JPH01190508A - Vehicle suspension device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To aim at reducing the number of necessary components of a vehicle suspension device by forming upper and lower arms integrally incorporated with each other from fiber reinforced resin, and by supporting the connecting parts of the arms to a vehicle body so as to give a vehicle spring function to the arms. CONSTITUTION:A suspension device S incorporates an integrally formed arm 1 composed of a V-like upper arm 2 and a V-like lower arm 3 located below the V-like arm 2 in parallel therewith, which are integrally incorporated with each other in an endless shape by means of a pair of connecting parts 4, 4 which are extended vertically. In this arrangement, V-like bent parts of the upper and lower arms 2, 3 are attached with metal plates 5, 6, respectively, and the upper and lower end parts of a knuckle 7 are rotatably connected to the metal plates 5, 6. The four boundaries between the connecting parts 4, 4 and the arms 2, 3 are fastened to a vehicle body with U-like bolts 10.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a suspension system for a vehicle, and more particularly to a so-called double wishbone type suspension system that includes an upper arm and a lower arm.

[Conventional technology]

The above-mentioned double wishbone type suspension system is well known as a vehicle suspension system. Conventionally, in this double wishbone type suspension device, one in which the upper arms or the lower arms of the left and right suspension devices are connected to each other using fiber reinforced resin (FRP) has been proposed (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 58-1
(See Japanese Utility Model Application No. 28908, Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 62-76009, and Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 61-15209).

[Problem that the invention seeks to solve]

However, in that case, in order to rotatably connect the end of the fiber-reinforced resin connecting member to each upper arm or each lower arm, it is necessary to form a boss portion at the end of the fiber-reinforced resin connecting member. If a boss portion is provided on a connecting member made of resin, it is difficult to obtain sufficient strength. or,
It is also conceivable to fix a boss made of metal or the like to the end of the connecting member, but in that case there is a drawback that the manufacturing process becomes complicated.

Moreover, in the lower arm, a large force is applied to the end of the connecting member in the vehicle width direction and the vehicle body longitudinal direction, and these forces normally act on the connecting member as a shearing force. It has been extremely difficult to connect the connecting member to the lower arm in a manner that ensures that the receiver is securely fastened.

Furthermore, when the left and right upper arms are connected to each other, there is a problem in that the space in the engine room or the passenger compartment is reduced due to the presence of the connecting member. As described above, connecting the upper arms or the lower arms with each other using a connecting member made of fiber-reinforced resin involves various problems.

On the other hand, a double wishbone type suspension device in which the left and right upper arms or lower arms are not connected to each other has a large number of parts and has the problem of difficulty in arranging shock absorbing springs due to space limitations. was.

[Means for solving problems]

In order to solve the above problems, a vehicle suspension device according to the present invention is a vehicle suspension device having an upper arm and a lower arm, in which the upper arm and the lower arm are integrally formed of fiber reinforced resin, and , the connecting portion between the upper arm and the lower arm includes an integrated arm supported by the vehicle body.

[For production]

According to the above configuration, the upper arm and lower arm of the double wishbone type suspension device are integrated, so the number of parts is reduced. Furthermore, since the integrated upper arm and lower arm are made of fiber-reinforced resin and the arm itself has a spring function, there is no need for a shock absorbing spring, further reducing the number of parts.

Furthermore, since the integrated arm is supported by the vehicle body in a non-rotatable manner, the force applied to the integrated arm in the vehicle width direction or vehicle body longitudinal direction is transmitted to the vehicle body as a tensile force or compressive force.
Therefore, the force in the vehicle width direction or vehicle body longitudinal direction can be reliably stopped.

〔Example〕

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below based on FIGS. 1 to 5.

FIG. 1 shows a suspension device S on the right side of the front part of the vehicle body.

As also shown in FIG. 2, this suspension device S has an integrated arm 1 made of fiber reinforced resin. The integrated arm 1 has an approximately 7-shaped upper arm 2 and an approximately 7-shaped lower arm 3 located below the upper arm 2 and approximately parallel to the upper arm 2.
They are integrated via a pair of connecting portions 4, 4, and are formed in an endless shape.

A metal plate 5 made of iron or the like is attached to the 7-shaped bent portion of the upper arm 2 and lower arm 3 of the integrated arm 1, respectively.
6 is attached by adhesive or the like, and the upper and lower ends of the knuckle 7 are rotatably connected to the two metal plates 5 and 6 via ball joints, respectively. The knuckle 7 rotatably supports a wheel 8 via its axle 7a.

As shown also in FIG.
The integrated arm 1 is thereby supported by the vehicle body 11. Connecting portion 4 in each U-bolt 10
・A rubber bushing 12 is fitted to the part along line 4,
In addition, each bushing 12 between the connecting parts 4, 4 and the vehicle body 11
Rubber sheets 13 are interposed at positions corresponding to the respective positions. Note that if geometry adjustment is required, a shim (not shown) is inserted between the rubber sheet 13 and the vehicle body 11.

A lower end portion of an oil damper 14 that is extendable and retractable in the longitudinal direction is rotatably attached to the lower metal plate 6.
The upper end of the oil damper 14 is rotatably attached to the vehicle body 11.

In the above configuration, vibrations in various directions between the wheels 8 and the vehicle body 11 are absorbed by the flexure of the integrated arm 1, and vibrations in the vertical direction of the vehicle body are also absorbed by the oil damper 14.

Next, an example of the manufacturing procedure of the integrated arm 1 will be described.

As shown in FIG. 4, a roving la made of a plurality of fibers such as glass or carbon is passed through a molten resin lb such as epoxy resin, vinyl ester resin, or unsaturated polyester filled in a container 15. The roving 1a having the resin 1b attached to its surface is wound into a ring shape to form a ring body IC made of fiber reinforced resin by a so-called filament winding molding method.

Next, a groove 16 corresponding to the shape of the integrated arm 1 after molding is formed.
The ring body IC is fitted into the groove 16a of the lower mold 16 shown in FIG.
form. In this way, the integrated arm 1 can be formed without interrupting the roving 1a, so the strength of the integrated arm 1 can be maintained high. There is no problem in forming it.

In the above embodiment, the integrated arm 1 was formed in an endless shape, but instead, as shown in FIG. 6, the upper arm I8 and the lower arm 19 are connected by bending a flat plate-shaped fiber reinforced resin. A suspension device may be constructed by forming an integrated arm 21 connected via the portion 20, and attaching members such as the above-mentioned knuckle 7 and oil damper 14 to this integrated arm 21.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As described above, the vehicle suspension device according to the present invention is a vehicle suspension device having an upper arm and a lower arm, in which the upper arm and the lower arm are integrally formed of fiber-reinforced resin, and the upper arm and the lower arm are The connecting portion includes an integrated arm that is supported by the vehicle body.

As a result, the upper arm and lower arm of the double wishbone type suspension device are integrated, which reduces the number of parts. In addition, since the integrated upper arm and lower arm are made of fiber-reinforced resin and the arm itself has a spring function, there is no need for a buffer spring, reducing the number of parts by -N and simplifying the structure. This has the effect that a compact suspension device can be obtained.

Furthermore, the integrated arm is supported by the vehicle body in a non-rotatable manner, and as a result, the force applied to the integrated arm in the vehicle width direction or vehicle body longitudinal direction is transmitted to the vehicle body as a tensile or compressive force. This makes it possible to reliably absorb and stop forces in the vehicle width direction or vehicle body longitudinal direction.

Furthermore, since the structure is such that the upper arm and lower arm on each side of the vehicle body are connected, the space in the engine room or the passenger compartment is not compressed.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1 to 6 show an embodiment of the present invention, in which FIG. 1 is a perspective view, FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an integrated arm, FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view of main parts, and FIG. The figure is an explanatory view showing an example of the molding process of the integrated arm, FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a mold used for molding the integrated arm, and FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing another example of the structure of the integrated arm. It is. 1 and 21 are integrated arms, 2 and 18 are upper arms, and 3
・19 is the lower arm, 4 and 2o are the connecting parts.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A suspension device for a vehicle having an upper arm and a lower arm, wherein the upper arm and the lower arm are integrally formed of fiber-reinforced resin, and the connecting portion between the upper arm and the lower arm is supported by the vehicle body. A suspension device for a vehicle, comprising an integrated arm.