Patent Application
20070251150
Embodiments of the present invention will be hereinafter described with reference to the drawings.
As shown in
Further provided are hanging metal fittings 14a and 14b for hanging the right door 12, a right slider 22 fixed to the hanging metal fittings 14a and 14b, a link metal fitting 18 fixed to the right slider 22, and a right rack 20 operating as a linear transmission member fixed to the link metal fitting 18 attached to the right door 11. The right slider 22 is slidable along a right door rail 24.
The left rack 19 and the right rack 20 are in mesh with pinion 31, a rotary transmission member that is fixed to an output shaft 34 that projects from the motor 30 (see
With the above configuration, the left door 11 and the right door 12 can slide smoothly along the left door rail 23 and the right door rail 24, respectively. Therefore, when the pinion 31 is rotated as a result of the motor 30 being driven, the left rack 19 and the right rack 20, which are in mesh with the pinion 31, are moved approximately parallel with the left door rail 23 and the right door rail 24.
In this embodiment, the motor 30 is a flat motor, such as a permanent magnet synchronous motor, that is covered with a shield plate 35 and a motor frame 38 as a body frame. A stator core 40 wound with a stator coil 39 is fixed to the inner wall of the motor frame 38 by means of an insulative resin mold 41.
A rotor 32, shaped like a cylinder having a closed end, opposes the stator core 40 with a prescribed interval. A power supply line 43 is connected to the stator coil 39. The output shaft 34 is fixed integrally to the rotor 32 so as to project leftward (as viewed in
A holding case, i.e., rack/pinion case 56, is fixed integrally to the shield plate 35. The shield plate 35 and the rack/pinion case 56 are provided with bearing holding portions 62 and 63. The bearing holding portions 62 and 63 are provided with bearings 36 and 37 as first and second shaft bearing members, respectively, and the pinion 31 is disposed between the bearings 36 and 37.
The pinion 31 is interposed between the two bearings 36 and 37 and is fixed to the output shaft 34 by a proper fixing means. The left rack 19 and the right rack 20, which can move approximately parallel with each other in opposite directions, oppose each other via the pinion 31 so as to be in mesh with the pinion 31. A left rack slide rail 58 and a right rack slide rail 59 are attached to the left rack 19 and the right rack 20, respectively. The left rack slide rail 58 and the right rack slide rail 59 slide along a left guide rail 60 and a right guide rail 61 as guide members, while being guided by the latter.
In this embodiment, the left rack 19 and the right rack 20, and the left guide rail 60 and the right guide rail 61, are held by the rack/pinion case 56. To cover the range of movement of the left rack 19 and the right rack 20, the rack/pinion case 56 is a long and narrow member extending along the movement direction of the left rack 19 and the right rack 20.
On the other hand, an attachment shaft 42 that is approximately concentric with the output shaft 34, projects from the rotor 32 toward the side opposite the output shaft 34 projecting side (i.e., the attachment shaft 42 projects rightward in
In this embodiment, the encoder 46 is a photoelectric rotary encoder with a rotary circular plate 54, formed with slits (not shown), and is fixed to the attachment shaft 42. A light-emitting element and a photo-detector (both not shown) are opposed to each other with the rotary circular plate 54 interposed in between. The number of rotations and a rotation direction and, if necessary, a rotation speed etc. of the attachment shaft 42 are detected as the rotary circular plate 54 interrupts light emitted from the light-emitting element. Reference numeral 55 denotes a power supply line and a signal line.
Next, the workings of the embodiment will be described.
Assume that a switch (not shown) is turned on in a state that the left door 11 and the right door 12 are closed as shown in
In this case, the left door 11 can move smoothly because the left slider 21 which is fixed to the link metal fitting 17 is moved in the same direction (i.e., the direction indicated by arrow B) while being guided by the left door rail 23.
At the same time, as the rotor 32 of the motor 30 is rotated in the direction indicated by arrow A, the right rack 20 which is in mesh with the pinion 31 is moved in a direction indicated by arrow C in
In this case, the right door 12 can move smoothly because the right slider 22 which is fixed to the link metal fitting 18 is moved in the same direction (i.e., the direction indicated by arrow C), while being guided by the right door rail 24.
The number of rotations and a rotation direction (and a rotation speed, if necessary) of output shaft 34 of the motor 30 are detected by the encoder 46, whereby positions and moving directions of the left door 11 and the right door 12 are detected. Therefore, the motor 30 can be controlled on the basis of output signals of the encoder 46.
According to this embodiment, since the rotary motor 30 is used as a drive source of the door driving apparatus 10, the area occupied by the driving section can be made smaller and a more compact design is enabled than in the case of using a linear motor. This makes it possible to install the door driving apparatus 10 easily in a narrow space.
In a conventional configuration in which the linear motor and the direction conversion device (i.e., pinion) are separated from each other, adjustment work is necessary in mounting the linear motor etc. In contrast, according to the embodiment, adjustment work can be simplified because the pinion 31 is fixed to the output shaft 34 that projects from the motor 30 and the left rack 19 and the right rack 20 are in mesh with the pinion 31. That is, the motor 30 and the direction conversion device are assembled as a unit.
Furthermore, because the bearings 36 and 37 that bear the output shaft 34 of the motor 30 are disposed on both sides in an axial direction of the pinion 31 fixed to the output shaft 34 of the motor 30, in dismantling the motor 30, the motor frame 38 can be detached from the shield plate 35 without the need for removing the bearings 36 and 37. This makes it possible to disassemble the stator core 40, etc., as well as to inspect the inside of the motor 30 and replace its components easily by removing the motor frame 38 even in a state that the motor 30 is kept mounted.
The door driving apparatus 10 according to this embodiment can be applied not only to automatic opening/closing doors of various vehicles, such as trains and automobiles, but also to automatic opening/closing doors of various kinds of buildings such as factories and apartment houses.
The door driving apparatus 10 according to this embodiment is configured in such a manner that a left door 11 and a right door 12 are opened and closed by using two motors 30 and 30′, respectively.
As shown in
As in the case of the first embodiment, the left rack 19 and the left guide rail 60 are held by rack/pinion case 56, and the right rack 20 and the right guide rail 61 are by rack/pinion case 56′. The rack/pinion cases 56 and 56′ are integrally fixed to respective motor frames.
When, for example, the left motor 30 is driven, the left rack 19 that is in mesh with the pinion 31 is moved and the left door 11 is opened or closed, being driven via hanging metal fittings 13a and 13b that are connected to the left rack 19. In this case, the left rack 19 is moved smoothly along the left guide rail 60 and hence the left door 11 is also moved smoothly.
Likewise, when the right motor 30′ is driven, the right rack 20 which is in mesh with the pinion 31′ is moved and the right door 12 is opened or closed being driven via the hanging metal fittings 14a and 14b that are connected to the right rack 20. Also in this case, the right rack 20 is moved smoothly along the right guide rail 61 and hence the right door 12 is also moved smoothly.
According to this embodiment, since the two motors 30 and 30′ are provided, the door link structure is simplified and the left door 11 and the right door 12 can be opening/closing-controlled individually. Accordingly, if necessary, only one of the left door 11 and the right door 12 may be controlled while the other door kept closed.
In this embodiment, a motor 30 is disposed in a space located above a door 11 of a vehicle body 70 so as to be oriented horizontally (i.e., its output shaft 34 extends in the horizontal direction,) and the door 11 can be opened and closed by drive power of the motor 30.
Specifically, the door 11 is connected via a door hanging metal fitting 13 and a link metal fitting 17 to a rack 19 that is accommodated in a rack/pinion case 56. The rack 19 is in mesh with a pinion 31 that is fixed to the output shaft 34 of the motor 30 and can slide along a rack slide rail 58. An encoder 46 is attached to the output shaft 34 of the motor 30.
A slider 21 is fixed to the link metal fitting 17 and is slidably guided by a door rail 23. As in the case of the first embodiment, the rack 19 and a rack slide rail 58 are held by the rack/pinion case 56, and the rack/pinion cases 56 is integrally fixed to a motor frame. Although this embodiment is directed to the configuration for opening and closing the single door 11, the invention is not limited to such a case and the concept of the second embodiment is likewise applicable to a case of opening and closing a pair of doors.
With the above configuration, when driving of the motor 30 is started from, for example, a state that the door 11 is closed, the drive power is transmitted to the rack 19 via the pinion 31 that is fixed to the output shaft 34 and then transmitted to the door 11 from the rack 19 via the link metal fitting 17 and the door hanging metal fitting 13, whereby the door 11 is opened. A similar operation is performed when the door 11 is closed. In this case, the door 11 can be opened or closed smoothly because the slider 21 is guided by the door rail 23.
According to this embodiment, since the motor 30 is oriented horizontally, the door driving apparatus 10 can be mounted compactly in the case where a space which is relatively wide in the vertical direction rather than in the horizontal direction exists above the door 11 of the vehicle body 70.
In this embodiment, a motor 30 is disposed in a space located above a door 11 of a vehicle body 70 so as to be oriented vertically (i.e., its output shaft 34 extends in the vertical direction,) and the door 11 can be opened and closed by drive power of the motor 30.
Specifically, the door 11 is connected, via a door hanging metal fitting 13 and a link metal fitting 17, to a rack 19 that is accommodated in a rack/pinion case 56. The rack 19 is in mesh with a pinion 31 that is fixed to the output shaft 34 of the motor 30 and can slide along a rack slide rail 58. An encoder 46 is attached to the output shaft 34 of the motor 30.
A slider 21 is fixed to the link metal fitting 17 and is guided slidably by a door rail 23. As in the case of the first embodiment, the rack 19 and a rack slide rail 58 are held by the rack/pinion case 56 and the rack/pinion cases 56 is fixed to a motor frame integrally. Although this embodiment is directed to the configuration for opening and closing the single door 11, the invention is not limited to such a case and the concept of the second embodiment is likewise applicable to a case of opening and closing a pair of doors.
With the above configuration, when driving of the motor 30 is started from, for example, a state that the door 11 is closed, the drive power is transmitted to the rack 19 via the pinion 31 that is fixed to the output shaft 34. The power is then transmitted to the door 11 from the rack 19 via the link metal fitting 17 and the door hanging metal fitting 13, whereby the door 11 is opened. A similar operation is performed when the door 11 is closed. In this case, the door 11 can be opened or closed smoothly because the slider 21 is guided by the door rail 23.
According to this embodiment, since the motor 30 is oriented vertically, the door driving apparatus 10 may be mounted compactly in the case where a space which is relatively wide in the horizontal direction rather than in the vertical direction exists above the door 11 of the vehicle body 70.
The disclosure of Japanese Patent Application No. 2006-124998 filed on Apr. 28, 2006 is incorporated as a reference. Also, the disclosure of Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2000-142392 is incorporated herein as a reference.
While the invention has been explained with reference to the specific embodiments of the invention, the explanation is illustrative and the invention is limited only by the appended claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006-124998 | Apr 2006 | JP | national |
