JPH09137837A - Clutch release bearing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce weight, to perform automatic alignment, and to perform sufficient resistance against a load by a method wherein one ring is energized toward a bearing holding member through assembly, a reinforcing member is located between an input member and a bearing holding member, and the dent of a coupling member is engaged with the protrusion of a bearing holding member. SOLUTION: A device comprises a clutch release bearing 10; the guide sleeve 20 of a bearing holding member; and the spring member 30 of a coupling member. A protrusion 22c is formed on the flange part 22 of the guide sleeve 20, and comprises a slope 22d; and a bed part 22e and is engaged with the notch part 37 of the spring member 30. Since the thickness of the reinforcing member 40 is relatively high and rigidity is also sufficient, a high load from a shift fork is receivable. Since a spring member 30 supports a bearing 10 by means of a friction force between a press part 32 and an outer ring 12, the bearing 10 is radially movable. When an inner ring 11 makes contact with a diaphragm spring, when eccentricity occurs therebetween, a force by which the bearing 10 is brought into concentricity is generated and automatic alignment is practicable. This constitution receives an excess load as an alignment function is achieved.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a clutch release bearing device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When operating a clutch mounted on a vehicle or the like, which is a power interrupting device using a friction plate, a diaphragm spring of a clutch cover is pressed in an axial direction with a shift fork as an input member, thereby causing the spring to operate. Power is disconnected by releasing the biasing force from the friction plate.

By the way, the shift fork is usually arranged on the fixed side of the vehicle body or the like, but the clutch cover is attached to the flywheel or the like of the engine so as to rotate integrally therewith. Therefore, if the shift fork directly presses the diaphragm spring of the clutch cover, the contact portion will be worn. Therefore, a clutch release bearing including a rotating wheel that abuts on a diaphragm spring and integrally rotates, and a non-rotating bearing holding member that holds the bearing in a predetermined state and receives an input from a shift fork. A clutch release bearing device consisting of, for example,
No. 7124, it is provided between the diaphragm spring and the shift fork.

In the clutch release bearing device disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Unexamined Publication No. 56-7124, the front end of the outer ring of the bearing faces the diaphragm spring, and the rear end of the inner ring of the bearing has a flange portion with a guide sleeve. Is provided so as to face the flange portion of the. Further, the bearing is attached to the guide sleeve such that the flange portions are sandwiched by the leaf springs in the axial direction. When the flange portion of the guide sleeve is pushed from the rear by the tip of the shift fork, the entire bearing device can be moved in the axial direction so that the tip of the outer ring contacts the diaphragm spring.

Since the flange portion of the inner ring is biased by the leaf spring so as to be movable in the radial direction with respect to the flange portion of the guide sleeve, the flange portion of the guide sleeve is pushed from the rear side to the shift fork. When the outer ring of the bearing comes into contact with the diaphragm spring of the clutch, the bearing is automatically aligned even if there is eccentricity between them.

By the way, in the past, the bearing holding member (guide sleeve) of the clutch release device was made of steel, but in recent years, from the viewpoint of weight reduction of parts and the like, there has been a demand for making it resin. However, if the guide sleeve is simply made of resin, the flange portion of the guide sleeve is a portion that receives the force from the shift fork, which causes wear and deformation of the contact portion. Therefore, it is considered that a leaf spring for suppressing the radial movement of the bearing is made of steel and is installed at the contact portion with the shift fork to prevent the contact portion from being worn or deformed.

[0007]

However, the above-mentioned configuration has the following problems. In order to hold the bearing movably in the radial direction so that the bearing can be aligned, the leaf spring must sandwich the rotating ring of the bearing and the flange portion of the guide sleeve with a light load of about 2 to 15 kgf. However, when the plate thickness of the plate spring is set to be relatively thick, for example, 1 mm or more, it becomes difficult to manufacture it due to the problem of the dimensional tolerance of each required component. This is because if the plate thickness is made thicker, the spring constant of the plate spring becomes higher, and even a small dimensional error causes a large variation in the sandwiching force, so the dimensional error must be strictly controlled. On the other hand, the pressing load of the shift fork is extremely high. Therefore, when trying to receive the load by the leaf spring, if the plate thickness of the abutting surface of the shift fork is relatively thin, the resin flange contacting the back surface of the leaf spring will be damaged. Bending or denting may occur, which may lead to cracking of the leaf spring. To prevent this, for example, the plate thickness of the plate spring needs to be set to 1.5 mm or more. However, if the plate thickness is increased in this way, the above-mentioned problem of dimensional control occurs.

An object of the present invention is to provide a clutch release bearing device which can reduce the weight and achieve the self-centering of the bearing, but can sufficiently resist the load from the shift fork. .

[0009]

In order to achieve the above object, a clutch release bearing device of the present invention includes an inner ring and an outer ring which are concentrically arranged and rotate relative to each other, one of which is fixed and the other of which rotates. A clutch release bearing in which the wheel comes into contact with a rotating member of the clutch device,
A resin bearing holding member having a cylindrical portion slidably fitted on the guide shaft and a flange portion, and the one ring of the clutch release bearing in the radial direction with respect to the bearing holding member. In a clutch release bearing device comprising a connecting member for holding it so as to be movable, the connecting member is deformed by assembly, whereby the pressing portion urges the one ring toward the bearing holding member. Further, a reinforcing member that is interposed between the input member and the bearing holding member and that receives an input from the input member and transmits the input to the flange portion of the bearing holding member is provided, The bearing holding member is provided with a protrusion,
The connecting member is provided with a recess for preventing the connecting member from coming off by engaging with the projection when assembled.
By assembling the connecting member, the reinforcing member is attached by being sandwiched between the bearing holding member and the connecting member.

[0010]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION According to the clutch release bearing of the present invention, the connecting member has a function of holding the bearing,
Since the reinforcing member has a function of receiving an input from the input member, it is possible to receive an excessive load from the input member while achieving the centering function of the bearing. Further, since the bearing holding member is provided with a protrusion and the connecting member is provided with a recess for preventing the connecting member from coming off by engaging with the protrusion at the time of assembling the connecting member, the connecting member is provided. By assembling
The reinforcing member is attached by being sandwiched between the bearing holding member and the base portion of the connecting member.

[0011]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a view of a clutch release bearing device according to an embodiment of the present invention as viewed from a shift fork side. FIG. 2 is an axial sectional view taken along the line II-II of FIG. 1 and viewed in the direction of the arrow.

In FIG. 2, the clutch release device is
It comprises a clutch release bearing 10, a guide sleeve 20 which is a bearing holding member, and a spring member 30 which is a connecting member. The clutch release bearing 10 has a contact portion 1 at the left end.
1a, a substantially tubular inner ring 11, a short tubular outer ring 12 concentrically enclosing the inner ring 11, an inner ring 11 and an outer ring 1
A plurality of balls 15 arranged so as to be able to roll freely between the two balls;
It comprises a retainer 16 for holding the balls 15 at a predetermined interval, and seals 17 and 18 for sealing the space defined by the inner ring 11 and the outer ring 12 on both sides in the axial direction of the ball 15 in a dust-proof and oil-tight manner. The inner race 11 is rotatably supported by the outer race 12. The contact portion 11a of the inner ring 11 has a shape that is turned outward in the radial direction, and comes into contact with a diaphragm spring of a clutch cover (not shown). The end of the inner ring 11 on the side opposite to the contact portion 11a is left as blank by pressing, so that cutting is not performed and manufacturing cost is reduced.

On the other hand, the guide sleeve 20 is made of resin and has a cylindrical main body 21, a flange portion 22 extending radially from the outer periphery near the center of the main body 21, and a flange portion 2.
The outer wall portion 23 projects axially leftward at the radially outer end of 2, and the guide portion 25 (FIG. 1) axially projects at the radially outer end of the flange portion 22.
A guide shaft (not shown) extends inside the main body 21, and the main body 21 is slidable on the guide shaft. A diametrically enlarged portion 24 is provided inside the main body 21.
The enlarged diameter portion 24 functions to prevent foreign matter from being caught when the main body 21 slides on the guide shaft. The outer wall portion 23 is provided outside the clutch release bearing 10 and serves as a radial movement restricting portion. Further, in order to make the clutch release bearing 10 movable in the radial direction, a gap 2 is formed between the outer circumference of the outer ring 12 and the inner circumference of the outer wall 23.
7 are formed. The guide portion 25 has a function of a guide when the spring member 30 is assembled.
Both sides are extended in the axial direction.

As is apparent from FIG. 1, the spring member 30 provided with two members having the same shape has a function of attaching the clutch release bearing 10 to the guide sleeve 20. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the spring member 30. The spring member 30 is formed by punching a sheet of spring steel plate such as SK5 with a press, bending it, and then quenching it. The spring member 30 is provided between the base portion 31 and the pressing portion 32, the base portion 31 abutting on the flange portion of the guide sleeve 20, the pressing portion 32 abutting on the outer ring 12 of the bearing, and the outer ring is provided on the pressing portion 32. And a beam portion 33 for applying an elastic force for urging the beam 12. The pressing portion 32 has an inclined portion 32a inclined outward in the axial direction so as not to contact the seal 17 and to facilitate the assembly of the spring member 30.

Further, the spring member 30 is formed at the intersection of the base portion 31 and the beam portion 33 so as to project in the radial direction, and is fitted in the end portion of the flange 22 portion of the guide sleeve 20 in the radial direction. 34. Further, in the vicinity of the lower end of both side portions 31a of the base portion 31, a notch 37 forming a recess is formed, and further, a lower edge portion 31b thereof.
A relatively large notch 38 is formed in the. A chamfer 39 is formed at the intersection of the notch 38 and the lower edge 31b.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of the portion cut along the line IV-IV in FIG. 1 as seen in the direction of the arrow. The flange 22 of the guide sleeve 20 is further provided with a projection 22c. The protrusion 22c is composed of a slope 22d and a base 22e, and has a notch 3 when the spring member 30 is mounted.
It has a shape that engages with 7.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the reinforcing member 40. The reinforcing member 40 includes a cylindrical portion 41, a plate-shaped anvil portion 42 protruding upward and downward from a substantially central portion of the cylindrical portion 41, and a flange portion 41 extending in the radial direction from an end portion of the cylindrical portion 41.
It is formed by pressing a relatively thin plate, followed by quenching. This prevents remarkable wear from occurring at the contact portion with the shift fork.

The cylindrical portion 41 has a diameter that just fits into the main body 21 when attached to the guide sleeve 20, so that the positioning of the reinforcing member 40 in the radial direction is achieved. The upper and lower portions of the cylindrical portion 41 are extended so as to correspond to the anvil portion 42 to form a rectangular portion 41a.
Is formed. The rectangular portion 41a has a function of guiding the shift fork and a function of ensuring rigidity of the anvil portion.

As is apparent from FIG. 5, the anvil portion 42
A step is formed between the and the flange portion 43. With this configuration, when the reinforcing member 40 is attached to the guide sleeve 20, the anvil portion 42 and the guide sleeve 20
A constant space 50 (FIG. 2) is formed between the flange portion 22 and the flange portion 22. This space 50 can be used for inserting a clip or the like when the shift fork is attached to the clutch release bearing device.

The flange portion 43 of the reinforcing member 40 is formed with a round notch 43a on the circumference thereof. This notch 43a
At the time of mounting, the engagement with the protrusions 22f formed at the corresponding positions of the flange portion 22 of the guide sleeve 20 achieves the rotation prevention of the reinforcing member 40. Further, the flange portion 4
3, an opening 43b for penetrating the projection 22c (FIG. 4) of the guide sleeve 20 and an opening 43c for penetrating a stopper 22g of the guide sleeve 20 described later are formed.

The flange portion 22 of the guide sleeve 20.
In the vicinity of the protrusion 22c, a stopper 22g which is a rectangular protrusion is formed. This stopper 22g
As is clear from FIG. 1, when the spring member 30 is attached to the guide sleeve 20, the notch 3
8 to prevent the spring member 30 from being pushed further inward. The chamfer 39 of the spring member 30 has a function of facilitating its insertion.

Next, the operation of the clutch release bearing device according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described below. In FIG. 1, a shift fork (not shown) pivots so that its tip comes into contact with the anvil portion 42 of the reinforcing member 40 to apply a constant load. Since the reinforcing member 40 is relatively thick and has sufficient rigidity, it can receive a large load received from the shift fork. The clutch release bearing device slides on a guide shaft (not shown) in the axial direction by an input from a shift fork to bring the contact portion 11a of the inner ring 11 into contact with a diaphragm spring of a clutch cover (not shown). Even if the diaphragm spring is rotating, the inner ring 11 is rotatable, so that after contact, it rotates integrally with the diaphragm spring, and the bearing device is further moved in the axial direction to press the diaphragm spring and open the clutch. It is designed to work.

The spring member 30 has an appropriate thickness.
Clutch release bearing 10 with respect to guide sleeve 20
Is supported only by the frictional force acting between the pressing portion 32 and the outer ring 12, the bearing 10 is movable in the radial direction with respect to the guide sleeve 20. Therefore, when the contact portion 11a of the inner ring 11 contacts the diaphragm spring, if there is an eccentricity between the two, a known force for positioning the bearing 10 concentrically occurs, thereby causing the bearing 10
Moves radially to achieve self-centering. Note that the outer wall portion 23 of the guide sleeve 20 is
It has a function to restrict 0 from moving outward in the radial direction by a predetermined amount or more. In addition, since the outer ring of a general ball bearing does not have a flange in many cases, if the outer ring is sandwiched by the spring member 30 as in the present embodiment, it is not necessary to modify the outer ring itself and an existing one is used. It can contribute to cost reduction.

Next, a method of assembling the clutch release bearing device will be described. Body 21 of guide sleeve 20
The clutch release bearing 10 and the reinforcing member 4 are provided around the
After the 0 is disposed, the spring member 30 is inserted while being guided by the guide portion 25 of the guide sleeve 20 from obliquely above and obliquely below in FIG. Since the spring member 30 can be inserted from one direction on the outer circumference, the assembly is easy. The spring member 30 includes the protrusion 2 of the guide sleeve 20.
When the notch 37 engages with the projection 22c and the notch 38 comes into contact with the stopper 22g, it returns to a predetermined shape, and the assembling is completed. Although the insertion of the spring member 30 is relatively easily performed by the action of the slope 22d, the spring member 30 is configured so as not to be inadvertently pulled out by the action of the base portion 22e after the engagement once.

In this embodiment, since the reinforcing member 40 is pressed against the guide sleeve 20 by the spring member 30 with a constant urging force, the reinforcing member 40 can be operated even when the diaphragm spring and the bearing inner ring 11 are not in contact with each other. There is no rattling.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to the embodiments, the present invention should not be construed as being limited to the above embodiments, and it goes without saying that appropriate modifications and improvements can be made. For example, the number of spring members 30 may be three instead of two. Further, the configuration of the present invention is possible even if the rotating wheel is the outer ring instead of the inner ring.

[0027]

As described above, according to the clutch release device of the present invention, the connecting member has a function of holding the bearing, and the reinforcing member has a function of receiving an input from the input member. Therefore, it is possible to receive an excessive load from the input member while achieving the centering function of the bearing. Further, since the bearing holding member is provided with a protrusion and the connecting member is provided with a recess for preventing the connecting member from coming off by engaging with the protrusion when the connecting member is assembled, the connecting member is By assembling,
The reinforcing member is attached by being sandwiched between the bearing holding member and the base portion of the connecting member.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a view of a clutch release bearing device according to an embodiment of the present invention as viewed from a shift fork side.

FIG. 2 is an axial sectional view taken along the line II-II of FIG. 1 and viewed in a direction indicated by an arrow.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged perspective view of a spring member 30.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of a portion cut along line IV-IV in FIG. 1 as seen in the direction of the arrow.

5 is a perspective view of a reinforcing member 40. FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10 ... clutch release bearing 20 guide sleeve 30 spring member 40 reinforcement member

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A clutch release bearing including an inner ring and an outer ring which are concentrically arranged and rotate relative to each other, one wheel being fixed, and the other rotating wheel being in contact with a rotating member of a clutch device. And a resin-made bearing holding member including a cylindrical portion slidably fitted on the guide shaft and a flange portion, and the one ring of the clutch release bearing is radiused with respect to the bearing holding member. In a clutch release bearing device comprising a connecting member that holds the ring so as to be movable in the direction, the connecting member is deformed by assembly, whereby the pressing portion moves the one ring toward the bearing holding member. A reinforcing portion that is configured to be urged and that is interposed between the input member and the bearing holding member and that receives an input from the input member and transmits the input to the flange portion of the bearing holding member. Is provided, and the bearing holding member is provided with a protrusion, and the coupling member is provided with a recess for preventing the coupling member from coming off by engaging with the protrusion at the time of assembling the coupling member. A clutch release bearing device in which the reinforcing member is mounted by being sandwiched between the bearing holding member and the connecting member by assembling the members.