JP2019202620A - Assist grip - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide an assist grip that facilitates a steering operation even by performing a steering with one hand.SOLUTION: An assist grip 10 mounted on a steering 1 that rotates around a steering shaft 2 comprises: a mounting unit 11 mounted on the steering 1; and an auxiliary power unit 20 having a rotation shaft 21 rotatably provided on the mounting unit 11 provided with a grip unit 22 gripped by a person. The auxiliary power unit 20 comprises: a power source 23 for rotating the rotation shaft 21; and a transmission mechanism for converting the rotation of the rotation shaft 21 into force to rotate around the steering shaft and transmitting it to the steering 1.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to an assist grip.

  Power steering technology has been developed in order to reduce the force required for steering operation and facilitate steering operation when steering a vehicle. In the power steering technology, a force necessary for steering operation is assisted by a motor, hydraulic pressure, etc., and the operator can comfortably operate the steering wheel with a small force.

  By the way, steering is usually operated with both hands, but when a handicapped person or a healthy person cannot use one hand, a grip may be provided so that the steering can be operated with one hand (Patent Documents 1 to 3). 4 etc.). Such a grip is provided with a rotating shaft rotatably on a main body portion fixed to the steering, and a grip held by an operator is provided on the rotating shaft. With this structure, when the steering wheel is operated while holding the grip, the handle is always in the same posture (ie with the finger pointing up) even if the position of the grip changes as the steering rotates. Can be maintained. Therefore, the steering can be stably operated even with one hand.

Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 06-018146 Utility model registration publication No. 03032667 Utility Model Registration Publication No. 03059179 Utility Model Registration Publication No. 03107062

  However, the grip described above is effective in keeping the posture of the hand constant with respect to the steering wheel, but has a function of assisting the operating force when the steering wheel is operated while holding the grip. Absent. Although the power required for steering operation can be reduced by the power steering as described above, when the power of one hand is very weak, when the steering is operated while holding the grip described above, only the assisting force by the power steering is required. There may be a burden on the steering operation.

  In view of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide an assist grip that can easily perform a steering operation even if the steering is operated with one hand.

  An assist grip according to a first aspect of the present invention is a grip that is attached to a steering wheel that rotates around a steering shaft, and is provided rotatably on the attachment portion that is provided with an attachment portion that is attached to the steering and a grip portion that is held by a person. An auxiliary power unit having a rotating shaft, wherein the auxiliary power unit converts the rotation of the rotating shaft into a force to rotate around the steering shaft by rotating the rotating shaft. And a transmission mechanism for transmitting to the steering.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, if the steering is rotated around the steering shaft while holding the grip, the force for rotating the steering can be assisted by the driving force generated by the power source of the auxiliary power unit. Then, even if one hand is very weak, the steering operation can be easily performed.

It is a schematic explanatory drawing of the steering 1 provided with the assist grip 10 of this embodiment, Comprising: (A) is a front view, (B) is a side view. (A) is a schematic sectional drawing of the assist grip 10 of this embodiment, (B) is a schematic explanatory drawing of the transmission mechanism 25. FIG. It is a figure explaining the action | operation of the transmission mechanism 25, (A) is a case where the steering 1 is rotated clockwise in FIG. 1 (A), (B) is the steering 1 counterclockwise in FIG. 1 (A). It is a case where it rotates.

  The assist grip according to the present invention is a grip attached to a steering wheel used for steering a vehicle, and is characterized in that a force required for operation by a person who operates the steering wheel with a grip can be reduced. .

  The steering to which the assist grip of the present invention is attached is not particularly limited. For example, a steering wheel that rotates around a rotation shaft, such as a steering wheel for a passenger car or a tractor, a steering wheel for a ship, or the like can be cited as a steering wheel to which the assist grip of the present invention is attached.

  In the following description, a case where the assist grip of the present invention is attached to a steering wheel for a vehicle will be described as a representative.

(Assist grip 10 of this embodiment)
The assist grip 10 of the present embodiment will be described based on the drawings.

<Steering>
First, the steering to which the assist grip 10 of this embodiment is attached will be briefly described.

  In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a steering steering, and reference numeral 2 denotes a steering shaft to which the steering steering 1 is attached. The steering 1 includes an annular wheel portion 1a, a boss portion 1b attached to the steering shaft 2, and a rim portion 1r that connects the boss portion 1b and the wheel portion 1a. A boss 1b of the steering 1 is attached to the tip of a steering shaft 2, and the steering shaft 2 is attached to a vehicle steering mechanism (not shown). Therefore, the vehicle can be steered by operating the steering 1 and rotating the wheel portion 1a around the steering shaft 2.

  The steering mechanism to which the steering shaft 2 is attached is not particularly limited, and the structure and the like thereof are not particularly limited, such as those having a power steering function and those having no power steering function.

<Assist grip 10>
As shown in FIG. 1, the assist grip 10 of the present embodiment includes an attachment portion 11 attached to the steering 1 and an auxiliary power portion 20 provided on the attachment portion 11.

  In the assist grip 10 of the present embodiment, if the operator operates the steering wheel 1 while holding the grip portion 22 of the auxiliary power unit 20, the operation force of the operator can be assisted by the auxiliary power unit 20. Yes. That is, if the assist grip 10 of the present embodiment is used, even if the force of one hand is very weak, the steering operation can be easily performed.

  Hereinafter, the structure of the assist grip 10 of this embodiment is demonstrated in detail.

<Mounting part 11>
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the attachment portion 11 is attached to the wheel portion 1 a of the steering 1. The mounting portion 11 includes a holding portion 12 that holds the wheel portion 1 a with the wheel portion 1 a interposed therebetween, and a hollow box-shaped case portion 13 that is connected to the holding portion 12.

  The holding part 12 can adopt, for example, a member formed by bending a plate-like member into a U shape, and adopt a structure in which the wheel part 1a is inserted from the opening and fixed to the wheel part 1a. Can do. In this case, if the opening can be opened or closed with a screw, a bolt, or the like, the attachment portion 11 can be easily attached to and detached from the wheel portion 1a by the holding portion 12. Moreover, you may form the holding | maintenance part 12 with the two plate-shaped members which have a dent. Also in this case, if the wheel portion 1a is disposed between the recesses of the two plate-like members and the two portions are approached and separated by screws, bolts or the like, the attachment portion 11 can be easily attached to the wheel portion 1a by the holding portion 12. Can be attached and detached. In addition, the structure of the holding | maintenance part 12 is not specifically limited, What is necessary is just a structure which can be attached or detached to the wheel part 1a.

  The holding portion 12 described above is provided with a case portion 13. This case part 13 is attached so that the rotating shaft 21 of the auxiliary power part 20 can rotate. And in the case part 13, the transmission mechanism 25 connected with the rotating shaft 21 is accommodated. In addition, the case part 13 should just be able to accommodate the transmission mechanism 25, and the shape and magnitude | size are not specifically limited.

<Auxiliary power unit 20>
As shown in FIG. 2, the auxiliary power unit 20 includes a rotating shaft 21, a grip portion 22 connected to the rotating shaft 21, and a transmission mechanism 25 connected to the rotating shaft 21.

<Auxiliary power unit 20>
The rotating shaft 21 has a base end portion (a lower end portion in FIG. 2) inserted into the case portion 13, and the base end portion is rotatably attached to the case portion 13 by a bearing or the like. A portion of the rotating shaft 21 that protrudes from the case portion 13 is provided with a case 21c, and the tip portion of the rotating shaft 21 is accommodated in the case 21c. In addition, the front-end | tip part of the rotating shaft 21 is also rotatably attached with respect to the case 21c with a bearing.

  A power source 23 is also accommodated in the case 21c. The rotary shaft 21 and the power source 23 are connected by a gear 21a provided on the rotary shaft 21 and a gear 23a provided on the main shaft 23b of the power source 23 such as a motor. That is, when the power source 23 is driven, the driving force is transmitted to the rotating shaft 21 via the gear 23a and the gear 21a, so that the rotating shaft 21 rotates. The rotary shaft 21 is provided with a known torque sensor so that the torque applied to the rotary shaft 21 can be detected.

  In FIG. 2, the case where the rotary shaft 21 and the power source 23 are provided separately has been described. However, when a motor is used as the power source 23, the main shaft of the motor may be used as the rotary shaft 21.

<Grip part 22>
A grip portion 22 is provided at the tip portion of the rotating shaft 21. The grip portion 22 is a portion that is held by the operator when the steering 1 is operated. The shape, size, and the like of the grip portion 22 are not particularly limited as long as the shape and size are easy to hold and operate by the operator. It is desirable that the grip portion 22 can be attached to and detached from the rotating shaft 21 and the case 21c. Then, it can change to the suitable grip part 22 according to an operator.

<Transmission mechanism 25>
As shown in FIG. 2, a transmission mechanism 25 is provided in the case portion 13. The transmission mechanism 25 includes a rack 26 fixed to the case portion 13. The rack 26 is provided such that the direction in which the teeth are aligned is substantially parallel to the circumferential direction of the wheel portion 1 a of the steering 1. In other words, the rack 26 is provided so that when the attachment portion 11 is attached to the wheel portion 1a by the holding portion 12, the direction in which the teeth are arranged is substantially parallel to the circumferential direction of the wheel portion 1a. A gear 29 meshes with the rack 26, and this gear 29 meshes with a gear 27 provided on the rotary shaft 21 via a gear 28. In other words, the rotation of the gear 27 (that is, the rotation of the rotating shaft 21) is transmitted to the rack 26 via the gears 28 and 29.

  With this configuration, when the power source 23 is rotated, the driving force is transmitted from the gear 23a provided on the main shaft 23b of the power source 23 to the gear 21a provided on the rotary shaft 21, and the rotary shaft 21 rotates. . Then, the gear 27 of the transmission mechanism 25 rotates with the rotation of the rotating shaft 21, and the driving force is supplied to the rack 26 via the gears 28 and 29. Then, a driving force is applied to the rack 26 so as to move the rack 26 in the direction in which the teeth are aligned (the vertical direction in FIG. 2B), so that the steering 1 can be rotated together with the rack 26.

  Therefore, if the power source 23 is operated, the driving force can be supplied to the rack 26 via the transmission mechanism 25.

  In addition, the magnitude | size and the number of teeth of each gear are not specifically limited. 2 and 3, the diameter of the gear 27 is larger than the diameters of the gear 21 a and the gear 23 a, but the diameter of the gear 27 is preferably larger than that of the gear 21 a and the gear 23 a. In this case, the steering 1 can be moved with a force larger than the driving force generated by the power source 23. Then, since the power source 23 can be reduced in size, the assist grip 10 can be reduced in size. Therefore, even if the assist grip 10 is attached to the steering wheel 1, it does not interfere with the rotation of the steering wheel 1, and the operability can be prevented from being lowered due to the attachment of the assist grip 10.

<Control unit 30>
The control unit 30 has a function of controlling the operation of the power source 23 to control the auxiliary force generated during the steering operation. More specifically, the control unit 30 includes a torque sensor that detects torque applied to the rotary shaft 21, and functions to control the operation of the power source 23 based on the torque applied to the rotary shaft 21 detected by the torque sensor. have. That is, since the control unit 30 can control the driving force generated by the power source 23 of the auxiliary power unit 20 based on the detection value of the torque sensor, the steering operation can be performed in accordance with the feeling of the operating person.

  The control unit 30 operates as follows, and adjusts the operation of the steering 1 by controlling the driving force supplied from the power source 23 in accordance with the movement of the person who operates the grip unit 22.

  First, when the torque sensor detects that a rotational torque greater than a reference value has been applied to the rotary shaft 21, the control unit 30 generates a reverse rotational torque that is greater than the rotational torque detected by the torque sensor. Then, the power source 23 is operated.

  For example, it is assumed that a person applies a force to move the grip portion 22 so that the steering wheel 1 rotates in the direction of the arrow A shown in FIG. 1 (the direction of the arrow A in FIG. 3A). Then, since the rotating shaft 21 provided in the grip part 22 is connected to the rack 26 via the gear 27 and the gear 28, the rotating shaft 21 has a reaction force as shown in FIG. Rotational torque is generated in the direction shown by arrow a in FIG. Then, the control part 30 drives the power source 23 so that the rotating shaft 21 rotates in the direction which cancels the rotational torque. That is, the power source 23 is driven so that the gear 23a rotates in the direction of arrow b in FIG. Moreover, since the control unit 30 drives the power source 23 so as to generate a rotational torque larger than the rotational torque caused by the force applied by a person, the steering 1 has the gears 27 to 29 of the transmission mechanism 25 and the rack 26. A force greater than the force applied by the person in the direction of arrow A is applied. Therefore, the steering 1 can be operated in the direction of arrow A with a force greater than the force applied by the person via the grip portion 22.

  When a person applies a force to move the grip portion 22 so that the steering wheel 1 rotates in the direction of the arrow B shown in FIG. 1 (the direction of the arrow B in FIG. 3B), FIG. ) In the direction indicated by the arrow a in FIG. Therefore, if the power source 23 is driven so that the gear 23a rotates in the direction of the arrow b in FIG. 3B, the steering 1 is moved to the arrow B with a force greater than the force applied by the person via the grip portion 22. Can be operated in the direction of

  On the other hand, when the rotational torque applied to the rotating shaft 21 becomes smaller than the reference value, the control unit 30 stops the operation of the power source 23 and stops the supply of the driving force from the power source 23. For example, when the steering wheel 1 is intentionally rotated by a person or when the steering wheel 1 is not rotated by a strong force from the outside, the steering wheel 1 may be rotated slightly. In some cases, rotational torque may be applied to the rotating shaft 21. In such a state, since the rotational torque applied to the rotating shaft 21 is small, there is no burden on the operator to perform the operation even without assistance from the power source 23. When the power source 23 is operated even in such a state, the operator must apply a force that opposes the driving force of the power source 23, so that the burden on the operator increases. Therefore, when only a force smaller than the reference value is applied to the rotating shaft 21, the control unit 30 does not operate the power source 23 or stops the operation, and applies a driving force to the rotating shaft 21. It is desirable not to supply.

<Clutch function>
The control unit 30 may have a function of stopping the operation of the power source 23 by an external command. For example, a button or the like may be provided on the grip portion 22 and the operation of the power source 23 may be stopped when the button is operated. Since the operation of the power source 23 can be stopped when the steering wheel 1 is rotated by the restoring force of the steering wheel 1, the operation of the steering wheel 1 can be made closer to the natural state.

  In addition, when the clutch function is provided, it is desirable to provide the power source 23 with a regeneration function. When the operation of the power source 23 is stopped by the clutch function, the gear 23 a of the power source 23 is rotated by the restoring force of the steering 1. Therefore, if the regenerative function is provided, there is an advantage that power can be stored in a battery or the like that provides power to the power source 23 by the rotational force of the gear 23a (that is, the restoring force of the steering 1).

  The assist grip of the present invention is applied as a grip attached to a steering steering such as a passenger car or a tractor.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Steering 2 Steering shaft 10 Assist grip 11 Attaching part 20 Auxiliary power part 21 Rotating shaft 22 Grip part 23 Power source 25 Transmission mechanism 30 Control part

Claims (3)

A grip attached to a steering wheel that rotates around the steering shaft,
An attachment portion attached to the steering;
An auxiliary power unit having a rotation shaft that is rotatably provided on the attachment part provided with a grip part held by a person,
The auxiliary power unit is
A power source for rotating the rotating shaft;
An assist grip, comprising: a transmission mechanism that converts the rotation of the rotation shaft into a rotation force around the steering shaft and transmits the force to the steering. The auxiliary power unit is
A torque sensor that detects rotational torque applied to the rotary shaft in accordance with the operation of the grip;
A control unit that controls the operation of the power source based on a detection value of the torque sensor,
The controller is
When the torque sensor detects that a rotational torque greater than a reference value has been applied to the rotary shaft, the power is generated so that a reverse rotational torque greater than the rotational torque detected by the torque sensor is generated. The assist grip according to claim 1, wherein a driving force is supplied from a source. The controller is
The assist grip according to claim 2, wherein the assist grip has a function of stopping the operation of the power source in response to a command from the outside.

Images