JPH05169943A - Suspension device of vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Abstract] [Purpose] To provide a vehicle suspension device that can increase the degree of freedom in setting the kingpin axis and enhance caster rigidity to ensure traveling stability. A pivot support mechanism 40 for connecting a wheel support 10, a shock absorber 20, and a shock absorber body 21 to an upper end portion of the wheel support 10 is provided for the shock absorber body 21.
A pivoting mechanism 40 that allows only rotation of the steering wheel in the steering direction,
A mold arm 50 and a link mechanism 60 that connects the shock absorber body 21 to the A-shaped arm 50 and that restrains the rotation of the shock absorber body around its axis are provided.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vehicle suspension system, and more particularly to an improved strut suspension system.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, strut suspensions and double wishbone suspensions have been widely put into practical use as vehicle suspension devices, but strut suspensions have a small number of parts and have a small and simple structure. There are problems such as increased kingpin offset and difficulty in increasing camber rigidity, and the double wishbone suspension has
Although there is a high degree of freedom in geometrical design for changes in camber and tread, and the kingpin offset can be made relatively small, there is the problem that a large installation space is required. Therefore, as a suspension combining the advantages of both types of suspensions, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No.
-128207, JP-A-57-209408, and JP-B-58-55921 include an upper arm and a lower arm in the vehicle width direction, and a shock absorber, and the lower end of the shock absorber body is pivotally attached to the lower arm. In addition, a suspension device has been proposed in which the inner end of the upper arm is pivotally attached to the shock absorber body.

[0003]

In the strut type suspension device, the lower end of the shock absorber body is integrally connected to the upper end of the wheel support, and the kingpin shaft includes the upper end of the shock absorber and the lower arm of the wheel support. Is defined by a line connecting to a ball joint pivotally attached to the lower end of the shock absorber, and during steering, the wheel support rotates about the kingpin axis through the rotation of the shock absorber about that axis. By the way, in the strut type suspension device, since the kingpin axis is set as described above, it is difficult to increase the degree of freedom in arrangement of the shock absorber, and it is difficult to increase the degree of freedom in setting the kingpin axis. There is a problem in that it is difficult to secure the rigidity of the casters due to the poor function of restraining the upper end of the support in the front-rear direction, and the running stability is lacking.

An object of the present invention is to provide a suspension device for a vehicle which can increase the degree of freedom in setting the kingpin axis and can increase the caster rigidity to ensure traveling stability.

[0005]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a vehicle suspension device, a wheel support for rotatably supporting wheels, a shock absorber connected to a vehicle body at an upper end, and a lower end of the wheel support at one end. A lower arm pivotally attached to the vehicle body and the other end pivotally attached to the vehicle body at one or more locations, and a pivotal attachment mechanism for connecting the shock absorber body and the upper end portion of the wheel support to the shock absorber body. A pivot mechanism that allows only rotation of the wheel support in the steering direction, and a link mechanism that connects the shock absorber body and the lower arm and that restricts rotation of the shock absorber body around its axis are provided. It is characterized by that.

According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a vehicle suspension device according to the first aspect, further comprising a stabilizer, and an end portion of the stabilizer is connected to a link member of a link mechanism. is there.

[0007]

In the vehicle suspension device according to the first aspect, the wheel support, the shock absorber, and
A pivoting mechanism that connects the lower arm, the shock absorber body and the upper end of the wheel support, and that allows only the rotation of the wheel support in the steering direction with respect to the shock absorber body, and the shock absorber body. Since the link mechanism that connects the lower arm and the link mechanism that restricts the rotation of the shock absorber body around its axis is provided, the kingpin shaft is a pivotal mechanism that pivotally connects the shaft center of the pivot mechanism and the lower arm to the wheel support. Since it is defined by a line connecting the center of the attachment portion, the kingpin axis can be changed according to the position of the pivot attachment portion. That is, the degree of freedom in setting the kingpin axis is significantly increased, and at the same time, the degree of freedom in arranging the shock absorber is also increased. Moreover, since the rotation of the shock absorber body around its axis is restricted via the link mechanism, the caster rigidity is increased and the running stability is improved.

In the vehicle suspension device according to the second aspect, the same effect as that of the first aspect is obtained, and the stabilizer is provided, and the end portion of the stabilizer is connected to the link member of the link mechanism. Elastic force can be applied to the link mechanism via the stabilizer.

[0009]

As described in the above section, the following effects can be obtained. According to the vehicle suspension device of the first aspect, the kingpin axis can be defined by a line that connects the axis of the pivot mechanism and the center of the pivot portion that pivotally connects the lower arm to the wheel support. The kingpin axis can be changed according to the position of the attachment part, the degree of freedom in setting the kingpin axis is significantly increased, the degree of freedom in the arrangement of the shock absorber is increased, and the axis of the shock absorber body is linked via the link mechanism. Since the turning around is restricted, the caster rigidity is increased and the running stability is improved.

According to the vehicle suspension device of the second aspect, the same effect as that of the first aspect can be obtained, and since the end portion of the stabilizer is connected to the link member of the link mechanism, the link mechanism is provided via the stabilizer. It is possible to give elastic force to.

[0011]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. This embodiment is an example of applying the present invention to a front suspension device of an FF type automobile,
Since this suspension device FS has a symmetrical structure,
A structure for supporting the right front wheel 1 will be described below with reference to FIGS. A front side frame 4 is provided on a wheel apron 3 of the engine room 2, a connecting bracket of a suspension cross member 5 is fixed to the front side frame 4, and a shock absorber 20 is provided on the top of a suspension tower 7 formed on the wheel apron 3. A mount portion 8 that connects the two is provided.

The suspension device FS has a wheel support 10, a shock absorber 20, a coil spring 36 arranged on the outer side thereof, and a pivotal connection for pivoting the lower end of the shock absorber body 21 to the upper end of the wheel support 10. The mechanism 40, the A-shaped arm 50 as the lower arm, and the lower end of the shock absorber body 21 are
A link mechanism 60 connected to the middle of the die arm 50, a stabilizer 70, and the like are provided. The wheel support 10 includes a shaft 11 rotatably mounted for mounting the wheel 1a, and a tie rod 1 of a steering device.
A knuckle 12 to which 5 is connected, an upper pivotally connecting portion 13, and a lower pivotally connecting portion 14 are provided, and the right end of the driving shaft 9 is connected to the shaft portion 11 via a universal joint.

With respect to the shock absorber 20 and the coil spring 36, the shock absorber 20 is composed of a general hydraulic damper, and the spring receiving member 22 fixed to the shock absorber main body 21 and the upper end of the rod 23 of the shock absorber 20 are provided. A coil spring 36 is arranged between the fixed spring receiving members 24, and
Mount member 25 fixed to the upper end of
It is being fixed with four bolts 8a. The axis of the shock absorber 20 is inclined by about 20 to 25 degrees so as to move inward as it goes upward when viewed from the front, and also moves backward as it goes upward as viewed from the side so that a proper caster angle is obtained. It is set to be tilted.

Explaining the pivot mechanism 40, the upper pivot portion 13 of the wheel support 10 is integrally formed with a shaft portion 13a tilted so as to have an appropriate angle of the kingpin axis K, and the shock absorber body 21. A main body auxiliary member 41, which forms a part of the main body auxiliary member 41, is fixed to the lower end of the main body auxiliary member 41.
The shaft portion 13a is rotatably inserted into and mounted on the pivot portion 42 through the upper and lower two rows of ball bearings about the shaft center of the shaft portion 13a. It is regulated so that it does not move in the axial direction. still,
The ball bearing is only provided in view of low friction and durability, and the ball bearing is omitted,
The shaft portion 13a may be pivotally attached to the pivot attachment portion 42 via a metal or the like.

The A-type arm 50 will be described.
The front inner end 5 of the two inner ends of the A-shaped arm 50
1 is pivotally attached to the pivot bracket 5a of the suspension cross member 5 via a ball joint bush having an axis in the front-rear direction, and the rear inner end portion 52 is attached to the pivot bracket 5b of the suspension cross member 5. Connection part 5 provided with a ball joint bush having an axis in a substantially front-back direction
It is pivotally attached via 3 and is positionally restrained in the front-back direction. Further, the outer end portion 54 of the A-shaped arm 50 is pivotally attached to the lower pivot portion 14 of the wheel support 10 via a ball joint. Therefore, the wheel support 10 is configured to be rotatable about the kingpin axis K that connects the shaft center of the shaft portion 13 a and the center of the ball joint of the lower pivot portion 14.

The link mechanism 60 for connecting the lower end of the shock absorber main body 21 to the middle of the A-shaped arm 50 will be described. The bracket 43 on the inner side of the main body auxiliary member 41 has a shaft centering in the front-back direction. An upper end portion of the upper link member 61 is rotatably and pivotally attached via a ball joint bush that the upper link member 61 has, and an upper end portion of the lower link member 62 has an axial center in the front-rear direction. A lower end of the lower link member 62 is rotatably pivotally mounted via a ball joint bush, and a lower end portion of the lower link member 62 has a shaft portion in a substantially front-rear direction on a bracket portion 63 at a rear portion of the A-shaped arm 50 near the outer end. The shock absorber main body 21 is rotatably pivoted via a bush, and the link mechanism 60 causes the shock absorber main body 21 to move against the A-type arm 50. It is restrained from rotation 21 about the axis of, and A-type arm 50 is connected to be relatively vertically movable with respect to the shock absorber body 21. still,
The axes of the three pivotally-attached portions of the link mechanism 60 do not necessarily have to be oriented substantially in the front-back direction, but may be oriented in the vehicle width direction, for example. The stabilizer 70 is formed by integrally forming a pair of left and right arm portions 71 and a torsion bar portion 73 connecting the rear ends of the arm portions 71.
The end portion of is connected to the upper end portion of a control link member 73 that is fixed to a convex portion 62a in the middle of the lower link member 62 and extends obliquely upward inward via a ball joint 74. However, the control link member 73 may be fixed to the upper link member 61.

Next, the operation of the vehicle suspension device described above will be described. First, the kingpin axis K
With respect to the above, as shown in FIG. 1, since the position where the pivot mechanism 40 is provided can be set relatively freely, the kingpin axis K
Can be appropriately set so that the kingpin offset has a small positive value. In this way, since the position where the shock absorber 20 is arranged does not directly affect the setting of the kingpin axis K, the kingpin axis K can be set freely depending on the position where the pivot mechanism 40 is arranged. Lateral rigidity is imparted to the wheel support 10 through a pivot mechanism 40. Further, since the shock absorber body 21 does not rotate about its axis during steering, the arrangement direction of the shock absorber 20 can be freely set, and the degree of freedom in designing the suspension device FS is significantly improved. Moreover, the lateral rigidity of the wheel support 10 can be reliably ensured by the pivot mechanism 40.
With the link mechanism 60, the shock absorber body 2
Since the rotation of the wheel support 1 is restricted, the support rigidity of the wheel support 10 is significantly increased, the caster rigidity is secured, and the running stability can be remarkably improved. Further, the end portion of the stabilizer 70 is connected to the lower link member 6 of the link mechanism 60.
Since it is pivotally attached to 2, the stabilizer 70 is attached to the link mechanism 60.
Can be applied, and the structure for connecting the end of the arm portion 71 of the stabilizer 70 to the A-shaped arm 50 is simplified.

Next, another embodiment in which the structure of the link mechanism 60 of the above embodiment is changed will be described. However, the same components as those in the above-mentioned embodiment are designated by the same reference numerals and the description thereof will be omitted. As shown in FIG. 4, the link mechanism 60A is mainly composed of a pair of front and rear upper link members 65a and 65b and a pair of front and rear lower link members 66a and 66b. The upper end portion is fixed to the shock absorber main body 21 and a ball joint bush having an axial center in the vehicle width direction on a pair of inner and outer pivotal brackets 45 at the lower end portion of the main body auxiliary member 41A forming a part of the shock absorber main body 21. Pivotally attached via
The upper end portion of the front lower link member 66a is rotatably connected to the lower end portion of the front upper link member 65a via a ball joint bush or a hinge pin having an axis in the vehicle width direction, and a rear lower member. The upper end of the link member 66b is rotatably connected to the lower end of the rear upper link member 65b via a ball joint bush or a hinge pin having an axis in the vehicle width direction, and a pair of front and rear lower link members are provided. The lower ends of 66a and 66b are pivotally attached to a pair of front and rear pivot brackets 55 in the middle of the A-shaped arm 50 via a ball joint bush having an axis in the vehicle width direction. The end of the arm portion 71 of the stabilizer 70 may be connected to the upper link members 65a and 65b or the lower link members 66a and 66b in the same manner as described above, or may be connected to the A-shaped arm 50.

With this link mechanism 60A, the shock absorber body 21 is connected to the A-shaped arm 50 so as not to rotate about the axis of the shock absorber body 21,
The A-shaped arm 50 is configured to be vertically movable relative to the shock absorber body 21. The drive shaft 9 is arranged so as to be inserted through a substantially central portion inside the link mechanism 60A. This link mechanism 60
In A, since the structure has sufficient strength and rigidity, the performance of rotationally restraining the shock absorber body 21 can be remarkably enhanced, and the durability of the link mechanism 60A can be enhanced. Incidentally, the upper link members 65a, 6
The upper end of 5b may be pivotally attached to the main body auxiliary member 41A in a phase-separated manner, and the lower ends of the lower link members 66a, 66b may be pivotally attached to the A-shaped arm 50 in a phase-separated manner.

The pivot mechanism 40 does not necessarily have to be arranged outside the lower end of the shock absorber body 21, but may be arranged behind the lower end of the shock absorber body 21, such as in an FR vehicle. In this case, since the shock absorber main body 21 and the drive shaft 9 do not interfere with each other, it is possible to set the shock absorber 20 at a low position and provide the main body auxiliary member 41 at the middle position of the shock absorber main body 21. In addition, the A-type arm 5
Instead of 0, it is also possible to provide an I-arm arranged substantially in the vehicle width direction and a trailing link arranged substantially in the front-rear direction, and as the link mechanism 60,
Various mechanisms can be adopted.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a suspension device according to an embodiment of the present invention when viewed from the rear.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the suspension device.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a main part of the suspension device.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a main part of a suspension device according to another embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10 Wheel Support 20 Shock Absorber 21 Shock Absorber Main Body 40 Pivoting Mechanism 50 A-type Arm 60, 60A Link Mechanism 70 Stabilizer

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A wheel support for rotatably supporting a wheel, a shock absorber connected to a vehicle body at an upper end portion, one end pivotally attached to a lower end portion of the wheel support, and one or more other end portions to the vehicle body. A lower arm pivotally attached at a point and a pivotal attachment mechanism connecting the shock absorber body and an upper end portion of the wheel support, the pivotal attachment allowing only rotation of the wheel support in the steering direction with respect to the shock absorber body. A suspension device for a vehicle, comprising: a mechanism, and a link mechanism that connects the shock absorber body and the lower arm and that restricts rotation of the shock absorber body around its axis. 2. The suspension device for a vehicle according to claim 1, further comprising a stabilizer, wherein an end portion of the stabilizer is connected to a link member of a link mechanism.