JPH088941Y2 - Lifting lock release mechanism for tilt steering - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial field of application] The present invention relates to a tilt steering of a vehicle, and more particularly to a tilt steering including a mechanism (tilt away mechanism) for flipping a steering wheel upward and retracting it to a maximum tilt position. The present invention relates to a jump lock releasing mechanism applicable to.

[Conventional technology]

A tilt steering provided with a mechanism for flipping a steering wheel upward and retracting it to a maximum tilt position is proposed in, for example, Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 58-20965. Therefore, in the tilt steering proposed in this publication, a lock mechanism for fixing the steering wheel retracted to the maximum tilt position in such a manner that the steering wheel cannot be tilted at that position (that is, a jump lock release mechanism). Not prepared.

[Problems to be solved by the device]

Therefore, in the above-described conventional device, when the steering wheel retracted to the maximum tilt position is inadvertently tilted downward, the steering wheel returns to its original state, and therefore the steering wheel is used when getting on and off. However, the effect of putting the steering wheel in the retracted state is halved.

In view of such circumstances, the applicant of the present application is
In the application, we proposed a jump lock releasing mechanism that locks the steering wheel retracted to the maximum tilt position so that it cannot be tilted at that position.

Therefore, the jump lock releasing mechanism proposed in Japanese Patent Application No. Sho 63-19106 is engaged with the lock pin when the steering wheel is retracted to the maximum tilt position by being biased in the engaging direction by the lock spring. A lock plate that locks the wheel so that it cannot be tilted at the maximum tilt position and a release lever that is rotated by a release operation to directly rotate the lock plate to release the engagement with the lock pin are the main constituent members. When a person puts his / her hand or weight on the steering wheel during the release operation of the lock, a large frictional force is generated in the engagement part between the lock members such as the lock plate and the lock pin, and a small release operation force releases the lock. I can't. If the lock is forcibly released with a large release actuation force, the lock is released abruptly and the steering wheel tilts down, resulting in a bad feeling. There is a problem such as.

The present invention has been made to deal with such a problem, and enables the release lever to be released with a small release operation force in any state (for example, a state in which a person holds his or her weight on the steering wheel). It is an object of the present invention to provide a jump steering lock releasing mechanism for a tilt steering, which is capable of releasing the lock when the frictional force generated in the engaging portion between the lock members is smaller than a predetermined value.

[Means for solving the problem]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, in the present invention,
For tilt steering that has a mechanism that flips the steering wheel upwards and retracts it to the maximum tilt position,
A second lock member that is biased by the lock spring in the engaging direction and engages with the first lock member when the steering wheel retracts to the maximum tilt position to fix the steering wheel at the maximum tilt position so that the steering wheel cannot be tilted. A state in which the frictional force generated at the engaging portion of the first lock member and the second lock member, which is provided and is interposed between the release lever rotated by the release operation and the second lock member, exceeds a predetermined value. Then, when the release lever is released, the spring is elastically deformed to store a spring force larger than the spring force of the lock spring, and the frictional force generated in the engaging portion between the first lock member and the second lock member is equal to or less than a predetermined value. In this state, when the release lever is released, the second lock member is moved against the lock spring to release the engagement with the first lock member. The release spring provided that, to constitute a tilt steering of the lift-up lock release mechanism.

[Action]

In the tilt-locking-up unlocking mechanism according to the present invention, when the steering wheel tilts to its maximum tilt position, the second lock member automatically engages with the first lock member by the action of the lock spring to lock the steering wheel. It is fixed so that it cannot be tilted at the maximum tilt position.

Further, when the release lever is operated to be released in such a state (the flip-up lock state), the friction generated in the engaging portion between the first lock member and the second lock member due to a person's hand or weight on the steering wheel. When the force is large and exceeds the predetermined value, the release spring elastically deforms by the release operation of the release lever and stores a spring force larger than the spring force of the lock spring. When the second lock member cannot be released and the release lever is held in the released state, the release spring is held in an elastically deformed state (a state in which a spring force larger than the spring force of the lock spring is stored). .

By the way, if the hand and weight are removed from the steering wheel in this holding state and the frictional force generated in the engaging portion between the first lock member and the second lock member becomes a small value below a predetermined value, the spring force of the release spring is increased. As a result, the second lock member is released to resist the spring force of the lock spring, and the engagement with the first lock member is released. Therefore, thereafter, the steering wheel at the maximum tilt position can be tilted downward.

On the other hand, when the release lever is operated to be released in the above-described flip-up lock state, a frictional force generated in the engaging portion between the first lock member and the second lock member without a person's hand or weight on the steering wheel is generated. If the value is smaller than the predetermined value, the release spring is elastically deformed by the release operation of the release lever, and the spring force causes the second lock member to release against the spring force of the lock spring and the first lock member. Disengage the. Therefore, thereafter, the steering wheel at the maximum tilt position can be tilted downward.

[Effect of device]

In the jump steering lock releasing mechanism of the tilt steering according to the present invention, when the second lock member is engaged with the first lock member (the flip-up lock state) as described above, the first lock member and the second lock member are locked. In any state of engagement of the members, the release lever is allowed to release by the elastic deformation of the release spring, and a person puts his / her hand or weight on the steering wheel. Even when the frictional force generated in the engaging portion of the lock member is large and exceeds the predetermined value, the release lever can be released with a small release actuating force.

Further, in the above-mentioned flip-up lock state, a person puts his / her hand or weight on the steering wheel, and the frictional force generated at the engaging portion between the first lock member and the second lock member is large and exceeds a predetermined value. In this case, when the release lever is released and held, the release spring is elastically deformed and the spring force is stored and kept higher than the spring force of the lock spring. The second lock member is prevented from being disengaged from the first lock member until the weight is removed and the frictional force generated between the lock members becomes a small value equal to or smaller than a predetermined value. It is not released, and the steering wheel does not tilt down unexpectedly and the feeling is not impaired.

〔Example〕

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

1 to 3 show a tilt steering for a vehicle equipped with a jump lock releasing mechanism and a tilt angle adjusting device according to the present invention. In this tilt steering, a lower bracket 11 is fixed to an upper end of a column tube 10. The upper bracket 13 is attached to the lower bracket 11 via the support shafts 12A and 12B so as to be tiltable in the vertical direction.
An upper shaft 15 integrally provided with a steering wheel 14 at the upper end is rotatably assembled to the upper bracket 13, and the upper shaft 15 has its lower end freely attached to the upper end of a main shaft (not shown). They are connected via a joint (not shown). The universal joint is a support shaft
12A and 12B are arranged coaxially and the column tube 10
The upper bracket 13, the steering wheel 14, and the upper shaft 15 are tiltable in the vertical direction with respect to the lower bracket 11.

In addition to the above brackets 11 and 13, the tilt angle adjusting device is interposed between the brackets 11 and 13 so that the steering wheel 14 is at the maximum tilt position shown by the phantom line in FIGS. 1 and 3. Compression coil spring S1 that urges to move
And a pair of left and right ratchets 17, 1 for allowing or preventing tilting of the upper bracket 13 with respect to the lower bracket 11.
Eight, poles 20 and 21 and cam plates 22 and 23 are provided.
The ratchets 17 and 18 are integrally formed on the left and right sides of the lower bracket 11, respectively, and have arcuate tooth portions centering on the support shafts 12A and 12B.

Each of the pawls 20 and 21 is rotatably assembled to the upper bracket 13 using a bolt 19A and a nut 19B, and has tooth portions 20a and 21a that mesh with the ratchets 17 and 18, respectively. Pins 20b and 21b are fixed to the poles 20 and 21, respectively.

The cam plates 22 and 23 are assembled to the upper bracket 13 using the connecting shaft 24, and
Are rotatably connected together via. The cam plate 22 on one side is the pin of the pole 20 as shown in FIG.
A large-diameter portion of 20b is fitted and has a cam elongated hole 22a constituting cam means for rotating the pole 20 with the pin 20b, and a stopper 25 is provided on the outer side. The stopper 25 has a pin 25a penetrating a through hole (not shown) provided in the cam plate 22, is fitted to the connecting shaft 24 so as to be rotatable integrally, and has a tension coil spring S2.
It is biased counterclockwise in FIG. 3 by (see FIG. 2). The stopper 25 comes into contact with the back surface of the pole 20 when the pole 20 and the ratchet 17 are meshed with each other, and the stopper 20 and the ratchet 17 are in contact with each other.
Has a function of holding the engagement of the cam plate 22 and is disengaged from the rear surface of the pole 20 in the initial stage of the clockwise rotation of the cam plate 22 shown in FIG.

The other cam plate 23, as shown in FIG.
The pin 21b of the pole 21 is fitted and the pole 21
It has a cam elongated hole 23a which constitutes a cam means for rotating the, and a stopper 26 is provided on the outside. Stopper
Reference numeral 26 has a pin 26a protruding outward, is fitted to the connecting shaft 24 so as to be rotatable integrally, and is urged clockwise by a tension coil spring S3 (lock spring) in FIG. The stopper 26 comes into contact with the back surface of the pole 21 when the pole 21 and the ratchet 18 are meshed with each other.
It has a function of holding the engagement between the ratchet 18 and the ratchet 18 and can be disengaged from the back surface of the pole 21 at the initial stage of the counterclockwise rotation of the cam plate 23 shown in FIG.

The cam slot 22a of the cam plate 22 and the cam plate 2
The cam long hole 23a of 3 is composed of an arc portion centering on the connecting shaft 24 and an arc portion approaching the connecting shaft 24.

Thus, in this embodiment, the right side, that is, the third
On the side shown in the figure, the first for controlling the rotation of the pole 20
The memory plate 31 and the second memory plate 32 are assembled. The first memory plate 31 is assembled on the right side of the lower bracket 11 using a pair of stopper pins 33 and 34, and has an arc-shaped adjusting tooth portion 3 centered on the support shaft 12A.
Have 1a. The second memory plate 32 is attached to the support shaft 12A through the oval mounting hole 32a so as to be rotatable and movable in the radial direction, and selectively with one of the adjusting tooth portions 31a of the first memory plate 31. Engaging locking claw 32b and pole 20
It has a T-shaped cam elongated hole 32c into which the outer small diameter portion of the pin 20b fixed to the above is fitted, and the locking claw 32b is biased by the tension coil spring S4 so as to engage with the adjusting tooth portion 31a. ing. The cam long hole 32c and the pin 20b of the pole 20 form a second
The cam means of the ratchet 17 and the pole are formed in an arc shape centering around the rotation center of the pole 20.
A first region 32c1 which allows the meshing and disengagement of 20 and a second region 32c2 which is continuously formed in the shape of an arc around the support shaft 12A and which maintains the disengaged state of the ratchet 17 and the pole 20.
And a third plate for continuously fixing the pole 20 and the second memory plate 32 to the cam plate 22 which is continuously formed in the first region 32c1 and which is in the rotating state by releasing the engagement between the adjusting tooth portion 31a and the locking claw 32b. It is constituted by the area 32c3.

Further, in this embodiment, the release lever 41 is coaxially assembled with the cam plate 23 and the stopper 26 on the left side, that is, the side shown in FIG.
42 and a lock pin 43 are rotatably attached to the lower bracket 11, and the release lever 41 and the lock pin 43 are connected to each other via a link 46 having a release pin 44 and a release spring 45 attached to the tip thereof. .

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the release lever 41 has a pin 41a protruding outward and a pin 41b protruding inward, and is rotatably fitted to the connecting shaft 24. When rotating counterclockwise in FIG. 1, the cam plate 23 is rotated by engaging with the cam plate 23 by the pin 41a. Further, the release lever 41 is configured to be rotated by a pin 41b by an electric drive means (not shown) including an electric motor, a speed reducer, a screw feed mechanism, or the like, or by hand.

The lock plate 42 has a lower end or lock pin 43.
Has an engaging step portion 42a at a portion corresponding to
Is rotatably fitted to the bolt 19A and the connecting shaft 24.
And is integrally fixed to the upper bracket 13 so as to be tilted integrally with the upper bracket 13.

The lock pin 43 has a substantially semicircular recess 43a in the rotating shaft portion, and is slidably fitted into the elongated hole 46a of the link 46 by a pin 43b provided at the upper end and protruding inward. Further, the lock spring S3 is urged in the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 1, and in the illustrated state, the engagement step portion 42a can pass through the recess 43a.

The release pin 44, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 4,
It is slidably attached to the pin guide 46b fixed to the tip of the link 46, and the lock pin is locked by the release spring 45.
It is urged toward the pin 43b of 43 and positioned at the position shown by the stopper 44a.

The release spring 45 is a compression coil spring interposed between the tip of the link 46 and the neck portion of the release pin 44, and has a spring force larger than the spring force of the lock spring S3 during compression elastic deformation (see FIG. 8). It is designed to store.

The link 46 is arranged in the front-rear direction inside the lock plate 42, and has a pin 41 of the release lever 42 at the rear end.
It is rotatably connected to the tip of a.

In this embodiment constructed as described above, the tension lever springs S2 and S3 are provided with the release lever 41 rotated by the electric drive means or by the hand in the state shown in FIG.
If the cam plate 22 and the stopper 25 are in the position shown in FIG. 3 (original position) and the cam plate 23 and the stopper 26 are in the position shown in FIG. 1 (original position), the cam plate 22 will move through the pin 20b. The pole 20 is held at the position shown in FIG. 3, the tooth portion 20a of the pole 20 and the ratchet 17 are held in mesh with each other, and the cam plate 23 holds the pin 20a.
The pole 21 is held at the position shown in FIG. 1 via 21b, and the tooth portion 21a of the pole 21 and the ratchet 18 are also held in a meshed state. The teeth 20a, 21a of each pole 20, 21 and each ratchet
The engagement state of 17, 18 is surely held by the stoppers 25, 26. Therefore, the upper bracket 13 is securely fixed to the lower bracket 11, and the steering wheel is
14 etc. are fixedly held in place.

Then, as described above, the steering wheel
When the release lever 41 is rotated counterclockwise in FIG. 1 to the first set position by electric drive means or by hand in a state where the 14 and the like are fixedly held in a predetermined position (original state), the release lever 41 1, the cam plate 23 is rotated a predetermined amount in the counterclockwise direction to rotate the connecting shaft 24 in the same direction, and the stopper 26, the cam plate 22 and the stopper 25 are connected against the springs S2 and S3. Rotate integrally with the shaft 24.

Therefore, on the side of the cam plate 22, as shown in FIG. 5, the pole 20 is rotated clockwise by the cam plate 22 via the pin 20b, and the tooth portion 20a of the pole 20 is rotated.
Is disengaged from ratchet 17 and dissociated,
On the side of the cam plate 23, the pin 21 is
The pole 21 is rotated counterclockwise in FIG. 1 via b, the tooth portion 21a of the pole 21 is disengaged from the ratchet 18 and disengaged, and as shown in FIG. Hole 32c
The first region 32c1 can be moved to the second region 32c2, and the steering wheel 14 and the like are tilted toward the maximum tilt position by the spring S1 (so-called tilt away). Since the second memory plate 32 is not moved by the pin 20b during the above operation, the second memory plate 32 is held in the state shown in FIG. 5 by the spring S4.

Thus, when the steering wheel 14 or the like tilts to its maximum tilt position, the pin 20a moves upward in the second region 32c2 of the cam long hole 32c on the cam plate 22 side as shown in FIG. On the plate 23 side, as shown in FIG. 7 (pin 21b and cam plate 23 are omitted), the lock pin 43 is the lock spring.
Engaged step portion of the lock plate 42 that is pulled and rotated by S3
42a can be engaged, and the downward rotation of upper bracket 13 and the like against spring S1 is prevented. Therefore,
The steering wheel 14 and the like are fixed so that they cannot be tilted at the maximum tilt position.

In addition, when returning the steering wheel 14 that is retracted to the maximum tilt position and fixed as described above to the original state, first, while the person is not putting hands or weight on the steering wheel 14, first use the electric motor. The release lever 41 is rotated clockwise in FIG.
46 to the rear to release pin 44 and release spring 45.
The lock pin 43 is rotated clockwise in the figure against the lock spring S3 via the
In a state where it does not engage with the engagement step portion 42a of 42 (the state of FIG. 9), the steering wheel 14 is tilted downward toward its original state, and then the release lever 41 is moved to the position shown by the solid line in FIG. Pin 20a on the cam plate 22 side, the cam long hole 3
The cam plate 22 and the stopper 25 are returned to the state shown in FIG. 3 by the action of the springs S2 and S3 as the second region 32c2 moves from the second region 32c2 to the first region 32c1 by being guided by the pole 20.
The tooth portion 20a of the pole meshes with the ratchet 17, and the cam plate 23 and the stopper 26 return to the state of FIG.
The tooth portion 21a of the gear meshes with the ratchet 18, and the steering wheel 14 returns to the original state before the retreat and is fixed.

By the way, when the steering wheel 14 is returned to the original position, the steering wheel 14 is touched by a person with his / her hand or weight on the engagement step portion 42a of the lock plate 42 and the contact engagement portion of the lock pin 43. When the generated frictional force is large and exceeds a predetermined value, the release spring 45 is elastically deformed as shown in FIG. 8 when the release lever 41 is rotated clockwise by the electric drive means or by the hand as shown in FIG. Although a spring force larger than the spring force of S3 is stored, the lock pin 43 cannot be rotated by the spring force of the release spring 45 due to the above large friction force,
When the release lever 41 is held in a rotated state, the release spring 45 is held in an elastically deformed state (a state in which a spring force larger than the spring force of the lock spring S3 is stored).

Therefore, in this holding state, the steering wheel
The hands and weight are removed from 14 and the engagement step 42a and the lock pin 4
When the frictional force generated in the contact engagement portion of 3 becomes a small value equal to or less than a predetermined value, the lock pin is caused by the spring force of the release spring 45 (which is larger than the spring force of the lock spring S3 in the state of FIG. 8). 43 is rotated via the release pin 44 against the spring force of the lock spring S3, and the engagement with the engagement step portion 42a of the lock plate 42 is released as shown in FIG. Therefore, thereafter, the steering wheel 14 at the maximum tilt position can be tilted downward.

On the other hand, when it is desired to adjust the tilt angle of the steering wheel 14 which is fixed at a predetermined position, first, with the steering wheel 14 held at the position before the adjustment, the release lever 41 is first moved by the electric drive means or the hand. When the rotary operation is performed counterclockwise in the figure to the second set position (the rotation amount is larger than the first set position), the tooth portion of the pole 21 on the cam plate 23 side is similar to the above-described tilt away time.
21a is disengaged from the ratchet 18 and disengaged, and as shown in FIG. 10 on the cam plate 22 side, the pole 20 is moved in the same manner as the tilt-away operation described above.
Tooth portion 20a of the ratchet 17 is disengaged and disengaged,
Also, the pin 20b moves to the third region 32c3, the second memory plate 32 is pulled against the spring S4, the locking claw 32b is disengaged from the adjusting tooth portion 31a, and the cam plate 22 is in a rotating state. On the other hand, the pole 20 and the second memory plate 32 are fixed.

Therefore, in such a state, the steering wheel
When the 14 is tilted to the desired position, the pole 20 and the second memory plate 32, together with the cam plate 22, become the upper bracket.
It rotates together with 13. Therefore, if the steering wheel 14 is stopped at a desired position and the release lever 41 is returned to the position shown by the solid line in FIG. 1, the second memory plate 32 returns to the state shown in FIG. Nail 32
The engaging position of b with the adjusting tooth portion 31a changes), and at the same time, the cam plates 22 and 23 return to the state shown in FIGS. 1 and 3 by the springs S2 and S3, and the teeth of the poles 20 and 21 are returned. The parts mesh with the ratchets 17 and 18 to make the steering wheel 14 incapable of tilting, and the adjustment is completed.

In the above embodiment, the release lever 41 and the lock pin 43
The present invention was implemented by connecting the release pin 44, the release spring 45, and the link 46 to each other, but the release lever 41 and the lock pin 43 are connected only via the release spring composed of a tension coil spring to implement the present invention. It is also possible to do so. Further, the present invention can be carried out by interposing a release spring between the lock plate and the release lever (operating plate) in Japanese Patent Application No. 63-19106.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a left side view showing an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a front view thereof, FIG. 3 is a right side view thereof, FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged view of FIG. 1, and FIGS. FIG. 10 is an operation explanatory view. Explanation of symbols 14 …… Steering wheel, S3 …… Lock spring, 41 …… Release lever, 42 …… Lock plate (first lock member), 43 …… Lock pin (second lock member), 45
...... Release spring.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] 1. A tilt steering having a mechanism for flipping a steering wheel upward and retracting it to a maximum tilt position, when the steering wheel is retracted to the maximum tilt position by being urged in an engaging direction by a lock spring. A second lock member that engages with the first lock member to fix the steering wheel at the maximum tilt position so that the steering wheel cannot be tilted is provided, and the second lock member is interposed between the release lever that is rotated by the release operation and the second lock member. Being the first
When the frictional force generated at the engaging portion between the lock member and the second lock member exceeds a predetermined value, it is elastically deformed when the release lever is released to store a spring force larger than the spring force of the lock spring. When the frictional force generated in the engaging portion between the first lock member and the second lock member is less than or equal to a predetermined value, the second lock member is moved against the lock spring when the release lever is released, and A jump lock release mechanism for tilt steering, which is configured by providing a release spring for releasing the engagement with the first lock member.