JPH03258614A - Power train structure of vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To reduce load distribution to a front wheel as well as overall height of a power train system by tilting the upper part of an engine to the front side of a vehicle, and by arranging a speed change gear in parallel with and on the side of the engine. CONSTITUTION:An output torque of an engine 5 is transmitted to an automatic transmission 8 through a torque converter 6 adjacent to the rear end of the engine, and a drive chain mechanism 7, by a power train P. The speed-changed torque is transmitted to both drive shafts 11, 12 on a front wheel side as well as on a rear wheel side, through a center differential 9. In this structure, the engine 5 is arranged with its upper part tilted to the front. Namely, seen from the side of a vehicle, a vertical axis l5 of the engine 5 is tilted to the front by a preset angle theta2 to a vertical axis l4 of the vehicle WD. The automatic transmission 8 is arranged in parallel with and on the side of the engine 5.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a power train structure for a vehicle in which an engine is arranged vertically and a transmission is arranged parallel to the engine.

[Conventional technology] In FF cars (front engine/front drive) or FF-derived four-wheel drive cars, the engine is placed horizontally (
Conventional powertrains (hereinafter referred to as transverse powertrains) have a transmission positioned parallel to the rear of the engine when viewed from the front and back of the vehicle. better known. In such a horizontally mounted powertrain, the output shaft of the engine and the input/output shaft of the transmission are arranged parallel to the axle shaft of the front wheels, which has the advantage of smoother power transmission. However, when such a horizontally mounted powertrain is installed in a normal wheelbase vehicle, most of the weight of the powertrain is placed on the front wheels, so a powertrain (hereinafter referred to as "powertrain") in which the engine and transmission are arranged vertically in series is used. Compared to PR cars (front engine, rear drive) equipped with a vertical in-line powertrain, the problem is that the load distribution to the front wheels is too large.

Therefore, it is possible to reduce the load distribution to the front wheels by placing the front wheels further forward than in a normal vehicle and by placing the center of gravity of the power train behind the front wheels. Since the wheelbase between the wheels becomes longer, the turning radius relative to the turning angle of the steering wheel becomes larger, causing problems such as poor steering performance.

Another possible method would be to arrange the engine and transmission in series in a vertical manner, similar to PR cars, and provide a power transmission mechanism that transmits the output of the transmission to the front wheel axle shaft. Since this would be placed below the cabin, the tunnel would bulge out inside the cabin, and the original advantage of the FF military, which was the ability to make the cabin wider, would be lost.

Therefore, in recent years, a powertrain (hereinafter referred to as a vertical parallel powertrain) has been proposed in which the Ennon is placed vertically and the transmission is placed vertically under the engine (hereinafter referred to as a vertical parallel powertrain). (Refer to Publication No. 56-73940), in a vehicle equipped with such a longitudinally installed parallel powertrain, the engine is placed in parallel with the engine in a vehicle equipped with a horizontally installed powertrain. The invention of claim 2 is a power train structure for a vehicle, characterized in that the power train structure is mounted on a vehicle so that the upper part thereof is inclined toward the front side of the vehicle. To provide a power train structure for a vehicle, characterized in that a transmission is arranged laterally and parallel to an engine.

[Operations and effects of the invention] According to the invention of claim 1, the engine is arranged vertically,
The transmission is placed parallel to the engine, allowing the powertrain's center of gravity to be located behind the front wheels. Therefore, the load distribution to the front wheels can be reduced without increasing the wheelbase. Further, since the transmission can be placed in front of the vehicle interior, the tunnel portion does not bulge into the vehicle interior, and the vehicle interior can be made larger.

Incidentally, since the bonnet is generally curved downward at the front of the vehicle, interference between the bonnet and the power train usually occurs at the front of the power train.

This has the advantage that the load distribution to the front wheels is reduced, and the tunnel part does not bulge into the passenger compartment, making the passenger compartment more spacious.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, in the conventional longitudinal parallel powertrain structure disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 56-73940, the total height of the powertrain becomes high, and therefore the vehicle does not meet the needs of the market. There is a problem in that it hinders the reduction of the bonnet.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems of the conventional technology, and it is possible to improve the front wheels of FF vehicles or FF-derived four-wheel drive vehicles without causing problems such as increasing the wheelbase or narrowing the passenger compartment. An object of the present invention is to provide a powertrain structure for a vehicle that can reduce the load distribution of the vehicle and reduce the overall height to achieve a low bonnet.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to achieve the two objectives, the invention of claim 1 arranges the engine vertically, the transmission, and, in the original, the engine. Since it is mounted so that it is tilted toward the front of the vehicle, the height of the engine is lower at the front of the engine, making it less likely that the bonnet will interfere with the power train, and allowing the hood to be placed at a lower position. It is possible to lower the hood of the vehicle.

In addition, since the engine and transmission are arranged in parallel,
The engine output shaft and the transmission output shaft can be arranged facing different directions. Therefore, when the vehicle is set to 4-wheel drive, even if the engine is tilted forward, it does not directly affect the location of the rear propeller shaft, which may cause interference between the rear propeller shaft and the passenger compartment. do not have.

According to the invention of claim 2, first of all, the same effect as that of claim 1 can be obtained. Furthermore, since the transmission is arranged parallel to the side of the engine, the overall height of the powertrain can be reduced, allowing the vehicle to have an even lower bonnet.

[Example] Examples of the present invention will be specifically described below.

As shown in Figure 1 and Figure 2, the power train P of the FF-derived four-wheel drive vehicle WD (hereinafter referred to as vehicle WD) is defined by a bonnet l, a dash panel 2, and a bottom plate member 3. It is arranged in an engine room 4 made up of

This power train P converts the output torque of the vertical V-type engine 5 through a torque converter 6 (hereinafter referred to as a torque converter 6) provided adjacent to the rear end of the engine 5 and a drive chain mechanism 7. The basic configuration is such that the torque transmitted to an automatic transmission 8 and changed by the transmission 8 is transmitted to a front wheel drive shaft 11 and a rear wheel drive shaft 12 via a center differential 9.

After this, the torque of the front wheel side drive shaft 11 is transferred to the front differential 13 and the left and right front axle shafts 14.1.
The torque of the rear drive shaft 12 is transmitted to the left and right rear wheels via the rear differential and the left and right rear axle shafts (not shown). The center portion (center of gravity) is located near the front wheel 16.17 or slightly behind the front wheel 16.17. Further, the engine 5 is arranged with its upper part tilted forward. In other words, when viewed from the side of the vehicle WD,
The vertical axis g5 of the engine 5 is inclined forward by an angle θ2 with respect to the vertical axis e4 of the vehicle WD.

Furthermore, when viewed in the vehicle width direction (left-right direction in FIG. 2), the engine 5 is arranged such that its center is located slightly to the left (right side in FIG. 2) of the center Q of the vehicle WD. The center of gravity of the engine 5 is located to the left of the center portion el. Further, the engine 5 is disposed with its upper portion inclined toward the right side, that is, toward the transmission 8. That is, the vertical axis Q3 of the engine 5 is tilted to the right (towards the transmission 8) by an angle θ1 with respect to the vertical axis Q of the vehicle WD. Therefore, the upper end surface of the right bank 31 of the engine 5 is
It is lower than the upper end surface of the left bank 32. and,
A surge tank 33 is disposed above the upper end surface of the right bank 31 and in close proximity to the upper end surface. In addition, in this embodiment, the left and right sides of the vehicle WD are
These are the left and right sides in the forward direction of the vehicle WD.

In addition, inside the engine room 4, there is a radiator 21 that cools the cooling water of the engine 5. A power steering device 22, a brake mask device 23, an alternator 24, an air conditioner 25, etc. are provided. Further, inside the vehicle compartment 20 on the rear side of the dash panel 2, a handle 26, a shift lever 27 for changing the range of the automatic transmission 8, an accelerator pedal 28, a brake pedal 29, etc. are provided.

Hereinafter, a power train P that is substantially composed of an engine 5, a torque converter 6, a drive chain mechanism 7, and a transmission 8 will be specifically explained.

Basically, the engine 5 is arranged vertically so that the longitudinal direction of the vehicle WD is longitudinal (horizontal direction in FIG. 1), that is, the axis of the engine output shaft 10 is oriented in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle. ing. When viewed in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle WD, the engine 5 includes a surge tank 33 and both banks 31.
．． An intake passage 34 is provided which communicates with each of the 32 cylinders.

A torque converter 6 is attached to the rear end of the engine 5 adjacent to it.
It is located at approximately the same height as the lower half of the.

When viewed in the vehicle width direction, the center Q of the vehicle WD, slightly to the right,
That is, the transmission 8 is vertically arranged on the right side of the engine 5, with the axes of input/output shafts 44, 47 (see FIG. 4) facing in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle. Furthermore, when viewed in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, the transmission 8 is arranged from the rear of the engine 5 to the position where the torque converter 6 is disposed.
is located completely behind the front wheel l617. Note that the transmission 8 is arranged at a position slightly lower than the torque converter 6 when viewed in the vertical direction.

When viewed in the vehicle width direction, an appropriate gap space 39 is formed between the transmission 8 and the lower part of the cylinder block 35 (the part that does not branch into banks) or the oil pan 38. As mentioned above, the engine 5 connects its upper end to the transmission 8.
Since it is tilted to the side, the right bank 31 is in a posture such that it slightly covers the left half of the transmission 8. In addition, power)・Rain P is the left and right side frame 363
It is located between 7.

In the above configuration, first, the engine 5 is arranged vertically, and its center of gravity is near the front wheels 16.17 or 16.17.
The center of gravity of the torque converter 6 and the center of gravity of the transmission 8 are located considerably behind the front wheel I6.17, so the center of gravity of the power train P as a whole is located behind the front wheel 1617. (so-called mitztoship).

Therefore, the load distribution to the front wheels 16, 17 can be reduced. Further, since the transmission 8 is disposed laterally to the engine 5, the transmission 8 is located forward of the vehicle interior 2°. Therefore, since the tunnel portion does not bulge into the vehicle interior 2o, the vehicle interior 2o can be made larger. Of course, it is not necessary to make the wheel height larger than that of a normal vehicle.

Next, the engine 5 is arranged with a part tilted toward the transmission 8 side.Furthermore, since the engine 5 is arranged with a part tilted forward, the front part of the power) rain P has two end faces low. Therefore, the hood of the vehicle can be further lowered.

That is, since the bonnet generally curves downward at the front of the vehicle, interference between the bonnet and the power train usually occurs at the front of the power train, or according to the present invention, the interference between the bonnet and the power train P occurs particularly at the front end of the power train P. Since the WD is lowered, the vehicle WD can be made to have a lower head net. In addition, in a vertically installed in-line powertrain, if you tilt the two parts of the engine forward, the transmission or propeller shirt)
Because the installation position is high, the transmission or propeller shaft interferes with the passenger compartment. For this reason, with a vertically installed in-line powertrain, it is difficult to tilt the two parts of the engine forward to lower the bonnet. According to the invention,
The rear wheel drive shaft 12 is located at the engine 5.
Since it is not directly related to the longitudinal inclination of the engine 5, the engine 5 can be tilted relatively freely, and the hood of the vehicle WD can be lowered.

Because of this arrangement, the bias in load distribution in the vehicle width direction of the power train P is reduced. That is, when viewed in the vehicle width direction, the engine 5 is disposed on the left side of the center portion Ql, and the transmission 8 is disposed on the right side, but since the weight of the engine 5 is originally much larger than the weight of the transmission 8, If the engine 5 and the transmission 8 are simply arranged in parallel, the weight of the power train P will be biased toward the engine 5 side, and as a result, the load in the vehicle width direction of the J vehicle WD will become unbalanced.

However, according to the present invention, since the second part of the engine 5 is tilted toward the transmission 8 side, the center of gravity of the engine 5 is shifted from the center of the engine to the transmission 8 side, and therefore the center of gravity of the power train P is biased. is reduced, and the load distribution of the vehicle WD can be equalized.

In addition, since the intake device such as the surge tank 33 is arranged above the right bank 31 where the second end surface is lowered and close to the upper end surface, the installation position of the intake device is lowered, and therefore the intake device The overall height of the powertrain system, including the Therefore, it is possible to reduce the vehicle WD.

2 The torque transmission mechanism from the power train P to the front and rear wheels will be specifically explained below.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the output shaft 1 of the engine 5
The zero torque is first input to the torque converter 6, converted into torque there, and then output to the torque converter output shaft 41. The torque converter output shaft 41 extends in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle and is disposed such that its rear end slightly protrudes rearward from the housing 40 of the torque converter 6.
A drive gear 42 is provided near the rear end of the motor 1.

A transmission input shaft 44 is disposed in the transmission 8 and extends in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle.
The rear end portion is disposed at approximately the same position as the rear end portion of the torque converter output shaft 41, and a driven gear 45 is provided near the rear end portion of the transmission input shaft 44. And drive gear 4
A chain 43 is wound around the torque converter 2 and the driven gear 45, so that the output torque of the torque converter 6 is input to the transmission 8.

Although not shown in detail, the torque input to the transmission input shaft 44 is shifted in accordance with engine load, vehicle speed, etc. by a transmission section 46 consisting of a transmission gear, a hydraulic clutch, etc. It is designed to be outputted to the transmission output shaft 47 via 50. This transmission output shaft 47 is
In the rear half of the transmission 8, they are disposed on the outer periphery of the transmission input shaft 44 so as to share an axis with the transmission input shaft 44 and to be able to freely rotate relative to each other around the axis.

An output gear 48 is attached near the rear end of the transmission output shaft 47. This output gear 48 meshes with an idle gear 49, and the idle gear 49 meshes with an input gear 51 that rotates integrally with a center differential case 52 of the center differential 9. Therefore, the output torque of the transmission 8 is transmitted to the center differential case 52 via the output gear 48, the idle gear 49, and the input gear 51.

Furthermore, the torque input to the center differential case 52 is
The signal is transmitted to front and rear side gears 55 and 56 via a center differential pinion 54 attached to a shaft portion 53 fixed to a center differential case 52, and then to 57. The front differential 13 is a bevel gear that differentially connects the left front axle shaft 14 and the right front axle shaft 15, and distributes the torque input to the front differential case 63 to both front axle shafts) + 4.15. It is a type of ordinary differential device.

On the other hand, as described above, the torque of the rear wheel side drive shaft 12 is transmitted to the left and right rear wheels via the rear differential (not shown) and the left and right rear axle shafts.

By the way, the center differential 9 is disposed between the transmission 8 and the housing 40 when viewed in the vehicle width direction, and is located near the rear end of the transmission 8 and immediately behind the housing 40 when viewed in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle. It is located in Further, when viewed in the vertical direction, it is arranged at a position lower than the engine output shaft IO, the torque converter output shaft 41, and the transmission joist/output shaft 44.47.

Here, the housing 40 is formed in a tapered shape with a smaller diameter at the rear in the rear half, and furthermore at the front and back.
The power is transmitted to the front and rear drive shafts 11 and 12, which rotate integrally with the rear wheel side gears 55 and 56. The center differential 9 is a normal differential of a bevel gear type that differentially connects the front and rear drive shafts 11.12 and distributes the torque input to the center differential case 52 to both drive shafts 11.12. It is a device.

The torque of the front drive shaft 11 is generated by a bevel gear 61 attached to the front end of the drive shaft 11 and a bevel gear 61 attached to the front end thereof.
Through the ring gear 62 that meshes with the ring gear 62
The transmission is transmitted to the front differential case 63, which rotates integrally with the front differential case 63.

And front differential case 63? This input torque is transmitted to the left and right side gears 66, 67 via the front differential pinion 65 attached to the shaft portion 64 fixed to the front differential case 63, and the torque of the left and right side gears 66, 67 is An extra space 60 is formed between the rear half of the housing 40 and the transmission 8 by the left and right front wheels 16.16 via the left and right front axle shafts 14.15 that rotate together with these. Since the center differential 9 is placed in such a way that it fits into this extra space 60, the extra space 60, which is originally a dead space, can be effectively used to arrange the center differential 9, and the power train P can be made compact. Furthermore, since the center differential 9 is disposed at the rear of the power train P, the center of gravity of the power train P can be moved closer to the rear wheels, and the load distribution to the front wheels 16, 17 can be further reduced.

In addition, since the center differential 9 is arranged at a low position, the arrangement position of the rear wheel drive shaft 12 is lowered, and interference between the rear wheel drive shaft 12 and the vehicle interior 20 (see Fig. 1) is prevented. be able to.

The front drive shaft 11 extends forward from the center differential 9 through a gap 39 formed between the engine 5 and the transmission 8, and is connected to the front differential 13. The front differential 13 is disposed slightly forward of the front end surface of the transmission 8 when viewed in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, and is aligned with the axis of the output shaft 10 of the engine 5 when viewed in the vehicle width direction.
It is arranged between the axes of the input/output shafts 44 and 47 of the transmission 8, and is arranged at approximately the same height as the center differential. In addition, in such a structure, the left front axle shaft 14 is disposed to pass through the oil pan 38 (see FIG. 2), or the oil pan is disposed at the engagement portion with the left front axle shaft 14. The bottom of 38 is raised.

In this way, the front wheel side drive shaft 11 is arranged by effectively utilizing the gap space 39, which is originally a dead space, so that the power train P can be made compact. In addition, the center differential I3 is connected to the transmission 8 between the axis of the output shaft 10 and the axis of the transmission joist/output shaft 4447.
Since the arrangement makes effective use of the dead space formed in front of the vehicle, power), rain P
Or the power transmission system can be made more compact.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory side view of a four-wheel drive vehicle equipped with a power train structure according to the present invention, with the body removed. FIG. 2 is an explanatory front elevational view of the interior of the engine compartment of the four-wheel drive vehicle shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a front elevational explanatory view of the power train of the four-wheel drive vehicle shown in FIG. 1. FIG. FIG. 4 is an explanatory cross-sectional view taken along the line AΔ of the power train shown in FIG. WD...4-wheel drive vehicle, I]...Powertrain, Tohonnet, 4 Engine compartment, 5...Engine, 6.
Torque converter, 7. Drive chain device, 8. Transmission, 9. Center differential, 10. Engine output shaft, 11.
Front wheel side drive shaft, I2... Rear wheel side drive shaft, 13 Front differential, 16.17・Front wheel, 33
... Zurge tank, 34 Intake passage, 40 - Housing, 41 ) - Lecon output shaft, 44 - Transmission input shaft, 47 - Transmission output shaft.

Claims (2)

[Claims] (1) A vehicle powertrain structure in which the engine is placed vertically and the transmission is placed parallel to the engine, characterized by the fact that the engine is mounted on the vehicle with its upper part tilted toward the front of the vehicle. The powertrain structure of the vehicle. (2) The power train structure for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the transmission is arranged laterally and parallel to the engine.