JP3271855B2 - Car steering system - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automobile steering system.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As shown in FIG. 3, a steering apparatus for an automobile is provided with a steering gear box 24 for connecting a knuckle arm 22 connected to a wheel 21 with a tie rod 23 and moving the tie rod 23, as shown in FIG. In general, a steering wheel 25 and a steering gear box 24 are connected by a steering shaft 26 having a cross joint 27 interposed therebetween. The steering shaft 26 extends obliquely forward and downward while being bent by the cross joint 27.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 61-220932 discloses a horizontal mounting system as shown in FIG. 3 in which a crankshaft extends along a vehicle width direction and a cylinder shaft center is directed substantially forward in a horizontal direction. The engine 30 is mounted, and the engine body 31
The transmission 32 directly connected to the crankshaft and the differential device 33 directly connected to the drive shaft 28 are interlockingly connected, and the axis of the differential 33 is disposed below the axis of the crankshaft. An automobile is disclosed in which the height dimension of the engine 30 is reduced and the center of gravity of the engine 30 is arranged immediately above or near the drive shaft 28 to improve the steering stability while enlarging the cabin. In such an engine arrangement, the tie rod 23 is disposed behind the drive shaft 28 and below the engine 30, and the steering gear box 24 is disposed at the rear of the transmission 32.

On the other hand, JP-A-1-262218 discloses a transmission in which a steering gear box is arranged in front of a drive shaft, and a steering shaft connecting a steering handle and a steering gear box projects to one side of an engine body. Disposed through the top is disclosed.

In addition, a conventional general horizontal engine 41
As shown in FIG. 4, a transmission 43 is connected to one side of an upright engine body 42 and a differential device 44 is disposed behind the transmission 43. , 45 are disposed on both sides in the vehicle width direction so as not to interfere with the horizontal engine 41 in plan view. For this reason, a notch 47 is formed outside the side member 45 to avoid interference with the strut that supports the wheel 46 while keeping the vehicle width within a certain range or to avoid interference with the wheel 46 during steering, as shown in FIG. The same applies to the case of a simple horizontal slant engine.

[0006]

However, in the configuration shown in FIG. 3, the transmission 32 protrudes from the right side of the engine body 31, and the steering gear box 24 is disposed in the space below the rear of the transmission 32. But the engine body 3
In the case of an engine in which the transmission 32 protrudes to the left of the vehicle 1, the engine body 31 is located in front of the steering handle 25 in a right-hand drive vehicle, so that there is no space for the steering gear box 24 to be arranged. Such a horizontal slant engine cannot be mounted, and there is a problem that a horizontal slant engine cannot be mounted irrespective of which side the transmission projects, and whether the transmission is a right-hand drive or a left-hand drive. Was.

[0007] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1-262218 also has a similar problem.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a steering apparatus for an automobile in which a horizontally mounted slant engine can be mounted regardless of the direction in which the transmission projects and the position of the steering handle. And

[0009]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention, there is provided a transmission in which a crankshaft extends along a vehicle width direction and a cylinder axis is inclined obliquely forward and upward, and a transmission is arranged in a vehicle width direction from an engine body. In a vehicle equipped with a horizontal slant engine arranged to protrude, a knuckle arm is protruded from a vertically intermediate portion of a strut that supports wheels,
A steering gear box for moving a tie rod connecting a knuckle arm is arranged in an upper space of an engine, and a steering handle and a steering gear box are connected by a steering shaft.

[0010]

According to the present invention, since the horizontal slant engine is mounted, the height of the engine body as well as the transmission is low, so that the steering gear box is disposed in the upper space of the horizontal slant engine. By doing so, the steering gear box can be arranged at any position in the vehicle width direction, regardless of the direction in which the transmission projects, so that the steering gear box is arranged corresponding to the steering handle regardless of the arrangement position of the steering handle, The steering device can be installed by connecting both with a steering shaft, and even if the steering gear box is arranged in the upper space of the engine, the knuckle arm protrudes from the middle part of the strut in the vertical direction and has almost the same height. Smooth steering via tie rods Bets can be, thus mounting the transverse slant engine regardless position in the projecting direction or the steering wheel of the transmission is made possible.

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.

Reference numeral 1 denotes a horizontal slant engine which is disposed so that the crankshaft extends in the vehicle width direction and the cylinder axis faces diagonally forward and upward, and the engine body 1a has a right side in the width direction of the vehicle body. And the transmission 2 on the left
Is protruding. Reference numeral 3 denotes wheels, which are connected to a differential device 4 via a drive shaft (not shown). The differential device 4 is disposed diagonally forward and downward of the transmission 2 and is interlocked with the transmission 2. I have.

The wheels 3 are pivotally supported by struts 5.

Reference numeral 6 denotes a steering device for the wheels 3. The knuckle arm 7 projects forward from a vertically intermediate portion of the strut 5, specifically, a lower portion of the upper strut spring disposition portion 5a. Numeral 8 denotes a steering rack arranged in the upper space of the horizontal slant engine 1 in the vehicle width direction, and a central portion 8a and a knuckle arm 7 are connected by a tie rod 9. The right side of the steering rack 8 is inserted into the steering gear box 10 and meshes with a pinion (not shown) provided therein.
1 and is slidably inserted into the housing 1. A bellows cover 12 is fitted between the central portion 8a of the steering rack 8 and the steering gear box 10 and the guide tube 11. Reference numeral 13 denotes a steering handle provided on the right side of the front of the passenger compartment. Have been.

Reference numeral 16 denotes a front upper side member at the front of the vehicle body. Since the height of the horizontal slant engine 1 is low, the front slant engine 1 extends toward the front end of the vehicle body through the upper space on both sides in the vehicle width direction of the horizontal slant engine 1. Has been established. 1
Reference numeral 7 denotes a lower frame that supports the horizontal slant engine 1, and front and rear ends of the lower frame 7 are connected by support members 18 a and 18 b disposed in front and rear of the horizontal slant engine 1 by a front upper side member 16.

In the above construction, since the horizontal slant engine 1 is mounted, the height is low not only in the transmission 2 but also in the engine main body 1a. Therefore, the steering gear box 10 and the steering rack 8 are horizontally mounted. The steering gear box 10 can be arranged at an arbitrary position in the vehicle width direction regardless of the projecting direction of the transmission 2 while being arranged in the space above the slant engine 1. Therefore, in the illustrated example, the steering gear box 10 is arranged on the right side in accordance with the arrangement of the steering handle 13 on the right. However, when the steering handle 13 is arranged on the left, the steering gear is correspondingly arranged. Box 10 can be placed on the left. Therefore, the steering gear box 10 is disposed to face the steering handle 13 regardless of the right handle, the left handle, and the transmission 2 protruding to either side. A connected steering device can be installed.

Even when the steering gear box 10 is placed in the space above the slanted engine 1, the knuckle arm 7 projects from the middle part of the strut 5 in the up-down direction and has almost the same height. Steering can be performed smoothly.

Thus, a horizontal slant engine can be mounted irrespective of the direction in which the transmission 2 projects and the position of the steering handle 13, and the horizontal slant engine 1 of this type can be compactly mounted in an engine room. Space can be increased.

Further, since the crank axis of the horizontal slant engine 1 is located behind the axis of the differential gear 5, and the center of gravity of the horizontal slant engine 1 is located near or behind the drive shaft, the steering operation is performed. Good stability and vehicle mobility.

Further, since the front upper side member 16 extends in the upper space on both sides of the slant engine 1 in the vehicle width direction, the front upper side member 16 is provided to avoid interference with the strut 5 and the wheel 3 during steering. Since there is no need to provide a cutout or the like in the front upper side member 16 and sufficient cross-sectional performance is ensured over the entire length thereof, the rigidity of the front portion of the vehicle body is reduced as in the conventional example shown in FIG. There is no problem such as low shock absorbing performance and deterioration of safety.

In the above embodiment, the steering device 6
Although the rack-and-pinion type is described as an example, the present invention is also applicable to other types of steering devices.

[0022]

According to the vehicle steering apparatus of the present invention, since the horizontal slant engine is mounted as described above, the height of the engine body as well as the transmission is low. Regardless of the position of the steering wheel, the steering gear box can be placed in the space above the slant engine regardless of the direction in which the steering wheel is projected, and the steering gear box can be placed at any position in the vehicle width direction. The steering device can be installed by connecting the steering handle and the steering gear box with the steering shaft, and even if the steering gear box is placed in the upper space of the engine, the knuckle arm projects from the middle part of the strut in the vertical direction and is almost the same Because it is height, smoothly through the tie rod Tearing can be performed, thus exhibit the effect of such mounting of the transverse slant engine is possible regardless of the position in the projecting direction or the steering wheel of the transmission.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an arrangement configuration of a steering device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view of the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing the arrangement of a conventional steering device.

FIG. 4 is a plan view showing the arrangement of another conventional engine.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Lateral slant engine 3 Wheel 5 Strut 6 Steering device 7 Knuckle arm 9 Tie rod 10 Steering gear box 13 Steering handle 15 Steering shaft

Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-3-32938 (JP, A) JP-A-1-262218 (JP, A) JP-A-4-55128 (JP, A) JP-A-59-130738 (JP) , A) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B62D 3/12 B62D 3/00 B60K 17/04-17/348

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A transmission in which a crankshaft extends along a vehicle width direction and a cylinder axis is inclined obliquely forward and upward, and a transmission protrudes from an engine body in a vehicle width direction.
In a vehicle equipped with a horizontal slant engine disposed in a vehicle, a knuckle arm protrudes from a vertically intermediate portion of a strut for supporting wheels, and a steering gear box for moving a tie rod connecting the knuckle arm is provided in an upper space of the engine. A steering wheel and a steering gear box are connected by a steering shaft.