JP4533348B2 - Operation pedal support structure - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a support structure for an operation pedal.

  A pedal body, such as a brake pedal or a clutch pedal, that is swung in the vehicle longitudinal direction is supported by a dash panel via a pedal bracket. That is, the pedal bracket is fixed to the dash panel, and the pedal body is swingably held in the front-rear direction with respect to the pedal bracket via the first support shaft extending in the vehicle width direction on the upper end side thereof, It is stepped on by the occupant at the lower end. Such a pedal body is required not to be largely displaced rearward particularly at the lower end side thereof in order to protect the occupant's foot during a vehicle collision (front collision).

  As a technique for meeting such a demand, for example, in Patent Document 1 below, a pivot lever is held swingably by a second support shaft that extends in the vehicle width direction with respect to a pedal bracket, so When the lever abuts on the vehicle body side member, the lever is rotated around the second support shaft, and the first support shaft supporting the pedal body is forcibly displaced rearward by the rotation of the rotation lever. It has been proposed to let Further, for example, in Patent Document 2 below, a rotation shaft serving as a swing fulcrum of the pedal body is displaced relative to the pedal stepping portion provided at the lower end portion of the pedal body toward the vehicle rear side when the vehicle collides. In such a pedal support structure, a spring urging force is used to hold the rotating shaft in the upper initial position. Further, for example, in Patent Document 3 below, there is disclosed a mechanism that disengages the pedal body from the pedal bracket by expanding and deforming the pedal bracket that holds the support shaft of the pedal body in the vehicle width direction in the event of a vehicle collision. Yes.

JP 2005-510785 A Japanese Patent No. 3269372 European Patent Application No. 0659615

  In those described in Patent Documents 1 and 2 described above, the support shaft of the operation pedal is prevented from dropping during normal operation, but when a large downward load is applied due to the pedal depression operation by the driver. There is a risk that the support pedal shaft will fall off. Moreover, in what was described in patent document 3, when the pedal body is inclined due to an oblique load applied when the pedal bracket is expanded and deformed at the time of a vehicle collision, the pedal bracket of the pedal body is removed. It will be difficult to ensure a secure departure.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above technical problem, and can normally prevent inadvertent dropping of the pedal body at normal times and reliably prevent the pedal body from retreating in the event of a vehicle collision. An object of the present invention is to provide a support structure for an operation pedal that can be used.

  Accordingly, the invention according to claim 1 of the present application is a pedal structure provided on the rear side of the dash panel and operated to swing in the vehicle front-rear direction. The pedal is attached to the dash panel and extends to the rear side of the vehicle body. A bracket, which is swingable via a pedal bracket provided with a support portion for supporting a first support shaft and a second support shaft extending in the vehicle width direction, and a first support shaft supported by the pedal bracket. It is supported by a pedal body supported by the pedal bracket and a second support shaft supported by the pedal bracket so as to be swingable. At the time of a vehicle collision, it can rotate around the second support shaft by interfering with a vehicle body side member. A rotary lever that is dynamically displaced and allows the first support shaft to be displaced relative to the pedal bracket by pushing down the first support shaft; and a lower lever that is positioned below the first support shaft. A drop-off restricting portion; a first engaging portion that engages with a pair of elongated holes formed in the pedal bracket extending in a substantially front-rear direction in the vehicle width direction; and the second support shaft or A drop-off restricting member having a second engaging portion that engages with a rotating lever or a pedal bracket, and when a downward load is applied to the pedal body, the first support shaft is displaced downward. And a drop-off restricting member configured to release the engagement with the shaft member and release the drop-off restriction in accordance with the turning of the turning lever at the time of a vehicle collision, The rotating lever is further provided with a displacement restricting portion that engages with the shaft member in a non-collision state and restricts the displacement of the shaft member in the disengagement direction with respect to the drop-off restricting member. Is.

  In the invention according to claim 2 of the present application, in the invention according to claim 1, in the support portion for the first support shaft provided in the pedal bracket, the downward displacement of the first support shaft is normally restricted. On the other hand, in the event of a vehicle collision, there is provided a restricting portion that allows the first support shaft to drop downward in accordance with the rotational displacement of the rotational lever.

  Furthermore, the invention according to claim 3 of the present application is characterized in that, in the invention according to claim 2, the pedal body is detached from the pedal bracket immediately after the first support shaft is dropped from the support portion. It is what.

  According to the invention of claim 1 of the present application, in the normal state, the shaft member is held and the forward displacement is restricted, and at the time of a vehicle collision, the rotation of the turning lever causes the shaft member and the drop-off restricting member to Since the displacement lever that allows the shaft member to be displaced in the direction of releasing the engagement is provided on the rotation lever, the pedal body can be prevented from falling off when there is no collision. Since the member is displaced with a relatively small load and the engagement between the shaft member and the drop-off restricting member is easily released, the pedal body can be reliably dropped off. As a result, it is possible to prevent the pedal body from moving backward.

  Further, according to the invention according to claim 2 of the present application, the downward displacement of the first support shaft is regulated during normal operation, while the first support shaft is moved downward according to the rotational displacement of the rotation lever during a vehicle collision. By providing the restricting portion that allows the drop-off, it is possible to restrict the downward displacement of the first support shaft during normal times.

  Furthermore, according to the invention of claim 3 of the present application, the pedal body can be reliably prevented from retreating with a simple configuration in which the pedal body is detached from the pedal bracket immediately after the first support shaft is detached.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1 is a side view of a brake pedal support structure according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, a brake booster 2 and a pedal bracket 10 that swingably supports a brake pedal 3 in the vehicle front-rear direction are attached to a dash panel 1 that partitions an engine room and a vehicle compartment. The brake pedal 3 extends obliquely downward from the support shaft, and a pedal stepping portion 3a is provided at a lower end portion thereof. A pivot lever 20 is pivotally supported on the pedal bracket 10 so as to drop the support shaft of the brake pedal 3 downward from the pedal bracket 10 in the event of a vehicle front collision. The brake booster 2 is connected to the brake pedal 3 via a push rod 2a. An instrument panel reinforcement 5 made of a pipe for supporting a steering column is disposed on the rear side of the rotation lever 20, and the instrument panel reinforcement 5 includes a rotation lever 20 at a normal time. A vehicle body side member 5a facing the rear end portion by a predetermined distance is provided.

  2 and 3 are an exploded perspective view of the support structure of the brake pedal 3 and a side view of the support structure of the brake pedal 3 in a normal state, respectively. The pedal bracket 10 basically includes a mounting board 11 that is bolted to the dash panel 1 and a pair of left and right side plates 12 that extend rearward from the left and right edge portions of the mounting board 11. Each side plate 12 is formed with a circular first support hole 13a for inserting and supporting the first support shaft 40 of the brake pedal 3 extending in the vehicle width direction. And the peripheral part of each 1st support hole 13a comprises the support part 13 for supporting the 1st spindle 40, respectively.

  In the present embodiment, as the first support shaft 40, a bolt in which a screw 40a is cut at one end and a bolt head 40b is provided at the other end is employed. The screw 40a is cut so as to be positioned on the outer side in the vehicle width direction from the outer surface of the right side plate after the first support shaft 40 is attached to the pedal bracket 10. Then, with the first support shaft 40 inserted through each first support hole 13a and the insertion hole 3c formed in the boss 3b on the upper end side of the brake pedal 3, the nut 41 is inserted into the screw 40a of the first support shaft. The brake pedal 3 is supported by the pedal bracket 10 so as to be swingable about the first support shaft 40 by being screwed through the washer 42. Further, according to the configuration of the screw 40 a and the washer 42, it is possible to prevent the screw 40 a from damaging the support portion 13 of the pedal bracket 10 when a load is applied to the first support shaft 40 when the brake pedal 3 is operated. it can.

  Furthermore, an opening 13b having a width smaller than the shaft diameter of the first support shaft 40 is formed below the first support hole 13a of each support portion 13, and protrudes to the rear and front of the vehicle, respectively. A pair of front and rear projections 13c (regulators) facing each other through the opening 13b is disposed. Note that the protrusion 13c may be only on one side of the front and rear. Each projection 13c supports the first support shaft 40 and regulates its downward drop during normal times other than during a vehicle front collision. The first support shaft 40 is deformed by being pushed downward to allow the first support shaft 40 to drop off. A notch portion 14 having a width larger than the shaft diameter of the first support shaft 40 is formed below the opening 13 b of each support portion 13.

  A circular second support hole 15 is formed on the rear side of the first support hole 13a of each side plate 12 to insert and support the second support shaft 50 of the rotating lever 20 extending in the vehicle width direction. As the second spindle 50, a bolt in which a screw 50a is cut on one end side and a bolt head 50b is provided on the other end side is employed. Then, in a state where the second support shaft 50 is inserted into each second support hole 15 and each insertion hole 21 a formed in the rotation lever 20, a nut (not shown) is attached to the screw 50 a of the second support shaft 50. By screwing, the rotation lever 20 is supported by the pedal bracket 10 so as to be rotatable about the second support shaft 50.

  Further, in the present embodiment, in each side plate 12, a linear long hole 16 extending in the front-rear direction of the vehicle is formed on the front side of the first support hole 13a while facing each other. Shaft members 17 are bridged over these long holes 16, and the shaft members 17 are held in the long holes 16 so as to be displaceable. Although not particularly illustrated, a configuration for preventing the shaft member 17 from coming off from the elongated hole 16 is adopted at both ends of the shaft member 17.

  The turning lever 20 is formed in a substantially U-shaped cross section, and connects a pair of left and right side plates 21 extending along the inner surface of each side plate 12 of the pedal bracket 10 and the upper edge of both side plates 21 to each other. And a top plate 22. In the rotating lever 20, an arc portion 21b formed in an arc shape is formed in a portion of each side plate 21 facing the boss portion 3b of the brake pedal 3, and the rotating lever 20 is in an assembled state. Thus, each arc portion 21b is set so as to be positioned via a predetermined clearance C with respect to the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical boss portion 3b. Further, a displacement restricting portion 23 for holding the shaft member 17 held in the long hole 16 on the pedal bracket 10 side from the lower side is provided on the front side of the arc portion 21b. Further, a circular insertion hole 21a for the second support shaft 50 is formed in the vicinity of the lower end portion of the side plate 21 extending downward and rearward of the arc portion 21b.

  In the present embodiment, for example, in order to prevent the brake pedal 3 from being inadvertently dropped when a relatively large load is applied to the brake pedal 3 during a pedal depression operation by a driver, It has been adopted. The drop-off restricting member 30 includes a pair of left and right side plates 31 extending along the inner surface of each side plate 12 of the pedal bracket 10 and the outer surface of each side plate 21 of the rotating lever 20, and both side plates 31 on the rear end side. And a connecting portion 32 to be connected. In addition, the connection by the connection part 32 is not necessarily required, and a pair of left and right side plates 31 may be formed separately.

  Each side plate 31 of the drop-off restricting member 30 is formed with an insertion hole 33 through which the first support shaft 40 that supports the boss portion 3b of the brake pedal 3 is inserted. In the present embodiment, a hole having a diameter that approximately matches the diameter of the first support shaft 40 is formed as the insertion hole 33. In the assembled state of each configuration, each side plate 31 of the drop-off restricting member 30 is disposed along the inner surface of the pedal bracket 10 and the outer surface of the rotation lever 20, and the first support shaft 40 is inserted into the insertion hole 33. It will be.

  Further, the drop-out restricting member 30 is formed with a front engaging portion 34 that engages with the shaft member 17 spanned in the long hole 16 formed in each side plate 12 of the pedal bracket 10 on the front end side thereof. In addition, at the center in the vehicle width direction of the connecting portion 32 provided on the rear end side, the second support shaft 50 that is inserted into the second support hole 15 of the pedal bracket 10 and the insertion hole 21a of the rotation lever 20 is engaged. A rear engagement portion 35 is formed. As can be seen from FIG. 3, in the normal state, the drop-off restricting member 30 is such that the front engaging portion 34 and the rear engaging portion 35 are engaged with the shaft member 17 and the second support shaft 50 from above in the front and rear of the vehicle, respectively. Is supported at a predetermined position.

  Further, in the normal state, the first support shaft 40 is inserted and supported by the first support hole 13a, and the rotating lever 20 has a circular arc portion 21b with a predetermined distance from the outer peripheral surface of the boss portion 3b of the brake pedal 3. It is set so as to be located via the clearance C. Further, the shaft member 17 is received and held from below by a displacement restricting portion 23 provided on the front end side of the rotation lever 20. As can be clearly understood from FIG. 3, in the normal state, the displacement restricting portion 23 is positioned such that the tip end portion 23a thereof overlaps the elongated hole 16, whereby the shaft member 17 is displaced forward (that is, the drop restricting member 30). (Displacement in the direction in which the engagement is disengaged) is restricted and held in the rear side in the long hole 16.

  In this state, for example, when a downward load is applied to the brake pedal 3, the boss portion 3 b of the brake pedal 3 is pulled downward, and accordingly, the first support shaft 40 pushes the drop-off regulating member 30 downward. However, in the state shown in FIG. 3, the drop-out restricting member 30 is engaged with the shaft member 17 and the second support shaft 50 from above by the front engagement portion 34 and the rear engagement portion 35 before and after the vehicle, respectively. Therefore, the brake pedal 3 is prevented from falling off. Thus, according to the support structure of the brake pedal 3, the brake pedal 3 is supported by the drop-off restricting member 30 even when a relatively large downward load is applied to the brake pedal 3, for example, when the pedal is depressed. The brake pedal 3 can be prevented from dropping carelessly.

  Next, the operation of the support structure for the brake pedal 3 at the time of a vehicle front collision will be described. 4 and 5 are side views of the support structure of the brake pedal 3 in an initial state at the time of a vehicle front collision and in a state in which the brake pedal 3 is dropped. At the time of a frontal collision of the vehicle, the dash panel 1 (see FIG. 1) and the pedal bracket 3 move to the rear of the vehicle, and the rear end portion of the side plate 21 of the turning lever 20 contacts the vehicle body side member 5a. Accordingly, the rotation lever 20 rotates about the second support shaft 50 in the direction (counterclockwise) indicated by reference numeral D1. 4 and 5, the rear end portion of the turning lever 20 before turning is indicated by a one-dot chain line. As the pivot lever 20 pivots, the holding portion 23 of the pivot lever 20 retracts from below the shaft member 17 so as to release the restriction of the shaft member 17 by the tip end portion 23a, and the pivot lever 20 The urging portion 24 urges the shaft member 17 held in the long hole 16 on the pedal bracket 10 side, and displaces it in the long hole 16 to the vehicle front side (left side in the drawing). When the shaft member 17 is displaced by a predetermined amount, the engagement of the bearing portion 34 of the drop-off restricting member 30 with respect to the shaft member 17 is released as shown in FIG. In this state, the support action of the drop-off restricting member 30 with respect to the brake pedal 3 becomes invalid, and the brake pedal 3 is supported simply by the first support shaft 40 being supported by the support portion 13. Further, in this state, the turning lever 20 is positioned so that the arc portion 21b abuts on the outer peripheral surface of the boss portion 3b of the brake pedal 3, that is, the clearance C shown in FIG. .

  When the turning lever 20 is turned from the state shown in FIG. 4, the arc portion 21b pushes the boss portion 3b of the brake pedal 3 downward, and thereby the boss portion 3b is displaced downward. Moreover, the 1st spindle 40 is displaced below with the boss | hub part 3b. With this displacement, the protrusion 13c of the pedal bracket 10 is deformed, and the opening 13b is expanded and deformed. As a result, the first support shaft 40 falls off from the support portion 13 provided on the pedal bracket 10. When the first support shaft 40 is dropped from the support portion 13, the brake pedal 3 is dropped together with the drop regulating member 30 that has been previously disengaged from the pedal bracket 10, as shown in FIG.

  As described above, after the engagement between the shaft member 17 and the drop-off restricting member 30 is released, the first support shaft 40 is dropped, so that the boss portion 3b is not supported by the drop-off restricting member 30, FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, the brake pedal 3 is dropped. Further, in the present embodiment, in the normal state, the shaft member 17 can be held by the displacement restricting portion 23 of the turning lever 20 to restrict the forward displacement in the long hole 16. The displacement restricting portion 23 of the rotating lever 20 is retracted from below the shaft member 17, and the shaft member 17 is only urged by the urging portion 24 of the rotating lever 20, that is, from the inclined urging portion 24. By applying a relatively small load, it can be easily displaced forward (in the direction in which the engagement with the drop-out restricting member 30 is released), and thereby the engagement between the shaft member 17 and the drop-out restricting member 30 is facilitated. Since the brake pedal 3 is released with certainty, the brake pedal 3 can be removed with certainty. Further, in the present embodiment, a configuration is adopted in which the brake pedal 3 is detached from the pedal bracket 10 immediately after the first support shaft 40 is detached, whereby the main body of the brake pedal 3 is moved backward in the vehicle. Can be reliably prevented.

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the illustrated embodiment, and it is needless to say that various improvements and design changes can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention.

  In the above-described embodiment, in a normal state, the predetermined clearance C is provided between the arcuate portion 21b of the rotating lever and the outer peripheral surface of the brake pedal 3, and the brake is applied to the insertion hole 33 of the drop-off restricting member 30. The structure in which the first support shaft 40 of the pedal 3 is inserted and supported without clearance, that is, the structure in which the rotating lever 20 pushes the boss portion 3b downward after the engagement of the drop-off restricting member 30 is adopted. Without being limited thereto, as shown in FIG. 6, in the normal state, the clearance between the arc portion 21b of the turning lever 20 and the outer peripheral surface of the brake pedal 3 is set to be very small, and the drop-off regulation is performed. A structure in which the first support shaft 40 of the brake pedal 3 is inserted and supported while ensuring a predetermined clearance with respect to the insertion hole 33 of the member 30, that is, the disengagement of the drop-off restricting member is performed. Substantially simultaneously, structure pushing the boss portion 3b of the brake pedal 3 on the lower side may be employed.

  In the above-described embodiment, the structure in which the first support shaft 40 of the brake pedal 3 is inserted into the insertion hole 33 of the drop-out restricting member is adopted, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the insertion hole of the drop-out restricting member A structure in which the boss portion 3 b of the brake pedal 3 is inserted through the brake pedal 3 may be adopted.

  Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, if the downward displacement of the first support shaft 40 can be regulated, the first support shaft 40 is not inserted and supported. For example, the vehicle is disposed below the first support shaft 40. A drop-out restricting member having another shape, such as a drop-out restricting member that supports the first support shaft 40 by extending in the front-rear direction, may be employed.

  Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the example in which the present invention is applied to the support structure of the brake pedal 3 is taken up. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention can be applied to, for example, an accelerator pedal and a clutch pedal. The same applies to other operation pedals.

It is a side view of the support structure of a brake pedal concerning an embodiment of the present invention. It is a disassembled perspective view of the support structure of the said brake pedal. It is a side view showing the normal state of the support structure of the above-mentioned brake pedal. It is a side view showing the initial state at the time of vehicle front collision of the support structure of the above-mentioned brake pedal. FIG. 3 is a side view showing a state in which the brake pedal has dropped off due to a vehicle front collision of the brake pedal support structure. It is a side view showing the normal state of the modification of the support structure of the said brake pedal.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Dash panel, 3 ... Brake pedal, 3b ... Boss part, 5a ... Car body side member, 10 ... Pedal bracket, 13 ... Support part, 13a ... 1st support hole, 13b ... Opening part, 13c ... Projection part, 15 ... Second support hole, 17 ... shaft member, 20 ... rotating lever, 21b ... arc portion, 23 ... displacement restricting portion, 23a ... tip portion, 30 ... drop-off restricting member, 33 ... insertion hole, 34 ... front engaging portion, 35 ... rear side engaging part, 40 ... 1st spindle, 50 ... 2nd spindle.

Claims (3)

In the support structure of the operation pedal that is provided at the rear of the dash panel and is operated to swing in the vehicle longitudinal direction,
A pedal bracket attached to the dash panel and extending to the rear side of the vehicle body, the pedal bracket provided with a support portion supporting the first and second support shafts extending in the vehicle width direction;
A pedal body that is swingably supported via a first support shaft supported by the pedal bracket;
The second support shaft supported by the pedal bracket is swingably supported, and at the time of a vehicle collision, the first support shaft is pivotally displaced around the second support shaft by interfering with a vehicle body side member. A rotation lever that allows the first support shaft to be displaced with respect to the pedal bracket by pushing down the support shaft;
A drop-off restricting portion positioned below the first support shaft and a first member that engages with a shaft member that is formed in the pedal bracket and extends in a pair of left and right elongated holes in the vehicle width direction extending in the front-rear direction. A drop-off restricting member having a joint portion and a second engaging portion that engages with the second support shaft or the rotating lever or the pedal bracket, and when a downward load is applied to the pedal body, A dropout configured to release the dropout restriction by releasing the engagement with the shaft member in accordance with the turning of the turning lever in the event of a vehicle collision while restricting the downward displacement of the first support shaft. A regulating member,
The rotating lever is further provided with a displacement restricting portion that engages with the shaft member in a non-collision state and restricts the displacement of the shaft member in the disengagement direction with respect to the drop-off restricting member. Support pedal support structure.   The support portion for the first support shaft provided on the pedal bracket normally restricts the downward displacement of the first support shaft, while the first support shaft according to the rotation displacement of the rotation lever at the time of a vehicle collision. The operation pedal support structure according to claim 1, further comprising a restricting portion that allows the support shaft to drop downward. 3. The operation pedal support structure according to claim 2, wherein the pedal body is detached from the pedal bracket immediately after the first support shaft is dropped from the support portion.

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