JP5114934B2 - Steering device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a steering device, and more particularly to a telescopic mechanism that is actuated by an electric motor to adjust a vehicle front-rear direction position of a steering handle and a steering device that includes a tilt mechanism that adjusts a vehicle vertical direction position.

  The steering device is a device for steering the steered wheels based on the steering amount (rotation amount) of the steering handle. The steering device mechanically connects the steering handle and the steered wheel via a steering shaft, an intermediate shaft, a pinion gear, a rack bar, and the like, and the steering amount of the steering handle is transmitted to the steered wheel through the mechanical connection and is rotated. A steering wheel is generally used. In recent years, the steering wheel and the steered wheel are mechanically separated in principle, and the steering amount of the steering wheel is electrically detected by a sensor or the like, and the steered wheel is electric motor or the like based on the detected value. A steering system using a steering method, a so-called steer-by-wire system, has also been developed.

  Such a steering device may be provided with a tilt mechanism for adjusting the vehicle vertical direction position (tilting position) of the steering handle and a telescopic mechanism for adjusting the vehicle front-rear direction position of the steering handle. Furthermore, an electric tilt / telescopic mechanism that operates the tilt mechanism or telescopic mechanism with an electric actuator such as an electric motor may be provided.

Patent Document 1 describes a steering device that includes a tilt motor that operates a tilt mechanism and a telescopic motor that operates a telescopic mechanism, and controls both the motors individually to operate the tilt mechanism and the telescopic mechanism. ing. Patent Document 2 describes a steering device that operates a tilt mechanism and a telescopic mechanism using an electric motor used in an electric power steering device. The steering device described in Patent Document 2 employs a structure in which a tilt mechanism and a telescopic mechanism are individually operated by one electric motor by switching an output destination of the electric motor by an electromagnetic clutch. The steering device described in Patent Document 3 also describes a steering device that can individually operate a tilt mechanism and a telescopic mechanism with one electric motor by using an electromagnetic clutch.
JP 2005-31826 A JP 2001-199350 A JP 2005-247020 A

  The steering device described in Patent Document 1 uses a separate motor to operate the tilt mechanism and the telescopic mechanism, and thus has a problem of increasing costs. On the other hand, the steering devices described in Patent Documents 2 and 3 have a configuration in which the tilt mechanism and the telescopic mechanism can be individually controlled by one electric motor, so that the cost is not increased due to the number of motors. However, since the output destination of the rotational torque of the electric motor is switched by an electromagnetic clutch, the cost is increased by using an expensive electromagnetic clutch, and a control circuit for controlling the operation of the electromagnetic clutch is also required. The problem that becomes complicated.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and in a steering apparatus provided with an electric tilt / telescopic mechanism, both the tilt mechanism and the telescopic mechanism can be individually driven by one electric motor, and the tilt mechanism is provided. An object of the present invention is to provide a steering device capable of switching between a telescopic mechanism and a telescopic mechanism with a simple configuration without using expensive parts such as an electromagnetic clutch.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is characterized by a tilt mechanism that is operated by a rotational torque output from an electric motor and adjusts a vehicle vertical direction position of a steering handle, and a rotational torque output from the electric motor. A telescopic mechanism that operates to adjust a vehicle longitudinal direction position of the steering handle, and a rotating shaft that is coupled to the electric motor and rotates in response to rotational torque output from the electric motor; A tilt transmission position which is attached to the rotation shaft so as to be integrally rotatable and radially movable, and which is capable of transmitting a rotational torque output from the electric motor to the tilt mechanism by a centrifugal force generated by the rotation of the rotation shaft; / Or displaceable to a telescopic transmission position which is a position capable of transmission to the telescopic mechanism E Bei position and the member, wherein the tilt mechanism includes a tilt screws rotating connected to said rotating shaft and integrally the rotary shaft, the axis of said tilt screw screwed to the screw rod by the rotation of said tilt screw A tilt nut that moves in a direction, and the telescopic mechanism is not connected to the rotating shaft when the displacement member is at the tilt transmission position, and the displacement is when the displacement member is at the telescopic transmission position. A telescopic screw that rotates integrally with the rotary shaft by being connected to the rotary shaft via a member, and a telescopic nut that is screwed into the telescopic screw and moves in the axial direction of the telescopic screw by the rotation of the telescopic screw The tilt screw and the telescopic screw are coaxially arranged. Is characterized in that the lead of the screw rod telescopic screw leads are equal, in that the steering device.

  According to the above invention, in the steering device, the rotating shaft rotates by driving the electric motor, and the displacement member attached to the rotating shaft receives centrifugal force by the rotation of the rotating shaft. The displacement member moves in the radial direction or the direction including the radial movement component in accordance with the received centrifugal force. When the displacement member is displaced to the tilt transmission position by this movement, the rotational torque output from the electric motor is transmitted to the tilt mechanism, and the tilt operation is performed. On the other hand, when the position is displaced to the telescopic transmission position, the rotational torque output from the electric motor is transmitted to the telescopic mechanism, and the telescopic operation is performed. As described above, according to the present invention, since the displacement member is operated using the centrifugal force generated by the rotation of the electric motor, the tilt operation and the telescopic operation can be performed with a simple configuration without using expensive components such as an electromagnetic clutch. Can be switched. In the above description, the “radial direction” is a direction orthogonal to the axial direction of the rotation shaft from the rotation center of the displacement member that rotates as the rotation shaft rotates.

  The displacement member is attached to a protrusion extending in a direction orthogonal to the rotation shaft, and the protrusion is extended while rotating around the rotation shaft by a centrifugal force generated by the rotation of the rotation shaft. What can be displaced in the direction is good. In this way, the displacement member can be configured in a compact manner, and the displacement member moves along the protrusion and is displaced to the tilt transmission position or the telescopic transmission position, so that the displacement operation is stabilized.

  The displacement member may be urged in a direction toward the proximal end side of the protrusion by an elastic means. In this way, when the centrifugal force does not act on the displacement member, or when the centrifugal force is smaller than the biasing force by the elastic means and the gravity of the displacement member, the displacement member is moved toward the proximal end side of the protrusion by the biasing force. Always place. For this reason, it is possible to prevent an unintended operation from occurring due to the displacement member being inadvertently displaced when the tilt operation or the telescopic operation is not performed.

  In the above invention, when the displacement member is displaced to the tilt transmission position, the rotational torque of the electric motor is transmitted to the tilt mechanism, and when the displacement member is displaced to the telescopic transmission position, the rotational torque of the electric motor is transmitted to the telescopic mechanism. It does not matter how it is transmitted. For example, as will be described in the first embodiment to be described later, the telescopic mechanism is disposed on the outer peripheral side of the displacement member, and the displacement member is displaced radially outward to contact the telescopic mechanism, and friction generated in this contact state. A friction contact method in which rotational torque is transmitted by force (this friction force increases as the centrifugal force increases) may be used. In this case, the displacement member acts as a clutch and is directly connected to the tilt mechanism or the telescopic mechanism. Alternatively, as will be described in the second to fourth embodiments described later, the displacement member is provided with a projecting piece that can be engaged with a tilt mechanism or a telescopic mechanism, and the clutch member is displaced radially outward by centrifugal force. A rotational engagement method in which a rotational torque is transmitted by engaging a projecting piece with a tilt mechanism or telescopic mechanism from a rotational direction at a predetermined rotational position may be used. In this case, the displacement member is indirectly connected to the tilt mechanism or the telescopic mechanism via the protruding piece.

  In the above invention, the rotational torque from the electric motor can be transmitted to the tilt mechanism when the displacement member is displaced to the tilt transmission position, and the rotational torque from the electric motor when the displacement member is displaced to the telescopic transmission position. Can be transmitted to the telescopic mechanism. For example, when the displacement member is displaced to the telescopic transmission position or the tilt transmission position, the rotational torque may be transmitted to both mechanisms. For example, in the first embodiment, which will be described later, when the displacement member is displaced to the tilt transmission position, the rotational torque is transmitted only to the tilt mechanism. It is also transmitted to the tilt mechanism. In this case, both the tilt mechanism and the telescopic mechanism are operated by driving the electric motor, but the structure of both mechanisms is devised so that the relative movement of both mechanisms (the movement of the other mechanism as seen from one mechanism) can be offset. By doing so, only the telescopic operation can be performed even if both mechanisms are operating.

  Further, the steering device of the present invention is disposed between the rotating shaft and any one of the tilt mechanism and the telescopic mechanism, and the rotating torque is transmitted from the rotating shaft and the transmitted rotating torque is predetermined. It is preferable to further include an intermediate member that transmits to either the tilt mechanism or the telescopic mechanism with a time interval of. According to this, when the rotational torque from the rotating shaft is transmitted to the intermediate member, the rotational torque transmitted through the intermediate member is transmitted to one of the tilt mechanism and the telescopic mechanism. Transmits the rotational torque to the one mechanism at a predetermined time interval after the rotational torque is input from the rotating shaft. In other words, by interposing the intermediate member, between the input timing at which the rotational torque is input from the rotation shaft to the intermediate member and the output timing at which the rotational torque is output from the intermediate member to either the tilt mechanism or the telescopic mechanism. A time lag corresponding to the above time interval occurs. By using this time lag, it is possible to adjust the transmission start time to the mechanism through which the rotational torque is transmitted via the intermediate member. Note that the intermediate member may be a member to which the rotational torque from the rotational shaft is transmitted via the displacement member, or may be a member to which the rotational torque is directly transmitted from the rotational shaft. When the rotational torque is transmitted via the displacement member, the rotational torque is transmitted at a predetermined time interval to the mechanism side to be transmitted at the position where the displacement member is displaced. When the rotational torque is transmitted directly from the rotating shaft without passing through the displacement member, the rotational torque is transmitted at a predetermined time interval to the mechanism side that is transmitted without passing through the displacement member.

  In this case, the first rotating piece on the rotating shaft side that is formed on the rotating shaft and transmits the rotational torque of the rotating shaft to the intermediate member, and is formed on one of the tilt mechanism and the telescopic mechanism, and is related to the intermediate member. A second projecting piece to which rotational torque from the intermediate member is transmitted by combining, the intermediate member being arranged so as to be rotatable about the axis of the rotation shaft, An input-side projecting piece that is formed on one end side of the connecting rod portion, and that the first rotating piece on the rotating shaft side engages from the rotating direction when the first projecting piece on the rotating shaft side rotates with the rotation of the rotating shaft; An output-side protruding piece that is formed on the other end side of the connecting rod portion and engages with the second protruding piece from a rotation direction when the connecting rod rotates, and the input-side protruding piece and the rotating shaft When the first side projecting piece starts to engage, the output side projecting piece and Serial second protrusion may the one in which is urged by urging means so as to disengage.

  The displacement member side first projecting piece formed on the displacement member and the tilting mechanism or the telescopic mechanism are formed on either of the intermediate members so as to transmit rotational torque from the intermediate member. And the displacement member side first protrusion is displaced to a predetermined radial position while rotating with the rotation of the rotation shaft. The third protrusion is formed on the other one of the tilt mechanism and the telescopic mechanism. And a fourth projecting piece that can be engaged with the first projecting piece on the displacement member side from the rotation direction, and the intermediate member is disposed so as to be rotatable about the axis of the rotating shaft. And the displacement member formed on one end side of the connecting rod portion is displaced when the displacement member side first protrusion is rotated to a radial position different from the radial position while rotating as the rotation shaft rotates. Side first protrusion An input-side projecting piece that engages in the rolling direction, and an output-side projecting piece that is formed on the other end side of the connecting rod portion and engages the third projecting piece from the rotating direction when the connecting rod rotates. And when the input-side projecting piece and the displacement member-side first projecting piece start to be engaged, the output-side projecting piece and the third projecting piece are biased by a biasing means. It may be what has been done.

(First embodiment)
Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a side view of a steering apparatus 1 having an electric tilt mechanism and an electric telescopic mechanism according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a bottom view.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the steering device 1 of this embodiment includes a cylindrical column tube 110 and a steering shaft 120 disposed on the inner peripheral side of the column tube 110. As shown in the figure, end portions of the steering shaft 120 protrude from both ends of the column tube 110, and a steering handle (not shown) is coaxially connected to the end portion of the steering shaft 120 protruding rightward in the drawing. Yes. On the other hand, an intermediate shaft (not shown) is connected to the end of the steering shaft 120 protruding leftward in the figure by a joint such as a universal joint. The intermediate shaft is further connected via a pinion gear (not shown) to a rack bar (not shown) that is a turning shaft of the steered wheels. Accordingly, when the driver rotates the steering handle, the steering shaft 120 rotates, and this rotation is transmitted to the intermediate shaft. Then, the rotational drive of the intermediate shaft is converted into the axial drive of the rack bar by the pinion gear, and used for turning the steered wheels. A configuration closer to the wheel than the intermediate shaft is omitted.

  The column tube 110 is a cylindrical member that is divided into a first tube 111, a second tube 112, and a third tube 113. The first tube 111 is a cylindrical member that is disposed on the right side in the drawing of the column tube 110 and is open at both ends. A first arm portion 111 a extending downward in FIG. 1 is formed on the left side of the first tube 111. As shown in FIG. 2, the first arm portion 111 a includes two arms extending in parallel from both side surfaces of the first tube 111. A circular hole is formed in the first arm portion 111a, and a pin 111b is attached to the circular hole from the outside.

  Similarly to the first tube 111, the second tube 112 is a cylindrical member having both ends opened. A connecting portion 112c extending in a bifurcated shape (see FIG. 2) in the axial direction is formed on the right end side of the second tube 112, and the second arm portion 112a is illustrated from the axial center of the second tube 112. 1 is formed to extend downward. As shown in FIG. 2, the second arm portion 112 a is configured by two arms extending in parallel from both sides of the second tube 112. A circular hole is formed in each side of the bifurcated connecting portion 112c, and a pin 112d is attached to the circular hole from the outside. The pin 112d is fixed to the outer peripheral wall of the first tube 111. Therefore, the first tube 111 is attached to the second tube 112 in a state of being supported by both ends via the pin 112d, and can swing with respect to the second tube 112 with the pin 112d as the rotation center. Further, as shown in FIG. 1, a long hole 112e is formed in the second arm portion 112a of the second tube 112, and a pin 112b is attached to the long hole 112e from the outside.

  The third tube 113 is a cylindrical member that is disposed on the left side of the column tube 110 in FIGS. 1 and 2 and is open at both ends. A third arm portion 113a is formed in the portion of the third tube 113 on the right side in the drawing so as to extend downward in FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, the third arm portion 113 a is composed of two arms extending in parallel from both sides of the third tube 113. Further, the inner diameter of the third tube 113 is slightly larger than the outer diameter of the second tube 112, and the illustrated left side of the second tube 112 is inserted from the illustrated right end side of the third tube 113. Although not shown, a liner is attached to the outer peripheral surface of the second tube 112 on the left side of the drawing, and the second tube 112 is inserted into the third tube 113 through this liner without rattling. However, the second tube 112 can be moved in the axial direction within the third tube 113 by slidingly contacting the inner peripheral wall of the third tube 113. The third tube 113 is fixed to the vehicle body side via a support bracket or the like.

  Similarly to the column tube 110, the steering shaft 120 is also divided into three parts, and includes a first shaft 121, a second shaft 122, and a third shaft 123. The first shaft 121 is mainly inserted into the first tube 111, the second shaft 122 is mainly inserted into the second tube 112, and the third shaft 123 is mainly inserted into the third tube 113.

  The first shaft 121 is formed in a rod shape, is inserted into the first tube 111, and is supported by the first tube 111 by a bearing or the like so as to be relatively rotatable about the axis and not to be relatively movable in the axial direction. Further, the right end portion of the first shaft 121 shown in the figure protrudes from the right end opening of the first tube 111, and the steering handle is fixed so as to rotate coaxially at this protruding portion. The second shaft 122 is formed in a cylindrical shape, is inserted into the second tube 112, and is supported on the second tube 112 by a bearing or the like so as to be relatively rotatable about the axis and not to be relatively movable in the axial direction.

  The first shaft 121 and the second shaft 122 are connected by a universal joint (not shown). The universal joint is provided around the connection portion between the first tube 111 and the second tube 112, one part constituting the universal joint is connected to the first shaft 121, and the other part is connected to the second shaft 122. Has been. The first shaft 121 can swing freely with respect to the second shaft 122 around the universal joint, and the rotational drive of the first shaft 121 can be transmitted to the second shaft 122 via the universal joint. It is said that. Therefore, when the first tube 111 swings with respect to the second tube 112 around the pin 112d, the first shaft 121 also swings with respect to the second shaft 122 around the universal joint, thereby tilting. Is done.

  The third shaft 123 is disposed in the third tube 113, and is supported on the third tube 113 by a bearing or the like so as to be relatively rotatable about the axis and not to be relatively movable in the axial direction. The third shaft 123 is formed in a rod shape, and an outer peripheral spline is formed along the axial direction on the outer periphery near the second shaft 122. On the other hand, an inner peripheral spline is formed on the inner periphery of the cylindrical second shaft 122 on the side close to the third shaft 123, and is fitted to the outer peripheral spline formed on the third shaft 123. By this spline fitting, the rotational driving force of the second shaft 122 can be transmitted to the third shaft 123, and the second shaft 122 can be moved in the axial direction with respect to the third shaft 123. Accordingly, when the second tube 112 moves in the axial direction with respect to the third tube 113, the second shaft 122 also moves in the axial direction with respect to the third shaft 123 accordingly, thereby performing a telescopic operation.

  The left end of the third shaft 123 shown in the figure protrudes from the third tube 113, and a serration is formed in the protruding part, and a universal joint (not shown) is attached to this part. The universal joint is also connected to the above-described intermediate shaft, and the rotational drive of the third shaft 123 is transmitted to the intermediate shaft.

  As well shown in FIG. 2, a housing 130 is disposed between two arms constituting the third arm portion 113 a formed on the third tube 113. Further, a pin 113b is attached to the third arm portion 113a from the outside, and this pin 113b is inserted into a side surface of the housing 130 to support the housing 130 so as to be rotatable. As can be seen from FIG. 2, the electric motor 10 is attached in the vicinity of the housing 130. The electric motor 10 is driven by power supplied from a power source (not shown) to rotate the output shaft. The output shaft is coaxially connected to a worm shaft 21 described later.

  FIG. 3 is an enlarged partial cross-sectional view showing details in the vicinity of the housing 130 in FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, the housing 130 houses the worm speed reducer 20 and the connecting rod 25. The worm speed reducer 20 includes a worm shaft 21, a worm gear 22, and a worm wheel 23. The worm gear 22 is coaxially attached to the outer periphery of the worm shaft 21 that is coaxially connected to the output shaft of the electric motor 10. As shown in FIG. 2, the worm shaft 21 passes through both side surfaces of the housing 130, and is arranged so that the axial direction thereof is orthogonal to the axial direction of the third tube 113. Further, the worm wheel 23 is meshed with the worm gear 22. The connecting rod 25 is coaxially connected to the inner periphery of the worm wheel 23 so as to be integrally rotatable. Therefore, the connecting rod 25 is connected to the electric motor 10 via the worm reduction gear 20. The connecting rod 25 corresponds to the rotating shaft of the present invention.

  The internal space of the housing 130 forms three chambers such as a deceleration chamber 131, a support chamber 132, and a clutch chamber 133 in order from the left side in FIG. The right side of the clutch chamber 133 in the figure is an opening surface 133a. The speed reducer 20 is disposed in the speed reduction chamber 131. Further, the connecting rod 25 is vertically cut from the deceleration chamber 131 through the support chamber 132 to the clutch chamber 133 and protrudes rightward in the drawing from the opening surface 133a of the clutch chamber 133. The connecting rod 25 is supported by the housing 130 so as to be rotatable and immovable in the axial direction by the first bearing 134 and the second bearing 135 in the support chamber 132, and extends in a direction parallel to the axial direction of the third tube 113. . A first presser nut 136 and a second presser nut 137 are attached to a portion of the connecting rod 25 disposed in the deceleration chamber 131. The first presser nut 136 prevents the worm wheel 23 from being displaced from the connecting rod 25 in the axial direction. The second presser nut 137 prevents the connecting rod 25 from being displaced in the axial direction in the housing 130 or rattling.

  As shown in FIG. 3, a support member 26 is attached to the connecting rod 25 at a portion disposed in the clutch chamber 133 in the housing 130, and the clutch member corresponding to the displacement member of the present invention is attached to the support member 26. 140 is attached. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. 3 and shows details of the support member 26 and the clutch member 140.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the support member 26 has a rod support portion 26a and a clutch support portion 26b. The rod support portion 26a is formed in a cylindrical shape, is disposed on the outer periphery of the portion of the connecting rod 25 that is disposed in the clutch chamber 133, and is connected to the connecting rod 25 so as to be coaxially rotatable by a fixing means (not shown). The clutch support portion 26b extends in a projecting shape from two locations on the side periphery of the rod support portion 26a in a direction (radial direction) orthogonal to the axial direction of the connecting rod 25, and corresponds to the projecting portion of the present invention. In the present embodiment, two clutch support portions 26b are provided at an interval of 180 degrees in the circumferential direction of the rod support portion 26a as shown in the figure, and are attached symmetrically with respect to the axis of the connecting rod 25. . Clutch members 140 are respectively placed on the clutch support portions 26b attached in this way.

  The clutch member 140 has a bottomed cylindrical shape in which one end is opened and a hole 140b is formed in a bottom surface 140a which is an end surface opposite to the opening surface. The clutch support portion 26b is inserted from the opening side of the clutch member 140 into the clutch member 140 and extends in the axial direction to the hole 140b of the bottom surface 140a of the clutch member 140. In the state shown in the drawing, the tip end portion 26c of the clutch support portion 26b is The clutch member 140 is slightly exposed from the hole 140b. The diameter of the hole 140b is set slightly larger than the outer diameter of the clutch support portion 26b. The clutch member 140 is movable (displaceable) along the extending direction (axial direction) of the clutch support portion 26b. Therefore, the clutch member 140 can rotate integrally with the connecting rod 25 while being supported by the clutch support portion 26b, and can move in the radial direction of the connecting rod 25.

  As shown in the figure, a coil spring 141 is attached to the inner peripheral side of the clutch member 140. The coil spring 141 is arranged in such a manner that it is wound around the clutch support portion 26b. One end 141a of the coil spring 141 is fixed to the clutch support portion 26b, and the other end 141b is fixed to the clutch member 140. Generating power. Therefore, the clutch member 140 is normally urged by the urging force of the coil spring 141 in a direction from the distal end portion 26c side to the proximal end portion 26d side of the clutch support portion 26b. Further, a friction material having a large frictional force is attached to the outer surface side of the bottom surface 140a of the clutch member 140.

  As shown in FIG. 3, a telescopic screw 144 is disposed outside a portion (a right side in FIG. 3) from a portion where the support member 26 of the connecting rod 25 is attached. The telescopic screw 144 is disposed coaxially with the connecting rod 25 and in a non-contact state. The telescopic screw 144 is formed in a cylindrical shape, and the left end side thereof is supported by the third bearing 138 so as to be rotatable and non-movable in the axial direction in the clutch chamber 133 of the housing 130 as shown in FIG. Has been. In addition, the diameter of the telescopic screw 144 on the left side of the portion supported by the third bearing 138 is radially increased. From the outer peripheral end of the expanded diameter portion, the axial direction (leftward in the drawing) A cylindrical end 144a extending in a cylindrical shape is formed. As shown in FIG. 3, the axial positions of the cylindrical end portion 144a and the clutch member 140 are overlapped, and the combined structure of the support member 26 and the clutch member 140 is stored just on the inner peripheral side of the cylindrical end portion 144a. The arrangement form is adopted. A friction material having a large friction coefficient is attached to the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical end portion 144a.

  In the state shown in FIG. 3, the clutch member 140 is displaced toward the base end portion 26 d side of the clutch support portion 26 b by the urging force of the coil spring 141, and therefore, the bottom surface 140 a of the clutch member 140 and the cylindrical end portion 144 a of the telescopic screw 144. It is made into the state spaced apart from the inner peripheral surface. Thus, the position of the clutch member 140 in a state where the clutch member 140 and the telescopic screw 144 are separated is the tilt transmission position in the present invention. The position of the clutch member 140 in a state where the bottom surface 140a of the clutch member 140 is in contact with the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical end 144a of the telescopic screw 144 and the clutch member 140 and the telescopic screw 144 are connected is the telescopic transmission position in the present invention. It is.

  As can be seen from FIGS. 1 and 3, the telescopic screw 144 protrudes from the opening surface 133 a side of the housing 130 and extends in a direction parallel to the axial direction of the second tube 112 and the third tube 113. Similarly to the telescopic screw 144, the connecting rod 25 that surrounds the outer periphery of the telescopic screw 144 also protrudes from the opening surface 133a side of the housing 130. As can be seen from FIG. 1, the connecting rod 25 is formed longer than the telescopic screw 144, protrudes from the tip of the telescopic screw 144, and further extends forward (rightward in the drawing). A tilt screw 146 is attached to the distal end portion of the connecting rod 25 so as to be coaxially rotatable.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a male screw is formed on the outer periphery of a portion of the telescopic screw 144 protruding from the housing 130, and a telescopic nut 145 formed with a female screw that is screwed to the male screw is a telescopic screw 144. Is attached. A pin 112b attached from the outside through a long hole 112e formed in the second arm portion 112a is inserted into the telescopic nut 145 from both sides, and the telescopic nut 145 is connected to the second through the pin 112b. The arm portion 112a is placed in a both-sided state. The telescopic screw 144, the telescopic nut 145, and the pin 112b correspond to the telescopic mechanism of the present invention.

  The tilt screw 146 is also formed with a male screw on the outer periphery, and a tilt nut 147 formed with a female screw screwed to the male screw is attached to the tilt screw 146. A pin 111b is inserted into the tilt nut 147 from both sides through a circular hole formed in the first arm portion 111a. Accordingly, the tilt nut 147 is rotatably supported by the first arm portion 111a via the pin 111b in a state where both ends are supported. In the present embodiment, the male screw lead formed on the telescopic screw 144 and the male screw lead formed on the tilt screw 146 are the same, and the female screw lead formed on the telescopic nut 145 The lead of the female screw formed on the tilt nut 147 is the same. The tilt screw 146, the tilt nut 147, and the pin 111b correspond to the tilt mechanism of the present invention.

  In the steering device 1 configured as described above, when the tilt operation of the steering wheel is performed, the driver operates the switch (not shown) to drive the electric motor 10. Thereby, the electric motor 10 is driven forward, for example. Then, the worm shaft 21 connected to the output shaft of the electric motor 10 rotates, and the worm gear 22 attached to the worm shaft 21 also rotates. This rotation is decelerated by the meshing of the worm gear 22 and the worm wheel 23, and the rotational torque increases. The rotation decelerated by the speed reducer 20 in this way is transmitted from the worm wheel 23 to the connecting rod 25 and the connecting rod 25 rotates. The rotation of the connecting rod 25 also rotates the tilt screw 146 that is coaxially attached to the tip of the connecting rod 25. Further, as the connecting rod 25 rotates, the support member 26 attached to the connecting rod 25 and the clutch member 140 connected to the support member 26 via the coil spring 141 also rotate around the axis of the connecting rod 25. Here, at the time of tilt operation, the rotation speed of the electric motor 10 is set to a relatively low speed, and the clutch member 140 is affected by the urging force of the coil spring 141 and its own gravity by the centrifugal force generated by the rotation of the electric motor 10. The support member 26 is not lifted against it. Therefore, during the tilt operation, the clutch member 140 remains in the tilt transmission position, and the clutch member 140 and the telescopic screw 144 are maintained in a separated state. Therefore, the rotational torque of the electric motor 10 is not transmitted to the telescopic screw 144, and the telescopic screw 144 does not rotate.

  In response to the rotation of the tilt screw 146, the tilt nut 147 attached to the tilt screw 146 is fed and moved forward in the axial direction of the tilt screw 146 (right in the drawing in FIG. 1). Since the tilt nut 147 is connected to the first arm portion 111a of the first tube 111 via the pin 111b, the first tube 111 is centered on the pin 112d in FIG. 1 by the feed movement of the tilt nut 147 in the above direction. It rotates counterclockwise. By this rotation, the first tube 111 tilts with respect to the second tube 112 so that the right side is directed upward as indicated by a two-dot chain line A in FIG. As the first tube 111 is tilted, the first shaft 121 in the first tube 111 is tilted in the same manner with respect to the second shaft 122. As a result, the steering handle attached to the right end of the first shaft 121 is tilted upward, and the tilt operation is performed. The tilt screw 146 and the telescopic screw 144 are also tilted along with such a tilting operation. However, the tilt nut 147 is rotatable about the pin 111b with respect to the first arm portion 111a, and the telescopic nut 145 is Since it can move within the long hole 112e of the two-arm portion 112a, the displacement due to the tilting of the screws 144 and 146 is absorbed by the rotation of the tilt nut 147 and the movement of the telescopic nut 145.

  When the electric motor 10 is driven in reverse rotation at the same rotational speed as described above by the driver's switch operation, the tilt screw 146 rotates in the opposite direction, and the tilt nut 147 is axially rearward on the tilt screw 146 (see FIG. 1 to the left). Accordingly, the first tube 111 connected to the tilt nut 147 rotates in the clockwise direction in FIG. 1 about the pin 112d. By this rotation, the first tube 111 tilts with respect to the second tube 112 so that the right side is directed downward as indicated by a two-dot chain line B in FIG. Along with this tilting, the first shaft 121 tilts with respect to the second shaft 122 so that the right side in the drawing is directed downward. As a result, the steering handle attached to the first shaft 121 tilts downward, and a tilt operation is performed. Also in this case, since the clutch member 140 is not connected to the telescopic screw 144, the telescopic screw 144 does not rotate.

  When performing a telescopic operation of the steering handle, the driver operates the switch (not shown) to drive the electric motor 10. Thereby, the electric motor 10 is driven forward, for example. Then, the rotational driving force of the electric motor 10 is transmitted to the worm reducer 20, and the rotational speed is reduced by the worm reducer 20 to increase the rotational torque. The decelerated rotation is transmitted from the worm wheel 23 to the connecting rod 25, and the connecting rod 25 rotates. Further, as the connecting rod 25 rotates, the support member 26 attached to the connecting rod 25 and the clutch member 140 connected to the support member 26 via the coil spring 141 also rotate. Here, the rotational speed of the electric motor 10 during the telescopic operation is relatively high, and the clutch member 140 resists the urging force of the coil spring 141 and its own gravity by the centrifugal force generated by the rotation of the electric motor 10. It is made to float. Accordingly, the clutch member 140 rotates radially around the axis of the connecting rod 25 from the position shown in FIG. 3 along the axial direction of the clutch support portion 26b (from the proximal end side to the distal end side of the clutch support portion 26b). The bottom surface 140a is displaced to a telescopic transmission position that is a position where the bottom surface 140a contacts the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical end portion 144a of the telescopic screw 144. Due to the displacement of the clutch member 140, the clutch member 140 is pressed against the cylindrical end 144a of the telescopic screw 144, and a frictional force is generated to connect the clutch member 140 and the telescopic screw 144.

  Therefore, the rotation of the clutch member 140 is also transmitted to the telescopic screw 144, and the telescopic screw 144 rotates. As the telescopic screw 144 rotates, the telescopic nut 145 screwed to the outer periphery of the telescopic screw 144 is fed and moved forward in the axial direction of the telescopic screw 144 (rightward in FIG. 1). Since the telescopic nut 145 is connected to the second arm portion 112a of the second tube 112 via the pin 112b, the second tube 112 also moves forward in the axial direction with respect to the third tube 113 according to the feed movement of the telescopic nut 145. To do.

  Further, the tilt screw 146 attached to the tip of the connecting rod 25 also rotates together with the connecting rod 25. By the rotation of the tilt screw 146, the tilt nut 147 screwed to the outer periphery of the tilt screw 146 is moved forward in the axial direction of the tilt screw 146 (rightward in FIG. 1). Therefore, the first tube 111 connected to the tilt nut 147 also moves forward in the axial direction. Here, since the lead of the telescopic screw 144 and the lead of the tilt screw 146 are the same, the feed movement amount of the tilt nut 147 is the same as the feed movement amount of the telescopic nut 145. For this reason, even during the feed movement, the relative positions of the nuts 145 and 147 do not change, and the relative positions of the second tube 112 and the first tube 111 do not change. Therefore, the first tube 111 only moves at the same speed in the axial direction together with the second tube 112, and tilts with respect to the second tube 112 so that the tilt operation is not performed. Thus, by devising the structure so that the relative movement of both mechanisms (the movement of the other mechanism as viewed from one mechanism) can be offset, both the first tube 111 and the second tube 112 become the third tube 113. On the other hand, it moves forward in the axial direction. As a result, the steering handle attached to the right end of the first shaft 121 moves rearward of the vehicle, and telescopic operation is performed.

  When the electric motor 10 is driven in reverse rotation at the same rotational speed as described above by the driver's switch operation, the telescopic screw 144 and the tilt screw 146 rotate in the opposite direction, and the telescopic nut 145 rotates on the telescopic screw 144. The tilt nut 147 is moved and moved rearward in the axial direction on the tilt screw 146. Accordingly, the second tube 112 connected to the telescopic nut 145 and the first tube 111 connected to the tilt nut 147 are both moved rearward in the axial direction. The first shaft 121 and the second shaft 122 are moved rearward in the axial direction with respect to the third shaft 123 in accordance with the rearward movement in the axial direction. As a result, the steering handle attached to the first shaft 121 moves forward of the vehicle, and telescopic operation is performed.

  As described above, the steering device 1 of the present embodiment connects the connecting rod 25 to the electric motor 10 via the speed reducer 20 and is attached to the connecting rod 25 so as to be integrally rotatable and radially movable. A clutch member is provided that can be displaced to a telescopic transmission position, which is a position where the rotational torque output from the electric motor 10 can be transmitted to the telescopic mechanism by the centrifugal force generated by the rotation of the rod 25. Further, when the centrifugal force is small, the clutch member 140 is displaced to a position (tilt transmission position) where the rotational torque output from the electric motor 10 is not transmitted to the telescopic mechanism, but only to the tilt mechanism. Therefore, if the centrifugal force is small, the clutch member 140 stays at the tilt transmission position and the tilt operation is performed. If the centrifugal force is large, the clutch member 140 is displaced to the telescopic transmission position and the telescopic operation is performed. Since the tilt operation and the telescopic operation can be selected by displacing the clutch member 140 using the centrifugal force in this way, the operation can be switched without using an expensive electromagnetic clutch or the like. Cost can be reduced. Further, since complicated control of the clutch is not required, the operation can be switched with a simple configuration.

(Second Embodiment)
In the steering device 1 shown in the first embodiment, since the tilt screw 146 is directly connected to the connecting rod 25, when the electric motor 10 is driven to rotate, the tilt screw 146 immediately rotates. On the other hand, the telescopic screw 144 has a structure in which the clutch member 140 starts to rotate after the clutch member 140 is displaced to the telescopic transmission position by the centrifugal force generated by the rotation of the electric motor 10 and the clutch member 140 and the telescopic screw 144 are connected. Therefore, a time lag occurs between the start of rotation of the electric motor 10 and the start of rotation of the telescopic screw 144. For this reason, even when only telescopic operation is desired, there is a possibility that only the tilt screw 146 rotates during the time lag and the tilt operation is performed. In the present embodiment, the time for which only the tilt screw rotates during telescopic operation is shortened or prevented.

  The steering device according to the present embodiment has the same general appearance and basic configuration as the steering device 1 shown in the first embodiment. Therefore, the side view of the steering device 1 shown in FIG. 1 and the bottom view of the steering device 1 shown in FIG. 2 can also be used in this embodiment. Therefore, these drawings and the description of the related parts in the first embodiment will be referred to, and the specific description thereof will be omitted here.

  FIG. 5 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing details of the vicinity of the housing 130 in a side view of the steering device according to the present embodiment. As can be seen from FIG. 5, in this embodiment, the connecting rod is separated. Further, the transmission structure for transmitting the rotational torque of the connecting rod to the tilt screw and the telescopic screw is different from that in the first embodiment. Since the other configuration is basically the same as the configuration described in the first embodiment, the same portions are denoted by the same reference numerals, and these descriptions refer to the portions described in the first embodiment. In particular, the detailed description thereof is omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 5, in this embodiment, it has the 1st connection rod 25a and the 2nd connection rod 25b as a structure corresponding to the connection rod 25 in the said 1st Embodiment. The first connecting rod 25a corresponds to a portion of the connecting rod 25 of the first embodiment that is housed in the housing 130, and is arranged in parallel with the axial direction of the third tube 113 (FIG. 1). ing. The first connecting rod 25 a is vertically cut from the deceleration chamber 131 through the support chamber 132 to the clutch chamber 133 in the housing 130, and is connected to the speed reducer 20 in the reduction chamber 131. 134 and the second bearing 135 are supported on the housing 130 so as to be rotatable and immovable in the axial direction, and extend to the clutch chamber 133 so that an end portion in the clutch chamber 133 is a free end. The first connecting rod 25a corresponds to the rotating shaft of the present invention.

  The first connecting rod 25 a has a support member 26 attached to the outer periphery of the portion disposed in the clutch chamber 133 in the housing 130. The support member 26 has a rod support portion 26a and a clutch support portion 26b. The rod support portion 26a is formed in a cylindrical shape so as to surround the free end portion of the first connecting rod 25a, and is connected to the first connecting rod 25a so as to be coaxially and integrally rotatable by a fixing means (not shown). The clutch support part 26b is extended radially outwardly from one place on the side periphery of the rod support part 26a. A clutch member 140 is attached to the support member 26. In the first embodiment, the clutch support portion 26b is provided at two positions symmetrical to the circumferential direction of the rod support portion 26a. In this embodiment, the clutch support portion 26b is one of the outer circumferences of the rod support portion 26a. Therefore, the clutch member 140 is also provided only on one clutch support portion 26b.

  The structure of the clutch member 140 is basically the same as that of the clutch member 140 described in the first embodiment. However, the clutch member 140 according to the present embodiment does not have to be attached with a friction material having a large friction coefficient on the bottom surface of the clutch member 140 and the clutch side first protrusion 201 extending from the side surface. This is different from the clutch member 140 described in the first embodiment. The clutch-side first projecting piece 201 provided on the clutch member 140 has a configuration corresponding to the displacement member-side first projecting piece of the present invention. The connecting rod 25a extends in the axial direction toward the opening surface 133a side (second connecting rod 25b side) of the housing 130.

  Further, as can be seen from the drawing, the rod side first protrusion 202 is attached to the rod support portion 26a. The rod-side first projecting piece 202 is provided at a position on the opposite side of the end face on the right side of the rod support portion 26a that is shifted by about 180 degrees in the circumferential direction from the portion where the clutch support portion 26b is attached. In the same manner as the clutch-side first projecting piece 201, the first connecting rod 25a extends in the axial direction toward the opening surface 133a side (second connecting rod 25b side) of the housing 130. The rod side first projecting piece 202 corresponds to the rotating shaft side first projecting piece of the present invention.

  The second connecting rod 25b corresponds to the configuration of the portion protruding from the housing 130 in the connecting rod 25 of the first embodiment, and a tilt screw 146 is coaxially rotatable at the tip thereof as shown in FIG. Is attached. The second connecting rod 25b has a base end surface (an end surface opposite to the end on which the tilt screw 146 is attached) facing the end surface of the free end of the first connecting rod 25a with a predetermined interval in the axial direction. The first connecting rods 25a are arranged in a column so that their axes coincide with each other. A telescopic screw 144 is disposed coaxially and in a non-contact state on the outer peripheral side of the second connecting rod 25b. As in the first embodiment, the telescopic screw 144 is enlarged in diameter at the base end side and enters the clutch chamber 133 of the housing 130, and the diameter-expanded portion is attached to the housing 130 by the third bearing 138. It is supported so that it can rotate but cannot move axially. Further, the base end portion of the telescopic screw 144 extends to an axial position that is substantially flush with the base end surface of the second connecting rod 25b, and only enters the housing 130, and the clutch as in the first embodiment. It does not extend to the outer periphery of the member 140.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the second connecting rod 25 b is supported by the fourth bearing 139 on the inner periphery of the base end portion of the telescopic screw 144 so as to be rotatable and not movable in the axial direction. It extends outward. The second connecting rod 25b is formed with a second tilting protrusion 204 for tilting that extends radially outward from the side periphery of the portion closer to the left in the drawing than the portion supported by the fourth bearing 139. The tilt second projecting piece 204 corresponds to the second projecting piece of the present invention. Also, from the base end of the telescopic screw 144, the second telescopic projection 203 is formed extending in the axial direction of the second connecting rod 25b and toward the first connecting rod 25a. The clutch-side first projecting piece 201 and the telescopic second projecting piece 203 have overlapping axial positions (positions in the horizontal direction in the drawing, positions along the axial direction of the first connecting rod 25a and the second connecting rod 25b). Is provided. However, when the clutch-side first projecting piece 201 rotates around the axis of the first connecting rod 25a in a state where the clutch member 140 is pressed against the proximal end side of the clutch support portion 26b by the biasing force of the coil spring 141, The radial position is set so as to turn inside the second telescopic projecting piece 203. Therefore, in the above state, even if the clutch-side first projecting piece 201 rotates, it does not engage with the telescopic second projecting piece 203.

  A connection arm 210 corresponding to the intermediate member of the present invention is attached to the base end face of the second connection rod 25b. The connecting arm 210 includes a rotating arm (connecting bar portion) 211, an input side protruding piece 212, and an output side protruding piece 213. The rotating arm 211 is attached to a pin attached to the base end surface of the second connecting rod 25b, and the second connecting rod 25b is centered on the rotation axis of the second connecting rod 25b via the pin. It is mounted for rotation. The input-side protruding piece 212 is formed on one end side of the rotating arm 211 so as to extend in the direction toward the first connecting rod 25a. On the other hand, the output-side protruding piece 213 is formed on the other end side of the rotating arm 211 so as to extend away from the first connecting rod 25a.

  As can be seen from FIG. 5, when the rod-side first projecting piece 202 rotates around the axis of the first connecting rod 25a as the first connecting rod 25a rotates, The radial position and the axial position are set so that the one projecting piece 202 is engaged from the rotational direction. The output side projecting piece 213 is set to have a radial position and an axial position so that the output projecting piece 213 engages with the tilt second projecting piece 204 from the rotation direction when the connecting arm 210 rotates. A spring 214 is attached to the connecting arm 210. The spring 214 is arranged such that the input-side protruding piece 212 is disposed at a predetermined rotational position in relation to the second connecting rod 25b.

  6 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line BB in FIG. As shown in the figure, the input-side protruding piece 212 and the output-side protruding piece 213 are located on the opposite sides with the rotation center therebetween. Further, when the input-side projecting piece 212 and the rod-side first projecting piece 202 are engaged as shown in the figure, the output-side projecting piece 213 and the tilt second projecting piece 204 are disengaged. Thus, the position biased by the spring 214 is set as the initial position of the connecting arm 210. In this embodiment, the initial position of the connecting arm 210 is shifted by approximately 180 degrees (about 160 degrees in the figure) in the circumferential direction (rotating direction of the connecting arm 210) between the output-side protruding piece 213 and the tilting second protruding piece 204. To be placed. Further, as can be seen from the drawing, the tilting second projecting piece 204 and the telescopic second projecting piece 203 are configured so that their rotational direction positions substantially coincide. With this configuration, the engagement between the output-side projecting piece 213 and the second tilting projecting piece 204 and the engagement between the clutch-side first projecting piece 201 and the second telescopic projecting piece 203 occur almost simultaneously. . Since the configuration other than this is the same as that of the first embodiment, a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

  In the above configuration, the tilt operation and the telescopic operation will be described with reference to FIGS. First, when the electric motor 10 is rotated to perform the tilt operation, this rotational torque is transmitted to the first connecting rod 25a via the speed reducer 20, and the first connecting rod 25a rotates. Along with the rotation of the first connecting rod 25a, the rod-side first projecting piece 202 provided on the rod support portion 26a also rotates. Then, as shown in FIG. 6, the connecting arm 210 rotates when the rod-side first protruding piece 202 engages with the input-side protruding piece 212 of the connecting arm 210. At the time of starting the engagement, as described above, the output-side projecting piece 213 and the telescopic second projecting piece 203 are spaced apart from each other in the circumferential direction. 210 is idle. Then, when the connecting arm 210 rotates by a predetermined angle and the output-side protruding piece 213 engages with the telescopic second protruding piece 203, the second connecting rod 25b starts rotating (as described above, the connecting arm 210 is idle). Time to do is called "dead zone period").

  Since the tilt screw 146 is coaxially connected to the tip of the second connecting rod 25b, the tilt screw 146 rotates upon receiving the rotation of the second connecting rod 25b, and the tilt operation is performed as in the first embodiment. Is done. Here, at the time of tilt operation, the rotation speed of the electric motor 10 is set to a relatively low speed, and the clutch member 140 is affected by the urging force of the coil spring 141 and its own gravity by the centrifugal force generated by the rotation of the electric motor 10. The support member 26 is not lifted against it. Accordingly, during the tilt operation, the clutch member 140 rotates while being pressed against the first connecting rod 25a side by the biasing force of the coil spring 141. Therefore, the radial direction positions of the clutch-side first projecting piece 201 and the telescopic second projecting piece are shifted, and they do not engage with each other. Therefore, the rotational torque of the electric motor 10 is not transmitted to the telescopic screw 144, and the telescopic screw 144 does not rotate.

  Further, when the electric motor 10 is rotated so as to perform the telescopic operation, the rotational torque of the electric motor 10 is transmitted to the first connecting rod 25a through the speed reducer 20 in the same manner as in the tilting operation, and the first connecting rod 25a. The rod-side first protruding piece 202 attached to the support member 26, the clutch member 140, and the rod support portion 26a rotates. By this rotation, the rod-side first projecting piece 202 engages with the input-side projecting piece 212 of the connecting arm 210, and the connecting arm 210 rotates. At this time, the connecting arm 210 idles during the above-described dead zone, and the rotation of the connecting arm 210 is not transmitted to the second connecting rod 25b and the tilt screw 146 during the dead zone. The second connecting rod 25b and the tilt screw 146 begin to rotate only when the output-side protruding piece 213 engages with the tilt second protruding piece 204.

  Further, at the time of telescopic operation, the rotational speed of the electric motor 10 is set to a relatively high speed, and the clutch member 140 is coiled by the centrifugal force generated by the rotation of the electric motor 10 (rotation of the first connecting rod 25a). Floats against the energizing force of itself and its own gravity. Then, during the dead zone, the clutch-side first protrusion 201 is displaced to a telescopic transmission position that is a radial position where the clutch-side first protrusion 201 can engage with the telescopic second protrusion 203. When displaced to this position, when the rotational direction positions of the clutch-side first projecting piece 201 and the telescopic second projecting piece 203 coincide, both engage from the rotational direction. By this engagement, rotational torque is transmitted to the telescopic screw 144 via the telescopic second projecting piece 203, and the telescopic screw 144 rotates.

  As described above, both the tilt screw 146 and the telescopic screw 144 rotate, and the telescopic operation is performed in the same manner as in the first embodiment. In this case, in the present embodiment, a predetermined dead zone period is provided from when the first connecting rod 25a rotates until the rotational torque is transmitted to the tilt screw 146 (second connecting rod 25b). At the end of the period, that is, when the output-side projecting piece 213 and the second tilting projecting piece 204 are engaged, the clutch-side first projecting piece 201 and the second telescopic projecting piece 203 are substantially matched. The rotational direction position of each projecting piece is set. Therefore, if the rotational speed of the electric motor 10 is increased during the dead zone and the clutch-side first protrusion 201 is displaced to the telescopic position, the clutch-side first protrusion 201 engages with the telescopic second protrusion 203. The timing and the timing at which the output-side projecting piece 213 and the second tilting projecting piece 204 are engaged can be substantially matched, and the telescopic screw 144 and the tilt screw 146 are operated simultaneously, or only one screw is operated. Time can be shortened.

In addition, after the tilt operation and the telescopic operation are performed, the electric motor 10 is rotated in the reverse direction (the rotation direction opposite to the direction in which the electric motor 10 is rotated in the tilt operation or the telescopic operation) to thereby rotate the first connecting rod 25a. By making one rotation (360 degrees) in the reverse direction, the connecting arm 210 returns to the initial state by the urging force of the coil spring 141, and the output-side protruding piece 213 and the tilting second protruding piece 204 are substantially rotated in the rotation direction. It is possible to return to a state separated by 180 degrees. Therefore, the dead zone can be used effectively even at the next operation.

(Third embodiment)
Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 7 is a side view of the steering device 3 according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 8 is a bottom view of the steering device 3.

  As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the steering device 3 of this embodiment includes a cylindrical column tube 310 and a steering shaft 320 disposed on the inner peripheral side of the column tube 310. The column tube 310 is a cylindrical member that is divided into two parts, a first tube 311 and a second tube 312. Both ends of the first tube 311 are open, and a first arm portion 311a extends downward from the bottom of the center in the axial direction.

  The second tube 312 has a cylindrical shape with both ends opened. As shown in FIG. 7, the inner diameter of the second tube 312 is slightly larger than the outer shape of the first tube 311, and the illustrated left side of the first tube 311 is inserted from the illustrated right end side of the second tube 312. Thus, the first tube 311 is movable in the axial direction with respect to the second tube 312. Further, a mounting hole 312c is formed above the left end side of the second tube 312 in FIG. The second tube 312 is fixed to the vehicle body side by a pin or the like in the hole 312c so as to be swingable, and a tilting operation is performed by swinging about the hole 312c.

  Similarly to the column tube 310, the steering shaft 320 is divided into two parts, and includes a first shaft 321 and a second shaft 322. The first shaft 321 is mainly inserted into the first tube 311 and the second shaft 322 is mainly inserted into the second tube. The first shaft 321 is supported by the first tube 311 via a bearing or the like so as to be relatively rotatable and not capable of axial relative movement. The second shaft 322 is supported by the second tube 312 via a bearing or the like so as to be relatively rotatable and not axially movable.

  The first shaft 321 is formed in a cylindrical shape on the side facing the second shaft 322, and an inner peripheral spline is formed in the axial direction on the inner peripheral side surface of the portion formed in the cylindrical shape. On the other hand, an outer peripheral spline is formed in the axial direction on the outer peripheral side surface of the second shaft 322 facing the first shaft 321. The inner peripheral spline is fitted to the outer peripheral spline. By this spline fitting, the rotation of the first shaft 321 can be transmitted to the second shaft 322, and the first shaft 321 can be moved in the axial direction with respect to the second shaft 322. A telescopic operation is performed by this axial movement.

  As shown in FIG. 7, a housing 330 is fixed below the second tube 312. FIG. 9 is a partial cross-sectional view showing details of the structure in the vicinity of the housing 330 as seen from the direction of FIG. The housing 330 of this embodiment is basically similar to that described in the second embodiment, and the shape and support structure of elements housed in the housing 330 are the same as those described in the second embodiment. It is similar. Therefore, the same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals and description of common elements is omitted, and different parts will be mainly described below.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the clutch support portion 26b of the support member 26 attached to the outer periphery of the free end portion of the first connecting rod 25a is formed longer than the clutch support portion 26b shown in the second embodiment. . Therefore, in the present embodiment, it is possible to set a longer stroke for the clutch member 140 supported by the clutch support portion 26b to move along the clutch support portion 26b than in the second embodiment.

  A clutch-side first projecting piece 221 corresponding to the displacement member-side first projecting piece of the present invention is attached to the side surface of the clutch member 140. The clutch-side first projecting piece 221 extends from the right side surface of the clutch member 140 in the axial direction of the first connecting rod 25a toward the second connecting rod 25b.

  The second connecting rod 25b has an end (base end) on the side shown in FIG. 9 entering the housing 330, and the base end face is spaced apart from the end face of the free end of the first connecting rod 25a in the axial direction. Facing. Further, a telescopic screw 344 is attached to the distal end, which is the end opposite to the base end of the second connecting rod 25b, so as to be coaxially rotatable (see FIG. 7). A tilt screw 346 is disposed coaxially and in a non-contact state on the outer peripheral side of the second connecting rod 25b. As described above, in the present embodiment, the arrangement of the tilt screw 346 and the telescopic screw 344 is reversed from the case of the second embodiment.

  The tilt screw 346 disposed so as to surround the outer periphery of the second connecting rod 25b has a diameter enlarged at the base end side and enters the clutch chamber 133 of the housing 330. The third bearing 138 is supported by the housing 330 so as to be rotatable and immovable in the axial direction. The base end surface of the tilt screw 346 has a bowl-like diameter, and the tilt second projecting piece 224 is attached to the base end surface. The second tilting protrusion 224 extends from the base end surface of the tilt screw 346 in the axial direction of the second connecting rod 25b and toward the first connecting rod 25a.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the second connecting rod 25 b is supported by the fourth bearing 139 on the inner periphery of the proximal end portion of the tilt screw 346 so as to be rotatable and immovable in the axial direction. It extends outward. Further, the second connecting rod 25b is formed with a second telescopic projecting piece 223 extending radially outward from the side periphery of the portion closer to the left side of the drawing than the portion supported by the fourth bearing 139. Further, a connecting arm 210 is attached to the base end surface of the second connecting rod 25b. Similar to the second embodiment, the connecting arm 210 includes a rotating arm 211 that rotates around a pin attached to the base end surface of the second connecting rod 25b, and an input side provided at one end of the rotating arm 211. It has a projecting piece 212 and an output side projecting piece 213 provided at the other end of the rotating arm 211. The input-side protruding piece 212 is formed to extend in the axial direction of the second connecting rod 25b and toward the first connecting rod 25a. The output-side projecting piece 213 is formed to extend in the axial direction of the second connecting rod 25b and away from the first connecting rod 25a (the direction opposite to the extending direction of the input-side projecting piece 212). Further, as can be seen from the figure, the distance from the rotation center of the rotation arm 211 to the input side protruding piece 212 is longer than the distance from the rotation center to the output side protruding piece 213. In the present embodiment, the second telescopic projecting piece 223 corresponds to the third projecting piece of the present invention, and the second projecting piece 224 for tilt corresponds to the fourth projecting piece of the present invention.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the clutch-side first projecting piece 221, the input-side projecting piece 212, and the tilting second projecting piece 224 are each positioned in the axial direction (on the axis of the first connecting rod 25a and the second connecting rod 25b). (Positions in the direction along) are provided to overlap. The tilting second projecting piece 224 is set at a radial position so as to turn outside the input projecting piece 212 when the tilt screw 346 rotates. Further, the radial position of the clutch-side first projecting piece 221 is such that the clutch member 140 is pressed against the proximal end side of the clutch support portion 26b by the urging force of the coil spring 141 (the state shown by the solid line in FIG. 9). When the first connecting rod 25a rotates, its radial position is set so as to turn inside the input side protruding piece 212.

  Therefore, even if the first connecting rod 25a rotates in the state shown in the drawing, the clutch-side first protruding piece 221 does not engage with the input-side protruding piece 212 or the tilting second protruding piece 224. However, when the clutch member 140 moves radially outward and is displaced to the telescopic transmission position, the clutch-side first projecting piece 221 can be engaged with the input-side projecting piece 212 from the rotational direction. In addition, when the clutch member 140 moves radially outward and is displaced to the tilt transmission position, the clutch-side first protrusion 221 can be engaged with the tilt second protrusion 224 from the rotation direction.

  A spring 214 is attached to the connecting arm 210. This spring 214 urges the connecting arm 210 as in the second embodiment. In other words, the connecting arm 210 is urged by the spring 214 so that the output-side protruding piece 213 is positioned at an initial position so as to deviate from the second telescopic second protruding piece 223 in the circumferential direction (rotating direction of the connecting arm 210) by approximately 180 degrees. Is done. Therefore, when the clutch-side first protrusion 221 is engaged with the input-side protrusion 212, a dead zone period similar to that of the second embodiment can be provided.

  As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, a male screw is formed on the outer periphery of a portion of the tilt screw 346 protruding from the housing 330, and a tilt nut 347 having a female screw screwed to the male screw is provided as the tilt screw. 346. The tilt nut 347 is connected to a pair of link members 351 at both ends thereof. The link member 351 includes an elongated rod portion 351a, a first pin portion 351b extending in a perpendicular direction from one end of the rod portion 351a, and a direction perpendicular to the other end of the rod portion 351a. It has the 2nd pin part 351c extended in the same direction as the 1st pin part 351b. The first pin portion 351b is rotatably attached to a bracket BR fixed to the vehicle body via a bearing or the like. The second pin portion 351c is rotatably connected to both side surfaces of the tilt nut 347 via a bearing or the like. As shown in FIG. 8, the link member 351 supports the tilt nut 347 so as to be rotatable from both sides with the column tube 310 sandwiched from both sides. Therefore, the column tube 310 is supported by the link member 351 together with the tilt nut 347, the tilt screw 346, and the housing 330 in a both-sided state.

  A pair of guide plates 352 are disposed on both side surfaces of the tilt nut 347. As shown in FIG. 7, the guide plate 352 is an elongated oval flat plate member having a long hole 352a formed therein. 312 is attached. And the 2nd pin part 351c of the link member 351 mentioned above penetrates this long hole 352a, and is connected with the tilt nut 347.

  The second connecting rod 25b is inserted through the inside of the tilt screw 346 and protrudes from the tip of the tilt screw 346. A telescopic screw 344 is attached to the outer periphery of the protruding portion. A male screw is formed on the outer periphery of the telescopic screw 344, and a telescopic nut 345 having a female screw screwed to the male screw is attached to the telescopic screw 344. The telescopic nut 345 is fixed to the first arm portion 311a of the first tube 311 on both side surfaces thereof.

  In the above configuration, the tilt operation and the telescopic operation will be described with reference to FIG. 10 which is a cross-sectional view taken along the line CC in FIG. 9 and FIG. First, when the electric motor 10 is rotated, this rotational torque is transmitted to the first connecting rod 25a via the speed reducer 20, and the first connecting rod 25a rotates. As the first connecting rod 25a rotates, the support member 26, the clutch member 140, and the clutch-side first protrusion 221 attached to the clutch member 140 rotate. However, when the electric motor 10 is at a very low speed, the centrifugal force acting on the clutch member 140 is small, and the clutch member 140 is pressed against the proximal end side of the clutch support portion 26b by the urging force of the coil spring 141. Remain in the state. In this state, the clutch-side first projecting piece 221 pivots on the inner peripheral side of the tilting second projecting piece 224 and the input-side projecting piece 212, so that the clutch-side first projecting piece 221 is engaged with them. Absent.

  When the telescopic operation is to be performed, the rotational speed of the electric motor 10 is increased to a medium speed higher than the low speed, and the centrifugal force applied to the clutch member 140 is increased. Then, the clutch member 140 floats against the urging force of the coil spring 141 and its own gravity by this centrifugal force and moves radially outward, and the clutch member 140 can engage with the input-side protruding piece 212 while rotating. Displace to the correct position (telescopic transmission position). For this reason, the clutch-side first projecting piece 221 is engaged with the input-side projecting piece 212 from the rotational direction, and the coupling arm 210 starts rotating by this engagement. Even if the connecting arm 210 starts to rotate, it rotates idly during the dead zone, so that the rotational torque is not transmitted to the second connecting rod 25b side. Then, at the end of the dead zone period, that is, when the output-side projecting piece 213 is engaged with the second telescopic projecting piece 223, the rotational torque is transmitted to the second connecting rod 25b, and the second connecting rod 25b and the telescopic screw 344 are connected. Start spinning. The telescopic nut 345 is fed and moved in the axial direction of the telescopic screw 344 by the rotation of the telescopic screw 344. Since the telescopic nut 345 is connected to the first tube 311, the first tube 311 moves in the axial direction with respect to the second tube 312 as the telescopic nut 345 is moved. Thereby, a telescopic operation is performed.

  When the tilt operation is to be performed, the rotational speed of the electric motor 10 is increased to a high speed faster than the medium speed, and the centrifugal force applied to the clutch member 140 is further increased. Then, the clutch member 140 is further moved radially outward by the centrifugal force, and the clutch member 140 can be engaged with the second tilting protrusion 224 indicated by the dotted line in FIG. 9 (tilt transmission position) while rotating. Displace up to. For this reason, the clutch-side first projecting piece 221 is engaged with the tilting second projecting piece 224 from the rotational direction, and the tilt screw 346 starts rotating by this engagement.

  When the tilt screw 346 rotates, the tilt nut 347 screwed with the tilt screw 346 is fed and moved in the axial direction of the tilt screw 346. As the tilt nut 347 moves, the second pin portion 351c of the link member 351 attached to the tilt nut 347 also moves. Since the link member 351 is pivotally fixed to the vehicle body side at the first pin portion 351b, the movement of the second pin portion 351c rotates around the first pin portion 351b of the rod portion 351a of the link member 351. Converted to dynamic.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 7, the second pin portion 351c of the link member 351 is connected to the second tube 312 via the tilt nut 347, and the second tube 312 can swing around the hole 312c. Since it is attached to the vehicle body, the third tube 312 rotates around the hole 312c in response to the rotation of the link member 351. By the rotation of the second tube 312, the entire steering device 3 is tilted about the hole 312 c and a tilt operation is performed. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 7, when the tilt nut 347 moves forward (rightward in the drawing) and the link member 351 rotates counterclockwise, this rotational operation includes a downward movement component. In response to this downward movement component, the steering device 3 tilts downward. Further, when the tilt nut moves backward (leftward in the drawing) and the link member 351 rotates in the clockwise direction, the upward movement component is included in this rotation operation. In response to this upward movement component, the steering device 3 is tilted upward.

  In the case of the present embodiment, the mass of the clutch member 140 is m, the spring constant of the coil spring 141 is k, and the radial position of the center of gravity of the clutch member 140 when the clutch member 140 is displaced to the telescopic transmission position (first connecting rod Assuming that the radial distance from the rotation center of 25a to the center of gravity is r1, and the extension of the coil spring 141 at that time is x1, the rotation speed ω1 of the first connecting rod 25a is ω1 = (k · x1) / (m / R1), the telescopic operation can be performed by displacing the clutch member 140 to the telescopic transmission position. Further, when the radial position of the center of gravity of the clutch member 140 when the clutch member 140 is displaced to the tilt transmission position is r2, and the extension of the coil spring at that time is x2, the rotational speed ω2 of the first connecting rod 25a is By setting ω2 = (k · x2) / (m · r2), the clutch member 140 can be displaced to the tilt transmission position to perform the tilt operation.

  As described above, also in the present embodiment, the telescopic operation and the tilt operation can be switched with a simple configuration by moving the clutch member 140 by centrifugal force. Similarly to the second embodiment, in the present embodiment, when the connecting arm 210 is urged by the spring 214 and the input-side protruding piece 212 and the clutch-side first protruding piece 221 start to be engaged, the output side The projecting piece 213 and the second telescopic projecting piece 223 are disengaged, and a dead zone period is provided when the clutch-side first projecting piece 221 is engaged with the input-side projecting piece 212. . Therefore, when the tilt operation is performed, even if the clutch-side first protrusion 221 is engaged with the input-side protrusion 212 due to an insufficient rotation speed of the electric motor 10, the rotation speed is increased during the dead zone period. For example, the clutch-side first projecting piece 221 can be disengaged from the input-side projecting piece 212 and engaged with the tilting second projecting piece 224 to perform a tilting operation.

(Fourth embodiment)
Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described. The steering device 4 described in the fourth embodiment is an example in which the electric motor is directly connected to the first connecting rod without going through the speed reducer, and the speed reducer is provided on the second connecting rod side. It is. FIG. 12 is a side view of the steering device 4 in the present embodiment. As shown in the figure, the steering device 4 in the present embodiment is configured by dividing the column tube 410 into two tubes, a first tube 411 and a second tube 412, as in the steering device 3 in the third embodiment. The steering shaft 420 is also divided into two parts, a first shaft 421 and a second shaft 422. Since the shapes and combinations of these tubes and shafts are the same as those described in the second embodiment, the detailed description thereof will be omitted. Further, a mounting hole 412c is provided on the left end side of the second tube 412 in the figure, and the column tube 410 swings about the mounting hole 412c and can be tilted.

  A housing 430 is attached to the second tube 412 on the lower side in the figure. 13 is a partial cross-sectional view showing the internal structure in the vicinity of the housing 430 as seen from the direction of arrow A in FIG. As shown in FIG. 13, three chambers such as a clutch chamber 431, a telescopic chamber 432, and a tilt chamber 433 are formed in the internal space of the housing 430. The clutch chamber 431 is provided with a first connecting rod 25 a that is directly connected to the output shaft of the electric motor 10. The first connecting rod 25 a extends in a direction orthogonal to the axial direction of the first tube 411 and the second tube 412. A support member 26 having a rod support portion 26a and a clutch support portion 26b is attached to the first connecting rod 25a. A clutch member 140 is attached to the support member 26. A clutch-side first protrusion 221 is formed on the right side surface of the clutch member 140 so as to extend rightward in the drawing. Since the shape and arrangement configuration of the support member 26 and the clutch member 140 are the same as those of the support member 26 and the clutch member 140 described in the third embodiment, the same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the detailed description thereof is omitted. .

  The telescopic chamber 432 is provided with a second connecting rod 25b and a telescopic worm speed reducer 20a. The telescopic worm speed reducer 20a includes a telescopic worm shaft 21a, a telescopic worm gear 22a, and a telescopic worm wheel 23a. As shown in the figure, the telescopic worm shaft 21a is arranged in the telescopic chamber 432 so that the first connecting rod 25a and the shaft core coincide with each other, and both ends can be rotated to the inner wall of the housing 430 by bearings and cannot move in the axial direction. It is supported. A telescopic worm gear 22a is formed in the central portion of the telescopic worm shaft 21a in the axial direction, and a telescopic worm wheel 23a is engaged with the telescopic worm gear 22a. A telescopic screw 444 is coaxially connected to the telescopic worm wheel 23a. As shown in FIG. 12, the telescopic screw 444 protrudes from the housing 430 and extends in the axial direction of the column tube 410. A male screw is formed on the outer periphery of the telescopic screw 444, and a female screw screwed with the male screw is formed. A telescopic nut 445 is attached. The telescopic nut 445 is fixed to the first tube 411 via a first arm portion 411 a formed on the first tube 411.

  The telescopic worm shaft 21a is formed in a cylindrical shape as shown in FIG. 13, and the left end in the figure is enlarged in diameter, and the end surface is shaped like a bowl. And from the left end surface expanded in this bowl shape, the 2nd projection piece 223 for telescopics is extended and formed in the direction which goes to the 1st connection rod 25a. A second connecting rod 25b is inserted through the inner peripheral side of the telescopic worm shaft 21a.

  The second connecting rod 25b is arranged in tandem in the telescopic chamber 432 so that the axial center of the first connecting rod 25a coincides, and the left end of the telescopic worm shaft 21a is expanded by a bearing at one end (the left end in the drawing). It is supported on the inner periphery of one end portion so as to be rotatable and not movable in the axial direction, and is connected to a tilt worm shaft 21b described later on the other end (right end in the figure). Further, a tilting second projecting piece 224 extending outward in the radial direction is formed from the side periphery of the second connecting rod 25b on the left side in the figure. Further, a connecting arm 210 is attached to the left end surface of the second connecting rod 25b. Similar to the third embodiment, the connecting arm 210 is rotatably attached to the second connecting rod 25b via a pin attached to the end face of the second connecting rod 25b, and rotates around the pin. A rotating arm 211, an input side protruding piece 212 provided at one end of the rotating arm 211, and an output side protruding piece 213 provided at the other end of the rotating arm 211. The input-side protruding piece 212 is attached to the end of the rotating arm 211 on the side where the distance from the pin is long, and is formed to extend in a direction approaching the first connecting rod 25a. The output-side protruding piece 213 is attached to an end portion on the side where the distance from the pin of the rotating arm 211 is short, and is formed to extend in a direction away from the first connecting rod 25a.

  Since the arrangement form of each projecting piece in the present embodiment is the same as the arrangement form of each projecting piece described in the third embodiment, the same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals and the specific engagement state thereof is described. The description of is omitted. In the present embodiment, the second tilting protrusion 224 corresponds to the third protrusion of the present invention, and the telescopic second protrusion 223 corresponds to the fourth protrusion of the present invention. In addition, a spring 214 is also attached to the connecting arm 210 of this embodiment, and the spring 214 causes the output-side protruding piece 213 to be substantially in the circumferential direction (rotating direction of the connecting arm 210) with the second protruding piece 224 for tilt. It is urged to be in an initial position that is shifted by 180 degrees. For this reason, when the clutch side 1st protrusion 221 engages with the input side protrusion 212, the dead zone period similar to 2nd, 3rd embodiment can be provided.

  In the tilt chamber 433, a tilt worm reducer 20b and a tilt screw 446 are disposed. The tilt worm reduction gear 20b includes the tilt worm shaft 21b, the tilt worm gear 22b, and the tilt worm wheel 23b. As described above, one end of the tilt worm shaft 21b is connected to the end of the second connecting rod 25b, and is rotatable coaxially with the second connecting rod 25b. The other end of the tilt worm shaft 21b is supported by the housing 430 by a bearing.

  The tilt worm gear 22b is formed in a cylindrical shape on the side periphery of the tilt worm shaft 21b, and is coaxially rotatable with the tilt worm shaft 21b. A tilt worm wheel 23b is engaged with the tilt worm gear 22b. A tilt screw 446 is coaxially attached to the inner periphery of the tilt worm wheel 23b. The tilt screw 446 is perpendicular to the axial direction of the column tube 410 and extends upward in the vehicle, and includes a bearing portion 446a and a screw portion 446b. The bearing portion 446a is supported by the housing 430 so as to be rotatable and non-movable in the axial direction by a bearing. The screw portion 446b is coaxially connected to the tip of the bearing portion 446a and protrudes upward from the housing 430 in the drawing. A male screw is formed on the outer periphery of the screw portion 446b, and a tilt nut 447 formed with a female screw is screwed to the male screw. The tilt nut 447 has a circular cross section, and is supported by a tilt bracket 452 on both sides so as to be rotatable in a direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the column tube 410 and parallel to the second connecting rod 25b by pins or the like. The tilt bracket 452 is fixed to the vehicle body ST side.

  In the above configuration, when the electric motor 10 is rotated, this rotational torque is transmitted from the output shaft of the electric motor 10 to the first connecting rod 25a, and the first connecting rod 25a rotates. As the first connecting rod 25a rotates, the support member 26, the clutch member 140, and the clutch-side first protrusion 221 attached to the clutch member 140 rotate. However, when the electric motor 10 is at a very low speed, the centrifugal force acting on the clutch member 140 is small, and the clutch member 140 is pressed against the proximal end side of the clutch support portion 26b by the urging force of the coil spring 141. Remain in the state. In this state, the clutch-side first projecting piece 221 pivots on the inner peripheral side of the tilting second projecting piece 224 and the input-side projecting piece 212, so that the clutch-side first projecting piece 221 is engaged with them. Absent.

  When the tilt operation is to be performed, the rotational speed of the electric motor 10 is increased to a medium speed higher than the low speed, and the centrifugal force applied to the clutch member 140 is increased. Then, the clutch member 140 floats against the urging force of the coil spring 141 and its own gravity by this centrifugal force and moves radially outward, and the clutch member 140 can engage with the input-side protruding piece 212 while rotating. Displace to the correct position (telescopic transmission position). For this reason, the clutch-side first projecting piece 221 is engaged with the input-side projecting piece 212 from the rotational direction, and the coupling arm 210 starts rotating by this engagement. Even if the connecting arm 210 starts to rotate, it rotates idly during the dead zone, so that the rotational torque is not transmitted to the second connecting rod 25b side. Then, at the end of the dead zone period, that is, when the output-side protruding piece 213 is engaged with the tilting second protruding piece 224, the rotational torque is transmitted to the second connecting rod 25b and the second connecting rod 25b starts to rotate.

  When the second connecting rod 25b rotates, the tilt worm shaft 21b and the tilt worm gear 22b connected thereto rotate. Further, the rotation of the tilt worm gear 22b is decelerated by meshing with the tilt worm wheel 23b to increase the rotational torque. Then, the tilt screw 446 rotates at the reduced rotational speed. The screwing state of the tilt screw 446 and the tilt nut 447 is changed by the rotation of the tilt screw 446. Here, since the tilt nut 447 is fixed to the tilt bracket 452 via a pin, the position of the tilt nut 447 is not displaced, and the tilt screw 446 relatively moves in the axial direction. In response to the axial movement of the tilt screw 446, the housing 430 that supports the tilt screw 446 and the entire column tube 410 connected to the housing 430 are swung around the mounting hole 412c provided in the second tube 412. Move. Thereby, the tilt operation is performed. At this time, the tilt screw 446 also tilts with the tilt operation, and this tilt is absorbed by the tilt nut 447 pivoting about the pin.

  When the telescopic operation is to be performed, the rotation speed of the electric motor 10 is rotated at a high speed faster than the medium speed. Then, the centrifugal force applied to the clutch member 140 is further increased, and the clutch member 140 moves further outward, so that it can be engaged with the second telescopic projecting piece 223 (telescopic transmission position) as shown by the dotted line in FIG. Displace up to. For this reason, the clutch-side first protrusion 221 is engaged with the telescopic second protrusion 223. By this engagement, rotational torque is transmitted to the telescopic worm shaft 21a via the telescopic second protrusion 223. For this reason, the telescopic worm shaft 21a and the telescopic worm gear 22a rotate coaxially. The rotational speed is reduced by the meshing of the telescopic worm gear 22a and the telescopic worm wheel 23a, and the rotational torque increases. The rotation thus decelerated is transmitted to the telescopic screw 444, and the telescopic screw 444 rotates. As a result, the telescopic nut 445 screwed into the telescopic screw 444 is fed and moved in the axial direction of the telescopic screw 444. By this feed movement, the first tube 411 connected to the telescopic nut 445 moves in the axial direction. Thereby, the telescopic operation is performed.

  As described above, also in the present embodiment, the telescopic operation and the tilt operation can be switched with a simple configuration by moving the clutch member 140 by centrifugal force. Similarly to the third embodiment, in the present embodiment, when the connecting arm 210 is urged by the spring 214 and the input-side protruding piece 212 and the clutch-side first protruding piece 221 start to be engaged, the output side The projecting piece 213 and the second tilting projecting piece 224 are brought into a non-engagement state, whereby a dead zone period is provided when the clutch-side first projecting piece 221 is engaged with the input-side projecting piece 212. ing. For this reason, when the telescopic operation is performed, even if the clutch-side first protrusion 221 is engaged with the input-side protrusion 212 due to an insufficient rotation speed of the electric motor 10, the rotation speed is increased during the dead zone. For example, the clutch-side first protrusion 221 can be detached from the input-side protrusion 212 and engaged with the telescopic second protrusion 223 to perform a telescopic operation.

  Further, in this example, after the rotational torque from the electric motor 10 is transmitted by the clutch mechanism such as the clutch member 140, the rotation axis direction is switched by the worm speed reduction mechanism (the telescopic worm speed reducer 20a and the tilt worm speed reducer 20b). In this embodiment, the operation mechanism is connected to each operation mechanism. However, a desired reduction mechanism is arranged between the electric motor 10 and the clutch mechanism to reduce the speed, and then the rotation shaft direction is switched by a bevel gear or a screw gear to operate each operation. You may make it transmit rotational torque to a mechanism.

It is a side view of the steering device in the first and second embodiments. It is a bottom view of the steering device in the first and second embodiments. It is a fragmentary sectional view which shows the detail of the housing vicinity of the steering device in 1st Embodiment. It is AA sectional drawing in FIG. It is a fragmentary sectional view which shows the detail of the housing vicinity of the steering device in 2nd Embodiment. It is BB sectional drawing in FIG. It is a side view of the steering device in a 3rd embodiment. It is a bottom view of the steering device in a 3rd embodiment. It is a fragmentary sectional view which shows the detail of the structure of the housing vicinity of the steering device in 3rd Embodiment. It is CC sectional drawing in FIG. It is DD sectional drawing in FIG. It is a side view of the steering device in a 4th embodiment. It is sectional drawing which shows the detail of the housing vicinity of the steering device in 4th Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1, 3, 4 ... Steering device, 10 ... Electric motor, 25 ... Connecting rod (rotary shaft), 25a ... 1st connecting rod (rotating shaft), 25b ... 2nd connecting rod, 26 ... Support member, 26a ... Rod support Part, 26b ... clutch support part (protrusion part), 110, 310, 410 ... column tube, 120, 320, 420 ... steering shaft, 130, 330, 430 ... housing, 140 ... clutch member (displacement member), 141 ... coil Spring (elastic means), 144, 344, 444 ... telescopic screw, 145, 345, 445 ... telescopic nut, 146, 346, 446 ... tilt screw, 147, 347, 447 ... tilt nut, 201 ... first protrusion on the clutch side 202 ... Rod side first projecting piece (rotating shaft side first projecting piece), 203 ... Second telescopic projecting piece, 04 ... 2nd protrusion for tilting (2nd protrusion), 210 ... Connecting arm, 211 ... Rotating arm, 212 ... Input side protrusion, 213 ... Output side protrusion, 214 ... Spring (biasing means), 221 ... Clutch side first projecting piece (displacement member side first projecting piece), 223 ... Telescopic second projecting piece (third projecting piece, fourth projecting piece), 224 ... Tilt second projecting piece (fourth projecting piece) , The third protrusion)

Claims (5)

A tilt mechanism that is actuated by rotational torque output from the electric motor to adjust the vehicle vertical position of the steering handle, and is actuated by rotational torque output from the electric motor to adjust the vehicle longitudinal direction position of the steering handle. In a steering device comprising a telescopic mechanism,
A rotating shaft connected to the electric motor and rotating in response to a rotating torque output from the electric motor;
A tilt transmission position that is attached to the rotating shaft so as to be integrally rotatable and radially movable, and that is capable of transmitting rotational torque output from the electric motor to the tilt mechanism by centrifugal force generated by rotation of the rotating shaft. and / or e Bei and a displacement member displaceable in a telescopic transmission position is a position capable of transmitting to the telescopic mechanism,
The tilt mechanism includes a tilt screw connected to the rotation shaft and rotating integrally with the rotation shaft, a tilt nut screwed into the tilt screw and moved in the axial direction of the tilt screw by rotation of the tilt screw, With
The telescopic mechanism is not connected to the rotation shaft when the displacement member is at the tilt transmission position, and is connected to the rotation shaft via the displacement member when the displacement member is at the telescopic transmission position. A telescopic screw that rotates integrally with the rotary shaft, and a telescopic nut that is screwed into the telescopic screw and moves in the axial direction of the telescopic screw by the rotation of the telescopic screw,
The tilt screw and the telescopic screw are arranged coaxially,
The steering device according to claim 1, wherein a lead of the tilt screw and a lead of the telescopic screw are made equal . The steering apparatus according to claim 1, wherein
The displacement member is attached to a protrusion extending in a direction orthogonal to the rotation axis, and is rotated in the extending direction of the protrusion while rotating around the rotation axis by a centrifugal force generated by the rotation of the rotation axis. A steering device characterized by being displaceable. The steering apparatus according to claim 2, wherein
The steering device according to claim 1, wherein the displacement member is urged in a direction toward the proximal end side of the protrusion by an elastic means. A tilt mechanism that is actuated by rotational torque output from the electric motor to adjust the vehicle vertical position of the steering handle, and is actuated by rotational torque output from the electric motor to adjust the vehicle longitudinal direction position of the steering handle. In a steering device comprising a telescopic mechanism,
A rotating shaft connected to the electric motor and rotating in response to a rotating torque output from the electric motor;
A tilt transmission position that is attached to the rotating shaft so as to be integrally rotatable and radially movable, and that is capable of transmitting rotational torque output from the electric motor to the tilt mechanism by centrifugal force generated by rotation of the rotating shaft. And / or a displacement member displaceable to a telescopic transmission position, which is a position capable of transmission to the telescopic mechanism,
The tilt mechanism is arranged between the rotation shaft and any one of the tilt mechanism and the telescopic mechanism, and the rotation torque is transmitted from the rotation shaft, and the transmitted rotation torque is transmitted at a predetermined time interval. And an intermediate member that transmits to one of the telescopic mechanisms,
A rotating shaft side first projecting piece that is formed on the rotating shaft and transmits a rotating torque of the rotating shaft to the intermediate member;
It said tilt mechanism and Bei example and a second protrusion which rotational torque is transmitted from the intermediate member by engaging the intermediate member is formed on one of the telescopic mechanism,
The intermediate member is formed on a connecting rod portion rotatably arranged around the axis of the rotating shaft, and is formed on one end side of the connecting rod portion, and the rotating shaft side first projecting piece is accompanied by the rotation of the rotating shaft. And the second projecting piece formed when the connecting rod is rotated on the other end side of the connecting rod portion. An output-side projecting piece that engages in the rotational direction, and when the input-side projecting piece and the rotating shaft-side first projecting piece start engagement, the output-side projecting piece and the second projecting piece are A steering device, wherein the steering device is biased by a biasing means so as to be in a disengaged state. A tilt mechanism that is actuated by rotational torque output from the electric motor to adjust the vehicle vertical position of the steering handle, and is actuated by rotational torque output from the electric motor to adjust the vehicle longitudinal direction position of the steering handle. In a steering device comprising a telescopic mechanism,
A rotating shaft connected to the electric motor and rotating in response to a rotating torque output from the electric motor;
A tilt transmission position that is attached to the rotating shaft so as to be integrally rotatable and radially movable, and that is capable of transmitting rotational torque output from the electric motor to the tilt mechanism by centrifugal force generated by rotation of the rotating shaft. And / or a displacement member displaceable to a telescopic transmission position, which is a position capable of transmission to the telescopic mechanism,
The tilt mechanism is arranged between the rotation shaft and any one of the tilt mechanism and the telescopic mechanism, and the rotation torque is transmitted from the rotation shaft, and the transmitted rotation torque is transmitted at a predetermined time interval. And an intermediate member that transmits to one of the telescopic mechanisms,
A displacement member side first protrusion formed on the displacement member;
A third projecting piece that is formed in either the tilt mechanism or the telescopic mechanism and is engaged with the intermediate member to transmit a rotational torque from the intermediate member;
When the displacement member-side first projecting piece formed on either the tilt mechanism or the telescopic mechanism is displaced in accordance with the rotation of the rotation shaft and is displaced to a predetermined radial position, the displacement member side first a fourth protrusion engageable from the rotational direction 1 protrusion, Bei give a,
The intermediate member is formed on a connecting rod portion rotatably arranged around the axis of the rotating shaft, and is formed on one end side of the connecting rod portion, and the first protruding piece on the displacement member side is rotated with the rotation of the rotating shaft. The displacement member side first protrusion is formed on the other end side of the connecting rod portion, and the displacement member side first protrusion is engaged in the rotation direction when displaced in a radial position different from the radial position. And an output-side protruding piece that engages with the third protruding piece from the rotation direction when the connecting rod rotates, and the input-side protruding piece and the displacement member-side first protruding piece start to engage. The steering device is characterized in that the output side projecting piece and the third projecting piece are urged by the urging means so as to be in a non-engaged state when the output side projecting piece is engaged.

Images