JPS6325266Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a bearing collar for a steering column used in the bearing portion of a steering shaft and a steering jacket that protects the steering shaft.

The steering column connects the steering wheel 2 to one end of the steering shaft as illustrated in FIG.
is rotatably supported by a steering jacket 3 at its upper and lower ends via ball bearings 4, and this steering jacket 3 is supported by a bracket 5 on the vehicle body side, for example, on the lower surface of an instrument panel 6. The structure of the support part of the steering shaft 1 at the upper end of the steering jacket 3 of the steering column is the second one.
As shown in the figure.

That is, the ball bearing 4 is generally formed by bending the ends of an inner ring 4a and an outer ring 4b to form a ball holding part 4c, and a ball 4d is attached to the holding part 4c.
The ball bearing 4 is further fitted into a bearing collar 7 fitted to the steering shaft 1 and attached to the upper end of the steering jacket 3. However, since the bearing collar 7 is an integral part, there is a gap C between the inner circumferential surface of the bearing collar 7 and the circumferential surface of the steering shaft 1. There has been a problem in that the bearing collar 7 and the ball bearing 4 fitted therein vibrate due to vehicle body vibrations, engine vibrations, etc. at the time of the vehicle and generate unpleasant noise. The bearing collar 7 shown in Figures 1 and 2 was devised to solve this problem.
A toothed washer 8 having an inclined toothed portion 8' protruding from one side is elastically mounted between the upper end edge of the steering shaft 1 and the steering shaft 1 via a spring member. That is, the coil spring 9 is elastically loaded between the snap spring 10 of the steering shaft 1 fixed to the steering shaft 1 and the toothed washer 8, and biases the toothed washer 8 in the direction of the bearing collar 7, thereby tightening the steering shaft. The teeth 8' are elastically inserted into the gap C between the bearing collar 7 and the bearing collar 7, and the tapered surface of the teeth 8' evenly presses the inner circumferential edge of the bearing collar 7 in an oblique direction to eliminate the vehicle body vibration. This prevents the inner circumferential surface of the bearing collar 7 from coming into contact with the circumferential surface of the steering shaft 1, and is an extremely effective device for preventing the generation of noise caused by the vibration of the vehicle body. However, in this case, since the steering shaft 1 vibrates in the axial direction due to vibrations during running, etc., the circumferential surface of the steering shaft 1, the inner circumferential surface of the base of the toothed washer 8, and the tip of the toothed portion 8' are They rub against each other, and the frictional parts of the two wear out, and this wear creates a new gap between the toothed washer 8 and the steering shaft 1, and this gap allows the bearing to be mounted on the tapered surface of the toothed portion 8'. It becomes impossible to press the inner circumferential edge of the collar 7 evenly in the diagonal direction, the vibration prevention ability of the bearing collar 7 decreases, and furthermore, the presence of the toothed washer 8 causes new noise generation. It has the following drawback. Particularly in the case of an axially movable steering column, the degree of wear is severe, and the anti-vibration ability quickly deteriorates.

The present invention was devised in consideration of the above-mentioned drawbacks of noise prevention structures using toothed washers, and its object is to provide a steering column bearing collar which can obtain a sufficient noise prevention effect due to vibration contact without using toothed washers.

The configuration of the present invention will be described below according to an embodiment shown in the drawings.

In Figures 3a and 3b, 7 is a bearing collar;
It consists of collar pieces 7a and 7b that are approximately the same length as the axial length of the ball bearing 4 and have the same shape,
A tapered portion 11 consisting of a raised portion is provided on the outer peripheral edge of one end, and at least one groove 13 is carved in the circumferential direction on the inner peripheral surface. That is, the collar pieces 7a and 7b are obtained by dividing a cylinder into two equal parts in the axial direction, and in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. When this happens, a gap S is created.

In this embodiment with the above configuration, the collar pieces 7a and 7b are inserted between the ball bearing 4 and the steering shaft 1 from the end side where the tapered part 11 is not provided, as in the conventional device,
By using the same snap spring 10, spring receiver 12, and coil spring 9 as in the conventional device,
However, the collar pieces 7a, 7b are urged in the insertion direction without using the toothed washer 8. Due to this bias, the collar pieces 7a, 7 as shown in FIG.
Tapered portion 1 provided at the outer peripheral edge of one end of b
The tapered surface 1 contacts the end edge of the ball bearing 4a, and presses it radially in the axial and radial directions from the contact point P, as shown by the arrows, and in particular, due to the pressure force in the radial direction, the ball bearing Fix 4. That is, since the bearing collar 7 is divided into collar pieces 7a and 7b, the end faces of the respective divided parts do not come into contact with each other, and function similar to a wedge between the ball bearing 4 and the steering shaft 1. Effectively, a compressive force is generated radially from the inner circumferential side to the outer circumferential side at one end of the ball bearing 4, thereby fixing the ball bearing and preventing its vibration.

FIG. 5 shows another embodiment, in which the bearing collar 7 is divided into two in the axial direction, which is similar to the embodiment described above, but in this embodiment, a tapered portion 11 is formed on the inner peripheral surface of one end. is formed by cutting the inner peripheral surface, and a tapered protuberance 11' is provided at the insertion side end of the collar pieces 7a, 7b of the steering shaft 1, with which the tapered part 11 comes into contact. In this embodiment, the collar pieces 7a and 7b, which are biased in the insertion direction by the coil spring 9 with the same configuration as the previous embodiment, have their insertion side ends connected to the tapered surface of the tapered raised portion 11'. The tapered portion 11 is pressed against and pushed up in the radial direction. This pushed up collar piece 7
The insertion side ends of a and 7b further press the contact portion of the ball bearing 4 in the radial direction, and the ball bearing 4 is fixed by this pressing force.

In the above embodiment, the upper side of the steering jacket, that is, the steering wheel side has been described, but it goes without saying that the bearing collar of the present invention may be applied to the lower side of the steering jacket, that is, the steering gear side.

As explained above, according to the present invention, without using a toothed washer, the vibration of the bearing collar 7 and the ball bearing 4 fitted therein due to vibrations of the vehicle body and engine vibration during driving can cause discomfort. In addition, since the steering shaft 1 does not wear out, new gaps will not be created due to wear of the steering shaft 1, and the fixation of ball bearings etc. will not be lost. Provides durable vibration and noise prevention effects. Also, in terms of manufacturing costs, the elimination of the toothed washers has the effect of reducing manufacturing costs. In addition, according to the present invention, the bearing collar has approximately the same length as the axial length of the bearing, and is divided in the axial direction, so the axial length (retention length) of the bearing collar and steering shaft is large, and the length of both is large. It secures a wide contact area, lowers the surface pressure on the bearing, and reduces wear due to relative movement between the bearing collar and the steering shaft.It also allows grooves to be easily carved on the inner circumferential surface of the bearing collar. The lubricant (for example, grease) can be retained in the groove, and wear and seizure caused by friction in the bearing can be prevented. Further, since the bearing collar is divided into a plurality of parts in the axial direction, when it is attached to the steering shaft, it can be inserted into the gap between the bearing and the steering shaft, which provides advantages such as good assembly performance.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a partially sectional side view showing an example of a conventional steering column, Fig. 2 is an enlarged view of the same part, and Fig. 3 is a partially sectional side view showing an example of a conventional steering column.
Figure a is a front view showing an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 3 b
4 is a side view showing the bearing collar, FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the operation of the present invention, and FIG. 5 is a partial sectional view showing another embodiment of the present invention. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Steering shaft, 4... Ball bearing, 7... Bearing collar, 7a, 7b... Collar piece, 11... Taper part, 11'... Protrusion part.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] In a steering column in which a steering shaft is rotatably supported by a steering jacket via a bearing, there is a space between the steering shaft and the bearing, which has a length substantially equal to the axial length of the bearing, and has an outer circumferential surface at one end and a An axially tapered portion is formed on one of the inner circumferential surfaces, and a bearing collar consisting of a cylinder divided into a plurality of axially divided portions is interposed, and the bearing collar is brought into contact with the tapered portion. A steering column device, characterized in that the steering column device is biased to be movable in a radial direction via either the bearing or a raised portion formed on the steering shaft.