Patent Application
20050001568
The present invention relates to a power device for a vehicle sliding door, and more particularly, to a power device for sliding a sliding door in a door-opening direction and in a door-closing direction.
Conventional vehicle sliding doors may be concurrently provided with a power slide device for sliding a sliding door in a door-opening direction and in a door-closing direction by motor power, a power close device for moving the sliding door located at a half-latched position to a full-latched position by motor power, a power release device for unlatching a door latch unit of the sliding door by motor power, and the like.
Further, when the sliding door is to be closed, the sliding door is slid to the half-latched position by the power slide device, and when the sliding door reaches the half-latched position, it is moved to the full-latched position by actuating the power slide device.
The power devices, in particular, the power device used as the power slide device is provided with a motor and a wire drum coupled with door-opening and door-closing cables for sliding the vehicle sliding door in the door-opening direction and in the door-closing direction, and the motor is connected to the wire drum through a clutch mechanism.
The clutch mechanism is divided broadly into a mechanical clutch mechanism and an electromagnetic clutch mechanism, and they have an advantage and a disadvantage, respectively. The mechanical clutch mechanism is basically composed of a motor as a power source, clutch pawls that are engaged with the wire drum, a cam member for moving the clutch pawls to an engagement position, and a brake member such as a spring and the like that restricts the concurrently-rotating-state of the cam member and the clutch pawl. When the motor rotates, the cam member and the clutch pawls are moved relatively with each other by the brake resistance applied by the brake member, and the clutch pawls are pushed out to the engagement position and engage with the wire drum, thereby motor power is transmitted to the wire drum. The mechanical clutch mechanism is advantageous in that the cost of electric parts can be reduced because only the motor is used as the power source. However, it takes a good amount of time to disconnect the clutch, and control becomes complicate due to the delay of disconnection particularly in a power unit used in the power slide device.
In contrast, the electromagnetic clutch mechanism is advantageous in that it can be controlled simply and can be connected and disconnected instantly.
There are many types of the electromagnetic clutch mechanisms which can be broadly classified into a friction type and a mesh type. The friction type clutch is connected by causing an armature to come into contact with a rotary plate by the magnetic force of an electromagnetic portion. The magnitude of an output that can be transmitted by the clutch depends on the magnitude of a friction coefficient between the armature and the rotary plate. Accordingly, a clutch mechanism, which is used in a power device having a large output such as the power slide device, requires a large electromagnetic coil portion that can strongly press an armature against a rotary plate so that a large friction coefficient can be obtained.
In contrast, the mesh type clutch is connected by causing a rugged portion of an armature to mesh with a rugged portion of a rotary plate. In the mesh executed between the rugged portions, the magnitude of a force for pressing the armature against the rotary plate does not substantially affect the magnitude of output that can be transmitted by the clutch. In the mesh type clutch, however, the moving distance of the armature, which is required for the armature to be meshed with the rotary plate is greatly longer than that of the armature required in the friction type clutch. Since an increase in a distance extremely lowers magnetic force, the mesh type clutch also requires a strong magnetic coil portion.
As described above, conventional electromagnetic clutch mechanisms require a strong magnetic coil portion.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a power device having a rational clutch mechanism in which a mechanical clutch mechanism is harmonized with an electromagnetic clutch mechanism.
An embodiment of the present invention will be explained.
The sliding door 11 has a power unit 20 disposed in the inner space 50 thereof, and the power unit 20 has motor power. The power unit 20 is provided with a wire drum 30 that pulls and draws out two wire cables, i.e. a door-opening cable 21′ and a door-closing cable 21″ which are connected to the wire drum 30 at the base ends thereof. When the wire drum 30 is rotated in the door-opening direction, the door-opening cable 21′ is taken up, and the door-closing cable 21″ is drawn out, and when the wire drum 30 is rotated in the door-closing direction, the door-opening cable 21′ is drawn out, and the door-closing cable 21″ is taken up.
The door-closing cable 21″ is drawn out from a front lower position of the sliding door 11, that is, from a position in the vicinity of the lower bracket 18 toward the vehicle body (toward the lower bracket 18) to the outside of the sliding door 11. The lower bracket 18 is provided with a pulley 22 having a vertical axial center, and the door-opening cable 21′ which has been drawn out from the sliding door 11, passes through a front side of the pulley 22, then extends rearward in the lower rail 14, and is fixed to a rear end of the lower rail 14 or to the vehicle body 10 in the vicinity of the rear end. With the above constitution, when the door-opening cable 21′ is taken up in a door-closed state, the sliding door 11 slides rearward (in the door-opening direction) through the lower bracket 18.
The door-closing cable 21″ is drawn out from the central portion in an up-and-down direction of the sliding door 11 on the rear side thereof, i.e. from a position in the vicinity of the center bracket 19 toward the vehicle body (toward the center bracket 19) to the outside of the sliding door 11. The center bracket 19 is provided with a pulley 23 having a vertical axial center, and the door-closing cable 21″ which has been drawn out from the sliding door 11, passes through a rear side of the pulley 23, then extends forward in the center rail 16, and is fixed to a front end of the center rail 16 or to the vehicle body 10 in the vicinity of the front end. With the above constitution, when the door-closlng cable 21″ is taken up in a door open state, the sliding door 11 slides forward (in the door-closing direction) through the center bracket 19.
In
The second worm wheel 27 is pivotally mounted on the case 29 of the power unit 20 by a second support shaft 32. One of the ends of the second support shaft 32 is caused to pass through the case 29 and to project to the outside, and a swing arm 33 is fixed to the projecting end of the second support shaft 32. A second clutch 34 is interposed between the second worm wheel 27 and the second support shaft 32. When the second clutch 34 is turned on, the rotation of the second worm wheel 27 is transmitted to the swing arm 33 through the second support shaft 32, and when the second clutch 34 is turned off, the swing arm 33 is placed in a free state with respect to the second worm wheel 27.
The swing arm 33 has a rotation end to which an end of a release cable 35 is locked. The other end of the release cable 35 is coupled with a door latch unit 36 of the sliding door 11, and when the release cable 35 is pulled in the direction of an arrow A by swinging the swing arm 33, the door latch unit 36 is released.
The first and second clutches 31 and 34 are clutches that are turned on and off by electric control and arranged according to the gist of the present invention. These clutches will be explained below. In
A moving gear member 65 (
A fixed gear member 69 is disposed on the left side of the moving gear member 65, and a spring 70 which presses the moving gear member rightward, is interposed between the moving gear member 65 and the fixed gear member 69. The gear member 69 is fixed to the wire drum 30 on the left surface thereof. The wire drum 30 is fixed to the left end of the first support shaft 28 so that it rotates integrally with the first support shaft 28. The fixed gear member 69 has an annular fixed gear portion 71 disposed on the right surface thereof. When the moving gear member 65 slides leftward with respect to the first support shaft 28, the moving gear portion 68 is meshed with the fixed gear portion 71, and the rotation of the first worm wheel 26 is transmitted to the wire drum 30, and when the moving gear member 65 slides rightward with respect to the first support shaft 28, the moving gear portion 68 is released from the fixed gear portion 71, and the rotation of the first worm wheel 26 is not transmitted to the wire drum 30.
The moving gear member 65 has a cam surface 72 formed thereon, and the cam surface 72 slides the moving gear member 65 leftward against the elastic force of the spring 70 in cooperation with the cam surface 64 of the cam member 63. The cam surface 72 has a symmetrical structure with respect to the cam surface 64 and is formed in an annular and regular rugged surface having apexes 72A that swell rightward in the axial direction of the first support shaft 28, bottoms 72B, and slant surfaces 72C for connecting them. As shown in
The second clutch 34 has the same structure as that of the first clutch 31, and includes a cylindrical magnetic coil portion 73, an annular armature 74, a spring 75, a cam member 76, a cam surface 77 of the cam member 76, a moving cam member 78, leg portions 79, engagement grooves 80, a moving gear portion 81, a fixed gear member 82, a spring 83, an annular fixed gear portion 84, and a cam surface 85 of the moving cam member 78. The fixed gear member 82 of the second clutch 34 is fixed to a receiving member 86 fixed to the left end of the second clutch 32.
The sliding door 11 has a power close device 44 attached to the inside thereof. The power close device 44 has motor power that is transmitted to the latch 38 of the door latch unit 36 through a close cable 45. In the illustrated embodiment, the power close device 44 is arranged as a device independent of the power unit 20. When the latch 38 is displaced into the half-latched position by the movement of the sliding door 11 in the door-closing direction, the power close device 44 pulls the close cable 45 and rotates the latch 38 from the half-latched position to the full-latched position, thereby the sliding door 11 is completely closed.
The door latch unit 36 is disposed at the rear end of the sliding door 11 and achieves a function for keeping the sliding door 11 in the door-closed state in cooperation with the striker 37. The sliding door 11 may be also provided with a front latch unit 46 separately which has a latch and a ratchet similar to those of the door latch unit 36, at the front end thereof. In this case, the other end of the release cable 35 is branched, and one of the branched other ends of release cable 35 is coupled with the ratchet of the front latch unit 46 so that the latch unit 46 is also unlatched by pulling the release cable 35. Reference numeral 47 denotes a front striker which is fixed to the vehicle body 10 and with which the latch of the front latch unit 46 is engaged.
Further, the sliding door 11 may be provided with a full-open position holder 48 having a latch and ratchet. When the sliding door 11 is moved to the full-open position by being slid in the opening direction, the latch of the full-open position holder 48 is engaged with a full-open striker 49 fixed to the vehicle body and keeps the sliding door 11 at the full-open position. When the latch/ratchet type full-open position holder 48 is used, an branched end of the release cable 35 is coupled with the ratchet of the full-open position holder 48 so that the full-open position holder 48 is unlatched by pulling the release cable 35.
In
As shown in
The power unit 20 shown in
Operation
First, an operation of the first clutch 31 will be explained. When the cylindrical worm 25 is rotated by rotation of the motor 24, the first worm wheel 26 is rotated clockwise in
When the electromagnetic coil portion 60 is turned on in the above state, the armature 61 is abutted against the electromagnetic coil portion 60 by the magnetic force generated by the coil portion, and predetermined brake resistance is generated between the electromagnetic coil portion 60 and the armature 61, thereby the concurrently-rotating-state of the armature 61 and the cam member 63 is restricted, and the moving gear member 65 is rotated about the first support shaft 28 relatively to the cam member 63. Thus, the phase of the cam surface 72 is shifted from that of the cam surface 64 as shown in
In the above arrangement, since it is sufficient that the electromagnetic coil portion 60 attracts the armature 61 disposed in the vicinity of the electromagnetic coil portion 60 and generates the friction brake resistance that can prevent the concurrent rotation of the armature 61 and the cam member 63, an electromagnetic coil portion that is small in size can be used. Further, since the size of the electromagnetic coil portion 60 can be reduced, an arrangement, in which the first worm wheel 26 having an appropriate size is disposed around the outer periphery of the electromagnetic coil portion 60, can be established.
Next, to explain an overall operation of the power device, when the cylindrical worm 25 is reversely rotated by the common motor 24 at the time the sliding door 11 is located at the full-closed position, the first worm wheel 26 is rotated counterclockwise in
When the rear latch unit 36 (and the front latch unit 46) are unlatched, the first clutch 31 is turned on. The first clutch 31 is preferably turned on just before the second clutch 34 is turned off. When the first clutch 31 is turned on, the counterclockwise rotation of the first worm wheel 26 is transmitted to the wire drum 30 to thereby also rotate the wire drum 30 counterclockwise in the door-opening direction. Accordingly, the door-opening cable 21′ is taken up and the door-closing cable 21″ is pulled out, thereby the sliding door 11 is slid in the door-opening direction, and when it reaches the full-open position, the first clutch 31 is turned off, and the motor 24 is also turned off.
Since the motor 24 rotates continuously in the series of the door open operations, it can be prevented that a large load due to a motor start current continuously acts on a battery as in a conventional battery. Further, the continuous rotation of the motor permits the sliding door 11 to be smoothly slid and opened after the rear latch unit 36 (and the front latch unit 46) have been unlatched.
When the cylindrical worm 25 is rotated by the common motor 24 at the time the sliding door 11 is located at the full-open position, the first worm wheel 26 is rotated clockwise, and the second worm wheel 27 is rotated counterclockwise in
When the full-open position holder 48 is unlatched, the first clutch 31 is turned on. The first clutch 31 is preferably turned on just before the second clutch 34 is turned off. When the first clutch 31 is turned on, the clockwise rotation of the first worm wheel 26 is transmitted to the wire drum 30, thereby the wire drum 30 is also rotated clockwise in the door-closing direction, thereby the door-closing cable 21″ is taken up, and the door-opening cable 21′ is drawn out. With the above operation, the sliding door 11 is slid in the door-closing direction, and when the sliding door 11 reaches the half-latched position, the first clutch 31 is turned off, and the motor 24 is stopped as well as the power close device 44 is actuated, and thereafter the sliding door 11 is moved from the half-latched position to the full-latched position by the power close device 44.
In a series of the door close operations, the motor 24 is actuated from the full-open position to the half-latched position, and thereafter the motor of the power close device 44 is actuated. However, since a large time lag exists between the start of actuation of the motor 24 and the start of the motor of the power close device 44, no large load due to a motor start current continuously acts on the battery.
Therefore, since the respective ratchets can be released from the respective latches even if the swing arm 33, which pulls the release cable 35 in the direction of the arrow A, is rotated in any direction, the respective ratchets of the full-open position holder 48, the rear latch unit 36, and the front latch unit 46 can be released from the respective ratchets only by turning on the second clutch 34 regardless of the rotational direction of the motor 24 while it is being rotated.
Advantages
As described above, in the present invention, since the electromagnetic coil portion 60 is used for the purpose of obtaining the friction brake resistance for restricting the concurrently rotating phenomenon when the clutch is connected, a small and inexpensive electromagnetic coil portion can be used as the electromagnetic coil portion 60. Further, the overall apparatus can be simply controlled because the first clutch 31 can be connected and disconnected by turning on and off the electromagnetic coil portion 60 regardless of that the electromagnetic coil portion 60 is used to apply the brake resistance.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002-194014 | Jul 2003 | JP | national |
