JPS6237804Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] The present invention relates to a support device for a steering column in an automobile, which is capable of reducing vibration noise in a vehicle interior by suppressing vertical vibration of a steering system.

In conventional automobiles, in the steering system support device, the upper supported part of the steering column, that is, the supported part on the steering handle side, is provided at the top of the dash board that partitions the vehicle interior and the engine compartment. Vehicle body vibrations caused by engine operation are amplified from the dash board to the dash board top and are transmitted to the steering column, vibrating the steering system. This causes vibration and noise in the vehicle interior. In F,F (front engine, front drive) type automobiles, the engine is housed in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle body, and the front wheels are driven by the engine, the engine crankshaft is perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle body. Therefore, the direction of engine torque fluctuation and
As the direction of the bending mode of the vehicle body coincides with that of the vehicle body, the vehicle body is easily affected by low-frequency vibrations in low-speed driving ranges including engine idling, and the resulting vertical vibrations of the front of the vehicle body are transmitted to the dash board. The steering column supported there vibrates, and this vibration is the cause of accentuating the vibration and noise inside the vehicle cabin.

Therefore, the present invention suppresses vibrations in the steering system by making it difficult for vibrations from the dart board to be transmitted to the steering column, thereby reducing vibration and noise in the vehicle interior. Good stability,
It is an object of the present invention to provide a support device for a steering column in the automobile.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention supports a stay in a cantilever manner on the front pillar lower of a front pillar in a vehicle interior partitioned through an engine compartment and a dart board, and the free end of this stay and the A dartshi board topper of the dart board is connected to the dart board upper part of the stay by a connecting mechanism configured to restrict the movement of the free end of the stay in the front-rear direction but to allow the movement of the stay in the vertical direction. A supported portion of the steering column on the steering handle side is supported at the free end, and further, below the support point, the dart board supports the supported portion of the steering column on the engine compartment side. do.

Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4.

A dash board 3 separates a central vehicle body Bc defining a vehicle compartment 1 from a front vehicle body Bf defining an engine compartment 2 in which an engine E is housed horizontally. The dart board 3 includes a dart board upper 3u and a dart board lower 3l, and a cowl 4 is coupled to the dart board upper 3u.

As shown in FIG. 1, in the vehicle interior 1, the base end of a stay 6 is cantilevered to the inner surface of a front pillar lower 5l of a front pillar 5 on the driver's seat side of the vehicle body. This stay 6 is composed of a horizontal frame 6a and a diagonal frame 6b connected to its free end, and the base ends of these frames 6a, 6b are connected to a front pillar 5l.

A connecting mechanism C is connected between the free end of the stay 6 and the dart board upper 3u of the dart board 3.
connected via. Next, the structure of this coupling mechanism C will be explained with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4. It includes a bracket 12 fixed to the free end of the horizontal frame 6a, and a bracket fixed to the dash board upper 3u. 13, both ends of the connecting member 11 are pin-connected with connecting pins 14, 14. In this connection mechanism C, when an external force in the longitudinal direction is applied to the stay 6, the connection member 11 is stretched to restrict the longitudinal movement of the stay 6, and when an external force in the vertical direction is applied to the stay 6, the connection member 11 is tightened. The member 11 swings around the connecting pins 14 and allows the stay 6 to move up and down.

A bearing portion 7 is provided at the tip of the stay 6, and an upper supported portion of the steering column 8, that is, a supported portion 8u on the steering handle 10 side is supported by the bearing portion 7. The lower supported portion 8l of the steering column 8 is supported by the dart board lower 3l. Steering column 8 as usual
A steering stem 9 is rotatably supported inside, a steering handle 10 is fixed to the upper end of the steering stem 9, and the lower end is connected to a front wheel via a steering mechanism (not shown).

Next, the operation of the first embodiment of the present invention will be explained. Now, when the engine E placed horizontally in the engine compartment 2 of the front body Bf is operated, the direction of engine torque fluctuation due to the rotation of the crankshaft perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle body and the direction of vertical bending of the vehicle body. Since these coincide, this causes the pitching of the vehicle body to be emphasized, and in particular, the front vehicle body Bf vibrates up and down under the influence of low frequency vibrations in the pitting direction that occur in the low speed driving range including idling operation of the engine E. This vibration is transmitted to the dart board 3,
The amplitude of the vibration of the dash board 3 gradually increases from the dash board lower 3l toward the dash board top 3u, but the upper supported portion 8u of the steering column 8 is Since vertical movement is allowed, vibrations from the dash board upper 3u are less likely to be transmitted to the steering column 8, and moreover, the front pillar lower 5l of the front pillar 5 supported by the stay 6 is relatively free from the driving vibrations of the engine E. Since this is difficult to transmit, the slight vibration of the upper part of the steering column 8 supported by the steering column 8 is suppressed as much as possible, and the vibration noise in the vehicle interior 1 caused by this can be reduced.

FIG. 5 shows a second embodiment of the invention. This second embodiment is a modification of the connection mechanism C of the first embodiment, and has a horizontal frame 6a of the stay 6.
and the connecting member 1 to the dart board top 3u.
Both ends of 1' are connected with bolts or the like. The connecting member 11' is made of a plate material that is rigid enough to stretch in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body and flexible enough to be easily bent in the vertical direction. This second embodiment is intended to simplify the structure of the connecting mechanism C, and has the same effects as the first embodiment.

FIG. 6 shows the first and second embodiments of the present invention and the upper supported part 8 of the steering column 8.
This is a graph comparing the vibration acceleration G in the vertical direction of the steering column 8 with the conventional one in which the steering column 8 is directly supported on the dash board top 3u. The vibration acceleration G in the vertical direction of the tip of the steering column 8 is taken as an axis, and the one according to the present invention is shown by a solid line, and the conventional one is shown by a broken line. As is clear from this graph, it can be seen that the steering system of the present invention reduces the vertical vibration of the steering system in the low speed operating range (600 to 800 r.p.m.) including idling operation of engine E.

As described above, according to the present invention, the stays 6; 6' are supported in a cantilever manner on the front pillar lower 5l of the front pillar 5 in the passenger compartment 1 which is partitioned through the engine compartment 2 and the dart board 3. Connect the free end portion of the stay 6;
It restricts the movement of the free end of 6' in the front and rear direction, but
The stays 6; 6'
Supports the supported portion 8u of the steering column 8 on the steering handle 10 side at the free end of the
Furthermore, since the supported part 8l of the steering column 8 on the side of the engine compartment 2 is supported by the dart board 3 below the support point, the stay 6 is attached to the front pillar lower 5l to which the driving vibrations of the engine E are relatively difficult to be transmitted. The supported portion 8u of the steering column 8 on the steering handle 10 side is mainly supported via the support portion 6'.
Therefore, it is effective in suppressing vibrations in the upper part of the steering column 8, and vibration noise within the vehicle interior 1 caused by the vibrations can be reduced as much as possible. Moreover, since the stays 6 and 6' are supported in a cantilever manner by the front pillar lower 5l and support the steering column 8 at their free ends, a long stay for supporting the steering column is installed between the left and right front pillar lowers. The space occupied by the stay is significantly smaller than that of one that is supported vertically, and the effective space of the vehicle interior 1 can be secured accordingly. Furthermore, even if the stays 6, 6' are supported in a cantilevered manner, their free ends are supported by the dash board upper 3u via the connection mechanism C, so there is no fear that their support rigidity will be impaired. Furthermore, even if the dart board upper 3u and the free ends of the stays 6, 6' are connected by the connecting mechanism C, relative movement in the vertical direction between them is allowed by the connecting mechanism C. Transmission of the engine vibrations acting on the dartshi board upper 3u to the free ends of the stays 6, 6' and, in turn, to the upper part of the steering column 8 is blocked, and therefore the vibrations of the dartshi board 3 are transmitted to the dartshi board lower 3l. There is no fear that the vibration of the steering column 8 will increase even if it is gradually emphasized toward the steering board upper part 3u. Furthermore, since the steering column 8 is also supported by the dartshi board lower 3l, which is located below the dartshi board upper 3u and has a relatively small vibration amplitude, the amount of engine vibration transmitted from the dartshi board 3 to the column 8 can be greatly reduced. The support of the column 8 can be further stabilized without increasing the number of columns.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Figures 1 to 4 show a first embodiment of the device of the present invention, in which Figure 1 is a front view of the inside of a car body equipped with the device of the present invention, Figure 2 is a sectional view taken along the line - - in Figure 1, Figure 3 is a side view of the coupling mechanism, Figure 4 is the third
5 is a side sectional view of the second embodiment of the device of the present invention, FIG. 5 is a side sectional view of the second embodiment of the device of the present invention, and FIG. 6 shows the characteristics of the device of the present invention. This is a graph showing. 1... Vehicle compartment, 2... Engine compartment, 3... Dash board, 5... Front pillar, 5l... Front pillar lower, 6, 6'... Stay, 8...
Steering column, 8u...Upper supported part, 1
0... Steering handle, 3u... Datsushi board top, C... Connection mechanism.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] A stay 6; 6' is supported in a cantilever manner on the front pillar lower 5l of the front pillar 5 in the passenger compartment 1 which is partitioned through the engine compartment 2 and the dart board 3, and the free end of this stay 6; , the dart board top 3u of the dart board 3,
The free ends of the stays 6; 6' are connected by a connecting mechanism C configured to restrict the movement of the free ends of the stays 6; 6' in the front-rear direction but allow their vertical movements; A supported portion 8u of the steering column 8 on the steering handle 10 side is supported at the end, and a supported portion 8l of the steering column 8 on the engine compartment 2 side is supported on the dart board 3 below the support point. A support device for a steering column in an automobile.