Control arm for a vehicle's wheel suspension

Abstract

Link (1) for a wheel suspension of a vehicle, comprising a link body which provides at least one end a bearing receptacle in which a bushing (2a, 3a) is received, wherein the bearing receptacle is defined by two spaced-apart support sections (1c, 1d; 1e, 1f) which each have an opening in which the bushing (2a, 3a) is held, wherein the openings are designed as through-passes with each a collar (1g, 1h; 1i, 1j) extending in the axial direction of the bearing receptacle, wherein the collars (1g, 1h; 1i, 1j) are each fitted into a recess (5a, 5b) formed in the bushing (2a, 3a), characterized in that the bushing (2a, 3a) is only in a space between the collars (1g, 1h;1i, 1j) the central section (2d, 3d) has a larger outer diameter than its axial end sections (2c, 3c) and the recesses (5a, 5b) are bounded in the axial direction by the axial end section (2c, 3c) of the bushing (2a, 3a) and its central section (2d, 3d) abutting the outside of the respective support section (1c, 1d; 1e, 1f) or the respective collar (1g, 1h; 1i, 1j).

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a control arm for a wheel suspension of a vehicle, in particular a motor vehicle, according to the preamble of claim 1.

[0002] Such control arms, also known as longitudinal, semi-trailing, or transverse control arms depending on their installation position, are used in vehicle construction as part of the wheel suspension. This connects the wheel to the vehicle body and guides it while allowing certain degrees of freedom.

[0003] For example, DE 10 2013 203 906 A1 discloses a triangular wishbone with a control arm body having a bearing mount for a rubber-metal bearing at one end. The bearing mount is defined by two spaced-apart support sections, each having an opening in which the outer bushing of the rubber-metal bearing is held. Furthermore, the openings are designed as passages, each with a collar, which rests against the outside of the cylindrical bushing and holds it in position.

[0004] Furthermore, hollow profile control arms with inwardly or outwardly facing passages are known from DE 10 2009 025 429 A1 and DE 10 2008 013 182 A1, in each of which a bearing component for connecting the control arm to the vehicle body of a motor vehicle is accommodated.

[0005] DE 10 2010 007 944 A1 and DE 10 2009 041 478 A1 further describe a wishbone manufactured as a one-piece sheet metal component from a sheet metal blank for arrangement on an axle of a motor vehicle with a control arm body on which a bearing holder designed as a passage with a collar is formed.

[0006] DE 90 06 777 U1 shows a tubular link with bearing eyes at each end, each of which accommodates a bearing. For this purpose, the ends of the tubular link are flattened at their ends, so that the tube walls taper towards each other from the undeformed area and form flat tongues toward the ends.

[0007] Furthermore, DE 10 2013 004 993 A1 discloses a sheet metal control arm for the wheel suspension of a motor vehicle, which control arm has a control arm body that forms two spaced-apart passages at at least one end for receiving a chassis bearing with a guide bushing. The inner surface of the passages is not smooth, but has a surface structure, for example edges, projections or ribs. Before inserting the guide bushing into the passages, it is first shrunk through a cold treatment, inserted into the passages and then heated again so that it expands. In this process, the surface structure of the inner surface of the passages penetrates slightly into the guide bushing and thus ensures that the guide bush is fixed in the passages.

[0008] Another link with a link body that provides a bearing eye arranged at one end for receiving a bushing bearing is described in DE 10 2011 080 452 A1. The bushing bearing has an outer bushing held on the bearing eye, which comprises a plastic material from which a radially deflectable locking element is formed. When the bushing bearing is installed, this locking element engages in a locking element receptacle arranged on the inner surface of the bearing eye. The locking element receptacle is formed, for example, by the clear distance between two collars of the through-holes facing one another. A similar configuration of a bearing receptacle is also shown in DE 31 08 701 C2.

[0009] Yet another bearing mount for a rubber-metal bearing in a bearing eye with a through-hole is disclosed in DE 30 43 113 A1. The outer bushing of the bearing has a flange at one axial end, which rests against the outside of the bearing eye in the installed position.

[0010] Against this background, the present invention is based on the object of creating a control arm for the wheel suspension of a vehicle, in particular a motor vehicle, that ensures a firm and permanent fit of a bushing, in particular a bearing bush, in a bearing receptacle of the control arm. Furthermore, the weight, structure, and thus also the manufacturing costs of the control arm are to be further reduced.

[0011] This object is achieved by a handlebar having the features of claim 1. Further particularly advantageous embodiments of the invention are disclosed in the subclaims.

[0012] It should be noted that the features listed individually in the following description can be combined with one another in any technically reasonable manner and demonstrate further embodiments of the invention. The description further characterizes and specifies the invention, particularly in conjunction with the figures.

[0013] It comprises a control arm, for example a longitudinal, oblique or transverse control arm, for a wheel suspension of a vehicle, in particular a motor vehicle, a control arm body which provides a bearing receptacle at at least one end. A bushing, for example an outer bushing of an elastomer-metal bearing, is received in the bearing receptacle. The bearing receptacle is defined by two spaced-apart support sections. The two support sections each have an opening in which the bushing is held. Furthermore, the openings are designed as passages, each with a collar extending in the axial direction of the bearing receptacle. The collars are each fitted into a recess formed in the bushing. In other words, the bushing has a smaller outer diameter in the region of the recesses than in the remaining areas.This significantly improves the attachment of the bushing in the handlebar grooves, as the collars form a positive fit with the bushing. The grooves, or the supporting sections at the end of the handlebar body, cannot move toward each other or spread apart when the handlebar is loaded. In other words, the positive fit reliably prevents axial outward or inward slippage of the grooves. A handlebar designed in this way thus ensures an absolutely secure fit of the bushing on the handlebar.

[0014] Preferably, the collar borders the respective opening all the way around. However, it is also conceivable for the collar to be limited to one or more sections of the opening, so that the respective opening is at least partially enclosed by the collar.

[0015] In addition to the positive connection between the collar and the bushing described above, the collar also offers the advantage that the forces transmitted from the bushing via the supporting sections into the handlebar body are transmitted via the contact surface provided by the collar, thereby reducing the stresses occurring in this connection. Furthermore, the contact surfaces between the collar and the bushing ensure a good press fit of the bushing in the bores.

[0016] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the collars are oriented with their free end faces facing toward each other. This creates a bearing support that is as short as possible and, despite the corresponding contact surfaces provided by the collars, does not extend beyond the opposite outer sides of the two support sections.

[0017] A further advantageous embodiment of the invention provides that the bushing has axial end sections that abut against mutually opposite outer sides of the support sections or collars. This further enhances the positive engagement of the collars of the support sections or passages received in the recesses of the bushing, as the axial end sections form a positive engagement with the support sections with respect to an axial movement of the bushing in the bearing mount.

[0018] According to the invention, the bushing has a larger outer diameter only in a central section located between the collars than in the axial end sections. The recesses are advantageously delimited in the axial direction by the axial end section of the bushing, which lies against the outer side of the respective support section or the respective collar, and by its central section, which has a larger outer diameter than the axial end sections of the bushing. This enables a particularly simple design of the recesses in the bushing in which the collars are accommodated, thus reducing the manufacturing effort for the handlebar according to the invention.

[0019] Particularly preferably, the bushing held in the bearing mount of the control arm surrounds an elastomer body, for example, a rubber body, in which an inner bushing is firmly held, via which the control arm can be elastically connected, for example, to the vehicle body. The bushing, the elastomer body, and the inner bushing form a so-called elastomer-metal bearing.

[0020] A further advantageous embodiment of the invention provides for the handlebar body to be a one-piece, single-shell sheet metal part. In addition to allowing for individual shape adaptation, this forming process also increases the stability of the handlebar. The one-piece design of the handlebar body eliminates the need for a material-to-metal joining process for the sheets, such as welding, which significantly reduces the manufacturing effort for the handlebar according to the invention. Furthermore, the single-shell construction of the handlebar body offers the advantage of a lightweight construction.

[0021] Particularly preferably, the support sections are made of the same material as the handlebar body and formed integrally therewith. For example, the handlebar body can be formed from a sheet metal blank into a substantially U-shaped hollow profile, the free legs of which form side walls of the handlebar body. The support sections can be formed from two directly opposite end regions of the side walls.

[0022] Preferably, the end regions of the side walls are configured such that they extend beyond the flat part of the U-profile connecting the side walls. Accordingly, the end regions of the side walls serving as supporting sections can project beyond the control body in such a way that, together with the rest of the control body, they do not have a U-shaped cross-section, but rather form protruding cheeks that accommodate the bushing. The seamless transition of the supporting sections thus formed into the side walls ensures a design of the bearing mounts that uses as little material as possible, thus ensuring a lightweight and sufficiently load-bearing capacity.

[0023] Further features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description of a non-limiting embodiment of the invention, which is explained in more detail below with reference to the drawing. In this drawing, schematically: Fig. 1 a plan view of an embodiment of a handlebar according to the invention, Fig. 2 a bottom view of the handlebar Fig. 1 and Fig. 3 a sectional view along the Fig. 1 and Fig. 2 shown section line AA.

[0024] In the different figures, parts that are equivalent in terms of their function are always provided with the same reference symbols, so that they are usually only described once.

[0025] Fig. 1 shows schematically a plan view of an embodiment of a control arm 1 designed as a tension / compression rod according to the present invention, Fig. 2 a bottom view of the handlebar 1 from Fig. 1 and Fig. 3 a sectional view along the Fig. 1 and Fig. 2 shown section line AA. As the Fig. 1 and Fig. 2, the handlebar 1 or the one in the Fig. 1 and Fig. 2, the handlebar body, which is not specifically designated and extends essentially between the end regions of the handlebar 1, is designed as a U-shaped hollow profile. The U-shaped hollow profile is a formed steel sheet. In particular, the handlebar 1 is a one-piece, U-shaped press shell. One-piece means that the press shell has not been brought into its final contour by means of material-locking joining techniques, but exclusively by forming processes. For example, the Fig. 1 by bending twice at the points shown in Fig. 1 shown bending edges 1a and 1b.

[0026] Like the Fig. 1 and Fig. 2, the handlebar body of the rod-shaped handlebar 1 provides bearing receptacles (not specifically designated) at its ends, in each of which a bearing 2 or 3 is accommodated. Fig. 1 and Fig. In the control arm 1 shown in Figure 2, the bearings 2 and 3 are each designed as elastomer-metal bearings. Each bearing 2, 3 has an outer metal bushing 2a or 3a, respectively, and an inner metal bushing 2b or 3b, respectively. Fig. 3 shows that an elastomer body 4, preferably a rubber body, is arranged between the outer bushing 2a or 3a and the inner bushing 2b, 3b. The elastomer body 4 is firmly connected to the respective bushings 2a, 3a or 2b, 3b, for example, molded onto them by vulcanization.

[0027] As in the Fig. 1 and Fig. As shown in Figure 2, two spaced-apart support sections 1c and 1d, or 1e and 1f, are integrally formed at the end regions of the handlebar body of the handlebar 1. These support sections define the two bearing receptacles in which the bushings 2a and 3a are received. To accommodate the respective bushings 2a and 3a, the support sections 1c, 1d, 1e, and 1f each have an opening (not specifically designated) in which the bushings 2a and 3a are held.

[0028] The Fig. 1, Fig. 2 and Fig. 3 further shows that the openings of the support sections 1c, 1d, 1e, and 1f are formed as passages, each with a collar 1g, 1h, 1i, and 1j extending in the axial direction of the bearing mount. In the illustrated embodiment of the link 1, the collars 1g, 1h, 1i, and 1j are oriented toward one another with their free end faces. The outer bushings 2a and 3a are supported against the respective collars 1g, 1h, 1i, and 1j. In particular, the collars 1g, 1h, 1i, and 1j and the bushings 2a and 3a each form a press fit.

[0029] As in Fig. As shown in Figure 3, the collars 1g, 1h, 1i, and 1j are each fitted or received in a recess 5a or 5b formed in the bushing 2a or 3a, respectively. Furthermore, it can be seen that the bushings 2a or 3a have axial end portions 2c or 3c, respectively, which bear against mutually opposite outer sides of the support portions 1c and 1d, or 1e and 1f.

[0030] In particular, the socket 2a or 3a in the case of the Fig. 1 to 3, the link 1 has a larger outer diameter only in a central section 2d or 3d located between the collars 1g and 1h or 1i and 1j than in the axial end sections 2c or 3c. Accordingly, the recesses 5a and 5b are each delimited in the axial direction by the axial end section 2c or 3c of the bushing 2a or 3a, respectively, adjacent to the outer side of the respective support section 1c and 1d or 1e and 1f, and by the central section 2d, 3d thereof.

[0031] The above-described control arm according to the invention is not limited to the embodiment disclosed herein, but also encompasses other embodiments with the same effect. For example, it is conceivable that the collars, whose end faces are oriented toward each other in the previously described embodiment, could also be oriented oppositely, i.e., point away from each other. In this case, the axial end sections of the bushing accommodated in the bearing receptacle would preferably abut the free end faces of the collars.

[0032] In a preferred embodiment, the control arm according to the invention is used as part of a wheel suspension on a vehicle, in particular a motor vehicle. List of reference symbols: 1 handlebar 1a Bending edge 1b Bending edge 1c supporting section 1d supporting section 1st supporting section 1f supporting section 1g collar 1h collar 1i collar 1j collar 2 elastomer-metal bearings 2a Outer metal bushing 2b Inner metal bushing 2c final section 2d middle section 3 elastomer-metal bearings 3a Outer metal bushing 3b Inner metal bushing 3c final section 3d middle section 4 elastomer body, rubber body 5a Deepening 5b Deepening

Claims

[1] A control arm (1) for a wheel suspension of a vehicle, comprising a control arm body which provides a bearing receptacle at at least one end into which a bushing (2a, 3a) is received, the bearing receptacle being defined by two spaced-apart support sections (1c, 1d; 1e, 1f), each having an opening in which the bushing (2a, 3a) is held, the openings being formed as passages, each with a collar (1g, 1h; 1i, 1j) extending in the axial direction of the bearing receptacle, the collars (1g, 1h; 1i, 1j) each being fitted into a recess (5a, 5b) formed in the bushing (2a, 3a), characterized bythat the bushing (2a, 3a) has a larger outer diameter only in a central section (2d, 3d) lying between the collars (1g, 1h; 1i, 1j) than in its axial end sections (2c, 3c) and the depressions (5a, 5b) are each delimited in the axial direction by the axial end section (2c, 3c) of the bushing (2a, 3a) and its central section (2d, 3d) lying on the outside of the respective support section (1c, 1d; 1e, 1f) or the respective collar (1g, 1h; 1i, 1j). [2] Handlebar (1) according to claim 1, characterized by that the collars (1g, 1h; 1i, 1j) are oriented with their free end faces towards each other. [3] Handlebar (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized by that the bushing (2a, 3a) has axial end sections (2c, 3c) which bear against mutually opposite outer sides of the support sections (1c, 1d; 1e, 1f) or the collars (1g, 1h; 1i, 1j). [4] Handlebar (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized bythat the bushing (2a, 3a) surrounds an elastomer body (4) in which an inner bushing (2b, 3b) is firmly received. [5] Handlebar (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the handlebar body is a one-piece, single-shell sheet metal part.

Images