JP2023143033A - Brake operation mechanism - Google Patents

Abstract

To prevent a brake pedal of a manual brake from moving when operating an electric brake in a vehicle equipped with a manual brake and an electric brake.SOLUTION: A transmission rod 44 transmits a movement of a brake pedal 12 and a movement of an electric actuator 14 to a master cylinder 16 of a brake system. An engagement pin 50 fixed to the brake pedal 12 engages with an elongated engagement hole 52 formed in an arm part 48 of the transmission rod 44. When the brake pedal 12 is depressed, the transmission rod 44 is driven via the engagement pin 50, and this movement is transmitted to the master cylinder 16. When an actuator arm 32 of the electric actuator 14 pushes against a stem 46 of the transmission rod 44, this movement is transmitted to the master cylinder 16. At this time, the engagement pin 50 moves relative to the engagement hole 52, the movement of the transmission rod 44 is not transmitted to the brake pedal 12, and the brake pedal 12 does not move.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to a mechanism for operating the brakes of a vehicle, and more particularly to a mechanism compatible with automatic braking.

Patent Document 1 below discloses that an actuator (2) that operates a brake pedal (9) is retrofitted to an existing brake device (22) of a vehicle, and the brake device (22) is activated by the actuator (2) based on the result of monitoring the front. A collision avoidance device is shown that activates the collision avoidance system. Note that the symbols in parentheses are the symbols used in Patent Document 1 below, and are used in the description of the embodiments of the present application.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2020-59304

In Patent Document 1, the brake device is operated by an actuator via a brake pedal. Therefore, when the actuator operates the brake device, the brake pedal also moves, which may make the driver feel uncomfortable.

The present invention provides a brake pedal operation mechanism in which the brake pedal does not move when the brake device is operated by an actuator.

The brake operation mechanism according to the present invention includes an electric actuator that operates the brakes of a vehicle, a transmission rod that transmits the movement of the brake pedal and the movement of the electric actuator to a master cylinder of the brake, and an engagement mechanism that engages the brake pedal and the transmission rod. and a combining mechanism. The engagement mechanism includes an elongated engagement hole formed in one of the brake pedal and the transmission rod, and an engagement pin provided in the other to engage with the engagement hole. Further, in the engagement mechanism, when the brake pedal is depressed, the engagement pin contacts the first end of the engagement hole to transmit the movement of the brake pedal to the transmission rod. On the other hand, when the electric actuator operates, the engagement pin separates from the first end of the engagement hole, and the movement of the transmission rod is not transmitted to the brake pedal.

Further, the transmission rod of the brake operating mechanism may have a base and two arms extending parallel to each other from the base. An operating element of the electric actuator is located between the two arms, and the operating element pushes the base to move the transmission rod. Furthermore, engagement holes may be formed in each of the two arm portions.

By using an engagement mechanism that engages the brake pedal and the transmission rod as a mechanism consisting of an elongated engagement hole and an engagement pin that engages with the engagement hole, the brake pedal will not move when the electric actuator applies the brake. It can be made not to move.

FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway side view of the brake operating mechanism of the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the brake operating mechanism shown in FIG. 1 as seen from the front and slightly diagonally side. FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway perspective view of the brake operating mechanism shown in FIG. 1 as seen from the side and slightly diagonally above. FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway plan view of the brake operating mechanism shown in FIG. 1; It is a side view which shows a connector. It is a perspective view showing a connector. It is an explanatory view of operation of a brake operation mechanism. It is a figure which shows lighting control of a brake lamp. FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of main parts of a brake operation mechanism according to another embodiment. FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of a main part of a brake operation mechanism according to still another embodiment.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the side of the driver who operates the brake will be referred to as the front, and the side opposite the front will be referred to as the rear. 1 to 4 are diagrams showing a schematic configuration of a brake operation mechanism 10 for a vehicle according to this embodiment. 1 is a partially cutaway side view, FIG. 2 is a perspective view seen from the front and slightly diagonally from the side, FIG. 3 is a partially cutaway perspective view seen from the side and slightly diagonally above, and FIG. FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway plan view.

The brake operation mechanism 10 includes a brake pedal 12 operated by a driver, an electric actuator 14 that is electrically driven based on a command from a control device, and a brake operation mechanism 10 that transfers the movement of the brake pedal 12 and the electric actuator 14 to a master cylinder 16 of the brake device. A transmission rod 18 for transmitting data is provided. In addition, in each figure after FIG. 2, the master cylinder 16 is omitted from illustration.

The brake pedal 12 is rotatably supported by a pedal shaft 22 supported by a pedal bracket 20 fixed to a vehicle body, for example, a toe board (not shown). More specifically, the brake pedal 12 includes a pedal arm 24 rotatably supported by a pedal shaft 22 and a pedal pad 26 fixed to the tip of the pedal arm 24. The driver steps on the pedal pad 26 to operate the brake device. The pedal bracket 20 is formed into a substantially U-shape by bending a sheet metal, and is arranged such that the U-shaped opening faces the front. The pedal shaft 22 is arranged inside the U-shape of the pedal bracket 20, and both ends are supported by the pedal bracket 20. When the driver depresses the pedal pad 26, the pedal arm 24 rotates about the pedal shaft 22, and this movement is transmitted to the master cylinder 16 via the transmission rod 18.

The electric actuator 14 includes an actuator main body 30 fixed to an actuator base 28 fixed to a pedal bracket 20, and an actuator arm 32, which is an operating element that is rotatably driven by an electric motor (not shown) built into the actuator main body 30. including. The actuator arm 32 is fixed to an output shaft 34 associated with an electric motor and is driven integrally with the output shaft 34 by the electric motor. The actuator base 28 includes a horizontal member 36 that is placed inside the U-shape of the pedal bracket 20 and fixed to the pedal bracket 20 on both left and right sides, and a horizontal member 36 that is placed on the front side of the horizontal member 36 and fixed to the horizontal member 36. vertical member 38. The actuator body 30 is fixed to a vertical member 38 of the actuator base 28. When the actuator arm 32 is driven clockwise in FIG. 1, this movement is transmitted to the master cylinder 16 via the transmission rod 18.

The transmission rod 18 includes a push rod 42 that engages the master cylinder 16 and, in particular, a piston 40 of the master cylinder, and a coupling 44 that is threadedly coupled to the push rod 42 . Connector 44 connects push rod 42 and brake pedal 12 and engages push rod 42 and actuator arm 32, as will be described in detail below. Details of the coupling 44 are shown in FIGS. 5 and 6. The connector 44 has a base 46 and two arms 48 that extend from the base 46 in parallel to each other toward the front side. A screw hole 46a is formed on the back side of the base 46, and a screw shaft 42a (see FIG. 4) formed on the push rod 42 is screwed into the screw hole 46a. A nut 49 (see FIG. 4) is further threadedly coupled to the screw shaft 42a, forming a double nut together with the base 46 to prevent the push rod 42 and the connector 44 from rotating.

The two arms 48 of the connector 44 are spaced apart, and a portion of the pedal arm 24 is located between the two arms 48 . The two arm portions 48 are formed with engagement holes 52 that engage with engagement pins 50 fixed to the pedal arm 24 . The engagement pin 50 and the engagement hole 52 constitute an engagement mechanism that engages the brake pedal 12 and the transmission rod 18. The engagement hole 52 is a long hole that is elongated in the direction in which the arm portion 48 extends, and the engagement pin 50 is movable relative to the arm portion 48, that is, the connector 44 within the range of the engagement hole 52. Further, a part of the actuator arm 32 is located between the two arm parts 48. The end of the actuator arm 32 can come into contact with a front surface 46b of the base 46 of the connector 44 (hereinafter, the surface 46b will be referred to as a contact surface 46b). When electric actuator 14 operates, actuator arm 32 abuts base 46 and pushes coupling 44 .

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating the operation of the brake operation mechanism 10. (a) is a state in which the brake is not operating, (b) is a state in which the brake is operated by an electric actuator such as an automatic brake, and (c) is a state in which the brake is manually operated, that is, the driver operates the brake with his/her foot. shows. Furthermore, in each of the figures (a) to (c), the upper side is a plan view and the lower side is a side view.

When the brake is not in operation, the engagement pin 50 is close to or in contact with the rear end (first end) 52a of the engagement hole 52. Further, the actuator arm 32 is close to or in contact with the contact surface 46b of the base 46.

When the brake is actuated by the electric actuator, the actuator arm 32 is rotated clockwise in each side view of FIG. 7 (arrow A), and the tip of the actuator arm 32 comes into contact with the contact surface 46b. , move the connector 44 toward the back side, that is, toward the master cylinder 16 (arrow B). As the coupling 44 moves, the push rod 42 moves and pushes the piston 40 of the master cylinder 16. This activates the brakes. At this time, the first end 52a of the engagement hole 52 separates from the engagement pin 50, and while the connector 44 moves, the position of the engagement pin 50 is maintained. The pedal arm 24, to which the engagement pin 50 is fixed, and the brake pedal 12 also do not move. Therefore, the driver does not feel uncomfortable that the brake pedal 12 moves independently.

When the brake is actuated by the brake pedal 12, the engagement pin 50 moves to the back side (arrow C) by depressing the brake pedal 12, and pushes the first end 52a of the engagement hole 52. The connector 44 is moved toward the master cylinder 16 (arrow D). This activates the brakes. At this time, the contact surfaces 46b of the actuator arm 32 and the base 46 are separated.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram regarding brake lamp control of a vehicle equipped with an automatic braking device and a manual braking device. The automatic braking system includes a forward monitoring device such as a LIDAR (light detection and ranging) that monitors obstacles in front of the vehicle, and an automatic brake control device 56 that operates the brakes of the vehicle based on the monitoring results of the forward monitoring device. including. The automatic brake control device 56 controls the electric actuator 14 to drive the master cylinder 16, and lights up the brake lamp 54 when the brake is applied. Further, the brake lamp 54 may be turned on only when the braking force is equal to or greater than a first predetermined value. Furthermore, the mode of lighting is changed depending on the braking force, such as lighting continuously when the braking force is greater than or equal to a first predetermined value and less than a second predetermined value, and blinking when the braking force is greater than or equal to the second predetermined value. You can.

The manual brake device is activated when the driver's foot depresses the brake pedal 12. When the brake pedal 12 is depressed, the master cylinder 16 is driven. Further, a brake switch 58 is arranged near the brake pedal 12, and when the brake pedal 12 is depressed, the brake switch 58 is depressed and the brake lamp 54 is turned on.

By inputting a signal from the brake switch 58 to the automatic brake control device 56, it is possible to detect the driver's intention to intervene in the brake operation.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a brake operating mechanism 70 of another embodiment. Components that are the same as those of the brake operating mechanism 10 described above are designated by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted. In the brake operation mechanism 70, an actuator body 74 of an electric actuator 72 is arranged and fixed outside the pedal bracket 20. An output shaft of the actuator body 74 is connected to an arm shaft 78 via a coupling 76. The tip of the arm shaft 78 is supported by a bearing 80 fixed to the pedal bracket 20. An actuator arm 82 is coupled to the arm shaft 78 . The actuator arm 82 has the same function as the actuator arm 32 described above, and is driven by an electric motor (not shown) built into the actuator body 74 to drive the master cylinder 16 via the transmission rod 18.

FIG. 10 is a partially cutaway side view of a brake operating mechanism 90 according to still another embodiment. Components that are the same as those of the brake operating mechanism 10 described above are designated by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted. The brake operation mechanism 90 is different from the brake operation mechanism 10 in the configuration of an operator that drives the transmission rod 18. The electric actuator 92 has an actuator arm 94 and an intermediate lever 96 as actuators for operating the transmission rod 18 . Electric actuator 92 drives transmission rod 18 via intermediate lever 96 . The intermediate lever 96 is rotatably supported by the pedal shaft 22 and extends from the pedal shaft 22 side to the opposite side through between the two arms 48 of the coupling member 44 . When the actuator arm 94 rotates clockwise in FIG. 10, the tip of the actuator arm 94 comes into contact with the tip of the intermediate lever 96, causing the intermediate lever 96 to rotate counterclockwise. A rotating intermediate lever 96 drives the master cylinder 16 via the transmission rod 18.

Regarding the intermediate lever 96, the distance from the pedal shaft 22 (fulcrum) to the point where it contacts the transmission rod 18 (point of action) is shorter than the distance from the pedal shaft 22 to the point where the actuator arm 94 contacts (point of force). Therefore, compared to the case where the transmission rod 18 is directly driven, the electric actuator 92 can be driven with a smaller output, that is, a smaller electric motor, and the electric actuator 92 can be made smaller. Further, since the displacement of the point in contact with the transmission rod 18 is smaller than the displacement of the point in contact with the actuator arm 94, fine adjustment of the braking force becomes possible.

By replacing the push rod of the brake operating mechanism of an existing vehicle and the connector connecting the push rod and the brake pedal with the push rod 42 and connector 44 described above, and by additionally installing an electric actuator, it is possible to can be equipped with an electric brake. At this time, the brake pedal 12 does not move when the electric actuator 14 operates the brake.

In each of the embodiments described above, the elongated engagement hole 52 is provided in the transmission rod 18, and the engagement pin 50 is provided in the brake pedal 12.However, in contrast to this, the engagement pin is provided on the transmission rod side. Alternatively, an elongated engagement hole may be provided on the brake pedal side.

10, 70, 90 brake operation mechanism, 12 brake pedal, 14, 72, 92 electric actuator, 16 master cylinder, 18 transmission rod, 20 pedal bracket, 22 pedal shaft, 24 pedal arm, 28 actuator base, 30, 74 actuator body , 32, 82, 94 actuator arm (operator), 34 output shaft, 42 push rod, 44 connector, 46 base, 46b contact surface, 48 arm, 50 engagement pin (engagement mechanism), 52 engagement Hole (engaging mechanism), 52a first end, 76 coupling, 96 intermediate lever.

Claims (2)

an electric actuator that operates the vehicle's brakes;
a transmission rod that transmits movement of a brake pedal and movement of the electric actuator to a master cylinder of the brake;
an engagement mechanism that engages the brake pedal and the transmission rod;
Equipped with
The engagement mechanism includes an elongated engagement hole formed in one of the brake pedal and the transmission rod, and an engagement pin provided in the other and engaged with the engagement hole, and further In the engagement mechanism, when the brake pedal is depressed, the engagement pin contacts the first end of the engagement hole to transmit the movement of the brake pedal to the transmission rod, and the electric actuator operates. When the engagement pin is separated from the first end of the engagement hole, the movement of the transmission rod is not transmitted to the brake pedal.
Brake operation mechanism. 2. The brake operation mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the transmission rod has a base and two arms extending parallel to each other from the base, and the electric actuator is connected between the two arms. A brake operation mechanism, wherein an operating element is positioned, the operating element pushes the base to move the transmission rod, and the engagement hole is formed in each of the two arm parts.

Images