JP6015510B2 - Method and apparatus for assembling planetary gear mechanism, planetary gear mechanism - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a technique for assembling a planetary gear mechanism.

  Patent Document 1 below discloses a planetary gear mechanism used in a positioning device. In this planetary gear mechanism, the planetary carrier that supports the planetary gear is divided into a plurality of parts so that backlash can be removed even if there is an error in the mounting position of the planetary gear or variation in the tooth thickness. The core pins are connected to each other by positioning means.

JP-A 63-235746

  The planetary gear mechanism disclosed in Patent Document 1 has a possibility of absorbing backlash by a divided planet carrier divided into a plurality of parts. This divided planet carrier has a complicated structure and rotates at a particularly high speed. When applied to a rotating body, there is a concern that the response balance will be reduced and vibrations and abnormal noises will be generated due to the rotation balance being lost. Therefore, the present inventors do not need to remove backlash when using the planetary gear mechanism if the planetary gear mechanism can be assembled in a state where the rotation balance is good in advance. I came up with the idea that the problem could be solved.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and one of its purposes is to provide a technique effective for assembling a planetary gear mechanism in a state of good rotation balance.

  In order to achieve the above object, a planetary gear mechanism according to the present invention includes a sun gear, a ring gear, a plurality of planetary gears, and a planet carrier. The sun gear is configured as an input member to which power is input. The ring gear is configured as an annular member surrounding the outer periphery of the sun gear. The plurality of planetary gears are interposed between the sun gear and the ring gear, and each meshes with both the sun gear and the ring gear. The planet carrier is configured as a member fixed to a plurality of planetary gears.

  The method for assembling the planetary gear mechanism includes a first step, a second step, and a third step. In the first step, an output member supported by the ring gear so as to be relatively rotatable is fixed to the mounting jig via a bearing provided on the outer peripheral surface of the ring gear. In the second step, the planet gear is held in a state where the planetary carrier is allowed to be adjusted in the radial direction with respect to the ring gear. By rotating the sun gear in the first direction, each of the plurality of planetary gears is rotated to rotate the ring gear into the first gear. Rotate in the direction. Thereby, it is possible to produce a centering (also referred to as “centering”) operation in which the center axis (rotation center) related to the rotation of the planet carrier matches the center axis (rotation center) related to the rotation of the ring gear. In the third step, the planet carrier is fixed to the output member so that the position adjustment of the planet carrier becomes impossible while maintaining the rotation of the sun gear in the first direction. Thereby, the planetary carrier is fixed to the output member in a state in which the planetary carrier is finally positioned with respect to the output member. Therefore, according to this assembling method of the planetary gear mechanism, the planetary gear mechanism can be assembled with a good rotational balance by suppressing the eccentricity of the planet carrier with respect to the ring gear. As a result, it is not necessary to remove backlash when the planetary gear mechanism is used, and it is possible to prevent the deterioration of response performance and the occurrence of vibration and abnormal noise caused by the rotation balance of the planetary gear mechanism being lost.

In a further assembling method according to the present invention, it is preferable to use fastening means capable of fastening the planet carrier and the output member to each other. In this case, in the second step, the planetary carrier is held by relaxing the fastening force by the fastening means, and in the third step, the planetary carrier is fixed to the output member by strengthening the fastening force by the fastening means. In this case, typically, a bolt capable of easily adjusting the fastening force can be used as the fastening means. Accordingly, the planetary carrier and the ring gear can be easily aligned using the fastening means when the planetary gear mechanism is assembled.

In the further assembling method according to the present invention, it is preferable that the rotation center of the sun gear and the rotation center of the output member coincide with each other when the output member is fixed to the mounting jig in the first step. Thereby, the precision of the alignment performed in order to suppress the eccentricity of the planet carrier with respect to the ring gear in the second and subsequent steps can be increased.

  An assembling apparatus for a planetary gear mechanism according to the present invention includes an attachment jig and a fastening means. The mounting jig has a function of supporting an output member rotatably supported by the ring gear via a bearing provided on the outer peripheral surface of the ring gear and rotatably supporting the sun gear. The fastening means can fasten the planet carrier and the output member. This fastening means selectively achieves either the holding state or the fixed state of the planet carrier. In the planet carrier holding state, the radial position adjustment of the planet carrier with respect to the ring gear is allowed by the relaxation of the fastening force of the fastening means. On the other hand, in the fixed state of the planetary carrier, the planetary carrier is fixed to the output member so that the position adjustment of the planetary carrier becomes impossible by strengthening the fastening force of the fastening means. Accordingly, the planetary carrier and the ring gear can be easily aligned using the fastening means when the planetary gear mechanism is assembled.

In the further assembling apparatus according to the present invention, it is preferable that the mounting jig has a mechanism for matching the rotation center of the sun gear and the rotation center of the output member . Thereby, the precision of alignment performed in order to suppress eccentricity of the planet carrier with respect to the ring gear can be enhanced.

In the planetary gear mechanism according to the present invention, the planet carrier has a bolt hole that can be fastened by a bolt to an output member that is rotatably supported by the ring gear via a bearing provided on the outer peripheral surface of the ring gear. As a result, the planet carrier is selectively achieved in either the holding state or the fixed state. In this holding state, the planetary carrier is allowed to be adjusted in the radial direction with respect to the ring gear by relaxing the fastening force by the bolt . On the other hand, the planetary carrier is fixed to the output member so that the position adjustment cannot be performed by strengthening the fastening force by the bolt in the fixed state. Thereby, the planetary gear mechanism having a structure suitable for easily aligning the planet carrier and the ring gear using the bolt at the time of assembly can be realized.

  The planetary gear mechanism according to the present invention is preferably a speed reduction mechanism that is interposed between an in-wheel motor mounted on a vehicle and a drive wheel, and that reduces the rotation of the in-wheel motor and transmits it to the drive wheel. In this case, the ring gear functions to support an output member that rotates integrally with a hub to which the drive wheels are attached, in a relatively rotatable manner via a bearing. Thereby, the planetary gear mechanism which has a structure suitable for the speed reduction mechanism allocated to the in-wheel motor of a vehicle is realizable.

  As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to assemble the planetary gear mechanism with a good rotational balance.

1 is a schematic sectional view showing a planetary gear mechanism 100 together with an alignment device 10 used at the time of assembly. It is a figure which shows the cross-section regarding the AA line in FIG. It is a figure which shows the case where the planet carrier 140 exists in the holding | maintenance state in the process of assembling the planetary gear mechanism 100 using the alignment apparatus. It is a figure which shows the case where the planet carrier 140 exists in the fixed state in the process of assembling the planetary gear mechanism 100 using the alignment apparatus.

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

  1 and 2 show an alignment device 10 which is an embodiment of the “planetary gear mechanism assembling device” of the present invention. This alignment apparatus 10 is an apparatus used when assembling the planetary gear mechanism 100 which is an embodiment of the “planetary gear mechanism” of the present invention.

  The planetary gear mechanism 100 includes a sun gear 110, a plurality of (four in FIG. 2) planetary gears 120, a ring gear 130, a planet carrier 140, a bearing (bearing) 150, and an output member 160. The sun gear 110 is a gear (also referred to as “sun gear”) as an input member that is fixed to an input shaft 111 extending in a predetermined direction and is rotatable about a rotation axis A1 of the input shaft 111. Each planetary gear 120 is a gear (also referred to as a “planetary gear”) that meshes with the sun gear 110 and is arranged around the sun gear 110 in this engaged state. The ring gear (also referred to as “internal gear”) 130 includes an annular cylindrical portion 131 that surrounds the outer periphery of the sun gear 110, and each planetary gear 120 is configured to mesh with the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion 131. That is, the plurality of planetary gears 120 are interposed between the sun gear 110 and the ring gear 130, and each mesh with both the sun gear 110 and the ring gear 130. The planetary carrier 140 is fixed to a shaft portion 141 serving as the center of rotation of each planetary gear 120, and is configured to be rotatable around the rotation axis A2 together with the planetary gear 120 when the planetary gear 120 revolves.

  The output member 160 includes an annular cylindrical portion 161 and an output shaft 162 that extends in the same direction as the input shaft 111. Between the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion 161 of the output member 160 and the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion 131 of the ring gear 130, a bearing 150 for rotatably supporting the output member 160 around the rotation axis A3 of the output shaft 162. Is intervening. Accordingly, the output member 160 is supported by the ring gear 130 so as to be relatively rotatable via the bearing 150 provided on the outer peripheral surface of the ring gear 130. When the ring gear 130 rotates, the center of rotation coincides with the rotation axis A3 of the output shaft 162. In this case, the output member 160 may be an original constituent member of the planetary gear mechanism 100 or a member used only for alignment work at the time of assembling the planetary gear mechanism 100.

  In the case of application to a vehicle, the planetary gear mechanism 100 can be used, for example, as a speed reduction mechanism that is interposed between an in-wheel motor (electric motor) mounted on the vehicle and drive wheels. This reduction mechanism functions to reduce the rotation of the in-wheel motor and transmit it to the drive wheels. In this case, the rotational torque of the input shaft 111 rotated by the driving force of the motor is transmitted to the output shaft 162 of the output member 160 via the sun gear 110, the planetary gear 120, and the planet carrier 140, and finally transmitted to the driving wheels. The ring gear 130 functions to support the output member 160 that rotates integrally with the hub to which the drive wheels are attached, via a bearing 150 so as to be relatively rotatable.

  Here, in the planetary gear mechanism 100 having the above-described configuration, the planetary carrier 140 is biased (“eccentric”) with respect to the ring gear 130 by a radial gap formed between the cylindrical portion 131 of the ring gear 130 and the planetary carrier 140. Say) occurs. Therefore, the alignment device 10 can be used to correct this deviation. The alignment device 10 includes an attachment jig 11 and a fastening means 12. These attachment jig 11 and fastening means 12 correspond to the “attachment jig” and “fastening means” of the present invention, respectively.

Of the planetary gear mechanism 100 configured as described above, the input shaft 111 fixed to the sun gear 110 and the output shaft 162 of the output member 160 are respectively attached to the attachment jig 11 of the alignment device 10. The mounting jig 11 functions to support the input shaft 111 in a rotatable manner and to support the output shaft 162 in a non-rotatable manner. On the other hand, the planet carrier 140 and the output member 160 can be fastened by the fastening means 12. In this case, the fastening means 12 is typically constituted by a bolt fastened to a fastened portion 142 ( bolt hole ) provided in the planet carrier 140 through the through hole 163 of the output member 160. This fastened portion 142 corresponds to the “fastened portion” of the present invention. The fastening means 12 can selectively achieve either the holding state or the fixed state of the planetary carrier 140 by the strength of the fastening force.

  Specifically, in the holding state of the planetary carrier 140 in which the fastening force by the fastening means 12 is relaxed (also referred to as “temporarily fixed state”), a slight operation that allows adjustment of the eccentricity with respect to the output member 160 is allowed, As a result, position adjustment of the planet carrier 140 (in the radial direction) with respect to the ring gear 130 is allowed. On the other hand, in the fixed state of the planet carrier 140 in which the fastening force by the fastening means 12 is strengthened (also referred to as “main fixed state”), the planet carrier 140 is connected to the output member 160 so that the position adjustment of the planet carrier 140 is impossible. Fixed. In any of the holding state and the fixed state, the rotating operation of the planet carrier 140 with respect to the fixed-side output member 160 is restricted by the fastening means 12. Therefore, when the input shaft 111 rotates, for example, in the direction of the arrow R (first direction) in FIG. 2, each planetary gear 120 does not revolve but only rotates in the direction of the arrow R around the shaft portion 141, and thereby the ring gear. 130 also rotates in the direction of arrow R, which is the same direction as planetary gear 120.

  Hereinafter, an assembly method of the planetary gear mechanism 100 using the alignment device 10 will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4. In these drawings, the description of the ring gear 130 is omitted for the sake of convenience in order to make it easier to understand the operational effects of the alignment device 10.

  As shown in FIG. 3, first, the output shaft 162 of the output member 160 is fixed to the first mounting portion 11a of the mounting jig 11 (first step). Thereby, the output member 160 fastened with the planetary carrier 140 by the fastening means 12 can be prevented from moving. Further, the input shaft 111 is rotatably mounted on the second mounting portion 11b of the mounting jig 11. On the other hand, the fastening force by the fastening means 12 is relaxed so that the planetary carrier 140 is in the above-described holding state, so that the planetary carrier 140 and the output member 160 can move so slightly that their eccentricity can be adjusted. Is allowed. That is, fine adjustment (positioning) of the relative position of the planet carrier 140 with respect to the output member 160 becomes possible. In this case, the input shaft 111 fixed to the sun gear 110 may be an original constituent member of the planetary gear mechanism 100, or a member used only for alignment work when the planetary gear mechanism 100 is assembled. Also good.

  In the first step described above, the rotation axis A1 (rotation center of the input shaft 111) related to the rotation of the input shaft 111 and the rotation axis A3 (rotation center of the output shaft 162) related to the rotation of the output shaft 162 coincide with each other. The fixing position of the output shaft 162 with respect to the mounting jig 11 is preferably adjusted. Thereby, the input shaft 111 and the output shaft 162 can be aligned (also referred to as “centering”), and the accuracy of alignment performed to suppress the eccentricity of the planet carrier 140 with respect to the ring gear 130 in the second step and thereafter. Can be increased. In this case, the mounting jig 11 includes a mechanism capable of finely adjusting the position of the first mounting portion 11a in a direction intersecting the output shaft 162, thereby matching the rotational center of the sun gear 110 and the rotational center of the output member 160 with each other. Can be made.

  At this time, the relative position of the planet carrier 140 with respect to the ring gear 130 is biased. When the size of the gap between the plurality of planetary gears 120 and the ring gear 130 is uneven, for example, the gaps 171 and 172 formed in the radial direction between the cylindrical portion 131 of the ring gear 130 and the planetary carrier 140 The size of 171 exceeds the size of the gap 172. In such a case, an axis having a distance d between a central axis A3 (rotation center of the ring gear 130) related to the rotation of the ring gear 130 and a central axis A2 (rotation center of the planetary carrier 140) related to the rotation of the planet carrier 140. An eccentric state in which a deviation has occurred is formed.

  Therefore, in order to eliminate this eccentric state, the input shaft 111 (sun gear 110) is rotated, for example, in the direction of arrow R in the above-described holding state of the planet carrier 140 by the fastening means 12 (second step). In this case, since the rotation operation of the planetary carrier 140 is restricted by the fastening means 12, each planetary gear 120 rotates in the direction of the arrow R around the shaft portion 141 and is engaged with the planetary gear 120 as described above. 130 also rotates in the direction of arrow R. At this time, since the planetary carrier 140 is set in the holding state by the fastening means 12, the radial gap 170 formed between the planetary carrier 140 and the output member 160 allows the planetary carrier 140 to move in the radial direction. To do. In this case, this rotation operation of the ring gear 130 is performed so that the central axis A2 related to the rotation of the planet carrier 140 coincides with the central axis A3 related to the rotation of the ring gear 130, as indicated by the white arrow in FIG. Causes alignment. In this case, the radial gap 170 between the planet carrier 140 and the output member 160 becomes an “adjustment” for this alignment. Therefore, the axial displacement between the center axis A2 of the planet carrier 140 and the center axis A3 of the ring gear 130 is suppressed, and the deviation of the gaps 171 and 172 between the cylindrical portion 131 of the ring gear 130 and the planet carrier 140 is corrected. The

  Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the radial position of the planet carrier 140 in a state where the rotation of the input shaft 111 (sun gear 110) in the direction of arrow R is maintained (that is, the alignment by the planet carrier 140 is completed). The planet carrier 140 is fixed to the output member 160 so that the adjustment becomes impossible (third step). For example, the bolt as the fastening means 12 is operated in the direction of strengthening the fastening force. Thereby, the planet carrier 140 is fixed to the output member 160 in a state in which the planetary carrier 140 is finally positioned with respect to the output member 160. As a result, even if the rotation operation of the input shaft 111 is stopped, the eccentricity suppression state of the planet carrier 140 with respect to the ring gear 130 is maintained. Thus, the setting position of the planetary carrier 140 is changed from the pre-alignment position indicated by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 4 to the alignment completion position indicated by the solid line, the eccentricity with respect to the ring gear 130 is small, and each planetary gear 120 is A state where the gaps in the radial direction are uniform is formed.

As described above, by assembling the planetary gear mechanism 100 using the alignment device 10, it is possible to assemble the planetary gear mechanism 100 with a good rotational balance by suppressing the eccentricity of the planet carrier 140 with respect to the ring gear 130. . As a result, it is not necessary to remove backlash when the planetary gear mechanism 100 is used, and it is possible to prevent a decrease in response performance and occurrence of vibration and abnormal noise caused by the rotation balance of the planetary gear mechanism 100 being lost. In particular, the present invention is effective when applied to the assembly of a reduction mechanism for an in-wheel motor that requires high response performance. Further, the planetary carrier 140 and the ring gear 130 can be easily aligned using the fastening means 12 when the planetary gear mechanism 100 is assembled.
In addition, by providing the planetary carrier 140 with the fastened portion 142 for fastening the fastening means 12, the planetary carrier 140 and the ring gear 130 can be easily aligned using the fastening means 12 during assembly. The planetary gear mechanism 100 can be realized.

  The present invention is not limited to the above exemplary embodiment, and various applications and modifications are possible. For example, each of the following embodiments to which the above embodiment is applied can be implemented.

  In the above embodiment, the case where the holding state and the fixed state of the planetary carrier 140 are selectively achieved by using the fastening means 12 has been described. However, in the present invention, the function of the fastening means 12 is achieved by another means. Also good.

  In the said embodiment, although the one attachment jig | tool 11 which has the 1st attachment part 11a and the 2nd attachment part 11b was described, in this invention, the attachment jig | tool which fulfill | performs the function of the 1st attachment part 11a, and 2nd A mounting jig that performs the function of the mounting portion 11b can also be configured separately.

  In the present invention, the assembling technique of the planetary gear mechanism 100 of the above-described embodiment can be applied to a reduction gear mounted on various devices other than the vehicle, including a reduction gear mounted on the vehicle.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Center alignment apparatus, 11 ... Mounting jig, 11a ... 1st mounting part, 11b ... 2nd mounting part, 12 ... Fastening means, 100 ... Planetary gear mechanism, 110 ... Sun gear, 111 ... Input shaft, 120 ... Planetary gear, DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 130 ... Ring gear, 131 ... Cylindrical part, 140 ... Planetary carrier, 141 ... Shaft part, 142 ... Fastened part, 150 ... Bearing, 160 ... Output member, 161 ... Cylindrical part, 162 ... Output shaft, 163 ... Through-hole , 171, 172, 173 ... gaps

Claims (7)

A sun gear as an input member; an annular ring gear surrounding an outer periphery of the sun gear; a plurality of planetary gears interposed between the sun gear and the ring gear, each meshing with both the sun gear and the ring gear; An assembling method of a planetary gear mechanism including a planetary carrier fixed to a planetary gear,
A first step of fixing an output member supported on the ring gear via a bearing provided on an outer peripheral surface of the ring gear so as to be relatively rotatable with the ring gear;
By rotating the sun gear in the first direction in a holding state of the planet carrier in which the radial position adjustment of the planet carrier with respect to the ring gear is allowed, the planetary gears are rotated to rotate the ring gear. A second step of rotating in a first direction;
A third step of fixing the planetary carrier to the output member so that the position adjustment of the planetary carrier becomes impossible while maintaining the rotation of the sun gear in the first direction;
A method for assembling a planetary gear mechanism. A method for assembling a planetary gear mechanism according to claim 1,
Using the fastening means capable of fastening the planet carrier and the output member to each other, in the second step, the planetary carrier is brought into the holding state by relaxing the fastening force by the fastening means, and in the third step, An assembling method of a planetary gear mechanism, wherein the planetary carrier is fixed to the output member by strengthening a fastening force by a fastening means. A method for assembling a planetary gear mechanism according to claim 1 or 2,
An assembly method of a planetary gear mechanism, wherein when the output member is fixed to the mounting jig in the first step, the rotation center of the sun gear and the rotation center of the output member are matched with each other. A sun gear as an input member; an annular ring gear surrounding an outer periphery of the sun gear; a plurality of planetary gears interposed between the sun gear and the ring gear, each meshing with both the sun gear and the ring gear; A planetary gear mechanism assembling apparatus comprising a planetary carrier fixed to a planetary gear,
An output jig that is rotatably supported by the ring gear via a bearing provided on an outer peripheral surface of the ring gear is fixed, and a mounting jig that rotatably supports the sun gear;
Fastening means capable of fastening the planet carrier and the output member to each other;
Including
The fastening means includes a holding state of the planet carrier in which the radial position adjustment of the planet carrier with respect to the ring gear is allowed by relaxation of the fastening force, and the position adjustment of the planet carrier is impossible by strengthening the fastening force. The planetary gear mechanism assembling apparatus that selectively achieves one of the fixed states of the planetary carrier fixed to the output member so that the planetary carrier is fixed. An assembly apparatus for a planetary gear mechanism according to claim 4,
The assembling apparatus for the planetary gear mechanism, wherein the mounting jig has a mechanism for matching the rotation center of the sun gear and the rotation center of the output member . A sun gear as an input member; an annular ring gear surrounding an outer periphery of the sun gear; a plurality of planetary gears interposed between the sun gear and the ring gear, each meshing with both the sun gear and the ring gear; A planetary gear mechanism comprising a planetary carrier fixed to a planetary gear,
The planetary carrier has a bolt hole that can be fastened by a bolt to an output member that is rotatably supported by the ring gear via a bearing provided on an outer peripheral surface of the ring gear, and thereby the fastening force of the bolt can be reduced. Either a holding state in which radial position adjustment with respect to the ring gear is allowed by relaxation, or a fixed state in which the position adjustment is impossible by strengthening the fastening force by the bolt is selective. Achieved in a planetary gear mechanism. The planetary gear mechanism according to claim 6,
A reduction mechanism that is interposed between an in-wheel motor mounted on a vehicle and drive wheels, and that reduces the rotation of the in-wheel motor and transmits the rotation to the drive wheels;
The ring gear is a planetary gear mechanism that supports the output member that rotates integrally with a hub to which the driving wheel is attached, so as to be relatively rotatable via the bearing.

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