JPS63251365A - Steering support device for vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent a steering shaft from inclining to the right or to the left when a vehicle collides, by fixing the steering shaft with a lateral vibration absorbing bracket whose flexural rigidity in the lateral direction is larger and that in the vertical direction is smaller. CONSTITUTION:A steering shaft 1 is of a collapsible structure which can absorb a shock by contracting itself in the axial direction when a vehicle collides. The steering shaft 1 is held by an upper holding bracket 3 which is installed to a jacket 14 at its center, and the holding bracket 3 is fixed to a holding bracket 15 which is installed at a car body. The lower part of the jacket 14 is held by a holding bracket 17. Between the vertical walls of the holding bracket 17, a lateral vibration absorbing bracket 22 is installed. The lateral vibration absorbing bracket 22 is composed making the flexural rigidity in the lateral direction larger and that in the vertical direction smaller.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention relates to a steering support device for a vehicle that can reduce the impact force exerted on a driver, particularly when a vehicle crashes.

(Problems with the Prior Art) Various energy absorbing structures have been proposed to alleviate the impact force that a driver receives from a steering shaft or steering wheel during a vehicle collision.

For example, in the steering device disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 56-157671, the steering shaft and the steering gear box are connected by a rubber coupling, and a relatively strong structure is attached to the vehicle body structure behind the location where the steering gear box is attached to the vehicle body. A weak point is established (when a J1 vehicle collides, the car body structure undergoes buckling deformation around that point, and the steering gear box is rotated in an axial direction that is almost perpendicular to the axial direction of the steering shaft, thereby creating a rubber coupling). I'm trying to break it.

Further, the shock-absorbing steering wheel disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 55-121770 has an energy absorber installed in the center of the wheel.

However, all of these conventional configurations have complicated structures and have two drawbacks: manufacturing.

Therefore, a steering support device shown in FIG. 6 can be considered as one that can realize the above energy absorbing structure with a simple configuration.

That is, in this device, a control rod 4 is provided on the vehicle front side of a two-part support bracket 3, which is provided at an axially intermediate portion of the steering shaft 1 and supports the shaft 1 on the vehicle body 2. 4 is connected to the vehicle body, and the lower end is connected to the steering shaft 1. When a vehicle crashes, the lower panel 6 is deformed as the engine 5 moves backward in the direction of the arrow, and the steering shaft 1 When the universal joint 7 at the front end is pushed toward the rear of the vehicle, the control arm 4 swings and displaces, and the steering wheel 8 at the rear end of the steering shaft 1 pivots downward about the upper support bracket 3. This prevents the driver's head 9 from colliding with the center part 10 of the steering wheel 8, and prevents the driver's head 9 from colliding with the center part 10 of the steering wheel 8, and prevents the driver's head 9 from colliding with the center part 10 of the steering wheel 8 by stopping the receiver at the second end II of the outer periphery of the steering wheel 8, which has a large amount of elastic deformation. This is what I did.

This steering support device is constructed based on the fact that the amount of rearward deformation of the darts lower panel 6 during a vehicle collision is more pronounced at the bottom of the panel 6 than at the top, considering the backward trajectory of the engine 5, etc. It is something that

By adopting a two-part steering support device, it is possible to absorb impact energy and protect the driver with a simple structure, but in order to obtain the effects shown in Figure 6, , Steering shaft 1 during vehicle collision
It is important to prevent it from tilting to the left or right. Otherwise, the outer circumference of the steering wheel 8.
This is because the position of the second end portion 11 is shifted from side to side with respect to the driver's head 9.

However, the rotation transmission rods 3 to 12 connected to the front of the steering shaft 1 via the universal joint 7 are arranged at a predetermined angle with respect to the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, as shown in FIG. Therefore, when the engine 5 and other components move backward due to a vehicle collision, the gear case I3 to which the front end of the rotation transmission rod I2 is connected is displaced rearward. There is a possibility that the shaft 1 may be displaced as shown by the broken line in the figure using the two-part support bracket 3 as a fulcrum, and the steering wheel 8 may also be displaced from side to side.

Therefore, the present applicant proposed in Japanese Patent Application No. 61-33425 by providing a left and right steady rest bracket with high bending rigidity in the left and right direction to prevent the steering shaft from tilting left and right due to impact force in the event of a vehicle collision. In the event of a vehicle collision, the steering wheel will not shift left or right, and the bracket has low downward bending rigidity, so it will not interfere with the swinging movement of the control rod. With the swinging displacement of the control rod, the steering wheel rotates downward from side to side without any hesitation, and as a result, when the driver's half of his body leans forward, his head is moved by elastic deformation. We have proposed a new steering device that can protect the driver by stopping and cushioning the upper end of the outer periphery of the steering wheel, which has a large impact absorption capacity.

(Object of the Invention) The present invention is an improvement of the steering device according to the applicant's earlier application, and is capable of quickly protecting the driver by increasing responsiveness to impact force at the time of a vehicle collision. It is an object of the present invention to provide a steering support device for a vehicle that can realize an impact energy absorbing structure with a simple configuration.

(Structure of the Invention) Therefore, the present invention provides a steering shaft having a steering wheel fixed to the rear end and an axially intermediate portion supported by the vehicle body, and a lower end of the steering shaft supported by the vehicle body. and a control rod connected to the front of the steering wheel and connected to the vehicle body at its upper end, and when a vehicle collides, the control rod swings back and forth to displace the position of the steering wheel downward. In this steering support device for a vehicle, one end of the left-right steady bracket is fixed to the steering shaft, and the other end is fixed to the steering shaft. It is characterized by being fixed to the vehicle body on the side of the steering link wheel from one end.

(Effects of the Invention) In the present invention, if 1', a left and right steady bracket is installed that has high bending rigidity in the left and right direction to prevent the steering shaft from tilting to the left or right due to impact force in the event of a vehicle collision.
This prevents the steering wheel from shifting to the left or right, and since the bracket has low bending rigidity in the vertical direction, it does not impede the swinging movement of the control rod, and therefore the control rod will not shift in the event of a vehicle collision. As the rod swings, the steering wheel rotates downward from side to side without skidding, and as a result, when the driver's upper body leans forward, the driver's head is deformed with great shock absorption capacity. The support can be stopped at the upper edge of the outer circumference of the steering wheel to create a buffer, protecting the driver.

Moreover, this can be achieved with an extremely simple structure.

Furthermore, since one end of the left and right steady rest bracket is fixed to the steering shaft and the other end is fixed to the vehicle body closer to the steering wheel than the one end, in the event of a vehicle collision,
Before the darts lower panel is significantly displaced rearward by the engine, etc., the steering shaft can be displaced by the displacement of the rotation transmission rod by the gear case.
This increases responsiveness to impact forces during vehicle collisions, quickly protecting drivers and improving safety.

(Example) Hereinafter, an example of the present invention will be described in detail based on the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a side view showing a steering support device for an automobile according to this embodiment. In the drawings, the same parts as those in FIG.

A steering wheel 8 is fixed to the rear upper end of the steering shaft I, and a rotation transmission rod I extends into the vehicle interior through the lower front end of the steering shaft I.
2 via a universal joint 7.

This steering shaft (■) has a collapsible structure that can contract in the axial direction and absorb the impact in the event of a collision, and this collapsible structure is known, for example, from Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 55-22309. , although illustration and detailed description are omitted, the steering shaft I is divided into upper and lower halves within the jacket 14 that rotatably supports it, and at the connecting portion of the two halves, one is connected to the other. It has a double shaft structure that can penetrate into the interior, and both are connected by a yarn pin that can be broken by impact.

The jacket 14 also has a double shaft structure so that it can contract in the axial direction as the steering shaft 1 contracts.

The steering shaft 1 having such a configuration is supported at its intermediate portion by an upper support bracket 3 attached to a jacket 14, and this upper support bracket 3 is connected to a support bracket I5 provided on the vehicle body 2 by bolts 16. Fixed by

A lower support bracket 17 is fixed to the lower end of the jacket 14, and the lower end of the control rod 4 is connected to this lower support bracket 17. The upper end of this control rod 4 is connected to the lower end of the darts lower panel 6.
At the two ends, it is connected to a support bracket 18 installed on the vehicle body 2.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the configuration of the attachment part of the control rod 4 as seen from the front from the axial direction of the steering shaft l. It is formed into a 17-shape by the upwardly extending portion 4b, and the horizontal portion 4a
is connected to the lower support bracket 17 by a relatively long bolt 19 passing through the inside thereof, and the upper end of the portion 4b extending in two directions is connected to the support bracket 1-18 fixed to the vehicle body 2 by a bolt 20. installed.

21 is a reinforcing plate for the control rod 4. Based on various experiments, the support bracket 18 is attached at a position where displacement is relatively small in the event of a collision.

A left and right steady rest bracket 22 is fitted between a pair of vertical walls of the lower support bracket 17 through which the bolt 19 passes.

As shown in the front and side views of FIGS.
A pipe 24 is fixed to one end by arc welding 25, and as shown in FIG. 2, the pipe 24 is formed to have approximately the same diameter as the horizontal portion 4a of the control lot 4.
is pivotally supported by a bolt 19.

As shown in FIG. 1, a mask cylinder bracket 26 is bolted to the dash roller panel 6 through a sleeve 29, and the mask cylinder bracket 26 is attached to the steering wheel 8 side of the lower support bracket 17. An ankle member 27 extending in the vehicle width direction is welded to the (rear side) position (see FIG. 5).

The left and right steady rest bracket 22 is arranged along the control rod 4, and the left and right rear ends 23a, 23a of the approximately Y-shaped plate 23 are connected to the two-part angle member 27.
It is fixed to the rear side with bolts and nuts 28°28.

Due to its shape and the structure of the frame 1, the left-right steady rest bracket 22 has a large bending rigidity in the left-right direction, and a small bending rigidity in the single-piece direction.

Here, "having a large bending rigidity in the left-right direction" means a range of left-right positional deviation of the steering wheel 8 such that the downwardly displaced steering wheel 8 can alleviate the impact force received by the driver in the event of a vehicle collision. This means that the steering shaft 1 has bending rigidity that can suppress the left and right inclination of the steering shaft 1.

Moreover, "the bending rigidity in the vertical direction is small" means that the bending rigidity is within a range that does not interfere with the swinging movement of the control rod 4 in the facing direction.

Therefore, when an external force acts on the plate 23 in the vertical or backward direction, the left and right steady rest brackets 22 move against the pipe 2.
Overcoming the frictional force between both end faces of 4 and the lower support bracket 17, it rotates around the bolt 19, and an external force in the left and right direction acts on the plate 23, causing it to slide into contact with the lower support bracket 17. This prevents displacement in the left and right directions.

, ” - If the configuration is as shown in Figure 1,
When the engine 5 etc. retreats in the direction of the arrow due to a vehicle collision and hits the lower panel 6, the lower panel 6
B Along with this, it deforms and moves backward. When the Dason roller panel 6 moves backward from the position of the universal joint 7, an impact force is transmitted to the steering shaft 1.

On the other hand, before the steering wheel panel 6 is significantly displaced rearward, a thrusting force is applied to the steering shaft 1 in accordance with the displacement of the rotational shaft 12 transmitted by the gear case I3.

Since the rotation transmission rod 12 is disposed at a predetermined angle with respect to the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, this thrust force includes a component in the left-right direction (see FIG. 7).

Therefore, at the front end of the steering shaft 1,
A sliding force acts to rotate the shaft l left and right with the upper support bracket 3 as a fulcrum, but the left and right steady rest brackets 22
is provided connecting the ankle member 27 and the lower end of the control rod 4, and the left and right steady rest brackets 2 of the brackets are connected to each other.
2 is provided with a substantially Y-shaped plate 23 extending left and right, and has extremely high bending rigidity in the left and right direction, so that tilting of the steering shaft 1 in the left and right direction is prevented.

Therefore, the control rod 4 swings in a substantially vertical direction including the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, as shown by arrow B), and the two ends 1 of the outer periphery of the steering wheel 8 mounted on the driver's head.
At 1, the receiver should be stopped and buffered.

With the displacement of the steering link shaft 1, the left and right anti-shake brackets 22 receive a compressive load and are appropriately bent to absorb the difference in displacement between the steering link shaft 1 and the ankle portions 127. Furthermore, it goes without saying that the left-right steady rest bracket 22 maintains a high bending rigidity in the left-right direction even in this deformed state.

Therefore, one end (pipe 24) of the left and right steady rest bracket 22 is fixed to the lower support bracket 17 of the steering shaft 1, and the other end (left and right rear end portions 23a, 23
a) Since one end is fixed to the vehicle body (annocle member 27 of the mask cylinder bracket 26) closer to the steering link wheel 8 than the other end, the engine 5 etc. will cause the Datsun roller panel 6 to be significantly displaced rearward in the event of a vehicle collision. Before the rotation transmission rod (2) is displaced by the case 13, the steering link no.
It's not about safety.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view of a steering link support device for an automobile according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line ■-■ in FIG. 1, and FIGS. 3 and 4 are front and side views of left and right steady rest brackets. FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the joined state of the mask cylinder bracket and the angle member, and FIGS. 6 and 7 are a side view and a plan view showing the action of a conventional automobile steering support device. l... Steering shaft, 2... Vehicle body, 3... Two-part support bracket, 4... Control rod, 8... Steering wheel, 22... Left and right steady rest bracket, 23... Plate , 23a...Right and left rear end (other end), 24.Pipe (one end), 26...Bracket for mask ring (vehicle body), 27
-Ankle member.

Claims (1)

[Claims] (1) A steering shaft with a steering wheel fixed to the rear end and an axially intermediate portion supported by the vehicle body;
A control rod is provided, the lower end of which is connected to the front of the intermediate portion of the steering shaft supported by the vehicle body, and the upper end of which is connected to the vehicle body, and when a vehicle crashes, the control rod swings back and forth to A steering support device for a vehicle configured to displace the steering wheel downward, in which a left-right steady bracket that has high bending rigidity in the left-right direction and low bending rigidity in the vertical direction is fixed to the steering shaft at one end. A steering support device for a vehicle, wherein the other end is fixed to a vehicle body closer to the steering wheel than the one end.