JP6167741B2 - Accelerator pedal device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an accelerator pedal device for a vehicle that is pivotally supported by a floor panel in a vehicle compartment so as to be pivotable and swings back and forth in response to a driver's stepping operation.

  Conventionally, a so-called organ-type accelerator pedal device is known as an accelerator pedal device. The organ-type accelerator pedal device includes a vertically long plate-like pedal body whose lower end is pivotally supported on the floor surface, and the swing direction of the pedal body and the depression direction centered on the driver's buttocks Are easy to match and a good operational feeling can be obtained. Such an accelerator pedal device is disclosed in Patent Document 1, for example.

  As one of driving techniques, a technique called heel and toe operation in a vehicle equipped with a manual transmission is known. The heel-and-toe operation means, for example, a state where the clutch is released with the left foot so that the gear can be smoothly shifted when shifting down for acceleration when exiting the corner while depressing the brake pedal when entering the corner Then, depressing the accelerator pedal to increase the engine speed, twisting the right ankle to the left, depressing the brake pedal with the toe part (fingerball) and depressing the accelerator pedal with the heel (buttock part) .

JP 2000-255283 A

  However, in the case of such an organ-type accelerator pedal device, if the heel and toe operation is performed, the lower part of the pedal is stepped on at the buttocks, and the twist angle of the right ankle is particularly insufficient. Since the stepping position becomes lower and approaches the pivotal support portion (hinge portion), it is difficult to secure the necessary stepping amount.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to obtain an organ-type accelerator pedal device that can perform a heel and toe operation satisfactorily.

  In order to solve the above problems, the present invention is configured as follows.

First, the invention according to claim 1 of the present application is arranged on the floor surface in front of the driver's seat, and the lower end portion is pivotally supported by the floor surface and extends obliquely forward from the pivotal support portion. An accelerator pedal device for a vehicle having a pedal body that can be stepped on to the vehicle, wherein the pedal body has a vertically long plate shape and is located on the right side of the center of the driver's seat. predetermined range below the heel tread which is depressed by the heel portion when the is from the heel side tread, sunken via a step portion is formed in a plate shape, the axis of the pivot portion is, in plan view With respect to the vehicle width direction, the right side is inclined at a predetermined angle in the rearward direction .

The invention according to claim 2 is characterized in that, in the invention according to claim 1, the pedal body has a tread surface portion extending in parallel with the pivotal support portion .

  The invention according to claim 3 is the invention according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the pivot portion of the pedal body is formed of a PP hinge, and the width of the pivot portion is set to be equal to that of the pedal body. In order to make it wider than the width, the base of the pedal body is widened to the right.

  According to the invention of each claim of the present application, the following effects can be obtained by the above configuration.

  First, according to the first aspect of the present invention, when the heel and toe operation is performed, it is possible to prevent the buttocks from stepping on the vicinity of the pivot portion of the accelerator pedal, and to ensure the heel side tread above the pivot portion. You can step in. Thereby, the required operation amount of the accelerator pedal at the time of heel and toe operation can be secured, and heel and toe operation can be performed satisfactorily.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, since the tread surface of the pedal body is oriented to the left rear, it is easy to follow the heel portion of the right foot directed to the right front during the heel & toe operation. Thereby, the shift | offset | difference with the depression direction of a collar part and the rocking | fluctuation direction of a pedal main body is suppressed. Therefore, the operation feeling can be improved during the heel and toe operation.

  Moreover, the tread surface of the pedal body is directed to the left rear, that is, to the driver side. For this reason, the driver can easily set the right foot in accordance with the swinging direction of the pedal body and can optimize the driving posture, so that the driver's thigh fatigue can be reduced. In addition, the operational feeling of the pedal body during normal accelerator operation can be improved.

  According to the invention described in claim 3, when the PP hinge that is required to widen the hinge portion is adopted, the pivot portion is expanded to the right side, so that the heel & toe operation can be performed. It is possible to prevent the lower portion of the heel from coming into contact with the expanded portion and hindering pedal operation.

  That is, according to the accelerator pedal device according to the present invention, the heel and toe operation can be performed satisfactorily in the organ type accelerator pedal device.

It is a top view which shows the front part structure of the vehicle provided with the accelerator pedal apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a perspective view of an accelerator pedal device. It is a side view of an accelerator pedal device. It is a front view of an accelerator pedal device. It is a side view which shows the state of the driver | operator's right leg at the time of heel and toe operation. It is a perspective view which shows the state of a driver | operator's right leg at the time of heel and toe operation. It is a top view which shows the positional relationship of each part of a driver | operator's right foot, and the accelerator pedal which concerns on this invention. It is a top view which shows the positional relationship of each part of a driver | operator's right foot, and the conventional accelerator pedal. It is a graph which shows the bending angle of a driver | operator's femur.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a front structure of a vehicle equipped with an accelerator pedal device according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the accelerator pedal device, FIG. 3 is a side view thereof, and FIG. It is a front view.

[Front structure of vehicle 100]
As shown in FIG. 1, a vehicle 100 includes a floor panel 2 that forms a floor surface of a passenger compartment 1, and a dash panel that stands on the front end of the floor panel 2 and partitions the passenger compartment 1 and the engine compartment 3. 4, a driver seat 5 on which the driver is seated, an accelerator pedal 6, a brake pedal 7, a clutch pedal 8, and a footrest 9 that are depressed by the driver seated on the driver seat 5. Yes. The vehicle 100 is a right-hand drive vehicle in which a handle (not shown) and the driver's seat 5 are arranged on the right side in the vehicle width direction.

  On the upper surface of the floor panel 2, a floor carpet (not shown) having sound insulation and heat insulation functions is laid. The driver's seat 5 is slidable in the front-rear direction so that a suitable driving posture can be provided in accordance with the body shape of the driver, and the rearward tilt amount of the seat back can be changed.

  The various pedals 6 to 8 are disposed in front of the floor panel 2 and are positioned in front of the vehicle in the driver's seat 5 so that the driver can step on the pedal. The accelerator pedal 6 and the brake pedal 7 that are depressed by the right foot are located on the right side of the center of the driver's seat 5, the accelerator pedal 6 is disposed on the right side, and the brake pedal 7 is disposed on the left side. . On the other hand, the clutch pedal 8 that is depressed by the left foot is located slightly to the left of the center of the driver seat 5, and the footrest 9 on which the left foot is placed is located to the left of the center of the driver seat 5. .

  The accelerator pedal 6 is a so-called organ-type accelerator pedal device that is attached to the floor panel 2 and swings in a substantially front-rear direction with a lower hinge shaft portion 32 (see FIG. 2) as a pivot shaft. The brake pedal 7 and the clutch pedal 8 are so-called suspension type pedal devices that swing in the front-rear direction in a suspended state by a support shaft (not shown) behind the dash panel 4.

[Accelerator pedal 6]
As shown in FIG. 2, the accelerator pedal 6 can swing in a substantially front-rear direction with a base member 20 fixed to the front portion of the floor panel 2 (see FIG. 1) and a lower end portion supported by the base member 20. And a pedal body 30 configured as described above. When the driver depresses the pedal body 30, the opening of the throttle valve (not shown) or the fuel injection amount is adjusted via an accelerator cable or an accelerator opening detecting means (not shown), and the engine output is reduced. It can be adjusted.

(Base member 20)
The base member 20 supports the pedal body 30 so as to be swingable substantially in the front-rear direction, and includes first and second attachment portions 21 and 22 that are recessed toward the floor panel 2 (see FIG. 1). And an engaging groove 23 that engages with the lower portion of the pedal body 30.

  Bolt insertion holes 21a and 22a (see FIG. 4) are provided at the bottoms of the first and second attachment portions 21 and 22, respectively. The base member 20 fixes the bolt 10 to the accelerator pedal device mounting bracket 11 through the bolt insertion holes 21a and 22a. The accelerator pedal device mounting bracket 11 forms a mounting surface that is one step higher than the floor panel 2 (see FIG. 1), thereby separating the accelerator pedal 6 from the floor panel 2 by the thickness of the floor carpet.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the engaging groove 23 has a substantially rectangular cross-sectional shape in which the upper opening is reduced. Referring also to FIG. 1, the engagement groove 23 extends in a direction in which the right side inclined by a predetermined angle α with respect to the vehicle width direction in the plan view is the rear side. Here, since the pedal body 30 swings with the hinge shaft portion 32 parallel to the engagement groove 23 as a pivot shaft, the swing angle of the pedal body 30 does not give the driver an uncomfortable feeling. The angle is set to a small angle of 10 degrees or less. In the present embodiment, the predetermined angle α is set to about 4 degrees.

(Pedal body 30)
The pedal body 30 includes an engaging portion 31 configured to be engageable with the engaging groove 23 of the base member 20, a hinge shaft portion 32 connected to the upper edge of the engaging portion 31, and an upper portion of the hinge shaft portion 32. This is a synthetic resin plate-like molded body formed integrally with the tread portion 33 connected to the edge. As the synthetic resin, for example, polypropylene (PP) can be used.

  The engaging portion 31 has a cross-sectional shape that substantially matches the cross-sectional shape of the engaging groove 23 of the base member 20, and extends along the longitudinal direction of the engaging groove 23.

  The hinge shaft portion 32 is a so-called PP hinge (also referred to as a living hinge) that constitutes a support shaft for the swinging motion of the pedal body 30 and has a thin cross-sectional shape. The PP hinge is a thin band-shaped resin hinge that can be bent without breaking. The hinge shaft portion 32 is provided in parallel with the engaging portion 31, that is, the engaging groove 23 of the base member 20. As a result, as described above, the pedal body 30 swings substantially in the front-rear direction, with the hinge shaft portion 32 inclined at a predetermined angle α with respect to the vehicle width direction as a pivot shaft.

  The tread surface portion 33 extends in parallel with the hinge shaft portion 32 so as to follow the right foot sole of the driver seated on the driver's seat 5 (see FIG. 1) as shown in a side view of FIG. As shown in the front view of FIG. That is, the tread portion 33 is inclined by a predetermined angle α with respect to the vehicle width direction, and the tread surface is directed toward the driver.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the tread portion 33 includes an upper tread surface 33 a that is depressed by a driver, and a lower tread surface 33 c that is formed in a flat plate shape that is one step lower from the upper tread surface 33 a via a stepped portion 33 b. ing. For example, the lower tread 33c is formed about 5 mm lower than the upper tread 33a.

  The upper tread surface 33a is vertically long so that when the driver normally depresses the accelerator pedal 6, it can be depressed more favorably by the thumb ball portion, and when the heel and toe operation is performed, the driver can more favorably depress the foot portion. Is formed in a substantially rectangular range. For this reason, the step part 33b which demarcates the lower edge of the upper tread 33a is provided, for example, at a position about 50 mm away from the hinge shaft 32 along the lower tread 33c.

  Here, the upper tread surface 33a is configured to be compact so as to have a minimum width W1 necessary for performing the above stepping operation. On the other hand, the hinge shaft portion 32 is configured to have a width W2 so that it can sufficiently withstand repeated swinging motion of the pedal body 30. As a result, since the width W1 of the upper tread 33a is shorter than the width W2 of the hinge shaft 32, the stepped portion 33b and the hinge shaft at the lower end of the upper tread 33a are formed by forming the lower tread 33c in a substantially trapezoidal shape. 32 is connected.

  Specifically, the lower tread 33c forms a widened portion 33d on the right side to absorb the difference between the width W1 of the upper tread 33a and the width W2 of the hinge shaft portion 32. That is, the lower tread 33c is formed in a shape in which the left side edge is aligned with the left side edge of the upper tread surface 33a, and the right side edge is wider than the right side edge of the upper tread surface 33a.

[Positional relationship between shoe sole and accelerator pedal 6 during heel and toe operation]
Next, the positional relationship between the sole of the driver's right foot and the accelerator pedal 6 during the heel and toe operation will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 5 is a side view showing a state of the right foot of the driver during the heel and toe operation, and FIG. 6 is a perspective view thereof. In FIG. 5, the entire right foot of the driver is shown, and in FIG. 6, the shoe sole of the driver's right foot is shown by a chain line.

  As shown in FIG. 5, in the heel and toe operation, the right ankle was twisted to the left, and the accelerator pedal 6 was depressed at the heel portion of the right foot while the brake pedal 7 was depressed at the toe ball portion of the right foot. Sometimes, the heel part of the shoe sole is located opposite to the lower surface of the tread part 33.

  In that case, since the lower tread 33c of the tread 33 is formed one step lower than the upper tread 33a via the stepped portion 33b, the heel portion of the shoe sole contacts the upper tread 33a and contacts the lower tread 33c. There is nothing. Thereby, it can prevent that a collar part steps on the vicinity of the hinge axial part 32 of the pedal main body 30, and can step on the upper tread 33a reliably.

  In particular, the lower tread 33c is formed one step lower than the upper tread 33a even when the heel portion of the shoe sole faces the lower tread 33c of the pedal body 30 when the twist angle of the right foot is insufficient. Therefore, the heel portion does not contact the upper tread surface 33a but contact the lower tread surface 33c.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the hinge shaft portion 32 of the pedal body 30 is disposed at a predetermined angle α in a direction in which the right side is rearward with respect to the vehicle width direction in plan view. The swing direction of the main body 30 is the front-rear direction slightly swung to the right. On the other hand, at the time of the heel and toe operation, the driver twists his right foot counterclockwise and steps on the brake pedal 7 with the thumb ball portion, while the accelerator pedal 6 located on the right rear side of the brake pedal 7 in the depressed position. Because the foot will be stepped on at the buttocks, the shoe sole will face the front right.

  That is, the swinging direction of the pedal body 30 and the directing direction of the driver's shoe back are likely to coincide. Moreover, since the tread surface portion 33 of the pedal body 30 is formed in parallel to the hinge shaft portion 32, the pedal surface portion 30 is directed toward the left rear driver side. As a result, the directivity direction of the tread portion 33 and the directivity direction of the shoe sole are easily matched, and the shoe sole is easily along the tread portion 33.

  In this embodiment, since the PP hinge is used for the hinge shaft portion 32, the width W2 of the hinge shaft portion 32 is required to be wider than the width W1 of the upper tread 33a. An expanded portion 33d is formed on the right side. On the other hand, in the heel-and-toe operation, the shoe sole of the right foot extends from the brake pedal 7 to the accelerator pedal 6, but since the expanding portion 33d is provided on the right side, the shoe sole expands near the hinge axis. The opening 33d is not stepped on.

[Positional relationship between each part of right foot and accelerator pedal 6 during normal accelerator pedal operation]
Next, the positional relationship between each part of the driver's right foot and the accelerator pedal 6 during normal accelerator pedal operation (not during heel and toe operation) will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 7 is a plan view showing the result of measuring the position of each part (waist, knee, ankle) of the right foot for each of various subjects when operating the accelerator pedal, and connecting each part with a straight line. FIG. 8 is a plan view showing the same measurement result as that in FIG. 7 when a conventional accelerator pedal 6 'is used. FIG. 9 is a graph in which the opening angle of the subject's thigh is calculated from the results of FIGS. 7 and 8. In addition, the conventional accelerator pedal is one in which the hinge shaft portion of the pedal body is configured in parallel to the vehicle width direction.

(Measurement conditions)
(1) Evaluation accelerator pedal device-Accelerator pedal 6 (predetermined angle α of hinge shaft portion 32 is 4 degrees)
・ Accelerator pedal 6 '(hinge shaft 32' is parallel to the vehicle width in plan view)
(2) Subjects: Five men and women each having a height of 150 cm to 184 cm (3) Two states were measured: the subject was in a relaxed state and the nervous state.

(Measurement result)
7 and 8 show that in the case of the accelerator pedal 6 according to the present embodiment, the position of the knee portion is located inward in the vehicle width direction as compared with the conventional accelerator pedal 6 '. Has been. This is because the accelerator pedal 6 is such that the tread portion 33 is directed toward the driver side, so that the shoe back can be easily along the tread portion 33. On the other hand, in the conventional accelerator pedal 6 ′, the tread portion 33 ′ is directed rearward. Therefore, by positioning the knee portion from the outside in the vehicle width direction toward the tread portion 33 ′, the shoe sole is made to be tread portion 33. It is easy to follow.

  In FIG. 9, in the case of the accelerator pedal 6 according to the present embodiment, the average value of the opening angle with respect to the front and rear direction of each subject's thigh is R1, and the same average value in the case of the accelerator pedal 6 'is R2. As shown in FIG. 9, in the accelerator pedal 6 according to the present embodiment, the opening angle of the thigh is reduced in both the relaxed state and the tensioned state as compared with the conventional accelerator pedal 6 '.

  That is, according to the accelerator pedal 6 according to the present embodiment, the hinge shaft portion 32 of the pedal body 30 is inclined by a predetermined angle α so that the right side is located rearward with respect to the vehicle width direction in plan view. It can be seen that the opening angle of the thigh of the right foot is reduced and the right foot is stretched in a more natural posture.

  According to the embodiment described above, the following effects can be exhibited.

(1) When the heel and toe operation is performed, it is possible to prevent the eaves portion from stepping on the vicinity of the hinge shaft portion 32 of the pedal body 30 and to step on the upper tread surface 33a above the hinge shaft portion 32 with certainty. Thereby, the required operation amount of the pedal body 30 at the time of the heel and toe operation can be secured, and the heel and toe operation can be performed satisfactorily.

(2) Since the tread portion 33 of the pedal body 30 is oriented to the left rear, it is easy to follow the heel portion of the right foot directed to the right front during the heel & toe operation. Thereby, the shift | offset | difference with the depression direction of a collar part and the rocking | fluctuation direction of the pedal main body 30 is suppressed. Therefore, the operation feeling can be improved during the heel and toe operation.

(3) The directivity direction of the tread portion 33 of the pedal body 30 is directed to the left rear, that is, the driver side. For this reason, the driver can easily set the shoe sole of the right foot in accordance with the swinging direction of the pedal body 30 and can optimize the driving posture. As a result, fatigue of the driver's thigh can be reduced. In addition, the operational feeling of the pedal body during normal accelerator operation can be improved.

(4) When a PP hinge that requires a wider width of the hinge shaft portion 32 is adopted, the expanded portion 33d is formed on the right side of the lower tread 33c, so that the lower portion of the heel and toe can be operated during the heel & toe operation. However, it is possible to prevent the pedal body 30 from being hindered by being in contact with the expanded portion 33d.

  The above description is for a right-hand drive vehicle, but a left-hand drive vehicle can be configured in exactly the same manner, and the above-described effects can be obtained for a left-hand drive vehicle.

  The present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above, and various modifications and changes can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention described in the claims.

  As described above, according to the present invention, since the heel and toe operation can be performed satisfactorily in the organ-type accelerator pedal device, there is a possibility that it can be suitably used in this type of manufacturing technical field. is there.

2 Floor panel 4 Dash panel 5 Driver's seat 6 Accelerator pedal 7 Brake pedal 8 Clutch pedal 20 Base member 23 Engaging groove 30 Pedal body 31 Engaging portion 32 Hinge shaft portion 33 Tread surface portion 33a Upper tread surface 33b Stepped portion 33c Lower tread surface 33d Expansion Opening

Claims (3)

A vehicle having a pedal body disposed on a floor surface in front of a driver's seat, having a lower end portion pivotally supported on the floor surface, extending obliquely forward from the pivotal support portion, and capable of being stepped forward by a driver's right foot An accelerator pedal device,
The pedal body is
It is in the shape of a vertically long flat plate , located on the right side of the center of the driver's seat,
A predetermined range below the heel-side tread that is stepped on by the heel during heel & toe operation is lower than the heel-side tread through the step, and is formed in a flat plate shape .
An accelerator pedal device, wherein an axis of the pivot portion is inclined at a predetermined angle in a direction in which the right side is rearward with respect to the vehicle width direction in plan view .   The pedal body has a tread surface portion extending in parallel with the pivot portion,
  The accelerator pedal device according to claim 1. The pivot portion of the pedal body is composed of a PP hinge, and in order to make the width of the pivot portion wider than the width of the pedal body, the base portion of the pedal body is expanded to the right.
The accelerator pedal device according to claim 1 or 2.

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