JPH03265727A - Rotary damper - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To effect damper resistance even when a stool cover is dropped down from a fairy open position by pressing the circumferential surface of an operating shaft with an elastic member at an early stage of closing turn, and thereby effecting damper resistance between a hollow rotating shaft and a casing by the use of viscous material when the cover reaches the position of a given angle. CONSTITUTION:When a stool cover 11 is turned to this side, a hinge pin 13 is rotated, and the operating shaft 5 of a rotary damper 1 is also rotated to the same direction. The operating shaft 5 is disposed with a gap section 10 provided while being interspaced from the inner bore 41d of the clutch rotor 41 of an one-way clutch 4 by way of an elastic member 6, the shaft is thereby rotated up to a given angle with the elastic member 6 pressed by the outer circumferential surface of the operating shaft 5 while being deformed, so that the shaft is thereby subjected to elastic resistance by the elastic member 6. When the elastic member 6 is pressed so as to be deformed so that it reaches its limit, the clutch rotor 41 of the one-way clutch 4 starts rotating together with the operating shaft 5, a clutch spring 42 is tightly wound up so that a hollow rotating shaft 3 is thereby rotated. This thereby causes the hollow rotating shaft 3 to be subjected to the viscous resistance of a viscous material layer 8, so that the shaft is slowly rotated.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a rotary damper suitable for absorbing a falling impact caused by free rotation of a rotating object.

[Prior Art] In general, opening/closing lids of pianos, record players, portable computers, copy machines, and other office equipment, opening/closing lids of pianos, etc., toilet seats and toilet lids of Western-style toilets, etc., have one end base supported by a rotating shaft. At the same time, the other end is a free end and is provided so as to be rotatable in the vertical direction within a rotation angle range of about a quarter circle to about 120 degrees.

When closing such a rotating object, such as a toilet lid or a toilet seat of a Western-style toilet bowl, the lid or the like becomes a free-falling rotating object. At this time, if you do not close it with your hand until the end, there is an inconvenience that it will collide at the final point of the closing rotation, producing a large impact sound and causing damage.

In view of this inconvenience, conventionally, various types of rotary dampers have been installed, such as those that utilize the viscous resistance of liquid and those that utilize frictional resistance.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] All of the conventional rotary dampers described in 1 generate a constant braking force. Therefore, even if such a rotary damper is installed, for a free-falling rotating object,
Since the rotational force gradually increases in proportion to the rotation angle,
The braking force gradually decreases and the speed of the rotating object gradually increases.

Therefore, in order to obtain a large braking force even at a rotation angle of 60 degrees or more, where the rotational force is large, the braking force at the initial stage of rotation must be made larger, and the closing operation is performed. This causes inconvenience. On the other hand, if the braking force at the initial stage of rotation is reduced, there is a risk that the above-mentioned damping effect at the end of the opening rotation cannot be expected, and the adjustment is time-consuming.

On the other hand, as a means to solve this problem, it is conceivable to provide a gap (play) between the operating shaft and the bearing hole.

According to such a damper, since the damper resistance acts from the middle of the closing rotation, it is possible to set the damper resistance to act from a predetermined rotation angle depending on the amount of play.

However, according to such a damper, when the damper is opened again after closing, if the opening angle is within the play range,
If you let go of the hand that was supporting the object, there is a risk that the rotating object will fall freely without any damper resistance.

The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, and it is possible to apply damper resistance when the rotational force of a rotating object that performs free-falling motion becomes large, and also to be able to apply damper resistance from a slightly open position. To provide a rotary damper capable of exerting damper resistance even when dropped.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to achieve the above object, the rotary damper of the present invention includes a cylindrical casing with a bottom, a hollow rotating shaft disposed within the casing with a viscous material layer interposed therebetween, and a cross-section of the rotary damper. A one-way clutch consisting of a clutch rotor having an inner hole formed in a substantially rectangular shape, and a clutch spring having one end fixed to the hollow rotating shaft and the other end being a free end and wound around the clutch rotor. an actuating shaft having at least one end facing outside of the casing, the other end being inserted into the clutch rotor, and at least the insertion portion having a substantially rectangular cross section; It is characterized by comprising an elastic member for a cushion loaded into one or more locations of a gap having a substantially triangular cross section formed between the circumferential surface of the insertion portion and the inner wall of the rotor shaft.

[Function] In this configuration, first, the rotary damper is installed with the outward protrusion of the operating shaft fixed to the rotation base of the rotating object. At the beginning of the open rotation of the rotating object, a gap (play) is formed between the operating shaft and the inner hole of the clutch rotor via the elastic member, so the operating shaft becomes independent inside the bearing hole. It rotates and does not exert viscous resistance up to an arbitrary angle. Therefore, up to this angle, the operating shaft rotates relatively freely and quickly, but during this time, the circumferential surface of the operating shaft presses and deforms the elastic member, so a cushioning effect acts on the operating shaft. .

On the other hand, when an arbitrary angle is reached, the one-way latch rotates together with the operating shaft via the elastic member. When the one-way clutch rotates in the closing direction, the hollow rotating shaft also rotates in conjunction with this. As a result, the viscous material disposed between the hollow rotating shaft and the casing acts to create viscous resistance, resulting in a large damper resistance.

When the lid is slightly opened after closing, the elastic member is deformed by the operating shaft into a shape different from the shape in the closed state.

Therefore, even if you release your hand or the like at this slightly open position, the cushioning effect of this elastic member acts on the object to be rotated.

[Example] Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in further detail based on an example shown in the drawings.

In the figure, l indicates a rotary damper according to the present embodiment, and the rotary damper 1 includes a casing 2, a hollow rotating shaft 3, a one-way clutch 4, an operating shaft 5, an elastic member 6
etc.

The casing 2 is formed into a bottomed cylindrical shape with one end 2a closed, and the other end is an opening 2b. A lid member 7 having a hole 7a through which at least an operating shaft 5 (described later) can be inserted is attached to the opening 2b, and includes, for example,
As shown in FIG. 1, it is fixed by the open end 2c of the casing 2 which is caulked inward.

The hollow rotating shaft 3 is rotatably disposed on the inner surface 2d of the casing 2 through a viscous material layer 8 filled with a viscous material such as grease. 3b is provided on the bottom wall portion 3C of the hollow rotating shaft 3, and is connected to the operating shaft 5 which will be described later.
3d is a sealing gasket provided around the hollow rotating shaft.

The one-way clutch 4 is disposed within the hollow portion of the hollow rotating shaft 3 and includes a clutch rotor 41 and a clutch spring 42.

The clutch rotor 41 has a stepped portion 41a, and a front end opening 41b is formed to have a smaller diameter than the rear end opening 41c so that the actuating shaft 5 can be inserted therethrough. Note that this stepped portion 41a serves as a lid that holds an elastic member 6, which will be described later. Furthermore, the inner hole 41d of the clutch rotor 41 serves as a bearing for the operating shaft 5, which will be described later.
As shown in FIG. 2, it is formed to have a substantially rectangular cross section.

The clutch spring 42 is disposed in an annular gap 9 formed by the outer circumferential surface of the clutch rotor 41 and the inner circumferential surface of the hollow rotating shaft 3 . Further, it is wound in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the clutch rotor 41, and one end thereof becomes a locking portion 42a and is locked at an arbitrary position of the hollow rotating shaft 3, while the other end portion 42b is a free end. Therefore, when the clutch rotor 41 rotates in the direction in which the clutch spring 42 is tightened, the hollow rotating shaft 3 is rotated accordingly, and when the clutch rotor 41 rotates in the unwinding direction, the clutch rotor 41 is rotated in the direction in which the clutch spring 42 is tightened. It will rotate independently.

At least the portion of the actuating shaft 5 that is inserted into the inner hole 41d of the clutch rotor 41 is formed to have a substantially rectangular cross section as shown in FIG.
A gap 10 having a substantially triangular cross section is formed between the inner wall 1d and the gap 10 is inserted and inserted freely in rotation. Moreover, the locking protrusion 5a is formed protrudingly on one end as described above, and the protrusion 5a is freely rotatably locked in the recess 3b provided in the bottom wall 3c of the hollow rotating shaft 3. At least the other end thereof is arranged to protrude outward from the opening 2b of the casing 2. Note that a rotation base provided on the object to be rotated is fixed to this protrusion 5b.

The elastic member 6 is made of an elastic material such as rubber and has a substantially cylindrical shape, and is located between each corner 41e of the inner hole 41d of the clutch rotor 41 and each outer surface 5c of the operating shaft 5, that is, the elastic member 6 is made of an elastic material such as rubber, and is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape. It is disposed at one or more locations in a gap 10 having a substantially triangular cross section formed by the shaft 5 and the inner wall of the inner hole 41d of the clutch rotor 41. Note that the elastic member 6 is not limited to the cylindrical shape shown in the drawings, but may have any shape such as a spherical shape.

Next, an explanation will be given of the effect when the rotary damper 1 of this embodiment having such a configuration is applied to the toilet lid 11 of a Western-style toilet as shown in FIG. 3 as an example of a freely falling rotating object.

First, the rotary damper 1 is installed as follows.

11a is a rotating base of the toilet lid 11, and 12a is a rotating base of the toilet seat 12. Reference numeral 13 denotes a hinge bin, which is inserted through and fixed to the rotating base 11a of the toilet lid 11 and freely rotatably penetrated through the rotating base 12a of the toilet seat 12.

The rotary damper 1 is fixed by placing a base portion (not shown) formed at the bottom of the casing 2 on the top surface of the toilet tank 14 or the like.

Further, the protruding portion 15b of the operating shaft 5 of the rotary damper l is attached to the hinge bin 1 at the rotating base portion 11a of the toilet lid 11.
The operating shaft 5 is inserted and fixed opposite to the hinge bin 13, and is arranged so that the operating shaft 5 rotates together with the hinge bin 13 when the toilet lid 11 is opened or closed.

In this state, when the toilet lid 11 is rotated toward the front for closing from the open lid state shown in FIG. 3, the hinge bin 13, which is the axis of rotation thereof, also rotates.

This rotation of the hinge bin 13 also causes the operating shaft 5 of the rotary damper 1 to rotate in the same direction.

At this time, first, the actuating shaft 5 is disposed with a gap 10 (play) between it and the inner hole 41d of the clutch rotor 41 of the one-way clutch 4 via the elastic member 6. The outer surface of the actuating shaft 5 allows the elastic member 6 to
Rotates while pressing and deforming. Therefore, up to this angle, although it is subject to elastic resistance due to the cushioning effect of the elastic member 6, it can rotate relatively freely.

2. When the elastic member 6 is suppressed and deformed and reaches its limit, that is, when the rotational force of the toilet lid 11 increases beyond an arbitrary angle,
The clutch rotor 41 of the one-way clutch 4 also begins to rotate together with the operating shaft 5 via the elastic member 6 . This rotation of the clutch rotor 41 tightens the clutch spring 42 provided around the clutch rotor 41, and the hollow rotating shaft 3 connected to the clutch spring 42 rotates.

As a result, the hollow rotating shaft 3 rotates slowly due to the viscous resistance of the viscous material layer 8 between it and the casing 2, so the speed of free fall when the toilet lid 11 is closed is reduced. A slow opening operation will be performed.

Here, in the lid closed state, the elastic member 6 is in a pressed deformed state. Therefore, from the closed state to the toilet lid 1
1, the operating shaft 5 first rotates while releasing the pressing deformation of the elastic member 6 within the inner hole 41d without rotating the clutch rotor 41 of the one-way clutch 4, as described above. Thereafter, when the release is further continued, the elastic member 6 is pressed and deformed again, and the clutch rotor 41 also rotates together with the actuating shaft 5, but at this time, the clutch rotor 41 rotates in the unwinding direction with respect to the clutch spring 6. Therefore, the hollow rotating shaft 3 does not need to be rotated. Therefore, the opening operation can be easily performed without being affected by the viscous resistance of the viscous material layer 8.

Here, if the toilet lid 11 is opened slightly, that is, if the clutch rotor 41 starts to rotate together with the operating shaft 5, if the hand or the like that was holding it is released,
Since the clutch spring 42 is not tightened, the viscous resistance by the viscous material layer 8 does not work. However, in this embodiment, the cross-sectional shape of the elastic member 6 deforms into a shape different from the shape in the closed state during this time, so the gap 10 (play )
Even if there is a problem, the cushioning effect of the elastic member 6 will always work. Therefore, in this case as well, the impact of the toilet lid 11 falling is absorbed.

In addition, in this embodiment, the rotary damper 1 is used as the toilet lid 1.
Although an example in which the present invention is applied to opening and closing the toilet seat 12 has been shown, the present invention may also be applied to opening and closing the toilet seat 12. It goes without saying that the invention may also be applied to opening/closing lids of pianos, record players, portable computers, copy machines, and other various devices.

[Effects of the Invention] According to the rotary damper of the present invention, since an elastic member is loaded in the gap between the actuating shaft and the inner hole formed in the clutch rotor, viscous resistance does not work in the early stage of the closing rotation of the opening/closing lid. While the closing operation can be performed smoothly, a large braking force can be applied due to the viscous resistance of the viscous material layer when the rotational force of the opening/closing lid becomes large.

In addition, even if you release your hand at a slightly open position where the viscous resistance of the viscous material layer does not act, the elastic member provided between the actuating shaft and the inner hole of the clutch rotor provides a buffer. It is possible to cause an action to take place.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view showing one embodiment of the rotary damper according to the present invention, Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line ■-■ in Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 is a rotary damper of the same embodiment applied to a Western-style toilet bowl. It is a perspective view which shows an example. 6 3...Hollow rotating shaft 4...One-way clutch 41...Clutch rotor 42...Clutch spring 5...Operating shaft 6. ...Elastic member 7 ... - Lid member 8 ... Viscous material layer IO ... Gap part

Claims (1)

[Claims] A cylindrical casing with a bottom, a hollow rotating shaft disposed within the casing through a layer of viscous material, a clutch rotor having an inner hole formed with a substantially rectangular cross section, and one end a one-way clutch consisting of a clutch spring fixed to the hollow rotating shaft, the other end being a free end, and wound around the clutch rotor; at least one end facing outside the casing; an actuation shaft whose end is inserted through the clutch rotor and at least the insertion portion is formed to have a substantially rectangular cross section; and an actuation shaft formed between the circumferential surface of the insertion portion of the actuation shaft and the inner wall of the rotor shaft. A rotary damper comprising: an elastic member for a cushion loaded in one or more locations of a gap having a substantially triangular cross section.