JPH10273088A - Bicycle with auxiliary power unit - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Problem] To provide a bicycle with an auxiliary power device, which makes it easy to attach a cover of the auxiliary power device to a general-purpose bicycle. A vehicle body B having a front wheel 10 and a rear wheel 12 is provided.
And an electric motor 50 provided in the housing 20.
The vehicle body B comprises a reduction mechanism for transmitting the rotational force of the vehicle body, a hollow shaft 70 for transmitting the rotational force of the reduction mechanism, a crankshaft 80 inserted through the hollow shaft 70 and transmitting the pedaling force of the pedal to the hollow shaft 70. Auxiliary power unit C attached to
And a cover A that covers the auxiliary power device C, a mounting part (columnar projections 34a to 34d, 41a to 41c) is formed on the housing 20 and the mounting part is provided with the mounting part. A bicycle with an auxiliary power device, in which the cover 60 is easily attached to the auxiliary power device C by attaching the cover 60.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a bicycle with an auxiliary power device that assists power in response to pedaling force during manual driving, and more particularly to a bicycle having an auxiliary power device covered with a cover.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, when the pedaling force of a pedal increases during traveling, the pedaling force is detected and the rotational force of an electric motor is transmitted to a hollow shaft via a speed reduction mechanism. Bicycles with an auxiliary power unit that transmit power to a rear wheel through a chain mounted on the sprocket to assist power and reduce treading power are widely known.

[0003] This type of bicycle with an auxiliary power device generally has a structure in which the auxiliary power device is mounted on a dedicated vehicle body, that is, a vehicle body in which the auxiliary power device is mounted. Since the chassis of the auxiliary power unit attached to the vehicle body is focused on functional surfaces such as disposing a reduction mechanism inside, the outer surface of the chassis is uneven, so during operation, That is, in order to prevent the clothing such as trousers from being touched when running while stepping on the pedal, or to prevent the clothing from being caught on the irregularities, or to prevent rainwater or the like from directly hitting the auxiliary power unit. In addition, the auxiliary power unit is covered with a cover.

The cover is attached to the vehicle body by, for example, a structure as shown in FIG. That is, a pair of fixtures 102 provided with mounting holes (not shown) at their distal ends are fixed to the left and right of the pipe 101 constituting the vehicle body by welding.
On the other hand, the cover 103 is composed of an upper cover 103a and lower covers 103b and 103c divided into right and left, and mounting holes (not shown) are formed on the inner side wall of the upper cover 103a so as to correspond to the pair of fixtures 102. Pair of mounting pieces 1
04, and the upper cover 103a is attached to the pipe 1
01 and a pair of mounting pieces 104 correspond to the fixture 102, and
4 and the fixture 102 with the screws 105 and the nuts 106 through the mounting holes, so that the upper cover 10
The auxiliary power unit 100 is covered with the cover 103 by attaching 3a to the pipe 101, that is, the vehicle body, and then attaching the lower covers 103b and 103c to the upper cover 103a with screws (not shown).

Therefore, the number of parts such as the fixing tool 102 and the mounting piece 104 increases, and the fixing tool 102 and the mounting piece 104
There is a problem that the number of assembling steps for mounting the increases.

Further, if the auxiliary power unit is mounted on a dedicated vehicle body as described above, there is a disadvantage that it is expensive. Therefore, in order to solve this disadvantage, an auxiliary power unit is attached to a hanger lug of the vehicle body of a general-purpose bicycle. The applicant has developed an inexpensive bicycle with an auxiliary power device as a configuration in which a hollow shaft provided in the power device is fitted to mount the auxiliary power device. When the cover that covers the device is attached to the vehicle body, it is necessary to attach a fixture separately since the frame of the body does not originally have a fixture, so it is necessary to attach the fixture to the pipe as described above. The mounting of this fixture is based on the fact that the cross section of the pipe of the frame is circular and that the structure of the frame of the vehicle body is of various types. Since the cover must be securely attached, it is necessary to attach it by welding, etc.In addition, the number of parts increases, the mounting structure becomes complicated, the mounting work becomes complicated, and the number of assembly steps is reduced. There is a problem that is increased.

[0007]

As described above, in a conventional bicycle with an auxiliary power unit, the cover for covering the auxiliary power unit requires a large number of parts such as fixing parts, and the fixing parts are attached to the frame of the vehicle body. Must be securely attached by welding or the like, which complicates the structure. Further, there is a problem that a jig for attachment is required and the number of assembling steps in the attachment increases.

[0008]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and discloses a vehicle body having front and rear wheels, a housing, an electric motor attached to the housing, and a rotational force of the electric motor. A transmission shaft, a hollow shaft for transmitting the rotational force of the reduction mechanism, a crankshaft inserted through the hollow shaft and transmitting the pedaling force of the pedal to the hollow shaft, and the hollow shaft being attached to a hanger lug of the vehicle body. In a bicycle with an auxiliary power device that is rotatably inserted and attached to the vehicle body and a cover that covers the auxiliary power device, a mounting portion is formed in the housing, and the mounting portion includes It is a bicycle with an auxiliary power unit with a cover attached.

In the above-described invention, the mounting portion is formed on the housing of the auxiliary power unit, and the cover is mounted on the mounting portion. Therefore, the number of parts is reduced and the structure is simplified. It is possible to easily and surely mount, and to simplify the mounting work, thereby reducing the number of assembling steps.

[0010]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIG. 1, a bicycle with an auxiliary power unit (hereinafter simply referred to as a bicycle) A
Is composed of a vehicle body B and an auxiliary power device (hereinafter simply referred to as a power device) C attached to the vehicle body B.
The vehicle body B is composed of a general bicycle, that is, a general-purpose bicycle that is generally commercially available, and includes a standing pipe 2 and a lower pipe 3 having one end fixed to a hanger lug 1, and fixed to the other end of the lower pipe 3. A frame 6 comprising an upper pipe 5 having one end fixed to the head pipe 4 and the other end fixed to a lower portion of the standing pipe 2; a chain stay 7 having one end fixed to the hanger lug 1; Front fork 8 attached to the head pipe 4, this front fork 8
, A front wheel 10 attached to the lower end of the front fork 8, one end is fixed to the upper part of the standing pipe 2 and the other end is not shown as the other end of the chain stay 7. A back fork 11 fixed via a rear pawl, a rear wheel 12 attached to the other end of the chain stay 7, a saddle 13 attached above the standing pipe 2, and an upper portion of the rear wheel 12 are provided. It is composed of a loading tray 14 and the like. The front wheel 10 and the rear wheel 1
A part of 2 is covered by covers 10a and 12a, respectively. The hanger lug 1 is provided with a crankshaft 80 (not shown in FIG. 1) to be described later, which is rotatable.
A left crank 81 and a right crank 82 provided with 1a and 82a are attached. Further, a battery case 14a for accommodating a battery (not shown) is attached to a lower portion of the loading tray 14. Also, power is supplied to the battery (not shown), the electric motor 50 (not shown in FIG. 1) described later, and control means (not shown) via the lead wire 16 as shown in FIG. A chain 18 is mounted on a sprocket (not shown in FIG. 1) 17 for transmitting a rotational force during traveling and a sprocket (not shown) of the rear wheel 12.

As shown in FIG. 3, the power unit C connects the main housing 30 and the sub-housing 40 with screws 21 (see FIG. 4).
A hollow shaft 70 rotatably attached to the housing 20 via a bearing 22;
The crank 81 and the crank 82 are attached to both ends of the hollow shaft 70, and the pedal 81a and the crank shaft 80 to which the pedaling force, that is, the rotational force of the pedal 82a is transmitted, are attached to the housing 20. The motor 50 includes a speed reduction mechanism (not shown) including a plurality of gear trains provided in the housing 20 and transmitting a rotational force of the motor 50 to the hollow shaft 70.

The crank 20 is provided in the housing 20.
1 and a torque detecting means (not shown) comprising a torque sensor for detecting a torque transmitted to the crankshaft 80 via the crank 82 and outputting an electric output corresponding to the torque. Further, a control unit (not shown) including a microcomputer or the like for controlling the output of the electric motor 50, that is, the rotational force, is provided in the housing 20 in accordance with the electrical output from the rotational force detecting unit.

The main housing 30 and the sub-housing 40
The main body 30 is formed of a material having good thermal conductivity, such as metal such as aluminum. Storage portions 32 projecting from the same side wall so as to be separated from each other above and are provided therein for storing various electric components (not shown) therein. By forming these storage portions 31 and the storage portions 32 in a protruding manner, A concave portion 33 is formed between the two storage portions 31 and 32. As shown in FIG. 2, the lower pipe 3 of the frame 6 is located in the recess 33 when the housing 20, that is, the power unit C is attached to the vehicle body B.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, columnar projections 34a to 34d as mounting portions are provided on the side wall of the main housing 30.
The end faces of the columnar projections 34a to 34d are formed so as to be flush with each other, and threaded holes 35a to 35d are formed at the ends thereof. Also,
The main housing 30 has four mounting holes 36 around the bearing 22.
Are formed.

Next, on the side wall of the sub-housing 40, as shown in FIG.
Are formed so that the end faces of the columnar projections 41a to 41c are flush with each other, and screw holes 42a to 42c are formed at the ends thereof. Also,
As shown in FIG. 4, a through-hole 43 is formed in the sub-housing 40, and an end of the crankshaft 80 projects from the through-hole 43.

Next, the cover 60 that covers the housing 20, that is, the power unit C will be described. This cover 60
A left cover 61 covers the housing 20 from the left crank 81 side, and a right cover 66 covers the housing 20 from the right crank 82 side.

As shown in FIG. 4, the left cover 61 has a rectangular side wall 61a and a peripheral wall formed on the side wall 61a except for a lower end side in the figure, that is, an upper wall 61b, a front wall 61c, and a rear wall 61d. And a U-shaped notch 6 whose rear side is slightly opened from the center in the front-rear direction, that is, the right side in the figure.
The notch 62 is formed so that the end of the crankshaft 80 projects from the side surface of the left cover 61 when the left cover 61 is attached to the housing 20. A semicircular notch 63a is formed in the rear side of the upper wall 61b to allow the left half of the standing pipe 2 of the frame 6 to enter, and the left half of the lower pipe 3 enters the front wall 61c. A semicircular notch 63b is formed,
A U-shaped notch 63c into which the chain stay 7 enters is formed in the rear wall 61d. The side wall 61a has screw holes 64a to 64c formed corresponding to the screw holes 42a to 42c formed in the columnar projections 41a to 41c formed in the sub-housing 40. The inner surface of the side wall 61a is
It is positioned in contact with the distal end surfaces of 1a to 41c and is attached to the columnar projections 41a to 41c, that is, the housing 20, by mounting screws 45a to 45c.

Next, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the right cover 66 has a substantially rectangular side wall 66a and a lower end side and a left side in the figure (the rear wheel 1).
(2) The peripheral wall, that is, the upper wall 66 formed except for the lower side.
b, a front wall 66c and a rear wall 66d. A cut-out 67 is formed in the side wall 66a. When the is mounted on the housing 20, a part of the chain cover 19 is fitted as shown in FIG. The chain cover 1
9, a through hole 19a is formed.
The tip of the crankshaft 80 protrudes from a.

A semicircular notch 68a is formed at the rear side of the upper wall 66b so as to receive the right half of the standing pipe 2 of the frame 6, and the right half of the lower pipe 3 is formed in the front wall 66c. Semi-circular cutout 68
b is formed, and a U-shaped notch 68c into which the chain stay 7 is inserted is formed in the rear wall 66d.
The side wall 66a has screw holes 69a to 69 formed corresponding to the screw holes 35a to 35d formed in the columnar projections 34a to 34d formed in the main housing 30.
d is formed. The inner surface of the side wall 66a is positioned in contact with the tip end surfaces of the columnar projections 34a to 34d, and is attached to the columnar projections 34a to 34d, that is, the housing 20, by mounting screws 37a to 37d.

Next, the power unit C and the cover 60
Of the vehicle to the vehicle body B will be described.

First, the assembling of the power unit C will be described. A bearing 22 is mounted on the housing 20 and the hollow shaft 70 is supported on the bearing 22. The crank shaft 80 is mounted on the hollow shaft 70. The electric motor 50 is attached to the storage portion 31 of the main housing 30 which is one of the housings 20, and the motor 50 is mounted inside the housing 20. After arranging the control means and the like at predetermined positions, the sub-housing 40 is attached to the main housing 30 with screws 21 to form the housing 20 as shown in FIGS.
Assembled as In the power unit C assembled in this manner, the hollow shaft 70 and the crankshaft 80 project from the side surface of the main housing 30 as shown in FIG. An end of the crankshaft 80 protrudes from a side surface of the crankshaft 40.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 2, a mounting plate 90 is mounted on one end surface of the hanger lug 1 of the vehicle body B by welding or the like.

The power unit C assembled as described above is mounted on the hollow shaft 7 protruding from the side of the main housing 30.
0 is rotatably supported by a bearing (not shown) provided in the hanger lug 1, and the screw holes 36 formed in the main housing 30 correspond to screw holes (not shown) provided in the mounting plate 90. Then, by fastening the screw 91,
Attach to body B. A sprocket 17 shown in FIG. 2 is attached to the distal end of the hollow shaft 70 by mounting means (not shown), and a chain 18 (not shown in FIG. 2) is connected to the sprocket 17 and the rear wheel 1 (not shown).
2 through the sprocket provided in
The chain cover 19 is attached to the vehicle body B with a screw (not shown) by passing the tip of the crankshaft 80 through 9a. Next, a pedal 8 is attached to both ends of the crankshaft 80.
After fitting the left crank 81 and the right crank 82 to which 1a and the pedal 82a are attached, respectively, the nut 83 is attached to screws 80a and 80b provided at both ends of the crankshaft 80 by fastening.

Next, the power unit C is mounted on the vehicle body B in this manner, and the left crank 81 and the right crank 82 are mounted on both ends of the crankshaft 80, and then the cover 60 covering the power unit C is mounted. Will be described. First, the left cover 61 is mounted in the notch 63a formed in the upper wall 61b, the notch 63b formed in the front wall 61c, and the notch 63c formed in the rear wall 61d. Standing pipe 2 of frame 6 of B,
The lower pipe 3 and the chain stay 7 on one side (left side) are positioned, and the sub-housing 40 is attached to the front end surfaces of the columnar projections 41a to 41c formed on the housing 20, that is, the sub-housing 40.
Then, the screws 45a to 45c are inserted into the screw holes 64a to 64c, and the screw holes 42a to 42c formed in the columnar projections 41a to 41c.
c, the left cover 40 is
0.

Similarly, the right cover 66 is mounted in a notch 68a formed in the upper wall 66b, a notch 68b formed in the front wall 66c, and a notch 68c formed in the rear wall 66d. Each of the frames 6 of the body B
The vertical pipe 2, the lower pipe 3 and the chain stay 7 on the other side (right side) are located, and the inner surface of the main housing 30 is brought into contact with the end surfaces of the columnar projections 34a to 34d formed on the housing 20, that is, the main housing 30. After contact and positioning, the screws 37a to 37d are inserted into the screw holes 69a to 69d to form the screw holes 3 formed in the columnar projections 34a to 34d.
The right cover 30 is securely attached to the housing 20 by being fastened to 5a to 35d.

The left cover 61 and the right cover 6
The order of attaching 6 is arbitrary. Thus, the cover 6
0, that is, the left cover 61 and the right cover 66 are mounted on the power unit C mounted on the vehicle body B, ie, the columnar projections 34a to 34d and the columnar projections 41a to 41d formed on the main housing 30 and the sub housing 40 of the power unit C, respectively. Since it is directly attached to 41c by screws 37a to 37d and screws 45a to 45b, it is possible to reduce the number of parts and to simplify the structure and to simplify the installation, because a fixing tool or the like is not required unlike the conventional art. Therefore, there is no need to attach a fixture to the body frame as compared to the conventional one, and the structure for attaching the fixture to the body frame is less complicated, so that the number of assembly steps for attachment is reduced. It can be achieved.

Also, in general-purpose bicycles, the frame 6 of the vehicle body B often has various shapes, that is, the number or shape of each pipe constituting the frame 6 is different, but each of the cover 60, that is, the left cover 61 and the right cover 66 is different. Cutouts 63a, 68a, 63 formed in the upper walls 61b, 66b, the front walls 61c, 66c, and the rear walls 61d, 66d.
By simply changing the positions of b, 68b and 63c, 68c, even if the form of the frame 6 of the vehicle body B is different, it can be easily handled.

Next, the bicycle A constructed as described above
The operation when driving is described. First, in order to supply electric power from the battery (not shown) to the electric motor 50, a start switch (not shown) is closed to drive the bicycle. When the vehicle travels on flat ground or the like, the driver's pedaling force of the pedals 81a and 82a is small as described above, and the rotational force applied to the crankshaft 80 is small. The torque of the crankshaft 80 at this time is detected by the torque detecting means (not shown), and an electrical output corresponding to the torque is output to the control means (not shown). The control means controls the electric motor 50 so as to output a predetermined rotational force in accordance with the rotational force.
The rotational force of 0 is transmitted to the hollow shaft 70 via the speed reduction mechanism (not shown), and then transmitted to the rear wheel 12 via the sprocket 17 and the chain 18, that is, the power is assisted. The power assisted at this time, that is, the rotational force is small.

Next, when traveling on an uphill or the like, a large rotational force is required, and as a result, the pedals 81a, 82
a, and the rotational force applied to the crankshaft 80 increases. The large torque applied to the crankshaft 80 at this time is detected by the torque detection means (not shown), and an electrical output corresponding to the torque is output to the control means (not shown). The control means controls the electric motor 50 so as to output a predetermined rotational force according to the rotational force in the same manner as described above, and the rotational force of the electric motor 50 based on this control is transmitted through the speed reduction mechanism (not shown). The power is transmitted to the hollow shaft 70, and then transmitted to the rear wheel 12 via the sprocket 17 and the chain 18, that is, power is assisted. The power assisted at this time, that is, the rotational force is large, so that the driver can easily travel even when a large rotational force is required such as on an uphill.

In the above embodiment, the lower part of the power unit C is not covered by the cover 60.
It goes without saying that a lower wall may be formed on the lower side to cover the lower side.

In the above embodiment, the left cover 61
And the right cover 66 are formed so as to be bisected at the center portion. However, this is not necessarily required to be a bisected structure, and the height of one of the upper wall, the front wall, and the rear wall is increased. The other may be made smaller.

In the above embodiment, the left cover 61
And a notch 63a formed in each of the right cover 66,
Nothing is provided at the edges of the 68a, 63b, 68b and 63c, 68c.
8a, 63b, 68b and 63c, 68c are provided with elastic sealing members, such as rubber, at the edges thereof to form a vertical pipe 2,
The cover 6 is transmitted along the lower pipe 3 and the chain stay 7.
Alternatively, rainwater or the like may be prevented from entering the inside of the zero.

[0033]

According to the present invention constructed as described above, the mounting portion is formed on the housing of the auxiliary power unit and the cover is mounted on the mounting portion, so that the number of parts is reduced and the structure is reduced. This is advantageous in that it is simple, easy and reliable to attach, and that the attaching operation is simple and the number of assembling steps can be reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an entire bicycle with an auxiliary power device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing a state where the auxiliary power unit according to the embodiment is attached to a vehicle body and one cover (right cover) is removed.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing the relationship between the auxiliary power unit and the right cover according to the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view showing the relationship between the auxiliary power unit and the left cover according to the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a conventional cover mounting structure.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List A bicycle with auxiliary power device B body C auxiliary power device 1 hanger lug 17 sprocket 18 chain 20 auxiliary power device housing 50 electric motor 60 cover 61 left cover (part of cover) 66 right cover (part of cover) 70 hollow shaft 80 Crankshaft 81a, 82a Pedal

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A vehicle body having front and rear wheels, a housing, an electric motor mounted on the housing, a reduction mechanism for transmitting torque of the electric motor, a hollow shaft for transmitting torque of the reduction mechanism, An auxiliary power unit that is inserted into the hollow shaft and transmits a pedaling force of a pedal to the hollow shaft, and is attached to the vehicle body by rotatably inserting the hollow shaft into a hanger lug of the vehicle body; A bicycle with an auxiliary power device, comprising a cover that covers the auxiliary power device, wherein a mounting portion is formed on the housing, and the cover is mounted on the mounting portion.