Electric stay device

Abstract

To provide an electric stay that can hold a wing at any open angle position relative to a support and can avoid overload when the wing stops due to an obstacle or when the wing is manually opened or closed.SOLUTION: An electric stay device 1 includes a linear actuator structure consisting of an outer pipe 2, an inner pipe 3, a geared motor 4, a sliding screw rod 6, a sliding nut 7, and linear guides 8 and 9. The sliding screw rod 6 is connected to the geared motor 4 via a coupling 5 that includes an overload protection clutch mechanism. The overload protection clutch mechanism includes an outer member 51 fixed to a rotating shaft 41 of the geared motor 4, an inner member 52 fitted to the outer member 51 so as to be rotatable relative to the outer member 51 about the axis and fixed to the sliding screw rod 6, and a spring 53 and a steel ball 54 held between them. As long as the steel ball 54 is held in a ball receiving recess 52a of the inner member 52 by the spring 53, rotation is transmitted from the geared motor 4 to the sliding screw rod 6.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an electric stay device that is interposed between a support, such as the frame of a housing, and a wing, such as a lid, hinged to the housing, for opening and closing the wing relative to the support and maintaining it in any open position. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, mechanical door stays that are manually operated have generally been used to support doors, such as canopies and front covers, that are pivotally attached to the frame of an opening to open and close the opening, in any open position (for example, Patent Document 1). On the other hand, an electromechanical linear actuator that may be applicable to the above-described stay is known, for example, from Patent Document 2. This linear actuator is an electromechanical linear actuator that includes a screw transmission mechanism, and the screw transmission mechanism has a screw spindle and a screw nut. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2010-281161 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2024-8894 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The above-mentioned conventional electromechanical linear actuator cannot be directly applied as a stay for a door. Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide an electrically operated stay that has the basic configuration of an electromechanical linear actuator, but also has a specific configuration for application as a door stay. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] In the following description, reference will be made to the reference numerals in the accompanying drawings, but the present invention is not limited thereto. In order to solve the above problems, the electric stay device 1 of the present invention is an electric stay device for opening and closing a wing 102 hinged to a support 101, and includes an outer pipe 2 pivotally supported at one end to the support 101 and an open other end, and an inner pipe 3 pivotally supported at one end to the wing 102 and the other end inserted into the outer pipe 2 so as to be freely movable in and out in the axial direction, with a guide member 32 and a sliding nut 7 fixed to the other end. A geared motor 4 is fixed inside one end of the outer pipe 2, and a sliding screw rod 6 is connected to its rotating shaft 41 via a coupling 5. The sliding screw rod 6 is threadedly engaged with the sliding nut 7 at its middle and extends axially within the inner pipe 3. Both ends of linear guides 8 and 9 are supported within the outer pipe 2. The linear guides 8, 9 extend along the axis within the outer pipe 2 and engage at their middle portions with the guide member 32 of the inner pipe 3 so as to be slidable relative to the guide member 32 in the axial direction but unable to rotate relative to the guide member 32 about the axis. An overload protection clutch mechanism is installed within the coupling 5. The overload protection clutch mechanism includes an outer member 51, an inner member 52, a spring 53 held between them, and steel balls 54. The outer member 51 is fixed to the rotating shaft 41 of the geared motor 4. The inner member 52 is fixed to one end of the sliding screw rod 6 and is fitted to the outer member 51 so as to be rotatable relative to the outer member 51 about the axis, and includes multiple ball receiving recesses 52a facing the outer member 51. The steel balls 54 are provided to drop into each ball receiving recess 52a and are urged toward the inner member 52 by a spring 53 on the outer member 51 side. A sensing mechanism is provided that senses the most extended and most retracted positions of the inner pipe 3 relative to the outer pipe based on the relative positions of a pair of linear guides 8, 9 and the guide member 32 of the inner pipe 3 that engages with them, and controls the operation of the geared motor. [Effects of the Invention]

[0006] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an electric stay that can hold the wing at any open angle position relative to the support, and that will not damage the device due to overload even if the motor continues to rotate while the wing comes to a stop due to an obstacle during opening or closing operation, or if a power outage occurs and the motor stops, making it necessary to open or close the wing manually. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] 10 is an explanatory diagram showing an embodiment in which the stay of the present invention is interposed between a housing and a door that opens and closes the opening of the housing. FIG. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the stay of FIG. 1. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the stay of FIG. 1 in a contracted state. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the stay in FIG. 1 in a contracted state. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0008] An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In FIG. 1, an electric stay device 1 is used to open and close a wing 102 such as a cover hinged to a support 101 such as a housing.

[0009] The electric stay device 1 comprises an outer pipe 2 whose one end is pivotally supported on a support 101 and whose other end is open, and an inner pipe 3 whose one end is pivotally supported on a wing 102 and whose other end is inserted into the outer pipe 2 so as to be freely movable in and out in the axial direction.

[0010] 2 to 4, one end of the outer pipe 2 is closed by a pull member 21, and the other end is open, with a sleeve 22 fitted inside. A geared motor 4 is fixed inside one end of the outer pipe 2. One end of a sliding screw rod 6 is connected to a rotating shaft 41 (FIG. 3) of the geared motor 4 via a coupling 5.

[0011] One end of the inner pipe 3 is closed by a pull member 31, and the other end located inside the outer pipe 2 is closed by a guide member 32, to the outside of which a sliding nut 7 is fixed.

[0012] The sliding screw rod 6 is threadedly engaged with the sliding nut 7 and extends along the axis within the inner pipe 3, and a stopper 61 is fixed to the other end.

[0013] A pair of strip-shaped linear guides 8, 9 are provided inside the outer pipe 2 and between the outer periphery of the inner pipe 3 and extending along the axis.

[0014] The linear guide 8 is supported at one end on the inner end of the sleeve 22 via a biasing spring 23 so as to be freely movable in the axial direction, and at the other end is provided with a sensor pin 81 that extends in the axial direction and is inserted into the through hole 21a of the pull member 21 so as to be freely movable in the axial direction.

[0015] The other linear guide 9 is supported at one end opposite the linear guide 8 on the inner end of the sleeve 22 so as to be freely movable in the axial direction, and at the other end is provided with a sensor pin 91 that extends in the axial direction and is inserted into the through hole 21b of the pull handle member 21 so as to be freely movable in the axial direction, and is supported so as to be freely movable in the opposite direction to the linear guide 8 via the biasing spring 24 between it and the pull handle 21.

[0016] The linear guides 8 and 9 are engaged at their intermediate portions with guide recesses 32a formed in the guide member 32 of the inner pipe 3 so as to be relatively slidable in the axial direction. Therefore, the inner pipe 3 is axially movable and expandable relative to the outer pipe 2, but is fixed around the axis.

[0017] The coupling 5 contains an overload protection clutch mechanism. The overload protection clutch mechanism comprises an outer member 51 fixed to the rotating shaft 41 of the geared motor 4, an inner member 52 fixed to one end of the sliding screw rod 6, and a spring 53 and a steel ball 54 interposed between the outer member 51 and the inner member 52. The spring 53 and the steel ball 54 are inserted into a recess 53a in the outer member 51, and the spring 53 pushes the steel ball 54 toward the inner member 52. The inner member 54 is fitted to the outer member 51 so as to be movable axially within a predetermined range, and is provided with a ball receiving recess 52a into which the steel ball 54 falls.

[0018] Therefore, as long as the steel ball 54 falls into the recess 52a, the rotation of the motor 4 is transmitted to the sliding screw rod 6. However, when the rotation load on the sliding screw rod 6 exceeds a predetermined value, the steel ball 54 compresses the spring 53 and escapes from the ball receiving recess 52a, causing idling between the rotating shaft 41 and the sliding screw rod 6.

[0019] Between the linear guides 8, 9 and the outer pipe 2, there is provided a detection mechanism that detects when the inner pipe 3 reaches the most extended position or the most retracted position relative to the outer pipe 2 and stops the geared motor 4.

[0020] The mechanism for detecting the maximum extension position includes the linear guide 8, a detection protrusion 82 protruding from it, a limit switch 10 fixed to the side of the pull member 21 of the outer pipe 2, and a detection pin 81 with its tip facing the lever 10a of the limit switch 10. When the inner pipe 3 reaches the vicinity of the maximum extension position, the guide member 32 abuts against the detection protrusion 82, compressing the spring 23 and moving the linear guide 8 so as to push it toward the sleeve 25 of the outer pipe 2, and the detection pin 81 operates the lever 10a of the limit switch 10 to the OFF side, cutting off the power supply to the geared motor 4 or issuing a control signal to switch the power supply direction to the geared motor 4.

[0021] The mechanism for detecting the most retracted position includes the linear guide 9, a detection protrusion 92 protruding from it, a limit switch 11 fixed to the opposite surface of the pull member 21, and a detection pin 91 with its tip facing the lever 11a of the limit switch 11. When the inner pipe 3 reaches the vicinity of the most retracted position, the guide member 32 abuts against the detection protrusion 92, compressing the spring 24 and moving the linear guide 8 toward the pull member 21, and the detection pin 91 operates the lever 11a of the limit switch 11 to the OFF side, cutting off the power supply to the geared motor 4 or issuing a control signal to switch the power supply direction to the geared motor 4.

[0022] The electric stay device 1 expands and contracts by converting the rotation of the sliding screw rod 6 driven by the geared motor 4 in the outer pipe 2 into axial extension and retraction of the inner pipe 3 by the sliding nut 7, and positions the wing 102 at any open angle position relative to the support 101. If the wing 102 comes into contact with an obstacle and stops while the motor continues to rotate, or if a power outage occurs and the motor stops, and it becomes necessary to open or close the wing manually, the overload protection clutch mechanism causes idling between the rotating shaft 41 of the geared motor 4 and the sliding screw rod 6, so the device will not be damaged by overload. [Explanation of symbols]

[0023] 1 Electric stay device 2 outer pipe 21 Pull handle parts 21a Through hole 21b Through hole 22 sleeve 23 Spring 24 Spring 3 Inner pipe 31 Pull handle 32 Guide member 32a Guide recess 4 Geared motor 41 Rotation axis 5 Coupling 51 Outer member 52 Inner member 52a Ball receiving recess 53 Spring 54 steel ball 6. Slide screw rod 61 Stopper 7 Slip nut 8 Linear Guide 81 Sensing Pin 82 Sensing protrusion 9 Linear guide 91 Sensing Pin 92 Sensing protrusion 10 Limit Switch 10a lever 11 Limit Switch 11a Lever 101 Support 102 Wing

Claims

1. An electric stay device for opening and closing a wing hinged to a support, comprising: an outer pipe whose one end is pivotally supported on the support and whose other end is open; an inner pipe having one end pivotally supported on the wing, the other end inserted into the outer pipe so as to be freely movable in and out in the axial direction, and the other end to which a guide member and a sliding nut are fixed; a geared motor fixed to the inside of one end of the outer pipe; a sliding threaded rod having one end connected to the rotation shaft of the geared motor via a coupling, a middle portion threadedly engaged with the sliding nut, and the other end extending along the axis of the inner pipe; a pair of linear guides extending along the axis within the outer pipe, supported at both ends by the outer pipe, and engaging at an intermediate portion with the guide member so as to be slidable relative to the guide member in the axial direction but unable to rotate relative to the guide member around the axis; the coupling comprises an overload protection clutch mechanism consisting of an outer member fixed to the rotating shaft of the geared motor, an inner member fixed to one end of the sliding screw rod and fitted inside the outer member so as to be relatively rotatable about its axis, and a plurality of steel balls held within the outer member and biased by a spring in the axial direction of the inner member so as to fall into ball receiving recesses of the inner member; and a detection mechanism that detects the most extended and most retracted positions of the inner pipe relative to the outer pipe based on the relative positions of the pair of linear guides and the guide members 32 engaged therewith, and controls the operation of the geared motor.

2. 2. The electric stay device according to claim 1, wherein the sensing mechanism includes the pair of linear guides supported at both ends of the outer pipe via springs so as to be elastically movable in the axial direction, sensing protrusions that protrude so as to abut against the guide member 32 near the most extended position and the most retracted position of the inner pipe to move the linear guides, and a pair of limit switches provided at one end of the outer pipe so as to open and close contacts in response to movement of the linear guides.

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