JPH1030533A - Starter - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To downsize an electromagnetic switch by reducing the load of a spring which generates the energizing force for engaging a pinion gear with a ring gear. SOLUTION: A pinion moving body 4 helical-spline-fitted on an output shaft 3 is pushed out forward by a pinion extruding lever 6 which is operated with the operating force (attracting force) of an electromagnetic switch 5 transferred. After the pinion gear 7 of the pinion moving body 4 pushed out forward is brought into contact with end surface of the ring gear 8 of an engine, reaction force is stored in a spring 50 involved in a plunger 40 as a result of the plunger 40 of the electromagnetic switch 5 being moved. When the pinion gear 7 is engaged with the ring gear 8 by the reaction force of the spring 50, the top protruding part 9b of a pinion retreat suppressing member 9 which moves by receiving the operation force of the electromagnetic switch 5, enters behind the pinion moving body 4 to suppress retreat of the pinion moving body 4.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] The present invention relates to a starter for starting an engine.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a prior art, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 58-1
There is a starter described in 78865. In this starter, the pinion gear and the one-way clutch are separated so that only the pinion gear can move on the output shaft. After the pinion gear is moved to the end face of the ring gear by the actuation force (attraction force) of the electromagnetic switch, the starter In this structure, the pinion gear meshes with the ring gear by the reaction force stored in the biasing spring. As a result, compared to a starter having a structure in which the pinion gear and the one-way clutch are moved in conjunction with each other, the mass of the moving body that is moved by the electromagnetic switch and the meshing biasing spring is significantly reduced. The load on the spring and the attraction force of the electromagnetic switch can be reduced, which is effective in reducing the size of the electromagnetic switch. In particular, in a deceleration starter in which the rotation of the motor is reduced and transmitted to the output shaft, the rotation rise of the pinion gear becomes slower,
The load of the engagement urging spring can be further reduced.

[0003]

However, in a starter in which the pinion gear and the one-way clutch are separated from each other so that only the pinion gear can move on the output shaft, a change in the number of revolutions caused when the engine is driven is caused by the fluctuation. When the number of rotations of the ring gear exceeds the number of rotations of the pinion gear, a force acts on the tooth surfaces of the helical splines formed on the inner periphery of the pinion gear and the outer periphery of the output shaft, respectively. It is the load of the meshing biasing spring that suppresses the retraction of the pinion gear. Is released and it becomes impossible to ignite.

Therefore, even if the load of the meshing biasing spring can be reduced in order to reduce the size of the electromagnetic switch, there is a limit in reducing the load of the meshing biasing spring due to the need to suppress the retraction of the pinion gear. No significant effect was obtained even in miniaturization of the switch. The present invention has been made based on the above circumstances, and its purpose is to
An object of the present invention is to provide a starter in which the load of a spring that generates an urging force for meshing a pinion gear with a ring gear is reduced, and the electromagnetic switch can be downsized.

[0005]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, when the rotational force of the electric motor is transmitted to the output shaft and the electric motor rotates to the position where it meshes with the pinion gearing gear, the reaction force stored in the spring is used to push out the pinion pushing means. And a pinion gear that meshes with the ring gear and is provided with a pinion retraction inhibiting member that interlocks with the plunger to inhibit the pinion gear from retreating after the pinion gear meshes with the ring gear. Thus, even if a reversing force acts on the pinion gear due to rotation speed fluctuations that occur when the engine is driven, the retraction of the pinion gear can be suppressed by the pinion retraction suppressing member. That is, in the present invention, it is not necessary to suppress the retraction of the pinion gear by the pinion pushing means to which the reaction force of the spring is transmitted. As a result, the spring load can be significantly reduced, so that the electromagnetic switch can be downsized.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a reduction gear for reducing the rotation of the electric motor and transmitting the reduced rotation to the output shaft. As a result, the start-up of the rotation of the pinion gear is delayed as compared with the starter having no speed reducer, so that the spring load can be further reduced.

[0007]

Next, a starter according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a sectional view of the starter. The starter 1 according to the present embodiment includes a starting motor 2 that generates a rotational force, a planetary gear reduction device (described later) that reduces the rotation of the startup motor 2, an output shaft 3 that receives the rotation output of the reduction device, and rotates. A pinion moving body 4 fitted to the output shaft 3, an electromagnetic switch 5 for controlling energization of the starting motor 2,
After the actuation force of the electromagnetic switch 5 is transmitted to push the pinion moving body 4 forward, the pinion pushing lever 6 and the pinion gear 7 mesh with the ring gear 8, and then the pinion gear 7
It comprises a pinion retraction suppressing member 9 (see FIG. 3) for restricting retraction, and a machine frame housing these components. This machine frame is composed of a front case 10,
It is composed of a center case 11, a yoke 12, a brush holder 13, and a rear case 14, and the whole is provided in a substantially cylindrical shape.

The starting motor 2 has a fixed magnetic pole 15 (for example, a plurality of permanent magnets) fixed to an inner peripheral surface of a yoke 12 which also serves as a part of the machine frame and a magnetic frame. An armature 16 is rotatably arranged, and a brush 18 is arranged on a commutator 17 provided at an end of the armature 16. One end side of the yoke 12 having a cylindrical shape is spigot-fitted with the opening end of the center case 11, and the other end side is spigot-fitted with the opening end of the brush holder 13 and combined. The armature 16 is configured such that one end of the rotating shaft 19 is connected to the output shaft 3.
Is inserted into a recess 20 formed at the other end of the brush holder 13 and rotatably supported via a bearing 21 fitted to the inner periphery of the recess 20, and the other end is held by a bearing portion 13 a of the brush holder 13. It is rotatably supported via the bearing 22 provided. The commutator 17 is formed by combining a plurality of commutator pieces in a cylindrical shape on the outer periphery on the other end side of the rotating shaft 19. The brush 18
It is arranged in a box-shaped brush storage chamber 24 formed by the brush holder 13 and the plate 23, and is urged by a brush spring 25 against the outer peripheral surface of the commutator 17. The brush 18 is slidable in the brush storage chamber 24 in the radial direction (vertical direction in FIG. 1) and is restricted from moving in the rotational direction.

The reduction gear includes a sun gear 26 (external teeth) formed on the outer periphery of one end of the rotating shaft 19, an internal gear 27 (internal teeth) located on a radially outer periphery of the sun gear 26, and the sun gear 26 and the internal gear 27. And a plurality of planetary gears 28 disposed between the gears and meshing with both gears. The internal gear 27 is formed on an inner peripheral surface of a gear component 29 disposed on the inner periphery of the center case 11. The roller 30 is interposed between the gear component 29 and the inner cylinder 11a of the center case 11, and the inner cylinder 11a and the roller
And a one-way clutch, and the armature 16
The armature 16 is rotatable in the anti-rotation direction. The planet gear 28 has a pin 31 press-fitted into a large-diameter portion 3 a provided on the outer periphery of the other end of the output shaft 3, and is rotatably supported via a bearing 32 fitted on the outer periphery of the pin 31.

The output shaft 3 is arranged coaxially with the rotation shaft 19, one end of which is rotatably supported via a bearing 33 held by the front case 10, and the other end of which is the center case 11.
Is rotatably supported via a bearing 34 held by the inner cylindrical portion 11a, and is restricted from moving in the axial direction with respect to the center case 11. A helical spline 3b is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the output shaft 3 protruding forward (leftward in FIG. 1) from the center case 11, and a helical spline 4a formed on the inner periphery of the pinion moving body 4 on the helical spline 3b. Are fitted.

The pinion moving body 4 is formed integrally with a pinion gear 7 for meshing with a ring gear 8 provided on a drive shaft of the engine, and a roller 35 is provided on the rear end side (the right end side in FIG. 1) of the pinion gear 7. A washer 36 that is rotatably supported via is disposed. The pinion moving body 4 is provided so as to be movable in the axial direction on the output shaft 3 by meshing with the helical spline 3b of the output shaft 3 and the helical spline 4a of the pinion moving body 4, and a return disposed in front of the pinion gear 7 is provided. The spring 37 constantly urges the rear side of the starter 1 (the side opposite to the ring gear 8).

The electromagnetic switch 5 is disposed at the rear end of the starter 1 (behind the brush holder 13) and is fixed to the inner periphery of a bowl-shaped rear case 14. The electromagnetic switch 5 includes a suction coil 39 that is energized by closing a key switch 38 (see FIG. 5), and a plunger 40 movably arranged on the inner periphery of the suction coil 39. Energizing circuit M of starting motor 2 with movement
The motor contacts (described below) interposed between the motor contacts (see FIG. 4) are opened and closed. In addition, the suction coil 39 and the plunger 40
The plunger 40 is arranged such that the moving direction of the plunger 40 is in the radial direction of the rear case 14 (the vertical direction in FIG. 1).

As shown in FIG. 5, the motor contacts include a movable contact 41 attached to an upper end of a plunger 40, a battery-side fixed contact 43 provided integrally with a battery terminal 42 fixed to the rear case 14, and a brush. 1 (positive electrode side), the movable contact 41 abuts on the fixed contacts 43 and 44 when the plunger 40 is pulled upward and moves upward in FIG. 43 and 44 conduct. The battery terminal 4
A cable 46 directly connected to the battery 45 is connected to 2, and power is supplied from the battery 45.

The pinion push lever 6 has a protrusion 47a of a plate 47, one end of which is disposed in front of the center case 11.
The other end is rotatably supported by a fulcrum 6A, and the other end thereof is disposed in an inclined state (see FIG. 1) in contact with a washer 36 disposed at the rear end of the pinion moving body 4. An elongated groove 6a is formed in the pinion pushing lever 6, and a tip 9c of a lower protruding portion 9a provided on the pinion retraction suppressing member 9 is engaged with the groove 6a (see FIG. 2). The pinion push lever 6 is provided with a tip 9c of the lower projection 9a.
The pinion moving body 4 can be pushed forward by rotating about the fulcrum 6A (rotating in the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 1) in association with the engagement between the pinion moving body 4 and the groove 6a.

As shown in FIG. 3, the pinion retreat suppressing member 9 is formed of, for example, a metal rod, and the lower projection 9a and the upper projection 9a are formed by bending both ends of the rod in the same direction. A projection 9b, and a tip 9c of the lower projection 9a is further bent substantially at right angles to the lower projection 9a. This pinion retraction restraining member 9
The lower projection 9a and the upper projection 9b are arranged in a space formed between the front end face of the center case 11 and the plate 47, and the lower projection 9a and the upper projection 9b are Is taken out of the plate 47 through the openings 47b and 47c (see FIG. 2) opened in
The entirety of the plate 47 is provided so as to be movable in the vertical direction in FIG. However, the pinion retreat suppressing member 9 is
A spring member 48 (see FIG. 2) fixed to the plate 47 is engaged with the upper projecting portion 9b, and is always urged upward in FIG. 1 by the reaction force of the spring member 48. The pinion retraction restraining member 9 is connected to the rod 4 provided in the plunger 40.
The actuation force of the electromagnetic switch 5 (movement of the plunger 40) is transmitted through the string-like member 51 connected to the spring 9, the spring 50, and the rod 49. Can be moved to

The rod 49 is inserted through a hole provided at the bottom of the plunger 40 into a cavity 40a formed inside the plunger 40, and slides on the inner periphery of the hole to form the cavity 40.
a is provided so as to be movable in the vertical direction. The spring 50 is disposed coaxially with the outer periphery of the rod 49 in the hollow portion 40 a, the lower end of the spring 50 is engaged with the inner surface of the bottom of the plunger 40, and the upper end is a large-diameter portion 49 a provided at the upper end of the rod 49.
To constantly urge the rod 49 upward with respect to the plunger 40. One end of the string-shaped member 51 is connected to the lower end of a rod 49 projecting downward from the hole of the plunger 40, and the other end is connected to the lower projecting portion 9 a of the pinion retraction suppressing member 9.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described. When the key switch 38 is closed, a current flows from the battery 45 to the attraction coil 39 of the electromagnetic switch 5 to generate a magnetic force, and the plunger 40 is attracted upward in FIG.
When the plunger 40 moves, the rod 49 urged by the spring 50 moves integrally with the plunger 40, so that the pinion retraction suppressing member 9 is pulled by the string-like member 51 connected to the rod 49, and the spring member While moving 48, it moves downward in FIG. When the pinion retraction suppressing member 9 moves downward, the distal end 9c of the lower protruding portion 9a presses the groove 6a of the pinion pushing lever 6, so that the pinion pushing lever 6 is pivoted about the fulcrum 6A in FIG.
Rotates counterclockwise.

By the rotation of the pinion pushing lever 6,
The pinion moving body 4 is pushed toward the ring gear 8 against the urging force of the return spring 37. When the extruded end surface of the pinion gear 7 comes into contact with the end surface of the ring gear 8 and the movement of the pinion moving body 4 stops, the rotation of the pinion pushing lever 6 also stops. Since the rotation of the pinion pushing lever 6 is stopped, the movement of the pinion retraction suppressing member 9 is restricted.
The movement of the rod 49 connected to is also stopped. However, since the plunger 40 in the electromagnetic switch 5 is attracted by the magnetic force of the attracting coil 39, the plunger moves further upward in FIG. When the movable contact 41 provided on the upper end portion of the plunger 40 contacts the fixed contacts 43 and 44 and closes the fixed contacts 43 and 44 by the movement of the plunger 40, a current flows from the battery 45 to the armature 16. The armature 16 starts rotating.

The rotation of the armature 16 is transmitted to the output shaft 3 after being decelerated by the speed reducer. As a result, when the output shaft 3 rotates and the pinion gear 7 rotates to a position where it meshes with the ring gear 8, the pinion moving body 4, which has been restricted from moving forward, becomes movable.
The rod 49 moves upward in the cavity 40 a of the plunger 40 by the reaction force of the spring 50. With the movement of the rod 49, the pinion retraction suppressing member 9 moves downward through the string-like member 51, and the pinion pushing lever 6 further rotates to push the pinion moving body 4 forward, whereby the pinion gear 7 and the ring gear 8 are moved. And the torque of the starting motor 2 is transmitted to the ring gear 8 to start the engine.

Thereafter, the plunger 40 of the electromagnetic switch 5
Since the movable contact 41 moves further upward after the movable contact 41 contacts the fixed contacts 43 and 44, the rod 49 and the string-like member 5
1, the pinion retreat suppressing member 9 moves downward,
The upper projection 9b of the pinion retraction suppressing member 9 enters behind the pinion moving body 4. Thereby, even if a retreating force acts on the pinion moving body 4 due to the rotation speed fluctuation generated when the engine is driven, the tip surface of the upper protruding portion 9b abuts the washer 36 of the pinion moving body 4, Retreat of the pinion moving body 4 can be suppressed. Here, as shown in FIG. 4, the distance between the upper protruding portion 9b of the pinion retraction restraining member 9 and the end face of the plate 47 is L1, and the distance from the end face of the plate 47 when the pinion pushing lever 6 is tilted at the maximum. When L2 is established, the following relationship is established between L1 and L2, so that the upper protruding portion 9b can smoothly mesh without interfering with the meshing of the pinion gear 7 and the ring gear 8. L1 ≤ L2

When the key switch 38 is opened after the engine is started, the current to the suction coil 39 is cut off and the plunger 40 is turned off.
The pinion retraction suppressing member 9 is pushed back upward by the reaction force of the spring member 48 because the force for sucking the pinion is eliminated. As a result, the upper projecting portion 9b of the pinion retreat inhibiting member 9 is disengaged from the washer 36, and the retraction control of the pinion moving body 4 is released. Therefore, the pinion moving body 4 is urged by the return spring 37 and moves on the output shaft 3. It retreats and is pushed back to the rest position. On the other hand, when the pinion retraction suppressing member 9 is pushed back upward, the rod 49 is pulled downward through the string-like member 51, and the plunger 40 of the electromagnetic switch 5 moves downward together with the rod 49 to move the movable contact 41.
Armature 1 is separated from the fixed contacts 43 and 44.
The current to 6 is cut off and the rotation of the armature 16 stops.

(Effects of the present embodiment) According to the present embodiment, even if a retreating force is applied to the pinion moving body 4 due to the rotation speed fluctuation generated when the engine is driven, the pinion moving body 4 is retreated. Can be suppressed by the upper protrusion 9b of the pinion retreat suppressing member 9. That is, since it is not necessary to suppress the retraction of the pinion moving body 4 by the pinion pushing lever 6 to which the reaction force of the spring 50 is transmitted, the spring 50 is a countermeasure that only engages the pinion gear 7 with the ring gear 8 through the pinion pushing lever 6. All you need to do is build up your strength. Therefore, the load on the spring 50 can be significantly reduced as compared with the conventional starter having a structure in which the retraction of the pinion gear 7 is suppressed by the load of the biasing spring for meshing, so that the electromagnetic switch 5 can be downsized.

Further, in this embodiment, there is provided a reduction gear for reducing the rotation of the starting motor 2 and transmitting the rotation to the output shaft 3.
As a result, the rise of the rotation of the pinion gear 7 is delayed as compared with a starter having no reduction gear, so that the load of the spring 50 can be further reduced. In this embodiment, each component of the starter 1 is housed in a substantially cylindrical machine frame. However, in a so-called two-axis starter in which the electromagnetic switch 5 is arranged radially outside the starting motor 2. Also, by restricting the retraction of the pinion moving body 4 with the same configuration as in the present embodiment, the load on the spring 50 can be reduced, and the electromagnetic switch 5 can be downsized. Further, in the present embodiment, the speed reducer is provided, but the configuration of the present invention may be applied to a starter having no speed reducer.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a starter.

FIG. 2 is a front view of the starter viewed from the front with the front case removed.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a pinion retraction regulating member.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a main part of the starter, showing a state where the pinion gear meshes with the ring gear.

FIG. 5 is an energization circuit diagram of a starting motor.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Starter 2 Starting motor (motor) 3 Output shaft 3b Helical spline (output shaft) 4a Helical spline (pinion moving body) 5 Electromagnetic switch 6 Pinion pushing lever (pinion pushing means) 7 Pinion gear 8 Ring gear 9 Pinion retraction suppressing member 10 Front case (Machine frame) 11 center case (machine frame) 12 yoke (machine frame) 13 brush holder (machine frame) 14 rear case (machine frame) 39 suction coil 40 plunger 41 movable contact (motor contact) 43 battery Side fixed contact (motor contact) 44 Motor side fixed contact (motor contact) 50 Spring M Energizing circuit

Claims (2)

[Claims] An electric motor for generating a rotational force, a coil for generating a magnetic force when energized, and a plunger attracted by the magnetic force of the coil, are interposed in an energizing circuit of the electric motor with the movement of the plunger. An electromagnetic switch that opens and closes a motor contact; an output shaft that rotates by transmitting the rotational force of the electric motor; a helical spline fitted around the output shaft to engage with a ring gear of the engine to rotate the electric motor. A pinion gear for transmitting a force to the ring gear; a pinion pushing means for transmitting the movement of the plunger to push the pinion gear forward; and after the pinion gear pushed forward contacts the ring gear, the plunger is further suctioned. The spring that stores the reaction force by being driven, and the rotational force of the electric motor are transmitted to the output shaft. When the pinion gear is rotated to a position where it meshes with the ring gear, a reaction force stored in the spring is transmitted to the pinion pushing means, and the pinion gear meshes with the ring gear. A starter provided with a pinion retraction inhibiting member for inhibiting retraction of the pinion gear in conjunction with the plunger. 2. A starter according to claim 1, further comprising a reduction gear for reducing the rotation of said electric motor and transmitting said rotation to said output shaft.