JP6775301B2 - Sensor device that detects the rotation angle of rotating members in a vehicle - Google Patents

Description

The present invention is a sensor device that detects the rotation angle of a rotating member in a vehicle, and the rotating member performs a plurality of rotations and is coupled to a measured value transmitter. Is connected to a measured value detector to generate a signal representing the rotation angle of the rotating member, and the measured value transmitter is configured as a motion converter together with the rotating member to rotate the rotating member. It relates to a sensor device that converts into translational motion of the measured value transmitter associated with a rotating member.

Multiple rotations can be detected, especially using the Nonius method. For example, in a steering angle sensor, the rotation of the steering shaft is transmitted to two gears having different numbers of teeth. By detecting the rotation angle of each of these gears, the rotation angle when the steering shaft is rotated a plurality of times can be estimated via the angle or the angle difference. In other words, both gears have the same absolute localization again only when the steering shaft has rotated multiple times.

German Patent Application Publication No. 102008011448 (Patent Document 1) describes a device for detecting a rotation angle. The device described herein includes a transmitter and a detector, which detects as a digitally evaluable signal a change in the physical quantity generated by the transmitter in response to a change in the rotation angle of the rotating member. To do. The rotating member has a relatively small appendage that is coupled to its peripheral surface and rotates by its rotation, preferably with a rotation angle sensor, the appendage via an axially coupled hypocycloid gear. A similarly rotating hypocycloid disc or hypocycloid gear is driven, and the rotation speed is reduced by the hypocycloid gear as follows. That is, from there, the rotation speed of the rotating member and the absolute steering angle of the steering shaft through a plurality of rotations are decelerated so as to be detected by the rotation angle sensor system.

German Patent Application Publication No. 2012202632 (Patent Document 2) discloses a sensor device that detects the rotation angle of a rotating member in a vehicle of the type described at the beginning. The rotating member is coupled to a measured value transmitter, which is connected to at least one sensor to generate a signal representing the rotation angle of the rotating member. The measured value transmitter here is configured as a motion converter together with the rotating member, and converts the rotation of the rotating member into an axial translational motion of the measured value transmitter in relation to the rotating member. The measured value transmitter includes a spring-loaded substrate having a fixed end and a measured end, where the measured end is guided by a rotating member. At least one sensor obtains the distance traveled by the measurement end of the measured value transmitter, which represents the rotation angle of the rotating member.

German Patent Application Publication No. 102008011448 German Patent Application Publication No. 2012202632

An object of the present invention is to make improvements in view of the drawbacks in the prior art in order to eliminate them.

According to the present invention, the problem is that the first guiding element disposed on the rotating member and the second guiding element arranged in a fixed position cause the translational motion of the measured value transmitter. It is solved by causing the measured value detector to be configured to detect the corresponding position change of the measured value transmitter.

The sensor device for detecting the rotation angle of a rotating member in a vehicle according to the feature portion of claim 1 is 0 to 360 ° from a rotatably supported object such as a shaft, a gear, a disc, or the like. In addition to the rotation angle in the range of 0 to N × 360 °, it has an advantage that a plurality of rotations in the range of 0 to N × 360 ° can be detected. Such a thing is required in the case of a steering angle sensor, for example. This is because the steering wheel can rotate more than once.

The embodiment of the present invention is used as a sensor device for detecting the rotation angle of a rotating member in a vehicle, and the rotating member performs a plurality of rotations and is coupled with a measured value transmitter. The value transmitter is connected to the measured value detector and generates a signal indicating the rotation angle of the rotating member. Here, the measured value transmitter is configured as a motion converter together with the rotating member, and converts the rotation of the rotating member into a translational motion of the measured value transmitter in relation to the rotating member. According to the present invention, the first guiding element disposed on the rotating member and the second guiding element arranged fixedly cause the translational motion of the measured value transmitter, and the measured value detector. Detects the corresponding position change of the measured value transmitter.

The means described in the dependent claim and further embodiments enable a suitable improved example of the sensor device for detecting the rotation angle of the rotating member in the vehicle according to claim 1.

Particularly preferably, the measured value transmitter can be implemented as a sphere or a sliding body. For guiding the reading transmitter, the first guiding element is formed as a spiral groove and the second guiding element is formed as a linear groove. Alternatively, the first guiding element may be formed as a linear groove and the second guiding element may be formed as a spiral groove. Due to the rotational movement of the rotating member, the measured value transmitter moves from the first position to the second position in the linear groove. By detecting the position of the measured value transmitter in the linear groove, the rotation angle of the rotating member can be estimated in an angle range from an angle larger than 0 to 360 °.

According to a preferred embodiment of the sensor device according to the present invention, the measured value detector may include at least two detection coils. This measured value detection device is configured so that the inductance of the detection coil changes when the detection region of each detection coil is reached. Preferably, the measured value transmitter is configured as a metal component. The measured value detector and the measured value transmitter may form, for example, an eddy current sensor capable of obtaining the instantaneous position of the measured value transmitter.

According to another preferred embodiment of the sensor device according to the present invention, the plurality of measurement value transmitters and the plurality of the guide elements formed as linear grooves are included, and the plurality of measurement value detections are included. The device has detected the corresponding position change of the measured value transmitter. These multiplex signals can be advantageously used for the purpose of averaging and redundancy.

According to another preferred embodiment of the sensor device according to the present invention, the rotating member may be configured as a disc or gear and directly connected to a shaft to be detected. Alternatively, the rotating member may be configured as a disc or gear and indirectly connected to the shaft to be detected via the disc or gear.

Further, according to another preferred embodiment of the sensor device according to the present invention, the fixedly disposed second inductive element is formed on the edge layer of the multilayer printed circuit board, and the at least two detection coils are formed. May be formed on the printed circuit board layer arranged below or above the edge layer.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In these drawings, components or elements having the same function or similar functions are designated by the same reference numerals.

The schematic diagram which showed the Example of the sensor device which concerns on this invention which has two gears and detects the rotation angle of the rotating member in a vehicle. FIG. 3 is a detailed view of one gear for the sensor device according to the present invention, which detects the rotation angle of the rotating member in the vehicle of FIG. FIG. 3 is a detailed view of a first embodiment of a measured value transmitter and a measured value receiver for the sensor device according to the present invention, which detects the rotation angle of the rotating member in the vehicle of FIG. FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the measured value transmitter and the measured value receiver of FIG. FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a second embodiment of a measured value transmitter and a measured value receiver for the sensor device according to the present invention, which detects the rotation angle of the rotating member in the vehicle of FIG.

As is clear from FIGS. 1 to 5, the sensor device 1 according to the present invention that detects the rotation angles of the rotating members 3 and 5 that rotate a plurality of times in the vehicle includes the measured value transmitter 7. The measured value transmitter is coupled to the rotating members 3 and 5, and is further connected to the measured value detectors 16 and 16A to generate a signal indicating the rotation angle of the rotating members 3 and 5. In this case, the measured value transmitter 7 is configured as a motion converter together with the rotating members 3 and 5, and this motion converter converts the rotations R1 and R2 of the rotating members 3 and 5 into the rotating members 3 and 5. Is converted into the translational motion R of the measured value transmitter 7. According to the present invention, the first guiding element 9 arranged on the rotating members 3 and 5 and the second guiding elements 12, 12A, 14 and 14A arranged fixedly form the measured value transmitter 7. It causes a translational motion, in which case the measured value detectors 16 and 16A detect the corresponding position change of the measured value transmitter 7.

As is clear from FIG. 1, in the illustrated embodiment, the first rotating member 3 is configured as a gear, and this gear is a shaft to be detected that performs a rotary motion R1 around the first rotating shaft DA1. Is directly connected to. The second rotating member 5 is also configured as a gear, and the gear is indirectly connected to the shaft to be detected via the first rotating member 3 configured as the gear. That is, this means that the first rotating member 3 configured as a gear drives the second rotating member 5 configured as a gear. Therefore, the second rotating member 5 performs a rotary motion R2 around the second rotating shaft DA2.

As can be seen from FIGS. 1 and 2, the first guiding element 9 is formed as a spiral groove, and the second guiding elements 12 and 14 are formed as a linear groove. The spiral groove of the first guiding element 9 can be provided by either the first rotating member 3 or the second rotating member 5. This is effective for measuring a plurality of rotations of the first rotating member 3. Shifting to a rotating member 5 configured as a smaller gear makes the requirement for angular resolution relatively low, but measuring a larger number of rotations is effective in response to this shifting. The second guiding elements 12, 14 formed as linear grooves, as can be seen from FIG. 1, below and above the outer region of the first rotating member 3 configured as a gear, and / Alternatively, it is provided below or above the second rotating member 5 configured as a gear. Here, as shown by the broken line in FIG. 1, the plurality of second induction elements 12 and 14 formed as linear grooves are detected by measuring values corresponding to the plurality of measured value transmitters 7. It can also be used with the vessels 16 and 16A. These measured value detectors 16, 16A are not shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 for the sake of clarity. These measured value detectors 16 and 16A will be described in the following specification with reference to FIGS. 3 to 5. The multiplex signal is used for the purpose of forming an average value or for the purpose of providing redundancy. In the illustrated embodiment, the measured value transmitter 7 is configured as a metal sphere 7A. By the rotational movement of each of the rotating members 3 and 5, the sphere 7A moves from the outside to the inside in the second guiding elements 12 and 14 formed as linear grooves. By detecting the position of the sphere 7A, the rotation angle of the rotating member can be estimated in an angle range from an angle larger than 0 to 360 °.

According to an alternative embodiment not shown here of the sensor device according to the present invention, the first guiding element is formed in the rotating member as a linear groove, and the second guiding element is a fixed spiral. It is formed as a groove.

3 and 4 show possible embodiments of the measured value detector 16 as an eddy current sensor that detects the position of the sphere 7A within the second inductive elements 12 and 14 formed as linear grooves. Has been done. For this purpose, a plurality of detection coils L1, L2, L3, and L4 are arranged adjacent to each other. The metal sphere 7A affects the inductance of these detection coils L1, L2, L3, and L4. By measuring the inductance, it is possible to determine the position of the sphere 7A. Here, when the sphere 7A is positioned at the geometric center of the coil having the minimum inductance or the two coils L1, L2, L3, L4, the two related coils Ln, Lm having the minimum inductance are obtained. This makes it possible to detect the position of the sphere 7A discretely. Alternatively, it is possible to continuously detect the position of the sphere 7A. In that case, in the first step, the two coils Ln and Lm affected by the sphere 7A are identified as in the discrete case described above, and in the second step, the measurements of these two coils Ln and Lm are performed. The exact position is calculated from the value. In many practical cases this is the following calculation rule,
(Ln-Lm) / (Ln + Lm)
It is possible to follow. However, the Ln and Lm represent related coils.

As is clear from FIG. 4, the fixed second guiding elements 12 and 14 formed as linear grooves are formed in the edge layer S1 of the multilayer printed circuit board 10, and the multilayer printed circuit board 10 is formed. In the illustrated embodiment, four layers S1, S2, S3, S4 are included. In the illustrated embodiment, the second guiding elements 12 and 14 formed as linear grooves for guiding the sphere 7A are realized by cutting in the uppermost layer S1 of the printed circuit board 10. The second printed circuit board layer S2 guarantees electrical insulation between the plurality of detection coils L1, L2, L3, L4 and the sphere 7A in an advantageous manner. These detection coils L1, L2, L3, and L4 are positioned in the third printed circuit board layer S3. The connection between the internal regions of the detection coils L1, L2, L3, L4, preferably formed as spiral coils, and the electronic evaluation circuits not shown in detail is, for example, vias and a fourth printed circuit board layer. It is realized by the feedback in S4. As a result, these detection coils L1, L2, L3, and L4 are formed in the printed circuit board layer S3 arranged above or below the edge layer S1.

FIG. 5 shows an example in which the measured value transmitter is configured as a metal sliding body 7B. The printed circuit board 10A here is composed of only three layers S1, S2, and S3. As is further clear from FIG. 5, the sliding body 7B has a spherical head 7.1B, and the spherical head 7.1B is inside the first guiding element 9 formed as a spiral groove. Is induced. In the illustrated embodiment, the sliding body 7B has a length corresponding to about half the length of the second guiding elements 12A and 14A formed as linear grooves. Similar to the printed circuit board 10 of FIGS. 3 and 4, the second guiding elements 12A and 14A formed as linear grooves for guiding the sliding body 7B are formed by cutting in the uppermost layer S1 of the printed circuit board 10A. It has been realized. Two detection coils L1 and L2 are arranged in the third printed circuit board layer S3 below the sliding body 7B, and these coils have substantially the same length as the sliding body 7B. Similar to the above-described embodiment, the metal sliding body 7B affects the inductance of the detection coils L1 and L2. An insulating layer S2 is provided between the uppermost layer S1 and the third layer S3 for electrical insulation. Thereby, the sliding body 7B emulates a very large sphere. The position of the sliding body 7B can be detected as in the above-described embodiment. Therefore, the inductances of the two detection coils L1 and L2 are detected, and the following equation,
(L1-L2) / (L1 + L2)
It is counted according to.

According to the embodiment of the present invention, a sensor device for detecting the rotation angle of the rotating member in the vehicle in the range of 0 to N × 360 ° is realized, and therefore, the rotation angle of the steering shaft can also be detected advantageously. Become. This is because the steering wheel can rotate more than once.

1 Sensor device 3 Rotating member 5 Rotating member 7 Measured value transmitter 7A Sphere 9 First induction element 10 Multilayer printed circuit board 12 Second induction element 14 Second induction element 16 Measurement value detector S1 Edge layer S2 Second Printed circuit board layer S3 Third printed circuit board layer S4 Fourth printed circuit board layer L1 Detection coil L2 Detection coil L3 Detection coil L4 Detection coil R1 Rotation R2 Rotation

Claims (8)

A sensor device (1) that detects the rotation angle of a rotating member (3, 5) in a vehicle.
The rotating members (3, 5) have been rotated a plurality of times and are coupled to the measured value transmitter (7).
The measured value transmitter (7) is connected to the measured value detector (16, 16A) to generate a signal indicating the rotation angle of the rotating member (3, 5).
The measured value transmitter (7) is configured as a motion converter together with the rotating member (3, 5), and the rotation (R1, R2) of the rotating member (3, 5) is combined with the rotating member (3, 5). ) In the sensor device (1) that converts the measured value transmitter (7) into the translational motion (R).
The first guiding element (9) arranged on the rotating member (3, 5) and the second guiding element (12, 12A, 14, 14A) fixedly arranged are the measured values. Causes the translational movement of the transmitter (7),
The measured value detectors (16, 16A) are configured to detect the corresponding position change of the measured value transmitter (7) .
The measured value detector (16, 16A) includes at least two detection coils (L1, L2, L3, L4).
The fixedly arranged second inductive element (12, 12A, 14, 14A) is formed on the edge layer (S1) of the multilayer printed circuit board (10, 10A), and the at least two detection coils (12, 12A, 14, 14A) are formed. L1, L2, L3, L4) are formed on the printed circuit board layer (S3) arranged below or above the edge layer (S1).
The sensor device (1). The sensor device (1) according to claim 1, wherein the measured value transmitter (7) is configured as a sphere (7A) or a sliding body (7B). The first guiding element (9) is formed as a spiral groove, and the second guiding element (12, 12A, 14, 14A) is formed as a linear groove, claim 1 or 2. The sensor device (1) according to 2. The first guiding element (9) is formed as a linear groove, and the second guiding element (12, 12A, 14, 14A) is formed as a spiral groove, claim 1 or 2. The sensor device (1) according to 2. Any one of claims 1 to 4 , wherein the measured value detector (16, 16A) and the measured value transmitter (7) constitute an eddy current sensor that obtains an instantaneous position of the measured value transmitter (7) . The sensor device (1) according to item 1. A plurality of measurement value transmitters (7) and a plurality of induction elements (12, 12A, 14, 14A) formed as linear grooves are included, and the plurality of measurement value detectors (16, 16A) are included. The sensor device (1) according to any one of claims 3 to 5 , which detects a corresponding position change of the plurality of measured value transmitters (7). The sensor device (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 6 , wherein the rotating member (3) is configured as a disc or a gear and is directly connected to a shaft to be detected. The sensor device according to any one of claims 1 to 6 , wherein the rotating member (5) is configured as a disc or a gear and is indirectly connected to a shaft to be detected via the disc or the gear. 1).

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