Steering axle and vehicle thereof

Abstract

This invention discloses a steering axle and its vehicle, including a steering bridge frame; steering wheels symmetrically arranged on both sides of the steering bridge frame and capable of synchronous rotation; and an electric cylinder mounted on the steering bridge frame for driving the steering wheel on one side to rotate and simultaneously rotating the steering wheel on the other side. The steering wheels on both sides are mounted on wheel frames, which are rotatably mounted at both ends of the steering bridge frame via slewing bearings. A rotating main shaft penetrating the slewing bearing and the steering bridge frame is mounted on the wheel frame. This invention uses the electric cylinder as a unique power source for steering, eliminating the need for other power systems or sharing power, effectively avoiding unnecessary energy waste. This invention discloses the use of a single-acting linkage-type electric cylinder as the power input, providing stable power input and high control precision. Furthermore, the use of mechanical transmission mechanisms such as gears and lead screws ensures high transmission precision, allowing operators to accurately control the start and stop positions of the steering wheels, resulting in high steering accuracy.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of vehicle steering axle equipment technology, specifically to a steering axle and its vehicle. Background Technology

[0002] Chinese Patent Publication No. CN208324769U discloses a steering axle for high-positioned battery vehicles, including a steering axle body, a left steering knuckle and a right steering knuckle symmetrically arranged at both ends of the steering axle body, a transverse hydraulic cylinder installed in the cavity of the steering axle body, and two steering linkages symmetrically arranged at both ends of the transverse hydraulic cylinder and respectively driving the left or right steering knuckle to rotate. However, in actual use, the following drawbacks still exist: With a hydraulic steering scheme, since generally only one oil pump is equipped to supply oil, it must simultaneously meet the needs of high-flow, high-pressure lifting conditions and low-flow, low-pressure steering conditions. If the entire vehicle only needs to turn, starting the oil pump to supply steering can easily cause a large amount of energy loss; due to the long steering oil pipes throughout the vehicle, there is a large pressure loss along the path, and the steering action is not smooth enough, with hydraulic shocks seriously affecting the driving comfort of the vehicle. Summary of the Invention

[0003] The purpose of this invention is to provide a steering axle and a vehicle thereof to solve the problems mentioned in the background art.

[0004] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention provides the following technical solution:

[0005] A steering axle, including

[0006] Steering bridge;

[0007] The steering wheels are symmetrically arranged on both sides of the steering bridge and rotate synchronously.

[0008] An electric cylinder, mounted on the steering bridge, is used to drive the steering wheel on one side to rotate and simultaneously rotate the steering wheel on the other side.

[0009] Wherein: the steering wheels on both sides are mounted on wheel frames, the wheel frames are rotatably mounted at both ends of the steering bridge via slewing bearings, the wheel frames are provided with a rotating main shaft that passes through the slewing bearing and the steering bridge, a rotating drive disc and a rotating driven disc are respectively mounted on one end of the rotating main shaft that extends to the surface of the steering bridge, the telescopic end of the electric cylinder is connected to one end of the rotating drive disc, and the other end of the rotating drive disc is connected to the rotating driven disc via a steering linkage.

[0010] Preferably, the electric cylinder includes a tailstock, on which a motor and a lead screw are arranged in parallel. A drive gear is arranged on the main shaft of the motor. A driven gear that meshes with the drive gear is arranged on one end of the lead screw located inside the tailstock. An internal push lead screw is drivenly connected to the lead screw. The end of the internal push lead screw away from the lead screw is rotatably connected to a first connecting shaft at one end of the rotating drive disc through a fixed lug.

[0011] Preferably, one end of the steering link is rotatably connected to the second connecting shaft on the rotating drive disc via a radial spherical bearing, and the other end of the steering link is rotatably connected to the second connecting shaft on the rotating driven disc via a deep groove ball bearing. The second connecting shaft is provided with a limiting sleeve that abuts against the radial spherical bearing and the deep groove ball bearing, and a dust cover is provided on the end of the second connecting shaft near the limiting sleeve.

[0012] Preferably, the wheel frame includes a vertically arranged wheel frame upright plate, the steering wheel is mounted on the lower end of the wheel frame upright plate via a wheel axle, and a wheel frame top plate is horizontally arranged on the upper end of the wheel frame upright plate and connected to the slewing bearing and the main rotating shaft.

[0013] Preferably, the steering wheel adopts a dual-wheel structure.

[0014] Preferably, the steering wheel includes a hub mounted on an axle, a tire mounted on the hub, and a straight-through oil injection cup and a hub cap at the end of the axle.

[0015] This application also relates to a vehicle that includes the aforementioned steering axle.

[0016] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the present invention are:

[0017] This invention utilizes an electric cylinder as a unique power source for steering, eliminating the need for other power systems or sharing power, thus effectively avoiding unnecessary energy waste. It employs a single-acting linkage-type electric cylinder as the power input, ensuring stable power input and high control precision. Furthermore, the use of mechanical transmission mechanisms such as gears and lead screws provides high transmission accuracy, allowing operators to precisely control the start and stop positions of the steering wheels, resulting in high steering precision. The swing axle of this invention offers precise steering angle control and low energy loss, enhancing the flexibility of counterbalance forklifts, reducing overall vehicle energy consumption, and providing excellent control precision and environment for the automatic control of counterbalance forklifts converted into AGVs. Attached Figure Description

[0018] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the present invention;

[0019] Figure 2 This is a front view of the present invention;

[0020] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the steering wheel structure of the present invention;

[0021] Figure 4 This is a top view of the present invention;

[0022] Figure 5 for Figure 4 Sectional view along the AA direction;

[0023] Figure 6 This is a side view of the present invention;

[0024] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the internal structure of the electric cylinder of the present invention;

[0025] In the diagram: 1. Steering bridge, 2. Steering wheel, 3. Electric cylinder, 4. Wheel frame, 5. Slewing bearing, 6. Rotary spindle, 7. Rotary drive disc, 8. Rotary driven disc, 9. Steering linkage, 10. Tailstock, 11. Motor, 12. Lead screw, 13. Drive gear, 14. Driven gear, 15. Internal push screw, 16. Fixing lug, 17. First connecting shaft, 18. Radial spherical bearing, 19. Second connecting shaft, 20. Deep groove ball bearing, 21. Limiting spacer, 22. Dust cover, 23. Wheel frame upright plate, 24. Wheel frame top plate, 25. Wheel axle, 26. Wheel hub, 27. Tire, 28. Straight-through pressure injection cup, 29. Wheel hub cap. Detailed Implementation

[0026] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0027] Please see Figure 1-7 The present invention provides a technical solution:

[0028] A steering axle, including

[0029] The steering bridge 1 is connected to the vehicle body through a central pivot, allowing the steering bridge 1 to rotate around the pivot. The advantage of this design is that it ensures that the steering wheels 2 on both sides can still effectively contact the ground when the vehicle is driving on uneven roads, providing effective support and traction, thereby improving the stability and passability of the vehicle.

[0030] Steering wheels 2 are symmetrically arranged on both sides of the steering bridge 1 and rotate synchronously. In this embodiment, the steering wheels 2 adopt a dual-wheel structure and arrangement. Under the same load-bearing capacity, the contact area between the vehicle and the ground during steering is smaller, thus reducing steering resistance and reducing energy loss caused by steering to a certain extent. The steering wheels 2 include a hub 26 mounted on a wheel axle 25, a tire 27 mounted on the hub 26, and a straight-through pressure injection cup 28 and a hub cap 29 at the end of the wheel axle 25. The straight-through pressure injection cup 28 is used to add lubricating grease, thereby ensuring that the bearing grease is consumed and emulsified during continuous vehicle operation.

[0031] Electric cylinder 3, which is mounted on steering bridge 1, is used to drive the steering wheel 2 on one side to rotate and to drive the steering wheel on the other side to rotate synchronously.

[0032] With the above structure, the forklift swing bridge uses a single-acting linkage electric cylinder 3 as the sole power source for steering, which does not require the participation or sharing of other power systems, effectively avoiding the waste of excess energy; the use of a single-acting linkage electric cylinder 3 as the power input ensures stable power input and high control precision, and the use of mechanical transmission mechanisms such as gears and lead screws provides high transmission precision, allowing operators to accurately control the start and stop positions of the steering wheels, resulting in high steering precision;

[0033] Wherein: the two steering wheels 2 are mounted on the wheel frame 4. The wheel frame 4 includes a vertically mounted wheel frame plate 23. The steering wheels 2 are mounted on the lower end of the wheel frame plate 23 via wheel axles 25. The upper end of the wheel frame plate 23 is horizontally welded with a wheel frame top plate 24 connected to the slewing bearing 5 and the rotating main shaft 6. The top of the wheel frame 4 is rotatably mounted on both ends of the steering bridge 1 via the slewing bearing 5. The wheel frame 4 is provided with a rotating main shaft 6 that passes through the slewing bearing 5 and the steering bridge 1. A rotating drive disc 7 and a rotating driven disc 8 are fixedly mounted on one end of the rotating main shaft 6 that extends to the surface of the steering bridge 1. The telescopic end of the electric cylinder 3 is connected to one end of the rotating drive disc 7. The other end of the rotating drive disc 7 is connected to the rotating driven disc 8 via a steering linkage 9.

[0034] The electric cylinder 3 includes a tailstock 10, on which a motor 11 and a lead screw 12 are arranged side by side. A drive gear 13 is arranged on the main shaft of the motor 11. A driven gear 14 that meshes with the drive gear 13 is arranged on one end of the lead screw 12 located inside the tailstock 10. The lead screw 12 is driven by an inner push lead screw 15. The end of the inner push lead screw 15 away from the lead screw 12 is rotatably connected to the first connecting shaft 17 at one end of the rotating drive disk 7 through a fixing lug 16. The motor 11 is equipped with a drive encoder, which can precisely control the stroke and speed of the electric cylinder 3 by adjusting the parameters of the steering controller, thereby achieving precise position control and precise inference control.

[0035] In this embodiment, when the motor 11 in the single-acting linkage electric cylinder 3 drives the driving gear 13 to rotate, the meshing rotation of the gear pair drives the driven gear 14 to rotate, which drives the lead screw 12 that cooperates with the driven gear 14 to rotate, and finally drives the inner push lead screw 15 to change its movement direction from axial rotation to axial movement, thereby pushing the rotating driving disk 7 to rotate, and finally, under the action of the steering linkage 9, the rotating driven disk 8 on the linkage side rotates synchronously.

[0036] In addition, the steering unit in the single-acting linkage electric cylinder 3 of this embodiment can be a controllable power source such as a stepper motor or a servo motor. In actual embodiments, a signal encoder can be installed below the steering connection shaft of the forklift. When the operator turns the steering wheel, an electrical signal is generated. This signal is transmitted to the steering controller, which compiles and transmits the signal. After receiving the signal from the controller, the motor encoder starts the rotor to rotate, thereby driving the lead screw 12 and the inner lead screw 15 in the electric lead screw mechanism to rotate, causing the inner lead screw 15 to move left and right, pushing the steering drive (driven) disc to rotate, thus driving the steering wheel 2 to rotate. Compared with the hydraulic steering system used to control the steering of the whole vehicle, the vehicle steering in this embodiment of the invention uses electrical signal transmission and control. The system has a short response time for signal reception and processing, and the control accuracy is higher. Since the vehicle direction control is controlled by the encoder issued by the steering connection shaft, the accuracy of the encoder can be improved to improve the steering control accuracy of the whole vehicle.

[0037] One end of the steering link 9 is rotatably connected to the second connecting shaft 19 on the rotating drive disc 7 via a radial spherical bearing 18, and the other end of the steering link 9 is rotatably connected to the second connecting shaft 19 on the rotating driven disc 8 via a deep groove ball bearing 20. The second connecting shaft 19 is preferably fixed to the rotating drive disc 7 and the rotating driven disc 8 by interference fit or welding. To ensure the smoothness of the system steering, the perpendicularity of the second connecting shaft 19 to the mating surface of the bracket of the rotating drive disc 7 and the rotating driven disc 8 should not exceed 0.05 mm. A limiting sleeve 21 is provided on the second connecting shaft 19 to abut against the radial spherical bearing 18 and the deep groove ball bearing 20 to prevent the radial spherical bearing 18 and the deep groove ball bearing 20 from disengaging from the second connecting shaft 19 during steering. To prevent excessive dust and foreign objects from falling into the bearing during long-term use, a dust cover 22 is provided on the end of the second connecting shaft 19 near the limiting sleeve 21. The lower stepped surface of the dust cover 22 abuts against the bearing, and the limiting sleeve 21 abuts against the bearing.

[0038] This application also relates to a vehicle that includes the aforementioned steering axle.

[0039] Although embodiments of the invention have been shown and described, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes, modifications, substitutions and alterations can be made to these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention, the scope of which is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A steering axle, characterized in that: include Steering bridge (1); Steering wheels (2) are symmetrically arranged on both sides of the steering bridge (1) and rotate synchronously; Electric cylinder (3), which is mounted on steering bridge (1), is used to drive the steering wheel (2) on one side to rotate and to drive the steering wheel on the other side to rotate synchronously. Wherein: the steering wheels (2) on both sides are mounted on the wheel frame (4), the wheel frame (4) is rotatably mounted on both ends of the steering bridge (1) via the slewing bearing (5), the wheel frame (4) is provided with a rotating main shaft (6) that passes through the slewing bearing (5) and the steering bridge (1), the rotating main shaft (6) extends to one end of the surface of the steering bridge (1) and is respectively mounted with a rotating drive disc (7) and a rotating driven disc (8), the telescopic end of the electric cylinder (3) is connected to one end of the rotating drive disc (7), and the other end of the rotating drive disc (7) is connected to the rotating driven disc (8) via the steering linkage (9); The electric cylinder (3) includes a tailstock (10), on which a motor (11) and a lead screw (12) are arranged in parallel. A drive gear (13) is arranged on the main shaft of the motor (11). A driven gear (14) that meshes with the drive gear (13) is arranged on one end of the lead screw (12) located inside the tailstock (10). The lead screw (12) is connected to an inner push lead screw (15). The end of the inner push lead screw (15) away from the lead screw (12) is rotatably connected to the first connecting shaft (17) at one end of the rotating drive disc (7) through a fixed ear (16). The wheel frame (4) includes a vertically arranged wheel frame plate (23), the steering wheel (2) is arranged at the lower end of the wheel frame plate (23) via a wheel axle (25), and the upper end of the wheel frame plate (23) is horizontally arranged with a wheel frame top plate (24) connected to the slewing bearing (5) and the rotating main shaft (6). The steering wheel (2) adopts a dual-wheel structure; The steering wheel (2) includes a hub (26) mounted on an axle (25), a tire (27) mounted on the hub (26), and a straight-through pressure injection cup (28) and a hub cap (29) mounted at the end of the axle (25).

2. A steering axle according to claim 1, characterized in that: One end of the steering linkage (9) is rotatably connected to the second connecting shaft (19) on the rotating drive disc (7) via a radial spherical bearing (18), and the other end of the steering linkage (9) is rotatably connected to the second connecting shaft (19) on the rotating driven disc (8) via a deep groove ball bearing (20). The second connecting shaft (19) is provided with a limiting sleeve (21) that abuts against the radial spherical bearing (18) and the deep groove ball bearing (20). A dust cover (22) is provided on the end of the second connecting shaft (19) near the limiting sleeve (21).

3. A vehicle, characterized in that: Includes a steering axle as described in any one of claims 1-2.

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