Drive unit for automotive applications

Abstract

The present invention relates to a drive unit for automotive applications, equipped with an electric drive unit (6, 7, 8) having an electric motor (6) and drive wheels (8). Furthermore, an operating element (5) acting on the drive wheels (8) is provided. A crown gear gear stage is implemented between a pinion (7) on the output shaft of the electric motor (6) and the drive wheels (8). According to the invention, the drive wheels (8) have a spiral contour (9) and / or a toothed contour (11) for acting on the operating element (5).

Description

Technical Field

[0001]

[0001] The present invention relates to a drive unit for automotive applications, which comprises an electric drive unit having an electric motor and drive wheels, and an operating element acted upon by the drive wheels, and in which a crown gear gear stage is implemented between a pinion on the output shaft of the electric motor and the drive wheels.

[0002]

[0002] Drive units for automotive applications typically operate with a low-voltage direct current, for example 12 V, 24 V, or even 48 V. A general field of such drive units is that the movement and operation of not only mirrors and window glass but also door wings and tailgates can be carried out with the assistance of the drive unit. Furthermore, with the assistance of the drive unit, the seat can be adjusted, the headlights can be set, or the flap for the electrical connection device can be locked.

[0003]

[0003] Furthermore, such a drive unit is particularly suitable for use in combination with an automotive latch. In such a case, the drive unit in question is actually arranged inside a housing or a lock housing. With the assistance of the drive unit, various functions such as "lock / unlock", "theft prevention / theft lock release", and "childproof / child lock" can be controlled. Furthermore, such a drive unit is preferably used for so-called "electrical release". In this case, the operating element acted upon by the drive wheels directly or indirectly acts on the detent when the locking mechanism is closed, ensuring that the detent is lifted from the latching engagement with the rotary latch. As a result, the locking mechanism, and thus the automotive latch, changes to the open state.

[0004]

[0004] Such a drive unit often operates with a high transmission ratio or reduction ratio so that, for example, it can transmit a large force in conjunction with a window lifter. Furthermore, due to the typically narrow installation conditions, a generally compact design is required. For this reason, the general prior art according to German Patent Application Publication No. 10 2020 102 362 has already proposed a drive unit for automotive applications in which the drive train has at least one crown gear stage. For this purpose, the pinion on the output shaft of the electric motor and the drive wheel are arranged at a constant angle, in particular at a right angle, to each other so that the crown gear gear stage is implemented in this way.

[0005]

[0005] An equivalent drive unit for automotive applications is pursued in German Patent Application Publication No. 10 2017 211 803. This is an angular gear designed as a crown gear. In addition to a high level of efficiency, the output wheel can be designed as a plastic injection molded part in order to achieve particularly simple and economical production.

[0006]

[0006] The prior art has been proven in principle, but there is still room for further improvement. Thus, for example, the installation space inside the lock housing for accommodating an automotive latch is extremely limited. At the same time, when a locking mechanism consisting of, for example, a rotary latch and a detent is released by an electric motor, a large force is required on the output side of the operating element. The solutions proposed in the prior art at this point have been proven to be successful, but there is still room for further improvement.

[0007]

[0007] Therefore, the present invention is based on the technical problem of further developing such a drive unit for automotive applications so as to achieve the highest possible transmission ratio or reduction ratio while taking into account a compact and economical design.

[0008]

[0008] To solve this technical problem, the present invention proposes that, based on a general drive unit within the framework of the first variant of the present invention, the drive wheel has a spiral-shaped contour for acting on the operating element. In the second variant of the present invention, in combination with a general drive unit, instead of the spiral-shaped contour, a toothed contour for acting on the positioning element is provided. In principle, the spiral-shaped contour and the toothed contour can also be combined with each other.

[0009]

[0009] The spiral-shaped contour is preferably arranged on the surface of the drive wheel opposite to the crown teeth portion. In contrast, the toothed contour is usually arranged on the surface of the drive wheel equipped with the crown teeth portion. This means that, according to the present invention, the drive wheel first has a crown teeth portion on one of the surfaces with which the pinion on the output shaft of the electric motor engages. However, on the opposite surface or the same surface of the drive wheel, which is mostly disk-shaped or circular disk-shaped, a spiral-shaped contour or a toothed contour is provided. The spiral-shaped contour is a spiral-shaped spiral surface wound around the axis or the rotation axis of the drive wheel and extending from the low point as the starting point of the spiral-shaped contour to the high point of the spiral-shaped contour. In contrast, the toothed contour is usually placed centrally compared to the drive wheel, i.e., the two rotation axes coincide. This also ultimately applies to the case of the spiral-shaped contour, in which case the spiral axis coincides with the axis or the rotation axis of the drive wheel.

[0010]

[0010] The operating element is generally a swivel lever rotatably mounted about an axis. The axis is usually defined by a bearing pin for the swivel lever that stands substantially vertically on the housing cover. This design can be such that the axis of the drive wheel and the axis of the swivel lever are arranged substantially perpendicular to each other. Such an embodiment is usually realized in combination with the spiral-shaped contour. However, when a toothed contour that typically interacts with the associated toothed contour on the swivel lever or the operating element is provided, an alternative approach is that the axis of the drive wheel and the axis of the swivel lever, i.e., the operating element, extend substantially parallel to each other.

[0011]

[0011] In the case of the realized spiral-shaped contour part, in a further embodiment, this method can be such that the swivel lever abuts against the spiral-shaped contour part on the head side by means of a stopper. Further, this method is such that the spiral-shaped contour part overlaps at least partially with the swivel lever at the non-deflected end position. This non-deflected end position of the swivel lever corresponds to the fact that the stopper on the head side of the swivel lever is at the lowest point of the spiral-shaped contour part. At this non-deflected end position, since the spiral-shaped contour part overlaps at least partially with the swivel lever, the stopper or the end stopper is thus defined. Therefore, since an additional stopper is clearly not necessary at this non-deflected end position of the swivel lever, the labor is reduced and the compactness of the solution according to the invention is increased.

[0012]

[0012] In the case of a modified example with a toothed contour part, the design is preferably such that the toothed contour part is provided as a central pinion on the drive wheel. This central pinion usually engages with a gear wheel arch on the operating element or the swivel lever. In this way, it is possible to achieve and implement a desired gear ratio between one central pinion and the other gear wheel arch. Further, the realization and implementation of such a gear wheel arch can be easily carried out on the operating element, that is, the swivel lever, which is usually made of plastic. Finally, the gear wheel arch is usually equipped with a stopper at the end to limit the swivel movement of the operating element, that is, the swivel lever, if necessary. Both of the described modified examples are characterized by a particularly compact design. This can be due to the fact that the swivel lever, that is, the operating element, overlaps at least partially with the drive wheel.

[0013]

[0013] Furthermore, this method is generally a method in which an electric motor including an output shaft and a pinion on the output shaft represents a mainly clockwise engagement angle with respect to a drive wheel having a crown tooth portion. Generally, both the pinion and the crown tooth portion can be designed as straight tooth portions. However, this is particularly suitable when spiral tooth portions are used at this time. Furthermore, in order to provide a particularly high gear ratio, an involute tooth portion can preferably be implemented.

[0014]

[0014] Furthermore, in the design, when a modification including a spiral-shaped contour portion is preferably considered, the design is such that the electric motor including the output shaft has a longitudinal extension portion that forms an acute angle with the axis of the swivel lever. In accordance with the modification using a toothed contour portion, the design is typically such that the electric motor including the output shaft has a longitudinal extension portion that is mainly directed in the tangential direction as compared with the gear wheel arch on the operating element, i.e., the swivel lever. Furthermore, both modifications are characterized in that the electric motor having the output shaft and the longitudinal extension portion determined by the output shaft is directed in the direction of the axis or the center of the disk-shaped drive wheel. Finally, this has been demonstrated to be particularly suitable when at least the drive wheel and the operating element are designed or positioned as plastic injection molded parts.

[0015]

[0015] As a result, a drive unit for automotive applications is provided from the perspective of the present invention, which has a particularly compact design and at the same time provides a high gear ratio or reduction ratio. At the same time, the entire unit is associated with economical manufacturing. Furthermore, since the crown gear gear stage between the pinion on the output shaft of the electric motor and the drive wheel for acting on the operating element allows a certain play in the axial direction, the installation is also easy and long-term functional reliability is ensured. Due to the freedom in the axial direction achieved in this way, the crown gear gear stage is less affected by production and assembly errors as well as any deformation of the housing.

[0016]

[0016] The crown gear gear stage, at this point, cooperates with the corresponding helical gearing on both the pinion and the crown tooth part on the drive wheel that is normally implemented at this time, ensuring that a high gear ratio for acting on the operating element is implemented. This is particularly applicable when the crown gear gear stage is the only gear stage of the drive unit according to the present invention.

[0017]

[0017] In this regard, the present invention also uses the fact that the spiral contour on the drive wheel can, in principle, realize a movement greater than the turning movement of the operating element, i.e., the turning lever. In this context, additionally and preferably, it is conceivable that the spiral contour includes different pitches and, as a result, different angles with respect to the axis of the drive wheel along its path. However, typically, the spiral contour functions with a constant gradient, and as a result, with the help of this gradient, the overall rotational movement of the drive wheel is converted into the rotational movement of the turning lever about an axis perpendicular to the turning lever. This facilitates a compact design while also providing an end stop at the unbiased end position of the turning lever.

[0018]

[0018] Equivalent advantages and effects are observed in the variant with a toothed contour. Even in this case, the rotational movement of the drive wheel is substantially converted into the rotational movement of the turning lever at a variable or constant ratio. On the one hand, the overlap observed at this point between the operating element, i.e., the turning lever, and on the other hand, the drive wheel, also facilitates a compact design. These are the main advantages.

[0019]

[0019] Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the drawings showing only exemplary embodiments.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0020]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0021]

[0020] The drawings show a drive unit for automotive applications. In the exemplary embodiment according to FIG. 1, the drive unit is used in conjunction with the automotive latch 1 shown in the figure. This means that the automotive latch 1 is equipped with an associated drive unit. For this purpose, the automotive latch 1 has a locking mechanism 2, 3 consisting of a rotary latch 2 and a detent 3 which are each rotatably attached to a lock case 1. From the perspective of the exemplary embodiment according to FIG. 1, the axis of the detent 3 is defined by a bearing pin 4 which stands vertically above the lock case 1 or generally above the housing cover 1 for this purpose. A release lever 5 is further attached to the bearing pin 4 in parallel in the axial direction with respect to the detent 3.

[0022]

[0021] From the perspective of the present invention, the release lever 5 is a specially designed operating element 5 which is designed as a swivel lever 5 rotatably attached about an axis defined by the bearing pin 4 from the perspective shown in the figure, specifically as the release lever 5 in the modification according to FIG. 1. The basic structure of the drive unit includes electric drive parts 6, 7, 8.

[0023]

[0022] The electric drive parts 6, 7, 8 include an electric motor 6 and a drive wheel 8. Further, a pinion 7 is realized on the output shaft of the electric motor 6. A crown gear gear stage is provided between the pinion 7 on the output shaft of the electric motor 6 and the drive wheel 8, which can be best understood from the illustration on the right side of FIG. 2. In fact, at this point, a helical tooth part or an involute tooth part is used on the pinion 7 on the one hand and on the drive wheel 8, that is, on the crown tooth part 8a on the drive wheel 8 on the other hand.

[0024]

[0023] Furthermore, in the exemplary embodiment according to FIG. 2, the drive wheel 8 is equipped with a spiral contour portion 9 on the opposite surface of the crown tooth portion 8a. The spiral contour portion 9 functions to act on the operating element 5. From the perspective of the modification example according to FIG. 1, the operating element 5 is designed as a turning lever, i.e., a release lever 5 as already described. As a result, as shown in FIG. 1, when the drive wheel 8 rotates counterclockwise about its axis 10, the release lever 5 also performs a turning motion counterclockwise about the axis defined by the bearing pin 4. When the release lever 5 rotates counterclockwise, the detent 3 is rotatably fixed and coupled to the release lever 5, and in this example, it further turns counterclockwise about the common bearing pin 4, thereby moving away from the locking position with the rotary latch 2. As a result, the rotary latch 2 can swing and open with the assistance of the spring, and can release the previously constrained lock bolt (not shown). Consequently, the associated automobile door and the locking mechanism 2, 3 are opened by the electric motor.

[0025]

[0024] Comparing FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, it can be confirmed that the turning lever 5 abuts against the spiral contour portion 9 on the head side by the stopper 5a. According to the exemplary embodiment, the spiral contour portion 9 has a certain pitch compared to the axis 10 of the drive wheel 8. In principle, an increase or decrease in pitch can be used depending on which output curve is desired.

[0026]

[0025] According to an exemplary embodiment, the crown gear gear stage between the pinion 7 and the drive wheel 8, i.e., the crown tooth portion 8a, represents the only gear stage where a particularly compact structure is observed. This is also due to the fact that the axis 10 of the drive wheel 8 and the axis of the swivel lever 5 formed by the bearing pin 4 are arranged substantially perpendicular to each other. Furthermore, this design is such that the electric motor 6 comprising the output shaft and the pinion 7 on the output shaft represents a mainly clockwise engagement angle compared to the drive wheel 8 provided with the crown tooth portion 8a. Furthermore, the electric motor 6 has a longitudinal extension forming an acute angle α with the axis of the swivel lever 5, or the bearing pin 4 defining its axis, together with the output shaft and the pinion 7 of the present case. This is best understood from the illustration on the right side of FIG. 2. The angle α may take a value between 10° and 40°.

[0027]

[0026] It can be verified that the spiral-shaped contour portion 9 at least partially overlaps with the swivel lever 5 at the undeflected end position of the swivel lever 5. This is illustrated in FIG. 1. In fact, the end position of the swivel lever 5 of the present case corresponds to the fact that in this case the swivel lever 5 together with its head-side stopper 5a is on the low point of the spiral-shaped contour portion 9. In contrast, the spiral-shaped contour portion 9 having the highest point overlaps with the swivel lever 5. At this undeflected end position of the swivel lever 5, the stopper is automatically provided with respect to the electric drive units 6, 7, 8.

[0028]

[0027] In order to achieve and implement particularly economical production, according to an exemplary embodiment, at least the drive wheel 8 and the operating element, i.e., the swivel lever 5, are each designed as plastic injection molded parts. In principle, the pinion 7 on the output shaft of the electric motor 6 can also be designed as a plastic injection molded part. This not only makes the production economical, but also an overall low weight is observed. Furthermore, a low frictional force is recognized.

[0029]

[0028] Similar advantages and effects are observed in the variant shown in Figure 3. In order to be able to act on the operating element 5, i.e. the swivel or release lever 5, as shown in Figure 1, a toothed profile 11 is provided on the drive wheel 8 instead of the spiral profile 9 shown in the figure. In fact, by means of the operating element, i.e. the swivel lever 5, the locking mechanism 2, 3 can be opened in the same way as in the variants described above. For this reason, it can be seen that in the exemplary embodiment according to Figure 3 a gearshift lever 14 is additionally implemented, which is basically unnecessary.

[0030]

[0029] In the variant according to Fig. 3, the toothed profile 11 is specifically designed as a central pinion 11 provided on the same side or surface as the crown gear 8a of the drive gear 8. A gear wheel arch 12 on the operating element or swivel lever 5 meshes with the central pinion 11. This results in a pivoting movement by the swivel lever or operating element 5, which can be limited, if necessary, by a stop 13 on the operating element 5. The pivoting movement of the operating element 5 is then transmitted to or acts on the gearshift lever 14.

[0031] It can be seen that the electric motor 6 with the pinion 7 is arranged in the longitudinal extension defined by the pinion relative to the drive wheel 8 and the crown gear 8a, so that the associated longitudinal extension is directed towards the centre of the drive wheel 8. This applies to all variants.

[0032] Furthermore, the present longitudinal extension in the variant according to FIG. 3 is directed primarily tangentially compared to the gear wheel arch 12. [Explanation of symbols]

[0033] 1 Automotive Latch 2 Rotating Latch 3. Brakes 4 bearing pins 5 Operational Elements 6 Electric Motor 7 Pinion 8 drive wheels 8a Crown tooth part 9 Spiral contour part 10 Axis 11 Toothed contour part 12 Gear wheel arch 13 Fastener 14 Shift lever

Claims

1. An electric drive unit (6, 7, 8) having an electric motor (6) and drive wheels (8), comprising an operating element (5) acted upon by the drive wheels (8), and a crown gear gear stage being implemented between a pinion (7) on the output shaft of the electric motor (6) and the drive wheels (8). In a drive unit for automotive applications The drive wheels (8) are characterized by having a spiral-shaped contour portion (9) and / or a toothed contour portion (11) for acting on the operating element (5). A drive unit.

2. The drive unit according to claim 1, wherein the spiral-shaped contour portion (9) is provided on a surface of the drive wheel (8) opposite to the surface with crown teeth (8a).

3. The drive unit according to claim 1, wherein the toothed contour portion (11) is provided on a surface of the drive wheel (8) equipped with crown teeth (8a).

4. The drive unit according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the operating element (5) is designed as a swivel lever (5) mounted to rotate about an axis.

5. The drive unit according to claim 4, wherein the axis is defined by a bearing pin (4) for the swivel lever (5) standing substantially vertically on a housing cover (1).

6. The drive unit according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the swivel lever (5) abuts against the spiral-shaped contour portion (9) on the head side by a stopper (5a).

7. The drive unit according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the spiral-shaped contour portion (9) at least partially overlaps with the swivel lever (5) at an unbiased end position.

8. The drive unit according to claim 7, wherein the axis (10) of the drive wheel (8) and the axis of the swivel lever (5) are arranged substantially perpendicular to each other.

9. The drive unit according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the electric motor (6) comprising the output shaft and the pinion (7) on the output shaft represents a mainly clockwise engagement angle with respect to the drive wheel (8) having the crown teeth (8a).

10. The drive unit according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the electric motor (6) comprising the output shaft has a longitudinal extension positioned in the direction of the center of the drive wheel (8).

11. The drive unit according to any one of claims 4 to 10, characterized in that the electric motor (6) comprising the output shaft has a longitudinal extension forming an acute angle (α) with the axis of the swivel lever (5).

12. The drive unit according to any one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that at least the drive wheel (8) and the operating element (5) are each designed as injection-molded plastic parts.

13. The drive unit according to any one of claims 1 to 12, characterized in that the electric motor (6) comprising the output shaft has a longitudinal extension directed in a substantially tangential direction compared to the gear wheel arch (12) on the operating element (5).

14. The drive unit according to any one of claims 1 to 13, characterized in that the operating element (5) acts on a gearshift lever (14).

15. An automotive latch (1) characterized by the drive unit according to any one of claims 1 to 14.

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