Adjustment mechanism for a diffuser body on a motor vehicle, diffuser device and motor vehicle

Abstract

The present invention relates to an adjustment mechanism (1) for a diffuser body (2) on a motor vehicle (3), which is configured to move the diffuser body (2) in a retracted position into an extended position in a retractable manner. What is essential to the invention is that the adjustment mechanism (1) has the following components, - a pendulum rod (7), via which the motor vehicle (3) can be articulated to the diffuser body (2), - a toggle lever (8) which can be connected in an articulated manner to the motor vehicle (3) and in an articulated manner to the diffuser body (2), - a longitudinally elastic coupling lever (9) which is articulated at one end to a knee joint (10) of the knee lever (8) and at the other end to the adjusting lever (11).

Description

The present invention relates to an adjustment mechanism for a diffuser body on a motor vehicle, which is configured such that it moves the diffuser body in a returnable manner from a retracted position into an extended position, according to the preamble of claim 1.DE 103 09 369 A1 discloses a generic adjusting mechanism for a diffuser body on a motor vehicle.DE 10 2020 209 130 A1 discloses a fairing arrangement for fairing a body element of a vehicle, having a pivotably mounted air guiding device which can be displaced by means of a kinematic arrangement into a retracted first functional position and into a completely extended second functional position and vice versa.DE 10 2019 133 502 A1 discloses an air guiding arrangement for a motor vehicle having at least one air guiding element which extends at least partially in the transverse direction of the motor vehicle in the nose region of the motor vehicle and can be transferred by at least one actuator from a retracted rest position into an extended air guiding position, wherein the air guiding element is movably connected to a body part of the motor vehicle via an deployment arrangement.DE 11 2019 005 188 T5 discloses an adjusting mechanism for a diffuser body on a motor vehicle having an adjusting mechanism which is configured in such a way that it moves the diffuser body in a returnable manner from a retracted position into an extended position. In the extended position, an air flow surface of the diffuser body is spaced further from the body of the motor vehicle than in the retracted position. Furthermore, the adjusting mechanism has an adjusting device for adjusting the diffuser body from its retracted position into its extended position and back.DE 10 2023 004 817 A1 discloses a motor vehicle having a rear diffuser which is arranged in an adjustable manner on an underbody of the motor vehicle. The rear diffuser is elastically mounted within a predefined adjustment angle α in a range of 9° to 25° with respect to the underbody.From DE 10 2015 223 492 A1 a variable control device is known with a spoiler panel which, in the retracted state, is in close contact with a rear bumper in order to fulfil the function of the rear bumper. In the extended state, the spoiler panel extends downward from the rear bumper to perform the function of a spoiler. For adjusting the spoiler panel, a comparatively complex adjusting mechanism is provided, which can, however, be damaged if the spoiler panel strikes an obstacle, for example.WO 2019 / 229 200 A1 discloses a further diffuser device for a motor vehicle having a diffuser body which can be adjusted between its retracted and its extended position by means of a likewise comparatively complicated adjusting mechanism.DE 10 2013 105 842 A1 discloses a diffuser which is arranged on a rear underbody of a motor vehicle and has a front, fixed diffuser part which is connected to the underbody of the motor vehicle, and a foldable rear diffuser part. By adjusting the diffuser part into an upwardly folded position and into a downwardly folded position, output / lift effects and air resistance effects are achieved accordingly.DE 10 2017 210 023 A1 discloses an adjustable spoiler device on a rear bumper of a motor vehicle. The spoiler device includes a connecting device installed on a rear bumper beam and adapted to vary in length in an up-down direction during a rotational operation. A spoiler of the spoiler device is operatively connected to the connecting device and follows the latter in the upward-downward movement.Diffusers or spoilers arranged on the rear side on an underbody of a motor vehicle, which diffusers or spoilers are adjustable between a retracted position, in particular an elevated position, i.e. a non-use position, and an extended position, in particular a lowered position, i.e. a use position, are sufficiently known.However, the disadvantage of the diffuser devices known from the prior art is that they are coupled to the motor vehicle on the one hand via comparatively complex adjustment mechanisms in order to be able to be adjusted between their retracted position and their extended position and on the other hand greatly reduce a slope angle in the extended position. In particular due to weather-related disturbances, for example in winter, it may not be possible to ensure that a diffuser body of a diffuser device is always retracted. When driving off the curb, an undesired collision with the curb, i.e. a contact on the curb, can therefore occur, in particular if the motor vehicle is additionally highly sprung in due to its own weight. Such a placement on a curbstone can cause great damage to the diffuser device, i.e. its adjustment mechanism or diffuser body, which is complicated to repair and thus expensive.The present invention is therefore concerned with the problem of specifying an improved or at least one alternative embodiment for an adjusting mechanism of the generic type, by means of which the problems known from the prior art can be at least partially overcome.This problem is solved according to the invention by the subject matter of independent claim 1. Advantageous embodiments are the subject of the dependent claims.The present invention is based on the general idea of constructing an adjustment mechanism for adjusting a diffuser body on a motor vehicle on the one hand in a structurally simple manner, i.e. in particular from a few parts, and on the other hand in such a manner that it yields when it is placed on a curbstone, for example, so that the diffuser body can be pressed simply upwards in this case. The adjustment mechanism according to the invention for a diffuser body on a motor vehicle, in particular on a rear of a motor vehicle, is configured in such a way that it moves the diffuser body in a returnable manner from a retracted position into an extended position, i.e. from a non-use position into a use position. In the extended position, an airflow surface of the diffuser body is spaced further from a body of the motor vehicle than in the retracted position. According to the invention, the adjusting mechanism now has the following components: a pendulum rod, via which the motor vehicle can be connected in an articulated manner to the diffuser body, a toggle lever, which can be connected in an articulated manner to the motor vehicle at the top, i.e. on the motor vehicle side, and to the diffuser body at the bottom, i.e. on the diffuser body side, and a longitudinally elastic coupling lever, which can be connected in an articulated manner at one end to a toggle joint of the toggle lever and at the other end to an adjusting lever of an adjusting device. On the whole, the entire adjusting mechanism thus has only three levers, namely a pendulum rod, a toggle lever, and the longitudinally elastic coupling lever, which represents a significant reduction in the diversity of parts compared to adjusting mechanisms known from the prior art. Due to the longitudinally elastic design of the coupling lever, it is also capable of yielding under tension, which is used to the effect that when the motor vehicle is placed on, for example, a curbstone, the coupling lever is simply elongated and, as a result, the adjusting mechanism can be designed to be resilient, so that when the motor vehicle is placed on, for example, a curbstone, the diffuser body can be simply pressed upwards. The longitudinal elasticity of the coupling lever is of course designed in such a way that wind forces which usually occur during the driving operation cannot cause an elongation or compression of the coupling lever. The adjusting mechanism according to the invention can thus achieve two advantages in comparison with lever mechanisms known from the prior art: on the one hand, the entire adjusting mechanism can be constructed in a significantly simpler and thus also more cost-effective and space-saving manner and, on the other hand, in such a way that in particular a diffuser body, but also the adjusting mechanism, are not damaged when the motor vehicle is undesirably placed on an obstacle.In an advantageous development of the adjusting mechanism according to the invention, the longitudinally elastic coupling lever has an elastic spring element. Such an elastic spring element can be, for example, a helical spring which is individually adaptable, i.e., easily to the requirements specifically present on a respective motor vehicle, both with respect to its spring force and with respect to its size or its spring travel. Moreover, such coil springs can also be produced cost-effectively.According to the invention, the longitudinally elastic coupling lever has a gas spring. A gas spring, also called a gas compression spring, usually has a steel cylinder which contains pressurized gas, for example nitrogen, and a piston rod which slides through the cylinder through a sealing ring. The gas is compressed when the piston rod enters the cylinder, thus imparting a shock to the cylinder, thereby acting as a spring. Such gas springs can likewise be designed with almost any spring constants and, in addition, in a space-saving and cost-effective manner, which offers the great advantage that the entire adjusting mechanism can also be designed in a cost-effective manner.The pendulum rod expediently has a bend. Such a bend can be oriented opposite to the knee of the toggle lever, whereby a particularly tight contact or a particularly tight collapsing of the adjusting mechanism in its retracted position is made possible. By means of the bend in the pendulum rod, articulated connection points on the one hand to the motor vehicle and on the other hand to the diffuser body can moreover be designed more individually with regard to their position.The present invention is further based on the general idea of specifying a diffuser device for a motor vehicle, wherein the diffuser device has a diffuser body which can be connected to a body of the motor vehicle via two adjustment mechanisms described in the preceding paragraphs. Furthermore, the diffuser device has an adjustment device for adjusting the diffuser body from its retracted position into its extended position, which is arranged between the two adjustment mechanisms, so that the adjustment device can bring about the adjustment of the diffuser body by means of a single drive shaft, which is coupled to a corresponding drive motor, for example an electric actuator. By arranging the adjusting device between the two adjusting mechanisms and simultaneously actuating two such adjusting mechanisms with only a single adjusting device, it is possible to dispense with two separate adjusting devices, which likewise results in construction space and cost advantages.In a particularly preferred embodiment of the diffuser device according to the invention, the diffuser body has a cavity. Theoretically, it is conceivable that the diffuser body is formed from a sheet metal body or a plastic body, which has at least one cavity for weight reduction. The cavity can of course be foamed in order to impart sufficient stability to the diffuser body on the one hand and to prevent unpleasant noise generation, for example due to resonance effects on the other hand.The present invention is further based on the general idea of equipping a motor vehicle with a diffuser device described in the preceding paragraphs and thereby transferring the advantages described with respect to the diffuser device according to the invention to the motor vehicle. Specifically, the advantages lie in an adjustment mechanism which is of comparatively simple and thus also cost-effective construction and which, on the one hand, enables reliable adjustment of the diffuser body between its retracted non-use position and its extended use position and, on the other hand, is designed in such a way that it can be adjusted by means of an external force, for example when it is placed on a curbstone, without the diffuser body or the adjustment mechanism being damaged in the process.Expediently, a stop is arranged on the motor vehicle, on which the diffuser body is supported, in particular in its retracted position. Such a stop can simultaneously also form a stop when the motor vehicle is placed on a curbstone, for example, so that in this case the diffuser body is pressed upwards until it bears against the stop on the motor vehicle side. In order to prevent damage to the diffuser body, the stop on the motor vehicle side can also have a stop surface on which the diffuser body likewise rests flat against the stop surface. The extensive introduction of force thus allows a risk of damage to be reduced.In a particularly preferred embodiment of the motor vehicle according to the invention, an air flow break-off point is displaced rearward in the direction of travel when the diffuser body is in its extended position. When the diffuser body is in its retracted position, i.e. non-use position, the airflow break-off point is located further forward in the direction of travel. This offers the great advantage that the airflow break-off point located further to the rear in the extended position enables an improved output and thus an improved traction of the motor vehicle, while the airflow break-off point located further to the front in its retracted position permits a higher bank angle.Further important features and advantages of the invention are evident from the dependent claims, from the drawings and from the associated description of the figures with reference to the drawings.It is understood that the features mentioned above and those still to be explained below can be used not only in the respectively specified combination, but also in other combinations or alone, without departing from the scope of the invention as defined by the claims. The above-mentioned components of a superordinate unit, such as a device, a device or an arrangement, which are designated separately, can form separate components or components of this unit or can be integral regions or sections of this unit, even if this is illustrated differently in the drawings.Preferred exemplary embodiments of the invention are illustrated in the drawings and are explained in more detail in the following description, wherein the same reference numerals refer to the same or similar or functionally the same components.They show, in each case schematically, FIG. 1 is a perspective view from below of a diffuser device according to the invention arranged on the rear side on a motor vehicle according to the invention, with the diffuser body retracted, FIG. 2 is a view as in FIG. 1, but with the diffuser body in its extended position, FIG. 3 shows a sectional illustration through the diffuser device according to the invention when the diffuser body is in its retracted position, FIG. 4 shows a view of a diffuser device according to the invention without a diffuser body and without a second adjustment mechanism, FIG. 5 is a view similar to FIG. 3, but with the diffuser body in its extended position, FIG. 6 is a view similar to FIG. 5, but also with the adjusting mechanism in its extended position, FIG. 7 is a side rear view of a motor vehicle according to the invention when driving into a ground shaft to illustrate the possibility of damage-free upward pressing of the diffuser body, FIG. 8 shows a side rear view as in FIG. 7, but when placed on a curb.According to FIGS. 3-6 and 8, an adjustment mechanism 1 according to the invention for a diffuser body 2 (compare FIGS. 1, 2 and 7 ) on a motor vehicle 3 is operatively connected to an adjustment lever 11 of an adjustment device 6 and is configured in such a way that it moves the diffuser body 2 in a returnable manner from a retracted position (compare FIGS. 1 and 3 and 4), i.e. a non-use position, into an extended position (compare FIGS. 2 and 5 and 6), i.e. a use position. In the extended position, an air flow surface 5 is spaced further from a body of the motor vehicle 3 or the motor vehicle 3 than in the retracted position.The adjusting mechanism 1 is connected in an articulated manner via the pendulum rod 7 and the toggle lever 8 to the diffuser body 2 or an L-shaped lever 4 connected thereto.According to the invention, the adjusting mechanism 4 now has the following components:A pendulum rod 7, by means of which the motor vehicle 3 can be articulated to the diffuser body 2, a toggle lever 8, which can be connected / connected at the top, i.e. on the motor vehicle side, in an articulated manner to the motor vehicle 3 and at the bottom, i.e. on the diffuser body side, in an articulated manner to the diffuser body 2, and a longitudinally elastic coupling lever 9, which can be connected at the one hand to a toggle joint 10 of the toggle lever 8 and at the other hand in an articulated manner to the adjusting lever 11. The adjusting mechanism 1 according to the invention has the great advantage of a construction which is extremely simple on the one hand in terms of design and therefore also cost-effective on the other hand due to the comparatively small number of parts, and on the other hand the possibility of moving the diffuser body 2 upwards by elastic lengthening of the coupling lever 9 when it is placed on, for example, an obstacle 12 (compare FIGS. 7 and 8 ), as is also clearly shown in FIG. 8.According to the invention, the longitudinally elastic coupling lever 9 has a gas spring, not shown, or alternatively an elastic spring element, likewise not shown, for example a helical spring. Such a helical spring can be produced in a space-optimized manner and at the same time in a cost-effective manner, as can a corresponding gas spring. In addition, it is conceivable to individually adapt a spring stiffness of such spring elements or gas springs to corresponding requirements.If the adjusting mechanism 1 is further considered, it can be seen that the pendulum rod 7 has a bend 13 which, on the one hand, makes it possible to arrange the two elongated connection points of the toggle lever 8 and of the pendulum rod 7 at locations on the motor vehicle 3 specifically provided for this purpose and, on the other hand, offers the possibility of another movement of the diffuser body 2 between its retracted position and its extended position.The adjustment mechanism 1 is a component of a diffuser device 14 with a diffuser body 2, which also has the above-mentioned adjustment device 6 for adjusting the diffuser body 2. According to FIGS. 4 and 6, the diffuser device 14 has two such adjusting mechanisms 1 and only a single adjusting device 6. the adjusting device 6 is arranged between the two adjusting mechanisms 1 so that the adjusting device 6 can bring about the adjustment of the diffuser body 2 by means of a single drive shaft 19 which is coupled to a corresponding drive motor, for example an electric actuator. The drive shaft 19 is in turn coupled to a respective adjusting lever 11 with an associated adjusting mechanism 1.In general, the diffuser device 14 is arranged on the rear side of the motor vehicle 3, as can be seen not only from FIGS. 1 and 2, but also from FIGS. 7 and 8.In addition, a stop 15 (compare FIG. 8 ) can be arranged on the motor vehicle 3, against which the diffuser body 2 bears in its retracted position, i.e. for example when it is placed on an obstacle 12, in particular a curbstone. The stop 15 can have a stop surface facing the diffuser body 2, against which the diffuser body 2 likewise makes surface contact with a stop surface, so that, in particular when the motor vehicle 3 is placed with its diffuser device 14, in particular with the diffuser body 2 on an obstacle 12, the diffuser body 2 can simply be pressed upwards and made surface contact with the stop 15. A load which is punctiform and thus greatly loading and possibly also damaging can thereby be avoided.If one considers in particular FIG. 8, it can be seen that the diffuser body 2 has a cavity 17. Theoretically, it is conceivable that the diffuser body 2 is formed from a sheet metal body or a plastic body, which has at least one cavity 17 for weight reduction. The cavity 17 can of course be foamed in order to impart sufficient stability to the diffuser body 2 on the one hand and to prevent unpleasant noise generation, for example due to resonance effects on the other hand.If FIGS. 1 and 2 and FIGS. 3 and 5 are again considered, it can be seen that an air flow break-off point 16 is displaced to the rear in the direction of travel 18 when the diffuser body 2 is in its extended position. By means of the diffuser device 14 according to the invention, it is thus possible to obtain an optimized air resistance when the diffuser body 2 is in its extended position, while a higher bank angle can be achieved when the diffuser body 2 is in its retracted position.The diffuser body 2 can yield as far as into the retracted position when the motor vehicle 3 is placed on the obstacle 12 and then returns to its starting position due to the longitudinally elastic coupling lever 9.All in all, with the adjusting mechanism 1 according to the invention, the diffusor device 14 according to the invention and the motor vehicle 3 according to the invention, a structurally simple adjustment of a diffusor body 2 between its use position and its non-use position can be achieved, wherein, due to the longitudinally elastic coupling lever 9 provided according to the invention, damage to the adjusting mechanism 1 when the motor vehicle 3 is placed on an obstacle 12 can be reliably prevented, since in this case the coupling lever 9 is extended and the diffusor body 2 can thereby be pressed upwards into its retracted position until it abuts, for example, the stop 15 of the motor vehicle 3.

Claims

Adjusting mechanism (1) for a diffuser body (2) on a motor vehicle (3), wherein the adjusting mechanism (1) is configured such that it moves the diffuser body (2) in a returnable manner from a retracted position into an extended position, wherein in the extended position an air flow surface (5) of the diffuser body (2) is spaced further from a body of the motor vehicle (3) than in the retracted position, wherein the adjusting mechanism (1) has the following components, - a pendulum rod (7) via which the motor vehicle (3) can be connected in an articulated manner to the diffuser body (2), - a toggle lever (8) which can be connected in an articulated manner to the motor vehicle (3) and in an articulated manner to the diffuser body (2), - a longitudinally elastic coupling lever (9) which can be connected in an articulated manner at one end to a toggle lever (10) of the toggle lever (8) and at the other end in an articulated manner to the adjusting lever (11), characterized in that the longitudinally elastic coupling lever (9) has a gas spring.Adjusting mechanism (1) according to claim 1, characterised in that the longitudinally elastic coupling lever (9) has an elastic spring element.Adjusting mechanism (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the pendulum rod (7) has a bend (13).Diffuser device (14) for a motor vehicle (3), - having a diffuser body (2) which can be connected to a motor vehicle (3) via two adjustment mechanisms (1) according to one of the preceding claims, - having an adjustment device (6) for adjusting the diffuser body (2) from its retracted position into its extended position, - wherein the adjustment device (6) is arranged between the two adjustment mechanisms (1).Diffuser device (14) according to Claim 4, characterized in that the diffuser body (1) has a cavity (17).Diffuser device (14) according to claim 5, characterised in that the cavity (17) is foamed.Motor vehicle (3) having a diffusor device (14) according to one of Claims 4 to 6, wherein the diffusor device (14) is arranged on the rear side.Motor vehicle (3) according to Claim 7, characterized in that a stop (15) is arranged on the motor vehicle (3), on which stop the diffuser body (2) is supported, in particular in its retracted position.Motor vehicle (3) according to Claim 7 or 8, characterized in that an air flow break-off point (16) is displaced to the rear in the direction of travel (18) when the diffuser body (2) is in its extended position.

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