JPH11129720A - Structure of air spring - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To avoid the interference of an air spring attached between a bracket provided on a vehicle frame and an axle with other members and increase a degree of freedom in vehicle layout by forming a cross sectional shape of the air spring into a non-circular shape. SOLUTION: Spring brackets 3, 2 are provided on left and right side members 1L, 1R, and one end of a leaf spring 4 is fixed by a pin 3a. Moreover, the brackets are attached to the other end by tightening the leaf spring 4 and a shock absorber bracket together on a rigid axle 10. A lower end part of a bellows 7 constituting an air spring which has a non-circular shape and an elliptic shape is attached to an upper part of the brackets, and an upper end part 7b thereof is attached to the side member 1L through the upper bracket. Consequently, it is possible to avoid the interference of the air spring with members A, B, etc., and perform vehicle layout easily because the bellows 7 is formed into the elliptic shape.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a structure of an air spring mounted between an axle and a bracket provided on a vehicle frame.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art The other end of a leaf spring rotatably connected to a bracket provided on a side member of a frame of a vehicle, for example, a large vehicle, is attached to the other end of an air spring having a circular cross section. There is known an air spring in which a rigid axle is attached to a lower surface of a leaf spring, and an upper end of the air spring is attached to a frame.

[0003]

However, in the above technique, the position of the air spring with respect to the frame, particularly, the position in the width direction is determined. Therefore,
When a related model with changed wheel positions is required, such as a heavy truck, due to legal restrictions on axle load and the maximum load capacity, other members such as engine accessories and linkages near the frame and the air spring May interfere with each other, and in such a case, there is a small degree of freedom in arranging members in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle to avoid the interference, and there is a problem that the vehicle layout is inconvenient.

[0004] The technique disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open Publication No. Hei 5-32013 is disclosed, but is a technique for attaching an air spring to a kick-up frame in which the rear end of a side member is cut up, and does not relate to the problem of the present application.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an air spring structure which prevents the air spring from interfering with other members and increases the degree of freedom in vehicle layout.

[0006]

According to the present invention, in a structure of an air spring mounted between a bracket provided on a frame of a vehicle and an axle, the cross section of the air spring has a non-circular shape. Is formed.

According to the present invention, the axle is a rigid axle, and the rigid axle is fixed to a leaf spring pivotally attached to a frame.

[0008]

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

In FIG. 1, a left side member 1L and a right side member 1R are connected by a cross member 5 also serving as an engine mount. The cross members other than the above are omitted to avoid complicating the drawing, and the left side in the drawing is the front F direction.

The left and right side members 1L and 1R are provided with spring brackets 3 and 2 respectively. Referring to FIG. 2, one end of a leaf spring 4 is pivotally attached to the spring bracket 3 by a pin 3a. At the other end, a bracket 8a is attached by a stud 9 and a nut 20 provided on the bracket 8a so as to fasten the leaf spring 4 and the shock absorber bracket 11 to the rigid axle 10 together.

A lower end portion 7a of a bellows 7 constituting an air spring formed in a non-circular elliptical shape is attached to an upper portion of the bracket 8a, and an upper end portion 7b
Is attached to the side member 1L via the upper bracket 12. The lower end of the shock absorber 13 not shown in FIG. 1 is pivotally attached to the shock absorber bracket 11, and the upper end is screwed to the shock absorber bracket 12 attached to the side rail 1L.

The other end of the right leaf spring 4 is connected to one end of a lateral rod 6 (not shown in detail), and the other end is connected to a lateral rod bracket 6a provided on the left side rail 1L. The positioning pin 4a of the spring 4 is engaged with a center hole (not shown) of the bracket 8a, and the bracket 8a is mounted and positioned on the rigid axle 10 together with the leaf spring 4 and the shock absorber bracket 11.

The operation will be described below.

In FIG. 1, when the bellows 7 has a circular cross section, the bellows 7 interferes with an adjacent member A (for example, a starter motor of an engine) or a member B (for example, a steering arm). By moving the vehicle into an elliptical shape without moving the vehicle, interference can be avoided, and the vehicle layout can be easily arranged because there is no related change.

Further, since only the cross-sectional shape of the bellows 7 is changed, there is no effect on performance such as steering stability.

[0016]

The present invention is configured as described above,
In the case of a layout change in a vehicle equipped with an air suspension, even if the bellows interferes with other members, it can be easily avoided, and the vehicle layout is simplified because the related members are not changed. It does not affect the maneuverability of the vehicle.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a front portion of a chassis showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view of FIG. 1;

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 (L, R) Side rail 2, 3 Spring bracket 4 Leaf spring 5 Cross member 7 Bellows 8a Bracket 10 Rigid axle 11, 14 ... Shock absorber bracket 12 ... Upper bracket A, B ... Member

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A structure of an air spring mounted between a bracket and an axle provided on a frame of a vehicle, wherein the air spring has a non-circular cross-sectional shape. Spring structure. 2. The air spring structure according to claim 1, wherein the axle is a rigid axle, and the rigid axle is fixed to a leaf spring pivotally attached to a frame.