JP3716673B2 - Steering device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a steering apparatus for a vehicle, and more particularly to a steering apparatus suitable for use in a cabover type truck or bus, a one-box vehicle, or the like in which a steering shaft is arranged to rise at a large angle with respect to a horizontal plane.
[0002]
[Prior art]
An example of the structure of a steering device in a conventional cabover type truck will be described with reference to FIGS. First, the steering apparatus generally indicated by reference numeral 10 tilts the position of the steering wheel 14 fixed to the upper end of the steering shaft 12 in the vehicle longitudinal direction in accordance with the physique of the driver and the desired driving posture. 6 is a so-called tilt and telescopic type device that can be displaced in the vertical direction, and the solid line in FIG. 6 supports the steering wheel 14, the steering shaft 12, and the steering shaft rotatably about its axis. The steering column 16 is in a neutral position, and the alternate long and short dash line in the figure indicates the state in which each member is located at the highest position and the most forward position, and the thin alternate long and short dashed line in the figure Indicates a state in which each of the members is located at the lowest position and located at the rearmost position. A column cover 18 is fixed to the outside of the steering column 16 via a mounting member (not shown). (Note that the column cover 18 is indicated by a two-dot chain line for convenience only when the steering shaft 12, the steering column 16, and the steering wheel 14 are in the neutral position, and at other positions, the steering shaft 12, the steering column 16, and It is indicated by a one-dot chain line and a thin dotted line similarly to the steering wheel 14. Hereinafter, the steering shaft 12, the steering wheel 14, the steering column 16, and the column cover 18 will be referred to as a steering assembly in some cases.)
[0003]
Near the lower end of the front side surface of the steering column 16, the bottom of the first column bracket 20 having a U-shape or U-shape is fixed by a fixing means such as welding, and the first column bracket 20. Both leg ends of the second column bracket 22 having a U-shaped or U-shaped planar shape are fixed to the front side surface of the steering column 16 in the upper part of the steering column 16 by fixing means such as welding. On the other hand, a U-shaped or U-shaped support bracket 24 whose front shape is opened upward is fixed to a structural member such as a front panel or a floor panel of a cab, for example, and extends above the support bracket 24. A pair of left and right elongated holes 26 extending in the vertical direction are provided at positions corresponding to the first column bracket 20 of the steering column 16 at the lower part of the pair of legs, and the second column bracket A pair of left and right elongated holes 28 extending in the vehicle front-rear direction are provided in the upper portion corresponding to 22.
Further, the left and right leg portions of the first column bracket 20 are formed with circular holes through which the bolts or the shaft members 30 are inserted, and the coaxial member 30 is inserted through the elongated holes 26 at both end portions thereof in a relatively rotatable manner. Has been.
[0004]
Further, a pair of left and right elongated holes 32 extending in the vertical direction are formed in the upper part of the left and right leg portions of the second column bracket 22, and the pair of longitudinal holes 32 and the support bracket 24 are formed in a pair of longitudinal directions. A tightening bolt 34 is inserted into a portion where the extended elongated hole 28 intersects, and as shown in FIG. 9, the tightening bolt 34 is fastened to a screw portion 38 provided at the shaft end opposite to the head portion 36. A nut 40 is screwed. The tightening nut 40 is coaxially provided with a female screw portion 42 that is screwed into the screw portion 38 and a female screw portion 44 having a smaller diameter than that, and a male serration or spline 46 is formed on the outer peripheral portion of the female screw portion 44. ing. The male serration 46 is fitted with a female serration or spline 50 formed at one end of the operation lever 48 shown in the side sectional view of FIG. A retaining bolt or screw 52 is screwed. In addition, a central portion of the tightening bolt 34 is provided with a notch portion 54 in which a part of the cylindrical surface is notched with a flat surface, and is fixed to the second column bracket 22 by a bolt 56 and parallel to the long hole 32. When the extended stopper 58 is engaged with the notch portion 54, the tightening bolt 34 is supported so as to be displaceable in the vertical direction along the long hole 32 although it cannot substantially rotate relative to the steering column 16. Reference numeral 60 in the figure denotes a friction plate that is fitted on the tightening bolt 34 and is pressed against the second column bracket 22 by tightening of the tightening nut 40.
[0005]
In the steering device 10, when the operation lever 48 disposed on the outer side along the left or right side wall of the column cover 18 is pulled and rotated toward the driver side, the tightening nut 40 rotates in the loosening direction. Then, the fixed connection between the second column bracket 22 and the support bracket 24 of the steering column 16 is released. As a result, when the steering wheel 14 is pulled up or pushed down, the tightening bolt 34 and the shaft member 30 slide upward or downward in the elongated holes 32 and 26 extending in the vertical direction, respectively. Thus, the steering assembly is displaced to a desired height position. Further, when the steering wheel 14 is gripped and pushed forward or pulled backward, the tightening bolt 34 slides along the elongated hole 28 extending in the vehicle front-rear direction with the shaft member 30 as the rotation center, and the steering assembly is moved. It rotates forward or backward and is displaced to a desired tilt position.
After the steering wheel 14 is displaced to the tilt position and the height position that the driver thinks is most preferable by the above operation, the operation lever 48 is rotated toward the front of the vehicle, so that the tightening nut 40 rotates in the tightening direction. The support bracket 24 and the second column bracket 22 are frictionally engaged and fixed via the friction plate 60.
[0006]
As shown in the front view of FIG. 7, the tightening type steering device is attractive because the operation lever 48 is disposed on either the left or right side of the column cover 18 to form a protrusion. In addition to being inferior, there is a problem that the driver's knee or its peripheral part hits and is injured in a collision or the like. Therefore, as shown by a one-dot chain line in FIG. 9, a structure in which the operation lever 48 is bent and the operation end handle 62 is arranged on the front side of the driver has been studied. The tightening bolt 34, the tightening nut 40, the operation lever 48, the support bracket 24 cooperating with them, the second column bracket 22 of the steering column, the friction plate 60, etc. If the tightening margin is reduced in consideration of the mounting error, the driver's hand holding the handle 62 of the operation lever 48 hits the column cover 18, so that sufficient tightening is not performed, and conversely the tightening margin is increased. Then, there is a problem that the handle 62 protrudes greatly from the surface of the column cover 18 toward the driver and becomes a protrusion that injures the driver in the event of a collision.
[0007]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
The present invention solves the problems of the tilt type or tilt and up-and-down insertion / removal type steering device adopting the above-described tightening and fixing method, and the operation lever for tightening protrudes greatly from the column cover surface when not operating or at rest. This kind of steering device can reliably prevent the driver from being injured by hitting the control lever in the event of a collision, and can improve the appearance and the comfort of the passenger compartment and the merchantability. Is intended to provide.
[0008]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The present invention is a steering column for rotatably supporting the scan tearing shaft, column cover attached to the outside of the steering column, the steering column is provided on the vehicle body side can be displaced in one at least of the vehicle longitudinal and vertical directions A support bracket for supporting, a column bracket fixed to the steering column, a tightening bolt inserted into the support bracket, and a tightening nut screwed to the bolt, and tightening the tightening nut The fastening means which can release the steering column displaceably by fixing the nut at a desired displacement position and loosening the clamping nut , the one end of the clamping column in the rotational direction about the axis of the clamping nut Locked with the tightening nut, the bending direction of the tightening nut relative to the tightening bolt Actuating lever having a volume by a plate spring portion between the one end and the other end, when not in operation the other end is pivotally connected to the steering column with one end is consolidated through a transmission link member to the other end An operation lever arranged to form a part of the surface of the column cover, and normally, the operation lever is locked at an inoperative position, and the operation lever is rotated when an external operation force is applied. The present invention proposes a steering apparatus including a lock means for unlocking in a possible state.
[0009]
In the present invention, the shaft member supported by the lower portion of the steering column is fitted into a long hole provided in the support bracket so as to extend in the vertical direction, and the tightening bolt is connected to the support bracket. It is preferable that a long hole extending in the vertical direction provided in one of the column brackets and a long hole extending in the vehicle front-rear direction provided in the other of the support bracket and the column bracket are inserted. In the present invention, the support bracket is provided with a shaft member supported by the lower portion of the steering column and a long hole extending in the vertical direction through which the tightening bolt is inserted, and the tightening bolt is provided in the column bracket. It is preferable that a long hole extending in the vehicle front-rear direction through which the bolt is inserted is provided.
[0010]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. (Note that members or portions that are substantially the same as or correspond to those of the conventional steering apparatus described with reference to FIGS. 6 to 10 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted.)
First, the conceptual side view of FIG. 1 shows the neutral position of each constituent member with a solid line (however, only the column cover 18 is shown with a two-dot chain line), similar to FIG. 6 showing the conventional steering device. A one-dot chain line shows a state where each constituent member is displaced to the highest position and tilted forward, and a thin dotted line shows a state where each constituent member is displaced to the lowest position and tilted rearmost.
[0011]
As well shown in the exploded perspective views of FIGS. 1 and 3, in this embodiment, the support bracket 20 mounted on the vehicle body side extends in the vertical direction for displacing the steering assembly in the vertical direction. Long holes 26 and 32 are provided, and a long hole 28 extending in the vehicle front-rear direction for tilting the steering assembly back and forth is provided in the second column bracket 22. Further, the steering bracket is screwed into the threaded portion 38 of the tightening bolt 34, and the support bracket 20 and the second column bracket 22 are frictionally tightened via the friction plate 60 by the rotation of the one direction, so that the steering assembly has a desired height. In addition to being fixed at the position and the tilt position, the tightening of the support bracket 20 and the second column bracket 22 is released by turning in the opposite direction to allow the assembly to be displaced vertically and tilted. The structure of the tightening means provided with the attaching nut 40 is substantially the same as that of the conventional steering device described above, but the structure of the operating means for rotating the tightening nut 40 in the tightening or loosening direction will be described later. So totally different.
[0012]
For example, as shown in the perspective view of FIG. 3, the anti-rotation structure of the tightening bolt 34 has an anti-rotation action in cooperation with the reinforcing peripheral edge formed by bending the peripheral edge of the support bracket 20. A structure in which the square washer 64 to be performed is formed integrally with the bolt head 36 or separately and fixed to the head 36 by welding or the like can be appropriately employed. Further, the structure of the bolt constituting the shaft member 30 serving as the center of rotation at the time of tilt displacement of the steering assembly and the cooperating nut, washer and the like are substantially the same as the conventional structure, and in the perspective view of FIG. A bush 66 interposed in the insertion portion of the shaft member 30 in the first column bracket 20 is also usually used.
[0013]
Now, as the tightening nut actuating means, one end of the actuating lever 68 is connected to the tightening nut 40 via a serration or spline, and the other end of the actuating lever 68 is connected to a connecting member 70 such as a bolt or a pin. A transmission link member 72 having one end pivotally attached thereto, one end being pivotally attached to the other end of the operation link member 72 by a connecting member 74 such as a bolt or a pin, and the other end being disposed on the rear side surface of the steering column 16. The operation lever 80 is pivotally attached to a mounting bracket 76 provided by a support member 78 such as a bolt or a pin.
As shown in the detailed side view of FIG. 4, the actuating lever 68 includes a base 82 having a female serration or spline 50 that is removably fitted to the male serration or spline 46 of the tightening nut 40. A leaf spring member 86 having one end fixed to the base 82 with a fixing tool such as a rivet or a bolt and having an eyeball portion 84 formed on the other end, and one side surface of the plate spring member 86, that is, a side surface facing the operation lever 80. And a support plate 88, one end of which is fastened together with one end of the leaf spring member 86 to the base 82. The support plate 88 is indicated by an arrow A in the drawing of the tightening nut 40. The leaf spring member 86 is allowed to bend freely with respect to the force acting in the tightening direction, but the leaf spring member is against the acting force in the direction of loosening the tightening nut 40 indicated by arrow B in the figure. In cooperation with 86 It acts to suppress deflection of the leaf spring member.
[0014]
As shown by the solid line in FIG. 1, the operation lever 80 is normally locked at the non-operating position by the locking means 88 so as to be substantially flush with the column cover 18, and FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, the front shape is formed in a rectangular plate shape. As shown in an enlarged view in FIG. 5, the locking means 88 is rotatably supported by a pivot 92 on a bracket 90 projecting from the back surface of the operation lever 80, and a locking claw 94 is provided at one end. A hook member 98 having an operation arm 96 at the other end, a striker 100 fixed to the rear side surface of the steering column 16 and extending in the vehicle width direction and disposed so as to face the hook member 98, and a pivot 92 are externally fitted. The hook member 98 includes a torsion spring 102 that elastically biases the hook member 98 so as to always rotate clockwise in FIG. On the other hand, when the driver inserts a finger into the operation lever 80 and presses the operation arm 96 against the urging force of the torsion spring 102 as shown by an arrow C, An opening 104 that can release the engagement with the striker 100 is provided. In the inoperative position of the operation lever 80 indicated by the one-dot chain line in FIG. 5, the locking claw 94 is locked to the striker 100, and at this time, the operation arm 96 of the hook member 98 is on the back surface of the operation lever 80. It is provided so as to close the opening 104 and close the opening 104 so as not to impair the appearance. In FIG. 2, the lock means 88 is not shown in order to avoid congestion of the drawing.
[0015]
In the above configuration, the solid line in FIG. 1 indicates that the steering assembly is in a neutral position with respect to the vertical direction and the front-rear direction, and the tightening bolt 34 that passes through the long holes 32 and 28 is tightened by the tightening nut 40 to the support bracket 24. It shows a state of being tightened and fixed by friction. At this time, after the tightening nut 40, the friction plate 60, the support bracket 24, and the second column bracket 22 are in close contact with each other, the leaf spring member 86 of the actuating lever 68 bends, whereby the deflection of the leaf spring member and the spring constant. The additional torque is applied to the tightening nut 40 by the spring force multiplied by. Therefore, by appropriately selecting the specifications such as the spring constant and length of the leaf spring member 86, the dimensional error and assembly error of each component member can be effectively absorbed by the deflection amount of the leaf spring member 86. The steering assembly can be firmly and securely fastened and fixed. Further, at this time, the operation lever 80 is locked at a position substantially flush with the surface of the column cover 18 by the locking means 88 and does not constitute a projection, so that the driver hits the operation lever 80 in the event of a collision or the like. There is an advantage that there is no injury, it is advantageous in terms of safety, and the appearance is excellent.
[0016]
Next, when it is desired to change the height and / or tilt position of the steering shaft 12, and hence the steering wheel 14, a finger or the like is inserted into the opening 104 of the operation lever 80 and the operation arm 96 of the lock means 88 is moved. auto press locking pawl 94 when unlocking removed from the striker 100, until X ₁ position control lever 80 by the reaction force is indicated by a chain line in FIG. 1 of the leaf spring member 86 (position shown by a solid line in FIG. 5) since opened manner, by rotating over a hand X ₂ position direction at the lower end of the operating lever, counter clockwise rotates the nut tightening the actuating lever 68 in FIG. 1 via a transmission link member 92 40 is relaxed. At this time, the attachment plate 88 cooperates with the leaf spring member 86 to effectively transmit the acting force in the slack direction to the tightening nut 40, so that the required rotation amount of the operation lever 80 can be reduced. As described above, by loosening the tightening nut 40, the long holes 26 and 32 extending in the vertical direction, and the shaft member 30 and the tightening bolts 34 respectively fitted in these long holes, the steering assembly is moved. After the shaft member 30 is displaced to a desired position and the tightening bolt 34 is moved along the elongated hole 28 extending in the front-rear direction to the desired tilt position, the operation lever 80 is pushed to rotate clockwise. When rotated, the locking claw 94 of the locking means 88 is automatically locked by the striker 100 to return to the normal position substantially flush with the column cover 18, and the operating lever 68 is connected to the clock via the transmission link member 72. The tightening nut 40 is tightened with respect to the tightening bolt 34. As a result, the steering wheel 14, the steering shaft 12, the steering column 16, and the column cover 18 are integrally fixed at desired vertical positions and tilt positions.
[0017]
In the above embodiment, the support bracket 24 is provided with the long holes 26 and 32 extending in the vertical direction, and the long hole 28 extending in the vehicle front-rear direction is provided in the second column bracket 22. When the steering assembly is displaced from a certain position in the up-down direction and the front-rear direction to another position, the link efficiency when the operation lever 80 is rotated in the slack direction and the tightening direction is shown in FIG. As in the conventional steering apparatus shown in FIG. 7, the support bracket 24 is provided with a long hole 26 extending in the vertical direction and a long hole 28 extending in the front-rear direction, and the second column bracket 22 is provided with the vertical direction. There is an additional advantage that can be improved compared to a configuration in which the elongated hole 32 is provided. (The force transmission efficiency increases when the angle formed by the connecting portion between the operating lever 80 and the transmission link member 72 and the angle formed by the connecting portion between the transmission link member 72 and the operating lever 62 are close to right angles, respectively).
[0018]
The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and the long holes 26 and 32 extending in the vertical direction of the support bracket 24 are simply circular holes so that the steering assembly can be rotationally displaced only in the tilt direction. The long holes 26 and 32 extending in the vertical direction of the tilt type steering device and the support bracket 24 are left as they are, and the long holes 28 extending in the front-rear direction of the second column bracket 22 are eliminated and replaced with simple circular holes. It is apparent that the present invention can also be applied to a pluggable steering apparatus in which the steering assembly can be displaced only in the vertical direction. Although the link efficiency is slightly reduced, a link type operation device comprising the operation lever 68, the transmission link member 72, and the operation lever 80 is applied in place of the operation lever 48 of the conventional steering device shown in FIGS. It is clear that this can be done.
[0019]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, a steering device according to the present invention includes a steering column that rotatably supports a steering shaft, a column cover that is mounted on the outside of the steering column, and the steering column that is provided on the vehicle body side so that the steering column can be A support bracket that is displaceably supported in at least one direction, a column bracket fixed to the steering column, a tightening bolt inserted into the support bracket, and a tightening nut screwed to the bolt. Tightening means for fixing the steering column in a desired displacement position by tightening the nut and releasing the steering column displaceably by loosening the tightening nut , one end of which is the shaft of the tightening nut Locked with the tightening nut in the rotational direction centered on the center and against the tightening bolt The other end with the actuating lever having a leaf spring portion which flexes tightening direction is allowed of the tightening nut between the one end and the other end, one end being consolidated through a transmission link member to the other end Is pivotally attached to the steering column and is arranged so as to form a part of the surface of the column cover when it is not operated. The operation lever of the tightening means for fixing the steering assembly in a desired position is provided with a lock means for unlocking the operation lever in a pivotable state when the operation lever is applied. because it is stored in a state of not protruding from the cover, excellent safety in the event of a collision, and with the advantage capable of improving the comfort and high resistance since no disfiguring, When unlocking the lever, the operating lever automatically opens due to the reaction force of the leaf spring in the operating lever that is allowed to bend in the tightening direction of the tightening nut. There is an advantage that the required amount to rotate the operation lever by applying the can be reduced.
In the present invention, the shaft member supported by the lower portion of the steering column is fitted into a long hole provided in the support bracket so as to extend in the vertical direction, and the tightening bolt is supported by the support bolt. By being inserted through a long hole extending in the vertical direction provided in one of the bracket and the column bracket and a long hole extending in the vehicle front-rear direction provided in the other of the support bracket and the column bracket, There is an advantage that the steering assembly can be freely displaced in the vertical direction and the front-back direction so as to conform to the physique of the driver and the desired driving posture, and can be fixed at a desired position.
Further, in the present invention, the support bracket is provided with a shaft member supported on the lower portion of the steering column and a long hole extending in the vertical direction through which the tightening bolt is inserted, and the tightening bolt is provided in the column bracket. By providing a long hole extending in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, the link efficiency when rotating the operation lever to tighten or loosen the tightening nut is excellent, thus reducing the required operating force. There are benefits to get.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic side view showing an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a front view seen from the direction of arrow II in FIG.
FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing a main part of the steering device shown in FIG. 1;
4 is an enlarged side view of an operation lever 68 in FIG. 1. FIG.
5 is an enlarged side sectional view of a mounting portion of the operation lever 80 in FIG. 1. FIG.
FIG. 6 is a schematic side view showing a conventional steering device.
7 is a front view seen from the direction of arrow VII in FIG. 6. FIG.
8 is a cross-sectional view of the tightening nut 40 in FIGS. 1 and 6. FIG.
9 is a cross-sectional view taken along line IX-XI in FIG.
10 is a side sectional view of the operation lever 48 in FIG. 6. FIG.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Steering device, 12 ... Steering shaft, 14 ... Steering wheel, 16 ... Steering column, 18 ... Column cover, 20 ... First column bracket, 22 ... Second column bracket, 24 ... Support bracket, 26 and 32 ... Long hole in the vertical direction, 28 ... Long hole in the front / rear direction, 30 ... Shaft member, 34 ... Tightening bolt, 68 ... Actuating lever, 72 ... Transmission link member, 80 ... Operation lever, 86 ... Leaf spring member, 88 ... Locking means 98 ... Hook members, 100 ... Striker.

Claims (3)

A steering column that rotatably supports the steering shaft, a column cover that is mounted on the outside of the steering column, a support bracket that is provided on the vehicle body side and that displaceably supports the steering column in at least one of the vehicle front-rear and vertical directions; A column bracket fixed to the steering column, a tightening bolt inserted into the support bracket, and a tightening nut screwed to the bolt, and tightening the tightening nut to move the steering column to a desired displacement position. The tightening means that can disengage the steering column by loosening the tightening nut and disengageably disengage the tightening nut , the one end being engaged with the tightening nut in the rotation direction about the axis of the tightening nut. Bending was allowed in the tightening direction of the tightening nut with respect to the tightening bolt. Actuating lever having a spring portion between the one end and the other end, one end and the other end while being consolidated through a transmission link member to the other end of said column cover when not in operation are pivotally connected to the steering column An operation lever arranged so as to form a part of the surface, and normally, the operation lever is locked at an inoperative position, and the operation lever can be rotated when an artificial operation external force is applied. A steering apparatus comprising a locking means for unlocking. A shaft member supported by a lower portion of the steering column is fitted and inserted into a long hole provided in the support bracket so as to extend in the vertical direction, and the tightening bolt is connected to one of the support bracket and the column bracket. 2. A long hole extending in the up-down direction provided in the vehicle and a long hole extending in the vehicle front-rear direction provided in the other of the support bracket and the column bracket are inserted through the long hole. Steering device. The support bracket is provided with a shaft member supported on the lower portion of the steering column and a long hole extending in the vertical direction through which the tightening bolt is inserted, and the front and rear of the vehicle in which the tightening bolt is inserted into the column bracket. The steering device according to claim 1, wherein a long hole extending in a direction is provided.

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