JP2004347059A - Pinion carrier unit for planetary gear mechanism - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To easily and quickly assemble a pinion carrier unit for a planetary gear mechanism. <P>SOLUTION: This pinion carrier unit 100 is provided with carriers 11 and 21 having main body parts 11 and 27 formed with through holes 14 and 27, a pinion gear 30 formed with a through hole 31, and a bridge 40 formed with a through hole 43 in both end areas thereof. The through hole 43 formed in both end areas of the bridge 40 is arranged on the same axis with the through holes 14 and 27 formed in the main body parts 11 and 27 and the through hole 31 formed in the pinion gear 30. The main body parts 11 and 27, each of the pinion gears 30 and each of the both ends areas of the bridge 40 are connected to each other by a pinion shaft 50 inserted into each of the through holes 11, 27, 31 and 43, which are arranged on the same axis, so that the only pinion gear 30 can be relatively rotated. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a pinion carrier unit of a planetary gear mechanism used for a power transmission device such as an automatic transmission mounted on an automobile.
[0002]
[Prior art]
An example of the pinion carrier unit of the planetary gear mechanism used in the power transmission device includes a first support portion that supports the pinion gear on one end surface side, a second support portion that supports the pinion gear on the other end surface side, and a first support portion. A connecting portion that extends from the portion and is connected to the second supporting portion to connect the first supporting portion and the second supporting portion. The connection portion extends from the first support portion in parallel or inclined with the axial direction of the planetary gear mechanism, the first connection portion having a thickness direction substantially in the radial direction of the planetary gear mechanism, and the first support portion. A second connecting portion extending in a direction parallel or inclined with respect to the axial direction of the planetary gear mechanism from which the thickness direction is substantially the circumferential direction of the planetary gear mechanism, and any one of the first connecting portion and the second connecting portion Or, a third connecting portion which is connected to both and comes into contact with the inner surface of the second supporting portion and whose thickness direction is the axial direction of the planetary gear mechanism. The connecting portion and the second supporting portion (that is, the first supporting portion and the second supporting portion) are integrally connected by caulking, welding, or the like (see Patent Document 1).
[0003]
According to the above-mentioned pinion carrier unit, the rigidity of the carrier is increased, so that the deformation is prevented, and the tooth contact of each gear is improved, so that the effects of noise reduction due to meshing and the durability of each gear are improved. It is said that it can be obtained. However, since the first support portion and the second support portion are integrally connected by caulking, welding, or the like, assembly is relatively difficult, takes time, and may be deformed. Furthermore, there is a maintenance problem that disassembly and reassembly are substantially impossible.
[0004]
[Patent Document 1]
JP-A-2001-200897
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a novel pinion carrier unit for a planetary gear mechanism, which can be easily and quickly assembled and is free from deformation during assembly.
[0006]
Another object of the present invention is to provide a novel planetary gear mechanism pinion carrier unit that can be easily disassembled and reassembled, and is excellent in maintainability.
[0007]
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a novel planetary gear mechanism pinion carrier unit that can be manufactured at low cost.
[0008]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
According to the present invention, in a pinion carrier unit of a planetary gear mechanism in which a plurality of pinion gears are rotatably supported,
A pair of carriers each having a disc-shaped main body in which a plurality of through holes are formed at intervals in the circumferential direction, and a plurality of concentric through holes formed between each main body of the carrier A plurality of pinion gears, and a plurality of bridges substantially disposed between the main body portions of the carrier and having through holes formed in both end regions in the circumferential direction, and a through hole formed in each end region of each bridge. The holes are arranged substantially concentrically with respect to the circumferentially adjacent through holes and the circumferentially adjacent pinion gear through holes of the respective main body portions of the carrier,
Each body portion of the carrier, each of the pinion gears, and the both end regions of each of the bridges are only pinion geared by a pinion shaft that is removably inserted so as to pass through each of the concentrically arranged through holes. Connected to rotate relative to each other,
A pinion carrier unit for a planetary gear mechanism is provided.
It is preferable that each of the pinion shafts is removably inserted into each of the through holes so as not to rotate with respect to the main body of one of the carriers and not to come out of each of the through holes.
An annular flange extending in the axial direction and extending in the opposite direction to the other carrier is formed on the circular periphery of the main body of one carrier, and a head is formed at one end of each of the pinion shafts. An arcuate surface that is substantially aligned with the inner peripheral surface of the annular flange and prevents relative rotation when each of the pinion shafts is completely inserted into each of the through holes is provided in a partial area of the outer peripheral surface. Preferably, it is formed.
Each of the bridges extends in the circumferential direction in each main body of the carrier at an axial interval and has a pair of arc-shaped plate portions whose thickness direction is the axial direction; An arc-shaped connecting portion that connects between radially outer ends in the direction intermediate region and the thickness direction is a radial direction, and the through-holes having a common axis are respectively provided at both end regions of the arc-shaped plate portion. Preferably, it is formed.
Two or more pinion gears are provided, and the interval between the axially outer surfaces of one end region in the circumferential direction of each arc-shaped plate portion of each bridge is slightly smaller than the interval of the inner axial surface of the other end region in the circumferential direction. As described above, it is preferable that the one end region of one bridge in the circumferentially adjacent bridge is overlapped with the inside of the other end region of the other bridge at a boundary portion with the circumferential intermediate region.
It is preferable that four or more even numbers of pinion gears are provided, and the bridges are arranged for each pair of two pinion gears adjacent to each other in the circumferential direction, each set being independent in the circumferential direction.
One arcuate plate in each of the bridges is integrally formed with the body of one carrier, or the other arcuate plate in each of the bridges is integrally formed with the body of the other carrier, Is preferred.
[0009]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of a pinion carrier unit of a planetary gear mechanism configured according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[0010]
1 to 5, a pinion carrier unit 100 of a planetary gear mechanism includes a pair of carriers 10 and 20, a plurality of, in the embodiment, three pinion gears 30, and a plurality of, in the embodiment, Has three bridges 40. One carrier 10 has a disk-shaped main body 11. A through-hole 12 is formed concentrically with the main body 11 in a central region of the disk-shaped main body 11, and an annular flange 13 is formed integrally with the circular periphery. In a state where one carrier 10 is assembled as a part of the pinion carrier unit 100 as described later, the annular flange 13 extends in the axial direction of one carrier 10 and in the opposite direction to the other carrier 20. Positioned as The presence of the annular flange 13 improves the strength of one carrier 10. The main body 11 also has a plurality of, in this embodiment, three, through holes 14 formed at equal angular intervals in the circumferential direction. The through-holes 14 having the same diameter are arranged at equal angular intervals of 120 ° in the circumferential direction.
[0011]
The other carrier 20 has a disk-shaped main body 21. A cylindrical portion 22 is integrally formed in a central region of the disk-shaped main body portion 21 so as to extend axially outward from one axial surface. In a state where the other carrier 20 is assembled as a part of the pinion carrier unit 100 as described later, the cylindrical portion 22 extends in the axial direction of the other carrier 20 and in the direction opposite to the one carrier 10. Positioned as The inner diameter of the inner peripheral surface of the one end region 23 on the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion 22 near the main body portion 21 in the axial direction is formed to be slightly larger than the inner diameter of the inner peripheral surface of the other region 24. An annular step portion 25 is formed between the second region 24 and the other region 24. An annular groove 26 is formed in one end region 23 on the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion 22. A plurality of, in this embodiment, three through holes 27 are formed in the main body 21 at equal angular intervals in the circumferential direction. The through-holes 27 having the same diameter are arranged at equal angular intervals of 120 ° in the circumferential direction. The inside diameter of each of the through holes 27 is substantially the same as the inside diameter of each of the through holes 14 of one carrier 10. Note that the axis of each of the one carrier 10 and the other carrier 20 is substantially common to the axis of the pinion carrier unit 100. Therefore, the axial direction means a common axial direction of one carrier 10, the other carrier 20, and the pinion carrier unit 100.
[0012]
Each of a plurality of, in the embodiment, three pinion gears 30 is formed with a concentric through-hole 31. In each of the through holes 31, a bush 32 as a bearing member is press-fitted. Each of the pinion gears 30 has substantially the same shape and size as one another.
[0013]
Each of the plurality, in the embodiment three bridges 40, has substantially the same shape and size as one another, and only one of them will be described below. The bridge 40 includes a pair of arc-shaped plate portions 41 and an arc-shaped connecting portion 42. A pair of arc-shaped plate portions 41 having substantially the same shape and size as each other are substantially parallel to the circumferential direction of the main body portions 11 and 21 of the carriers 10 and 20 at intervals in the axial direction. It is configured to extend and the thickness direction is the axial direction. The arc-shaped connecting portion 42 is configured to connect between radially outer ends in each circumferential intermediate region of the arc-shaped plate portion 41 and to have a radial direction in a thickness direction. The pair of arc-shaped plate portions 41 and the arc-shaped connecting portion 42 are integrally formed by bending a single steel plate. Through holes 43 having a common axis are formed in both end regions in the circumferential direction of each of the arc-shaped plate portions 41. Both ends in the circumferential direction of the arc-shaped plate portion 41 have an arc shape concentric with the through hole 43. In each of the arc-shaped plate portions 41, the intermediate region is formed such that the interval between the axial outer surfaces of the one end region 41A in the circumferential direction is slightly smaller than the interval between the axial inner surfaces of the other end region 41B in the circumferential direction. It is bent at a boundary 41D with 41C. In the embodiment, the interval between the axial outer surfaces of the other end region 41B in the circumferential direction in each of the arc-shaped plate portions 41 is formed substantially the same as the interval between the axial outer surfaces of the intermediate region 41C. I have.
[0014]
The carriers 10 and 20 are arranged on a common axis at a distance from each other. Each of the through-holes 14 formed in the main body 11 of the carrier 10 and each of the through-holes 27 formed in the main body 21 of the carrier 20 are arranged substantially on a common axis. Between the main bodies 11 and 21 of the carriers 10 and 20, each of the pinion gear 30 and each of the bridges 40 are arranged. One end region 41A of each of the bridges 40 is inserted (superimposed) inside the other end region 41B of the bridge 40 adjacent in the circumferential direction, and is connected to each of the through holes 43 formed in the one end region 41A and the other end region 41B. Each of the formed through holes 43 is disposed on a substantially common axis with respect to the through holes 14 and 27 of the main bodies 11 and 21 of the carriers 10 and 20, respectively. Each of the pinion gears 30 is disposed between a pair of arc-shaped plate portions 41 in one end region 41A of each of the bridges 40. Each of the through holes 31 of the pinion gear 30 substantially corresponds to the through holes 43 of the one end region 41A and the other end region 41B of the bridge 40, and the through holes 14 and 27 of the main bodies 11 and 21 of the carriers 10 and 20. They are arranged on a common axis.
[0015]
The body portions 11 and 21 of the carriers 10 and 20, the pinion gears 30 adjacent to each other in the circumferential direction, and the mutually overlapped one end region 41 </ b> A and the other end region 41 </ b> B of each of the bridges 40 are substantially formed. The pinion shaft 50 is removably inserted so as to pass through each of the through holes 14, 43, 31 and 27 arranged on a common axis, so that only the pinion gear 30 is connected so as to be relatively rotatable.
[0016]
More specifically, a plurality of, in the embodiment, three pinion shafts 50 have substantially the same shape and size as each other, and each of the shaft portions 51 has a circular outer peripheral surface of the same diameter. And a head 52 formed at one end of the shaft 51. An arc surface 53 is formed in a part of the outer peripheral surface of the head 52 having a constant axial thickness. The radius of the arc surface 53 is substantially the same as the radius of the inner peripheral surface of the annular flange 13 formed on the main body 11 of one carrier 10. An annular groove 54 is formed at the other end of the shaft portion 51 of the pinion shaft 51. Each of the pinion shafts 51 is provided with a through hole 43, 31 (more precisely, a hole of the bush 32) and a through hole 14 formed in the main body 11 of one of the carriers 10 on the common axis. 27 when fully inserted into each of them, the pinion shaft 51 is substantially aligned with the inner peripheral surface of the annular flange 13 (in other words, substantially in contact with or opposed to with a small gap). Relative rotation with respect to the annular flange 13 and thus with respect to one of the carriers 10 is prevented. The other end of each shaft 51 of the pinion shaft 50 is protruded from one surface of the main body 21 of the other carrier 20, and the retaining ring 55 is detachably engaged with the annular groove 54 of the protruded other end. Are combined. This prevents each of the pinion shafts 51 from coming off.
[0017]
Since the bush 32 is press-fitted into each through hole 31 of the pinion gear 30, each of the pinion shafts 50 penetrates and is inserted into the bush 32 with respect to each of the pinion gears 30. Become. Thrust washers 33 are provided on both side surfaces of the pinion gear 30, respectively. Each of the thrust washers 33 is formed of an appropriate material having a relatively low coefficient of friction, and is configured so as to reduce wear on both side surfaces of the pinion gear 30 and one end region 41A of each of the bridges 40.
[0018]
In the pinion carrier unit 100 configured as described above, as shown in FIG. 3, for example, each of the pinion gears 30 meshes with a sun gear 61 disposed on a drive shaft 60 forming a part of a power transmission device. Is done. Each of the pinion gears 30 is also meshed with a ring gear (not shown). The cylindrical portion 22 of the other carrier 20 is supported so as to be rotatable relative to the drive shaft 60 via a radial ball bearing 62 pressed into the inner peripheral surface of the one end region 23 of the cylindrical portion 22. The radial ball bearing 62 is prevented from coming off in the axial direction by the retaining ring 63 engaged with the annular groove 26 and the step 25 formed in the cylindrical portion 22. The pinion carrier unit 100, the sun gear 61, and the ring gear (not shown) constitute a planetary gear mechanism.
[0019]
According to the planetary carrier unit 100 described above, the through holes 43 formed in the both end regions 41A and 41B of each of the bridges 40 are formed in the main body portions 11 and 21 of the carriers 10 and 20 so as to be adjacent to each other in the circumferential direction. 14 and 27, and substantially concentrically with respect to the through holes 31 of each of the pinion gears 30 circumferentially adjacent to each other, and the main bodies 11 and 21 of the carriers 10 and 20, the respective pinion gears 30, , The two end regions 41A and 41B of each of the bridges 40 are connected to a pinion gear 50 by a pinion shaft 50 removably inserted so as to pass through each of the concentrically arranged through holes 14, 43, 31 and 27, respectively. Only 30 are connected for relative rotation. The planetary carrier unit 100 having the above-described configuration allows the pinion shaft 50 to be fixed to the one carrier 10 and the both end regions 41A and 41B of the bridge 40 in the circumferential direction without welding or caulking as in the conventional planetary carrier unit. Can be assembled quickly and reliably by a very simple operation of substantially inserting each of the pinion gears 30 adjacent to each other and each of the through holes 14, 43, 31 and 27 of the other carrier 20. In addition, the pinion shaft 50 can be disassembled by a very easy operation of merely pulling out the pinion shaft 50 from each of the through holes 14, 43, 31 and 27, so that maintenance is excellent. Furthermore, the elimination of welding or caulking as in the conventional planetary carrier unit eliminates the risk of deformation during assembly, and allows manufacturing at a lower cost than before.
[0020]
In the planetary carrier unit 100 described above, each of the pinion shafts 50 is formed so that it cannot rotate with respect to the main body 11 of one of the carriers 10 and does not come out of each of the through holes 14, 43, 31, and 27. 14, 43, 31 and 27 are detachably inserted. Such a configuration makes it possible to easily achieve the above-mentioned effects in practical use.
[0021]
In the above-described planetary carrier unit 100, an annular flange 13 is formed on the circular periphery of the main body 11 of one carrier 10 so as to extend in the axial direction and in the opposite direction to the other carrier 20. A head 52 is formed at one end of each of the pinion shafts 30, and in a partial area of the outer peripheral surface of the head 52, each of the pinion shafts 30 is completely inserted into each of the through holes 14, 43, 31 and 27. Is formed substantially in alignment with the inner peripheral surface of the annular flange 13 to prevent relative rotation. Such a configuration makes it practically easy to achieve the above-mentioned effects.
[0022]
In the planetary carrier unit 100 described above, each of the bridges 40 extends in the circumferential direction of the main body 11 and 21 of each of the carriers 10 and 20 at an axial interval, and the thickness direction is the axial direction. And an arc-shaped connecting portion 42 that connects between radially outer ends of the respective intermediate portions 41C in the circumferential direction of the arc-shaped plate portion 41 and whose thickness direction is the radial direction. In both end regions 41A and 41B of the arc-shaped plate portion 41, through holes 43 having a common axis are formed. Such a configuration makes it practically easy to achieve the above-mentioned effects.
[0023]
In the above-described planetary carrier unit 100, two or more pinion gears 30 (for example, two, three, four, five, six,...) Are provided. In this case, the interval between the axial outer surfaces of the one end region 41A in the circumferential direction in each of the arc-shaped plate portions 41 of the bridge 40 is slightly smaller than the interval between the axial inner surfaces of the other end region 41B in the circumferential direction. , At the boundary 41D with the circumferential intermediate region 41C. One end region 41A of one bridge 40 in the circumferentially adjacent bridges 40 is superimposed on the other end region 41B of the other bridge 40. Such a configuration contributes to improving the strength of each of the bridges 40, and thus the strength of the entire planetary carrier unit 100.
[0024]
In the planetary carrier unit 100 described above, it is possible to provide an even number of pinion gears 30 (for example, four, six, eight,...). In this embodiment, the bridges 40 are arranged for each pair of two pinion gears 30 which are adjacent to each other in the circumferential direction and which are independent in the circumferential direction. FIG. 6 shows a main part of an embodiment in which six pinion gears 30 are provided. The bridge 40 is arranged so that a pair of two pinion gears 30 adjacent in the circumferential direction is a unit in the circumferential direction. Are arranged for each of the groups independently. There are a total of three sets of two circumferentially adjacent pinion gears 30 shown in FIG. In such an embodiment, the one end region 41A of the bridge 40 that is adjacent in the circumferential direction is not overlapped inside the other end region 41B. The space between the axial outer surfaces of the one end region 41A is formed substantially the same as the space between the axial outer surfaces of the other end region 41B in the circumferential direction (the circumferential direction of each arc-shaped plate portion 41 of the bridge 40). A bent portion in the above-described embodiment described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5 is not formed at a boundary portion 41D between the one end region 41A and the circumferential intermediate region 41C). In such a configuration, the number of bridges 40 can be reduced (the number of the pinion gears 30 may be half of the total number), so that further cost reduction and weight reduction can be achieved.
[0025]
In the planetary carrier unit 100 described above, the other arc-shaped plate portion 41 in each of the bridges 40 is formed integrally with the main body 11 of the one carrier 10 or the other circle in each of the bridges 40. There is still another embodiment in which the arc-shaped plate portion 41 is formed integrally with the main body portion 21 of the other carrier 20. Such a configuration can be formed by hot rolling. In addition, with such an integrated configuration, the strength of each of the bridges 40, and thus the strength of the entire planetary carrier unit 100, can be improved. Such an integrated configuration is applied to an embodiment in which two or more even or odd pinion gears 30 are provided. Note that one or more arc-shaped plate portions 41 in some but not all of the bridges 40 are integrally formed with the main body 11 of one of the carriers 10, or in each of the bridges 40. There are still other embodiments in which some but not all of the other arcuate plate portions 41 are integrally formed with the body portion 21 of the other carrier 20.
[0026]
【The invention's effect】
ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to the pinion carrier unit of the planetary gear mechanism by this invention, assembling can be performed easily and quickly, and there is no possibility of deformation at the time of assembly. In addition, it can be easily disassembled and reassembled, and is excellent in maintainability. Furthermore, it can be manufactured at low cost.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a preferred embodiment of a pinion carrier unit of a planetary gear mechanism configured according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a view of the pinion carrier unit shown in FIG. 1 as viewed from the right in FIG. 1 in the axial direction.
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG.
FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view showing the pinion carrier unit shown in FIG. 1;
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a layout when a bridge included in the pinion carrier unit shown in FIG. 1 is assembled, as viewed from the same axial direction as FIG. 2;
6 is a view showing a layout when assembling a bridge included in another embodiment of the pinion carrier unit of the planetary gear mechanism configured according to the present invention, as viewed from the same axial direction as FIG. 2;
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 One carrier 11 Main part 13 Annular flange 14 Through hole 20 The other carrier 21 Main part 27 Through hole 30 Pinion gear 31 Through hole 40 Bridge 41 Arc plate 42 Arc connection part 43 Through hole 41A One end area 41B The other end area 41C Intermediate area 41D Boundary part 50 Pinion shaft 51 Shaft part 52 Head 53 Arc surface

Claims (7)

In a pinion carrier unit of a planetary gear mechanism in which a plurality of pinion gears are rotatably supported,
A pair of carriers each having a disc-shaped main body in which a plurality of through holes are formed at intervals in the circumferential direction, and a plurality of concentric through holes formed between each main body of the carrier A plurality of pinion gears, and a plurality of bridges substantially disposed between the main body portions of the carrier and having through holes formed in both end regions in the circumferential direction, and a through hole formed in each end region of each bridge. The holes are arranged substantially concentrically with respect to the circumferentially adjacent through holes and the circumferentially adjacent pinion gear through holes of the respective main body portions of the carrier,
Each body portion of the carrier, each of the pinion gears, and the both end regions of each of the bridges are only pinion geared by a pinion shaft that is removably inserted so as to pass through each of the concentrically arranged through holes. Connected to rotate relative to each other,
A pinion carrier unit for a planetary gear mechanism. The planetary gear mechanism according to claim 1, wherein each of the pinion shafts is removably inserted into each of the through holes so as not to rotate with respect to the main body of one of the carriers and not to come out of each of the through holes. Pinion carrier unit. An annular flange extending in the axial direction and extending in the opposite direction to the other carrier is formed on the circular periphery of the main body of one carrier, and a head is formed at one end of each of the pinion shafts. An arcuate surface that is substantially aligned with the inner peripheral surface of the annular flange and prevents relative rotation when each of the pinion shafts is completely inserted into each of the through holes is provided in a partial area of the outer peripheral surface. The pinion carrier unit for a planetary gear mechanism according to claim 2, wherein the pinion carrier unit is formed. Each of the bridges extends in the circumferential direction in each main body of the carrier at an axial interval and has a pair of arc-shaped plate portions whose thickness direction is the axial direction; An arc-shaped connecting portion that connects between radially outer ends in the direction intermediate region and the thickness direction is a radial direction, and the through-holes having a common axis are respectively provided at both end regions of the arc-shaped plate portion. The pinion carrier unit of the planetary gear mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the pinion carrier unit is formed. Two or more pinion gears are provided, and the interval between the axially outer surfaces of one end region in the circumferential direction of each arc-shaped plate portion of each bridge is slightly smaller than the interval of the inner axial surface of the other end region in the circumferential direction. The end portion of one of the bridges in the circumferentially adjacent bridge is overlapped with the inside of the other end region of the other bridge by being bent at the boundary with the circumferential intermediate region. The pinion carrier unit of the planetary gear mechanism. 5. The planetary gear according to claim 4, wherein four or more even numbers of pinion gears are provided, and the bridges are arranged for each set of two pinion gears adjacent to each other in the circumferential direction, each set being independent in the circumferential direction. Pinion carrier unit for gear mechanism. One arcuate plate in each of the bridges is integrally formed with the body of one carrier, or the other arcuate plate in each of the bridges is integrally formed with the body of the other carrier, A pinion carrier unit for a planetary gear mechanism according to claim 4.

Images