JP3504473B2 - Wheel alignment measurement 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 wheel alignment measuring device suitable for measuring wheel alignment of a front two-axle vehicle.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A steering system of a vehicle is a device for transmitting the force of a steering wheel (steering wheel) to a front wheel (steering wheel) to steer the steering wheel. The rotational force of the steering wheel is steering shaft → gear box → tie rod → knuckle arm. By transmitting it, the steering angle of the front wheels is changed according to the rotation angle of the steering wheel.

Therefore, the steering system reliably transmits the rotational force of the steering wheel to the front wheels in response to the steering wheel operation of the driver, and also maintains the wheel alignment in order to maintain the resilience after the steering wheel operation and the straightness while the vehicle is running. That is,
It is necessary that the transmission system from the steering wheel to the front wheels is accurately adjusted. The inspection of the wheel alignment is performed by placing the left and right front wheels (steering wheels) on a pair of turntables of the wheel alignment measuring device and supporting them so that they can be displaced in a horizontal plane.

In the wheel alignment measuring device, for example, the right turntable on which the right front wheel is placed is fixed, and the left turntable on which the left front wheel is placed is movable in the vehicle width direction. , The tread of the vehicle to be inspected (the distance between the centers of the contact surfaces of the left and right tire treads (called the wheel distance)). And
The left and right turntables are placed with their centers aligned with the center positions of the left and right turntables.

[0005]

However, since the above-mentioned conventional wheel alignment measuring apparatus is intended for a vehicle having a front single axis, that is, a front wheel is a single axis, it is difficult to check the wheel alignment of the front two-axis vehicle. is there. That is, in the case of inspecting the front two axle wheels in the conventional wheel alignment measuring device, first, the front front axle wheels are placed on the turntable, and the front portion of the vehicle is slightly jacked up to lift the front and rear axle wheels. In this condition, check the wheel alignment for the front and front axle wheels. Next, the vehicle is moved to place the front and rear axle wheels on the turntable, and the front portion of the vehicle is slightly jacked up to support the front and front axle wheels in a slightly floating state. Check the wheel alignment for.

For this reason, it takes a lot of trouble to check the wheel alignment and the fine measurement is difficult because the measurement of the alignment of the front and front axle wheels and the measurement of the alignment of the front and rear axle wheels are separately performed. And
There are problems such as poor measurement accuracy. In addition, the conventional wheel alignment measuring device has a bearing installed in the lower part of the turntable so that the turntable can be rotated. However, the steering resistance of the vehicle to be measured, and the rolling resistance of the bearing during measurement are included. The value is measured.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned points, and checks the wheel alignment of a front two-axle vehicle.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a wheel alignment measuring device capable of simultaneously performing all wheels of a shaft, thereby improving workability and measuring accuracy.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the invention of claim 1, a steering wheel of a front two-axle vehicle is placed, and a wheel alignment measuring device for measuring alignment of the steering wheel is provided. A pair of turntables on which the left and right wheels of the front front axle of the vehicle are placed are housed in a frame fixed to the front part of the base of the wheel alignment measuring device, and the turntable has the base at the four corners of the lower surface. A base provided with a roller that can roll over, an upper plate that is airtightly fixed on the base to form an air chamber between the upper plate and a plurality of air outlets provided above, and the upper plate. is placed being pushed up by air pressure blown from the air outlet consists of a table which floatably mounted supporting the wheel, one said frame of said pair of turntable Is locked to one side, a first turntable units other one is movably received in the tread direction before <br/> Symbol vehicle, the rear side of the first turntable unit, and front and rear of the vehicle A pair of turntables on which the left and right wheels of the front-rear axis of the vehicle are placed are housed in frames that are arranged side by side in such a manner that the turntables can roll on the base at the four corners of the lower surface. A base provided with rollers, an upper plate which is airtightly fixed on the base to form an air chamber therebetween, and a plurality of air outlets are provided above the base, and the base placed on the upper plate to blow the air. And a table for floatingly mounting and supporting the wheels by being pushed up by the air pressure blown from the outlet, and one of the pair of turntables is locked to one side of the frame.
And a second turntable unit in which the other is housed so as to be movable in the tread direction of the vehicle, and the base.
And between the frame of the second turntable unit
The second turn frame in front of the vehicle.
It is characterized in that it is provided with a moving device for moving it backward .

The distance between the pair of turntables of the first turntable unit and the second turntable unit is adjusted to the respective tread values of the front and front axle wheels and the front and rear axle wheels of the vehicle to be inspected having the two front steering wheels. At the same time, the second turntable unit is moved so that the distance between the second turntable unit and the first turntable unit is adjusted to the wheel base value between the front and rear axle wheels of the inspection vehicle. Then the first and second
The other turntable unit of the turntable unit
Of the front wheels and front and rear wheels by moving the
The tread position is set, and the inspection vehicle is moved on the pair of turntables of the first and second turntable units to place the left and right front front and rear axle wheels of the vehicle. In this way, the wheel alignment is measured by simultaneously supporting the steered wheels of a vehicle having two steered wheels. The turntables of the first and second turntable units are floated by air pressure to support the steered wheels of the inspection vehicle so as to be floatable, thereby reducing wheel alignment measurement errors. box,
Measurement error when measuring steering resistance of steering wheel of steering force transmission system such as tie rod and knuckle arm is reduced.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, at the position facing the second turntable unit at the edge of the first turntable unit, the first inclined surface is inclined downward in the direction away from the base end. A rider board is provided, and a second rider board having an inclined surface whose upper surface inclines downward in a direction away from the base end at a position facing the first turntable unit at an edge portion of the second turntable unit. A guide that is rotatably provided and that allows at least one of the riding plates to ride on the other riding plate when the first riding plate and the second riding plate contact each other And

Since the first turntable unit and the second turntable unit face each other and the riding plate is provided, the front front wheels of a vehicle having two steered wheels pass over the second turntable unit. It is possible to smoothly move back and forth on the first turntable unit, and one of the riding plates is placed on the other of the riding plates, so that the steered wheels become the front and front axle wheels of the two-axle vehicle. Wheel alignment measurement can be easily performed even in vehicles with short front and rear axle wheels.

[0012]

[0013]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to examples. FIG. 1 is a plan view showing the outline of a wheel alignment measuring device according to the present invention. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 6, the hand alignment adjusting device 1 includes a first turntable unit 3 and a second turntable unit 4 arranged on a base 2, and the first turntable unit 3 and the second turntable unit 4 are arranged at the left and right and front and rear positions of the base 2. A moving device 5 for moving the two-turntable unit 4 in the front-back direction of the vehicle on which it is placed is arranged. The first turntable unit 3 is fixed to the front part of the base 2, and the second turntable unit 4 is
It is supposed to be movable back and forth.

The first turntable unit 3 is composed of a rectangular frame 6 and a pair of left and right turntables 10 and 11 housed in the frame 6. The frame 6 is a front part of the base 2. It is fixed to. The second turntable unit 4 has a rectangular frame 7
And a pair of left and right turntables 12 and 13 housed in the frame 7. And
As shown in FIG. 5, the frame 7 is laid along the vehicle front-rear direction (longitudinal direction), which is placed on both left and right sides of the base 2 via rollers 8 provided on the left and right front and rear portions. 5 is movable on a roller 9 (only the roller 8 and the rail 9 on the right side are shown in FIG. 5).

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the turntable 10 is an air type turntable, in which a disc-shaped upper plate 16 is airtightly fixed to a square base 15 having chamfered four corners. A disk-shaped table 17 is mounted on. An air chamber 18 is formed between the base 15 and the upper board 16, and a large number of small holes 16a are formed in the upper board 16 over the entire surface. Each small hole 16a has a lower end opened to the air chamber 18 and an upper end opened to the table 17. These small holes 16a are blown holes for high-pressure air in the air chamber 18. A plurality of ports 16b are provided on the side wall of the upper board 16 and are connected to an air source via an air hose (not shown). The table 17 is locked to the upper board 16 by two lock pins 19. These lock pins 19 are pulled out at the time of use, and the table 17 is allowed to float on the upper plate 16 with a slight gap by air pressure while the wheels are placed.

Rollers 20 which can roll on the base 2 are provided at the four corners of the base 15, and the base 15 is movably supported while being slightly separated from the base 2. Also,
Stopper rubbers 21 are provided at the front and rear positions on the left and right sides of the base 15.
Is provided. The other turntables 11 to 13 are also configured similarly to the turntable 10. Then, as shown in FIG. 1, the turntables 10 and 11 are housed in the frame 6, the turntables 12 and 13 are housed in the frame 7, and each one side, for example, the right turntables 11 and 13, It is immovably locked to the right side of the frames 6 and 7. These turntables 11 and 13 are made immovable by covers 21 and 22 which are bridged to the frames 6 and 7, respectively. On the other hand, turntables 10 and 12
2 in the frames 6 and 7 in the tread direction (vehicle width direction)
It is possible to move to the position shown by the dashed line. The turntables 10 and 12 are manually pushed and moved.

Scales 23, 24 are provided on the left side of the upper edges of the frames 6, 7 so that the turntables 10, 12 can be accurately positioned according to the tread of the vehicle. Further, a scale 25 is provided on the left side of the base 2 along the longitudinal direction so that the steered wheels can move forward.
The wheelbase (W /
According to B), the turntables 12 and 13 of the second turntable unit 4 can be accurately positioned.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 6, the base 2 has a first
A slit 30 is provided at a position slightly rearward of the frame 6 of the turntable unit 3 so as to cross the width direction (left-right direction) thereof. The drive shaft 31 of the moving device 5 is arranged horizontally in the slit 30 along the width direction, and the bearings 32 are provided at both ends.
It is pivotally supported by 33. Then, sprockets 34 and 35 are fixed near both ends of the drive shaft 31.
A rotary shaft of a drive motor 36 is connected to one end of the drive shaft 31.

On one side of the base plate 2, driven shafts 40, 41 are arranged on both left and right sides of the base plate 2 so that bearings 42, 43 are disposed.
Is pivotally supported by. These driven shafts 40, 41
Are arranged coaxially and parallel to the drive shaft 31, and sprockets 44 and 45 are pivotally supported at one end of each. The sprocket 34 of the drive shaft 31 and the sprocket 44 of the driven shaft 40, and the sprocket 35 of the drive shaft 31 and the sprocket 45 of the driven shaft 41 are aligned along the front-back direction of the base 2.

As shown in FIG. 1, the chain 47 on the right side is
As shown in FIG.
a and 47b are fixed to brackets 48 and 49 fixed to the front and rear positions on the right side of the frame 7. Similarly to the right chain 46, the left chain 47 is also hung around the sprocket 34 of the drive shaft 31 and the sprocket 44 of the driven shaft 40, and both ends thereof are fixed to the front and rear positions on the left side of the frame 7 (both are (Not shown). As a result, the frame 7, that is, the second turntable unit 4 is rotated by the drive motor 36 so that the front portion of the base 2 (wheel base (W / B)) shown by the solid line in FIG.
From the narrow position to the rear position of the base 2 (the wide position of the wheel base (W / B)) indicated by the chain double-dashed line.

As shown in FIG. 4, dogs 50 and 51 are provided on one side of the frame 7 at both front and rear ends. On the other hand, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 2, the base 2 is provided with position detecting limit switches 52 and 53 at the narrow position of the wheel base and the wide position of the wheel base. These limit switches 52 and 53 are turned on when pushed by the dogs 50 and 51, and detect the wheel base narrow position and the wheel base wide position of the second turntable unit 4.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 6, at the rear end of the frame 6 of the first turntable unit 3, a base end of a riding plate 55 bridging the slit 30 of the base 2 is fixed. Also, the frame 7 of the second turntable unit 4
The base end of the riding plate 56 is connected to the front end of the so as to be vertically rotatable. The riding plates 55 and 56 are inclined surfaces having a wedge shape in a side view, the upper surfaces of which are obliquely lowered from the base end toward the tip. Further, an upward guide member 70 (FIG. 7) is provided at the tip of the riding plate 56. And FIG.
Riding on the riding plate 56 rides plate 55 when the second turntable unit 4 is moved to the wheelbase narrow limit position as shown in, the second turntable unit 4 as shown in FIG. 7 is retracted ride It descends from the plate 55 and is placed on the base 2. Incidentally, the upward guide member 7
0 may be any member as long as it is a member that guides the riding plate 56 to ride on the riding plate 55, but a roller member or the like is preferable.

As shown in FIG. 7, the riding plates 55 and 56 are
Since the tip ends face each other and are inclined and descended, the steered wheels smoothly move forward and backward over the first turntable unit 3 over the second turntable unit 4 over the front front wheel of the front two-axle vehicle, as described later. It becomes possible.
In addition, since the riding plate 56 is configured to ride on the riding plate 55, it is possible to cope with a vehicle having steered wheels with a short axial distance between two-axis vehicles. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 6, the front end of the cover 57 is connected to the rear end of the frame 7 of the second table unit 4, and the front wheels of the vehicle are on the cover 57, the first turntable unit 3, Second
Move on the turntable unit 4.

FIG. 8 is a control device 6 for controlling the moving device 5.
0 and the remote control switch 61 are shown. The control device 60 is
Wheelbase of rear turntable unit 4 (W /
It controls movement in the B) direction (front-back direction) (hereinafter referred to as “W / B movement”), and the remote control switch 61 incorporates the movement start switch. Control device 60
Is the main switch 62, the operation switch 63, the indicator lamp 6
4, a rotating light 65 and the like are provided. In addition, the control device 6
A drive motor 36 of the moving device 5 and limit switches 52 and 53 are connected to 0.

The operation switch 63 includes an operation preparation switch S1 that enables the W / B moving operation of the second turntable unit 4, an operation stop switch S2 that stops the W / B moving operation, a buzzer BZ, and various abnormal display warnings. A reset switch S3 for canceling the operation, a lamp check switch S4 for checking the indicator lamp 64 and the buzzer, an emergency stop switch S5 for canceling the operation preparation and stopping the W / B operation, and the like.

The indicator lamp 64 includes a power indicator lamp L1, an operation preparation lamp L2 indicating that the second turntable unit 4 can be operated, an emergency stop lamp L3 that lights up when the emergency stop switch is pressed, and a turn indicator. Insufficient air pressure indicator light L4 that lights when the air pressure supplied to the tables 10 to 13 is insufficient, trip light L5 that lights when the breaker of the motor 36 trips due to overload of the moving device 5, and moving device 5 A trip light L6 that is turned on when the thermal trips due to a load, an indicator light L8 that displays the W / B expansion direction movement limit (extended position) and the reduction direction movement limit (narrow position) of the second turntable unit 4, and It consists of L9 etc.

The revolving light 65 is a revolving light (red) La that lights up when an abnormality occurs in the adjusting device, and a revolving light (yellow) Lb that operates the remote control switch 61 to display the W / B moving operation. , A speaker SP or the like that gives a voice warning that the vehicle is in operation when the remote control switch 61 is turned on. The remote controller switch 61 is composed of a W / B enlargement switch Sa, a W / B reduction switch Sb, an emergency stop switch Sc, and the like.

The operation will be described below. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 6, in the wheel alignment measuring device, the second turntable unit 4 is moved to the narrow position shown by the solid line in the non-use state, and the turntable 1 on each left side is
Items 1 and 13 are on the right side. First, the operator operates the W / B enlargement switch Sa of the remote control switch 61 to move the second turntable unit 4 rearward,
While reading the scale 25, when the positions of the wheel base (W / B) values of the front front wheels and the front and rear wheels of the inspection vehicle (front two-axle vehicle) are reached, the operation of the W / B enlargement switch Sa is stopped,
The second turntable unit 4 is stopped at this position. Then, the operator manually moves the left turntables 10, 12 of the first turntable unit 3 and the second turntable unit 4 to the left while reading the scales 23, 24 to move the front front wheel, front and rear wheels. Set to the tread position of the wheel. Thereby, the operator can quickly, easily and accurately set the turntables 10 to 13 to the W / B value and tread of the inspection vehicle.

Next, the operator advances the inspection vehicle straight and attaches the left and right first axle wheels to the turntable 10,
11, the left and right second axle wheels on the turntables 12, 13
Place it on. In this way, the front two wheels are placed on the turntables 10 to 13. It should be noted that when the wheels are placed on the turntables, it is preferable that the center positions of the wheels match the center positions of the turntables as much as possible, but some deviations are allowed. After confirming that the wheels are placed on the turntables 10 to 13, the operator can check the lock pins 19 of the turntables 10 to 13.
(Figs. 2 and 3) are pulled out.

Then, the operator turns each turntable 10
Air of a predetermined pressure is supplied to -13. Turntable 10
When the air pressure is supplied to the table 17,
(FIG. 3) slightly floats from the upper board 16 and can be floated. That is, all the front two wheels of the inspection vehicle are supported so as to be floatable. This makes it possible to check the wheel alignment of the steered wheels at the same time.

After the inspection of the wheel alignment is completed, the operator stops the supply of air pressure to the turntables 10-13. This makes the turntable 10
The table 17 of 13 descends and is placed on the upper board 16. Next, the worker moves the inspection vehicle backward to move the front 2
Retract all wheels of the shaft from the turntables 10-13.
At this time, since the table 17 is not locked to the upper plate 16 of the turntables 10 to 13, the inspection vehicle is gently retracted at a low speed. After the inspection vehicle moves backward, the worker
The lock pin 19 is inserted and fixed to the turntables 10 to 13. Next, the operator operates the W / B reduction switch Sb of the remote control switch 61 to move the rear turntable unit 4 to the position shown by the solid line in FIG.

The control device 60 automatically stops the second turntable unit 4 by a signal from the limit switch 52 or 53 when the second turntable unit 4 moves to the narrow position or the wide position. .
In the above embodiment, the measurement of the wheel alignment of the front two-axle vehicle has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this, and it is needless to say that the wheel alignment of the front one-axle vehicle can also be measured.

[0033]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the invention, the distance between the pair of turntables of the first turntable unit and the second turntable unit is the The wheelbase between the front front wheel and the front and rear axle wheels of the inspection vehicle is adjusted to match the tread values of the front and front axle wheels and the front and rear axle wheels, and the second turntable unit is moved so that the distance between the first turntable unit and the front and rear axle wheels is adjusted. According to the value, the inspection vehicle is moved on the pair of turntables of the first and second turntable units, and the front left and right front axle wheels and the front and rear axle wheels of the vehicle are placed. In this way, by simultaneously supporting the steered wheels of a vehicle having two steered wheels, it becomes easy to measure the wheel alignment. And the first and second turntables
The turntable of the unit
By supporting the steerable wheels of the inspection vehicle so that they can float,
Wheels compared to turntables with built-in bearings
It is possible to reduce the alignment error
The steering shaft, gearbox, tyro
Steering wheel transmission of steering force transmission system such as steering wheel and knuckle arm.
The measurement error at the time of anti-measurement can be reduced.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, since the first turntable unit and the second turntable unit face each other and the riding plate is provided, the front front wheel of a vehicle having two steering wheels can be provided. It is possible to smoothly move forward and backward on the first turntable unit by overcoming the second turntable unit, and one of the riding plates is placed on the other riding plate, so that the steered wheels are
The wheel alignment measurement can be easily performed even in a vehicle in which the front and rear axle wheels of the axle vehicle and the front and rear axle wheels have a short wheel base.

[0035]

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway plan view of a wheel alignment measuring device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the turntable shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line III-III in FIG.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of a main part of the second turntable unit shown in FIG.

5 is an end view in the direction of arrow V in FIG.

6 is a sectional view taken along the line VI-VI in FIG.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a state in which the second turntable unit of FIG. 6 has moved to the rear.

8 is a front view of a control device that controls the moving mechanism of the second turntable unit shown in FIG. 1. FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Wheel alignment measuring device 2 foundation 3 first turntable unit 4 Second turntable unit 5 Moving mechanism 6, 7 frames 8 roller 9 rails 10-13 turntable 31 Drive axis 40, 41 Driven shaft 36 Drive motor 60 control device 61 remote control

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-7-132851 (JP, A) JP-A-61-41913 (JP, A) JP-A-48-49161 (JP, A) Jitsukaihei 2- 149374 (JP, U) (58) Fields investigated (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G01B 21/00-21/32 G01B 5/00-5/30 G01B ^7/ 00-7/34 G01M 17/00

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A wheel alignment measuring device on which steered wheels of a front two-axle vehicle are mounted and which measures alignment of the steered wheels, wherein the wheel alignment measuring device is fixed to a front portion of a base of the wheel alignment measuring device.
A pair of turntables, on which the left and right wheels of the front axle of the vehicle are placed, are housed in a fixed frame , and the turntables are provided with rollers that can roll on the base at the four corners of the lower surface. A base, an upper plate that is airtightly fixed on the base to form an air chamber therebetween, and has a number of air outlets provided above, and is placed on the upper plate and blown out from the outlet. A table that is lifted up by air pressure to support the wheels so that the wheels can float, and one of the pair of turntables is the frame.
A first turntable unit that is locked to one side and one of the other is stored so as to be movable in the tread direction of the vehicle, and is movable in the front and rear direction of the vehicle, behind the first turntable unit A pair of turntables on which the left and right wheels of the front and rear axles of the vehicle are placed are housed in the frames arranged side by side, and the turntables are provided with rollers that can roll on the base at the four corners of the lower surface. A base, an upper plate that is airtightly fixed on the base to form an air chamber therebetween, and is provided with a large number of air outlets in the upper part, and is placed on the upper plate and blown out from the outlets. And a table that supports the wheels so that the wheels can be floated by being pushed up by the air pressure, and one of the pair of turntables is the frame.
Locked to one side of a second turntable units other one is movably received in the tread direction of the vehicle, the base and frame of the second turntable unit
The second turn frame is installed between the second turn frame and
A wheel alignment measuring device, comprising: a moving device that moves the vehicle in the front-rear direction . 2. The position of the edge of the first turntable unit facing the second turntable unit,
A first riding plate having an inclined surface that is inclined downward in a direction in which the upper surface is separated from the base end is provided, and the upper surface is the base end at a position facing the first turntable unit at an edge portion of the second turntable unit. A sloping second riding plate that tilts downward in a direction away from is rotatably provided, and at least one of the riding plates when the first riding plate and the second riding plate contact each other. The wheel alignment measuring device according to claim 1, wherein the other riding plate is provided with a guide that enables the riding plate.