KR100700057B1 - Electric power steering module and device for a small vessel - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an electric steering apparatus for ships, comprising: a steering handle; An electric steering module which senses a steering force applied to the steering handle and generates an auxiliary force; A control unit for calculating the assisting force from the steering force sensed by the electric steering module and controlling the electric steering module to generate the calculated assisting force; A helm pump generating hydraulic pressure by a steering force applied to the electric steering module and the generated auxiliary force; It includes a rudder cylinder for driving the rudder by the hydraulic pressure applied from the helm pump. The electric steering module includes a handle shaft shaft to which the steering handle is fastened; A pump side shaft for rotating the helm pump; A torsion bar connecting the handle shaft and the pump side shaft to rotate the pump side shaft when the handle side shaft rotates to reach a left and right tolerance range; A torque sensor which measures the twist of the torsion bar and detects a steering force applied to the steering handle; And a motor controlled by the control unit to apply an auxiliary force to the pump side shaft.

Marine, steering, rudder, electric, helm pump, torsion bar, torque sensor

Description

ELECTRIC POWER STEERING MODULE AND DEVICE FOR A SMALL VESSEL}

1 is a block diagram of an electric steering apparatus according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 2 is a side view showing a combined state of the EPS module, steering wheel and helm pump in the electric steering apparatus according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a conceptual view illustrating the configuration of an EPS module in the electric steering apparatus according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

4A and 4B are front and side cross-sectional views showing the detailed configuration of the EPS module in the electric steering apparatus according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

5 is a configuration diagram of a torque sensor coupled to the torsion bar of the EPS module to measure the torque applied thereto.

FIG. 6 is a front view of the slice plate constituting the torque sensor of FIG. 5 as viewed in the axial direction of the shaft; FIG.

7 is a voltage waveform diagram detected by the torque sensor in accordance with the rotation of the slice plate is formed with a square projection.

8 is a voltage waveform diagram detected by a torque sensor in accordance with rotation of a slice plate having a sawtooth-shaped protrusion formed.

<Description of the symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

100: electric steering module (EPS module) 105: handle side shaft

110: pump side shaft 115: torsion bar

120: worm gear 125: worm

130: DC motor 135a, 135b: slice plate

140a, 140b: light emitting sensor 145a, 145b: light receiving sensor

150: PCB substrate 200: steering wheel

300: helm pump 400: rudder cylinder

500: hydraulic hose 600: clutch and governor

700: control unit (ECU) 800: remote controller

900: battery

The present invention relates to an electric steering apparatus for ships, and more particularly, an electric steering apparatus that can exert excellent steering performance with a simple structure by generating an auxiliary force by a direct current (DC) motor in response to a steering force applied to a steering wheel. It is about.

In general, the steering device used in ships is a device to change or maintain the direction of the ship by adjusting the angle of the rudder (also called "rudder" or "key") mounted on the stern, etc. Has a profound effect on However, since a small vessel such as a small fishing boat or a yacht has a lot of restrictions on the installation space of the steering apparatus, unlike a large vessel, a more compact steering apparatus is employed.

Steering systems typically employed in small vessels include, for example, manual hydraulic helm steering units which manually operate a helm pump to drive a stern steering cylinder or rudder kit connected to the helm pump via a hydraulic hose, and a ship engine as a power source. Hydraulic power steering device configured to control the direction of the rudder connected thereto by controlling the hydraulic pressure generated by the transmission to the steering cylinder or the steering gear of the stern.

By the way, the above-described manual hydraulic helm steering apparatus has the advantages of a simple structure and easy installation, but has a disadvantage of high speed and rapid turning and poor steering. In addition, the hydraulic power steering method has excellent driving steering ability and is suitable for high speed operation, but since the hydraulic system is complicated and part of the engine output is utilized for the steering device, the engine efficiency is reduced and it operates normally only when the engine is running. have. Accordingly, it is mainly used for medium and large vessels rather than small vessels.

As such, in order to secure sufficient steering capability in a small ship, a hydraulic power steering system having excellent performance should be employed, but it is difficult to apply practically due to complicated structure and cost problems. Accordingly, there is an urgent need for the development of a steering device that can be applied to a small ship by combining the advantages of a manual hydraulic helm steering method and a hydraulic power steering method, which are mainly employed in a small ship.

In order to solve the above-described problems, the present invention is to combine the auxiliary power source separate from the engine to operate the helm pump in the conventional manual hydraulic helm steering device to achieve a performance equivalent to the hydraulic power steering system with a simpler structure Its purpose is to.

In order to achieve the above object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a marine electric steering device for driving a rudder, the steering handle; An electric steering module which senses a steering force applied to the steering handle and generates an auxiliary force; A control unit for calculating the assisting force from the steering force sensed by the electric steering module and controlling the electric steering module to generate the calculated assisting force; A helm pump generating hydraulic pressure by a steering force applied to the electric steering module and the generated auxiliary force; It includes a rudder cylinder for driving the rudder by the hydraulic pressure applied from the helm pump. The electric steering module includes a handle shaft shaft to which the steering handle is fastened; A pump side shaft for rotating the helm pump; A torsion bar connecting the handle shaft and the pump side shaft to rotate the pump side shaft when the handle side shaft rotates to reach a left and right tolerance range; A torque sensor which measures the twist of the torsion bar and detects a steering force applied to the steering handle; And a motor controlled by the control unit to apply an auxiliary force to the pump side shaft.

At this time, the torque sensor detects the tolerance of the torsion bar by a light emitting sensor and a light receiving sensor, and the control unit is configured to apply the auxiliary force when the handle side shaft rotates to reach the tolerance range. Can be controlled.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided an electric motor steering module for detecting a steering force applied to the steering handle and generating an auxiliary force for driving a rudder, the handle shaft shaft to which the steering handle is fastened; A pump side shaft for rotating the helm pump; A torsion bar connecting the handle shaft and the pump side shaft to rotate the pump side shaft when the handle side shaft rotates to reach a left and right tolerance range; A torque sensor which measures the twist of the torsion bar and detects a steering force applied to the steering handle; And a motor that applies an auxiliary force to the pump side shaft in response to the steering force sensed by the torque sensor.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to like or similar components throughout the drawings.

1 is a view showing the configuration of an electric steering apparatus according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, an electric steering module (Electronic Power Steering Module, hereinafter referred to as an "EPS module") 100, a steering wheel 200, a helm pump 300, a rudder cylinder 400, a hydraulic hose 500, a clutch and governor 600, a control unit 700, a remote controller 800, and a battery 900.

As shown in FIG. 2, the EPS module 100 has a steering wheel 200 and a helm pump 300 connected to each other before and after, and detects a steering force F _M of the steering wheel 200. The signal S _r is transmitted to the control unit 700, and has a DC motor therein to apply the DC motor output F _EM indicated by the control unit to the helm pump. That is, the steering force (F _M ) of the steering wheel and the auxiliary steering force by the motor output (F _EM ) of the EPS module are added to operate the helm pump, and the steering force greater than the steering load (F _R ) acting on the rudder is The rudder is actuated when applied to the rudder cylinder 400 via a helm pump. More detailed configuration of the EPS module 100 will be described later with reference to FIGS. 3 to 4.

The steering wheel 200 is connected to the handle shaft of the EPS module 100, and as is known, the steering wheel can be operated as a port or starboard, and the steering force (F _M ) applied by the user to the steering wheel is a helm pump And is sensed by the EPS module as described above.

The helm pump 300 generates hydraulic pressure by rotating the rotating shaft according to the steering force applied from the steering handle 200 and / or the EPS module 100, and two oil discharge parts are provided for the oil circulation and the hydraulic hose 500 is provided. ) Is connected.

A rudder is coupled to the rudder cylinder 400 to drive the rudder by the hydraulic pressure applied from the helm pump 300 through the hydraulic hose 500. Meanwhile, as described above, the steering load F _R acts on the rudder to hinder the operation of the rudder due to friction with seawater, and the steering load F _R also increases because the friction increases as the speed of the ship increases. do.

The clutch and governor 600 adjusts the shift and the output of the engine (not shown) under the control of the control unit 700, and provides the control unit 700 with information related to the shift state and the engine output state. In addition, since the manual lever of the clutch and the governor 600 is provided, the speed and the gear of the ship can be adjusted not only by the control signal applied through the control unit 700 or the remote controller 800 but also by the lever operation.

The control unit 700 receives the torque sensor signal S _r sensed by the EPS module 100 and calculates a DC motor output value F _EM to generate an assist force for driving the helm pump 300. Deliver to module 100. To this end, the EPS module may be provided with a DC motor driving circuit for generating a driving current corresponding to the DC motor output value.

On the other hand, since the ship speed and the steering load (F _R ) are correlated with each other, the steering speed (F _R ) can be predicted using the ship speed, which corresponds to the difference between the steering load (F _R ) and the predetermined steering force. The value can be set to compensate more than the DC motor output value (F _EM ). For example, the crude inertia required for the steering wheel when the ship speed is increased _(M F) or even to increase with, may be set to enable the operation of the rudder only certain crude inertia _(M F), regardless of the vessel speed.

In addition, the control unit 700 monitors the operating states of the clutch and governor 600, and applies a control signal for changing the operating states of the clutch and governor 600 in response to a user command. In addition, the control unit 700 may be set to perform autonomous driving through linkage with the GPS equipment.

The remote controller 800 is connected to the control unit 700 through a wired or wireless to control the EPS module 100 and the clutch and governor 600 in a place other than the steering room, for example, the ship deck. That is, the remote controller 800 displays the operation states of the EPS module 100 and the clutch and the governor 600 on the screen so that the user can recognize them, and includes a control button to control signals for controlling them. To pass). Accordingly, there is an advantage that can check and control the rudder and / or engine output, etc. in the deck, etc. in addition to the ship's steering room.

Finally, the battery 900 supplies operating power to the control unit 700 and the EPS module 100, and the EPS module 100 may receive a DC voltage via the control unit 700.

3 is a conceptual view of the configuration of the EPS module in the electric steering apparatus according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, Figures 4a and 4b is a front sectional view showing a detailed configuration of the EPS module in the electric steering apparatus according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. And side cross-sectional view.

As shown, the EPS module is connected to the handle side shaft 105 to which the steering handle is fastened, and the pump side shaft 110 connected to the rotating shaft or the gear shaft of the helm pump by the torsion bar 115. The torsion bar 115 causes the pump side shaft to follow-up as the handle side shaft rotates to reach the left and right tolerance range (ie, tolerance limit). In more detail, the torsion bar 115 fixes the handle side shaft 105 and the pump side shaft 110 with spring pins, so that steering force (rotation force) is applied to the handle side shaft 105, for example, left and right. Torque is generated while twisting each other within a tolerance range of 7 kPa, the pump shaft 110 rotates when reaching 7 kPa, and when the rotational force of the handle shaft is canceled, it is restored to its original state.

In addition, a worm gear 120 is connected to the pump side shaft, and the worm 125 which is geared to the worm gear is attached to the rotation shaft of the DC motor 130. As described above, the driving current corresponding to the DC motor output value F _EM is applied to the DC motor 130 by the control unit 700. Accordingly, the rotational force of the worm 125 attached to the DC motor 130 is applied. It is transmitted to the pump side shaft 110 through the worm gear 120.

On the other hand, according to the above-described configuration of the EPS module, since the pump side shaft can be rotated only by the rotational force applied to the handle side shaft by the steering handle, that is, the steering force, manual operation is performed even if the auxiliary force is not applied by the DC motor. It is possible.

FIG. 5 illustrates a torque sensor for measuring torque applied to the torsion bar of the EPS module, and FIG. 6 is a front view of the slice plate constituting the torque sensor of FIG. 5 as viewed from the axial direction of the shaft.

As shown in the figure, the handle side shaft 105 and the pump side shaft 110 are provided with flanges 105a and 110b so as to face each other, and the ends of the flanges 105a and 110b have a sawtooth or square shape along the outer circumferential surface thereof. The slice plates 135a and 135b with protrusions protruding periodically are attached.

Then, the PCB substrate 150 is disposed so that the pair of light emitting sensors and light receiving sensors 140a and 145a; 140b and 145b face up and down in the axial direction of both shafts in correspondence with the projection positions of the respective slice plates 135a and 135b. And light emitted from the light emitting sensors 140a and 140b are detected by the light receiving sensors 145a and 145b. At this time, if the light emitting sensor and the light receiving sensor are located at the projection position (A in FIG. 6) of the slice plate as the shafts rotate, the light emitted from the light emitting sensor is blocked by the projections so that no light is detected by the light receiving sensor. . On the contrary, when the light emitting sensor and the light receiving sensor are positioned between the protrusions of the slice plate (B of FIG. 6), the light emitted from the light emitting sensor passes through the grooves recessed inwardly between the protrusions and is detected by the light receiving sensor.

Subsequently, an operation of outputting the torque sensor signal S _r by the torque sensor described above with reference to FIG. 7 will be described, and FIG. 7 illustrates a voltage output from the light receiving sensor of the torque sensor when the projection of the slice plate has a square shape. The waveform is shown.

First, when a driving force is first applied to the handle side shaft through the steering handle (first section), the handle side shaft rotates, and projections of the slice plate formed along the outer circumferential surface from the flange of the handle side shaft periodically block light. The voltage sensed by the sensor takes the form of a periodic pulse. On the other hand, as described above, even if the handle shaft rotates within the tolerance range of the torsion bar, since the pump shaft does not rotate and only the torsion bar is generated, the light receiving sensor corresponding to the pump shaft continues to output the same voltage. do.

Then, when the handle side shaft rotates in the second section to reach the tolerance range of the torsion bar, the torque due to the torsion bar's torsion is transmitted to the pump side shaft, so that the pump side shaft rotates together, thus corresponding to the pump side shaft. The light receiving sensor also outputs a voltage in the form of a periodic pulse.

As such, the torque sensor detects the tolerance of the torsion bar by a light emitting sensor and a light receiving sensor, and the control unit may be configured to apply an assist force when the handle side shaft rotates to reach the tolerance range. That is, when a periodic pulse is commonly output from the light receiving sensors of the handle shaft and the pump shaft, the torque sensor signal S _r is output so that the DC motor of the EPS module generates an assist force. In addition, the magnitude of the torque sensor signal may be determined by counting an interval or period of occurrence of the pulse corresponding to the magnitude of the torque and determining a value that is linearly proportional thereto or according to a predetermined function curve. By analyzing the magnitude of the torque sensor signal S _r , the control unit determines the magnitude of the torque corresponding to the steering force from the steering wheel and determines the motor output value F _EM of the EPS module.

On the other hand, Figure 7 described above illustrates a case where the projection of the slice plate is a square shape, when the projection is a sawtooth shape as shown in Figure 8 the voltage waveform takes a sawtooth shape.

As divided into (a) and (b) of FIG. 8, when the projection of the slice plate attached to the handle side shaft and / or the pump side shaft takes a left-right asymmetric shape, the steering wheel rotates to the port or starboard It can be seen that the waveforms of the output voltages are different from each other. Therefore, the rotation direction of the steering wheel can be detected according to the waveform of the output voltage, and the polarity of the torque sensor signal S _r can be reversed according to the rotation direction. On the other hand, the occurrence time and magnitude of the torque sensor signal S _r may be determined in the same manner as described above.

On the other hand, in order to prepare for the malfunction of the above-described torque sensor, a separate torque sensor can be installed as an auxiliary, and such an auxiliary torque sensor is disclosed in Korean Patent Publication No. 2005-40204 "Torque Sensor of Electric Power Steering System". Can be taken. When the two torque sensors are provided in this way, the auxiliary motor can be output from the DC motor only when the torque sensor signals are simultaneously detected from these torque sensors, and the output value of the DC motor is determined by either torque sensor. It can be determined according to the sensed torque value.

In the above embodiment, for example, the steering wheel, the helm pump, the hydraulic hose, the rudder cylinder, etc. may utilize the equipment of the conventional manual hydraulic helm steering apparatus, and the electronic control of the clutch and the governor can be added as needed. have. In addition, the control unit may be mounted in the EPS module, and may be further provided with an angle sensor and a steering angle indicator for detecting and displaying the angle of the rudder.

Although the preferred embodiment according to the present invention has been described above, this is merely exemplary and those skilled in the art will understand that various modifications and equivalent other embodiments are possible therefrom. Therefore, the protection scope of the present invention should be defined by the following claims.

As described above, according to the present invention, by adding an EPS module, a control unit, or the like to the conventional manual hydraulic helm steering apparatus, it is possible to exhibit steering characteristics, turning characteristics and the like corresponding to the hydraulic power steering system. Moreover, the electric steering apparatus according to the present invention is not only simple and economical in structure, but also can recycle the components of the manual hydraulic helm steering apparatus installed on the existing vessel, compared to the hydraulic power steering apparatus requiring a complicated hydraulic system. It has the advantage of easy maintenance. In addition, the use of DC motors instead of engine power to generate steering assistance increases engine efficiency and enables precise control of steering assistance.

In addition, since the torque sensor according to the present invention is configured in a non-contact manner using a light emitting sensor and a light receiving sensor, and is mounted on the outside of the torsion bar and the shaft, the torque sensor is easy to assemble and easy to maintain, and torsion through voltage waveform analysis The tolerance range and torque value of the bar can be calculated accurately. In addition, by combining and duplexing the torque sensor and the conventional torque sensor according to the present invention it is possible to prevent malfunction and improve the operation reliability.

Claims (9)

As a marine electric steering device for driving a rudder, Steering wheel, An electric steering module which senses a steering force applied to the steering handle and generates an auxiliary force; A control unit for calculating an assist force from the steering force sensed by the electric steering module and controlling the electric steering module to generate the calculated assistance force; A helm pump for generating hydraulic pressure by a steering force applied to the electric steering module and the generated auxiliary force; Rudder cylinder for driving the rudder by the hydraulic pressure applied from the helm pump Including, the electric steering module is A handle shaft shaft to which the steering handle is fastened; A pump side shaft for rotating the helm pump; A torsion bar that connects the handle shaft shaft and the pump side shaft so that the pump side shaft rotates continuously when the handle side shaft rotates to reach a left and right tolerance range; Torque sensor for measuring the distortion of the torsion bar to detect the steering force applied to the steering wheel, A motor controlled by the control unit to apply an auxiliary force to the pump side shaft Including; The torque sensor detects a tolerance of the torsion bar by a light emitting sensor and a light receiving sensor, and the control unit controls the motor to apply the assistance force when the handle side shaft rotates to reach the tolerance range. Steering gear for ships. The method of claim 1, wherein the electric steering module Worm gear is connected to the pump side shaft, the worm gear and the worm gear is coupled to the rotation shaft of the motor, the auxiliary force generated by the motor is transmitted to the pump side shaft through the worm and worm gear Electric steering. delete The method according to claim 1 or 2, And a governor for controlling shifting and output of the engine under control of the control unit. The method according to claim 1 or 2, And a remote controller for remotely controlling the control unit. An electric steering module for ships that detects a steering force applied to a steering wheel and generates an auxiliary force for driving a rudder, A handle shaft shaft to which the steering handle is fastened; A pump side shaft for rotating the helm pump; A torsion bar that connects the handle shaft shaft and the pump side shaft so that the pump side shaft rotates continuously when the handle side shaft rotates to reach a left and right tolerance range; Torque sensor for measuring the distortion of the torsion bar to detect the steering force applied to the steering wheel, A motor that applies an auxiliary force to the pump side shaft in response to the steering force detected by the torque sensor Marine electric steering module comprising a. The method of claim 6, A control unit that calculates an assist force from the steering force sensed by the torque sensor and drives the motor to generate the calculated assist force Marine electric steering module further comprising. The method according to claim 6 or 7, Worm gear is connected to the pump side shaft, the worm gear and the worm gear is coupled to the rotation shaft of the motor, the auxiliary force generated by the motor is transmitted to the pump side shaft through the worm and worm gear Electric steering module. The method of claim 7, wherein The torque sensor recognizes the tolerance of the torsion bar by the light emitting sensor and the light receiving sensor, And said control unit controls said motor to apply said assistance force when said handle side shaft rotates to reach said tolerance range.

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