JPH11310138A - Steering device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To allow carrying out the movement of a steering wheel accurately only when it is necessary to move the steering wheel to the front side of a vehicle, and to realize the small size and the light weight of the whole body. SOLUTION: In this steering device, a projection 7 having a cut hole to open the rear side part of a vehicle is provided on the outer surface of a steering column 2. The projection 7 and a bracket 3 are connected each other by a bolt 8 which is inserted to the cut hole by making the connection of the projection 7 and the bracker 3 allowable to release when a load more than a specified value in the direction to move the steering column 2 to the front side of the vehicle is input to the steering column 2. To the peripheral edge of the cut hole, a projecting edge 72 engaged to the shaft of the bolt 8 by extending from the upper side of the shaft of the bolt 8 to the oblique lower side at the rear side of the vehicle of the shaft is provided, in order to block the connection release of the projection 7 and the bracket 3, when the steering column 2 is erected at a specified angle θ1.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a cab-over type vehicle such as a light truck, for example, in which a steering shaft is supported in an almost upright state, and in the case of a so-called secondary collision, the steering wheel is moved forward to thereby move the driver's body. The present invention relates to a steering device capable of preventing a large impact from being applied to a steering wheel.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a cab-over type vehicle, a driver's seat is located above a front wheel, which is a steered wheel. Therefore, a steering shaft and a steering column supporting the steering shaft are in an upright state which is closer to an upright position than that of a general passenger vehicle. Is provided. In such a vehicle, the steering wheel is retracted forward in a secondary collision (a collision that occurs after a primary collision in which the vehicle collides with another object and a driver collides with a part of the vehicle). ,
It is desired that a large impact force is not applied to the driver's body from the steering wheel.

Therefore, conventionally, for example, the actual fairness 5-1
There is a steering device described in Japanese Patent No. 6062 and Japanese Patent Publication No. 55-31026. In each of the steering devices described in these publications, a stay (bracket) is connected to an upper portion of a steering column that supports a steering shaft, and the upper portion of the steering column is fixed to a fixed portion of the steering column in front of the vehicle via the stay. The structure is supported by In the steering device having such a configuration, when a secondary collision occurs and a load forward of the vehicle is input to the upper portion of the steering column, the steering column moves forward of the vehicle while compressing and deforming the stay by pressing the stay. Become.

[0004]

However, the conventional steering device described above has the following disadvantages.

First, in the conventional steering apparatus, the mechanical strength of the stay must be set to an appropriate value so that the stay is appropriately compressed and deformed by a load input to the steering column at the time of a secondary collision. Must. However, in practice, the magnitude of the load input to the steering column during a secondary collision varies, and it is necessary to reliably deform the stay only when it is necessary to move the steering wheel to the front of the vehicle. In practice, setting the strength of the stay to make it possible has been quite difficult. That is, conventionally, if the strength of the stay is too large, the stay does not deform at the time of the secondary collision,
The steering column may not move forward. On the other hand, if the strength of the stay is too low, the stay is easily deformed and the steering column is unnecessarily moved forward of the vehicle even in a minor collision when the vehicle is traveling at an extremely low speed. There is a fear. Eventually, in this type of steering device, a primary collision of a certain scale occurs, and in the event of a secondary collision that needs to protect the driver following this, the steering column moves forward, but otherwise In the case of (1), it is necessary to take care that the steering column does not move forward of the vehicle unnecessarily. However, conventionally, there is a problem that it is difficult to satisfy such conditions easily and sufficiently.

Secondly, in the conventional steering device, the size of the stay supporting the steering column in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle is larger than the stroke length for moving the steering column forward in the case of a secondary collision. Must be formed. For this reason, conventionally, the stay has become large and the weight thereof has also increased, which has been disadvantageous in reducing the size and weight of the steering device.

The present invention has been conceived under such circumstances, and when it is necessary to move the steering wheel to the front of the vehicle, the operation can be performed accurately. In other cases, it is an object of the present invention to provide a steering device that can easily prevent the steering wheel from easily moving forward of the vehicle, and that can reduce the overall size and weight. I have.

[0008]

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above problems, the present invention employs the following technical means.

That is, the steering apparatus according to the present invention is a steering column that supports a steering shaft and stands at a predetermined angle, and is mechanically connected to a lower end of the steering shaft below the steering column. A gear box, and a bracket attached to a fixed member of the vehicle body so as to support an upper portion or an intermediate portion in a longitudinal direction of the steering column. A projection having a cutout hole with an open portion is provided, and the projection and the bracket are connected to the steering column when a load of a predetermined value or more in a direction for moving the steering column forward of the vehicle is input. The connection between these projections and the bracket can be released, The protrusions are connected to each other by bolts inserted into the notch holes and supported by the brackets, and the periphery of the notch holes is formed when the steering column is standing at the predetermined angle. In order to prevent the connection with the bracket from being released, a protruding edge portion extending from above the shaft portion of the bolt obliquely downward to the rear of the vehicle and engaging with the shaft portion of the bolt is provided. Features.

In the present invention, first, in a normal state in which the steering column is standing at a predetermined original angle, the protruding edge of the projection provided on the steering column has a bolted portion supported by the bracket. It is engaged with the shaft. Therefore, even if a large load directed toward the front of the vehicle is input to the steering column, the connection between the projection of the steering column and the bracket is immediately released by the engagement between the projection and the bolt. This prevents the steering column from coming off the bracket and easily moving forward of the vehicle. On the other hand, in the present invention, since the lower end of the steering shaft is mechanically connected to the gear box, when the vehicle causes a primary collision and the gear box moves rearward, the lower end of the steering shaft is moved. It is possible to forcibly move the rear of the vehicle along with the movement of the gear box, and thereby rotate the steering column so that its upper part moves relatively to the front of the vehicle with respect to its lower part. Can be. Also, at the time of the turning operation of the steering column or at the initial stage of the turning operation, the connection state between the projection of the steering column and the bracket is held by the engagement between the projection and the bolt. Therefore, at the time of the primary collision, the steering column can be rotated by forcibly deforming the bracket or the like. When the steering column rotates in this manner and its upright angle changes, the posture of the protrusion of the steering column changes, and this protrusion does not engage with the shaft of the bolt, or a state in which the protrusion is not engaged. It can be in a shallow state. For this reason, in the present invention, a secondary collision occurs in such a posture, and when a load equal to or more than a predetermined value in a direction for moving the steering column to the front of the vehicle is input to the steering column, this causes the protrusion of the steering column for the first time. The connection between the part and the bracket is released, so that the steering wheel attached to the steering column or the steering shaft can be properly retracted to the front of the vehicle.

As described above, in the invention of the present application, the primary collision occurs to change the attitude of the steering column, and the engagement between the projection provided on the projection of the steering column and the bolt supported by the bracket is performed. Only when the state is released or when the state is close to the released state, the connection state between the steering column and the bracket can be released and the steering column can be largely moved forward of the vehicle, and in other cases, Can prevent the steering column from inadvertently moving to the front of the vehicle due to the engagement between the protruding edge and the bolt. Therefore, in the present invention, it is necessary to appropriately perform the operation only when it is really necessary to retract the steering wheel to the front of the vehicle, and to prevent the steering wheel from being carelessly moved at other times. An extraordinary effect is obtained that can be easily achieved.

Although the present invention employs a structure in which the projection of the steering column is bolted to the bracket, unlike the prior art, it is not necessary to provide the bracket in a large and bulky state in the vehicle. . For this reason, the present invention has the advantage that the overall size can be reduced and the weight can be reduced as compared with the conventional steering device.

[0013] Other features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description of embodiments of the invention with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0014]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a partially sectional side view showing an example of a schematic configuration of a steering device according to the present invention. FIG.
FIG. 2 is an enlarged sectional side view of a main part of FIG. 1. FIG.
It is III-III sectional drawing. FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view, partially in section, of main parts constituting the steering device shown in FIG. FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line VV of FIG. In the drawings after FIG. 1, the arrow Fr indicates the front of the vehicle, and the arrow Up
Indicates an upper direction in the vehicle height direction, and an arrow w indicates a vehicle width direction.

In FIG. 1, this steering device A
Is provided on a vehicle such as a cab-over type light truck, for example, and includes a steering shaft 1, a substantially cylindrical steering column 2 that rotatably supports the steering shaft 1 around its axis, an upper bracket 3,
The lower bracket 4, the energy absorbing plate 6, and other members described below are provided. The steering shaft 1 and the steering column 2 are standing upright at an inclination angle θ1 that is almost upright (this inclination angle is an intersection angle with a vertical line, and the same hereinafter). The steering device A of the present embodiment has the greatest feature in the structure of the connecting portion between the steering column 2 and the upper bracket 3, but also has a feature in which the energy absorbing plate 6 is attached.

The steering shaft 1 has a steering wheel 10 mounted on an upper portion thereof, and penetrates the steering column 2. The lower end 1a of the steering shaft 1 is mechanically connected to a gear box 12 disposed below the steering shaft 1 via a joint mechanism 11. The joint mechanism 11 transmits the rotational operation of the steering shaft 1 to the gear box 12. The gear box 12 converts the rotation operation into a straight reciprocating operation in the vehicle width direction necessary for the operation of the front wheel steering.

The lower bracket 4 is fixedly attached to the lower portion of the steering column 2 by welding or the like, and is attached to the lower support member 5b using bolts 8a. The lower support member 5b is
For example, it is attached to a dash panel or a suitable fixing member of a vehicle body provided separately from the dash panel. The same applies to an upper support member 5a to be described later, and the lower support member 5b and the upper support member 5a can be formed of the same member. The whole or a part of the lower bracket 4 or the lower support member 5b is configured to be relatively easily deformed, and a very large impact load F1 is input from the front of the vehicle to the front of the vehicle due to the primary collision of the vehicle. When the gear box 12 moves rearward due to the load input, the lower bracket 4 or the lower support member 5
By deforming the whole or a part of b, the lower end portion 1a of the steering shaft 1 can be allowed to move rearward of the vehicle by the pulling force received from the gear box 12.

As shown in FIG. 3, the upper bracket 3 has a pair of bracket plates 3 having a substantially L-shaped cross section.
0, 30 and is fixedly attached to the upper support member 5a using bolts 8b, 8b. The upper support member 5a is configured to allow the steering column 2 to move forward of the vehicle. A pair of bracket plates 30, 3 of the upper bracket 3
At 0, a bolt 8 for attaching the steering column 2 to the upper bracket 3 penetrates in the vehicle width direction.

A protrusion 7 is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the steering column 2 at the middle or upper portion in the longitudinal direction. The projecting portion 7 is formed by welding two plates 70, 70 spaced from each other in the vehicle width direction to the steering column 2, and connecting the two plates 70, 70 to a rear portion of the outer peripheral surface of the steering column 2. This is the part that protrudes rearward from the vehicle.
Each of the plate members 70, 70 is provided with a pair of notch holes 71, 71 facing each other, and between the plate members 70, 70, a first auxiliary member 73 or a second auxiliary member. 74 is fixedly attached by welding or the like.

The protruding portion 7 is disposed between the pair of bracket plates 30, 30 of the upper bracket 3, and the bolt 8 is inserted through the pair of cutout holes 71, 71 in series. The steering column 2 is connected to the upper bracket 3 by the projecting portion 7 being sandwiched between the pair of bracket plates 30, 30 by a tightening force between the bolt 8 and a nut 80 screwed thereto. Have been. Each of the pair of notches 71, 71 is open toward the rear of the vehicle. Therefore, the protrusion 7
In the bolted structure of the upper bracket 3 and the upper bracket 3, when a large load of a predetermined value or more that is directed forward of the vehicle is input to the steering column 2, these bolts resist the fastening force between the bolt 8 and the nut 8 a. It is possible to forcibly release the stop structure.

However, as best seen in FIG. 5, a protruding edge 72 is provided at the periphery of each of the notches 71. When the steering column 2 is mounted at the original inclination angle θ1, the protruding edge 72 extends downward from the shaft portion of the bolt 8 obliquely below the shaft portion to the rear of the vehicle by an appropriate dimension L. And is engaged with the shaft of the bolt 8. As will be described later, the protruding edge portion 72 is a portion for preventing the steering column 2 from easily detaching from the upper bracket 3.

As best seen in FIGS. 2 and 4,
The first auxiliary member 73 is formed in a cross-sectional shape substantially similar to the contour of the peripheral portion of each of the cutout holes 71, and serves as a spacer for connecting the two plate members 70, 70 to each other.
It serves to reinforce the respective peripheral edges of the pair of cutout holes 71, 71. Further, the first auxiliary member 73
Plays a role of supporting one end 6a of the energy absorbing plate 6 in the longitudinal direction. The second auxiliary member 74 includes:
As will be described later, it serves to assist the deformation of the energy absorbing plate 6, and is formed, for example, in a substantially L-shaped cross section. The first auxiliary member 73 and the second auxiliary member 74 are both formed by pressing a metal plate.

The energy absorbing plate 6 is a metal plate such as iron, which can be bent and deformed, and has a belt shape having an appropriate length. However, in the present invention, an energy absorbing member such as a plurality of metal wires or a plate or wire made of a material other than metal may be used instead of the energy absorbing plate 6. One end 6a of the energy absorbing plate 6 is joined to the first auxiliary member 73 by welding or the like, and a portion near the joint of the one end 6a is positioned with respect to the shaft of the bolt 8. The lever 8 is bent so as to go from the front side to the rear side of the lever, and embraces the shaft of the bolt 8. Then, the portion of the energy absorbing plate 6 connected to the bent portion passes through a gap between the first auxiliary member 73 and the second auxiliary member 74, and then the second auxiliary member 74 and the steering column 2 It is arranged so as to pass through a gap between the outer peripheral surface and the rear surface portion. Other portions of the energy absorbing plate 6 extend downward along the outer peripheral surface of the steering column 2. Since the energy absorbing plate 6 is a hard metal plate, the substantially entire length of the energy absorbing plate 6 can be adjusted to the steering column without providing special support means at the other end 6b located at the lower end of the energy absorbing plate 6. 2 along the longitudinal direction. However,
The other end 6a of the energy absorbing plate 6 or a portion in the vicinity thereof may be held in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the steering column 2 by using, for example, a belt. This is preferable because it is possible to appropriately prevent the contact noise between the other end 6a of the energy absorbing plate 6 and the steering column 2 due to the vibration of the vehicle.

Next, the operation of the steering device A will be described.

First, in the steering apparatus A, the steering column 2 is set at a predetermined inclination angle θ1, but in this normal state, as described with reference to FIG. A protruding edge 72 of the portion 7 extends below the upper surface of the shaft 8 on the vehicle rear side of the shaft of the bolt 8, and the protruding edge 72 is engaged with the bolt 8. Therefore, in such a state, even if a load facing the front of the vehicle acts on the steering column 2, the engagement between the protruding edge 72 and the bolt 8 causes the protruding portion 7 to be connected to the upper bracket 3. The connection state is not released.

As a result, in this steering device A, the steering column 2 and the steering wheel 1
When a relatively small load that does not need to move 0 to the front of the vehicle is input, that is, for example, at the time of a minor vehicle collision at low speed running, the connection between the steering column 2 and the upper bracket 3 is easily released. Can be appropriately prevented. Of course, when the input load to the steering column 2 is small, the connection between the projection 7 of the steering column 2 and the upper bracket 3 can be maintained by the tightening force of the bolt 8 and the nut 80. In the device A, even if the tightening of the bolt 8 and the nut 80 is loosened, when the input load is small, the connection between the projection 7 and the upper bracket 3 is securely maintained. You can do it.

Next, when a primary collision of the vehicle occurs and a very large impact load F1 is input from the front of the vehicle to the front of the vehicle, the front of the vehicle crashes and the gear box 12 moves to the rear of the vehicle. . Then, the lower end portion 1a of the steering shaft 1 mechanically connected to the gear box 12 is pulled rearward of the vehicle by the gear box 12, so that the steering shaft 1
The steering column 2 and the lower bracket 4 rotate about the lower bracket 4 or a position near the lower bracket 4 so that the upper part thereof moves forward of the vehicle.
These inclination angles are θ2. At the time of this turning operation, as described above, the steering column 2 is prevented from being detached from the upper bracket 3 by the engaging action between the bolt 8 and the protruding edge portion 72. As a result, the steering column 2 Rotates while forcibly deforming the upper bracket 3 or the upper support member 5a.

As shown in FIG. 6, when the steering column 2 has the inclination angle θ2, the side edge 72a of the protruding portion 72 of the protruding portion 7 has a horizontal or nearly horizontal angle, and the protruding portion 72 and the bolt 8 Are disengaged or their engagement dimensions are considerably smaller. For this reason, the protruding edge portion 72 no longer exerts a retaining effect on the upper bracket 3. Therefore, when a secondary collision occurs following the primary collision of the vehicle, and an input of an impact load F2 of a certain value or more directed forward of the vehicle is provided at the upper part of the steering column 2, the bolt between the protrusion 7 and the upper bracket 3 is bolted. 8 is immediately released. As a result, the steering column 2 separates from the upper bracket 3, and moves further forward of the vehicle such that the inclination angle becomes θ3 as shown by the phantom line in FIG. As a result, the steering wheel 10 can be appropriately retracted to the front of the vehicle at the time of a secondary collision.

When the steering column 2 is moved forward of the vehicle, the energy absorbing plate 6 holding the bolt 8 is forcibly deformed as shown in FIGS. More specifically, as the steering column 2 moves forward of the vehicle, the energy absorbing plate 6
The energy absorbing plate 6 is connected to the steering column 2 because the one end 6a of the steering column 2 moves away from the bolt 8.
As a result, the energy absorbing plate 6 is forcibly pulled to the shaft portion of the bolt 8 or a portion that comes into contact with the second auxiliary member 74. The respective portions of the energy absorbing plate 6 are laddered by the shaft portion of the bolt 8 and the second auxiliary member 74. Then, bending deformation (plastic deformation) occurs continuously in the longitudinal direction. This deformation can be continuously performed until the other end 6b of the energy absorbing plate 6 has passed through the second auxiliary member 74. Therefore, when the steering column 2 rotates so as to change from the inclination angle θ2 to θ3, the impact force at the time of the secondary collision can be absorbed and reduced by the deformation of the energy absorbing plate 6. In particular, the energy absorbing plate 6 is designed to hold the shaft of the bolt 8 from the front thereof and is successively squeezed in the longitudinal direction by the shaft.
As shown by an arrow N1, not only is the steering column 2 moved in front of the vehicle, but also the arrows N2, N
As shown in FIG. 3, even when the vehicle moves in a diagonal direction of the vehicle, the energy absorbing plate 6 is surely deformed, and the deformation is performed in the same manner to exert an appropriate resistance. Thus, the absorption and relaxation of the impact force can be more appropriately achieved.

Of course, the specific configuration of each part of the steering device according to the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be variously designed and modified.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partially sectional side view showing an example of a schematic configuration of a steering device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged sectional side view of a main part of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line III-III of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view, partially in section, of main parts constituting the steering device shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line VV of FIG. 3;

6 is a cross-sectional side view of a main part showing an initial state of operation of the steering device shown in FIG. 1;

7 is a cross-sectional side view of a main part of the steering device shown in FIG. 1 in a state where impact absorption occurs.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken along line VIII-VIII of FIG. 7;

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List A Steering device 1 Steering shaft 2 Steering column 3 Upper bracket (bracket) 5a Upper support member 6 Energy absorbing plate (energy absorbing member) 7 Projection 8 Bolt 10 Steering wheel 11 Joint mechanism 12 Gear box 71 Notch hole 72 Protrusion

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A steering column supporting a steering shaft and standing at a predetermined angle, a gear box located below the steering column and mechanically connected to a lower end of the steering shaft, and A bracket attached to a fixed member of the vehicle body so as to support an upper portion or a middle portion in the longitudinal direction of the column, wherein the steering column has a cutout hole in the outer surface of the steering column, the rear portion of which is open. A protrusion is provided, and the protrusion and the bracket are connected to each other when a load of a predetermined value or more in a direction for moving the steering column forward of the vehicle is input to the steering column. When the connection is releasable, it is inserted into the Are connected to each other by bolts, and at the periphery of the notch hole, when the steering column is standing at the predetermined angle, the connection between the projection and the bracket is prevented from being released. A steering device, wherein a protruding edge portion is provided from above the shaft portion of the bolt to extend diagonally below the shaft portion behind the vehicle and engages with the shaft portion of the bolt.