JP2016190572A - suspension - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a suspension which can suitably achieve simplification of manufacture and reduction of cost of manufacture of a knuckle.SOLUTION: A suspension S comprising a knuckle 1 which is manufactured via a process in which a long metallic extrusion-molded product is cut in a direction crossing a direction of extrusion, the knuckle 1 is provided with at least one pore 10A to 10C for attachment of components, which penetrates in the direction of extrusion, in an extrusion molding step. At least one attachment object component among three components of a shock absorber, a suspension arm and a tie rod end of a steering device is attached to the knuckle 1 by use of the pore 10A to 10C for attachment of components, and in this attachment structure, the pore 10A to 10C for attachment of components is left in the direction penetrating the direction of extrusion.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

  The present invention relates to a suspension for a vehicle such as an automobile, and more particularly to a suspension using a knuckle manufactured as a metal extruded material.

An example of the suspension includes a knuckle described in Patent Document 1.
The knuckle described in this document is an extruded material, and is manufactured through a process of cutting a long extruded product made of aluminum alloy in a direction crossing the extrusion direction. The knuckle has a plurality of holes for mounting parts. By using the plurality of holes, parts such as the upper and lower suspension arms and the tie rod end of the steering device are attached to the knuckle. ing. However, when mounting the above-described parts, bending is performed in the vicinity (arm part) where the knuckle part mounting hole is formed, and the part mounting hole is set to face in the vertical direction. The orientation of the hole for attaching the component is the same as the orientation of the hole for attaching the component which is provided in a conventional general knuckle (knuckle as a non-extruded material) by machining.

  However, the prior art has room for improvement as described below.

  That is, since a step of bending the vicinity of the formation portion of the hole for attaching the knuckle component is necessary, the number of manufacturing steps is increased by the number of bending steps, and the manufacturing cost is increased. In addition, there is a concern about strength reduction due to bending. Furthermore, when the bending process applied to the knuckle is inaccurate, there is a problem that an error occurs in the position of the hole for mounting the component due to this.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-161911

  The present invention has been conceived under the circumstances as described above, and provides a suspension that can appropriately facilitate the manufacture of knuckle and reduce the manufacturing cost. It is an issue.

  In order to solve the above problems, the present invention takes the following technical means.

  The suspension provided by the present invention includes a knuckle manufactured through a process of cutting a long metal extruded product in a direction crossing the extrusion direction, and the knuckle includes a knuckle in the extrusion direction. A suspension having at least one hole for attaching a part to be penetrated provided at an extrusion stage, wherein the suspension is at least one of a shock absorber, an upper or lower suspension arm, and a tie rod end. The component is attached to the knuckle using the hole for attaching the component, and in the attachment structure, the hole for attaching the component is left in a direction penetrating in the extrusion direction. It is a feature.

According to such a configuration, the following effects can be obtained.
That is, of the three structures of the shock absorber, the suspension arm, and the tie rod end, in the attachment structure of at least one attachment target part and the knuckle, the direction of the hole for attaching the part provided in the knuckle is the extrusion of the knuckle. Since it remains in the direction penetrating in the direction, the hole for attaching the component can be formed at the time of extrusion of the knuckle. Unlike the prior art, it is not necessary to bend the knuckle in the vicinity of the hole for mounting the component. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the number of knuckle manufacturing steps and reduce the manufacturing cost. In addition, it is possible to suitably eliminate problems such as the possibility of the strength being lowered due to bending and the occurrence of an error in the position of the part mounting hole.

  In the present invention, preferably, a bearing case for supporting wheel rotation is disposed on the outer side in the vehicle width direction of the knuckle, and a bracket for the attachment target component is disposed on the inner side in the vehicle width direction of the knuckle. Each of the bracket and the bearing case is provided with holes corresponding to the holes for attaching the parts of the knuckle, and bolts are sequentially inserted into the plurality of holes, thereby The bracket and the bearing case are attached.

  According to such a configuration, the predetermined bearing case and the part to be attached can be appropriately attached to the knuckle with a simple and rational structure.

  Other features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description of embodiments of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings.

It is principal part front sectional drawing which shows an example of the suspension which concerns on this invention. It is a principal part perspective view which shows the manufacturing process of the knuckle used with the suspension of FIG. (A) is a principal part perspective view which shows the structure of the knuckle of a suspension shown in FIG. 1, and its peripheral part, (b) is a disassembled perspective view of (a). It is a principal part disassembled perspective view which shows the other example of this invention. It is a principal part disassembled perspective view which shows the other example of this invention.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the drawings.

The suspension S shown in FIG. 1 is a strut suspension (in FIG. 1, the direction orthogonal to the paper surface is the vehicle front-rear direction, the arrow Out is the outer direction in the vehicle width direction, and the arrow Up is the vehicle height direction. Above).
The suspension S includes an axle member 59 (a hub in the figure) that supports the wheel 58, a bearing case 5 that houses a bearing that rotatably supports the axle member 59, and a knuckle 1 that supports the bearing case 5. ing. The knuckle 1 is attached with a lower part of a shock absorber 2, a lower suspension arm 3, and a tie rod end 40 a of the steering device 4.

A shock absorber bracket 6 is joined to the lower portion of the shock absorber 2 by means of welding or the like, and is attached to the knuckle 1 via the bracket 6. One end of the lower suspension arm 3 is connected to the lower part of the knuckle 1 via a bracket 7 for the lower suspension and a ball joint BJ1 supported by the lower suspension bracket 7. The steering device 4 includes a steering gear box 41 and a tie rod 40 that is connected to the steering gear in the steering box 41 and is movable in the vehicle width direction. The tie rod end 40a has a ball joint BJ2. This ball joint BJ2 is connected to the knuckle 1.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the knuckle 1 is a step of cutting a long extruded product 1A of aluminum (including an aluminum alloy), for example, along a virtual line La in FIG. It has been manufactured after that. However, in the knuckle 1 of the present embodiment, a plurality of holes 12a and 12b indicated by phantom lines are formed in a subsequent process. The knuckle 1 has, as a part formed at the time of extrusion molding, an opening 13 provided in the center, and a plurality of holes 10A, 10B, 11 provided in an upper region and a lower region in the vicinity of the opening 13. An arm portion 14 extending in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, a hole portion 10C provided in the vicinity of the distal end portion of the arm portion 14, an upper concave portion 15 and a lower concave portion 16 formed at the upper and lower portions of the knuckle 1, and the knuckle 1 A plurality of holes 17a, 17b and the like for reducing the weight are provided. Except for the plurality of holes 12a and 12b, all of the holes described above are holes formed during extrusion of the knuckle 1 and penetrated in the extrusion direction. Reference numeral 10C denotes holes for attaching the shock absorber 2, the lower suspension arm 3, and the tie rod end 40a (parts for attaching parts in the present invention).

  As shown in FIG. 3, the bearing case 5 is arranged on one side (the vehicle width direction outer side) of the knuckle 1 and attached to the knuckle 1 using a plurality of bolts 8e. This attachment is performed by screwing a bolt 8 e inserted through the hole 11 of the knuckle 1 into the screw hole 50 of the bearing case 5.

  The bracket 6 for the shock absorber is joined to the shock absorber 2, and projects from the shock absorber 2 to the outside in the vehicle width direction, and the upright plate portion 61 projects downward from the bracket body 60. And have. A part of the bracket main body 60 is a fitting portion that fits into the upper concave portion 15 of the knuckle 1, and this fitting portion is attached to the upper portion of the knuckle 1 using bolts and nuts 8 a and 9 a. More specifically, the bracket main body 60 is provided with bolt insertion holes 62 corresponding to the pair of holes 12a provided in the pair of protruding wall portions 15a on the upper portion of the knuckle 1. The bolt 8a is inserted through the holes 62 and 12a in series, thereby fixing the above-described portion. The upright plate portion 61 is disposed so as to be in contact with one side (vehicle width direction inner side) of the knuckle 1, and is attached to the knuckle 1 using the bolt 8 b. However, this attachment also serves as attachment of the bearing case 5 to the knuckle 1. More specifically, the standing plate portion 61 is provided with a bolt insertion hole 63 corresponding to the hole 10 </ b> A of the knuckle 1, and the bolt 8 b is connected to the holes 63 and 10 </ b> A and the bearing case 5. The screw holes 50a are inserted in series. By fastening the bolt 8b, the bracket 6 for the shock absorber and the bearing case 5 are fixed to the knuckle 1.

The bracket 7 for the lower suspension arm stands up and holds the ball joint BJ1 in the vertical direction, and has a fitting portion 70 fitted into the lower concave portion 16 of the knuckle 1, and a vehicle width direction from the fitting portion 70. It has the standing part 71 which is located inside and protrudes upward. In the bracket 7, bolts 8 c are inserted into a pair of holes 12 b provided in the pair of protruding wall portions 16 a at the lower part of the knuckle 1, and a bolt insertion hole 72 provided in the bracket 7, and The nut 9c is screwed onto the bolt 8c, so that the knuckle 1 is attached. The standing portion 71 is arranged so as to be in contact with one side of the knuckle 1 (inner side in the vehicle width direction), and is attached to the knuckle 1 using a bolt 8d. However, this attachment also serves to attach the bearing case 5 in the same manner as the bracket 6 for the shock absorber described above. Specifically, the standing portion 71 is provided with a bolt insertion hole 73 corresponding to the hole 10 </ b> B of the knuckle 1, and the bolt 8 d is formed in the holes 73 and 10 </ b> B and the screw hole 50 b of the bearing case 5. It is plugged into a series. The bracket 7 and the bearing case 5 are fixed to the knuckle 1 by tightening the bolt 8d.

  The ball joint BJ2 of the tie rod end 40a has a screw shaft portion 99 at one end, and the screw shaft portion 99 is inserted into the hole 10C of the knuckle 1. A nut 99a is screwed onto the screw shaft portion 99 so as to be tightened. Thus, the tie rod end 40a is attached to the knuckle 1.

  Next, the operation of the suspension S described above will be described.

  First, the holes 10A to 10C of the knuckle 1 are used as attachment means for the shock absorber 2, the lower suspension arm 3 and the tie rod end 40a to the knuckle 1, all of which are extruded when the knuckle 1 is extruded. The orientation of the direction is left unchanged. In the present embodiment, the knuckle 1 is not bent for the purpose of setting the orientation of the holes 10A to 10C described above to the orientation such as the vertical direction. For this reason, it is possible to facilitate the manufacture of the knuckle 1 and to reduce the manufacturing cost of the knuckle 1, and thus the overall manufacturing cost of the suspension S. In addition, when the knuckle 1 is bent, the positional accuracy of the holes 10A to 10C may be deteriorated, or the strength of the bent portion may be reduced. Such a fear can be preferably eliminated.

  The bearing case 5 is also attached to the knuckle 1 using the hole 11 formed by extrusion, but the structure for attaching the brackets 6 and 7 for the shock absorber and the lower suspension arm to the knuckle 1 In FIG. 2, the mounting of the bearing case 5 to the knuckle 1 is also attempted using the bolts 8b and 8d inserted through the holes 10A and 10B. Therefore, the configuration is reasonable, and it is more preferable for reducing the number of bolt fastening work steps and facilitating assembly work.

  4 and 5 show another embodiment of the present invention. In these drawings, elements that are the same as or similar to those in the above embodiment are given the same reference numerals as in the above embodiment.

  In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, at least one hole 10 </ b> D formed at the time of extrusion molding is provided in the upper part of the knuckle 1. The suspension bracket 6 is provided with a hole 69 corresponding to the hole 10D. The bracket 6 is arranged so as to abut one side of the upper portion of the knuckle 1, and the bolts 8f are inserted into the holes 69 and 10D in series so that the nut 9f is tightened. The installation of is planned. Similar to the above-described embodiment, fastening using bolts 8b inserted through the holes 63 and 10A is also used.

  According to this embodiment, it is not necessary to separately provide the hole 12a shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 by machining. Therefore, it is more preferable in reducing the manufacturing cost of the knuckle 1.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 5, at least one hole 10 </ b> E formed at the time of extrusion molding is provided in the lower part of the knuckle 1. The bracket 7 for the lower suspension arm is provided on each of a plate-like portion 79 that supports the ball joint BJ1, a plurality of protruding piece portions 78 that protrude upward from the plate-like portion 79, and the plurality of protruding piece portions 78. It has a hole 77 for inserting a bolt. The bracket 7 is inserted into the holes 77 and 10E in a state where the bracket 7 is fitted to the lower part of the knuckle 1 so that the lower part of the knuckle 1 enters between the protruding piece parts 78 facing each other with a gap in the vehicle width direction. By attaching the bolt 8g and tightening the nut 9g, the knuckle 1 can be attached. A lower opening-shaped concave portion 19 is formed on the lower surface portion of the knuckle 1 to fit the upper portion of the ball joint BJ1 and avoid interference between the knuckle 1 and the ball joint BJ1.

  According to this embodiment, it is not necessary to separately provide the hole 12b shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 by machining. Therefore, it is also preferable in reducing the manufacturing cost of the knuckle 1. Of course, in the present invention, the structure shown in FIG. 4 and the structure shown in FIG. 5 can be employed simultaneously.

  The present invention is not limited to the contents of the above-described embodiment. The specific configuration of each part of the suspension according to the present invention can be variously modified within the intended scope of the present invention.

The present invention can be applied to various types of suspensions other than the strut type regardless of the specific type of suspension. In the present invention, it is preferable that the shock absorber, the suspension arm, and the tie rod end are all attached to the knuckle using the part mounting holes that are oriented in the extrusion direction. However, it is not necessarily limited to this. At least one of the three members may be attached to the knuckle using a hole that extends in the extrusion direction. The suspension arm is not limited to the lower suspension arm, and may be an upper suspension arm.
The hole for mounting a part in the present invention can be used in an extruded state (a state in which the inner surface is not ground or the like). Machining etc. may be applied.

S suspension BJ1, BJ2 ball joint 1 knuckle 10A to 10E hole (hole for mounting components)
2 Shock absorber (Mounting target)
3 Lower suspension arm (attachment target)
40a Tie rod end 5 Bearing case

Claims (2)

It is equipped with a knuckle manufactured through a process of cutting a metal long extruded product in a direction crossing the extrusion direction,
The knuckle is a suspension provided with at least one component mounting hole penetrating in the extrusion direction at the extrusion stage,
Of the three components of the shock absorber, the upper or lower suspension arm, and the tie rod end, at least one attachment target part is attached to the knuckle using the part attachment hole, and in this attachment structure, The suspension for mounting a component, wherein the hole for attaching the component is left in a direction penetrating in the extrusion direction. The suspension according to claim 1,
A bearing case for wheel rotation support is arranged on the outer side in the vehicle width direction of the knuckle, and a bracket of the attachment target part is arranged on the inner side in the vehicle width direction of the knuckle,
Each of the bracket and the bearing case is provided with holes corresponding to the holes for attaching the parts of the knuckle, and bolts are sequentially inserted into the plurality of holes, thereby A suspension in which the bracket and the bearing case are attached.

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