JPH0516061Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] (Field of industrial application) The present invention relates to the structure of the support portion of a steering column, and more specifically, to a support structure that has high support rigidity for the steering column and is highly safe even in the event of a collision. It is.

(Prior Art) A steering column transmits the rotation of a steering wheel operated by a driver to a steering gear to steer the wheels.
Therefore, if the support rigidity of the steering column is low, the rotation of the steering wheel cannot be accurately transmitted, resulting in a decrease in drivability. In this way, increasing the support rigidity of the steering column is one of the important requirements for improving drivability, and various proposals have been made in the past regarding this support rigidity. One such example
For example, as disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Application No. 58-111668, there is a structure in which a steering column is supported by a steering bracket fixed to a dash upper panel.

In addition, since the steering column supported in this way is placed directly in front of the driver along with the steering wheel, in the case of a collision at the front of the car, the steering column and steering wheel will be pushed backwards by the vehicle body deformed by the collision. There is a problem in that there is a risk that the vehicle will be pushed by the vehicle and pressurize the occupants. One way to achieve this is to increase the support rigidity of the steering column to make it difficult for the steering column to move backwards even when the vehicle body is deformed due to a collision.
However, since the load upon collision is often quite large, simply increasing the rigidity has its limits and is not economical. Therefore, even if the steering column, etc. is pushed rearward due to the deformation of the vehicle body during a collision, the steering column is moved upward rather than just to the rear, thereby reducing the risk of pressure on the occupants. It is desirable that such measures be taken.

(Purpose of the invention) The present invention was developed in view of the above circumstances, and is designed to provide a steering column with high supporting rigidity, and to prevent the steering column from being pushed backwards due to a collision at the front of the vehicle. It is an object of the present invention to provide a highly safe steering support structure in which the upper part is rotated upward so that the steering wheel does not pressurize the driver.

(Structure of the invention) A steering column that includes a steering shaft that transmits the rotation of the steering wheel to a steering gear and extends forward and downward from the steering wheel, and at least the rear wall of a cowl box located at the front of the vehicle interior. a steering top bracket having a front end fixed to the dart top panel and extending toward the rear of the vehicle body to support an intermediate portion of the steering column; A steering support structure including a steering top support member that extends and is supported by the vehicle body at both ends and supports the steering top bracket at an intermediate portion, the steering top support member being arranged to extend in the vehicle width direction at the bottom of the steering column. a steering lower support member whose both ends are supported by the vehicle body; a rear end is fixed to the steering lower support member; a lower part of the steering column is fixed to the front end; and the front end is larger than the rear end. and a steering lower bracket disposed in the front-rear direction so as to be located below the steering column, and the lower part of the steering column is supported by the steering lower support member via the steering lower bracket. It is something to do.

(Embodiments) Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described based on the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic side view of the front part of a driver's cabin of an automobile taken along a vertical plane extending longitudinally, and an engine room A and a vehicle compartment B are separated by a dart lower panel 1. As shown in FIG. A dart upper panel 2 forming a cowl box D extending in the vehicle width direction is joined to the upper end of the dart lower panel 1, and the upper surface of the dart needle upper panel 2 has a closed cross-sectional shape extending in the vehicle width direction. The needle member 3 is joined. The lower end of the front windshield 4 is supported by the dash upper member 3. Incidentally, the upper rear part of the dart header panel 2 is covered by an instrument panel (not shown), and various instruments 5 such as a speedometer are attached to this instrument panel.

On the lower surface of the dash upper panel 2, as shown in the figure, the front upper end of a steering upper bracket 15 extending back and forth is fixedly provided. This steering support bracket 15 is attached to a steering column 1 extending diagonally in the front and rear directions as shown in the figure.
A steering top support member 16 whose rear end extends in the vehicle width direction.
Supported by. The steering top support member 16 includes a tube member 17 extending in the vehicle width direction and having both ends supported by the vehicle body, a support member 18 attached to the tube member 17, and a support member 18 attached to the support member 18, which extends in the center portion of the steering column 10. It consists of a holding plate 19 for holding.

The third figure shows the steering top bracket 15, the steering top support member 16, and the steering column 10 supported by these.
Further, FIG. 4 is a view taken along the arrow - of this figure, and both of these figures show the steering column 10 by the steering top bracket 15 and the steering top support member 16.
The structure of the supporting part will be explained. The support member 18 is attached to the tube member 17 so as to surround the tube member 17, and the steering support bracket 15 is joined to the lower surface of the support member 18. Further, a retaining plate 19 is attached to the support member 18 with bolts 19a, 19a across the steering assembly bracket 15, and at this time, the central portion of the steering column 10 is retained by the retaining plate 19.

On the other hand, as shown in the figure (Fig. 1), a steering wheel 11 is attached to the rear upper end of a steering column 10 that extends diagonally from the upper rear part to the lower front part in the front and back direction, and the steering wheel 11 is operated by the driver. The rotation of 11 is the steering shaft 12 installed in the steering column 10.
The signal is then transmitted to a steering gear (not shown) via a connecting shaft 13 connected to the front end of the steering shaft 12, thereby steering both left and right wheels. The lower end of the steering column 10 is also supported by a steering lower bracket 20. As shown in the figure, the steering lower bracket 20 extends back and forth, has a downwardly bent front part, and has a front end located below the rear end, and the front end supports the lower part of the steering column 10 via the support plate 22. .
On the other hand, the rear end of the steering lower bracket 20 is fixed to a tube-shaped steering lower support member 21 that extends in the vehicle width direction and is supported at both ends by the vehicle body. It is becoming increasingly supported by The second cross-sectional view of the steering lower bracket 20 along the arrow - is
As shown in this figure, the rear ends of the steering lower brackets 20, 20 are joined to a steering lower support member 21 whose both ends are connected and held to the vehicle body.
The lower part of the steering column 10 is supported by the front end of the steering column 10 via the support plate 22.

In addition, the pedal indicated by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 1 is the brake pedal 7.
is rotatably attached to a brake bracket 6 fixed to the darts lower panel 1, and the movement of the brake pedal 7 is transmitted to a master back 8 and a master cylinder 9 fixed to the darts lower panel 1. ing.

In the above steering support structure,
Due to the collision at the front, the needle lower panel 1
The deformation of the steering support structure when the front lower end of the steering column 10 is pushed rearward and the accompanying movement of the steering column 10 will be described. When the lower front end of the steering column 10 is pushed rearward due to a collision, the stiffness of the steering lower bracket 20, which supports the lower part of the steering column 10, is relatively small, while the steering bracket, which supports the center part of the steering column 10, The support rigidity of the steering column support member 16 is high, and the front end of the steering lower bracket 20 connected to the lower part of the steering column 10 is located lower than the rear end connected to the steering lower support member 21. The force that pushes the front lower end of the steering column 10 backward acts on the steering lower bracket 20 as a counterclockwise moment centered on the steering lower support member 21, and as a result, the steering column 10 has a steering upper part. A counterclockwise moment is applied around the central portion supported by the support member 16, and as a result, for example, the steering support bracket 15
The steering column 10 is rotated counterclockwise (in the direction of arrow C) about the central portion supported by the steering top support member 16 by deforming a predetermined portion, for example, the portion 15a. For this reason,
The steering wheel 11 facing the driver can be moved upward to prevent the driver from being squeezed by the steering wheel. More specifically, when the steering bracket 15 moves backward during a collision, the steering bracket 1
The rear end of the bracket 15 does not move backward due to the presence of the highly rigid steering upper support member 16, and therefore the bracket 15 is deformed, for example, at the portion 15a. Since a counterclockwise moment is applied by the bracket 20, the deformation of the bracket portion 15a due to the moment also causes the steering column 10 to be deformed in the direction of rotating the steering column 10 in the counterclockwise direction. It will be rotated counterclockwise (in the direction of arrow C).

In the above support structure, the steering column 10 is supported by two highly rigid support members, the steering upper support member 16 and the steering lower support member 21, so that the support rigidity of the steering is high.

(Effect of the invention) As explained above, according to the invention, the middle part of the steering column is supported by the steering upper bracket reinforced by the steering upper support member, and the lower end of the steering column is supported by the steering lower bracket. Since the steering column is supported by the steering lower support member through the steering column, the support rigidity of the steering column can be increased, and the front end of the steering lower bracket, which is connected to the lower part of the steering column, is connected to the steering lower support member. Since the lower end of the steering column is positioned below the rear end, even if the lower end of the steering column is pushed rearward in the event of a collision, the steering lower bracket will still allow the steering column to rotate around the support provided by the steering upper bracket. The steering wheel can be moved upward to prevent the steering wheel from pressing on the driver.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a schematic side view showing the steering support structure according to the present invention, Fig. 2 is a sectional view showing the support structure along the arrow - in Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 is a schematic side view showing the support structure at the center of the steering column. FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the structure taken along the arrow - in FIG. 3; 1... Dashboard panel, 2... Dashboard panel, 7... Brake pedal, 10... Steering column, 11... Steering wheel,
15... Steering bracket, 16...
...Steering top support member, 20...Steering lower bracket, 21...Steering lower support member.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claim for Utility Model Registration] At least a steering column that includes a steering shaft that transmits the rotation of the steering wheel to the steering gear and extends forward and downward from the steering wheel, and a cowl box that is located at the front of the vehicle interior. A dashi upper panel forming a rear wall, and a front end fixed to the dashi upper panel and extending toward the rear of the vehicle body,
A steering top bracket that supports the middle portion of the steering column; and a steering top support member that extends in the vehicle width direction, has both ends supported by the vehicle body, and supports the steering top bracket at the middle portion. The steering support structure includes a steering lower support member disposed extending in the vehicle width direction at the bottom of the steering column and supported at both ends by the vehicle body; The lower part of the steering column is fixed, and the steering lower bracket is arranged in the front-rear direction so that the front end thereof is located lower than the rear end, and the steering column is connected to the steering column through the steering lower bracket. A steering support structure for a vehicle, characterized in that a lower portion of the steering support member is supported by the steering lower support member.