JPS634825Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] "Industrial application field" This invention is a clutch used in a clutch that is interposed between an automobile engine and a transmission to transmit and cut off power from the former to the latter. Among the release bearings, the inner ring rotates, and
The present invention relates to an improved structure of a clutch release bearing in which the diameter at the point of contact with the diaphragm spring (hereinafter referred to as the contact diameter) is larger than the pitch circle diameter of the steel balls of the bearing.

In general, there are two types of bearings: outer ring rotating type and inner ring rotating type. Compared to inner ring rotating type, outer ring rotating type has a higher circumferential speed by the diameter difference, and it is difficult to supply lubricant to the raceway surface of the inner ring. To become
It can be said that the inner ring rotating type is more advantageous because the temperature rise and wear are large and the bearing life is shortened.

In addition, the reason why the contact diameter with the diaphragm spring is made larger than the pitch diameter of the steel balls in the bearing is to make the bearing smaller and lighter.When the bearing is made smaller, the circumferential speed becomes smaller, which reduces temperature rise and wear. It is also advantageous in terms of improving lifespan.

``Prior Art'' Now, referring to FIG. 1, which shows an example of the structure of a conventional clutch release bearing with rotating inner ring, this figure shows an automatic adjustment system that corrects eccentricity between the rotation center of the clutch cover and the rotation center of the bearing. An actuating element A, shown in the form of a core, is moved axially by a clutch release fork member (not shown), a drive element B acts on the clutch release device by actuation of this actuating element; The main components are an elastic member D that presses the outer ring of the ball bearing 1 forming the drive element in the axial direction toward the operating element, and a cover member C that tightens the operating element, the drive element, and the elastic member in the axial direction. It's summery. In the figure, 1a is the bearing outer ring, 2 is the cylindrical sleeve, and 3 is the sleeve 2.
4 is a steel ball, 5 is a bearing inner ring having a contact portion 5a that comes into contact with a diaphragm spring 7 of the clutch cover, and 6a, 6a are seal members.

By the way, the contact diameter between the contact portion 5a of the bearing inner ring 5 and the diaphragm spring 7 of the clutch cover is
DM is determined by the size of the clutch cover (varies depending on manufacturer, car model, etc.). As this contact diameter dm increases, the outer diameter of the contact portion 5a will inevitably increase, but if it is too large, as in the case of Fig. 1, the contact portion 5a and the inner diameter of the outer ring 1a may Since there is no space between them, it becomes impossible to assemble the seal 6a on the left side in the figure. Therefore, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, some bearings have a contact portion 5a with the diaphragm spring 7 separated from the bearing.

The contact member 8 shown in FIG. 2 has a cylindrical portion 8a that fits into the inner circumferential surface of the bearing inner ring 1b with a tight fit.The cylindrical portion 8a is press-fitted into the bearing inner ring 1b and integrated. It has become Contact member 9 shown in FIG.
Similarly, the cylindrical portion 9a is fitted to the inner peripheral surface of the bearing inner ring 1b, but in this case, the cylindrical portion 9a is fitted to the inner peripheral surface of the bearing inner ring 1b with a loose fit. , are integrated by crimping the tip portion 9b.

"Problems to be Solved by the Invention" However, these conventional structures had the following drawbacks. That is, in the structure shown in FIG. 2, when press-fitting and assembling, the contact member 8
It is necessary to polish the parts A and B that contact the bearing inner ring 1b. In view of the function of the clutch release bearing, the contact diameter dm of the contact member 8 and the cylindrical portion 8a must be in a concentric relationship. However, since the contact portion has an arcuate cross section as shown in the figure and is difficult to hold accurately, it is very difficult to polish the cylindrical portion 8a perfectly concentrically with respect to the contact diameter. In addition, the contact member 8 is often made of a thin steel plate with a thickness of about 1.6 to 2.0 mm, and the cylindrical portion 8a, which has low rigidity due to its form, is easily distorted by the abrasive force acting in the radial direction. For this reason, a deviation S is likely to occur between the rotation center of the contact diameter dm and the rotation center of the cylindrical portion 8a (which is also the rotation center of the bearing). Furthermore, since there is a radially extending flange portion at the left end of the cylindrical portion 8a in the figure, polishing can only be done up to the front of this flange portion, and the cylindrical portion 8a
This will create a step. As a result, the bearing inner ring 1b and the contact member 8 cannot be completely fitted and integrated.

In addition, the structure shown in Fig. 3 requires polishing of the parts A and B that contact the bearing inner ring 1b, as with the one in Fig. 2, and since it is a loose fit, it may cause problems if the clearance is larger than necessary. In some cases, the contact diameter dm between the bearing rotation center and the contact member 9
A deviation S from the center is likely to occur. In other words, in the one shown in Figure 3, there is a gap between the bearing inner ring and the cylindrical part 9a of the contact member, and since both are fixed only in the axial direction, it is not possible to regulate the position of this gap in the radial direction. . In either case of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3, if a shift S in the center of rotation occurs, undesirable slippage, so-called slip motion, will occur at the contact portions between the contact members 8 and 9 and the diaphragm spring. Further, the contact member 9 is heat treated,
Generally, in order to perform carburizing and quenching, it is necessary to perform carburizing treatment on the caulking portion 9b so that it can be easily bent and caulked.
Furthermore, since it is necessary to perform this caulking, the tip end 9b of the contact member 9 is made thinner by turning to make it easier to bend, and the inner ring 1b of the bearing is chamfered 1c with special dimensions.
, which increases the number of man-hours.

As described above, none of the conventional structures shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 are functionally fully satisfactory, and also have factors that increase costs, making them unsuitable for mass production.

Therefore, this invention does not use special bearings like the conventional example shown in Fig. 1, and also
This is an attempt to develop an inner ring rotating clutch release bearing that does not require as many man-hours as the conventional example shown in the figure, is inexpensive, and exhibits sufficiently satisfactory functions.

"Means for Solving the Problems" The inner ring rotating clutch release bearing of this invention includes the following A to D. Namely, the operating element A is actuated by a clutch releasing fork member, usually referred to as a clutch release fork; the driving element B acts on a clutch releasing device such as a diaphragm spring in response to actuation of this operating element; an elastic member D that presses the outer ring of the ball bearing forming the element in the axial direction toward the operating element;
and a cover member C for tightening the operating element A, drive element B, and elastic member D to each other in the axial direction.

The drive element B is composed of a contact member 10 made of a hardened steel plate, a ball bearing 1, and a cylindrical member 11 made of a thin steel plate. The contact member 10 has a contact portion having an arcuate cross section that contacts the diaphragm spring, a radial flange base 10a that contacts the end face of the ball bearing inner ring 1b, and a small diameter side of the contact portion and a large diameter side of the flange base that are connected to each other. It has a connecting part. The connection part here refers to the continuous or transitional part between the contact part and the flange base, and is cylindrical,
It can take a shape such as a truncated cone. The center of curvature of the arc of the contact portion having an arcuate cross section is located radially outward from the center of the steel balls 4 of the ball bearing 1. Cylindrical member 11
has a radial flange base 1 of the contact member 10 at one end.
It has a first flange 11a that follows the outer shape of the ball bearing inner ring 1b and a second flange 11b that hugs the end surface of the ball bearing inner ring 1b at the other end.
That is, the first flange 11a of the cylindrical member 11
By crimping the second flange 11b of the cylindrical member 11 with the flange base 10a of the contact member 10 interposed between the end face of the ball bearing inner ring 1b, the contact member 10 and the ball bearing 1 are integrated. , and a cylindrical member 11 is formed.

Embodiments Hereinafter, embodiments of this invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

First, referring to FIG. 4 showing the drive element portion of the inner ring rotating clutch release bearing of this invention, the drive element portion B includes a standard ball bearing 1, a contact member 10, and a cylindrical shape for fastening these two. It is composed of a member 11. The contact member 10 has a contact portion having an arcuate cross section that contacts the diaphragm spring, and a radial flange base 1 along the side surface of the bearing inner ring at its base in order to connect to the bearing inner ring 1b.
It has 0a. The contact portion and the flange base are continuous via a cylindrical connection portion. As shown in FIG. 4, the center of curvature of the contact portion having an arcuate cross section is located on the outside in the radial direction from the pitch diameter of the steel balls 4 of the ball bearing 1. This contact member 10 is formed only by press work and is heat treated to obtain the necessary hardness. In order to integrally fix this contact member 10 to the bearing inner ring 1b, a cylindrical member 11 formed only by press work is used. At one end of the cylindrical member 11,
As shown in the figure, a first flange 11a having a substantially square cross section is formed along the radial direction of the flange base 10a of the contact member 10 and the outer shape of the connecting portion following it,
The other end is crimped to embrace the bearing inner ring 1b to form a second flange 11b. What is the abbreviation here?
As shown in the drawings, a portion extends radially outward from one end of the cylindrical member 11, and a portion extends generally axially along the contact member 10 from the large diameter end of this radial portion. pointing. Cylindrical member 1
Since bearing 1 is formed of a thin steel plate with a thickness of about 0.4 to 1.0 mm, the other end can be easily caulked, and therefore there is no need to worry about applying unnecessary force to bearing 1 and impairing bearing precision. In this way, since there is no risk of affecting the normal functioning of the bearing 1,
You won't have to pay as much attention to detail as before when assembling, and you can expect to improve work efficiency. Further, since the first flange 11a having a substantially square cross section serves as a reinforcing rib and provides the cylindrical member 11 with large rigidity considering its thickness, this cylindrical member 11
The entire drive element B, which is constructed by integrally connecting the contact member 10 and the bearing inner ring 1b, can also maintain rigidity comparable to that of the prior art.

Next, the overall structure of the inner ring rotating clutch release bearing of this invention is as shown in FIGS.
Reference numeral 2 denotes a sleeve made of a thin steel plate, 13 a first side plate fixed to the sleeve 12, and 14 a second side plate that presses the bearing outer ring 1a. These constitute the operating element A. Further, C is a cover member made of a thin steel plate for axially tightening the operating element A and the drive element B, and D is a wave spring inserted between this cover member and the outer ring 1a of the ball bearing forming the drive element. It is an elastic member such as.

In FIG. 6, the contact member 10 and the first flange of the cylindrical member 11 have shapes that are slightly different from those of the embodiment shown in FIG. 4. That is, the contact portion of the contact member 10 having an arcuate cross section is connected to the flange base via the truncated cone-shaped connection portion, and correspondingly, the first flange of the cylindrical member 11 also connects to the flange base of the contact member 10. It consists of a radial portion that abuts the flange base and a truncated conical portion that follows the outer shape of the connection portion. However, in this case too,
There is no difference from the embodiment shown in FIG. 4 in that the rigidity is increased and the contact area with the contact member 10 is increased.

The structure of the drive element B of this invention is particularly effective for self-aligning clutch release bearings. In other words, the self-aligning type has a clutch cover of
Therefore, the diaphragm spring and the contact member 10 have the function of correcting the deviation between the rotation center of the diaphragm spring and the rotation center of the bearing.
The slippage at the contact portion with the contact member is significantly reduced, and the frictional moment due to this slippage is hardly transmitted to the cylindrical member through the contact member. Therefore, the occurrence of repeated stress due to this frictional moment is hardly observed in the caulked portion 11b of the cylindrical member 11, and the cylindrical member 11 can maintain its rigidity over a long period of time, and play will not occur in the contact member. It is to prevent this.

"Effects of the Invention" As explained above, in the inner ring rotating clutch release bearing of this invention, the drive element B is composed of the ball bearing 1, the contact member 10 made of steel plate, and the cylindrical member 11 made of thin steel plate. As a result, it was possible to simultaneously solve the problems of the conventional products shown in FIGS. 1 to 3.

That is, since the contact member 10 is made separate from the bearing inner ring 1b, the standard ball bearing 1 can be used as is, and there is no need to prepare a specially designed bearing as in the conventional product shown in Fig. 1. In addition, sticker 6
An advantage is obtained that the incorporation of a can be easily carried out regardless of the size of the contact diameter dm.
Further, the contact member 10 can also be easily manufactured using only press work.

Since the contact member 10 and the ball bearing 1, which are separate bodies, are connected to each other by the cylindrical member 11 made of thin-walled steel plate to achieve integration, when assembling the drive element B, the cylindrical member 11 is It is only necessary to caulk the end portion (second flange 11b), and there is no need for additional machining such as polishing or turning as in the conventional products shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. In addition, since the cylindrical member 11 is made of a thin steel plate, it can be inserted without any gaps along the inner diameter of the bearing inner ring 1b, without any deformation that would adversely affect the radial clearance of the bearing, and the ends can be easily tightened. can be done. Therefore, not only is there no risk of impairing bearing accuracy due to excessive force acting on the bearing 1, but also no polishing or the like is required, and the misalignment S can be eliminated or minimized as much as possible. can.

The cylindrical member 11 has a shape that can be manufactured from a thin steel plate only by press work, and the contact member 10
Since the first flange 11a is provided along the outer shape of the first flange 11a, this acts as a reinforcing rib, and it is possible to ensure the same rigidity as the conventional product despite the thin wall. Furthermore, this first flange 11
The presence of a increases the frictional contact area between the contact member 10 and the cylindrical member 11, maintains the fastening force by the cylindrical member 11 over a long period of time, and prevents rattling and idle rotation between the bearing inner ring 1b and the contact member 10. Helpful.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing a conventional example of an inner ring rotating clutch release bearing, FIGS. 2 and 3 are sectional views showing a drive element in another conventional example, and FIG.
The figure is a sectional view showing the drive element of the inner ring rotating clutch release bearing of this invention, and FIG. 5 is a front view of the inner ring rotating clutch release bearing of this invention.
FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along the line X--X, and FIG. 7 is a bottom view thereof. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1...Ball bearing, 1a...Bearing outer ring, 1b...Bearing inner ring, 4...Steel ball, 6a, 6a...Seal member, 7...Diaphragm spring, 10...Contact member, 10a...Contact member Radial flange base, 11... Cylindrical member, 11a... First flange, 11b... Second flange, 12... Sleeve, 13... First side plate, 14... Second side plate, A ...Operating element, B...Driving element, C...Cover member, D...Elastic member.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] An actuating element A actuated by the clutch release fork member, a drive element B acting on the clutch release device by actuation of this actuating element, an axial direction in which the outer ring of the ball bearing forming the drive element is directed towards the actuating element. It consists of an elastic member D that presses the operating element, a cover member C that tightens the operating element, the drive element, and the elastic member in the axial direction, and the drive element B includes a hardened steel plate contact member, a ball bearing, and a thin steel plate. a cylindrical member made of a steel plate, a contact portion having an arcuate cross section where the steel plate contact member abuts the diaphragm spring, a radial flange base that abuts the end face of the ball bearing inner ring, and a small diameter side of the contact portion. a connecting portion that connects the large diameter side of the flange base, and the center of curvature of the arc of the arc-shaped contact portion is located radially outside the pitch circle diameter of the steel balls of the ball bearing; The cylindrical member made of thin steel plate has a first flange at one end that follows the radial flange base of the steel plate contact member and the outer shape of the connecting portion following it, and a second flange at the other end for holding the end surface of the inner ring of the ball bearing. The base of the flange of the contact member made of the steel plate is interposed between the first flange of the cylindrical member made of the thin steel plate and the end face of the ball bearing inner ring, and the base of the flange of the contact member made of the steel plate is interposed between the first flange of the cylindrical member made of the thin steel plate An inner ring rotating clutch release bearing characterized by integrally joined by crimping the flange.