The present invention relates to a brake booster for a motor-vehicle brake system, with a force-input member which is coupled or can be coupled with a brake pedal and is displaceable along a displacement axis, with a control valve which can be actuated in accordance with a displacement of the force-input member, with a chamber arrangement, which is arranged in a booster housing and can be selected via the control valve, with at least one vacuum chamber and at least one working chamber, which have been separated from one another via at least one movable wall coupled with the control valve, and with a force-output member for delivering a brake force to a downstream master-brake-cylinder arrangement, wherein the control valve with the force-output member has been biased into an initial position with the aid of a restoring spring, wherein the restoring spring is supported with a first end on the control valve.
A brake booster of such a type is known from the prior art and is shown, for example, in document DE 10 2008 035 179 A1. In this case it is furthermore stipulated that the restoring spring is supported with a second end on the master-brake-cylinder arrangement. The master-brake-cylinder arrangement projects into the booster housing through a receiving opening, said receiving opening having a generally larger diameter than the cylindrically designed restoring spring.
In the course of the assembly of the brake booster with the master-brake-cylinder arrangement the restoring spring firstly has to be inserted between the control valve and the receiving opening in the booster housing. Consequently there is a risk of the restoring spring slipping out of the receiving opening or becoming wedged within the booster housing before the master-brake-cylinder arrangement is brought together with the brake booster. As a result, the restoring spring and other components of the brake booster can be damaged, and the assembly sequence is disrupted. Comparable problems may similarly arise in the course of maintenance or repair work as soon as the brake booster and the master-brake-cylinder arrangement are separated again. For the purpose of avoiding these problems, the solution according to document DE 10 2008 035 179 A1 provides a retaining device for the restoring spring, in the form of a supporting ring. The latter is arranged between the restoring spring and the receiving opening and exceeds the diameter of the receiving opening, so that neither the supporting ring nor the restoring spring can fall out of the receiving opening.
With this solution, however, it has turned out to be a disadvantage that the supporting ring has to be integrated as an additional component into the sequence of assembly of the brake booster, entailing a corresponding expenditure of time and money.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to make available a brake booster of the type described at the outset, which, by inexpensive and simple means, prevents the restoring spring from accidentally falling out of the booster housing.
This object is achieved by a brake booster of the type described at the outset, in the case of which it is stipulated that the booster housing exhibits a receiving opening for the downstream master-brake-cylinder arrangement, said opening having been designed with at least one axial guide portion and with at least one radial stop portion, which have each been configured to support a second end of the restoring spring.
As distinct from the state of the art, the invention no longer provides that an additional component in the form of a supporting ring has to be installed in the brake booster. Rather, the inventors have recognised that the insertion of the additional supporting ring and the correct positioning thereof on the receiving opening comprises numerous complex handling steps and consequently distinctly increases the necessary expenditure of time and money. Instead of this, the invention provides that a comparably acting retaining device has been formed or fitted directly on the booster housing or on the receiving opening thereof. In this connection, an integral forming of the retaining device on the booster housing has proved to be a particularly advantageous variant according to the invention. As a result, all the additional handling steps—and the accompanying potentials for error—required in the prior art are dispensed with.
In accordance with the invention, the retaining device has been designed in the form of the at least one axial guide portion and the at least one radial stop portion, which have been arranged on the receiving opening. By virtue of these portions, the restoring spring can be effectively prevented both from falling out of the receiving opening—that is to say, slipping in the axial direction—and from tilting or slipping in the radial direction.
A further development of the invention provides that the guide portion and the stop portion extend at least partly in a common peripheral-segment region of the receiving opening and have been arranged to be axially adjacent. According to this further development, the guide portion and the stop portion, viewed in an axis-including section, can consequently define a stepped portion of the receiving opening, with which the second end of the restoring spring is supported. In this connection it may, for example, be stipulated that the guide portion and the stop portion have been arranged in such a manner that the guide portion surrounds the restoring spring from the inside or from the outside over a certain peripheral-segment region—that is to say, for example, that the guide portion extends into a typically cylindrical inner cavity spanned by the restoring spring or extends along an outer peripheral surface of the restoring spring.
In a further development of the invention it is stipulated that the guide portion and the stop portion extend substantially in different peripheral-segment regions of the receiving opening. In other words, in this further development it is stipulated that the guide portion and the stop portion have been arranged along the periphery of the receiving opening very largely offset in relation to one another. As a result, a retaining device of particularly compact design can be made available, since the guide portion and the stop portion may extend at least partly over a common axial region.
In this context it may furthermore be stipulated in accordance with the invention that the receiving opening has been designed with a plurality of guide portions and/or stop portions, and the guide portions and stop portions have been arranged to be substantially uniformly distributed along the periphery of the receiving opening. By provision of a plurality of guide portions and/or stop portions, a particularly reliable retaining action is guaranteed, in which connection a reliable positioning or a centred orientation of the restoring spring in the radial direction can be obtained, in particular, by provision of a plurality of guide portions. By virtue of the uniform distribution along the periphery of the receiving opening, the assembly process in the course of inserting the master-brake-cylinder arrangement into the receiving opening can be facilitated, as described in more detail below, since the orientation of these components relative to one another is facilitated.
A further development of the invention provides furthermore that the guide portion has been angled radially outwards away from the receiving opening. In this case, in accordance with the invention it may be stipulated that the angular magnitude by which the guide portion is angled away assumes a generally small value between 1° and 40°, particularly preferably between 5° and 20°. By angling the guide portion away, a centring action with respect to the restoring spring is generally obtained in the event of a relative motion of receiving opening and restoring spring, with a sufficiently reliable support in the radial direction being ensured at the same time. Consequently a durably concentric arrangement of a cylindrical restoring spring relative to the displacement axis can be obtained, for example.
In a further development of the invention it is stipulated that the stop portion has been angled radially inwards away from the receiving opening. In this case, in accordance with the invention it may be stipulated that the stop portion has been angled away from the receiving opening by an angular magnitude between 20° and 120°, particularly preferably by a magnitude from 40° to 80°. Generally, by virtue of such an angling of the stop portion an end face for supporting the restoring spring can be made available in particularly simple and compact manner, by virtue of which the restoring spring can be prevented from falling out of the receiving opening. By virtue of an angling by an angle of less than 90°, particularly preferably between 40° and 80°, it is ensured that a sufficiently large stop face has been made available without an insertion of the master-brake-cylinder device into the receiving opening being too greatly impaired.
In a further development of the invention it is stipulated that the stop portion at least partly overlaps radially with the second end of the restoring spring. By virtue of such a radial overlap, an axial displacement of the restoring spring can be avoided particularly effectively.
Similarly, in accordance with the invention it may be stipulated that the guide portion at least partly overlaps axially with the second end of the restoring spring. Such an axial overlap offers an effective point of support in the radial direction and similarly an axial guidance and consequently also centring of the restoring spring.
A further development of the invention provides that the receiving opening has been designed as a cross-sectional region of a tubular collar extending from the booster housing. In this case, the collar may generally have been designed as a receiving portion with guiding or supporting and centring action for the master-brake-cylinder arrangement and/or the restoring spring. It may preferentially be stipulated, furthermore, that the receiving opening has been designed as that cross-sectional region of the collar which is situated directly opposite the restoring spring—that is to say, typically, as an axial end of the collar situated opposite the restoring spring.
In this context it may furthermore be stipulated in accordance with the invention that the collar extends concentrically in relation to the displacement axis. Similarly, in accordance with the invention it may be stipulated that the collar extends at least partly into the booster housing. This simplifies the assembly of the master-brake-cylinder arrangement and the brake booster as a whole and ensures a reliable mode of operation of the brake booster in the case of a compact construction.
A further development of the invention provides that the guide portion and the stop portion directly support the second end of the restoring spring only prior to assembly of the brake booster with the master-brake-cylinder arrangement, and after the assembly the second end of the restoring spring has been lifted away from the guide portion and the stop portion. The supporting of the restoring spring can accordingly be taken over, so to speak, by the master-brake-cylinder arrangement after assembly. As a result, an optimal relative positioning of master-brake-cylinder arrangement, restoring spring and control valve is ensured without additional and possibly disrupting influences of the retaining device according to the invention. It will be understood that, in accordance with the invention, it may similarly be stipulated that in consequence of a disassembly or detachment of the master-brake-cylinder arrangement from the brake booster once again a supporting of the restoring spring is established by the retaining device according to the invention.
The invention further relates to a brake-boosting arrangement comprising a brake booster according to one of the variants described above and a master-brake-cylinder arrangement. In this case, in accordance with the invention it is stipulated that the master-brake-cylinder arrangement exhibits an axial end portion which extends into or through the receiving opening of the brake booster, the outer peripheral surface of the axial end portion having been profiled to correspond to the guide portion and/or to the stop portion. A corresponding profiling in this case is to be understood to mean, in particular, a profiling of a type that enables a collision-free insertion of the master-brake-cylinder arrangement into the receiving opening and past the retaining device.
In this context, in accordance with the invention it may furthermore be stipulated that the axial end portion exhibits in its outer peripheral surface a recess that has been designed to receive the guide portion of the receiving opening. In this case, for the purpose of simplifying the assembly it is particularly advantageous if the recess has been dimensioned to be larger in the peripheral direction than the guide portion, by virtue of which a certain tolerance with respect to the relative positioning of the components in relation to one another has been made available.
Furthermore, in this context it may be stipulated in accordance with the invention that the axial end portion has been designed as part of a separate attachment sleeve which has been fitted to the master-brake-cylinder arrangement. This makes it possible that no changes have to be made in respect of the master-brake-cylinder arrangement as such, but merely the separate attachment sleeve has to be adapted to the brake booster designed with the retaining device according to the invention. In this case, in accordance with the invention it may advantageously be stipulated that the attachment sleeve has been produced from a synthetic material. This enhances the freedom of styling and consequently the possibilities for designing a profile of the axial end portion to correspond to the guide portion and/or stop portion. The fitting of the attachment sleeve to the master-brake-cylinder arrangement may be effected, for example, by means of a screw joint.
The attachment sleeve may in addition have been designed with at least one end face via which the restoring spring is supported with its second end on the master-brake-cylinder arrangement. In this case, the second end of the restoring spring, in particular in the form of a terminal turn, may also have been received in recesses in the end face. The reception of the second end may be obtained particularly effectively by virtue of such recesses which have been shaped to be substantially complementary to the second end of the restoring spring. This enables a positioning and a holding of the restoring spring in a desired orientation, and avoids a slipping of the restoring spring, particularly in the radial direction. Similarly, it may be stipulated that the second end of the restoring spring has been received within the recesses in such a manner that a twisting of the restoring spring in at least one direction about the displacement axis has been blocked, for example by provision of appropriate stop faces within the recess.
The invention will be elucidated in exemplary manner in the following with reference to the appended Figures.
Represented are:
In
Both movable walls 32, 34 have been firmly coupled with the control-valve casing 16 for the purpose of common motion. In the control valve 14 two valve seats 36, 38 have been arranged, the first valve seat 36 separating the working chambers 24 and 26 from the ambient atmosphere, and the second valve seat 38 separating the working chambers 24 and 26 from the vacuum chambers 28 and 30.
The control-valve casing 16 has been coupled with a force-output member 42 via a resilient reaction member 40. The force-output member 42 exhibits at its left end in
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As already explained, the brake booster 10 is shown in
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The brake booster according to
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Consequently the force-output member 42 can transmit a braking force to the actuating piston 60, so that the latter is displaced within the brake-cylinder housing 59. As a result, braking forces can be built up in generally known manner within a brake system downstream of the brake booster 10.
In
In the course of assembly of the master-brake-cylinder arrangement 58 with the brake booster 10, an axial end portion 64 of the master-brake-cylinder housing 59 has to be inserted into the receiving opening 50 and also pushed a certain amount through the receiving opening 50. In order in this process to avoid collisions with the guide portion 56 projecting radially inwards, the axial end portion 64 has been designed as an attachment sleeve 66, described in still more detail below and represented only schematically in this Figure, in the outer peripheral surface of which several recesses 62 have been formed. The recesses 62 have been dimensioned in such a manner that they can receive at least one guide portion 56, so that the master-brake-cylinder housing 59 with its axial end portion 64 can be moved axially through the receiving opening 50 without collision. The attachment sleeve 66 exhibits, in addition, the end face 74 via which the second end of the restoring spring 48 is supported on the master-brake-cylinder arrangement. As is evident furthermore from
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Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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10 2013 021 122.0 | Dec 2013 | DE | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/EP2014/073944 | 11/6/2014 | WO | 00 |