JP2023072809A - Actuator assembling method - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a new actuator assembling method that enables an actuator to be assembled comparatively easily.SOLUTION: An actuator assembling method for an actuator that is used to change an irradiating direction of a vehicular lamp includes the steps of: preparing a housing 56 in which a first opening part 56b and a second opening part 56c are formed on different side surfaces; mounting a rotating member 50 that rotates accompanying rotation of a motor 48 on a predetermined position in the housing 56 through the first opening part 56b; inserting a rod 44 connected to a mechanism that tilts an optical member provided in the vehicular lamp through the second opening part 56c and connecting the rod concentrically to the rotating member 50; and attaching a holding member 60 for holding the rod 44 to the second opening part 56c.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

The present invention relates to an actuator assembly method.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there has been known a leveling actuator device that adjusts the optical axis of a vehicle headlamp to change the irradiation direction according to the inclination angle of the vehicle. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an illumination corrector that includes an electric motor, a rod that is rotated by the electric motor, and a mechatronic device that partially covers the circumference of the rod and converts the rotary motion of the rod into linear motion. It is A spherical portion is provided at the tip of the rod, and the advance and retreat of the spherical portion fitted to the connection portion on the back surface of the reflector tilts the reflector, thereby changing the irradiation direction of the illuminator.

JP 2009-26763 A

The aforementioned illumination corrector requires mounting of the electric module on the rear cap of the housing and mounting of the mechatronics device and the rod on the front cap, leaving room for improvement in assembly.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and one of the objects thereof is to provide a new method of assembling an actuator that is relatively easy to assemble.

In order to solve the above-described problems, a method of assembling an actuator according to one aspect of the present invention is a method of assembling an actuator used for changing the irradiation direction of a vehicle lamp, comprising a first opening and a second opening. A step of preparing a housing having openings provided on different sides; a step of placing a rotating member that rotates with rotation of a motor at a predetermined position of the housing through a first opening; A step of inserting a rod connected to a mechanism for tilting a member through a second opening and coaxially connecting it to the rotating member; and a step of attaching a holding member holding the rod to the second opening. .

According to this aspect, since a plurality of parts to be connected to each other can be coaxially connected after being inserted through different openings, the degree of freedom in the assembling process is increased and the assembling is facilitated.

The holding member may hold the rod slidably in the advancing/retreating direction and suppress rattling in the direction intersecting the advancing/retreating direction of the rod. Accordingly, by attaching the holding member to the second opening, the movement of the rod can be restricted within a predetermined range.

A step of placing the motor at a predetermined position of the housing through the first opening, and placing a component constituting a speed reduction mechanism for decelerating the rotation of the motor and transmitting it to the rotating member through the first opening at a predetermined position. and . As a result, the rotation transmission mechanism including the motor, speed reduction mechanism, and rotating member can be placed through the first opening. can be provided within

The housing has a box-like shape as a whole. Assuming that the housing has a height of H, a width of W, and a thickness of D (where H>W>D), the motor is arranged so that the rotation axis of the motor extends along the thickness direction. , and the rotating member may be placed along the width direction. As a result, the thickness of the housing can be reduced by reducing the thickness of the motor in the rotation axis direction.

The housing may have a first opening formed in one of both sides in the thickness direction, and a second opening formed in one of both sides in the width direction. Accordingly, by arranging the housing so that the other of the two sides in the thickness direction is the bottom surface, the members can be assembled through both the first opening and the second opening without rotating the housing.

Arbitrary combinations of the above constituent elements, and conversions of expressions of the present invention between manufacturing methods, devices such as lamps and lighting, light-emitting modules, light sources, etc. are also effective as aspects of the present invention.

According to the present invention, it is possible to realize a new method of assembling an actuator that is relatively easy to assemble.

1 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a vehicle lamp provided with an actuator according to this embodiment; FIG. FIG. 2 is a front cross-sectional view of the vehicle lamp shown in FIG. 1 ; 1 is an overall perspective view of an actuator according to this embodiment; FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of an actuator according to the embodiment; FIG. FIG. 4 is a partial side view showing a main part of a speed reduction mechanism in the actuator according to this embodiment; It is a perspective view of a rotating member according to the present embodiment. FIG. 4 is a side view of the rotating member according to the embodiment; It is a perspective view of a rod according to the present embodiment. It is the figure which looked at the rod shown in FIG. 8 from the A direction. It is the figure which looked at the rod shown in FIG. 8 from the B direction. It is the figure which looked at the rod shown in FIG. 8 from the C direction. 4 is a perspective view of a holding member according to the embodiment; FIG. It is the figure which looked at the rod shown in FIG. 12 from D direction. It is the figure which looked at the rod shown in FIG. 12 from the E direction. It is the figure which looked at the rod shown in FIG. 12 from F direction. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the actuator shown in FIG. 3 taken along line GG; FIG. 17 is a diagram showing a state in which the rod is extended from the state shown in FIG. 16; FIG. 4 is a view showing a main part of the HH cross section of the actuator shown in FIG. 3; FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of an actuator according to a modification;

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION The present invention will be described below based on preferred embodiments with reference to the drawings. The same or equivalent constituent elements, members, and processes shown in each drawing are denoted by the same reference numerals, and duplication of description will be omitted as appropriate. Moreover, the embodiments are illustrative rather than limiting the invention, and not all features and combinations thereof described in the embodiments are necessarily essential to the invention.

(vehicle lamp)
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a vehicle lamp provided with an actuator according to this embodiment. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the vehicle lamp 10 shown in FIG. 1 as viewed from the front. The vehicle lamp 10 shown in FIG. 1 shows one of left and right headlamps. The headlights are attached to both sides in the vehicle width direction in the front part of the vehicle, and a pair of headlights illuminate the front of the vehicle.

A vehicle lamp 10 includes a lamp housing 12 having an opening forward and a cover 14 closing the opening of the lamp housing 12 . The lamp housing 12 and the cover 14 constitute a lamp housing 16, and the inside of the lamp housing 16 is formed as a lamp chamber 16a.

A frame 18 is arranged in the lamp chamber 16a. The frame 18 has an upper support portion 18a provided at the upper end portion, a pair of lower support portions 18b, 18b provided at the lower end portion, and a unit mounting portion 18c provided at the intermediate portion. . The pair of lower support portions 18b are spaced apart in the left-right direction of the vehicle.

A screw support member 20 is provided on the rear side of the lower support portion 18b of the frame 18 . An upper front end portion of the screw support member 20 is provided as a spherical portion 20a. The screw support members 20, 20 are supported by the lamp housing 12 so as to be movable in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body.

Bearing members 22, 24, and 24 are attached to the upper support portion 18a and the lower support portions 18b, 18b of the frame 18 in a state of being penetrated therethrough.

The spherical portions 20a of the screw support members 20 are connected to the bearing members 24, respectively. The bearing member 24 is rotatable in any direction with respect to the screw support member 20 .

A pair of aiming screws 26 , 26 are rotatably supported in the lamp housing 12 but immovable in the front-rear direction (axial direction). The aiming screws 26 , 26 are spaced apart in the lateral direction of the vehicle, and their rear ends protrude rearward from the lamp housing 12 . The aiming screw 26 has a threaded portion 26 a that is coupled to the screw support member 20 .

Lamp units 28 , 28 are attached to the unit attachment portion 18 c of the frame 18 . The number of lamp units 28 attached to the unit attachment portion 18c may be one, or three or more.

The lamp unit 28 includes a heat sink 30 that emits heat, a substrate 32 arranged on the heat sink 30, a light source 34 mounted on the substrate 32, and a reflector that reflects the light emitted from the light source 34 forward. , a projection lens 38 through which light emitted from the light source 34 is transmitted, and a holder 40 that holds the projection lens 38 .

An actuator 42 is arranged in the lamp chamber 16a. The actuator 42 is arranged behind the lamp unit 28 in the upper part of the lamp chamber 16a, for example, and fixed to a part of the lamp housing 12. As shown in FIG.

(Optical axis adjustment in vehicle lamp)
Next, optical axis adjustment in the vehicle lamp 10 will be described. The vehicular lamp 10 is configured to enable aiming adjustment, which is an initial adjustment of the irradiation direction, and leveling adjustment, which adjusts the deviation of the optical axis that varies depending on the weight of the on-vehicle object. Aiming adjustment includes horizontal aiming adjustment and vertical aiming adjustment.

Left-right aiming adjustment is performed by rotating one of the aiming screws 26 . When the aiming screw 26 is rotated, the screw support member 20 to which the threaded portion 26a is screwed is sent forward or backward according to the rotation direction of the aiming screw 26, and the frame 18 and the lamp units 28, 28 are integrated. As a result, the other screw support member 20 rotates around the line connecting the spherical portion 20a of the other screw support member 20 and the spherical portion 46 at the tip of the rod 44 as a fulcrum axis. When the frame 18 and the lamp units 28, 28 are rotated integrally, the directions of the optical axes of the lamp units 28, 28 are displaced to the left and right, and left and right aiming adjustment is performed.

Vertical aiming adjustment is performed by rotating both of the aiming screws 26, 26 in the same direction. When the aiming screws 26, 26 are rotated, the screw support members 20, 20 to which the threaded portions 26a, 26a are screwed, are sent forward or backward according to the direction of rotation of the aiming screws 26, 26, and the frame 18 is rotated. and the lamp units 28, 28 are integrally rotated with the spherical portion 46 of the rod 44 as a fulcrum. When the frame 18 and the lamp units 28, 28 are integrally rotated, the directions of the optical axes of the lamp units 28, 28 are vertically displaced, and vertical aiming adjustment is performed.

Leveling adjustment is performed by operating the drive mechanism of the actuator 42 . The rod 44 moves in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle with respect to the lamp housing 12 when the drive mechanism is operated.

When the rod 44 is moved forward, for example, the bearing members 22, 24, 24 are rotated with respect to the spherical portion 46 and the spherical portions 20a, 20a, respectively. Then, the frame 18 and the lamp units 28, 28 are integrally rotated downward about the line connecting the spherical portions 20a, 20a. When the frame 18 and the lamp units 28, 28 are rotated integrally, the directions of the optical axes of the lamp units 28, 28 are displaced downward to perform leveling adjustment.

On the other hand, when the rod 44 is moved rearward, for example, the bearing members 22, 24, 24 are rotated with respect to the spherical portion 46 and the spherical portions 20a, 20a, respectively. As a result, the frame 18 and the lamp units 28, 28 are integrally rotated upward about the line connecting the spherical portions 20a, 20a. When the frame 18 and the lamp units 28, 28 are rotated integrally, the directions of the optical axes of the lamp units 28, 28 are displaced upward, and leveling adjustment is performed.

(actuator)
Next, the configuration of the actuator 42 according to this embodiment will be described in detail. FIG. 3 is an overall perspective view of the actuator according to this embodiment. FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the actuator according to this embodiment. FIG. 5 is a partial side view showing the main part of the speed reduction mechanism in the actuator according to this embodiment.

The actuator 42 is used to change the irradiation direction of the vehicle lamp by the leveling adjustment described above. The actuator 42 includes a motor 48, a spur gear 52 meshing with a pinion gear 48a fixed to the rotation shaft of the motor 48, a pin 54 serving as the rotation shaft of the spur gear 52, and a bearing portion 56a supporting the pin 54. is provided at the bottom, a cover 58 covering one opening 56b of the housing 56, a holding member 60 attached to the other opening 56c of the housing 56, and one end of the rod 44. and a C-ring 62 to be mounted.

The actuator 42 also includes a control board 86 and a cover 88 that covers the other opening of the housing 56 . The control board 86 is a printed wiring board, and includes a connector 90 to which a cable for transmitting control signals from an external vehicle ECU and a headlamp vehicle ECU is connected, a capacitor 92, and a rotor for detecting the rotational position of the motor 48. three Hall ICs 94 and other elements are mounted. A control IC (not shown) for controlling the positioning of the motor 48 is mounted on the back side of the control board 86 shown in FIG.

The motor 48 according to the present embodiment is a brushless DC motor, which is a kind of flat motor, so that the thickness of the housing 56 is made as thin as possible. Here, a flat motor is a motor in which the case thickness CT in the direction of the rotation axis is relatively thin with respect to the diameter CD of the case containing the main parts, for example, a motor that satisfies CD>CT. The spur gear 52 has a coaxially fixed worm 64 and meshes with a helical gear 66 provided on the outer circumference of the rotating member 50 . The worm 64 and the helical gear 66 constitute a worm gear whose rotation axes are perpendicular to each other.

As the motor 48 rotates, the rotating member 50 rotates via a reduction mechanism consisting of a pinion gear 48 a , a spur gear 52 , a worm 64 and a helical gear 66 . In this way, by transmitting the rotation of the motor to the rotating member 50 via the speed reduction mechanism, the rotating member 50 can be rotated at an appropriate rotational speed even if a motor rotating at high speed and having relatively small torque is used. Sufficient thrust can be obtained. Therefore, a small and flat brushless DC motor can be used as the actuator 42 .

(Rotating member)
FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a rotating member according to this embodiment. FIG. 7 is a side view of the rotating member according to this embodiment. The rotating member 50 is a cylindrical member as a whole, and a female screw 68 is formed in a hole along the rotating shaft of the front end portion connected to the rod 44 . A groove 70 in which the C-ring 62 is mounted is formed in the outer circumference of the rear end portion of the rotary member 50 . A helical gear 66 is formed at the center of the rotating member 50 . The rotating member 50 is made of a material whose main component is nylon resin that does not contain glass fiber.

(rod)
FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a rod according to this embodiment. FIG. 9 is a view of the rod shown in FIG. 8 viewed from direction A. FIG. FIG. 10 is a view of the rod shown in FIG. 8 viewed from direction B. FIG. FIG. 11 is a view of the rod shown in FIG. 8 viewed from direction C. FIG.

The rod 44 has a spherical portion 46 at its front end. The spherical portion 46 is a connection portion that is connected to the bearing member 22 that constitutes a part of the mechanism that tilts the optical member (the lamp unit 28 ) included in the vehicle lamp 10 . A male screw 72 that fits (engages) with the female screw 68 of the rotating member 50 is formed on the outer circumference of the rear end portion of the rod 44 . Thereby, the rod 44 is coaxially connected to the rotary member 50 so as to be relatively rotatable. Further, by forming threads on each of the rod 44 and the rotating member 50, the rotating member and the rod can be rotatably connected to each other with a simple process.

Further, the rod 44 is provided with a plurality of guide rails 74 extending in the axial direction on the outer periphery. The rod 44 according to the present embodiment is provided with three guide rails 74 at equal intervals (120° intervals) in the circumferential direction of the rod. The front end of each guide rail 74 is formed with an inclined portion 74a. The rear ends of the guide rails 74 are connected by an annular portion 76 , and an annular space 78 is formed between the annular portion 76 and the male screw 72 . As a result, the rotating member 50 rotates relative to the rod 44 while the rotating member 50 is connected to the rod 44, so that the front end of the rotating member 50 passes through the space 78 while the male screw 72 and the female screw 68 are engaged with each other. Then, it advances toward the spherical portion 46 or retreats away from the spherical portion 46 .

Further, the guide rails 74 are also connected by an annular portion 79 near the center thereof. The position and diameter of the end surface 79a of the annular portion 79 on the spherical portion 46 side are set so as to come into contact with the arc portion of the holding member 60, which will be described later. The rod 44 is made of a material different from that of the rotating member 50, the main component of which is nylon resin containing glass fiber. A resin having good slidability, such as a polyacetal resin, may be used instead of the nylon resin.

(Holding member)
FIG. 12 is a perspective view of a holding member according to this embodiment. FIG. 13 is a view of the rod shown in FIG. 12 as seen from direction D. FIG. FIG. 14 is a view of the rod shown in FIG. 12 as seen from direction E. FIG. FIG. 15 is a view of the rod shown in FIG. 12 as seen from direction F. FIG.

The holding member 60 according to the present embodiment is a member that holds the rod 44 slidably in the advancing/retreating direction and suppresses rattling in the direction intersecting the advancing/retreating direction of the rod 44, and contains polyacetal resin as a main component. made of material that Then, the opening 56c of the housing 56 through which the rod 44 advances and retreats is mounted. The holding member 60 is axially provided with a plurality of guide grooves 80 on its inner periphery. The holding member 60 according to the present embodiment is provided with three guide grooves 80 at equal intervals (120° intervals) in the circumferential direction of the holding member 60 . The guide groove 80 is configured so that the guide rail 74 of the rod 44 slides.

Thereby, each of the plurality of guide rails 74 of the rod 44 is guided by each of the plurality of guide grooves 80 of the holding member 60 at equal intervals. As a result, the rod 44 is less likely to tilt with respect to the holding member 60 , and the rod 44 slides smoothly in the axial direction of the holding member 60 without rotating. Also, three arcuate portions 60b are provided at equal intervals so as to surround the opening 60a at the front end of the holding member 60, and are configured so that the annular portion 79 of the rod 44 abuts thereon.

The holding member 60 has three protrusions 82 formed at equal intervals on the outer periphery thereof, the protrusions 82 being engaged with the square holes 56f provided on the inner periphery of the opening 56c shown in FIG. The protrusions 82 are provided between the guide grooves 80 . Accordingly, the holding member 60 can be easily attached to the opening 56c, and the rod 44 can be held without the holding member 60 rotating or sliding in the opening 56c. Therefore, the rotation of the rod 44 is restricted by the holding member 60 when the rotating member 50 rotates. As a result, the rod 44 coaxial with the rotating member 50 advances and retreats from the opening 56c by sliding axially with respect to the holding member 60 as the rotating member 50 rotates. In this manner, the rotating member 50 and the rod 44 according to the present embodiment can integrally configure a compact advancing/retreating mechanism.

FIG. 16 is a GG sectional view of the actuator 42 shown in FIG. FIG. 16 shows rod 44 mostly retracted inside housing 56 . FIG. 17 shows a state in which the rod 44 is extended from the state shown in FIG. The rod 44 is positioned at a first position P1 (the state shown in FIG. 16) where the rod 44 abuts against the bottom portion 50a of the hole of the rotating member 50 when contracted, and a second position P2 (a state shown in FIG. ) is connected to the rotary member 50 so as to be movable between the state shown in FIG. The rod 44 has the guide rail 74 overlapping the internal thread 68 at the first position P1. That is, when the rod 44 is contracted, the guide rail 74 overlaps the rotating member 50, so that the rotating member 50 and the rod 44 can be integrally shortened.

The actuator 42 according to the present embodiment described above includes a motor 48 that is a flat motor, and a housing 56 that accommodates the motor 48 , rotating member 50 and rod 44 . The rod 44 is configured such that the spherical portion 46 advances and retreats with respect to the rotating member 50 as the rotating member 50 rotates. Further, as shown in FIG. 5, in the actuator 42, the rotation axis X1 of the motor 48 and the rotation axis X2 of the rotating member 50 are not parallel. In other words, the rotation axis X1 and the rotation axis X2 are in a twisted position. The angle formed by the rotation axis X1 and the rotation axis X2 according to this embodiment is 90°.

Since the rotation axis X1 of the motor 48 and the rotation axis X2 of the rotating member 50 are in a twisted position, the thickness of the motor 48 in the rotation axis direction can be suppressed, and the thickness of the housing 56 in a predetermined direction can be reduced.

The housing (housing 56 and cover 58) of the actuator 42 has a box-like shape as a whole and includes a housing 56 that supports the motor 48 and a cover 58 that covers an opening 56b formed in the housing 56. there is The opening 56b is formed so that the motor 48 is exposed when not covered with the cover 58, as shown in FIG. Accordingly, the motor 48 can be assembled to the housing 56 through the opening 56c of the housing 56. As shown in FIG.

Assuming that the height of the housing 56 shown in FIG. The member 50 is arranged along the width direction W. As shown in FIG. Accordingly, by suppressing the thickness D of the motor 48 in the direction of the rotation axis X1, the thickness direction of the housing 56 can be reduced. Further, the housing 56 is formed with an opening 56c as a slide hole through which the rod 44 slides on one of both sides in the width direction.

(Actuator control method)
Next, an example of an actuator control method will be described. An electronic control unit (hereinafter referred to as "vehicle ECU") that performs leveling control of the vehicle controls the operation of the actuator 42 based on the output from a sensor (e.g. vehicle height sensor) provided on the vehicle side. . Specifically, the vehicle ECU, which detects the tilt of the vehicle, calculates the tilt angle at that time based on the information from the sensor, and adjusts the rod in the actuator 42 so that the desired tilt angle (horizontal state) is obtained. Control position information of the motor 48 required to realize the movement amount (advance/retreat amount) of 44 is calculated. Then, the vehicle ECU outputs a signal corresponding to the calculated control position information to the control IC.

A signal corresponding to the control position information is input to the control IC via the connector 90 . The motor 48 is electrically connected to the control board 86 and driven by the control IC. Three Hall ICs 94 are arranged on the control board 86 at predetermined intervals along the circumferential direction of the rotor of the motor 48 . When the rotor magnet rotates together with the rotor, the magnetic field in each Hall IC changes, and the ON/OFF state of each Hall IC changes, thereby outputting a pulse signal corresponding to the rotation period of the rotor. The control IC associates the count value with the rotational position of the motor 48 by counting the pulse signals.

(Assembly method of actuator)
Next, a method for assembling the actuator described above will be described. As shown in FIG. 4, the method of assembling the actuator according to the present embodiment comprises the steps of preparing a housing 56 having openings 56b and 56c provided on different sides, and moving the rotating member 50 from the opening 56b. a step of placing the housing 56 at a predetermined position; a step of inserting a rod 44 connected to a mechanism for tilting an optical member included in the vehicle lamp through the opening 56c and coaxially connecting the rod 44 to the rotary member 50; and attaching a holding member 60 for holding the to the opening 56c. The predetermined position on which the rotating member 50 is placed is a position where the C-ring 62 attached to the rear end of the rotating member 50 is held by the U-shaped protrusion 84 provided on the bottom of the housing 56 . The C-ring 62 is a locking portion made of a material containing polyacetal resin as a main component.

According to this assembling method, the rotating member 50 and the rod 44 that are to be connected to each other can be coaxially connected after being inserted through the different openings 56b and 56c, so that the degree of freedom in the assembling process increases and the assembling becomes easy. Also, in some cases, the entire opening can be made smaller than when the parts are connected in advance and then placed on the housing 56 .

Further, the assembling method according to the present embodiment comprises a step of placing the motor 48 at a predetermined position of the housing 56 through the opening 56b, and a speed reduction mechanism that reduces the speed of rotation of the motor 48 and transmits it to the rotating member 50. and placing the spur gear 52 at a predetermined position from the opening 56b. As a result, the rotation transmission mechanism including the motor 48, speed reduction mechanism, and rotating member 50 can be mounted through the opening 56b, so that the rotation transmission mechanism can be mounted without changing the orientation of the housing 56 or the orientation of the members. It can be provided within the housing 56 . Further, by attaching the holding member 60 to the opening 56c, the movement of the rod 44 can be restricted within a predetermined range.

The housing 56 has an opening 56b formed in one of both sides in the thickness direction, and an opening 56c formed in one of both sides in the width direction. Accordingly, by arranging the housing 56 with the other of the two sides in the thickness direction as the bottom surface, the members can be assembled from both the openings 56b and 56c without rotating the housing 56 .

(Assembling the spherical part to the bearing member)
In the actuator 42 according to this embodiment, the spherical portion 46 is finally assembled to the bearing member 22 shown in FIG. At this time, as shown in FIG. 16, a large load L (several hundred N or more) is applied to the spherical portion 46 in the direction of the arrow, and the rear end portion 50b of the rotating member 50 is pushed through the housing 56 via the rod 44. It tries to displace toward the inner wall 56d.

However, the C-ring 62 is fitted in the groove 70 near the rear end 50b, and the C-ring 62 as a locking portion fits into the groove of the protrusion 84, so that the rear end 50b is held at a predetermined position of the housing 56. locked to. Therefore, when the rear end portion 50b tries to displace toward the inner wall 56d, a large force is applied to the C-ring 62, and if the amount of displacement is large, the C-ring 62 will be deformed or cracked.

Therefore, the actuator 42 according to the present embodiment is provided with a displacement suppressing portion that suppresses the displacement of the rear end portion 50b between the rear end portion 50b of the rotating member 50 and the inner wall 56d of the housing 56. As shown in FIG. FIG. 18 is a diagram showing a main part of the HH cross section of the actuator 42 shown in FIG.

A displacement suppressing portion according to the present embodiment is a protrusion 56 e provided on the inner wall 56 d of the housing 56 . Accordingly, by devising the shape of the housing 56 , the convex portion 56 e can be provided integrally with the housing 56 .

Without the convex portion 56e, the rear end portion 50b shown in FIG. 18 can be displaced up to the distance d1 from the inner wall 56d. In that case, a large load is applied to the C-ring 62 that is engaged with the protrusion 84, and it may be deformed or cracked. However, by providing the convex portion 56e on the inner wall 56d, the gap between the rear end portion 50b and the convex portion 56e can be reduced to d2 (d2<d1). As a result, the amount of displacement of the rear end portion 50b is reduced up to the gap d2, and the load applied to the C ring 62 is reduced. That is, deformation and cracking of the C-ring 62 are suppressed by suppressing the displacement of the rear end portion 50b of the rotating member 50 .

The convex portion 56e according to the present embodiment is a rib extending in the thickness D direction. As a result, displacement of the rear end portion 50b of the rotating member 50 can be reliably suppressed with a simple shape. Also, the gap d2 between the rear end portion 50b and the convex portion 56e may be 0.3 to 1.0 mm. As a result, the displacement of the rear end portion 50b can be suppressed to 0.3 to 1.0 mm or less. Moreover, the height of the convex portion is 1.0 to 2.0 mm. As a result, it is possible to provide the protrusion 56e that does not easily interfere with other members in the housing 56. As shown in FIG.

(Modification)
In the above-described embodiment, the actuator 42 in which the rod 44 is provided with a male thread and the rotating member 50 is provided with a female thread has been described as an example. may FIG. 19 is a cross-sectional view of an actuator according to a modification. It should be noted that the same reference numerals are given to the same configurations as those of the actuator 42, and the description thereof will be omitted as appropriate. The actuator 142 according to the modified example is mainly characterized in that a rotating member 150 having a male thread 172 is connected to a rod 144 having a female thread 168 formed therein. The actuator 142 configured in this manner has the same function as the actuator 42 described above.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to the above-described embodiments, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be applied to any suitable combination or replacement of the configurations of the embodiments. It is included in the present invention. Further, it is also possible to appropriately rearrange the combinations and the order of processing in the embodiments based on the knowledge of a person skilled in the art, and to add modifications such as various design changes to the embodiments. Embodiments described may also fall within the scope of the present invention.

Reference Signs List 10 vehicle lamp 28 lamp unit 42 actuator 44 rod 46 spherical portion 48 motor 48a pinion gear 50 rotating member 50b rear end 52 spur gear 56 housing 56b opening 56c opening . Space 79 Annular portion 79a End face 80 Guide groove 82 Projection 84 Projection P1 First position P2 Second position X1 Rotation axis X2 Rotation axis d1 Spacing d2 Gap.

Claims (5)

A method of assembling an actuator used to change the irradiation direction of a vehicle lamp, comprising:
providing a housing having a first opening and a second opening on different sides;
placing a rotating member that rotates with the rotation of the motor at a predetermined position of the housing through the first opening;
a step of inserting a rod connected to a mechanism for tilting an optical member included in the vehicle lamp through the second opening and coaxially connecting the rod to the rotating member;
attaching a holding member holding the rod to the second opening;
A method of assembling an actuator comprising: 2. The method of assembling an actuator according to claim 1, wherein the holding member holds the rod slidably in the advancing/retreating direction and suppresses rattling in a direction intersecting the advancing/retreating direction of the rod. placing the motor at a predetermined position in the housing through the first opening;
a step of placing a part constituting a speed reduction mechanism for decelerating the rotation of the motor and transmitting it to the rotating member at a predetermined position through the first opening;
3. The method for assembling an actuator according to claim 1, comprising: The housing has a box shape as a whole, and if the height of the housing is H, the width is W, and the thickness is D (however, H>W>D), then:
The motor is placed so that the rotation axis of the motor extends along the thickness direction,
4. The method of assembling an actuator according to claim 3, wherein the rotating member is placed along the width direction. The housing is
The first opening is formed in one of the surfaces on both sides in the thickness direction,
5. The method of assembling an actuator according to claim 4, wherein the second opening is formed in one of both sides in the width direction.

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