JPS627024B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a steering tilt device, more specifically, a steering tilt device for easing the driving posture in a vehicle such as an automobile.
The present invention relates to a tilt device that allows a handle wheel to be adjusted to any vertical position for ease of getting on and off.

Various tilt devices of this type have been proposed, and the steering column is provided with a balance spring that biases the tilt device upward (or downward). As such a balance spring device, for example,
There are some such as those described in Japanese Patent No. 51664, but these are lists of various types of balance springs for the entire tilt device, and the structure is complicated and lacks practicality.

On the other hand, for the tilt operation lever to adjust and fix the steering column to any position,
It is necessary to provide a spring to bias it toward the fixed side, and in the conventional device, it is necessary to provide a spring for biasing the operating lever in addition to the balance spring, making the configuration increasingly complicated.

Further, in the conventional type, the operating angle of the tilt operating lever is large, which makes it difficult to adjust the position of the tilt operating lever when tightening the steering column, and it is also difficult to keep the lever position constant.

It is an object of the present invention to solve the above-mentioned drawbacks of the tilt device, and to provide a tilt device that has a simple configuration and can provide an appropriate biasing force to the steering column and the tilt operation member. The purpose of this invention is to facilitate the adjustment of the fixed position of the operating member and to reduce the operating angle of the tilt operating member to facilitate the operation.

To explain the embodiment, a steering column 1 is composed of upper and lower column jackets 2 and 3, a central axis 4 for tilt angle is provided at the lower part of the steering column 1, and a tilt angle center axis 4 is provided at the lower part of the steering column 1. A support mechanism 6 for supporting the steering column 1 on the vehicle body side is provided on the vehicle body side portion such as 5, and the support mechanism 6 is provided with a function of guiding the tilt operation of the steering column 1 and fixing it at an arbitrary adjustment position. , the handle wheel 7 can be adjusted to any position in the vertical direction.

The support mechanism 6 is fixed to the lower surface of the instrument panel 5 of the vehicle body, and clamps the upper column jacket 3 from both sides thereof to move the steering column 1 in the vertical direction.
That is, there are left and right brackets 8 for guiding vertical arc rotation (tilt operation) about the tilt angle central axis 4, and a receiving bracket 9 fixed to the lower surface of the column jacket 3, which is provided in a direction transverse to the column jacket 3. A bolt 11 is rotatably supported by a spacing holding cylinder 10, and one end of the bolt 11 has a right-hand thread, and the other end has a left-hand thread, and an arc-shaped tilting member is provided on the left and right brackets 8. The guide slot 12 is inserted through it.

Then, an inner nut 13 having a left-handed thread is attached to the left-handed threaded portion of one end of the bolt 11, and a serration fitting 14 or a spline fitting is applied to the outer diameter of the nut 13 to engage the nut 13 integrally in the rotational direction. A left-handed screw corner nut 17 consisting of an outer corner washer 15 and a screw 16 that fixes the inner nut 13 and outer corner washer 15 in the fitted state is screwed together, and a right-handed thread is attached to the right-handed threaded portion at the other end. Screw together the screwed right-hand screw square nut 18,
Each of the square nuts 17 and 18 is prevented from rotating by a rotation prevention protrusion 19 provided on the side of the guide elongated hole 12 of the bracket 8, and the base of the tilt operation lever 20 is fixed to the bolt 11. That is, by operating the tilt operation lever 20, the bolt 11 is rotated, and the bracket 8 is fastened between each corner nut 17, 18 and both end surfaces of the spacing cylinder 10 to fix the steering column 1. By loosening the fastening, the steering column 1 can be tilted.

As can be seen from the above explanation, bracket 8 is
In the illustration, the brackets are shown separated into left and right sides, but they may be integrated into a U-shape, and the bolts 11 are stepped bolts, and the end faces of the stepped portions slide into contact with the inner surface of the brackets 8. If this is done, the spacing holding cylinder 10 may be omitted, and instead of combining the left-hand threaded square nuts 17 to form a nut, the right-hand threaded square nuts 18 may be used as a combination nut, or the left and right double-sided nuts may be combined. It may be a nut, and the left and right threads may be arbitrarily determined, such as a single thread or multiple threads. Further, the tilt operation lever 20 does not necessarily have to be a lever, and can be replaced with a suitable operation member. The illustrated steering device is a shock absorbing type steering device that absorbs the energy of the collision to ensure the driver's safety when the vehicle collides.Therefore, the support mechanism 6 is completely attached to the instrument panel of the vehicle body. Rather than being fixed to the instrument panel, if the driver's chest and abdomen are strongly hit by the steering wheel during a collision, the instrument panel will come off during the shock absorption process.

The operating lever 20 has an operating portion 21 extending toward the handle wheel 7 side as shown in the figure, and a spring hanging arm 22 bent into a U-shape with respect to the operating portion 21 through its rotation center 11 (bolt). , one end of the balance spring 24 is attached to a spring hooking protrusion 23 provided on a fixed part on the vehicle body side such as the support bracket 8, and the other end of the balance spring 24 is attached to the spring hooking arm 22.
0 in the direction of fixing the steering column 1 by tightening the bracket 8 between the bolt 11 and the square nuts 17 and 18, and at the same time in the direction of lifting the steering column 1 upward, that is, in the direction of tilting the steering column 1. Column 1
One balance spring 24 serves as a biasing means for both the tilt operation lever 20 and the steering column 1 so as to bias the tilt operation lever 20 and the steering column 1.

Further, a receiving nut 25 is fixedly installed at a suitable position on the upper column jacket 3, and an eccentric ring 27 is attached to the nut 25 by a screw 26 so that the amount of eccentricity can be adjusted. The tilt operating lever 20 is brought into contact with the eccentric ring 27 and is locked at that position with the steering column 1 fixed at a desired tilt position. .

This invention has the above structure, and in FIG. 1, G; center of gravity W of the entire tilting device; weight Fu of the entire tilting device; force Fl for raising the entire tilting device; force A for lowering the entire tilting device. ; Point of force applied to the steering wheel L; Distance between the central axis 4 and point A l ₁ ; Distance between the central axis 4 and the bolt 11 l ₂ ; Distance between the central axis 4 and the spring attachment point l ₃ ; Distance between the central axis 4 and the center of gravity Distance R from G; Distance r between the bolt 11 and the point of application of the tilt operating lever; Distance h between the bolt 11 and the spring loading point; Adjustment height of the tilt operating lever (Fig. 2), pt: Center axis 4 and Friction torque Kg-mm fh: Sliding resistance of tilt operation lever assembly Kg S: Tensile force of balance spring Kg Find the tensile force of the balance spring.

When the tilt operation lever is unlocked, it is desirable from an ergonomic point of view that the entire tilt device can be raised slightly by the action of the balance spring. Therefore, the equation of balance around the central axis 4 is: -Fu×L=pt+fh×l ₁ −S×l ₂ +W×l ₃ ... The tensile force S of the spring is: S=(pt+fh×l ₁ +W×l ₃ ) Fu×L/l ₂ ...
... For example, Fu = 1Kg (force that can slightly raise the entire tilt device), pt = 10Kg-mm, l ₁ = 380mm, l ₂ = 410
mm, l ₃ = 430mm, L = 780mm, fh = 1Kg, W = 4Kg
Then, S=(10+1×380+4×430)+1×780
/410≒7Kg The downward force of the handle wheel when using the above balance spring is Fl×L=pt+fh×l ₁ +S×l ₂ −W×l ₃ …… Fl=pt+fh×l ₁ +S×l ₂ − W x l ₃ /L... Therefore, Fl = 10 + 1 x 380 + 7 x 410 - 4 x 430
/780≒2Kg It is preferable that the operating force of the tilt operation lever is about 4Kg, taking into account female drivers and the like. on the other hand,
The tightening force between the bolt 11 and the square nuts 17 and 18 is required to be 400 kg-mm or more based on conventional results.

Therefore, if S = 7Kg, Fl = 2Kg, Fu = 1Kg, and f: operation force of the tilt operation lever Th: tightening force of the bolt and nut, (a) When the tilt operation lever is locked, Th = S × r + f × R ...... r=Th-f×R/S ……For example, f=3Kg, Th=400Kg-mm, R=110
If mm, then r=400-3×110/7≒10mm (b) When the tilt operation lever is unlocked f=Th+S×r/R …… f=400×7×10/110≒4Kg Balance spring 24 is If a spring force with a small change in spring force with respect to the operating stroke (low spring constant) is selected, the change in each operating force in the above calculation example will be small, and it will be stable near the calculated value.

As mentioned above, using one balance spring,
By appropriately selecting the radius r of the spring loading point of the tilt operating lever, the most ergonomically appropriate operating force can be obtained, including for female drivers.In the example above, when the operating force of the tilt operating lever is locked, …………3Kg When unlocked…4Kg When the tilt control lever is unlocked, the handle wheel automatically rises, the lifting force at this time is 1Kg, and the wheel pushing force is 2Kg, which is light even for a female driver. The tilt device can be operated very easily with operating force, and has only one balance spring, which biases the tilt operating lever in the lock direction and simultaneously biases the steering column in the tilt operating direction. Its configuration is significantly simplified compared to the conventional one.

Furthermore, if the eccentric ring 27 is attached to the column jacket 3 and the amount of eccentricity is ε, then the lock position of the tilt operating lever 20 can be adjusted within the range of ε×2, as shown in FIG. Since the posture of the lever in the locked position is always kept constant, it is easy to operate the lever, and the operating angle can be kept constant.When installed on an actual vehicle, it has commercial value as a lever device that looks good on the outside. can be increased.

Furthermore, if the eccentric ring is made of synthetic resin, rubber, etc., this will help prevent knocking noise with the lever. Further, when the rotation direction of the lever is set in the opposite direction, the eccentric ring may be attached at a position opposite to that of the embodiment, that is, on the lower surface of the lever.

The bolt for fixing the steering column has a right-hand thread and a left-hand thread on the left and right sides, so even if the rotation angle of the tilt operation lever is small, the lock and unlock states can be easily obtained. Furthermore, the rotation angle of the lever can be set small.

Since at least one of the corner nuts is a combination of the inner nut and the outer corner washer, the tilt operation lever can be set at a position within one serration of the inner nut and the outer corner washer. Can be easily adjusted by adjusting
A bolt tightening force (for example, 400 kg-mm as described above) can be obtained at the tilt operation lever lock position, and its adjustment is extremely easy.

As described above, the present invention can provide a tilt device that has a simple configuration and is extremely easy to adjust and operate.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a side view of the embodiment, Fig. 2 is an enlarged view of the main parts, Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line shown in Fig. 2,
4, 5, and 6 are exploded perspective views of the main parts, FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of a portion, and FIG. 8 is a side view thereof. 1... Steering column, 2, 3... Column jacket, 4... Center shaft, 5... Vehicle instrument panel,
6...Support mechanism, 7...Handle wheel, 8...
... Bracket, 10 ... Spacing cylinder, 11 ...
Bolt, 12... Guide elongated hole, 13... Inner nut, 14... Serration, 15... Outer corner washer, 17, 18... Nut, 19... Detent projection, 20... Tilt operation lever, 21... ...Operation unit, 22...Spring hanging arm, 23...Spring hanging protrusion, 24...Balance spring, 27...Eccentric ring.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A central axis of the tilt angle is provided at the bottom of the steering column, and a support mechanism is provided at the top of the steering column to support the column toward the vehicle body, guide the tilt operation, and fix the column at any adjustment position. Provided,
In a steering tilt device that allows the position of the steering wheel to be adjusted, one end of the balance spring is attached to a member fixed to the vehicle body, and the other end is attached at a position a required radius away from the center of rotation of the tilt operation member. The balance spring is attached to the operating member and serves as a biasing means for rotating the tilt operating member in a direction to fix the steering column at the adjustment position and a biasing means for biasing the steering column in the tilt operating direction. A tilt device characterized by: 2. The tilt device according to claim 1, wherein the balance spring biases the steering column upward via the tilt operation member. 3. Claim 1 or 2, wherein the tilt operating member is a tilt operating lever that is rotatably supported by the support mechanism and whose operating portion is extended toward the handle wheel.
Tilt device as described. 4. An eccentric ring is attached and fixed to a suitable position on the column jacket so that the amount of eccentricity can be adjusted, and when the steering column is fixed at a desired tilt position, the operating member comes into contact with the eccentric ring and the rotation stop position is reached. A tilting device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, which is regulated. 5. The support mechanism includes a bracket that is fixed to the vehicle body side such as the lower surface of the instrument panel of the vehicle body and that clamps the steering column from both sides and guides the tilting operation of the column; A left-hand thread is provided at the end of the bracket, and the bracket is attached to the column jacket so as to be rotatable in a direction transverse to the column jacket. It is constructed with right-handed and left-handed square nuts that are prevented from rotating by rotation prevention protrusions provided on the bracket, and by fixing the operating member to the bolt, the bolt becomes the center of rotation of the tilt operating member. and at least one of the right-handed threaded nut and the left-handed threaded square nut is fitted to the inner nut screwed into the thread of the bolt, and integrally engaged with the outer periphery of the inner nut in the rotational direction, and A combination nut comprising an outer corner washer whose rotation is prevented by a stop protrusion, and the steering column is fastened and fixed to the bracket by rotation of the tilt operation member, and the fastening is released. 5. The tilt device according to any one of 1 to 4. 6. The tilting device according to claim 5, wherein the right-hand thread and left-hand thread of the bolt and the threads of each corner nut screwed therewith are single-threaded or multi-threaded.