JPH0692241A - Grip type steering device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To lessen a operating range in steering and enable stable steering by disposing a stick part steered by rotating left and right with a single hand crosswise on a steering rotating axis. CONSTITUTION:When a driver rotates left and right a grip stick 3, a grip rotating angle detecting mechanism (encoder) 9 sends the rotationary angle signal to an electronic control unit(ECU) 30. The ECU 30 calculates a rotational reaction in the calculating section to start a motor 8 and give the rotational reaction to the grip stick 3. A torque sensor 7 detects a difference between torque acting on the first and second shafts to send the detected signal to the ECU 30 so that the ECU 30 controls a motor 8 to set a difference between torque to a predetermined value. On the other hand, the ECU 30 generates a pulse signal corresponding to the angular information from an encoder 9 by a PWM generator 33 to drive steering motors 37, 38 for steering.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vehicle steering system.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A steering device for a vehicle is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1-22.
A common form is one in which a steering wheel 12 (steering handle 11) is attached to the steering shaft 12 shown in FIG. Alternatively, JP-A-63-
There is known a stick 41 shown in FIG. 3 and FIG.

[0003]

Since the handle wheel occupies a considerable space and area in front of the driver, the arrangement of meters such as a speedometer and switches is significantly limited. In that respect, the stick only needs to be placed near the driver, and the front space can be used widely.

However, since the stick is rocked to the left and right with one point below or below it as the rocking point, the stick is easily affected by the lateral G (acceleration) and the road surface accompanying the turning. For example, when the stick is tilted to the left, when the centrifugal force in the right direction is applied, the stick is raised, so it is necessary to hold the stick more strongly, which makes the operation difficult. Similarly, when the vehicle is running, the vehicle body vibrates depending on the road surface condition, and it becomes difficult to hold the stick due to the lateral input among the vibration components transmitted to the driver.

The human arm is related to its skeleton and muscles,
The outer rotation tends to have a weaker force than the inner rotation. For example, in the case of a right hand operation, it is more difficult to make a right turn than a left turn, and the driver's fatigue level tends to increase after a long time of driving.

When attaching the stick to the inner surface of the door,
It is necessary to bring the stick as a whole toward the inside of the room so that the top of the tilted stick does not come too close to the door. Therefore, the stick is easy to get in the way.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a steering device which is stable and easy to operate while utilizing the space in front of the driver.

[0008]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a grip type steering device in which a driver grips with one hand and crosses a grip bar portion that rotates left and right on a steering rotation axis. Make up.

When the grip bar is oriented vertically, the longitudinal center point of the grip bar may be offset above the steering rotation axis.

Further, in the neutral state of the operation, the grip bar portion is set so as to be entirely inclined so that its upper portion is on the driver side and its lower portion is on the side away from the driver. Also, when operating with both hands, make sure that it is in the shape of a V when viewed from the driver.
A book grip type steering device is arranged.

The grip type steering device is provided with a mounting seat for directly or indirectly mounting on a front door of a vehicle.

[0012]

[Operation] Steering is performed by gripping the grip bar portion and rotating to the left and right to steer, and it is not possible to move by turning or lateral input from the road surface, so stable steering can be performed.

By offsetting the longitudinal center point of the gripping bar portion upward, the rotation center of the arm is aligned with the steering rotation axis. In addition, by setting the grip bar part in a neutral state so that the upper part is on the driver side and the lower part is on the side away from the driver, the grip part is oriented so that the direction of the grip part is naturally extended. Match the fist of.

The grip type steering device is mounted on the side of the driver (for example, the inner surface of the front door) within the range where the grip bar does not hit.

[0015]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The drawings should be viewed in the direction of the reference numerals.
FIG. 1 is a side view of a grip type steering device of the present invention. The grip type steering device 1 includes a grip rod portion 3, a U ring 4, a pivot shaft 5, a grip absolute angle detection mechanism 6, and a torque on a steering rotation shaft 2. The sensor 7, the reaction force generation motor 8, and the grip rotation angle detection mechanism 9 are arranged in series.

More specifically, the first side of the torque sensor 7 is provided on one side.
The bracket 11 is attached with a plurality of hexagon socket head bolts 12, and the grip absolute angle detection mechanism 6 is attached to the first bracket 11 with a long and thin cross screw 13, and the first shaft 7a of the torque sensor 7 and the grip absolute angle detection. The pivot shaft 5 is inserted in common with the mechanism 6, the U ring 4 is attached to the other end of the pivot shaft 5, the flat washer 14 and the nut 15 are attached.
It is fixed at. The pivot shaft 5 and the U ring 4 are spline-coupled, and the relative mounting angle can be changed. The pivot shaft 5 is fastened to the first shaft 7a of the torque sensor 7 with a set screw 16 and a key 17. Set screw 16
Is screwed in with a driver or the like through a notch (not shown) opened in the first bracket 11.

Further, the sub-bracket 18 is attached to the reaction force generating motor 8 to which the grip rotation angle detecting mechanism 9 is previously attached by a plurality of hexagon socket head cap screws 19, and the sub-bracket 18 and the second bracket 21 are different from each other. It is also fastened to the other side surface of the torque sensor 7 with the hexagon socket head cap screw 22. At this time, the motor shaft 8a is fitted to the second shaft 7b of the torque sensor 7.

FIG. 2 is a view taken in the direction of arrow 2 in FIG. 1, and the mounting seat 23 formed on the first bracket 11 is joined and fixed to the inner surface of the front door 25 with a bolt 24. Second bracket 21
Is also the same.

In FIG. 1, the grip absolute angle detection mechanism 6 is, for example, a rotary variable resistor or a potentiometer, and a brush rotating together with the pivot shaft 5 slides on a fixed resistance element to output voltage. Is an analog instrument for converting the absolute angle of the grip bar portion 3 into an electric signal.

The torque sensor 7 measures the relative torque difference between the pivot shaft 5 and the motor shaft 8a, has a piezoelectric element and a strain gauge inside, and converts the amount of strain into a current or a voltage.

The reaction force generating motor 8 applies a predetermined rotational reaction force, that is, a response force to the grip bar portion 3, and is appropriately decelerated by a built-in reduction gear. The grip rotation angle detection mechanism 9 is a rotary encoder, that is, a device that converts a rotation angle into an electric signal, and is, for example, a magnetic encoder,
It is a digital instrument that converts the rotation angle into the number of pulses.

The operation of the grip type steering device having the above construction will be described below. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing an example of use of the grip type steering device of the present invention, in which the driver M holds the grip bar portion 3 of the grip type steering device 1 with his right hand and rotates to the left or right as indicated by the arrow. Steer. In the figure, 27 is a seat, 2
8 is an instrument panel, 29 is a rearview mirror.

FIG. 4 is a system diagram of the grip type steering device of the present invention. When the driver rotates the grip bar portion 3 to the left or right, the grip rotation angle detection mechanism 9 immediately outputs the rotation angle and direction signal to the electronic device. Control unit 30 (hereinafter "ECU3
0 ”). The ECU 30 calculates the rotation reaction force in the calculation unit, and the motor 8 is transmitted via the motor drive unit 31.
Is started and a rotational reaction force is applied to the grip bar portion 3. The torque sensor 7 detects the difference between the torques acting on the first shaft and the second shaft (see FIG. 1), and sends this signal to the ECU 30 via the strain amplifier 32. The ECU 30 controls the motor 8 so that the torque difference has a predetermined value.

On the other hand, the ECU 30 has its PWM (pulse
A pulse signal corresponding to the rotation angle information of the grip rotation angle detection mechanism 9 is generated by the Widos modulation) generator 33, and the steering motors 37, 38 are driven via the PWM interface unit 34 and the motor drive units 35, 36. Then, the wheels 39 and 40 are steered.

The grip absolute angle detection mechanism (potentiometer) 6 is a grip rotation angle detection mechanism (encoder).
As in 9, the rotation angle from the neutral position of the grip bar 3 is monitored, and at the same time, the absolute angle of the grip is detected to determine the neutral position when the system is started up. In this embodiment, the grip rotation is performed. It is also provided as a backup of the angle detection mechanism 9. For example, the ECU 30 compares the digital signal of the grip rotation angle detection mechanism 9 with the analog signal of the potentiometer 6 and determines that the accuracy of each device is good if the difference between them is less than a certain value.

FIG. 5 is a modified embodiment of FIG. 1 according to the present invention, characterized in that the longitudinal center point 41 of the grip bar portion 3 is offset by a dimension H above the steering shaft 2. To do. The dimension H corresponds to the difference between the center of rotation of the human arm and the center of the fist. That is, attention is paid to the fact that the center of the fist is offset by about H above the center of rotation of the arm. Since the center of rotation of the arm matches the center of rotation of the steering wheel, the movement of the arm becomes natural.

FIG. 6 shows a modified embodiment of FIG. 2 according to the present invention, which is characterized in that the grip bar portion 3 has its upper portion inclined toward the driver side, and its angle is ψ. This angle ψ corresponds to the tilt angle at that time when the normal person has a comfortable posture with both hands extended to the front and opens downward. Further, when the angle is 0 °, it is more difficult to operate when rotating outward than when rotating inward, that is, focusing on the physical and skeletal properties of a person. This makes it easier to hold at the same time, and at the same time the amount of operation to the inside and outside can be made uniform. Although it is difficult to apply force to the rotation operation to the inside,
By inclining the inside by the angle ψ as in this example, the forces applied to the inside and the outside can be balanced. In consideration of the above, the reaction force characteristics may be set such that the rotation reaction force on the outer side is lower than that on the inner side.

Although the grip-type steering device 1 is attached to the front door in the present embodiment, the invention is not limited to this, and the grip-type steering device 1 may be attached to the instrument panel or the center console in the front of the vehicle compartment. Although the grip type steering device 1 is directly attached to the front door 25 in FIGS. 2 and 6, it may be indirectly attached via an appropriate bracket.

[0029]

As described above, according to the present invention, since the steering can be steered by holding the grip bar portion with one hand and rotating it to the left or right, the operating range during steering becomes much smaller than that of the conventional steering wheel. In addition, stable steering is possible,
The driver's seat can have a large space. Also, since the range of movement of the grip bar portion is small, the grip type steering device can be mounted, for example, in a state of being extremely close to the front door.

Further, the longitudinal center point of the gripping bar portion is offset upward so that the rotation center of the arm is aligned with the steering rotation axis, which facilitates the operation, and further, in the neutral state, By setting it so that it will be on the driver's side as a whole, the direction of the grip will be adjusted to match the naturally extended fist of the arm, resulting in less fatigue even when driving for a long time.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view of a grip type steering device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a view on arrow 2 of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a usage example of the grip type steering device of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a system diagram of a grip type steering device of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a modified embodiment diagram of FIG. 1 according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a modified embodiment diagram of FIG. 2 according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Grip type steering device, 2 ... Steering rotary shaft, 3
... grip bar part, 6 ... grip absolute angle detection mechanism, 23 ... mounting seat, 25 ... front door, 41 ... center point of grip bar part, H ... offset amount, M ... driver, ψ ... tilt angle.

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A grip bar portion where the driver can change the traveling direction of the vehicle by holding it with one hand and rotating it to the left or right is arranged so as to intersect with a steering rotation axis extending in the vehicle front-rear direction. A distinctive grip type steering device. 2. The grip type steering according to claim 1, wherein when the grip bar is oriented vertically, the longitudinal center point of the grip bar is offset above the steering rotation axis. apparatus. 3. The grip according to claim 1, wherein the grip bar portion when the vehicle is traveling straight is set so as to be inclined as a whole away from a driver from an upper portion to a lower portion thereof. Steering device. 4. The grip type steering device according to claim 1, wherein the grip type steering device includes a mounting seat for directly or indirectly mounting to a front door of a vehicle.