JPH10329781A - Operating force detecting means and bicycle assist device with it - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To easily push a bicycle with operating force by providing stays supporting a handle bar, providing the prescribed load sensors between the handle bar and the stays, and detecting the operating force of a driver. SOLUTION: Load sensors 1a, 1b, 1c, 1d are provided on both sides of the front and the rear in the advance direction of a bicycle. An elastic member 9 is arranged between the load sensors 1a, 1b, 1c, 1d and stays 11a, 11b, and the prescribed elastic force is invariably applied to a handle bar so that the handle bar is returned to the original position. The detected values from the load sensors and the detected values from a car speed sensor, a shift position sensor, and an engine rotation sensor are inputted to a controller. The necessity for the generation of assist driving force is judged and the required assist driving force is calculated based on these detected values, and the assist driving force is generated accordingly. When the prescribed operating force is applied to the handle bar, the heavy bicycle can be pushed via light operating force.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an operating force detecting means, and more particularly to an operating force detecting means for detecting an operating force applied to a steering wheel of a motorcycle and an assist device for a motorcycle using the same.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, when a motorcycle or the like is put in or out of a garage or a bicycle parking lot, or when a person walks by pushing a sidewalk, a driver (rider) directly applies an operating force to a steering wheel to move the motorcycle. ing. This is difficult when the motorcycle is large and heavy, and it is particularly difficult for a female driver to directly push and move the motorcycle even if the motorcycle is relatively light. .

[0003] In order to solve such a problem, some motorcycles assist the driver's operation with the assist driving force of the electric motor only in the backward direction. This is shown in FIG.
As shown in the figure, a predetermined reversing switch 5 is provided at the end area of the handlebar, which is held by the driver during driving.
When the driver operates the reverse switch 51 with his / her finger, the assist motor 53 is rotated to generate an assist driving force. That is, by operating the reverse switch 51, the assist motor 53 applies an assist driving force in the reverse direction to the drive wheels of the motorcycle,
It assists backward movement.

[0004]

However, the above conventional example has the following disadvantages. That is, the driver must operate the reverse switch to obtain the assist driving force, but it is very difficult to operate the reverse switch while holding the steering wheel while holding the heavy motorcycle substantially upright. , Causing the inconvenience. In addition, since the assist driving force is generated only in the backward direction, it is inconvenient when the user pushes the sidewalk or walks on a narrow alley.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The object of the present invention is to improve the disadvantages of the prior art, and in particular, it is possible to detect the operating force of the driver without performing any special operation, and to easily push the motorcycle with this operating force. It is an object of the present invention to provide a motorcycle assist device.

[0006]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, a handlebar operated by a motorcycle driver and a stay for supporting the handlebar are provided. A predetermined load sensor is provided between the and the stay. With the configuration described above, when the driver grips and presses the handlebar, the load sensor can detect the operating force pressed by the driver. For this reason, the detection value of the load sensor can be used for controlling the motorcycle.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the handlebar is supported so as to be finely movable with respect to the stay, and is provided between the load sensor and the stay in a direction for returning the handlebar to the original position. The other structure is the same as that of the first aspect of the present invention. With the configuration described above, the load applied from the elastic member to the load sensor changes with the fine movement of the handlebar. Therefore, the load can be detected more accurately.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, the load sensor and the elastic member are provided in front and rear of the operation direction when the driver operates the steering wheel to push the motorcycle. This is the same as the invention described in Item 2.
With the above-described configuration, the detection values of the respective load sensors are different from each other depending on the direction and the magnitude of the operation force by which the driver presses the handlebar. Therefore, by comparing this, it is possible to determine in which direction the driver is pushing the motorcycle forward or backward. Further, the pressing force at that time can also be calculated. Furthermore, by providing the load sensor and the elastic member at two locations in front and rear, and calculating the operating force for the driver to press the motorcycle from these values, the temperature change around the load sensor and the dimensional error of the parts can be reduced. Influence can be reduced, and the operating force can be accurately detected.

Further, according to the present invention, the operating force detecting means, a control section for outputting a predetermined control signal based on the output of the operating force detecting means, and a predetermined section in accordance with the control signal from the control section. And a predetermined assist motor clutch for transmitting the assist driving force of the assist motor to the driving wheel side of the two-wheeled vehicle.
Or, it is the same as the invention described in 3. With the above configuration, when it is determined from the detection value of the load sensor that the driver is pushing the motorcycle forward, the assist driving force can be applied in the forward direction. On the other hand, if it is determined that the driver is pushing backward, the assist driving force can be applied in the backward direction.

[0010]

An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. As shown in FIG. 1, the operating force detecting means of the present invention includes a handlebar 10 operated by a motorcycle driver.
And a stay 11 for supporting the handlebar 10, and a predetermined load sensor 1a is provided between the handlebar 10 and the stays 11a and 11b.

The details will be described below.
Is a bar-shaped member partially bent, and its cross-sectional shape is circular. Handlebars 10 are provided with grips 10a at both ends thereof for the driver to grip. Also,
The handlebar 10 is supported by predetermined stays 11a and 11b at two places in the central region. This stay 1
1a and 11b are configured to sandwich the handlebar 10 from above and below. It consists of an upper stay 11a and a lower stay 11b (see FIG. 1B). And. The stays 11a and 11b are fixed to the top bridge 21 of the motorcycle with two predetermined bolts 23.

Since the stays 11a and 11b hold the handlebar 10 from above and below as described above, each of the upper and lower stays 11a and 11b has a substantially semi-cylindrical recess 25 formed in the contact area. ing. However, the concave portion 25 is not a complete semi-cylindrical shape, but has a shape slightly longer in a substantially horizontal direction (approximate to an ellipse). This is because the handlebar 10 can be finely moved with respect to the stays 11a and 11b as described later. FIG.
In (B), the stays 11a and 11b and the top bridge 21 are slightly inclined. This is because the top bridge 21 is mounted on the upper end of the front fork 27 (see FIG. 2), and the front fork 27 itself has a predetermined caster angle.

Further, the handlebar 10 and the stays 11a,
11b, predetermined load sensors 1a, 1b,
1c, 1d and an elastic member 9 are provided. The load sensors 1a, 1b, 1c, 1d are, for example, strain gauges, and output a predetermined electric signal according to the magnitude of a load applied. The load sensors 1a, 1b, 1c, 1
d is disposed in direct contact with the surface of the handlebar 10. In the present embodiment, load sensors 1a, 1b, 1c, 1d are respectively provided on both front and rear sides in the traveling direction of the motorcycle. The load sensors 1a, 1b, 1
The types of c and 1d are not particularly limited, as long as the load applied to the handlebar can be accurately measured.
It may be something like a pressure sensor. FIG. 1A shows a plan view of the operation force detecting means 1, but actually the load sensors 1a, 1b, 1c, 1d are housed inside the stays 11a, 11b, so that they can be seen from the outside. Not to be.

Further, the elastic member 9 includes the load sensors 1a, 1
b, 1c, 1d and stays 11a, 11b. More specifically, of the recesses 25 formed in the stays 11a and 11b, predetermined elastic member holes 29 are formed at both ends in the horizontal direction, and a compression spring as the elastic member 9 is formed in the elastic member holes 29. Equipped. Since the elastic member holes 29 are formed and the elastic member 9 is fixed in this manner, the elastic member 9 does not buckle even when a predetermined load is applied. The elastic member is not limited to a compression spring, but may be a member such as rubber.

As shown in FIG. 1B, the elastic members 9 are provided at the front and rear in the traveling direction of the motorcycle, respectively. Each elastic member 9 always applies a predetermined elastic force to the handlebar 1 so as to return the handlebar 10 to the original position.
Energizing to zero. Here, in the operating force detecting means 1 according to the present embodiment, the elastic member on the front side in the traveling direction is stored in the lower stay 11b, and the elastic member on the rear side is stored in the upper stay 11a. However, the elastic member hole 29 may be formed in the boundary region between the upper stay 11a and the lower stay 11b, and the elastic member 9 may be fixed to both upper and lower stays 11a and 11b.

As shown in FIG. 1 (A), the operating force detecting means 1 of this embodiment has a total of four sets of load sensors 1.
a, 1b, 1c, 1d and an elastic member 9 are provided.
However, in order to improve the accuracy of load detection, another stay may be provided, and a load sensor and an elastic member may be provided in this stay. The stays 11a, 1
The amount of movement of the handlebar 10 with respect to 1b is so small that the driver does not feel uncomfortable. Therefore, the driver cannot recognize the slight movement of the handlebar 10 in a normal operation. In FIG. 1B, the gaps are shown large for convenience of explanation.

Although the operating force detecting means 1 of the present invention is configured as described above, the present invention is not limited to this. That is, a load sensor may be provided only on one side of the two sets of stays that support the handlebar 10. Further, the cross-sectional shape of the handlebar in the region supported by the stay may be a prismatic shape, and the recess of each stay may be a rectangular shape. This effectively prevents the handlebar from rotating with respect to the stay.
Further, the load sensor may be directly provided between the handlebar and the stay without providing an elastic member.

Next, a description will be given of a motorcycle assist device using the above-described operating force detecting means 1. As shown in FIG. 2, the handlebar 10 of the motorcycle is supported by the stay described above, and this stay is fixed to a top bridge at the upper end of the front fork 27. Here, the top bridge fixes the two front forks 27 at their upper ends. An assist motor 4 and an assist motor clutch 5 are provided near the engine of the motorcycle. The assist motor 4 applies an assist drive force to the drive wheels 31 of the motorcycle, and the assist motor clutch 5 switches between transmission and stop of the assist drive force.

Further, the motorcycle is equipped with an assisting battery 7 for supplying electric power to the control unit 6 and the assist motor 4 described above. This assist battery 7
A normal lead battery or the like is used. Note that the assist battery 7 may be provided only for assist, or may be already provided for normal power supply to the auxiliary equipment and shared with the vehicle battery. However, in this case, it is necessary to use a battery having a relatively large capacity. Further, the motorcycle body is provided with an engine speed sensor 2 for detecting the engine speed, a shift position sensor 3 for detecting the state of the transmission, and a vehicle speed sensor 8 for detecting the vehicle speed. The engine speed sensor 2 directly detects the speed of the output shaft (not shown) of the engine. For example, it may be a rotary encoder.

Next, a configuration for applying assist driving force from the assist motor 4 to the driving wheels 31 will be described. As shown in FIG. 3, from the engine side (not shown),
A transmission output shaft 14 extends. The transmission output shaft 14 rotates at the number of revolutions after being shifted by a transmission (not shown), and applies a driving force to the driving wheels 31 during normal traveling. Further, a predetermined drive sprocket 15 is mounted on an end of the transmission output shaft 14. A drive chain 16 is wound around the drive sprocket 15. The drive chain 16 is extended to a sprocket (not shown) of the drive wheel 31, and drives the drive wheel 31 of the motorcycle.

The assist motor 4 described above is disposed near the transmission output shaft 14.
The assist motor 4 is integrally equipped with a predetermined assist motor clutch 5, and the assist motor 4
The first assist gear 12 is attached to the end of the output shaft of the first embodiment. The assist motor clutch 5 switches connection and disconnection between the assist motor 4 and the first assist gear 12 according to a command from the control unit 6. Then, an assist driving force is applied through the assist motor clutch 5. Further, the first assist gear 12 meshes with a second assist gear 13 mounted on the transmission output shaft 14.

FIG. 4 is a control block diagram of the motorcycle assist device. As shown in this figure, the control unit 6 receives a detection value from each load sensor. Further, respective detection values from the vehicle speed sensor 8, the shift position sensor 3, and the engine rotation sensor 2 are input. Then, based on these detected values, the control unit 6 determines whether or not to generate the assist driving force, and calculates the magnitude or the like when the assist driving force is generated. After the calculation, a predetermined control signal is generated, and this control signal is transmitted to the assist motor 4 and the clutch 5 for the assist motor.
Is sent to

Next, a control flow in the case where an assist driving force is actually generated will be described with reference to FIGS. First, from the outputs of the various sensors, the control unit 6 determines whether the shift position is neutral, the engine is stopped, and the vehicle speed is equal to or lower than a predetermined value a (step S1 in FIG. 5). . This is for determining whether or not to apply the assist driving force. Then, when all of these conditions are satisfied, the assist motor clutch 5 is connected as preparation before applying the assist driving force (step S2 in FIG. 5). Conversely, if any of these conditions are not met,
The clutch 5 for the assist motor is disengaged (step S5 in FIG. 5). When the assist motor clutch 5 is disengaged, the assist motor 4 does not load the rotation of the transmission output shaft 14.

When the assist motor clutch 5 is connected, the magnitude of the assist driving force is calculated based on a signal from each load sensor. Specifically, when the driver pushes the handlebar 10 of the motorcycle to enter the garage or walk on the sidewalk, the operating force applied to the handlebar 10 is applied to each of the load sensors 1a, 1b, 1c, 1d. To detect. At this time, each of the load sensors 1a, 1b, 1c, 1
As shown in FIG. 6, the output of d is S1F, S1R, S2
F and S2R. When the driver pushes the two-wheeled vehicle from these information, the operating force F applied to the handlebar 10 is calculated by the following formula.

F = K {(S1F−S1R) + (S2F−S2R)}

The above equation indicates that one set of front and rear load sensors 1a, 1b, 1c, 1 on one side of the outputs of the load sensors 1a, 1b, 1c, 1d attached to the stays 11a, 11b.
The difference between the detected values of d is calculated, and the difference is calculated based on a value obtained by adding the differences on both sides. K included in the equation is a proportional constant of F to the output value of the load sensors 1a, 1b, 1c, 1d. After the control unit 6 calculates F, the magnitude of the assist driving force corresponding to F is determined (step S3 in FIG. 5). When the above formula is used to calculate F, there are the following advantages. That is, for example, when the size of the handlebar changes due to a temperature change, the load applied to the load sensor may slightly change. Assuming that the value of the change amount of the load at that time is N, each load changes as follows.

FS1 → FS1 + N FS2 → FS2 + N However, when F is obtained by using the above equation, the amount of change in the load is eliminated. For this reason,
It is hard to be affected by the temperature change around the load sensor and the dimensional error of the parts, and the operating force can be detected with high accuracy.

When determining the assist driving force, FIG.
The map shown in Fig. 2 is used. That is, when the absolute value of the operation force F is equal to or smaller than a predetermined value b, the assist driving force is zero. That is, when the operating force applied to the handlebar 10 is small, the assist driving force is not applied. This is to prevent the assist driving force from being generated during normal steering operation. On the other hand, when the operating force F exceeds the predetermined value b, the assist driving force is generated in accordance with the value of the operating force F. Specifically, the assist driving force is linearly increased with an increase in the operation force F. When the absolute value of the operation force F is increased to some extent and exceeds the upper limit c,
The assist driving force is set to the maximum assist driving force Ac without increasing any more.

The control unit 6 sends a control signal to the assist motor 4 based on the information on the assist driving force calculated by the above-described stroke. The assist motor 4 generates a necessary assist driving force according to the control signal, and transmits the generated assist driving force to the driving wheels 31 of the motorcycle. Thus, the driver can push a heavy motorcycle with a light operating force by urging the handlebar 10 with a predetermined operating force.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG.
Regarding the forward and backward movements, the magnitude of the assist driving force with respect to the operation force F is set equal. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, it is also possible to perform control such as making the reverse side assist driving force smaller than the forward side, or conversely making the reverse side assist driving force larger than the forward side. It is possible. Further, control may be performed such that the assist driving force approaches the upper limit in a curved line with respect to the operating force urged by the driver to the handlebar.

[0031]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a handlebar operated by a motorcycle driver, and a stay for supporting the handlebar. Provided with a predetermined load sensor. Therefore, when the driver applies a predetermined operating force to the handlebar, the operating force can be automatically detected, and the detected value can be used for controlling the motorcycle. Effect.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the handlebar is supported so as to be finely movable with respect to the stay,
A predetermined elastic member acting between the load sensor and the stay in a direction for returning the handlebar to the original position is provided. Therefore, there is an excellent effect that the load sensor can more accurately detect the operating force urged on the handlebar due to the change in the elastic force of the elastic member caused by the slight movement of the handlebar.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the load sensor and the elastic member are provided forward and backward in the operation direction when the driver operates the steering wheel to push the motorcycle. For this reason,
There is an excellent effect that the direction of the operating force applied to the handlebar can be detected and can be used for controlling the motorcycle. Further, the load sensor and the elastic member are moved forward and backward.
By providing a location and calculating the operating force by which the driver presses the two-wheeled vehicle from these values, it is less likely to be affected by temperature changes around the load sensor and dimensional errors of the parts, and the operating force is accurately detected. The effect is excellent.

Further, according to the present invention, a control section for outputting a predetermined control signal based on the output of the operating force detecting means, and a predetermined assist driving force in response to the control signal from the control section. An output assist motor is provided, and a predetermined assist motor clutch for transmitting the assist driving force of the assist motor to the drive wheels of the motorcycle. For this reason, the assist driving force is applied to the motorcycle based on the operation force detected by the operation force detection means, and an appropriate assist driving force is applied without performing a special operation such as a switch operation. An excellent effect of being easy is produced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG.
1A is a plan view of the operation force detecting means, and FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG.
FIG. 1C is an enlarged cross-sectional view in a mounting region of the load sensor of FIG.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a motorcycle using the operating force detection means disclosed in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a partially omitted plan view showing an assist motor provided in the motorcycle disclosed in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a control block diagram of the motorcycle assist device of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a control flowchart of the motorcycle assist device of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a case where an operating force F is calculated from outputs of the load sensors disclosed in FIG. 1 (A).

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a relationship between an operating force F and an assist driving force.

FIG. 8 is a side view showing a conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1 operating force detecting means 4 assist motor 5 assist motor clutch 6 control unit 9 elastic member (compression spring) 10 handlebar 11a, 11b stay

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A handlebar operated by a motorcycle driver, and a stay for supporting the handlebar, wherein a predetermined load sensor is provided between the handlebar and the stay. Operating force detection means. 2. A predetermined elastic member which supports the handlebar so as to be finely movable with respect to a stay, and which constantly acts between the load sensor and the stay in a direction for returning the handlebar to its original position. The operating force detecting means according to claim 1, wherein the operating force detecting means is provided. 3. The operating force detecting means according to claim 2, wherein the load sensor and the elastic member are provided in front and rear directions of the operation when the driver operates the steering wheel to push the motorcycle. 4. A control unit for outputting a predetermined control signal based on an output of the operating force detection means, an assist motor for outputting a predetermined assist driving force in response to a control signal from the control unit, 4. A two-wheeled vehicle assist device using operating force detecting means according to claim 1, further comprising a predetermined assist motor clutch for transmitting an assisted driving force of the motor to a driven wheel side of the two-wheeled vehicle.