JP4373744B2 - Optical rotation angle detector - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an optical rotation angle detection device used for detection of a rotation angle of a rotating body provided in an in-vehicle device, such as detection of a steering angle of an in-vehicle steering wheel.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an optical rotation angle detection device that detects a rotation angle of a rotating body provided in an in-vehicle device, such as detection of a steering angle of an in-vehicle steering wheel, is provided. As a conventional optical rotation angle detection device, a disk-shaped code plate in which slit rows are arranged along the circumferential direction and rotated integrally with a rotating body, a light emitting element that emits light to the slit rows at a predetermined position, and the light emitting element And a light receiving element that receives light that has passed through the slit row, and detects a rotational speed, a rotation direction, a rotation angle, and the like of the rotating body based on a signal formed by the light receiving element by the rotation of the code plate.

  This optical rotation angle detecting device is used for transmission control of automobiles, steering control of rear wheels in a four-wheel steering vehicle, and the like, and recently, a small one is required.

  However, when the conventional rotation angle detection device is downsized, there is a problem that the positioning dimension error of the light emitting / receiving element becomes relatively large and the detection accuracy of the rotation angle deteriorates.

  The present invention has been made in view of the actual situation of the prior art, and an object thereof is to provide an optical rotation angle detection device that can be miniaturized without deteriorating the detection accuracy of the rotation angle.

To achieve the above object, a photo optical rotation angle detecting apparatus of the present invention, which is confronted with the code plate forming a slit matrix comprising a plurality of slits, the light-emitting portion and the light receiving portion through the slit matrix An interrupter, a circuit board for fixing and electrically connecting the photointerrupter, a holder provided on the circuit board and having an internal portion for installing the photointerrupter, and positioning the holder and the circuit board And a positioning portion.

  With this configuration, the holder can be disposed on the circuit board without causing a positioning error, and the position of the photo interrupter with respect to the code plate can be set with high accuracy, so that the optical rotation angle detection device does not deteriorate the rotation angle detection accuracy. Can be miniaturized.

  In the optical rotation angle detection device of the above-described invention, the positioning portion includes a first protrusion formed on the holder and a first insertion formed on the circuit board for fitting the first protrusion. It consists of holes.

  With this configuration, the holder and the circuit board can be easily assembled.

  Further, in the above-described optical rotation angle detection device, the inner portion includes a through hole, and includes a reference surface that comes into contact with an outer wall of the photo interrupter when the photo interrupter is inserted into the inner portion. The inner surface other than the reference surface is provided with an abutting portion pressed against the outer wall other than the outer wall of the photo interrupter.

  With this configuration, the photo interrupter can be brought into contact with the reference surface of the internal part simply by inserting the photo interrupter into the internal part, and the position accuracy of the photo interrupter with respect to the holder can be set high, so that assembly is easy. .

Further, in the optical rotation angle detecting apparatus described above, the photo-interrupter cross section has a rectangular shape, said portion is open in a shape conforming to the cross-sectional shape of the photo in cod-flop data, wherein The reference surface is composed of two adjacent inner surfaces of the inner surfaces of the inner portion, and the contact portion is formed on two inner surfaces other than the reference surface.

  With this configuration, the position accuracy of the photo interrupter can be reliably and stably increased.

  In the optical rotation angle detection device described above, the holder is made of synthetic resin, and the contact portion is formed in a tapered shape toward the side wall of the phone interrupter.

  With such a configuration, the photo interrupter can be easily and highly accurately arranged at a predetermined position of the holder without giving unnecessary distortion to the photo interrupter, so that stable and highly accurate detection can be performed.

Further, in the optical rotation angle detecting apparatus described above, before kissing lit columns extending from said code plate to the rotation axis direction of the code plate, the circuit board is disposed in a direction perpendicular to the rotational axis Become.

  With this configuration, the height of the apparatus can be kept low, so that the optical rotation angle detection apparatus can be reduced in size and thickness without deteriorating the detection accuracy of the rotation angle.

  In the optical rotation angle detection device described above, the circuit board or the holder has a second insertion hole or a second protrusion, and the other fixing member is fitted with the second insertion hole or the second protrusion. The code plate is connected to a rotating member that is rotatable with respect to the other fixing member, and has a third projecting portion or a third fitting hole to be joined.

  With this configuration, the circuit board and the holder can be provided without accumulating positioning errors with respect to other fixing members, and in particular, a digital code system that uses a large number of light receiving / emitting portions in order to improve detection accuracy ( This is suitable for downsizing an optical rotation angle detection device based on gray code, M code, and the like.

  The optical rotation angle detection device of the present invention can attach the photo interrupter to the reference surface of the positioning hole of the holder and can position and fix the holder to the circuit board. It is possible to prevent the error from being increased and to prevent the detection accuracy of the rotation angle from deteriorating.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the optical rotation angle detection device of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the optical rotation angle detection device of the present invention, FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing a part of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a photo of FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view showing the interrupter part, FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing the main part of the present embodiment shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 5 is a main part cross-sectional view showing a state where the holder and the circuit board are fitted and fixed to the case.

  The present embodiment is attached to a rotating body provided in a vehicle-mounted device, such as detecting the steering angle of a vehicle-mounted steering wheel, and signals when it rotates together with a rotating body (not shown) as shown in FIGS. A cylindrical code plate 1 that forms a light source, a photo interrupter 4 that detects a signal formed by rotation of the code plate while facing the light emitting portion and the light receiving portion through the code plate 1, and fixing the photo interrupter 4 A circuit board 8 that is electrically connected; a holder 7 that is provided on the circuit board 8 and has an internal part 9 in which the photointerrupter 4 is provided; a positioning part that positions the holder 7 and the circuit board 8; And a case 11 for positioning and mounting the circuit board 8.

  As is apparent from FIG. 2, the code plate 1 is provided with a concentric arrangement of slits 2a and 3a and two rows of slits comprising light-shielding portions 2b and 3b, for gray code output for absolute angle detection. An inner projection group 2 and an outer projection group 3 as tracks are provided. When the code plate 1 rotates, each projection group 2, 3 crosses the concave groove 4 a of the photointerrupter 4 and is emitted from the light emitting portion of the photointerrupter 4. The rotation angle is detected by a control unit (not shown) mounted on the circuit board 8 based on a signal obtained when the light passes through each slit (for example, the slit 3a) and is received by the photo interrupter 4 light receiving unit. Is done. The slit row may be formed by one row of projection groups depending on the rotation angle detection method, but may be formed by more projection groups than two rows.

  The photo interrupter 4 has a rectangular cross section and is formed of a synthetic resin mold package. The photo interrupter 4 is provided so that the light emitting part and the light receiving part are opposed to each other through the concave groove 4a, and four outer walls 4b are provided. It has been. The side viewer type light emitting / receiving element has a height dimension of about 6 mm from the height regulating portion to the upper surface of the element, whereas the photo interrupter 4 has a height dimension of about 3 to 3 mm and can be miniaturized. Therefore, the height dimension can be reduced.

  The holder 7 is attached on the circuit board 8 so as to face the inner protrusion group 2 and the outer protrusion group 3 of the code plate 1. The holder 7 has an arcuate plate shape along the arrangement direction of the inner and outer protrusion groups 2 and 3 of the code plate 1 and is provided with an internal portion 9 for fitting and positioning the photo interrupter 4 corresponding to the inner protrusion group 2. In addition, an internal portion 9 is provided for fitting and positioning the photo interrupter 4 corresponding to the outer protrusion group 3. Further, a boss (first projecting portion) 7a is formed on the back surface of the holder 7 provided with the photo interrupter 4 (the surface on the back side of the surface provided with the photo interrupter 4: the upper surface side in FIG. 2). The holder 7 and the circuit board 8 are relatively positioned by being fitted into a positioning hole (first insertion hole) 8 a formed in the board 8. In addition, as shown in FIG. 5, the boss 7a is provided with one or more second insertion holes 7b (or a second projecting portion (not shown)). The third protrusion 11a of the case 11 is fitted into the fitting hole 7b.

As is clear from the enlarged view in FIG. 2, the inner portion 9 of the holder 7 is made of a through hole having an opening having a shape following the shape of the cross section of the photo in cod-flop data 4, the photo-interrupter 4 Reference surfaces 9a and 9b are in contact with a part of the outer wall 4b of the photo interrupter 4 when inserted into the inner portion 9, and the inner surfaces 9c and 9d excluding these reference surfaces 9a and 9b 9b in contact with the other outer side wall 4b of the photo-interrupter 4 so as pressed against the outer璧4b of the photo in cod-flop data 4 equivalents having an abutment portion 9e.

  The circuit board 8 is formed in a substantially disk shape having an opening, has two positioning holes 8a into which the bosses 7a of the holder 7 are fitted, and is mounted with a control unit (not shown). Here, it is preferable that two or more bosses 7a of the holder 7 and positioning holes 8a of the circuit board 8 are formed.

  The holder 7 to which the circuit board 8 is positioned and fixed is positioned and attached to the case 11 of the optical rotation angle detection device. The case 11 is provided with a third protrusion 11a (or a third insertion hole) that is fitted into the second insertion hole 7b (or the second protrusion) of the holder 7, and as shown in FIG. The holder 7 and the case 11 are positioned by fitting the insertion hole 7b and the third protrusion 11a.

  Instead of attaching the holder 7 to the case 11, the circuit board 8 is provided with a second insertion hole (or second protrusion), and is attached to the third protrusion (or third insertion hole) of the case 11. You may do it. Moreover, it is desirable that two or more second and third insertion holes and second and third protrusions are formed.

  The case 11 is connected to a fixed body (not shown) such as a steering column or a fixed housing of the rotary connector, and the code plate 1 is connected to a rotary body (not shown) such as a movable housing of the steering shaft or the rotary connector. Is done.

  Next, positioning of the photo interrupter 4 will be described.

  When the photo interrupter 4 is inserted into the inner portion 9 of the holder 7, two adjacent outer walls 4b, 4b of the photo interrupter 4 abut against the tip of the abutting portion 9e of the inner portion 9, and are pushed in while crushing the tip. It is. As a result, as shown in FIG. 4, the photo interrupter 4 is pressed and positioned against the two adjacent reference surfaces 9a and 9b where the contact portion 9e is not provided.

  As described above, in this embodiment, the code plate 1 having a plurality of slits, the photo interrupter 4 in which the light emitting unit and the light receiving unit are opposed to each other via the code plate 1, and the photo interrupter 4 are fixed and electrically connected. The circuit board 8 to be mounted, the holder 7 having the internal portion 9 provided on the circuit board 8 and in which the photo interrupter 4 is provided, and the positioning portion for positioning the holder 7 and the circuit board 8. Since the holder 7 can be disposed on the circuit board 8 without causing a positioning error and the position of the photo interrupter 4 with respect to the code plate 1 can be set with high accuracy, the optical rotation angle detection device without deteriorating the detection accuracy of the rotation angle Can be miniaturized.

  In the present embodiment, the positioning portion includes the first protruding portion 7a formed in the holder 7 and the first insertion hole 8a formed in the circuit board 8 for fitting the first protruding portion 7a. The holder 7 and the circuit board 8 can be easily assembled.

  In this embodiment, the inner portion 9 is formed of a through hole, and includes reference surfaces 9a and 9b that come into contact with the outer wall 4b of the photo interrupter 4 when the photo interrupter 4 is inserted into the inner portion 9. Since the inner side surfaces 9c and 9d other than the reference surfaces 9a and 9b are provided with contact portions 9e that are pressed against the other outer walls 4b other than the outer wall 4b of the photo interrupter 4, the photo interrupter 4 is provided. The photo interrupter 4 can be brought into contact with the reference surfaces 9a and 9b of the internal portion 9 simply by being inserted into the internal portion 9, and the positional accuracy of the photo interrupter 4 with respect to the holder 7 can be set high, so that assembly is easy. is there.

Further, in the present embodiment, the photo-interrupter 4 has cross section a rectangular, inner portion 9 is opened in a shape conforming to the cross sectional shape of the photo in cod-flop data 4, the reference plane 9a, 9b is The contact portion 9e is formed on the two inner side surfaces 9c and 9d other than the reference surface, so that the positional accuracy of the photo interrupter 4 is ensured. It can be increased stably.

  Further, in this embodiment, the holder 7 is made of synthetic resin, and the contact portion 9e is formed in a tapered shape toward the side wall of the photo-interrupter 4, so that an unnecessary distortion is not given to the photo interrupter 4. In addition, since the photo interrupter 4 can be easily and highly accurately disposed at a predetermined position of the holder 7, stable and highly accurate detection can be performed.

  In this embodiment, the plurality of slit rows extend from the code plate 1 in the direction of the rotation axis of the code plate 1 and the circuit board 8 is arranged in a direction orthogonal to the direction of the rotation axis. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the size and thickness of the optical rotation angle detection device without degrading the detection accuracy of the rotation angle.

  In the present embodiment, the holder 7 (or the circuit board 8) has the second insertion hole 7b (or the second protrusion), and the other fixing member (case 11) has the second insertion hole 7b (or the second insertion hole). The code plate 1 is connected to a rotating member that can rotate with respect to the other fixing member (case 11). Therefore, the circuit board 8 and the holder 7 can be provided without accumulating positioning errors with respect to the other fixing member (case 11). In particular, a large number of light emitting / receiving portions are used in order to improve detection accuracy. It is suitable for downsizing an optical rotation angle detection device based on a digital code system (gray code, M code, etc.).

It is a perspective view which shows one Example of the optical rotation angle detection apparatus of this invention. It is a disassembled perspective view which expands and shows a part of a present Example shown in FIG. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the photo interrupter of FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the principal part of a present Example shown in FIG. It is principal part sectional drawing which shows the state which fitted and fixed the holder and the circuit board to the case.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Code board 2 Inner protrusion group 2a Slit 2b Light-shielding board 3 Outer protrusion group 3a Slit 3b Light-shielding board 4 Photointerrupter 7 Holder 7a Boss (1st protrusion part)
7b Second insertion hole 8 Circuit board 8a Positioning hole (second insertion hole)
9 Internal part 9a, 9b Reference surface 9e Contact part 11 Case 11a 3rd protrusion part

Claims (7)

A code board formed with a slit row composed of a plurality of slits, a photo interrupter that opposes a light emitting portion and a light receiving portion through the slit row , a circuit board that fixes and electrically connects the photo interrupter, and An optical rotation angle detecting device, comprising: a holder provided on a circuit board and having an internal part for installing the photo interrupter; and a positioning part for positioning the holder and the circuit board.   2. The positioning portion according to claim 1, wherein the positioning portion includes a first protrusion formed on the holder and a first insertion hole formed on the circuit board for fitting the first protrusion. Optical rotation angle detector.   3. The reference surface according to claim 1, wherein the inner portion includes a through hole, and includes a reference surface that comes into contact with an outer wall of the photo interrupter when the photo interrupter is inserted into the inner portion. An optical rotation angle detection device comprising an abutting portion pressed against an outer wall other than the outer wall of the photo interrupter on an inner surface other than the outer wall. According to claim 3, wherein the photointerrupter cross section has a rectangular shape, said portion is open in a shape conforming to the cross-sectional shape of the photo in cod-flop data, the reference surface is the inner portion An optical rotation angle detection device comprising two inner side surfaces adjacent to each other, and the contact portion being formed on two inner side surfaces other than the reference surface.   5. The optical rotation angle detection device according to claim 3, wherein the holder is made of a synthetic resin, and the contact portion is formed in a tapered shape toward a side wall of the fine interrupter. In any one of claims 1 to 5, before kissing lit columns extending from said code plate to the rotation axis direction of the code plate, said circuit board is arranged in a direction perpendicular to the rotational axis An optical rotation angle detection device.   7. The circuit board or the holder according to claim 1, wherein the circuit board or the holder has a second insertion hole or a second protrusion, and the other fixing member has the second insertion hole or the second protrusion. And a third projecting portion or a third insertion hole, and the code plate is connected to a rotating member rotatable with respect to the other fixing member.

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