JP3396631B2 - Foldable shift lever device - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a shift lever device provided in an automatic transmission for a vehicle, and more particularly to a floor shift type shift lever device provided in an automatic transmission of a vehicle, which is in an upright state. The present invention relates to a retractable shift lever device in which a shift lever can be laid down.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In an automobile equipped with a floor shift type shift lever device, it may be difficult for an occupant to get on and off from the driver's seat side when the vehicle is stopped and the passenger may get on and off the passenger seat side. By the way, the shift lever is arranged on the side opposite to the door of the driver's seat, and therefore, it has been an obstacle when a passenger moves from the driver's seat to the passenger's seat or from the passenger's seat to the driver's seat.

Therefore, various types of retractable shift lever devices have been conventionally proposed in which the shift lever can be laid down to facilitate the movement of the occupant between the driver's seat and the passenger seat.

[0004] For example, the applicant of the present invention, the actual Kaihei 4-58656
The retractable shift lever device disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No.
Further, as shown in FIG. 10, the base portion side of the shift lever 2 is pivotally attached to the bracket 1 having the lock groove 1a on the upper surface side by the pivot pin 2a so as to be capable of undulating. A lock release knob 3 is slidably fitted in the shift lever 2, and the pair of links 4a and 4b constituting a link mechanism 4 are connected to the lock release knob 3 by pins 4c at their upper portions. . A lock pin 5 engageable with the lock groove 1a is attached to the lower portion of the links 4a and 4b, and the lock pin 5 is biased downward by a compression spring 6. Then, the lock release knob 3 is slid upward against the biasing force of the compression spring 6 to disengage the lock pin 5 from the lock groove 1a of the bracket 1 and the shift lever 2 is laid down around the pivot pin 2a. Is configured to let.

In the figure, 7 is an operation knob attached to the upper part of the shift lever 2.

[0006]

In the retractable shift lever device described above, a pair of links 4a and 4b are required to attach the lock pin 5 to the lock release knob 3, and the links 4a and 4b are used as pins. 4c is connected to the lock release knob 3 and the links 4a, 4b
In addition, since the lock pin 5 is fixed by fixing means such as caulking, there is a problem that the structure becomes complicated and the assembling property is poor.

Further, a retractable shift lever device has been proposed in which the angle of the shift lever 2 can be adjusted in order to facilitate the driver's shift operation. In this type of device, as shown in FIG. 11, a plurality of lock grooves 1a, for example, four lock grooves 1a are formed on the upper surface side of the bracket 1, and the lock grooves are locked in the lock groove 1a at the position where the driver can most easily perform the shift operation. The pin 5 is configured to be pressed into engagement.

However, in this type of retractable shift lever device, when the lock release knob 3 is pulled up to disengage the lock pin 5 from the lock groove 1a, the shift lever 2
However, the angle of the shift lever 2 is difficult to adjust, and the operation feeling is poor.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems. The first object of the present invention is to simplify the structure and improve the assemblability. An object of the present invention is to provide such a retractable shift lever device.

[0010]

[0011]

In order to achieve the above object, in a retractable shift lever device according to a first aspect of the present invention, a support bracket having a lock groove on an upper surface side and a base portion side of the support bracket are provided. A shift lever rotatably mounted on the shaft, a lock release knob slidably fitted in the shift lever, and a lock groove provided on the lock release knob to engage the lock groove to inhibit the shift lever from falling down. It consists of a lock pin and an urging means for urging the lock pin downward. By sliding the lock release knob upward, the lock pin is disengaged from the lock groove of the support bracket, and the shift lever is laid down. It is a retractable shift lever device that enables the lock
A long hole is formed in the slot facing the groove along the axial direction.
The lock pin is movably inserted and the tubular shift
The lock pin is moved downward by the urging means arranged in the lever.
Biased to the outer periphery of the shift lever and slidably inserted into the outer surface.
By lowering the lock release knob,
Cooperation with a pair of taper parts provided on the lock release knob
Lock the lock release knob into the pair of holding recesses.
The feature is that both ends of cuppin are attached .

Further, in the retractable shift lever device according to a second aspect of the invention, the lock releasing knob has a fork-like restoring force having a pair of holding recesses for holding both ends of the lock pin at a base portion, which face each other. the lock pin holding portion is formed with,
Tapered portions forcibly guiding the lock pin to the holding recess when the lock release knob is moved down along the shift lever are formed below the lock pin holding portion so as to face each other. Is characterized by.

[0013]

[0014]

[0015]

[0016]

A claim 1 configured as described above.
According to the inventions of 2 and 2 , when the lock pin is attached to the lock release knob, the lock pin can be attached to the lock release knob only by sliding the lock release knob slidably fitted in the shift lever downward. Since the formed taper portion can be forcibly guided to the holding recess of the lock release knob and attached to the lock release knob, the structure can be simplified and the assembling property can be improved.

[0018]

[0019]

[0020]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION A first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.

In the figure, E is a foldable shift lever device provided in an automatic transmission of an automobile, and includes a support bracket 11 having a lock groove 14 on the upper surface side, and a pivot pin 23 on the base side of the support bracket 11. The shift lever 20 is pivotally mounted on the shift lever 20, the lock release knob 30 is slidably inserted into the shift lever 20, and the shift lever 20 is engaged with the lock groove 14 provided in the lock release knob 30. The lock pin 40 is configured to lock the support bracket 11 by sliding the lock release knob 30 upward. Groove 1
The shift lever 20 can be laid down by moving it away from No. 4.

The lock release knob 30 has a holding recess 33a for holding the lock pin 40.
When the lock release knob 30 is moved down along the shift lever 20 when the lock pin 0 is attached, the lock pin 40 is provided with a tapered portion 33b which is forcibly guided to the holding recess 33a of the lock pin 40.

Further, the configuration of the first embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail.

The bracket 10 is rotatably supported on a floor (not shown) of the vehicle body so as to rotate around an axis OO, and a pair of brackets 10 are arranged on the upper portion of the bracket 10 at predetermined intervals. A support bracket 11 having a U-shaped cross section having upright walls 12 and 13 is provided.

Further, on the upper surfaces of the upright walls 12 and 13, a plurality of, for example, three lock grooves 14 opening upward are continuously provided in the radial direction with the center of the shaft hole 11a of the pivot pin 23 as a fulcrum. Has been formed. On the end surface of the shift lever 20 which is continuous with the lock groove 14 on the fallen side (passenger side),
An arc-shaped guide surface 15 whose center is the center of the shaft hole 11a and whose radius is the distance to the top surface of the lock groove 14 and an upright wall 17 continuous to the guide surface 15 via a step portion 16 are formed. The step portion 16 is arranged near the horizontal line XX passing through the center of the shaft hole 11a.

The lock groove 14 is formed in a V shape, and when the lock pin 40 is engaged with the lock groove 14, a gap a is formed between the bottom surface of the lock groove 14 and the outer peripheral surface of the lock pin 40. Is set to allow Escape hole 1
Reference numeral 8 denotes a lower portion of the back of the support bracket 11 having a U-shaped cross section. The lower end of the shift bracket 20 moves when the shift lever 20 moves between the use state and the fall state.
Prevent it from interfering with.

The shift lever 20 is composed of a tubular base portion 21 and an operation knob mounting portion 22 which is press-fitted into an upper hollow portion of the base portion 21. Below the base portion 21, an upright wall of the support bracket 11 is provided. It is sandwiched between 12 and 13 and is pivotally supported by a pivot pin 23. Further, an elongated hole 21a extending along the axial direction is formed at a position facing the lock groove 14 above the base portion 21, and the lock pin 40 is set to be inserted into the elongated hole 21a. Has been done.

The vertical length of the long hole 21a is such that the lock pin 40 can be engaged with the lock groove 14 and the lock pin 40 is disengaged from the lock groove 14 when the lock release knob 30 is pulled up. It's set long enough to be able to. Furthermore, on the upper part of the operation knob mounting portion 22,
The operation knob 24 is attached.

On the unlocking knob 30, a flange-shaped grip portion 31, a tubular sliding portion 32, and a fork-shaped lock pin holding portion 33 are formed continuously from the top to the bottom. The sliding portion 32 is slidably fitted on the outer peripheral surface of the base portion 21 of the shift lever 20.

The lock pin holding portion 33 has a lock pin 4
A pair of holding recesses 33a, 33a for holding both ends of 0 are formed facing each other.
Tapered portions 33b and 33b that are inclined toward the outer peripheral side are formed below a and 33a. When the lock release knob 30 is lowered along the shift lever 20 by the tapered portions 33b, 33b, the shift lever 20
The lock pin 40 fitted into the long hole 21a is forcibly guided to the holding recess 33a of the lock pin holding portion 33.

The compression spring 50, which is an example of the urging means, is arranged in the hollow portion of the base portion 21 of the shift lever 20 between the lower end of the knob mounting portion 22 and the lock pin 40. 40 is always biased downward.

Next, the operation of the first embodiment of the present invention will be described.

When the lock release knob 30 is attached to the shift lever 20, first, the base portion 2 of the shift lever 20 is attached.
The compression spring 50 is inserted into the hollow portion of No. 1 and the lock pin 40 is fitted into the elongated hole 21 a of the base portion 21 of the shift lever 20 while bending the compression spring 50.

Then, the lower portion of the base portion 21 of the shift lever 20 is inserted into the upright walls 12 and 13 of the support bracket 11,
After being pivotally supported by the pivot pin 23, the sliding portion 32 of the lock release knob 30 is fitted into the outer peripheral surface of the base portion 21 of the shift lever 20 and the lock release knob 30 is lowered . And
After the tapered portions 33b, 33b of the lock pin holding portion 33 come into contact with the lock pin 40, the lock release knob 3
When 0 is lowered, the lock pin holding portion 33 expands due to the cooperative action of the taper portions 33b, 33b and the lock pin 40, the lock pin 40 enters the lock pin holding portion 33, and the holding concave portions 33a, 33a are released. When reaching the position facing the lock pin 40, both ends of the lock pin 40 are fitted into the holding recesses 33a, 33a by the restoring force of the lock pin holding portion 33.

When the shift lever 20 is in the upright state, that is, in the normal use state, the lock pin 40 is pressed into engagement with the lock groove 14 by the spring force of the compression spring 50, as shown in FIGS. Therefore, the fall of the shift lever 20 is prohibited.

In order to bring the shift lever 20 in the upright state into the laid state as shown in FIG. 5, the grip 31 is gripped and the lock release knob 30 is resisted against the spring force of the compression spring 50.
Is pulled upward as indicated by a virtual line in FIG.
Then, the lock pin 40 is also pulled up, and the lock pin 40 is disengaged from the lock groove 14.

Then, when the shift lever 30 is rotated clockwise in FIG. 1, the shift lever 20 falls down while pressing the lock pin 40 against the guide surface 15. Then, the shift lever 30 is stopped at the position where the lock pin 40 passes through the step portion 16 and comes into contact with the upright surface 17. At this time,
The stepped portion 16 can give a feeling of moderation to the shift lever 20.

In order to return the shift lever 20 from the fallen state to the upright state shown in FIG. 1, the grip portion 31 is gripped to resist the spring force of the compression spring 50 in FIG. Pull in the direction A and rotate the shift lever 20 counterclockwise to the position shown in FIG. Therefore,
When the grip portion 31 is released, the lock pin 40 descends due to the restoring force of the compression spring 50 and press-fits into the lock groove 14 to hold the shift lever 20 in the upright state.

Further, the shift lever 20 in the upright state
When adjusting the angle of the lock release knob 30, the grip portion 31 of the lock release knob 30 is grasped and the lock release knob 30 is pulled up against the compression spring 50, and the lock pin 40 is pulled up.
When the grip portion 31 is released from the lock groove 14 and the grip portion 31 is released at a position facing any of the lock grooves 14, the lock pin 40 is pressed into engagement with the lock groove 14 due to the restoring force of the compression spring 50, and thus the occupant is The angle of the shift lever 20 can be adjusted to the position where the shift operation is most easy.

As described above, according to the first embodiment of the present invention, the lock pin 40 is attached to the lock release knob 3.
When the lock pin 40 is attached to the lock lever 40, the lock pin 40 is formed in the lock pin holding portion 33 of the lock release knob 30 by sliding the lock release knob 30 slidably fitted in the shift lever 20 downward. It can be forcibly guided into the holding recess 33a by the 33b and attached to the unlock knob 30. As a result, the structure can be simplified and the assembling property can be improved.

Next, the second and third embodiments will be described with reference to FIGS.

The retractable shift lever device E in the second embodiment is similar to the first embodiment in that the lock groove 14 is provided.
A support bracket 11 having an upper surface side, a shift lever 20 pivotally mounted on the support bracket 11 at a base side thereof, a lock release knob 30 slidably fitted on the shift lever 20, and a lock release The shift lever 20 is provided by engaging the lock groove 14 provided on the knob 30.
Lock pin 40 that prohibits the lodging of
And a compression spring 50 as an urging means for urging the lock pin 0 downward, and the lock release knob 30 is slid upward to move the lock pin 40 to the lock groove 14 of the bracket 10.
The shift lever 20 can be laid down from above.

Further, in the second embodiment, the support bracket 11 is provided with a click feeling imparting means 60 capable of obtaining a click feeling corresponding to the lock groove 14.

The click feeling imparting means 60 is provided at a position facing the lock groove 14 of the support bracket 11 and has three, for example, three lock grooves 14 corresponding to the lock grooves 14.
1 is continuously formed, a long hole 21b is formed on the shift lever 20 at a position corresponding to the click feeling imparting recess 61, and the click feeling imparting pin 62 can be moved up and down. A pressure contact means 63 is disposed which is in constant pressure contact with the moderation imparting concave portion 61.

In addition, the retractable shift lever device E according to the third embodiment is similar to the retractable shift lever device E according to the first embodiment except that the moderation imparting means 60 according to the second embodiment is provided. A third embodiment, which is provided and includes the second embodiment in addition to the first embodiment, will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 6 to 8 for convenience.

The click feeling imparting means 60 comprises three click feeling imparting recesses 61, a click feeling imparting pin 62, and a pressure contact means 63.

The three moderation imparting recesses 61 are formed by the lock grooves 14 of the upright walls 12 and 13 of the support bracket 11 and the shaft hole 11.
It is formed continuously with the upper surface of a pair of fan-shaped notch portions 64 formed with the center of the shaft hole 11a as a fulcrum between a and a.

The moderation imparting pin 62 is used for the shift lever 20.
The base 21 is inserted in a long hole 21b formed along the axial direction at a position corresponding to the moderation giving recess 61 so as to be able to move up and down.

The compression spring 63 as the compression means is provided with the shift lever 20 between the moderation giving pin 62 and the pivot pin 23.
It is arranged in the hollow portion of the base portion 21, and the compression spring 63 constantly presses the moderation imparting pin 62 into the moderation imparting recess 61.

The other structure is similar to that shown in the first embodiment, and the description thereof is omitted.

Next, the operation of the third embodiment of the present invention will be described.

As shown in FIG. 6, the angle of the shift lever 20 in the upright state is adjusted by operating the lock release knob 30 as described in the first embodiment. At this time, with the rotation of the shift lever 20, the click feeling imparting pin 62 moves the compression spring 63.
By the spring force of the above, it moves in the up-down direction while being pressed against the moderation imparting concave portion 61.

Thus, a feeling of moderation can be imparted when the angle of the shift lever 20 is adjusted, and the shift lever 20 can be adjusted.
The angle adjustment can be easily performed, and the operation feeling can be improved.

The other operations are similar to those shown in the first embodiment, and the description thereof will be omitted.

[0055]

As described above , according to the present invention, when the lock pin is attached to the lock release knob, the lock pin is slidably inserted into the shift lever and the lock release knob is slid downward. Can be forcibly guided into the holding recess of the lock release knob by the taper portion formed on the lock release knob and the restoring force to be attached to the lock release knob, so that the structure is simplified and the assemblability is improved. be able to.

[0056]

[0057]

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory front view of a retractable shift lever device shown as a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line II-II of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a perspective explanatory view of the lock release knob.

FIG. 4 is a perspective explanatory view of the support bracket.

FIG. 5 is an operation explanatory view showing a state when the shift lever is in a fall position.

FIG. 6 is a front view explanatory view of a foldable shift lever device including the second embodiment in the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along line VII-VII of FIG.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory front view showing an upper portion of the support bracket.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory cross-sectional view of a retractable shift lever device according to a conventional example.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory cross-sectional view taken along the line XX of FIG.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory front view showing a lock groove of a bracket of a retractable shift lever device according to another conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

11 Support bracket 14 Lock groove 20 shift lever 21b long hole 30 unlock knob 31 grip 33 Lock pin holder 33a holding recess 33b taper part 40 lock pin 50 Biasing means (compression spring) 60 Moderation imparting means 61 Depression imparting recess 62 Moderation-imparting pin 63 Pressure contact means (compression spring) E Retractable shift lever device

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (58) Fields investigated (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B60K 20/00-20/08 F16H 59/00-59/12 G05G 1/00-25/04

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A support bracket having a lock groove on the upper surface side, a shift lever pivotally mounted on the support bracket so that the base side can be undulated, a lock release knob slidably fitted on the shift lever, and The lock release knob is provided with a lock pin that engages with the lock groove to prohibit the shift lever from falling down, and a biasing unit that biases the lock pin downward. A retractable shift lever device capable of tilting the shift lever by moving the lock pin away from the lock groove of the support bracket, the shift lever device being formed at a position facing the lock groove along the axial direction. Shi
The lock pin is movably inserted in the elongated hole,
Locked by biasing means located in tubular shift lever
The pin is urged downward so that it can slide on the outer peripheral surface of the shift lever.
By lowering the lock release knob that is inserted,
End and a pair of taper parts provided on the lock release knob.
A pair of holdings provided on the lock release knob
A retractable shift lever device characterized in that both ends of the lock pin are mounted in the recess . 2. The lock release knob is provided with a lock pin holding portion having a fork-shaped restoring force having a pair of holding recesses for holding both ends of the lock pin, which are opposed to each other, at the base portion. Below the holding portion, tapered portions for forcibly guiding the lock pin to the holding recess when the lock release knob is lowered along the shift lever are formed to face each other. The retractable shift lever device according to claim 1.