JP4916273B2 - Spline coupling structure and spline device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a spline coupling structure. In particular, the present invention relates to a spline coupling structure in which rattling is prevented.

  The spline coupling is a coupling in which a spline groove formed in the first member and a spline groove formed in the second member are engaged with each other. Such a coupling structure is suitable when two members that are likely to rotate in directions opposite to each other are coupled while suppressing rotation. The spline coupling is employed in a stabilizer mounted on a vehicle as disclosed in Patent Document 1, for example. The stabilizer is mounted in order to suppress the rolling motion of the vehicle while turning. An example of a stabilizer is shown below.

As shown in FIG. 3, the stabilizer of patent document 1 has the stabilizer bars 50 and 52 divided | segmented into right and left. The stabilizer bars 50 and 52 are respectively held by the vehicle body. One end of each of the stabilizer bars 50 and 52 is connected to the left and right wheels on the front side, and the other end is connected in the actuator 54.
As shown in FIG. 4, the actuator 54 has a brushless motor 56 and a speed reduction mechanism 58. The speed reduction mechanism 58 is a mysterious planetary gear mechanism. A sun gear 62 is splined to the rotor 60 of the brushless motor 56. The sun gear 62 is disposed so as to mesh with the first-stage planetary gear 64. The first stage planetary gear 64 is rotatably supported by the sun gear 66 and is also rotatably supported around the axis of the stabilizer bar 50 (which is also the axis of the sun gears 62 and 66). The first stage planetary gear 64 is arranged so as to mesh with the ring gear 70. That is, the first stage planetary gear 64 is supported so as to revolve around the axis of the stabilizer bar 50 while rotating between the sun gear 62 and the ring gear 70. The ring gears 68 and 70 are internal gears having different numbers of teeth. A second planetary gear 72 is provided as a common planetary gear that meshes with the ring gears 68 and 70. The planetary gear 72 is supported so that it can revolve around the axis of the stabilizer bar 50. The second-stage planetary gear 72 is arranged so as to mesh with the sun gear 66. That is, the second-stage planetary gear 72 is supported so as to revolve around the axis of the stabilizer bar 50 while rotating between the sun gear 66 and the ring gears 68 and 70.

One end of the stabilizer bar 50 is splined to the bearing portion 68 b of the ring gear 68. The bearing portion 68 b is integrally formed with an end plate 68 e that constitutes the ring gear 68. That is, one end of the stabilizer bar 50 is integrally coupled to the ring gear 68. The ring gear 68 is rotatably supported on the inner surface of the housing 74 via a bearing 50a. The other end of the stabilizer bar 50 is rotatably supported on the inner surface of the lid member 78 via a bearing 50b.
One end of the stabilizer bar 52 is integrally formed with the end plate 52e. The end plate 52e is splined to the housing 74. A ring gear 70 is integrally formed inside the housing 74. That is, one end of the stabilizer bar 52 is integrally joined to the ring gear 70.

The reduction mechanism 58 is connected to the brushless motor 56. The rotor 60 of the brushless motor 56 is supported so as to be rotatable about the stabilizer bar 50. The stator 76 of the brushless motor 56 is fixed to the inner surface of the housing 74 so as to surround the rotor 60. The rotor 60 has a cylindrical shape, and both ends thereof are rotatably supported on the inner surfaces of the housing 74 and the lid member 78 via bearings 60b.
When the brushless motor 56 is rotated, the ring gears 68 and 70 are relatively driven, and the stabilizer bars 50 and 52 coupled to the ring gears 68 and 70 are driven. A shaft rotation of the stabilizer bar 50 is detected by a rotation sensor 80 disposed in the housing 74. The torsional force of the stabilizer bars 50 and 52 is variably controlled by the actuator 54, and the roll motion of the vehicle body is suppressed.

In the stabilizer of Patent Document 1 described above, spline coupling is often used as a means for connecting the stabilizer bars 50 and 52 to the actuator 54. The divided two stabilizer bars 50 and 52 can independently rotate, and the rotation direction of the two stabilizer bars 50 and 52 changes according to the roll direction of the vehicle body. For this reason, if the fit of the spline coupling is a so-called “clearance fit” in which the spline coupling moves slightly in the axial direction after the coupling, an abnormal noise is generated when the rotational direction changes due to rattling.
In order to realize spline coupling without backlash, a so-called “fitting” is usually performed with an interference fit. For example, if one spline groove is provided with a lead angle to form a lead spline, and the other spline groove is press-fitted and fitted, a spline connection without rattling and no abnormal noise can be realized. However, since high machining accuracy is required to perform “fitting fit”, an increase in cost and a reduction in work efficiency are inevitable. Therefore, it has been desired to realize spline coupling that is “clearance fit” and has no backlash.

In the stabilizer of Patent Document 1, a shaft spline 50 s having an outer tooth portion is formed at one end of the stabilizer bar 50. A hole spline 68 s having an inner tooth portion is formed inside the bearing portion 68 b of the ring gear 68. A shaft spline 50s is fitted into the hole spline 68s. A groove-shaped notch 50c having a predetermined length extending in the axial direction is formed on the outer surface of the shaft spline 50s. A tooth-shaped elastic member 82 is attached to the notch 50c. The tooth-shaped elastic member 82 is made of an elastic resin. The tooth-shaped elastic member 82 has an outer tooth portion that meshes with the inner tooth portion of the hole spline 68s, and is set to a size slightly larger than the size of the outer tooth portion of the shaft spline 50s. The tooth-shaped elastic member 82 has a left-right symmetric cross section, and is configured such that the top of the tooth is located on a diameter passing through the central axis of the hole spline 68s. The stabilizer bar 50 is inserted into the hole spline 68s in a state where the tooth-shaped elastic member 82 is press-fitted into the notch 50c of the shaft spline 50s. At this time, the tooth-shaped elastic member 82 meshes with the inner tooth portion of the hole spline 68s while being compressed, and the shaft spline 50s is pressed in the radial direction by the elastic force of the tooth-shaped elastic member 82.
According to the above configuration, since the fit between the hole spline 68s and the shaft spline 50s is “clearance fit”, the two can be coupled with a light load about the human arm force. Moreover, after the shaft spline 50s is inserted into the hole spline 68s, the shaft spline 50s can be brought into close contact with the hole spline 68s by the elastic force of the tooth-shaped elastic member 82. In the stabilizer of Patent Literature 1, spline coupling without backlash can be realized while being “clearance fit”.

JP 2006-27525 A

In the spline connection of Patent Document 1, a member (tooth-shaped elastic member 82) for bringing the shaft spline 50s into close contact with the hole spline 68s is indispensable. For this reason, it is necessary to form the notch 50c in the shaft spline 50s, and it is necessary to press-fit the tooth-shaped elastic member 82 into the notch 50c into the shaft spline 50s during assembly. Therefore, the assembly work efficiency is reduced and the cost is increased.
The present invention has been created in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a technique capable of realizing spline coupling without backlash while having high work efficiency and low cost.

The spline coupling of the present invention is a spline coupling structure that couples the first member and the second member. The first member has a tapered surface and a spline groove formed at one end. The second member has a tapered surface that contacts the tapered surface of the first member, and a spline groove that engages with the spline groove of the first member. The tapered surface of the first member is formed on at least a part of the circumferential direction, while the tapered surface of the second member is formed only on a part of the circumferential direction. And in the state which moved the 1st member toward the 2nd member and combined both the members, while both the spline grooves of the 1st member and the 2nd member are engaged, Both the tapered surfaces of the second member abut and the first member is guided and moved by the tapered surface of the second member, so that the second member is on the side opposite to the side where the tapered surface is formed. Both spline grooves are pressed against each other.
In this spline coupling, when the first member and the second member are coupled, the tapered surface of the first member and the tapered surface of the second member abut. When the taper surface of the first member and the taper surface of the second member abut, the first member slides along the taper surface of the second member, so the first member is the second member It moves to the side opposite to the side where the taper surface is formed. By this movement, the first member is pressed against the second member, so that the spline grooves are closely engaged (that is, closely meshed). Accordingly, it is possible to realize spline coupling without backlash.
Further, since only the tapered surfaces are formed on the first member and the second member, it is not necessary to provide a notch in a part of the spline groove as in the prior art, and there is no need for a tooth-shaped elastic member. For this reason, the assembly | attachment operation | work of both can be performed efficiently and it can manufacture at low cost.

  In the above spline coupling structure, the first member may be a rod-shaped member, and the second member may be a member having a hole for receiving one end of the first member. According to this, since the area | region which forms a spline groove | channel can be ensured widely, a stronger joint structure can be implement | achieved.

The spline coupling structure can be used for coupling the stabilizer bar and the actuator. That is, the first member can be a stabilizer bar that is mounted on the vehicle and transmits torsion torque (torsional force) to the wheels, and the second member can be a rotor of an actuator that controls the torsion torque of the stabilizer bar. .
When the roll direction of the vehicle changes, the rotation direction of the stabilizer bar (rotor) changes, so if the fit of the spline connection is “clearance fit”, the teeth of the spline grooves formed on each other collide with each other to generate noise. Let By adopting the above spline coupling structure for this spline coupling, even if the fit is “clear fit”, it is possible to prevent rattling and to prevent the generation of abnormal noise.

The present invention also provides a novel spline device in which rattling between spline grooves is prevented. That is, the spline device of the present invention is a spline device including a spline shaft and a member to be coupled in which a hole for receiving one end of the spline shaft is formed. The spline shaft has a tapered surface formed on the end surface of the one end and a spline groove formed on the outer peripheral surface in the vicinity of the one end. The member to be coupled has a tapered surface formed at the bottom of the hole and a spline groove formed on the inner peripheral surface of the hole. The tapered surface of the spline shaft is formed on at least a part of the circumferential direction, while the tapered surface of the coupled member is formed only on a part of the circumferential direction. When one end of the spline shaft is received in the hole of the coupled member and the two members are coupled, the spline shaft and the spline grooves of the coupled member are engaged, and both the taper of the spline shaft and the coupled member are tapered. The surfaces abut and the spline shaft moves in a direction perpendicular to the axis, so that a part of the circumferential direction of both spline grooves is pressed against each other.
This spline device also uses the spline coupling structure described above. For this reason, there can exist the effect obtained by the spline coupling structure mentioned above.

  In the above spline device, it is preferable that the tapered surface of the spline shaft is formed so as to make a round in the circumferential direction. By forming the tapered surface of the spline shaft in all circumferential directions, the spline shaft and the coupled member can be coupled without adjusting the circumferential positional relationship.

  In the spline coupling structure of the present invention, rattling can be prevented even if the fit of the spline groove is not “fitting fit”. According to the present invention, since the fit of the spline connection can be “clearance fit”, machining is facilitated. It is possible to realize a spline connection that has high working efficiency and low cost and is free from backlash.

Preferred embodiments of the present invention are listed.
(Mode 1) The second member includes a member having a spline groove that engages with the spline groove of the first member, and a member having a tapered surface that comes into contact with the tapered surface of the first member.
(Mode 2) The first member has a substantially cylindrical shape, and a tapered surface is formed to chamfer the tip. The second member has a substantially cylindrical shape with one end closed, and a tapered surface having the same taper angle as that of the first member is formed on the inner surface of the second member. The tapered surface of the first member is formed so as to make a circuit around the axis, but the tapered surface of the second member is formed only in a part in the circumferential direction.

  An embodiment embodying the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The spline coupling structure of this embodiment is employed for coupling a stabilizer bar and an actuator rotor in a stabilizer mounted on a vehicle. Here, only the spline coupling structure according to the present invention will be described, and the description of the structure of other parts of the stabilizer will be omitted by the description of the prior art (see FIGS. 3 and 4).

As shown in FIG. 1, a spline groove is formed at one end of the stabilizer bar 10 (hereinafter, a portion where the spline groove of the stabilizer bar 10 is formed may be referred to as a shaft spline portion 10a). Each spline groove of the shaft spline portion 10 a is formed in parallel to the axial direction of the stabilizer bar 10. A tapered portion 10b having a tapered shape is formed at the tip of the shaft spline portion 10a. The tapered portion 10 b makes a round around the axis of the stabilizer bar 10. A female screw portion 10c for the bolt 16 is formed at the center of the end surface of the stabilizer bar 10 on the shaft spline portion 10a side.
A substantially cylindrical tube member 12 having both ends opened is externally fitted to the shaft spline portion 10a. The cylindrical member 12 has an inner cylindrical surface and an outer cylindrical surface that extend parallel to the axial direction of the stabilizer bar 10. A spline groove is formed on the inner cylindrical surface of the cylindrical member 12 (hereinafter, the portion of the cylindrical member 12 where the spline groove is formed may be referred to as a hole spline portion 12a). Each spline groove of the hole spline portion 12a is formed in parallel to the axial direction of the cylindrical member 12 (that is, the axial direction of the stabilizer bar 10). The hole spline portion 12a and the shaft spline portion 10a are spline-coupled, and the fit is set to be “clearance fit”. In a state where the stabilizer bar 10 and the cylindrical member 12 are coupled, the tapered portion 10 b of the stabilizer bar 10 protrudes outward from the end portion of the cylindrical member 12. At one end of the cylindrical member 12 (left end in FIG. 1), a screw portion 12b is formed on the outer peripheral surface thereof. The cylinder member 12 is connected to a rotor of an actuator via a speed reduction mechanism (see FIGS. 3 and 4).

A substantially cylindrical retainer 14 having one end opened is externally fitted to the cylindrical member 12 on the side opposite to the stabilizer bar. The retainer 14 has an inner cylindrical surface that extends parallel to the axial direction of the stabilizer bar 10. The diameter of the inner cylinder of the retainer 14 is equal to the outer diameter of the cylinder member 12. A female screw portion 14 f is formed on the inner cylindrical surface of the retainer 14. The female threaded portion 14f of the retainer 14 and the threaded portion 12b of the cylindrical member 12 are screwed together, whereby the cylindrical member 12 and the retainer 14 are integrated.
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, two substantially donut-shaped flat surfaces 14 b and 14 c that are concentric with the shaft of the stabilizer bar 10 are formed in two stages on the inner surface of the end portion 14 a of the retainer 14. A tapered portion 14d is formed at a part of the step between the central plane 14b and the outer peripheral plane 14c (that is, as shown in FIG. 2, the tapered portion 14d is formed at a part in the circumferential direction. Have been). The taper angle of the taper portion 14 d is equal to the taper angle of the taper portion 10 b of the stabilizer bar 10. A through hole 14e for inserting the bolt 16 is formed at the center of the end portion 14a.

  When the bolt 16 is inserted into the through hole 14e of the retainer 14 in a state where the retainer 14 is fitted on one end of the combined body of the stabilizer bar 10 and the cylindrical member 12, the bolt 16 is subsequently connected to the female screw portion of the stabilizer bar 10. 10c. By tightening the bolt 16, the retainer 14, the stabilizer bar 10 and the combined body of the cylindrical members 12 approach each other in the axial direction, and the taper portion 10 b of the stabilizer bar 10 and the taper portion 14 d of the retainer 14 come into contact with each other. When the bolt 16 is further tightened, the stabilizer bar 10 slides along the tapered portion 14d, and moves in the direction perpendicular to the axis to the opposite side (lower side in FIGS. 1 and 2) where the tapered portion 14d is formed. To do. As a result, the engagement tightness between the shaft spline part 10a and the hole spline part 12a increases on the side opposite to the side where the tapered part 14d is formed. That is, the shaft spline part 10a is pressed against the hole spline part 12a, and both engage closely.

Here, if the fit between the shaft spline portion 10a and the hole spline portion 12a is “fitting fit”, high machining accuracy is required for the spline portions 10a and 12a. For example, in order to form the lead spline groove on the stabilizer bar, first, the material is roughly cut by machining (rough cutting of the material) to form a primary molded body. Next, heat treatment is performed to cure the primary molded body. Spline grooves are formed by machining (precision cutting) on the cured primary molded body again. Cutting the cured material is not easy, but if the lead spline grooves are formed before the heat treatment, the lead spline grooves are deformed by the heat treatment. For this reason, in order to obtain high processing accuracy, it must be cut after the heat treatment. In addition, since it is not easy to achieve high machining accuracy even with a high cutting technique, in practice, the shaft spline part 10a and the hole spline part 12a are selectively used for assembly after machining. Must fit into. This inevitably increases costs and decreases work efficiency.
In the present embodiment, since the fit between the shaft spline portion 10a and the hole spline portion 12a is set to “clearance fit”, high machining accuracy is not required, and the stabilizer bar 10 and the cylindrical member 12 have a spline groove. Heat treatment can be performed after molding. For example, the stabilizer bar 10 can be manufactured by roughing a material by machining (cutting), then forming a spline groove by rolling the molded body after the roughing, and finally performing heat treatment. it can. Therefore, since machining is performed on the metal before heat treatment (metal that can be easily machined), machining can be easily performed. Further, since the spline groove can be formed by rolling, it can be formed efficiently (in a short time). As a result, the manufacturing cost can be drastically reduced as compared with the case where the fit between the shaft spline part 10a and the hole spline part 12a is “fitting fit”.

  Further, in this embodiment, the tapered portion 10b is formed at the tip of the stabilizer bar 10, the tapered portion 14d is formed on a part of the inner surface of the end portion 14a of the retainer 14, and the tapered portion 10b is pressed against the tapered portion 14d. By tightening the bolt 16, the tightness of engagement between the shaft spline part 10 a and the hole spline part 12 a can be increased. For this reason, even if the fit between the shaft spline part 10a and the hole spline part 12a is “clearance fit”, rattling of the shaft spline part 10a and the hole spline part 12a is prevented. Generation of abnormal noise caused by backlash between the portion 10a and the hole spline portion 12a can be suppressed.

In the above-described embodiment, the tapered surface that makes a round around the axis of the stabilizer bar 10 is formed. However, the present invention is not limited to such an example, and the tapered surface is formed in a part of the circumferential direction of the stabilizer bar 10. Also good. In this case, it is necessary to adjust the positional relationship in the circumferential direction so that both tapered surfaces of the stabilizer bar 10 and the retainer 14 are in contact with each other (that is, in this embodiment, the shaft of the stabilizer bar 10 is fitted). By forming a tapered surface that goes around, there is no need to adjust the circumferential positional relationship between the stabilizer bar 10 and the retainer 14).
In the embodiment described above, the hole spline side member coupled to the stabilizer bar 10 (shaft spline) is composed of two members, the cylindrical member 12 and the retainer 14, but the present invention is not limited to such a form. A member on the hole spline side may be manufactured by integrating the cylindrical member 12 and the retainer 14 (one component).
In the above-described embodiment, the spline coupling structure of the present invention is applied to a stabilizer. However, the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment, and for example, a transmission unit that transmits the output of a motor with a reduction gear. The spline coupling structure of the present invention can also be applied to.

Specific examples of the present invention have been described in detail above, but these are merely examples and do not limit the scope of the claims. The technology described in the claims includes various modifications and changes of the specific examples illustrated above.
In addition, the technical elements described in the present specification or the drawings exhibit technical usefulness alone or in various combinations, and are not limited to the combinations described in the claims at the time of filing. In addition, the technology illustrated in the present specification or the drawings achieves a plurality of objects at the same time, and has technical utility by achieving one of the objects.

The principal part sectional drawing for demonstrating the spline coupling | bonding structure of a present Example. A view of the retainer. The perspective view of the conventional stabilizer. Sectional drawing of the actuator of the conventional stabilizer.

Explanation of symbols

10: Stabilizer bar, 10a: Shaft spline part, 10b: Tapered part, 10c female thread part, 10d: End face 12: Tube member, 12a: Hole spline part 14: Retainer, 14a: End part, 14b: Plane, 14c: Plane, 14d: Tapered portion, 14e: Through hole 16: Bolt 50: Stabilizer bar, 50a: Bearing, 50b: Bearing, 50c: Notch, 50s: Shaft spline 52: Stabilizer bar, 50e: End plate 54: Actuator 56: Brushless motor 58: Reduction mechanism 60: Rotor, 60b: Bearing 62: Sun gear 64: Planetary gear 66: Sun gear 68: Ring gear, 68b: Bearing portion, 68e: End plate, 68s: Hole spline 70: Ring gear 72: Planetary gear 74: Housing 76: Stator 78: Lid member 80: Rotation Capacitors 82: toothed elastic member

Claims (5)

A spline coupling structure for coupling the first member and the second member,
The first member has a tapered surface and a spline groove formed at one end,
The second member has a tapered surface that contacts the tapered surface of the first member, and a spline groove that engages with the spline groove of the first member.
The tapered surface of the first member is formed on at least part of the circumferential direction, while the tapered surface of the second member is formed only on part of the circumferential direction,
In a state in which the first member is moved toward the second member and both the members are coupled, the spline grooves of the first member and the second member are engaged, and the first member and the second member are engaged. Both the tapered surfaces of the first member abut and the first member is guided and moved by the tapered surface of the second member, so that both splines on the side opposite to the side where the tapered surface of the second member is formed. A spline coupling structure characterized in that the grooves are pressed against each other.   2. The spline coupling structure according to claim 1, wherein the first member is a rod-shaped member, and the second member is a member having a hole for receiving one end of the first member.   The first member is a stabilizer bar that is mounted on a vehicle and transmits torsion torque to a wheel, and the second member is a rotor of an actuator that controls torsion torque of the stabilizer bar. The spline connection structure described in 1. A spline device comprising a spline shaft and a member to be coupled in which a hole for receiving one end of the spline shaft is formed;
The spline shaft has a tapered surface formed on the end surface of the one end and a spline groove formed on the outer peripheral surface in the vicinity of the one end,
The member to be coupled has a tapered surface formed at the bottom of the hole and a spline groove formed on the inner peripheral surface of the hole.
The tapered surface of the spline shaft is formed on at least a part of the circumferential direction, while the tapered surface of the coupled member is formed only on a part of the circumferential direction,
In a state where one end of the spline shaft is received in the hole of the coupled member and the both members are coupled, the spline shaft and the spline grooves of the coupled member are engaged, and both the tapered surfaces of the spline shaft and the coupled member are A spline device, wherein the spline shafts are in contact with each other and the circumferential portions of both spline grooves are pressed against each other by moving the spline shaft in a direction perpendicular to the axis.   The spline device according to claim 4, wherein the tapered surface of the spline shaft is formed so as to make a round in the circumferential direction.

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