JPH0485172A - Steering support structure - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent a driver from being directly hit by a steering wheel even if such a strong impact as having a pedal bracket drawn back is inflicted, by connecting the pedal bracket and an upper steering part shiftably in the longitudinal direction in a relative manner. CONSTITUTION:This steering support structure consists of a steering support member 11, being clamped to a pedal bracket 9 and provided with two almost parallel shafts 11a in the collisional direction, and a steering holding member 12 being clamped to the lower end of an upper steering part 1, inserting the shaft 11a and clamped, and simultaneously making the steering support member 11 shiftable in the axial direction when a strong impact is added to the pedal bracket 9 at collision. Accordingly, even if a dashpanel 6 to which the steering support member 11 is clamped and the pedal bracket 9 both are drawn back, the shafts 11a are slidden to the steering holding member 12 in the axial direction, thus the upper steering part 1 is almost immovable.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a steering support structure for a vehicle, and more particularly to a steering support structure that limits the backward movement of the steering wheel in the event of a collision.

[Conventional technology]

Regarding the steering and its support structure provided in the vehicle,
This will be explained below based on FIG.

The steering is mainly composed of an upper steering part 1 and a lower steering part 2, and the upper steering part 1 and the lower steering part 2 are connected by a universal joint 3 at different angles. The lower steering section 2 passes through the dash panel 6, and a steering gear section 5 is connected to the other end via a universal joint 4 different from the one described above. on the other hand,
A steering wheel 7 is attached to the other end of the upper steering section 1. Further, near the center of the upper steering section 1, an energy absorbing section 10 is provided that absorbs collision energy to protect passengers in case of a collision.

The upper steering portion 1 is supported by a steering holder 8 fixed to a pedal bracket 9. That is, by bolting the steering holder 8 to the lower end of the upper steering section 1, the upper steering section is supported from above. Note that the pedal bracket 9 itself is fixed onto the dash panel 6 by bolting.

In the above configuration, when the steering wheel 7 is rotated, the steering shaft (not shown) in the upper steering part 1 rotates, and the rotation is transmitted to the lower steering part 2 via the universal joint 3, and further to the universal joint. It is transmitted to the steering gear section 5 via the point 4, where the rotation of the steering wheel 7 is converted into linear motion. This causes the wheels to deflect in the desired direction, resulting in a change in direction.

Also, safety measures have been taken into account, so that even if an unexpected accident occurs and the engine, suspension (not shown) at the front of the vehicle move backward due to the impact, the universal joints 3 and 4 will not bend. This prevents the upper steering section 1 from moving back too much.
Crew safety is ensured. In addition, even if the front part of the vehicle body collapses due to a frontal collision, the dash panel 6 supporting the upper steering part l moves backward, and the steering wheel 3 directly hits the chest of the crew member, the energy absorption part 10 absorbs the impact. The impact is alleviated.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

However, in the above conventional configuration, the energy absorbing section 10
Since the zero stroke has a limit of about 100 mm, for example, after the steering wheel 7 directly hits the chest of the crew member and the energy absorbing part 10 begins to absorb the impact, the dash panel 6 supporting the upper steering part 1 is There is a problem in that safety cannot be ensured if the motor moves backward beyond the stroke.

[Means to solve the problem]

In order to solve the above problems, the steering support structure of the present invention has a steering support structure in which an upper steering portion including a steering wheel is supported by a pedal bracket provided on a dash panel. A steering support member is provided with a shaft and both ends thereof are fixed to the pedal bracket, and the steering support member is fixed to the upper steering portion and the shaft is inserted into the steering support member, and the steering support member is fixed only when a strong impact is applied to the pedal bracket. The present invention is characterized in that a steering holding member is provided that is fixed so as to be movable in the axial direction.

[For production]

According to the above configuration, the steering support member has a shaft substantially parallel to the vehicle traveling direction and has both ends fixed to the pedal bracket, and the steering support member is fixed to the upper steering portion and the shaft is inserted into the pedal bracket. The upper steering part is normally fixed to the pedal bracket by the steering support member. However, if a strong impact that causes the pedal bracket to move backward due to a frontal collision or the like is applied, only the steering support member moves back in the axial direction, and the upper steering section does not move back.

[Example] An example of the present invention will be described below based on FIGS. 1 to 3. Note that members having the same functions as those shown in the drawings of the conventional example are given the same reference numerals.

As shown in FIG. 3, the steering system of this embodiment is mainly composed of an upper steering section 1 and a lower steering section 2. These upper steering section 1 and lower steering section 2 are connected to each other by a universal joint 3. are connected by changing the The lower steering section 2 passes through a dash panel 6 of the vehicle, and the other end thereof is connected to a steering gear section (not shown) via a universal joint 4 different from the one described above. On the other hand, a steering wheel 7 is attached to the other end of the upper steering section 1. In addition, near the center of the upper steering section 1, there is an energy absorption section I that absorbs collision energy from the standpoint of protecting the crew in case of a collision.
O is provided.

The upper steering portion 1 is supported by a steering support member 11 fixed to the pedal bracket 9. The steering support structure of this embodiment will be described below with reference to FIG. 1, which is an enlarged view of section A in FIG. 3, and FIG. 2, which shows a cross section of the main part of FIG. 1.

The steering support structure of this embodiment includes a steering support member 11 fixed to a pedal bracket 9 and provided with two shafts 11a and 11a substantially parallel to the collision direction (indicated by arrows in the figure), and an upper steering portion 1. and a steering holding member 12 which is fixed to the lower end, through which the shafts 11a and lla are inserted and fixed, and which allows the steering support member 11 to move in the axial direction when a strong impact is applied to the pedal bracket 9 in the event of a collision. It mainly consists of

The steering support member 11 consists of two U-shaped parallel shafts 11a and lla kept at a constant interval, and a rising portion 11b which is bent into a dogleg shape and whose ends are integrated. Both ends are fixed to the pedal bracket 9 by, for example, welding, so that the shafts 11a and 11a are substantially parallel to the direction of vehicle travel. Note that the pedal bracket 9 itself is fixed on the dash panel 6 (FIG. 3) by bolting.

As shown in detail in FIG. 2, the steering holding member 12 is mainly composed of a fixing member 12a and a tightening member 12b. The fixing member 12a contacts the lower end of the upper steering portion 1 over a large area, and is firmly fixed by, for example, welding. The two wings are provided with cylindrical collars 13, 13 into which the shafts 11a, 11a are fitted.
A recess is provided to support the. On the other hand, both wings of the tightening member 12b are also provided with recesses for holding the collars 13 at positions corresponding to the recesses of the fixing member 12a.

In the above setting of the steering holding member 12,
The shafts 11a, 11a of the steering support member 11 are fitted into the collars 13, 13, respectively, and these collars 13, 1
3 is held horizontally on the top of the fixing member 12a,
The tightening member 12b is tightened with a predetermined stress by the bolts 14 on both sides. At this time, the steering holding member 12 is used to prevent the upper steering portion 1 from moving relative to the pedal bracket 9 in response to the force that the steering wheel normally receives, for example, the force that the steering wheel receives during driving.
The upper steering part 1 hardly moves against a strong impact such as a frontal collision causing the pedal bracket to move backward, and only the shafts 11a and lla of the steering support member 11 are fixed to the steering holding member 12. Tightening is performed so that it slides in the axial direction (direction of collision). In other words, the shafts 11a and 11
Tightening is performed so that the frictional force between a and the steering holding member 12 is sufficiently larger than the force that the steering wheel would normally receive, and sufficiently smaller than the impact at the time of a collision.

In the above configuration, when the steering wheel 7 (FIG. 3) is rotated, the steering shaft 15 (see FIGS. 1 and 2) in the upper steering portion 1 is rotated.
It is transmitted to the lower steering part 2 via the universal joint 3, and further transmitted to the steering gear part (not shown) via the universal joint 4, where the rotation of the steering wheel 7 is converted into linear motion. Ru. This causes the wheels to deflect in the desired direction, resulting in a change in direction.

In addition, even if an unexpected accident occurs and the engine, suspension (not shown), etc. at the front of the vehicle move back due to the impact, the universal joints 3 and 4 will bend, causing the upper steering section 1 to move back significantly. This ensures the safety of the crew. In addition, even if the front part of the vehicle body is crushed due to a frontal collision and the dash panel 6 and pedal bracket 9 to which the steering support member 11 is fixed move backward, the shafts 11a and lla will move in the axial direction (direction of collision) relative to the steering support member 12. ), and the upper steering section 1 hardly moves. At this time, even if the chest of the crew member hits the steering wheel 7, the impact is absorbed by the energy absorbing section 10 and the impact is alleviated.

As described above, in this embodiment, the upper steering part 1 is not fixed to the pedal bracket 9 by bolting, but the steering support member 11 fixed to the pedal bracket 9 is fixed to the lower end of the upper steering part 1. The steering support member 11 is fitted into the steering holding member 12 and fixed with a predetermined tightening stress, so that when a strong impact is applied in the collision direction, the steering support member 11 can move in the axial direction, so that the magnitude of the tightening stress can be reduced. Accordingly, the behavior such as the amount of retraction of the upper steering portion 1 at the time of a collision can be controlled. This significantly improves safety even in the event of a frontal collision in which the dash panel 6 and pedal bracket 9 move backward.

In addition, two shafts 11 are provided so as to sandwich the upper steering portion 1.
a and lla are provided, and a steering holding member 12 consisting of a fixing member 12a fixed over a large area to the lower end of the upper steering portion 1 is inserted into the steering holding member 12, and both ends of the steering supporting member 11 are welded to the pedal bracket 9. Since the upper steering part 1 is supported at three points, the support rigidity is improved compared to the conventional steering support structure in which the upper steering part 1 is bolted to the pedal bracket 9 and the upper steering part 1 is simply supported from above. are doing.

In the above embodiment, the two shafts 11a and 11a are integrated at the end of the rising portion 11b, but the rising portion 1
They may remain parallel to the end of 1b. In this way, the upper steering portion 1 is supported at four points, and the steering support rigidity is further improved.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As described above, the steering support structure of the present invention includes a steering support member having an axis substantially parallel to the direction of travel of the vehicle and having both ends fixed to the pedal bracket, and a steering support member fixed to the upper steering portion to support the shaft. Since the upper steering part is provided with a steering holding member that is fitted and fixed so that the steering support member moves in the axial direction only when a strong impact is applied to the pedal bracket, the upper steering part normally does not hold the steering support member. However, if a strong impact that causes the pedal bracket to move backward due to a frontal collision or the like is applied, only the steering support member moves back in the axial direction, and the upper steering section does not move back. This prevents the steering wheel provided in the upper steering section from hitting the crew member directly, thereby significantly improving the safety of the crew member in the event of a collision.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1 to 3 show one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is an enlarged view of section A in FIG. 3, and is a perspective view showing the steering support structure. FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing the configuration of the steering holding member. FIG. 3 is a schematic configuration diagram showing the entire steering and steering support structure. FIG. 4 shows a conventional example, and is a schematic configuration diagram showing a steering and a steering support structure. ■ is the upper steering part, 6 is the dash panel, 7 is the steering wheel, 9 is the pedal bracket, 11 is the steering support member, lla is the shaft 11b is the rising part, 12 is the steering holding member, 12a is the fixing member, 1
2b is a tightening member, 13 is a collar, and 14 is a bolt. Patent applicant Mazda Co., Ltd. H! 1 Figure 2

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A steering support structure in which an upper steering portion including a steering wheel is supported by a pedal bracket provided on a dash panel, which has an axis substantially parallel to the direction of vehicle travel, and has both ends attached to the pedal bracket. A fixed steering support member and the shaft fixed to the upper steering portion are fitted and fixed so that the steering support member moves in the direction of the shaft only when a strong impact is applied to the pedal bracket. A steering support structure characterized in that a steering support structure is provided with a steering holding member.