JP2008271644A - Generator-equipped bearing for wheel - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a generator-equipped bearing for a wheel with which a generator can be compactly installed on a vehicle, a power generation amount can be sufficiently ensured, wiring in a tire and a wheel can be easily executed and a bearing for wheel can be easily assembled in the wheel, assemblability is good and mass productivity can be obtained. <P>SOLUTION: A plurality of rows of rotating bodies 5 are interposed between an external member 1 as a fixed wheel and an internal member 2 as a rotary wheel. A generator 21 is provided between the external member 1 and the internal member 2. A connector 32 connected via a wiring 27 is provided on the generator 21. The connector 32 is attached on the internal member 2 as the rotary wheel, or pulled out via the wiring 27 from the internal member 2. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a wheel bearing with a power generator equipped with a power generator for supplying electric power to a rotating side.

  2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, in order to improve the stability of automobiles, tire abnormality detection devices that detect abnormalities in tires and issue warnings to drivers as necessary have been actively developed. For example, a tire pressure monitoring device (Patent Document 1) that monitors tire pressure, a tire abnormality detection device that detects tire abnormality based on tire temperature and wear amount, and the like can be cited. Moreover, a structure in which a load sensor is provided on the rotation side has also been proposed as means for detecting the tire contact force (Patent Document 4). As described above, when the sensor is installed on the rotation side, it is necessary to supply power for driving the sensor and the transmitter to the rotation side.

In order to meet such a demand, there has been proposed one having a power generation plate that generates power by generating a shape deformation due to air pressure fluctuation in the tire (for example, Patent Document 1). In addition, a tire power supply device has been proposed in which an electromagnetic coil is provided on the tire rotation side and a magnetic field generating means is provided on the non-rotation side (for example, Patent Document 2). Further, a wheel bearing device in which a power generation device is incorporated in a wheel bearing has been proposed (Patent Document 3). In addition, there is a means for supplying power to the rotating side by a method such as slip ring or wireless power feeding.
JP 2006-329772 A JP 2006-232195 A JP 2002-055113 A JP 2003-246201 A

In the case of generating power by deforming the shape of the power generation plate due to the change in tire air pressure in Patent Document 1, the amount of power generation is small, and it is necessary to provide a plurality of power generation plates to increase the power generation amount. Therefore, there are problems in terms of assembly and cost. For example, even if a plurality of power generation plates are provided, it is difficult to supply power to a plurality of sensors.
In the configuration of Patent Document 2, the power generation device is provided outside the bearing, and the unsprung load increases as the whole becomes larger. Moreover, it cannot be said that the assembling property and the sealing property of the power generation device are good. In addition, there is a problem that the wiring is obstructive when attached to the wheel.
In the configuration of Patent Document 3, power is generated by the wheel bearing, but it is not used as power supply to the rotating side.
In addition, in the wireless power feeding, there is a problem that the positional relationship between the transmission side and the reception side is important, and the degree of freedom in design is narrowed. In addition, when a slip ring is used, wear and wiring are problematic.

  An object of the present invention is that a power generation device can be installed compactly in a vehicle, and a sufficient amount of power can be secured, and wiring to a tire and a wheel side and assembly of a wheel bearing to a wheel can be easily performed. The object is to provide a wheel bearing with a power generator excellent in mass production.

  The wheel bearing with power generator according to the present invention includes a stationary wheel having a double row rolling surface, a rotating wheel having a rolling surface facing the rolling surface of the fixed wheel, and a facing rolling surface. In a wheel bearing comprising a double row rolling element interposed therebetween and a sealing device for sealing an end portion between the fixed wheel and the rotating wheel, the wheel bearing rotatably supporting the wheel with respect to the vehicle body, the fixed wheel A power generator comprising a stator including a magnet provided on the rotor and a rotor including a coil provided on the rotating wheel; and a power generator connected to the power generator via a wiring and attached to the rotating wheel or the rotating wheel And a connector drawn from the connector.

  According to this configuration, since the power generation device is provided on the wheel bearing, the power generation device can be installed compactly in the vehicle. Further, since the connector is provided, wiring to the tire or wheel side and assembly of the wheel bearing to the wheel are facilitated. For this reason, it becomes easy to assemble and is excellent in mass productivity, so that the cost can be reduced. The power supplied from the connector can be used as a power source for various sensors for detecting tire abnormality. Since the power generation device includes a stator including a magnet provided on the fixed wheel and a rotor including a coil provided on the rotating wheel, a sufficient amount of power generation can be ensured. In this case, since the rotational speed of the axle during normal traveling is fast, the amount of power generation is large, and power can be supplied to a plurality of sensors. Note that a capacitor may be provided on the rotating wheel, and the generated power may be charged in the capacitor.

In the present invention, the rotating wheel may have one or both of a wiring hole and a wiring groove for drawing the wiring out of the bearing.
By providing a wiring hole or a wiring groove in the rotating wheel, it becomes easy to pull out the wiring to the outside, and disconnection of the wiring can be prevented when the constant velocity joint is assembled.

  A part of the wiring hole or the wiring groove may be molded. By molding a part of the wiring hole or the wiring groove, foreign matters such as water can be prevented from entering the inside of the wheel bearing.

You may arrange | position the said electric power generating apparatus between double row rolling surfaces. The power generation device may be provided between a flange provided on the rotating wheel and an end of the fixed wheel.
By providing the power generator between double row rolling surfaces, or between the flange of the rotating wheel and the end of the fixed ring, the entire system can be made compact, and a seal structure such as sand guard is provided for the bearing seal. It becomes possible to share with.

  The rotor of the power generator may have a partition for protecting the coil. This partition may be, for example, a resin cover. By providing a partition wall on the rotor of the power generation device, the coil can be protected. In addition, in a situation where there is grease around the rotor of the power generation device, it is possible to prevent deterioration of the insulating film of the coil due to the grease.

  In the present invention, the connector may be fixed to a rotating wheel. If the connector is fixed to a part of the rotating wheel, wiring does not get in the way when assembling the wheel, and wiring to the tire side can be easily performed.

  In this invention, the connector may be pulled out from the inner diameter portion of the rotating wheel. The connector may be pulled out from a flange provided on the rotating wheel. By pulling out the connector from the inner diameter portion of the rotating wheel or the rotating wheel flange, power supply to the tire or wheel side is facilitated.

  The wheel bearing with a power generator according to the present invention is provided with a power generator and a connector on the wheel bearing, so that power can be supplied to the rotating side, and the supplied power can be used as a power source for a tire abnormality detection device or the like. . Further, since the power generation device is incorporated in the wheel bearing, the power generation device can be installed compactly in the vehicle. In addition, since wiring to the tire side can be easily performed by the connector, the assemblability is excellent and the mass productivity is excellent, and the cost can be reduced.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line I-O-I 'of FIG. This embodiment is a third generation inner ring rotating type and is applied to a wheel bearing for driving wheel support. In this specification, the side closer to the outer side in the vehicle width direction of the vehicle when attached to the vehicle is referred to as the outboard side, and the side closer to the center of the vehicle is referred to as the inboard side.
As shown in a sectional view in FIG. 1, the bearing in the wheel bearing with power transmission device is opposed to the outer member 1 in which a double row rolling surface 3 is formed on the inner periphery, and the respective rolling surfaces 3. It is comprised by the inner member 2 which formed the rolling surface 4, and the double row rolling element 5 interposed between the rolling surfaces 3 and 4 of these outer member 1 and the inner member 2. As shown in FIG. This wheel bearing is a double-row angular ball bearing type, and the rolling elements 5 are made of balls and are held by a cage 6 for each row. The rolling surfaces 3 and 4 have a circular arc shape in cross section, and the rolling surfaces 3 and 4 are formed so that the contact angles are aligned with the back surface. Both ends of the bearing space between the outer member 1 and the inner member 2 are respectively sealed by seals 7 and 8 serving as sealing devices.

The outer member 1 is a fixed wheel, and has a flange 1a for mounting a vehicle body attached to a knuckle in a suspension device (not shown) of the vehicle body on the outer periphery, and the whole is an integral part. Bolt holes 14 for mounting the vehicle body are provided in the flange 1a at a plurality of locations in the circumferential direction.
The inner member 2 is a rotating wheel, and includes a hub wheel 9 having a hub flange 9a for attaching the wheel, and an inner ring 10 fitted to the outer periphery of the inboard side end of the shaft portion 9b of the hub wheel 9. The hub wheel 9 and the inner ring 10 are formed with the rolling surfaces 4 of the respective rows. An inner ring fitting surface 12 having a small diameter with a step is provided on the outer periphery of the inboard side end of the hub wheel 9, and the inner ring 10 is fitted to the inner ring fitting surface 12. A through hole 11 is provided at the center of the hub wheel 9. The hub flange 9a is provided with press-fit holes 16 for hub bolts at a plurality of locations in the circumferential direction. In the vicinity of the base portion of the hub flange 9a of the hub wheel 9, a cylindrical pilot portion 13 for guiding a wheel and a braking component (not shown) protrudes toward the outboard side.

  In this wheel bearing, a power generation device 21 is provided between an outer member 1 that is a fixed wheel and an inner member 2 that is a rotating wheel. The power generator 21 is disposed between the double-row rolling surfaces 3 and 3 (4, 4).

  The power generation device 21 includes a ring-shaped rotor 25 including a coil and a ring-shaped stator 23 including a magnet. In this embodiment, the stator 23 includes a mounting ring and a magnet provided on the inner diameter surface thereof. Specific examples of the power generation device 21 will be described later together with FIGS. 10 and 11. The rotor 25 is fixed to the outer diameter surface of the inner member 2 that is a rotating ring, and the stator 23 is fixed to the inner diameter surface of the outer member 1 that is a fixed ring by a method such as press fitting or bonding. The rotor 25 and the stator 23 are positioned so as to face each other in the radial direction. Note that the outer member 1 that is a fixed ring or the inner member 2 that is a rotating ring may be provided with a step or a protrusion (not shown) that positions the stator 23 and the rotor 25 in the axial direction. .

  The hub wheel 9 of the inner member 2 that is a rotating wheel is provided with a wiring hole 29 through which the wiring 27 connected to the coil of the rotor 25 passes from the outer diameter surface to the inner diameter surface. A wiring groove 30 is provided in a part of the wiring groove 27 so as to extend the wiring 27 in the axial direction. When assembling the rotor 25 having a coil, the wire 27 may be fitted to the inner diameter surface of the outer member 1 from the axial direction in a state where the wiring hole 29 is passed through in advance.

  A connector 32 for sending electric power to a sensor (not shown) installed on the tire or wheel is connected to the tip of the wiring 27. The connector 32 is fixed to the end face on the outboard side at the inner diameter portion of the hub wheel 9 in the inner member 2 rather than the pilot portion 13.

  The connector 32 is one of plug-in connector pairs in which a pair of connectors are plugged into each other, and is, for example, a socket type. FIG. 3 is a schematic view showing an example of the connector 32 fixed to the hub wheel 9 and the connector 33 of the tire-side wiring 34 connected to the connector 32.

  According to the said structure, since the electric power generating apparatus 21 was provided in the wheel bearing, a power generating apparatus can be installed in a vehicle compactly. Further, since the connector 32 is provided on the rotation side of the wheel bearing and power is supplied to the tire and the wheel via the connector 32, the wiring is not obstructed when the wheel bearing is installed on the tire. It becomes possible to perform wiring in the tire even before installing the bearing for the vehicle. The wiring 27 is preferably fixed in the wiring groove 30. Then, when the constant velocity joint is assembled, the wiring 27 does not get in the way and can be assembled without being disconnected. Further, if a part of the wiring hole 29 or the wiring groove 30 is molded, it is possible to prevent water or the like from entering the inside. Further, the coil of the rotor 25 can be protected by covering it with a cover (not shown) made of resin or the like serving as a partition wall.

FIG. 12 shows an assembly view in which a wheel bearing with a power generator having the same configuration as that of the embodiment of FIG. 1 is fixed to the knuckle 60. 1 is different from the embodiment of FIG. 1 in that the inner ring 10 of the inner member 2 is caulked and fixed by the caulking portion 9b at the end of the hub wheel 9, but the other configurations are different. Are the same.
In this wheel bearing with power generator, the outer member 1 which is a fixed wheel is connected to a knuckle 60 with a bolt 61. The inner member 2 is inserted through the stem portion 63a of the outer ring 63 of the constant velocity joint 62, and the inner member 2 is sandwiched between the step surface around the proximal end of the stem portion 63a and the nut 64 at the distal end. The wheel bearing and the constant velocity joint 62 are connected. A brake rotor 40 and a wheel 50 are overlapped on the hub flange 9 a of the inner member 2 which is a rotating wheel of a wheel bearing, and fixed with a hub bolt 15. A tire 50 a is attached to the wheel 50.

  This example is an example when power is supplied to the tire 50a. The tire 50a is provided with sensors (not shown) for detecting air pressure and detecting tire abnormality, and supplies electric power to these sensors. When the connector 32 is taken out from the tip of the hub wheel 9 constituting the rotating wheel as in this example, electric power can be supplied to the tire 50a through the side surface of the wheel 50 on the outboard side. In this case, the wiring 27 can be protected by providing a wheel cover (not shown). If the connector 32 is extended from the hub flange 9a, it is possible to provide a wiring hole in a part of the brake rotor 40 and wire the tire 50a.

  FIG. 4 shows another embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the power generation device 21 is disposed between the proximal end of the hub flange 9a of the hub 9 constituting the rotating wheel and the inner diameter surface of the outer board 1 side end of the outer member 1 that is a fixed wheel. The connector 32 connected to the coil wiring 27 of the rotor 25 is not fixed to the hub wheel 9 but is hung outside. The rest is the same as the embodiment of FIG.

  FIG. 5 shows still another embodiment of the present invention. This embodiment is an example applied to a wheel bearing for a driven wheel. Since the wheel bearing for the driven wheel does not need to be connected to the constant velocity joint, the hub wheel 9 constituting the inner member 2 serving as a rotating wheel has a shape that does not have a through hole at the center. The inner ring 10 is fixed to the hub ring 9 by a caulking portion 9 c of the hub ring 9. In this wheel bearing, a power generation device 21 is arranged between the rolling surfaces 3 and 4 on the outboard side and the seal 7 on the outboard side. In this embodiment, the connector 32 is not fixed to the tip of the hub wheel 9, but may be fixed. The other configuration is the same as that of the embodiment of FIG.

FIG. 6A shows still another embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the power generation device 21 is disposed between the proximal end of the hub flange 9a of the hub 9 constituting the rotating wheel and the inner diameter surface of the outer side of the outer member 1 serving as a fixed wheel. . A contact-type seal 7B serving as a sealing device is provided between the outer diameter surface of the rotor 25 and the inner diameter surface of the outer member 1. A part of the hub flange 9a in the circumferential direction is provided with a wiring groove 36 for passing the coil wiring 27, and the connector 32 connected to the wiring 27 is taken out from the outer diameter surface of the hub flange 9a. ing.
For example, as shown in FIG. 5B, a portion of the wiring 27 protruding from the hub flange 9a may be provided with a wiring hole 41 in a part of the brake rotor 40 and drawn out to the outer diameter side. Other configurations are the same as those of the embodiment described above with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 7 shows still another embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, a wiring groove 36 is provided in a part of the hub flange 9a of the hub 9 constituting the rotating wheel, and the connector 32 is fixed to the side surface on the outboard side of the hub flange 9a. The other configuration is the same as that of the embodiment of FIG.

  FIG. 8 shows still another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8B shows a view of the inner diameter portion of the wheel 50 as viewed from the outboard side. In this embodiment, the wiring hole 42 is provided in a part of the hub flange 9a constituting the rotating wheel, and the connector 32 is fixed to the inboard side surface of the hub flange 9a. A notch 51 is provided on the inner diameter surface of the wheel 50 and the brake rotor 40 that are attached to the hub flange 9 a so as to be accommodated in the notch 51. Thereby, wiring can be easily performed even after the brake rotor 40 and the wheel 50 are installed. The other configuration is the same as that of the embodiment of FIG.

  FIG. 9 shows still another embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the power generation device 21 is a coreless axial gap type power generation device, and is disposed between double-row rolling surfaces. A rotor 25 having a coil is disposed between a pair of stators 23A and 23B having magnets. The rest is the same as the embodiment shown in FIG.

  FIG. 10 shows an example of the power generation device 21 used in each of the above embodiments. This power generator 21 is a radial gap type claw pole power generator. The stator 23 includes a mounting ring 23a and a magnet 22 provided on the inner diameter surface thereof. The magnet 22 is a multipolar magnet in which magnetic poles N and S are alternately arranged in the circumferential direction. The rotor 25 includes a ring-shaped yoke 25a having O at the center of the ring concentric with the stator 23, and a coil 24 housed in the yoke 25a. The yoke 25a is a combination of two ring-shaped yoke constituent members 25aa and 25ab facing each other in the axial direction at the inner diameter portion, and a plurality of claw portions a that engage with both yoke constituent members 25aa and 25ab via gaps. , B are claw pole type. The claw pole power generator has the advantage of being small and having good power generation efficiency.

  FIG. 11 shows another example of the radial gap type power generator used in the power generator 21 of each of the above embodiments. The stator 23 is a ring-shaped multipolar magnet in which magnetic poles N and S are alternately arranged in the circumferential direction. In the rotor 25, individual coils 24a constituting the coil 24 are wound around the respective protrusions 25ba provided on the outer periphery of the yoke 25b so as to protrude in the circumferential direction in the circumferential direction. A thin partition 72 made of a nonmagnetic material such as a synthetic resin for protecting the coil 24 is provided on the side surface and the outer diameter surface of the rotor 25. The gaps between the individual coils 24a are filled with a resin mold or the like using a mold resin 71. Note that the rotor of the axial gap power generator can have the same configuration as described above.

  In each of the above embodiments, the outer member 1 is a fixed ring, but the present invention can also be applied to a wheel bearing in which the inner member is a fixed ring and the outer member is a rotating wheel.

1 is a cross-sectional view of a wheel bearing with a power generator according to a first embodiment of the present invention. It is the side view which looked at the wheel bearing with the power generator from the inboard side. It is the schematic which shows an example of a connector. It is sectional drawing which shows other embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows other embodiment of this invention. (A) is sectional drawing which shows other embodiment of this invention, (B) is a fragmentary sectional view of the modification. It is sectional drawing which shows other embodiment of this invention. (A), (B) is sectional drawing which shows further another embodiment of this invention, respectively, and a front view which shows the internal diameter part of the wheel. It is sectional drawing which shows other embodiment of this invention. (A) is the fragmentary sectional view of the claw pole type electric power generating apparatus used for each said embodiment, (B) is the partial expanded view which looked at the stator from the outer diameter side. (A) is the partial front view of the other radial gap type electric power generating apparatus used for said each embodiment, (B) is the partial side view. It is an assembly drawing which shows the state which attached the wheel bearing with an electric power generating device which concerns on further another embodiment of this invention to the knuckle, and assembled | attached the wheel.

Explanation of symbols

1. Outer member (fixed ring)
2 ... Inward member (rotating wheel)
3, 4 ... rolling surface 5 ... rolling elements 7, 8 ... seal (sealing device)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 21 ... Power generator 22 ... Magnet 23 ... Stator 24 ... Coil 25 ... Rotor 27 ... Wiring 29 ... Wiring hole 30 ... Wiring groove 32 ... Connector 40 ... Brake rotor 50 ... Wheel 50a ... Tire 72 ... Partition

Claims (9)

A fixed ring formed with a double row rolling surface, a rotating wheel formed with a rolling surface facing the rolling surface of the fixed wheel, and a double row rolling element interposed between the opposing rolling surfaces; A wheel bearing that includes a sealing device that seals an end portion between the fixed wheel and the rotating wheel, and rotatably supports the wheel with respect to the vehicle body;
A power generator configured of a stator including a magnet provided on the stationary wheel and a rotor including a coil provided on the rotating wheel, and connected to the power generator via a wiring and attached to the rotating wheel; A wheel bearing with a power generator, comprising: a connector drawn from the rotating wheel.   2. The wheel bearing with a power generator according to claim 1, wherein the rotating wheel has one or both of a wiring hole and a wiring groove for drawing the wiring out of the bearing.   3. The wheel bearing with power generator according to claim 2, wherein a part of the wiring hole or the wiring groove is molded.   4. The wheel bearing with a power generator according to claim 1, wherein the power generator is provided between two rows of rolling surfaces. 5.   4. The power generation device wheel according to claim 1, wherein the power generation device is provided between a flange provided on the rotating wheel and an end portion of the fixed wheel. 5. bearing. 6. The wheel bearing with a power generator according to claim 1, wherein the rotor of the power generator has a partition wall for protecting the coil.   7. The wheel bearing with power generator according to claim 1, wherein the connector is fixed to a rotating wheel.   8. The wheel bearing with a power generator according to claim 1, wherein the connector is pulled out from an inner diameter portion of the rotating wheel.   8. The wheel bearing with a power generator according to claim 1, wherein the connector is pulled out from a flange provided on the rotating wheel. 9.

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