JP4174933B2 - Open / close drive device for sunroof device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an opening / closing drive device for a sunroof device that opens and closes a movable panel formed on a vehicle roof.
[0002]
[Prior art]
As a conventional sunroof opening / closing drive device for opening / closing a movable panel, a device disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-106985 is known.
[0003]
In this conventional apparatus, a gear mechanism is built in, a case where an output gear is arranged outside and screwed to the sunroof housing, a gear cable that is fixed to the case and covers a meshing portion of the output gear and the gear cable and is applied by a biasing force. And a box for supporting a leaf spring that maintains the meshing state of the output gear and the gear cable, is formed separately from the sunroof housing.
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in the configuration of the above-described conventional device, the box that covers the meshing portion between the output gear and the gear cable is formed separately from the sunroof housing, and is usually made of a metal such as iron in order to ensure the strength inside the box. It is formed by a member. Therefore, it leads to an increase in the number of parts related to the opening / closing drive device, which increases the number of manufacturing steps, which is not preferable. Further, in this configuration, the casing pipe and the box are attached to the sunroof housing such as the front frame after the casing pipe through which the cable is inserted is attached to the box, which is not preferable from the viewpoint of assembling. Furthermore, there is a problem that the weight increases when the box is made of metal.
[0005]
Therefore, in order to solve the above problems, it is a technical object of the present invention to provide an open / close drive device for a sunroof device that has a simpler configuration than that of a conventional device and is excellent in assemblability.
[0006]
The technical means taken in the present invention to solve the above technical problem is to push and pull the gear cable meshed with the output gear by the rotation operation of the output gear linked to the gear mechanism linked to the drive source. An opening / closing drive device for a sunroof device that opens and closes a movable panel that is disposed in an opening of a vehicle roof and that is linked to the gear cable, and a housing that houses the output gear and incorporates the gear mechanism, A box formed integrally with a sunroof frame that supports the movable panel so as to be openable and closable, and covers a meshing portion of the output gear and the gear cable; and a side wall through which the gear cable penetrates the gear. A holding hole for holding a casing pipe extending through the cable from the side wall and extending outward from the side wall; A lid for attaching the casing pipe, which is inserted and held in the holding hole, to the box, and the outer diameter of the mounting end of the casing pipe with the holding hole is wider than the inner diameter of the holding hole. It was configured that.
[0007]
According to this technical means, since the box is formed integrally with the sunroof frame, that is, a part of the sunroof frame constitutes the box, the housing that covers the meshing part of the output gear and the gear cable is fixed to the box. By providing, the opening / closing drive device is connected to the sunroof frame. Therefore, the number of parts related to the opening / closing drive device is reduced and the number of manufacturing steps is reduced as compared with the conventional device. Further, by forming a holding hole in the side wall of the box and fitting the lid into the box, the casing pipe can be assembled at the same time when the box and the housing are fixed, and the assembling property is improved. Furthermore, by forming the outer diameter of the mounting end of the casing pipe wider than the inner diameter of the holding hole, the casing pipe is prevented from being detached from the holding hole by pushing and pulling the gear cable.
[0008]
In addition, since the box is made of resin, the shape can be arbitrarily set to ensure the strength of the portion covering the meshing part of the output gear and the gear cable, and the weight is also lighter than metals such as iron. Is preferable.
[0009]
Furthermore, when the gear cable extending outside the box is configured to be inserted into the casing pipe, the sunroof frame and the casing pipe are fixed by attaching the casing pipe to the box, It is also suitable in terms of assembly.
[0010]
Specifically, the sunroof frame body includes guide rails arranged on both side edges of the opening, and a resin frame formed in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the guide rail, and the box is integrated with the frame. Form.
[0011]
Preferably, when a support member that supports the gear cable and maintains the meshing state of the output gear and the gear cable is disposed on the inner peripheral surface of the box, the gear cable and the box when the gear cable is pushed and pulled inside the box The cable and the box are prevented from being damaged due to the sliding with the inner peripheral surface, and the gear cable can be prevented from bulging outward from the meshing portion with the output gear.
[0013]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
An opening / closing drive device for a sunroof device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a plan view of a sunroof device employing the opening / closing drive device 1 of the present embodiment. Openings 2 are formed in the vehicle roof, and sunroof frames 4 that support a movable panel 3 that opens and closes the openings 2 are movably disposed on both side edges of the openings 2. The sunroof frame 4 includes guide rails 41 disposed on both side edges of the opening 2 and a resin frame 42 formed separately from the guide rails 41 and formed in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the guide rails 41. It is configured. The front frame 42 on the front edge side of the opening 2 pushes and pulls the gear cable 12 meshed with the output gear 13 by the rotation operation of the output gear 13 linked to the gear mechanism 14 linked to the motor 11 that is a drive source. Thus, an opening / closing drive device 1 that opens and closes the movable panel 3 is formed. The opening / closing drive device 1 is linked to each link mechanism 5 via a gear cable 12. The gear cable 12 is toothed as is well known, and one end is attached to the guide rail 41 and is slidably guided into the casing pipe 6 and the guide rail 41 through which the gear cable 12 is inserted.
[0014]
2 is a perspective view of the opening / closing drive device of the sunroof device, FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the opening / closing drive device of the sunroof device, and FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA of FIG. As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the opening / closing drive device 1 includes a motor 11, a gear mechanism 14 having an output gear 13 that is linked to the motor 11 and meshed with a gear cable 12 linked to the movable panel 3, and the motor 11. The circuit board 15 having a control element for controlling the operation of the motor and the housing 16 in which the gear mechanism 14 and the circuit board 15 are housed are mainly configured.
[0015]
The housing 16 includes a box-shaped gear mechanism side case 16A and a circuit board side case 16B that closes the gear mechanism side case 16A and defines an accommodation space. The gear mechanism side case 16A and the circuit board side case 16B are engaged by fitting engagement portions (not shown) formed in both cases. The rotation output shaft 17 of the gear mechanism 14 is rotatably supported by the gear mechanism side case 16A and the circuit board side case 16B so as to cross the housing space of the housing 16 while penetrating the circuit board 15. One end of the rotation output shaft 17 extends through the gear mechanism side case 16 </ b> A, and the output gear 13 is fixed to the one end so as to rotate integrally with the rotation output shaft 17.
[0016]
A worm gear (not shown) is fixed to the rotating shaft of the motor 11 so as to rotate integrally. The rotation output shaft 17 and the worm wheel gear 32 are supported so as to rotate integrally. The worm gear and the worm oil gear 32 mesh with each other to constitute the gear mechanism 14. The rotation operation of the motor 11 is decelerated by the gear mechanism 14 to rotate the rotation output shaft 17 and output from the output gear 13. As a result, the rotation of the output gear 13 causes the movable panel 3 to move the opening 2 from the slide or tilt open state to the closed state or from the closed state to the slide or tilt open state.
[0017]
The output gear 13 disposed outside the housing 16 is engaged with the two gear cables 12 so as to be pushed and pulled in the opposite directions, and the support member 18 disposed on the inner periphery of the box 43 and the box 43. The meshing part is covered by. The support member 18 is an iron leaf spring, and the gear cable 12 is supported by the support member 18 so that the meshing state of the output gear 13 and the gear cable 12 is maintained. In addition, the gear cable 12 is prevented from bulging outward from the meshing portion with the output gear 13.
[0018]
The box 43 is formed integrally with the front frame 42 so as to extend from the center of the front frame 42 toward the front of the opening 2 when the front frame 42 made of reinforced nylon is injection-molded. At the time of injection molding, the surface of the box 43 that supports the gear cable 12 is set to be thicker than the upper surface in order to prevent the gear cable 12 from bulging outward. The side wall 43a of the box 43 through which the gear cable 12 passes is formed with a total of four holding holes 43b for inserting the gear cable 12 therein and holding the casing pipe 6 extending from the side wall 43a to the outside. One gear cable 12 passes through the holding hole 43b facing each side wall 43a. The gear cable 12 extending to the outside of the box 43 passes through the inside of the casing pipe 6 attached to the holding hole 43b and is linked to each link mechanism 5. The casing pipe 6 and the supporting member are fitted into the box 43 by holding the casing pipe 6 in the holding hole 43b and fitting the lid body 19 from below in FIG. 18 is attached. In the present embodiment, the outer diameter of the attachment end of the casing pipe 6 with the holding hole 43b through which the gear cable 12 for sliding the movable panel 3 is inserted is formed wider than the inner diameter of the holding hole 43b. The casing pipe 6 is prevented from being detached from the holding hole 43b by pushing and pulling the cable 12.
[0019]
The assembly according to the opening / closing drive device 1 of the sunroof device having the above-described configuration will be described. First, the support member 18 is arranged in the box 43 and the cover body 19 is fitted into the box 43 with the four casing pipes 6 inserted into the holding holes 43b. The casing pipe 6 and the support member 18 are inserted into the box 43. Install. At this time, the gear cable 12 has not yet been inserted into the casing pipe 6. Next, the gear cable 12 is inserted into the casing pipe 6 from the end of the casing pipe 6 on the link mechanism 5 side. The box 43 and the housing 16 are arranged so that the output gear 13 outside the housing 16 in a state where the motor 11, the gear mechanism 14 and the circuit board 15 are arranged is meshed with the gear cable 12 in the box 43. The opening / closing drive device 1 is connected to the front frame 42 by screwing. The front frame 42 is attached to the guide rail 41 in a state of being connected to the opening / closing drive device 1 to constitute the sunroof frame 4.
[0020]
As described above, the box 43 that covers the meshing portion between the output gear 13 and the gear cable 12 is formed integrally with the front frame 42, so that the opening / closing drive device 1 is secured to the sunroof frame 4 by screwing the box 43 and the housing 16. Concatenated with Therefore, the number of parts related to the opening / closing drive device 1 is reduced as compared with the conventional device, the configuration is simplified, and the assembling property is improved. Further, since the box 43 is molded by resin injection molding, it is possible to easily mold a portion requiring strength thickly, which is preferable from the viewpoint of weight and manufacturing.
[0021]
Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments. For example, a driving device including a damper mechanism between an output gear of a gear mechanism and a rotation output shaft. Alternatively, it may be a drive device provided with a detection mechanism for detecting the movement position of the roof panel in the housing.
[0022]
【The invention's effect】
According to the present invention, since the box is integrally formed with the sunroof frame, that is, a part of the sunroof frame constitutes the box, the opening / closing drive device is connected to the sunroof frame by fixing the housing to the box. Is done. Therefore, the number of parts related to the opening / closing drive device is reduced as compared with the conventional device, and the number of manufacturing steps is also reduced.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a plan view of a sunroof device employing an opening / closing drive device according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an opening / closing drive device for a sunroof device according to the present invention.
FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the opening / closing drive device for the sunroof device according to the present invention.
4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Opening / closing drive device 2 ... Opening part 3 ... Movable panel 4 ... Sunroof frame 5 ... Link mechanism 6 ... Casing pipe 11 ... Motor (drive source)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 12 ... Gear cable 13 ... Output gear 14 ... Gear mechanism 16 ... Housing 18 ... Support member 41 ... Guide rail 42 ... Front frame (frame)
43 ... Box

Claims (3)

The gear cable meshed with the output gear is pushed and pulled by the rotation operation of the output gear linked to the gear mechanism linked to the drive source, and is arranged at the opening of the vehicle roof and linked to the gear cable. In the opening and closing drive device of the sunroof device that opens and closes the movable panel,
A housing in which the output gear is disposed outside and the gear mechanism is built in;
A box formed integrally with a sunroof frame that supports the movable panel so as to be openable and closable, and covers a meshing portion of the output gear and the gear cable;
A holding hole for holding a casing pipe that is formed in a side wall through which the gear cable of the box passes, passes through the gear cable, and extends outward from the side wall;
A lid that attaches to the box a casing pipe that is fitted into the box and held in the holding hole;
Furthermore, the opening / closing drive device of the sunroof device, wherein an outer diameter of an end portion of the casing pipe with the holding hole is formed wider than an inner diameter of the holding hole . The sunroof frame includes a guide rail disposed on both side edges of the opening, and a resin frame formed in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the guide rail,
The sunroof driving device according to claim 1, wherein the box is formed integrally with the frame.   2. The sunroof device according to claim 1, wherein a support member that supports the gear cable and maintains the meshing state of the output gear and the gear cable is disposed on an inner peripheral surface of the box. Drive device.

Images