Steering engine and automobile

Abstract

The utility model discloses a steering engine and an automobile. The steering engine includes: a screw; the nut is arranged around the screw rod; and a ball circulation system between the screw and the nut, the ball circulation system comprising: a ball by means of which a rotational movement of the screw can be converted into a linear movement of the nut; and the ball communicating pipe is arranged outside the nut and is used for communicating the balls at the two ends of the screw rod. According to the steering engine, the structure can be simplified.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the automotive field, and more specifically, to a steering mechanism and an automobile having such a steering mechanism. Background Technology

[0002] The steering gear, also known as the steering unit or steering mechanism, is one of the most important components of a vehicle's steering system. Its main function is to assist the driver in turning the steering wheel, reducing the effort required and making driving easier and more convenient. Utility Model Content

[0003] One objective of this application is to provide a steering mechanism with a novel structure.

[0004] To solve the above-mentioned technical problems, this application provides a steering gear, which includes:

[0005] Screw;

[0006] A nut arranged around the screw; and

[0007] A ball recirculation system between the screw and the nut, the ball recirculation system comprising:

[0008] Ball bearings, by means of which the rotational motion of the screw is converted into the linear motion of the nut; and

[0009] A ball bearing connecting tube is disposed outside the nut, the ball bearing connecting tube being used to connect the balls located at both ends of the screw.

[0010] According to one aspect of this application, in a steering gear, the ball connecting tube is fixedly connected to the nut.

[0011] According to one aspect of this application, the steering gear includes a connecting piece that presses the ball connecting tube against the nut, and the connecting piece and the nut are connected by bolts.

[0012] According to one aspect of this application, a steering gear has a groove on the surface of the nut for at least partially accommodating the ball connecting tube.

[0013] According to one aspect of this application, the steering gear, wherein the ball connecting tube is made of spring steel.

[0014] According to one aspect of this application, the ball connecting tube is inclined to the axial direction of the screw.

[0015] According to one aspect of this application, the steering gear includes a bearing for supporting the screw, the bearing being a thrust bearing or an angular contact ball bearing.

[0016] According to one aspect of this application, the steering gear includes a housing and a cylinder head, the cylinder head being used to enclose the housing, and the bearing being supported on the housing.

[0017] According to one aspect of this application, a steering gear is provided in the housing, the mounting plate being used to mount a steering motor.

[0018] According to one aspect of this application, a steering gear is provided in the housing, the worm gear being used to transmit steering force from the steering motor to the screw, an end cap is provided at one end of the housing near the mounting plate, a bearing is supported on the end cap, the end cap being located in the space formed by the cylinder head and the housing, and the worm gear being located in the space formed by the end cap and the housing.

[0019] According to one aspect of this application, the steering gear includes a sector shaft that engages with the nut for outputting steering force.

[0020] On the other hand, this application provides an automobile that includes the aforementioned steering mechanism.

[0021] According to the technical solution of this application, a new type of steering gear is provided, which connects the balls at both ends of the screw through a ball connecting tube set outside the nut, thereby simplifying the structure of the steering gear. Attached Figure Description

[0022] The disclosure of this application is illustrated with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be understood that the drawings are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of protection of this application. Wherein:

[0023] Figure 1 A cross-sectional view schematically shows a steering mechanism according to one embodiment of this application; and

[0024] Figure 2 A 3D diagram is shown schematically. Figure 1 The steering gear in the middle. Detailed Implementation

[0025] The embodiments of this application will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that these descriptions are merely descriptive and exemplary and should not be construed as limiting the scope of protection of this application.

[0026] Please see Figure 1 and Figure 2As shown, a steering gear 10 according to a specific embodiment of this application includes a screw 1, a nut 2 disposed around the screw 1, and a ball recirculation system between the screw 1 and the nut 2. The ball recirculation system, similar to a ball screw, is used to convert the rotational motion of the screw 1 into the linear motion of the nut 2. The ball recirculation system includes balls 3 and a ball connecting tube 4. A ball track exists between the screw 1 and the nut 2, and force is transmitted by means of the balls 3 located in the ball track, enabling the conversion of the rotational motion of the screw 1 into the linear motion of the nut 2. The ball recirculation system contains a plurality of balls 3, which are spherically shaped. The ball connecting tube 4 is disposed outside the nut 2, i.e., the ball connecting tube 4 is separately disposed from the nut 2. The ball connecting tube 4 is used to connect the balls 3 located at both ends of the screw 1.

[0027] Specifically, the ball bearing connecting tube 4 connects the balls 3 located at the uppermost and lowermost ends of the screw 1 to form a circulation loop. That is, the balls 3 at the uppermost end of the screw 1 can move directly towards the lowermost end of the screw 1 through the ball bearing connecting tube 4, without needing to pass through the ball bearing track between the screw 1 and the nut 2. Conversely, the balls 3 at the lowermost end of the screw 1 can move directly towards the uppermost end of the screw 1 through the ball bearing connecting tube 4, without needing to pass through the ball bearing track between the screw 1 and the nut 2.

[0028] The present application proposes a novel steering gear 10 structure, which simplifies the structure of the steering gear 10 by connecting the balls 3 located at both ends of the screw 1 through a ball connecting tube 4 disposed outside the nut 2. Furthermore, compared to a scheme where the balls 3 circulate inside the nut 2, this reduces the volume and weight of the nut 2.

[0029] In the embodiment shown in the figure, the ball joint tube 4 is fixedly connected to the nut 2. Specifically, the steering gear 10 includes a connecting piece 5, which presses the ball joint tube 4 against the nut 2, and the connecting piece 5 is bolted to the nut 2. Further, a groove 21 is provided on the surface of the nut 2, which is used to at least partially accommodate the ball joint tube 4. The groove 21 is, for example, constructed as a half-tube, which matches the shape of the ball joint tube 4 and accommodates half of the ball joint tube 4.

[0030] For example, the ball connecting tube 4 is made of spring steel, which increases elasticity and effectively reduces the impact of the balls.

[0031] refer to Figure 2As shown, the ball connecting tube 4 is inclined to the axis of the screw 1, which can play a better role in buffering. In addition, a stop is provided at the end of the ball connecting tube 4 (i.e., the inlet and outlet of the ball), which can guide the ball 3 and prevent impact.

[0032] The steering gear 10 also includes a bearing 6, which supports the screw 1. Since the nut 2 is supported by the screw 1, the bearing 6 indirectly supports the nut 2.

[0033] The bearing 6 can be a thrust bearing, only counteracting the axial force of the screw 1. In this case, the radial force of the screw 1 is counteracted by the contact between the nut 2 and the inner wall of the steering gear 10 housing. The contact with the inner wall of the steering gear 10 housing can be a surface of the nut 2 or the ball joint tube 4. In the latter case, at least a portion of the ball joint tube 4 or the connecting piece 5 used to fix the ball joint tube 4 can be made of a wear-resistant material.

[0034] The bearing 6 can also be an angular contact ball bearing, which can counteract both the axial and radial forces of the screw 1. In this case, the nut 2 does not need to contact the inner wall 8 of the steering gear 10 housing, thus eliminating the need for high-precision machining of the inner wall of the steering gear 10 housing, saving time and cost. At this time, the distance between the outer side of the connecting piece 5 and the inner wall 8 of the housing is greater than or equal to 2.5 mm to prevent contact between the connecting piece 5 / ball bearing connecting tube 4 and the inner wall 8 of the housing.

[0035] The steering gear 10 also includes a housing 11 and a cylinder head 12, the cylinder head 12 being used to close the housing 11, specifically closing the upper end of the housing 11. The bearing 6 can be directly supported on the housing 11, or the bearing 6 can be supported on the housing 11 by means of a bushing. This arrangement simplifies the structure of the steering gear near the upper end of the housing, improves integration, and reduces the size and weight of the housing.

[0036] A mounting plate 13 is provided at the housing 11 for mounting a steering motor. The steering motor can provide at least part of the steering force to the screw through a worm gear, thereby assisting in steering. Mounting holes for the steering motor can be made on the mounting plate 13 according to the actual angle at which the steering motor is to be installed, improving installation flexibility.

[0037] A worm gear 14 is provided in the housing 11, which transmits the steering force from the steering motor to the screw 1. An end cover 15 is provided at one end of the housing 11 near the mounting plate 13, and the bearing 6 is supported on the end cover 15. The end cover 15 is located in the space formed by the cylinder head 12 and the housing 11, and the worm gear 14 is located in the space formed by the end cover 15 and the housing 11. This arrangement makes the steering gear structure more compact and more suitable for miniaturized and flexible applications.

[0038] In addition, the steering gear 10 also includes a sector shaft 7, which cooperates with the nut 2 to output steering force.

[0039] This application also includes an automobile with a steering gear of any one or more of the foregoing embodiments, the technical features and effects of which correspond to the foregoing description, and therefore will not be repeated here.

Claims

1. A steering gear (10), characterized in that, The steering gear (10) includes: Screw (1); A nut (2) disposed around the screw (1); and A ball recirculation system between the screw (1) and the nut (2), the ball recirculation system comprising: The ball bearing (3) enables the rotational motion of the screw (1) to be converted into the linear motion of the nut (2); and A ball joint tube (4) is provided outside the nut (2), which is used to connect the balls (3) at both ends of the screw (1).

2. The steering gear (10) according to claim 1, characterized in that, The ball joint tube (4) is fixedly connected to the nut (2).

3. The steering gear (10) according to claim 2, characterized in that, The steering gear (10) includes a connecting piece (5), which presses the ball connecting pipe (4) against the nut (2), and the connecting piece (5) and the nut (2) are connected by bolts.

4. The steering gear (10) according to claim 2, characterized in that, A groove (21) is provided on the surface of the nut (2), the groove (21) being used to at least partially accommodate the ball connecting tube (4).

5. The steering gear (10) according to claim 1, characterized in that, The ball joint tube (4) is made of spring steel.

6. The steering gear (10) according to claim 1, characterized in that, The ball joint tube (4) is inclined to the axis of the screw (1).

7. The steering gear (10) according to claim 1, characterized in that, The steering gear (10) includes a bearing (6) for supporting the screw (1), and the bearing (6) is a thrust bearing or an angular contact ball bearing.

8. The steering gear (10) according to claim 7, characterized in that, The steering gear (10) includes a housing (11) and a cylinder head (12), the cylinder head (12) being used to enclose the housing (11), and the bearing (6) being supported on the housing (11).

9. The steering gear (10) according to claim 8, characterized in that, A mounting plate (13) is provided at the housing (11), and the mounting plate (13) is used to install the steering motor.

10. The steering gear (10) according to claim 9, characterized in that, A worm gear (14) is provided in the housing (11) for transmitting steering force from the steering motor to the screw (1). An end cap (15) is provided at one end of the housing (11) near the mounting plate (13). The bearing (6) is supported on the end cap (15). The end cap (15) is located in the space formed by the cylinder head (12) and the housing (11). The worm gear (14) is located in the space formed by the end cap (15) and the housing (11).

11. The steering gear (10) according to claim 1, characterized in that, The steering gear (10) includes a sector shaft (7), which cooperates with the nut (2) to output steering force.

12. A car, characterized in that, It includes a steering mechanism (10) according to any one of claims 1 to 11.

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