JP2016211672A - Constant velocity joint - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a constant velocity joint capable of preventing grease from being accumulated at the bottom part of an outside joint member.SOLUTION: A constant velocity joint 100 includes: a bottomed cylindrical outside joint member 10; and an inside joint member 30 arranged inside the outside joint member 10, and capable of taking an angle to an axial direction of the outside joint member 10; a ball 40 performing torque transmission between the outside joint member 10 and the inside joint member 30; grease 70 stored inside the outside joint member 10; and a movable member 80 attached to the bottom part of the outside joint member 10 in a movable manner to the outside joint member 10.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a constant velocity joint that contains grease therein.

  In order to ensure the slidability of the torque transmission member of the constant velocity joint, grease is accommodated in the constant velocity joint. Since the bottom portion of the outer joint member of the constant velocity joint is the rotation center of the outer joint member, the centrifugal force acting on the grease existing at the bottom portion is small, and the grease stays at the bottom portion. For this reason, in order to make grease exist in the sliding portion, it is necessary to inject extra grease into the constant velocity joint as much as it stays at the bottom of the outer joint member. Since the grease used for the constant velocity joint is an expensive grease such as molybdenum disulfide grease, if extra grease is injected into the constant velocity joint, the constant velocity joint becomes expensive.

  Therefore, as shown in Patent Document 1, a constant velocity joint has been proposed in which a tip side is formed so as to be elastically deformable and a stirrer whose tip can be in contact with the bottom of an outer joint member is provided on a shaft. In this constant velocity joint, when the shaft swings with respect to the outer joint member, the grease present in the outer joint member is stirred by the stirring body, and the retention of grease at the bottom of the outer joint member is suppressed.

JP2013-200000A

  However, in the constant velocity joint shown in Patent Document 1, the stirrer is in contact with the bottom of the outer joint member, so that the rotational resistance of the constant velocity joint is increased, and the abrasion powder of the stirring member is mixed into the grease as a foreign matter, There was a possibility that the sliding part of the constant velocity joint was worn.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and is a constant velocity joint that can prevent the grease from staying at the bottom of the outer joint member without increasing rotational resistance and without foreign matter entering the grease. The purpose is to provide.

  The constant velocity joint of the present invention includes a bottomed cylindrical outer joint member, an inner joint member that is disposed inside the outer joint member and can take an angle with respect to an axial direction of the outer joint member, A torque transmitting member that transmits torque between the outer joint member and the inner joint member, grease contained in the outer joint member, and movable at the bottom of the outer joint member with respect to the outer joint member And a movable member attached to.

  Accordingly, when the vehicle travels, the movable member moves and vibrates with respect to the outer joint member, and the grease attached to the surface of the movable member is shaken off from the surface of the movable member. For this reason, the stay of grease at the bottom of the outer joint member is suppressed, and this grease is supplied to the sliding portion of the constant velocity joint. In addition, since the movable member does not come into contact with any member other than the outer joint member to which the movable member is attached, the rotational resistance of the constant velocity joint does not increase, and foreign matter is generated due to damage or wear due to contact. Do not mix.

It is an axial sectional view of a constant velocity joint. It is a principal part expanded sectional view of a constant velocity joint. It is an axial sectional view of the constant velocity joint of another embodiment.

(Constant velocity joint structure)
The constant velocity joint 100 of this embodiment is demonstrated with reference to FIG. In FIG. 1, the right and left direction on the paper surface is defined as the constant velocity joint 100 and the axial direction of each member constituting the constant velocity joint 100. The constant velocity joint 100 is provided between a prime mover such as an engine of a vehicle and a drive wheel of the vehicle, and transmits torque between the prime mover and the drive wheel.

  The constant velocity joint 100 of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 is a ball type. The constant velocity joint 100 includes an outer joint member 10, a shaft 20, an inner joint member 30, a ball 40 (torque transmission member), a cage 50, a boot 60, grease 70, and a movable member 80.

  The outer joint member 10 is formed in a bottomed cylindrical shape (cup shape) and is connected to one member that transmits torque. A plurality of outer joint member ball grooves 12 are formed on the inner peripheral surface 11 of the outer joint member 10. In the present embodiment, the bottom portion 13 of the outer joint member 10 is formed in a direction orthogonal to the axial direction of the outer joint member 10. Between the bottom 13 of the outer joint member 10 and the inner peripheral surface 11 of the outer joint member 10, an inner peripheral inclined surface 14 whose inner diameter gradually increases toward the opening side of the outer joint member 10 is formed. A holding projection 15 is formed along the axial direction at the center of rotation of the bottom of the outer joint member 10. The shaft 20 is connected to the other member that transmits torque, and the tip side thereof is inserted into the outer joint member 10.

  The inner joint member 30 is attached to the outer peripheral surface on the distal end side of the shaft 20 so as not to be relatively rotatable. The inner joint member 30 is disposed inside the outer joint member 10 and can take an angle with respect to the axial direction of the outer joint member 10. A plurality of inner joint member ball grooves 31 are formed on the outer peripheral surface of the inner joint member 30.

  The ball 40 is disposed between the opposing outer joint member ball groove 12 and the inner joint member ball groove 31, and transmits torque between the outer joint member 10 and the inner joint member 30. When the ball 40 rolls on the outer joint member ball groove 12 and the inner joint member ball groove 31, the axial direction of the outer joint member 10 and the axial direction of the inner joint member 30 (shaft 20) are at an angle. Torque can be transmitted between the outer joint member 10 and the inner joint member 30 (shaft 20). The cage 50 is disposed between the inner peripheral surface of the outer joint member 10 and the outer peripheral surface of the inner joint member 30, and holds the plurality of balls 40 at a predetermined angle.

  The boot 60 is formed in a bellows shape that can be bent and deformed, and covers between the opening of the outer joint member 10 and the outer peripheral surface of the shaft 20. The grease 70 is accommodated inside the outer joint member 10 and the boot 60. The grease 70 is contained in the outer joint member 10 and the boot 60 in such an amount that the ball 40 and the inner joint member ball groove 31 can be lubricated. That is, even when the grease 70 moves to the inner peripheral surfaces of the boot 60 and the outer joint member 10 due to the centrifugal force acting on the grease 70 due to the rotation of the constant velocity joint 100, the grease 70 is moved to the inner joint. An amount of grease 70 that can exist in the member ball groove 31 is accommodated inside the outer joint member 10 and the boot 60.

  The outer joint member 10, the shaft 20, the inner joint member 30, the ball 40, and the cage 50 are made of an iron-based material such as carbon steel. The boot 60 is made of a flexible material that can be elastically deformed, such as synthetic resin or rubber.

  The movable member 80 has a block shape and a truncated cone shape. An insertion hole 81 is formed in the axial center (center) of the movable member 80. The holding projection 15 is inserted into the insertion hole 81, the tip of the holding projection 15 is fitted, and the movable member 80 is attached to the holding projection 15. There is a gap between the holding projection 15 and the insertion hole 81. With such a structure, the movable member 80 is swingably attached to the holding projection 15 (outer joint member 10). That is, the movable member 80 is attached to the bottom of the outer joint member 10 so as to be movable with respect to the outer joint member 10. The movable member 80 can be relatively rotated around the axis of the holding projection 15 (outer joint member 10). An inclined surface 82 whose outer diameter decreases toward the opening of the outer joint member 10 is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the movable member 80.

  The movable member 80 is made of a lightweight material having a specific gravity smaller than those of the outer joint member 10 such as synthetic resin or aluminum, the shaft 20, the inner joint member 30, the ball 40, and the cage 50.

(Effect of this embodiment)
As is apparent from the above description, the constant velocity joint 100 of the present invention is disposed inside the bottomed cylindrical outer joint member 10 and the outer joint member 10 and is angled with respect to the axial direction of the outer joint member 10. An inner joint member 30 capable of taking the torque, a ball 40 (torque transmission member) for transmitting torque between the outer joint member 10 and the inner joint member 30, and a grease 70 accommodated inside the outer joint member 10. A movable member 80 movably attached to the outer joint member 10 at the bottom of the outer joint member 10.

  Accordingly, when the vehicle travels, the movable member 80 moves and vibrates with respect to the outer joint member 10, and the grease 70a (shown in FIG. 2) attached to the surface of the movable member 80 is shaken off from the surface of the movable member 80. . For this reason, the stay of the grease 70 a at the bottom of the outer joint member is suppressed, and the grease 70 a is supplied to the sliding portion of the constant velocity joint 100.

  Further, as compared with a constant velocity joint in which a shaft is provided with a stirring body whose tip can be in contact with the bottom of the outer joint member as in the prior art, the movable member 80 has an outer joint member 10 to which the movable member 80 is attached. Since no contact is made with any other member, the rotational resistance of the constant velocity joint 100 does not increase, and foreign matter is not generated and mixed into the grease 70 due to breakage or wear due to contact.

  The movable member 80 is attached around the axis of the outer joint member 10 so as to be rotatable relative to the outer joint member 10. As a result, the grease 70b (shown in FIG. 2) adhered across the movable member 80 and the bottom surface of the outer joint member is sheared and shaken off by the relative rotation between the movable member 80 and the outer joint member 10. . For this reason, the stay of the grease 70 a at the bottom of the outer joint member is suppressed, and the grease 70 a is supplied to the sliding portion of the constant velocity joint 100.

  The movable member 80 is formed with an inclined surface 82 whose outer diameter gradually decreases toward the opening side of the outer joint member 10. As a result, when the outer joint member 10 rotates and the movable member 80 rotates, the grease 70a attached to the inclined surface 82 moves along the inclined surface 82 to the inner peripheral side of the outer joint member 10 by centrifugal force. (Shown by arrows in FIG. 2). For this reason, the grease 70a is more reliably suppressed from staying at the bottom of the outer joint member, and the grease 70a is reliably supplied by the sliding portion of the constant velocity joint 100.

  The movable member 80 is made of a material having a specific gravity smaller than that of the outer joint member 10. Thereby, the mass increase of the constant velocity joint 100 by providing the movable member 80 can be suppressed.

  The movable member 80 has a block shape. Thus, when the constant velocity joint 100 is configured so that almost no gap is generated between the base of the movable member 80 and the bottom 13 of the outer joint member 10, the base of the movable member 80 and the bottom of the outer joint member 10 are formed. It is possible to suppress the retention of the grease 70 between the two.

(Another embodiment)
As shown in FIG. 3, the movable member 90 movably attached to the holding projection 15 of the outer joint member 10 may be a constant velocity joint 200 having a plate shape. Also in this embodiment, the movable member 90 is formed with an inclined surface 91 whose outer diameter gradually decreases toward the opening side of the outer joint member 10. In the constant velocity joint 200 shown in FIG. 3, the movable member 90 has a hemispherical shape, but the movable member 90 may have a conical shape. Thus, since the movable member 90 is plate-shaped, the mass of the movable member 90 does not increase compared to the block shape, and an increase in the mass of the constant velocity joint 200 due to the provision of the movable member 90 can be suppressed.

  In the embodiment described above, the constant velocity joint 100 is a ball type. However, the constant velocity joint 100 is not limited to the ball type, and may be a tripod type constant velocity joint or the like. The tripod type constant velocity joint includes an outer joint member, a tripod as an inner joint member, and a torque transmission member that transmits torque between a raceway groove of the outer joint member and a leg shaft of the inner joint member. The torque transmitting member is a roller that is rotatably supported by the leg shaft and rolls in the raceway groove, or transmits torque while rolling between the member supported by the leg shaft and the raceway groove of the outer joint member. An axial rolling element.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Outer joint member, 20 ... Shaft, 30 ... Inner joint member, 40 ... Ball (torque transmission member), 50 ... Retainer, 60 ... Boot, 70 ... Grease, 80 ... Movable member, 81 ... Inclined surface, 90 ... Movable member, 100 ... constant velocity joint, 200 ... constant velocity joint of another embodiment

Claims (6)

A bottomed cylindrical outer joint member;
An inner joint member disposed inside the outer joint member and capable of taking an angle with respect to an axial direction of the outer joint member;
A torque transmission member that transmits torque between the outer joint member and the inner joint member;
Grease accommodated inside the outer joint member;
A movable member attached to the bottom of the outer joint member movably with respect to the outer joint member;
A constant velocity joint.   The constant velocity joint according to claim 1, wherein the movable member is attached to the outer joint member so as to be rotatable relative to the outer joint member around an axis of the outer joint member.   3. The constant velocity joint according to claim 1, wherein the movable member is formed with an inclined surface whose outer diameter gradually decreases toward the opening side of the outer joint member.   The constant velocity joint according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the movable member is made of a material having a specific gravity smaller than that of the outer joint member.   The constant velocity joint according to claim 1, wherein the movable member has a block shape.   The constant velocity joint according to claim 1, wherein the movable member has a plate shape.

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