JP2932598B2 - Motorcycle height adjustment device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Object of the Invention] (Industrial application field) The present invention relates to a vehicle height adjusting device for a motorcycle that adjusts the vehicle height by changing the length of a front suspension and a rear cushion unit. In particular, it relates to improvement of a hydraulic jack for a front suspension.

(Prior Art) A vehicle height adjusting device that enables a rider to adjust the vehicle height of a motorcycle using a front suspension and a rear cushion unit is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application No. 1-38554. , But are generally not publicly available.

The vehicle height adjustment device described in the specification of Japanese Utility Model Application No. 1-38554 is provided between the front suspension and the vehicle height adjustment unit,
The front height adjustment unit and the rear cushion unit are connected by hydraulic hoses, and pressure oil is supplied or discharged from the vehicle height adjustment unit to the front suspension and the hydraulic jacks of the rear cushion unit through these hydraulic hoses. The height of the vehicle is adjusted by changing the length of the suspension and rear cushion.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) To set the vehicle height to the low state, operate the vehicle height adjustment unit,
This is done by preventing the hydraulic pressure of the pressure oil from acting excessively on both hydraulic jacks of the front suspension and the rear cushion unit, and discharging the pressure oil in both hydraulic jacks according to the weight of the motorcycle and the weight of the rider.

However, also at this time, since a slight hydraulic pressure is acting on both hydraulic jacks of the front suspension and the rear cushion unit, when the load shared by the front wheels becomes extremely small, such as when the front wheels are lifted up, etc. Therefore, the front suspension may be extended.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and provides a motorcycle height adjustment device for a motorcycle that can prevent unnecessary extension of a front suspension even when the load shared by the front wheels decreases in a low vehicle height state. The purpose is to do.

[Configuration of the invention]

(Means for Solving the Problems) In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a motorcycle height adjusting device according to the present invention includes a hydraulic jack capable of adjusting the vehicle height, a rear cushion unit, and a vehicle height adjusting device. A front suspension that has a hydraulic jack that can adjust the height and accommodates a spring for shock absorption from the road surface,
A vehicle height adjustment device having a vehicle height adjustment unit capable of transmitting the oil pressure of the pressure oil in the rear cushion unit to the hydraulic jacks through a hydraulic hose,
The hydraulic jack of the front suspension has a jack piston housed in a jack cylinder into which the pressure oil is guided, and an urging body is provided between an end of the jack cylinder and the jack piston. Is disposed in parallel with the spring, and the biasing member is disposed so as to exert a biasing force on the jack piston in a direction opposite to a hydraulic action direction of the pressure oil.

(Operation) Therefore, according to the motorcycle height adjusting device of the present invention, when the vehicle height adjusting unit is operated to bring the vehicle height to the high state, a large oil pressure of the pressure oil is transmitted to the hydraulic jack of the front suspension. You. The oil pressure of this pressure oil pushes the jack piston against the urging force of the urging body, increasing the initial load of the front suspension spring, extending the front suspension, and reducing the vehicle height.
Change to High state.

When the vehicle height adjustment unit is operated to reduce the vehicle height to the low state, the hydraulic pressure of the pressure oil transmitted to the hydraulic jack of the front suspension is reduced, so that the jack piston applies the urging force of the urging body, the vehicle weight and the rider. Pushed back by weight. As a result, the initial load of the front suspension spring is reduced, the front suspension contracts, and the vehicle height becomes a low state.

Thus, the initial load of the front suspension can be positively reduced by the urging force of the urging body,
Even if the load shared by the front wheels decreases during traveling of the vehicle, the extension of the front suspension can be prevented by the action of the biasing force.

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

FIG. 2 is an overall side view showing a motorcycle to which the vehicle height adjusting device according to the present invention is applied.

As shown in FIG. 2, a front fork 2 supporting a front wheel 1 is disposed in front of a vehicle body frame 3, and a rear wheel 5 supported by a rear suspension 4 is disposed behind the vehicle body frame 3. Is done. A seat 6 is disposed above the vehicle body frame 3, and the rider straddles the seat 6 and operates by operating the handlebar 7.

The front fork 2 is an inverted type front fork, and includes two left and right front suspensions 8 and 9. These front suspensions 8 and 9 consist of an upper bracket 10 and an under bracket
11 supports the vehicle body frame 3 via a steering shaft and a head pipe (not shown). These front suspensions 8, 9 absorb the impact from the front wheels 1 and attenuate the vibration.

The rear suspension 4 has a swing arm 13 pivotally supporting the rear wheel 5 and supported by the body frame 3 by a pivot 12, an upper end supported by the body frame 3, and a lower end via a link mechanism (not shown). And a rear cushion unit 14 supported by the swing arm 13. The rear cushion unit 14 absorbs the vertical swing of the swing arm 13 about the pivot 12 and attenuates the vibration, so that the impact on the rear wheel 5 is reduced.

Now, the front suspensions 8 and 9 and the rear cushion unit 14 have a hydraulic jack 50 described later.
(FIGS. 1 and 4) and 49 (FIG. 3) are respectively formed, and a vehicle height adjusting section 15 is arranged near the rear cushion unit 14. The hydraulic jacks 50 of the front suspensions 8 and 9 and the vehicle height adjusting unit 15 are
The hydraulic jack 49 of the rear cushion unit 14 and the vehicle height adjusting unit 15 are connected by a hydraulic hose on the rear side of the vehicle.
The vehicle height adjusting device 18 is constituted by being connected by the 17.
A hose connecting device 19 is provided in the middle of the vehicle front hydraulic hose 16.

In FIG. 2, reference numeral 20 denotes a front fender, and reference numeral 21 denotes a front fender.
Is a headlamp housing, 22 is a seat rail of the body frame 3, 23 is a side stand, and 24
Denotes an engine, and reference numeral 25 denotes an exhaust pipe connected to the engine 24.

As shown in FIG. 3, the rear cushion unit 14
A coil spring 27 is arranged on the outer periphery of a rear oil damper 26. The rear oil damper 26 is provided with a coil spring 27 due to the resistance when the pressure oil filled in the cylinder 28 passes through the small hole of the piston 29 and the valve 29A.
Vibration is rapidly attenuated. This cylinder 28
The inside is connected to the oil chamber of the reserve tank 31 shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 through the connecting hose 30 and the oil passage of the vehicle height adjusting unit 15.
Communicating with 32, the amount of pressure oil in the cylinder 28 is adjusted. The inside of the reserve tank 31 is partitioned by the piston 33 into the oil chamber 32 and the air chamber. A pressure of about 10 atm acts in the air chamber 34, and the pressure is adjusted so that bubbles are not generated in the oil chamber 32 and the pressure oil in the hydraulic jacks 49 and 50 and the like. Also, the above reserve tank
31 is integrally fixed to the adjusting portion main body 46 of the vehicle height adjusting portion 15 by screwing or the like.

The front suspensions 8, 9 shown in FIG.
An inner tube 35 supported on the wheel side of the front wheel 1,
The outer tube 36 includes a front oil damper. The front oil damper rapidly attenuates the vibration of a spring 37 disposed in the inner tube 35, and the spring 37 buffers the impact that the front wheel 1 receives from the road surface.

As shown in FIGS. 3, 4, and 7, the hose connecting device 19 disposed on the vehicle front hydraulic hose 16 includes a front fork side joint portion 38A and a vehicle height adjusting portion side joint portion 38B. It is composed of

These joints 38A and 38B are respectively connected to the cylinder 3
Pistons 40A, 40B are arranged in 9A, 39B, and cylinders 39A, 3
The hose connecting portions 41A and 41B are fixed to the ends of 9B, respectively. Two vehicle front side hydraulic hoses 16 are connected to a hose connecting portion 41A of a front fork side joint portion 38A and connected to front suspensions 8, 9, respectively. Also, one vehicle front side hydraulic hose 16 is connected to the hose connecting portion 41B of the vehicle height adjusting portion side joint portion 38B, and is connected to the vehicle height adjusting portion 15. Further, a push rod 42 is fixed to the piston 40A.

Further, outer cylinders 43A and 43B are loosely fitted around the outer circumferences of the cylinders 39A and 39B. By screwing female threads 44A and male threads 44B cut into these outer cylinders 43A and 43B, respectively, the front fork side joint portion 38A and the vehicle height adjustment portion side joint portion 38B are joined. At the time of this connection, the outer cylinder 43A and
43B is locked by rings 45A and 45B, respectively, and the push rod 42 contacts the piston 40B. Therefore, due to the fluctuation of the oil pressure of the pressure oil in the cylinders 39A, 39B, the pistons 40A,
40B works together.

Now, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, the vehicle height adjusting unit 15 of the vehicle height adjusting device 18 has a spool valve 47 as a vehicle height switching valve rotatably disposed at the center position of the adjusting unit main body 46. The spool valve 47 is provided with an adjusting operation section shown in FIG.
Reference numeral 48 denotes a unitary structure. By rotating the adjustment operation section 48, the spool valve 47 is switched to the High side for increasing the vehicle height or to the Low side for decreasing the vehicle height.

That is, the spool valve 47 is operated by operating the adjustment operation section 48.
When switched to the high side, the swing of the swing arm 13 causes the piston 29 in the rear oil damper 26 shown in FIG. 3 to move up and down, and the pressure oil in the cylinder 28 is displaced by arrows A and B,
Further, it flows as shown by arrows C and D shown in FIG. 5 and arrow E shown in FIG. 3, and flows into the hydraulic jack 49 of the rear cushion unit 14 via the vehicle body rear side hydraulic hose 17 as shown by arrow F. . Further, the pressure oil flowing in the vehicle height adjusting unit 15 as shown by the arrow E flows through the vehicle front side hydraulic hose 16 to the vehicle height adjusting unit side joint 38B of the hose connecting device 19 as shown by the arrow G. The hydraulic pressure of the pressure oil is transmitted to the hydraulic jacks 50 of the front suspensions 8 and 9 via the front fork side joint 38A shown in FIG.

The pressure oil that reaches these two hydraulic jacks 49 and 50 is
The check valve 47A installed in the vehicle height adjusting unit 15 closes the check valve 47A, accumulates in the hydraulic jacks 49, 50, and does not return to the cylinder 28 of the rear cushion unit 14.

As shown in FIG. 3, in the hydraulic jack 49, a jack piston 52 is disposed in a jack cylinder chamber 51, and the movement amount of the jack piston 52 is transmitted to a spring guide 54 via a spacer 53, and the spring 27 It changes the initial load. Therefore, when pressure oil flows from the vehicle height adjustment unit 15 into the jack cylinder chamber 51 of the hydraulic jack 49, the jack piston 52 moves and pushes down the spring guide 54, so that the rear cushion unit 14 is extended to increase the vehicle height. .

The hydraulic jack 50 of the front suspensions 8 and 9 has a jack piston 56 disposed in a jack cylinder chamber 55 installed in the outer tube 36, as shown in FIGS.
56 moves the plunger 57, ring 58 and spacer 59
Through the spring guide 60. The two vehicle front hydraulic hoses 16 are connected to the fork caps 61 of the left and right front suspensions 8 and 9 respectively, and guide the pressure oil in the vehicle front hydraulic hose 16 into the jack cylinder chamber 55.

In this jack cylinder chamber 55, there is a fork cap
A stopper 70 is provided at an end opposite to 61. A return spring 71 as an urging member is disposed between the stopper 70 and the jack piston 56. The urging force of the return spring 71 acts on the jack piston 56 in a direction opposite to the direction in which the hydraulic pressure of the pressure oil guided from the vehicle front side hydraulic hose 16 into the jack cylinder chamber 55 acts on the jack piston 56. A return spring 71 as an urging member is disposed at a distance from the shock absorbing spring 37 in the axial direction of the outer tube 36 as shown in FIG. 4, while the return spring 71 is arranged in parallel with the spring 37. The spring force of the return spring 71 does not affect the spring characteristics of the spring 37.

Accordingly, when the oil pressure of the pressure oil is transmitted to the hydraulic jack 50 through the hose connecting device 19, the jack piston 56 moves downward against the urging force of the return spring 71, and the spring guide 60 pushes down the spring 37. The initial load of the lever spring 37 is increased, and the front suspensions 8 and 9 are extended to increase the vehicle height.

In order to lower the vehicle height, the spool valve 47 is switched to the Low side by rotating the adjusting operation section 48 (the spool valve 47 is rotated 90 ° counterclockwise from the position shown in FIG. 5). . Then, depending on the weight of the vehicle and the weight of the rider, the pressure oil in the hydraulic jack 49 of the rear cushion unit 14 (see FIG. 3) passes through the vehicle rear side hydraulic hose 17 and the oil passage of the vehicle height adjustment unit 15 and is reserved. Oil chamber of tank 31
Return to 32. Further, the jack piston 56 in the hydraulic jacks 50 (see FIG. 1) of the front suspensions 8 and 9 moves toward the fork cap 61 due to the weight of the vehicle, the weight of the rider, and the urging force of the return spring 71. The pressure oil in 50 returns to the front fork side joint portion 38A of the hose connection device 19. As a result, the pressure oil in the joint 38B on the side of the vehicle height adjustment unit passes through the vehicle height adjustment unit 15 and passes through the oil chamber of the reserve tank 31.
Return to 32. Thus, the initial loads of the coil spring 27 of the rear cushion unit 14 and the springs 37 of the front suspensions 8 and 9 are reduced, and the rear cushion unit 14 and the front suspensions 8, 9 are reduced.
To lower the vehicle height.

In addition, a first blow valve 62 and a second blow valve 63 are arranged in the adjusting section main body 46 as shown in FIG.
The first blow valve 62 is configured such that a piston 64 is urged by a spring 65. This first blow valve 62
When the pressure oil flowing from the rear oil damper 26 through the connecting hose 30 (see FIG. 3) exceeds a predetermined pressure when the spool valve 47 is switched to the high side, the piston 64 As a result, a part of the pressure oil is discharged into the oil chamber 32 of the reservoir 31 as shown by the arrow H.

Further, the second blow valve 63 is such that a ball 66 is loosely fitted to a push piece 67 and a spring 69 is disposed between the push piece 67 and a spring guide 68. Screwed into 46.
When the vehicle jumps while the vehicle is running with the spool valve 47 switched to the high side, the hydraulic jack 49 of the rear cushion unit 14 and the hydraulic jack 5 of the front suspensions 8, 9
When the oil pressure of the pressure oil in the cylinder 0 rises, the ball 66 moves against the urging force of the spring 69, and the hydraulic hose 16 on the front side of the vehicle moves.
Then, the pressure oil in the vehicle rear side hydraulic hose 17 is returned into the oil chamber 32 of the reserve tank 31 as shown by the arrow I. This prevents the hydraulic hoses 16 and 17 from being damaged.

According to the above embodiment, when traveling on uneven terrain,
By turning the adjustment operation unit 48 of the vehicle height adjustment unit 15 in the HIGH direction to switch the spool valve 47 to the high side, the hydraulic jack 49 of the rear cushion unit 14 and the hydraulic jack 50 of the front suspension units 8 and 9 are changed.
The pressure oil in the rear cushion unit 14 is
15 to increase the length of the rear cushion unit 14 and the front suspension units 8 and 9 to increase the vehicle height and increase the road clearance.
Further, when traveling in an urban area or the like, the adjustment operation section 48 of the vehicle height adjustment section 15 is rotated in the Low direction to operate the spool valve 47.
To the low side, the pressure oil in the hydraulic jacks 49 and 50 is eliminated, the length of the rear cushion unit 14 and the front suspension units 8 and 9 are shortened to lower the vehicle height, and improve the legging performance. be able to.

In particular, when the spool valve 47 is switched to the low side and the hydraulic pressure of the pressure oil in the jack cylinder chamber 55 of the hydraulic jack 50 of the front suspensions 8, 9 is indirectly introduced into the oil chamber 32 of the reserve tank 31, The movement of the piston 56 toward the fork cap 61 is performed not only by the weight of the motorcycle and the rider, but also by the urging force of the return spring 71. At this time, the hydraulic pressure (about 10 atm) in the oil chamber 22 in the reserve tank 31 acts in the jack cylinder chamber 55, and this hydraulic pressure is applied to the jack piston 56.
Acts in a direction opposite to the biasing force of the return spring 71. Therefore, when the return spring 71 does not exist, the front suspensions 8 and 9 are extended by the oil pressure in the oil chamber 32 when the load shared by the front wheels is reduced, such as when the front wheels 1 float during vehicle running. And running may become unstable. However, the presence of the return spring 71 as described above allows the front suspensions 8, 9 to be prevented from being extended by the urging force of the return spring 71 even when the load shared by the front wheels decreases. As a result, the low state of the front suspensions 8, 9 can be reliably maintained, and traveling stability can be achieved.

Also, hydraulic jacks 50 for front suspensions 8 and 9
The movement of the jack piston 56 to the fork cap 61 side is performed not only by the weight of the motorcycle, but also by the urging force of the return spring 71.
When the spool valve 47 is switched to the low side, the front suspensions 8, 9 can be contracted simultaneously with the rear cushion unit 14 by the urging force of the return spring 71. As a result, when switching to the low side, the rider can immediately sense that the vehicle height has decreased,
The characteristics of the vehicle height adjusting device can be improved.

〔The invention's effect〕

As described above, according to the motorcycle height adjusting device of the present invention, the hydraulic jack of the front suspension has the jack piston accommodated in the jack cylinder to which the pressure oil is guided, and the end of the jack cylinder and the jack An urging body is arranged between the pistons, and the urging body is arranged in parallel with the spring, while the urging body is attached to the jack piston in a direction opposite to a hydraulic action direction of the pressure oil. Since it is installed so as to exert an urging force, the initial load of the front suspension can be positively reduced by the urging force of the urging body. This prevents suspension elongation and improves the vehicle height adjustment characteristics that reliably maintain the front suspension in the LOW state. On the other hand, since the biasing body is arranged in parallel with the shock-absorbing spring, the compression amount of the shock-absorbing spring can be reduced without affecting the characteristics of the shock-absorbing spring or deteriorating the riding comfort. Irrespective of the above, a stable biasing force can be exerted on the jack piston.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a low state of the hydraulic jack of the front force suspension shown in FIG. 2, and FIG. 2 is an overall side view showing a motorcycle to which the motorcycle height adjusting device according to the present invention is applied. FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing the rear cushion unit and the vehicle height adjusting portion and the like shown in FIG.
FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing the front suspension and the like of FIG. 2 and showing a high state of the hydraulic jack, and FIG.
FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along the line VI of FIG. 3, and FIG. 7 is a sectional view showing the hose connecting device of FIG. 2… Front fork, 8,9… Front suspension, 14… Rear cushion unit, 15… Vehicle height adjustment section, 16… Vehicle front side hydraulic hose, 17 …… Vehicle rear side hydraulic hose, 18 …… Vehicle height adjustment device, 46 …… Spool valve, 48 …… Adjustment operation part, 49,50 …… Hydraulic jack, 55…
... jack chamber, 56 ... jack piston, 71 ... return spring.

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] A rear cushion unit provided with a hydraulic jack capable of adjusting the vehicle height; a front suspension provided with a hydraulic jack capable of adjusting the vehicle height and accommodating a spring for cushioning impact from a road surface; A motorcycle height adjustment device having a vehicle height adjustment unit capable of transmitting the oil pressure of the pressure oil in the rear cushion unit to the hydraulic jacks via a hydraulic hose, wherein the hydraulic jack of the front suspension is A jack piston is housed in a jack cylinder through which pressure oil is guided,
An urging body is arranged between the end of the jack cylinder and the jack piston, and the urging body is arranged in parallel with the spring. A height adjusting device for a motorcycle, wherein the device is installed so as to apply an urging force in a direction opposite to a hydraulic action direction of the motorcycle.