JPH0585120A - Vehicle suspension device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a suspension device of a vehicle where a connecting part will not come off a supporting surface of a wheel supporting member and the fabricability is improved when, one of two arm members composing an upper arm, which extends approximately in the longitudinal direction is connected to the wheel supporting member. CONSTITUTION:An upper arm 4 consists of the first upper arm 10 which is arranged below the upper end of a rim of a wheel 2 and extends approximately in the width direction of a vehicle, and the second upper arm 11 which is arranged above the first upper arm 10 and extends approximately in the longitudinal direction. The outer end part of the first upper arm 10 is connected to a knuckle arm 19 through a pivotably fixing member 30 which is prefabricated into a through hole 19h in the vertical direction formed in the knuckle arm 19.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vehicle suspension device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a suspension device for a vehicle, a suspension arm which swingably supports a wheel supporting member with respect to a vehicle body is constituted by a lower arm and an upper arm, and is generally well known. By providing the upper arm as described above, various advantages such as suppressing the camber change of the wheel and eliminating the bending force to the shock absorber can be obtained.

By the way, how to set the disposition of the upper arm has a great influence on steering stability, riding comfort, brake judder and the like. That is,
In order to enhance the steering stability, it is desirable to arrange the upper arm so that it extends in the vehicle width direction as much as possible so that it can sufficiently receive the lateral force input from the wheels, while improving riding comfort and braking. In order to prevent judder, it is advantageous to arrange the upper arm so as to extend in the front-rear direction of the vehicle body so that the external force input from the front-rear direction of the vehicle body can be effectively received. In this way, there are different requirements for the layout of the upper arm between those that improve steering stability and those that can improve riding comfort and prevent brake judder. Satisfaction is important.

Regarding this problem, for example, JP-A-58-6
In Japanese Patent No. 7508, it is proposed that the upper arm be composed of two arm members having different extending directions. By arranging the upper arm with two arm members and making the extension directions of the two arms different from each other, one arm member is arranged so as to extend substantially in the vehicle width direction and the other arm member is arranged so as to extend substantially in the vehicle body front-rear direction. Will be possible. Further, in laying out the two arm members, in order to satisfy the above requirements sufficiently and avoid interference with other members located around the suspension arm and interference between the suspension arms, It is considered that the arm member extending substantially in the vehicle width direction is arranged inside the tire circle of the wheel (that is, below the rim upper end of the wheel), while the arm member extending substantially in the vehicle body front-rear direction is arranged above this. There is.

[0005]

By the way, when the two arm members constituting the upper arm are arranged in different vertical positions as described above, the outside of the lower arm member extending substantially in the width direction of the vehicle. There is a problem that the assembling work at the time of connecting the end portion to the wheel supporting member becomes difficult. That is, since a large number of components of the suspension device, such as the lower part of the shock absorber and other link members, are arranged below the upper end of the rim of the wheel, originally there is insufficient space and the arm pivot member does not have enough space. It is quite difficult to secure a sufficient working space for attaching the screws and tightening the screw members. However, if the wheel support member is provided with a mounting portion that extends in the front-rear direction of the vehicle body so that the connecting portion between the outer end portion of the arm member and the wheel support member is disengaged from the support surface of the wheel support member, Although the assembly work can be performed relatively easily, it is considered that when lateral force acts on the wheels, a rotational moment acts on the wheel support members, which adversely affects the alignment of the wheels. ..

When the outer end of the arm member is connected to the wheel support member, a bolt insertion hole is formed in the wheel support member, while a pivotally mounted member is attached to the outer end of the arm member to attach the bolt. Fixing the pivot member to the wheel support member by tightening the member is conventionally
It is common. However, in this case, since the arm member has a pivotally attached member attached to the outer end portion to increase the weight thereof, the arm member becomes difficult to handle, and the assembling workability further deteriorates.

Therefore, according to the present invention, of the two arm members constituting the upper arm, when connecting the arm member extending substantially in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body to the wheel supporting member, the connecting portion is disengaged from the support surface of the wheel supporting member. The present invention has been made for the purpose of providing a suspension device for a vehicle that does not have to be mounted and can improve the workability of assembly.

[0008]

Therefore, the present invention has two advantages.
In a vehicle suspension device having an upper arm composed of a book link member, the upper arm comprises:
The first upper arm is disposed below the rim upper end of the wheel and extends substantially in the vehicle width direction, and the second upper arm is disposed above the first upper arm and extends substantially in the vehicle front-rear direction. The outer end portion of the upper arm is supported by a pivot member mounted in a vertical through hole formed in the wheel support member.

[0009]

According to the present invention, since the outer end portion of the first upper arm is supported by the pivot member mounted in the vertical through hole formed in the wheel supporting member, the outer portion of the first upper arm is not supported. When assembling the end portion to the wheel support member, the pivotal attachment member is previously attached to the wheel support member side, so that the first upper arm can be made smaller than in the case where the end portion is attached to the first upper arm side in the related art. It is light in weight, easy to handle, and easy to assemble. Also, since the pivot member is assembled in the vertical through hole formed in the wheel support member, the outer end portion of the first upper arm should be connected to the wheel support member within its support surface. Therefore, when a lateral force acts on the wheel, it is possible to effectively prevent the rotational moment from acting on the wheel supporting member.

[0010]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a front view showing a front suspension device for a vehicle according to the present embodiment as seen from the rear of the vehicle body, for example, for the right front wheel, and FIG. 2 is a plan view of the front suspension device. In addition, the same suspension device 1 is equipped on the left front wheel side,
The left and right suspension devices 1 have the same configuration and perform the same operation except that the right and left suspension devices are reversed. Therefore, the right front wheel suspension device 1 will be described below.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the suspension device 1 supports a knuckle arm 19 as a wheel supporting member for rotatably supporting the wheel 2 so as to be swingable with respect to the vehicle body. As a suspension arm,
It comprises a lower arm 3 and an upper arm 4 arranged above the lower arm 3. The lower arm 3 is
More preferably, as can be seen from FIG. 2, it is composed of first and second lower arms 5 and 6, and the first lower arm 5 extends substantially in the vehicle width direction, and the second lower arm
The lower arm 6 is arranged on the front side of the vehicle body with respect to the first lower arm 5 so as to be inclined toward the rear side of the vehicle body as it extends outward in the vehicle width direction.

The inner end of the first lower arm 5 is rotatably attached to a cross member 7 integrally attached to the vehicle body via a bush 8, and the inner end of the second lower arm 6 is The cross member 7 is rotatably attached to the cross member 7 via a bush 9 on the front side of the vehicle body with respect to the inner end of the first lower arm 5. On the other hand, the outer end portion of the second lower arm 6 is connected to a substantially middle portion of the first lower arm 5 in the longitudinal direction via a bush. This makes the first
Both the lower arm 5 and the second lower arm 6 can be swung in the vertical direction about the bushes 8 and 9, respectively.

In the present embodiment, the upper arm 4 comprises a first upper arm 10 and a second upper arm 11. The first upper arm 10 is arranged below the rim upper end of the wheel 2 and above the first lower arm 5 so as to extend substantially in the vehicle width direction, and the substantially middle portion in the longitudinal direction thereof is In order to arrange the damper 12 (the imaginary line in FIG. 2 shows the lower end portion arrangement position of the damper 12) which should be interposed between the first lower arm 5 and the vehicle body toward the rear of the vehicle body without interfering with each other. It is formed in a curved shape so as to be convex.

The inner end of the first upper arm 10 is more preferably attached to the cross member 7 via a pillow ball 13. This pillow ball 13
As is well known in the art, for example, as shown in detail in FIG. 3, the outer cylinder 14 fitted to the inner end portion of the first upper arm 10 and the outer cylinder 14 are coaxially arranged. An inner cylinder 15 provided, an annular elastic body 16 disposed between the two cylinders 14, 15, and a support shaft 17 supported in the inner cylinder 15 and attached to the cross member 7 are provided. As a result, the first upper arm 10 is not restricted from being displaced in the vehicle width direction, but can be swung in the vertical direction about the pillow ball 13 as well as in the vehicle longitudinal direction.
It can be easily swung (in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 3). As described above, the first upper arm 10 is attached to the vehicle body through the pillow ball 13 so that the first upper arm 10 is moved to the second upper arm 1.
Since the first upper arm 10 can easily swing in the arm longitudinal direction of the first arm (that is, the front-rear direction of the vehicle body), the first upper arm 10 can move the second upper arm 11 that requires a relatively large movement in order to improve riding comfort. As a result, the steering stability is improved, the riding comfort is improved, and the brake judder is prevented. The outer end portion of the first upper arm 10 is connected to a substantially horizontal portion in the middle of the knuckle arm 19 via a pivot member 30, as will be described later in detail.

As can be seen clearly from FIG. 2, the second upper arm 11 is arranged so as to extend substantially in the front-rear direction of the vehicle body, and its arrangement position is on the rear side of the vehicle body with respect to the first upper arm 10. The first upper arm 10
It is set to a higher position than. Further, the second upper arm 11 has one end portion (the left end portion in FIG. 2) located above the outer end portion side of the first upper arm 10 while the other end portion (the right end portion in FIG. 2) does not. The second upper arm 11 is positioned at a position relatively far behind the first upper arm 10 on the vehicle body rear side, and the other end of the second upper arm 11 is supported on the vehicle body side (for example, a dash panel) via a normal elastic bush 18. Has been done. As a result, the second upper arm 11 can swing up and down about the elastic bush 18.

Between the lower arm 3 and the upper arm 4 and the front wheel 2, the knuckle arm 19 as a wheel supporting member is arranged so as to extend in a substantially vertical direction, as can be seen from FIG. This knuckle arm 1
9 is connected to the outer end portion of the first lower arm 5, the outer end portion of the first upper arm 10 and the one end portion of the second upper arm 11 through pivot members in order from the lower side to the upper side. The knuckle arm 1
9 is supported rotatably about an axis extending substantially vertically, which is obtained by sequentially connecting the connection points of the three arm members 5, 10 and 11.

The upper end of the knuckle arm 19 is
It is located above the upper end of the rim of the wheel 2, and
One end of the upper arm 11 has the knuckle arm 19
Is connected to the upper end of the. Further, the second upper arm 11 is more preferably arranged so that the rear side of the vehicle body is slightly inclined toward the lower side of the vehicle body, so that so-called nose dive during vehicle braking can be alleviated. There is. Further, a hub (not shown) is rotatably supported on the knuckle arm 19, and the front wheel 2 is fixed to the hub. In this way, the suspension device 1 is configured as a multi-link type. 1 and 2, 20 is a tie rod connected to a connecting portion 21 extending from the knuckle arm 19, and 22 is a stabilizer.

In the suspension device 1 constructed as described above, the vehicle body is protected from the impact from the road surface as usual, and the first upper arm 10 is arranged so as to extend substantially in the vehicle width direction. Established, and the first
Since the inner end of the upper arm 10 is attached to the cross member 7 via the pillow ball 13 and the displacement of the first upper arm 10 in the vehicle width direction is restricted, the lateral force input to the front wheel 2 is not affected. The first upper arm 10 can sufficiently receive the first upper arm 10 and the steering stability can be improved.

Since the second upper arm 11 is arranged so as to extend substantially in the front-rear direction of the vehicle body,
The upper arm 11 can sufficiently receive an external force input from the front-rear direction of the vehicle body, improve riding comfort and prevent brake judder. Further, in the present embodiment, the second upper arm 11
Is set higher than the height position of the first upper arm 10, the moment length from the ground contact point of the front wheel 2 to the second upper arm 11 becomes long, and the front wheel 2
Even when an external force is input in the vehicle front-rear direction, the force acting on the second upper arm 11 becomes small. Therefore, it is even more preferable in terms of improving riding comfort and preventing brake judder.

Further, in consideration of further improvement in riding comfort, the second upper arm 11 is made to have the elastic bush 1.
Although it is desirable that the first upper arm 10 is relatively easily moved in the front-rear direction of the vehicle based on No. 8 (the bush 18 is set to be relatively easily bent), the inner end portion of the first upper arm 10 is connected to the cross member 7 via the pillow ball 13. Since the first upper arm 10 can be easily rocked about the pillow ball 13 in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body, the movement of the second upper arm 11 is not obstructed, and It is possible to further improve the riding comfort and prevent the brake judder without particularly sacrificing the improvement in steering stability.

By the way, in this embodiment, when the outer end portion of the first upper arm 10 is assembled to the knuckle arm 19, the pivot member 31 is attached to the side of the knuckle arm 19 in advance, and the pivot member 31 is attached to the pivot member 31. The outer end of the first upper arm 11 is assembled. That is, as shown in detail in FIG. 4, the knuckle arm 19
A vertical through hole 19h is formed in a substantially horizontal portion in the middle of the through hole 19h.
1 is assembled in advance.

The pivot member 31 includes a case composed of a flat plate-shaped substrate 32 and a cylindrical tube portion 32, and a shaft member 33 having a ball portion 33a at one end.
A bush 35 having a spherical receiving seat is disposed therein, and the ball portion 33a of the shaft member 33 is disposed in the cylindrical portion 32.
It is configured by inserting the side and disposing a collar 36 having a spherical receiving seat on the lower side of the ball portion 33a, and then locking the lower surface side of the collar 36 with a retaining ring 37. The pivot member 30 is fixed to the knuckle arm 19 side by press-fitting the case tube portion 32 into the through hole 19h.
In order to prevent muddy water, dust, foreign matter, etc. from entering the pivot member 30 between the outer peripheral portion of the case tubular portion 32 and the middle portion of the shaft member 33, for example, a rubber member is used. The dust seal 38 is attached.

On the other hand, at the outer end portion of the first upper arm 10, an elastic body 44 such as rubber is provided between the inner cylinder 42 and the outer cylinder 43.
A conventionally known elastic bush 41, in which the above-mentioned elements are arranged, is mounted, and when the outer end portion of the first upper arm 10 is assembled to the pivot member 30, the inner cylinder 4 of the elastic bush 41 is mounted.
2 is fitted to the outer peripheral portion of the shaft member 33, and then the nut 39 is tightened from the lower surface side to perform the assembling work.

As described above, according to this embodiment, since the pivot member 30 is assembled in advance on the knuckle arm 19 side, the first upper arm 10 is light and easy to handle, and the assembling workability. Is improved. Further, since the outer end portion of the first upper arm 10 is connected to the pivot member 30 assembled in the through hole 19a formed in the knuckle arm 19 itself, it does not come off from the support surface of the knuckle arm 19 and Since they are connected within the support surface, it is possible to prevent a rotational moment from acting on the knuckle arm 19 when a lateral force acts on the wheel 2. Furthermore, since the inside of the pivot member 30 is covered with the dust seal 38, the entry of dust, foreign matter, etc. can be prevented, and the problem of rust due to the entry of water can be solved. Further, the pivot member 30 is the knuckle arm 1
Since it is press-fitted into the through hole 19h of 9, the strength of the knuckle arm 19 can be improved by providing the through hole 19h, as in the conventional case where the through hole is provided to insert the bolt.
There is no reduction in rigidity.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view of a suspension device for a right front wheel of a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the suspension device.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged vertical cross-sectional explanatory view showing a pillow ball for mounting the first upper arm of the suspension device.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory longitudinal sectional view showing an assembly structure of an outer end portion of the first upper arm.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Suspension device 2 ... Wheel 3 ... Lower arm 4 ... Upper arm 10 ... 1st upper arm 11 ... 2nd upper arm 19 ... Knuckle arm 19h ... Through hole 30 ... Pivoting member

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A suspension device for a vehicle having an upper arm composed of two link members, wherein the upper arm includes a first upper arm which is disposed below an upper end of a rim of a wheel and extends substantially in a vehicle width direction. First
The second upper arm is disposed above the upper arm and extends substantially in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body. The outer end portion of the first upper arm is pivotally attached to a vertical through hole formed in the wheel supporting member. A suspension device for a vehicle, which is supported by a member.