JP3203274B2 - Throttle actuator - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a throttle actuator for driving a throttle valve of an engine.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, by setting the relationship between the throttle pedal opening amount and the depression amount of an accelerator pedal arbitrarily by using an actuator such as a motor, idle speed control, improvement of operational feeling and reduction of fuel consumption, or In order to reduce shocks generated during shifting of the automatic transmission, there is an increasing demand for always finely adjusting the throttle valve opening by an actuator even during normal accelerator operation.

[0003] In order to fulfill such a demand, a throttle actuator which detects an accelerator pedal operation amount and controls an opening degree of a throttle valve by an actuator so as to attain a desired opening degree corresponding to the accelerator pedal operation amount. is necessary.

As a first example of the prior art, an opening degree of the throttle valve is arbitrarily set by driving a throttle valve for controlling an amount of air taken into the engine by an actuator such as a motor, so that an operating state of the engine is controlled. An electronically-controlled throttle actuator for maintaining the vehicle optimum or adapting the running state of the vehicle to environmental conditions is described in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2-27123.

As a second example of the prior art, a throttle actuator capable of controlling the opening degree of a throttle valve to a predetermined valve opening characteristic which is not simply proportional to the amount of depression of an accelerator pedal is disclosed in, for example, JP-A-63-16703.
No. 6 is disclosed.

[0006]

The throttle actuator according to the first example of the prior art has a lost motion spring between a motor, an electromagnetic clutch, an operation lever operated by a driver via an accelerator pedal, and a throttle shaft. ing. In this operation, the electromagnetic clutch is normally disconnected, and the driver adjusts the opening of the throttle valve via the operation lever. Performs control that greatly changes the opening of the throttle valve with respect to the position of the operation lever, such as auto speed control that keeps the running speed of the vehicle at a set speed or traction control that throttles the engine output according to the running condition of the vehicle At that time, an electromagnetic clutch was connected and the opening of the throttle valve was adjusted by a motor. Also, the difference in the relative rotation angle between the operation lever and the throttle shaft, which occurs when performing auto speed control or traction control, was absorbed by the displacement of the lost motion spring.

That is, in the prior art, the adjustment of the opening of the throttle valve is mainly performed by the driver driving the throttle shaft from the operation lever via the accelerator pedal. The relationship between the amount of depression and the opening of the throttle valve was determined mechanically on a one-to-one basis.

On the other hand, in recent years, the relationship between the depression amount of the accelerator pedal and the opening degree of the throttle valve has been arbitrarily set to improve the operational feeling, reduce the fuel consumption, or reduce the shock generated during shifting of the automatic transmission. In order to achieve such a requirement, there is an increasing demand for always finely adjusting the throttle valve opening by an actuator even during a normal accelerator operation.

In order to fulfill this demand, the operation amount of the accelerator pedal is detected, and the opening of the throttle valve is controlled by a motor so that the opening corresponds to the operation amount of the accelerator pedal.

Although such a control can be structurally realized by a conventional throttle actuator,
When the motor drives the throttle valve, the driving force of the motor is transmitted to the operation lever through the lost motion spring, and attempts to move the operation lever toward the throttle valve. Since the opening of the throttle valve is controlled based on the position of the operation lever, if the position of the operation lever changes when the motor drives the throttle valve,
The opening control may not converge.

When the motor or the control device of the motor breaks down, the control device disconnects the electromagnetic clutch, and the driver adjusts the opening of the throttle valve from the accelerator pedal through the operating lever. Become. However, when the control device fails, there is a high possibility that the control device itself cannot detect the failure or disconnect the electromagnetic clutch. Therefore, in order to allow the vehicle to travel safely while adjusting the opening of the throttle valve even after the motor or the control device of the motor fails, the opening control by the motor without the control device is performed. It is necessary to provide a mechanism that can be interrupted and that can directly adjust the opening of the throttle valve by operating the accelerator pedal by the driver.

The present invention has been made by paying attention to the fact that the control of the throttle valve opening by the motor as the actuator has the following two characteristics.

The first is an idle speed control for controlling the engine speed at the time of starting or idling, and a throttle valve opening for improving the above-mentioned operational feeling or reducing fuel consumption and shift shock. The control to fine-tune the degree is regarded as an inherent characteristic of the engine and the vehicle, and is not always controlled to execute or stop the function according to the driver's intention, but is performed at all times. In addition, it is necessary that the lever operated by the driver has a structure that does not receive the control force of the actuator.

On the other hand, control for feeding back the running state of the vehicle and greatly changing the opening of the throttle valve, such as auto speed control and traction control, is control having a characteristic that the driver intends to execute the function.

A first object of the present invention is to perform stable control for finely adjusting the throttle valve opening such as idle speed control, and to perform a control when an actuator or a control device of the actuator fails. A mechanism that interrupts the opening control by the actuator without intervening the operation of the control device and adjusts the opening of the throttle valve directly by the driver's operation of the accelerator pedal to allow the vehicle to run stably. The control for greatly changing the opening of the throttle valve, such as auto speed control and traction control, is to provide a throttle actuator that allows a driver to execute or interrupt the control.

Further, the throttle actuator according to the second example of the prior art is a rotating body which is interlocked with the operation of the accelerator pedal by the driver, a motor which can reduce the opening of the throttle valve to a rotation angle of the rotating body or less, And a coil spring for pulling the rotating body and the throttle shaft. The operation is to detect the rotation angle of the rotating body and control the throttle valve opening by a motor so that the throttle valve opening has a predetermined size within a range not more than the throttle valve opening proportional to the rotation angle. . Further, the difference in the relative rotation angle between the rotating body and the throttle shaft generated during motor control is absorbed by the displacement of the coil spring.

According to the above-mentioned conventional throttle actuator, when the motor drives the throttle valve, the driving force of the motor is transmitted to the rotating body through the coil spring to move the rotating body toward the throttle valve. Since the opening of the throttle valve is controlled based on the position of the rotating body, if the position of the rotating body changes due to the driving of the throttle valve by the motor, the opening control may not converge.

The adjustment of the opening of the throttle valve after the failure of the motor or the control device for the motor is performed by the driver via the rotating body from the accelerator pedal. But,
In that case, there is a possibility that the throttle valve cannot be opened beyond the opening at the time when the motor failed. For example, if the motor is locked while the motor is controlled so that the throttle valve is fully closed, the throttle valve cannot be opened by operating the accelerator pedal, and the vehicle cannot run sufficiently safely.

A second object of the present invention is to make it possible to stably control the motor and to open the throttle valve by operating the accelerator pedal by the driver when the actuator or the control device of the actuator breaks down. It is an object of the present invention to provide a throttle actuator capable of adjusting a degree in a sufficiently wide range to allow a vehicle to travel safely.

[0020]

In order to achieve the first object, a first solution of the present invention is to provide a throttle shaft having a throttle valve provided in an intake cylinder of an engine, and an operation of an accelerator pedal. An accelerator lever that is interlocked with and is rotatably disposed relative to the throttle shaft; a return spring that urges the accelerator lever with a torque in the closing direction of the throttle valve; and a throttle valve that can be opened and closed. and actuator, said is relatively rotatably installed between the accelerator lever and the throttle shaft, a third <br/> lever closed direction of the torque of the throttle valve from the engagement portion of the accelerator levers is transmitted chromatography, first the opening direction of the torque of the throttle valve from the throttle shaft and integral engaging lever is transmitted
A differential lever lever and closing direction of the torque of the throttle valve from said engagement lever is provided with a second levers being transmitted, the engagement portion of the third lever and the accelerator lever of the differential lever A differential spring for urging the accelerator lever and the differential lever to bring the torque into close contact with each other, and a torque for urging the accelerator lever between the actuator and the throttle shaft by the return spring.
And the differential spring is in front of a third lever of the differential lever.
Torque to bring the engagement part of the accelerator lever into close contact with each other
A torque limiter which enables transferring torque smaller than for torque <br/> transmitted between the actuator and the throttle shaft, provided in relation of parallel with the torque limiter, the return spring and The differential gear
To transmit a torque larger than the torque generated by the spring.
When the clutch is disconnected,
The actuator includes a first lever and a differential lever of the differential lever.
And a second lever and the engagement lever of the throttle shaft
Of the throttle valve so that a gap exists between
And controlling the opening, the engaging portion between the third lever and the accelerator lever of the differential lever is characterized in that it has a configuration to operate in close contact by the biasing force of the differential spring .

In order to achieve the second object, a second solution of the present invention is to provide a throttle shaft having a throttle valve provided in an intake cylinder of an engine, a throttle shaft interlocked with operation of an accelerator pedal, axis and being relatively rotatably installed, and the first lever and the the opening direction of the force of the throttle valve from the integral <br/> engagement lever and the throttle shaft is reached Den <br/> A second lever to which torque in the closing direction of the throttle valve is transmitted from the engagement lever;
An accelerator lever having a chromatography, a return spring for urging the closing direction of the torque of the throttle valve with respect to the accelerator lever, an actuator capable of opening and closing of the throttle valve, Banegaa back between the actuator and the throttle shaft
A torque limiter capable of transmitting a torque smaller than the torque applied to the xerever .
The first lever and the second lever of the accelerator lever.
Slot so that there is a gap between the lever and the engagement lever.
It is characterized in that it has a configuration for controlling the opening of Ttorubarubu.

[0022]

According to the first solution of the present invention, the control for constantly fine-tuning the throttle valve opening such as the idle speed control is performed by controlling the driving force of the actuator via the torque limiter with the clutch disengaged. This is performed by transmitting the signal to the throttle shaft. At this time, the engagement portion between the first and second levers and the second lever of the differential lever and the throttle shaft is set to have a gap in the opening degree range of the throttle valve finely adjusted by the actuator. Accordingly, since the driving force of the actuator is not transmitted to the accelerator lever through the throttle shaft and the differential lever to move the position of the accelerator lever, the throttle valve opening control by the actuator can be stably performed. In addition, the l-th differential lever
When the engagement portion between the second lever or the second lever and the throttle shaft is engaged, the throttle shaft is driven by the first lever or the second lever of the differential lever regardless of the rotational position of the actuator. By setting the transmission torque of the torque limiter and the generation force of the return spring and the differential spring as described above, the first lever or the second lever of the differential lever due to a failure of the actuator or the control device of the actuator is set. When the lever and the engagement portion of the throttle shaft engage with each other, the torque limiter slips, and the throttle shaft is driven by the first lever of the differential lever in the closing direction of the throttle valve. Are driven by the second lever of the differential lever in the opening direction. Therefore, even when the actuator or the control device of the actuator fails, the driver operates the accelerator pedal without intervening the operation of the control device.
It is possible to drive the vehicle stably by directly adjusting the opening of the throttle valve.

Controls such as auto-speed control, which feeds back the running state of the vehicle and greatly changes the opening of the throttle valve, involve connecting a clutch when the driver wants to execute the function, and connecting the first lever of the differential lever. This can be realized by preventing the torque limiter from slipping even when the lever or the second lever engages with the engagement portion of the throttle shaft. Further, since the connection and disconnection of the clutch can be operated by the driver, the driver can disconnect the clutch even when the actuator or the control device of the actuator fails and the control device cannot operate to disconnect the clutch. The connection between the actuator and the throttle shaft can be returned to the state connected by the torque limiter. Accordingly, thereafter, when the first lever or the second lever of the differential lever comes into contact with the engagement portion between the throttle shaft and the throttle shaft, the torque limiter slips, and the throttle The shaft is driven by the first lever of the differential lever in the closing direction of the throttle valve and, conversely, by the second lever of the differential lever in the opening direction of the throttle valve.
Therefore, directly by the driver's operation of the accelerator pedal,
The vehicle can be driven safely by adjusting the opening of the throttle valve.

According to the second solution of the present invention, the driving force of the actuator is transmitted to the throttle shaft via the torque limiter. At this time, the engagement portion between the first lever and the second lever of the accelerator lever and the throttle shaft is set to have a gap in the opening range of the throttle valve adjusted by the actuator.
Therefore, since the driving force of the actuator is not transmitted from the throttle shaft to the accelerator lever to move the position of the accelerator lever, the throttle valve opening control by the actuator can be stably performed.
Further, when the engagement portion between the first lever or the second lever of the accelerator lever and the throttle shaft is engaged, the throttle shaft is connected to the first lever or the accelerator lever regardless of the rotational position of the actuator. The transmission torque of the torque limiter and the force generated by the return spring are set so as to be driven by the second lever. When the first lever or the second lever of the accelerator lever engages with the engagement portion of the throttle shaft due to a failure of the actuator or the control device of the actuator, a slip occurs in the torque limiter, and the throttle shaft In the closing direction of the throttle valve, it is driven by the first lever of the accelerator lever, and conversely, in the opening direction of the throttle valve, it is driven by the second lever of the accelerator lever. Therefore, even when the actuator or the control device of the actuator breaks down, the driver can operate the accelerator pedal to directly adjust the opening degree of the throttle valve to allow the vehicle to travel safely.

[0025]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 2 is an assembly view of the entire system.

The air sucked from the air cleaner 1 is supplied to the engine 3 through the intake cylinder 2. The intake cylinder 2 is provided with a throttle valve 4 for controlling the amount of intake air supplied to the engine 3.

A throttle shaft 5 is rotatably supported in the intake cylinder 2, and the throttle valve 4 is mounted so as to rotate integrally with the throttle shaft 5. When the throttle shaft 5 rotates and the throttle valve 4 opens, the amount of air supplied to the engine 3 increases, and conversely, the throttle shaft 5 rotates in the opposite direction to rotate the throttle valve 4.
Is closed, the amount of air supplied to the engine 3 decreases.

A differential lever 6 is provided at one end of the throttle shaft 5.
And an accelerator lever 7 is installed rotatably with respect to the throttle shaft 5. The accelerator lever 7 is connected to an accelerator pedal 9 via an accelerator wire 8. Further, one end of a return spring 16 for urging a torque in the closing direction of the throttle valve 4 is engaged with the accelerator lever 7. The differential lever 6 is configured to receive a third force transmitted in a closing direction of the throttle valve from an engagement portion with the accelerator lever 7.
A first lever to which a force in the opening direction of the throttle valve 4 is transmitted from an engagement portion with the throttle shaft 5;
A second lever to which a force in the closing direction of the throttle valve 4 is transmitted from an engagement portion with the throttle shaft 5.
When the depression amount of the accelerator pedal 9 changes, the accelerator lever 7 rotates via the accelerator wire 8. The rotational position of the accelerator lever 7, that is, the amount of depression of the accelerator pedal 9 is detected by an accelerator position sensor 11 and the output signal of the accelerator position sensor 11 is input to the control unit 10.

The other end of the throttle shaft 5 is connected to a motor 13 via an electromagnetic clutch 12 having a built-in torque limiter. Although the detailed structure of the electromagnetic clutch 12 will be described later, the electromagnetic clutch 12 and the torque limiter are configured to have a parallel relationship with the torque transmitted between the motor 13 and the throttle shaft 5. The rotation of the motor 13 is controlled by a signal from the control unit 10.
The upper limit of the magnitude of the driving force transmitted from the motor 13 to the throttle shaft 5 when the electromagnetic clutch 12 is in the disconnected state is the transmittable torque of the torque limiter. When the electromagnetic clutch 12 is in the connected state, all of the driving force of the motor 13 is transmitted to the throttle shaft 5. The rotational position of the throttle shaft 5, that is, the opening of the throttle valve 4, is detected by the throttle position sensor 14 and the motor 13, and the output signal of the throttle position sensor 14 is input to the control unit 10.

In order to connect the electromagnetic clutch l2, a command switch 17 operated by the driver directly connects the connected switch 171, and a signal connected to the command switch 17 receives a signal connected to the control unit 10 to connect the control unit 10.
And both must be connected. On the other hand, to disconnect the electromagnetic clutch 12, one of the switches 171 and 172 may be disconnected. In other words, even when the control unit l0 breaks down and the switch l72 is not disconnected, if the driver disconnects the switch l71 using the command switch l7, the electromagnetic clutch l2 is disconnected. Further, when the control unit 10 detects a failure of the motor 13 or the like, the control unit 10 disconnects the switch 172 to disconnect the electromagnetic clutch 12 even when the driver does not operate the command switch 17 without noticing the failure. Is disconnected.

Next, details of the opening / closing mechanism of the throttle actuator of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

In FIG. 1, the depressing force of the accelerator pedal 9 is transmitted via an accelerator wire 8 to an accelerator lever 7 rotatably mounted on the throttle shaft 5. Similarly, the differential lever 6 is rotatably mounted on the throttle shaft 5. A return spring 1 for urging a torque in the closing direction of the throttle valve 4 is provided on the accelerator lever 7.
6 is engaged, and the other end of the return spring 16 is connected to the intake cylinder 2.
Is engaged with the pin 18 implanted in the first. Further, the accelerator lever 7 has an engaging portion 71 that engages with the differential lever 6.
Is provided. The differential lever 6 is provided with a third lever 61 to which a torque in a closing direction of the throttle valve 4 is transmitted from an engagement portion 71 of the accelerator lever 7.
That is, the third lever 61 is provided at a position in the closing direction of the throttle valve 4 with respect to the engaging portion 71.

A differential spring 15 is provided between the accelerator lever 7 and the differential lever 6, and one end thereof is connected to the accelerator lever 7
And the other end is engaged with the differential lever 6.
Is engaged with the pin 64 implanted in the second. Differential spring 15
Urges the accelerator lever 7 with torque in the closing direction of the throttle valve 4, and urges the differential lever 6 with torque in the opening direction of the throttle valve 4. That is, the differential spring 15 generates a torque for bringing the engagement portion 71 of the accelerator lever 7 and the third lever 61 of the differential lever 6 into close contact with each other.

The differential lever 6 is a first lever 6 to which a torque in the opening direction of the throttle valve 4 is transmitted from an engagement lever 51 which rotates integrally with the throttle shaft 5.
2 and a second lever 63 to which the torque in the closing direction of the throttle valve 4 is transmitted from the engagement lever 51.

There is an air gap between the first lever 62 and the second lever 63 of the differential lever 6 and the engagement lever 51 of the throttle shaft 5. The size of the air gap is controlled by idle speed control, improvement of operation feeling, reduction of fuel consumption,
Alternatively, in order to reduce the shift shock of the automatic transmission or the like, when the motor 13 always performs fine control of the throttle valve opening with respect to the amount of depression of the accelerator pedal 9, the differential lever 6 is not operated. a first lever 62 and <br/> second lever 63 engages the lever 51 of the throttle shaft 5 is set so as not to engage. That is,
The first lever 62 and the second lever 63 are connected to the motor 1
3, the control for finely adjusting the normal Tokigyo cormorants throttle valve opening, is present as upper and lower limits of the limiter of the control range.

In order to explain the action of the upper and lower limiters of the control range, FIG. 3 and FIG.
Next, the structure of the electromagnetic clutch 12 incorporating the torque limiter will be described.

FIGS. 3 and 4 are sectional views showing the structure of the electromagnetic clutch l2. FIG. 3 shows a state where the electromagnetic clutch 12 is energized and connected, and FIG. 4 shows a state where the electromagnetic clutch 12 is disconnected without energization.

The outer periphery of the throttle shaft 5 has a rotor 121
Is mounted so as to rotate integrally with the throttle shaft 5. A friction plate 122 is attached to the flange of the rotor 121. The coil 123 for generating a magnetic field is housed in the core 124 and fixed to the intake cylinder 2. The armature 125 is attached via a leaf spring 126 to a gear 127 to which rotation from the motor 13 is input. The gear 127 is rotatably supported on the outer periphery of the throttle shaft 5 via a bearing 128.

When the coil 123 is energized, the core 12
4. A magnetic circuit is formed by the rotor 121 and the armature 125, and an electromagnetic force that attracts the armature 125 to the rotor 121 is generated. At this time, as shown in FIG. 3, the armature 125
And is pressed against the friction plate 122 by the frictional force between the armature 125 and the friction plate 122.
The rotation of the gear 127 is controlled by the rotor 121 and the throttle shaft 5.
Is transmitted to On the other hand, when the coil 123 is not energized, as shown in FIG. 4, the armature 125 moves in the direction of the gear 127 by the spring force of the leaf spring 126, and the armature 125 and the friction plate 122 are disconnected.

The electromagnetic clutch 12 has a built-in torque limiter 19.

The torque limiter 19 includes a friction plate 192 connected to the gear 127 by a spline portion and rotating integrally, a friction plate 193 connected to the rotor 121 by the spline portion and rotating integrally, and a friction plate 193. 1
Composed of wavy if <br/> I 191 Metropolitan for generating a force for pressing the 92 and the friction plate 193. The magnitude of the torque that can be transmitted by the torque limiter 19 is adjusted by the pressing force of the wave spring 191.

The torque transmitted between the motor 13 and the throttle shaft 5 causes the armature l of the electromagnetic clutch l2 to change.
The torque transmission via the friction plate 125 and the friction plate 122 and the torque transmission by the torque limiter 19 are configured to be in a parallel relationship. When the electromagnetic clutch 12 is in the disconnected state, the magnitude of the torque transmitted between the motor 13 and the throttle shaft 5 is limited to the maximum transmitted torque at which the torque limiter 19 starts to slip. On the other hand, when the electromagnetic clutch l2 is in the connected state, the electromagnetic clutch l2 is transmitted so that all of the driving force of the motor l3 is transmitted to the throttle shaft 5.
2 is set.

The maximum transmission torque of the torque limiter 19 is:
The maximum value of the inertia torque generated when a member driven by the motor 13 via the torque limiter 19, that is, the throttle shaft 5 and the throttle valve 4 are controlled by the motor 13 to constantly finely adjust the throttle valve opening. Is equal to or greater than the maximum value, that is, equal to or greater than the maximum value, and the torque that the return spring 16 biases the accelerator lever 7 and the differential spring 15 engages the third lever 61 of the differential lever 6 and the engagement portion of the accelerator lever 7 71 are set so as to be smaller than a torque for bringing the two into close contact with each other.

The operation of the thus configured throttle actuator of the present invention will be described below.

FIG. 5 shows, for simplicity of explanation,
FIG. 7 is an operation explanatory diagram showing a rotation movement of a throttle actuator as a linear movement. In the figure, the opening direction of the throttle valve 4 is set to the left. 5, 52 and 53 indicate a fully closed stopper and a fully opened stopper of the throttle valve 4, respectively.
Reference numerals 73 and 74 denote a fully closed stopper and a fully opened stopper of the accelerator lever 7, respectively.

FIG. 5 shows a state in which the opening degree of the throttle valve 4 is finely adjusted by the motor 13 in accordance with the depression amount of the accelerator pedal 9 with the electromagnetic clutch 12 disconnected. At this time, the torque generated by the motor 13 is transmitted to the throttle shaft 5 only through the torque limiter 19. In FIG. 5, the electromagnetic clutch 12 is omitted for simplicity, and only the torque limiter 19 is shown. When the opening control of the motor 13 is normally performed, a gap exists between the engagement lever 51 of the throttle shaft 5 and the first lever 62 and the second lever 63 of the differential lever 6, and the throttle The shaft 5 and the differential lever 6 are not in contact. Therefore, since the accelerator lever 7 is not moved by receiving the torque from the motor 13 via the differential lever 6, the throttle valve 4
Can be stably performed. At this time, the accelerator lever 7 and the differential lever 6 are moving closely together by the action of the differential spring 15.

Since the motor 13 drives the throttle shaft 5 and the throttle valve 4 via the torque limiter 19, the torque transmitted by the torque limiter 19 is equal to the inertia torque of the throttle shaft 5 and the throttle valve 4. . As described above, the maximum transmission torque of the torque limiter 19 is set to be equal to or more than this inertia torque. Accordingly, the torque limiter 19 does not slip during the control of the opening of the throttle valve 4 by the motor 13, so that the opening can be controlled at high speed and with high accuracy.

Next, an operation when the motor 13 runs away due to a failure of the motor 13 or the control unit 10 while the electromagnetic clutch 12 is disconnected will be described.

FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining the operation when the motor 13 runs out of control in the direction in which the throttle valve 4 is opened with the electromagnetic clutch 12 disconnected.

At this time, the throttle valve 4 is driven by the motor 13 via the torque limiter 19 until the engagement lever 51 of the throttle shaft 5 engages with the first lever 62 of the differential lever 6. When the motor 13 attempts to further open the throttle valve 4, a torque in the direction of closing the throttle valve 4 generated by the return spring 16 is applied to the throttle shaft 5 by the accelerator lever 7 and the differential lever 6.
Is energized through. Here, since the maximum transmission torque of the torque limiter 19 is set to be smaller than the torque that the return spring 16 urges the accelerator lever 7, the torque limiter 19 slips. Therefore, although the motor 13 continues to rotate in the opening direction, the opening of the throttle valve 4 does not open beyond the position of the first lever 62 of the differential lever 6.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of the operation when the motor l3 runs away in the direction to close the throttle valve 4 with the electromagnetic clutch l2 disconnected.

At this time, the throttle valve 4 is operated by the motor 13 via the torque limiter 19 until the engagement lever 51 of the throttle shaft 5 engages with the second lever 63 of the differential lever 6. Driven. When the motor 13 attempts to further close the throttle valve 4, the torque that the differential spring 15 makes the differential lever 6 adhere to the accelerator lever 7 is transmitted to the throttle shaft 5. Here, the maximum transmission torque of the torque limiter 19 is set so that the differential spring 15 is smaller than the torque that causes the differential lever 6 and the accelerator lever 7 to be in close contact with each other. 7, the slippage occurs in the torque limiter 19 while maintaining the close contact state. Therefore, the motor 1
3, the throttle valve 4 continues to rotate in the closing direction, but the opening of the throttle valve 4 does not close to an opening equal to or less than the position of the second lever 63 of the differential lever 6.

As described above, in the throttle actuator of the present invention, even if the motor 13 runs away due to a failure when the electromagnetic clutch 12 is disconnected, the throttle lever 6
Since the first lever 62 and the second lever 63 function as upper and lower limiters of the opening degree of the throttle valve 4, respectively, the throttle valve 4 suddenly opens or closes completely, and the vehicle rapidly accelerates or decelerates. There is no. Further, the operation of the differential lever 6 as a limiter of the first and second levers is performed without the intervention of the control unit 10.
Therefore, even when the control of the motor 13 is completely disabled due to the failure of the control unit 10, the opening of the throttle valve 4 can be directly adjusted by the driver's operation of the accelerator pedal to allow the vehicle to run safely.

FIG. 8 shows the opening range of the throttle valve 4 which can be controlled by the motor 13 with respect to the driver's depression amount of the accelerator pedal when the electromagnetic clutch 12 is disconnected, and when the motor 13 becomes uncontrollable. Throttle valve 4 adjustable by accelerator pedal operation
Shows the degree of opening.

In the figure, a range O indicated by hatching is shown by oblique lines.
ACDEGO indicates an opening degree range of the throttle valve 4 that can be controlled by the motor 13 with respect to the accelerator pedal depression amount of the driver. For example, when the accelerator pedal depression amount is a, the opening of the throttle valve 4 that can be adjusted by the control of the motor 13 is from b to c, and the adjustment width d (= cd) of the opening is the differential lever 6. Is determined by the size of the gap between the first lever 62 and the second lever 63 and the engagement lever 51 of the throttle shaft 5. The torque generated by the motor 13 is not transmitted to the accelerator lever 7 as long as the opening of the throttle valve 4 is adjusted by controlling the motor 13 within the range of the hatched portion in FIG.

The marks GB, BC, CF, and FG in FIG.
When the control of the motor 13 becomes disabled, the accelerator pedal depression amount is reduced from 0% to 100% and from 100% to 0%.
5 shows the change in the opening degree of the throttle valve 4 when it is changed to. That is, the change in the opening degree of the throttle valve 4 with respect to the accelerator pedal depression amount at this time is represented by GB
It has hysteresis indicated by CFG.

The opening of the throttle valve 4 corresponding to the point G is the opening used for the idle speed control and the minimum opening that can be returned by operating the accelerator pedal when the control is disabled. Accordingly, the position of the point G is set so that the opening of the throttle valve 4 can sufficiently reduce the engine output when the accelerator pedal 9 is released.

The opening of the throttle valve 4 corresponding to the point C is the maximum opening that can be opened by operating the accelerator pedal when control is impossible. Therefore, the position of the point C is set so that when the accelerator pedal 9 is depressed to the maximum position, the opening of the throttle valve 4 can obtain an engine output capable of driving the vehicle stably.

Further, the opening control width d and the lower limit AC of the control range are determined.
The inclination of the upper limit GE depends on the size of the gap between the first lever 62 and the second lever 63 of the differential lever 6 and the engagement lever 51 of the throttle shaft 5 and the inclination of the accelerator lever 7 to which the accelerator wire 8 is applied. It can be adjusted by changing the effective diameter.

For example, as shown in FIG. 9, when the effective diameter of the accelerator lever 7 is made smaller than that shown in FIG. 8, the inclination of AC and GE becomes steeper. Here, if the position of the point C that gives the maximum opening of the throttle valve 4 when control is impossible is set to be equal to the case of FIG. 8, the opening control width d can be made larger than that of FIG. it can.
However, at the same time, the hysteresis GBCFG of the change in the opening degree of the throttle valve 4 with respect to the amount of depression of the accelerator pedal when control is impossible becomes larger than that in the case of FIG.

Further, as shown in FIG. 10, when the effective diameter of the accelerator lever 7 is made larger than that shown in FIG. 8, the inclination of AC and GE becomes gentler. When the position of the point C that gives the maximum opening of the throttle valve 4 when control is impossible is set to be equal to the case of FIG. 8, the opening control width d becomes smaller than that of FIG. But at the same time,
The hysteresis GBCFG of the change in the opening of the throttle valve 4 with respect to the amount of depression of the accelerator pedal when control is impossible is also
It can be smaller than in the case of FIG.

As described above, the size of the gap between the first lever 62 and the second lever 63 of the differential lever 6 and the engagement lever 51 of the throttle width 5 and the size of the accelerator lever 7 to which the accelerator wire 8 is applied By changing the effective diameter, it is possible to freely set the opening width required for control and the characteristics of the throttle valve opening with respect to the operation of the accelerator pedal when control is impossible.

Next, a throttle actuator for connecting the electromagnetic clutch 12 and performing a control for feeding back the operating state of the vehicle and greatly changing the opening of the throttle valve, such as automatic speed control and traction control. Will be described. In order to be able to execute these controls,
As described with reference to FIG. 2, when the driver wants to execute the control function, the command switch 17 is operated to connect the electromagnetic clutch 12 and the first lever 6 of the differential lever 6 is operated.
It is necessary to prevent the torque limiter 19 from slipping even when the second or second lever 63 and the engagement lever 51 of the throttle shaft 5 are engaged.

[0065] Figure 11 is a state of connecting the electromagnetic clutch 12, as the auto speed control, the motor control to increase the opening degree of the throttle valve 4 with respect to the depression amount of the accelerator <br/> Bae Da Le 9 13 shows a state of the operation. At this time, the torque generated by the motor 13 is transmitted to the electromagnetic
Is transmitted to In FIG. 11, the torque limiter 19 is omitted for simplicity, and only the electromagnetic clutch 12 is shown.
When the motor 13 drives the throttle valve 4 in the opening direction, the engagement lever 51 of the throttle width 5 comes into contact with the first lever 62 of the differential lever 6, and the accelerator lever 7 is moved in the opening direction of the throttle valve 4. It is. Since the control such as the automatic speed control adjusts the opening of the throttle valve 4 by the motor 13 so that the opening is determined by the control unit 10 according to the running state of the vehicle, the position of the accelerator lever 7 moves. Even if this is done, the opening control by the motor 13 will not be unstable.

When the accelerator lever 7 is moved to the opening side with respect to the driver's depression amount of the accelerator pedal, the motor 13 bears the torque of the return spring 16 that the driver bears with the depression force of the accelerator pedal 9. Will do.
In other words, the driver feels that the accelerator pedal 9 has become lighter, and can also know through the accelerator pedal 9 that the throttle valve 4 has been largely moved to the open side by the motor 13. However, at this time, since the accelerator wire 8 is slack, the depressed position of the accelerator pedal 9 is not moved.

FIG. 12 shows how the motor 13 controls the throttle valve 4 to reduce the opening of the throttle valve 4 with respect to the amount of depression of the accelerator pedal 9, such as traction control, with the electromagnetic clutch 12 connected. Is shown. Like FIG. 11, in FIG. 12, the torque limiter 19 is omitted for simplicity, and only the electromagnetic clutch 12 is shown. When the motor 13 drives the throttle valve 4 in the closing direction, the engagement lever 51 of the throttle width 5 and the second lever 63 of the differential lever 6 engage, and the differential lever 6 moves in the closing direction of the throttle valve 4. Be moved. When the differential lever 6 is moved in the closing direction, the accelerator lever 7
, The driver bears the torque of the return spring 16 and the torque of the differential spring 15 by the depression force of the accelerator pedal 9. That is,
The driver feels that the accelerator pedal 9 has become heavy, and can also know through the accelerator pedal 9 that the throttle valve 4 has been largely moved to the closing side by the motor 13. At this time, the accelerator lever 7 does not move to the closing side from a position corresponding to the amount of depression of the accelerator pedal 9 by the driver.

FIG. 13 shows the opening range of the throttle valve 4 that can be controlled by the motor 13 with respect to the amount of depression of the accelerator pedal by the driver when the electromagnetic clutch 12 is connected.

In the figure, the hatched area indicates the opening range of the throttle valve 4 which can be controlled by the motor 13 with respect to the driver's depression amount of the accelerator pedal. In other words, the opening of the throttle valve 4 can be adjusted from fully closed to fully open by controlling the motor 13 at an arbitrary position where the accelerator pedal is depressed. The range OACDEGO indicates an opening range in which even if the opening of the throttle valve 4 is controlled by the motor 13, the depression force of the accelerator pedal 9 operated by the driver does not change. This opening range is determined by the first lever 6 of the differential lever 6.
It is set by the size of the gap between the second and second levers 63 and the engagement lever 51 of the throttle shaft 5. Also,
The range GEHG and the range AICA indicate an opening range where the accelerator pedal 9 becomes lighter and an opening range where the accelerator pedal 9 becomes heavier, respectively, by controlling the opening of the motor 13.

Also, arrows GB, BC, CF,
When the FG disconnects the electromagnetic clutch 12 at the time of failure,
Depress the accelerator pedal from 0% to 100% and l
Throttle valve 4 when changing from 00% to 0%
3 shows the change in the opening degree.

When the motor 13 runs away due to a failure of the motor 13 or the control unit 10 while the electromagnetic clutch 12 is connected, the operation as described with reference to FIG. 2 is as follows.

That is, the failure is detected by the control unit 1
When 0 is detected, the control unit 10 disconnects the switch 172 to thereby activate the electromagnetic clutch 12.
Is disconnected. If the control unit 10 breaks down and the switch 172 is not disconnected, if the driver operates the command switch 17 to disconnect the switch 171, the electromagnetic clutch 12 is disconnected. The operation after the electromagnetic clutch 12 is disconnected is the same as the operation described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7, and the motor 13 and the throttle shaft 5 are connected only by the torque limiter 19. Thereafter, the first lever 62 and the second lever 63 of the differential lever 6
However , since the throttle valve 4 functions as an upper limit and a lower limit of the opening degree of the throttle valve 4, respectively, the throttle valve 4 does not suddenly open or close completely and the vehicle does not suddenly accelerate or decelerate. The operation of the differential lever 6 as a limiter of the first and second levers is performed without the intervention of the control unit 10. Therefore, even when the control of the motor 13 is completely disabled due to the failure of the control unit 10, the opening of the throttle valve 4 can be directly adjusted by the driver's operation of the accelerator pedal to allow the vehicle to run safely. .

Next, a description will be given of a second embodiment of the throttle actuator according to the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing the structure of the main part of the second embodiment. Phase違点the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1 is that with the second return spring 20 for urging the closing direction of the torque of the throttle valve 4 with respect to the throttle shaft 5. One end of the second return spring 20 is engaged with a pin 18 implanted in the intake cylinder 2, and the other end is connected to the throttle shaft 5.
Is engaged with a spring hanger 54 which rotates together with the spring hanger 54.

FIG. 15 is a sectional view of the electromagnetic clutch 12 provided in the throttle actuator of the second embodiment. The electromagnetic clutch 12 of FIG. 15 incorporates a torque limiter 21 of a type different from that shown in FIGS. In FIG. 15, parts other than the true limiter 21 are the same as those shown in FIGS. 3 and 4.
5 shows a state where the electromagnetic clutch 12 is disconnected.

The torque limiter 21 is constituted by a coil spring. The inner diameter of the coil spring is inserted with a slight interference with the outer diameter of the boss of the rotor 121 and the gear 127. The winding direction of the coil spring is the gear l2.
7 is attached to the rotor 121 so as to be in the direction of tightening when rotating in the opening direction of the throttle valve 4 (see FIG. 16).

When the motor 13 rotates the gear 127 in the opening direction of the throttle valve 4, a frictional force is generated between the inner diameter of the coil spring and the boss, and the motor 121, that is, the throttle shaft 5 is rotated. it can. However, when the torque of the motor 13 is increased, the frictional force is lost at a predetermined torque, and slipping starts to occur between the coil spring and the boss. The torque at this time is the maximum transmission torque of the torque limiter 21. The magnitude of the maximum transmission torque can be arbitrarily set by adjusting the interference of the inner diameter of the coil spring with respect to the outer diameter of the boss and the amount of winding of the spring around the boss. The motor 13 is driven via the torque limiter 21 by the throttle shaft 5, the throttle valve 4, and the second return spring 20, and the torque transmitted by the torque limiter 21 is the inertia torque of the throttle shaft 5 and the throttle valve 4. And the second return spring 20
Is equal to the torque generated in the closing direction of the throttle valve 4. If the maximum transmission torque of the torque limiter 21 is set to be equal to or greater than the value obtained by adding the inertia torque and the torque of the return spring, the throttle valve 4
Does not occur in the torque limiter 19 during the opening degree control of.

When the motor 13 rotates the gear 127 in the direction in which the throttle valve 4 closes, the coil spring is rewound, so that torque from the gear 127 to the rotor 121 is generated between the coil spring and the boss. It is transmitted only by a slight slip force. At this time, the throttle shaft 5 rotates in the closing direction of the throttle valve 4 by the biasing torque of the second return spring 20, and stops again at an opening at which a frictional force is generated between the coil spring and the boss.

As described above, the opening of the throttle valve 4 can be controlled by the motor 13 via the torque limiter 21.

Next, the operation when the motor 13 runs away in the direction to open the throttle valve 4 with the electromagnetic clutch 12 disconnected will be described.

At this time, the throttle valve 4 is opened by the motor 13 via the torque limiter 21 until the engagement lever 51 of the throttle shaft 5 engages with the first lever 62 of the differential lever 6. When the motor 13 tries to open the throttle valve 4 further, the throttle shaft 5
The torque generated by the return spring 16 in the direction to close the throttle valve 4 is urged via the differential lever 6 and the accelerator lever 7. At this time, if the torque that can be transmitted by the torque limiter 21 is set to be smaller than the torque that the return spring 16 urges the accelerator lever 7,
The torque limiter 21 slips. Therefore, the motor 1
3 further continues to rotate in the opening direction, but the opening of the throttle valve 4 does not open beyond the position of the first lever 62 of the differential lever 6.

[0082] Furthermore, while cutting the electromagnetic clutch 12, when the motor 13 runs away in the direction of closing the throttle valve 4, a throttle valve 4, the engaging lever 51 of the throttle shaft 5 is a second differential lever 6 Lever 63
Until it is closed by the second return spring 21. At this time, the torque limiter 2
A torque acts in the direction of unwinding one coil spring. If the magnitude of the torque transmitted by the idling force of the torque limiter 21 is set to be smaller than the torque by which the differential spring 15 makes the differential lever 6 and the accelerator lever 7 adhere to each other, the differential lever 6 The torque limiter 21 slips while keeping the close contact with the accelerator lever 7. Therefore, although the motor 13 continues to rotate in the closing direction, the opening of the throttle valve 4
The second lever 63 does not close to an opening smaller than the position of the lever 63.

In the throttle actuator according to the second embodiment of the present invention, similarly to the first embodiment, the electromagnetic clutch 12 is used.
Even if the motor 13 runs out of control due to a failure when the motor is disconnected, the first lever 62 and the second lever 63 of the differential lever 6 function as upper and lower limiters of the opening degree of the throttle valve 4, respectively. Therefore, the throttle valve 4 does not suddenly open or close completely, and the vehicle does not suddenly accelerate or decelerate. Further, the operation of the limiters of the first and second levers of the differential lever 6 is performed without the intervention of the control unit 10. Therefore, even when the control of the motor 13 is completely disabled due to the failure of the control unit 10, the driver can operate the accelerator pedal to directly adjust the opening degree of the throttle valve 4 to drive the vehicle safely. it can.

Incidentally, also in the second embodiment, the electromagnetic clutch
When the motor 2 is in the connected state, the transmission torque of the electromagnetic clutch 12 is set such that all of the driving force of the motor 13 is transmitted to the throttle shaft 5. Electromagnetic clutch
The operation of control when connecting 2 and the operation at the time of failure are as follows.
This is the same as that described in the first embodiment.

Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
2 will be described.

In FIG. 18, an accelerator lever 7 is provided at one end of the throttle shaft 5 so as to be rotatable with respect to the throttle shaft 5. The accelerator lever 7 is connected to an accelerator pedal 9 via an accelerator wire 8. Also,
One end of a return spring 16 that biases the torque in the closing direction of the throttle valve 4 is engaged with the accelerator lever 7. Although the detailed structure of the accelerator lever 7 will be described later, the accelerator lever 7 engages with a first lever to which a force in the opening direction of the throttle valve 4 is transmitted from an engagement portion with the throttle shaft 5 and the throttle shaft 5. Throttle valve 4 from section
And a second lever to which the force in the closing direction is transmitted. When the depression amount of the accelerator pedal 9 is changed, the accelerator lever 7 is rotated via the accelerator wire 8. The rotational position of the accelerator lever 7, that is, the amount of depression of the accelerator pedal 9 is detected by the accelerator position sensor 11, and the output signal of the accelerator position sensor 11 is input to the control unit 10.

The other end of the throttle shaft 5 is connected to the motor 13 via a torque limiter 19. The motor 13
The rotation is controlled by a signal from the control unit 10. The upper limit of the magnitude of the driving force transmitted from the motor 13 to the throttle shaft 5 is the transmittable torque of the torque limiter 19. The rotational position of the throttle shaft 5, that is, the opening of the throttle valve 4, is detected by a throttle position sensor 14, and the throttle position sensor 1
4 is input to the control unit 10.

Next, the details of the opening / closing mechanism of the throttle actuator according to the third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

In FIG. 17, the depressing force of the accelerator pedal 9 is transmitted via an accelerator wire 8 to an accelerator lever 7 rotatably mounted on the throttle shaft 5. One end of a return spring 16 for urging the accelerator lever 7 in the closing direction of the throttle valve 4 is engaged, and the other end of the return spring 16 is engaged with a pin 18 implanted in the intake cylinder 2. ing. Further, the accelerator lever 7 has a first lever 71 to which torque in the opening direction of the throttle valve 4 is transmitted from an engagement lever 51 which rotates integrally with the throttle shaft 5, and a throttle valve 4 from the engagement lever 51. And a second lever 72 to which the torque in the closing direction is transmitted.

The first lever 71 and the second lever 72 of the accelerator lever 7 and the engagement lever 51 of the throttle shaft 5
There is a gap between them. The size of the gap is determined by the motor 13 with respect to the amount of depression of the accelerator pedal 9 in order to achieve idle speed control, improve operational feeling, reduce fuel consumption, or reduce the shift shock of an automatic transmission. The first lever 71 and the second lever 72 of the accelerator lever 7 are set so as not to engage with the engagement lever 51 of the throttle shaft 5 when performing control for adjusting the throttle valve opening. I have. That is, the first lever 71 and the second lever 72
Exists as a limiter for the upper and lower limits of the control range for the control that constantly adjusts the throttle valve opening.

The structure of the torque limiter 19 will be described below with reference to FIGS. 19 and 20 in order to explain the action as the upper and lower limiters of the control range.

FIG. 19 is a sectional view showing the structure of the torque limiter 19.

On the outer periphery of the throttle shaft 5, a gear 127 to which rotation from a motor 13 is input is rotatably supported via a bearing 128.

The torque limiter 19 is composed of a friction plate 192 coupled to the gear 127 and the sub-line portion and rotating integrally therewith, and a friction plate 1 coupled to the rotor 122 and the spline portion and rotating integrally with the throttle shaft 5.
93, and a wavy spring 191 that generates a force for pressing the friction plates 192 and 193. The magnitude of the torque that can be transmitted by the torque limiter 19 is determined by the wave spring l.
It is adjusted by the pressing force of 91.

The maximum magnitude of the torque transmitted between the motor 13 and the throttle shaft 5 is the maximum transmitted torque at which the torque limiter 19 starts to slip.

The maximum transmission torque of the torque limiter 19 is:
The members driven by the motor 13 via the torque limiter 19, that is, the throttle shaft 5 and the throttle valve 4 are equal to the maximum value of the drive torque required for controlling the throttle valve opening by the motor 13 or It is set to be large and smaller than the torque that the return spring 16 urges the accelerator lever 7.

The operation of the throttle actuator of the present invention configured as described above will be described below.

FIG. 20 is an operation explanatory diagram showing the rotational movement of the throttle actuator as a linear movement for easy understanding. In the figure, the opening direction of the throttle valve 4 is set to the left. FIG.
The numbers written in 0 correspond to the numbers of the members shown in FIGS. 20, 52 and 53 indicate a fully closed stopper and a fully opened stopper of the throttle valve 4, respectively, and 73 and 74 indicate a fully closed stopper and a fully opened stopper of the accelerator lever 7, respectively. I have.

FIG. 20 shows a state in which the opening of the throttle valve 4 is controlled by the motor 13 in accordance with the depression amount of the accelerator pedal 9. At this time, the torque generated by the motor 13 is the torque limiter 1
9 is transmitted to the throttle shaft 5 only. When the opening degree control of the motor 13 is performed normally, a gap exists between the engagement lever 51 of the throttle shaft 5 and the first lever 71 and the second lever 72 of the accelerator lever 7, and the throttle shaft 5 and the accelerator lever 7 are not in contact with each other. Accordingly, since the accelerator lever 7 is not moved by receiving the torque from the motor 13, the opening control of the throttle valve 4 by the motor 13 can be stably performed.

Since the motor 13 is driven by the throttle shaft 5 and the throttle valve 4 via the torque limiter 19, the torque transmitted by the torque limiter 19 depends on the inertia torque and friction of the throttle shaft 5 and the throttle valve 4. Is equal to the drive torque which is the sum of the loss torques. As described above, the maximum transmission torque of the torque limiter 19 is set to be equal to or greater than this driving torque. Therefore, the throttle valve 4 by the motor 13
No slip occurs in the torque limiter 19 during the opening degree control, so that the opening degree can be controlled at high speed and with high accuracy.

Next, an operation when the motor 13 runs away due to a failure of the motor 13 or the control unit 10 will be described.

FIG. 21 is a diagram for explaining the operation when the motor 13 runs out of control in the direction in which the throttle valve 4 is opened.

At this time, the throttle valve 4 is driven by the motor 13 via the torque limiter 19 until the engagement lever 51 of the throttle shaft 5 engages with the first lever 71 of the accelerator lever 7. When the motor 13 tries to open the throttle valve 4 further, the throttle shaft 5
, The torque generated by the return spring 16 in the direction to close the throttle valve 4 is urged via the accelerator lever 7. Here, the maximum transmission torque of the torque limiter 19 is
Since the return spring 16 is set to be smaller than the torque urging the accelerator lever 7, the torque limiter 19 slips. Therefore, although the motor 13 continues to rotate in the opening direction, the opening of the throttle valve 4 does not open beyond the position of the first lever 71 of the accelerator lever 7.

FIG. 22 is an explanatory diagram of the operation when the motor 13 runs away in the direction in which the throttle valve 4 is closed.

At this time, the throttle valve 4 is driven by the motor 13 via the torque limiter 19 until the engagement lever 51 of the throttle shaft 5 engages with the second lever 72 of the accelerator lever 7. Even if the motor 13 attempts to further close the throttle valve 4, the position of the accelerator lever 7 is supported by the driver's depression force on the accelerator pedal 9, so that the torque limiter 19 is also required.
Slips. Therefore, although the motor 13 continues to rotate in the closing direction, the opening of the throttle valve 4 does not close to the opening below the position of the second lever 72 of the accelerator lever 7.

As described above with reference to FIGS. 21 and 22, the throttle actuator according to the present invention can operate the first lever 71 and the second lever 71 of the accelerator lever 7 even if the motor 13 runs away due to a failure. The levers 72 function as limiters for the upper and lower limits of the opening degree of the throttle valve 4, respectively, so that the throttle valve 4 does not suddenly open or close completely and the vehicle does not suddenly accelerate or suddenly decelerate.
Further, the operation of the first and second levers of the accelerator lever 7 as limiters is performed without the intervention of the control unit 10. Therefore, even when the control of the motor 13 is completely disabled due to the failure of the control unit 10, the driver can operate the accelerator pedal to directly adjust the opening of the throttle valve 4 to allow the vehicle to run safely.

The opening range of the throttle valve 4 that can be controlled by the motor 13 with respect to the amount of depression of the accelerator pedal by the driver, and the opening of the throttle valve 4 that can be adjusted by operating the accelerator pedal when the motor 13 becomes uncontrollable. As described above, as shown in FIG. 8, and regarding the change in the effective diameter of the accelerator lever,
9 and 10 are as described above.

Next, a fourth embodiment of the throttle actuator of the present invention will be described.

FIG. 23 is a diagram showing the structure of the main part of the fourth embodiment. The difference from the third embodiment shown in FIG. 17 is that a second return spring 20 for urging the throttle shaft 5 with a torque in the closing direction of the throttle valve 4 is provided. One end of the second return spring 20 is engaged with a pin 18 implanted in the intake cylinder 2, and the other end is connected to the throttle shaft 5.
Is engaged with a spring hanger 54 which rotates together with the spring hanger 54.

The fourth embodiment incorporates a torque limiter 21 of a type different from that shown in FIG. FIG. 24 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the structure of the torque limiter 21.

The torque limiter 21 is constituted by a coil spring. The inner diameter of the coil spring is inserted with a slight interference with the outer diameter of the boss of the rotor 121 and the gear 127. The winding direction of the coil spring is
7 is attached to the rotor 121 so as to be in the direction of tightening when rotating in the opening direction of the throttle valve 4 (see FIG. 25).

When the motor 13 rotates the gear 127 in the opening direction of the throttle valve 4, a frictional force is generated between the inner diameter of the coil spring and the boss, and the rotor 121, that is, the throttle shaft 5 can be rotated. However, when the torque of the motor 13 is increased, the frictional force is lost at a predetermined torque, and slipping starts to occur between the coil spring and the boss. The torque at this time is the maximum transmission torque of the torque limiter 21. The magnitude of the maximum transmission torque can be arbitrarily set by adjusting the interference of the inner diameter of the coil spring with respect to the outer diameter of the boss and the amount of winding of the spring around the boss. It is the throttle shaft 5, the throttle valve 4, and the second return spring 20 that the motor 13 drives via the torque limiter 21, and the torque transmitted by the torque limiter 21 is the driving torque of the throttle shaft 5 and the throttle valve 4. And the torque generated by the second return spring 20 in the closing direction of the throttle valve 4.
If the maximum transmission torque of the torque limiter 21 is set to be equal to or more than the value obtained by adding the driving torque and the torque of the return spring, the torque limiter 19 slips during the opening control of the throttle valve 4 by the motor 13. Never do.

When the motor 13 turns the gear 127 in the direction in which the throttle valve 4 closes, the coil spring is rewound, so that torque from the gear 127 to the rotor 121 is generated between the coil spring and the boss. It is transmitted only by a slight slip force. At this time, the throttle shaft 5 rotates in the closing direction of the throttle valve 4 by the biasing torque of the second return spring 20, and stops again at an opening at which a frictional force is generated between the coil spring and the boss. Thus, the opening of the throttle valve 4 can be controlled by the motor 13 via the torque limiter 21.

Subsequently, the motor 13 is operated by the throttle valve 4
The operation when a runaway occurs in the opening direction will be described.

At this time, the throttle valve 4 is opened by the motor 13 via the torque limiter 21 until the engagement lever 51 of the throttle shaft 5 engages with the first lever 71 of the accelerator lever 7. When the motor 13 attempts to further open the throttle valve 4, a torque in the direction of closing the throttle valve 4 generated by the return spring 16 is applied to the throttle shaft 5 via the accelerator lever 7. At this time, if the torque that can be transmitted by the torque limiter 21 is set to be smaller than the torque that the return spring 16 urges the accelerator lever 7, the torque limiter 21 slips. Therefore, although the motor 13 continues to rotate further in the opening direction, the opening of the throttle valve 4 does not open beyond the position of the first lever 71 of the accelerator lever 7.

When the motor 13 runs away in the direction to close the throttle valve 4, the throttle valve 4
Is closed by the second return spring 21 until the engagement lever 51 of the throttle shaft 5 engages with the second lever 72 of the accelerator lever 7. At this time, a torque acts on the throttle shaft 5 in a direction in which the coil spring of the torque limiter 21 is rewound. Even if the motor 13 attempts to further close the throttle valve 4, if the driver's depression force on the accelerator pedal 9 is greater than the idling force of the torque limiter 21, the torque limiter 21 will still slip. Therefore, although the motor 13 continues to rotate in the closing direction, the opening of the throttle valve 4 does not close to the opening below the position of the second lever 72 of the accelerator lever 7.

As described above, the fourth aspect of the present invention
In the throttle actuator of the embodiment, similarly to the third embodiment, even if the motor 13 runs away due to a failure,
Since the first lever 71 and the second lever 72 of the accelerator lever 7 function as limiters for the upper and lower limits of the opening of the throttle valve 4, respectively,
However, the vehicle does not suddenly open or close completely, and the vehicle does not suddenly accelerate or suddenly disappear.

FIG. 26 shows another type of torque limiter 22.
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing the structure of FIG.

The torque limiter 22 is a so-called powder limiter that transmits torque using a magnet and magnetic powder as a medium. The casing 221 rotates integrally with the gear 127, and the magnet rotates integrally with the throttle shaft 5. 222 and a magnetic powder 223 sealed between the casing 221 and the magnet 222.

The maximum transmission torque of the torque limiter 22 is:
It is set according to the strength of the magnetic field of the magnetic circuit formed by the casing 221, the magnet 222, and the magnetic powder 223. The operation of the torque limiter 22 at the time of failure of the motor or the like is as follows.
This is the same as that described in each of the above embodiments.

[0121]

As described above, according to the present invention,
The engagement portion between the first lever and the second lever of the differential lever or the accelerator lever and the throttle shaft is set to have a gap, so that the position of the accelerator lever is not moved by the driving force of the actuator. Therefore, the opening control of the throttle valve by the actuator can be stably performed. Further, in the case of failure of the actuator or the control device of the actuator, when the first lever or the second lever of the differential lever or the accelerator lever is engaged with the engagement portion of the throttle shaft, the torque limiter slips, The throttle shaft is driven by the first or second lever, so that the driver can operate the pedal to directly adjust the opening of the throttle valve to drive the vehicle safely. In the case of automatic speed control, traction control, and the like, an electromagnetic clutch can be connected, and control can be performed to greatly change the opening of the throttle valve by feeding back the running state of the vehicle.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an assembly view showing a first embodiment of a throttle valve opening / closing mechanism according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the entire system of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 when the electromagnetic clutch is connected;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the electromagnetic clutch of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 when disconnected.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of an operation when the electromagnetic clutch of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 is disconnected.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of an operation at the time of runaway in a motor opening direction.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of an operation during a runaway in a motor closing direction.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram of a control range when the electromagnetic clutch is disconnected.

FIG. 9 is another explanatory diagram of the control range when the electromagnetic clutch is disconnected.

FIG. 10 is another explanatory view of the control range when the electromagnetic clutch is disconnected.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram of an operation when an electromagnetic clutch is connected.

FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating another operation when the electromagnetic clutch is connected.

FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram of a control range when an electromagnetic clutch is connected.

FIG. 14 is an assembly view showing a second embodiment of the throttle valve opening / closing mechanism according to the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view of the embodiment shown in FIG. 14 when the electromagnetic clutch is disconnected.

FIG. 16 is a sectional view showing a throttle valve opening / closing mechanism of the embodiment shown in FIG. 14;

FIG. 17 shows a third embodiment of the throttle valve opening / closing mechanism according to the present invention.

18 is a configuration diagram of the entire system of the embodiment shown in FIG.

19 is a sectional view of the torque limiter of the embodiment shown in FIG.

20 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the embodiment shown in FIG. 17 (in a normal state).

FIG. 21 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the embodiment shown in FIG. 17 (at the time of runaway in the motor opening direction).

FIG. 22 is an explanatory view of the operation of the embodiment shown in FIG. 17 (when the motor runs out of control in the closing direction).

FIG. 23 is a diagram showing a throttle valve opening / closing mechanism according to a fourth embodiment;

FIG. 24 is a sectional view of another type of torque limiter.

FIG. 25 is a view showing a throttle valve opening / closing mechanism according to a fourth embodiment;

FIG. 26 is a sectional view of still another type of torque limiter;

[Explanation of symbols]

2 ... intake cylinder 4 ... throttle valve 5 ... throttle shaft 6 ... differential lever 7 ... accelerator lever 8 ... accelerator wire 9 ... accelerator pedal 10 ... control unit 12 ... electromagnetic clutch 13 ... motor 15 ... differential spring 16 ... return spring 17 ... Command switches 19, 21, 22 ...
Torque limiter 20: second return spring

Continuation of the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification code FI F02D 11/04 F02D 11/04 J 11/10 11/10 B H Q 29/02 301 29/02 301C 311 311E 41/04 310 41/04 310G 41/08 310 41/08 310 41/14 320 41/14 320A 320D 41/22 310 41/22 310H (72) Inventor Naoyuki Tanaka 502, Kandatecho, Tsuchiura-shi, Ibaraki Pref. ) Inventor Yasuhiko Honda 2520 Takada, Katsuta, Ibaraki Pref. Automotive Equipment Division, Hitachi, Ltd. (56) References JP-A-3-107544 (JP, A) JP-A-3-242432 (JP, A) JP-A-1-95932 (JP, A) JP-A 64-32437 (JP, U) Patent 2809508 (JP, B2) US Patent 5,103,787 (US, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , (DB name) F02D 9/00-11/10

Claims (9)

(57) [Claims] A throttle shaft having a throttle valve provided in an intake cylinder of an engine; an accelerator lever interlocked with operation of an accelerator pedal and arranged to be rotatable relative to the throttle shaft; A return spring for urging a torque in the closing direction of the throttle valve with respect to the throttle valve; an actuator capable of opening and closing the throttle valve; and an accelerator lever mounted to be rotatable relative to the accelerator lever and the throttle shaft. third levers which torque from the engagement portion of the closing direction of the throttle valve over is transmitted, the torque of the throttle shaft and the opening direction of the integral of the engaging lever or <br/> et the throttle valve is transmitted The torque in the closing direction of the throttle valve is transmitted from the first lever and the engagement lever that are closed. The second of the levers
A differential spring biasing the differential lever, the torque are brought into close contact with each other and the engaging portion of the third lever and the accelerator lever of the differential lever to the accelerator lever and the differential lever wherein the actuator and wherein between said throttle shaft
The return spring biases the accelerator lever and
The differential spring is connected to the third lever of the differential lever and the actuator.
Than the torque to make the engagement part of the cell lever adhere to each other
A torque limiter that can be transmitted a small torque with respect to torque transmitted between the actuator and the throttle shaft, provided in relation of parallel with the torque limiter, the return spring and the differential spring
And a clutch capable of transmitting a torque larger than the generated torque.
A first lever and a second lever of the differential lever;
There is an air gap between the throttle shaft and the engagement lever
Controlling an opening degree of the throttle valve as the engagement portion of the third lever and the accelerator lever of the differential lever configuration that operates in close contact by the biasing force of the differential spring
Throttle actuator, characterized in that the the. A throttle shaft having a throttle valve provided in wherein the engine intake cylinder of, are installed to be rotated relative the throttle shaft with interlocked with operation of the accelerator pedal and the throttle shaft and integral Axel opening direction of the force of the throttle valve from the engagement lever is provided with a second levers closed direction of the torque of the first lever and the throttle valve from said engagement lever <br/> transmitted is transmitted in Lever in the closing direction of the throttle valve with respect to the accelerator lever.
A return spring for biasing the torque, and an actuator capable of opening and closing of the throttle valve, the return spring between the actuator and the throttle shaft Accessible
Transmission allowed a smaller torque than the torque for biasing Rureba
A torque limiter, and the actuator has a first lever and an accelerator lever.
And a gap exists between the second lever and the engagement lever.
Throttle actuator, characterized in <br/> that the configuration for controlling the opening degree of the throttle valve so that. 3. The throttle actuator according to claim 1, wherein a first lever or a second lever of a differential lever or an accelerator lever and an engagement lever integral with the throttle shaft are engaged. The transmission torque of the torque limiter and the force generated by the return spring are set so that the throttle shaft is driven by the first lever or the second lever of the accelerator lever regardless of the rotational position of the actuator. Throttle actuator. 4. The throttle actuator according to claim 1, wherein a first lever and a second lever of a differential lever or an accelerator lever are provided.
Of the gap between the lever 2 and the engagement portion with the throttle shaft
Accelerator lever to which the accelerator wire can be applied
By changing the effective diameter, depending on the actuator
A throttle actuator, wherein an opening of a throttle valve to be adjusted is set . 5. The throttle actuator according to claim 1, wherein the torque limiter is driven by the actuator.
A friction plate that rotates integrally with the rotating shaft, and a throttle shaft
And the friction plate that rotates together with the friction plate
A throttle actuator , comprising: a spring for applying a force . 6. The throttle actuator according to claim 1, wherein the torque limiter is driven by the actuator.
It rotates integrally with the outer diameter of the rotating shaft and the throttle shaft.
Coil inserted into the outer diameter of the shaft with a specified interference
Throttle actuator, characterized in that it is constituted by the roots. 7. The throttle actuator according to claim 1, wherein the torque limiter uses a magnet and a magnetic powder as a medium.
A throttle actuator, which is a so-called powder limiter for transmitting a torque . 8. The throttle actuator according to claim 1, wherein a force in a closing direction of the throttle valve with respect to the throttle shaft.
A second return spring for biasing the throttle actuator. 9. The throttle actuator according to claim 8 , wherein a first lever of a differential lever or an accelerator lever or a first lever of an accelerator lever.
When the engagement portion between the second lever and the throttle shaft is engaged
The slot regardless of the rotational position of the actuator.
The torque axis is the first lever or the second
Transmission of the torque limiter as driven by the lever
The return torque and the force generated by the return spring and the second return spring.
Throttle actuator characterized in that it is fixed .