Electric tow hook

Abstract

The invention provides an electric tow hook. The electric tow hook comprises a fixing piece, a tow hook body, a driven piece, a mandrel, a locking piece, a driving piece, a transmission obstacle structure and the like. The mandrel is mounted on the fixing piece, is connected with the tow hook and synchronously rotates with the tow hook; the driving part is directly or indirectly connected with the actuating device, the driven part is installed on the mandrel, the driving part is matched with the driven part and drives the driven part to rotate, and when transmission of the driving part and the driven part is hindered, the driving part drives the driven part and the mandrel provided with the driven part to rotate together; the electric tow hook is simple in structure, convenient to machine and manufacture and high in working reliability, most of stress of the tow hook directly acts on the fixing piece, the strength is good, and the installation space is small.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of vehicle accessories, and particularly to an electric trailer hitch. Background Art

[0002] A trailer hitch, also known as a towing bar, trailer bar, tow hook, etc., is a device for connecting a vehicle to other vehicles or equipment, mainly used for a vehicle to tow other vehicles or goods. The trailer hitch includes a fixed trailer hitch and a non-fixed trailer hitch. Due to usage requirements, the fixed trailer hitch usually has a part protruding outside the vehicle, which affects the aesthetics and safety of the vehicle.

[0003] To eliminate these effects, non-fixed trailer hitches have emerged, including a detachable trailer hook and a foldable trailer hitch. When the trailer hitch is extended and folded back by a motor drive, it is an electric trailer hitch. By adopting a specific structural design in the motor-driven mechanism, the trailer hitch can be reliably fixed in the working position and the retracted position, which is convenient to use and avoids the influence caused by the trailer hitch always protruding outside. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The purpose of the present invention is to at least partially overcome the defects of the prior art and provide an electric trailer hitch, which can reliably fix the trailer hitch in the working position and the retracted position through a simple structure, and can still stably maintain its position unchanged even under external forces, and can smoothly rotate from one fixed position to another position and be re-fixed.

[0005] To achieve the above purpose or one of the purposes, the technical solution of the present invention is as follows: An electric trailer hitch, characterized in that it includes a fixing member, a locking member, a core shaft, a driven member, a driving member, a trailer hitch, and a transmission blocking structure; the fixing member is fixedly installed on the vehicle body; the core shaft is installed on the fixing member, connected to the trailer hitch and rotates synchronously; the driven member is eccentrically installed on the core shaft, the driving member is directly or indirectly connected to an actuating device, the driving member cooperates with the driven member and drives the driven member to rotate; the transmission blocking structure is configured to be able to terminate the power transmission from the driving member to the driven member; after the transmission blocking structure intervenes, the rotation of the driven member around its own axis terminates, and the driving member and the driven member move integrally and are directly transmitted to the core shaft; after the transmission blocking structure is removed from intervention, the driving member drives the driven member to rotate around its own axis and is no longer transmitted integrally; the locking member is configured to be able to move radially along the core shaft to lock or unlock the trailer hitch.

[0006] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the fixing member includes a fixing plate and a fixing bushing, the fixing plate is fixedly installed on the vehicle body chassis or the bumper beam, and the fixing bushing is fixedly installed on the fixing plate.

[0007] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, on the end face where the fixing member cooperates with the mandrel, one of them includes a limiting groove and the other includes a limiting boss.

[0008] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the transmission obstacle structure is provided in the transmission characteristics of the driving member and / or the driven member.

[0009] Correspondingly, the transmission obstacle structure can also be provided outside the transmission characteristics of the driving member and / or the driven member. Preferably, it can be provided between the driving member and the mandrel, between the driving member and the planet carrier connecting and mounting a plurality of the driven members, between the driven member and the planet carrier, etc.; it can also be provided in specially designed additional features. Preferably, additional features can be specially designed on the driven member and the driving member, such as non-circular cross-section mating, etc., for generating a transmission obstacle effect.

[0010] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the driven member is configured to be able to drive the locking member to move radially along the mandrel when rotating around its own axis.

[0011] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the outer surface of the locking member includes one of a spherical surface, a cylindrical surface, a planar surface, an inclined surface, a conical surface, a helical surface, a parabolic surface, a hyperbolic surface or a combination of the above surfaces.

[0012] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the locking member includes an upper part and a lower part, and the lower part of the locking member can deflect relative to the upper part of the locking member; the outer surface of the upper part and / or the lower part of the locking member includes one of a spherical surface, a cylindrical surface, a planar surface, an inclined surface, a conical surface, a helical surface, a parabolic surface, a hyperbolic surface or a combination of the above surfaces.

[0013] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, it further includes a positioning assembly, and the positioning assembly is configured to be able to reliably position the trailer hitch in the working position / retracted position when the trailer hitch is unloaded.

[0014] The electric trailer hitch of the present invention has the following advantages: The structure is simple. By driving the driving member through the actuating device, the driving member drives the driven member to drive the trailer hitch to rotate, and it can be reliably fixed in the working position and the retracted position.

[0015] It works reliably. The trailer hitch is sleeved on the fixing member, and the locking member positioned by the fixing member locks the trailer hitch. Therefore, the force and torque of the trailer hitch act completely on the fixing member. At the same time, the locking member moves along the axial direction, and through reasonable structural design, the locking member can lock the trailer hitch in a line contact or surface contact manner, with high working strength and good reliability. Brief Description of the Drawings

[0016] Figure 1 Fig. is a schematic view of the first embodiment of the electric trailer hitch of the present invention; Figure 2 Fig. is a schematic view of the transmission obstacle structure in the first embodiment of the present invention; Figure 3 Fig. is a schematic view of the second embodiment of the electric trailer hitch of the present invention; Figure 4 Fig. is a schematic view of the locking member embodiment of the present invention. Detailed Description of the Embodiments

[0017] The exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings, where the same or similar reference numerals represent the same or similar elements. Additionally, in the following detailed description, for the purpose of explanation, many specific details are set forth to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments disclosed herein. However, it is obvious that one or more embodiments can be implemented without these specific details. In other instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in diagrammatic form to simplify the drawings.

[0018] Figure 1-2 Fig. is a schematic view of the first embodiment of the electric trailer hitch applying the present invention. As shown in the figure, the fixed bushing 310 is fixedly connected to the fixing plate 320 to jointly form the fixing member 300, wherein the fixing plate 320 is fixedly connected to the vehicle frame. The core shaft 400 is installed in the fixed bushing 310. Three follower members 500 have a transmission feature - a gear at one end and a machining feature at the other end to drive the locking member 200 to move radially. They are circumferentially evenly distributed and eccentrically installed in the core shaft 400. The three follower members 500 are interconnected by a planet carrier and cooperate with the driving member 600 (internal gear) with the transmission feature (gear). The trailer hitch 100 is sleeved on the fixed bushing 310 and is connected to the core shaft 400 and rotates synchronously. A radial through hole is provided on the fixed bushing 310, and the locking member 200 can move radially along the core shaft 400 in the through hole. The driving member 600 is connected to an actuating device (motor, not shown in the figure) and rotates actively. The core shaft 400 is axially positioned by mating with the end face of the fixing member 300 with a stepped surface. In this embodiment, a limiting boss 401 is provided on the mating end face of the core shaft 400, and a corresponding limiting groove 311 is provided on the mating end face of the fixed bushing 310. When one side of the limiting boss 401 abuts against one side of the limiting groove 311, the trailer hitch 100 is in the working position / retracted position; when the other side of the limiting boss 401 abuts against the other side of the limiting groove 311, the trailer hitch 100 is in the retracted position / working position. Correspondingly, the limiting boss can also be provided on the fixed bushing 310, the limiting groove can be provided on the core shaft 400, or the core shaft 400 can be mated with the end face of the fixing plate 320 and the limiting boss and the limiting groove can be provided respectively.

[0019] The positioning component 700 includes an elastic member 701 and a positioning member 702. A pit matching the positioning member 702 is machined on the towing hook 100. When the towing hook 100 is in the working position / retracted position, the positioning member 702 is inserted into the pit on the towing hook 100 under the action of the elastic member 701 to position the towing hook 100 and balance the gravity of the towing hook 100 at this position. The transmission obstacle structure 800 is located on the driven member 500. Specifically, the transmission obstacle structure 800 has an increased root circle radius, which can be directly formed during gear machining or assembled after gear machining is completed, and is reflected in the transmission characteristics of the driven member 500. In other preferred embodiments of the present invention, the transmission obstacle structure 800 can also be reflected as an increased tooth height. The transmission obstacle structure 800 reflected as an increased root circle radius / reflected as an increased tooth height can be provided not only in the transmission characteristics of the driven member 500 but also in the transmission characteristics of the driving member 600. When the gear meshing transmission reaches the transmission obstacle structure 800, since the meshing dimension here does not meet the meshing requirements, the gear transmission is terminated, that is, the transmission obstacle structure 800 intervenes, the driven member 500 stops rotating, and the driving member 600 and the driven member 500 are integrally transmitted to directly transmit power to the core shaft 400.

[0020] Figure 3 For another embodiment of the present invention, the difference from the first embodiment is as follows: 1. The outer surface characteristics of the locking member 200 are different: In the first embodiment, the main body of the locking member 200 is cylindrical, the locking end surface cooperating with the towing hook 100 is a cylindrical surface, and the driving end surface cooperating with the driven member 500 is a cylindrical surface with a larger diameter; while Figure 3 in the second embodiment shown, the locking member 200 is spherical. Correspondingly, the machining characteristics of the driven member 500 for driving the radial movement of the locking member 200 are also different.

[0021] 2. The transmission obstacle structure 800 is different: Figure 1 In the first embodiment shown, the transmission obstacle structure 800 has an increased root circle radius and is provided in the transmission characteristics, while Figure 3 in the second embodiment shown, the transmission obstacle structure 800 is provided outside the transmission characteristics. Specifically, a boss 801 of the transmission obstacle structure is added to the end surface of the driving member 600 facing the core shaft 400, and a groove 802 of the transmission obstacle structure is added to the end surface of the core shaft 400 facing the driving member 600. When the side surface of the boss 801 contacts the side surface of the groove 802, that is, the transmission obstacle structure 800 intervenes, the transmission from the driving member 600 to the driven member 500 is terminated, the driven member 500 cannot rotate, and is integrally transmitted with the driving member 600 to directly transmit power to the core shaft 400. When the side surface of the boss 801 does not contact the side surface of the groove 802, that is, the transmission obstacle structure 800 releases the intervention, the driven member 500 rotates.

[0022] In other preferred embodiments of the present invention, the transmission obstacle structure 800 can also be arranged between the driving member and the planet carrier, or between the driven member and the planet carrier, or on a specially machined additional feature, such as non-circular cross-sections machined on the driving member and the driven member respectively to terminate the power transmission from the driving member to the driven member at a specific position.

[0023] Figure 4 This is another embodiment of the locking member 200 of the present invention. In the second embodiment of the electric trailer hitch, as Figure 3 shown, the locking member 200 is spherical, and at this time, there is a point contact between the locking member 200 and the driving surface of the driven member 500. In the first embodiment of the electric trailer hitch, as Figure 1 shown, there is a line contact between the locking member 200 and the driving surface of the driven member 500. In the above two embodiments, the locking member 200 is a single part, while in Figure 4 the shown embodiment, the locking member 200 is a combined part, including an upper part 201 and a lower part 202, and the lower part 202 is matched with the driving surface of the driven member 500 with a curved surface. During the radial movement of the locking member 200, the lower part 202 rotates relative to the upper part 201. In this embodiment, the locking member 200 and the driving surface of the driven member 500 are matched with a curved surface in shape, which is a surface contact, greatly improving the part strength when the trailer hitch is locked.

[0024] In another preferred embodiment of the present invention, the positioning assembly 700 is an electromagnetic control member. When the trailer hitch 100 is in the working position or the retracted position and reliable positioning is required to balance its gravity influence, the positioning assembly 700 works under the action of a control electric signal to position the trailer hitch 100. When the trailer hitch 100 needs to rotate, the positioning assembly 700 releases the positioning work under the action of the control electric signal.

[0025] The following describes the working process of the electric trailer hitch of the present invention with the embodiment shown in Figure 1 Figure 2 or 3: When the trailer hitch 100 is in the working position / retracted position, one side of the limit boss 401 is in mating contact with one side of the limit groove 311, and the positioning member 702 of the positioning assembly 700 is inserted into the pit on the trailer hitch 100 to position the trailer hitch against the gravitational force acting on it. In the locked state of the trailer hitch 100, the locking member 200 cooperates with the outer surface of the driven member 500 and is in the position farthest from the central axis of the mandrel 400, and is inserted into the corresponding hole on the trailer hitch 100 to reliably lock the trailer hitch 100. When it is necessary to change the position of the trailer hitch 100, the driving member 600 rotates. At this time, the mandrel 400 and the trailer hitch 100 are integrally locked and fixed by the locking member 200. Therefore, the driven member 500 rotates on its own, and the mating position with the locking member 200 moves from the outer cylindrical surface to the machined surface, and the locking member 200 moves radially inward along the mandrel 400 until the outer surface of the locking member 200 does not protrude beyond the outer surface of the fixed bushing 310 at all, and the trailer hitch 100 is completely unlocked. The transmission obstacle structure 800 intervenes, and the driven member 500 and the driving member 600 are integrally driven to jointly transmit power to the mandrel 400, that is, drive the trailer hitch 100 to rotate together from the working position / retracted position to the retracted position / working position. The positioning member 702 of the positioning assembly 700 leaves the pit on the trailer hitch 100, and the elastic member 701 is compressed until the position is reached, and the other side of the limit boss 401 is in mating contact with the other side of the limit groove 311. The positioning member 702 of the positioning assembly 700 is inserted into the pit on the trailer hitch 100 again under the action of the elastic member 701 to position the trailer hitch 100 and balance the gravitational force. The driving member 600 rotates in the reverse direction, the transmission obstacle structure 800 releases the intervention, the driven member 500 rotates on its own, and drives the locking member 200 to move radially away from the center of the mandrel 400 and insert into the corresponding hole on the trailer hitch 100 to reliably lock the trailer hitch 100.

[0026] The electric trailer hitch of the present invention has the following advantages: Reliable in operation, the forces and torques of the trailer hitch act completely on the fixed parts, and the acting loads on the transmission parts are relatively small. The transmission obstacle structure can completely terminate the transmission action and accurately switch the rotation and revolution of the driven member.

[0027] High working strength, the locking member only has radial movement, so it can be designed in line contact and surface contact modes and can withstand higher working loads.

[0028] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that various changes can be made therein without departing from the principles and spirit of the present invention. The scope of application of the present invention is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. An electric trailer hook, characterized in that: It includes a fixing part, a locking part, a core shaft, a follower, a driving part, a trailer hook, and a transmission obstacle structure; the fixing part is fixedly mounted on the vehicle body; the core shaft is mounted on the fixing part, connected to the trailer hook and rotates synchronously; the follower is eccentrically mounted on the core shaft, the driving part is directly or indirectly connected to the actuating device, the driving part cooperates with the follower and drives the follower to rotate; the transmission obstacle structure is configured to terminate the power transmission from the driving part to the follower; the locking part is configured to be able to move along the radial direction of the core shaft to lock or unlock the trailer hook.

2. The electric trailer hook according to claim 1, characterized in that: On the end surfaces of the fixing member and the core shaft that cooperate with each other, one of them includes a limiting groove, and the other includes a limiting boss.

3. The electric trailer hook according to claim 1, characterized in that: The transmission obstacle structure is arranged in the transmission feature of the driving member and / or the driven member.

4. The electric trailer hook according to claim 1, characterized in that: The driven member is configured to drive the locking member to move radially along the core shaft when rotating around its own axis.

5. The electric trailer hook according to claim 1, characterized in that: The outer surface of the locking member includes a spherical surface, a cylindrical surface, a plane, an inclined surface, a conical surface, a spiral surface, a parabola, a hyperboloid, or a combination of the above surfaces.

6. The electric trailer hook according to claim 1, characterized in that: The locking member includes an upper part and a lower part, and the lower part of the locking member can be deflected relative to the upper part of the locking member; the outer surface of the upper part of the locking member and / or the lower part of the locking member includes a spherical surface, a cylindrical surface, a plane, an inclined surface, a conical surface, a spiral surface, a parabola, a hyperbolic surface, or a combination of the above surfaces.

7. The electric trailer hook according to claim 1, characterized in that: Also included is a positioning assembly configured to reliably position the trailer hook in the working position / retracted position when the trailer hook is unloaded.

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