JP7572883B2 - Vacuum mounting structure - Google Patents

Description

One aspect of the present invention relates to a vacuum mounting structure.

There is a known technology that uses the negative pressure stored in a vacuum tank by controlling a vacuum pump to activate a brake booster (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 9-177678

In a vehicle having the above-mentioned configuration, for example, a brake actuator (hydraulic actuator) that functions as a control valve according to the assist force generated by the brake booster may also be installed. In this way, the installation of a configuration such as a vacuum pump, vacuum tank, and brake actuator may result in complicated piping and wiring, making it difficult to effectively use the space inside the vehicle.

One aspect of the present invention was made in consideration of the above situation, and relates to a vacuum mounting structure that can save space inside a vehicle.

The vacuum mounting structure according to one aspect of the present invention includes a vacuum tank that accumulates gas at a negative pressure that is lower than atmospheric pressure, a vacuum pump that discharges gas from the vacuum tank and uses the negative pressure of the vacuum tank to operate a brake booster, and an actuator that functions as a control valve according to the assist force generated by the brake booster, with the vacuum tank, vacuum pump, and actuator being integrated into a module.

In a vacuum mounting structure according to one aspect of the present invention, a vacuum tank, a vacuum pump, and an actuator (brake actuator) are integrated. With such a configuration, these structures are arranged close to each other in a compact manner, and therefore, for example, the length of the piping and wiring connecting these structures can be shortened. This prevents the piping and wiring from becoming complicated, and saves space inside the vehicle. Furthermore, by shortening the length of the piping and wiring, it is possible to reduce the weight of the vehicle and reduce costs, and improve the reliability of the piping, etc.

The vacuum mounting structure may further include a bracket that supports the vacuum tank from below. This configuration improves durability against vertical vibration input, which is the main component of vibration input to the vacuum tank.

The bracket may be in contact with only a portion of the outer peripheral surface of the vacuum tank and may be welded to the outer peripheral surface. By welding the bracket to the outer peripheral surface of the vacuum tank, the contact area between the bracket and the outer peripheral surface of the vacuum tank can be reduced. This can suppress crevice corrosion on the surface of the vacuum tank, improve rust prevention performance, and suppress rust formation.

The vacuum mounting structure according to one aspect of the present invention can save space inside the vehicle.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a vacuum mounting structure according to the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a vacuum mounting structure according to the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a vacuum mounting structure according to the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a vacuum mounting structure according to the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a side view of the vacuum mounting structure according to the embodiment. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a vacuum tank included in the vacuum mounting structure.

The vacuum mounting structure according to the embodiment will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the same or equivalent elements are given the same reference numerals, and duplicate descriptions will be omitted.

Figures 1 to 4 are perspective views of the vacuum mounting structure 1 according to this embodiment. Figure 5 is a side view of the vacuum mounting structure 1 according to this embodiment. Figure 6 is a perspective view of the vacuum tanks 10, 20 included in the vacuum mounting structure 1. The vacuum mounting structure 1 is a mounting structure including the vacuum tanks 10, 20 included in, for example, an electric vehicle. As shown in Figures 1 to 5, the vacuum mounting structure 1 includes the vacuum tanks 10, 20, a vacuum pump 30, and a hydraulic actuator 40. In the vacuum mounting structure 1 according to this embodiment, the vacuum tanks 10, 20, the vacuum pump 30, and the hydraulic actuator 40 are modularized (details will be described later).

The vacuum tanks 10 and 20 are cylindrical tanks with bottoms, and store gas at a negative pressure that is lower than atmospheric pressure. The vacuum tanks 10 and 20 are aligned in the axial direction and are arranged so as to overlap each other in the vertical direction. The capacity of the vacuum tanks 10 and 20 may be, for example, about 2 liters each.

As shown in FIG. 6, the vacuum tank 10 is disposed above the vacuum tank 20. The vacuum tank 10 has a cylindrical vacuum reservoir 11 and plate-like reservoir ends 12, 13 that close both ends (bottom surfaces) of the vacuum reservoir 11. The vacuum tank 10 is supported by the vacuum tank 20 via two brackets 61, 62. That is, the brackets 61, 62 are disposed between the vacuum tanks 10, 20. The bracket 61 supports the vacuum tank 10 at one axial end side (reservoir end 12 side) of the vacuum tank 10. The bracket 62 supports the vacuum tank 10 at the other axial end side (reservoir end 13 side) of the vacuum tank 10. Each of the brackets 61 and 62 has two sides that run along the outer periphery of the vacuum tank 10 and contact the outer periphery of the vacuum tank 20. The brackets 61 and 62 are welded to the outer periphery of the vacuum tanks 10 and 20 on the sides that run along the outer periphery of the vacuum tanks 10 and 20.

As shown in FIG. 6, the vacuum tank 20 is disposed below the vacuum tank 10. The vacuum tank 20 has a cylindrical vacuum reservoir 21 and plate-like reservoir ends 22, 23 that close both ends (bottom surfaces) of the vacuum reservoir 21. The vacuum tank 20 is supported by two brackets 63, 64. The brackets 63, 64 are brackets that support the vacuum tank 20 from below. The bracket 63 supports the vacuum tank 20 at one axial end side (reservoir end 22 side) of the vacuum tank 20. The bracket 64 supports the vacuum tank 20 at the other axial end side (reservoir end 23 side) of the vacuum tank 20. Both brackets 63, 64 have one side that is in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the vacuum tank 20 along the outer peripheral surface of the vacuum tank 20. That is, the brackets 63 and 64 are in contact with only a portion of the outer circumferential surface of the vacuum tank 20. The brackets 63 and 64 are welded to the outer circumferential surface of the vacuum tank 20 at the edges that contact the outer circumferential surface.

The brackets 63 and 64 are fixed to the module support bracket 50. The module support bracket 50 is a bracket that supports all of the modularized vacuum tanks 10 and 20, the vacuum pump 30, and the hydraulic actuator 40. As shown in FIG. 1, the bracket 63 is fixed to the module support bracket 50 by bolts 67 and 68. In detail, the bracket 63 is fixed to the module support bracket 50 by inserting the bolts 67 and 68 into the through holes of the mounting surface 63x and the mounting surface 50x in the bracket 63, with the mounting surface 63x parallel to the plate surface of the reservoir end 22 and the mounting surface 50x parallel to the mounting surface 63x of the module support bracket 50 being arranged so as to overlap each other. Similarly, the bracket 64 is fixed to the module support bracket 50. As a result, the vacuum tanks 10 and 20 are supported (fixed) to the module support bracket 50 via the brackets 63 and 64.

As shown in Figures 1 and 2, a through hole is formed in the reservoir end 12 of the vacuum tank 10, and a tube 65 connected to the through hole is connected to a brake booster (not shown). Also, a through hole is formed in the reservoir end 22 of the vacuum tank 20, and a tube 66 connected to the through hole is connected to the vacuum reservoir 11 of the vacuum tank 10.

The vacuum pump 30 exhausts the gas in the vacuum tanks 10, 20 and operates a brake booster (not shown) using the negative pressure in the vacuum tanks 10, 20. The vacuum pump 30 is positioned at the same height as the vacuum tank 10 on the other end side (reservoir end 13 side) of the vacuum tank 10 in the axial direction.

The vacuum pump 30 is placed on and supported (fixed) to a horizontally arranged plate 69 as shown in FIG. 4. The plate 69 is then fixed to the module support bracket 50 with bolts 70, 71, and 72. In detail, with the mounting surface 50y of the module support bracket 50 parallel to the plate 69 positioned below the plate 69, the bolts 70, 71, and 72 are inserted into the through holes of the plate 69 and the mounting surface 50y, thereby fixing the plate 69 to the module support bracket 50. As a result, the vacuum pump 30 is supported (fixed) to the module support bracket 50 via the plate 69.

The hydraulic actuator 40 is an actuator for hydraulic control of the brakes, for example an ABS (Anti-lock Braking System) actuator. The hydraulic actuator 40 functions as a control valve according to the assist force generated by a brake booster (not shown). That is, the assist force generated by the brake booster (not shown) is supplied to the hydraulic actuator 40 via a master cylinder (not shown) and becomes a braking force that stops the rotation of the wheels. The hydraulic actuator 40 is disposed at the same height as the vacuum tank 10 at one end side (reservoir end 12 side) in the axial direction of the vacuum tank 10. That is, the hydraulic actuator 40 and the vacuum pump 30 are disposed adjacent to each other in the axial direction of the vacuum tank 10.

As shown in FIG. 1, the hydraulic actuator 40 is fixed to the module support bracket 50 by bolts 73 and 74. In detail, the hydraulic actuator 40 and the vertically extending mounting surface 50z of the module support bracket 50 are opposed to each other, and the bolts 73 and 74 are inserted into the through holes of the hydraulic actuator 40 and the mounting surface 50z, so that the hydraulic actuator 40 is supported (fixed) to the module support bracket 50. As described above, the vacuum tanks 10 and 20 are supported (fixed) to the module support bracket 50, the vacuum pump 30 is supported (fixed) to the module support bracket 50, and the hydraulic actuator 40 is supported (fixed) to the module support bracket 50, so that all of the components of the vacuum mounting structure 1 are supported (fixed) to the module support bracket 50. As a result, the vacuum tanks 10 and 20, the vacuum pump 30, and the hydraulic actuator 40 are integrated into a module.

As shown in FIG. 5, the module support bracket 50 supporting the vacuum tanks 10, 20, the vacuum pump 30, and the hydraulic actuator 40 is fixed to the anchor arm 80 by bolts 75, 76. The anchor arm 80 is connected to the frame 90. With this configuration, each component of the vacuum mounting structure 1 supported by the module support bracket 50, particularly the vacuum pump 30 and the hydraulic actuator 40, can be positioned near the frame 90. This reduces the input to the vacuum pump 30 and the hydraulic actuator 40, and suppresses vibration of these components.

Next, we will explain the effects of the vacuum mounting structure 1 according to this embodiment.

The vacuum mounting structure 1 according to this embodiment includes vacuum tanks 10, 20 that accumulate gas at a negative pressure that is lower than atmospheric pressure, a vacuum pump 30 that discharges gas from the vacuum tanks 10, 20 and uses the negative pressure of the vacuum tanks 10, 20 to operate a brake booster (not shown), and a hydraulic actuator 40 that functions as a control valve according to the assist force generated by the brake booster (not shown), and the vacuum tanks 10, 20, the vacuum pump 30, and the hydraulic actuator 40 are integrated into a module.

In the vacuum mounting structure 1 according to this embodiment, the vacuum tanks 10, 20, the vacuum pump 30, and the hydraulic actuator 40 (brake actuator) are integrated. With this configuration, these structures are arranged in close proximity to each other in a compact manner, so that, for example, the length of the piping and wiring connecting these structures can be shortened. This prevents the piping and wiring from becoming complicated, and saves space inside the vehicle. Furthermore, by shortening the length of the piping and wiring, it is possible to reduce the weight of the vehicle and reduce costs, while improving the reliability of the piping, etc.

The above-mentioned vacuum mounting structure 1 may further include brackets 63, 64 that support the vacuum tank 20 from below. This configuration can improve durability against vertical vibration input, which is the main component of vibration input to the vacuum tanks 10, 20.

The brackets 63, 64 are in contact with only a portion of the outer circumferential surface of the vacuum tank 20 and may be welded to the outer circumferential surface. By welding the brackets 63, 64 to the outer circumferential surface of the vacuum tank 20, the contact area between the brackets 63, 64 and the outer circumferential surface of the vacuum tank 20 can be reduced. This makes it possible to suppress rust on the surface of the vacuum tank 20.

1...vacuum mounting structure, 10, 20...vacuum tank, 30...vacuum pump, 40...hydraulic actuator, 63, 64...bracket.

Claims (3)

A vacuum tank that accumulates gas at a negative pressure that is lower than atmospheric pressure;
a vacuum pump that discharges gas from the vacuum tank and operates a brake booster by utilizing the negative pressure of the vacuum tank;
an actuator that functions as a control valve according to the assist force generated by the brake booster,
A vacuum mounting structure, in which the vacuum tank, the vacuum pump, and the actuator are integrally modularized. The vacuum mounting structure of claim 1, further comprising a bracket that supports the vacuum tank from below. The vacuum mounting structure of claim 2, wherein the bracket is in contact with only a portion of the outer circumferential surface of the vacuum tank and is welded to the outer circumferential surface.

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