JP4640263B2 - Air conditioning register - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an air-conditioning register provided in an automobile interior or the like and constituting an opening for blowing out hot air or cold air from an air conditioner, and more specifically, a damper plate that opens and closes an air flow path, and a knob that swings the damper plate And an air-conditioning register having a link mechanism using gears.

  In general, a plurality of automobile registers are arranged in the passenger compartment for the purpose of quickly air-conditioning the passenger compartment and improving the comfort by sending air evenly to passengers in each seat. However, there are many cases in which it is necessary to individually control the blowing / stopping from each register according to a small number of passengers or individual differences in comfort.

  Therefore, in a conventional register, a damper plate is swingably disposed in an air flow path through which hot air or cold air flows, and the damper plate is driven to swing by a knob provided in the vicinity of the blowout opening. It can be opened and closed. A link mechanism composed of a plurality of gears or the like is interposed between the knob and the damper plate, and the rotation of the knob by manual operation is smoothly converted into the swing of the damper plate.

  In order to improve the operability when the damper plate is rotated by manual operation of the knob, it is preferable to generate a moderation feeling such as a click feeling when the knob is operated when the damper plate is fully closed. Therefore, for example, as disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 3486733, a small tooth groove shallower than a normal tooth groove is provided in a part of the gear that transmits the rotation of the knob, and at least one of the gears is elastic in the radial direction. A deformable link mechanism has been put into practical use.

  According to this link mechanism, when the tooth of the other gear gets over the small groove when fully closed, one gear is elastically deformed in the radial direction, and the elastic force is released when the getting over is completed. Therefore, the operator of the knob perceives a sense of moderation due to the generation and release of the load, thereby improving operability.

  By the way, in an air-conditioning register having a damper plate, when a gap between the seal surface of the damper plate and the wall surface of the flow path is in a specific range, a whistle is blown by blowing a strong wind from the gap. A whistle-like noise that blows the sound may occur. When such an abnormal noise occurs, the quietness in the passenger compartment is impaired, and it is extremely annoying when listening to music.

  Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-306033 discloses an air conditioning register having a link mechanism in which one of the gears is elastically deformable in the radial direction and a large tooth width portion having a large tooth width is formed on a part of the teeth. It is disclosed. According to this air-conditioning register, when the gap between the seal surface of the damper plate and the wall surface of the flow passage has a size that generates whistle-like noise, the large tooth width portion and the tooth portion of another gear Interfere with. Therefore, the gears are forcibly rotated by the elastic reaction force generated, and the tooth portions of the other gears get over the large tooth width portion, so the gap between the seal surface of the damper plate and the wall surface of the flow path is whistle-like. It is possible to prevent the damper plate from being stationary in a state where the noise is generated and to prevent the generation of whistle-like noise.

However, in the link mechanism described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-306033, in order to form a large tooth width portion, it is necessary to drastically change the shape of a conventional gear forming die, and in terms of the cost of die production. There was a problem.
Patent No. 3486733 JP2003-306033

  Even in the damper mechanism described in Patent Document 1, whistle-like abnormal noise may be generated when the gap between the seal surface of the damper plate and the wall surface of the flow path falls within a specific range. Depending on the shape of the air-conditioning register, the amount of air blown out, etc., the gap size in which the whistle-like noise is generated may increase. That is, there may be a wide angle range in which whistle-like noise is generated in the swing angle until the damper plate is fully closed.

  Therefore, the inventors of the present application have conceived that in the damper mechanism described in Patent Document 1, a plurality of adjacent tooth spaces are used as small tooth spaces. For example, if two adjacent tooth spaces are small teeth, when the tooth portions of other gears get over the two small teeth, the same effect as that described in Patent Document 2 is achieved, and the swing angle is reduced. Since the damper plate can be prevented from standing still in a wide range, it is possible to prevent the generation of whistle-like noise.

  However, for example, when the two tooth spaces are small teeth, the feeling of moderation due to the generation and release of the load is perceived twice when the tooth portion of the other gear gets over each small tooth space, It cannot be said that operability is good.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and it should be solved that the moderation feeling when fully closed is perceived only once and that the generation of whistle-like abnormal noise is reliably prevented. Let it be an issue. Still another problem to be solved is to reduce the cost of mold production by making it possible to easily form a gear mold from a conventional mold.

The air-conditioning register of the present invention that solves the above problems is characterized in that a cylindrical retainer that forms a blowout opening and an air flow path, a damper plate that is pivotally supported in the retainer and pivotable to the retainer And a link mechanism including at least a first gear and a second gear meshing with each other, and the damper plate swings by converting the rotation of the knob into the swing of the damper plate by the link mechanism. An air conditioning register that opens and closes the air flow path,
At least one of the gears constituting the link mechanism is formed to be elastically deformable in the radial direction,
A first small groove portion shallower than a normal tooth groove is formed in one tooth groove of the first gear,
A pair of adjacent tooth spaces of the second gear is formed with second small tooth spaces that are shallower than regular tooth spaces,
When the first gear and the second gear mesh with each other when the damper plate is at least fully closed, one of the leading teeth adjacent to the first small tooth groove of the first gear meshes with the second small tooth groove, and then the second gear. The intermediate tooth portion between the pair of second small tooth groove portions of the gear meshes with the first small tooth groove portion, and the other succeeding tooth portion adjacent to the first small tooth groove portion of the first gear is the second small tooth. It is in meshing with the groove.

  More preferably, the tooth gap of the first small tooth groove portion is shallower than the tooth groove of the second small tooth groove portion.

  According to the air-conditioning register of the present invention, when the first gear and the second gear mesh with each other when the damper plate is at least fully closed, the one preceding tooth portion adjacent to the first small tooth groove portion of the first gear is the second. The intermediate tooth portion between the pair of second small tooth groove portions of the second gear meshes with the first small tooth groove portion, and the other adjacent to the first small tooth groove portion of the first gear. The following tooth part meshes with the second small tooth groove part. At the time of meshing, at least one of the first gear and the second gear is elastically deformed in the radial direction, and thus a load is generated. In addition, the load is generated three times in a short period of time corresponding to three consecutive circumferential distances of the leading tooth portion, the first small tooth groove portion, and the trailing tooth portion of the first gear. Therefore, the knob operator is perceived as a single load change, and the moderation feeling when fully closed is perceived only once, which is excellent in operability.

  If the tooth groove of the first small tooth groove portion is made shallower than the tooth groove of the second small tooth groove portion, at least between the initial stage and the late stage when the first gear and the second gear mesh when the damper plate is at least fully closed. The load can be increased most and the moderation feeling is further improved.

  In addition, since the above-described load acts continuously three times and the elastic deformation of the gear continuously occurs, the three consecutive circumferential distances of the leading tooth portion, the first small tooth groove portion, and the trailing tooth portion of the first gear. The rotation corresponding to is promoted by the elastic reaction force, and the damper plate is restrained from resting in the middle of the fully closed state. Therefore, it is possible to prevent whistle-like noises from occurring in a wide range of the swing angle of the damper plate.

  Furthermore, in order to manufacture a mold for forming the first small tooth groove part and the second small tooth groove part, it is possible to manufacture by merely slightly cutting the tip of the tooth groove forming part of the conventionally used mold. . Therefore, the cost of mold manufacture can be reduced.

  The air conditioning register of the present invention includes a retainer, a damper plate, a knob, and a link mechanism. The retainer is a cylindrical member that forms a blowout opening and an air flow path, and a conventionally used one can be used as it is. The cross-sectional shape is not particularly limited, such as a polygon, a circle, or an ellipse. The side opposite to the outlet opening of the retainer is connected to the air outlet of the air conditioner.

  The retainer is generally provided with a plurality of vertical fins and a plurality of horizontal fins so as to be able to swing, and the structure thereof can be the same as that of the conventional one and is not particularly limited.

  The damper plate is a member that is pivotally supported in the retainer to open and close the air flow path, and has a shape corresponding to the cross-sectional shape of the air flow path of the retainer. Further, the knob is rotatably provided in the vicinity of, for example, the blowout opening of the retainer.

  The link mechanism includes at least a first gear and a second gear that mesh with each other. The first gear or the second gear may be formed integrally with the pivot shaft of the knob or the damper plate, respectively, but in this case, the rotation direction of the knob and the swinging direction of the damper plate are reversed. Absent. Therefore, it is desirable to use an odd number of gears.

  At least one of the gears constituting the link mechanism is formed to be elastically deformable in the radial direction. To do this, at least one of the gears may be formed in a hollow frame shape. The gear formed to be elastically deformable may be the first gear or the second gear, or may be another gear. In the case where the link mechanism is constituted by a plurality of three or more gears, there is no restriction on the order or position as long as the first gear and the second gear are two gears meshing with each other.

  The depths of the first and second small tooth grooves may be shallower than the normal tooth groove, but preferably 30 to 50% of the normal tooth groove. If the depth of the first small tooth groove portion and the second small tooth groove portion is out of this range, the load may be too low and the feeling of moderation may be insufficient, or the load may be too high and the operability may deteriorate.

  Even if the first small tooth gap portion is not formed and instead the tooth height of the intermediate tooth portion between the pair of second small tooth groove portions is made higher than the normal tooth height, the same effect as the present invention can be obtained. Played. However, in this case, since the intermediate tooth portion protrudes outward from the other tooth portions, there is a risk of breakage or wear. Further, since it may be difficult to design the tooth portion that meshes with the intermediate tooth portion, it is desirable to form the first small tooth groove portion as in the present invention.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be specifically described with reference to Examples and Comparative Examples.

(Example)
FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of the register of this embodiment. This register is an automobile register, and basically has the same configuration as a conventional register, and is entirely made of resin. This register includes a cylindrical retainer 1 having an air flow path and a blow-off opening 10, a damper plate 2 that is swingably disposed in the retainer 1, a knob 3 for swinging the damper plate 2, and a knob. 3 is mainly composed of an intermediate gear 4 and a shut gear 5 that convert the rotation of the shaft 3 into the swing of the damper plate 2.

  The damper plate 2 is formed in a plate shape and has a swing shaft 20 at the center. The swing shaft 20 is pivotally supported on the upper and lower walls of the retainer 1. Further, a sponge body 21 is held on the peripheral end surface of the damper plate 2 for elastically contacting and sealing the wall surface of the retainer 1.

  A bezel 11 that forms a blowout opening 10 is fixed to the front end opening of the retainer 1. A plurality of horizontal wind direction deflecting plates 12 parallel to each other and a vertical wind direction deflecting plate (not shown) are swingably provided at the tip opening and in the back thereof, and the angle with respect to the retainer 1 is varied by operating the adjustment knob 13. The air blowing direction can be varied.

  A knob 3 is pivotally supported in the vicinity of the blowout opening 10 on the bottom rear surface of the retainer 1. The knob 3 can be operated by protruding partly forward from a knob opening 14 formed in the bezel 11, and a knob gear 30 is formed at the rear part of the knob 3.

  An intermediate gear 4 is pivotally supported on the rear surface of the bottom of the retainer 1, and the intermediate gear 4 meshes with the knob gear 30. As shown in an enlarged view in FIG. 2, the intermediate gear 4 includes an outer peripheral tooth portion 40, an inner hub 41, and four bent spokes 42 that connect the outer peripheral tooth portion 40 and the inner hub 41. Since the bent spoke 42 is elastically deformable, the outer peripheral tooth portion 40 is elastically deformable in the radial direction. In one tooth groove of the outer peripheral tooth portion 40 of the intermediate gear 4, a shallow first small tooth groove portion 43 is formed at a depth of 40% of a normal tooth groove.

  The swing shaft 20 at the lower part of the damper plate 2 passes through the bottom wall of the retainer 1 and protrudes toward the bottom rear side of the retainer 1, and a fan-shaped shut gear 5 is fixed to the protruding end. The shut gear 5 is formed with an engagement hole 50 having a flat portion, and is engaged with an engagement portion 22 having a flat portion formed at the tip of the swing shaft 20. That is, the shut gear 5 rotates as the damper plate 2 swings. The shut gear 5 meshes with the intermediate gear 4. Further, as shown in an enlarged view in FIG. 3, in the pair of adjacent tooth spaces of the shut gear 5, second small tooth spaces 51 and 52 that are shallow at a depth of 40% of the normal tooth spaces are formed.

  When the knob 3 protruding from the knob opening 14 is rotated in one direction, the intermediate gear 4 is rotated in the opposite direction, the shut gear 5 is rotated in the same direction as the knob 3, and the damper plate 2 is turned into the knob. 3 swings in the same direction as the rotation of 3. That is, the knob 3, the intermediate gear 4, and the shut gear 5 constitute a link mechanism.

  In the air-conditioning register of the present embodiment formed as described above, when the blowout of the wind from the blowout opening 10 is stopped, the knob 3 protruding from the knob opening 14 is rotated in one direction. Then, immediately before the damper plate 2 closes the air flow path of the retainer 1, one leading tooth portion 44 adjacent to the first small tooth groove portion 43 of the intermediate gear 4 is engaged with the second small tooth groove portion 52 as shown in FIG. Accordingly, the intermediate gear 4 is elastically deformed in the radial direction. As a result, the load is perceived by the operator via the knob 3.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 5, one intermediate tooth portion 53 sandwiched between the second small tooth groove portions 51 and 52 of the shut gear 5 engages with the first small tooth groove portion 43 of the intermediate gear 4, and Elastic deformation continues. Further, as shown in FIG. 6, the other trailing tooth portion 45 adjacent to the first small tooth groove portion 43 of the intermediate gear 4 engages with the second small tooth groove portion 51, and the elastic deformation of the intermediate gear 4 further continues. . Thereafter, the engagement between the trailing tooth portion 45 and the second small tooth groove portion 51 is released, so that the elastic deformation of the intermediate gear 4 is released, and the operator perceives the release of the load via the knob 3. The At this time, the positions of the tooth portions and the small tooth groove portions are set so that the damper plate 2 fully closes the air flow path.

  For the resistor of this example, the load acting on the knob 3 was measured while the damper plate 2 was in the fully closed state from the state in which the air flow path was opened. That is, a nail was fixed to the operation surface of the knob 3, and the load when the knob 3 was rotated in one direction (shut direction) was measured. The results are shown in FIG.

(Comparative example)
A register having the same configuration as in Example 1 except that the shallow first small groove portion 43 was not formed in the outer peripheral tooth portion 40 of the intermediate gear 4 was used as a comparative example, and the results of measuring the load in the same manner as in the example were obtained. As shown in FIG.

<Evaluation>
As is clear from FIG. 7, two peaks are recognized in the register of the comparative example, and the sense of moderation due to the generation and release of the load is perceived twice. However, according to the register of the embodiment, since there is one mountain, the moderation feeling due to the generation and release of the load is perceived only once and is excellent in operability.

  Further, as can be seen from FIG. 7, in the register of the embodiment, the rotation width of the knob 3 from the mountain climbing to the mountain descending is wide. In the mountain range, the gears do not stop due to the elastic reaction force of the intermediate gear 4 that is continuously generated. Therefore, the damper plate can be prevented from standing still in a wide range of swinging angles, so that it is possible to prevent the generation of whistle-like noise.

  Further, in the mold for forming the first small tooth groove portion 43 and the second small tooth groove portion 51, 52, it is only necessary to cut the tip of the tooth groove forming portion of the conventionally used die. Therefore, since it is not necessary to manufacture a new mold, the cost of manufacturing the mold can be reduced.

It is a disassembled perspective view of the air-conditioning register | resistor which concerns on one Example of this invention. It is a top view of the intermediate gear used for the register for air conditioning concerning one example of the present invention. It is a top view of the shut gear used for the air-conditioning register | resistor which concerns on one Example of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the meshing state of the intermediate | middle gear and shut gear in the air-conditioning register | resistor which concerns on one Example of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the meshing state of the intermediate | middle gear and shut gear in the air-conditioning register | resistor which concerns on one Example of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the meshing state of the intermediate | middle gear and shut gear in the air-conditioning register | resistor which concerns on one Example of this invention. It is a graph which shows the relationship between a displacement and a load.

Explanation of symbols

1: Retainer 2: Damper plate 3: Knob 4: Intermediate gear 5: Shut gear 11: Bezel
20: Oscillating shaft 30: Knob gear 42: Bent spoke
43: First small tooth gap 44: Leading tooth 45: Trailing tooth
51: Second small groove portion 52: Second small groove portion 53: Intermediate tooth portion

Claims (2)

A cylindrical retainer that forms a blow-off opening and an air flow path, a damper plate that is pivotally supported in the retainer, and a knob that is pivotally provided in the retainer, and at least a first that meshes with each other. A link mechanism including a gear and a second gear, and the rotation of the knob is converted into the swing of the damper plate by the link mechanism, whereby the damper plate swings to open and close the air flow path. An air conditioning register,
At least one of the gears constituting the link mechanism is formed to be elastically deformable in the radial direction,
A first small groove portion shallower than a normal tooth groove is formed in one tooth groove of the first gear,
A pair of adjacent tooth spaces of the second gear is formed with second small tooth spaces shallower than normal tooth spaces,
When the first gear and the second gear mesh with each other when the damper plate is at least fully closed, one leading tooth portion adjacent to the first small tooth groove portion of the first gear becomes the second small tooth groove portion. An intermediate tooth portion between the pair of second small tooth groove portions of the second gear meshes with the first small tooth groove portion, and further adjacent to the first small tooth groove portion of the first gear. An air-conditioning register, wherein the other trailing tooth portion meshes with the second small tooth groove portion.   The air conditioning register according to claim 1, wherein a tooth groove of the first small tooth groove portion is shallower than a tooth groove of the second small tooth groove portion.

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