JP4760396B2 - Rigid suspension system for motorized vehicles - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a rigid suspension device for a motor-equipped vehicle configured by connecting a wheel driving motor and an axle member.

  Electric motors that use electric motors as wheel drive power and hybrid cars that use a combination of electric motors and other power sources as power (both motorized vehicles) are located near the left and right wheels respectively. Thus, there is a structure in which the left and right wheels are driven by the outputs of the left and right electric motors, respectively. A vehicle using an in-wheel motor has a typical structure.

  By the way, in the case of an electric vehicle or a hybrid vehicle, an example of a suspension device having a structure in which right and left motors and wheels are connected by a rigid body is known because of the advantage that the structure is simple.

Many rigid suspension devices have a disk-shaped axle plate (axle plate member) attached to the end of an axle tube extending in the vehicle width direction as disclosed in Patent Document 1, and the axle plate is electrically driven. A structure is used in which the motor is connected to the center of the end that faces inward in the vehicle width direction.
JP 2005-289324 A

  By the way, the right and left electric motors are required to have a structure that takes into account the water, soil, stones, and the like that the wheels spring up because of the arrangement near the wheels.

  For this reason, the electric motor uses a hermetic housing composed of a motor housing having an opening for carrying in an internal device at one end and a cover for closing the opening of the motor housing, and the motor element is provided inside the motor housing. The structure which accommodates the various apparatuses containing a part and protrudes a drive shaft from the other end part of the motor housing is used. In other words, the motor element portion and related devices are protected from water, dirt, stones and the like by the housing structure.

  In the case of such an electric motor, the rigid suspension device normally connects the end of the axle tube to the center of the end of the electric motor facing inward in the vehicle width direction, that is, as disclosed in Patent Document 1. .

  With such a connection, an input from the wheel and a reaction force from an elastic member (such as a coil spring) interposed between the axle tube and the vehicle body are input to the cover of the housing structure.

  By the way, since the cover is a plate-shaped part that is attached to a part of the motor housing, it is structurally susceptible to the load input to the cover, and the sealing performance between the motor housing and the cover is applied from the cover ( The load tends to be damaged by the load. In particular, since electric parts such as a stator and a rotor, and electronic parts attached to the electric motor are housed inside the electric motor, the seal is damaged, and when water enters the inside, the influence is great.

  Therefore, in the structure in which the axle tube is connected to the center of the end of the electric motor, it is required to separately provide a seal structure in consideration of input to the cover between the motor housing and the cover. However, this becomes a problem that increases the complexity and cost of the electric motor, and cannot be easily improved.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a rigid suspension device for a motor-equipped vehicle in which an axle member and an electric motor are connected without directly affecting the seal between the motor housing and the cover.

  In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 employs a structure in which each end of the axle member is connected to the motor housing without touching the cover, and the load applied to the axle member is the cover. Instead, it was input to the motor housing.

  In addition to the above object, the invention described in claim 1 has a simpler structure so that it can be connected to the motor housing without touching the cover, and further, the inspection and function confirmation of the electric motor alone can be performed quickly. The connecting portion attaches to the end of the axle member an axle plate member whose outer peripheral end overlaps only the end surface of the motor housing on the outer peripheral side from the outer peripheral end of the cover, and the outer peripheral end of the axle plate member that overlaps the motor housing Is configured to be detachably fastened to the end face of the motor housing by a fastening member.

  In addition to the above-described object, the invention according to claim 2 employs a member that overlaps with the outermost end surface portion of the motor housing as the axle plate member so that the support rigidity with the electric motor is further secured. The axle member end is fastened to the end surface of the motor housing with the maximum span that provides high support strength.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, since the load applied to the axle member is input not only to the cover but only to the motor housing having higher rigidity than the cover, the motor housing that causes the input to be applied to the cover, The deterioration of the sealing performance between the covers is suppressed.

  Therefore, a rigid suspension device that does not directly affect the seal between the motor housing and the cover can be provided.

  Further, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the end of the axle member can be connected to the motor housing without touching the cover with a simple structure using the axle plate member. In particular, since the electric motor can be removed from the axle plate member, it is possible to perform an inspection or a function confirmation test independently, and it is excellent in terms of maintainability.

  According to the invention of claim 2, the axle plate member is further fastened to the end surface of the motor housing with the maximum span, and is fastened to the peripheral wall of the motor housing where the highest rigidity is desired. It can be fastened to the electric motor with sufficient support strength and rigidity.

[First Embodiment]
The present invention will be described below based on the first embodiment shown in FIGS.

  FIG. 1 shows the appearance of a rigid suspension device that suspends a rear wheel (drive wheel) of a motor-equipped vehicle, for example, an electric vehicle. In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes an axle tube (corresponding to the axle member of the present application) disposed at the lower part of a vehicle body (not shown). The axle tube 1 is composed of, for example, a rigid tube extending along the vehicle width direction. At both ends of the axle tube 1, there are provided a buffer member and a buffer component for buffering shock and vibration transmitted to the vehicle body (not shown), for example, a pair of coil springs 2 and a pair of shock absorbers 3. A pair of in-wheel motors 5 (corresponding to the electric motor for driving the wheel of the present application) are fastened to both ends of the axle tube 1.

  A cross-sectional view of the in-wheel motor 5 is shown in FIG. 2, and the appearance of the in-wheel motor 5 is shown in FIG. The left and right in-wheel motors 5 are the same, and one of them will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3. Reference numeral 10 in the figure denotes a metal hermetic housing. The housing 10 is, for example, a bottomed cylindrical motor housing 12 whose one end is covered by an end wall 11 and the other end is open, and a plate shape that closes an opening 13 for carrying in an internal device formed by the opening. Cover 14. The cover 14 fits with a fitting seat 12b formed on the peripheral wall 12a of the motor housing 12 to close the opening 13, and is fixed to the peripheral wall 12a of the motor housing 12 with a fastener (bolt or the like) not shown. It is attached with the structure to do. Of course, the fitted cover 14 and the peripheral wall 12a are sealed with a seal member (not shown) interposed therebetween. Various devices including a motor element portion, for example, a stator 15 and a rotor 16 (both devices constituting the motor element portion) and a speed reduction portion 17 (a reduction gear mechanism or the like) are housed in the hermetic housing 10. The speed reduction unit 17 is assembled to the rotor shaft 16 a of the rotor 16. As a result, when the stator 15 is excited, the rotor 16 rotates, and this rotation is decelerated by the speed reduction unit 17 and is output from the output shaft 18 (only part of which is shown in FIG. 2). ing. The output shaft 18 of the speed reduction portion 17 protrudes outside through the central portion of the end wall 11 (only a part is shown). A wheel mounting portion 19 is attached to the distal end portion of the output shaft 18. Further, a braking unit 20 (equipment incorporating a brake shoe or the like) that applies a braking force to the output shaft 18 is attached to the end wall 11. Of the in-wheel 5 assembled with these various devices, the end on the cover 14 side (one end of the present application) is connected to the end of the axle tube 1 and the output on the opposite end (the other end). The shaft 18 is arranged outside in the vehicle width direction. A rear wheel 22 (wheel: shown by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 1) is assembled to the wheel mounting portion 19, and the rear wheel 22 is driven by a driving force (rotational force) output from the in-hole motor 5. Or a braking force is applied from the braking unit 20 to the rear wheel 22. Reference numerals 23 and 24 denote upper rods and lower rods arranged at the upper and lower portions of the motor housing 12 for supporting the end of the axle tube 1 so as to be movable in the vertical direction with respect to the vehicle body (not shown).

  Thus, a rigid suspension of a type in which the left and right rear wheels 21 are suspended by the rigid axle tube 1 is configured.

  In this suspension device, each end portion of the axle tube 1 is connected to the end portion of the motor housing 12 (the end portion having the cover 14 side) without touching the cover 14 by the connecting portion 35 as shown in FIGS. : One end part). A disc-shaped axle plate 30 is attached to each end portion of the axle tube 1 in the connecting portion 35, and only the outer peripheral end portion of the axle plate 30 that extends radially extends from the outer peripheral end of the cover 14 to the outer peripheral side. A structure is used in which the end face of the motor housing is positioned so as to overlap and be fixed. Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the peripheral wall 12a of the motor housing 12 is extended outward (in the end face direction) from the point of the cover 14 (closed state). The axle plate 30 is sized to reach the outermost periphery of the motor housing 12. Further, the plate portion from the center portion to the outer peripheral end portion of the axle plate 30 has a shape portion for projecting the outer peripheral end portion in the forward direction (motor side), for example, a step portion 31 concentrically. It is formed along. In the step portion 31, only the outer peripheral end portion of the axle plate 30 is overlapped with the end of the peripheral wall 12 a forming the outermost end surface portion of the motor housing 12. Of course, the axle plate 30 is not limited to the structure forming the stepped portion 31, but other structures, for example, the axle plate 30 itself is formed in a cone shape, and only the outer peripheral end overlaps the outermost peripheral end of the motor housing 12. You may do it. For fixing the axle plate 30, as shown in FIG. 3, for example, fixing seat surface portions 32 are formed at a plurality of locations on the outermost peripheral end of the axle plate 30, and the end surface portion of the peripheral wall 12 a faces the seat surface portion 32. In addition, a structure is used in which a receiving seat 33 formed by, for example, a boss portion is formed, the seat surface portion 32 is received by the receiving seat 33 and fastened by a fastening member, for example, a bolt member 34. Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the outermost peripheral portion of the axle plate 30 is configured such that the bolt member 34 is screwed from the seat surface portion 32 to the receiving seat 33 and the seat surface portion 32 is fastened to the motor housing 12. Thus, it is fixed to the peripheral wall 12a having high rigidity so as to be detachable.

  According to the rigid suspension device configured as described above, the load input from the rear wheel 22 or the coil spring 2 during the traveling of the vehicle is coupled to the end surface portion of the motor housing 12 in which the end of the axle tube is removed from the cover 14. Thus, both are input to the motor housing 12 having higher rigidity and strength than the cover 14.

  As a result, there is no direct input to the cover 14 from the rear wheel 22 or the coil spring 2 so that the load is concentrated, and between the motor housing 12 and the cover 14 due to the input being applied to the cover 14. The deterioration of the sealing performance is prevented.

  Therefore, it is possible to obtain a rigid suspension device in which the input load does not affect the seal of the in-wheel motor 5, and the in-wheel motor 5 does not have to be excessively burdened. Moreover, the structure for obtaining the same effect is simple because only the outermost peripheral end portion of the axle plate 30 is overlapped and fixed to the end surface of the motor housing 12. In addition, since the in-wheel motor 5 can be detached from the axle plate 30 by itself when the fastening of the bolt member 34 is released, the in-wheel motor 5 can be subjected to an inspection or a function confirmation test by itself if necessary. The in-wheel motor 5 can be easily maintained. In particular, when the outermost peripheral end portion of the axle plate 30 is connected to the outermost end surface portion of the motor housing 12, the peripheral wall not only is fastened to the end surface of the motor housing 12 with the maximum span but also the highest rigidity can be expected. Since it is fastened to 12a, it can be connected to the in-wheel motor 5 while ensuring sufficient support strength and rigidity, and a structure that can sufficiently withstand the input load can be realized.

[Second Embodiment]
FIG. 4 shows a second embodiment of the present invention.

  In the present embodiment, a disk-shaped reinforcement member 40 is provided on the inner surface of the axle plate 30 to increase the coupling rigidity between the axle tube 1 and the axle plate 30. Specifically, the axle plate 30 attached to the outer periphery of the end portion of the axle tube 1 has a shape in which only the outer peripheral end portion protrudes toward the motor side, for example, a trumpet shape, while having high rigidity and strength. The reinforcement member 40 is a member having a shape that fits in the space on the tip side of the wrapper portion, for example, a disk-shaped plate member. The reinforcement member 40 has a central portion attached to the end of the axle tube 1 penetrating the axle plate 30 (for example, by welding), and an outer peripheral end portion attached to the inner surface of the axle plate 30 (for example, by welding). It is made to install in the point of the inner surface side which does not touch the cover 14.

  With such a structure, due to the structure in which only the outer peripheral end portion is attached to the motor housing 12, the coupling rigidity between the axle tube 1 and the axle plate 30, which tends to be unstable, is such that the conical portion 42 of the axle plate 30 and the reinforcement force. A closed space having a triangular cross section is formed around the end of the axle tube by the coupling with the member 40, which is remarkably enhanced. At the same time, the strength of the axle plate 30 itself, that is, sufficient strength to withstand the bending moment when the input is applied from the rear wheel or the coil spring can be ensured.

  However, in FIG. 4, the same parts as those in the first embodiment described above are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted.

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the tube member is used as the axle member. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and a structure using a beam member may be used. Moreover, in embodiment mentioned above, although the in-wheel motor was used for the electric motor, not only this but another electric motor may be sufficient. In the above-described embodiment, an electric vehicle has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a hybrid vehicle in which, for example, an electric motor and an engine are combined may be used. Of course, the present invention may be applied not to the rear wheel of the vehicle but to a suspension device that supports the front wheel.

1 is a perspective view showing an overall configuration of a rigid suspension device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. Sectional drawing which shows the connection structure of the electric motor and axle tube end in FIG. The perspective view which decomposed | disassembled the connection structure. Sectional drawing which shows the principal part of the 2nd Embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Axle tube (axle member), 5 ... In-wheel motor (electric motor), 12 ... Motor housing, 13 ... Opening, 14 ... Cover, 15, 16 ... Stator, motor (motor element part), 30 ... Axle plate ( Axle plate member), 34 ... bolt member (fastening member), 35 ... connecting portion, 40 ... reinforcement member.

Claims (2)

A motor housing (12) having an opening for carrying in an internal device at one end, a motor element portion housed therein, and a drive shaft disposed at the other end, and a cover for closing the opening of the motor housing (12) ( 14) an electric motor for driving a wheel,
An axle member (1) extending along the vehicle width direction;
Each end of the axle member (1) has a connecting portion (35) for connecting one end of the motor housing (12) without touching the cover (14) ,
Further, the connecting portion (35) is attached to the end portion of the axle member (1), and the outer peripheral end portion is only the end surface of the motor housing (12) on the outer peripheral side from the outer peripheral end of the cover (14). An overlapping axle plate member (30); and a fastening member (34) for removably fastening the outer peripheral end of the overlapping axle plate member (30) to the end surface of the motor housing (12). A rigid suspension device for a motor-equipped vehicle. The rigid suspension device for a motor-equipped vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein the axle plate member (30) has a shape overlapping with an outermost end surface portion of the motor housing (12) .

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