Steering engine and vehicle

Abstract

The utility model provides a steering engine and a vehicle. The steering engine includes: a servo unit including: a rotating shaft; the first shell comprises an opening and an opening section, the opening is formed at the outward end of the opening section, and the rotating shaft extends from the interior of the first shell to penetrate through the opening and the opening section; the oil sealing piece is sleeved on the rotating shaft in the opening section, and is respectively in sealing connection with the rotating shaft and the opening section; and a transmission unit comprising: a worm gear and a worm arranged to mesh with each other; a second housing accommodating the worm wheel and the worm, and attached to the first housing; and the coupling is used for connecting the worm and the rotating shaft together. The steering engine and the vehicle have the advantages of being simple, reliable, easy to implement, convenient to use and the like, and the improved sealing capacity can be provided.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the field of sealing structures. More particularly, the present application relates to a steering machine which aims to provide improved sealing capability. The present application also relates to a vehicle comprising the above-mentioned steering machine. BACKGROUND

[0002] Various vehicles such as Light Commercial Vehicles (LCV) and Heavy Commercial Vehicles (HCV) have been developed in the art. Some cavities in the steering machine for the above-mentioned vehicles can be designed without oil, and can also be designed with oil. The steering machine can comprise a server unit (SU), and the server unit can comprise an electric motor to provide power. It is desirable that the server unit and the electric motor are free from the oil in the steering machine, that is, the electric motor needs to have sealing capability against the oil. SUMMARY

[0003] It is an object of one aspect of the present application to provide a steering machine which can provide improved sealing capability. It is an object of another aspect of the present application to provide a vehicle comprising the above-mentioned steering machine.

[0004] The object of the present application is achieved by the technical solutions as follows:

[0005] A steering machine comprising:

[0006] a server unit comprising:

[0007] a rotation shaft;

[0008] a first housing comprising an opening and an opening section, the opening being formed at an outward facing end of the opening section, wherein the rotation shaft extends from inside the first housing through the opening and the opening section; and

[0009] an oil seal member fitted on the rotation shaft in the opening section and forming a sealed connection with the rotation shaft and the opening section respectively; and

[0010] a transmission unit comprising:

[0011] a worm gear and a worm screw arranged in mesh with each other;

[0012] a second housing accommodating the worm gear and the worm screw and attached to the first housing; and

[0013] a coupling connecting the worm screw and the rotation shaft together.

[0014] In the above described steering gear, optionally, the rotation shaft extends outside the first housing, and the opening section protrudes in the axial direction with respect to other parts of the first housing.

[0015] In the above described steering gear, optionally, the part of the rotation shaft that is in contact with the oil seal has one or more of the following parameters: hardness between 45-55 HRC, surface roughness of RZ4, diameter tolerance of 0.05 mm; the part of the opening section that is in contact with the oil seal has one or more of the following parameters: surface roughness of RZ16, inner diameter tolerance of H8.

[0016] In the above described steering gear, optionally, the first housing and the second housing are connected together by a plurality of bolts, and a seal is provided between them to form a sealed connection.

[0017] In the above described steering gear, optionally, the coupling connects the end of the rotation shaft and the end of the worm together.

[0018] In the above described steering gear, optionally, the worm and the rotation shaft are both arranged to extend along the axial direction, and the worm is attached to the second housing by a swing bearing.

[0019] In the above described steering gear, optionally, the servo unit includes at least two bearings, which are provided between the rotation shaft and the first housing.

[0020] In the above described steering gear, optionally, the opening section forms a step at the end that faces the inside of the first housing, and one of the bearings abuts against the step, and the oil seal is provided between one of the bearings and the opening.

[0021] In the above described steering gear, optionally, the servo unit includes a stator and a rotor, the stator is fixed with respect to the first housing, and the rotor is attached to the rotation shaft.

[0022] A vehicle including the above described steering gear. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0023] The present application will be described in further detail in connection with the appended drawings and preferred embodiments. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the drawings are for illustrative purposes only and should not be construed as limiting the scope of the present application in any way. Furthermore, unless specifically noted, the drawings are not necessarily to scale and the dimensions of the various features can have been exaggerated for the sake of clarity and presentation. The drawings are not intended to limit the scope of the application in any way.

[0024] Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of the steering gear of the present application.

[0025] Figure 2 is Figure 1 is a partial enlarged view of the embodiment shown. Detailed Implementation

[0026] Preferred 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.

[0027] First, it should be noted that the directional terms such as top, bottom, upward, and downward mentioned in this article are defined relative to the directions shown in the various accompanying figures. These directions are relative concepts and will therefore vary depending on their location and state. Therefore, these or other directional terms should not be construed as restrictive.

[0028] Furthermore, it should be noted that any single technical feature described or implied in the embodiments herein, or any single technical feature shown or implied in the accompanying drawings, can be further combined to obtain other embodiments not directly mentioned herein.

[0029] It should be noted that in different figures, the same reference numerals denote the same or substantially the same parts.

[0030] Figure 1 and Figure 2 Different aspects of one embodiment of the steering gear of this application are illustrated. The steering gear may include at least a servo unit 10 and a transmission unit 20. In one embodiment, the servo unit 10 may include a motor, and therefore may also be referred to as including a motor assembly. In one embodiment, the transmission unit 20 may include a worm gear mechanism.

[0031] The servo unit 10 may include a shaft 110, a first housing 120, an oil seal 130, and at least two or more bearings 140, etc. The shaft 110 may extend generally along the axial direction AA. The first housing 120 may receive the shaft 110, and one end of the shaft 110 may extend to the outside of the first housing 120. In the illustrated embodiment, the first housing 120 may include an opening 121 and an opening section 122. The opening section 122 is a portion of the first housing 120 that forms the opening 121, and the opening 121 may be located at one end of the opening section 122. In one embodiment, the opening section 122 may project in the axial direction AA relative to other portions of the first housing 120. In one embodiment, the inner wall of the opening section 122 may be configured to be generally cylindrical and may extend along the axial direction AA.

[0032] The oil seal 130 can be sleeved on the shaft 110 and can be located at the opening section 122. In one embodiment, the oil seal can also be referred to as a shaft seal. In particular, the outer surface and the inner surface of the oil seal 130 can be in contact with the inner wall of the opening section 122 and the outer wall of the shaft 110 respectively, and form a sealing structure respectively. In one embodiment, the oil seal 130 can be any suitable commercially available sealing component. In one embodiment, the portion of the shaft 100 that is in contact with the oil seal 130 can have one or more of the following parameters: a hardness between 45-55 HRC, a surface roughness of RZ4, a diameter tolerance of 0.05 mm, etc. The portion of the opening section 121 that is in contact with the oil seal 130 can have one or more of the following parameters: a surface roughness of RZ16, an inner diameter tolerance of H8. In the above parameters, HRC represents Rockwell hardness, and RZ represents microscopic unevenness ten-point height.

[0033] The bearing 140 can be sleeved on the shaft 110 and can be disposed between the shaft 110 and the first housing 120. In one embodiment, two bearings 140 are disposed at the two ends of the shaft 110 respectively and collectively support the shaft 110. In one embodiment, one of the bearings 140 can be disposed between the inner wall of the first housing 120 and the outer wall of the shaft 110. In one embodiment, the oil seal 130 can be disposed between one of the bearings 140 and the opening 121. In one embodiment, the opening section 122 can form a step 123 at the end towards the inside of the first housing 120, and the bearing 140 can abut against the step 123.

[0034] It is easy to understand that the servo unit 10 can also include a stator and a rotor. The stator can be fixed relative to the first housing 120, and the rotor can be attached to the shaft 110. The stator and the rotor collectively constitute part of the motor.

[0035] The transmission unit 20 can include a worm gear 211, a worm shaft 212, a second housing 220, and a coupling 230, etc. The second housing 220 can accommodate and support the worm gear 211 and the worm shaft 212. The first housing 120 can be attached to the second housing 220, and a seal 221 is disposed therebetween to form a sealed connection. In one embodiment, the first housing 120 and the second housing 220 can be attached together by one or more bolts 222. The worm gear 211 and the worm shaft 212 can be meshed with each other, and one end of the worm shaft 212 can be connected with the shaft 110 extending outside the first housing 120 through the coupling 230. The worm shaft 212 can extend substantially along the axial direction A-A. It is easy to understand that due to the presence of the coupling 230, the worm shaft 212 and the shaft 110 are not always coaxial, and the shaft centers of the worm shaft 212 and the shaft 110 can be offset within a certain angular range during operation.

[0036] Further, the outer periphery of the worm 212 can be sleeved with a swing bearing 213, and the swing bearing 213 can be arranged between the outer surface of the worm 212 and the second housing 220. During the operation of the steering machine, the swing bearing adjusts the radial clearance and generates runout, so that the axial seal is not suitable to be arranged on the worm 212.

[0037] The present application also relates to a vehicle, which can comprise a transmission system, the transmission system can comprise the steering machine described above. In one embodiment, the vehicle can be a light commercial vehicle, a medium commercial vehicle or a heavy commercial vehicle.

[0038] The steering machine and the vehicle of the present application have the advantages of being simple and reliable, easy to implement, convenient to use, etc., can provide improved sealing effect, avoid oil entering the motor part of the servo unit, and thus ensure the safe and stable operation of the motor.

[0039] The present application is disclosed with reference to the drawings and to enable a person skilled in the art to practice the application, including making and using any devices or systems, selecting appropriate materials, and using any incorporated methods. The scope of the application is defined by the technical solutions claimed, and includes other examples that a person skilled in the art thinks of. As long as such other examples include structural elements that are not different from the literal language of the claimed technical solutions, or such other examples include equivalent structural elements that are not materially different from the literal language of the claimed technical solutions, such other examples should be considered to be within the protection scope determined by the claimed technical solutions of the present application.

Claims

1. A steering gear, characterized by Comprising: a servo unit (10) comprising: a rotation shaft (110); a first housing (120) comprising an opening (121) formed at an end of an opening section (122) facing outward, wherein the rotation shaft (110) extends from inside the first housing (120) through the opening (121) and the opening section (122); and an oil seal member (130) fitted on the rotation shaft (110) in the opening section (122) and forming a sealed connection with the rotation shaft (110) and the opening section (122), respectively; and a transmission unit (20) comprising: a worm gear (211) and a worm shaft (212) arranged in mesh with each other; a second housing (220) accommodating the worm gear (211) and the worm shaft (212) and attached to the first housing (120); and a coupling (230) connecting the worm shaft (212) and the rotation shaft (110) together.

2. The steering gear according to claim 1, characterized in that The rotation shaft (110) extends outside the first housing (120), and the opening section (122) protrudes in an axial direction (A-A) relative to other parts of the first housing (120).

3. The steering gear according to claim 1, wherein The part of the rotation shaft (110) in contact with the oil seal member (130) has one or more of the following parameters: a hardness between 45-55 HRC, a surface roughness of RZ4, a diameter tolerance of 0.05 mm; the part of the opening section (122) in contact with the oil seal member (130) has one or more of the following parameters: a surface roughness of RZ16, an inner diameter tolerance of H8.

4. The steering gear of claim 1 wherein, The first housing (120) and the second housing (220) are connected together by a plurality of bolts (222) and a seal (221) is provided therebetween to form a sealed connection.

5. The steering gear of claim 1 wherein, The coupling (230) connects the end of the rotation shaft (110) and the end of the worm shaft (212) together.

6. The steering gear according to claim 5, wherein The worm shaft (212) and the rotation shaft (110) are both arranged to extend along an axial direction (A-A), and the worm shaft (212) is attached to the second housing (220) by a swing bearing (213).

7. The steering gear according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that The servo unit (10) comprises at least two bearings (140) provided between the rotation shaft (110) and the first housing (120).

8. The steering gear according to claim 7, characterized in that The opening section (122) forms a step (123) at an end facing the inside of the first housing (120), and one of the bearings (140) abuts against the step (123), and the oil seal member (130) is provided between one of the bearings (140) and the opening (121).

9. The steering gear according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that The servo unit (10) comprises a stator fixed relative to the first housing (120) and a rotor attached on the rotation shaft (110).

10. A vehicle characterized by comprising: A steering gear comprising the servo unit according to any one of claims 1-9.

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