JPH0353133B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a steering lock device used in automobiles and the like.

The steering lock device automatically locks the steering wheel when the key is removed, making it inoperable. It has a lock link that rotates when the key is inserted or removed, and a lock link that rotates when the key is inserted. When the key is removed, the lock link disengages from the rear end of the lock link and moves to the lock position, making it impossible to rotate the steering shaft. It is generally known that a locking member is provided. As shown in Fig. 5, the lock link is rotated in conjunction with the insertion and removal of the key, as shown in Fig. 5, the lock link is moved up and down in response to the insertion and removal of the key into a cylinder 3' into which the key is inserted and rotated. Generally, a sliding body 30 is provided, the tip of the lock link 6' is brought into contact with the upper surface of the sliding body 30, and the lock link 6' is driven via the sliding body 30 in response to insertion and removal of the key. It is true. For this reason, the lock link 6' must be placed at a position that matches the orientation of the key when it is inserted or removed, which poses a problem in that the shape and mounting direction of the key switch are restricted.

The present invention has focused on these points, and has been made with the object of providing a steering lock device in which the position of the lock link can be relatively freely selected relative to the insertion/removal position of the key. The rotary plate has a key insertion/removal detection piece that is pressed by contacting a key, and an arcuate piece that is pushed up via the key insertion/removal detection piece to a position where the periphery draws an arc centered on the cylinder when the key is inserted. It is characterized in that the tip of the lock link, which is rotatably attached to the cylinder and rotates in conjunction with the insertion and removal of the key, is brought into sliding contact with the circumferential edge of the circular arc piece of the rotary plate. That is, in the present invention, the lock link is driven by the arc piece of the rotary plate, and when the cylinder is rotated, the tip of the lock link slides on the arc piece. There is no need to position it according to the insertion/removal position, and by appropriately designing the shape of the rotating plate, it is possible to select the position of the lock link quite freely, which greatly reduces restrictions on the shape and installation direction of the key switch. This will be alleviated. Furthermore, in the conventional example described above, when the key is inserted, the top surface of the sliding body needs to be flush with the outer circumferential surface of the cylinder, which prevents the top surface of the sliding body from being too low or too high relative to the outer circumferential surface. If there is a step with respect to the outer circumferential surface of the lock link, the tip of the lock link will get stuck and the cylinder will not be able to rotate smoothly, so there is a problem that high accuracy is required in the dimensions of the parts.However, in the present invention, the lock link Since the tip always slides on the arc piece, there is no need to increase the accuracy of the parts, and the cylinder can be rotated smoothly without getting caught. Also, by changing the center of rotation of the rotary plate, it is easy to insert and remove the key. Another advantage is that the motion of the detection piece is expanded to increase the amount of pushout of the arcuate piece, thereby making it possible to drive the lock link more reliably.

Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present invention will be described based on the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway side view of the key switch, showing a state in which no key is inserted, and FIG. 2, a state in which a key is inserted. In the figure, 1 is a body having a rotary switch part 2 at the rear end, 3 is a cylinder installed inside the front end of the body 1, and the cylinder 3 is provided with a plurality of lock plates 4, which have a well-known structure. It constitutes a cylinder lock.
Reference numeral 5 denotes a cam integrally formed at the rear of the cylinder 3, which rotates a rotary switch installed in the rotary switch section 2 as the cylinder 3 rotates. A lock link 6 is pivotally attached to the body 1 by a pin 7, is biased with rotational force by a spring 8, and has a tip 6a in sliding contact with a rotary plate 9 provided in the cylinder 3. Reference numeral 10 denotes a locking member that is biased toward the rear in the figure by a spring (not shown) and moves in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the figure in accordance with the rotation of the cam 5. In the locked position, the rear portion is formed on the body 1. It protrudes from the opening hole (not shown) provided in the figure to lock the steering shaft (not shown), and in the unlocked position, it moves toward the front in the figure and the rear part enters into the body 1 to unlock the steering shaft. do. The rear end 6b of the locking link 6 is separated from the locking member 10 when no key is inserted, and when the key 11 is inserted,
When the rotating plate 9 is pushed up by the key 11 and the locking link 6 rotates, the rear end 6b contacts the upper surface 10a of the locking member 10, and the key 11 is rotated to move the locking member 10 to the unlock position. The upper surface 1 of the locking member 10 as shown in FIG.
It is configured to engage a groove 10b formed in 0a. Through this operation, the lock link 6 rotates in conjunction with the insertion and removal of the key 11, and when the key 11 is inserted, the locking member 10 is held in the unlocked position to unlock the steering shaft, and the key 11 is removed and removed. At times, the locking member 10 is moved to the lock position to lock the steering shaft. 12 is a cap.

A key detection switch 15 is provided on the outer periphery of the body 1, and a fixed contact 16 and a movable contact 17 constitute a normally open switch. A slider 18 is provided at a position corresponding to the movable contact 17 for controlling the opening and closing of the switch, and is housed in a mounting hole 19 provided in the body 1 so as to be slidable in the diametrical direction of the cylinder 3. 18a is the spring piece 1 of the movable contact 17
7a, and the tip 18b is in sliding contact with a rotary plate 20 provided on the cylinder 3. The movable contact 17 is not in contact with the fixed contact 16 when the key 11 is not inserted, but when the key 11 is inserted, the rotary plate 20 is pushed up by the key 11 as shown in FIG. 2, and the slider 18 is pushed up. By pressing the spring piece 17a, the movable contact 17 contacts the fixed contact 16, and the key detection switch 15 is turned on to detect that the key 11 has been inserted.

Next, the structure and operation of the rotating plate 9 will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4. FIG. 3 shows a state in which the key 11 is not inserted, and FIG. 4 shows a state in which the key 11 is inserted. The rotary plate 9 consists of an arcuate piece 21 and a key insertion/removal detection piece 22 protruding inward from the middle of the arcuate piece 21, and is rotatably attached to the cylinder 3 by a fulcrum 23. A rotating plate storage recess 25 is formed in the cylinder 3 . The key insertion/removal detection piece 22 is inserted into the key insertion hole 26 of the cylinder 3, and when the key 11 is inserted, the key groove step 27 formed on the side surface of the key 11 as shown in FIG. As a result, the rotary plate 9 rotates counterclockwise about the fulcrum 23, and the arcuate piece 21 protrudes beyond the outer peripheral surface of the cylinder 3. In this state, the arcuate piece 21 has a shape such that its peripheral edge 21a exactly coincides with the arc centered on the cylinder 3, and its protrusion height is selected so that it does not touch the inner circumferential surface of the body 1. Further, when the key 11 is operated, the rotary plate 9 together with the cylinder 3 rotates in the direction of the arrow in FIG. The location and length of the piece 21 have been selected.

This embodiment is constructed as described above, and when the key 11 is inserted, the tip 6a of the lock link 6 is pushed up by the arcuate piece 21, and when the key 11 is rotated, the tip 6a is pushed up by the periphery of the arcuate piece 21. 21a. Since the height of the peripheral edge 21a is constant and has an arcuate shape with no irregularities, the cylinder 3 rotates smoothly, and the lock link 6 keeps the steering shaft in the unlocked state while the key 11 is inserted. It is retained. In the conventional case, the lock link had to be placed in line with the key insertion/removal position, but
As shown in FIG. 3, in this embodiment, the lock link 6 is disposed at a position YY shifted by 45 degrees from the key insertion/removal position X-X. That is, by appropriately designing the shape of the rotary plate 9, the lock link 6 can be
The position of the key switch can be selected quite freely, and according to the present invention, restrictions on the overall shape and mounting direction of the key switch are greatly relaxed, and the degree of freedom in design is improved. Further, since the tip 6a of the lock link 6 slides on the arcuate piece 21, the tip of the lock link 6' slides on the sliding body 30 provided on the cylinder 3'.
Unlike conventional models that slide across both the top surface and the outer peripheral surface of the cylinder 3', there is no difference in level on the sliding surface due to dimensional errors in the parts, and the requirements for part precision are relaxed. be done. Furthermore,
From the positional relationship between the fulcrum 23 and the tip of the key insertion/removal detection piece 22, the movement of the key insertion/removal detection piece 22 is caused by the circular arc piece 21.
Since the information is transmitted in an enlarged manner, the amount of extrusion of the arcuate piece 21 can be increased compared to the conventional example, and the lock link 6
It also becomes possible to drive the motor more reliably.

The key detection switch 15 described above is used, for example, in combination with a door switch as an alarm device to prevent forgetting to remove the key, and the rotary plate 20 is also of the same structure as the rotary plate 9. The explanation is omitted.

As is clear from the description of the above embodiments, the present invention provides a cylinder with a rotary plate having a key insertion/removal detection piece and an arcuate piece that is pushed up via the key insertion/removal detection piece when the key is inserted. The tip of the lock link slides into contact with the key switch, and the position of the lock link relative to the key insertion/removal position can be selected quite freely, greatly improving the degree of freedom regarding the shape and installation position of the key switch. In addition, it does not require high precision parts, allows for smooth key rotation, and has other advantages such as being able to drive the lock link more reliably.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

1 and 2 are partially cutaway side views of an embodiment of the present invention, FIGS. 3 and 4 are sectional views of the main parts of the same, and FIG. 5 is a partially cutaway side view of a conventional example. be. 3 is a cylinder, 6 is a locking link, 6a is a tip, 9 is a rotating plate, 10 is a locking member, 11 is a key, 21 is an arcuate piece, 21a is a periphery, and 22 is a key insertion/removal detection piece.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. Includes a key insertion/removal detection piece that is pressed in contact with the inserted key, and an arcuate piece that is pushed up via the key insertion/removal detection piece to a position where the periphery draws an arc centered on the cylinder when the key is inserted. The rotating plate is rotatably attached to the cylinder, and the tip of the locking link rotates in conjunction with the insertion and removal of the key and holds the locking member in the unlocked position when the key is inserted.
A steering lock device characterized in that the steering lock device is brought into sliding contact with the circumferential edge of the circular arc piece of the rotary plate.