JP3715710B2 - Jet propulsion nozzle drive system for small vessels - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a nozzle driving device for adjusting a vertical swing angle of a jet propulsion nozzle of a small boat called a so-called water bike.
[0002]
[Prior art]
The jet propulsion nozzle of a watercraft jets water pressurized by a pump to the rear of the hull, and the vertical angle (trim angle) of the jet propulsion nozzle greatly affects the maneuverability. 2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there has been known a nozzle driving device that can change a trim angle of a jet propulsion nozzle in accordance with a marine vessel maneuvering situation such as starting, turning, or two-seater.
[0003]
Conventional nozzle driving devices are roughly classified into electric type and mechanical type (manual type). In the electric drive device, the trim angle of the jet propulsion nozzle is changed by an electric motor. On the other hand, as illustrated in FIG. 10, the manual drive device operates the cable 3 by rotating the pulley 2 by rotating the grip 1 provided on the steering bar handle of the water bike. Thus, the jet propulsion nozzle 4 is moved up or down according to the operation amount and operation direction of the cable 3. The mechanical type is superior to the electric type in terms of good responsiveness during operation and cost.
[0004]
The nozzle 4 can change the inclination in at least three stages. That is, there are three types: neutral position (NEUTRAL), up position (UP), and down position (DOWN). In addition, since a restoring force (reaction force) acts on the nozzle 4 during the operation of the boat due to the thrust of the water jet, a lock mechanism 5 is provided to hold the nozzle 4 in a desired position. The lock mechanism 5 includes a release button 6 provided on the grip 1 side and a fitting groove 7 to which the release button 6 can be engaged and disengaged. The release button 6 is arranged in the direction of arrow A in FIG. The grip 1 can be rotated to the up side or the down side by releasing a part 6a of the release button 6 from the fitting groove 7 when operated in the direction).
[0005]
However, the lock mechanism 5 configured as described above does not provide a feeling of movement when rotating the grip 1 while operating the release button 6 in the release direction, for example, when switching from the up side or the down side position to the neutral position. It may be difficult to tell if the position has changed. For this reason, it is desirable to provide a detent mechanism that produces a feeling of movement when the grip 1 is switched to each position.
[0006]
As the detent mechanism, a ball biased by a spring is provided on one side of the mutually facing surfaces of the base member 8 on the fixed side and the pulley 2 on the rotation side, and the ball can be fitted on the other side. It is conceivable to form as many receiving holes as the number of positions. With such a detent mechanism, when the grip is rotated, the ball switches into the receiving hole when the desired position is reached, generating a sense of movement and increasing the rotational resistance of the grip. You can know what happened by touching your hands.
[0007]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
The detent mechanism using balls and receiving holes as described above requires as many receiving holes as the number of positions. Therefore, if the receiving holes are provided near the rotation center of the grip, the pitch between the receiving holes is It becomes difficult to arrange the receiving holes depending on the number of receiving holes. Moreover, since the grip can be rotated with one hand, the range that can be rotated is relatively narrow, for example, around 90 °, and if all the receiving holes are arranged in this narrow angular range, the pitch of the receiving holes becomes extremely narrow, The edge of the receiving hole becomes a weak point of strength.
[0008]
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a mechanical (manual type) jet propulsion nozzle drive device in which the receiving holes of the detent mechanism can be made smaller than the number of positions and the receiving holes can be arranged without difficulty. .
[0009]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The jet propulsion nozzle drive device of the present invention, which was developed to achieve the above object, has a driving force transmission cable capable of operating the jet propulsion nozzle up or down, and a base member provided on a steering handle. A grip mounted so as to be rotatable relative to the grip; and the cable is driven in a direction to move the nozzle upward when the grip rotates together with the grip and rotates in the first direction with the neutral position as a boundary. A rotating body that drives the cable in a direction to move the nozzle to the down side when rotated in the direction of 2 and the grip when the grip is positioned at each of the up side and down side positions (including the neutral position). A detent mechanism that generates a feeling of movement, and the detent mechanism is provided on one side of the mutually opposing surfaces of the member on the rotating body and the base member. A plurality of engagement elements that are biased toward the other side by a spring and are provided on the other side of the mutually facing surfaces and are identified among the plurality of engagement elements when the rotating body is in a neutral position When the rotating body rotates in the first direction and the position is switched to the up side, an engaging element different from the specific engaging element is fitted. A detent body having a receiving hole and having a receiving hole into which an engaging member different from the specific engaging member is fitted when the rotating body rotates in the second direction and the position is switched to the down side. It has.
[0010]
When the grip is in the neutral position, a specific engagement element among the plurality of engagement elements is fitted in a predetermined receiving hole. When the jet propulsion nozzle is switched to the up side by rotating the grip from the neutral position to the up side, the other engagement element is fitted into a receiving hole different from the neutral position, thereby rotating the grip. Increases the feeling of movement. Even when the nozzle is switched to the down side by rotating the grip to the down side, a sense of movement is obtained by fitting the other engagement element into a receiving hole different from the neutral position. In addition, even when the grip is rotated from the up side to the down side or from the down side to the up side, the grip rotation resistance is temporarily reduced by fitting the engaging element into the receiving hole at the moment when the grip reaches the neutral position. As a result, the feeling of movement is obtained.
[0011]
Such a detent mechanism requires less number of receiving holes than the number of positions that can be switched, and can easily place all receiving holes within a limited angle range, and increase the pitch between the receiving holes. Can do. For this reason, even when the number of positions is large or when it is necessary to arrange the receiving hole near the rotation center of the grip, it is possible to arrange the receiving hole without difficulty, contributing to the compactness of the detent mechanism, Since the thickness between the receiving holes can be increased, the strength of the edges of the receiving holes can be sufficiently obtained.
[0012]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
A first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. The jet propulsion nozzle 10 shown in FIG. 2 is provided at the rear of the hull of a small boat (water bike) (not shown). The nozzle 10 can swing up and down about a shaft 11 and is moved up (UP) side by a mechanical (manual) nozzle drive device 12 from the neutral position (NEUTRAL) in the vertical direction. The trim angle can be adjusted in two stages on the stage and down side.
[0013]
The nozzle driving device 12 includes an operation unit 20 provided on a steering bar handle for a watercraft, a relay machine 21 provided on the hull side, and the like. The operation unit 20 and the relay machine 21 are connected by a first cable 22 and a second cable 23 for driving force transmission. The relay machine 21 and the jet propulsion nozzle 10 are connected by a push / pull cable 24. When the first cable 22 is pulled by the operation unit 20, the push / pull cable 24 is pulled and the nozzle 10 is driven to the up side. When the second cable 23 is pulled by the operation unit 20, the push / pull cable 24 is pushed so that the nozzle 10 moves to the down side.
[0014]
As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the operation unit 20 includes a base member 31 that is fixed to the shaft 30 side of the steering bar handle, and a guide tube 32 that is provided to be rotatable relative to the shaft 30 about the axis. , A grip 33 for rotating operation fixed to the guide tube 32, a pulley 34 as a rotating body that rotates integrally with the guide tube 32, a lock mechanism 35 that regulates the rotational position of the grip 33, a detent mechanism 36, and the like. ing. The base member 31 in the illustrated example is formed by connecting a first member 31 a located on the lower side and a second member 31 b located on the upper side with screws 37 and 38 in FIG. 4, and the shaft 30 passes through the base member 31. A hole 39 is formed. A cable lead-out portion 40 is provided below the base member 31.
[0015]
A terminal 22a (shown in FIG. 1) of the first cable 22 and a terminal 23a of the second cable 23 are fixed to the outer peripheral portion of the pulley 34 that functions as a rotating body. The portions near the terminals 22a and 23a of the cables 22 and 23 are wound around the groove of the pulley 34, and the first cable 22 is wound around the pulley 34 when the pulley 34 is rotated clockwise in FIG. Thus, the first cable 22 is pulled, and the second cable 23 is pulled by winding the second cable 23 around the pulley 34 when the pulley 34 is rotated counterclockwise. . These cables 22 and 23 are drawn out of the base member 31 from the cable lead-out portion 40. The cables 22 and 23 are covered with cover tubes 41 and 42.
[0016]
More specifically, when the pulley 34 is in the neutral position (N) in FIG. 1, the first cable 22 and the second cable 23 are wound around the pulley 34 by substantially the same amount, so that both the cables 22 and 23 are Because of the neutral state, the push-pull cable 24 is also in the neutral position, so that the jet propulsion nozzle 10 is in the neutral position. When the pulley 34 is rotated to the position (UP1) in FIG. 1, the jet propulsion nozzle 10 is raised to the up position 1 (UP1) by pulling the first cable 22 by a predetermined stroke. When the pulley 34 further rotates to (UP2) in FIG. 1, the first cable 22 is further pulled, so that the jet propulsion nozzle 10 is raised to the up position 2 (UP2).
[0017]
Conversely, when the pulley 34 rotates to the position (DOWN1) in FIG. 1, the second cable 23 is pulled by a predetermined stroke, so that the jet propulsion nozzle 10 is lowered to the down position 1 (DOWN1). When the pulley 34 further rotates to (DOWN2) in FIG. 1, the second cable 23 is further pulled, so that the jet propulsion nozzle 10 is lowered to the down position 2 (DOWN2).
[0018]
The lock mechanism 35 shown in FIG. 3 includes a release button 50 and a receiving portion 52 having a receiving groove 51 into which a part 50a of the release button 50 can be engaged. The release button 50 is rotatable about the shaft 53. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 7, the release button 50 is a molded product including a button body 54 made of a synthetic resin and a metal lock plate core 55 inserted when the button body 54 is molded. . Although the thickness T1 of the lock plate core 55 is less than half the thickness T2 of the button body 54, the metal lock plate core 55 has sufficient strength and wear resistance in the thickness direction and the like.
[0019]
As shown in FIG. 6, the receiving portion 52 has five receiving grooves 51 formed in the base member 31, and ribs 57 are formed between the receiving grooves 51. These receiving grooves 51 are formed at positions where the engaging portions 50a of the lock plate core 55 can be engaged regardless of the position of the grip 33 among the above five positions. Is engaged with any one of the receiving grooves 51, the rib 57 prevents the rotation of the grip 33, and the lock plate is operated when the release button 50 is operated in the direction of arrow A (release direction) in FIG. The grip 33 can be rotated by removing the cored bar 55 from the receiving groove 51. The release button 50 is biased by a torsion spring 58 in a direction to engage with the receiving groove 51.
[0020]
In this embodiment, a high-strength metal lock plate mandrel 55 is inserted into the synthetic resin button body 54, and the thickness T1 of the engaging portion 50a with the receiving groove 51 is made as thin as possible. Therefore, even if the number of positions is larger than in the prior art, the thickness of the rib 57 between the receiving grooves 51 can be increased, and the receiving portion 52 can have sufficient strength.
[0021]
In addition, a mark 60 is provided on the grip 33, and a position display (not shown) is provided at a position corresponding to each position of the grip 33 on the base member 31 side. It is possible to visually check where the position is located.
[0022]
On the other hand, the detent mechanism 36 is configured as described below.
The detent mechanism 36 includes two balls 71 and 72 that function as engagement elements, and a detent body 74 provided at the end of the pulley 34. The balls 71 and 72 are housed in ball housing holes 76 and 77 formed in the base member 31 and are urged by springs 78 and 79 in a direction of exiting from the ball housing holes 76 and 77. Instead of the balls 71 and 72, for example, a plunger-shaped engagement element having a rounded tip may be used, and the shape of the engagement element is not limited.
[0023]
A center hole 80 through which the shaft 30 passes is formed at the center of the detent body 74, and four receiving holes 81, 82, 83, 84 are formed on the same circumference around the center hole 80. ing. In the case of this embodiment, all the receiving holes 81 to 84 are arranged at the same pitch P2 (45 °) between the holes. The pitch P1 of the balls 71 and 72 is 1.5 times (67.5 °) the pitch P2 between the holes.
[0024]
As shown in part of the detent mechanism 36 in FIG. 5, the detent body 74 includes a body body 90 made of synthetic resin and stainless steel having a thickness of 1 mm or less attached to the end surface of the body body 90. A spherical recess 92 in which circular holes as the receiving holes 81 to 84 are formed in the surface plate 91, and the balls 71 and 72 can be fitted in the body main body 90. Is molded. By providing the surface plate 91 on the resin body main body 90, the strength of the contact surfaces with the balls 71 and 72, particularly the edges of the receiving holes 81 to 84, can be increased. Such a surface plate 91 works effectively as a means for reinforcing the detent body 74 even if the thickness is considerably small.
[0025]
Next, the operation of the nozzle driving device 12 having the detent mechanism 36 having the above configuration will be described.
When the pulley 34 is in the neutral position (N) shown in FIG. 1, that is, when the nozzle 10 is in the neutral position (NEUTRAL), the first ball 71 is fitted in the second receiving hole 82. In this state, when the release button 50 is pushed in the direction of arrow A in FIG. 3 and the grip 33 is rotated to the position (UP1) in FIG. 1, the first cable 22 and the push / pull cable 24 are pulled. As a result, the nozzle 10 moves to the up position 1 (UP1), the second ball 72 is fitted into the third receiving hole 83 in the detent mechanism 36, and the rotational resistance of the grip 33 increases at that moment. Since a feeling of movement is generated, it can be seen that the position has been switched to UP1 due to the feeling received by the hand.
[0026]
When the grip 33 is further rotated to the position (UP2) in FIG. 1, the angle of the nozzle 10 is switched to the up position 2 (UP2), and the first ball 71 is now fitted into the first receiving hole 81. To do. It can be seen that switching to UP2 occurs because of the feeling of articulation.
[0027]
Contrary to the above, when the grip 33 is rotated to the position shown in FIG. 1 (DOWN1), the nozzle 10 moves to the down position 1 (DOWN1), and the second ball 72 enters the fourth receiving hole 84. Mating. It can be seen that switching to DOWN1 occurs at this time because of the feeling of articulation. When the grip 33 is further rotated to the position (DOWN2), the angle of the nozzle 10 is switched to the down position 2 (DOWN2), and the first ball 71 is now fitted into the third receiving hole 83. It can be seen that switching to DOWN2 occurs because of the feeling of articulation at this time.
[0028]
In the case of the detent mechanism 36 of this embodiment, the rotation range of the grip 33 is 45 ° on the up side and 45 ° on the down side, for a total of 90 °, so that the above can be achieved by moving the wrist while holding the grip 33 with one hand. Five types of positions can be switched sequentially. In this case, the receiving holes 81 to 84 may be four places, and the receiving holes 81 to 84 can be arranged in an angle range (P2 × 3 = 135 °) wider than the rotation range (90 °) of the grip 33.
[0029]
FIG. 8 shows a second embodiment of the present invention. This embodiment is common to the first embodiment in that two balls 71 and 72 and four receiving holes 81 to 84 are provided. However, as shown in FIG. The pitch P3 (52.5 °) between the third receiving hole 83 and the fourth receiving hole 84 is made larger than the pitch P2 (45 °) between the other receiving holes 81 and 82. In this case, the grip rotation angle when switching from the neutral position (N) to the down position (DOWN) is 30 °, which can be larger than the grip rotation angle 22.5 ° of the first embodiment. The grip rotation angle on the up side is 22.5 ° for both UP1 and UP2, which is the same as in the first embodiment. Accordingly, the total grip rotation angle in FIG. 8 is 75 °. Thus, by appropriately changing the pitch of the receiving holes 81 to 84, the grip rotation angle can be changed between the up side and the down side.
[0030]
FIG. 9 shows a third embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, three balls 71, 72, 73 and three holes 81, 82, 83 are provided. The pitch P2 of the holes 81 to 83 is 45 °, and the pitch P3 of the balls 71 to 73 is 67.5 °. In this case, when the pulley 34 rotates to the position (UP1) in FIG. 9, the jet propulsion nozzle 10 moves to the up position 1 (UP1) and the second ball 72 is fitted in the third receiving hole 83. It can be seen that a feeling of movement occurred and the switch was made to UP1. When the pulley 34 further rotates to the position (UP2), the nozzle 10 is switched to the up position 2 (UP2) and this time, the first ball 71 is fitted into the first receiving hole 81. It can be seen that switching to UP2 occurs because of the feeling of articulation.
[0031]
Contrary to the above, when the pulley 34 is rotated to the position (DOWN1) in FIG. 9, the nozzle 10 is lowered to the down position 1 (DOWN1), and the third ball 73 is fitted into the first receiving hole 81. Thus, it can be seen that switching to DOWN1 occurs because a feeling of movement occurs. When the pulley 34 further rotates to the position (DOWN2), the nozzle 10 is switched to the down position 2 (DOWN2), and the first ball 71 is now fitted into the third receiving hole 83. It can be seen that switching to DOWN2 occurs because of the feeling of articulation at this time.
[0032]
In the case of this embodiment, it is possible to correspond to the five positions with only the three receiving holes 81 to 83, so that it is easier to arrange the receiving holes 81 to 83. Further, since the balls 71 to 73 can be arranged in a wider range than the receiving holes 81 to 83, it is easy to secure a space for providing the three balls 71 to 73.
[0033]
In any of the above embodiments, the balls 71 to 73 are provided on the base member 31 side and the receiving holes 81 to 84 are provided on the pulley 34 side. However, in carrying out the present invention, the balls 71 to 73 are provided on the pulley 34 side. 73 and receiving holes 81 to 84 may be provided on the base member 31 side.
[0034]
【The invention's effect】
According to the present invention, the number of receiving holes can be reduced from the number of selectable positions, the pitch of the receiving holes can be made relatively large even if the number of positions is large, and the receiving holes can be arranged without difficulty. The strength of the edge of the receiving hole can be sufficiently secured.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a front view showing a relationship between a ball and a receiving hole of a detent mechanism showing a first embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a plan view of a nozzle driving device including the detent mechanism shown in FIG.
FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of an operation unit of the nozzle driving device shown in FIG.
4 is a cross-sectional view of the operation unit shown in FIG.
5 is a cross-sectional view of a part of the detent mechanism of the operation unit shown in FIG.
6 is a front view of the base member of the operation unit shown in FIG. 3 as viewed from the back side.
7 is a plan view of a release button of the operation unit shown in FIG. 3. FIG.
FIG. 8 is a front view showing a relationship between a ball and a receiving hole of a detent mechanism showing a second embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 9 is a front view showing a relationship between a ball and a receiving hole of a detent mechanism showing a third embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of an operation unit of a conventional nozzle driving device.
11 is a front view of a part of the lock mechanism of the operation unit shown in FIG.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Jet propulsion nozzle 12 ... Nozzle drive device 22,23,24 ... Cable 31 ... Base member 33 ... Grip 34 ... Pulley (rotary body)
35 ... Lock mechanism 36 ... Detent mechanism 50 ... Release buttons 71, 72, 73 ... Ball (engagement element)
74 ... Detent body 78, 79 ... Spring 81, 82, 83, 84 ... Receiving hole

Claims (3)

In a small vessel having a jet propulsion nozzle that can swing up and down at the rear of the hull,
A driving force transmission cable capable of operating the jet propulsion nozzle up or down; and
A grip mounted so as to be relatively rotatable with respect to a base member provided on a steering handle;
When the cable is driven in the direction in which the nozzle is moved up and rotated in the first direction when the grip is rotated in the first direction with the neutral position as a boundary, the nozzle is rotated in the second direction. A rotating body that drives the cable in a direction to move the cable to the down side,
A detent mechanism that produces a feeling of movement when the grip is located at each of the up side and down side positions (including the neutral position);
The detent mechanism is
A plurality of engagement elements provided on one side of the mutually opposing surfaces of the member on the rotating body and the base member and biased toward the other side by a spring;
The rotating body is provided on the other side of the mutually opposed surfaces and has a receiving hole into which a specific engagement element is fitted among the plurality of engagement elements when the rotation body is in a neutral position, and the rotation body is the first When the position is switched to the up side by rotating in the direction of, the bearing has a receiving hole into which an engaging element different from the specific engaging element is fitted, and the rotating body rotates in the second direction. A detent body having a receiving hole into which an engaging member different from the specific engaging member is fitted when the is switched to the down side;
A jet propulsion nozzle drive device for a small vessel. The detent body includes a body body portion made of synthetic resin and a metal surface plate attached to an end surface of the body body portion, and a circular hole as the receiving hole is formed in the surface plate. 2. The jet propulsion nozzle drive device for a small vessel according to claim 1, wherein a spherical recess into which the engagement element can be fitted is formed in the body main body portion at a position matching the circular hole. A lock mechanism for locking the grip at each position is provided. The lock mechanism is engaged with the release button provided on the grip and the release button formed on the base member when the grip is at each position. A movement-reception receiving groove disposed at a position to be joined, and a spring that biases the release button in a direction for engaging the release button with the receiving groove, the release button including a synthetic resin button body, and 2. A lock plate core made of metal that is molded in the button body and is thinner than the thickness of the button body, and a part of the lock plate core bar is inserted into the receiving groove. A jet propulsion nozzle drive device for a small vessel as described.

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