JPH10119872A - Auxiliary power supply device for bicycle - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To detect the transmission of pedaling force and the magnitude of the pedaling force by a simple and small configuration less in failure rate in the auxiliary power supply device for a bicycle. SOLUTION: The auxiliary power supply device is equipped with a pedal shaft 12 to which pedaling force by a rider of a bicycle is transmitted, an auxiliary shaft 22 to which auxiliary power is transmitted from an auxiliary power motor M, an output shaft which is rotatably disposed around the pedal shaft, and transmits the pedaling force and auxiliary power to a wheel, an auxiliary shaft side one-way clutch 23 interposed between the auxiliary shaft and the output shaft, an inner side cylinder member 42 disposed around the pedal shaft, to which the pedaling force is transmitted from the pedal shaft, an outer side member 44 which is disposed around the inner side cylindrical member, and transmits the pedaling force transmitted from the inner side cylindrical member to the output side, and with a motor control unit C for controlling auxiliary power produced by the auxiliary power motor. The outer side member 44 is so constituted as to be displaced to the axial line direction of the pedal shaft in response to the magnitude of the pedaling force when the pedaling force is transmitted, and the motor control unit C controls electric power to be fed to the auxiliary power motor in such a way that the auxiliary power motor M will produce auxiliary power in response to the quantity of displacement in the axial direction of the outer side member 44.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an auxiliary power supply device for a bicycle, and particularly to an auxiliary power supply device for driving wheels when a large driving force is required on a slope or the like without complicated operation. The present invention relates to an auxiliary power supply device for a bicycle in which the occupant's driving work is reduced. More specifically, according to the present invention, the magnitude of the pedaling force applied to the pedal by the occupant is detected with high reliability by a small and simple mechanism, and the pedaling force can be safely detected when a large driving work exceeding a predetermined value is required. The present invention relates to a bicycle auxiliary power supply device to which auxiliary power is supplied.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Bicycles driven by human power have advantages such as being easy and having low pollution. However, since their driving force is relatively small, they can be used for running on uphill slopes, running under headwinds, etc.
There is a disadvantage that it is difficult to travel requiring a relatively large driving force, such as traveling during acceleration. In order to make up for this disadvantage, various bicycles have been devised in which a motor is supplementarily powered by a motor when a large driving force is required.

For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 55-22590 discloses that when a pedaling force of a bicycle is increased and a pulling force of a chain for transmitting a driving force to a rear wheel of the bicycle is increased, a driving device is operated by a spring. Discloses a bicycle that is moved by the pulling force of a chain, a switch of a motor is closed, and auxiliary power is supplied from the motor. However, the bicycle of this publication has the disadvantage that it does not respond sensitively to changes in pedaling force, since it utilizes small changes in the lateral force of the chain that occur in response to the longitudinal pulling force of the chain. Further, since the lateral force of the chain is easily affected by the vibration and shaking of the bicycle, there is a disadvantage that the switch of the motor is simply closed by a large vibration or shaking, even if the pedaling force is not large.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 4-358986 discloses that a driving torque is detected using a torque detector having a structure in which a planetary gear mechanism is interposed in a driving system driven by humans and a driving reaction force is detected from the middle of the planetary gear mechanism. A bicycle with an electric motor configured to increase or decrease the current of a motor in response to an increase or decrease in driving torque is disclosed. However, since the bicycle disclosed in this publication uses many complicated and expensive parts such as a planetary gear mechanism, a controller, a torque detector, and the like, it has a high possibility of failure, has low durability, and has a high manufacturing cost. Having.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 8-99686 discloses that an elastic body caused by a pedal depression force is detected by a torque detecting unit, and an electric drive unit is driven by a driving force corresponding to the expansion and contraction. Since it is arranged so as to cross the axis of the shaft, the mechanism for detecting the magnitude of the pedaling force applied to the pedal by the occupant is relatively large and complicated.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art of a bicycle having an auxiliary power motor, and to provide an auxiliary power motor to a bicycle only when a large stepping force such as a slope is required. The present invention is to provide an auxiliary power supply device for a bicycle that reliably supplies auxiliary power from a vehicle by a simple mechanism, reduces driving work by stepping force, and enables safe and comfortable running. Another object of the present invention is to provide an auxiliary power supply device for a bicycle with mechanical parts having high structural strength, high durability and low cost. Another object of the present invention is to configure a member for transmitting a pedaling force transmitted from a pedal shaft of a bicycle to be displaced in the axial direction of the pedal shaft in accordance with the magnitude of the pedaling force, thereby transmitting and transmitting the pedaling force. It is an object of the present invention to make it possible to detect the height accurately with a simple and small structure. Other objects of the present invention will become apparent in the following description and examples.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An auxiliary power supply device for a bicycle according to the present invention includes a pedal shaft to which a pedaling force by a bicycle occupant is transmitted, an auxiliary shaft to which auxiliary power is transmitted from an auxiliary power motor, and a pedal shaft. An output shaft that is rotatably disposed to transmit pedaling force and auxiliary force to wheels, an auxiliary shaft-side one-way clutch disposed between the auxiliary shaft and the output shaft, and a pedaling force that is disposed around the pedal shaft and transmitted from the pedal shaft. An inner cylindrical member, an outer member disposed around the inner cylindrical member and transmitting the pedaling force transmitted from the inner cylindrical member to the output shaft, and a motor controller for controlling the auxiliary power generated by the auxiliary power motor. The outer member is configured to be displaced in the axial direction of the pedal shaft according to the magnitude of the pedaling force, and the motor controller is configured to cause the auxiliary power motor to generate auxiliary power in accordance with the amount of displacement of the outer member in the axial direction. Next, the power supplied to the auxiliary power motor is controlled.

In the present invention, preferably, the inner cylindrical member receives the pedaling force from the pedal shaft via the one-way clutch on the pedal shaft side, and the output shaft has an input plate portion arranged around the pedal shaft. The outer member is a sliding shaft that is slidably engaged with the inner peripheral surface facing the outer peripheral surface of the inner cylindrical member, the cylindrical flange portion coaxial with the pedal shaft, and the input plate portion of the output shaft in the axial direction of the pedal shaft. With parts. The input plate portion of the output shaft is capable of transmitting auxiliary power from the auxiliary shaft, and is engaged with the sliding shaft portion of the outer member so as to transmit the pedaling force from the outer member.

An elastic member is disposed between the input plate portion and the outer member to exert an elastic force in the axial direction of the pedal shaft between the input plate portion and the outer member, and a pedaling force responsive mechanism is disposed between the inner cylindrical member and the outer member. . The pedaling force response mechanism has a structure that generates an axial thrust of the pedal shaft on the outer member according to the magnitude of the pedaling force, and the outer member is displaced in the axial direction against the elastic force by the thrust generated by the pedaling force response mechanism. You. The axial displacement of the outer member is optically or magnetically detected by a displacement detector and input to the motor controller. The motor controller controls the power supplied to the auxiliary power motor according to the displacement signal of the outer member.

The elastic member is constituted by one or a plurality of coil springs wound around an axis parallel to the axis of the pedal shaft. The pedaling force responsive mechanism has a structure in which a male screw formed on the outer peripheral surface of the inner cylindrical member and a female screw formed on the inner peripheral surface of the outer member are engaged. The combination of the female screw and the male screw can be a combination of a change nut and a multi-start screw. In addition, the pedaling force response mechanism may have a structure in which one of the inner cylindrical member and the outer member is provided with an inclined surface inclined with respect to the axis, and the other is provided with a protrusion slidable along the inclined surface. On the other hand, the bicycle auxiliary power supply device of the present invention further includes a traveling speedometer for detecting the traveling speed of the bicycle, and the motor controller supplies power to the auxiliary power motor when the traveling speed of the bicycle exceeds a predetermined value. Is controlled not to be supplied. The traveling speedometer includes a rotating magnet carried on an input plate portion of an output shaft and a rotation speed sensor for detecting rotation of the magnet.

[0011]

In the bicycle auxiliary power supply device according to the present invention, when the running resistance of the bicycle increases on an uphill or the like and the pedaling force increases, the pedaling force transmitted from the inner cylindrical member to the outer member increases, and The member is displaced in the axial direction of the pedal shaft. The axial displacement of the outer member is
The displacement is detected optically by the displacement detector and input to the motor controller.The motor controller supplies power to the auxiliary power motor according to the axial displacement, whereby the auxiliary power motor supplies the auxiliary power. Occur. The auxiliary power generated by the auxiliary power motor is transmitted to the wheels of the bicycle via the auxiliary shaft, the one-way clutch on the auxiliary shaft, the output shaft, etc., and drives the wheels. It is driven and runs without increasing the pedaling force. The traveling speed is detected by the traveling speedometer, and when the traveling speed exceeds a predetermined value, for example, 24 km / h, the power supply to the auxiliary power motor is stopped for danger prevention.

When the pedaling force of the pedal is reduced due to running on a flat ground or a downhill, or running at low speed, the pedaling force transmitted from the inner cylindrical member to the outer member is reduced, and the outer member is reduced in the axial direction of the pedal shaft. Displaced. This small displacement is detected by the displacement detector and input to the motor controller, and the motor controller supplies relatively small electric power to the auxiliary power motor according to the displacement to generate relatively small auxiliary power. Or stop the auxiliary power motor. Therefore, the bicycle is driven with little auxiliary power and is driven mainly by treading force or only by treading force, and little or no battery power is consumed.

[0013]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view showing an embodiment of an auxiliary power supply device for a bicycle according to the present invention. FIG.
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the auxiliary power supply device of FIG. 1 along a line AA, and FIG. 3 is a partially enlarged view of FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 1, the auxiliary power supply device has a pedal shaft 12 to which pedaling force by a bicycle occupant is transmitted via a pedal (not shown). The pedaling force transmitted to the pedal shaft 12 is transmitted to the inner cylindrical member 42 coaxial with the pedal shaft via the pedal shaft-side one-way clutch 11 arranged around the pedal shaft.

The inner cylindrical member 42 is rotatably supported by a casing 15 fixed to the vehicle body via a ball bearing 16, and is provided between the outer peripheral surface of the pedal shaft 12 and the inner peripheral surface of the inner cylindrical member 42. A needle bearing 13 is arranged alongside the one-way clutch 11, whereby the pedal shaft 12 and the inner cylindrical member 42 are supported by the casing 15 so as to be rotatable and not to move in the axial direction.
The one-way clutch 11 on the pedal shaft side transmits the pedaling force of the occupant, that is, the bicycle driving force from the pedal shaft to the inner cylindrical member, but does not transmit the driving force in the opposite direction. The disadvantage that the pedal shaft 12 is rotated can be eliminated.

As shown in FIG. 3, the pedaling force transmitted to the inner cylindrical member 42 is transmitted to an outer member 44 arranged coaxially with the inner cylindrical member via a treading force response mechanism 45. The outer member 44 includes an inner peripheral surface 4 facing the outer peripheral surface 41 of the inner cylindrical member.
3. It has a disk portion 63 and a cylindrical flange portion 64 coaxial with the pedal shaft, and a plurality of sliding shaft portions 65. The plurality of sliding shaft portions 65 are provided on the output shaft 3 coaxial with the pedal shaft 12.
0 is slidably engaged with the input plate portion 32 in the axial direction. The outer peripheral surface of the input plate portion 32 forms a gear 29 to which auxiliary power is transmitted.

An output shaft 30 coaxial with the pedal shaft 12 is supported by the casing 15 via a ball bearing 16 so as to be rotatable and not to move in the axial direction. A needle bearing 13 is arranged between the outer peripheral surfaces, and by this structure, the output shaft and the pedal shaft 12 are supported by the casing so as to be rotatable and not to move in the axial direction. The output shaft 30 further includes a chain wheel 34 coaxial with the pedal shaft, and transmits the pedaling force and the auxiliary power transmitted to the output shaft to the chain wheel on the wheel side via a chain (not shown).

A plurality of coil springs 46 are arranged between the input plate portion 32 of the output shaft and the disk portion 63 of the outer member.
An axial elastic force is applied so as to separate the two. Each coil spring 46 is wound around an axis parallel to the axis of the pedal shaft. As shown in FIG. 2, the coil springs 46 are arranged at equal intervals in the circumferential direction of the disk portion 63 of the outer member. The elastic force of the coil spring 46 preferably has a direction in which the output shaft 30 and the outer member 44 are separated from each other in the axial direction, but may have a direction in which both are brought close to each other. As is clear from the arrangement of the coil spring 46 and the sliding shaft portion 65 in FIG.
The cross-sectional view below the pedal shaft 12 in FIG. 1 shows a cross-section rotated 45 degrees around the axis with respect to the upper cross-section.

The pedaling force response mechanism 45 disposed between the inner cylindrical member 42 and the outer member 44 generates a thrust in the axial direction of the pedal shaft on the outer member 44 according to the magnitude of the pedaling force transmitted from the inner cylindrical member. Having. In FIGS. 1 and 3, the treading force responsive mechanism 45 is provided on the outer peripheral surface 4 of the inner cylindrical member 42.
1 and a female screw formed on the inner peripheral surface 43 of the outer member 44. The inner screw is engaged with the male screw when the male screw of the inner cylindrical member is rotated by treading force. The combined female screw transmits a pedaling force (rotational force) in the rotational direction and a component (thrust) in the axial direction of the pedaling force.

The axial thrust generated by the treading force response mechanism 45 displaces the outer member 44 in the axial direction against the elastic force of the coil spring 46. The combination of the female screw and the male screw can be a combination of a change nut and a multi-thread screw capable of efficiently converting a rotational force into a linear motion. The pedaling force responding mechanism 45 has a structure in which an inclined surface inclined with respect to the axial direction is provided on the outer member 44, and a protrusion slidable along the inclined surface is provided on the outer peripheral surface or end of the inner cylindrical member 42. be able to.

The treading force transmitted from the inner cylindrical member 42 to the outer member 44 is transmitted to the outer member 44 after being separated into a rotational force and an axial thrust by a treading force response mechanism 45, and the outer member 44 is rotated by the rotational force. Then, the rotational force is transmitted to the output shaft 32 via the sliding shaft portion 65, and is displaced in the axial direction by the thrust against the elastic force of the coil spring 46. Accordingly, the cylindrical flange portion 64 of the outer member is displaced in the axial direction by a displacement amount corresponding to the magnitude of the pedaling force. Displacement of the cylindrical flange portion 64, the displacement detector 66 is converted is detected optically to the displacement amount signal S _1, is input to the motor controller C, is supplied from the battery B to the auxiliary power motor M The power is increased or decreased according to the amount of displacement.

The input plate portion 32 of the output shaft 30 is engaged with the sliding shaft portion 65 of the outer member, and the pedaling force is transmitted from the outer member. The axial displacement of the outer member is released because the sliding shaft portion 65 can slide in the axial direction with respect to the sliding hole 33 of the input plate portion 32, and is transmitted from the outer member 44 to the output shaft 30. The only treading force is the turning force.

The bicycle auxiliary power supply device of the present invention may further include a running speed meter for detecting the running speed of the bicycle, the motor controller, predetermined running speed of the bicycle by the speed signal S ₂ from the traveling speedometer If it exceeds the value, control is performed so as not to supply power to the auxiliary power motor. The traveling speedometer is
Is constituted by a speed sensor 84 for detecting the rotation of the rotary magnet 82 and the magnet carried on the input plate portion 32 of the output shaft 30, which generates a speed signal S _2. The rotation speed signal S ₂ is supplied to the motor controller C.

When electric power is supplied to the auxiliary power motor M by the motor controller C, the generated power is transmitted as auxiliary power to the auxiliary shaft 22 via a motor shaft and a bevel gear transmission mechanism. The auxiliary power is supplied from the auxiliary shaft 22 to the auxiliary shaft-side one-way clutch 23, the small gear 25 on the auxiliary shaft 24, and the small gear 25.
Are transmitted to the large gear 26 on the intermediate shaft 28, the small gear 27 on the intermediate shaft 28, and the large gear 29 on the output shaft 30 meshed with the small gear 27. The auxiliary power transmitted in this manner is combined with the pedaling force transmitted to the output shaft 30 via the sliding shaft portion 65 of the outer member, and transmitted to the bicycle wheel via the chain wheel 34 of the output shaft 30.

The auxiliary one-way clutch 23 applies the rotational auxiliary power generated by the auxiliary power motor M to the first shaft from the auxiliary shaft.
It transmits to the intermediate shaft but not in the opposite direction. That is, the output shaft 30 is free to rotate in the forward direction of the bicycle with respect to the auxiliary shaft 22, so that the inconvenience of transmitting the forward driving force of the bicycle by the pedaling force from the output shaft 30 to the auxiliary power motor M is eliminated.

[0025]

In the bicycle auxiliary power supply device according to the present invention, the magnitude of the pedaling force for rotating the pedal shaft is detected by a small-sized mechanism having a simple structure, and power is supplied from the battery only when the pedaling force is relatively large. And provide auxiliary power to the bicycle. Therefore, the occupant of the bicycle can continue comfortable running on a slope or the like where the bicycle driving work becomes large without increasing the pedaling force by the auxiliary power.

According to the present invention, the outer member disposed around the pedal shaft receives the rotational tread force for advancing the bicycle, and the thrust is substantially proportional to the magnitude of the tread force, that is, the axial direction of the pedal shaft. , And is displaced in the axial direction against the elastic force in the axial direction acting on the outer member. The displacement of the outer member in the axial direction is converted into a displacement signal by a displacement detector, and is used in the motor controller for controlling the power supply of the auxiliary power motor.

In the present invention, the thrust substantially proportional to the magnitude of the rotary tread force can be obtained by a relatively simple and small mechanism as a whole. That is, the pedaling force for rotating the pedal shaft is
Rotational force and axial thrust are separated by a pedaling force response mechanism coaxial with the pedal shaft. The pedaling force response mechanism is specifically configured by a screw mechanism coaxial with the pedal shaft, and has a simple and small structure. Also, since the elastic member that applies the elastic force to the outer member also generates the elastic force in the axial direction,
Compared with the case where a conventional spring member that intersects with the axial direction is used, the structure is significantly simpler and can be formed in a small size.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing an embodiment of a bicycle auxiliary power supply device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the auxiliary power supply device of FIG. 1 along a line AA.

FIG. 3 is a partially enlarged view of FIG. 1;

[Explanation of symbols]

11: one-way clutch on pedal shaft side, 12: pedal shaft, 1
3: needle bearing, 14: oil seal, 15: casing, 16: ball bearing, 22: auxiliary shaft, 23: one-way clutch on auxiliary shaft side, 24: first intermediate shaft, 25, 26, 27:
Gear, 28: second intermediate shaft, 29: gear, 30: output shaft,
32: input plate portion, 33: sliding hole, 34: chain wheel, 41: outer peripheral surface, 42: inner cylindrical member, 43: inner peripheral surface, 44: outer member, 45: pedal force responsive mechanism, 46: coil spring, 63 : Disk portion, 64: cylindrical flange portion, 65: sliding shaft portion, 66: displacement detector, 82: rotating magnet, 84: rotation speed sensor, M: auxiliary motor.

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A pedal shaft to which pedaling force transmitted by a rider of a bicycle is transmitted, an auxiliary shaft to which auxiliary power is transmitted from an auxiliary power motor, and a pedal shaft rotatably arranged around the pedal shaft to transmit pedaling force and auxiliary power to wheels. An output shaft, an auxiliary shaft-side one-way clutch arranged between the auxiliary shaft and the output shaft, an inner cylindrical member arranged around the pedal shaft and to which the pedaling force is transmitted from the pedal shaft, an inner cylinder arranged around the inner cylindrical member An outer member for transmitting the treading force transmitted from the member to the output shaft, a motor controller for controlling the auxiliary power generated by the auxiliary power motor, the outer member according to the magnitude of the treading force when the treading force is transmitted And the motor controller supplies the auxiliary power motor to the auxiliary power motor such that the auxiliary power motor generates auxiliary power in accordance with the axial displacement of the outer member. Bicycle auxiliary power supply apparatus characterized by controlling the power. 2. The auxiliary power supply device for a bicycle according to claim 1, wherein the inner cylindrical member receives a pedaling force from the pedal shaft via a pedal shaft-side one-way clutch, and the output shaft is provided around the pedal shaft. The outer member has an inner peripheral surface facing the outer peripheral surface of the inner cylindrical member, a cylindrical flange portion coaxial with the pedal shaft, and an input shaft portion of the output shaft which is slid in the axial direction. A sliding shaft portion movably engaged, the input plate portion of the output shaft is capable of transmitting auxiliary power from the auxiliary shaft, and is engaged with the sliding shaft portion of the outer member to apply a pedaling force from the outer member. The transmission is enabled, an elastic member is arranged between the input plate portion and the outer member, an axial elastic force acts between the two, and a treading force response mechanism is arranged between the inner cylindrical member and the outer member, The response mechanism is located on the outer member according to the magnitude of the pedaling force. The outer member is displaced in the axial direction against the elastic force by the thrust generated from the pedaling force responding mechanism, and the axial displacement of the outer member is optically detected by a displacement detector. An auxiliary power supply device for a bicycle, which is input to a motor controller. 3. An auxiliary power supply for a bicycle according to claim 2, wherein the elastic member is constituted by one or a plurality of coil springs wound around an axis parallel to the axis of the pedal shaft. apparatus. 4. The pedaling force responsive mechanism has a structure in which a male screw formed on an outer peripheral surface of an inner cylindrical member and a female screw formed on an inner peripheral surface of an outer member are engaged. Item 4. An auxiliary power supply device for a bicycle according to item 2 or 3. 5. A traveling speedometer for detecting a traveling speed of a bicycle, the traveling speedometer comprising a rotating magnet carried on an input plate portion of an output shaft, and a rotation speed sensor for detecting rotation of the magnet. The bicycle auxiliary power supply device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the motor controller does not supply power to the auxiliary power motor when the running speed of the bicycle exceeds a predetermined value. .