JPH09142368A - Bicycle with auxiliary power device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To facilitate the fitting work to a car body and prevent the radiation of radiant electromagnetic waves by storing a control device controlling a motor in a storage chamber formed in a case. SOLUTION: Fitting bosses 234a-234c for fitting a printed board 301 protruded from a bottom wall 231 on a fitting section 235 side are formed on a storage chamber 234 storing a control device 300. A fitting base 234e protruded from the bottom wall 231 is formed on the storage chamber 234 between the fitting bosses 234a and 234b. The fitting section 235 for fitting a motor is provided with an insertion port surrounded with a circular wall and opened upward, and a fitting boss provided with a screw insertion hole is formed on the opposite bottom face. The occupation area of the motor is reduced, the motor can be miniaturized, and the fitting work to a car body is facilitated. The lead wire connecting the motor and the control device 300 is wired in a case, and the radiation of radiant electromagnetic waves can be surely prevented.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a bicycle with an auxiliary power unit.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a bicycle with an auxiliary power unit has been used which is equipped with an auxiliary power unit using a motor as a drive source so that the rotational force of the auxiliary power unit is added to the rotational force by human power when traveling by human power. There is. A so-called electric bicycle using this type of motor as an auxiliary power unit is described in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-227474. An electric bicycle using a motor described in this publication, as described in the publication, effectively cools heat-generating components such as a controller using traveling wind, and a motor and a controller. Is intended to reduce the emission of radiated electromagnetic waves emitted from the lead wire due to the switching operation of the motor and controller due to the long lead wire electrically connecting 1 to 4 of the publication and the details of the invention of the publication, the crankshaft driving motor 11 and the controller 19 are arranged in line along the down tube 2b. A power supply relay 18 for supplying power to the motor 11 is interposed between the motor 11 and the controller 19, and
Motor 11, power supply relay 18, controller 19
Is covered with the vehicle body cover 42.

With this structure, the controller 19, the power supply relay 18 and the motor 11 are cooled by the air flow caused by the traveling wind, and the lead wire is shortened to radiate an electromagnetic wave emitted from the lead wire. I try to make it difficult.

However, the electric bicycle described in the above publication has a motor unit 10 including a motor 11 and a controller 19.
Since they are separate from each other, they must be separately attached to the down tube 2b during assembly, which complicates the assembly work and also requires individual measures to prevent ingress of rainwater and the like. There is a problem that its structure is complicated because it must be done.

Further, although the exposure of the lead wire to the outside is shortened to reduce the emission of the radiated electromagnetic wave, the radiated electromagnetic wave cannot be surely prevented because the lead wire is exposed. .

Further, although the controller 19 is constructed to cool by utilizing the air flow due to the traveling wind, the cooling is not always sufficient, so the controller 1
The lower case 33 of No. 9 is provided with the radiation fins 33a, which causes a problem that the structure of the lower case 33 becomes complicated and the controller 19 becomes large due to the radiation fins 33a.

Further, as is apparent from the description of the electric bicycle described in the above publication (for example, a frame structure, a structure in which the battery case 38 is attached to the lug 5 with a screw 38a), a dedicated vehicle body is required. The price is high, and it is not preferable from the economical viewpoint for the user.

[0008]

As described above, in the electric bicycle described in the above publication, that is, the bicycle with the auxiliary power unit, first, the bicycle with the auxiliary power unit is expensive because it requires a dedicated vehicle body. Secondly, the controller, motor, and power supply relay must be separately attached to the down tube, which complicates the assembly work. There is a problem that the volume of the whole occupies becomes large and the size becomes large as a whole, and that measures against intrusion of rainwater and the like must be separately provided. Thirdly, although the lead wire connecting the motor and the controller is shortened, there is a problem that the radiation electromagnetic wave cannot be reliably emitted from this lead wire. Fourth, it is necessary to provide a radiation fin in the controller case in order to reliably cool the heat-generating components such as the controller, which results in a complicated controller structure and a large size. .

[0009]

The present invention solves the above problems, and the invention set forth in claim 1 is intended to solve the above first to third problems, and is attached to a case. An electric motor, a power transmission means arranged in the case for transmitting the rotational force of the electric motor, and a rotational force transmitted from the power transmission means rotatably attached to the case via a bearing and transmitted to the sprocket. A hollow shaft attached to a hanger lug of a vehicle body, a crank shaft rotatably provided inside the hollow shaft, and a crank having pedals provided at both ends are attached,
In the bicycle with the auxiliary power unit, the auxiliary power unit is configured by the mounting member provided on the case and attached to the frame, and the auxiliary power unit is attached to the vehicle body by the mounting unit and the hollow shaft. And a control device for controlling the electric motor is housed in the storage chamber, and the invention according to claim 2 is to solve the above first to fourth problems. According to the present invention, the case according to the invention of claim 1 is formed of a member having good thermal conductivity, and at least an electronic component which generates heat among electronic components constituting the control device is brought into contact with a part of the storage chamber. The control device is stored in the storage chamber as a bicycle with an auxiliary power unit, and the invention according to claim 3 is intended to solve the first to fourth problems. Therefore, in the invention according to claim 1 and claim 2, the case is formed by arranging an arrangement chamber for arranging the power transmission means and an accommodation chamber for accommodating the control device in a substantially linear arrangement. In addition, the mounting portion is formed laterally on the same side as the protruding side of the hollow shaft of the storage chamber, and the power transmission means is disposed in the disposition chamber to store the power. The control device is housed in a room,
A bicycle with an auxiliary power unit in which the electric motor is attached to the attachment portion to configure the auxiliary power unit.

In the invention according to claim 1 configured as described above, since the body of a general-purpose bicycle can be used as it is without requiring a dedicated body, it is possible to provide an inexpensive bicycle with an auxiliary power unit. The power transmission means, the control device are housed in the case and the electric motor is attached, so that the volume occupied by the power transmission means, the control device and the electric motor can be reduced to make it compact, and the work of attaching them to the vehicle body is easy. Furthermore, the measures against rainwater and other intrusions can be made only in the above case and can be done reliably and easily. In addition, since the lead wire connecting the motor and controller is wired inside the case, the emission of radiated electromagnetic waves is surely prevented. It has the effect of being able to.

According to the second aspect of the invention, in addition to the operation of the first aspect of the invention, the case has a function of a heat radiation fin for cooling the electronic components that generate heat that constitute the control device. As a result, the cooling device can be reliably cooled and the control device can be prevented from being upsized.

Further, the invention according to claim 3 has an effect that the width of the auxiliary power unit in the front-rear direction can be reduced in addition to the effect of each of the invention according to claim 1 and the invention according to claim 2. I have. Therefore, when it is attached to the vehicle body, it does not significantly protrude from the side of the vehicle body and does not hinder the operation of the bicycle.

[0013]

Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. As shown in the figure,
A bicycle with an auxiliary power unit (hereinafter simply referred to as a bicycle) A is
Bicycle body (hereinafter simply referred to as vehicle body) B and auxiliary power unit attached to this vehicle body B (hereinafter simply referred to as power unit)
C. The vehicle body B is composed of a general-purpose bicycle, that is, a general-purpose bicycle that is commercially available, and has a standing pipe 2 whose one end is fixed to a hanger lug 1.
And a lower pipe 3 and a head pipe 4 fixed to the other end of the lower pipe 3, one end of which is fixed to the head pipe 4 and the other end of which is an upper pipe 5 which is fixed to a lower portion of the standing pipe 2. A chain stay 7 having one end fixed to the hanger lug 1, a front hawk 8 attached to the head pipe 4, a handle 9 attached to the upper end of the front hawk 8, a lower end portion of the front hawk 8. A front wheel 10, a back hawk 11 having one end fixed to the upper portion of the vertical pipe 2 and the other end fixed to the other end of the chain stay 7 via a rear pawl (not shown), the other end of the chain stay 7. The rear wheel 12 is mounted on the side, the saddle 13 is mounted above the standing pipe 2, and the load receiving base 14 is provided on the upper portion of the rear wheel. The front wheels 10 and the rear wheels 12 are partially covered with a cover 10a.
And 12a. A crankshaft 80, which will be described later, is rotatably provided on the hanger lug 1, and pedals 8 are provided at both ends of the crankshaft 80, respectively.
A left crank 81 and a right crank 82 provided with 1a and 82a are attached. A battery case 15 is attached to the upper portion of the cargo receiving base 14, and a battery (not shown) is detachably attached to the battery case 15. Further, the battery is connected to the electric motor 40 described later by a lead wire 16. In addition, the sprocket 17 that transmits the rotational force during traveling
And a chain 18 on the sprocket (not shown) of the rear wheel 12.
Is hung.

Next, the structure of the power unit C and how to assemble it will be described.

First, the structure of the power unit C will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 to 5. As shown in the figure, the power unit C includes a case 30, an electric motor 40 attached to the case 30,
A hollow shaft 70 provided in the case 30, a crank shaft 80 penetrating the hollow shaft 70, a rotational force switching means T for switching the rotational force of the crank shaft 80 and the rotational force of the electric motor 40, and other components. ing. A control device 300, which will be described in detail later, and the like are housed in the case 30.

Next, each of the above components will be described. First, the case 30 includes a bottom wall 231 and the bottom wall 2
A case body 230 is formed in the shape of a box with a bottom having an opening at one end with a peripheral wall 232 formed around the periphery of the base 31, and a lid case 250 for closing the opening of the case body 230. The case body 230 and the lid case 250 are formed of a material having good thermal conductivity, for example, a metal such as aluminum. Also, the lid case 2
50 is attached by screws 255 (see FIG. 3),
At the time of this attachment, a packing P is attached which is held between the opening edge of the case body 230 and the lid case 250 to prevent rainwater and the like from entering.

The case main body 230 has a main disposition chamber as a disposition chamber in which a part of the power transmission means 50, that is, an output side part is disposed on one end side, that is, the side on which the hollow shaft 70 is mounted. 233 is formed, and the other end side is adjacent to the main arranging chamber 233 and
33 and the control device 30.
A storage chamber 234 for storing 0 and the like is provided. Further, on the side of the storage chamber 234, that is, on the side where the hollow shaft 70 is projected, a mounting portion 235 that is formed side by side with the storage chamber 234 and on which the electric motor 40 is mounted is provided. A sub-arrangement chamber 236 is provided between the main-arrangement chamber 233 and a part of the power transmission means 50, that is, a part on the input side.

Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the case main body 230 is provided with a connection component storage chamber 237 which is formed via the mounting portion 235 and a gap G and accommodates a connection component such as a connector described later.

In the main chamber 233, as shown in FIG. 2, a first bearing mounting portion 233a having a concave shape is formed on the bottom wall 231, and a through hole is formed in the central portion through the bottom wall 231. Second bearing mounting portions 233b each having 231a are formed.

As shown in the perspective view of FIG. 5, the storage chamber 234 for storing the control device 300 is provided at one end, that is, at the mounting portion 235 side, for mounting the printed circuit board 301 protruding from the bottom wall 231. Individual mounting bosses 234a to 234c are formed, and the mounting bosses 234a to 234c are formed.
The printed circuit board 3 is mounted on the printed circuit board 3 by mounting screws 301a
01 can be attached. Further, in the storage chamber 234, there is formed a mounting base 234e which is located between the mounting bosses 234a and 234b and protrudes from the bottom wall 231 and has a distal end portion having a rectangular flat surface. Has three mounting holes 234f.
The bottom wall 231 is located at the other end of the storage chamber 234.
The connection component storage chamber 237 is formed by denting the connection component storage chamber 237, and the first connector 237a and the second connector 237b are accommodated in the bottom of the connection component storage chamber 237 in a connected state. ing. Also storage room 23
A relay 302, which is located in the vicinity of the connection component storage chamber 237 and projects from the bottom wall 231, is attached to the reference numeral 2.
The individual mounting boss 234g is provided.
The relay 302 is attached to g with an attaching screw 302a.

Further, the sub-arrangement chamber 2 of the storage chamber 234.
A torque sensor 100 and a speed sensor 105, which will be described in detail later, are attached to a partition wall 236a with the reference numeral 36. In FIG. 5, 234d is the lid case 2
It is a mounting boss to which a screw 255 for mounting 50 is mounted.

Next, the mounting portion 235 for mounting the electric motor 40 is surrounded by the annular wall 235a and is formed at one end side, that is, the insertion opening 23 formed by opening the upper side in FIG.
5b, and a mounting boss 23 having a screw insertion hole 235c on the bottom surface facing the insertion opening 235b.
A plurality of 5d (only one is shown in FIG. 2) is formed.

Further, as shown in FIG. 3, at the rear end side of the case main body 230, that is, at the portion on the side of the chain stay 7 with the through hole 231a interposed therebetween, as shown in FIG. Is formed, and two screw insertion holes 238a are formed in the mounting portion 238.

In the lid case 250 attached to the opening of the case body 230 configured as described above, the first bearing mounting portion 233a and the second bearing mounting portion 233b formed on the case body 230 are provided. Correspondingly, a bearing mounting portion 251 and a through hole 252 are formed, and a screw insertion hole (not shown) through which the screw 255 is inserted is formed in the peripheral portion. Further, the lid case 250 is formed with an annular seal member housing portion 253a for housing the seal member 253 around the through hole 252.
The case main body 230 and the case lid 250 are integrally connected and attached by the screw 255 through the packing P in a state where the power transmission means 50, the control device 300 and the like are housed.

Next, the electric motor 40 has a plurality of mounting bases 42 (1 in FIG. 2) on the end surface on the side where the output shaft 41 projects.
A plurality of female screws 4 (only one is shown in FIG. 2) are attached to the mounting base 42 by means of screws 43.
A mounting boss 44 is formed on which 4a is formed. The electric motor 40 has a cylindrical buffer body 4 made of rubber or the like.
5 is inserted from the insertion opening 235b in a state of being fitted to the periphery, is housed in the mounting portion 235, and the mounting boss 44 is made to correspond to the mounting boss 235d, and then mounted to the mounting portion 235 by the mounting screw 46. To be The rear end side of the mounted rear electric motor 40, that is, the side opposite to the side where the output shaft 42 projects is covered with a cover 47 made of synthetic resin or the like to prevent rainwater from entering. The mount 42 and the cushioning body 45 are made of a heat insulating material having a poor thermal conductivity, and also have a function of not transmitting the heat generated from the electric motor 40 to the case body 230.

Next, the power transmission means 50 will be described. The power transmission means 50 includes a gear 51 attached to the tip end of the output shaft 41 of the electric motor 40, a large gear 52 meshing with the gear 51, and a small gear 53 coaxial with the gear 52. , A large-diameter gear 54b rotatably mounted on the fixed shaft 54a and meshing with the gear 53
And a bevel gear 54c integrated with the gear 54b, a bevel gear 55 that meshes with the bevel gear 54c, a gear 55b attached to the same shaft 55a as the shaft to which the bevel gear 55 is attached, and this gear And a drive gear 56 meshing with 55b.

Bearings 55c and 55d, which are ball bearings, are attached to both ends of a shaft 55a to which the bevel gear 55 and the gear 55b are attached. The bearings 55c and 55d are the case body 230 and the case lid 250. First bearing mounting portion 233a provided in each
And the bearing mounting portion 251. The gear 55b is mounted on the shaft 55a via a one-way clutch 55f. This one-way clutch 55
f functions to rotate the gear 55 so as to transmit the rotational force of the electric motor 40 to the drive gear 56 so that the bicycle travels normally, that is, in the forward direction, but idles in the opposite direction. It is a thing. In other words, the one-way clutch 55f is used for the pedal 81a,
When the cranks 81 and 82 to which the 82a is attached rotate in the traveling direction, the cranks 81 and 82 function to idle.

The gear 51 is on the input side of the rotational force from the electric motor 40, the gears 51 to 53 and a part of the gear 54 are disposed in the sub-arrangement portion 236, and the drive gear 56 is also provided. Is the output side of the rotational force,
Part of the gear 54, the bevel gear 55, the gear 55b, and the drive gear 56 are arranged in the main arrangement portion 233.

A shaft hole 56a is formed in the central portion of the drive gear 56, and a concavo-convex line 56c called involute serration is formed in the shaft hole 56a. Further, on the side surface of the gear 56 on the case lid 250 side, a plurality of (three in the embodiment, only one is shown in FIG. 3) protrusions arranged concentrically on the outer periphery of the shaft hole 56a as shown in FIG. 57 is formed, and the protrusion 57 is formed with an inclined surface 57a that gradually rises upward as shown in the figure along the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 6, that is, the direction in which the drive gear 56 rotates during traveling. ing. Further, on the side surface of the drive gear 56 on the case lid 250 side, as shown in FIG. 3, the shaft hole 5 is located between the adjacent protrusions 57.
A plurality of (three in the embodiment, only two are shown in FIG. 3) arranged concentrically with 6a is formed with an L-shaped restricting member 58 for restricting one end side of a drive spring 60 described later. ing.

Next, the hollow shaft 70 which is fitted in the shaft hole 56a formed in the drive gear 56 and which transmits the power of the electric motor 40 transmitted through the power transmission means 50 to the sprocket 17 will be described. . The hollow shaft 70 has a through hole 71 therein and has the shaft hole 56a at one end side.
An uneven strip 72 is formed which engages with the uneven strip 56c formed on the shaft 56a.
The hollow shaft 70 is rotated integrally with the drive gear 56 by being prevented from rotating in the circumferential direction by the engagement of c and 72. In addition, the concavo-convex strip 7 is formed on the outer circumference of the other end of the hollow shaft 70.
3 is formed, and the concave-convex strip 73 is formed on the sprocket 1
7 is formed so as to be aligned with the uneven strip 17b formed on the mounting member 17a to which 7 is mounted. The hollow shaft 70 is press-fitted and attached to the inner ring of the ball bearing 77 in the vicinity of the concave-convex line 72 formed on the one end side, and the hollow shaft 70 is attached to the case body 230.
The outer ring of the ball bearing 77 is press-fitted into the second bearing mounting portion 233b provided in the case body 230 so as to be attached to the case body 230.

Next, the crankshaft 80 which is attached by penetrating the through hole 71 of the hollow shaft 70 will be described. At one end of the crankshaft 80, a mounting portion 83 including a fitting portion 83a whose outer periphery is formed in a prismatic shape and a screw portion (not shown) protruding from the fitting portion 83a is provided. A mounting portion 84 including a fitting portion 84a having an outer periphery formed in a prismatic shape and a screw portion (not shown) protruding from the fitting portion 84a is formed in each of the above. In addition, the mounting portion 8
3 and 84 are the left crank 81 of the general-purpose bicycle described above.
Also, the right crank 82 is formed in a shape and size that match the fitting portions 81b, 82b of the right crank 82.

A unidirectional clutch 85 is attached to the crankshaft 80 at a position close to the drive gear 56 attached to the hollow shaft 70, and the crankshaft 80 is attached to the crankshaft 80 via the unidirectional clutch 85. Is attached with a rotational force detection member 90. The one-way clutch 85
Is a pedal 81 when the crankshaft 80 travels manually as described later.
When the a and 82a are rotated in the traveling direction by the attached cranks 81 and 82, the rotational force detecting member 90 is rotated, and conversely, when the crankshaft 80 is rotated, it functions to idle. Is. Further, a disk-shaped flange portion 91 is formed on the case lid 250 side of the rotational force detection member 90 so as to be separated from the side surface of the drive gear 56 by a predetermined distance so as to form a space. There is. Then, the drive gear 5 of the flange portion 91
As shown in FIG. 3, the drive spring 6 is provided on the 6-side surface.
A compression portion 92 that abuts and compresses the other end side of 0 is formed. The drive spring 60 is arranged between the L-shaped regulating member 58 and the compression portion 92.

The magnitude of the urging force of the drive spring 60 is such that the rotational force applied to the rotational force detection member 90 via the crankshaft 80 and the one-way clutch 85 during human power travel exceeds a predetermined value. And the size is set to start compressing. That is, a large load is applied to the rear wheel 12 during traveling and pedals 81a, 82a that are depressed against this are applied.
Is applied to the crankshaft 80 via the cranks 81 and 82, the rotational force detection member 90 that rotates together with the crankshaft 80 gradually compresses the drive spring 60 and rotates ahead of the drive gear 56. However, the size is set to move relatively. That is, during manual running, when the rotational force of the rotational force detection member 90 that rotates together with the one-way clutch 85 along with the rotation of the crankshaft 80 exceeds a predetermined value, relative movement with the drive gear 56 occurs. It is set to.

Therefore, when the rotational force applied to the crankshaft 80 does not exceed a predetermined value, the rotational force detection member 90
Will rotate in synchronism with the rotational force detection member 90 via the drive spring 60 which is maintained in a state of being hardly compressed.

Further, the flange portion 9 of the rotational force detecting member 90
As shown in FIGS. 2 and 6, in FIG. 1, three through holes 93 (only one is shown in FIGS. 2 and 6) are formed in a portion corresponding to the protrusion 57 formed on the side surface of the drive gear 56. ing.

A deflection plate 95 is attached to the flange portion 91 so that it can be brought into contact with and separated from the flange portion 91. The displacement plate 95 is integrally mounted in correspondence with each of the through holes 93, and the slide shaft 9 having a flange portion 96a at the tip thereof is formed.
6 is provided, the slide shaft 96 is penetrated through the through hole 93, and the displacement plate 95 is always provided between the inner surface of the flange portion 91, that is, the surface facing the drive gear 56 and the flange portion 96a. The deflection plate 95 is attached to the flange portion 91 so as to be able to come into contact with and separate from the flange portion 91 via a coil spring 97 that urges the flange portion 91 in a direction of being pressed against the flange portion 91.

Then, the drive gear 56, the rotational force detecting member 90, the drive spring 60 and the displacement plate 95.
The rotary force switching means T is configured to convert the rotary force of the crankshaft 80 into a force in the axial direction.

Here, the operation of converting the rotational force into the axial force will be described. First, when a rotational force in the traveling direction is applied to the crankshaft 80 by the cranks 81 and 82 of the pedals 81a and 82a, the rotational force is detected via the one-way clutch 85 attached to the crankshaft 80. The rotational force detection member 90 is transmitted to 90 and rotates. When the rotational force detection member 90 rotates, the rotational force is generated via the drive spring 60 disposed between the compression portion 92 formed on the rotational force detection member 90 and the regulation member 58 of the drive gear 56 in accordance with this rotation. The torque of the detection member 90 is transmitted to the drive gear 56, and this rotational force is further transmitted to the hollow shaft 70 via the drive gear 56, and the rear wheel 12 is driven via the sprocket 17 and the chain 19 to cycle the bicycle. A runs.

When the vehicle is traveling uphill or the like while traveling, the pedals 81a, 8a are moved more than before.
You have to step hard on 2a. When the pedals 81a and 82a are strongly depressed, the rotation force detecting member 90 and the hollow shaft 70, which are attached to the crankshaft 80 rotated by the pedals 81a and 82a via the one-way clutch 85, rotate integrally. Drive gear 56
There will be relative movement between and. In other words, the pedals 81a, 82a are
By strongly pressing a, the drive spring 60 provided between the rotational force detection member 90 and the drive gear 56 is compressed, and the rotational force detection member 90 rotates ahead of the drive gear 56. As a result, the rotational force detection member 9
The tip end of the slide shaft 96 of the displacement plate 95 that can be moved toward and away from 0 moves upward along the inclined surface 57a of the protrusion 57 provided on the drive gear 56, and along with this movement, the coil spring 97. Is compressed, and the displacement plate 95 is separated or moved from the drive gear 56 along the axial direction of the crankshaft 80 to the position shown by the chain double-dashed line in FIG. 2, which causes the torque of the crankshaft 80 to move in the axial direction. It can be converted or switched to.

When the displacement plate 95 moves to the position shown by the chain double-dashed line in FIG. 2, the torque sensor 100 which operates by the displacement of the displacement plate 95 operates. The electric output of the torque sensor 100 is sent to the control device 300, and the control device 300 controls the electric motor 40 to be driven by the electric output.

When traveling from an uphill to a flat surface, the restoring force of the drive spring 60 restores a predetermined state, and the rotational force detecting member 90 and the drive gear 56 are moved.
Relative movement with respect to the slide plate 96 disappears, the slide shaft 96 moves downward from the inclined surface 57a of the protrusion 57, and the displacement plate 9 moves.
5 is held in contact with the rotational force detection member 90. As a result, the torque sensor 100 returns to the original state, and the electric output at this time is sent to the control device 300,
The controller 300 controls the electric motor 40 to stop by the electric output.

The structure of the torque sensor 100 will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8. As shown in FIG. 7, the torque sensor 100 includes a case body 101 including a lower case 110 and an upper case 120 attached to the lower case 110, a strain gauge 130 as a sensor disposed in the case body 101, and a cover. Actuator 140 that receives the acting force of the detected torque, and actuator 140
The coil spring 150 and the like which transmit the acting force received by the strain gauge 130 to the strain gauge 130.

A concave printed circuit board housing 112 is provided in the center of the lower case 110, and a printed circuit board 112a is housed in the printed circuit board housing 112. Lead wires 135a to 13 connected to the substrate 112a
5d is pulled out. In addition, the upper case 120
Is formed in a box shape with a bottom, in which an outer peripheral wall 122 is formed on the outer periphery of the bottom wall 121.
Is formed with a tubular portion 125 projecting inward and outward, and a guide hole 126 is formed in the tubular portion 125 from the outer end portion to the substantially intermediate portion, and the intermediate portion to the inner end portion is formed. A hole 127 having a diameter larger than that of the guide hole 126 is formed in the parts up to.

Then, the sensor, that is, the strain gauge 1
Reference numeral 30 designates four resistors R1 made of a thin film on the surface of the strain element 131 made of aluminum or the like with an insulating film interposed therebetween.
R4 to R4 (not shown in FIG. 7) are attached by so-called semiconductor technology or the like, and the four resistors R1 to R4 are formed by printed wiring to form a bridge W as shown in FIG. It is configured to be connected. The connection point between the resistors R1 and R3 and the connection point between the resistors R4 and R2 of the bridge W are connected to the power source through the lead wires 132a and 132b, and the connection point between the resistors R1 and R4. The connection point between the resistors R2 and R3 is the output end, and the output from this output end, that is, the electrical output corresponding to the magnitude of the detected torque, is output to the amplifier 136 via the lead wires 133a and 133b. The amplified output from the amplifier 136 is sent to the control device 300, and the control device 300 controls the driving / stopping of the electric motor 40 according to the output. The lead wire 1
32a and 132b are electrically connected to the lead wires 135a and 135d connected to the printed circuit board 112a, and the lead wires 133a and 133b are electrically connected to the lead wires 135b and 135c, respectively.

The free end 131a of the flexure element 131, which is fixed by sandwiching the fixed end between the lower case 110 and the upper case 120, is located below the inner end of the tubular portion 125 and the guide hole 126. A pin 134 having an axial center coinciding with the axial center of the guide hole 126 is attached to the tip end thereof, and the pin 134 has an annular shape for receiving the other end of the coil spring 150. A collar 134a is formed.

Further, the actuating member 140 has the guide hole 1
The shaft 141 is guided by the shaft 26 and slidably fits in the axial direction. The shaft 141 has a large diameter stopper 142 formed at one end of the shaft 141. Also, the operating body 1
A step 145 that receives the end of the coil spring 150 is formed at the tip of the fork 40.
The coil spring 1 is provided between the ring collar 34a and the ring collar 134a.
50 is arranged in a compressed state by a predetermined amount. In addition,
The tip portion of the stopper portion 142 is formed in a spherical shape to reduce friction with the displacement plate 95.

The operation of the torque sensor 100 is based on the same principle as that of a torque sensor using a conventionally well-known strain gauge. That is, the detected torque, that is, the rotational force of the crankshaft 80 converted into the axial force by the drive plate 90 and the displacement plate 95 acts on the actuating body 140 by the displacement plate 95, and by this action, the flexure element 131. Bending force is applied to or released from
The resistance values of the resistors R1 to R4 are changed, and the electrical output from the ridge W corresponding to the change in the resistance value is taken out. That is, in this embodiment, when the pedaling force of the pedals 81a and 82a does not exceed a predetermined value during manual running, that is, when the drive gear 56 and the drive plate 90 do not move relative to each other, the displacement plate 95 is The maximum bending force is applied to the flexure element 131 via the actuating body 140 and the coil spring 150 without moving, and in this state, the electrical output output from the bridge W is set as a reference value. Is controlled by the control device 300 so as to be in a stopped state, and the pedaling force of the pedals 81a and 82a becomes large as in the case of traveling on an uphill. When the pedaling force exceeds a predetermined value, the drive gear 56 and Relative movement of the drive plate 90 occurs and the displacement plate 9
5 moves, the bending force of the flexure element 131 applied via the actuating body 140 and the coil spring 150 decreases, and the resistance values of the resistors R1 to R4 of the bridge W change as the bending force decreases. However, an electrical output corresponding to this change is output from the bridge W, and the control device 300 controls the electric motor 40 to be driven according to this electrical output.

Next, the rear wheel 1 of the driving force of the electric motor 40
2 will be described.

If the pedaling force of the pedals 81a and 82a becomes large and exceeds a predetermined value when traveling uphill or the like by manual driving, the rotational force detecting member 90 rotates ahead of the drive gear 56. As a result, relative movement occurs between the two, and as a result, the tip of the slide shaft 96 of the displacement plate 95 moves upward on the inclined surface 57a of the projection 57 provided on the drive gear 56, and the displacement plate 95 is moved by the displacement plate 95. Move away from. As a result, the actuating body 140 is displaced by the biasing force of the coil spring 150.
5, the bending force of the flexure element 131 decreases, the flexure element 131 restores, the resistance values of the resistors R1 to R4 change, and the bridge W changes its electrical resistance according to the change of the resistance value. Output is output to the control device 300, and the control device 300 drives or rotates the electric motor 40 according to this output.

When the electric motor 40 rotates, this torque is transmitted to the power transmission means 50, that is, the gear 51 or the drive gear 56.
Is transmitted to the hollow shaft 70 via the sprocket 17 and the chain 19 attached to the hollow shaft 70, and is transmitted to the rear wheel 12. That is, the pedal 81
The bicycle A travels with the rotational force of the electric motor 40, that is, power, assisted by the rotational force of the human power transmitted to the crankshaft 80 by stepping on the a and 82a.

Next, the control device 300 will be described. The control device 300 includes a relay 302, a microcomputer 303, a field effect transistor (hereinafter simply referred to as F
ET) 304 and electronic components (not shown), and these microcomputer 303, FET
Reference numeral 304 and electronic parts not shown are the printed circuit board 3
01 is attached. Then, the FET 304
Functions to flow a current to be supplied to the electric motor 40 under the control of the microcomputer 303. Therefore, the FET 304 is an electronic component having a large heat generation amount among the elements constituting the control device 300. When the printed circuit board 301 is mounted on the mounting bosses 234a to 234c by the screw 301a, it is mounted on the mounting base 234e by the screw 304a. This mount 23
4e is integrally formed with the case body 230,
Further, since the case body 230 is made of a material having good heat conduction as described above, the heat generated by the FET 304 is efficiently radiated from the mounting base 234e through the case body 230. It is cooled. That is, since the case main body 230 having a large surface area, that is, the heat radiation area functions as a heat radiation fin, the FET 304, that is, the electronic component that generates heat can be cooled very efficiently. In addition,
Heat generated from not only the FET 304 but also the relay 302 arranged in the storage chamber 234 is efficiently dissipated from the case main body 230, so that it is possible to prevent the room temperature in the storage chamber 234 from rising. The electronic components can be efficiently cooled.

Note that the relay 302 switches connection / disconnection between the battery (not shown) and the microcomputer 303 and other electronic parts under the control of the microcomputer 303.

The speed sensor 105 is adapted to detect the speed by the number of teeth passing per unit time while the drive gear 56 is rotating, and the detection result is the control device 300. That is, when the speed of the bicycle A exceeds a predetermined value and is sent to the microcomputer 303, the control device 300 causes the electric motor 40 to move.
It is controlled to stop.

Although not specifically shown in the wiring diagram, the outputs of the torque sensor 100 and the speed sensor 105 are connected so as to be sent to the control device 300, that is, the microcomputer 303, and the control device 30.
0 is connected so as to control the relay 302, and a battery (not shown) and the relay 302 are connected by a lead wire 16.

Further, in the connection component storage chamber 237, the printed circuit board 301 on which the control device 300 is mounted is mounted.
The first connector 237a to which the lead wire drawn from the lead wire, the lead wire of the relay 302, and the like are collectively connected,
The second connector 237b is housed and the first connector 237a, the second connector 237b and the battery (not shown) are connected by the lead wire 16.

Here, a method of assembling the power unit C will be described. The crankshaft 80 is attached to the one-way clutch 85 to which the rotational force detection member 90 is attached in advance.

The output shaft 4 is attached to the case body 230.
1, the electric motor 40 having the gear 51 which is a part of the power transmission means 50 is attached, and the case main body 230
Each of the other gears 52 or bevel gears 55 constituting the power transmission means 50 is disposed at a predetermined position, and the hollow shaft 70 into which the ball bearing 77 is press fitted is attached to the ball bearing 77 to the second bearing. It is press-fitted into the portion 233b and attached to the case body 230. Also, body case 2
30, the torque sensor 100 and the speed sensor 1
05, relay 302, microcomputer 303,
The printed circuit board 301 etc. to which the FET 304 is attached are attached. Further, the first connector 237a and the second connector 237b are provided in the connection component storage chamber 237.
To store.

Then, the concavo-convex line 72a formed on the hollow shaft 70 is fitted with the concavo-convex line 56a of the drive gear 56 which is a part of the power transmission means 50, and then the crankshaft 80 is passed through the through hole 71 of the hollow shaft 70. Needle bearings 73a, 7 in
Insert via 3b. At the time of this insertion, the drive spring 60 is arranged between the restriction member 58 formed on the drive gear 56 and the compression portion 92 formed on the rotational force detection member 90. Then, the case lid 230 is attached to the case main body 230 in this state.
The power unit C is assembled by inserting the crankshaft 80 into the through hole 252 so as to close the opening of the case main body 230, and then attaching it with the screw 255.

Next, the mounting of the power unit C thus assembled on the body B of a general-purpose bicycle will be described.

To install the power unit C on the body B of a general-purpose bicycle, first remove the cranks (in the embodiment, the left crank 81 and the right crank 82) attached to the crankshaft of the body B from the crankshaft, and then , Remove the left and right doors attached to the left and right of the hanger lug from the hanger lug and remove all other parts attached to the hanger lug.

Next, the mounting member 310 accommodating the bearing 315 is mounted on the female screw 1b formed on the inner peripheral wall on one end side of the hanger lug 1, and then the regulating member 330 is fitted through the through hole 1a.
, And the female screw 1c formed on the inner peripheral wall on the other end side
The mounting member 320 accommodating the bearing 325 is mounted on the mounting member 320.
Next, the hollow shaft 70 incorporated in the power plant C and protruding outward is inserted from the left side in FIG. 2 to rotatably support the bearings 315 and 325, and then the hollow shaft 70 is inserted through the washer 76b. The locking member 76a is fitted into the fitting groove 76 and attached. Hollow shaft 7 in this state
No. 0 is attached to the hanger lug 1 with its axial movement restricted by the washer 76b and the washer 75b positioned and attached to the locking member 75a on the hollow shaft 70 and located on the end face side of the attachment member 310. Then, the mounting member 17 is attached to the uneven strip 73 formed on the hollow shaft 70.
Attach the sprocket 17 via a.

In this way, when the hollow shaft 70 is attached to the hanger lug 1, the power unit C can rotate about the hollow shaft 70 via the ball bearing 77. Then, the power unit C rotatably attached is rotated in either direction around the hollow shaft 70 as an axis, and the attachment portion 23 is formed on the case body 230.
8 is positioned so as to correspond to one side of the chain stay 7, a cushioning body (not shown) is interposed between the one side of the chain stay 7 and the mounting portion 238, and the chain After positioning a tightening metal fitting (not shown) on the other side of the stay 7, mount the screw 2 so as to sandwich the chain stay 7 between the mounting portion 238 and the tightening metal fitting.
38b and a nut (not shown).

Then, as shown in FIG.
Since the screw insertion hole 238a formed in the above is formed as a long hole along the circumferential direction, even if the position of the chain stay 7 is slightly different depending on the vehicle body B, it can be rotated and adjusted in the circumferential direction to be attached. Is.

In this way, the power unit C has a hollow shaft 70 attached to the vehicle body B by inserting one into the hanger lug 1.
Accordingly, the other is attached to the chain stay 7 and is fixedly attached to the vehicle body B by the attachment portion 238 and the fastening metal fitting. Then, the power plant C attaches one side to the hanger lug 1 by the hollow shaft 70, and positions the other side by rotating the attaching portion 238 to a position corresponding to the chain stay 7 with the hollow shaft 70 as an axis. Since the mounting portion 238 and the tightening metal fitting (not shown) are used to mount the frame 6 of the vehicle body B through a buffer (not shown), the frame 6 of the vehicle body B can be mounted. In other words, one of them is uniquely positioned by the hollow shaft 70 attached to the hanger lug 1, but the other can be positioned at an arbitrary position with the hollow shaft 70 as the center of rotation. It can be attached.

After mounting the power unit C on the vehicle body B, the left crank 81 and the right crank 82 having the pedals 81a and 82a mounted on the mounting portions 83 and 84 of the crankshaft 80 are mounted by the nuts 83b and 84b. This completes all the assembly.

When the power unit C is attached to the vehicle body B, the case body 230 is attached to the main disposition chamber 233 and the storage chamber 2.
34 and 34 are arranged substantially linearly, and the mounting portion 235 is formed on the side wall of the storage chamber 234 on the same side as the protruding side of the hollow shaft 70. Since the case 30 is formed in a character shape, the mounting portion 235 of the case 30 is located below the lower pipe 3 of the frame 6 of the vehicle body B, and the main arrangement chamber 233 and the accommodating chamber are arranged linearly in a flat shape. Since the 234 and the lower pipe 3 are located on the side of the lower pipe 3, the power unit C of the case 30 does not largely protrude to the side of the frame 6, and the case 30 does not interfere with running. Is.

Next, the operation of the bicycle with the auxiliary power unit configured as described above will be described. First, in order to supply electric power from the battery (not shown) to the control device 300 and the like, a start switch (not shown) is closed to ride a bicycle. When the vehicle is traveling on a level ground or a downhill, the rotational force applied to the drive gear 56 via the crankshaft 80 does not exceed the predetermined rotational force as described above, so that the drive gear 56 and the rotational force detection member 90 are separated from each other. The drive spring 60 disposed therebetween is not compressed, and therefore the drive gear 56 and the rotational force detecting member 90 rotate in synchronization with each other, and the displacement plate 95 does not move and the rotational force detecting member 90 does not move. Since it rotates together with 90, the deflection plate 9
5 does not move, the control device 300 controls the electric motor 40 by the electrical output output from the torque sensor 100.
Is controlled to a stopped state, and therefore the running force is not assisted from the power unit C, and the rotational force of the crankshaft 80 applied through the crankshafts 81 and 82 by depressing the pedals 81a and 82a is the drive gear 56. Is transmitted to the rear wheel 12 via the hollow shaft 70, the sprocket 17, and the chain 19 for manual running.

Further, when traveling uphill, a large turning force is required, and as a result, the pedals 81a and 82a are
As a result, the rotational force applied to the crankshaft 80 and the rotational force detection member 90 increases and exceeds a predetermined value. That is, the drive gear 56 is transmitted to the rear wheel 12 via the chain 19 by the sprocket 1
Since the load applied to the hollow shaft 70 that transmits the rotational force to the gear 7 increases, the rotational force detection member 90 rotates faster than the rotation of the drive gear 56, and as a result, the drive spring 60.
Are compressed and the rotational force detection member 90 rotates ahead of the drive gear 56, and the slide shaft 96 of the displacement plate 95 moves upward along the slope 57a of the projection 57 of the drive gear 56, and the displacement plate 95 is rotated. Moves away from the rotational force detection member 90. When the displacement plate 95 moves, the bending force of the strain element 131 of the torque sensor 100 decreases, and the resistance value of the resistors R1 to R4 changes with this decrease, and the electrical output accompanying this change is generated. The output is sent from the torque sensor 100 to the control device 300, and the control device 300 controls the drive of the electric motor 40 according to the electric output, and the rotational force of the electric motor 40 is transmitted via the power transmission means 50.
It is transmitted to the rear wheel 12 via the hollow shaft 70, the sprocket 17, and the chain 19. The rotational force from the electric motor 40 is applied to the crankshaft 8 by depressing the pedals 81a and 82a.
It is added to the rotational force due to human power transmitted to zero. That is, the power of the electric motor 40 is assisted when the rotational force due to human power exceeds a predetermined value.
Even when a large turning force such as an uphill is required, the vehicle can be easily traveled.

When the vehicle again travels on level ground or the like, the rotational force detecting member 90 returns to its original state by the urging force of the drive spring 60, rotates in synchronization with the drive gear 56 without relative movement, and is displaced. Since the plate 95 also returns to the original position and the electrical output from the torque sensor 100 also returns to the original state, the control device 300 controls the electric motor 40 to stop in accordance with this electrical output. That is, the assistance of the rotational force from the power unit C is cut off, and the vehicle is driven only by the rotational force by human power.

As described above, since the bicycle with the auxiliary power unit can be used as it is as a general-purpose bicycle without requiring a dedicated vehicle body, the bicycle can be an inexpensive bicycle with the auxiliary power unit, and the case can be used. The power transmission means 50, the control device 300, and the like are housed in the unit 30 and the electric motor 40 is attached, so that the volume occupied by the power transmission unit 50, the control device 300, and the electric motor 40 can be reduced and downsized. The work of attaching to the vehicle body B is facilitated, and furthermore, measures against the intrusion of rainwater and the like are ensured by a simple configuration in which only the case 30 is provided, that is, the packing P is provided between the opening edge of the case body 230 and the lid case 250. The lead wire for connecting the electric motor 40, the relay 302, the control device 300, and the like is inside the case. Those capable of reliably radiation radiated electromagnetic wave from being wired.

Further, since the case 30 is provided with the function of the radiation fins for cooling the heat-generating electronic components constituting the control device, the cooling can be surely performed and the control device can be prevented from being upsized. .

Further, the case body 230 is attached to the main disposition chamber 233.
And the accommodating chamber 234 are arranged substantially linearly, and the mounting portion 235 is formed on the side wall of the accommodating chamber 234 on the same side as the projecting side of the hollow hollow shaft 70. Is formed into a substantially L shape, the case 30 is attached to the mounting portion 235 of the frame 6 of the vehicle body B.
Since the main arrangement chamber 233 and the storage chamber 234, which are located below the lower pipe 3 and are linearly arranged in a flat shape, are located on the side of the lower pipe, the case 30, that is, the power unit. C is the side of the frame 6, that is, the vehicle body B
The size of the case 30 does not significantly extend to the side of the vehicle, and the size of the vehicle can be reduced, and the case 30 does not interfere with the running of the vehicle and does not hinder the operation of the bicycle.

In the above embodiment, since the first connector 237a and the second connector 237b are housed in the connection part housing chamber 237, the relay 302 and the lead wire 16 from the battery are described above. After connecting by the connectors 237a and 237b, the connectors 237a and 237b are connected to the connection component storage chamber 237.
It is sufficient to store only the lead wires 16 in the case 30 and pull out only the lead wires 16 from the case 30. Since many lead wires are not exposed to the outside of the case 30, these lead wires do not get in the way, and these lead wires do not interfere. You don't even have to handle the lines out of the way. In addition, the connection component storage chamber 237
Is formed so as to face the mounting portion 235 to which the electric motor 40 is mounted and is formed through a gap G, and the lower pipe 3 of the frame 6 is positioned in this gap G.
The case 30, that is, the power unit C can make the vehicle body B compact, and the connection component storage chamber 237 does not project to the side of the vehicle body B even when the vehicle body B is attached to the vehicle body B. There is no such thing.

In the above embodiment, the electric motor 40 is attached so that the axial direction of the output shaft 41 thereof coincides with the front-back direction of the vehicle body B. The gears may be mounted so as to be orthogonal to the front-rear direction. In this case, spur gears can be used for each gear forming the power transmission means 50 without using a bevel gear, and all the gears are arranged in a linear arrangement. Therefore, the sub-arrangement chamber 236 can be omitted.

Further, although the storage chamber 234 is arranged side by side with the mounting portion 235, this may not necessarily be arranged in this way. For example, the connection component storage chamber 237.
May be provided side by side in the vertical direction, and in this case as well, the power unit C does not largely project to the side of the vehicle body B. However, as in the configuration of the above embodiment, the storage chamber 23
4 and the mounting portion 235 are arranged side by side, the storage chamber 234 and the mounting portion 235 are located below the vehicle body B, so that there is an advantage that they are not obstructed during traveling.

[0076]

The present invention is configured as described above.
The invention according to claim 1 can be used as an inexpensive bicycle with an auxiliary power unit because the vehicle body of a general-purpose bicycle can be used as it is without requiring a dedicated vehicle body.
The power transmission means and the control device are housed in the case, and the electric motor is attached.
The volume occupied by the control device and the electric motor can be reduced to make it smaller, and the work of attaching these to the vehicle body becomes easier,
Furthermore, measures against the intrusion of rainwater and the like can be surely and easily carried out only by the case, and since the lead wire connecting the electric motor and the control device is wired in the case, it is possible to surely radiate the radiated electromagnetic wave. It is possible to produce an effect.

According to the second aspect of the invention, in addition to the effect of the first aspect of the invention, the case is provided with the function of a radiation fin for cooling the heat-generating electronic components constituting the control device. It is possible to achieve an effect that the cooling can be surely performed and the control device can be prevented from being upsized.

Further, in addition to the effects of the invention of claim 1 and the invention of claim 2, the invention according to claim 3 has a substantially straight line between the installation chamber of the case body and the storage chamber. In addition, since the mounting portion is formed on the side wall on the same side as the projecting side of the hollow shaft of the storage chamber, the power unit can greatly protrude to the side of the vehicle body. In addition, it is possible to obtain an effect that the bicycle can be made compact and that it does not hinder the operation of the bicycle without disturbing the user while traveling.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an entire embodiment of a bicycle with an auxiliary power device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a state in which an auxiliary power unit is attached to the vehicle body of the above-described embodiment (a developed cross-sectional view developed by a straight line passing through the output shaft of the electric motor, the gear, and the crankshaft).

FIG. 3 is a view showing a state in which the auxiliary power unit is attached to the vehicle body, with a part of the above embodiment being sectioned.

FIG. 4 is a diagram of a state in which the auxiliary power unit according to the above-described embodiment is attached to a vehicle body as viewed from above (in the axial direction of the vertical pipe).

FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view showing a part (a storage chamber) of the case according to the embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an operation of switching the rotational force of the above embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the torque sensor according to the above embodiment.

FIG. 8 is an electric circuit diagram of the torque sensor.

[Explanation of symbols]

 A bicycle with auxiliary power unit B bicycle main body (car body) C auxiliary power unit 1 hanger lug 17 sprocket 30 case 40 electric motor 50 power transmission means 70 hollow shaft 80 crank shaft 81 left crank 82 right crank 81a, 82a pedal 233 main installation room ( Installation room) 234 Storage room 235 Mounting part 311 Field effect transistor (heat-generating electronic component)

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. An electric motor mounted on a case, a power transmission means arranged in the case for transmitting a rotational force of the electric motor, and a power transmission means rotatably mounted on the case via a bearing. A hollow shaft that transmits the transmitted rotational force to the sprocket and that is attached to the hanger lug of the vehicle body, and a crankshaft that is rotatably provided inside the hollow shaft and that has cranks with pedals provided at both ends, In the bicycle with the auxiliary power unit, the auxiliary power unit is configured by the mounting member provided on the case and attached to the frame, and the auxiliary power unit is attached to the vehicle body by the mounting unit and the hollow shaft. And a control device for controlling the electric motor is stored in the storage chamber. 2. The housing is formed of a material having good thermal conductivity, and at least one of the electronic components constituting the control device that generates heat is brought into contact with a part of the storage chamber to mount the control device in the storage chamber. The bicycle with an auxiliary power unit according to claim 1, wherein the bicycle is stored in. 3. The case is formed by arranging an arrangement chamber for arranging the power transmission means and an accommodating chamber for accommodating the control device in a substantially linear manner, and projecting the hollow shaft of the accommodating chamber. The mounting portion is formed on the same side as the mounting side, the power transmission means is disposed in the mounting chamber, the control device is stored in the storage chamber, and the mounting portion is mounted. The bicycle with an auxiliary power unit according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the electric motor is attached to a portion of the auxiliary power unit.