Handle

Abstract

To provide a handle that is able to simply dispose a conductive portion at an edge part of a skin body and is excellent in the strength of the edge part of the skin body including the conductive portion.SOLUTION: A handle 1 includes a rim portion 3 for a gripping operation, the rim portion including: a rim covering portion 20 extending in a predetermined direction; a skin body 23 covering at least a part of a surface of the rim covering portion 20; and a sewn portion 24 fixing the skin body 23 to the rim covering portion 20 by sewing the skin body 23. The sewn portion 24 is formed so as to form a conductive portion 27 by sewing side edge parts 23a, 23a to each other on the back side of the skin body 23 by means of a sewing thread 26 including a conductive thread, the side edge parts extending in a predetermined direction of the skin body 23 wound around the rim covering portion 20.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a handle provided with a grip portion having an epidermal body.

Background Art

[0002] In recent years, there has been a demand for adding functions to the steering wheel, which is a handle of an automobile. For example, in order to detect biometric information of an occupant who grips the rim portion, which is a grip portion, a conductive portion is arranged at a position where it comes into contact with the occupant's finger or the like in the rim portion. In such a steering wheel, when an epidermal body such as leather is applied to the rim portion for the purpose of improving the design, it is difficult to set the conductive portion on the surface of the epidermal body, particularly at the stitching portion. Therefore, by using a conductive thread at the stitching portion, it is possible to impart a conductive function also to the stitching portion (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, since the conductive thread generally has inferior rigidity compared to a normal stitching thread, if the conductive thread is exposed on the surface of the epidermal body, it is likely to be worn by the operation of the occupant. Therefore, it is required to prevent the conductive function from being unexpectedly impaired due to wear.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of such points, and an object thereof is to provide a handle in which a conductive portion can be simply arranged at the edge of an epidermal body and the strength of the edge of the epidermal body including the conductive portion is excellent.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The handle according to claim 1 includes a grip portion main body extending in a predetermined direction, a skin body covering at least a part of the surface of the grip portion main body, and a stitching portion for fixing the skin body to the grip portion main body by stitching the skin body. The handle is a handle having a grip portion for gripping operation, and the stitching portion is formed by stitching, with a stitching thread containing a conductive thread, edges extending in the predetermined direction of the skin body wound around the grip portion main body and facing each other on the back side of the skin body to form a conductive portion.

[0007] The handle according to claim 2 is the handle according to claim 1, further comprising a decorative sewing portion located along each edge of the skin body, and the stitching portion is formed by alternately passing the stitching thread between the decorative sewing portions on the back side of the skin body.

[0008] The handle according to claim 3 is the handle according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a main conductive portion is disposed at a position that does not overlap with the stitching portion between the grip portion main body and the skin body.

[0009] The handle according to claim 4 is the handle according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the conductive portion has a heater function or a sensor function.

Advantages of the Invention

[0010] According to the handle of claim 1, since the conductive portion does not protrude on the front side of the skin body, the occupant does not directly touch the conductive portion, and a conductive portion with ensured rigidity and excellent durability can be arranged at the edges of the skin bodies stitched to each other.

[0011] According to the handle of claim 2, in addition to the effect of the handle of claim 1, the stitching portion, that is, the conductive portion, can be easily formed.

[0012] According to the handle described in claim 3, in addition to the effects of the handle described in claim 1 or 2, when suturing the edges of the epidermal body with a suture thread, it is possible to prevent the sewing needle and the main conductive part from interfering and damaging the main conductive part, and a conductive part can be formed by the main conductive part in a range other than the conductive part in the gripping part. Therefore, a wide range of the gripping part can be used as the conductive part.

[0013] According to the handle described in claim 4, in addition to the effects of the handle described in claim 1 or 2, the gripping part can be provided with a heater function and a sensor function.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0014]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0015] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0016] In Fig. 2(a), reference numeral 1 denotes a steering wheel (a steering handle) for a vehicle such as an automobile. In the present embodiment, as an example of the steering wheel, the handle 1 has a boss portion 2 located at the center thereof surrounded by a rim portion (grip) 3 which is an annular or arcuate gripping portion, and the boss portion 2 and the rim portion 3 are connected by radial spoke portions 4. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and a so-called yoke-type control lever may be used. The handle 1 is attached to a steering shaft which is a steering shaft normally provided on the vehicle in an inclined state. Hereinafter, the handle 1 will be described with the direction of arrow U being the upper side and the direction of arrow D being the lower side when viewed from the passenger side. In addition, regarding the front-rear, left-right directions, in each figure, the direction of arrow L is the left side and the direction of arrow R is the right side based on the direction viewed from the passenger seated in the driver's seat. Further, regarding each part of the handle 1, the position and shape will be described with reference to the steering reference state shown in Fig. 2(a), that is, the neutral position (neutral).

[0017] The boss portion 2 is attached to the steering shaft and is located at the rotation center of the handle 1.

[0018] The rim portion 3 is a portion that a passenger (driver) grips to operate the handle 1. That is, the rim portion 3 is a portion for steering operation. The rim portion 3 is formed to extend in a predetermined direction (shown by arrow X). In the illustrated example, the rim portion 3 is formed to extend in the rotation direction of the handle 1, that is, the circumferential direction. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the predetermined direction is the rotation direction of the handle 1 which is the circumferential direction of the rim portion 3, that is, the longitude direction or the front view circumferential direction or the large diameter direction.

[0019] A plurality of spoke portions 4 are provided. In the present embodiment, three spoke portions 4 are provided so as to connect the left and right side portions and the lower portion of the boss portion 2 and the rim portion 3. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and for example, two spoke portions may be provided, or four or more spoke portions may be provided.

[0020] And, as shown in FIGS. 2(a) and 2(b), the handle 1 has an armature (core metal) 10 which is the handle main body. The core metal 10 is made of a metal such as an alloy of aluminum or magnesium. The core metal 10 includes a boss core metal part 12 corresponding to the boss part 2, a rim core metal part 13 as a grip core metal part corresponding to the rim part 3, and a spoke core metal part 14 corresponding to the spoke part 4. The spoke core metal part 14 is continuously and integrally formed from the boss core metal part 12, and the rim core metal part 13 is fixed to the spoke core metal part 14 by welding or the like to be integrally formed. And, in the core metal 10, the connecting part between the rim core metal part 13 and the rim core metal part 13 of the spoke core metal part 14 is covered by a covering part 15.

[0021] The boss core metal part 12 constitutes the core of the boss part 2. The boss core metal part 12 has a substantially cylindrical boss having a serration structure that meshes with the steering shaft. A module 17 such as an airbag device is disposed in the boss core metal part 12. The boss part 2 is constituted by the boss core metal part 12 and the module 17. The back side of the boss core metal part 12 is covered with a cover body which is also called a back cover, a lower cover or a body cover.

[0022] The rim core metal part 13 constitutes the core of the rim part 3. In the present embodiment, the rim core metal part 13 is formed in an annular shape or an arc shape that continues over the entire circumference.

[0023] The spoke core metal part 14 constitutes the core of the spoke part 4. The spoke core metal part 14 is provided radially from the boss core metal part 12. Note that the spoke core metal part 14 is not necessarily provided for all the spoke parts 4, and some of the spoke parts 4 may be constituted by a finisher, a cover body or the like without the spoke core metal part 14.

[0024] The covering portion 15 is a resin layer formed of, for example, a synthetic resin or the like. For example, the covering portion 15 is made of a finely foamed soft polyurethane resin or the like. The covering portion 15 includes a rim covering portion 20 that is a gripping portion main body covering the rim core metal portion 13, and a spoke covering portion 21 that covers an end portion of the spoke core metal portion 14 continuous with the rim core metal portion 13.

[0025] As shown in FIG. 1(a), the rim covering portion 20 is formed in a shape that is easy for an occupant to grip, such as a circular cross-sectional shape or an elliptical shape.

[0026] As shown in FIGS. 2(a) and 2(b), the spoke covering portion 21 is continuous with the rim covering portion 20 and covers up to a position adjacent to the module 17 and the finisher at the end portion of the spoke core metal portion 14 on the rim core metal portion 13 side.

[0027] Then, as shown in FIGS. 1(a) and 2(a), the surface of the rim covering portion 20 of the covering portion 15 is mainly covered by the skin body 23. The skin body 23 is formed in a thin sheet shape of natural leather, synthetic leather, or synthetic resin, etc., and is wound around the surface of the rim covering portion 20 to cover the entire rim covering portion 20. The surface of the skin body 23 forms the surface of the rim portion 3. In the present embodiment, the skin body 23 is divided into a plurality of pieces so as to cover the entire rim portion 3 in the predetermined direction in which the rim portion 3 extends, and in the present embodiment, the range across the weft direction of the rim portion 3. And each skin body 23 is curved along the meridian direction or the cross-sectional circumferential direction or the small diameter direction of the rim portion 3 so as to wrap the rim covering portion 20, and both side edges 23a, 23a which are edge portions extending in the weft direction are on the inner edge side of the rim covering portion 20, that is, the side facing the boss portion 2, in other words, the positions on the rotation center side of the handle 1, and face each other without a gap or substantially without a gap in the meridian direction, and these both side edges 23a, 23a are sewn to each other by the sewing portion 24 and fixed to the covering portion 15 (rim covering portion 20).

[0028] As shown in FIGS. 1(a) and 1(b), the suture portion 24 includes a suture thread 26 containing a conductive thread, and the suture thread 26 is arranged in a zigzag shape across the side edge portions 23a, 23a on the back side of the epidermal body 23 to form a conductive portion 27. In the present embodiment, the suture thread 26 itself is a conductive thread, but it is not limited to this, and a blended yarn containing a conductive thread or the like may be used as the suture thread 26. As the conductive thread, for example, one made of a conductive material such as metal plating is used. In the present embodiment, stitch portions 28, 28 are formed along the side edge portions 23a, 23a in parallel or substantially parallel, and the suture thread 26 is arranged in a zigzag shape across between these stitch portions 28, 28 on the back side of the epidermal body 23. Therefore, in the illustrated example, the conductive portion 27 is formed between the stitch portions 28, 28 on the back side of the epidermal body 23. That is, by suturing the epidermal body 23 with the suture thread 26, the position of the suture thread 26, that is, the position of the conductive portion 27 is determined.

[0029] The stitch portion 28 is a decorative sewing portion for design that forms an intermittent line on the front side of the epidermal body 23, and is arranged at a position near the side edge portion 23a of the epidermal body 23. In the present embodiment, the suture portion 24 and the stitch portion 28 form a catch stitch, also called a so-called European stitch or the like, and the suture thread 26 is sewn so as to be alternately hooked to one stitch portion 28 and the other stitch portion 28, and the stitch portion 28 is curved by the suture thread 26. In the illustrated example, the suture thread 26 is hooked to one stitch portion 28 and the other stitch portion 28 skipping one stitch (skipping one stitch) in the weft direction of the rim covering portion 20. Therefore, the suture thread 26 is not exposed on the surface of the epidermal body 23 and is at a position where the fingers of the occupant holding the rim portion 3 do not directly contact.

[0030] The conductive part 27 has a heater function or a sensor function. The conductive part 27 is electrically connected to an in-vehicle control device 29 such as an ECU located on the vehicle body side. The in-vehicle control device 29, together with the conductive part 27, functions as, for example, a heater part that indirectly warms the hand of a passenger holding the rim part 3, a detection part that detects the holding / non-holding of the rim part 3 by the passenger (hands-on / off detection (HoD)), or a detection part that measures the biological information of the passenger (such as heartbeat, pulse, myoelectricity, blood flow, etc.). For example, when the conductive part 27 has a sensor function, the epidermal body 23 becomes an insulating layer, a capacitor is formed between the hand of the passenger holding the rim part 3 and the conductive part 27, and by detecting the change in the capacitance of the capacitor, the in-vehicle control device 29 functions as a detection part.

[0031] The conductive part 27 may be arranged continuously over the entire circumference of the rim part 3 or may be arranged intermittently. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 2(a), the conductive part 27 is arranged continuously over a range of the rim part 3 excluding the connecting part between the rim part 3 and the spoke part 4.

[0032] Preferably, as shown in FIG. 1(a), a main conductive part 30 is arranged between the epidermal body 23 and the rim covering part 20. The main conductive part 30 is formed in a sheet shape, for example. The main conductive part 30 may be embedded in the rim covering part 20, but in this embodiment, it is wound around the surface of the rim covering part 20 and sandwiched and held between the rim covering part 20 and the epidermal body 23. The main conductive part 30 can be arranged at any position of the rim part 3. In this embodiment, the main conductive part 30 is curved along the warp direction or the cross-sectional circumferential direction or the minor diameter direction of the rim part 3 so as to wrap the rim covering part 20, and extends and is arranged over the weft direction or the front view circumferential direction or the major diameter direction of the rim part 3.

[0033] The main conductive part 30 has both side edges 30a, 30a which are edges extending in the weft direction, facing each other in the warp direction with a gap therebetween on the inner edge side of the rim covering part 20, that is, on the side facing the boss part 2, in other words, on the rotation center side of the handle 1, and is located at a position not overlapping with the stitching part 24. That is, both side edges 30a, 30a of the main conductive part 30 are at positions away from both side edges 23a, 23a of the skin body 23, in this embodiment, the stitch parts 28, 28, in the warp direction of the rim part 3 (rim covering part 20). Therefore, the main conductive part 30 is in a complementary relationship with the conductive part 27 in the warp direction of the rim part 3 (rim covering part 20), and is arranged to cover the whole or substantially the whole of the surface of the rim covering part 20 except for the position overlapping with the conductive part 27.

[0034] The main conductive part 30 is a functional component having a heater function or a sensor function, similar to the conductive part 27. The main conductive part 30 is electrically connected to the in-vehicle control device 29 together with the conductive part 27. The in-vehicle control device 29 functions as, for example, a heater part that indirectly warms the hand of a passenger holding the rim part 3, a detection part that detects the holding / non-holding of the rim part 3 by the passenger (hands-on / off detection (HoD)), or a detection part that detects the biometric information of the passenger, together with the conductive part 27 and / or the main conductive part 30. For example, when the main conductive part 30 has a sensor function, the skin body 23 becomes an insulating layer, a capacitor is formed between the hand of the passenger holding the rim part 3 and the main conductive part 30, and the in-vehicle control device 29 functions as a detection part by detecting a change in the capacitance of the capacitor. Note that the in-vehicle control device electrically connected to the conductive part 27 and the in-vehicle control device electrically connected to the main conductive part 30 may be set separately.

[0035] Thus, the suture thread 26 containing a conductive thread that forms the suture part 24 for suturing the skin body 23 that covers at least a part of the surface of the rim covering part 20 is wound around the rim covering part 20 and sutures the side edges 23a, 23a of the skin body 23 on the back side of the skin body 23. Therefore, the conductive part 27 can be arranged at the side edges 23a, 23a of the skin body 23 that are sutured to each other, that is, at the joining part of the skin body 23, without impairing the designability. Also, since the suture part 24, that is, the conductive part 27, does not protrude to the front side of the skin body 23, the occupant does not directly touch the conductive part 27, rigidity can be ensured, and the strength of the joining part of the skin body 23 including the conductive part 27 is excellent.

[0036] That is, when suturing the skin body 23 at the side edges 23a, 23a, considering damage due to interference with the sewing needle, basically the conductive part can only be arranged at a position that does not interfere with the sewing needle. In this embodiment, by making the suture thread 26 itself that forms the suture part 24 conductive, the conductive part 27 can be arranged on the rim part 3 without considering interference with the sewing needle.

[0037] In particular, since the rim part 3 is a part that the occupant (driver) frequently grips, by arranging the suture thread 26 on the back side of the skin body 23, the occupant does not directly touch the suture thread 26, and even if the occupant frequently grips the rim part 3, it is possible to suppress the suture thread 26 from being cut or worn out over time, and the conductive part 27 can be reliably maintained for a long time.

[0038] With respect to the stitch parts 28, 28 located along the edges of the side edges 23a, 23a of the skin body 23, the suture thread 26 is alternately passed between the stitch parts 28, 28 on the back side of the skin body 23 to form the suture part 24. Therefore, the suture part 24, that is, the conductive part 27, can be easily formed using, for example, a sewing machine.

[0039] In addition, by arranging the main conductive part 30 at a position that does not overlap with the sewing part 24 between the rim covering part 20 and the skin body 23, when the side edges 23a, 23a of the skin body 23 are sewn together by the sewing thread 26, it is possible to prevent the sewing needle and the main conductive part 30 from interfering and damaging the main conductive part 30. Further, since a conductive part can be formed by the main conductive part 30 in a range other than the conductive part 27 in the rim part 3, a wide range of the rim part 3 can be used as a conductive part. In particular, in the present embodiment, since the conductive part 27 and the main conductive part 30 are positioned on the surface of the rim covering part 20 so as to complement each other, a conductive action can be provided to the whole or substantially the whole of the rim part 3.

[0040] Since the conductive part 27 has a heater function or a sensor function, the rim part 3 can be provided with a heater function and a sensor function.

[0041] Similarly, since the main conductive part 30 has a heater function or a sensor function, a wide range of the rim part 3, in the present embodiment, the whole or substantially the whole of the rim part 3 can be used as a heater or a sensor. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of a portion that cannot be warmed on the fingers of the occupant holding the rim part 3, or the occurrence of a portion on the rim part 3 where it is impossible to detect that the occupant is holding the rim part 3 or the biological information of the occupant.

[0042] In addition, in one embodiment, an example in which the sewing part 24 is formed such that the sewing thread 26 is stretched between the side edges 23a, 23a of the skin body 23 has been given, but the present invention is not limited to this. As in another embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the tip ends of the folded-back parts 23b, 23b which are the edges where the side edges 23a, 23a of the skin body 23 are folded back to the back side (the lower side in the figure) may be sewn together by the sewing thread 26. Even in this case, the conductive part 27 will be formed on the back side of the skin body 23. Similar to one embodiment, the conductive part 27 can be simply arranged at the edge of the skin body 23, and it is possible to provide the handle 1 having excellent strength at the edge of the skin body 23 including the conductive part 27.

Industrial Applicability

[0043] The present invention can be suitably used, for example, as a steering wheel for a vehicle such as an automobile.

Explanation of Signs

[0044] 1 Steering wheel 3 Rim part which is a gripping part 20 Rim covering part which is the main body of the gripping part 23 Skin body 23a Side edge part which is an edge 23b Folded-back part which is an edge 24 Stitching part 26 Stitching thread 27 Conductive part 28 Stitch part which is a decorative sewing part 30 Main conductive part

Claims

1. A handle for gripping operation, comprising a gripping portion main body extending in a predetermined direction, a skin body covering at least a part of the surface of the gripping portion main body, and a stitching portion for fixing the skin body to the gripping portion main body by stitching the skin body, wherein the stitching portion is formed by stitching, with a stitching thread containing a conductive thread, edges of the skin body that extend in the predetermined direction and face each other and are wound around the gripping portion main body on the back side of the skin body to form a conductive portion. The handle is characterized by this.

2. It is provided with a decorative sewing portion located along each edge of the skin body, and the stitching portion is formed by alternately passing the stitching thread between the decorative sewing portions on the back side of the skin body. The handle according to claim 1, characterized by this.

3. A main conductive portion is disposed at a position that does not overlap with the stitching portion between the gripping portion main body and the skin body. The handle according to claim 1 or 2, characterized by this.

4. The conductive portion has a heater function or a sensor function. The handle according to claim 1 or 2, characterized by this.

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