an O-ring is accommodated and held in each of a plurality of annular accommodation grooves 27 provided on the outer periphery 183 of the rack guide 18. The outer diameter of the rack guide 18 is slightly smaller than the inner diameter of the accommodating portion 16, and the elastic member 28 slides on the inner periphery 16 a of the accommodating portion 16, so that the rack guide 18 moves inside the accommodating portion 16. It moves in a direction that advances and retreats with respect to the rack shaft 8. The elastic member 28 functions to prevent the rack guide 18 from falling over in the accommodating portion 16.

Referring to FIG. 3 in which a part of FIG. 2 is enlarged, the second surface 182 of the rack guide 18 is provided with a recess 29 made of, for example, a circular hole that accommodates a part of the compression coil spring 21. The first end 211 of the compression coil spring 21 is received by the bottom 291 of the recess 29. The inner periphery 292 of the recess 29 serves to guide the outer diameter portion of the compression coil spring 21.
2 and 3, the sealing member 20 has a first surface 201 facing the rack guide 18 (second surface 182 thereof) and a second surface 202 opposite to the first surface 201. It consists of a plug. That is, the male screw 30 is formed on the outer periphery 203 of the sealing member 20. On the other hand, a female screw 31 is formed within a predetermined length from the external opening end 19 of the housing portion 16, and the male screw 30 of the sealing member 20 is screwed into the female screw 31, so that the sealing member 20 is fixed to the housing 17. ing.

  The second surface 202 of the sealing member 20 is provided with a tool engagement hole 32 having, for example, a polygonal cross section with which a tool for screwing the sealing member 20 is engaged. Further, a sealing member made of an annular elastic member such as an O-ring is formed in one or more annular housing grooves 33 provided on the outer periphery 203 of the sealing member 20 (corresponding to an outer periphery 363 of a cylindrical portion 36 described later). 34 is accommodated and held. The seal member 34 functions to seal between the outer periphery 203 of the sealing member 20 and the inner periphery 16 a of the housing portion 16.

  The first surface 201 of the sealing member 20 is provided with a recess 35 that is recessed toward the second end portion 202 and accommodates a part of the compression coil spring 21 and a part of the holding member 24. Thus, the sealing member 20 is provided with a bottomed cylindrical portion 36 surrounding the periphery of the recess 35. The second end 212 of the compression coil spring 21 is received by the bottom 351 of the recess 35. That is, the compression coil spring 21 is interposed in a compressed state between the bottom 351 of the recess 35 of the sealing member 20 and the bottom 291 of the recess 29 of the rack guide 18, and the rack guide 18 is moved to the rack shaft 8 side. It is elastically biased. An end surface 361 (corresponding to the first surface 201 of the sealing member 20) of the cylindrical portion 36 of the sealing member 20 forms an annular shape that surrounds the periphery of the concave portion 35 and functions as a seat portion that receives the disc spring 22.

3 and 4, the holding member 24 includes a guide cylinder 37 that guides an inner diameter portion 22 a serving as a radial end portion of the disc spring 22, and a first end portion 371 in the axial direction X <b> 1 of the guide cylinder 37 ( And a seat plate 38 that extends outward in the radial direction Y1 from the end of the rack guide 18 and receives the disc spring 22.
The outer periphery 39 of the guide cylinder 37 has a first portion 391 that frictionally engages with the inner periphery 352 of the recess 35 and a second portion 392 that guides the inner diameter portion 22 a of the disc spring 22. The second portion 392 is disposed between the first portion 391 and the seat plate 38. The guide cylinder 37 is formed with a first slit 41 extending in the axial direction X1 or in a direction inclined with respect to the axial direction X1 so as to allow elastic diameter reduction. The seat plate 38 has a second slit 42 that is continuous with the first slit 41 of the guide tube 37.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the disc spring 22 and the seat plate 38 are interposed between the end surface 361 (seat portion) of the cylindrical portion 36 of the sealing member 20 and the second surface 182 of the rack guide 18. . The seat plate 38 is interposed between the disc spring 22 and the second surface 182 of the rack guide 18 in a state along the second surface 182 of the rack guide 18. That is, the seat plate 38 includes a first surface 381 along the second surface 182 of the rack guide 18 and a second surface 382 that is a seat surface that receives the load of the disc spring 22. The distance between the end surface 361 (seat portion) of the tubular portion 36 and the second surface 382 of the seat plate 38 is set larger than the contact length of the plurality of disc springs 22.

For example, when the rack guide 18 is made of aluminum, the seat plate 38 avoids contact between the second surface 182 of the rack guide 18 and the disc spring 22, thereby causing wear on the second surface 182 of the rack guide 18. It plays a function of suppressing Therefore, the holding member 24 including the seat plate 38 is made of, for example, steel or resin.
Most of the guide tube 37 is inserted and accommodated in the recess 35 of the sealing member 20. The compression coil spring 21 is inserted through the guide tube 37. A predetermined amount of gap is provided between the inner periphery 43 of the guide tube 37 and the outer diameter of the compression coil spring 21.

  The guide tube 37 has a second end 372 that is an end opposite to the first end 371 from which the seat plate 38 is extended. Between the second end 372 of the guide tube 37 and the bottom 351 of the recess 35 of the sealing member 20 with respect to the forward / backward direction of the rack guide 18 (corresponding to the depth direction of the circular hole as the accommodating portion 16), for example A clearance equivalent to or greater than the advance / retreat amount of the rack guide 18 is provided.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the disc spring 22 and the holding member 24 constitute a first sub-ensemble SA1 as a holding member unit that can be handled integrally. In the state of the first sub-ensemble SA1, the outer diameter D1 of the first portion 391 is larger than the inner diameter D3 of the inner diameter portion 22a of the disc spring 22 (D1> D3). Accordingly, the disc spring 22 disposed between the first portion 391 and the seat plate 38 with respect to the axial direction X <b> 1 of the guide tube 37 is restricted from being removed from the guide tube 37. As a result, the disc spring 22 and the holding member 24 can constitute a first sub-ensemble SA1 (holding member unit) that can be handled as a unit.

The outer diameter D2 of the second portion 392 that guides and holds the disc spring 22 along the inner diameter portion 22a is smaller than the outer diameter D1 of the first portion 391 (D2 <D1). The outer diameter D2 of the second portion 392 is smaller than the inner diameter D3 of the disc spring 22 (D2 <D3).
The first portion 391 may extend along the entire circumference of the outer periphery 39 of the guide tube 37, or may be configured by a plurality of convex ribs (not shown) that are spaced apart in the circumferential direction of the outer periphery 39. . When the first portion 391 is constituted by a plurality of convex ribs, the outer diameter D1 of the first portion 391 corresponds to the diameter of the circumscribed cylinder that circumscribes the plurality of convex ribs.

As shown in FIG. 6, the first portion 391 of the outer periphery 39 of the holding member 24 is frictionally engaged with the inner periphery 352 of the recess 35 of the sealing member 20, so that the disc spring 22, the holding member 24, and the sealing member 20 are engaged. And the sealing member 34 constitute a second sub-ensemble SA2 as a sealing member unit that can be handled as a unit.
The second subassembly SA2 (sealing member unit) is a unit subassembly larger than the first subassembly SA1 (holding member unit). At the time of assembly, first, the first subassembly SA1 is assembled, and then the first subassembly SA1 is combined with the sealing member 20 to assemble the second subassembly SA2.

  The outer diameter D1 of the first portion 391 of the outer periphery 39 of the guide cylinder 37 in the state of the first subassembly SA1 (holding member unit) in FIG. 5 is larger than the inner diameter D4 of the recess 35 of the sealing member 20 shown in FIG. It is enlarged (D1> D4). Therefore, when the guide tube 37 of the holding member 24 of the first subassembly SA1 is fitted into the recess 35 of the sealing member 20, the guide tube 37 is elastically reduced in diameter (that is, the width of the first slit 41). (Shrink). The guide cylinder 37 that is elastically reduced in diameter and fitted into the recess 35 frictionally engages with the inner periphery 352 of the recess 35. Thereby, 1st subassembly SA1 (holding member unit) is hold | maintained at the sealing member 20, and 2nd subassembly SA2 (sealing member unit) is comprised.

  In the example of FIG. 5, the outer diameter D2 of the second portion 392 is smaller than the inner diameter D3 of the disc spring 22 in the state of the subassembly SA1 (D2 <D3). Although not shown, if the outer diameter D2 of the second portion 392 is equivalent to the inner diameter D3 of the disc spring 22 (D2 = D3) in the state of the first subassembly SA1, the second subassembly SA2 In this state, it is preferable that the outer diameter of the second portion 392 is smaller than the inner diameter D3 of the disc spring 22 (D2 <D3). This is because it is possible to suppress the second portion 392 from inhibiting the elastic deformation of the disc spring 22.

  According to the present embodiment, the elastic contraction amount of the guide cylinder 37 of the holding member 24 is easily adjusted by increasing / decreasing the width of the first slit 41, and the guide cylinder 37 is frictionally engaged with the recess 35 of the sealing member 20. With this simple operation, the disc spring 22 and the holding member 24 can be easily integrated with the sealing member 20 to form a unit (second subassembly SA2 as a sealing member unit) that can be handled integrally. it can. Therefore, the assemblability of the rack guide device 15 as a whole can be improved. As a result, the steering apparatus 1 excellent in assemblability can be provided.

In particular, by increasing or decreasing the width of the first slit 41, the dimensional error of each component to be combined (the holding member 24 having the guide cylinder 37, the sealing member 20 having the recess 35, etc.) is absorbed, and the guide cylinder of the holding member 24 is absorbed. 37 can be reliably frictionally engaged with the inner periphery 352 of the recess 35.
Further, since the holding member 24 receives the load of the disc spring 22 by the seat plate 38 provided at one end of the guide cylinder 37 that guides the inner diameter portion 22 a of the disc spring 22, the rack guide 18 is worn by the disc spring 22. Occurrence can be suppressed.

  Further, the first portion 391 on the outer periphery 39 of the guide cylinder 37 of the holding member 24 can suppress the withdrawal of the disc spring 22 from the guide cylinder 37. Therefore, a unit (first subassembly SA1 as a holding member unit) that can be handled integrally including the disc spring 22 and the holding member 24 can be configured, so that the assembly property as a whole can be improved. it can.

In addition, when there are a plurality of disc springs 22, the plurality of disc springs 22 that are easily separated are held together, so that the disc discs 22 can be prevented from being misaligned even during operation. ,preferable.
Further, when a load is input to the rack guide 18 from the rack shaft 8 side and the holding member 24 is displaced together with the rack guide 18, the guide tube 37 (the first portion 391 of the outer periphery 39) of the holding member 24 is A frictional resistance load is generated by sliding on the inner periphery 352 of the recess 35 of the sealing member 20. When there are a plurality of disc springs 22, in addition to the generation of the frictional resistance load by the elastic member 23, the contact surfaces between the disc springs 22 frictionally slide with the compression displacement of the disc springs 22. To generate a frictional resistance load. Since the frictional resistance load by the holding member 24 and the disc spring 22 contributes as a counter load against the load input from the rack shaft 8 side, the counter load by the compression coil spring 21 and the disc spring 22 and the counter load by the friction resistance load are reduced. In addition, the overall counter load can be increased.

  Further, when a large load is input to the rack guide 18 from the rack shaft 8 side, the rack guide 18 moves to the sealing member 20 side together with the holding member 24. At this time, the friction load of the friction engagement (of the guide tube 37) of the holding member 24 with respect to the sealing member 20 can be added to the load generated by the compressed disc spring 22. Therefore, it is possible to increase the counter load facing the large load. Moreover, when the rack guide 18 returns to the rack shaft 8 side, it can return smoothly.

Further, since the compression coil spring 21 interposed between the sealing member 22 and the rack guide 18 and biasing the rack guide 18 toward the rack shaft 8 is used together with the disc spring 22, the degree of freedom in setting the load is improved. be able to.
Second Embodiment
FIG. 7 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a main part of the rack guide device 15P according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The rack guide device 15P of the second embodiment shown in FIG. 7 is mainly different from the rack guide device 15 of the first embodiment shown in FIG. That is, in the rack guide device 15 of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the guide cylinder 37 of the holding member 24 holding the disc spring 22 is frictionally engaged with the inner periphery 352 of the recess 35 of the sealing member 20.

  On the other hand, in the rack guide device 15P of the third embodiment of FIG. 7, the guide cylinder 37P of the holding member 24P holding the disc spring 22 is frictionally engaged with the inner periphery 292P of the recess 29P of the rack guide 18. Yes. The guide cylinder 37P includes a first end 371P (corresponding to an end on the sealing member 20 side) and a second end 372P (corresponding to an end on the rack guide 18P side) in the axial direction X1. . The seat plate 38P extends outward in the radial direction Y1 from the first end 371P.

The compression coil spring 21 is interposed in a compressed state between the bottom 351 of the recess 35 of the sealing member 20 and the bottom 291P of the recess 29P of the rack guide 18P.
The outer periphery 39P of the guide cylinder 37P has a first portion 391P that frictionally engages with the inner periphery 292P of the recess 29P, and a second portion 392P that guides the inner diameter portion 22a of the disc spring 22. The guide cylinder 37P is formed with a first slit 41P extending in the axial direction X1 or in a direction inclined with respect to the axial direction X1 so as to enable elastic diameter reduction. The seat plate 38P is formed with a second slit 42P that is continuous with the first slit 41P of the guide tube 37P.

The seat plate 38P includes a first surface 381P along the end surface 201 (corresponding to the end surface of the tubular portion 36) of the sealing member 20 of the sealing member 20, and a second surface 382P that is a seat surface that receives the load of the disc spring 22P. And.
In the constituent elements of the second embodiment in FIG. 7, the same reference numerals as those in the first embodiment in FIG. 3 are assigned to the same constituent elements as in the first embodiment in FIG. is there.

  According to the second embodiment, the guide cylinder 37P is frictionally engaged with the recess 29P of the rack guide 18P by easily adjusting the elastic diameter reduction amount of the guide cylinder 37P of the holding member 24 by increasing or decreasing the width of the first slit 41P. The unit that can easily handle the disc spring 22 and the holding member 24 to the rack guide 18P and handle them integrally (as shown in FIG. 9, the disc spring 22, the holding member 24P, and the rack guide 18P). The second subassembly SA2P) as a rack guide unit including the elastic member 28 and the sliding contact plate 26 can be configured. Therefore, the assemblability of the rack guide device 15P as a whole can be improved. As a result, the steering apparatus 1 excellent in assemblability can be provided.

In particular, by increasing / decreasing the width of the first slit 41P, the dimensional error of each component to be combined (the holding member 24P having the guide cylinder 37P, the rack guide 18P having the recess 29P, etc.) is absorbed, and the guide cylinder 37P of the holding member 24P Can be reliably frictionally engaged with the inner periphery 292P of the recess 29P.
Further, since the holding member 24P receives the load of the disc spring 22 by the seat plate 38P provided at one end of the guide cylinder 37P that guides the inner diameter portion 22a of the disc spring 22, the wear of the sealing member 20 by the disc spring 22 is caused. Can be suppressed.

  Further, the first portion 391P on the outer periphery 39P of the guide cylinder 37P of the holding member 24P can suppress the withdrawal of the disc spring 22 from the guide cylinder 37P. Therefore, a unit (first subassembly SA1P as the holding member unit shown in FIG. 8) that can be handled integrally including the disc spring 22 and the holding member 24P can be configured, and therefore, the assembly property as a whole is improved. Can be improved.

In addition, when there are a plurality of disc springs 22, the plurality of disc springs 22 that are easily separated are held together, so that the disc discs 22 can be prevented from being misaligned even during operation. ,preferable.
Further, when a load is input to the rack guide 18P from the rack shaft 8 side and the rack guide 18P is displaced with respect to the holding member 24P, the guide cylinder 37P of the holding member 24P (the first portion 391P of the outer periphery 39P thereof). However, it frictionally slides against the inner periphery 292P of the recess 29P of the rack guide 18P to generate a frictional resistance load. When there are a plurality of disc springs 22, in addition to the generation of the frictional resistance load by the elastic member 23, the contact surfaces between the disc springs 22 frictionally slide with the compression displacement of the disc springs 22. To generate a frictional resistance load. Since the frictional resistance load by the holding member 24P and the disc spring 22 contributes as a counter load against the load input from the rack shaft 8 side, the counter load by the compression coil spring 21 and the disc spring 22 and the counter load by the friction resistance load are reduced. In addition, the overall counter load can be increased.

  Further, when a large load is input from the rack shaft 8 side to the rack guide 18P, the rack guide 18P moves relative to the holding member 24P. At this time, the friction load of the friction engagement (of the guide tube 37P) of the holding member 24P with respect to the rack guide 18P can be added to the load generated by the compressed disc spring 22. Therefore, it is possible to increase the counter load facing the large load. Moreover, when the rack guide 18P returns to the rack shaft 8 side, it can return smoothly.

In addition, since the compression coil spring 21 interposed between the sealing member 20 and the rack guide 18P and biasing the rack guide 18P toward the rack shaft 8 is used together with the disc spring 22, the degree of freedom in setting the load is improved. be able to.
The present invention is not limited to each of the above-described embodiments. For example, in the second embodiment of FIG. 7, for example, an iron or resin intervening plate is interposed between the end surface of the rack guide 18P and the disc spring. Thus, the occurrence of wear of the rack guide 18P by the disc spring 22 may be suppressed. In addition, the present invention can be variously modified within the scope of the claims.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Steering device, 2 ... Steering member, 3 ... Steering shaft, 5 ... Intermediate shaft, 7 ... Pinion shaft, 8 ... Rack shaft, 9 ... Rack housing, 15; 15P ... Rack guide device, 16 ... Housing part, 17 ... Housing 18; 18P: Rack guide, 19 ... External open end, 20 ... Sealing member, 22 ... Belleville spring, 22a ... Inner diameter part, 24; 24P ... Holding member, 29; 29P ... Recess, 291; 291P ... Bottom, 292; 292P ... inner circumference, 35 ... recess, 351 ... bottom, 352 ... inner circumference, 37; 37P ... guide tube, 371; 371P ... first end (one end), 372; 372P ... second end, 38; 38P ... seat plate, 39; 39P ... outer periphery, 391; 391P ... first part, 392; 392P ... second part, 41; 41P ... first slit, 42; 42P ... second slit, D1 ... (of the first part Outer diameter, D2 ... outer diameter (of the second part), D3 ... inner diameter of (disc spring), SA1; SA1P ... first subassembly (holding member unit), SA2 ... second subassembly (sealing member unit), SA2P: second subassembly (rack guide unit), X1: axial direction of guide tube, Y1: radial direction of guide tube

Claims (4)

A rack guide which is housed in a housing portion formed in a housing through which a rack shaft meshing with the pinion shaft is inserted so as to be able to advance and retreat toward the rack shaft side and which slidably supports the rack shaft in the axial direction of the rack shaft; ,
A sealing member fixed to an external opening end provided on the side opposite to the rack shaft side in the housing portion;
At least one disc spring interposed between the sealing member and the rack guide and biasing the rack guide toward the rack shaft;
A holding member that holds the disc spring and is frictionally engaged with an inner periphery of a recess provided in any one of the rack guide and the sealing member,
The holding member includes a guide tube provided with an outer periphery having a first portion that frictionally engages with an inner periphery of the recess and a second portion that guides an inner diameter portion of the disc spring,
A rack guide device in which the guide tube is formed with a slit extending in an axial direction or a direction inclined with respect to the axial direction so as to enable elastic diameter reduction. In Claim 1, the holding member includes an annular seat plate that extends in a radial direction from one axial end of the guide tube and receives a load of the disc spring,
A rack guide device in which the seat plate is formed with a second slit that is continuous with a first slit as a slit of the guide tube. In Claim 1 or 2, the holding member unit which comprises the disk spring and the holding member, and can be handled integrally is constituted,
The rack guide device according to the holding member unit, wherein an outer diameter of the first portion is larger than an outer diameter of the second portion and larger than an inner diameter of the disc spring.   A steering device including the rack guide device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

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