JP2606927B2 - Car auto step device - Google Patents

Description

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automatic stepping device for a motor vehicle, and more particularly, to restricting a turning position of a step plate when immersed to a position near a non-use position and further turning the step plate. The present invention relates to an improvement of a stopper which can realize both the regulation of the rotation position and the allowance of rotation to the storage position when the lock is possible at the stored storage position.

[Conventional technology]

An automatic stepping device for a car is a device for facilitating getting on and off, such that when a door is opened, a step plate protrudes outward from a side of a vehicle body, and when the door is closed, the step plate is pushed inward. It is particularly effective for automobiles with a high entrance position such as a so-called one-box car having a sliding door.

FIG. 8 shows an example of such an automatic stepping device for an automobile. In the figure, 31 is a step plate, which is a bracket fixed to the vehicle body.
It is rotatably supported by a support rod 33 between a use position shown by a solid line in the drawing and a non-use position shown by a two-dot chain line, and is urged in the use position direction. I have. A lock lever 34 for use is provided on the lower surface of the step plate 31.
a, the release lever 34b is rotatably supported on the shaft, and the link 34c
Are connected by The lock lever 34a is biased so as to be locked to a lock pin 35a fixed to the vehicle body when the step plate 31 is rotated to the use position. On the upper surface of the step plate 31, a storage lock lever 36 is rotatably disposed.
When the step plate 31 is turned to the non-use position, it can be locked to the lock pin 35b fixed to the bracket 32.

Reference numeral 37 denotes a stopper, which restricts the rotating position of the step plate 31 at the time of immersion by contacting the receiving member 32a fixed to the bracket 32 to the non-use position.

In this conventional apparatus, when a slide door (not shown) is opened, the step plate 31 is rotated by the urging force to a use position indicated by a solid line in FIG. Locked to. Further, in response to the closing operation of the slide door, the roller 38 of the opener fixed to the door comes into contact with the release lever 34b to rotate it, thereby rotating the lock lever 34a during use via the link 34c. Then, the lock with the lock pin 35a is released, the lock is released, and the roller 38 causes the step plate 31 to rotate to the non-use position. At this time, the stopper 37 comes into contact with the receiving member 32a, thereby regulating the rotation position of the step plate 31.

When not operating the automatic step mechanism, the step plate 31 is rotated to a non-use position (storage position) where the stopper 37 contacts the receiving member 32a, and the storage lock lever 36 is connected to the lock pin 35b. Lock. Thereby, the step plate 31 is locked at the storage position. In order to release the lock, the storage lock lever 36 is rotated to release the lock with the lock pin 35b.

[Problems to be solved by the invention]

In the above-mentioned conventional automatic step device, the lock mechanism for the use position and the lock mechanism for the storage position are separately required, and the structure is complicated. Therefore, the cost is high accordingly, and it is required to simplify the structure and reduce the cost.

Here, in order to respond to the above request, for example, it is conceivable to enable locking of the stowed position by the use position lock mechanism. Must be set to However, at the time of a normal automatic step operation, it is necessary to restrict the rotation position of the step plate to the non-use position. For this reason, since the stopper is provided, it cannot be rotated to the storage position as it is.

The present invention has been made to meet the above-mentioned demand, and by devising the structure of the stopper, the rotation position of the step plate when it is immersed can be restricted to the non-use position, and it can be rotated to the storage position as required. It is an object of the present invention to provide an auto-stepping device for an automobile that can move.

[Means for solving the problem]

According to the present invention, a step plate of a bottom wall is rotatably supported at a door opening, and a step plate between a use position where the step plate protrudes outward from the side of the vehicle body and a non-use position where the step plate is immersed inward. The stepping plate is further rotated from the non-use position in the auto-stepping device of a vehicle provided with a stopper for restricting the rotation position when the step plate is immersed near the non-use position while rotating the step plate. A lock mechanism that locks the storage position is provided, and the stopper is configured to restrict the rotation of the step plate to a position near a non-use position when the step plate is immersed, and to allow rotation to a position near the storage position. It is characterized in that it is configured to be able to switch between the rotation-allowed state.

Here, the switching in the present invention is performed, for example, by rotating a stepper plate to a damper constituting a stopper, a contact portion that comes into contact with a receiving member on the vehicle body side when the step plate is rotated to a non-use position, and further rotating to a storage position. This can be realized by forming a notch portion that does not come into contact even if it is made to rotate, and rotatably configured so that either the abutment portion or the notch portion faces the receiving member.

[Action]

According to the automatic step device of the present invention, when operating the automatic step mechanism, the rotation position of the step plate can be restricted to the vicinity of the non-use position by setting the stopper in the rotation restricted state. On the other hand, when it is not operated, it can be rotated to the storage position by switching to the rotation allowable state. Therefore, for example, both the position lock at the time of use and the position lock at the time of storage can be realized by one lock mechanism, and the structure can be simplified.

〔Example〕

 Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 to FIG. 7 are views for explaining an automatic stepping device for a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes a one-box type vehicle to which the present embodiment is applied, which has a door opening 2a at the center of the side wall of the vehicle body 2.
The door opening 2a is opened and closed by moving the slide door 3 in the vehicle front-rear direction.

A step plate 4 is rotatably supported on the bottom wall 2b of the door opening 2a, and an opener 5 is mounted on the slide door 3.
Are fixed, and the two constitute an automatic step device 6. The opener 5 has a structure in which a roller 8 is rotatably mounted on the lower end of a bracket 7 composed of a round bar 7a and a band plate 7b, and the bracket 7 is fixed to the slide door 3 with bolts 9a. The roller 8 comprises a large diameter portion 8a located at the lower end and a small diameter portion 8b located above the lower end. The roller 8 projects downward from the lower edge of the slide door 3. When the door 3 is advanced, the step plate Contact 4

The step plate 4 is bolted to the bottom wall 2b of the vehicle body 2.
Support rod 11 by support bracket 10 fixed at 9b
Is pivoted through. The upper portion of the support rod 11 is rotatably inserted into a bearing 10a welded and fixed to the support bracket 10, and the lower portion is welded and fixed to the step plate 4. Reference numeral 12 denotes an urging spring wound around the support rod 11, one end of the spring 12 being locked on the support bracket 10 side and the other end being locked on the step plate 4 side. It is urged to rotate in the use position direction protruding laterally from the opening 2a.

The rear edge of the support bracket 10 has a locking recess 10 in use for locking the step plate 4 in a position for use.
b is formed so as to open rearward, and a guide surface 10c for guiding a later-described locking pin to the concave portion 10b is formed in a portion adjacent to the concave portion 10b. Also this support bracket 10
A lock plate 10d is welded and fixed to the front side of the lock plate.
Is formed at the storage position, and a guide surface 10f for guiding the locking pin to the concave portion 10e and a receiving surface with which a stopper described later abuts are provided adjacent to the concave portion 10e. 10 g are sequentially formed.

The step plate 4 is made of sheet metal, and has a structure in which a concave groove 4a is formed, the peripheral edge is bent downward, and a reinforcing plate 4b is fixed to the lower surface by welding in order to improve the strength. A lock lever 16 made of a band-shaped metal plate is arranged on the lower surface of the step plate 4, and is rotatably supported on the step plate 4 by a support pin 17. One end 16a of this lock lever 16
Is located on the upper surface thereof through an opening 4c formed in the step plate 4. The locking pin 16b implanted in the one end 16a is used for the above-mentioned locking recess 10b for use or the locking recess 1 for storage.
0e and can be biased in the locking direction.
Powered by 18. The other end of the lock lever 16
A guide plate 16d is formed on the guide plate 16c. When the slide door 3 is moved in the closing direction, the roller 8 of the opener 5 comes into contact with the guide plate 16d to rotate the lock lever 16. Has become.

The support rod on the upper surface of the step plate 4
A stopper 13 is fixed near 11. The stopper 13 has a structure in which a substantially central portion of a rubber damper 15 is rotatably supported by a box-shaped bracket 14 made of sheet metal. A reinforcing piano wire 15d is embedded in a lever portion 15c formed integrally with the rear portion of the damper 15, and a contact portion 15a and a notch formed by cutting out a part of the contact portion are provided at a front portion. The part 15b is formed integrally. By rotating the damper 15, one of the contact portion 15a and the notch 15b faces the receiving surface 10g of the locking plate 10d.

 Next, the operation and effect of this embodiment will be described.

During normal operation of the auto-step mechanism, the damper 15 of the stopper 13 is rotated to a position where the contact portion 15a faces the receiving surface 10g (see FIGS. 1A and 5A).

When the slide door 3 is opened, the step plate 4 is rotated counterclockwise in FIG. 2 by the urging force of the urging spring 12 to a use position shown by a solid line in FIG.
At this time, the locking pin 16b of the lock lever 16 is
The step plate 4 is locked in the use position as shown by the solid line in FIG.

When the slide door 3 is closed, first, the large-diameter portion 8a of the roller 8 of the opener 7 presses the guide plate 16d of the lock lever 16 to rotate the lock lever 16 clockwise, thereby using the lock pin 16b. The lock with the time locking recess 10b is released, and the lock is released. Then, the small-diameter portion 8b of the roller 8 comes into sliding contact with the peripheral edge of the step plate 4, rotates the step plate 4 in accordance with the movement of the slide door 3 in the closing direction. It will be located at the non-use position shown by the three-dot chain line in the figure. At this time, when the step plate 4 further rotates slightly due to inertia or the like, the contact portion 15a of the damper 15 contacts the receiving surface 10g as shown by a solid line in FIG. The rotation position during immersion is regulated.

If you do not want to operate the auto step mechanism,
The 13 dampers 15 are rotated so that the cutouts 15b face the receiving surfaces 10g (see FIGS. 1 (b) and 5 (b)).
The notch 15b is rotated to a position near a position where the notch 15b contacts the receiving surface 10g. Then, the locking pin 16b of the lock lever 16 is guided by the guide surface 10f and locked in the storage locking recess 10e, whereby the step plate 4 is in the storage position as shown by a solid line in FIG. 1 (b). Locked to. In order to return the automatic step mechanism, the lock lever 16 is pushed and rotated by pushing the guide plate 16d, whereby the lock at the storage position is released, and the automatic step mechanism operates.

Thus, in the automatic step device according to the present embodiment,
The locking pin 16b of the lock lever 16 is locked in the locking recess 10b at the time of use and locked at the storage recess 10e at the time of storage when used, so that only one set of locking mechanism is required.
In addition, since the lock mechanism has a simple structure that only supports the lock lever 16 in a rotatable manner, the number of parts can be reduced and the structure can be simplified, and as a result, the cost can be reduced.

In the present embodiment, the abutting portion contacts the damper 15 of the stopper 13.
15a and a notch 15b, one of which is a receiving surface 10g.
When the auto-step mechanism is normally operated, the stopper 13 performs a function of regulating the rotational position by bringing the contact portion 15a into contact with the receiving surface 10g. When locking to the storage position, use the damper
By facing the 15 notch 15b to the receiving surface 10g,
The stopper 13 does not hinder the rotation of the step plate 4, and can be rotated to a position where the locking pin 16b of the lock lever 16 is locked in the storage recess 10e,
The lock at both the storage position and the use position by the one lock mechanism described above can be realized.

In the above embodiment, the damper 15 is rotated so that either the contact portion 15a or the notch 15b faces the receiving surface 10g. However, the stopper of the present invention is limited to such a structure. In other words, the stopper may be configured so that the stopper can be switched to the rotation-restricted state or the rotation-permitted state. For example, the damper 15 may be configured to slide in the direction perpendicular to the axis. .

〔The invention's effect〕

As described above, according to the automatic stepping device for an automobile according to the present invention, the stopper is configured to be switchable between the rotation restricting state and the rotation allowing state, so that the turning position when the step plate is immersed is set to the non-use position. In addition to being restricted to the vicinity, it can be rotated to the storage position, and for example, it can be locked at both the use position and the storage position by one lock mechanism, which has the effect of simplifying the structure.

[Brief description of the drawings]

1 to 7 are views for explaining an automatic stepping device according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 1 is a view for explaining the operation thereof, and FIG. 1 (b) is a plan view showing a stored state, FIG. 2 is a plan view of the embodiment device, FIG. 3 is a side view, and FIG. 4 is a plan view of FIG. IV-IV sectional view, FIG. 5 (a),
5 (b) is a perspective view of the stopper, FIG. 5 (c) is a plan view of the damper, FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of the apparatus of the embodiment, and FIG. 7 employs the apparatus of the embodiment. FIG. 8 is a plan view of a conventional auto step device, and FIG. In the figure, 1 is an automobile, 2 is a car body, 2a is a door opening, 2b
Is a bottom wall, 4 is a step plate, 6 is an automatic step device, 13 is a stopper, and 16 is a lock lever (lock mechanism).

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] A step plate is rotatably supported on a bottom wall of a door opening between a use position where the step plate projects outward from a side surface of the vehicle body and a non-use position where the step plate is immersed inward. In the auto-stepping device for a vehicle provided with a stopper for restricting the turning position of the step plate when immersed near the non-use position, the step plate is further turned from the non-use position. A lock mechanism that locks the retracted position at the retracted position is provided, and the stopper is configured to regulate the rotation of the step plate to a position near the non-use position when the submersion is rotated, and to rotate to a position near the retracted position. An automatic stepping device for an automobile, wherein the automatic switching device is configured to be switchable between an allowable rotation allowed state.