Automotive Test Systems

Abstract

To configure an automobile test system capable of being applied to an environment resistance test, NV (noise, vibration) test or the like.SOLUTION: A floor 11 divides a test chamber 10 into an upper specimen arrangement space 101 and a lower underfloor space 102. An automobile 200 to be tested, which is equipped with simulated wheels 7 rotatably supporting a drive shaft, is arranged on the floor 11 and restrained. An end part of a rotational shaft 5 installed in the specimen arrangement space 101 is connected to the drive shaft of the automobile 200 via the simulated wheels 7. A dynamometer 3 is installed in the underfloor space 102 under the floor 11. A power transmission mechanism 4, which connects an output shaft of the dynamometer 3 in the underfloor space 102 and the rotational shaft 5 in the specimen arrangement space 101 through a small opening provided in the floor 11, transmits the rotational motion power of the output shaft of the dynamometer 3 as the rotational motion power of the rotational shaft 5.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to the art of testing automobiles. [Background technology]

[0002] A known technique for testing automobiles is to use a simulated wheel that includes a simulated wheel, a tire mounted on the simulated wheel, and a connecting shaft rotatably supported by a bearing provided in the center of the simulated wheel (for example, Patent Document 1). In this technique, one end of the connecting shaft of the simulated wheel is connected to a hub shaft that is integrated with the inner ring of a hub bearing that is connected to the drive shaft of the automobile, and the other end of the connecting shaft is connected to the output shaft of a dynamometer, and the test is performed while applying a load from the dynamometer to the drive shaft of the automobile. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2017-101958 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] According to a technique in which testing is performed by connecting the output shaft of a dynamometer to a hub shaft that is integrated with the inner ring of a vehicle's hub bearing using a mock wheel, when testing a vehicle in a test room, the vehicle being tested and the dynamometer are placed in the same room.

[0005] For this reason, environmental resistance tests for automobiles, which must be conducted in a laboratory, cannot be conducted in environments that are outside the temperature range specified for the dynamometer. In addition, during high-load operation, heat generated by the dynamometer may affect the test environment temperature.

[0006] Furthermore, in automotive NV (noise, vibration) testing and EMC testing, which must be conducted in a test laboratory, the noise, vibration and electromagnetic noise generated by the dynamometer itself can be an obstacle and make it difficult to conduct the tests properly.

[0007] These problems can be solved by installing equipment to isolate the dynamometer from the environment in the test room and to soundproof the dynamometer in the test room, but this requires special equipment and incurs significant costs.In addition, in existing test rooms, it may not be possible to install such equipment due to space limitations.

[0008] An object of the present invention is to provide an automobile testing system that is equipped with a dynamometer that applies a load to the drive shaft of an automobile and that can be applied to a variety of tests. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] In order to achieve the above-mentioned objective, the present invention provides an automobile testing system installed in a test room having a test specimen arrangement space above a floor and an underfloor space below the floor, which are separated by a floor, the system comprising a support mechanism placed on the floor for rotatably supporting a drive shaft connected to the inner ring of a hub bearing of a test subject automobile installed in the test specimen arrangement space, a dynamometer installed in the underfloor space, and a power transmission mechanism for transmitting the power of the rotational motion of the dynamometer output shaft as the power of the rotational motion of the drive shaft of the automobile.

[0010] Such an automobile testing system may include a rotating shaft connected to the inner ring of a hub bearing connected to the drive shaft of the automobile via the support mechanism so as to rotate together with the inner ring of the hub bearing, and the power transmission mechanism may convert between the rotational motion of the dynamometer output shaft and the rotational motion of the rotating shaft, thereby transmitting the power of the rotational motion of the dynamometer output shaft via the rotating shaft as the power of the rotational motion of the drive shaft of the automobile.

[0011] Alternatively, such an automobile testing system may include an opening provided in the floor, and the power transmission mechanism may include a power transmission member passing through the opening, a first motion conversion unit disposed in the underfloor space, connected to a dynamometer output shaft and converting the rotational motion of the dynamometer output shaft into motion of the power transmission member, and a second motion conversion unit disposed in the test specimen arrangement space, connected to an inner ring of a hub bearing connected to the drive shaft of the automobile and converting the motion of the power transmission member into rotational motion of the drive shaft of the automobile.

[0012] In addition, the automobile testing system having the above-mentioned rotating shaft may be provided with an opening in the floor, and the power transmission mechanism may include a power transmission member passing through the opening, a first motion conversion unit disposed in the underfloor space and connected to a dynamometer output shaft to convert the rotational motion of the dynamometer output shaft into motion of the power transmission member, and a second motion conversion unit disposed in the test specimen arrangement space and connected to the rotating shaft to convert the motion of the power transmission member into rotational motion of the rotating shaft.

[0013] It is also preferable that such an automobile testing system be provided with a suppression member that suppresses the transmission of heat or sound between the test specimen arrangement space and the underfloor space through an opening in the floor.

[0014] With this type of automobile testing system, the automobile to be tested and the dynamometer are placed in different spaces that are almost completely isolated by a floor, and automobile testing is performed thereby eliminating limitations imposed by the dynamometer's specified operating range and the effects on testing of noise, vibration, and electromagnetic noise generated by the dynamometer itself, and enabling a variety of tests to be performed, such as automobile environmental resistance testing and NV testing.

[0015] In addition, since the dynamometer is not installed in a position that overlaps horizontally with the vehicle being tested, it does not require a large horizontal installation space, and can be used without any problems in existing test rooms with limited area. Effect of the Invention

[0016] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an automobile testing system that is equipped with a dynamometer that applies a load to the drive shaft of an automobile and that can be applied to a variety of tests. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0017] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of an automobile testing system according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 2] 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a mock wheel according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a power transmission unit according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing another example of the configuration of the automobile testing system according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 5] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing another example of the configuration of the automobile testing system according to the embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0018] An embodiment of the present invention will be described. 1a and 1b show the configuration of an automobile testing system according to this embodiment, taking as an example a case in which an automobile 200 to be tested is a four-wheel drive vehicle. As shown in the figure, the automobile testing system includes a test control system 1 and a sensor 2. The automobile testing system also includes four sets of a dynamometer 3, a power transmission mechanism 4, a rotating shaft 5, a rotating shaft bearing 6, a simulated wheel 7, and a heat and sound insulating material 8, each set corresponding to one of the four wheels of the automobile.

[0019] A test room 10 in which automobile tests are performed is divided by a floor 11 into a test body arrangement space 101 above the floor 11 and an underfloor space 102 below the floor 11, and the dynamometer 3 is arranged in the underfloor space 102.

[0020] A simulated wheel 7 is attached to the hub bearing of the vehicle 200 under test in place of a wheel, and the vehicle 200 under test is placed in the test specimen arrangement space 101 in a form supported on the floor 11 via the simulated wheel 7. The vehicle 200 under test is also restrained so as not to move relative to the floor 11. This restraint is achieved, for example, by fixing a belt looped around the simulated wheel 7 to the floor 11, or by fixing a belt connected to a towing point of the vehicle 200 to the floor 11.

[0021] The rotating shaft bearing 6 is installed on the floor 11 and rotatably supports one end of the rotating shaft 5. The drive shaft of the automobile 200 is rotatably supported by a simulated wheel 7 via a hub shaft of a hub bearing of the automobile 200 and an inner ring integrated with the hub shaft. The other end of the rotating shaft 5 is connected to the inner ring of the hub bearing of the automobile 200 via the simulated wheel 7 so as to rotate together with the drive shaft of the automobile 200.

[0022] One end of the power transmission mechanism 4 is connected to the output shaft of the dynamometer 3, and the other end is connected to the rotating shaft 5, and transmits the power of the rotational motion between the dynamometer 3 and the rotating shaft 5. Therefore, a load or power can be transmitted from the dynamometer 3 to the drive shaft of the automobile 200 via the power transmission mechanism 4, the rotating shaft 5, the simulated wheel 7, and the inner ring of the hub bearing.

[0023] The power transmission mechanism 4 connects the output shaft of the dynamometer 3 in the underfloor space 102 to the rotating shaft 5 in the test specimen arrangement space 101 through a small opening provided in the floor 11. The heat and sound insulating material 8 is arranged so as to reduce the transmission of heat and sound through this opening as much as possible without interfering with the operation of the power transmission mechanism 4. As the heat and sound insulating material 8, for example, a porous or foam sheet can be used.

[0024] The dynamometer 3 or the simulated wheel 7 is equipped with a torque sensor that detects the torque acting between the dynamometer 3 and the drive shaft of the automobile 200, and a rotation sensor that detects the rotation speed, and the test control system 1 controls the torque generated by the dynamometer 3 and the rotation speed detected by the rotation sensor while referring to the torque detected by the torque sensor and the rotation speed detected by the rotation sensor.

[0025] The test control system 1 acquires various conditions of the automobile 200, such as the engine rotation speed, gear shift state, accelerator opening, steering angle, steering torque, and various environmental conditions, such as the temperature around the automobile 200, from the sensor 2, the ECU of the automobile 200, and various on-board sensors equipped in the automobile 200, while controlling the load and power applied to the drive shaft of the automobile 200 from the dynamometer 3 to perform various measurements related to the automobile 200. Generally, a load simulating a load during actual driving is applied to the drive shaft of the automobile 200 from the dynamometer 3.

[0026] Next, the configuration of the dummy wheel 7 will be described with reference to FIG. 2a shows the state around the hub bearing of the automobile 200 in a standard state. The standard state refers to the original state in which the automobile 200 is capable of being driven. As shown in the figure, in a standard state, an outer ring 2011 of a hub bearing 201 is fixed to a knuckle 202 and is connected to a vehicle body via the knuckle 202. The outer ring 2011 of the hub bearing 201 rotatably supports an inner ring 2012, and a drive shaft 203 of an automobile 200 is inserted into the inner ring 2012 so that the inner ring 2012 rotates together with the drive shaft 203. A wheel of a wheel 204 is fixed to the inner ring 2012 of the hub bearing 201 using a hub bolt provided on a flange on the outer side of the vehicle body of a hub shaft integrated with the inner ring 2012 of the hub bearing 201, and the wheel 204 rotates together with the drive shaft 203 and the inner ring 2012 of the hub bearing 201.

[0027] FIG. 2b shows the state during testing in which the wheels 204 of the automobile 200 are replaced with dummy wheels 7. As shown in the figure, the simulated wheel 7 has a simulated wheel 71, a tire 72 attached to the outer periphery of the simulated wheel 71, an adapter disk 73 connected to the center of the simulated wheel 71, and a connecting shaft 74. The connecting shaft 74 is made up of a center shaft 74a rotatably supported by the adapter disk 73, and an inner ring portion 74b provided on the outer periphery of the center shaft 74a.

[0028] Then, the end of the center shaft 74a of the connecting shaft 74 on the inside of the vehicle body is fixed to a hub shaft that is integrated with the inner ring 2012 of the hub bearing 201 using a hub bolt, and the inner ring portion 74b of the connecting shaft 74 is fixed to a coupling 51 connected to the rotating shaft 5, thereby connecting the rotating shaft 5 and the inner ring 2012 of the hub bearing 201.

[0029] The rotating shaft 5 may be a constant velocity joint (CVJ) so that a certain degree of axial misalignment can be tolerated. Next, the power transmission mechanism 4 will be described. The power transmission mechanism 4 is a rotational transmission mechanism that converts the rotational motion of the output shaft of the dynamometer 3 into the rotational motion of the rotating shaft 5. For example, as shown in Figure 3a, a winding transmission mechanism consisting of a first pulley 401 fixed to the output shaft of the dynamometer 3, a second pulley 402 fixed to the rotating shaft 5, and a winding intermediate link 403 such as a belt or chain that is wound around the first pulley 401 and the second pulley 402 can be used as the power transmission mechanism 4.

[0030] 3b, the power transmission mechanism 4 may be a mechanism including a transmission shaft 411, a transmission shaft bearing 412 fixed to the floor 11 and supporting the transmission shaft 411 rotatably with the vertical direction as its axis of rotation, a first gear 413 for converting the rotational motion of the output shaft of the dynamometer 3 with the horizontal direction as its axis of rotation into the rotational motion of the transmission shaft 411 with the vertical direction as its axis of rotation, and a second gear 414 for converting the rotational motion of the transmission shaft 411 into the rotational motion of the rotating shaft 5 with the left-right direction of the automobile 200 as its axis of rotation. Here, worm gears or bevel gears may be used as the first gear 413 and the second gear 414. For example, both the first gear 413 and the second gear 414 may be bevel gears. Also, the first gear 413 may be a bevel gear, and the second gear 414 may be a worm gear in which the second gear 414 side of the transmission shaft 411 is a worm and the second gear 414 is a worm wheel.

[0031] In addition, the power transmission mechanism 4 may be a mechanism composed of a first gear 421 fixed to the output shaft of the dynamometer 3 and a second gear 422 fixed to the rotating shaft 5 and meshing with the first gear 421, as shown in Figure 3c.

[0032] The embodiment of the present invention has been described above. The orientation of the dynamometer 3 in the embodiment may be different from that shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 4a, the orientation of the dynamometer 3 may be inverted from the orientation shown in FIG. 1 with respect to the left-right direction of the automobile 200 under test. Furthermore, the orientation of the dynamometer 3 may be such that the direction of the output shaft is in the longitudinal direction of the automobile 200 under test, as shown in FIG. 4b. In addition, the automobile testing system may be configured to transmit rotational motion directly to the inner ring 2012 of the hub bearing 201 of the automobile 200 under test using the power transmission mechanism 4, without providing a rotating shaft 5 and a rotating shaft bearing 6, as shown in FIG. 5a.

[0033] Such direct transmission of rotational motion to the inner ring 2012 of the hub bearing 201 can be achieved, for example, as shown in Figure 5b, by configuring the power transmission mechanism 4 with a first pulley 401 fixed to the output shaft of the dynamometer 3, a third pulley 404 connected to the inner ring 2012 of the hub bearing 201 of the automobile 200, and a winding intermediate link 403 such as a belt or chain that is wound around the first pulley 401 and the third pulley 404, and by connecting the third pulley 404 to the connecting shaft 74 of the simulated wheel 7, the third pulley 404 and the inner ring 2012 of the hub bearing 201 of the automobile 200 are rotatably supported by the simulated wheel 7.

[0034] Although the above description has been given taking as an example a case where the automobile 200 under test is a four-wheel drive automobile, the above configuration may also be applied when the automobile 200 under test is a front-wheel drive or rear-wheel drive automobile, and power may be applied from the dynamometer 3 to the trailing wheels to rotate equivalent to that during actual driving. However, if there is no problem with the control of the automobile 200 even if the trailing wheels of the automobile 200 are stopped, the set of the dynamometer 3, power transmission mechanism 4, rotating shaft 5, rotating shaft bearing 6, dummy wheel 7, and heat insulating sound insulating member 8 may be provided only for the driving wheels.

[0035] In the above embodiment, the drive shaft 203 of the automobile 200 and the end of the rotating shaft 5 on the automobile 200 side are supported by the simulated wheel 7, but these supports may be implemented in a form that does not use the simulated wheel 7. For example, these supports may be implemented in a configuration in which the simulated wheel 7 is replaced with a bearing fixed onto the floor 11.

[0036] In addition, together with the dummy wheels 7, the rotating shaft 5 may be supported by an intermediate bearing provided on the floor 11 at a position close to the automobile 200 to suppress movement of the shaft center. As described above, according to this embodiment, the vehicle 200 to be tested and the dynamometer 3 are placed in different spaces that are almost isolated by the floor 11, and testing of the vehicle 200 is performed. This eliminates limitations imposed by the specified operating range of the dynamometer 3, as well as the effects of noise, vibration, electromagnetic noise, and heat generated by the dynamometer 3 itself on the testing, and makes it possible to perform a variety of tests on the vehicle 200, such as environmental resistance testing and NV testing.

[0037] In addition, in the automobile testing system of this embodiment, the dynamometer 3 is not installed in a position that overlaps horizontally with the automobile 200 to be tested, so that installation does not require a large horizontal space, and the system can be applied without any problems to existing test rooms 10 with small areas. [Explanation of symbols]

[0038] 1...test control system, 2...sensor, 3...dynamometer, 4...power transmission mechanism, 5...rotating shaft, 6...rotating shaft bearing, 7...simulated wheel, 8...thermal insulation and sound insulation member, 10...test chamber, 11...floor, 51...coupling, 71...simulated wheel, 72...tire, 73...adapter disk, 74...connecting shaft, 74a...center shaft, 74b...inner wheel portion, 101...test specimen arrangement space, 102...underfloor space, 200...automobile, 201...hub bearing, 202...knuckle, 203...drive shaft, 204...wheel, 401...first pulley, 402...second pulley, 403...intermediate joint, 404...third pulley, 411...transmission shaft, 412...transmission shaft bearing, 413...first gear, 414...second gear, 2011...outer wheel, 2012...inner wheel.

Claims

1. An automobile test system installed in a test room having a test specimen arrangement space above a floor and a subfloor space below the floor, the test room being separated by a floor, A support mechanism placed on the floor for rotatably supporting a drive shaft connected to an inner ring of a hub bearing of a test subject automobile installed in the test specimen arrangement space; A dynamometer installed in the underfloor space; a power transmission mechanism that transmits the power of the rotational motion of the output shaft of the dynamometer as the power of the rotational motion of a drive shaft of the automobile, the floor has an opening; The power transmission mechanism is characterized in that it comprises a power transmission member that passes through the opening, a first motion conversion unit located in the underfloor space and connected to the output shaft of a dynamometer to convert the rotational motion of the output shaft of the dynamometer into motion of the power transmission member, and a second motion conversion unit located in the test specimen arrangement space and connected to an inner ring of a hub bearing connected to the drive shaft of the vehicle to convert the motion of the power transmission member into rotational motion of the drive shaft of the vehicle.

2. The automotive testing system according to claim 1, 13. An automobile testing system comprising: a suppression member for suppressing the transmission of heat or sound between the test specimen arrangement space and the underfloor space through an opening in the floor.

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