JP3131611B2 - Torque rod - Google Patents

Description

Description: FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention is directed to a torque rod, and more particularly to a vehicle made of a polymerizable synthetic material, the components of a drive train of the vehicle and the vehicle. Connected to the chassis, the vehicle accelerates,
The present invention relates to a torque rod for alleviating a strain that the vehicle receives from a road surface and a terrain state when the vehicle is stopped and operating, and stabilizing the drive train. Such a torque rod is
It is fixedly attached to the differential housing and the vehicle chassis in the axial direction, the parallel direction, or the oblique direction.

2. Description of the Related Art Torque rods for vehicles for motor vehicles, particularly vehicles with tandem axle suspensions, are well known. Such rods used today are essentially made of steel, each having a steel shaft with a pair of straddle mounting ends with lateral openings forming a socket. . The mounting end has a mounting flange with an opening for mounting at a specific location on the chassis and drive train side.

There are basically two types of straddle mounting ends. That is, one has a central ball with a pair of outwardly extending mounting flanges that fit into respective sockets. A plastic or metal insulating lining material is interposed between the ball and the socket. Further, the ball and lining are snap-ring and are secured within the socket by one or more rings positioned by presses, stakes or flanges. The advantage of this arrangement is that the ball is completely rotatable with respect to the socket and that the angular contact between them is high.

A second type of straddle mounting end has a cylindrical pin body with two outwardly extending flanges mounted in respective sockets. A rubber insulating lining material is interposed between the pin body and the socket. During assembly, this rubber is deformed and fitted between the inner surface of the socket and the surface of the cylindrical pin body. With this structure, the rotation and rotation of the pin with respect to the socket are restricted.

(Problems to be solved by the invention) However, the above-mentioned conventional structure has the following problems. First, conventional torque rods are heavy, weighing about 20 pounds. Secondly, it is difficult to manufacture, requires almost safe casting or forging techniques, and requires a high degree of expertise in assembling operations using heavy presses and the like.
Third, conventional torque rods are expensive to manufacture and dismantle due to their difficulty in manufacturing and the high cost of the required raw materials. Fourth, the insulating lining material interposed between the ball and the socket is easily worn. And fifth, conventional torque rods are not compatible with different vehicle types because their length cannot be adjusted.

Therefore, a first object of the present invention is to provide a torque rod which is made of a polymerizable synthetic material and whose length can be adjusted. . Flanges integrally formed with the rod shaft may be provided at both ends of the rod. The rod shaft may be configured as a hollow, solid, or multilayer structure having a plurality of concentric layers.

Also, the rod shaft is divided into two halves,
Each of the halves has the same structure and configuration as those described above, except that the halves have ends that can be connected to each other with play. A sleeve having an opening for injection is slidably disposed on both ends of the connectable rods. After adjusting the two halves to each other to obtain a desired length (this adjustment may be performed after the operation of attaching the two halves to the vehicle body, or
(It may be performed before that.), The sleeve is slid over the connecting connection part, and the seal bonding agent is injected into the passage in the connecting part from the opening. When the bonding agent cures, the two halves are connected almost integrally.

The torque rod having the above configuration solves the above-described problems of the related art. First, the torque rod made of a synthetic material is less than half the weight of a conventional torque rod. Second, the configuration, which in some cases involves molding, polishing, shaving, etc., is relatively simple. Third, the resulting manufacturing and replacement costs are low. Fourth, since no insulating lining material is used, there is no fear of the lining material being worn. Fifth, the structure using the synthetic material according to the present invention is:
Adjustment of the length of the torque rod is easy.

FIG. 1 shows a conventional rigid automotive vehicle chassis, generally designated by the reference numeral 11. The chassis 11 is used for trucks, garbage trucks, leveling vehicles, or other rigid automobile vehicles using conventional torque rods. The chassis 11 includes a pair of side members 16 and a cross member
18 and a rear end 14 having a differential device housing 15.

Two torque rods including an adjustable torque rod 12 and a non-adjustable torque rod 10 are attached to specific portions of the chassis 11. And, for example,
The adjustable torque rod 12 connects the differential device housing 15 and one of the side members 16 in FIG. 1, while the non-adjustable torque rod 10 connects the differential device housing 15 and the cross member in FIG. 18 and connected.

Of course, both torque rods can be attached to the chassis by a method other than the above. In addition, the attachment points of the two torque rods may be other than those shown in the drawings, for example, as is known in a 4-spring suspension structure, between other parts of the chassis and a drive train. Good.

FIG. 2 shows the non-adjustable torque rod 10 in detail. The non-adjustable torque rod 10 has a shaft 13 with straddle ends 20 that are substantially the same at both ends. Each of the straddle ends 20 has two openings 22.

FIG. 3, on the other hand, shows the adjustable torque rod 12 in detail. This adjustable torque rod 12 has a shaft 13 'with approximately the same straddle end 20' at each end.
have. Further, a coupling sleeve 25 is provided. The connection and coupling structure by the sleeve will be described later in detail with reference to FIGS. 11 to 13.

The non-adjustable torque rod 10 shown in FIG. 2 and the adjustable torque rod 12 shown in FIG. 3 are both made of a polymerizable synthetic material, and these torque rods are formed as a single unit. Or may be composed of a plurality of parts. The configuration of these rods according to the present invention will be described later in detail with reference to FIGS. 8 to 10.

Next, FIGS. 4 to 7 each show another embodiment of the torque rod of the present invention. However, there is no change in that the torque rod of each of these embodiments is also made of a polymerizable synthetic material.

First of all, FIG. 4 shows a straight shaft support end 30 having a one-piece structure. And this end 30
Has a straight shaft portion 28 and a base portion 26, and these portions are integrally formed.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along the line 5-5 in FIG. 4, in which a section of the base 26 is shown. The base 26 has a pair of openings 32 that can be aligned with the metal bush 34. The openings 32 and the bush 34 are also indicated by broken lines in FIGS. 4, 6, and 7.

Next, FIG. 6 shows a flared shaft end 34 having a one-piece structure. The end 34 has a flared shaft 36 and a base 27, and these parts are integrally formed.

FIG. 7 shows still another embodiment of the torque rod according to the present invention. That is, a column end 38 having a two-piece structure is shown here, and the end 38 has a base 40 having a column 41 that can be fitted into the shaft 42. As a method for fixing the support portion 41 to the inside of the shaft portion 42, a conventional fixing method can be used.

2 and 3, the structure of the torque rod according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 8 to 10. FIG.

First, FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken along the line 8-8 in FIG. It should be noted that various configurations of the specific ends shown in FIGS. 4, 6, and 7 will be described below. However, the configurations shown in FIGS. 8 to 10 are merely examples, and The end of the invention is not limited to these configuration examples.

FIG. 8 shows a substantially hollow shaft body 50 made of a polymerizable synthetic material.

In contrast, FIG. 9 shows a shaft body 52 which is also made of a polymerizable synthetic material, but has a solid structure.

Further, FIG. 10 illustrates a multilayer shaft body, generally designated by the reference numeral 51, to illustrate the diversity of the composite structure of the present invention. The multilayer shaft main body 51 includes an outer layer 50 ′, a third inner layer 54, a second inner layer 56, a first inner layer 58, and a core 60. This multilayer structure is advantageous for increasing the strength and elasticity of the rod without increasing its weight and dimensions.

In order to provide the maximum flexibility in use of the torque rod of the present invention, the present invention further provides a manufacturing method for adjusting the rod length to adapt the torque rod to various rigid vehicles. Is also provided. Next, this method will be described with reference to FIG. 11 to FIG. This method is realized by the above-described configuration using a polymerizable synthetic material.

In FIG. 11, there is shown a first half torque rod shaft 62 having a connection end portion 63 which can be connected to the connection end portion 64 of the second half torque rod shaft 65 with play. ing. The two connecting ends 63 and 64 are formed so as to play in both the side and axial directions when they are connected to each other.

Further, a sleeve member 66 is provided slidably on one of the two half torque rod shafts 62 and 65. The sleeve member 66 has an opening for injection.
Has 68. Note that it is desirable to provide a cover or other sealing device (not shown) in the opening 68.

Now, a method of connecting and connecting the above-described members will be described.

First, the half rods 62 and 65 are fixed to desired portions of the vehicle chassis 11, respectively. At this time, the rod shafts 62, 65 are positioned so that the both ends 63, 64 are almost completely connected to each other. 63, 64
However, since they are connected to each other with play, the length of the torque rod can be changed as necessary.

This connected state is best shown in FIG. In FIG. 12, the sleeve member 66 is located on the rod shaft 65, and the rod shaft 65 is
It is almost completely connected to 62. As shown by reference symbol C in the drawing, a passage is formed between the respective ends 63 and 64 when the rod shafts 62 and 65 are connected to each other.

Next, as shown in FIG.
After connecting 2, 65, the sleeve member 66 is
3 and 64 so that the sleeve member 66
Cover these ends completely. Since this sleeve member 66 has little play with respect to the two rod shafts 62 and 65, by sliding the sleeve member 66 as described above, the two rods 62 and 65 shafts are centered with each other. You. The opening 68 is substantially aligned with the passage C (indicated by a broken line in the figure).

Thereafter, a self-curing fluid or a semi-fluid seal bonding agent (not shown) is injected from the opening 68 until the passage C is completely filled. Immediately after this injection operation, the sleeve member 66 is still movable. Therefore, during this time, the sleeve member 66 is rotated around the two rod shafts 62 and 65 connected to each other to fix the internal bonding agent. Alternatively, a cover (not shown) may be provided over the opening 68.

Incidentally, as the seal bonding agent, the both rod shafts 62, 6
It is preferable to use a material that chemically reacts with the polymerizable synthetic material forming the sleeve member 66 and the sleeve member 66 so that when hardened, these members are almost integrally formed as one torque rod. .

Although various embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the scope of the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and various other modifications and improvements can be made without departing from the scope of the claims.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a state in which a torque rod according to the present invention is mounted on a chassis of a conventional solid automobile vehicle, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing one embodiment of a torque rod according to the present invention. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the torque rod according to the present invention, FIG. 4 is a plan view showing the torque rod of the present invention, and FIG. 5 is a line 5-5 in FIG. FIG. 6 is a plan view showing an end of another torque rod of the present invention, FIG. 7 is a plan view showing an end of still another torque rod of the present invention, FIG. Is a sectional view taken along line 8-8 in FIG. 4, FIG. 9 is a sectional view taken along line 9-9 in FIG. 6, and FIG. 10 is a sectional view taken along line 10-10 in FIG. Sectional view along the line, FIG. 11 is a partial perspective view showing a pair of half shafts and one sleeve, FIG. 12 is moving the sleeve on one shaft to one side,
An eleventh state in which the pair of half shafts are overlapped with each other
FIG. 13 is a perspective view of each member shown in the drawing, and FIG. 13 is a view showing a modification of the configuration of FIG. 12, showing a state in which the sleeve is positioned on the mutually overlapped ends of the two half shafts. It is. 13,13 ', 28,36,42,62,65 ...... Shaft body, 20,20', 26,27,40
…… ends, 25,66 …… sleeves.

Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-59-187556 (JP, A) JP-A-63-1784 (JP, U) JP-A-63-133402 (JP, U) JP-A-59-194631 (JP) , U)

Claims (12)

(57) [Claims] 1. A torque rod for use in a motor vehicle chassis, the rod comprising a first portion and a second portion, the rod being substantially cylindrical and made of a polymerizable synthetic material. A shaft body, wherein the first and second parts are connected to each other in a playful manner to form one connection area, and the body is further connected to the first and second parts. In the first position, the first position is located on one of the first and second portions.
And a sleeve slidable to a second position on the connection area of the second portion. 2. A torque rod for a motor vehicle, the rod having a generally cylindrical, longitudinal body made of a polymerizable synthetic material having a first portion and a second portion. The two portions are connected to each other in a playful manner to form one connection region, and the main body is further connected to the first or second portion in a state where the first and second portions are connected to each other. A slidable sleeve from a first position located on one of the first and second portions to a second position on the connection region of the first and second portions, wherein the sleeve comprises:
A torque rod having an opening for injecting at least one bonding filler. 3. A torque rod for a motor vehicle, the rod having a generally cylindrical, longitudinal body made of a polymerizable synthetic material, having a first portion and a second portion. The two portions are connected to each other in a playful manner to form one connection region, and the main body is further connected to the first or second portion in a state where the first and second portions are connected to each other. A sleeve slidable from a first position located on one of the first and second portions to a second position on the connection region of the first and second portions, the first portion comprising:
A first mounting end and a first connecting end, wherein the second portion has a second receiving end and a second connecting end, and the two connecting ends A torque rod which, when the parts are connected to play with each other, forms a space therebetween for injecting the binding filler. 4. The torque rod according to claim 3, wherein said first connecting end and said second connecting end have substantially the same shape. 5. A first shaft portion connects the first mounting end portion and the first connecting end portion, and a second shaft portion forms the second mounting end portion and the second connecting end portion. The first connecting end portion has a first outer surface extending in the axial direction having a substantially semicircular cross section, and at least two axially extending flat surfaces that are not coplanar. Having a first inner surface, one of the first inner surfaces that are not on the same surface is formed continuously from the first shaft portion, and the first inner surface that is formed continuously is
An axially extending second outer surface having a width that is smaller than the other first inner surface that is not on the same plane, wherein the second connecting end has a substantially semicircular cross-section; A second inner surface that extends in the axial direction and is not coplanar, and one of the second inner surfaces that are not coplanar is continuously formed from the second shaft portion, and is formed continuously. The second inner surface of
The torque rod according to claim 3, wherein the torque rod has a width smaller than that of the other second inner surface that is not on the same plane. 6. The torque rod according to claim 3, wherein said first mounting end and said second mounting end have mounting means for mounting said rod to a chassis of a motor vehicle. 7. The torque rod according to claim 6, wherein each of the two end portions has one end portion substantially perpendicular to an axial length of the main body. 8. The torque rod according to claim 7, wherein at least one of the ends has at least one opening. 9. The torque rod according to claim 8, wherein said at least one opening is aligned with a metallic bush. 10. The torque rod according to claim 1, wherein said body is formed as a substantially solid structure. 11. A method for adjusting and fixing a torque rod for a motor vehicle, wherein the rods each have a connectable end and an end fixed to a chassis of the vehicle. Comprising two connecting portions that can be connected with play and a sleeve having at least one opening, wherein both connecting portions are made of a polymerizable material, and the fixing method is as follows. A step of sliding the sleeve over one of the two connecting portions; a step of fixing the fixing end to the chassis of the vehicle; and a play of the connecting portions. Connecting the sleeve to the opening of the sleeve until the sleeve surrounds substantially the entire connection area formed by the connection of the two connection portions. Stroke to inject a filler. 12. The method according to claim 11, further comprising the step of adjusting the two connecting portions to each other to appropriately change the rod length before the step of injecting the binding filler.