JP5556441B2 - Reclining device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a reclining device that adjusts the tilt angle between a first member and a second member that are relatively tilted.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a reclining device that adjusts the tilt angle between a relatively tilting first member and a second member, a base plate 130 and a gear that rotate relative to each other like a vehicle seat reclining device 120 illustrated in FIG. In order to fix the cover 150 that restricts the relative movement of the plate 140 in the axial direction to the base plate 130, a sandwiched portion 131 is formed on the outer periphery of the base plate 130. Since the cover 150 is configured to be clamped by the cover 150 from the axial direction, the reclining device 120 is enlarged in the radial direction by the amount of the clamped portion 131 provided. In FIG. 6, reference numerals 141, 160, and 161 denote external teeth of the gear plate 140, lock gears, and lock gears, and reference numeral 170 denotes a cam for controlling the engagement of the internal teeth 141 and the external teeth 161. .

  Therefore, in the vehicle seat reclining device disclosed in Patent Document 1 below, the machine frame (base plate) and the lid (gear plate) are relatively moved in a state where relative movement is restricted in the axial direction by the restriction member (cover). The restricting member is rotatably held, and an end portion of the large diameter portion of the cylindrical restricting portion surrounding the outer side in the radial direction of the machine frame is welded to the outer peripheral portion of the machine frame. Specifically, since the outer peripheral edge of the machine frame is formed in an R shape, a circular groove is formed between the end surface of the machine frame and the end surface of the regulating member. A weld joint is made to form a bead. Thereby, compared with the case where the said clamping part is provided in a machine frame, the outer diameter dimension of the reclining apparatus was made small.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2008-18108

  However, when the end surface of the base plate and the end surface of the cover are simply welded together as in the reclining device of Patent Document 1, a part of the end surface of the base plate rises due to the welded portion. Then, when the base plate is assembled to the seat-side bracket or the like at the end face, the above-described welded portion interferes, and there is a problem that play occurs between the base plate and the bracket or the like. In order to eliminate such a backlash, if the cutting process etc. which remove a weld part are given to the above-mentioned end face, the cost reduction of the reclining device is hindered by newly adding this processing process. There is also a problem.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a reclining device that can reduce the size of the device by reducing the radial dimension.

In order to achieve the above object, the reclining device according to claim 1, which is a reclining device that adjusts the tilt angle between the first member and the second member that tilt relative to each other, A base plate attached to the first member on an attachment surface on one side in the axial direction; and a gear plate attached to the second member and assembled to be rotatable relative to the base plate and having internal teeth. The base plate and the gear plate are held so as to be capable of relative rotation in a state in which the base plate comes into contact with the inner surface of the first cylindrical portion and is in sliding contact with the gear plate on the inner surface of the second cylindrical portion. In addition, a cover that suppresses relative movement in the axial direction and a guide portion formed on the base plate are guided so as to be movable only in the radial direction. A lock gear having external teeth that can be assembled and meshed with the internal teeth; and a cam that controls the movement of the lock gear outward in the radial direction to mesh the external teeth with the internal teeth, on the outer edge of the base plate Is formed such that a projecting portion projecting annularly in the axial direction on the other side in the axial direction is engageable with an outer peripheral surface of the gear plate on an inner peripheral surface thereof, and the first cylindrical portion is formed by the cover When fixed to the base plate, the end surface on one side in the axial direction is formed so as to be located on the other side in the axial direction with respect to the mounting surface, and the first tubular portion is formed from the outer peripheral side with respect to the base plate. By being welded, the cover is fixed to the base plate, a gap is formed between the end surface on the other axial side of the protrusion and the cover, and the protrusion is formed by ironing. That And features.

  In the first aspect of the present invention, the outer edge of the base plate is formed with a protruding portion that protrudes in the axial direction on the other side in the axial direction so as to be able to engage with the outer peripheral surface of the gear plate on its inner peripheral surface. The first tubular portion is formed such that when the cover is fixed to the base plate, the end surface on one axial side is positioned on the other axial side with respect to the mounting surface. The cover is fixed to the base plate by welding the first tubular portion to the base plate from the outer peripheral side.

For this reason, since a cover is fixed to a base plate, without providing the clamping part for fixing a cover to the outer peripheral part of a base plate, the dimension of radial direction can be made small. In particular, the welded portion is on the outer peripheral side, and the end surface on one side in the axial direction of the first cylindrical portion of the cover is located on the other side in the axial direction with respect to the mounting surface. It is possible to eliminate interference with the first member attached to the.
Therefore, the size of the apparatus can be reduced by reducing the radial dimension.

In particular , a gap is formed between the end surface on the other axial side of the protrusion and the cover, and the protrusion is formed by ironing . Thus, since a clearance gap is formed between the end surface of the other side in the axial direction of the protruding portion and the cover, the dimensional accuracy required for the protruding portion is reduced. Thus, as a forming method of projecting portions, capable molded at low cheap relatively machining accuracy, it is possible to employ a pressurized Engineering-out obsolete.

It is a side view which shows the structure outline | summary of the vehicle seat by which the reclining apparatus of this invention is installed. It is sectional drawing of a reclining apparatus. It is sectional drawing by the cut surface equivalent to the 3-3 line shown in FIG. It is sectional drawing by the cut surface equivalent to the 4-4 line shown in FIG. It is an expanded sectional view which shows the assembly | attachment state of a base plate and a cover bracket. It is sectional drawing which shows the conventional reclining apparatus.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of a reclining device 20 according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a side view showing a schematic configuration of a vehicle seat 10 on which a reclining device 20 of the present invention is installed.
As is well known, the vehicle seat 10 includes a seat cushion 11 and a seat back 12 as main components. The seat cushion 11 includes a seat bracket (lower bracket) 11a, and the seat back 12 includes a seat back bracket (upper side). Brackets) 12a are fixed.

  The lower bracket 11a and the upper bracket 12a are coupled to each other so as to be relatively rotatable by being fixed to the relatively rotating portions of the round reclining unit 21, respectively. Thereby, the tilt angle of the seat back 12 with respect to the seat cushion 11 can be adjusted. The seat cushion 11 and the lower bracket 11a correspond to an example of a “first member” described in the claims, and the seat back 12 and the upper bracket 12a include the “second member” described in the claims. It may correspond to an example of “members”.

  A reclining operation lever 23 is attached to the center shaft 22 at the center of the round reclining unit 21. A reclining device 20 is constituted by the round reclining unit 21, the center shaft 22 and the reclining operation lever 23. When the reclining operation lever 23 is pulled upward, the reclining device 20 is unlocked and the tilt angle of the seat back 12 can be adjusted. As can be seen from FIG. 1, the seat back 12 can be rotated from a forwardly tilted position in contact with the seat cushion 11 to a backwardly tilted position that becomes flat with the seat cushion 11. The structure of such a reclining device 20 will be described below.

  FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the reclining device 20. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 3-3 shown in FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 4-4 shown in FIG. FIG. 5 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing an assembled state of the base plate 30 and the cover bracket 50. In FIG. 2, for the sake of convenience, the center shaft 22 and the reclining operation lever 23 are not shown. In FIG. 4, only the vicinity of the inner teeth 41 is shown for the gear plate 40.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the round reclining unit 21 is configured so that the base plate 30 and the gear plate 40 are rotated relative to each other by assembling the cover bracket 50 by superimposing the substantially disc-shaped base plate 30 and the substantially bowl-shaped gear plate 40. It is configured to be held as possible and to prevent relative movement in the axial direction.

  A cavity (space) C is formed between the base plate 30 and the gear plate 40. In this cavity C, as shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, a total of four lock gears of a pair of first lock gears 61 and a pair of second lock gears 62, a central cam 70, and two substantially arc-shaped spring members. A member for locking and unlocking 80 and a substantially disk-shaped lever plate 90 is disposed.

  The base plate 30 has a plurality of protrusions 30b formed on the back surface thereof (hereinafter also referred to as an attachment surface 30a on the one side in the axial direction). By attaching, the attachment surface 30a is attached to the lower bracket 11a. As shown in FIG. 3, the base plate 30 is formed with four guide protrusions 31, 32, 31, 32 for guiding the lock gears 61, 62 in the radial direction on the side surface on the other side in the axial direction. ing. In FIG. 2, the following description will be made with the left side of the drawing as one side in the axial direction and the right side of the drawing as the other side in the axial direction. Moreover, each guide convex part 31 and 32 can correspond to an example of the "guide part" as described in a claim.

  Further, an annular projecting portion 33 that projects annularly in the axial direction on the other side in the axial direction is formed on the outer edge of the base plate 30 so as to be able to engage with a part of the outer peripheral surface of the gear plate 40 on its inner peripheral surface. Yes. The base plate 30 is formed with guide protrusions 31, 32, etc. by plastic working such as press working, and in particular, the annular projection 33 is formed by ironing (plastic working).

  Inner teeth 41 are formed on the inner peripheral surface of the gear plate 40 over the entire periphery. The gear plate 40 has a plurality of protrusions (not shown) formed on the back surface (the surface on the other side in the axial direction). By engaging these protrusions with the engagement holes (not shown) of the upper bracket 12a. And attached to the upper bracket 12a.

  As shown in FIG. 3, external teeth 61 a and 62 a that can mesh with the internal teeth 41 of the gear plate 40 are formed on the outer peripheral sides of the first lock gear 61 and the second lock gear 62. In addition, the lock gears 61 and 62 are formed with protrusions 61b and 62b that protrude to the other side in the axial direction. Both first lock gears 61 are guided by linear portions (guide portions) between the movable guide 34 guided by the guide convex portion 32 and the side peripheral portion of the guide convex portion 31, and are supported so as to be slidable only in the radial direction. ing. Further, both the second lock gears 62 are supported by the guide portions of the side peripheral portions of the guide convex portions 31 and 32 so as to be slidable only in the radial direction.

  In the center of the base plate 30, a plate-like cam 70 having a through hole 71 formed at the center is rotatably disposed. The cam 70 is formed with a cam surface 72 that contacts the rear end surface of each lock gear 61, 62 on the outer peripheral surface, and protrudes to the other side in the axial direction with two engagement holes 73 that engage one end of the spring member 80 on the side surface. Two columnar projections 74 are formed.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the cam 70 is strongly biased in the lock rotation direction (clockwise in FIGS. 3 and 4) by engaging with one end of each of the two spring members 80. As a result, the cam 70 abuts against the rear end surfaces of the lock gears 61 and 62 at the cam surface 72, so that the lock gears 61 and 62 are moved radially outward by the urging force in the lock rotation direction by the spring members 80. It will be strongly urged. Note that the other ends of the spring members 80 are respectively engaged with the base plate 30 so as to penetrate through the through holes of the movable guide 34.

  The center shaft 22 is inserted into the through hole 71 of the cam 70, and the cam 70 is unlocked in the direction of unlocking against the urging force of the two spring members 80 by rotating the center shaft 22 (see FIGS. 3 and 3). 4 in a counterclockwise direction).

  As shown in FIG. 4, the lever plate 90 is provided with a through hole 91 that fits into both protrusions 74 of the cam 70, two cam holes 92, and two cam holes 93. The lever plate 90 is configured such that the through holes 91 and the protrusions 74 are fitted, the protrusions 61b are inserted into the cam holes 92, and the protrusions 62b are inserted into the cam holes 93, respectively. And it is assembled | attached to each lock gear 61,62.

  Thus, when the lever plate 90 rotates together with the cam 70 in the unlock rotation direction, the inner peripheral edge of the cam hole 92 abuts against the protrusion 61b of the first lock gear 61, and the inner peripheral edge of the cam hole 93 corresponds to both the second lock gears. 62 abuts on the projection 62b of the respective 62. When the lever plate 90 further rotates in the unlocking rotation direction, the protrusions 61b and 62b are urged radially inward by the inner peripheral edges of the cam holes 92 and 93, and the lock gears 61 and 62 are radially inward. Will be moved to.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the cover bracket 50 includes a cylindrical first cylindrical portion 51 and a stepped cylindrical second cylindrical portion 52. When the cover bracket 50 is fixed to the base plate 30, the first cylindrical portion 51 contacts the outer peripheral surface of the base plate 30 on the inner peripheral surface thereof, and the end surface 51 a on one side in the axial direction thereof with respect to the mounting surface 30 a. It is formed so as to be located on the other side in the axial direction. That is, the gap X1 shown in FIG. 5 is formed in the axial direction between the end surface 51a and the mounting surface 30a.

  Further, when the cover bracket 50 is fixed to the base plate 30, the second cylindrical portion 52 is in sliding contact with the outer peripheral surface and the side surface in the vicinity of the outer edge portion on the other axial side of the gear plate 40 on the inner peripheral surface thereof. The annular protrusion 33 is formed so as not to contact the end surface 33a on the other axial side. That is, the gap X2 shown in FIG. 5 is formed in the axial direction between the inner peripheral surface of the second cylindrical portion 52 and the end surface 33a. As described above, since the gap X2 is formed between the end surface 33a and the second cylindrical portion 52, this annular shape is compared with the case where the end surface 33a is in contact with and fixed to the second cylindrical portion 52. The dimensional accuracy required for the protrusion 33 is reduced.

  The cover bracket 50 formed in this way has the first cylindrical portion 51 in contrast to the base plate 30 and the gear plate 40 in which the lock gears 61 and 62 and the cam 70 are disposed in the cavity C and assembled together. The second cylindrical portion 52 is in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the base plate 30 and is slidably contacted with the gear plate 40 so that the gaps X1 and X2 are formed. The first cylindrical portion 51 is welded to the base plate 30 by laser welding from the outer peripheral side (see arrow α in FIG. 5), so that the cover bracket 50 is fixed to the base plate 30. Thereby, the base plate 30 and the gear plate 40 are held by the cover bracket 50 so as to be relatively rotatable, and the relative movement in the axial direction is suppressed.

  And the reclining operation lever 23 is assembled | attached with respect to the center shaft 22 inserted in the through-hole 71 of the cam 70, and the reclining apparatus 20 shown in FIG. 2 is completed. In the reclining device 20 configured as described above, the protrusions 30b of the base plate 30 are engaged with the engagement holes of the lower bracket 11a, and the protrusions of the gear plate 40 are engaged with the engagement holes of the upper bracket 12a. By combining, the seat cushion 11 and the seat back 12 are connected by the reclining device 20 so as to be capable of relative tilting. The base plate 30 may be attached to the upper bracket 12a and the gear plate 40 may be attached to the lower bracket 11a.

An unlocked state and a locked state of the reclining device 20 according to this embodiment configured as described above will be described below.
(Unlocked)
First, the unlocked state in the reclining device 20 will be described.
When the occupant releases the lock to adjust the tilt angle of the seat back 12, the reclining operation lever 23 is operated to rotate the center shaft 22 in the unlocking rotation direction. Then, the cam 70 rotates together with the center shaft 22 in the unlock rotation direction against the urging force of both spring members 80.

  When the cam 70 rotates in the unlocking rotation direction, the contact between the cam surface 72 of the cam 70 and the rear end surfaces of the lock gears 61 and 62 is released, and the lock gears 61 and 62 are moved radially outward. The urging force by the cam 70 that is urging is released. As a result, the lock gears 61 and 62 can move inward in the radial direction, and the engagement between the inner teeth 41 of the gear plate 40 and the outer teeth 61a and 62a of the lock gears 61 and 62 can be released.

  Then, when the lever plate 90 rotates together with the cam 70 in the unlock rotation direction, the inner peripheral edges of the cam holes 92 and 93 of the lever plate 90 come into contact with the protrusions 61b and 62b of the lock gears 61 and 62, respectively. The lock gears 61 and 62 are positively moved radially inward to release the engagement between the inner teeth 41 and the outer teeth 61a and 62a.

  As described above, when the meshing between the inner teeth 41 and the outer teeth 61a and 62a is released, the rotation of the gear plate 40 becomes free and the round reclining unit 21 is unlocked. When the round reclining unit 21 is unlocked, the reclining device 20 is unlocked, and the tilt angle of the seat back 12 can be freely adjusted.

(Locked state)
Next, the locked state in the reclining device 20 will be described.
When the adjustment of the inclination angle of the seat back 12 by the occupant is completed, the reclining operation lever 23 is loosened, so that the cam 70 is rotated in the lock rotation direction by the urging force of both spring members 80.

  When the cam surface 72 of the rotating cam 70 comes into contact with the rear end surfaces of the lock gears 61 and 62, the lock gears 61 and 62 are urged radially outward. Accordingly, the outer teeth 61 a and 62 a of the lock gears 61 and 62 move radially outward so as to mesh with the inner teeth 41 of the gear plate 40.

  The outer teeth 61a and 62a of the lock gears 61 and 62 mesh with the inner teeth 41 of the gear plate 40, so that the rotation of the gear plate 40 is restricted and the reclining device 20 is locked.

  As described above, in the reclining device 20 according to the present embodiment, the annular protrusion 33 is formed on the outer edge of the base plate 30 so as to be able to engage with the outer peripheral surface of the gear plate 40 on the inner peripheral surface thereof. When the cover bracket 50 is fixed to the base plate 30, the first tubular portion 51 of the 50 is formed such that the end surface 51a on one side in the axial direction is positioned on the other side in the axial direction with respect to the mounting surface 30a. (See gap X1 in FIG. 5). The cover bracket 50 is fixed to the base plate 30 by welding the first tubular portion 51 to the base plate 30 by laser welding from the outer peripheral side.

For this reason, since the cover bracket 50 is fixed to the base plate 30 without providing the above-described sandwiched portion 131 (see FIG. 6) for fixing the cover bracket 50 to the outer peripheral portion of the base plate 30, the radial dimension is reduced. Can be small. In particular, the welded portion is on the outer peripheral side, and the end surface 51a on one side in the axial direction of the first tubular portion 51 is located on the other side in the axial direction with respect to the mounting surface 30a. Interference with the lower bracket 11a attached to the attachment surface 30a can be eliminated.
Therefore, the size of the apparatus can be reduced by reducing the radial dimension.

  In the reclining device 20 according to the present embodiment, a gap X2 is formed between the end surface 33a on the other axial side of the annular protrusion 33 and the cover bracket 50, and the annular protrusion 33 is formed by plastic working. The As a result, the dimensional accuracy required for the annular protrusion 33 is reduced. Therefore, plastic processing such as ironing, which can be formed at a low cost, although the processing accuracy is relatively low, is adopted as a method for forming the annular protrusion 33. be able to.

In addition, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, You may actualize as follows.
(1) The welding method for welding and joining the first tubular portion 51 to the base plate 30 from the outer peripheral side is not limited to laser welding, and for example, a welding method such as spot welding or seam welding may be employed.

(2) The forming method for forming the annular projecting portion 33 is not limited to iron forming, and other plastic working may be employed, or other forming methods such as cutting may be employed. In this case, in the molding method capable of molding the annular protrusion 33 with high accuracy, the gap between the end surface 33a on the other axial side of the annular protrusion 33 and the second cylindrical portion 52 may be eliminated.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Vehicle seat 11 ... Seat cushion (1st member)
11a: Lower bracket (first member)
12 ... Seat back (second member)
12a ... Upper bracket (second member)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 20 ... Reclining apparatus 30 ... Base plate 30a ... Mounting surface 31, 32 ... Guide convex part (guide part)
33 ... annular protrusion (protrusion)
33a ... End face 40 ... Gear plate 41 ... Internal teeth 50 ... Cover bracket (cover)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 51 ... 1st cylindrical part 51a ... End surface 52 ... 2nd cylindrical part 61 ... 1st lock gear 61a ... External tooth 62 ... 2nd lock gear 62a ... External tooth 70 ... Cam 80 ... Spring member 90 ... Lever plate X1, X2 ... Gap

Claims (1)

A reclining device that adjusts a tilt angle between a first member and a second member that tilt relatively,
A base plate that is attached to an attachment surface on one axial side with respect to the first member;
A gear plate attached to the second member and assembled to be rotatable relative to the base plate and having internal teeth;
While maintaining contact with the inner surface of the first cylindrical portion with respect to the base plate and sliding contact with the inner surface of the second cylindrical portion with respect to the gear plate, the base plate and the gear plate are rotatably held. A cover that suppresses relative movement in the axial direction;
A lock gear having external teeth that are assembled so as to be movable only in the radial direction with respect to the guide portion formed on the base plate, and have external teeth that can mesh with the internal teeth;
A cam that controls movement of the lock gear radially outward to mesh the outer teeth with the inner teeth,
On the outer edge of the base plate, a projecting portion that projects annularly in the axial direction on the other side in the axial direction is formed so as to be engageable with the outer peripheral surface of the gear plate on the inner peripheral surface thereof,
The first cylindrical portion is formed such that when the cover is fixed to the base plate, the end surface on the one axial side is positioned on the other axial side with respect to the mounting surface,
The first cylindrical portion is welded to the base plate from the outer peripheral side, whereby the cover is fixed to the base plate ,
A gap is formed between the end face on the other side in the axial direction of the protrusion and the cover,
The protrusion reclining device according to claim Rukoto formed by ironing.

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