JPH09156513A - Steering column holed hold boot - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce the number of parts so as to increase a workability of installation. SOLUTION: An intermediate connection part 3 positioned at one end side of an intermediate shaft 2 extending from a gear box 1 is positioned on an operator cabin side, and a boot 8 is provided so that it surrounds the outer periphery of the intermediate shaft 2. To install the intermediate shaft 2, first one end side of it is installed to the gear box 1. Also, when the boot 8 is pulled from an engine room side to an operator cabin side, on the other side, a seal part 12 and a tongue piece part 15 are bent toward the inner periphery side, and the top end of the tongue piece part 15 is fixed temporarily. After a contact part 11 is brought in contact with a dash panel 6, a temporary fixing is released, and the tongue piece part 15 is returned back to the original form and extended to the outer periphery side. By this, the other end side is fixed. Thus the installation work can be performed easily, and no installation jig such as bolt is required.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a steering column hole boot, and more particularly, it is provided so as to surround an outer circumference of an intermeshing shaft, one end side of which is attached to a gear box in an engine room and the other end side thereof is an opening of a dash panel. The present invention relates to a steering column hall boot fixed to a rim.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as shown in FIG. 9, a steering shaft 51 located on the driver's cab side of a vehicle and a gear box 52 located on the engine room side are connected by an intermediate shaft 53. An intermediary coupling portion 54 is provided on one end side (for example, the lower side in the figure) of the intermediary shaft 53, and the intermediary shaft 53 and the gear box 52 are coupled at the coupling portion 54. Further, the interior coupling portion 54 is provided such that the extending direction of the steering shaft 51 and the extending direction of the gear box 52 are changed so that the shaft connecting the gear box 52 and the steering wheel is bent as a whole. It is what is done.

Further, as shown in the figure, a dash panel 55 for partitioning the driver's cab side of the vehicle and the engine room side
An opening 56 is formed in the inner wall of the inner shaft 53, and the intermediate shaft 53 is arranged so as to pass through the opening 56. Conventionally, a cover 57 is provided to seal the opening 56 and the intermediary shaft 53. That is, the cover 57 is composed of the first cover 58 and the second cover 59. The first cover 58 has a substantially cylindrical shape and is arranged so as to surround the intermediate shaft 53, and one end side (the lower side in the drawing) of the first cover 58 is attached to the dash panel 55 by a bolt 61 or the like. Further, the second cover 59 has a substantially annular plate shape and is attached to the other end side of the first cover 58 by a clamp 63 integrally with the metal insert 62.

However, in the above technique, the intermediary coupling portion 54 is located on the engine room side. Since such a portion is a very small space, the gear box 52 and the intermediate shaft 53 when the connecting portion 54 is configured are formed.
The task of connecting and was very difficult.

In order to solve such a problem, for example, in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 63-131867, the lower end of the cover is fixed to the upper end of the gear box (steering gear assembly), and the gear box is mounted on the vehicle. A technique is disclosed in which an integrated box and cover are pushed up from the engine room side, and an intermesh shaft (pinion shaft) is projected into the cab. Then, in this technique, the upper end of the cover is fixed to the opening of the dash panel, and thereafter, the cover is connected to the steering shaft at the intermediary joint (universal joint). With such a configuration,
The coupling at the interior coupling portion can be performed in a relatively large driver's cab rather than in the engine compartment. For this reason,
Workability at the time of joining is improved.

[0006]

However, in the above technique, when fixing the cover to the dash panel,
Since a fixing means such as a bolt was required, the number of parts was relatively large. In addition, when it is mounted on a vehicle, the gear box and the cover that are integrated together are pushed up from the engine room side, and the interior shaft is projected into the driver's cab. In addition, it was relatively difficult to guide to the opening of the dash panel. As a result, there has been a demand for further improvement in workability in mounting.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and an object thereof is to surround the outer circumference of an intermesh shaft, one end of which is attached to a gear box in the engine room and the other end of which is attached. A steering column hole boot whose side is fixed to an opening edge of a dash panel is to provide a steering column hole boot capable of reducing the number of parts and improving workability at the time of mounting. .

[0008]

In order to achieve the above object, in the invention according to claim 1, the invention is located at one end side of an intermediate shaft extending from a gear box provided in an engine room toward a driver's cab. In a condition in which a coupling portion closest to the gearbox among coupling portions for changing the steering shaft extending direction and the gearbox extending direction to be coupled is arranged to be located in the cab, A steering column hole boot, which is provided so as to surround the outer periphery of the intermesh shaft, and has an outer peripheral edge fixed to an opening edge of a dash panel that divides the engine room and the driver's cab. When fixing the steering column hall boots to the dash panel, An abutting part that can abut the engine room side of the dash panel when the boot is pulled toward the cab side from the engine room side, and is provided on the cab side with respect to the abutting part, and at least the aforesaid Until the contact portion contacts the dash panel, it is bent toward the inner peripheral side against the original shape, then returned to the original shape and extends toward the outer peripheral side, and the driver's cab of the dash panel The gist of the invention is to provide a seal portion that can come into contact with the side and a tongue piece portion that is integrally formed at an end edge of at least a part of the seal portion.

According to the above construction, the coupling portion located closest to the gearbox among the coupling portions located on the one end side of the intermediary shaft is arranged so as to be located in a relatively wide cab. Can be done easily. In addition, the outer peripheral edge of the steering column hole boot provided so as to surround the outer circumference of the intermesh shaft,
It is fixed to the opening edge of the dash panel that divides the engine room and the cab. Therefore, the steering column hole boot can seal between the opening edge of the dash panel and the intermesh shaft.

In the present invention, when the gear box and the steering column hole boot are mounted, the gear box and the like are mounted from the engine room side toward the driver's cab side with the steering column hole boot assembled. It At this time, the steering column hole boot in the engine room is pulled in manually toward the driver's cab, but it is provided on the seal portion provided on the outer peripheral edge of the boot and the edge of a part thereof. The tongue piece is bent toward the inner peripheral side against the original shape at least until the contact portion contacts the dash panel. Therefore, the tongue piece or the like can be easily guided to the opening edge while being held.

After the abutment portion abuts the dash panel, the seal portion and the tongue portion are restored to their original shapes and extend toward the outer peripheral side. Therefore, the opening edge of the dash panel is dressed by the contact portion, the seal portion, and the like. Therefore, the steering column hole boot is fixed to the opening edge of the dash panel without using fixing means such as bolts.

Further, in a second aspect of the present invention, in the steering column hole boot according to the first aspect, a plurality of the tongue pieces are provided at least at opposing positions, and the tip portion thereof has The gist of the invention is to provide a temporary fixing mechanism for temporarily fixing the tongue pieces that face each other.

According to the above construction, in addition to the action of the invention described in claim 1, the mutually opposing tongue pieces can be temporarily fixed by the temporary fixing mechanism. For this reason, when the steering column hole boot is transported and mounted, the temporary fixing mechanism temporarily fixes the tips of the tongue portions that are opposed to each other, so that the seal portion resists the initial shape and is located on the inner peripheral side. The folded state can be easily held. Therefore, it does not return to its original shape during transportation and mounting, and after the abutting portion abuts the dash panel, the temporary fastening by the temporary fastening mechanism is released, so that it can be easily initialized. Can be returned to the shape of.

[0014]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIG. 2, a gear box 1 is arranged on the engine room side (lower side in the figure). An intermediary shaft 2 is provided above the gear box 1. A steering shaft 4 is provided above the intermediary shaft 2 through an intermediary coupling portion 3, and a steering wheel 5 is provided above the shaft 4. The interior coupling portion 3 changes the extending direction of the steering shaft 4 and the extending direction of the gear box 1,
For example, it is configured by a universal joint. That is, the interior coupling portion 3 is provided such that the shaft (the line formed by reference numerals 1, 2, and 4) connecting the gear box 1 and the steering wheel 5 is bent as a whole.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, an opening 7 is formed in the dash panel 6 which divides the vehicle cab side from the engine room side. The interior shaft 2 is arranged so as to pass through the opening 7. In the present embodiment, the opening 7
Rubber steering column hole boots (hereinafter referred to simply as "boots") to seal the inner shaft 2 from the interior shaft 2.
8) is provided. That is, the boot 8 is
The whole is formed in a bellows shape, and one end edge (lower end edge in the figure) of the bellows is attached to the gear box 1. The outer periphery of the other end edge (upper edge in the figure) of the boot 8 is fixed to the opening 7 of the dash panel 6.

In the present embodiment, since the other end edge side of the boot 8 is particularly characteristic, the configuration of the other end edge side will be described in detail below. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 8, a contact portion 11 having a diameter larger than that of the opening 7 is formed on the other end edge side of the boot 8. Further, a seal portion 12 extending in the outer peripheral direction is formed on the upper side at a predetermined distance from the contact portion 11. The space sandwiched between the contact portion 11 and the seal portion 12 is the groove portion 13. The other end side of the boot 8 is fixed so that the edge of the opening 7 of the dash panel 6 is fitted into the groove 13. Further, the surface of the sealing portion 12 on the contact portion 11 side, that is, the lower surface is provided with irregularities 14 for further improving the sealing property.

In addition, a tongue portion 15 extending further outward is integrally formed at four locations on the outer peripheral edge of the seal portion 12. In the present embodiment, the tongue piece 15
Consists of two sheets (four sheets in total) extending in opposite directions. A through hole 16 or an engagement protrusion 17 is formed at the tip of each tongue portion 15. When two tongue pieces 15 extending in opposite directions face the inner peripheral side,
The engaging projection 17 is engaged in the through hole 16, and by this engagement, the mutually facing tongue pieces 15 are connected and temporarily fixed (see FIG. 4). Thus, in the present embodiment, the through hole 16 and the engaging protrusion 17 are provided.
The temporary fixing mechanism is constituted by the.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 1, a resin cover 1 for preventing foreign matter from falling is provided inside the other end of the boot 8.
8 are provided. The cover 18 includes a tubular portion 21 having a flange 19 on the outer periphery thereof, a bottom portion 23 having an insertion hole 22 for the intermediate shaft 2, and a claw portion 24 provided below the tubular portion 21. Then, the cover 18 is attached and fixed in a state in which the claw portion 24 is in contact with the rear surface of the contact portion 11 on the other end edge side of the boot 8. In the space formed by the bottom portion 23 and the tubular portion 21 of the cover 18, a sound absorbing material (shown by a chain double-dashed line in the figure) 25 made of a porous material such as foamed polyurethane is arranged.

Next, the operation and effect of the boot 8 having the above-described structure during transportation and mounting of the gear box 1 etc. will be described. Immediately after molding (initially), the boot 8 having the shape as shown in FIG. 3 is temporarily processed on the other edge side, for example, manually. That is, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the seal portion 12 and the tongue piece portion 15 which are initially extended outward are bent toward the inside. Further, at this time, the engaging projection 17 is fitted into the through hole 16,
The tongue pieces 15 are temporarily fixed to each other. Then, transportation and the like are performed in this state.

Now, prior to mounting the gear box 1 or the like on a vehicle, the boot 8 is, as shown in FIG.
The one end side is attached by being fitted into the upper end portion of the gear box 1. Subsequently, the gear box 1 to which the boot 8 is attached is mounted at a predetermined position in the engine room by the mounting device. At this time, the boots 8
While being moved toward the opening 7 of the dash panel 6, the intermittence shaft 2 already attached to the gear box 1 extends through the opening 7 and into the cab. Therefore, the upper end portion of the intermediary shaft 2 is located inside the driver's cab, and at this time, the steering shaft 4 and the intermediary shaft 2 are joined together to form the intermediary joint portion 3.
At this time, since the work can be performed in a relatively large cab, the coupling operation can be performed very easily. As a result, workability can be improved.

After the joining work is completed, the work of fixing the other end of the boot 8 is continued. That is, as shown in FIG. 6, the tongue piece portion 15 that is located in the engine room and is temporarily fixed is drawn into the driver's cab side by hand or the like.

Then, as a result of the pulling-in work,
As shown in FIG. 7, first, the contact portion 11 contacts the dash panel 6. By this contact, the portion above the contact portion 11, that is, the seal portion 12 and the tongue piece portion 15 are positioned above the dash panel 6 (on the cab side). Then, the engaging projection 17 is removed from the through hole 16 to release the temporary fixing. Then, as shown in FIG. 8, the tongue portion 15 and the seal portion 12 are returned to their original shapes automatically by the release, or manually by force. That is, the temporary bending inward is released, and the tongue piece portion 15 and the seal portion 12 are directed outward. At this time, if the tongue portion 15 and the seal portion 12 are temporarily
Even if it is forcibly returned to the initial shape by hand, it will eventually be returned to the original shape.
The work of directing the tongue piece portion 15 and the seal portion 12 to the outside can be easily performed. And, like this, the tongue piece 1
The groove portion 13 is formed by the seal portion 12 and the contact portion 11 by returning the seal portion 12 and the seal portion 12 to the initial shape, and as described above, the groove portion 13 is formed.
The end edge of the opening 7 of the dash panel 6 is fitted into
It will be sandwiched between the seal portion 12 and the contact portion 11, and as a result, the other end edge side of the boot 8 will be fixed to the dash panel 6. In addition, along with this, the seal portion 1
Since the unevenness 14 provided on the second portion hits the dash panel 6, the sealability can be further improved.

After that, the cover 18 is fitted from the driver's cab side, so that the claw portion 24 is engaged from the inner peripheral side of the other end edge side of the boot 8, whereby the cover 18 is attached with one touch. Furthermore, the cover 18
The sound absorbing material 25 is housed in the space formed by the bottom portion 23 and the like, whereby the work of mounting the gear box 1, the boot 8 and the like on the vehicle is completed.

As described above in detail, according to the present embodiment, when the gear box 1, the boot 8 and the like are mounted,
The gear box 1 and the like are mounted with one end of the boot 8 attached to the gear box 1 from the engine room side toward the driver's cab side. At this time, the boot 8 in the engine room is pulled in manually toward the driver's cab, but the seal portion 12 and the tongue portion 15 on the other end edge side of the boot 8 are inwardly opposed to the original shape. It is bent around. Therefore, the tongue piece 15 and the like can be easily guided to the opening 7 while being held. In particular, in this embodiment, the tongue pieces 15 that face each other are temporarily fixed to each other by the temporary fixing mechanisms 16, 1.
Since it is temporarily fixed by 7, the tongue piece 15 can be handled like a handle, and the pulling operation can be performed more easily. Therefore, workability can be improved.

After the abutment portion 12 abuts the dash panel 6, the seal portion 12 and the tongue portion 15 are
It is restored to its original shape and extends toward the outer circumference. Therefore,
The edge of the opening 7 of the dash panel 7 is shaped to be sandwiched by the contact portion 11 and the seal portion 12. for that reason,
The other end side of the boot 8 is fixed to the edge of the opening 7 of the dash panel 6 without using a separate fixing means, unlike the prior art in which fixing means such as a bolt is used.
As a result, the fixing work can be facilitated, and the number of parts can be reduced, which in turn can reduce the cost.

Further, as described above, the mutually opposing tongue pieces 1 are
Since the five members are temporarily fixed to each other, the state in which the seal portion 12 and the tongue piece portion 15 are bent toward the inner peripheral side against the initial shape can be easily maintained during transportation and mounting. Therefore, it does not return to its original shape during transportation and mounting, and after the abutting portion abuts the dash panel, the temporary fastening by the temporary fastening mechanism is released, so that it can be easily initialized. Can be returned to the shape of.
As a result, the state of being bent toward the inner peripheral side is not released during the work, so that the workability can be further improved.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, but may be configured as follows, for example. (1) In the above-described embodiment, the through hole 16 and the engaging protrusion 17 are provided at the tip of the tongue portion 15 as a temporary fixing mechanism. However, if the mechanism is a temporary fixing mechanism, for example, a hook or the like may be used. May be. Further, the configuration may be omitted.

(2) In the above-described embodiment, when temporarily fixing the tongue piece 15, the length of the tongue piece 15 is set so that the position of the temporary stop does not coincide with the intermediary shaft 2. However, as long as the tongue pieces 15 are deformable or extendable, they may have the same length. Also,
The shape and the number of the tongue pieces 15 are not limited to those in the above embodiment.

(3) Concavity and convexity 1 in the above embodiment
4, some or all of the cover 18, the sound absorbing material 25, etc. may be omitted. (4) In the above embodiment, the boot 8 is embodied as a bellows as a whole, but if it is tubular,
The shape and the like are not limited at all.

(5) Further above the steering wheel 5 on the steering wheel 5 side,
It may be embodied when a separate connecting portion is provided. However, in this case, the coupling portion closest to the gear box 1 needs to be located on the cab side.

A technical idea which is not described in each claim of the claims and can be grasped from the above-mentioned embodiment will be described below together with its effect. (A) In the steering column hole boot according to the first and second aspects, the seal portion is provided with unevenness for enhancing the sealing property with the dash panel.

With such a structure, the sealability between the boot and the dash panel can be improved. (B) In the steering column hole boot according to any one of claims 1 and 2, and the above-mentioned (a), the sealability between the intermediary shaft and the steering column hole boot is further provided on the inner peripheral side of the outer peripheral edge of the other end. It is characterized in that at least one of a cover and a soundproofing material for increasing the noise is provided.

With such a structure, the sealability between the intermediary shaft and the steering column hole boot is improved, and particularly when a cover is provided,
Even if foreign matter is dropped on the driver's cab side, it is possible to prevent the foreign matter from dropping to the engine room side.
Further, when the soundproof material is provided, it is possible to effectively suppress the propagation of noise from the engine room side to the driver's cab side.

[0034]

As described in detail above, according to the present invention,
In the steering column hole boot, which is provided so as to surround the outer circumference of the intermesh shaft, one end side of which is attached to the gear box in the engine room and the other end side of which is fixed to the opening edge of the dash panel, the number of parts can be reduced. At the same time, there is an excellent effect that workability at the time of mounting can be dramatically improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing a mounting structure of a steering column hole boot according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a boot mounting structure including an interlocking portion and the like.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the initial shape of the boot.

FIG. 4 is a plan view showing a tongue piece and the like on the other end side of the boot.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view for explaining an operation when wearing boots or the like.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the contact portion contacts the dash panel when the boot or the like is attached.

FIG. 7 is likewise an enlarged sectional view of FIG.

FIG. 8 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing a state where fixing of the other end side of the boot is completed.

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing a cover mounting structure in the related art.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Gear box, 2 ... Intermediate shaft, 3 ... Intermediate coupling part, 4 ... Steering shaft, 6 ... Dash panel, 7 ... Opening part, 8 ... Steering column hole boot, 11 ... Abutting part, 12 ... Sealing part, 15 … Tongue part.

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Fujio Ninomiya 1 Kasuga, Nishikasugai-gun, Aichi Ochiai, Nagahata No. 1 Toyoda Gosei Co., Ltd. Within the corporation

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A gearbox (1) which is located at one end side of an intermediate shaft (2) extending from a gearbox (1) provided in an engine room toward a driver's cab, and extends in a steering shaft (4). ) Of the interim shaft (2) under the condition that the connecting part (3) closest to the gear box among the connecting parts for changing the extending direction is arranged to be located in the cab. Is provided so as to surround the outer periphery of the steering column hole boot fixed to an opening edge of a dash panel (6) partitioning the engine room and the driver's cab. When fixing the steering column hole boot (1) to the dash panel (6), the steering column hole boot (1) Abutting portion may abut on the engine room side of the from the serial engine room side when being pulled toward the cab side dash panel (6) (1
1) and the inner periphery against the initial shape, which is provided closer to the cab side than the contact portion (11) and at least until the contact portion (11) contacts the dash panel (6). A seal portion (12) that is bent to the side, then returns to its original shape and extends toward the outer peripheral side, and can abut against the driver's cab side of the dash panel (6); and the seal portion (12). And a tongue piece portion (15) integrally formed on at least a part of the edge of the steering column hole boot. 2. The steering column hole boot according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the tongue pieces (15) are provided at at least opposing positions, and the tongue pieces that are opposed to each other are provided at their tip ends. (15) A steering column hole boot, which is provided with a temporary fixing mechanism (16, 17) for temporarily fixing each other.