JPS595653Y2 - Rack and pinion steering system - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a rack and pinion type steering device, and particularly to improvements in meshing adjustment between the rack and pinion.

A device for converting steering torque applied to a steering shaft by a steering wheel into reciprocating motion along the axis of a rack bar includes a housing, a pinion rotatably attached to the housing and rotationally driven by the steering shaft, and the housing. Rack and pinion steering systems are known which include a rack bar having rack teeth extending through the rack and engaging the pinion and being driven by the pinion.

In this type of rack and pinion steering device,
In order to set the relative position of the rack bar and the pinion at the meshing position between the rack teeth of the rack bar and the teeth of the pinion to the optimum position regardless of manufacturing errors or assembly errors of these parts, the rack bar is The rack bar is supported through an eccentric sleeve near the housing where it meshes with the pinion, and by adjusting the rotational position of the eccentric sleeve, the relative position between the rack bar and the pinion can be adjusted as appropriate. The rack-and-pinion type steering device is disclosed in Patent No. 777673 (Japanese Patent Publication No.
No. 530).

The present invention provides a rack and pinion steering device using such an eccentric sleeve, in which the rotational position of the eccentric sleeve can be more easily adjusted, and at the same time, the adjusted position setting is reliably maintained. It is an object of the present invention to provide a rack and pinion type steering device having an improved eccentric sleeve structure so that readjustment and resetting can be easily performed when necessary.

According to the present invention, the eccentric sleeve is formed with a crown-shaped uneven portion by forming a number of notches along the circumference at one end thereof, and the housing has a sleeve hole for receiving the eccentric sleeve. A number of notches are formed at one end to receive the convex portions of the uneven portion of the eccentric sleeve, and the rotational position of the eccentric sleeve can be adjusted by selecting the engagement of these many convex portions and the notches. This is achieved by making the settings as follows.

FIG. 1 of the accompanying drawings is a sectional view showing one embodiment of the ratchet-and-pinion type steering device according to the present invention.

In the figure, 1 is a housing, and a pinion 1 is rotatably attached to the housing, and is rotationally driven by a steering wheel (not shown in the figure) via a torque transmission mechanism. There is.

A rack bar 3 is provided through the housing 1, and the rack bar has rack teeth 4 that mesh with the pinion 2.

At the portion where it engages with the pinion 2, the rack par 3 is supported by a saddle element 5 on the side opposite to the pinion 2 with the rack par 3 sandwiched therebetween.

A sleeve hole 6 is formed in the housing 1 adjacent to the meshing portion between the pinion 2 and the rack teeth 4, and a sleeve 7 is inserted into the sleeve hole.

The sleeve 7 is designed as an eccentric sleeve, as shown in FIG. 1 and in FIG. 2, which shows a cross-section along the line II--II in FIG.
As shown in the figure, a large number of notches 7a are formed along the periphery at one end (the right end in FIG. 1), and this creates a crown-shaped unevenness with protrusions 7b left in between. shaped into a shape.

Correspondingly, the inner end of the sleeve {L6, i.e., the right end in FIG.
It can be set at a rotated position relative to the housing 1 for each angle in units of increments of 7b.

The sleeve 7 inserted into a predetermined position is prevented from coming out by a snap ring 9 fitted into an annular groove 8 formed at the entrance of the sleeve hole 6.

According to this structure, even if there are manufacturing errors regarding the housing 1, pinion 2, rack par 3, and rack teeth 4 that make up the rack and pinion type steering device, the rotation of each product when the sleeve 7 is installed is By suitably adjusting the position, the engagement between the pinion 2 and the rack teeth 4 can be adjusted to a proper value, and the rack par 3 can be adjusted relative to the housing 1, and thus the pinion rotatably mounted on the housing. It is possible to reliably hold the rack par 3 at a predetermined adjusted position with respect to the pinion 2, and it is possible to effectively solve the problem of the rack par 3 being displaced relative to the pinion 2 and causing wobbling during use.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing one embodiment of the rack and pinion steering device according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line II--II in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing one embodiment of the sleeve. It is a perspective view showing an example. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1...Housing, 2...Pinion, 3...Rack bar, 4...Rack tooth, 5...Saddle element, 6...
... Sleeve hole, 6a... Cut groove at the inner end of the sleeve hole,
7... Sleeve, 7a... Notch at the end of the sleeve,
7b...Protrusion at the end of the sleeve, 8...Annular groove, 9...
...Snap ring.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] a housing; a pinion pivotally mounted on the housing; a rack bar having rack teeth extending through the housing and meshing with and driven by the pinion; and a sleeve that supports the housing in the vicinity of meshing with the housing, and the sleeve is configured as an eccentric sleeve, and when the sleeve is installed, the rotational position of the sleeve is adjusted so that the rack teeth and the pinion are connected to each other. In a rack and pinion type steering device configured to be able to adjust meshing, the sleeve has a crown-shaped uneven portion by forming a number of notches along the circumference at one end thereof. The housing has a plurality of grooves formed at one end of the snob hole that receives the sleeve, and the grooves are formed at one end of the sleeve hole to receive the protrusions in the uneven portion of the sleeve. A rack and pinion type steering device, characterized in that the rotational position of the sleeve is adjusted and set by selecting engagement with the sleeve.