JPH051456Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] [Field of industrial application] The present invention relates to a reinforcing structure for the joint between the engine and the transmission in a power unit employed in, for example, a front-wheel drive vehicle (hereinafter referred to as FF vehicle). In particular, the present invention relates to improving the rigidity of the connection when the driveshaft from the transmission is located close to the engine.

[Conventional technology]

For example, an automotive power unit used in a front-wheel drive vehicle is generally constructed by connecting an engine and a transmission, which is disposed outside of the engine in the vehicle width direction and drives a drive shaft, with bolts. The power unit is mounted on the vehicle body, and the drive shaft drives, for example, the front wheels. In this case, the coupling portion is
Vehicles are repeatedly subjected to various moments due to constant driving torque, engine vibration, vibration from the road surface, etc. Furthermore, due to its structure, the transmission often protrudes outward in a direction perpendicular to the engine's crankshaft, so if left as is, the bolts at the connection may loosen, or in extreme cases, the bolts may break. This may cause the joint to become misaligned.

Conventionally, therefore, attempts have been made to integrate the engine and transmission by reinforcing the joints, thereby improving the rigidity of the power unit itself. An example of such a reinforcing structure is conventionally described in Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 59-47520. This is a reinforcing structure in which one end of a flat stiffener is fixed to the engine and the other end to the transmission.

[Problem that the invention attempts to solve]

However, the reinforcing structure disclosed in the above-mentioned publication has a problem in that the buckling rigidity against vertical bending force and the bending rigidity against longitudinal bending force are insufficient. This is due to the problem of the stiffener's placement space, that is, it has to be placed in a narrow space between the engine and the drive shaft, so the stiffener becomes a thin, flat plate. This is due to its low rigidity.

By the way, in order to increase the rigidity of the stiffener, it is possible to make the stiffener thicker or to have a shape with a larger section modulus, but when the plate thickness is increased, there is a problem that the weight increases accordingly, and If the section modulus is simply increased, it is difficult to adopt this method because it is necessary to increase the distance between the engine and the drive shaft to secure a space for arranging the stiffener.

The present invention was devised to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, and its purpose is to provide a reinforcing structure for an automobile power unit that can greatly improve the vertical and longitudinal rigidity of the joint with a simple structure. It is said that

[Means for solving problems]

The present invention is an automotive power unit in which an engine and a transmission are coupled together, and a drive shaft from the transmission is arranged to pass along the side of the engine, in which the engine and transmission are fixed with a stiffener. The reinforcement structure is characterized in that the stiffener has a cylindrical shape surrounding the transmission outlet portion of the drive shaft, and the end face of the stiffener is fixed to the transmission and the side face to the engine.

[Effect]

According to the reinforcing structure for an automobile power unit according to the present invention, the stiffener that connects the engine and the transmission is shaped like a cylinder surrounding the transmission exit portion of the drive shaft.
Its section modulus is greatly improved compared to conventional flat plate-shaped stiffeners, and the rigidity of the stiffener itself against both vertical and longitudinal bending forces can be improved, which greatly improves the joint rigidity of the entire power unit. can. Furthermore, since the stiffener is arranged in a cylindrical shape that surrounds the drive shaft, it can be arranged without enlarging the gap between the engine and drive shaft, and the arrangement relationship between the engine, transmission, and drive shaft is The conventional system can be used without any increase in the space for arranging the power unit.

In addition, a universal joint is arranged at the transmission exit portion of the drive shaft, and this is surrounded by a bellows-shaped shaft boot.The stiffener of the present invention surrounds this boot, and has a protective function of the boot. also fulfill.

〔Example〕

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

1 to 3 are diagrams for explaining a reinforcing structure for an automobile power unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In the figure, 1 is a typical power unit for front-wheel drive vehicles.The power unit 1 is mainly composed of an engine 2 and a transmission 3.The transmission 3 is located at the front of the vehicle. It is arranged horizontally so as to be located outward in the width direction. This transmission 3 is constructed by connecting a transmission case to a clutch housing, and the clutch housing is connected to the engine 2 by a connecting bolt (not shown), and the differential case portion 3a is connected to the rear of the engine 2 and It protrudes downward. A pair of left and right drive shafts 4 are connected to the differential case portion 3a.
a and 4b extend in the vehicle width direction, and their tips are connected to the left and right front wheels. Further, the drive shafts 4a, 4b and the outlet of the transmission 3 are connected by a universal joint, and the joint is surrounded by a shaft boot 5 made of rubber. The drive shaft 4b on the right side is the engine 1.
It passes near the rear of.

The differential case portion 3a of the transmission 3 and the engine 2 are connected by a stiffener 6, which constitutes the reinforcing structure of this embodiment. The stiffener 6 is constructed by integrally forming a mission side flange portion 9 at one end of a cylindrical stiffener body 7, and an engine side flange portion 8 at a side surface thereof.

This stiffener 6 has a structure in which the stiffener main body 7 is connected to the transmission 3 of the shaft boot 5.
They are arranged so as to surround the vicinity of the exit, and the transmission side flange part 9 is attached to the end face of the differential case part 3a of the transmission 3 with mounting bolts 9a, and the engine side flange part 8 is attached to the side surface of the engine 2 with mounting bolts 8a.
are fixed respectively.

Next, the effects of this embodiment will be explained.

Since the stiffener 6 of this embodiment has a cylindrical main body 7, it can withstand bending force in the vertical direction (arrow A in the figure) and bending force in the front and back direction (arrow B in the figure).
Since the section modulus of the stiffener 6 itself is increased, the rigidity of the stiffener 6 itself can be increased, and as a result, the joint rigidity of the power unit 1 itself can be increased.

In addition, since the main body 7 of the stiffener 6 is arranged to surround the shaft boot 5, that is, the structure is such that rigidity can be improved without changing the gap between the engine 2 and the drive shaft 4b.
There is no need to change the arrangement relationship between the transmission 3 and the drive shaft 4b, and therefore the space for arranging the power unit 1 does not increase.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, the main body 7 of the stiffener 6 is shaped to surround the shaft boot 5, so that the shaft boot 5 can be protected from external forces.

In addition, in the above embodiment, the main body 7 of the stiffener 6
Although it is formed into a cylindrical shape, it does not necessarily have to be a cylindrical shape, and in short, it may have a shape that surrounds the drive shaft, such as a polygonal cylindrical shape.

[Effect of idea]

As described above, according to the reinforcing structure for an automobile power unit according to the present invention, the stiffener is formed into a cylindrical shape surrounding the transmission exit portion of the drive shaft, and the end face of the stiffener is connected to the transmission and the side face is connected to the engine. Since they are each fixed, the stiffness of the stiffener itself is improved, which has the effect of improving the stiffness of the connection to the power unit.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

1 to 3 are diagrams for explaining the reinforcing structure of an automobile power unit according to an embodiment of the present invention, in which FIG. 1 is a plan view of the power unit, FIG. 2 is a rear view thereof, FIG. 3 is a side view thereof. In the figure, 1 is the power unit, 2 is the engine, 3 is the transmission, 4b is the drive shaft, 5 is the shaft boot (the transmission outlet part of the drive shaft), 6 is the stiffener, and 8 is the engine side flange part (the stiffener). ), 9 is a flange portion on the transmission side (end surface of the stiffener).

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] An automobile in which an engine and a transmission disposed outside the engine in the vehicle width direction are coupled, and a drive shaft extending from the transmission in the vehicle width direction is disposed to pass along the side of the engine in the vehicle longitudinal direction. In a power unit for a motor vehicle, the reinforcement structure is such that the engine and the transmission are fixed with a stiffener. A reinforcing structure for an automobile power unit characterized by having a side surface fixed to the engine.