JPH0689791B2 - Automatic clutch adjuster - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automatic adjusting device mounted on a clutch of an automobile, and more particularly, to an automatic adjusting device for always maintaining a good operating condition of the clutch regardless of wear of a clutch disc and extension of a clutch cable. Related to those configured in.

[Prior art]

Generally, a clutch mounted on an automobile is used for axially pressing a clutch disc supported by a transmission input shaft and a flywheel supported by an engine-side drive shaft (crankshaft). It consists of a clutch cover. The clutch cover presses the clutch disc toward the flywheel side by an axially movable pressure plate that is pressed against the clutch disc, and the pressure plate is attached to the clutch disc side by, for example, a tire flam spring. Power is given. Further, a clutch release bearing, which is fitted to the transmission input shaft and faces the diaphragm spring, is provided on the side of the diaphragm spring opposite to the clutch disc, and a predetermined axial movement is performed with respect to the clutch release bearing. And a clutch release lever for. In the case of a pedal-operated clutch, for example, a clutch release bearing that is interlocked with the clutch release lever, which is linked to the clutch pedal via a clutch cable, is swung by a predetermined operation by depressing the clutch pedal. The diaphragm spring is pressed to elastically deform the diaphragm spring in the releasing direction of the urging force to the clutch disc, whereby the pressure contact state between the clutch disc and the flywheel is released. That is, the clutch is disengaged. Also,
When the clutch pedal is released, the diaphragm spring elastically returns to its original shape, which pushes the clutch disc against the flywheel.
The clutch will be engaged.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention]

By the way, as the clutch device is repeatedly used, the facing of the clutch disc, which is pressed against the flywheel with a certain friction, is worn. In this case, the position of the clutch release lever in the swinging direction is constant when the clutch pedal is not depressed. If left as it is, the elastic deformation of the diamond spring in the spring force acting direction on the clutch disc is restricted by the clutch release bearing or the clutch release lever, and the spring force of the diaphragm spring in the clutch connecting direction on the clutch disc cannot be completely released. In this case, the diaphragm spring does not exert sufficient pressure on the clutch disc, causing slippage between the clutch disc and the flywheel when the clutch is engaged, causing burnout of the flywheel and clutch disc, and the clutch engagement. The problem arises that smoothness is significantly impaired. Therefore, normally, in order to avoid such a harmful effect, the work of adjusting the position of the clutch release lever according to the wear of the clutch disc is periodically performed by changing the mounting position of the end portion of the clutch cable. Had to do. The present applicant has previously proposed an automatic wear adjusting device as disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 59-21289 as a device capable of eliminating such troublesome adjustment work. This automatic wear adjusting device includes an outer cylinder having a wedge-shaped inner surface and an inner shaft slidably inserted into the outer cylinder. A rolling element is mounted between the wedge-shaped inner surface and the inner shaft, and One of the cylinder and the inner shaft is connected to the clutch release lever, and the other is connected to an actuator that is interlocked with the gear shift operation lever. When the gear shift operation lever is operated, the locking mechanism between the rolling element and the wedge-shaped inner surface is operated to lock the outer cylinder and the inner shaft, so that the driving force of the actuator is transmitted to the clutch release lever. When the clutch disc is worn, the position of the clutch release lever can be automatically adjusted by the relative slide between the outer cylinder and the inner shaft when the lock mechanism is released. However, even the above automatic wear adjusting device has the following problems. That is, in the case of a pedal-operated clutch, the clutch cable stretches over time like wear of the clutch disc. In this case, due to the slack of the clutch cable, the operating response of the clutch is deteriorated and the clutch connecting / disconnecting operation cannot be smoothly performed. Although the automatic wear adjustment device described above can automatically adjust the position of the clutch release lever in response to the wear of the clutch disc, it automatically corrects the extension of the clutch cable to check the operating state of the clutch. It is not possible to make it always constant. The present invention was devised under the circumstances as described above, and the position of the clutch release lever can be automatically adjusted according to the wear of the clutch disc, and the clutch cable is stretched. It is an object of the present invention to provide an automatic clutch adjusting device that automatically corrects this elongation even in the case of occurrence, and always maintains the operating state of the clutch smoothly.

[Means for solving problems]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, an automatic adjustment device in a clutch mechanism of the present invention is a clutch pedal in which a clutch release lever for pressing a diaphragm spring in a clutch releasing direction via a clutch release bearing is connected to the clutch release lever via a motion transmission mechanism. Is an automatic adjusting device interposed in the motion transmitting mechanism of a clutch which is operated by a stepping operation of a cylindrical fixing holder, and is inserted into the fixing holder so as to be slidable in the axial direction from the clutch pedal side end thereof. Together with a first shaft connected to the clutch pedal side, a second shaft inserted into the fixed holder so as to be axially slidable from its clutch release lever side end, and connected to the clutch release lever side. A spring for urging the first shaft and the second shaft in a direction close to each other; A slider that is axially slidably mounted in an annular space between the inner surface of the fixed holder and the first shaft outer surface and the second shaft outer surface; and a slider that is interposed between the first shaft and the slider. A first lock mechanism for restricting axial relative movement of the uniaxial shaft to the clutch pedal side with respect to the slider; and a first lock mechanism interposed between the second shaft and the slider, and the first lock mechanism with respect to the slider when the clutch pedal is depressed. And a second lock mechanism that restricts relative movement of the second shaft in the axial direction and allows relative movement of the second shaft in the axial direction with respect to the slider when the clutch pedal is not depressed.

[Action and effect]

When the clutch pedal is depressed, the first shaft connected to the clutch pedal side is pulled to the clutch pedal side via a motion transmission mechanism, for example, a cable. At this time, the relative movement of the first shaft with respect to the slider is caused by the first lock mechanism. Since the relative movement of the slider and the second shaft connected to the clutch release lever side is also regulated by the second lock mechanism, the slider and the second shaft also move with the sliding movement of the first shaft. Can be slid together with. That is, the operating force of the motion transmitting mechanism by the depression operation of the clutch pedal is transmitted to the clutch release lever through the integral sliding movement of the first shaft, the slider and the second shaft, and the clutch release lever is operated. By the way, when the clutch pedal is not stepped on, the second lock mechanism is released and the second shaft is allowed to play in the axial direction with respect to the slider or the fixed holder. Accordingly, the clutch release lever that is swung by a predetermined amount is in a state in which it can be idled in the swing direction. Therefore, for example, in a constant contact type clutch in which the clutch release bearing lightly contacts the diaphragm spring when the clutch pedal is not depressed, when the clutch pedal is not depressed,
The diaphragm spring presses the clutch release bearing and the clutch release lever with its elastic force, and the positions of the clutch release bearing and the clutch release lever can be changed. In other words, in the clutch engaged state, the elastic deformation of the diaphragm spring in the direction in which the spring force acts on the clutch disc can be allowed by the idle swing of the clutch release lever and the accompanying axial retraction of the clutch release bearing. Therefore, even if the clutch disc is worn, the diaphragm spring can be automatically elastically deformed in the spring force acting direction in response to the abrasion, so that the clutch disc is always provided with sufficient pressing force from the diaphragm spring. As a result, the clutch is prevented from slipping. On the other hand, the first shaft is biased in the direction closer to the second shaft, that is, in the direction opposite to the clutch pedal side, and the first lock mechanism does not function in this direction. Therefore,
Even if the cable connecting the first shaft and the clutch pedal as a motion transmitting mechanism expands, the slack of the cable is absorbed by the sliding movement of the first shaft in the above-mentioned urging direction,
This automatically adjusts the length of the cable and keeps its tension constant at all times. As described above, in the automatic adjusting device of the present invention, when the clutch disc is worn, the slippage of the clutch is prevented by automatically deforming the spring force acting direction of the diaphragm spring accordingly. Further, for example, when the clutch pedal and the first shaft are connected via a cable, the extension of the cable can be automatically corrected to make the tension of the cable constant, so that the clutch operating state is always maintained. Keeps good.

[Explanation of Examples]

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the drawings. As shown in FIG. 3, the clutch 1 includes a flywheel 3 fixed to an engine-side drive shaft (crankshaft) 2.
And a clutch cover 5 for pressing the clutch disc 4 against the flywheel 3 in the axial direction. The clutch disc 4 is supported by the transmission input shaft 6,
Further, the clutch cover 5 presses the clutch disc 4 toward the flywheel side by a pressure plate 7 which is in pressure contact with the clutch disc 4 and is movable in the axial direction, and the pressure plate 7 serves as the transmission input shaft. A urging force is applied to the clutch disc side by a diaphragm spring 9 which receives a pushing operation from a clutch release bearing 8 mounted on the clutch release bearing 6. The clutch release bearing 8 is
Clutch release lever 13 that swings around the pivot 12
When the diaphragm spring 9 is pushed to the side of the diaphragm spring 9, the diaphragm spring 9 is pushed into the clutch release bearing 8 and elastically deformed in the direction opposite to the spring force acting direction.
The pressing force applied to the pressure plate 7 or the clutch disc 4 is released, and the clutch is disengaged. In the case of the pedal operation type clutch as shown in the figure, the clutch release lever 13 is actuated by depressing the clutch pedal 10 connected to the clutch release lever 13 via the motion transmission mechanism 11 to push the clutch release bearing 8. Move.
The clutch shown in this example is of a constant contact type in which the clutch release bearing 8 is always in light contact with the diaphragm spring 8 when the clutch pedal 10 is released. Now, as shown in FIG. 3, the automatic adjusting device 14 of the present invention.
Is interposed in the motion transmission mechanism 11, the cylindrical fixed holder 15 is provided around the axial center portion, and the flange portion 15a having a plurality of screw holes 15b in the circumferential direction is attached to the vehicle body member. It is fixed to the vehicle body by being bolted. Further, the automatic adjustment device 11 is inserted into the fixed holder 15 so as to be slidable in the axial direction from the clutch pedal side end, and is connected to the clutch pedal 10 via a cable 16 as a motion transmission mechanism 11 and a first shaft 17. A second shaft 18 is inserted into the fixed holder 15 so as to be slidable in the axial direction from the clutch release lever side end, and is pivotally connected to the clutch release lever 13 via a connecting body 34. As shown in detail in FIG. 1 and FIG.
Is a substantially cylindrical body, and the small-diameter shaft portion 19 of the second shaft 18 is axially slidably inserted in the axial inner hole 17a.
Then, the first shaft 17 and the second shaft 18 are installed inside the inner hole 17a, and one end is pulled by the first shaft 17 and the other end is pulled by the small-diameter shaft portion 19 of the second shaft 18, respectively. The tension coil springs 20 are connected to each other via a coil spring 20 and are biased in the axial direction in the direction of approaching each other. Further, the small-diameter shaft portion 19 of the second shaft 18 is provided with a ring-shaped groove 21 extending in the circumferential direction on the outer peripheral surface of the distal end portion thereof, and the ring-shaped groove 21 is provided at one position on the outer peripheral surface in the circumferential direction. A key groove 22 connected to the groove 21 and extending in the axial direction is formed. The ring-shaped groove is formed at the tip of the first shaft 17.
A key body 23 that is slidably fitted in the key groove 21 and the key groove 22 is provided. As shown in FIG. 2, a first shaft 17 and a second shaft 18 are provided.
The sliding movement in the separating direction is restricted when the key body 23 is fitted into the ring-shaped groove 21, and the key body 23
When the positions of the key groove 22 and the key groove 22 are displaced from each other in the circumferential direction, the two are held at the maximum separated position. That is, when the relative rotational positions of the first shaft 17 and the second shaft 18 are adjusted to match the circumferential positions of the key groove 22 and the key body 23 as indicated by phantom lines in FIG. The first shaft 17 and the second shaft 18 are slidably fitted into the key groove 22 from the body 23, and
They are slid in the direction of approaching each other with a spring force of 20. A tubular slider 24 is internally slidably mounted in an annular space between the inner surface of the fixed holder 15 and the outer surface of the first shaft 17 and the outer surface of the second shaft 18. And, between the slider 24 and the first shaft 17, the slider 24 of the first shaft 17 is
A first lock mechanism 25 that restricts the relative axial movement of the clutch pedal toward the clutch pedal is provided. On the other hand, between the slider 24 and the second shaft 18, the axial relative movement of the second shaft 18 with respect to the slider 24 is regulated when the clutch pedal 10 is stepped on, and the second relative to the slider 24 when the clutch pedal 10 is not stepped on. A second lock mechanism 26 that allows relative movement of the shaft 18 in the axial direction is provided. That is, the inner surface of the slider 24 is provided with cone-shaped inner surfaces 27a, 27b, which gradually expand in diameter inward in the axial direction, at both end portions thereof. And the above-mentioned first locking mechanism
25 is one cone-shaped inner surface located on the clutch pedal side
27a and a plurality of steel balls 28 arranged between this and the outer peripheral surface of the first shaft 17, while the second lock mechanism 26 is the other cone positioned on the clutch release side. The inner surface 27b and a plurality of steel balls 29 disposed between the inner surface 27b and the outer peripheral surface of the second shaft 18 are formed. Further, the steel balls 28 of the first lock mechanism 25 and the steel balls 29 of the second lock mechanism 26 are provided with a pair of ball pushing members 30 axially slidably arranged in the inner hole of the slider 24, A compression coil spring 31 interposed between the pair of ball pushing members 30 and 30 urges the cone-shaped inner surfaces 27a and 27b in a forced engagement direction (locking direction). When the first shaft 17 slides toward the clutch pedal, the steel balls 28 are pulled by the first shaft 17 while receiving the biasing force of the compression coil spring 31, and the cone-shaped inner surface 27a and the first inner surface 27a. The first shaft 17 and the slider 24 are locked by being wedged into the outer peripheral surface of the one shaft 17, while the steel balls 28 ... When the first shaft 17 slides toward the clutch release lever side. The first shaft 17 can freely slide with respect to the slider 24 because it does not bite between the cone-shaped inner surface 27a and the outer peripheral surface of the first shaft 17. Then, when the slider 24 slides toward the clutch pedal with respect to the second shaft 18, the steel balls 29 of the second lock mechanism 26 ...
The second shaft 18 is locked with respect to the slider 24 by making it difficult to fit between the cone-shaped inner surface 27b and the outer peripheral surface of the second shaft 18. The slider 24 is constantly biased toward the clutch release lever by a compression coil spring 32 interposed between the slider 24 and the inner end wall of the fixed holder 15 on the clutch pedal side. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, it is positioned at the moving end on the clutch release lever side in the axial direction. And at this time, the steel ball 29 of the second lock mechanism 26,
By receiving by the ball receiving wall 33 provided on the inner end wall of the fixed holder 15 on the clutch release lever side, by preventing the rolling between the cone-shaped inner surface 27 of the steel ball 29 and the second shaft outer peripheral surface, The operation of the second lock mechanism 26 is forcibly released so that the second shaft 18 can freely slide relative to the slider 24 or the fixed holder 15. The first shaft 17 has a clutch pedal in the fixed holder until the steel balls 28 of the first lock mechanism 25 come into contact with a ball receiving wall 35 provided on an inner end wall of the fixed holder 15 on the clutch pedal side. It is allowed to slide to the side. Further, the second shaft 18 is allowed to slide toward the clutch release lever side until the stopper ring 36 fitted on the outer peripheral surface of the second shaft 18 comes into contact with the steel balls 29 of the second lock mechanism 26. In the clutch of this example equipped with the automatic adjustment device 14 having the above-mentioned configuration, when the clutch pedal 10 is depressed,
The first shaft 17 connected to the cable 16 is slid in the direction of arrow A in FIGS. At this time, the first shaft 17 is restricted from sliding relative to the slider 24 toward the clutch pedal by the first lock mechanism 25, so that the slider 24 is
It is slidable integrally with the first shaft 17 and in the same direction. Further, as the slider 24 slides toward the clutch pedal side, the steel balls 29 of the second lock mechanism 26 ...
Immediately retracts between the cone-shaped inner surface 27b and the outer peripheral surface of the second shaft, the second lock mechanism 26 is actuated, and the second shaft 18 is locked by the slider 24. Primary shaft 17
And the slider 24 can be slid in the same direction as these. The sliding movement of the second shaft 18 actuates the clutch release lever 13, and the clutch release bearing 8 which is interlocked with the second release shaft 18 elastically deforms the diaphragm spring 9 in the direction opposite to the spring force acting direction. Is cut. When the depression of the clutch pedal 10 is released, the diaphragm spring 8 elastically returns to the normal state and the clutch is engaged, and the first shaft 17 and the second shaft 18 are set to the positions shown in FIGS. It is moved in the direction of arrow B in FIG. At this time, the slider 24 is also moved to follow the second shaft 18 and the urging force of the compression coil spring 32 to the moving end on the clutch release lever side as shown in the figure. Then, in this state, as described above, the steel ball 29 of the second lock mechanism 26 has the ball receiving wall.
Since the bite between the cone-shaped inner surface 27b and the outer peripheral surface of the second shaft is blocked by 33 and the operation of the second lock mechanism 26 is released, the second shaft 18 is fixed to the slider 24 or the fixed holder 15.
On the other hand, it is in a state in which relative sliding can be freely performed. By the way, as described above, when the clutch pedal 10 is not depressed (when the clutch is engaged), the second shaft 18 is allowed to play in the axial direction, so that the clutch release lever 13 connected to the second shaft 18 is allowed to move. 3 is in a state in which play swing in the direction of arrow C is allowed in FIG. That is, with the clutch engaged, the pressure plate 7 of the diaphragm spring 8 or the clutch disc 4
The elastic deformation in the direction in which the spring force acts on the clutch release lever 13 can be allowed by the play swing of the clutch release lever 13 and the retracting movement of the clutch release bearing 8 associated therewith. Therefore, when the clutch disc 4 is worn, elastic deformation of the diaphragm spring 8 in the spring force acting direction is automatically performed without changing the position of the clutch release lever 13 one by one. Diaphragm spring 8 on disk 4
From this, a sufficient pressing force is always applied to the flywheel side. As a result, slipping of the clutch due to wear of the clutch disc is prevented, the clutch operation is always maintained in good condition, and the time and effort required for regular adjustment work as in the conventional case can be saved. The first shaft 17 is biased toward the second shaft (clutch release lever side) by the tension coil spring 20 that is interposed between the first shaft 17 and the second shaft 18, and the first lock mechanism 25 is a slider. Relative sliding of the second shaft 17 to the clutch release lever side with respect to 24 is not restricted. Therefore, even if the cable 16 connecting the clutch pedal 10 and the first shaft 17 is stretched, the slack of the cable 16 is automatically absorbed by the sliding movement of the first shaft 17 in the biasing direction, and
Since the tension of 16 is always kept constant, the cable
It is not necessary to adjust the length of 16 and it is possible to always disengage the clutch by depressing the clutch pedal 10 with good responsiveness. Even if the cable is stretched when the second shaft 18 and the clutch release lever 13 are connected to each other through the cable, the tension of the cable is not increased by the tension coil spring 20 of the second shaft 18. It can be absorbed by automatic sliding in the direction of force (clutch pedal side). Further, in the automatic adjustment device 14 of this example, when connecting this to the clutch pedal 10 or the clutch release lever 13, it is not necessary to perform the initial adjustment of the cable length. That is, in assembling, as shown in FIG. 2, the key body 23 of the first shaft 17 is fitted into the ring-shaped groove 21 of the second shaft 18, and the first shaft 17 and the second shaft 18 are connected. Is held at the maximum distance between them (at this time, the cable
16 is slack. ), The first shaft 17 to the cable 16,
The second shafts 18 are connected to the clutch release levers 13, respectively. Then, after this, by adjusting the relative rotational position of the first shaft 17 and the second shaft 18, to match the circumferential position of the key groove 22 of the key body 23 and the second shaft 18, the tension coil spring The first shaft 17 is slid to the clutch release lever side and the second shaft 18 is slid to the clutch pedal side by the urging force of 20, and the cable 16 is slid at this time by the sliding motion of the first shaft 17. The slack is absorbed by being pulled by the first shaft 17, and the cable length is automatically adjusted. Therefore, as described above, it is not necessary to individually adjust the length of the cable 16 after the adjustment device 14 is assembled. Further, this means that the work of attaching the adjusting device 14 is very simple. By the way, the scope of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments. For example, in the embodiment, when urging the first shaft and the second shaft in the approaching direction, a method of interposing a tension coil spring between them is used, but the first shaft is attached to the clutch release lever side. The compression springs for urging may be respectively provided with the compression springs for urging the second shaft toward the clutch pedal to urge both shafts in the approaching direction.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a sectional view of an automatic adjusting device according to an embodiment of the present invention,
FIG. 2 is a view showing a state before the automatic adjusting device is assembled to a clutch, which is a view corresponding to a cross section taken along the line II-II of FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a clutch or a clutch equipped with the automatic adjusting device. It is the figure which showed the clutch operating mechanism roughly. 8 ... Clutch release bearing, 9 ... Diaphragm spring, 10 ... Clutch pedal, 11 ... Motion transmission mechanism, 13
... Clutch release lever, 15 ... Fixed holder, 16 ... First shaft, 18 ... Second shaft, 24 ... Slider, 25 ... First lock mechanism,
26 ... Second locking mechanism.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A motion transmitting mechanism of a clutch, wherein a clutch release lever for pressing a diaphragm spring in a clutch releasing direction via a clutch release bearing is actuated by depressing a clutch pedal connected thereto via a motion transmitting mechanism. An automatic adjusting device interposed in a tubular fixing holder, and a first shaft which is inserted into the fixing holder so as to be axially slidable from its clutch pedal side end and which is connected to the clutch pedal side. And a second shaft that is axially slidably inserted from the clutch release lever side end of the fixed holder and that is connected to the clutch release lever side, and the first shaft and the second shaft are close to each other. Of the spring for biasing the fixed holder, the inner surface of the fixed holder, and the outer surface of the first shaft and the outer surface of the second shaft. A slider that is axially slidably mounted in the annular space, and is interposed between the first shaft and the slider, and restricts the relative movement of the first shaft in the axial direction toward the clutch pedal with respect to the slider. The first lock mechanism, which is interposed between the second shaft and the slider, restricts the relative movement of the second shaft with respect to the slider in the axial direction when the clutch pedal is depressed, and the clutch pedal is not depressed. An automatic clutch adjusting device comprising a second lock mechanism that allows axial movement of the second shaft relative to the slider.