JPH1120731A - Front wheel peripheral structure for four-wheeled vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve braking force to a front wheel without disturbing any other part and to accomplish further compactification of a vehicle body in the vehicle width direction. SOLUTION: The subject structure is provided with a knuckle main body 32, by which a steering knuckle 26 is supported freely steerably to a vehicle body, and a boss part 33 protruded integrally from the knuckle main body 32. A front wheel 12 is provided with a hub 57 supported in the boss part 33 freely rotationally and a rim 60 supported by the hub 57. The axis directional intermediate part, of the rim 60 is expanded inward in the radial direction so as to be used as an expansion part, 62. A brake disc 69, which is installed to the hub 57, is arranged, while a caliper brake 70, which can clamp and press the radius directional external end side of the brake disc 69, is arranged. The caliper brake 70 is positioned on the side of the expansion part 62 in the rim 60, while the brake disc 69 is fitted around the boss part 33 in the steering knuckle 26.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a structure around a front wheel of a four-wheeled vehicle. The present invention relates to a structure around the front wheel when freely supported.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art The structure around the front wheels of the above four-wheeled vehicle includes:
Conventionally, there is the one configured as follows.

That is, a front wheel is rotatably supported on each side of the vehicle body of the vehicle via a steering knuckle around an axis extending in the vehicle width direction. The steering knuckle includes a knuckle body that is supported on the vehicle body so as to be steerable, and a boss portion integrally protruding from the knuckle body toward the outside of the vehicle body on the axis. The front wheel includes a hub rotatably supported by the boss around the axis, and a rim that holds a tire and is supported by the hub. Is bulged inward in the radial direction.

When the front wheels are steered together with the steering knuckle by operating a steering wheel, the vehicle can be steered.

[0005] Further, as described above, a circumferential groove called a well is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the rim by bulging the middle portion in the axial direction of the rim, and by using the well, the tire is mounted on the rim. Can be easily done.

[0006] Further, there is provided a disc brake which brakes the front wheels to brake the vehicle. The disc brake includes an annular brake disc mounted on the hub on the shaft center, and a caliper brake mounted on the steering knuckle and capable of clamping a radially outer end side of the brake disc. And the caliper brake is disposed inside the rim.

[0007] By operating the brake operation unit,
When the caliper brake performs a braking operation, the caliper brake clamps the outer end side of the brake disc, and the front wheel can be braked by a frictional force generated thereby.

[0008]

As one means for further improving the braking force by the disk brake, the outer diameter of the brake disk is increased so that the brake disk is clamped by the caliper brake. It is conceivable to increase the braking torque by moving the portion farther away from the axis.

However, if the outer diameter of the brake disk is simply increased, the caliper brake is largely separated from the axis, and the caliper brake may come into contact with the bulge of the rim. Therefore, it is not easy to improve the braking force.

On the other hand, it is desired that the vehicle body has a more compact size in the vehicle width direction, but since there is almost no excess space between the components of the vehicle body in the vehicle width direction, Satisfying compactness is not easy.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has as its object to improve the braking force applied to the front wheels without causing any other trouble.

Another object is to make the vehicle body more compact in the vehicle width direction.

[0013]

The structure around the front wheels of a four-wheeled vehicle according to the present invention for solving the above-mentioned problems is provided at each side of the vehicle body 2 with an axial center extending in the vehicle width direction via a steering knuckle 26. The front wheel 12 is rotatably supported around 30 turns,
A knuckle body 32 on which the steering knuckle 26 is steerably supported by the vehicle body 2, and a boss portion 33 integrally protruding from the knuckle body 32 toward the outside of the vehicle body 2 on the axis 30. A hub 57 rotatably supported by the boss 33 around the axis 30; and a rim 60 holding the tire 61 and supported by the hub 57. An annular brake attached to the hub 57 on the shaft center 30 by swelling a halfway portion in the axial direction in a cross section in a front view toward the inside in the radial direction to form a swelling portion 62. A disk 69 is provided and the steering knuckle 26
In the structure around the front wheels of a four-wheeled vehicle provided with a caliper brake 70 attached to the brake disc 69 so as to be able to pinch the radially outer end side of the brake disc 69,

The caliper brake 70 is connected to the rim 60
Of the steering knuckle 26 with the brake disc 69 being positioned at the side of the bulging portion 62 of the steering knuckle 26.
It is fitted outside.

[0015]

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

In FIGS. 2 and 3, reference numeral 1 denotes a four-wheeled vehicle.
The arrow Fr in each figure indicates the front of the vehicle 1, and the left and right described below refer to the vehicle width direction toward the front.

2 and 3, a vehicle body 2 of the vehicle 1 has a vehicle body frame 3 framed by pipes. A front portion of the vehicle body frame 3 has a pair of left and right vertical pipes 4 and 4 extending vertically. And a pair of left and right horizontal pipes 5, 5 extending rearward from lower ends of the vertical pipes 4, 4.
And a cross member 6 for connecting the front ends of the horizontal pipes 5 and 5 to each other.

The front part of the vehicle body 2 has a bumper 7 located at the front end of the vehicle body 2 in front of the vertical pipe 4 and the upper end of the bumper 7 is located on the upper end side of the vertical pipe 4. Is bound to. The lower part of the bumper 7 is composed of a pair of lower right and left lower pipes 8 descending rearward, and a cross member 9 for connecting longitudinally intermediate portions of the lower pipes 8 with each other. The lower end of each of the lower pipes 8 is coupled to a longitudinally intermediate portion of each of the vertical pipes 4, and the lower end of each of the lower pipes 8 is
The lower end of each of the vertical pipes 4 and the horizontal pipe 5
Is located in the vicinity of the coupling portion 10 with the front end of the front end.

A front wheel 12 is suspended on each side of the front part of the vehicle body 2 via a suspension device 11, and a suspension device (not shown) is disposed on each side part of the rear part of the vehicle body 2. The rear wheels are suspended through. Each of these front wheels 12
And the rear wheels allow the vehicle body 2 to move on a running surface 1
3 supported on.

The vehicle body 2 has a fender 14 that covers the front wheels 12 and the rear wheels from above, respectively. The fender 14 is made of resin and is supported by the vehicle body frame 3.

A seat (not shown) for seating a rider is supported at the rear of the body frame 3. An engine 16 which is a driving device for traveling is supported in a middle part of the body frame 3 in the front-rear direction, and a fuel tank 17 for storing fuel supplied to the engine 16 is supported.

A differential device 18 is provided which receives the power from the engine 16 and outputs the power to the front wheels 12 at equal torques. The differential device 18 is provided at the front of the body frame 3. Each vertical pipe 4 and horizontal pipe 5 are supported by fasteners 19. The power from the engine 16 is also transmitted to the rear wheels.

In FIGS. 1-4, the suspension 11 is
The vehicle body 2 is provided with shock absorbers 22 which are located on each side of the front part of the vehicle body 2 and extend in the vertical direction. The upper ends of these shock absorbers 22 are connected to the body frame by a universal joint (ball joint type). 3 It is pivotally supported on the upper part of the front part. On the other hand, lower arms 24 are provided at respective lower sides of the front part of the vehicle body 2 and extend in the vehicle width direction. The inner ends of the lower arms 24 in the vehicle width direction are pivotally supported by the vehicle body frame 3, The outer end of each of the lower arms 24 around the pivot is restricted from swinging in the front-rear direction, and can swing only in the vertical direction.

A steering knuckle 26 extending vertically is interposed between a lower end of the shock absorber 22 and a corresponding outer end of the lower arm 24 on each side of the vehicle body 2. The lower end of the vessel 22 and the upper end of the steering knuckle 26 are detachably fastened by fasteners 27. The outer end of the lower arm 24 and the lower end of the steering knuckle 26 are pivotally supported by a universal joint 28.

The steering knuckle 26 can be steered (rotated) together with the shock absorber 22 around a virtual straight steering axis 29 connecting the universal joints 23 and 28.

The steering knuckle 26 supports the front wheel 12 so as to be rotatable around an axis 30 extending in the vehicle width direction, so that the front wheel 12 is mounted on each side of the vehicle body 2. And steering knuckle 2
6 can be integrally steered around the steering shaft center 29.

Each of the steering knuckles 26 is fastened to the lower end of the shock absorber 22 by a fastener 27 while being pivotally supported by the universal joint 28 on the outer end of the lower arm 24 to be steerable to the vehicle body 2. A knuckle main body 32 is formed on the shaft 30 and has a cylindrical boss 33 protruding from the knuckle main body 32 toward the outside of the vehicle body 2. An axle 35 is rotatably supported by the bosses 33 on the shaft 30 via a pair of left and right bearings 34, 34.

1 to 5, a steering operation device 38 for steering each of the front wheels 12 is provided.

The steering operation device 38 has a knuckle arm 39 integrally extending rearward from the upper end of each knuckle body 32. On the other hand, a steering shaft 40 extending in the vertical direction is pivotally supported at the center of the front part of the vehicle body 2 in the vehicle width direction via a pair of upper and lower bearings 41 so as to be rotatable around its axis. The steering shaft 40 has the steering shaft main body 43 supported by the dual bearings 41 as described above, and the lower end of the steering shaft main body 43 penetrates the lower bearing 41 downward. ing. The steering shaft 40 is
A detachable shaft 44 is detachably fixed to the lower end of the steering shaft main body 43 by spline fitting and a fastener 45.

A steering handle 47 is attached to the upper end of the steering shaft main body 43 of the steering shaft 40.
Further, a pair of upper and lower pitman arms 48 and 49 are attached to a lower portion of the steering shaft 40. Of the pitman arms 48 and 49, the upper pitman arm 48 is located above the bearing 41 and is located above the steering shaft main body 43.
The lower pitman arm 49 is attached to the detachable shaft 44.

Each of the pitman arms 48, 49 protrudes rearward from the steering shaft 40. A protruding end of the upper pitman arm 48 of the pitman arms 48, 49 and the knuckle arms 39, 39
The extension end of the right knuckle arm 39, which is one side, is interlockingly connected to each other by a pair of universal joints 50, 50 and a tie rod 51. The protruding end of the lower pitman arm 49 and the extending end of the left knuckle arm 39 on the other side are connected to each other by a pair of universal joints 52, 52 and a tie rod 53.

1 and 3, each of the front wheels 12 is
On the axle 30, the axle 35 is fixed to the axle 35 by spline fitting.
A hub 57 rotatably supported on the hub 57; a wheel disc 59 removably fastened to the outer surface of the hub 57 in the vehicle width direction by a fastener 58;
Rim 60 attached to the rim 60 by welding,
And a tire 61 detachably attached to the tire. That is, the rim 60 holds the tire 61 and is supported by the hub 57 via the wheel disc 59.

In particular, in FIG. 1, a middle portion in the vehicle width direction in a cross section of the rim 60 when viewed from the front is bulged inward in the radial direction to form a bulged portion 62, which is a bulged portion 62. The rim 60 is reinforced by the portion 62. And, on the outer peripheral surface of the rim 60, the bulging portion 6
A peripheral groove called a well 63 formed by the internal space 2 is formed. By using this well 63,
The tire 61 can be easily attached to the rim 60.

The inner end of the axle 35 in the vehicle width direction and the output portion of the differential device 18 are interlocked with each other via a propeller shaft 64. That is, the front wheels 12 are connected to the axle 35, the propeller shaft 64. , And the engine 16 via a differential device 18.

A hydraulic disc brake 67 is provided to brake the front wheels 12 so that the vehicle 1 can be braked. The disc brake 67 includes an annular brake disc 69 attached to the inner surface of the hub 57 in the vehicle width direction on the shaft center 30 by a fastener 69, and a brake disc 69 attached to the steering knuckle 26. And a caliper brake 70 capable of pinching a radially outer end portion of the caliper brake with a hydraulic cylinder. The caliper brake 70 is operated by a brake operation unit 71 to be able to perform a braking operation.

Then, by driving the engine 16,
When the power is transmitted to the front wheels 12 and the rear wheels via the differential device 18, the propeller shaft 64, the axle 35, and the like, the vehicle 1 can travel on the traveling surface 13.

During the traveling, the vehicle 1
When an impact force is applied to the shock absorber 22, the telescopic operation in the longitudinal direction of the shock absorber 22 and the rotation of the lower arm 24 cause
The front wheel 12 and the steering knuckle 26 swing up and down integrally, and the above-described shock-absorbing operation of the shock absorber 22 absorbs the impact force, thereby ensuring smooth steering even in a rough terrain.

Further, by the steering operation to the steering handle 47, the steering shaft 40, the pitman arms 48 and 49, the universal joints 50 and 52, the tie rods 51 and 53, and the knuckle arms are attached to the steering handle 47. The steering knuckle 26 and the front wheel 12 are integrally linked via 39, whereby a desired steering of the vehicle 1 is obtained.

If the caliper brake 70 is operated by operating the brake operating portion 71 during the traveling, the caliper brake 70 clamps the outer end of the brake disc 69, thereby The front wheels 12 are braked by the generated frictional force.

1 to 5, the protruding ends of the pitman arms 48 and 49 are provided so as to be close to each other in the up-down direction and are located at substantially the same position in the vehicle width direction. Both pitman arms 4
The left and right knuckle arms 39 between 8, 49 (near)
39, and the projecting ends of the pitman arms 48, 49 and the knuckle arms 39,
The extension end of 39 is located at substantially the same position in the front-rear direction.

In the above case, since the projecting ends of the pitman arms 48 and 49 are located at substantially the same position in plan view, the steering shaft 40 is rotated by operating the steering handle 47. , This steering axis 40
Each pitman arm 48, 49 and each tie rod 5
When the steering knuckles 26 and the front wheels 12 are interlocked via the front wheels 1 and 53, the left and right front wheels 1
The two steering angles are almost the same as each other, so that a smooth steering can be obtained.

The pitman arms 48 and 49 are located above the large differential device 18.
For this reason, the inner ends of the tie rods 51 and 53 are also positioned high together with the pitman arms 48 and 49.

Therefore, as described above, each of the knuckle arms 39 is extended from the upper end of the knuckle body 32 to give a sufficient height to the extended end of each of the knuckle arms 39. Therefore, each of the above tie rods 51, 5
3 are also to be positioned higher.

Accordingly, the tie rods 51 and 53 are set to be substantially horizontal and are prevented from being greatly inclined, and are given to the universal joints 50 and 52 from the tie rods 51 and 53 during the steering operation. The external force is suppressed to be small, the steering operation can be performed smoothly, and the life of the universal joints 50 and 52 is improved by the small external force.

As described above, the lower pitman arm 49 is attached to the detachable shaft 44 which is detachably fixed to the steering shaft main body 43. Therefore, when the universal joint 50 and the tie rod 51 are attached to and detached from the upper pitman arm 48, the detachable shaft 44 is attached to the steering shaft main body 43.
May be removed together with the lower pitman arm 49. In this way, a large work space around the upper pitman arm 48 is ensured, and this work is facilitated. After the operation around the upper pitman arm 48 is completed, the detachable shaft 44 may be attached to the steering shaft main body 43, or the universal joint 52 and the tie rod 53 may be integrally attached together with the detachable shaft 44. I just need.

Incidentally, both pitman arms 48 and 49 may be attached to the detachable shaft 44. In this case, the pitman arms 48 and 49 of the detachable shaft 44 removed from the steering shaft main body 43 may be attached to the pitman arms 48 and 49. The work of attaching and detaching each of the universal joints 50 and 52 and each of the tie rods 51 and 53 may be performed in a large work space outside the vehicle.

In particular, in FIG. 1, the caliper brake 70 is disposed radially inward of the rim 60, but is positioned near the side of the bulge 62 of the rim 60. I have.

Therefore, in order to further increase the braking force on the front wheels 12, the brake disc 6
When the outer diameter of the brake disc 9 is increased, the caliper brake 70 for clamping the radially outer end side of the brake disc 69 is greatly separated from the shaft center 30 of the brake disc 69 and accordingly protrudes. Although there is a possibility of contact with the portion 62, the caliper brake 70
Is located beside the bulging portion 62 on the inner peripheral surface of the rim 60, so that contact with the bulging portion 62 is avoided.

Therefore, the outer diameter of the brake disc 69 can be increased to some extent, and the portion of the brake disc 69 held by the caliper brake 70 can be further separated from the axis 30 of the caliper brake 70,
The braking force can be further improved.

The brake disk 69 is fitted on the boss 33 of the steering knuckle 26.

That is, as described above, the outer diameter of the brake disk 69 is increased, so that the inner diameter of the brake disk 69 can be increased. Therefore, the brake disk 69 can be easily fitted to the boss 33.

As described above, since the brake disc 69 is externally fitted to the boss portion 33, the width of the vehicle body 2 in the vehicle width direction is smaller than in the case where these are arranged side by side in the vehicle width direction. It can be made more compact.

In FIGS. 2, 3 and 6, the engine 16
The engine guard 73 is made of sheet metal and covers the differential device 18 from the front, and has sufficient strength. The engine guard 73 is detachably fastened to the two cross members 6 and 9 by fasteners 74, respectively.

In FIG. 6, when viewed from the side of the vehicle body 2, the upper front surface of each lower pipe 8 of the bumper 7 and the front surface of the engine guard 73 are located on a substantially rectilinear imaginary surface which descends rearward. Are almost flush with each other. Also,
The lower end of the engine guard 73 covers the joint 10 from the front thereof and is located near the joint 10.

Therefore, while the vehicle 1 is running, the vehicle 2
When the vehicle collides with the slightly raised running surface 13, the upper front surface of each lower pipe 8 of the bumper 7 and the front surface of the engine guard 73 ride on the running surface 13 smoothly. Therefore, it is possible to prevent a large impact force from being applied to the vehicle body 2 at the time of the collision.

2, 3, 7-9, a pair of left and right headlights 76, 76 for irradiating light toward the front of the vehicle body 2 are provided in the upper front part of the vehicle body 2. As shown in FIG.

Each of the headlights 76 includes a resin-made headlight body 77 constituting an outer shell thereof, and a headlight body 78 included in the headlight body 77. The headlight body 77 is attached to the headlight body 77 by a pair of pivots 79 and 79 and a fastener 80.

The upper fitting portion 77a of the headlight body 77 is provided with the fitting portion 1 of the fender 14.
4a, and is attached to the fender 14 by a pair of right and left fasteners 81, 81.

For this reason, each headlight 76 is directly attached to the fender 14 which constitutes a part of the vehicle body 2, so that a separate bracket for attaching the headlight 76 is not required. Accordingly, the mounting of the headlight 76 can be achieved with a simple configuration.

[0060]

According to the present invention, the front wheel is rotatably supported on each side of the vehicle body around the axis extending in the vehicle width direction via the steering knuckle, and the steering knuckle is steerable to the vehicle body. A knuckle body supported by the knuckle body and a boss portion integrally projecting from the knuckle body toward the outside of the vehicle body on the axis, wherein the front wheel is rotatable around the axis with the boss portion. And a rim that holds the tire and is supported by the hub. The rim of the rim is bulged inward in the radial direction at an axially intermediate portion in a cross-section of the rim in a front view. This is the bulge,
A four-wheeled vehicle provided with an annular brake disk mounted on the hub on the shaft center and a caliper brake mounted on the steering knuckle and capable of clamping a radially outer end of the brake disk; In the structure around the front wheels of the vehicle,

The caliper brake is located on the side of the bulge of the rim.

For this reason, the braking force on the front wheel is
If the outer diameter of the brake disc is increased to further improve the diameter, the caliper brake for clamping the radially outer end of the brake disc is far away from the axis of the brake disc. However, as described above, since the caliper brake is located on the inner peripheral surface of the rim on the side of the bulge, contact with the bulge may occur. Be avoided.

Accordingly, the outer diameter of the brake disc can be increased to some extent, and the portion of the brake disc held by the caliper brake can be further separated from the axis of the brake disc, thereby reducing the braking force. It can be further improved without causing any other trouble.

The brake disk is fitted on the boss of the steering knuckle.

That is, as described above, the outer diameter of the brake disk is increased, so that the inner diameter of the brake disk can be increased. Therefore, the brake disk can be easily fitted to the boss.

As described above, since the brake discs are externally fitted to the boss portions, the width of the vehicle body in the vehicle width direction can be made more compact than when these are arranged side by side in the vehicle width direction. Can be done.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partially enlarged sectional view of FIG. 2;

FIG. 2 is a front view of the vehicle.

FIG. 3 is a front side view of the vehicle.

FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged detailed view of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a view taken along line 5-5 in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a partially enlarged detailed view of FIG. 3;

FIG. 7 is a partially enlarged detailed view of FIG. 3;

FIG. 8 is a rear view of the headlamp shown in FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a sectional view taken along line 9-9 of FIG. 8;

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 vehicle 2 body 3 body frame 11 suspension device 12 front wheel 13 running surface 16 engine 26 steering knuckle 29 steering axis 30 axis 32 knuckle body 33 boss portion 35 axle 57 hub 59 wheel disk 60 rim 61 tire 62 bulging portion 67 Disc brake 69 Brake disc 70 Caliper brake 71 Brake operation unit

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A knuckle body in which a front wheel is rotatably supported on each side of a vehicle body around an axis extending in a vehicle width direction via a steering knuckle, and the steering knuckle is supported on the vehicle body in a steerable manner. And a boss portion integrally projecting from the knuckle body toward the outside of the vehicle body on the axis, wherein the front wheel is rotatably supported by the boss around the axis. A rim that holds the tire and is supported by the hub, and bulges a middle part in the axial direction in a cross section of the rim in a front view toward inward in the radial direction, thereby forming a bulge part. And a caliper brake mounted on the steering knuckle and capable of pinching a radially outer end of the brake disc mounted on the steering knuckle. In a structure around a front wheel of a four-wheel vehicle provided with a key, the caliper brake is positioned on a side of a bulging portion of the rim, and the brake disk is fitted to the boss portion of the steering knuckle. Structure around the front wheels of the vehicle.