JP3816998B2 - Mirror device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a mirror device capable of adjusting the direction of a reflecting surface, for example, a rearview mirror capable of changing the direction of a reflecting surface by remote control in an automobile.
[0002]
[Prior art]
An example of this type of mirror device is disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 5-27304. This mirror device is configured as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, 51 is a base frame, 52 is a reflector member that is tiltably attached to the base frame 51 at a point indicated by reference numeral 53, and 55 is spaced from the tilt center 53 of the reflector member 52. This is a forward / backward mechanism for pushing and pulling the reflecting mirror member 52 in the front-rear direction of the reflecting surface at the position. The advancing / retracting member 56 in the advancing / retracting mechanism 55 includes a pivot portion 57 adapted to be fitted to a spherical seat 54 provided in the reflecting mirror member 52, a plurality of ribs 58 for transmitting rotational power, and a screw member attached to the base frame 51. A flexible claw 59 for fitting with 63 screws is provided. The rotation member 60 in the advance / retreat mechanism 55 includes a space 61 for positioning the advance / retreat member 56 on the inner side and a plurality of grooves 62 for fitting the ribs 58 therein.
[0003]
In the above configuration, when the rotation member 60 is rotated by the motor, the advance / retreat member 56 rotates integrally therewith, and the advance / retreat member 56 moves forward or backward along the screw member 63. As a result, the reflecting mirror member 52 tilts and the direction of the reflecting surface can be changed. In the case of the above operation, the plurality of rotational force transmission ribs 58 provided in the advance / retreat member 56 are fitted in the grooves 62 of the rotation member 60, so that the rotation of the rotation member 60 is reliably performed on the advance / retreat member 56. Communicated. Therefore, there is a feature that the above operation can be performed reliably.
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In this conventional mirror device, in the case of the above operation, the rotational force transmission rib 58 is guided by the groove 62 of the rotating member 60, so that the advance / retreat member 56 tries to advance or retreat straight as indicated by an arrow 64. . However, since the reflecting mirror member 52 tilts about the tilting center 53, the spherical seat 54 fitted to the pivot portion 57 of the advance / retreat member 56 moves while drawing an arc as indicated by an arrow 65. For this reason, there is a problem in that near the both ends of the forward / backward movement range of the forward / backward member 56, a twisting force is applied to the forward / backward member 56, and the forward or backward movement becomes heavy. This has a problem that, for example, a motor for rotating the rotating member 60 requires a large motor that generates such torque. Further, since the advance / retreat member 56 has a complicated shape as shown in the drawing, the mold structure for manufacturing the advance / retreat member 56 requires a core for forming the space 66 for the screw member 63 to be complicated, for example. There was a point. In addition, since the advancing / retracting member 56 is manufactured one by one using such a mold, there is a problem that it takes time and is expensive.
[0005]
The mirror device of the present application is provided in order to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and its purpose is to make the advance / retreat member for tilting the reflecting mirror member advance or retract directly by the rotating member. By doing so, it is possible to ensure the movement of the advance / retreat member.
In the above case, the advancing / retreating member can be moved lightly not only in the middle part of the advancing / retreating range of the advancing / retreating member but also near both ends of the range.
Furthermore, the outer shape of the advancing / retracting member can be simplified so that an inexpensive mold can be used as a mold for manufacturing with a simple structure such as a two-part mold.
In addition, by making it possible to manufacture the advancing / retreating member in such a two-divided type, it is possible to obtain a large number of products by a single molding operation.
Other objects and advantages will be readily apparent from the drawings and the following description associated therewith.
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, the mirror device according to the present invention has a reflector member attached to a base frame so as to be tiltable, and the reflector member is attached to the base frame at a position away from the tilt center of the reflector member. In the mirror device provided with an advancing / retreating mechanism for pushing / pulling the reflecting surface in the front / rear direction, and changing the direction of the reflecting surface of the reflecting mirror member by pushing / pulling the reflecting mirror member by the advancing / retreating mechanism, The mechanism includes a forward / backward member that is movable back and forth in the front-rear direction of the reflecting surface and has one end connected to the reflector member, and a space for positioning the forward / backward member on the inner side, and is rotatable around the forward / backward member. And a rotation stopping member for preventing the reciprocation of the advancement / retraction member relative to the rotation member. The inner surface of the rotation member facing the space is provided with a female screw. On the outer peripheral surface of the advance / retreat member, the one end of the advance / retreat member can be tilted in a direction connecting the tilt center of the reflector member and the advance / retreat member with respect to the direction in a slight section of the other end. A male screw threadedly engaged with the female screw is provided on the side which is the side, and the advancing and retracting member moves in the front-rear direction of the reflecting surface by rotating the rotating member.
[0007]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, drawings showing embodiments of the present invention will be described. 1 and 2 showing an electric rearview mirror of an automobile, A denotes a mirror body, and B denotes a mirror device housed therein. Reference numeral 1 denotes a case in the mirror body A, which has a configuration for mounting the mirror device B therein. That is, 2 is a mounting seat integrally formed with the case 1, 3 is a mirror frame, and a mounting post 4 is integrally formed and is fixed to the mounting seat 2 with a locking screw 5.
[0008]
The mirror device B has a base frame C serving as a non-moving base and a reflecting mirror member D attached to the base frame C so as to be tiltable. E is an advance / retreat mechanism for tilting the reflecting mirror member D with respect to the base frame C. F is a driving element for driving the advancing / retracting mechanism E, and illustrates an electric motor.
[0009]
The base frame C is a housing for housing the advance / retreat mechanism E and a motor for operating the same, and as shown in FIG. 3, two housing elements 7 and 8 made of resin material are opposed to each other. And are integrated with a fastening screw 9. The structure provided in each of the elements 7 and 8 will be described. 10 is a seat for receiving the reflecting mirror member in a tiltable manner, and 11 is a restricting portion for restricting the position of a later-described rotating member in the advance / retreat mechanism E. , 12 respectively indicate support shafts for rotatably supporting the rotating member. Reference numeral 13 shown in FIG. 2 is a set screw for attaching the base frame C to the column 4.
[0010]
As shown in FIG. 2, the reflecting mirror member D is composed of a substrate 15 serving as a base for supporting the reflecting mirror and a mirror element 16 attached thereto. The substrate 15 will be described. Reference numeral 17 denotes an abutting portion that is brought into contact with the seat 10 so that the substrate 15 can be tilted with respect to the base frame C. The opposing surfaces of the corresponding portion 17 and the receiving seat 10 are formed in a spherical shape so that the substrate 15 can be tilted in an arbitrary direction with respect to the base frame C. The seat 10 and the ball center P1 (see FIG. 3) of this portion 17 are the tilting center of the reflecting mirror member D with respect to the base frame C. Reference numerals 18 and 19 denote members for pressing the abutment portion 17 against the seat 10, and respectively indicate a retainer and a compression spring. Reference numeral 20 denotes a spring retainer having a head portion of a screw 9. Reference numeral 21 denotes a connecting portion with the advancing / retracting mechanism E, and a spherical seat is used so that the connecting state can be maintained even if the substrate 15 is inclined in any direction. The mirror element 16 includes a mirror holder 23 that is attached to the substrate 15 by retrofitting and a reflecting mirror 24 held by the holder 23. Reference numeral 24 a denotes a reflecting surface of the reflecting mirror 24. The reflecting mirror member D may be configured such that the substrate 15 has a reflecting surface on itself.
[0011]
The advancing / retreating mechanism E is provided at a position spaced from the tilting center P1 of the reflecting mirror member D as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 in order to tilt the reflecting mirror member D, and the reflecting mirror member D is reflected on the reflecting surface 24a. These are pushed and pulled in the front-rear direction, that is, the left-right direction in FIG. The advancing / retracting mechanism E is provided with two positions shifted by 90 ° with respect to the tilting center P1 as shown in FIG. 1 so that the reflecting mirror member D can be tilted in any direction up, down, left and right. Yes. The advance / retreat mechanism E will be described with reference to FIGS. 26 is an advancing / retracting member for pushing and pulling the reflecting mirror member D in the front-rear direction of the reflecting surface 24a, 27 is a rotating member for advancing and retracting the advancing / retracting member 26 by its own rotation, and 28 is the rotating member The rotation stop member provided in each inner periphery of the two support shafts 12 and 12 shape | molded integrally with the element 8 in order to prevent the rotation of the advance / retreat member 26 with respect to 27 is shown. 29 is a boot for waterproofing, which is formed of a flexible material such as rubber.
[0012]
The advance / retreat member 26 will be described. Reference numeral 30 denotes a driving unit that is connected to the reflecting mirror member D to drive it, and is provided at one end of the advancing / retracting member 26 for driving the substrate 15 from its rear surface. The drive unit 30 is formed in a spherical shape that can be fitted to the connection part 21 for the same purpose as the connection part 21. Reference numeral 31 denotes a leg portion. In order to be subjected to rotation regulation by the rotation stop member 28, the opposite side to the one side thereof is lacking 32 to form a flat plate, and the surfaces 31a and 31b on the respective sides are flat. Reference numeral 33 denotes a male screw for receiving a forward / backward force from the rotating member 27. The male screw 33 is disposed laterally with respect to the surfaces 31a and 31b in the leg portion 31 so that the advancing / retracting member 26 can be tilted in a state where the rotating member 27 is engaged with a female screw to be described later. The side surfaces 31c and 31d are provided in a short range 34. Further, the male screw 33 is configured so that the inclination of the advancing / retreating member 26 is kept smaller than the movement dimension when the drive unit 30 moves to the surface 31a side or the surface 31b side around the portion of the male screw 33. Therefore, it is formed in a slight section at a position away from the drive unit 30, for example, at the lower end of the leg 31 as shown in the figure. The advancing / retreating member 26 as described above is movable back and forth in the front-rear direction of the reflecting surface 24a. That is, when the drive unit 30 is fitted to the connecting portion 21 of the substrate 15 and the leg portion 31 receives a guide by the rotation preventing member 28, the forward / backward direction of the reflecting surface 24a can be advanced and retracted in a state where the advance / retreat direction is regulated by them. It is like that. Further, the advance / retreat member 26 is combined with the rotation stop member 28 so that the advance / retreat member 26 can be tilted in a direction 42 connecting the tilting center P1 of the reflector member and the advance / retreat member 26, and the male screw 33 is arranged in the direction 42. It is located on the side that is the side. Their configuration will be described later. The advancing / retracting member 26 having the above-described configuration has a configuration in which the various functional elements are provided on the outer peripheral surface thereof. Therefore, when this is manufactured by molding a synthetic resin material, the advancing / retracting member 26 is arranged in the direction of arrow 44 in FIG. Molding can be performed with an inexpensive two-part mold. Therefore, by providing a large number of molding spaces in the mold, the number of products can be increased and the unit price of parts can be reduced.
[0013]
The rotating member 27 will be described. The rotating member 27 is formed in an annular shape, and is provided with a space 36 for positioning the advance / retreat member 26 on the inner side thereof. The rotation member 27 can freely rotate around the advance / retreat member 26. That is, the rotation member 27 is supported by the support shaft 12 and is rotatable about the space 36. Reference numeral 37 denotes a female screw provided on the inner peripheral surface facing the space 36. The female screw meshes with the male screw 33, and applies a force to advance and retreat the advance / retreat member 26 by the rotation of the rotation member 27. Reference numeral 38 denotes gear teeth formed on the outer peripheral surface of the rotating member 27. By providing the gear teeth 38, the rotating member 27 is a worm wheel. Reference numeral 39 denotes a worm gear attached to the rotating shaft of the motor F, which meshes with the worm wheel 27.
[0014]
The rotation stop member 28 will be described. 40 is a storage space in which the leg portion 31 of the advance / retreat member 26 is positioned, and the inner wall surfaces on both sides thereof are opposed to the surfaces 31a, 31b of the advance / retreat member 26 to restrict the rotation thereof. It has become. The distance D1 between the regulating surfaces 41 and 41 is larger than the thickness T1 of the leg 31 (thickness between the surfaces 31a and 31b) in order to allow the advance / retreat member 26 to tilt toward the surface 31a or the surface 31b. It is. The regulating surfaces 41 and 41 are arranged in such a direction 42 that the direction allowing the inclination of the advancing / retracting member 26 is a direction 42 (left-right direction in FIG. 3) connecting the tilting center P1 of the reflecting mirror member D and the advancing / retreating member 26. It is formed in the orthogonal direction. The interval D1 is an interval at which tilting of the advancing / retracting member 26 due to the drive unit 30 moving in the direction 42 as the substrate 15 tilts is allowed without any problem. By positioning the leg portion 31 of the advance / retreat member 26 in the space 40 for storing the rotation stopper member 28 having the above-described configuration, the male screw 33 of the advance / retreat member 26 is located on the side that is lateral to the direction 42 described above. positioned. The rotation stop member 28 is configured using the support shaft 12, but may be configured separately.
[0015]
In the above configuration, when the motor F is energized, the worm gear 39 is rotated in one or the opposite direction according to the polarity of the energization, and the rotating member 27 is rotated in the one or opposite direction. The advance / retreat member 26 whose rotation is restricted by the rotation stop member 28 moves forward or backward in the forward direction of the reflecting surface 24a through the engagement of the female screw 37 and the male screw 33 by the rotation of the rotary member 27. The drive unit 30 pushes or pulls the substrate 15. As a result, the reflecting mirror member D tilts about the tilting center P1, and the direction of the reflecting surface 24a changes.
[0016]
In the case of the above operation, the substrate 15 tilts in the direction of the arrow 43 around the tilt center P1, so that a force in the direction of the arrow 42 is applied to the drive unit 30. However, as is apparent from the above configuration, the advance / retreat member 26 can freely tilt in the direction of the arrow 42 within the advance / retreat range. As a result, the above operation is performed very smoothly.
[0017]
Next, FIG. 6 which shows different embodiment of the external thread in the advance / retreat member will be described. This figure shows an example in which the shape of the male screw is different, and the rotating member can be meshed with any female screw, whether it is a right screw or a left screw. The purpose is to do so. In the figure, reference numeral 71 denotes a thread line formed so as not to have a lead. Reference numerals 72 and 73 respectively denote thread valleys, the former having a right-hand thread lead and the latter having a left-hand thread lead. A range 74 surrounded by the thread valley lines 72 and 73 is a screw bottom. 75 indicates the slope of the thread.
[0018]
With respect to the male screw 33e having the above-described configuration, the female screw of the right screw meshes with the thread valley line 72 as indicated by reference numeral 76, and the female screw of the left screw has its screw thread line indicated by reference numeral 77. Mesh with the thread valley line 73. Such an advancing / retracting member having a male screw can be meshed with a single advancing / retracting member when the rotating member has a right-hand screw or a left-hand screw. There is an effect that can be done.
[0019]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, in the present invention, when the reflecting mirror member D is tilted by the advancing / retreating member 26 in order to change the direction of the reflecting surface 24a, when the rotating member 27 is driven to rotate, Since the turning force of the rotating member 27 is directly transmitted to the advance / retreat member 26 as a forward or backward force by the engagement of the female screw 37 and the male screw 33 of the advance / retreat member 26, the advance / retreat member 26 can be reliably advanced / retreated. There is.
Moreover, the male screw 33 is provided on the side 31c, 31d which is lateral to the direction 42 connecting the tilting center P1 of the reflecting mirror member D and the advance / retreat member 26 at the other end of the outer peripheral surface of the advance / retreat member 26. In the above case, even if the connecting portion 21 of the reflecting mirror member D with one end of the advancing / retreating member 26 performs the arc motion 43, the advancing / retreating member 26 can be inclined following the movement. Therefore, the advancing / retreating member 26 can be advanced / retreated lightly not only in the middle part of the advancing / retreating range but also near both ends of the range. This has the effect of making it possible to use an inexpensive motor having a relatively small torque as the driving element F for rotating the rotating member 27, for example.
In addition, since the outer shape of the advance / retreat member 26 can be simplified, it is possible to reduce the manufacturing cost.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a front view of a rearview mirror of an automobile.
FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway side view of a rearview mirror of an automobile.
3 is a cross-sectional view of the mirror device taken along the line III-III in FIG.
4 is a cross-sectional view of the mirror device taken along the line IV-IV in FIG. 1;
FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view showing a relationship among a rotation member, an advance / retreat member, and a rotation stop member.
FIG. 6 is a partial view showing an example in which the shape of the male screw in the advance / retreat member is different.
FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing an outline of a conventional mirror device.
FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view showing a relationship among a rotating member, an advancing / retreating member, and a screw member in a conventional mirror device.
[Explanation of symbols]
C Base frame D Reflector member E Advance / Retreat mechanism
P1 tilt center
26 Advance / Retreat
27 Rotating member
28 Anti-rotation member
33 Male thread
37 Female thread

Claims (1)

A reflector member (D) is tiltably attached to the base frame (C),
The base frame (C) has an advancing / retreating mechanism for pushing and pulling the reflecting mirror member (D) in the front-rear direction of the reflecting surface (24a) at a position away from the tilt center (P1) of the reflecting mirror member (D). (E)
In the mirror device (B) in which the direction of the reflecting surface (24a) of the reflecting mirror member (D) is changed by pushing and pulling the reflecting mirror member (D) by the advance / retreat mechanism (E),
The advance / retreat mechanism (E)
An advancing / retracting member (26) which is movable back and forth in the front-rear direction of the reflecting surface (24a) and has one end (30) connected to the reflecting mirror member (D);
A rotation member (27) provided with a space (36) for positioning the advance / retreat member (26) on the inner side and freely rotatable in one or the opposite direction around the advance / retreat member (26);
Consisting of a rotation stop member (28),
The rotating member (27) is provided with a female screw (37) on the inner peripheral surface facing the space (36),
A part of the outer peripheral surface of the advancing / retracting member (26) has a relative position to the inner peripheral surface of the rotating member (27) with the other end of the advancing / retreating member (26) being positioned in the space (36). Two male screws (33) are provided at two locations apart from each other so as to mesh with the female screw portion facing
The rotation stop member (28) regulates the rotation of the advance / retreat member (26) even when the rotation member (27) is rotated in one or the opposite direction, and the advance / retreat member (26) It is configured to advance and retract in the front-rear direction of the reflecting surface (24a), and
The position where the reciprocation of the advance / retreat member (26) is restricted is that the surface connecting the one end (30) and the two male screws (33, 33) of the advance / retreat member (26) advances and retreats from the tilt center (P1). Restricting to a position that maintains a state orthogonal to the direction (42) connecting the one end (30) of the member (26),
While the rotating member (27) is rotating, the advancing / retracting member (26) is moved forward and backward, with the two male screws (33, 33) as fulcrums and the one end (30) and the two male screws (33, 33). The mirror device is characterized in that the surface connecting the members tilts in the direction (42) connecting the tilt center (P1) and the advance / retreat member (26).

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