Drive shaft boot protector

Abstract

To provide a drive shaft boot protector capable of always protecting a boot from all directions in any vehicle state and suppressing vehicle vibration by reducing a thrust load caused by a constant velocity joint.SOLUTION: The drive shaft boot protector (6) includes a cylindrical mounting portion (7) mounted on an outer periphery of the constant velocity joint (4) via an elastic grommet (9), and a boot protection portion (8) extending from one opening end of the cylindrical mounting portion (7) to a tip end side of the boot (5) and having an enlarged diameter tapered shape covering an outside of the boot (5).SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] This invention relates to a drive shaft boot protector, and more particularly to a drive shaft boot protector that protects boots used in the sliding and bending portions of constant velocity joints provided on the drive and driven sides of a vehicle drive shaft. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, for example, in saddle-type off-road vehicles, constant velocity joints with slide mechanisms are provided on the drive and driven sides of a drive shaft. The sliding and bending parts of this constant velocity joint are covered with rubber boots, and protective equipment is known for protecting the boots from foreign objects such as flying stones, dirty water, and shrubs (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

[0003] Patent Document 1 discloses a protective device that covers at least the front of a vehicle, such as a boot. Specifically, the protective device on the drive side is attached to the suspension arm, and the protective device on the driven side, i.e., the front wheel side, is attached to the knuckle. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2005-212698 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, in the case of the device described in Patent Document 1, the protective equipment is attached to a suspension arm or knuckle separate from the constant velocity joint, so it can only protect the boots from foreign objects such as flying stones, dirty water, and shrubs from specific directions, and therefore has the problem of not being able to protect the boots from all directions at all times regardless of the vehicle condition.

[0006] In addition, a sliding load is generated due to the structure of the constant velocity joint, which has a sliding mechanism for the drive shaft. This sliding load is transmitted to the vehicle and leads to vehicle vibration. Therefore, it is desirable to reduce the thrust load and suppress vehicle vibration.

[0007] This invention was made in consideration of the above circumstances, and its objective is to provide a drive shaft boot protector that protects the boot from all directions at all times regardless of the vehicle condition, and reduces thrust loads caused by constant velocity joints to suppress vehicle vibrations. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a drive shaft boot protector that protects boots used in sliding and bending portions of constant velocity joints provided on the drive side and driven side of a vehicle drive shaft, and is characterized by comprising a cylindrical mounting portion that is attached to the outer periphery of the constant velocity joint via an elastic annular support member, and a boot protective portion with an enlarged, tapered shape that extends from one open end of the cylindrical mounting portion toward the tip side of the boot and covers the outside of the boot.

[0009] By configuring it in this manner, the protective equipment can be supported on the constant velocity joint by an elastic annular support member that has a thrust load damping function, and the boot protection portion with an expanded tapered shape can cover and protect the outside of the boot. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to the present invention, the above-described configuration makes it possible to always protect the boot from all directions in any vehicle condition, and to reduce thrust loads caused by the constant velocity joint, thereby suppressing vehicle vibrations. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic plan view showing, in partial cross section, a state in which the drive shaft boot protector according to the present invention is in use. [Figure 2] 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a main part of a drive shaft boot protector according to the present invention. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram (a) showing the state in which a thrust load is applied to the drive shaft boot protector of the present invention; FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view (b) of a key part showing the state in which a thrust load is applied to one driving side; and FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view (c) of a key part showing the state in which a thrust load is applied to the other driven side. [Figure 4] 1A and 1B are schematic plan views showing the operation of the protective equipment according to the present invention, in which FIG. 1A shows the state where the steering wheel is turned to the left, and FIG. 1B shows the state where the steering wheel is turned to the right. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0013] As shown in Figure 1, a drive shaft 3 connecting the drive side and driven side of a drive unit 1 mounted on a vehicle is connected to a drive shaft 1a of the drive unit 1 on the drive side via a constant velocity joint 4, and is also connected to an axle 2a of a front wheel 2 on the driven side via a constant velocity joint 4. The constant velocity joints 4 on the drive side and driven side are formed identically, and the sliding and bending portions are covered with a rubber boot 5. The boot 5 is formed in a bellows shape with a narrow taper toward the drive shaft 3 side, and a protector 6 according to the present invention is provided on the outside of the boot 5.

[0014] The protector 6 comprises a cylindrical mounting portion 7 attached to the outer periphery of the constant velocity joint 4 via an elastic annular support member 9 (hereinafter referred to as grommet 9), and a boot protector portion 8 having an enlarged tapered shape that extends from one open end of the cylindrical mounting portion 7 toward the tip of the boot 5 and covers the outside of the boot 5.

[0015] In this case, the cylindrical mounting portion 7 of the protector 6 is supported by two grommets 9 arranged at a distance from each other. By supporting the cylindrical mounting portion 7 of the protector 6 via the elastic grommets 9 in this way, the grommets 9 can be given a thrust load attenuation function. That is, as shown in Figure 3, when a thrust load TL is applied to the drive shaft 3, the grommet 9 repeatedly deforms in the direction opposite to the thrust load against the thrust load TL, and is passively swung, thereby attenuating the thrust load (see Figures 3(b) and (c)).

[0016] The taper angle of the boot protection portion 8, which has an expanded tapered shape and covers the outside of the boot 5, is set to be equal to or greater than the maximum operating angle of the constant velocity joint 4. By setting the taper angle of the boot protection portion 8 to be equal to or greater than the maximum operating angle of the constant velocity joint 4 in this way, interference between the boot 5 and the protector 6 can be avoided in any vehicle state. Specifically, as shown in Figures 4(a) and 4(b), interference between the boot 5 and the protector 6 can be avoided even when the steering wheel is turned left or right. In Figure 4, reference numeral "10" denotes a support shaft of a knuckle (not shown) that is attached to apply a steering angle to the front wheel 2.

[0017] According to the protector 6 of the embodiment configured as described above, the protector 6 can be supported on the constant velocity joint 4 by the elastic grommet 9 that has a thrust load attenuation function, and the boot 5 can be covered and protected by the expanded, tapered boot protector 8. Therefore, the boot 5 is always protected from all directions under any vehicle condition, and the thrust load TL caused by the constant velocity joint can be reduced to suppress vehicle vibration.

[0018] Furthermore, according to the protective equipment 6 of the embodiment, the boot protective portion 8 is formed in a tapered shape that expands in diameter toward the tip side of the boot 5, thereby providing a self-exhaust function against the entry of foreign objects such as flying stones, sewage, and shrubs.

[0019] Furthermore, according to the protective device 6 of the embodiment, the protective device 6 is supported on the constant velocity joint 4 by the elastic grommet 9 that has a thrust load attenuation function, thereby making it possible to suppress the protective device itself from emitting noise or vibration. Furthermore, by directly providing the constant velocity joint 4 with a thrust load damping function, it is possible to suppress vibrations in the connected drive device 1, for example, an electric drive device that integrates a motor, inverter, and reducer. [Explanation of symbols]

[0020] 1. Drive unit 2 front wheels 3 drive shaft 4 Constant velocity joint 5. Boots 6 Protective equipment 7 Cylindrical mounting part 8 Boot protection 9 Grommet (annular support member) 10 spindle TL Thrust load

Claims

[Claim 1] A drive shaft boot protector that protects boots used in sliding and bending portions of constant velocity joints provided on the drive side and driven side of a vehicle drive shaft, a cylindrical mounting portion attached to an outer periphery of the constant velocity joint via an elastic annular support member; a boot protection portion having an enlarged tapered shape that extends from one open end of the cylindrical mounting portion toward the tip end of the boot and covers the outside of the boot; A drive shaft boot protector characterized by:

Images