JPH081924Y2 - Suspension device for vehicle steering wheel - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Industrial field of application) The present invention relates to a suspension device for suspending steering wheels of a vehicle on a vehicle body, and more particularly to a double wishbone type suspension device.

(Prior Art) This type of suspension device is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 59-96008, in which a steering knuckle rotatably supporting a steering wheel of a vehicle is mounted above and below the vehicle body at the upper and lower ends through which the kingpin axis passes. It is usual that the upper arm and the lower arm, which can be swung in the direction, are mounted so as to be steerable, and a suspension spring and a shock absorber are mounted between both ends of the lower arm and the vehicle body.

Then, in order to enable steering around the kingpin axis of the steering knuckle and steering wheel, the connection between the upper and lower ends of the steering knuckle and the tips of the upper arm and the lower arm is performed by the upper ball joint and the lower ball joint, respectively. .

(Problems to be solved by the invention) By the way, these ball joints have almost no function of absorbing the vertical vibration of the steering wheel, and the upper and lower ends of the steering knuckle are directly connected to the tips of the upper arm and the lower arm by ball joints. With the conventional structure,
Vertical high frequency micro-vibration that cannot be absorbed by the suspension spring is transmitted to the vehicle body and adversely affects the riding comfort of the vehicle.

Further, particularly when the upper end of the steering knuckle is extended upward along the suspension spring as described in the above-mentioned document, the upper end of the steering knuckle that rotates to follow the steering wheel steering does not interfere with the suspension spring during steering. It is necessary to place them apart from each other so that
The overall width of the engine room becomes narrow, making it difficult to install a horizontal engine.

(Means for Solving the Problems) In view of these problems, the present invention provides a king knuckle that supports a steering knuckle that rotatably supports a steering wheel of a vehicle through an upper arm and a lower arm that are vertically swingable with respect to a vehicle body. In a suspension device suspended on a vehicle body in a state capable of being steered about an axis, a lower end of a steering knuckle through which the kingpin axis passes is attached to a tip of the lower arm so that the steering can be performed and can be vertically swung. An extension is connected between the upper end of the steering knuckle through which the kingpin axis passes and the tip of the upper arm, and the upper end of the steering knuckle can be rotated at the lower end of the extension about the kingpin axis. The upper end of the extension on the kingpin axis. It is characterized in that it has linked to vertically swing the tip of the upper arm via a bush.

(Operation) During steering operation of the vehicle, the steering wheel and the steering knuckle are steered around the kingpin axis relative to the lower end of the extension and the tip of the lower arm, so that the vehicle can be steered. When the steering wheel is bound and rebounded, the lower arm can be swung in the vertical direction via the steering knuckle, and the upper arm can be swung in the vertical direction via the steering knuckle and the extension, thereby fulfilling a cushioning function.

By the way, the upper end of the steering knuckle and the tip of the upper arm are not directly connected, but an extension is interposed therebetween, and the upper end of the steering knuckle is connected to the lower end so that it can rotate around the kingpin axis, and the upper end is on the kingpin axis. Since it is swingably connected to the tip of the upper arm via the elastic bush, high-frequency micro-vibration from the steering wheel to the vehicle body can be blocked by the elastic bush, and road noise can be reduced. For the same reason, when the steered wheels are drive wheels, it is possible to prevent engine noise and gear noise from the engine and the transmission to the steered wheels from reaching the vehicle body. In addition,
Since the elastic bush is on the kingpin axis, no twisting moment is input even during steering, and if the soft bush is the soft one that achieves the above-mentioned action and effect, the horse will also change the camber or caster of the steering wheel. It does not affect the driving performance.

In addition, the elastic bush having the special arrangement described above can achieve the above-described high-frequency micro-vibration blocking effect without causing a change in wheel alignment during steering steering.

Furthermore, since the extension does not rotate following the steering of the steered wheels, even when the extension is extended upward along the suspension spring and the upper arm is arranged as high as possible on the vehicle body, the extension and the suspension spring should be close to each other. As a result, the overall width of the engine room can be increased, making it easier to install a horizontal engine.

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

1 and 2 show one embodiment of the suspension device of the present invention, in which reference numeral 1 denotes a steering wheel (front wheel) to be suspended on a vehicle body 2 by the device of the present invention. The steering wheel 1 is also a drive wheel driven by a drive axle 3 through a constant velocity universal joint 4, and is rotatably supported in a steering knuckle 6 by a bearing 5, and the steering knuckle 6 is steered. 1
At the same time, it is possible to steer around the kingpin axis line 7.

Therefore, a lower ball joint 8 is provided at the lower end through which the kingpin axis 7 of the steering knuckle 6 passes, and the tip of the lower arm 9 is attached to the ball stud. The base end of the lower arm 9 is attached to the vehicle body 2 so as to be vertically swingable,
A stabilizer rod 10 extending from the lower arm of the other steering wheel is attached between both ends of the lower arm 9. A kingpin 11 is planted at the upper end through which the kingpin axis 7 of the steering knuckle 6 passes, and is arranged coaxially with the kingpin axis 7. The lower end of the extension 13 is rotatably supported on the king pin 11 via the bearing 12 to extend the extension.
13 is extended upward along a shock absorber 14 and a suspension spring 15 mounted between the lower arm 9 and the vehicle body 2. Then, the upper end of the extension 13 is connected to the tip of the upper arm 17 on the kingpin axis 7 via an elastic bush 16 so as to be vertically swingable. The base end of the upper arm 17 is attached to a vehicle body bracket 19 via a well-known sliding bush 18 so as to be vertically swingable.

 The operation of the above embodiment will be described below.

The power from the drive axle 3 is transmitted to the steered wheels 1 via the constant velocity universal joint 4 and drives the steered wheels 1 to drive the vehicle. When the steering operation is performed during traveling, the steering knuckle 6 is steered around the kingpin axis 7 relative to the lower end of the extension 13 and the tip of the lower arm 9, and the vehicle can be steered.

When the steering wheel 1 bounces and rebounds, the lower arm 9 swings vertically through the steering knuckle 6 and the lower ball joint 8, and the upper arm 17 swings vertically through the steering knuckle 6, the extension 13 and the elastic bush 16. During this time, the suspension spring 15 performs a predetermined cushioning function and the shock absorber 14 performs a predetermined vibration damping function.

By the way, high-frequency micro-vibrations from the steering wheel 1 that cannot be absorbed by the suspension spring 15 are absorbed by the elasticity of the elastic bush 16 and are not transmitted to the vehicle body, and road noise, engine noise and gear noise from the axle 3 are not transmitted. It is possible to prevent reaching the vehicle body.

Even if the elastic bush 16 is soft as described above, it is on the kingpin axis line 7 where it is not twisted during steering,
There is no change in camber or change in casters of the steered wheels 1, and the steering performance is not adversely affected.

Furthermore, since the extension 13 does not rotate following the steering of the steered wheels 1, the extension 13 and the suspension spring are also extended in the illustrated configuration in which the extension 13 extends upward along the suspension spring 15.
The 15s can be brought close to each other as shown in FIG. 2, the entire width of the engine room can be increased, and the horizontal engine can be easily mounted.

When the upper arm 17 is arranged above as shown in the drawing, snow or the like that the steering wheel 1 bounces is accumulated on the upper arm 17 and interferes with the vehicle body 2 to prevent the upper arm 17 from swinging. The upper arm 17 may be deformed. In this case, as shown in FIG. 3, this can be dealt with by making the central upper surface portion between both ends of the upper arm 17 thin and convex as shown by the sectional shape of 17a.
That is, according to the shape of the upper arm 17, the accumulated snow or the like can be easily broken and dropped due to the impact of the bounding and rebounding of the steering wheel 1, and the above-mentioned concern can be eliminated.

The reason why the upper surface of the upper arm 17 between the both ends of the central portion is made thin and convex is that the bending moment applied to the area is small and it is advantageous in strength.
The remaining part of 17 has its upper surface kept flat as shown by the cross-sectional shape of 17b.

(Effect of the Invention) As described above, in the suspension device of the present invention, since the upper end of the steering knuckle 6 and the tip of the upper arm 17 are not directly connected to each other and the connection is made via the extension 13, the upper end of the extension 13 is provided. The tip of the upper arm 17 and the tip of the upper arm 17 are connected by a soft elastic bush 16 so that high-frequency micro-vibration from the steering wheel 1 can be absorbed here, and road noise and the like can be prevented from being transmitted to the vehicle body. Even if the elastic bush 16 is softened in consideration of the above-mentioned effects, it is on the kingpin axis line 7 which is not twisted at the time of turning, so that the camber change or the caster change of the steering wheel 1, that is, the adverse effect on the steering performance. The above-described effects can be produced without causing Further, the lower end of the extension 13 can be steerably connected to the upper end of the steering knuckle 6 so that the extension 13 does not rotate following the steering of the steering wheel 1, and the extension 13 and the suspension spring 15 are brought closer to each other. Thus, the width of the engine room can be widened so that the horizontal engine can be easily mounted.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway front view showing an embodiment of a suspension device of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line II-II of FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a preferable upper surface shape of an upper arm. . 1 ... Steering wheel, 3 ... Drive axle, 4 ... Constant velocity universal joint, 6 ... Steering knuckle, 7 ... King pin axis, 8 ... Lower ball joint, 9 ... Lower arm, 11 ... King pin, 13 ... Extension 14 …… Shock absorber 15 …… Suspension spring 16 …… Elastic bush, 17 …… Upper arm 18 …… Slip bush

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] 1. A suspension device for suspending a steering knuckle rotatably supporting a steering wheel of a vehicle on a vehicle body through an upper arm and a lower arm which are vertically swingable with respect to the vehicle body so as to be steerable around a kingpin axis. In the above, the lower end of the steering knuckle through which the kingpin axis passes is connected to the tip of the lower arm such that the steering is possible and can swing in the vertical direction, and the upper end of the steering knuckle through which the kingpin axis passes, An extension is interposed between the tip of the upper arm and the lower end of the extension is connected to the upper end of the steering knuckle so as to be rotatable around the kingpin axis, and the upper end of the extension is provided with an elastic bush on the kingpin axis. Oscillate vertically on the tip of the upper arm. A vehicle steering wheel suspension device characterized by being movably connected.