JP5222236B2 - Steering lock device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a steering lock device that locks a steering of an automobile or the like for the purpose of preventing theft.

  This steering lock device is disposed on a steering shaft that rotates in accordance with the steering operation of the automobile. In this steering lock device, a lock bolt is mounted inside the housing, and when the driver starts the engine, the lock bolt is immersed in the housing and the lock to the steering shaft by the lock bolt is released (unlocked). On the other hand, when the engine is stopped, the lock bolt is advanced from the housing to be in a state where it can be engaged with the steering shaft. In this state, when the lock bolt coincides in the radial direction with respect to the engagement groove of the steering shaft, the steering shaft is locked by engaging the lock bolt.

  In the steering lock device described in Patent Document 1, the driving force of a motor is transmitted to a shaft member having a worm wheel portion to be rotated. When the shaft member rotates, the cam member moves straight in the vertical direction in the axial direction of the shaft member, or rotates integrally with the shaft member. Then, when the cam member is rotated in the unlocking operation direction by the forward rotation of the motor, the lock bolt advances (protrudes) through the slider and becomes in a state where it can be engaged with the steering shaft. Further, when the cam member is rotated in the lock operation direction by driving the motor in the reverse direction, the lock bolt is retracted (immersed) via the slider, and the engagement with the steering shaft is released.

  However, in the steering lock device described in Patent Document 1, a cam member for operating a lock bolt is disposed on the shaft member, and this shaft member is supported between the housing and a lid that closes the opening of the housing. Has been. The lock bolt is made of metal, while the shaft member is made of resin in order to reduce the weight of the vehicle. Therefore, the shaft member has a problem that both ends supported by the housing and the lid are easily worn. Further, the shaft member may be damaged if an excessive load is applied during the locking operation.

JP 2008-1000064 A

  An object of the present invention is to provide a steering lock device that can prevent wear and breakage of a shaft member that receives a driving force and can improve durability.

  In order to solve the above problems, a steering lock device according to the present invention has a housing in which one end is opened and the other end is closed, a shaft hole is provided in the closed wall, and an insertion hole is formed in a predetermined wall. And a lid that is attached so as to close the opening of the housing and has a support portion at a position corresponding to the shaft hole, and an actuator that is disposed in the housing or the lid and is driven forward or reversely by energization And a shaft member having one end supported by the support portion of the lid and the other end supported in the shaft hole portion of the housing, and provided with a stopper portion contacting the periphery of the shaft hole portion at the other end. , A transmission mechanism that receives and transmits the driving force of the actuator, and a part of the housing that receives the driving force of the actuator via the transmission mechanism and is inserted from the insertion hole of the housing. It moves between a lock position that can be engaged with a movable member that protrudes and interlocks with the steering operation, and an unlock position that is inserted into the insertion hole of the housing and released from the engagement with the movable member. And a locking member.

  In the steering lock device of the present invention, the lid is provided with a support portion that supports one end of the shaft member, the housing is provided with a shaft hole portion that supports the other end of the shaft member, and the shaft member has a periphery of the shaft hole portion. The stopper part which contacts is provided. Therefore, since the contact area between the end portion of the shaft member and the housing is increased, wear of the tip portion of the shaft member can be suppressed.

In this steering lock device, when the transmission mechanism releases the engagement of the lock member with respect to the movable member, the transmission mechanism is integrated with the shaft member in a state where there is substantially no resistance between the movable member and the lock member. In the state where the movable member and the lock member have a resistance greater than or equal to a predetermined value, the shaft member moves in the axial direction and the lock member is engaged with the movable member. It is preferable to further have a cam member that comes into contact with the stopper portion of the shaft member and stops.
Specifically, the cam member has a substantially cylindrical shape that penetrates the shaft member and engages the lock member with an outer peripheral portion, and has a thread on one of the shaft member and the cam member. A thread groove is formed on the other side, and the cam member is configured to be integrally rotatable with respect to the shaft member and movable in the axial direction by screwing the thread and the thread groove.
In this way, when the thread or thread groove wears down and the engagement between the shaft member and the cam member cannot be maintained, the urging force of the urging member that urges the locking member in the protruding direction causes the cam member to Even if it moves in the axial direction with respect to the shaft member, it stops by contacting the stopper portion. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the cam member from being detached from the shaft member.

  In addition, the transmission mechanism is assembled by screwing the shaft member and the cam member together, and then assembled to the end portion opposite to the stopper portion of the shaft member, and receives the driving force of the actuator to receive the shaft member. It is preferable to further have a worm wheel as a separate member that transmits to the motor. If it does in this way, the shaft member and cam member which comprise a transmission mechanism can be assembled | attached easily.

  Furthermore, it is preferable to provide a sliding contact portion that contacts the lid on the bottom surface of the worm wheel. As described above, when the worm wheel receives the driving force of the actuator, the force acts in the direction inclined in the axial direction in addition to the force in the rotational direction. Therefore, the axial stability of the shaft member can be improved by providing a sliding contact portion that contacts the lid on the bottom surface of the worm wheel. Therefore, it is possible to reduce an excessive load on the shaft member during driving.

  In the steering lock device of the present invention, because the shaft member is provided with the stopper portion that contacts the periphery of the shaft hole portion of the housing, the contact area between the end portion of the shaft member and the housing can be increased. Wear of the tip portion of the shaft member can be suppressed. In addition, since the worm wheel disposed at the end opposite to the stopper portion of the shaft member is provided with a sliding contact portion that contacts the lid, the rotation stability of the shaft member can be improved during driving together with the stopper portion. The wear and overload of the member can be reduced. As a result, the durability of the shaft member can be improved.

It is sectional drawing which shows the steering lock apparatus of embodiment which concerns on this invention. It is a perspective view which shows the state which removed the housing from the lid. It is a disassembled perspective view of a lock unit. It is a disassembled sectional view which shows the worm wheel, shaft member, and cam member which comprise a transmission mechanism. It is process drawing which shows the unlocking operation in the state without resistance. It is process drawing which shows the unlocking operation in a state with resistance. It is process drawing which shows the lock action in the state in which the engagement groove of the steering shaft corresponded with the lock bolt. It is process drawing which shows the lock action in the state where the engagement groove of a steering shaft does not correspond with a lock bolt.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a steering lock device according to an embodiment of the present invention. This steering lock device rotatably engages a steering shaft 1 that is a movable member that is interlocked with a steering operation (not shown) by a control signal from a controller (host ECU) mounted on a vehicle and electric power from a battery. While releasing (unlocking), it engages (locks) so that rotation is impossible. In the following description, the words “up”, “bottom”, “left”, “right”, “front”, “back”, “vertical”, “horizontal” are used for convenience. It is not intended to limit the configuration.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the steering lock device includes a casing including a housing 10 and a lid 14 so as to be integrally attached to the outer peripheral portion of the steering shaft 1. The steering shaft 1 is provided with engagement grooves 2 extending along the axial direction at predetermined intervals in the circumferential direction. Further, the steering shaft 1 is covered with a cylindrical steering column 3, and a lock bolt 46 described later can be advanced and retracted from an opening of the steering column 3.

  The housing 10 is formed as an integrally molded product made of metal such as zinc, and has a box shape with the lower end opened and the upper end closed. The housing 10 is provided with a substantially semi-cylindrical shaft mounting portion 11 on an upper blocking wall portion 10a located on the opposite side to the opening. In addition, a lock bolt insertion hole 12 having a substantially rectangular shape is provided in the blocking wall portion 10a so as to penetrate through the inside so as to be positioned at a substantially central portion of the shaft mounting portion 11. Furthermore, a shaft hole portion 13 that supports the shaft member 27 is provided on the inner surface side of the closing wall portion 10 a of the housing 10 so as to be positioned beside the lock bolt insertion hole 12. The closing wall portion 10a of the housing 10 is provided with a hooking portion (not shown) that locks the upper end of the unlock spring 44.

  The lid 14 is attached by screwing so as to close the opening of the housing 10, and is formed as an integrally molded product made of metal such as zinc, like the housing 10. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the lid 14 is provided with a plurality of support walls 15 for supporting and integrating (modulating) a switch case 17 and a lock unit 18 described later. Among them, a support wall 15 a is formed at a position corresponding to the axial direction with respect to the shaft hole portion 13 of the housing 10 so as to form a substantially circular accommodation space. This accommodation space accommodates the worm gear 21 and the worm wheel 22 described later rotatably. Further, the lid 14 is provided with a shaft-like support portion 16 corresponding to the shaft hole portion 13 of the housing 10 so as to be positioned at the center of the accommodation space.

  A switch case 17 and a lock unit 18 are disposed in the internal space of the housing 10 and the lid 14. Among them, the switch case 17 includes a detection switch for detecting whether the lock bolt 46 constituting the lock unit 18 is in the advanced state (locked state) or the immersive state (unlocked state), A control circuit board that controls energization of the electric motor 19 in accordance with a control signal from the controller is accommodated. The lock unit 18 is generally composed of an electric motor 19, a worm gear 21, a worm wheel 22, a shaft member 27, a cam member 35, a slider 38, and a lock bolt 46. The worm gear 21, the worm wheel 22, the shaft member 27, and the cam member 35 constitute a transmission mechanism that receives the driving force of the electric motor 19 and transmits it to the slider 38. Further, the slider 38 and the lock bolt 46 constitute a lock member that receives the driving force of the electric motor 19 through the transmission mechanism and locks and unlocks the steering shaft 1.

  The electric motor 19 is an actuator that is driven forward or reversely by energization, and is fixed on the lid 14 by a support wall 15. In the electric motor 19, a pair of connection portions 20a and 20b is connected to a terminal portion (not shown) provided in the switch case 17, and power is supplied from an in-vehicle battery (not shown). . The electric motor 19 is driven to rotate forward when a positive current is applied to the connecting portion 20a and a negative current is applied to the connecting portion 20b, and a negative current is applied to the connecting portion 20a and applied to the connecting portion 20b. Drives in reverse by applying a positive current. These energization states are switched by the switch case 17 by a control signal input to the switch case 17.

  The worm gear 21 is made of metal and is fixed to the output shaft of the electric motor 19. The worm gear 21 is disposed so as to be positioned in the support wall 15 a of the lid 14 by disposing the electric motor 19 on the lid 14.

  The worm wheel 22 is made of resin and has a disk shape provided with a gear (oblique tooth) extending obliquely at an outer peripheral portion. A fixing hole 23 for fixing the lower end of the shaft member 27 is provided at the center of the worm wheel 22. The fixing hole 23 is non-circular and penetrates along the axial direction. Further, as shown in FIG. 4, a guide groove 24a for restricting the fixing position of the shaft member 27 and an engaging protrusion 24b for positioning and fixing are provided in the fixing hole 23. The worm wheel 22 is rotatably supported in the support wall 15a by disposing the shaft member 27 so as to be inserted into the support portion 16 of the lid 14 while being disposed on the shaft member 27. The In the state where the worm wheel 22 is disposed, the worm gear 21 extends in the tangential direction on the outer peripheral portion, and the gears are engaged with each other. As a result, the rotational power of the electric motor 19 is transmitted to the worm wheel 22 via the worm gear 21, and rotates about the shaft center by the driving force. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, a substantially circular sliding contact portion 25 that comes into contact with the upper surface of the lid 14 is provided on the bottom surface of the worm wheel 22 so as to bulge in the axial direction. Further, the lower end portion of the shaft member 27 is attached so as to be substantially flush with the bottom surface of the worm wheel 22, thereby stabilizing the rotation of the shaft member 27 and the worm wheel 22 during driving together with a stopper portion 33 of the shaft member 27 described later. It is configured to make it. The worm wheel 22 is provided with a restricting portion 26 protruding upward on the outer peripheral portion of the fixing hole 23.

  The shaft member 27 is made of resin and extends upward along the axial direction of the worm wheel 22 by inserting and fixing the lower end thereof into the fixing hole 23 of the worm wheel 22 as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. It is a cylindrical shape. A non-circular fixing portion 28 having a chamfered portion is provided at the lower end of the shaft member 27. The fixed portion 28 is provided with a guide convex portion 29 corresponding to the guide groove 24a of the worm wheel 22 and an engagement hole 30 corresponding to the engagement protrusion 24b. Further, the shaft member 27 is provided with a mounting hole 31 into which the support portion 16 of the lid 14 can be inserted so as to extend upward along the axial direction from the lower end surface. Further, the upper end of the shaft member 27 constitutes a shaft portion 32 disposed in the shaft hole portion 13 of the housing 10. Accordingly, the shaft member 27 is disposed so that the lower end is supported by the support portion 16 of the lid 14 and the upper end is supported in the shaft hole portion 13 of the housing 10. And in this embodiment, the stopper part 33 which protrudes in a radial direction outward is provided in the edge part located in the side of the axial part 32 so that disk shape may be made. The stopper portion 33 is provided in a position in contact with the periphery of the shaft hole portion 13 in an assembled state in which the shaft portion 32 is inserted into the shaft hole portion 13, so that the tip of the shaft portion 32 is at the bottom of the shaft hole portion 13 ( The upper end is not touched (see FIG. 1). Further, the shaft member 27 is provided with a screw thread 34 that is a male screw projecting so as to form a spiral shape on the outer peripheral portion located below the stopper portion 33.

  The cam member 35 is made of resin, and converts the rotation by the driving force of the electric motor 19 into the linear movement of the slider 38 in the axial direction. The cam member 35 has a substantially cylindrical shape having a through hole penetrating in the axial direction, and a thread groove 36 which is a female screw corresponding to the thread 34 of the shaft member 27 is provided on the inner peripheral surface of the through hole. ing. In addition, a cam groove 37 for engaging the slider 38 is provided on the outer peripheral portion of the cam member 35 so as to extend in a spiral shape over approximately 360 degrees. The cam member 35 is penetrated in a state where the shaft member 27 is screwed from the lower end portion opposite to the stopper portion 33, and then the worm wheel 22 is assembled to the shaft member 27. Thereby, when the shaft member 27 rotates in accordance with the rotation of the worm wheel 22, the shaft member 27 can be integrally rotated and moved in the axial direction. That is, the cam member 35 moves linearly in the axial direction with respect to the shaft member 27, or rotates together with the worm wheel 22. Further, the upward movement with respect to the shaft member 27 comes into contact with the stopper portion 33 and stops.

  The slider 38 is made of metal, and receives the driving force of the electric motor 19 through the cam member 35 to advance and retract the lock bolt 46 between the lock position and the unlock position. The slider 38 is supported by the support wall 15 of the lid 14 so as to be slidable in the vertical direction. Further, the slider 38 is provided with an engaging portion 39 that protrudes in the lateral direction and is inserted and locked in the cam groove 37 of the cam member 35. Accordingly, when the cam member 35 moves up and down with respect to the shaft member 27, the slider 38 moves up and down in parallel with the shaft member 27 together with the cam member 35. Further, when the cam member 35 rotates with the shaft member 27, the engaging portion 39 relatively moves along the cam groove 37 of the cam member 35, so that the slider 38 also moves up and down. In addition, a housing portion 40 that is open at the top and one side and is closed at the bottom is provided at the center of the slider 38. A first spring receiving portion 41 having a truncated cone shape is provided in the closing portion of the housing portion 40. A lock bolt 46 is disposed in the accommodating portion 40 via a lock spring 42. Further, the slider 38 is provided with a second truncated cone-shaped spring receiving portion 43 on the same side as the engaging portion 39. The lower end of the coiled unlock spring 44 is fitted and locked to the second spring receiving portion 43. A hook 44 a at the upper end of the unlock spring 44 is hooked on the inner surface of the housing 10. As a result, the unlock spring 44 presses and urges the slider 38 in the unlocking direction when the assembly is completed. Reference numeral 45 denotes a switch actuating portion that can detect whether the slider 38 is actuated to the lock position or the unlock position by operating the switch receiving portion of the switch case 17.

  The lock bolt 46 is made of a casting having a rectangular shape, and an engagement portion 47 having a trapezoidal shape in side view is provided at the front end in the advancing direction. In addition, the lock bolt 46 is formed with a long hole 48 that extends in the vertical direction (advancing / retreating direction) slightly below the center in the vertical direction and penetrates in the thickness direction. Further, a spring accommodating recess 49 is formed at the lower end of the lock bolt 46. The lock bolt 46 is assembled to the slider 38 by penetrating the long hole 48 with the pin 50 in a state where the lock bolt 46 is disposed in the accommodating portion 40 of the slider 38. The lock bolt 46 assembled in this way moves up and down together with the slider 38. However, when the engagement portion 47 of the lock bolt 46 does not coincide with the engagement groove 2 and cannot be advanced, the pin 50 can move in the longitudinal direction within the long hole 48, so that the lock bolt 46 is moved to the slider 38. Relative to the vertical direction. When the engaging portion 47 and the engaging groove 2 coincide with each other, the lock bolt 46 projects by the urging force of the lock spring 42.

  The lock bolt 46 receives a driving force of the electric motor 19 through a transmission mechanism including the cam member 35, the shaft member 27, the worm wheel 22 and the worm gear 21. Then, the engagement portion 47 protrudes from the lock bolt insertion hole 12 of the housing 10 and can be engaged with the engagement groove 2 of the steering shaft 1, and the engagement groove 2 is inserted into the insertion hole of the housing 10. It moves between the unlocked positions released from the engagement. Further, in the transmission mechanism, when the lock bolt 46 is engaged with the steering shaft 1, the cam member 35 comes into contact with the stopper portion 33 of the shaft member 27 and stops. Further, when the lock bolt 46 is disengaged from the steering shaft 1, the cam member 35 rotates integrally with the shaft member 27 in a state where there is almost no resistance between them. On the other hand, the cam member 35 moves in the axial direction with respect to the shaft member 27 in a state where there is a resistance of a predetermined value or more between the steering shaft 1 and the lock bolt 46.

  Next, an unlocking operation and a locking operation of the steering lock device of the present embodiment will be described.

  First, the lock bolt 46 is in the locked position when the engine start or operation of the automobile is prohibited. In this state, the steering shaft 1 is locked by the engagement portion 47 of the lock bolt 46 engaging with the engagement groove 2 of the steering shaft 1. The state where the engine start and the operation are prohibited is, for example, when the user who has the regular electronic key is not in the vehicle and is not near the vehicle.

  FIG. 5 shows an unlocking operation in a normal state that does not require a large pulling force (no resistance) when the lock bolt 46 is retracted from the engagement groove 2 of the steering shaft 1 to release the engagement. Are shown step by step.

  In the state A, the lock bolt 46 is in the lock position, and the engagement portion 47 at the tip thereof is engaged with the engagement groove 2 of the steering shaft 1. At this time, when the side surface of the engaging groove 2 is not pressed against the side surface of the engaging portion 47, a large pulling force is not required for releasing the engagement of the lock bolt 46 from the steering shaft 1. Further, when the lock bolt 46 is in the locked position, the engaging portion 39 of the slider 38 is located at the upper end of the cam groove 37 of the cam member 35.

  In this state A, when a user who has an authorized electronic key gets into the car and presses the engine operation switch, the vehicle controller outputs a start command, and the control signal is input to the control circuit board of the switch case 17. The electric motor 19 is energized and driven to rotate forward. Thereby, the motive power of the electric motor 19 is transmitted through the worm gear 21, and the worm wheel 22 rotates counterclockwise when viewed from above.

  At this time, in the normal state where there is no resistance, the pulling force of the lock bolt 46 is relatively light. Therefore, the frictional force between the shaft member 27 of the worm wheel 22 and the cam member 35 is greater than the frictional force between the engaging portion 39 of the slider 38 and the side surface of the cam groove 37 of the cam member 35. It is rotated together with the worm wheel 22. Thus, when the cam member 35 starts to rotate together with the worm wheel 22, the engaging portion 39 of the slider 38 moves along the cam groove 37 of the cam member 35, and the lock bolt 46 is locked as shown in the state B. Moves downward from the position toward the unlocking direction. As a result, the engaging portion 47 of the lock bolt 46 escapes from the engaging groove 2 of the steering shaft 1 and is released (unlocked).

  When the cam member 35 further rotates, the engaging portion 39 of the slider 38 moves along the cam groove 37 and the lock bolt 46 further moves down to the state C, and the engaging portion 39 contacts the lower end of the cam groove 37. Thereby, the further rotation of the cam member 35 is controlled. At this time, the engagement portion 47 of the lock bolt 46 has already escaped from the engagement groove 2 of the steering shaft 1, but the lock bolt 46 has not yet reached the unlock position.

  Therefore, even after reaching the state C, the electric motor 19 continues to rotate forward. Thereby, the worm wheel 22 also continues to rotate. At this time, since the rotation of the cam member 35 is already restricted, the cam member 35 is driven against the shaft member 27 by screw driving while keeping the engaging portion 39 of the slider 38 in contact with the end portion of the cam groove 37. To move downward in the axial direction. Along with this, the slider 38 and the lock bolt 46 also move linearly downward to reach the unlock position shown in the state D.

  At this time, the lower surface of the cam member 35 is in contact with the restricting portion 26 of the worm wheel 22, so that further downward movement is restricted. At this time, the detection switch of the switch case 17 is actuated by the switch actuating portion 45 of the slider 38, and the control circuit board of the switch case 17 detects that the lock bolt 46 is in the unlock position, and the electric motor 19 is driven. Stopped. In the unlocking operation described above, the urging force with which the unlock spring 44 presses the slider 38 is maximum in state A and minimum in state D. Therefore, the unlock spring 44 serves to assist the pulling force of the lock bolt 46.

  FIG. 6 shows that when the lock bolt 46 is retracted from the engagement groove 2 of the steering shaft 1 to release the engagement, the lock bolt 46 requires a large pulling force (having a resistance greater than a predetermined value). The unlocking operation is shown step by step. Here, “at the time of stationary” means that when the engaging portion 47 of the lock bolt 46 is fitted in the engaging groove 2 of the steering shaft 1, torque is applied by rotating the steering shaft 1 and the engaging shaft 47 is engaged. The state where the side surface of the groove 2 is in strong pressure contact with the side surface of the engaging portion 47 is shown. In this state, a large pulling force of a predetermined amount or more is required for pulling out the lock bolt 46, and the torque or load (resistance) acting on the lock bolt 46 at this time is referred to as “stationary torque”.

  In the state A, similarly to FIG. 5, the lock bolt 46 is in the locked position, and the upper end of the cam groove 37 of the cam member 35 is in contact with the engaging portion 39 of the slider 38. From this state, the electric motor 19 starts the forward rotation drive so as to perform the unlocking operation as described above. At this time, since the stationary torque is applied to the lock bolt 46, the pulling force becomes larger than that in the normal state. Therefore, the frictional force between the engaging portion 39 of the slider 38 and the side surface of the cam groove 37 of the cam member 35 is superior to the frictional force between the shaft member 27 of the worm wheel 22 and the cam member 35. The shaft member 27 rotates in the counterclockwise direction with respect to the cam member 35 in a top view without the 35 rotating with the shaft member 27. Thereby, the cam member 35 linearly moves downward by screw driving without rotating. Along with this, the lock bolt 46 also moves linearly downward, moves downward until the lower surface of the cam member 35 abuts against the restricting portion 26, and enters the state G. At this time, the engagement portion 47 of the lock bolt 46 is in a state of being released from the engagement groove 2 of the steering lock bolt and released (unlocked).

  In this way, when the stationary torque is applied, the lock bolt 46 is moved downward by screw drive, so that the operation speed is slower than the operation by the cam 37 groove as in FIG. A pulling force can be obtained, and the lock bolt 46 applied with the stationary torque can be pulled out with certainty.

  Note that the force required to move the lock bolt 46 after the engagement with the steering shaft 1 is released is relatively small. Therefore, after the state G, the frictional force between the shaft member 27 of the worm wheel 22 and the cam member 35 is greater than the frictional force between the engaging portion 39 of the slider 38 and the side surface of the cam groove 37 of the cam member 35. In order to win, the cam member 35 rotates together with the worm wheel 22. Thereby, when the cam member 35 rotates together with the worm wheel 22, the engaging portion 39 of the slider 38 moves away from the upper end of the cam groove 37 of the cam member 35 along the cam groove 37, and accordingly the state H As shown, the lock bolt 46 further linearly moves downward. When the engaging portion 39 of the slider 38 comes into contact with the lower end of the cam groove 37, the lock bolt 46 reaches the unlock position shown in the state D, and at the same time, the operation of the electric motor 19 is stopped.

  As described above, according to the steering lock device of the present embodiment, the cam bolt 35 that can rotate and move linearly with respect to the shaft member 27 is provided as a member that transmits power to the lock bolt 46. Two methods can be adopted for the driving of 46. That is, when the cam member 35 moves linearly with respect to the shaft member 27, the lock bolt 46 operates at a low speed but a large pulling force is obtained. On the other hand, when the cam member 35 rotates with the shaft member 27, the pulling force of the lock bolt 46 is small. Can increase the operating speed. Accordingly, in a normal state where no load is particularly applied to the lock bolt 46, priority is given to quickly moving the lock bolt 46 by rotation of the cam groove 37 of the cam member 35, and in a state where a stationary torque is applied, the cam member Priority can be given to pulling out the lock bolt 46 with a large force by the straight movement of 35.

  FIG. 7 shows a step of locking operation in a normal state in which the lock bolt 46 is advanced and engaged with the engagement groove 2 of the steering shaft 1 so that the engagement portion 47 of the lock bolt 46 matches the engagement groove 2. Indicate. The state D is an unlock position similar to that in FIGS. 5 and 6.

  After detecting that the user holding the regular electronic key has stopped the engine, or has stopped the engine and the vehicle door has been closed, the vehicle controller has moved a predetermined distance or more away from the vehicle. A lock command is output to the steering lock device. When this control signal is received, the electric motor 19 is driven in reverse. As a result, the driving force of the electric motor 19 is transmitted via the worm gear 21, and the worm wheel 22 rotates in the clockwise direction when viewed from above.

  At this time, the pushing force for linearly moving the lock bolt 46 upward may be small. Therefore, since the frictional force between the shaft member 27 of the worm wheel 22 and the cam member 35 is greater than the frictional force between the engaging portion 39 of the slider 38 and the side surface of the cam groove 37 of the cam member 35, the cam member 35 rotates together with the worm wheel 22. As a result, when the cam member 35 starts rotating in the clockwise direction together with the worm wheel 22, the engaging portion 39 of the slider 38 moves away from the lower end of the cam groove 37 of the cam member 35 along the cam groove 37. Accordingly, as shown in the state E, the lock bolt 46 linearly moves upward from the unlock position toward the lock direction.

  Thereafter, as the cam member 35 further rotates, the lock bolt 46 linearly moves upward. However, when the engaging portion 39 of the slider 38 is in contact with the upper end of the cam groove 37, the cam member 35 rotates. Is regulated. After that, since the reverse rotation of the electric motor 19 is continued, the worm wheel 22 and the shaft member 27 continue to rotate. Thereby, the cam member 35 linearly moves upward with respect to the shaft member 27 by screw driving without rotating. Along with this, the lock bolt 46 also moves linearly upward and reaches the locked position in state A. Then, the cam member 35 comes into contact with the stopper portion 33 of the shaft member 27. At this time, the detection switch of the switch case 17 is actuated by the switch actuating portion 45 of the slider 38, and the control circuit board of the switch case 17 detects that the lock bolt 46 is in the locked position, and the drive of the electric motor 19 is stopped. Is done. As a result, the engaging portion 47 of the lock bolt 46 is fitted into the engaging groove 2 of the steering shaft 1, and the steering shaft 1 (steering) is locked.

  FIG. 8 shows the lock operation when the engagement groove 2 of the steering shaft 1 and the engagement portion 47 of the lock bolt 46 do not coincide with each other during the lock operation. In this case, the state D and the state E until the engaging portion 47 of the lock bolt 46 contacts the outer peripheral surface of the steering shaft 1 are the same as the normal lock operation.

  That is, when the engaging portion 39 of the slider 38 is in contact with the upper end of the cam groove 37 by forward rotation of the electric motor 19, the rotation of the cam member 35 is restricted. Thereafter, since the reverse drive of the electric motor 19 is continued, the worm wheel 22 and the shaft member 27 continue to rotate. When the lock bolt 46 linearly moves further upward from the state F, the tip of the engaging portion 47 of the lock bolt 46 contacts the outer peripheral surface of the steering shaft 1, and further upward movement is restricted. However, since the reverse drive of the electric motor 19 is continued, the cam member 35 moves upward with respect to the shaft member 27 by screw driving, and the slider 38 also moves upward accordingly.

  At this time, the lock bolt 46 of this embodiment is assembled so as to be relatively movable with respect to the slider 38 by the long hole 48 and the pin 50. Therefore, only the slider 38 moves without the lock bolt 46 moving due to contact with the outer peripheral surface of the steering shaft 1. As a result, the lock spring 42 disposed between the slider 38 and the lock bolt 46 is elastically contracted. The upward movement of the slider 38 stops when the drive of the electric motor 19 is stopped when the cam member 35 comes into contact with the stopper portion 33 of the shaft member 27. As a result, the lock bolt 46 is in a state A ′ that is strongly urged in the lock direction by the lock spring 42.

  In this state A ′, since the engaging portion 47 of the lock bolt 46 is not engaged with the engaging groove 2 of the steering shaft 1, the steering shaft 1 (steering) can be rotated. However, when the engaging groove 2 of the steering shaft 1 coincides with the engaging portion 47 of the lock bolt 46 in the radial direction by the rotation operation, the lock bolt 46 is moved upward by the urging force of the lock spring 42, and the engaging portion 47 is The locked state shown in the state A is brought into the engaging groove 2.

  As described above, the steering lock device of the present invention rotates the shaft member 27 constituting the transmission mechanism and locks it via the cam member 35 when the electric motor 19 is driven to rotate forward or reversely according to the control signal of the controller. The slider 38 and the lock bolt 46 which are members can be unlocked or locked.

  The shaft member 27 of the present embodiment is configured such that the lower end is supported by the support portion 16 of the lid 14, and the upper end is supported by the shaft hole portion 13 of the housing 10, and the upper end is surrounded by the shaft hole portion 13. The stopper part 33 which contacts is provided. Therefore, the contact area between the end portion (shaft portion 32) of the shaft member 27 and the housing 10 is increased. As a result, the load on the shaft portion 32 accompanying the rotation of the shaft member 27 can be reduced, so that wear can be suppressed. In addition, in the present embodiment, since the sliding contact portion 25 that contacts the lid 14 is provided on the bottom surface of the worm wheel 22 disposed at the lower end of the shaft member 27, the shaft member 27 is worn and the shaft member 27 is not worn. Excessive load can be further reduced. Specifically, since the worm wheel 22 is configured to receive the driving force of the drive motor from the worm gear 21, the worm wheel 22 receives a force in a direction inclined in the axial direction in addition to the force in the rotational direction. Works. However, in the present embodiment, the large diameter stopper portion 33 provided at the upper end portion of the shaft member 27 so as to increase the contact surface with the housing 10 and the sliding contact portion 25 provided on the bottom surface of the worm wheel 22 It is the structure which suppresses force. As a result, since the shaft member 27 rotates stably without being inclined, an excessive load on the shaft member 27 is reduced, and the durability of the shaft member 27 can be improved.

  In the present embodiment, the cam member 35 is provided to transmit the rotation of the shaft member 27 to the lock bolt 46, and these are assembled by screwing the screw thread 34 and the screw groove 36. Since these members 27 and 35 are resin molded products, the thread 34 and the thread groove 36 may wear due to repeated operation, and the engagement may not be maintained. In such a state, when the state A ′ of FIG. 8 returns to the state A of FIG. 6, the lock bolt 46 protrudes by the urging force of the urging member (lock spring 42), and the slider Even if the cam member 35 is separated from the shaft member 27 and moved in the axial direction by the lock bolt 46 coming into contact with the pin 50 of 38, the cam member 35 stops by coming into contact with the stopper portion 33. Thus, even when the thread 34 and the thread groove 36 are worn, the cam member 35 can be prevented from being detached from the shaft member 27.

  Furthermore, in this embodiment, the worm wheel 22 and the shaft member 27 are formed as separate members, and the cam member 35 cannot be detached by assembling the worm wheel 22 after the cam member 35 is assembled to the shaft member 27. It can be easily assembled in any state. Therefore, assembly workability can be improved.

  The steering lock device of the present invention is not limited to the configuration of the above embodiment, and various modifications can be made.

  For example, in the above-described embodiment, the stopper portion 33 formed on the shaft member 27 is formed in a disc shape, but two or more rod-shaped portions may be configured to protrude radially outward. In the embodiment, the worm wheel 22 is provided separately from the shaft member 27. However, the shaft member 27 and the worm wheel 22 are provided integrally, and the shaft portion 32 and the stopper provided separately. It is good also as a structure which assembles | assembles the part 33 integrally. Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the screw thread 34 is provided on the shaft member 27 and the screw groove 36 is provided on the cam member 35. However, the screw groove is provided on the outer peripheral portion of the shaft member 27, and the screw is provided on the inner peripheral surface of the cam member 35. Mountains may be provided. In the above embodiment, the electric motor 19 is disposed on the lid 14, but may be disposed on the housing 10.

1. Steering shaft (movable member)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 2 ... Engagement groove 10 ... Housing 10a ... Blocking wall part 12 ... Lock bolt insertion hole 13 ... Shaft hole part 14 ... Lid 16 ... Support part 19 ... Electric motor (actuator)
21 ... Worm gear (transmission mechanism)
22 ... Worm wheel (transmission mechanism)
25 ... Sliding contact portion 27 ... Shaft member (transmission mechanism)
31 ... Mounting hole 32 ... Shaft portion 33 ... Stopper portion 34 ... Thread 35 ... Cam member (transmission mechanism)
36 ... Screw groove 37 ... Cam groove 38 ... Slider (lock member)
39 ... Engagement part 46 ... Lock bolt (lock member)
47. Engagement part

Claims (6)

Opening one end and closing the other end, providing a shaft hole in the closed wall, and a housing having an insertion hole in a predetermined wall,
A lid which is attached so as to close the opening of the housing, and which has a support portion at a position corresponding to the shaft hole portion;
An actuator that is disposed in the housing or lid and is driven forward or reversely by energization;
One end is supported by the support portion of the lid, the other end is supported in the shaft hole portion of the housing, and the other end includes a shaft member provided with a stopper portion that contacts the periphery of the shaft hole portion, A transmission mechanism that receives the driving force of the actuator to transmit,
A lock position where a driving force of the actuator is received via the transmission mechanism, a part of the housing protrudes from the insertion hole of the housing and can be engaged with a movable member interlocked with the steering operation, and the insertion hole of the housing A locking member that moves between unlocked positions that are immersed in and disengaged from the movable member;
A steering lock device comprising:   When the engagement of the lock member with respect to the movable member is released, the transmission mechanism rotates integrally with the shaft member in a state where there is almost no resistance between the movable member and the lock member, When the movable member and the lock member have a resistance equal to or greater than a predetermined value, the shaft member moves in the axial direction and engages the lock member with the movable member. The steering lock device according to claim 1, further comprising a cam member that comes into contact with the portion and stops. The cam member has a substantially cylindrical shape that penetrates the shaft member and engages the lock member with an outer peripheral portion.
Among the shaft member and cam member, a thread is provided on one side and a thread groove is formed on the other side,
The steering lock according to claim 2, wherein the cam member is configured to be integrally rotatable with respect to the shaft member and movable in the axial direction by screwing the screw thread and the screw groove. apparatus.   The transmission mechanism is assembled by screwing the shaft member and the cam member together and then assembled to the end portion opposite to the stopper portion of the shaft member, and receives the driving force of the actuator to transmit to the shaft member. The steering lock device according to claim 3, further comprising a worm wheel as a separate member.   2. The steering lock device according to claim 1, wherein the transmission mechanism has a worm wheel that receives and transmits a driving force of the actuator at an end portion of the shaft member opposite to the stopper portion.   The steering lock device according to claim 4 or 5, wherein a sliding contact portion that contacts the lid is provided on a bottom surface of the worm wheel.

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