JPS6327160Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] The present invention adjusts the damping force by rotating a control rod that is connected to the damping force adjustment mechanism installed in the shock absorber body and has one end protruding outside the shock absorber body. The present invention relates to a drive device for a control rod in a damping force adjusting device that can change the damping force in multiple stages.

Many shock absorbers installed in vehicles have an adjustment device that changes the damping force in multiple stages. In such a shock absorber, a control rod connected to the adjusting device is projected outside the shock absorber main body, and a driving device is connected to the protruding control rod. . This drive device is configured to selectively rotate control rods connected thereto in multiple stages.

As a driving device for such a control rod, a proposal as shown in FIG. 1 has been proposed in the past.

That is, this control rod drive device includes a drive motor 3, a reduction mechanism 4, and a sector gear 5 in a suitable casing 2 disposed above and outside the shock absorber main body from which the rear end of the control rod 1 projects. The control rod 1 connected to the rotation center of the sector gear 5 is rotated by the motor 3. When the control rod 1 is rotated, the damping force within the lower shock absorber body is selected to be either high or low.

However, when adjusting the damping force in multiple stages, it is necessary to select a desired rotation stop position using multiple position detection contacts 6a, 6b, and 6c formed on the sector gear 5. However, in order to obtain the selected stop position, it is necessary to reduce the speed of the sector gear 5 to a speed at which it can be stopped. And if we try to slow it down, for example,
If a high damping force is to be generated to control the nose-down that occurs when the vehicle is suddenly decelerated, it must be done in an extremely short period of time, and the rotation of the sector gear 5 and its This is not preferable since it takes a long time to stop.
Also, if the sector gear 5 is rotated at high speed so that the sector gear 5 rotates in a short time,
When the sector gear 5 stops, its stop position deviates, resulting in a so-called overrun phenomenon, which is disadvantageous in that the accuracy of the stop position of the sector gear 5 deteriorates.

Therefore, the present invention provides a control rod drive device in a damping force adjustment device that can rapidly rotate the sector gear that rotationally drives the control rod and reliably prevent the sector gear from rotating at a desired stop position. The purpose is to provide.

In order to achieve this purpose, the structure of the present invention is
A damping force adjustment mechanism is provided inside the shock absorber body, and this damping force adjustment mechanism is interlocked with a control rod that protrudes outside the shock absorber body, and by rotating this control rod, the damping force can be adjusted in multiple stages. The damping force adjusting device is configured to change the damping force to a position that changes the direction of the damping force. The stopper is formed to be able to prevent rotation of the sector gear at an intermediate position of rotation.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be explained based on the illustrated embodiments.

As shown in FIG. 2, the drive device for the control rod in the damping force adjusting device according to the present invention is as follows:
It is connected to a control rod 1 protruding from an actuator A of a shock absorber, hydraulic suspension, etc., and has a drive motor 3, a sector gear 5, and a stopper 7 inside a casing 2 as appropriate. Become.

Although not shown in the drawings, the control rod 1 has its tip connected to an adjustment mechanism that changes the constant damping force generated within the actuator A in multiple stages. It has a plurality of orifices and is formed with an adjuster disposed in an oil passage through which hydraulic oil passes. The tip of the control rod 1 is connected to this adjuster, and by rotating the control rod 1, an arbitrary orifice of the adjuster is selected and a constant damping force is varied in multiple stages.

Further, the rear end of the control rod 1 is connected to the drive device of the control rod 1 according to the present invention, and in particular, the rear end of the control rod 1 is connected to the rotation center of the sector gear 5. They are connected. For this connection, a connector 52 connected with a pin 51 to the rear end of the control rod 1 is used. This connector 52 is fitted into a plug 53 that is spline-coupled to the sector gear 5.

Therefore, if the pin 51 is removed, the control rod 1 and this device can be separated, and for example, when transporting the actuator A before installing it in a vehicle, there is no problem in connecting the device together. This also makes it possible to replace the device after the actuator A is installed in the vehicle.

Note that, instead of the present embodiment, the rear end of the control rod 1 has a plug 53 spline-coupled to the sector gear 5 without using the connector 52.
The plug 5 may be connected to the sector gear 5 by being fitted into the connector 52.
3 may also be omitted and may be connected directly to the rotation center of the sector gear 5.

As shown in FIG. 3, the sector gear 5 to which the rear end of the control rod 1 is connected to its center of rotation has a base portion 5a formed with a spline to which the plug 53 can be connected, and a base portion 5a formed with a spline to which the plug 53 can be connected. A driving part 5b that is arranged in series, and this driving part 5b and a base part 5a.
It consists of a protruding part 5c which protrudes from the base part 5a in the radial direction with an appropriate length on the substantially opposite side with the base part 5a in between. Teeth 5b' are formed on the string side of the drive portion 5b, and a pinion gear 31 connected to the drive motor 3 meshes with the teeth 5b'. Further, the protrusion 5c has a concave portion 5c' on one side thereof, with which the stopper 7 comes into contact. Incidentally, it goes without saying that the formation of this concave portion 5c' may be omitted.

Therefore, when the drive motor 3 is energized and rotated, for example, in the forward direction, the drive portion 5b is rotated through the pinion gear 31.
For example, it will turn clockwise, and
When the drive motor 3 is reversely rotated, the drive section 5b turns counterclockwise. The protruding portion 5c then turns clockwise or counterclockwise as the drive portion 5b turns. A locking piece 54 is provided to determine the turning limit of the protrusion 5c when the sector gear 5 rotates clockwise, and conversely, a locking piece 54 is provided to determine the rotation limit of the protrusion 5c when the sector gear 5 rotates counterclockwise. A locking piece 55 is provided to determine the turning limit. This protrusion 5c is the locking piece 5.
It goes without saying that the rotational position of the sector gear 5 whose rotation is prevented at 4 or 55 corresponds to the desired rotational position of the control rod 1 connected to this sector gear 5.

By providing the locking pieces 54 and 55, the rotation of the sector gear 5 can be stopped at a desired rotational position even if the sector gear 5 is rotated at a high speed. 1 can be rotated quickly.

The stopper 7 comes into contact with the protrusion 5c
is to prevent the sector gear 5 from rotating at an intermediate position.

That is, depending on the rotational position of the control rod 1, the damping force generated in the actuator A can be set to hard mode (when a high damping force is generated), soft mode (when a low damping force is generated), and soft mode when an intermediate damping force is generated. For example, when the protrusion 5c comes into contact with the lower locking piece 54 in FIG. 3, in the normal state, the adjustment mechanism changes in three stages. When the protruding portion 5c comes into contact with the stopper 55, the soft state is set, and when the stopper 7 comes into contact with the protruding portion 5c, the hard state is set, and the stopper 7 is set in the hard state. This is used to ensure the rotational position of 1. And at this hard time,
For example, when a vehicle suddenly decelerates and causes a so-called nose-down phenomenon, a high damping force is generated to control the attitude of the vehicle, so it must be done quickly and reliably. As described above, the sector gear 5 is rotated quickly, and the stopper 7 is formed so as to be able to reliably stop the rapidly rotating sector gear 5 at a desired rotational position. It is something that exists.

That is, as shown in FIG. 2, the stopper 7 is disposed so as to be movable up and down within a linear solenoid 71 attached to the external upper surface of the casing 2, and is not energized by the linear solenoid 71. The stopper 7 is biased upward by a coil spring 72 so that the stopper 7 can be kept raised at the time. And this direct acting solenoid 7
When the stopper 1 is excited, the stopper 7 is lowered, and its tip abuts the protrusion 5c of the sector gear 5, thereby blocking the rotation of the sector gear 5 at an intermediate position.

Note that the direct-acting solenoid 71 may be energized by sensor detection, or
It may also be done by manual operation. In addition, since it is sufficient for the stopper 7 to be lowered when requested when the damping force generated in the actuator A is hard, instead of this embodiment, the stopper 7 can be operated manually to prevent sudden deceleration, for example, in a two-wheeled vehicle. Therefore, sector gear 5 is activated only when the rear brake or front brake is suddenly operated.
The stopper may be formed so as to be able to be lowered so that it comes into contact with the protrusion 5c.

The direct-acting solenoid 71 to which the stopper 7 is attached is connected to a power source (not shown).
It is energized or de-energized by the ON/OFF operation, but instead of this, the power is turned ON.
It is excited by the operation and lowers the stopper 7, but after a few seconds, the power is automatically turned off.
The structure may be such that the excitation is canceled by this. In this case, the sector gear 5 is in the hard position, and its rotation is prevented by the stopper 7, and a high damping force is generated only for a few seconds required to control the vehicle attitude, but after that, it is in the normal position (downward in Figure 3). The sector gear 5 is automatically rotated to the locking piece 54 position), and an intermediate damping force suitable for normal driving after the ratio control of the vehicle can be generated.

In addition, in the illustrated embodiment, the sector gear 5
When the protruding portion 5c is in the soft position (the upper locking piece 55 position in FIG. 3) and the stopper 7 is lowered, the sector gear 5 can be prevented from rotating to the desired hard position. However, instead of this, for example, the stopper 7 may be formed so as to descend even when the protrusion 5c is in the normal position and prevent rotation of the sector gear 5 at a desired stop position; The protruding portion 5c may be formed so that the stopper 7 can stop the protruding portion 5c at a desired hard position regardless of whether the portion 5c is in the soft position or the normal position.

As described above, according to the present invention, the tip is connected to the rear end of the control rod, which is connected to the adjustment mechanism that changes the damping force generated in the actuator in multiple stages, and the control rod is rotated at high speed. Therefore, the damping force within the actuator can be adjusted quickly. In particular, even if the control rod needs to be rotated in multiple stages, it is possible to reliably prevent the control rod from rotating at a desired rotational position. As a result, if the drive device of the control rod in the damping force adjustment device according to the present invention is connected to a desired actuator, the handling stability and riding comfort of the vehicle equipped with the actuator can be further improved. It is something that can be achieved.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway plan view of a control rod drive device in a conventional damping force adjustment device, and FIG. 2 is a longitudinal section showing the control rod drive device in a damping force adjustment device according to the present invention. The side view and FIG. 3 are a partial cross-sectional view of the device shown by the middle line - in FIG. 1... Control rod, 3... Drive motor, 5... Sector gear, 7... Stopper, 71...
...Direct solenoid, A...actuator.

Claims (1)

[Claims for Utility Model Registration] (1) A damping force adjustment mechanism is provided in the actuator,
This damping force adjustment mechanism is interlocked with a control rod protruding from the outside of the actuator, and the damping force adjustment device is formed so that the damping force can be changed in multiple stages by rotating the control rod. A drive motor, a sector gear that rotates a control rod that is rotated by the drive motor and connected to its rotation center, a locking piece that determines the horizontal rotation limit of this sector gear, and a locking piece that determines the left and right rotation limit of this sector gear, A control rod drive device consisting of a stopper that prevents rotation of the control rod. (2) A drive device for a control rod in a damping force adjusting device according to claim 1, wherein the stopper is configured to be operated by manual operation. (3) A drive device for a control rod in a damping force adjusting device according to claim 1, wherein the stopper is connected to a direct-acting solenoid and is actuated by excitation of the solenoid.