JPH0322035Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] [Industrial field of application] The present invention relates to a turn signal switch (direction indicator) installed in an automobile, etc., and particularly relates to a cancel mechanism for automatically returning an operating lever to a neutral position. .

[Conventional technology]

Various turn signal switches have been provided in the past, and one example will be explained with reference to FIGS. 8 to 12.

FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view showing the main parts of the turn signal switch. In the figure, 1 is a case attached to a steering cover (not shown), and 2 is a switch driver housed in a recess 1a of the case 1. , 3 is an operating lever connected to the switch driving body 2 and protrudes from the case 1, and 4 is the recess 1a.
This is a cover that is attached to the case 1 to cover the .
The upper surface of the switch drive body 2 is provided with a locking cam 5 having a planar triangular shape and a stepped groove 6, and blind holes 7 (one of which is omitted in the figure) are provided at two locations on the circumferential surface. ) are drilled. A cam plate 8 is housed in the groove 6 so as to be movable back and forth, and the cam plate 8 is supported by a pair of springs 9 having a relatively large elastic force.
It is urged in the forward direction by the switch drive body 2, and is prevented from falling out of the groove 6 by a pair of presser plates 10 screwed to the switch drive body 2. Reference numeral 11 denotes a drive body that is slidably fitted into the blind hole 7, and these drive bodies 11 are urged outward by the spring force of a spring 12.

A pair of chevron-shaped cams 13 are provided on the inner wall of the case 1.
are formed, and the driving body 11 slides on the cam surfaces of these cams 13. A cam body 14 has a pair of protrusions 14a on its upper surface and a locking pin 14b on its lower surface, and the cam body 14 has a tension spring 15 hooked at both ends to the cover 4.
is urged forward by. In addition, the cam body 1
The protrusion 14a of No. 4 is inserted into an arc-shaped guide hole 4a formed in the cover 4, and the locking pin 14b is adapted to come into contact with the chevron-shaped cam surface of the locking cam 5.

FIGS. 9 to 12 are plan views showing the state in which such a turn signal switch is attached to a steering device. In these figures, 16 is a steering shaft, 17 is a cancel cam that rotates together with the steering shaft 16 and has two protrusions 17a at 180 degrees opposite positions, and the front surface of the case 1 faces the cancel cam 17. mounted on the steering device.

As shown in FIG. 9, when the operating lever 3 is in the neutral position, the cam body 14 is attached to the locking pin 14b on the lower surface.
When it comes into contact with the top of the locking cam 5, it retreats against the tension spring 15 and is located outside the rotation locus of both protrusions 17a of the cancel cam 17. Therefore, even if the steering wheel (not shown) is rotated in such a state, the projection 1 of the cancel cam 17
7a does not contact the cam body 14 and the switch drive body 2
And the operating lever 3 is maintained at the neutral position.

Next, as shown in FIG. 10, when the operating lever 3 is rotated from the neutral position in the direction of arrow A, for example, the upper drive body in the figure (hereinafter, for convenience of explanation, the upper drive body in the figure is referred to as 11a, and the lower drive body in the figure is referred to as 11a). 11a (marked 11b on the drive body) climbs over the peak of the cam 13,
The switch drive body 2 and the operating lever 3 are locked in this position, and the switch drive body 2 operates, for example, a left turn switch (not shown). Further, since the relative position of the locking cam 5 and the cam body 14 changes due to the rotation of the switch driving body 2, the cam body 14 is biased by the tension spring 15 (see FIG. 8), and the locking pin 14b is The locking cam 5 transitions from the top to an inclined portion and protrudes toward the front side of the case 1.

From this state, as shown in FIG. 11, when the steering wheel reversely rotates to its original position (rotates in the direction of arrow B), the cam body 14, which is in the protruding state during the return operation, is moved to one of the protrusions of the cancel cam 17. 17a. Then, the cam body 14
rotates in the direction of arrow C using the lower protrusion 14a in the figure as a fulcrum to drive the cam plate 8. That is, since the cam plate 8 is connected to the switch drive body 2 via a spring 9 with a relatively strong spring force, the cam plate 8, the switch drive body 2, and the operating lever 3 are integrated and rotate clockwise in the figure. 9 and automatically returns to the neutral position shown in FIG. 9, and a so-called cancel operation is performed.

On the other hand, if the steering wheel enters the return operation while the driver holds the control lever 3 in the state shown in FIG. If desired, as shown in FIG. 12, the cam body 14 comes into contact with one of the protrusions 17a of the cancel cam 17, which performs the return operation in the same manner as described above, and rotates in the direction of arrow C. In this case, since the operating lever 3 and the switch drive body 2 are fixed by the driver, the force acting on the cam plate 8 from the cam body 14 is absorbed by the contraction of the spring 9 at the bottom in the figure. The canceled operation of the operating lever 3 is not performed. Then, the cancel cam 17 is the 12th
When the steering wheel further rotates in the direction of arrow B in the figure and returns to the neutral position, the protrusion 17a of the cancel cam 17 separates from the cam body 14, and even if the driver takes his hand off the operating lever 3, the operating lever 3 remains It remains locked in the state shown in FIG.

[Problem that the invention attempts to solve]

As described above, the turn signal switch is equipped with a cancel mechanism for automatically returning the operating lever 3 locked in one direction to the neutral position when the steering wheel returns. 3 is fixed in the locked state, the cam body 14 moves to the cancel cam 17.
It is necessary to have a safety function that connects and disconnects the
In the conventional example described above, a safety structure is adopted in which the cam plate 8 driven by the cam body 14 is connected to the switch drive body 2 via a spring 9 with a strong spring force.

However, the cam body 14 that drives the cam plate 8
However, depending on the direction of rotation of the cancel cam 14, the cam plate 8 rotates around one of the protrusions 14a as a fulcrum during cancel operation.
The amount of movement increased, and the following problems occurred.

That is, at the time of normal cancellation in which the operating lever 3 in the locked state is automatically returned to the neutral position,
As the switch driving body 2 returns to the neutral position, the cam body 14 moves the projection 17a of the cancel cam 17.
Since it retreats in the direction away from the cam body 14, a large load is not applied to the power transmission system including the cam body 14. However, if a cancel operation is performed with the operating lever 3 fixed, the protrusion 17 of the cancel cam 17
a causes the cam body 14 to rotate over a large angle range about one protrusion 14a, which places a large load on the cam plate 8, which is biased by the strong spring force of the spring 9, the cam body 14 that drives it, etc. There was a risk that these items would be damaged. Of course, if the spring force of the spring 9 is set weak, the applied load can be absorbed by the spring 9, but in this case, the spring 9 will undesirably contract during normal cancellation, and the driving force of the cam body 14 will not be able to drive the switch. The signal is not transmitted to the body 2, and the cancel operation cannot be performed reliably.

This problem is caused by the fact that when the cancel operation is performed with the operation lever 3 fixed at the operating position, the cam body 14 rotates greatly in the direction in which it comes into contact with the cam plate 8, which is different from the conventional example described above. A similar problem occurs when a safety structure is used.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a cancel mechanism for a turn signal switch that eliminates the problems of the prior art described above, ensures reliable cancel operation, and prevents damage to the power transmission system from the cancel cam to the switch drive body. There is something to do.

[Means for solving problems]

The object of the present invention described above is to provide a switch driving body that rotates integrally with the operating lever and can be locked into the first and second operating positions via the neutral position, and a switch driver that rotates integrally with the steering shaft and that rotates integrally with the steering shaft. a cancel cam having a protrusion, which is advanced to a position where it can engage with the protrusion when the switch drive body is in the first and second lock positions, and is in a position where it is not engaged with the protrusion when the switch drive body is in the neutral position; The cancel cam includes a retracting cam body and an operating body driven by the cam body, and the protrusion of the cancel cam moves the operating lever, which is locked in the first and second operating positions, to the cam body and the operating body. In a cancel mechanism for a turn signal switch that automatically returns to a neutral position when driven, first and second engagement protrusions are provided at a predetermined interval on the cam body, and the first and second engagement protrusions This is generally achieved by configuring the protrusion to be a guide part extending in the front-rear direction, and the second engaging protrusion to be guided along the slope of one of the fan-shaped guide parts that widens toward the rear. .

[Effect]

That is, with the above configuration, when the cam body and the projection of the cancel cam collide, the cam body is guided diagonally backward by the first engaging projection and the second projection diagonally backward. It rotates while retreating in the direction and comes into contact with the operating body, and the cancel operation can be reliably performed by moving the operating body. Additionally, if a cancel operation is performed with the control lever fixed in the operating position, the cam body moves further in the direction of driving the control body, but since the direction of movement is diagonally backward, the amount of movement of the control body is small. , damage to the power transmission system such as the cam body, the operating body, or the cancel cam is prevented.

〔Example〕

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 7.

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of the main parts of a turn signal switch according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a back view showing a state in which a cam body is assembled into a cover provided in the turn signal switch, and FIG. The figure is a plan view showing the state in which the turn signal switch is attached to the steering device.
Parts corresponding to those in Figure 2 are given the same reference numerals.

In these figures, 18 indicates a pair of engagement holes 18
The slider 18 is placed on the upper surface of the switch driver 2 with its tongue 18b inserted into the recess 2a of the switch driver 2. Pins 23 protruding from the drive body 11 are inserted into the engagement holes 18a of the slider 18, respectively, and these pins 23 are movable along guide grooves 7a formed in the upper part of the blind hole 7. . These guide grooves 7a are connected to the switch drive body 2.
The engaging holes 18a of the slider 18 are formed in a dogleg shape in the embodiment so as to partially overlap with the guide groove 7a.

Reference numeral 19 denotes a cam body, and the upper surface of the cam body 19 is provided with a first protrusion 19a and a second protrusion 19b at a predetermined interval in the front-rear direction, and the lower surface is provided with a first protrusion 19a and a second protrusion 19b.
An engagement pin 19c is provided coaxially with the projection 19a. 20 is a filigree spring inserted into the cam body 19, 21 is a linear guide hole, and 22 is a fan-shaped relief hole, and these guide hole 21 and relief hole 22 are continuously drilled in the upper surface of the cover 4. ing. As is clear from FIG. 2, the first protrusion 19 of the cam body 19
a is in the guide hole 21 and the second protrusion 19b is in the escape hole 2
The cam body 19 is moved by the spring force of the filigree springs 20, which are located inside the cam body 2 and whose ends are hooked to the cover 4.
is biased toward the front side of case 1. The rest of the configuration is basically the same as the conventional turn signal switch described above, and detailed explanation will be omitted here.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be explained with reference to the plan views shown in FIGS. 3 to 7.

First, as shown in FIG. 3, when the operating lever 3 is in the neutral position, the cam body 19
9c comes into contact with the top of the locking cam 5, so both protrusions 17a of the cancel cam 17 move backward against the filigree spring 20 and rotate together with the steering shaft 16.
does not collide with the cam body 19. Therefore, even if the steering wheel is rotated in such a state, the cam body 19
is not operated, and the operating lever 3 and the switch driving body 2 are maintained at neutral positions as both the driving bodies 11 abut against the troughs of the cams 13 formed on the inner wall of the case 1.

Next, as shown in FIG. 4, when the operating lever 3 is rotated from the neutral position, for example, in the direction of arrow A, the driving body 11a in the upper part of the figure resists the spring 12, climbs over the peak of the cam 13, and moves into the other position. The switch driver 2 and the operating lever 3 are locked at this position. When the switch drive body 2 rotates in this manner, a switch (not shown) disposed below the switch drive body 2 is turned on, and for example, a turn signal for a left turn blinks. On the other hand, when the switch drive body 2 rotates as described above, the relative position between the locking cam 5 provided on the switch drive body 2 and the cam body 19 regulated by the cover 4 changes, so that the cam body 19 is not locked. The pin 19c moves from the peak to the valley of the locking cam 5, and the cam body 19 moves to the filigree spring 20.
A portion of the case 1 protrudes from the front side due to the spring force (see FIGS. 1 and 2).

In this state, as shown in FIG. 5, when the steering shaft 16 further rotates in the same direction as the operating lever 3 (in the direction of arrow A), one of the protrusions 17a of the cancel cam 17 engages with the protruding portion of the cam body 19. In this case, the first protrusion 19a of the cam body 19 connects the guide hole 21 with the second protrusion 19a.
Since the protrusions 9b move along the upper slope of the escape hole 22 in the figure, the cam body 19 retreats without coming into contact with the slider 18, and the switch drive body 2 and operating lever 3 are locked as shown in FIG. held in state.

When the steering wheel returns to its original position due to the caster effect from the state shown in FIG. 4, that is, when the steering shaft 16 rotates in the direction of arrow B as shown in FIG. The protrusion 17a abuts against the protruding portion of the cam body 19 to drive it. In this case, the first protrusion 19a of the cam body 19 moves along the guide hole 21, and the second protrusion 19b moves along the lower slope in the figure of the escape hole 22, so that
The cam body 19 comes into contact with the slider 18 and slides it downward in the figure (in the direction of arrow D). and,
When the slider 18 moves in the direction of arrow D in this manner, the pin 23 provided on the driver 11a at the upper side in the figure comes into contact with the end of the engagement hole 18a of the slider 18 and moves, so the driver 11a is moved by the spring. 12, the tip of the driver 11a separates from the cam 13, and the switch driver 2 and operating lever 3 automatically return to the neutral position shown in FIG. Further, as the switch driving body 2 returns, the locking pin 19c moves to the top of the locking cam 5 again, so the cam body 19 sinks into the case 1 against the filigree spring 20, and the cam body 19
The engagement between the projection 17a of the cancel cam 17 and the projection 17a is released.

On the other hand, when the steering wheel enters a return operation from the state shown in FIG. 4 with the driver fixing the operating lever 3, that is, when the steering shaft 16 rotates in the direction of arrow B in FIG. 4 due to the caster effect, the cam body 19 is first moved to the position shown in FIG. 6 by either one 17a of the cancel cam 17, and drives the slider 18 in the direction of arrow D.
The driver 11a retreats into the blind hole 7. Here, since the switch driving body 2 and the operating lever 3 are fixed by the driver, the first
The second protrusions 19a and 19b retreat to the position shown in FIG. 7 along the guide hole 21 and the lower slope of the escape hole 22, respectively. Pin 23 provided on the lower driver 11b
Since the dogleg-shaped engagement hole 18 moves to the part perpendicular to the guide groove 7a, the driver 11b hardly moves, and the load caused by the movement of the driver 11b can be reduced. ing.

When the protrusion 17a of the cancel cam 17 passes through the cam body 19, the cam body 19 is returned to the protruding state shown in FIG. The switch driver 2 and the operating lever 3 remain locked.

The above is an explanation of the case where the operating lever 3 is rotated in the direction of arrow A to blink, for example, a turn signal for a left turn, but the operation lever 3 is rotated in the opposite direction to blink, for example, a blinker for a right turn. When the drive body 11b at the bottom in the figure is moved over the cam 13 and locked, the same operation as described above is performed. However, in this case, the cam body 1 at the time of cancellation
9, the first and second protrusions 19a and 19b move along the upper slopes of the guide hole 21 and escape hole 22 in the figure, respectively, and the slider 18 is moved in the direction opposite to arrow D.

In one embodiment configured in this way, the cam body 19 driven by the cancel cam 17
Since the force of can be directly transmitted to the drive body 11 via the slider 18, the drive body 11 and the cam 13
The operation lever 3 is securely engaged and disengaged from the
When a cancel operation is performed with the cam 17, cam body 19, slider 18, etc. fixed, the spring 12 can absorb the load acting on the cancel cam 17, the cam body 19, the slider 18, etc. by contracting, and a reliable cancel operation can be realized. Further, since the slider 18, the driver 11, and the spring 12 can be assembled into the case 1 in a state where they are each blocked into the switch driver 2, it is possible to prevent the driver 11 from falling off during the assembly work.

Further, when a cancel operation is performed with the operation lever 3 fixed, the cam body 19 is moved toward the first protrusion 19a.
is the guide hole 21, and the second protrusion 19b is the escape hole 22.
In order to move each slope on either side of
In this case, the amount of movement of the slider 18 can be suppressed, and the load acting on the cancel cam 17, the cam body 19, the slider 18, etc. can be reduced. Furthermore, since the movement range of the cam body 19 is thus smaller than that of the conventional one, the filigree spring 20 can be used at low cost as an elastic means for biasing the cam body 19.

In the embodiment described above, the movement of the slider (operating body) 18 is absorbed by the contraction of the spring 12 as a safety structure when a cancel operation is performed with the operating lever 3 fixed in the operating position. Although the structure has been described, the present invention can also be applied to other safety structures (see FIGS. 8 to 12) using the cam plate (operating body) 8 and spring 9 described as the prior art, for example. The same effect can be achieved in this case.

[Effect of idea]

As explained above, according to the present invention, the cam body is guided diagonally backward and the operating body is driven during the movement to perform the cancel operation, so that the cancel operation is performed with the operating lever fixed. In this case, the amount of movement of the operating body can be reduced, and the cancel operation can therefore be performed reliably, and damage to the power transmission system from the cancel cam to the switch driving body can be prevented.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Figures 1 to 7 relate to an embodiment of the present invention, in which Figure 1 is an exploded perspective view of the main parts of the turn signal switch, Figure 2 is a back view showing the cam body assembled in the cover, Figure 3, Figure 4, Figure 5, Figure 6
7 are plan views showing the operation of the turn signal switch, FIGS. 8 to 12 relate to conventional turn signal switches, FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view of the main parts, and FIGS. 9 and 10. 11 and 12 are plan views showing the respective operations. 1... Case, 2... Switch driver, 3...
Operation lever, 4...cover, 5...locking cam, 7
... Blind hole, 7a ... Guide groove, 11 ... Drive body, 12 ... Spring, 13 ... Cam, 16 ...
... Steering shaft, 17 ... Cancel cam, 1
7a...Protrusion, 18...Slider (operation body), 1
8a...Engagement hole, 19...Cam body, 19a...First protrusion, 19b...Second protrusion, 19c...Locking pin, 20...Wirework spring, 21...Guide hole (guide part), 22... Relief hole (guide part), 23
……pin.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] a switch drive body that rotates integrally with the operating lever and can be locked into first and second operating positions via a neutral position; and a switch driver that rotates integrally with the steering shaft;
a cancel cam having a protrusion around its periphery, which moves forward to a position where it can engage with the protrusion when the switch drive body is in the first and second lock positions, and disengages with the protrusion when the switch drive body is in the neutral position; The cancel cam has a cam body that retracts to a position, and an operating body driven by the cam body, and the protrusion of the cancel cam moves the operating lever, which is locked in the first and second operating positions, into the cam body and the operating body. In a turn signal switch cancel mechanism that automatically returns to a neutral position by driving the cam body, first and second engagement protrusions are provided at a predetermined interval on the cam body; The engaging protrusion is configured to be guided by a guide part extending in the front-rear direction, and the second engaging protrusion is guided along an inclined surface of one of the fan-shaped guide parts that widens toward the rear. Turn signal switch cancel mechanism.