JP6498893B2 - Rotating connector device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a rotary connector device including a rotation angle detection unit.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a rotating connector device is used to electrically connect a rotating side and a fixed side like a steering wheel and a vehicle body of an automobile. A known rotation connector device includes a rotation angle detection unit (SAS, steering angle sensor) for detecting an operation angle (steering angle, rotation angle) of a steering wheel. Patent Documents 1 and 2 disclose this type of rotary connector device.

  The rotary connector device of Patent Document 1 includes a stator, a rotator, and a sleeve (spring receiving member). The stator is a member configured to be rotatable relative to the steering wheel. The rotator and the sleeve are members that rotate together with the steering wheel. The rotator is formed with an engaging protrusion for attaching the steering wheel and an engaging claw for engaging the sleeve. The sleeve is formed with an engaging portion for engaging a rotation angle detecting portion (steering angle sensor). With this configuration, when the driver rotates the steering wheel, the force is transmitted in the order of the rotator, the sleeve, and the rotation angle detection unit (see FIG. 4A). The rotary connector device detects the rotation angle of the steering wheel in this way.

  Inside the rotary connector device of Patent Document 1, a cable for transmitting a signal related to the operation of an air bag or a horn is disposed. One end of the cable is connected to a connector on the upper surface of the rotator (surface on the steering wheel side). The other end of the cable is connected to a connector on the side surface of the stator. The cable is wound in one direction in an annular space composed of a stator and a rotator, and then the direction in which the cable is wound is reversed and wound in the opposite direction. With this configuration, the rotator can be rotated clockwise or counterclockwise by the number of times corresponding to the length of the cable.

  Moreover, the rotation connector apparatus of patent document 1 is arrange | positioned at the steering wheel side among a rotation angle detection part and a cable. On the other hand, in the rotation connector device (steering angle sensor unit) of Patent Document 2, the rotation angle detection unit is arranged on the steering wheel side among the rotation angle detection unit (steering angle sensor) and the cable.

JP 2013-73926 A JP-A-9-326282 JP 2000-241144 A

  As described above, in the rotary connector device of Patent Document 1, the rotation of the steering wheel is transmitted to the rotation angle detection unit via the rotator and the sleeve. Further, since the steering wheel, the rotator, the sleeve, and the rotation angle detector are generally fixed by fitting one into the other, rattling may occur. Therefore, when the rotation of the steering wheel is transmitted, rattling is accumulated through the rotator and the sleeve. As a result, it is conceivable that the rotation angle of the steering wheel and the rotation angle detected by the rotation angle detector are misaligned. In particular, there is a possibility that play of the fitting portion of the rotator and the sleeve becomes large due to aging, and in this case, the amount of deviation increases.

  In this respect, since the distance between the steering wheel and the rotation detection unit is short in the rotary connector device of Patent Document 2, the number of members that transmit the rotation of the steering wheel to the rotation detection unit can be reduced. Therefore, the accumulation of rattling as in Patent Document 1 can be reduced. However, when the rotation angle detection unit is arranged closer to the steering wheel than the cable as in Patent Document 2, the following problems exist.

  That is, since the rotation angle detection unit is arranged on the steering wheel side of the cable, it is difficult to arrange a connector for connecting to the airbag module or the like on the upper surface of the rotator. Actually, in Patent Document 2, it is described that one end of the cable is pulled out from the lower surface of the stator and connected to the external output cable, but it is described how the other end of the cable is connected to the outside. It has not been.

  Moreover, in patent document 2, since the rotation angle detection part is arrange | positioned rather than the cable at the steering wheel side, it is necessary to arrange | position a rotation angle detection part and a cable in a casing in a different aspect from the past. However, Patent Document 2 does not describe a detailed structure of the casing and a specific assembling method. As described above, since there are various problems in the layout of Patent Document 2, a configuration for reducing the above-described rattling in the layout of Patent Document 1 has been demanded.

  Patent Document 3 discloses a device in which a rotary connector that accommodates a cable and a rudder angle sensor that detects a rotation angle are configured separately. The force applied to the steering wheel is transmitted to the steering angle sensor via the rotary connector. Therefore, even with the device of Patent Document 3, there is a possibility that the rotation angle of the steering wheel and the rotation angle detected by the rudder angle sensor are misaligned.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and a main object thereof is a configuration for accurately detecting a rotation angle of a steering wheel in a rotary connector device in which a cable to be accommodated is arranged on the steering wheel side. Is to provide.

Means and effects for solving the problems

  The problems to be solved by the present invention are as described above. Next, means for solving the problems and the effects thereof will be described.

According to the viewpoint of this invention, the rotation connector apparatus of the following structures is provided. That is, the rotary connector device includes a fixed member, a first rotary member, a cable, a second rotary member, and a rotation angle detection unit. The first rotating member is rotatable relative to the fixed member and rotates together with the steering wheel. The cable is disposed in a space covered with the fixing member and the first rotating member. The second rotating member is rotatable relative to the fixed member, has a steering mounting portion for mounting the steering wheel, and rotates together with the steering wheel. The rotation angle detector is disposed on the opposite side of the steering wheel with the cable interposed therebetween. A rotating body that rotates together with the steering wheel is integrally formed with the second rotating member. The rotation angle detection unit has a detection unit arranged so as not to follow the steering wheel. The detection unit detects a rotation angle of the steering wheel by detecting rotation of the rotating body with respect to the detection unit. The rotational force of the steering wheel is transmitted to the first rotating member via the second rotating member.

Accordingly, in the rotary connector device having a layout in which the cable is disposed on the steering wheel side, the rotation of the steering wheel can be directly transmitted to the second rotating member, and the rotation angle of the second rotating member can be detected. For this reason, it is possible to prevent a decrease in detection accuracy of the rotation angle due to the accumulation of rattling while employing a general layout. Since the rotation of the second rotating member is transmitted to the rotating body without backlash, the detection accuracy of the rotation angle of the steering wheel can be improved as compared with the case where a rotating body is separately attached to the second rotating member. Further, since the rotation of the steering wheel can be transmitted to the second rotating member without going through the first rotating member, accumulation of rattling can be prevented.

The rotary connector device includes a protective cover that is rotatable relative to the second rotary member and can be attached to the fixed member from the opposite side of the steering wheel, and the detection unit is disposed on the protective cover. It is preferable that

  Thereby, after attaching the 2nd rotation member in which the rotary body was formed, a protective cover can be attached so that it may be covered. Therefore, the assembly process of the rotary connector device can be simplified. The protective cover can also be used for protecting the rotation angle detection unit, arranging the detection elements of the rotation angle detection unit, and the like.

  In the rotary connector device, it is preferable that the steering attachment portion is a fitting portion for fitting with the steering wheel.

  Accordingly, the steering wheel can be fixed simply by being inserted into the second rotating member.

  The rotary connector device preferably has the following configuration. That is, at least the fixing member is formed with an insertion hole into which the steering wheel and the steering shaft are inserted, and when viewed in a direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the insertion hole, the second rotating member has the insertion hole. The fitting part does not protrude outward from the fixed member or the first rotating member.

  Thereby, since a fitting part does not protrude outside, when attaching a rotation connector device to a steering wheel, it can prevent that a fitting part hits outside and is damaged.

The perspective view of the rotation connector apparatus incorporating a rudder angle sensor according to an embodiment of the present invention. A partial sectional view of a rotation connector device incorporating a rudder angle sensor. The disassembled perspective view of the rotation connector apparatus incorporating a rudder angle sensor. Explanatory drawing which shows the process in which rotation of a steering wheel is transmitted to the rotary body of a rotation angle detection part.

  Next, a rotary connector device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a rotating connector device incorporating a rudder angle sensor according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a partial cross-sectional view of a rotary connector device incorporating a rudder angle sensor. FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the rotary connector device incorporating the rudder angle sensor.

  The steering angle sensor built-in rotary connector device 1 (hereinafter simply referred to as the rotary connector device 1) is connected to a boss portion 101 of a steering wheel (handle) 100 of an automobile as shown in FIG. The rotary connector device 1 electrically connects the steering side (rotation side) and the vehicle body side (fixed side). Moreover, the rotation connector apparatus 1 detects the rotation angle of the steering wheel 100, and outputs it to ECU etc. The rotation angle of the steering wheel 100 is used for hydraulic control of the power steering, control for stabilizing the behavior of the vehicle, and the like.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the rotary connector device 1 includes a rotator 10, a stator 20, a flexible flat cable 30, a sleeve 40, a protective cover 50, and a rotation angle detection unit (steering angle sensor) 60. . In the following description, the side of the rotary connector device 1 where the steering wheel 100 (particularly the portion operated by the operator) is located may be referred to as the upper side, and the opposite side may be referred to as the lower side.

  The rotator 10 is a member that covers the flexible flat cable 30 together with the stator 20 and rotates together with the steering wheel 100. As shown in FIG. 3, the rotator 10 includes an upper surface portion 11 and a cylindrical portion 15.

  The upper surface portion 11 is a substantially disk-shaped portion that constitutes the upper surface of the rotator 10. An insertion hole 12 into which the steering wheel 100 and a steering shaft (not shown) are inserted is formed in the center of the upper surface portion 11. The cylindrical portion 15 constitutes the inner wall surface of the insertion hole 12. A rotation side connector 13 is disposed on the upper surface portion 11. The rotation-side connector 13 connects one end of the flexible flat cable 30 and an electric wire extending from a steering-side (rotation-side) member or an auxiliary device (for example, a horn switch, an airbag module, and a steering wheel switch unit).

  The stator 20 is disposed below the rotator 10 and covers the flexible flat cable 30 together with the rotator 10. The stator 20 is fixed to an appropriate member on the vehicle body side, for example, a combination switch (not shown) of a steering column. The stator 20 is attached to a rotation side member such as the steering wheel 100 and the steering shaft so as to be relatively rotatable. As shown in FIG. 3, the stator 20 includes a bottom surface portion 21 and a cylindrical portion 25.

  The bottom surface portion 21 is a substantially disk-shaped member that constitutes the bottom surface of the stator 20. An insertion hole into which the steering wheel 100 and the steering shaft are inserted is formed in the center of the stator 20. The cylindrical portion 25 is a cylindrical member that constitutes the outer periphery (side surface) portion of the stator 20. A fixed connector 26 is disposed in the cylindrical portion 25. The fixed connector 26 connects the other end of the flexible flat cable 30 and an electric wire extending from a vehicle body side (fixed side) member (for example, a power source and an ECU).

  The flexible flat cable 30 is disposed in an annular space formed by the rotator 10 and the stator 20. The flexible flat cable 30 is wound in one direction within the annular space, and then the direction in which the flexible flat cable 30 is wound is reversed into a U shape and wound in the opposite direction. With this configuration, the rotator can be rotated clockwise or counterclockwise by the number of times corresponding to the length of the flexible flat cable. A plurality of rollers may be arranged in the annular space. By providing these rollers, the flexible flat cable 30 can be held in a state of being always aligned in the annular space.

  The sleeve 40 is a member that is disposed below the stator 20 and rotates together with the steering wheel 100. The sleeve 40 includes a side surface portion 41, a steering support portion 45, and a bottom surface portion 48. The sleeve 40 is made of resin, and each part is integrally formed. In the present specification, an object that is integrally formed by using the same mold, for example, instead of attaching a separate member with a fixing member is referred to as “integratedly configured”.

  A rotator mounting portion 42 and a rotating body 43 are formed on the side surface portion 41 of the sleeve 40. The rotator mounting portion 42 can mount the rotator 10 so as not to be relatively rotatable by an unillustrated mounting claw or the like. The rotating body 43 is a disk-shaped member formed so as to extend outward from the approximate center of the side surface portion 41. A ring magnet 61 described later is attached (fixed) to the side surface portion 41.

  The steering support portion 45 is a disk-shaped member that constitutes the upper surface of the sleeve 40. The steering support part 45 supports the boss part 101 of the steering wheel 100. An insertion hole into which the steering shaft is inserted is formed at the center of the steering support portion 45.

  A fitting portion 47 is formed on the outer peripheral portion of the steering support portion 45. The fitting part 47 is comprised from the two parallel rod-shaped members 47a formed so that it might extend upward. Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the boss portion 101 is formed with a protruding portion 101a protruding in the outer peripheral direction. The fitting portion 47 holds the projecting portion 101a so as to be sandwiched by elastic force. As a result, the rotational force of the steering wheel 100 is directly transmitted to the sleeve 40 (without passing through the rotator 10), so that the sleeve 40 rotates integrally with the steering wheel 100.

  Further, when the fitting portion 47 is viewed in a direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the insertion hole 12 (side view, FIG. 2), the upper end (end portion on the steering wheel 100 side) of the fitting portion 47 is the rotator 10. And it is located below the upper end of the stator 20. In other words, the fitting portion 47 does not protrude from the rotator 10 and the stator 20 (the fitting portion 47 is located inside the insertion hole 12). Thereby, when attaching the rotation connector apparatus 1 to the steering wheel 100 or a combination switch, it can prevent that the fitting part 47 hits outside and is damaged.

  The bottom surface portion 48 is a portion constituting the bottom surface side of the sleeve 40. An insertion hole for inserting the steering shaft is formed in the center of the bottom surface portion 48.

  A cancel cam 49 is connected to the sleeve 40. The cancel cam 49 is configured to rotate together with the sleeve 40 and the steering wheel 100. The cancel cam 49 is a member that returns the turn lever that operates the direction indicator when the rotation of the steering wheel 100 returns (that is, when the vehicle turns right or left).

  The protective cover 50 is disposed so as to cover a part of the sleeve 40, and is attached to the stator 20 so as not to be driven by the rotation of the steering wheel 100. The protective cover 50 includes a cylindrical portion 51 and a bottom surface portion 52.

  The cylindrical part 51 is a part constituting the side part of the protective cover 50 and is a cylindrical member. The bottom surface portion 52 is a disk-shaped member connected to the lower side of the cylindrical portion 51. An insertion hole into which the steering shaft is inserted is formed at the center of the bottom surface portion 52. In addition, two Hall elements 62 described later are attached to the inner surface of the bottom surface portion 52.

  The rotation angle detection unit 60 detects the rotation of the steering wheel 100. The rotation angle detection unit 60 includes a ring magnet 61 and two Hall elements 62. The ring magnet 61 is attached to the rotating body 43 of the sleeve 40 and rotates as the steering wheel 100 rotates. The ring magnet 61 has, for example, a four-pole configuration, and S poles and N poles are alternately arranged every 90 degrees. As the ring magnet 61 rotates, the magnetic flux density changes.

  The hall element 62 is fixed to the inner surface side of the bottom surface portion 52 of the protective cover 50. The two Hall elements 62 are fixed so as to form an angle of, for example, approximately 90 ° around the axis of the rotating body 43 (ring magnet 61). The hall element 62 outputs a signal corresponding to the detected magnetic flux density to a not-shown substrate or the like. Since the magnetic flux density changes when the ring magnet 61 rotates, the voltage output from the Hall element 62 also changes.

  Thereby, the rotation angle of the steering wheel 100 can be detected. The assembly of the rotary connector device 1 will be described later.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 4, the configuration of the conventional rotary connector device according to the present embodiment and the configuration for transmitting the rotation of the steering wheel will be described. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a process in which the rotation of the steering wheel is transmitted to the rotating body of the rotation angle detection unit.

  In the rotary connector device of the conventional example (Patent Document 1, etc.), the steering wheel is attached to the rotator. And while a sleeve is attached to a rotator, a rotation angle detection part is attached to a sleeve. The steering wheel, the rotator, the sleeve, and the rotation angle detection unit are generally fixed by fitting one of them into the other, and therefore, rattling may occur.

  Therefore, as described above, in the rotary connector device of the conventional example, the rotation of the steering wheel is transmitted to the rotation angle detection unit via the rotator and the sleeve (see FIG. 4A). Therefore, it is conceivable that the backlash accumulates and the rotation angle of the steering wheel and the rotation angle detected by the rotation angle detection unit are shifted. In particular, there is a possibility that play of the fitting portion of the rotator and the sleeve becomes large due to aging, and in this case, the amount of deviation increases.

  In contrast, in the present embodiment, the rotation of the steering wheel 100 is directly transmitted to the sleeve 40 (see FIG. 4B). In addition, since each part of the sleeve 40 is comprised integrally, rotation of the sleeve 40 is transmitted to the rotating body 43 without rattling. Further, since the ring magnet 61 is fixed to the rotating body 43, there is no backlash. Therefore, in the present embodiment, there is almost no deviation between the rotation angle of the steering wheel 100 and the rotation angle detected by the rotation angle detector 60. Therefore, the rotation angle of the steering wheel 100 can be detected with high accuracy.

  As described above, the rotary connector device 1 includes the stator 20, the rotator 10, the flexible flat cable 30, the sleeve 40, and the rotation angle detection unit 60. The rotator 10 can rotate relative to the stator 20 and rotates together with the steering wheel 100. The flexible flat cable 30 is disposed in a space covered with the stator 20 and the rotator 10. The sleeve 40 is rotatable relative to the stator 20, has a fitting portion 47 for attaching the steering wheel 100, and rotates together with the steering wheel 100. The rotation angle detection unit 60 is disposed on the opposite side of the steering wheel 100 with the flexible flat cable 30 interposed therebetween, and detects the rotation angle of the sleeve 40.

  Thereby, in the rotary connector device 1 having the layout in which the flexible flat cable 30 is disposed on the steering wheel 100 side, the rotation of the steering wheel 100 can be transmitted to the sleeve 40 as it is, and the rotation angle of the sleeve 40 can be detected. For this reason, it is possible to prevent a decrease in detection accuracy of the rotation angle due to the accumulation of rattling while adopting a general layout.

  Further, in the rotary connector device 1 of the present embodiment, the sleeve 40 is integrally configured with a rotating body 43 that rotates together with the steering wheel 100. The rotation angle detection unit 60 detects the rotation angle of the rotating body 43 of the sleeve 40.

  Thereby, since the rotation of the sleeve 40 is transmitted to the rotating body 43 without rattling, the detection accuracy of the rotation angle of the steering wheel 100 can be improved as compared with the case where a rotating body is separately attached to the sleeve 40.

  Further, the rotary connector device 1 of the present embodiment includes a protective cover 50 that can be rotated relative to the sleeve 40 and can be attached to the fixed member from the opposite side of the steering wheel 100.

  In the configuration including the protective cover 50 of the present embodiment, assembly can be performed by a simple process as follows. That is, first, the rotator 10 is attached to the stator 20 so as to sandwich the flexible flat cable 30. Next, the sleeve 40 is attached to the rotator 10. Thereafter, the protective cover 50 is attached so as to cover the sleeve 40. Thus, in this embodiment, the assembly process of the rotary connector device 1 can be simplified. The protective cover 50 has a function as an installation destination of the hall element 62 in addition to the function of protecting the rotation angle detection unit 60.

  Further, in the rotary connector device 1 of the present embodiment, the steering attachment portion is a fitting portion for fitting with the steering wheel 100.

  As a result, the steering wheel 100 can be fixed simply by being inserted into the sleeve 40.

  Further, in the rotary connector device 1 of the present embodiment, at least the stator 20 has an insertion hole 12 into which the steering wheel 100 is inserted, and the direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the insertion hole 12 (FIG. 2). , The fitting portion 47 of the sleeve 40 does not protrude outward from the stator 20 or the rotator 10.

  Thereby, since the fitting part 47 does not protrude outside, when fitting the rotary connector device 1 to the steering wheel 100, the fitting part 47 can be prevented from hitting the outside and being damaged.

  In the rotary connector device 1 of the present embodiment, the rotational force of the steering wheel 100 is transmitted to the rotator 10 via the sleeve 40.

  Thereby, since the sleeve 40 and the rotating body 43 of the rotation angle detection unit 60 are integrally configured, rattling between the sleeve 40 and the rotation angle detection unit 60 can be prevented. Therefore, the detection accuracy of the rotation angle can be further improved.

  The preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described above, but the above configuration can be modified as follows, for example.

  The interval at which the protruding portion 101a of the fitting portion 47 is formed is also arbitrary. For example, the interval may be 180 ° (that is, facing each other). Further, the number of the fitting portions 47 and the protruding portions 101a formed is not limited to one, and may be two or more, for example. Moreover, the method of fixing the steering wheel 100 and the sleeve 40 is arbitrary, and may be fixed using a fixing tool.

  In the above-described embodiment, the rotation angle detection unit 60 is configured such that the detection unit (Hall element 62) detects a change in the magnetic field. A change in induced electromotive force may be detected. Moreover, the structure which detects rotation of the rotary body 43 using a photo interrupter etc. may be sufficient.

  The number of flexible flat cables 30 included in the rotary connector device 1 and the winding direction are arbitrary and can be changed as appropriate. Moreover, the shape of the flexible flat cable 30 is also arbitrary.

  The shape of each part which comprises the rotation connector apparatus 1 shown by the said embodiment, arrangement | positioning, and the attachment method are examples, and can be changed suitably. For example, the stator 20 may be a single member or may be composed of two or more members. The rotating body 43 may have a gear shape.

  The rotary connector device of the present invention can be attached not only to a steering for an automobile but also to a steering for another vehicle.

1 Rotating connector device 10 Rotator (first rotating member)
12 Insertion hole 20 Stator (fixing member)
30 Flexible flat cable (cable)
40 Sleeve (second rotating member)
43 Rotating body 47 Fitting part (steering part)
50 Protective cover 60 Rotation angle detector 61 Ring magnet 62 Hall element

Claims (4)

A fixing member;
A first rotating member that is rotatable relative to the fixed member and rotates with the steering wheel;
A cable disposed in a space covered with the fixing member and the first rotating member;
A second rotation member that is rotatable relative to the fixed member, has a steering attachment portion for attaching the steering wheel, and rotates together with the steering wheel;
A rotation angle detector disposed on the opposite side of the steering wheel across the cable;
With
A rotating body that rotates together with the steering wheel is integrally formed with the second rotating member,
The rotation angle detection unit has a detection unit arranged so as not to follow the steering wheel,
The detection unit detects a rotation angle of the steering wheel by detecting rotation of the rotating body with respect to the detection unit ,
The rotating connector device according to claim 1, wherein the rotational force of the steering wheel is transmitted to the first rotating member via the second rotating member . The rotary connector device according to claim 1,
A protective cover that is rotatable relative to the second rotating member and attachable to the fixed member from the opposite side of the steering wheel;
The rotary connector device, wherein the detection unit is disposed on the protective cover. The rotary connector device according to claim 1 or 2,
The rotary connector device, wherein the steering attachment portion is a fitting portion for fitting with the steering wheel. The rotary connector device according to claim 3,
At least the fixing member has an insertion hole into which the steering wheel and the steering shaft are inserted, and when viewed in a direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the insertion hole,
The rotating connector device, wherein the fitting portion of the second rotating member does not protrude outward from the fixing member or the first rotating member.

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