JP3006386B2 - Wiper device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a wiper device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, rain and snow adhering to a windshield glass of a vehicle are disposed at a predetermined position below a front side of a windshield glass (hereinafter simply referred to as "glass") 2 of a vehicle body 1. The wiper device 3 wipes it off. The wiper device 3 includes a pivot 4 rotatably disposed on the vehicle body 1, an arm head 5 having a base end fixed to a tip of the pivot 4, and a pivot having a base end capable of being raised and lowered at the tip of the arm head 5. A wiper arm 8 composed of a supported retainer 6 and an arm piece 7 whose base end is fixed to the distal end of the retainer 6, and a pin that has a central portion at the distal end of the arm piece 7 and is swingable in the axial direction of the arm piece 7. And a wiper blade 10 supported by the wiper blade 9 and a spring (not shown) provided between the distal end of the arm head 5 and the base end of the arm piece 7. A blade rubber 11 pressed against the surface of the glass 2 and a pivot 4 disposed on the vehicle body 1 side;
And a driving device (not shown) for rotating the motor over a predetermined range. Then, the wiper arm 8 is rotated by the pivot 4, and the blade rubber 11 wipes rain, snow, and the like attached to the surface of the glass 2.

[0003]

By the way, glass 2
Has a complicated curved surface. Therefore, in order to operate the wiper arm 8 along the curved surface and to smoothly wipe the wiper arm 8 over the entire range of rotation, the mounting position of the pivot 4 on the vehicle body 1 is required. It is necessary to accurately set the mounting state. In general, the angle θ (hereinafter referred to as “error angle”) between the wiper blade 10 and the surface of the glass 2 at any position in the wiper wiping range (wiper pattern) is:
It is set to be within approximately ± 8 ° (FIG. 3
(A)).

On the other hand, the pivot 4 of the wiper device 3 has an axial direction that is constant over the entire rotation range of the wiper arm 8. Therefore, the error angle θ greatly changes according to the change in the curvature in the range where the glass 2 is wiped (0 ° to 85 °) as shown by the solid line I in FIG. In general,
The value of the error angle θ is defined such that the direction in which the wiper blade 10 wipes up from the stop position is positive, and the direction in which the wiper blade 10 is wiped down is negative.
The inclination of the pivot 4 is set so as to be in a range of approximately ± 4 ° <θ <± 8 °.

However, when the error angle θ exceeds the range of the above set value, a very thin water film 14 is formed by water droplets 13 attached to the glass surface as shown in FIG. The wiping action of the wiper becomes insufficient. Also, as shown in FIG.
When the blade rubber 11 is turned over, the blade rubber 11 cannot be turned over and jumps over the glass surface, causing a phenomenon called so-called chatter. When the error angle θ is smaller than the range of the set value, the blade rubber 11 is shifted right and left as shown in FIG.

Further, since the error angle θ is different at each position of the wiper blade 10, there is a problem that the blade rubber 11 is twisted. In particular, such a problem may occur when the wiper arm 8 is at the stop position or near the reversing position, and the deterioration of the blade rubber 11 or the adhesion of a foreign substance to the glass surface and the friction coefficient between the blade rubber 11 and the glass surface. Becomes remarkable when increases. In order to solve such inconvenience, it is necessary to reduce the amount of change in the value of the error angle θ or to keep it constant.

[0007] To change the error angle,
There is a windshield wiper device disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 5-51496. In this device, a pivot of a wiper is rotatably supported around a first axis by a first bearing, and the first bearing is not parallel to the first axis by a second bearing. , And the error angle is changed by changing the first bearing about the second axis in synchronization with the turning movement of the wiper arm.

However, when the wiper arm and the wiper blade are not in a position parallel to the rotation axis of the second bearing, the error angle does not change even if the first bearing is rotated. Generally, the rotation angle of the wiper is
The angle is about 85 ° to 110 °, and the error angle can be changed at one of the stop position and the inversion position of the wiper arm, but cannot be changed at any other position. Therefore, it is difficult to keep the error angle constant over the entire rotation range (stroke) of the wiper arm. Therefore, the wiper blade cannot always be moved on the glass surface with an appropriate error angle according to the shape of the glass surface.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned point, and has a wiper in which an error angle is kept in an ideal range or constant at any position of a locus on the glass surface in a wiper wiping range. It is intended to provide a device.

[0010]

According to the present invention, a wiper arm having a base end mounted on an upper end of a pivot and a wiper blade provided at a distal end is rotated by the pivot to form a glass surface. A support mechanism interposed between an upper end of the pivot and a base end of the wiper arm for supporting the wiper arm relative to the pivot so as to be non-rotatable and swingable in the wiping direction; and a vehicle body. And between the support mechanism,
A first cam for swinging the wiper arm in the wiping direction of the wiper arm in accordance with the glass surface and a second cam for swinging the wiper arm in accordance with the glass surface when wiping are formed, and each of the pivots is inverted. A switching mechanism that engages with the pivot at the position to switch the position between the first cam and the second cam, and is interposed between the switching mechanism and the support mechanism, and is engaged with the first cam during wiping. A drive mechanism for swinging the support mechanism, engaging with the second cam when wiping down, and swinging the support mechanism.

Further, the upper end is interposed between the upper end of the pivot and the base end of the wiper arm, the upper end is fitted to the base end of the wiper arm and screwed, and the lower end is connected to the upper end of the pivot. A pivotally supported head portion, wherein the head portion supports the wiper arm so as to be non-rotatable relative to the pivot and to be pivotable in the wiping direction;
Further, the head section is configured to perform the swing by a driving mechanism.

[0012]

The support mechanism pivots the base end of the wiper arm together with the pivot at the upper end of the pivot and supports the wiper arm so as to be swingable in the wiping direction of the wiper arm. The drive mechanism operates in synchronization with the rotation of the pivot, and each switching mechanism is operated by the switching mechanism.
Switching a first cam and a second cam Te translocation smell,
During wiped the wiper arm, is pivoted more wiper arm to the first cams, during beat wiping swings more wiper arm to the second cams. As a result, the wiper arm is swung in the wiping direction while rotating, whereby the error angle is kept constant or within an ideal range.

[0013]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. 5 to 8, in the wiper device 20, a swing mechanism 25 is interposed between a pivot (rotating shaft of the wiper) 21 and an arm head 23 forming a base end of the wiper arm 22. The swinging mechanism 25 includes a supporting mechanism 26
And the drive mechanism 27, and the support mechanism 2
6 is the base end 2 of the arm head 23 at the upper end of the pivot 21
3a is supported so as not to be able to rotate relative to the pivot 21 and to be swingable in the wiping direction, and the drive mechanism 27 is synchronized with the rotation of the pivot 21 by the arm mechanism 23 via the support mechanism 26.
Rocks. Also, the lower end of the pivot 21 is a link 2
8 (FIGS. 7 and 8) is connected to a driving device (not shown) of the wiper device 20.

The support mechanism 26 includes a rod guide 30 and the head unit 3 that is swingably supported by the rod guide 30.
1. The rod guide 30 is shown in FIG.
The upper end of the pivot 21 is fitted and fixed in a shaft hole formed in the center lower surface, and small holes 30f, 30g are formed in the front ends of the left and right sides 30a, 30b as shown in FIG. And a small hole 30h formed in the lower surface of the rear end of the rear portion 30c.
, The upper end of the guide pin 33 is fitted and fixed. Further, at the center of the upper surface of the rod guide 30, a support portion 30d,
30e are integrally suspended in parallel to the left and right side portions 30a and 30b in a direction facing each other with a space therebetween (FIG. 7), and shaft holes 30i and 30j are respectively formed in the center.

As shown in FIG. 7, the head portion 31 has a support portion 31a having a columnar shape, a pivot 31b being vertically suspended at the center of the upper surface, and a tapered serration 31c and a threaded portion 31d at the upper end of the pivot 31b. Is formed. or,
As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, a substantially semicircular flange 31e is formed on the front side at the lower end, and a support portion 31f is vertically provided in the center of the lower surface along the left-right direction (FIG. 7). 31
g is drilled. The head section 31 includes a support section 31
f is inserted between the support portions 30d and 30e of the rod guide 30, and is swingably supported by a shaft 34 passing through the shaft holes 30i, 31g and 30j.

Therefore, the rod guide 30 is connected to the head 3
Even if it is configured to be swingable with 1, the mounting of the arm head 23 of the conventionally used wiper is possible by the head structure. The base end 23a of the arm head 23 has holes 23c, 23d, 23e as shown in FIG.
Are formed concentrically, the holes 23c and 23e are slightly larger in diameter than the support portion 31a, and the lower holes 23b
Protrusions 23f and 23g (FIG. 8) that are in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the support portion 31a are formed on the inner surfaces on both left and right sides of the support portion 31a. Also,
The hole 23d is a tapered hole. The arm head 23 is mounted on the support portion 31a of the head portion 31, the pivot 31b passes through the hole 23d, and the serration 31
c is fitted to the tapered portion, and the support portion 23b is
Is firmly fixed so as not to rotate relatively, and a cap 36 is attached to the hole 23c. Then, the base end 2 of the arm head 23
Since the head 3a and the head 31 are fixed at three points by the serration 31c of the pivot 31b and the projections 23f and 23g on both sides of the hole 23e, the movement of the wiper arm in the left-right direction is prevented.

The drive mechanism 27 is provided between the vehicle body and the rod guide 3.
0, the cam base 40, the slide cam 41, the rods 45, 46, 47 and the return spring 4
8, 49, 50, and the like. Cam base 40
Has a long rectangular shape in the left-right direction (wiping direction of the wiper arm) (FIG. 10), and the pivot 21 is rotatably penetrated through a hole 40a formed in the center with a slight gap (FIG. 7, FIG. 7). (FIG. 8). The cam base 40 is fixed to the vehicle body.

As shown in FIG. 10, the slide cam 41 is slidable in the left and right directions within the cam base 40, and has a long hole 41b extending in the center thereof along the longitudinal direction.
1 is movable. A long hole 41b on the upper surface 41a
On both left and right sides, and both side portions 30a of the rod guide 30,
Arc-shaped cams 42 and 43 are formed at positions that can face the holes 30f and 30g (FIG. 8) of 30b. These cams 42 and 43 are concentric with the center of the long hole 41b,
In addition, they are arranged on the same circumference over a predetermined length, and each of the upper surfaces 42a and 43a is a cam surface.

The cams 42 and 43 are arc-shaped end cams, and the cam surfaces 42a and 43a are set to curved surfaces that swing the wiper arm according to the curved surface of the glass and maintain an error angle in an ideal range. I have. And the cam surface 43
a controls the swing angle of the wiper arm during wiping, and the cam surface 42a controls the swing angle during wiping to keep the error angle constant or within an ideal range, respectively.

The rods 45 and 46 are inserted into the right and left holes 30f and 30g of the rod guide 30 so as to be slidable in the axial direction, and are compressed by a spring 48 provided between the heads 45a and 46a and the rod guide 30. , 49, the heads 45a, 46a are pressed against the lower surface of the flange 31e of the head portion 31. These rods 45 and 46 are set to the same length, and as will be described later,
6 correspond to the cam surface 42a or 43 of the cam 42 corresponding to the lower end surface.
Selectively contact the cam surface 43a.

The lower half of the rod 47 is axially slidably fitted in a cylindrical holder 51 (FIGS. 6 and 7) vertically provided at the center of the front edge of the slide cam 41. The head 47a is pressed against the lower surface of the flange 31e and pushed up by the spring force of the spring 50 contracted between the upper end surface of the holder 51 and the head 47a. This rod 4
7 is the entire rotation range of the head unit 31, that is, the wiper arm 2
2, the flange 31e is constantly pushed up over the wiping range. A guide groove 41h (FIG. 5) formed at the center of the rear edge of the slide cam 41 has a rear portion 30 of the rod guide 30.
The lower end of a guide pin 33 suspended from the rear end of the lower surface of c is engaged.

Further, a positioning mechanism 55 (FIG. 7) is provided at the center of the front end of the cam pedestal 40, and the locking ball 56 is moved by the spring force of the spring 57.
The slide cam 41 is positioned at the stop position or the reverse position by engaging with the concave portion 41e or 41f (FIG. 10) provided at each reverse position (stop position and reverse position) of the opposed front end face of the slide cam 41. Has become.

The rods 45, 46 and the cams 42, 4
3, the head portion 31 is swung according to the rotation of the pivot 21, and the slide cam is slid at each reversal position of the pivot 21 by the guide pin 33 and the guide groove 41h, thereby switching the position, that is, the cam 42 and the rod 45. Alternatively, the engagement or disengagement between the cam 43 and the rod 46 is switched, and at this time, the flange 31e of the head portion 31 is pushed up by the rod 47 to tilt the head portion 31 to facilitate the switching operation of the slide cam 41. And positioning mechanism 5
5 locks and holds the slide cam 41 at each reversal position.

In FIG. 5, the axial direction of the pivot 21 is represented by the Z axis, the axial direction of the wiper arm 22 is represented by the Y axis, and the wiping direction of the wiper arm 22 is represented by the X axis. The pivoting direction of the pivot 21 is indicated by arrows A and A ′, the wiping direction is indicated by arrow A, and the wiping direction is indicated by arrow A ′. Further, the same direction as the wiper arm 22 is indicated by arrows B and B ', the swing direction at the time of wiping is indicated by arrow B, and the swing direction at the time of wiping is indicated by arrow B'.

The operation will be described below. First, as shown in FIG. 11, when the wiper arm 22 (indicated by a two-dot chain line) is at the stop position (storage position), the pivot 21 is rotated rightward to the maximum position and provided at the rear portion 30c of the rod guide 30. The guide pin 33 pushes the left end face of the guide groove 41h of the slide cam 41 to the left, the guide cam 41 is moved to the left of the cam base 40, and is locked and held at the position by the positioning mechanism 55. I have. Also,
The head portion 31 is pushed up on the left side of the flange 31 e by the rod 47, and is tilted rightward and downward with respect to the rod guide 30 around the shaft 34 (FIG. 8), and the lower end surface of the right rod 46 is the upper surface of the slide cam 41. The lower end surface of the left rod 45 is in contact with the upper surface 41a and is separated from the upper surface 41a. As a result, the lower end surface of the rod 46 is
a.

In this state, the rod 46 on the right side of the rod guide 30 can be engaged with the cam 43 on the right side of the slide cam 41, and the lower end thereof faces the start end 43b of the cam 43. On the other hand, the rod 45 on the left side of the rod guide 30
Is disengaged from the cam 42,
Is located on the inner side of the terminal end 42c. When the pivot 21 rotates to the left and the wiping operation is started, the wiper arm 22 rotates to the left (in the direction of arrow A) together with the pivot 21 to wipe the glass surface. When the pivot 21 starts to rotate counterclockwise, the rod guide 3
And the lower end of the rod 46 rides on the cam surface 43a of the cam 43.
a pushes up the right side of the flange 31e of the head part 31 (FIG. 8). As a result, the head 31 swings in the direction of arrow B in FIG. 8, and accordingly, the wiper arm 22 tilts in the wiping direction. At this time, the rod 45 is pushed down by the flange 31e against the spring force of the spring 48, and moves inside the cam 42 with a slight gap (FIG. 8). The cam surface 43a of the cam 43 is formed according to the glass surface as described above, and is swung with the rotation of the pivot 21, that is, the wiping operation as shown in FIGS. , Is kept constant as shown by the two-dot chain line III in FIG.

When the wiper arm 22 rotates to the vicinity of the reversing position, as shown in FIG.
The guide pin 33 provided on the rear portion 30c of the slide cam 41 comes into contact with the right end surface of the guide groove 41h of the slide cam 41 and pushes the slide cam 41 rightward, whereby the slide cam 41 is pushed rightward. When the wiper arm 22 reaches the reversing position, the guide pin 33 pushes the slide cam 41 to the right end position as shown in FIG. And slide cam 4
1 is locked and held at this position by the positioning mechanism 55.

At the same time, the right rod 46 of the rod guide 30 is disengaged from the end 43c of the cam 43,
3, the subsequent engagement is released, and the left rod 45 is engaged with the starting end 42 b of the cam 42. At this time, the right side of the flange 31 e is pushed up by the rod 47 and tilted to the left with respect to the rod guide 30, the lower end surface of the rod 45 abuts on the upper surface 41 a of the slide cam 41, and the lower end surface of the rod 46. Are separated from the upper surface 41a. This makes it easier for the lower end surface of the rod 45 to engage with the cam surface 42a of the cam 42.

When the pivot 21 rotates clockwise from the inverted position and the wiper arm 22 rotates clockwise (in the direction of arrow A ') to start the wiping operation of the glass surface, the rod guide 30 is integrally formed. The lower end of the rod 45 is turned to the cam 4
The upper end 45a of the rod pushes up on the left side of the flange 31e of the head portion 31. As a result, the head portion 31 swings in the direction of arrow B ′ in FIG. 8, and accordingly, the wiper arm 22 tilts in the wiping direction. The cam surface 42a of the cam 42 is formed according to the glass surface as described above, and the rotation of the pivot 21, that is,
As shown in FIG. 15 and FIG. 16, it is swung with the wiping-down operation, and the error angle is, for example, the two-dot chain line II in FIG.
It is kept constant as indicated by I '.

When the wiper arm 22 rotates to the vicinity of the stop position, as shown in FIG.
Guide pin 33 is the guide groove 41h of the slide cam 41.
The slide cam 41 is pushed leftward in contact with the left end surface of the slide cam 41. When the wiper arm 22 reaches the stop position, the guide pin 33 pushes the slide cam 41 to the left end position as shown in FIG.
Then, the slide cam 41 is locked and held at the position by the positioning mechanism 55.

At the same time, the rod 4 on the left side of the rod guide 30
5 is disengaged from the terminal end 42c of the cam 42 and is located inside the cam 42, the subsequent engagement is released, and the left rod 46 can be engaged with the start end 43b of the cam 43. Then, the wiping operation of the wiper arm 22 is started as described above. Such an operation is repeatedly performed, and the glass surface is wiped.

Each of the cams 42 and 43 of the slide cam 41
By changing the shapes of the cam surfaces 42a and 43a, the error angle can be maintained in an ideal range as shown by a one-dot chain line II in FIG. FIGS. 17 and 18 show another embodiment of the present invention, in which members corresponding to those in FIGS. 5 and 6 are denoted by corresponding reference numerals. In the embodiments shown in FIGS. 17 and 18, neither return spring is used for the rods 45 'and 46', and the cams 42 '(only one side is shown) of the slide cam 41' are provided with the rods 45 'for both the forward path and the return path. 46 '
An endless cam surface which contacts each lower end surface is formed so as to always contact the rods 45 'and 46'. The cam surface 42a 'of the cam 42' has a curved cam surface 42a1 'corresponding to the glass surface on the outward path.
2a2 'is simply a return surface. The same applies to the other cam. Therefore, the rod 47 as shown in FIG. 6 is unnecessary.

FIG. 17 shows the upper ends 45a ', 46a' of the rods 45 ', 46' and the right and left sides 3 of the head 31 '.
1a 'and 31b' are connected by pins 60 and 61, respectively, and a hole 31i '(only one side is shown) of the side portion 31a' is swingable as an elongated hole. FIG. 18 shows the upper ends 45 of the rods 45 'and 46'.
a 'and 46a' are in a free state and are brought into contact with the lower surfaces of both side portions 31a 'and 31b' of the head portion 31 '.

The drive of the slide cam is not limited to mechanical drive, but may be electrically driven using a solenoid or the like.

[0035]

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to keep the error angle within an ideal range or substantially constant at any position of the wiping locus on the glass surface of the wiper. Chatter of the wiper can be prevented, and an ideal wiping operation can always be performed. Further, since the reversing movement of the wiper blade can be performed smoothly, no excessive force is applied to the blade, and twisting or uneven wear of the blade rubber is prevented, and the life of the blade rubber is extended. In addition, the error angle can be kept constant or within an ideal range without using an actuator, and a robust and inexpensive configuration can be achieved. Further, unitization, completeness, and compactness can be obtained. And other excellent effects.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a wiper device and a glass surface of a vehicle.

FIG. 2 is a front view of a wiper arm of the wiper device of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a relationship between a wiper blade of the wiper device of FIG. 1 and a glass surface when the wiper blade is wiped.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a relationship between a rotation angle of a wiper arm and an error angle.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a main part of the wiper device according to the present invention, in a state where the arm head of the wiper arm is supported on the upper end of the pivot, as viewed obliquely from the rear.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of FIG. 5 viewed obliquely from the front.

7 is a sectional view taken along the line VII-VII in FIG.

8 is a cross-sectional view taken along a line VIII-VIII in FIG.

FIG. 9 is a plan view of the rod guide of FIG. 5;

FIG. 10 is a plan view of the slide cam of FIG. 5;

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing a state at a stop position of the wiper arm of FIG. 5;

FIG. 12 is an explanatory view showing a state in which the wiper arm of FIG. 11 is in the process of being wiped.

13 is an explanatory diagram showing a state at a position near the end of the wiping operation of the wiper arm in FIG. 11;

FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram showing an operation of the wiper arm in FIG. 13 at a reverse position.

FIG. 15 is an explanatory view showing a state where the wiper arm of FIG. 14 is being wiped down;

16 is an explanatory diagram showing a state at a position near the end of the wiping operation of the wiper arm in FIG. 15;

FIG. 17 is a perspective view showing a main part of a second embodiment of the wiper swing mechanism of the present invention.

FIG. 18 is a perspective view showing a main part of a third embodiment of the wiper swing mechanism of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 20 wiper device 21 pivot 22 wiper arm 23 arm head 26 support mechanism 27 drive mechanism 30 rod guide 31 head part 33 guide pin 40 cam pedestal 41 slide cam 42, 43 cam 45 to 47 rod 48 to 50 return spring 55 positioning mechanism

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor: Natsukatsu Goto, 1 Nakashinkiri, Hashime-cho, Okazaki-shi, Aichi, Japan Okazaki Plant of Mitsubishi Motors Engineering Co., Ltd. No. 33-8, Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (56) References Special Table 5-509052 (JP, A) (58) Field surveyed (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B60S 1/34

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A wiper device for wiping a glass surface by rotating a wiper arm having a base end attached to an upper end of a pivot and having a wiper blade at a distal end by the pivot, the upper end of the pivot and the base end of the wiper arm. And a support mechanism that supports the wiper arm so as to be relatively non-rotatable with respect to the pivot and swingably in the wiping direction. A support mechanism that is interposed between the vehicle body and the support mechanism and extends in the wiping direction of the wiper arm. A first cam for swinging the wiper arm according to the glass surface and a second cam for swinging the wiper arm according to the glass surface at the time of wiping are formed. The first cam is engaged with the pivot at each reversal position of the pivot. A switching mechanism that switches the position of the first cam and the second cam in combination, and is interposed between the switching mechanism and the support mechanism to wipe up And a drive mechanism that engages with the first cam to swing the support mechanism, and engages with the second cam to swing the support mechanism when wiping down. Wiper device. 2. A wiper device for wiping a glass surface by rotating a wiper arm having a base end attached to an upper end of a pivot and a wiper blade at the end by the pivot, the upper end of the pivot and the base end of the wiper arm. And a head part whose upper end is fitted and screwed to the base end of the wiper arm and whose lower end is swingably supported by the upper end of the pivot. Supports the wiper arm so that it cannot rotate relative to the pivot and can swing in the wiping direction,
The said head part is rock | swiveled by the drive mechanism, The wiper apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned.