JP4965474B2 - Damper device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a damper device that suppresses a closing speed when a toilet seat or a toilet lid is closed with respect to a toilet body, for example.

  Conventionally, there is a damper device shown in FIGS. 10 (a) and 10 (b). The damper device is filled in the case 12, the shaft 13 rotatably accommodated in the case 12, the valve body 15 provided between the inner surface of the case 12 and the shaft 13, and the inside of the case 12. And a viscous fluid. The shaft 13 has a pair of blade portions 13 a and 13 b that protrude toward the inner surface of the case 12. Substantially V-shaped grooves 13c and 13c are formed at the tips of the blade portions 13a and 13b. The valve body 15 is provided with substantially V-shaped protrusions 15a, 15a. The protrusions 15a and 15a of the valve body enter the grooves 13c and 13c of the blade portion. The protrusions 15a and 15a of the valve body are set so as to be slightly movable in the circumferential direction (rotation direction) of the shaft in the grooves 13c and 13c of the blade portion. A concave portion 15c is provided on one inclined surface 15b of the protrusion 15a of the valve body 15 (no concave portion is provided on the opposite inclined surface 15b ').

As shown in FIG. 10A, when the shaft 13 rotates clockwise (B direction) with respect to the case 12, the inclined surface 15b ′ of the valve body 15 and the inclined surface 13d ′ of the groove 13c come into contact with each other. Since the inclined surface 15b ′ is not provided with a recess, a flow path through which the viscous fluid can freely pass is not formed between the first chamber A and the second chamber B. Therefore, in the viscous fluid, a minute gap between the support portion 12a that supports the shaft formed on the inner surface of the case 12 and the shaft 13 becomes an orifice, and a braking function is exhibited.
On the contrary, as shown in FIG. 10B, when the shaft 13 rotates counterclockwise (A direction) with respect to the case 12, the inclined surface 15b of the valve body 15 and the inclined surface 13d of the groove 13c come into contact with each other. To do. At this time, since the recess 15c is provided in the inclined surface 15b of the valve body, a flow path for allowing the viscous fluid to freely pass is formed between the first chamber A and the second chamber B. The Therefore, when the shaft 13 rotates counterclockwise (A direction) with respect to the case 12, the braking function is not exhibited.

When such a damper device is used in, for example, a Western-style toilet, the case 2 is fixed to either the toilet body or the toilet seat (toilet lid), and the shaft 13 is fixed to the other. When the toilet seat (toilet lid) is opened, the toilet seat (toilet lid) is not braked because the state shown in FIG.
Conversely, when the toilet seat (toilet lid) is closed, the state shown in FIG. 10 (a) is reached and the toilet seat (toilet lid) is braked. At this time, since the toilet seat (toilet lid) can be closed slowly, it is possible to prevent the toilet seat (toilet lid) from colliding with the toilet body and generating a large collision sound.

  However, when the toilet seat (toilet lid) is opened (see FIG. 10B), when the shaft 13 rotates with respect to the case 12, the valve body 15 moves away from the center of the shaft 13 by the inclined surface 13d and the inclined surface 15b. Move in the direction toward the inner surface of the case. Thereby, a case inner surface and a valve body contact with a strong force. When this force opens the toilet seat (toilet lid), it acts as a force that prevents the toilet seat from being opened, so there is a problem that the toilet seat (toilet lid) cannot be opened with a small force.

JP 2000-120748 A

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a damper device that can be opened with a small force when a second member (for example, a toilet seat, a toilet lid, etc.) is opened with respect to a first member (for example, a toilet body). It is to provide.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems. According to claim 1 of the present invention, a case, a shaft entering the case, a viscous fluid filled in the case, A valve body provided between an inner surface and the shaft, and a damper device supported by the shaft so that the valve body can move relative to the shaft by a predetermined angle in the circumferential direction of the shaft. a is, when rotated relative to the shaft in one direction relative to the case, the valve body is then moved relatively in the other direction to the direction toward the inner surface of the case with respect to the axis in the damper device to be guided, when rotated relative to the shaft in the other direction with respect to the case, the valve body is provided on the shaft to move relative to the one direction relative to the axis By touching the guide surface, it moves in the direction toward the center of the shaft. Characterized in that it.

  According to the present invention, when the shaft is rotated in the other direction, the valve body moves relative to the shaft in one direction and is biased or guided in the direction toward the center of the shaft. Resistance due to contact between the inner surface and the valve body can be reduced or eliminated, and the second member can be opened with a small force with respect to the first member.

The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.
In this embodiment, the damper device 1 of the present invention is incorporated in a Western-style toilet. The Western-style toilet includes a toilet body 10, a toilet seat 20 that can rotate on the toilet body, and a toilet lid 30 that can also rotate on the toilet body. The damper device 1 has a function as a hinge for rotatably supporting the toilet body 10 and the toilet seat 20 and the toilet body 10 and the toilet lid 30. Moreover, when closing a toilet lid and a toilet seat with respect to a toilet bowl main body, it has a function which brakes a toilet lid and a toilet seat and closes slowly. Conversely, when opening the toilet lid and toilet seat relative to the toilet body, the toilet lid and toilet seat are not braked.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the toilet body 10 is provided with a pair of attachment cylinders 10 a and 10 a for attaching the toilet seat 20 and the toilet lid 30. The toilet seat 20 and the toilet lid 30 are also provided with a pair of attachment cylinders 20a, 20a, 30a, 30a, respectively.
As shown in FIG. 2A (DD sectional view of FIG. 1), one mounting cylinder 10a on the toilet body side and the toilet seat mounting cylinder 20a are arranged side by side, and the toilet seat mounting cylinder 20a and the toilet lid 30 are disposed. Mounting cylinders 30a are arranged side by side. The damper device 1 is disposed between the one mounting cylinder 10a and the toilet seat mounting cylinder 20a. Details of the damper device 1 will be described later. A shaft 30b and a bearing hole 20b are provided in the mounting cylinder 20a of the toilet seat and the mounting cylinder 30a of the toilet lid 30 so as to be relatively rotatable.

As shown in FIG. 2B (the EE cross-sectional view of FIG. 1), an attachment cylinder 30a of the toilet lid 30 is arranged side by side on the other attachment cylinder 10a, and an attachment cylinder of the toilet seat 20 is arranged on the attachment cylinder 30a. 20a are arranged side by side. The damper device 1 is disposed between the mounting cylinder 10a and the mounting cylinder 30a. The toilet lid mounting cylinder 30a and the toilet seat mounting cylinder 20a are respectively provided with a shaft 30b and a bearing hole 20b so as to rotate relatively.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the damper device 1 includes a case 2, a shaft 3, a valve body 5, and a viscous fluid filled in the case.

As shown in FIG. 4, the case 2 includes a cylindrical portion 2a, a pair of partition portions 2c and 2c provided on the inner surface of the cylindrical portion, and a lid portion 2f. One end of the cylindrical portion 2a is open and the other end is closed. An anti-rotation portion 2b is provided at the other end (closed side) of the cylindrical portion 2a. By fixing the detent portion 2b to the attachment portion 20a, the cylindrical portion 2a is prevented from rotating relative to the attachment portion 20a (see FIG. 2A).
A stepped portion 2e is provided at one end (the open side) of the cylindrical portion 2a. By fitting the small diameter portions of the stepped portion 2e and the lid portion 2f, the opening of the cylindrical portion 2a is closed by the lid portion 2f as shown in FIG. 3 (see FIG. 3).

  As shown in FIG. 4, the shaft 3 includes a cylindrical base 3a, a first leg 3A and a second leg 3B projecting from the base 3a, and a protrusion 3e projecting from one end of the base 3a. ing. A trough is formed by a pair of short protrusions 3c, 3c (second protrusion) and a long protrusion 3b (first protrusion) at the distal ends of the first leg 3A and the second leg 3B. is doing. The protrusion 3e is provided with an anti-rotation portion 3f, and the anti-rotation portion 3f is fixed to the one mounting cylinder 10a so as not to rotate (see FIG. 2A). The base 3a, the first leg 3A, the second leg 3B, and the protrusion 3e are integrally formed.

As shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the cylindrical portion 2a of the case is attached to the bearing portion provided at the other end of the base portion 3a so that the shaft 3 can smoothly rotate with respect to the case 2. A support portion 2g provided on the bottom surface is rotatably fitted. An O-ring 6 is attached to the outer peripheral surface of the protrusion 3e. The O-ring 6 is pressed against the lid portion 2f so that the viscous fluid filled in the case does not leak to the outside.

The first leg 3A is provided symmetrically and 180 ° apart from the second leg 3B (see FIG. 4). Here, the configuration of the first leg 3A will be described.
A first protrusion 3b and a second protrusion 3c are provided at the tip of the first leg 3A so as to be along the rotation axis of the shaft 3. The first protrusion 3b has the same length as the base 3a. A pair of second protrusions 3c and 3c are provided so as to be aligned in the longitudinal direction of the base portion 3a (the direction along the rotation axis of the shaft portion 3). A gap 3d is provided between the pair of second protrusions 3c and 3c.
As shown in FIG. 7, the first protrusion 3b has a first guide surface 3h facing the inner surface of the case 2 (on the center O of the shaft 3 and the first guide surface 3h as shown in FIG. 7). A surface facing the inner surface side of the case from the line connecting the dots). The second protrusions 3c and 3c are provided with a third guide surface 3g facing the center side of the shaft 3 (as shown in FIG. 8, the center O of the shaft 3 and a point on the third guide surface 3g. A surface that faces the center side of the shaft from the connected line) is provided.

One of the valve bodies 5 and 5 is provided between the inner surface of the case 2 and the first protrusion 3A, and one is provided between the inner surface of the case 2 and the second protrusion 3B.
As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the valve body 5 includes a first protrusion 3b, a protrusion 5b that is loosely fitted to the second protrusion 3c, and an arc portion 5a that protrudes from the end of the protrusion 5b. A second inclined surface 5c and a fourth inclined surface 5d are provided on both sides of the protrusion 5b. In addition, the circular arc part 5a and the protrusion part 5b are formed integrally.

The operation of the damper device will be described with reference to FIGS.
When the toilet lid 20 is rotated in the 0 direction to close the toilet body 10, the shaft 3 rotates in the B direction in the figure with respect to the case 2 as shown in FIG. 7. In this case, the shaft 3 and the valve body 5 rotate integrally with the first guide surface 3h of the shaft 3 and the second guide surface 5c of the valve body 5 in contact with each other.
At this time, the chamber B filled with the viscous fluid has a high pressure, and the chamber C similarly filled with the viscous fluid has a low pressure. As a result, the viscous fluid tends to flow in the direction E (the direction from the chamber B to the chamber C) in FIG. 7, and the resistance by the viscous fluid and the both guide surfaces (the first guide surface 3h and the second guide surface 5c). The valve body 5 is pressed against the inner surface of the case 2. The first guide surface 3h and the second guide surface 5c constitute a guide portion that converts the force that the viscous fluid acts on the valve body and guides the valve body in the direction toward the inner surface of the case. The arc portion 5a of the valve body 5 is in close contact with the inner surface of the case 2 so that viscous fluid does not flow. At this time, the minute gap between the outer periphery of the shaft base 3a and the partition walls 2c and 2c of the case serves as an orifice.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 7, the viscous fluid causes a force F to act on the valve body 5. This force is divided into a component force F1 (a direction perpendicular to the first guide surface 3h) and a component force F2 (a direction along the first guide surface 3h) by the first guide surface 3h and the second guide guide surface 5c. Since this F2 acts on the valve body 5, the valve body 5 comes into close contact with the inner surface of the case 2 by the force of F3.

Next, when the toilet lid 20 is rotated in the opening direction with respect to the toilet body 10, the shaft 3 rotates in the direction A in the figure with respect to the casing 2, as shown in FIG. In this case, the shaft 3 and the valve body 5 rotate integrally with the third guide surface 3g of the shaft 3 and the fourth guide surface 5d of the valve body 5 in contact with each other.
At this time, the flow path H through which the viscous fluid passes is formed by the gap 3d and the gap formed between the guide surface 5c of the valve body and the first protrusion 3b. As a result, the viscous fluid flows freely in the G direction (direction from the chamber C toward the chamber B) in FIG. The valve body 5 is guided toward the center side of the shaft 3 by the third guide surface 3g and the fourth guide surface 5d. The third guide surface 3g and the fourth guide surface 5d constitute a guide portion that converts the force of the viscous fluid and guides the valve body in the direction toward the center O of the shaft 3.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 8A, the viscous fluid causes a force P to act on the valve body 5. This force is divided into a component force P1 (a direction perpendicular to the third guide surface 3g) and a component force P2 (a direction along the third guide surface 3g) by the third guide surface 3g and the fourth guide surface 5d. Since the force P2 acts on the valve body 5, the valve body 5 is guided toward the center of the shaft. Thereby, the contact pressure by contact with the inner surface of a case and a valve body can be eliminated. Further, a gap for allowing the viscous fluid to freely pass is formed between the valve body and the inner surface of the case. Therefore, the toilet lid 20 can be opened with a small force.
FIG. 8B is another example of the first embodiment. In the first embodiment, the valve body 5 is separated from the inner surface of the case 2 when the shaft 3 is rotated in the direction A in the figure with respect to the casing 2. However, in another example, the valve body 5 is in contact with the inner surface of the case 2 when the shaft 3 is rotated in the direction A in the figure with respect to the casing 2. Further, the valve body 5 is biased toward the center of the shaft by the third guide surface 3g and the fourth guide surface 5d. When the shaft is rotated in the other direction (direction A) by this biasing force, the valve body moves relative to the shaft in one direction and is biased in the direction toward the center of the shaft. It is possible to reduce resistance due to contact between the inner surface of the valve and the valve body. Therefore, the toilet lid 20 can be opened with a small force.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In the configuration shown in FIG. 9, the same components as those in the first embodiment (see FIGS. 7 and 8) are denoted by the same reference numerals.
The difference from the first embodiment is that when the toilet lid 20 is rotated in the opening direction with respect to the toilet body 10, the valve body 5 shafts the force of the viscous fluid toward the high pressure chamber (the chamber C in FIG. 9). 3 is provided with a guide surface 5e for guiding in a direction toward the center O. When the shaft 3 rotates in the A direction with respect to the case 2, the shaft 3 and the valve body 5 rotate integrally with the surface 3g and the surface 5d in contact with each other. A guide surface 5 e is formed on the valve body 5, and this guide surface guides the resistance of the viscous fluid in the direction toward the center of the shaft 3. Therefore, resistance due to contact between the inner surface of the case and the valve body can be eliminated, and the toilet lid 20 can be opened with a small force.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, when the toilet seat body 10 is rotated in the direction in which the toilet lid 20 is closed, the valve body 5 moves in the direction toward the center of the shaft 3. Therefore, since resistance due to contact between the inner surface of the case 2 and the valve body 5 can be eliminated, the toilet lid 20 can be opened with a small force.

It is a figure which shows embodiment of this invention and shows the toilet bowl in which the damper was integrated. It is sectional drawing which shows the state in which the damper apparatus was integrated. (A) shows DD sectional drawing of FIG. 1, (b) shows EE sectional drawing of FIG. It is a perspective view of a damper device. It is a disassembled perspective view of a damper device. It is sectional drawing of a damper apparatus, and is a figure which shows the state which has act | operated braking force. It is sectional drawing of a damper apparatus, and is a figure which shows the state which has not act | operated braking force. It is a principal part enlarged view of FIG. It is a principal part enlarged view of FIG. (A) shows a state where the valve body is separated from the inner surface of the case, (b) shows another example, and shows a state where the valve body is in contact with the inner surface of the case. It is a principal part expanded sectional view which shows other embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows the conventional damper apparatus, (a) shows the state when an axis | shaft is rotated to one direction with respect to a case, (b) is the state when an axis | shaft is rotated to the other direction with respect to a case. Indicates.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Damper apparatus 2 Case 2a Cylinder part 2b Anti-rotation part 2c Partition part 3 Axis 3A 1st leg part 3B 2nd leg part 3a Base part 3b 1st protrusion part 3c 2nd protrusion part 3d Gap 3g 3rd guide surface (1st guide) Part)
3h 1st guide surface (1st guide part)
5 Valve body 5a Arc part 5b Projection part 5c 2nd guide surface (2nd guide part)
5d 4th guide surface (2nd guide part)

Claims (1)

Case and
A shaft that fits into the case,
A viscous fluid filled in the case;
A valve body provided between the inner surface of the case and the shaft;
A damper device supported by the shaft such that the valve body is movable relative to the shaft by a predetermined angle in a circumferential direction of the shaft;
When rotated relative to the shaft in one direction relative to the case, a damper in which the valve body is guided in the direction toward the inner surface of the case to move relative to the other direction relative to the axis In the device
When rotated relative to the shaft in the other direction relative to the case, by the valve body contacts the guide surface provided on the shaft to move relative to the one direction relative to the axis The damper device moves in a direction toward the center side of the shaft .