JPH0536750Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] [Industrial application field] The present invention relates to a headlamp device for an automobile, and in particular to a headlamp that can change and adjust the irradiation direction according to changes in the load applied to the car body. The present invention relates to an optical axis adjustment device of a device.

[Prior Art] In an automobile headlamp device, it is necessary to correctly adjust the direction of illumination. Therefore, the headlamp unit is held so that it can be tilted back and forth, left and right, and is used for assembly and adjustment, inspection, and maintenance. At the time of replacement, etc., the irradiation direction is adjusted (aiming adjustment) by tilting it using the aiming mechanism.

In addition, the body of a car is supported by a suspension system so that it can move up and down in order to absorb vibrations, shocks, etc., so the attitude of the car body changes depending on the load and the position where the load is applied, which causes the headlight to change. The irradiation direction of the lighting device also changes. Therefore, the adjustment of the irradiation direction based on this load (leveling adjustment) can be automatically performed separately from the aiming adjustment by remote control from the driver's seat.

Various optical axis adjusting devices capable of performing such leveling adjustment have been proposed in the past, one example of which is known as Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 105240/1983. Fig. 6 shows a conventional example of such an optical axis adjustment device for leveling adjustment, and to briefly explain it, 1 is a headlight unit, 2 is a headlight unit 1 that can be tilted vertically and horizontally. 3 is an optical axis adjustment device for leveling adjustment of the headlamp unit 1, and this optical axis adjustment device 3 is equipped with a leveling drive section 4 consisting of a motor attached to the lamp housing 2. . The leveling drive unit 4 is driven by remote control from the driver's seat, and has an output rod 5 that moves forward and backward as it rotates, and its front end is connected to the headlamp unit 1 via a connecting rod 6. has been done. The connecting rod 6 is attached to the lower surface of the headlamp unit 1 via a bracket 7, and has a spherical head at its rear end that is rotatably press-fitted into a spherical seat 9 recessed in the front end surface of the output rod 5. A portion 8 is integrally provided.

In such a configuration, when the output rod 5 is moved forward or backward by the leveling drive unit 4 during aiming adjustment, the connecting rod 6 is pushed or pulled, so that the headlamp unit 1 moves to the pivot point with respect to the lamp housing 2. (not shown), the irradiation angle is adjusted upward or downward by tilting in the front-rear direction.

[Problem to be solved by the invention] However, in such a conventional optical axis adjustment device, the leveling drive unit 4 is fixedly arranged on the lamp housing 2, and the connecting rod 6 is connected to the bracket 7.
Since it is fixedly arranged in the position, there is no play when adjusting the leveling, and there is a problem that smooth operation cannot be obtained.

That is, since the headlamp unit 1 is tilted in the front-rear direction about the pivot point (not shown) with respect to the lamp housing 2, the spherical head 8 of the connecting rod 6 becomes larger as the tilt angle increases. The height position of the rod relative to the output rod 5 changes, and a force acts on the output rod 5 to cause it to bend. Further, misalignment between the output rod 5 and the connecting rod 6 may also occur due to variations in parts due to manufacturing errors, assembly errors in the headlamp unit 1 and the optical axis adjustment device 3, and the like. As a result, smooth movement of the output rod 5 cannot be obtained, resulting in reduced operability. Furthermore, since a large driving force is required, the drive unit 4 becomes larger.

Therefore, the present invention was devised in view of the above-mentioned conventional problems, and its purpose is to ensure the transmission of operating force and to operate the output rod smoothly with a small driving force. An object of the present invention is to provide an optical axis adjustment device for a headlamp device that can perform the following operations.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention includes an output rod whose one end is connected to a headlamp unit through a bearing so as to be relatively tiltable, and which is moved forward and backward by a drive section. In the optical axis adjustment device for a headlamp device in which the headlamp unit is tilted, the bearing is loosely fitted into a mounting hole provided in the headlamp unit and having a hole diameter larger than an outer diameter of the bearing. , and is prevented from coming off from the mounting hole by a washer that fits around the outer periphery.

[Function] In this invention, a floating gap is formed between the bearing and the mounting hole, which absorbs assembly errors caused by variations in parts, misalignment of the bearing due to rotation of the headlamp unit during leveling adjustment, etc. do.

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

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing an embodiment of the optical axis adjusting device according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the same device, and FIG.
4 is a partial cross-sectional view taken along the line -- in FIG. 3, and FIG. 5 is a plan view of the headlamp device. Figures 3 to 5
In the figure, a headlight device, generally designated by the reference numeral 10, is a lamp positioned and fixed to the front corner of a vehicle body 11 (FIG. 5) by appropriate fastening means (not shown) such as stud bolts and nuts. Housing 12
A headlamp unit 1 is arranged to be tiltable vertically and horizontally with respect to the lamp housing 12.
It has 3.

The headlamp unit 13 includes a lamp body 14 whose inner surface forms a paraboloid of revolution reflection surface, and a lamp body 14 whose inner surface forms a paraboloid of revolution reflection surface.
4, a light source 16 such as a halogen bulb disposed inside the lamp body 14, a retaining ring 17 that holds the outer peripheral surface of the front end of the lamp body 14, A waterproof cover 18 and the like is provided to watertightly cover a valve insertion hole (not shown) formed on the back surface. An aiming mechanism 20 is installed between the headlamp unit 13 and the lamp housing 12, and supports the headlamp unit 13 so as to be tiltable vertically and horizontally.

The aiming mechanism 20 includes an adjuster steering screw 21 for horizontal aiming and an adjuster steering screw 22 for vertical aiming.
and a spring 2 that biases the headlight unit 13 rearward.
It is composed of 3. The adjusting screw 21 for left-right aiming is rotatably attached to the center of the right end of the mounting ring 25 of the headlamp unit 13 in the height direction while being prevented from moving in the axial direction. The section is threadedly connected to a self-locking nut 27 attached to the lamp housing 12, and is rotated from the side and front of the headlamp device 10. The adjusting screw 22 for vertical aiming is also rotatably attached to the center of the upper end of the mounting ring 25 and prevented from moving in the axial direction, and its rear end is attached to the lamp housing 12. It is threadedly connected to another self-locking nut 28, and is rotated from above and in front of the headlamp device 10. The spring 23 is disposed such that one end thereof is engaged with the lower left corner of the mounting ring 25 and the other end thereof is engaged with the lamp housing 12.

In this case, when the adjuster steering screw 21 for horizontal direction aiming is rotated, the adjuster steering screw 21 moves forward and backward relative to the front locking nut 27, so that the headlight unit 13 is rotated. It is tilted in the left-right direction about the virtual axis connecting the lever 22 and the spring 23, and the irradiation angle in the left-right direction is adjusted. Further, when the adjusting screw 22 for vertical aiming is rotated and moved back and forth with respect to the locking nut 28, the headlamp unit 13 is moved by adjusting the adjusting screw 21 for horizontal aiming. It is tilted vertically about a virtual axis connecting it to the spring 23, and the irradiation angle is adjusted vertically.

Reference numeral 30 denotes an optical axis adjustment device for leveling adjustment of the headlamp unit 13. As shown in FIGS. A motor 31 as a driving section is fixed via a bracket 32. The output rod 33 of the motor 31 is configured to move forward and backward, and a spherical head 34 is integrally provided at its front end. On the other hand, a bearing 36 is attached to a mounting ring 29 attached to the retaining ring 17 on the side of the headlamp unit 13 via a bracket 35 in correspondence with the output rod 33.

The bearing 36 is integrally molded from a bracket material with excellent wear resistance, such as nylon 66, and is a cylindrical body with both ends open, with the center portion fitting into the mounting hole 38 provided in the bracket 35. A fitting portion 39 is configured. In this case, the outer diameter of the fitting part 39 is sufficiently smaller than the hole diameter of the mounting hole 38, so that it is inserted into the mounting hole 38 in a loosely fitted state, and the distance between the fitting part 39 and the mounting hole 38 is Idling gap G that allows some movement of the bearing 36
(Fig. 1).

Further, the fitting portion 3 is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the bearing 36.
A collar portion 40 and a pair of retaining pieces 41 are provided with 9 in between. The flange 40 has a larger outer diameter than the mounting hole 38 and is closely fitted to the back side of the bracket 35. The pair of retaining pieces 41 are surrounded by a U-shaped groove 44 formed on the circumferential surface of the bearing 36, so that they have an elastic tongue shape.
A chevron-shaped protrusion 41a that protrudes from the outer peripheral surface of the fitting portion 39 is integrally provided on its surface. Furthermore, slotted grooves 45 are formed on both left and right side surfaces of the bearing 36, one end of which opens into the rear end opening of the bearing 36, the other end of which extends to near the front end of the bearing 36, and which communicates the inner and outer peripheries. A spherical seat 47 is formed in the center of the interior, into which the spherical head 34 of the output rod 33 is press-fitted from the rear. During this press-fitting, the slotted groove 4
5 to open the opening on the rear end side of the bearing 36 and press fit the spherical head 34 therein.

Bearing 3 with such a configuration
6 is loosely fitted into the mounting hole 38, and is prevented from coming off by a washer 48. The washer 48 is made of plastic and has a cylindrical shape, and is attached to the fitting part 3.
It is fitted to the outer periphery of 9. The washer 48 has an outer diameter larger than the mounting hole 38 and an inner diameter larger than the fitting part 39.
The outer diameter of the retaining piece 41 is approximately equal to or slightly larger than the outside diameter of the retaining piece 41 , and when the retaining piece 41 is fitted, the retaining piece 41 is pressed to elastically deform it and sink into the U-shaped groove 44 . After fitting, the retaining piece 41 elastically returns to prevent the bearing 36 from coming off, thereby preventing the bearing 36 from coming off the mounting hole 38.

In this case, the bearing 36 is allowed to move freely in the up, down, left and right directions due to the free movement G due to the dimensional difference between the fitting portion 39 and the mounting hole 38.

A pair of left and right horizontal fulcrum shafts 50 (FIG. 4), which constitute rotational fulcrums during leveling adjustment, are disposed on the mounting ring 29 at lower positions on both sides of the back surface of the headlamp unit 13. Each fulcrum shaft 50
is provided horizontally, and a spherical head 51 integrally provided at the rear end is press-fitted into a spherical seat 53 of a bearing 52 attached to the mounting ring 25 so as to be relatively rotatable. This bearing 5
Unlike the bearing 36 described above, the bearing 2 is immovably fixed to the mounting ring 25.

In the optical axis adjustment device 30 having such a configuration, when the motor 31 is driven to move the output rod 33 forward and backward, the bracket 35 rotates in the front and rear directions. Therefore, the headlamp unit 13 also rotates around the virtual axis connecting the pair of fulcrum shafts 50.
It tilts forward and backward to adjust the irradiation angle upward or downward.

Here, the headlamp unit 13 is connected to the fulcrum shaft 50.
When the bearing 36 is rotated using the bearing 36 as a rotational fulcrum, the height position of the bearing 36 shifts, and in the past, the output rod 33 is twisted as described above, and it does not operate smoothly.
The output rod 3 is attached to the mounting hole 38 of the bracket 35 with a sufficient free movement gap G. Since it moves up and down with the rotation of the headlamp unit 13, the output rod 3
3. Guarantees smooth forward and backward movement without causing any trouble. Therefore, leveling adjustment can be performed reliably with a small driving force. Further, if no twisting occurs, the spherical seat 47 of the bearing 36 is less likely to wear out. Furthermore, bearing 36
The floating gap G between the headlamp and the mounting hole 38 absorbs assembly errors of the headlamp unit 13, variations in dimensions of the parts of the optical axis adjustment device 30, and the like.

[Effects of the invention] As explained above, according to the optical axis adjustment device for a headlamp device according to the invention, a bearing is provided on the headlamp unit side to which the output rod of the drive section is connected so as to be relatively tiltable. The bearing is loosely fitted into the mounting hole and has sufficient play, so when the headlight unit is tilted, the bearing will also move and prevent the output rod from becoming twisted or being subject to load. Furthermore, since the play absorbs assembly errors of the headlamp unit, variations in component dimensions, etc., the output rod can be moved forward and backward smoothly and reliably with a small driving force, improving the operability and durability of the device. can improve sex.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing an embodiment of the optical axis adjusting device according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the same device, and FIG.
The figure is a front view of an automobile headlight device equipped with the same device, FIG. 4 is a partial sectional view taken along the line - in FIG. 3, FIG. 5 is a plan view of the headlight device, and FIG. 6 is a conventional It is a side sectional view of an optical axis adjustment device. 1, 13... Headlight unit, 2, 12... Lamp housing, 4... Drive unit, 5... Output rod, 6... Connection rod, 25, 29... Mounting ring, 33... Output rod , 34... Spherical head, 36... Bearing, 38... Mounting hole, 39
... Fitting portion, 40 ... Flange portion, 41 ... Retaining piece, 48 ... Washer, G ... Floating gap.

Claims (1)

[Claims for Utility Model Registration] An output rod whose one end is connected to the headlamp unit via a bearing so as to be relatively tiltable is moved forward and backward by a drive mechanism to tilt the headlamp unit. In the optical axis adjustment device for a lighting device, the bearing is loosely fitted into a mounting hole provided in the headlamp unit and has a hole diameter larger than the outer diameter of the bearing, and the bearing is fitted into the mounting hole by a washer that fits on the outer periphery. An optical axis adjustment device for a headlamp device, characterized in that it is prevented from coming off.