Adjustment drive for a motor vehicle and steering column for a motor vehicle

BE1033360A1Pending Publication Date: 2026-09-04THYSSENKRUPP PRESTA AG +1
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Patent Information

Application Number
BE2025005078
Authority / Receiving Office
BE · BE
Patent Type
Applications
Current Assignee / Owner
Filing Date
2025-02-11
Publication Date
2026-09-04

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Description

2. More uniform and improved lubrication can be achieved. However, in the externally open lubricant reservoirs, the lubricant can dry out over the service life of the adjustment drive, or, depending on the operating or environmental conditions, the lubricant supply can become uneven. This can impair the lubrication over the service life, which can lead, for example, to undesirable increased noise levels. In view of the problems explained above, one of the tasks of the present invention is to enable improved operation and maintenance-free lubrication. 10. Description of the Invention This task is solved according to the invention by the adjustment drive with the features of claim 1. Advantageous further developments result from the dependent claims.15 In an adjustment drive for a motor vehicle for the motor-driven adjustment of two components, comprising a threaded spindle which is axially extended in the direction of an axis and engages with a thread in a spindle nut, wherein the threaded spindle and the spindle nut can be driven to rotate relative to each other by a motor drive, and comprising a lubrication device with a lubricant reservoir in which lubricant can be received, 20 which can be dispensed onto the thread, it is provided according to the invention that the lubrication device has a dispenser device. The lubricant reservoir can be filled with a supply of lubricant, preferably a grease with a specified viscosity. It is preferably arranged separately from the thread. During operation of the adjusting drive, lubricant from this supply can be introduced onto the thread and thus into the thread engagement between the thread flanks of the lead screw and lead screw nut.Continuous, and as uniform as possible, lubrication over the service life enables smooth adjustment and high rigidity. 30 According to the invention, a dispenser device is provided which is designed to take lubricant from the lubricant reservoir or lubricant depot, which is preferably arranged separately from the thread, and apply it to the thread at a dispensing point: This allows lubricant to be introduced between the threaded spindle and the spindle nut. 35 A significant advantage results from the fact that the lubricant supply contained in the lubricant reservoir can, in principle, be of any size, and in particular is not limited, as in the prior art mentioned above, by the dimensions of the thread or recesses made therein. The dispenser is designed for the active pumping or passive delivery of a flowable lubricant such as grease or the like from the lubricant reservoir to the delivery point on the thread.It can be triggered by an external actuator to dispense a certain quantity of lubricant, e.g., as a discrete, measured, or unmeasured portion. Preferably, the dispensing device can be adapted to the fluid properties of the lubricant, such as viscosity, wettability, etc., and to the required operating characteristics, for example, with regard to dosing the optimal quantity of lubricant for operation. By appropriately dimensioning the lubricant reservoir, improved and maintenance-free lubrication over the entire service life of the spindle drive can be achieved with minimal effort. This results in less wear and a consistently high natural frequency, which allows the particularly high requirements in this regard to be met in motor vehicles, for example, with adjustable steering columns.A further advantage is that the lubricant can be stored in the lubricant reservoir or lubricant depot, protected against potentially harmful environmental influences, and that unused lubricant can be provided as needed by the dispenser for lubricating the thread engagement. A free-flowing grease with defined properties is preferably used as the lubricant. Preferably, the dispenser includes a pump. This is designed for the active pumping of a free-flowing lubricant such as grease or the like. It can be driven by an external actuator for the active pumping of the lubricant. Preferably, the pumping device can be adapted to the viscosity and other flow properties of the lubricant and the required operating characteristics, for example with regard to dosing the optimal amount of lubricant for the operation.Preferably, the pump unit can be connected on the inlet side to a storage chamber (BE2025 / 5078 4) which provides a lubricant supply. From this, it can extract lubricant and dispense it in a metered manner onto the thread. For this purpose, the pump unit can preferably be connected on the outlet side to an applicator device. The pump unit advantageously enables an actively metered and demand-based dispensing of lubricant into the thread, adapted to the specific operating conditions. Alternatively, the dispenser device may be designed to passively direct the fluid, free-flowing lubricant from the lubricant reservoir to the dispensing point on the thread. 10 If the fluid properties of the lubricant allow it to flow independently from the reservoir to the dispensing point driven by pressure, capillary action, cohesion, or other forces, a particularly simple design of the dispenser device can advantageously be achieved.It may be provided that the dispenser device has a conduit for directing a self-flowing lubricant fluid from the lubricant reservoir to the 15 thread. Actuation of the dispenser device in this case can, for example, consist of opening a closure device such as an outlet valve or a pinch seal, etc. consisting of, for example, a lubricant droplet emerging from a pipe or a lubricant-soaked body, by touching or wiping it off. 20 It is preferred that the lubrication device has a storage chamber. The storage chamber serves as a lubricant reservoir in which a supply of lubricant is stored, and to which the dispenser device for withdrawing lubricant is connected. The lubricant can be drawn from the storage chamber and applied to the thread as required by the dispenser device according to the invention. 25Preferably, the volume of the storage chamber can be dimensioned such that it can hold a sufficient supply of lubricant for the lubrication of the spindle drive over its entire service life. Specifically, the lubricant supply is several times the amount of lubricant that adheres to the threaded spindle during operation and fills the thread clearance to the internal thread of the spindle nut. In an advantageous further development, the storage chamber can be designed to be sealed to the outside except for the connection for lubricant extraction via the dispenser device. The storage chamber can, for example, be designed to be collapsible, such as in the form of a flexible bag or piston cartridge, the internal volume of which shrinks according to the extraction of lubricant. This practically eliminates potentially harmful external influences. Another advantageous further development can provide that the storage chamber has pressure-building means for building up overpressure in the storage chamber. This overpressure5 can, for example,permanently prevail in the storage chamber and thus support and / or enhance the self-sustaining (passive) flow of lubricant (without active conveyance by a pumping device) from the storage chamber to the discharge point at the thread. For example, a wall of a collapsible storage chamber designed as an expandable membrane, which expands when the storage chamber is filled and is thereby placed under mechanical stress, can represent such a pressure build-up means, because the mechanical stress of the wall membrane puts the lubricant stored therein under overpressure (compared to the outside of the storage wall). It is advantageous that the lubrication device has an applicator device. The applicator device is connected to the dispenser device and designed to apply the lubricant actively supplied by the dispenser device or flowing independently in a controlled manner to the thread, for example in the form of a lubricating film extending circumferentially over the threads.It thus forms the dispensing point of the lubricant onto the thread. This allows for optimal lubrication with efficient use of lubricant. Specifically, the applicator device can have dispensing and application devices for the lubricant, for example, nozzles, wipers, metering devices, an applicator chamber that completely or partially encloses the thread, or the like. An advantageous embodiment can provide that the dispenser device is mechanically coupled to the threaded spindle and the spindle nut. For this purpose, the dispenser device can be mechanically connected to the threaded spindle and the spindle nut in such a way that it can be actuated by their relative movement when the spindle drive is adjusted. For example, the dispenser device can be integrated directly or indirectly axially between the threaded spindle and the spindle nut or components connected thereto.The opposing relative axial movements during adjustment in opposite directions can, for example, directly or indirectly drive a pump mechanism of an intermittently driven conveying device, or open a shut-off valve of a passive lubricant conveying line, or collect lubricant droplets oozing from a line or a lubricant-soaked body by wiping. The aforementioned design can be implemented by fixing the lubrication device axially to the threaded spindle and interacting with an actuating element axially fixed relative to the spindle nut, or by fixing it axially relative to the spindle nut and interacting with an actuating element axially fixed to the threaded spindle. Regardless of the design of the spindle drive, the threaded spindle and the spindle nut are moved axially relative to each other during operation when the adjustment drive is adjusted, i.e., towards each other or away from each other.This linear relative movement can be easily implemented in a design as an actuation stroke for an intermittently driven pumping device. For practical implementation, it is possible for the pumping device to move with the threaded spindle and to be mechanically actuated and driven by the actuating element, which moves relative to it along with the spindle nut during adjustment.15 Alternatively, it is also conceivable and possible that, conversely, the pumping device is fixed directly to the spindle nut or axially fixed relative to the spindle nut and is actuated by an actuating element that moves relative to it along with the threaded spindle. The lubricant can be dispensed in the area of ​​the internal thread of the spindle nut, or20 also outside the spindle nut onto the thread of the threaded spindle.The same applies analogously if the dispenser device does not have a pumping device and the lubricant is not actively but only passively conveyed, whereby the previously described relative movement between spindle and nut is then used for a corresponding actuation of the dispenser device. An advantageous design can be realized by fixing the dispenser device end-side to a free end of the threaded spindle and being able to be stopped axially against an actuating element connected to the spindle nut or fixed axially relative to the spindle nut. The actuating element may preferably be attached to a component that is adjustable together with the spindle nut (or axially fixed relative to the spindle nut), for example on a support unit, a casing unit or an actuating unit of an adjustable steering column, where the actuating unit is adjustable relative to the support unit.The actuating element is arranged in BE2025 / 5078 7 within the travel of the threaded spindle in such a way that the dispenser device can axially strike against it when the adjustment drive is moved to its stop, i.e., adjusted as far as possible until the adjustment is mechanically limited by the stop against the actuating element. Accordingly, the actuating element can represent a mechanical end stop of the adjustment drive. The force impulse generated by the mechanical stop of the dispenser device against the actuating element can be used to drive the pump device, as is explained below by way of example, or, in the case of a dispenser device without a pump device with purely passive lubricant delivery, can be used, for example, to actuate a closure device. 10 Alternatively, the actuating element can be designed as a receiver element.This can then be designed as a receiving element which, at the end of the adjustment travel, contacts, receives, or wipes off lubricant droplets emerging, for example, from a line or a lubricant-soaked body, or adhering there due to capillary or cohesive forces, and in this way mechanically actuates the dispenser.15 An advantageous embodiment provides that the dispenser has a piston pump comprising a piston axially displaceable in a cylinder. In the aforementioned embodiment, it is preferred that the cylinder and the piston are axially supported between the threaded spindle and the spindle nut.20 A preferred further development can provide that the cylinder and the piston have an inlet valve connected to the storage chamber. 25 A preferred development may provide that the cylinder or piston has an outlet valve connected to an applicator device.The piston pump comprises a piston-cylinder unit with a piston guided in the cylinder and sealed in the direction of the cylinder axis. Preferably, the cylinder axis 30 can be identical to the threaded axis, i.e., the axis of the spindle drive. The piston and the cylinder define a pump chamber. This can preferably be connected to the storage chamber via an inlet valve and to the applicator device via an outlet valve. The inlet valve and the outlet valve can preferably be designed as one-way or check valves, e.g., as reed or diaphragm valves, so that the lubricant can flow exclusively through 35 BE2025 / 5078 8 from the storage chamber into the pump chamber and exclusively through the outlet valve from the pump chamber to the applicator device. can. This causes pressure on the piston, directed towards reducing the volume of the pump chamber, to cause a piston stroke, through which the lubricant located in the pump chamber is pumped to the thread.An increase in the volume of the pump chamber, which can be achieved by a return stroke of the piston opposite to the piston stroke, ensures a flow of lubricant from the storage chamber into the pump chamber. The alternating back-and-forth, intermittent stroke movement of the piston relative to the cylinder can preferably be generated by the piston being axially supported on the threaded spindle, and the cylinder on the spindle nut or an actuating element connected thereto, or vice versa. If the adjustment drive is driven to its block, i.e., adjusted to the end of the maximum possible adjustment range, the pumping device can strike the actuating element with the piston or cylinder, thereby generating a piston stroke that forces the lubricant out of the pump chamber through the outlet valve to the thread.In this way, a needs-based delivery of lubricant to the thread can be controlled so that the adjusting drive hits the actuating element at the end stop using the motor drive with a predetermined 20 adjusting force. It is possible that the outlet valve has a predetermined limit value. The predetermined limit value denotes a pressure threshold that must be exceeded for the outlet valve to release the flow of lubricant to the thread. This ensures that, during normal adjustment operation, when the actuator is driven to its limit with the normal adjustment force, the lubricant pressure within the pump chamber remains below the pressure threshold, and no lubricant is released through the outlet valve. Only when the actuator is driven to its limit with a defined, higher adjustment force relative to normal adjustment operation, which can be described as a service or maintenance force, is the pressure threshold exceeded, and lubricant is delivered to the thread.This allows a targeted and automated lubrication routine to be initiated, preferably depending on predefined operating or maintenance parameters. BE2025 / 5078 9 In an alternative embodiment, the lubricant reservoir may be provided for in a variable-volume storage chamber. The variable-volume storage chamber may be filled with an essentially compressible lubricant, for example, grease, and may have an outlet. In practice, it may, for example, be a membrane bellows, a corrugated bellows, or the like, made of metallic material or plastic.5 The variable-volume storage chamber may also be designed as a bladder or pouch made of a flexible or rubbery and / or expandable material. In any case, it may be compressed by an external force so that the grease contained therein may be forced out through the outlet. Alternatively or additionally, by filling the bellows with lubricant, it may be possible to create a 10 further orThe elastic membrane is in a stretched state, so that the bellows or the membrane is mechanically under tension. Due to this tension, the bellows or the membrane pressurizes the lubricant and thus forms a pressure build-up as described above. 15 The outlet can, for example, have an outlet valve which releases the lubricant at a predetermined pressure threshold; i.e., in this embodiment, the outlet valve can also have a predetermined limit value. An applicator device or the like can be connected to the outlet valve as described above. 20 The lubricant reservoir can consist, at least in part, of a sponge-like, porous storage medium. This can absorb a free-flowing lubricant and release it again by compression.The invention further comprises a steering column for a motor vehicle, comprising at least 25 an actuating unit adjustable relative to a support unit and at least one motorized actuating drive arranged between them, characterized in that the actuating drive is designed according to one of the embodiments or combinations thereof described above. 30 A method according to the invention for operating an actuating drive of the type mentioned above provides that its dispensing device for the lubrication device is actively actuated in order to draw lubricant from the lubricant reservoir onto the thread of the threaded spindle. 35 The method according to the invention can comprise all the process steps and procedures described above in connection with the actuating drive according to the invention. A significant advantage is that the lubrication device integrated with the adjustment drive according to the invention can be activated when required in order to introduce lubricant from the lubricant reservoir into the lubrication gap of the thread.The dispenser can be activated at predefined maintenance intervals to perform a service or maintenance routine. For example, the actuator – as described above – can be driven to its limit with an increased actuating force to apply lubricant in a metered manner. This provides a kind of integrated maintenance option that enables improved lubrication and optimized operating characteristics over the entire service life of the actuator. Description of the Drawings 15 Advantageous embodiments of the invention are explained in more detail below with reference to the drawings. In detail: Fig. 1 shows a schematic perspective view of a steering column according to the invention, Fig. 2 shows another perspective view of the steering column according to Fig. 1 from a different viewing angle, Fig. 3 shows a steering column according to Figs. 1 and 2 in a first side view, Fig. 4 shows a longitudinal section through a lubrication device according to the invention in a first embodiment, Fig. 5 shows a detail from Fig.3 in a first adjustment state of the adjustment drive according to Fig. 3, Fig. 6a a view analogous to Fig. 5 in a second adjustment state (end stop), 35 BE2025 / 5078 11 Fig. 6 a partial longitudinal section from Fig. 4 during the adjustment state according to Fig. 6a, Fig. 7a a view analogous to Fig. 6a in a third adjustment state, 5 Fig. 7 a view as in Fig. 6b during the adjustment state according to Fig. 7a, Fig. 8 the steering column according to Figs. 1 and 2 in a second side view (opposite to Fig. 3), 10 Fig. 9 a longitudinal section through an adjustment drive according to the invention with a lubrication device in a second embodiment in a first adjustment state (analogous to Fig. 4), Fig. 10a a view analogous to Fig. 9 in a second adjustment state (end stop), 15 Fig. 10 shows a partial longitudinal section from Fig. 9 during the adjustment state according to Fig. 10a, Fig. 11a shows a view analogous to Fig. 10a in a third adjustment state, 20 Fig. 11 shows a view as in Fig. 10b during the adjustment state according to Fig. 11a.Embodiment of the invention 25 In the different figures, identical parts are always provided with the same reference numerals and are therefore usually only named or mentioned once. Fig. 1 shows a steering column 1 according to the invention in a schematic perspective view obliquely from the top left towards the rear end, relative to the direction of travel of a vehicle not shown, in which a steering wheel (not shown here) is held in the operating area. Fig. 2 shows the steering column 1 in a view from the opposite side, i.e., seen from the top right. Fig. 3 shows a side view transverse to the direction of travel, seen from the left side, and Fig. 8 a side view, seen from the opposite (right) side. 35 BE2025 / 5078 12 The steering column 1 comprises a support unit 2, which has fastening means 21 in the form of fastening holes for attachment to a vehicle body (not shown). A positioning unit 3 is held by the support unit 2, which is received in a mantle unit 4 – also called a guide box or box swing arm.5 The actuating unit 3 has an inner shell (shell tube) 31 in which a steering spindle 32 is rotatably mounted about a longitudinal axis L, which extends axially in the longitudinal direction, i.e., in the direction of the longitudinal axis L. At the rear end of the steering spindle 32, a mounting section 33 is formed to which a steering wheel (not shown) can be attached. 10 The actuating unit 3 is telescopically displaceable in the shell unit 4 in the direction of the longitudinal axis L to enable longitudinal adjustment, in order to be able to position the steering wheel connected to the steering spindle 32 forwards and backwards in the longitudinal direction relative to the support unit 2, as indicated by the double arrow parallel to the longitudinal axis L. 15 Einster adjustment drive 5 for longitudinal adjustment of the actuating unit 3 relative to the outer unit 4 in the direction of the longitudinal axis Lweissteinen spindle drive with a spindle nut 51 with an internal thread extending along an axis into which a threaded spindle 52 with its thread 520, i.e. with its external thread, is screwed into the corresponding internal thread of the spindle nut 51.The spindle axis of the threaded spindle 52 is identical to the axis G and runs essentially parallel to the longitudinal axis L. The spindle nut 51 is rotatably mounted about the axis G in a bearing housing 53, which is rigidly connected to the outer casing 4. In the direction of axis G, the spindle nut 51 is axially supported on the outer casing 4 via the bearing housing 53. The adjusting drive 5 is accordingly a so-called plunge spindle drive with a spindle nut 51 that rotates relative to the adjustable components. The threaded spindle 52 is connected to the adjusting unit 30 via a transmission element 34 at its rear end by a fastening element 54, which can be designed as a fork head. This connection is fixed in the direction of axis G or the longitudinal axis L and is fixed with respect to rotation about axis G. The transmission element 34 extends from the rear end of the threaded spindle 52 to the actuating unit 3.35 BE2025 / 5078 13 The adjustment drive 5 incorporates an electric motor (drive motor) 55, by which the spindle nut 51 can be driven to rotate with respect to the axis G relative to the stationary threaded spindle 52. A so-called plunge spindle drive is realized through the rotating spindle nut 51 and the threaded spindle 52, which is fixed with respect to rotation. By rotating the spindle nut 51, the threaded spindle 52 can be displaced – depending on the direction of rotation of the motor 55 – in the direction of the axis G relative to the spindle nut 51, so that the actuating unit 3 connected to the threaded spindle 52 is adjusted accordingly in the direction of the longitudinal axis L relative to the outer casing unit 4 connected to the spindle nut 51. 10 The actuating unit 3 and the casing unit 4 accordingly form two components within the meaning of the invention that can be adjusted relative to each other by means of the first adjusting drive 5. The casing unit 4 is pivotable about a horizontal pivot axis S lying transverse to the longitudinal axis L and is mounted in a pivot bearing 22 on the support unit 2.In the rear area, the housing unit 4 is connected to the support unit 2 via an actuating lever 41. By a rotary movement of the actuating lever 41, the housing unit 4 can be pivoted relative to the support unit 2 about the pivot axis S, which lies horizontally in the installed state, thereby allowing adjustment of a steering wheel attached to the mounting section 33 in the vertical direction H, as indicated by the double arrow. In Fig. 2, which shows a perspective view of the steering column 1 from the rear side in Fig. 1, it can be seen how a second adjusting drive 6 for vertical adjustment of the steering column 1 is attached. This adjusting drive 6 comprises a spindle nut 61, in whose internal thread a threaded spindle 62 with its thread 620 is inserted along an axis G. grips. This is a bearing housing 63, which is attached to the shell unit 4, rotatably mounted about the axis G and axially supported on the shell unit 4, and can be driven by an electric motor (drive motor) 65 in either direction of rotation about the axis G.Accordingly, the adjusting drive 6 is a so-called rotary spindle drive with a driveable 30 threaded spindle 62 that rotates relative to the adjustable components. The spindle nut 61, which can be made of, for example, plastic or a non-ferrous metal such as brass or the like, is fixed with respect to rotation about the axis G at one end of the two-armed adjusting lever 41, which is rotatably mounted around a swivel bearing 23 on the 35 BE2025 / 5078 14 support unit 2, and whose other arm is connected at the other end to the housing unit 4. By rotating the threaded spindle 61, depending on the direction of rotation of the motor 65, the spindle nut 61 can be displaced 5 in the direction of the axis G relative to the threaded spindle 62, so that the outer casing unit 4 connected to the spindle nut 61 via the adjusting lever 41, together with the adjusting device 3 contained therein, can be adjusted up or down relative to the support unit 2 in the vertical direction, as indicated by the double arrow.The support unit 2 and the outer casing unit 4, or also the actuating unit 3 connected thereto, form 10 accordingly two components which can be adjusted relative to each other by means of the second actuating drive 6 in accordance with the invention. At the front axial end, on the left in Figs. 1 and 3, with respect to the direction of travel, a lubrication device 7 according to the invention is attached to the threaded spindle 52 of the first adjustment drive 5 in 15 of a first embodiment. An actuating element 42 is fixedly attached to the casing unit 4, which is fixed in the axial direction relative to the adjustment drive 5, specifically relative to the spindle nut 51 mounted in the bearing housing 53. The actuating element 42 projects into the linear path of movement of the threaded spindle 52 and forms a front end stop for it. This makes it possible for the threaded spindle 52 to mechanically strike the actuating element 42 with its front end 20 and thus also with the lubrication device 7 attached there, i.e., to come to a stop. The function of the lubrication device 7 in conjunction with the actuating element 42 is shown below with reference to the figure.4 to 7b explained in more detail. 25 Fig. 4 shows a longitudinal section through the lubrication device 7 in normal adjustment operation of the adjustment drive 5, for example during an adjustment movement to retract the actuating unit 3 into the housing unit 4 in the forward direction of travel, as indicated in the detail from Fig. 3 shown in Fig. 5 with the arrow pointing to the left. 30 Fig. 4 shows the lubrication device 7 in an enlarged detail view in the rest state, i.e. in normal adjustment operation. It features a dispenser device 70 designed as a piston pump, which has a piston 72 mounted axially displaceable in a cylinder 71 in the direction of axis G. The cylinder 71 and the piston 72 define a pump chamber 73. A storage chamber 74 filled with grease (not shown here) is connected to the pump chamber 73 via an inlet valve 75 designed as a one-way valve (check valve) 35 BE2025 / 5078 15, so that lubricant, for example grease, can flow from the storage chamber 74 through the inlet valve 75 into the pump chamber 73.This outlet valve 76, also designed as a one-way valve and arranged in the piston 72, is connected to an applicator device 77, which here is designed as an applicator chamber enclosing the thread 520 of the threaded spindle 52. Lubricant can flow from the pump chamber 73 into the applicator chamber 77 through the outlet valve 76. The piston 72 is fixed axially to the front face of the threaded spindle 52. An axially acting compression spring 78 elastically loads the piston 72 outwards from the cylinder 71, so that the pump chamber 73 is held at its maximum volume by the spring tension. The lubrication device 7 has, for example, a housing 79 which includes the cylinder 71 and the storage chamber 74. It can be formed in one piece as shown, and, for example, be made of a metal or plastic. The housing 79 is axially spring-supported against the piston 72, which in turn is axially supported against the front face of the threaded spindle. 20 In Figs. 5, 6a and 7as in a detail of Fig.Figure 3 schematically shows the movement states that follow one another during the execution of a service routine for lubricating the adjustment drive 5 according to the inventive method. Figure 4 shows the lubrication device in the state of Figure 5, and correspondingly, the sections shown in Figures 6 and 7b show the states according to Figures 6a and 7a. 25 The adjustment drive 5 is designed as a plunge spindle drive in which the spindle nut 51 is driven in rotation, and the threaded spindle 52 is stationary relative to it in the direction of rotation. Figure 5 schematically shows how the adjustment drive 5 is moved forward again, whereby 30 the actuating unit 3 is simultaneously retracted forward into the housing unit 4, and the lubrication device 7 is moved axially along axis G towards the actuating element 42. The direction of movement is indicated by the arrow pointing to the left. The lubricating device is in the idle state as shown in Fig. 4. The storage chamber 74 and the pump chamber 73 are filled with lubricant, and the inlet valve 75 and the outlet valve 7635 are closed. BE2025 / 5078 16 InFig.6a The lubrication device 7 strikes axially against the actuating element 42, so that the end stop of the adjustment is reached. The adjusting force is exerted on the piston 72 via the threaded spindle 52, so that it is pushed into the cylinder 71, which is supported against the actuating element 42 via the housing 79. This is indicated in Fig. 6b by the left-pointing arrow 5. In doing so, the pump chamber 73 is compressed and the compression spring 78 is elastically compressed and tensioned. Due to the pressure increase, the lubricant located in the pump chamber 73 is forced through the outlet valve 76 into the applicator chamber 77. This is indicated by the wavy arrow. tet. There, it reaches the thread 520 of the threaded spindle 52 as a lubricating film, so that the lubricant applied to the thread during the subsequent work cycles of the adjusting drive, through axial reciprocating movement of the threaded spindle 52, reaches the spindle nut 51, is distributed in its internal threads and thus subsequently distributed over the entire axial length of the thread 520 of the threaded spindle 52.15 According to the inventive method, the adjusting force at the stop according to Fig. 6a and 6b is set sufficiently high so that the hydraulic pressure increase in the pump chamber 73 is high enough for the lubricant to pass the pressure threshold set by the outlet valve 76. 20 In Fig. 7a, the adjustment direction, i.e., the axial direction of movement of the threaded spindle 52, is reversed, and the lubrication device 7 is released from the stop and moved backwards by the actuating element 42, as indicated by the arrow pointing to the right. As shown in Fig. 7b, the piston 72 is pushed backwards out of the cylinder 71 by the spring force of the tensioned compression spring 78, as indicated by the arrow pointing to the right 25. The resulting increase in the volume of the pump chamber 73 creates a hydraulic vacuum, which ensures that lubricant is drawn from the storage chamber 74 through the inlet valve 75 into the pump chamber 73e, as indicated by the curved arrow.30 When the piston 72 has been completely moved back into its starting position by the spring force of the compression spring 78, the rest state shown in Fig. 4 is reached again. The pump chamber 73 is refilled with lubricant, and if necessary, further lubrication can be carried out according to the steps of the inventive method shown in Figures 4 to 7b. 35 BE2025 / 5078 17 At the rear axial end with respect to the direction of travel, on the left in Figures 2 and 8, a lubrication device 8 according to the invention is attached to the threaded spindle 62 of the second adjusting drive 6 in a second embodiment. An actuating element 66 is fixedly attached to the spindle nut 61. The spindle nut 61 is displaceable in the axial direction relative to the threaded spindle 62 during adjustment. The actuating element 66 projects into the linear travel path 5 of the second lubrication device 8 attached to the threaded spindle 62 and forms a front end stop for it.This makes it possible for the lubrication device 8 to mechanically strike against the actuating element 66 when the spindle nut 61 is moved maximally backwards by the threaded spindle 62, to the left in Figures 2, 8, 9, and 10, as indicated by the arrow in Figures 9 and 10. The impact of the lubrication device 810 against the actuating element 66 mechanically limits the adjustment travel of the adjusting drive 6, i.e., the adjusting drive 6 is brought to a stop. The function of the lubrication device 8 in conjunction with the actuating element 66 is explained in more detail below with reference to Figures 9 to 11b. 15 The operating principle of the lubrication device 8 corresponds in principle to that of the lubrication device 7, the differences arising from the adaptation of the adjusting drive 6, which is designed as a rotary spindle drive and differs from the plunge spindle drive of the adjusting drive 5 by its reversed kinematics. 20 The lubrication device 8 can strike axially against the actuating element 66 at the end stop, which is located on the spindle nut 61 on the front axial end face, in Fig.9 is arranged on the left. Fig. 9 shows a longitudinal section along the axis G through the adjusting drive 6, analogous to Fig. 25 4 during the adjusting movement, in which the spindle nut 61 moves linearly forward on the threaded spindle 62, as indicated in Fig. 9 by the arrow pointing to the right. Fig. 10a shows the axial stop analogous to Fig. 6a, and Fig. 10b analogous to Fig. 6b the actuation of the lubrication device 8 produced thereby. Fig. 11a shows the released state analogous to Fig. 7a, and Fig. 11b analogous to Fig. 7b the lubrication device 8. Figs. 9, 10 and 11b show details of the lubrication device 8. This has a dispenser device 80 designed as a piston pump, with a piston 82 axially displaceable in a cylinder 81 and a pump chamber 83 enclosed between them. This is connected to a storage chamber 84 via an inlet valve 85, and via an outlet valve 86 to an applicator device 87 designed as an applicator chamber. An axially acting compression spring 88 is arranged between the piston 82 and the cylinder 81.The cylinder 81 and the storage chamber 84 are arranged in a housing 89, which, as in the example shown, can be designed in one piece or as a single unit. 5 The cylinder 81 is fixed to the threaded spindle 62 with the housing 89. The piston 82 is mounted so as to be axially displaceable relative to the cylinder 81 and relative to the threaded spindle 62. Figure 9 shows a state of movement during adjustment in which the spindle nut 61 moves linearly forward relative to the threaded spindle 62, as indicated by the left-pointing arrow. In this process, the actuating element 66, arranged on the front face of the spindle nut 61, is moved axially towards the piston 82 of the lubrication device 8. In Fig. 10a – analogous to Fig. 6a – the situation when the adjustment 15 l drive 6 reaches its end stop is shown. The actuating element 66 strikes axially against the piston 82, as can be seen in Fig. 10, so that the piston is pushed into the cylinder 81. This is indicated in Fig. 10b by the left-pointing arrow. The pump chamber 83 is compressed and the compression spring 88 is elastically compressed and tensioned.Due to the pressure increase, the lubricant located in the pump chamber 83 is forced through the outlet valve 86 into the applicator chamber 87. This is indicated by the wavy arrow. There, it reaches the thread 620 of the threaded spindle 62 as a lubricating film, so that the lubricant applied to the thread 620 is distributed from the spindle nut 61 to the entire axial length of the thread 620 of the threaded spindle 62 during the subsequent work cycle of the adjusting drive by axial reciprocating movement of the spindle nut 61. According to the method according to the invention, the adjusting force is adjusted at the stop according to Fig. 10a and 10bau are sufficiently high so that the hydraulic pressure increase in the pump chamber 83 is high enough for the lubricant to pass the pressure threshold specified by the outlet valve 86. In Fig. 11a the adjustment direction, i.e.The axial direction of movement of the threaded spindle 62 is reversed, and the lubrication device 8 is released from the stop with the spindle nut 61 by moving the actuating element 66 (in the direction of travel) forward away from the lubrication device 8, as indicated by the arrow pointing to the right. As in Fig. As shown in Figure 11b, the piston 82 is pushed backward out of the cylinder 81 by the spring force of the tensioned compression spring 88 BE2025 / 5078 19, as indicated by the right-pointing arrow. The resulting increase in volume of the pump chamber 83 creates a hydraulic vacuum, which ensures that lubricant is drawn from the storage chamber 84 into the pump chamber 83 through the inlet valve 85, as indicated by the curved arrow. 5 When the piston 82 has been completely moved back into its starting position by the spring force of the compression spring 88, the rest state of the lubrication device 8 shown in Figure 9 is reached again. The pump chamber 83 is again filled with lubricant, and If necessary, further lubrication can be carried out according to the instructions.