JP2512319B2 - Vehicle headlamp tilting device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION A tilting device for a vehicle headlight according to the present invention will be described in accordance with the following items.

A. Industrial field of use B. Outline of invention C. Prior art [Fig. 12] D. Problems to be solved by the invention [Fig. 12] E. Means for solving problems F. Example [Figs. 1 to 11] F-1. First embodiment [Figs. 1 to 8] a. Headlight unit, lamp housing [Figs. 1 to 5]
Fig.] B. Rotating fulcrum mechanism [Fig. 4] c. Aiming adjustment mechanism [Fig. 5] d. Tilt device [Figs. 1 to 4, 6 to 8] d-1. Leveling mechanism [ 1, 3, 4, and 6
Fig. To Fig. 8] d-1-a. Casing [Fig. 1, Fig. 3, Fig. 4 and Fig. 6]
Fig., Fig. 7] d-1-b. Rod support, drive gear [Fig. 1, Fig. 7,
FIG. 8] d-1-c. Adjustment rod [FIG. 1, FIG. 3, FIG. 4, FIG.
Figure, Figure 8] d-1-d. Motor, worm gear, worm wheel [Figure 1, Figure 7, Figure 8] d-1-e. Sensor [Structure] [Figure 1, Figure 8] d-1-f. Sensor driving means [Fig. 1, Fig. 7, Fig. 8]
Fig.] D-1-g. Sensor [Function] d-1-h. Attachment to lamp housing, connection of adjusting rod and headlamp unit [Fig. 1, 3, 4] d-2 .Aiming operation unit [Figs. 1, 3, 4
Fig. 8] d-2-a. Aiming operation axis d-2-b. Connected body d-3. Operation d-3-a. Aiming adjustment in vertical direction d-3-b. Leveling d-4. Impact F-2. Second embodiment [Fig. 9] F-3. Application example [Figs. 10 and 11] G. Effects of the invention (A. Industrial field of application) The present invention is novel. Tilting device for headlights for vehicles. More specifically, a tilting member tilted when adjusting the irradiation direction is tiltably supported by a supporting member, and a front end portion is connected to an adjusting rod connected to the tilting member and a rear end portion of the adjusting rod. A tilting device for a vehicle headlamp, comprising: an aiming operation section; and a leveling mechanism arranged between the aiming operation section and a tilting member for moving the adjusting rod in the front-rear direction, By devising the connecting structure between the aiming operation part and the adjusting rod,
It is an object of the present invention to provide a novel tilting device for a vehicle headlamp, which prevents the impact from being transmitted to the adjusting rod and the leveling mechanism even when the impact is applied to the aiming operation section.

(B. Overview of the Invention) A tilting device for a vehicle headlamp according to the present invention is a tilting member that tilts when adjusting an irradiation direction and is tiltably supported by a supporting member. A connecting adjustment rod, an aiming operating part connected to the rear end of the adjusting rod, and a leveling mechanism arranged between the aiming operating part and the tilting member for moving the adjusting rod in the front-back direction. A tilting device for a vehicle headlamp, comprising an output section of an aiming operation section and a rear end section of an adjusting rod, which is slidable in an axial direction with respect to both of the output section and the adjusting rod. By connecting via a connecting body,
Even if a shock is applied to the aiming operation portion, the shock is not transmitted to the adjusting rod or the leveling mechanism.

(C. Prior art) [FIG. 12] For example, in an automobile headlight device, an initial aiming adjustment in the irradiation direction, that is, irradiation performed after being attached to the vehicle body, before use, or during inspection, etc. In addition to the adjustment of the direction, there is so-called leveling adjustment, that is, it is possible to adjust the irradiation direction performed each time to correct the irradiation direction which is deviated by the change of the load applied to the vehicle body. Usually has an adjustment point in common with one of the adjustment points at which the initial aiming adjustment is made.

FIG. 12 shows an example a of a conventional vehicle headlight device having such a leveling adjusting function. In the figure, b is a lamp body, and c is the lamp body b.
, A lens attached so as to cover the front opening thereof, d is a reflecting mirror arranged in the lamp space defined by the lamp body b and the lens c, and e is a light bulb supported by the reflecting mirror d, The lamp body b is fixed to the lamp housing f,
The reflecting mirror d is supported on the rear wall g of the lamp body b so as to be tiltable in the left-right direction and the up-down direction via one rotation fulcrum and two adjustment points.

Reference numeral h denotes a tilting device provided at one of the above two adjusting points for tilting the reflecting mirror d in the vertical direction, and a casing i fixed to the inner surface of the rear wall g of the lamp body b,
Worm wheel j housed inside the casing i
And a leveling drive unit including a motor, a worm gear and the like (not shown), and a worm wheel j of the drive unit supported by a casing i so as to be movable in the front-rear direction.
A rod support k which is screwed into the worm wheel and is moved by the rotation of the worm wheel j, and an intermediate rod which is rotatably and axially immovably supported by the rod support k. The adjusting rod 1 has its front end portion screwed into a nut n supported by a bracket m fixed to the lower end portion of the reflecting mirror d, and its rear end portion is projected rearward from the rear wall g of the lamp body b. ing.

Then, when performing the initial aiming adjustment in the vertical direction, the adjusting rod 1 is grasped at its rear end and rotated,
As a result, the adjusting rod 1 is screwed or unscrewed with respect to the nut n, so that the nut n is moved along the adjusting rod 1 in the front-rear direction, the reflecting mirror d is tilted substantially vertically, and the leveling is performed. When performing the adjustment, the drive unit is driven, whereby the rod support body k is moved integrally with the adjustment rod 1 in the front-back direction, and the reflecting mirror d is moved.
Is tilted vertically.

(D. Problems to be Solved by the Invention) [FIG. 12] According to such a tilting device h, since the rear end portion of the adjusting rod l is projected rearward from the lamp body b, the adjusting rod is for some reason caused. There is a possibility that an impact may be directly applied to the adjusting rod l, and when the impact is applied to the adjusting rod l, the impact is mediated by the worm wheel of the drive unit or meshing with it through the rod support k supporting the adjusting rod l. Since it is transmitted to the worm gear that is in motion, the gears that make up the drive unit may be misaligned or have tooth cracks.

Further, the leveling adjusting means is not always provided in the vehicle headlamp, and the tilting device is often constituted only by the aiming adjusting means. In this respect, the conventional tilting device h described above has the aiming adjusting means. Since the lamp body b has a special structure such that the tilting device h is provided, the lamp body b does not have the leveling adjustment means. It is extremely difficult to use it as a lamp body of another type of headlight device or to use only the aiming adjusting means in the components of the tilting device h for the other headlight device. Since the other headlamp device must be provided with another lamp body and aiming adjusting means, therefore, the number of parts is increased. There is also a problem that.

(E. Means for Solving Problems) Therefore, in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the tilting device for a vehicle headlamp according to the present invention has a substantially tubular connecting body extending backward from the casing of the adjusting rod. The protruding portion and the output portion of the aiming operation portion are fitted in the axially slidable and non-rotatable manner, respectively.

Therefore, according to the tilting device for a vehicle headlamp of the present invention, the rotation generated by operating the aiming operation portion is transmitted to the adjusting rod via the connecting body, but is applied to the aiming operation portion. The impact is not released at the fitting part between the output part of the aiming operation part and the connecting body and is not transmitted to the adjusting rod, and the external shock is applied to the adjusting rod and the leveling mechanism without impairing the predetermined operation function for the adjusting rod. In addition, in the headlight device which does not have a leveling mechanism, the aiming operation part in the tilting device according to the present invention can be used as it is and the intermediate part of the predetermined adjustment rod can be supported by the supporting member. By supporting the front end portion with the tilting member and connecting the rear end portion with the output portion of the aiming operation portion through the connecting body, the necessary initial aiming adjustment portion is constructed. It can be, it is possible to greatly common parts.

(F. Embodiment) [FIGS. 1 to 11] Hereinafter, details of a tilting device for a vehicle headlamp according to the present invention will be described with reference to the illustrated embodiment.

(F-1. First Embodiment) [Figs. 1 to 8] Figs. 1 to 8 show a first embodiment of a tilting device for a vehicle headlamp according to the present invention. The headlight device 1 shown in this embodiment is a so-called movable unit headlight device,
That is, a headlamp unit formed by disposing a light bulb in a lamp space defined by a lamp body having a reflecting mirror surface and a lens covering a front opening thereof is used as a tilting member, and the headlamp unit is set with respect to a vehicle body. This is a headlight device of a type that changes the irradiation direction by tilting.

(A. Headlamp Unit, Lamp Housing) [FIGS. 1 to 5] 2 is a headlamp unit, which includes a lamp body 3 formed to have a recessed shape that is open substantially forward and It comprises a lens 4 attached to the lamp body 3 so as to cover its front opening, and a light bulb 5 supported by the lamp body 3. The lamp body 3 has a reflection surface 3a facing forward, and the light bulb 5 has a light bulb mounting hole formed at the top of the reflection surface 3a.
The light emitting portion of the light bulb 5 is supported by 3b and is located in a lamp space 6 defined by the lamp body 3 and the lens 4.

Reference numeral 7 denotes a synthetic resin lamp housing, which has a substantially concave shape that is open to the front, and is fixed to the vehicle body 8 so as to be located on the rear side of the opening for headlight placement of the vehicle body 8.

Point A, point B and point C (see FIG. 2) are points at which the headlamp unit 2 is supported by the lamp housing 7, point A is a rotation fulcrum portion, and is separated laterally from point A. The points C and C, which are spaced downward from the points B and A, serve as adjusting portions that can adjust the distance between the headlamp unit 2 and the lamp housing 7. The headlamp unit 2 is adjusted by these adjusting portions so that the headlight unit 2 is adjusted in the left-right direction (the leftward direction in FIG. 2 is the leftward direction and the rightward direction is the rightward direction) and the vertical direction. It is designed to be tilted in the direction.

Reference numeral 9 denotes an operation shaft arranging portion which is formed so as to project rearward from a position corresponding to the adjusting portion C on the lower end portion of the rear wall 10 of the lamp housing 7. This operation shaft arranging portion 9 will be described later. In the portion where the aiming operation shaft of the tilting device is provided, the rear end is closed and has a substantially cylindrical shape, a circular support hole 11a is formed in the rear end wall 11, and the rear end wall 1
An annular protrusion 11b is formed on the rear surface of 1 so as to surround the support hole 11a.

(B. Rotational fulcrum mechanism) [Fig. 4] 12 is a rotational fulcrum mechanism which constitutes the above-mentioned rotational fulcrum part.

Reference numeral 13 denotes a supported portion that projects rearward from the rear surface of the lamp body 3. A metal support shaft 14 is fixed to the rear end of the supported portion 13, and a spherical portion 14a is integrated with the lower end of the support shaft 14. Is formed in.

Reference numeral 15 denotes a synthetic resin receptacle attached so as to project forward from the upper portion of the rear wall 10 of the lamp housing 7, and has a spherical recess 15a formed on the upper surface thereof. The spherical portion 14a of the support shaft 14 is rotatably fitted in the shaft 15a.

The headlamp unit 2 is mounted on the lamp housing 7 so that the headlamp unit 2 can be tilted about a point where the spherical portion 14a of the support shaft 14 is supported by the receiving body 15 (this point is the point A). Supported.

(C. Aiming Adjusting Mechanism) [FIG. 5] Reference numeral 16 is an aiming adjusting mechanism which constitutes the adjusting part at the point B.

Reference numeral 17 denotes a substantially cylindrical protrusion projecting rearward from the rear surface of the lamp body 3, and a receiving end 18 made of synthetic resin is supported at the rear end of the receiving end. A spherical recess 18a opening toward the front and a groove-shaped hole 18b continuously extending forward are formed at the front end of the spherical recess 18a.

Reference numeral 19 denotes a gear unit, which is a rear wall 10 of the lamp housing 7.
A gear case 20 fixed to the front surface of the vehicle, a first bevel gear 21 rotatably provided in the gear case 20 in a direction in which the axial direction extends in the vertical direction, and a second bevel gear meshed with the first bevel gear 21. 22 and an aiming adjustment shaft 23, a boss formed in the center of the second bevel gear 22 is formed with a screw hole 22a penetrating in the front-rear direction, and an operation rod 21a fixed to the first bevel gear 21 is formed. The upper end portion projects outside the gear case 20.

Most of the aiming adjustment shaft 23 has a screw shaft shape, and a sphere portion 23a and a plate-like protrusion 23b protruding forward from the sphere portion 23a are integrally formed at a front end portion thereof, and an intermediate portion thereof. Is screwed into the screw hole 22a of the second bevel gear 22, the spherical portion 23a is rotatably fitted in the spherical concave portion 18a of the receiving member 18 (this point is the point B), and The protrusion 23b is slidably engaged with the hole 18b of the receiving body 18. Therefore,
The aiming adjustment shaft 23 is connected to the receiver 18 in a non-rotatable state.

Then, the first bevel gear 2 is moved by the operating rod 21a.
When 1 is rotated, the second bevel gear 22 is rotated, and the aiming adjustment shaft screwed to the second bevel gear 22 is rotated.
Since 23 is sent in the axial direction, the receiving body 18 is moved in the substantially front-back direction, whereby the headlight unit 2 is moved to the points A and C.
The irradiation direction is changed to the left-right direction by tilting in the substantially left-right direction with the straight line connecting the points as the rotation center axis. That is, the aiming adjustment in the left-right direction is performed.

(D. Tilt device) [FIGS. 1 to 4 and 6 to 8]
FIG. 24 is a tilting device that constitutes an adjusting part of the support point C, and has a leveling mechanism having an adjusting rod whose front end is connected to the headlamp unit 2 and an aiming operation connected to the adjusting rod. The tilting device 24 performs initial aiming adjustment and leveling adjustment in the vertical direction of the headlight unit 2.

(D-1. Leveling mechanism) [FIG. 1, FIG. 3, FIG.
6 to 8] 25 is a leveling mechanism.

(D-1-a. Casing) [FIG. 1, FIG. 3, FIG.
6 and 7] 26 is a casing of the leveling mechanism 24, which is composed of a front half 27 and a rear half 28, which can be split in two, and are integrally connected to each other.

Most of the front half 27 and the rear half 28 have a front-rear symmetrical shape, and the outer shape when viewed from the front-rear direction is approximately two-thirds of the upper portion 29, 29 '(hereinafter referred to as "upper"). ) Is a vertically long rectangle, and the remaining portions 30 and 30 '(hereinafter referred to as "lower portions") are substantially semicircular. The insides of the lower portions 30 and 30' are the insides of the upper portions 29 and 29 '. The depth is about one-third to one-quarter of the depth of. The holes 31, 31, 31 and 31 ', 3 are provided at the three corners of the upper part 29, 29' except for the upper right end.
1 ', 31' are formed, and projections 32, 32 'are formed on the upper end surface at positions substantially corresponding to corners other than the above three corners. Holes 32a are formed in the projections 32, 32'. 32'a is formed.

Further, the front half 27 has a substantially central portion 33a below the front wall 33.
Is formed in a thick wall by projecting to both front and rear sides, and a circular support hole 34 is formed penetrating the thick portion 33a in the front and rear direction, and an axial direction of the support hole 34 is formed on the inner peripheral surface of the support hole 34. Engaging grooves 34a, 34a extending along the are formed.

Further, a circular recess 36 is formed in the center of the inner surface of the lower part of the rear wall 35 of the rear half 28 by projecting this part rearward, and a circular recess is formed in the center of the back wall of the recess 36. Is formed with a rod insertion hole 37.

Then, the two halves 27 and 28 as described above are connected to each other with their respective opening faces butted against each other.
Nuts 39, 39 are provided at the tips of the screws 38, 38 inserted into two of 31, 31, 31 and 31 ', 31', 31 'except the one on the lower left.
Are joined together by being screwed together, thereby forming a casing 26 having a relatively thin space inside. When these two halves 27 and 28 are combined, the support hole 34 of the front half 27 and the rod insertion hole of the rear half 28 are inserted.
37 and are located on the same axis.

(D-1-b. Rod support, drive gear) [Fig. 1, 7
FIG. 8, FIG. 8] 40 is a rod support. The rod support 40 has a substantially cylindrical shape that is long in the front-rear direction, and a substantially intermediate portion 41 has a diameter larger than the remaining portion, and is located on the opposite sides of the intermediate portion 41 with an axis centered therebetween. Engaging projections 41a, 41a are provided so as to project from the portions, and a portion 42 rearward from the intermediate portion 41 serves as a screw shaft portion.

43 is a drive gear rotated by a worm wheel described later, and a substantially cylindrical boss portion 44 and a gear portion 45 centering on the front end portion of the boss 44 are integrally formed. A screw hole 44a is formed in the center, and the gear portion 45
A concave portion 45a having a diameter slightly smaller than the outer diameter of the gear portion 45 and having a depth approximately half the thickness of the gear portion 45 is formed on the front surface of the.

The drive gear 43 has a boss portion 44 rotatably fitted in the recess 36 formed in the rear wall 35 of the rear half 28 and a recess 45a formed in the gear portion 45.
Is rotatably externally fitted to the rear end of the thick portion 33a formed in the lower portion 30 of the front half 27, and is thereby rotatably arranged on the rear side of the lower end inside the casing 26. .

Further, the rod support body 40 has an intermediate portion 41 slidably inserted into a support hole 34 formed in a thick portion 33a of the front half 27, and a screw shaft portion 42 of the rod support body 40 of a boss portion 44 of a drive gear 43. Screw hole 44
The engaging projections 41a, 41a are slidably engaged with a and slidably engaged with the engaging grooves 34a, 34a of the support hole 34, whereby the lower end portion inside the casing 26 is rotated. It is placed in an impossible state.

(D-1-c. Adjusting rod) [Fig. 1, Fig. 3, Fig. 4,
7 and FIG. 8] 46 is an adjusting rod having a substantially cylindrical shape, a front end side approximately one-third of which is formed in the screw shaft portion 47, and a rear end side approximately one-fourth portion 48.
(Hereinafter, referred to as "connecting portion") is formed to have an oval cross section, a stopper flange 50 is formed at the boundary between the intermediate portion 49 and the connecting portion 48, and the intermediate portion 49 is formed. An annular groove 51 is formed at the boundary between the screw shaft portion 47 and the screw shaft portion 47.

Then, such an adjusting rod 46 is rotatably inserted into a support hole 52 formed by penetrating the central portion of the rod support body 40 at its intermediate portion 49, and its stopper flange 50 is at the rear end of the rod support body 40. When it comes into contact with, the retaining ring 53 is engaged with the groove 51 located immediately before the hole 52, and thereby it is supported by the rod support 40 rotatably and immovably in the axial direction.

(D-1-d. Motor, worm gear, worm wheel) [FIGS. 1, 7, and 8] 54 is a motor having a case 55 having a substantially oval shape when viewed from the axial direction. The case 55 is arranged at the upper end inside the casing 26 with the axial direction extending in the left-right direction.
The projections 55a, 55a provided on both end surfaces of the motor support pieces 56, 56 projecting from the rear half 28 and the front wall of the front half 27 and the like fix the position with respect to the casing 26, and the rotation shaft 57 thereof. The pinion gear 58 is fixed to. The tip of the rotary shaft 57 is supported by semicircular cutouts 59, 59 (only the rear half 24 is shown in FIG. 6) formed in the abutting end faces of the halves 27, 28.

Reference numeral 60 denotes a worm body, in which a worm gear 61 and a reduction gear 62 in the form of a spur gear centered on a position near one end of the worm gear 61 are integrally formed of synthetic resin.
Cylindrical bosses 63, 63 that are arranged immediately below the motor 54 in a direction parallel to the motor 54 and project from both ends of the worm gear 61.
There is a worm support piece 64 protruding from the rear half 28 and a half
The transmission gears 62 are rotatably supported separately in semicircular cutouts 65, 65 formed on the abutting surfaces of 27, 28, and a transmission gear 62 is meshed with a pinion gear 58 of a motor 54.

Reference numeral 66 is a support shaft for supporting a worm wheel, a sensor, etc., which will be described later, and has a length substantially the same as the distance between the front wall 33 and the rear wall 35 of the casing 26, and is located at the rear side from the center thereof. The portion 66a has a cylindrical shape, and the remaining portion is formed so as to have a substantially oval shape when viewed in the axial direction, and its front and rear end portions are substantially in the center of the inner surfaces of the front wall 33 and the rear wall 35. It is rotatably supported by the formed bearing recesses 67, 67 '. Therefore, the support shaft 66 is arranged parallel to the rod support 40 and the adjusting rod 46.

Reference numeral 68 denotes a rotating body, and a worm wheel 69 and a transmission gear 70 coaxial with the worm wheel 69 and having a smaller diameter than the worm wheel 69 are integrally formed by a synthetic resin, and the worm wheel 69 has a diameter smaller than the outer diameter of the worm wheel 69. A circular recess 71 having a small diameter is formed, and a support hole 72 is formed in the center.
Then, such a rotating body 68 is provided in the support hole 72 with the support shaft.
The cylindrical portion 66a of 66 is rotatably inserted, the worm wheel 69 is meshed with the worm gear 61 of the worm body 60, and the transmission gear 70 is meshed with the gear portion 45 of the drive gear 43. Therefore, the worm wheel 69 is the rod support 40, the adjusting rod.
46 and the drive gear 43 are arranged in parallel.

Then, when the motor 54 rotates, the rotation is transmitted to the drive gear 43 through the path of the pinion gear 58-worm body 60-worm wheel 69, the drive gear 43 is rotated, and the rod support 40 and the adjusting rod 46 are rotated. It will be integrally moved in the axial direction.

(D-1-e. Sensor [Structure]) [FIGS. 1 and 8] 73 is a sensor for detecting the position of the adjusting rod 46 moved as described above, and includes a circuit board and a contact holding plate. And sensor gear etc.

Reference numeral 74 is a circuit board, and a circular engaging hole 75 is formed in the substantially central portion thereof.
, Two positioning holes 76, 76 are formed, and a large number of terminals 77, 77, ... Arranged substantially annularly around the engagement hole 75 are formed by printing on the rear surface. There is.

Reference numeral 78 denotes a contact holding plate in the shape of a substantially thick disc, which has a circular support hole 79 formed in the center thereof and a large number of contact holding holes 80, 80 arranged in an annular position surrounding the support hole 79. , Are formed, and positioning projections 81, 81 are formed on the front surface.

Reference numeral 82 denotes a rotor, which is a disc portion having a thick central portion.
A hole 86 is formed integrally with a cylindrical boss portion 85 projecting from the central portion 84 of the disc portion 83 and having a cylindrical shape.
Is formed, and the central hole 86 has a portion 86a corresponding to the disc portion 83.
Has a substantially oval cross section and the rest is circular. Further, the tip side approximately one-third of the boss portion 85 is provided with a cut groove extending along the axial direction, and thus is divided into approximately four equal parts in the axial direction and has elasticity having a bending elasticity in a direction orthogonal to the axial direction. The elastic pieces formed on the pieces 87, 87, ...
Engaging grooves 88, 88, ... Which extend annularly in the direction around the axis are formed in approximately the rear half of the outer peripheral surfaces of 87, 87 ,.

Reference numeral 89 denotes a substantially ring-shaped conductor support plate, on the front surface of which two substantially semi-circular arc-shaped conductors 90 and 90 'are formed, and the rear surface is adhered to the front surface of the disc portion 83 of the rotor 82. It is fixed by the fixing means.

The contact-holding plate 78 faces the rear surface of the rotating board 74, that is, the surface on which the terminals 77, 77, ... , 76, the position thereof is defined, and the rotor 82 has the elastic pieces 87, 8 of the boss portion 85.
The portion on the disk portion 83 side from 7, ... Is rotatably inserted into the support hole 79 of the contact holding plate 78, and the engaging groove of the boss portion 85 is formed.
88, 88, ... rotatably engages the opening edge portion of the engaging hole 75 of the circuit board 74, and the contact holding plate 78 serves as the circuit board 74 and the disc portion.
It is held in a sandwiched manner with the central portion 84 of 83. Furthermore,
The portion of the support shaft 66 between the front end of the cylindrical portion 66a is inserted into the center hole 86 of the rotor 82, and the part 86a of the center hole is oval-shaped as described above. So
The rotor 82 and the support shaft 66 are coupled so as to rotate integrally.

Further, spherical contact points 91, 91, ... And coil springs 92, 92, ... Having conductivity are provided in this order from the rear side in the contact point holding holes 80, 80 ,. The contact points 91, 91, ... Are coil springs 92, 92, ...
・ Always elastically contact the surface of the conductor support plate 89 on which the conductors 90, 90 'are provided, and the coil springs 92, 92 ,.
..Front ends of terminals 77, 7 formed on circuit board 74
It is in contact with 7, ...

Incidentally, in the rotating body 68, the concave portion 71 has a disc portion 83 of the rotor 83.
Also, the conductor support plate 89 is supported by the support shaft 66 so as to be fitted on the conductor support plate 89 with some margin.

Then, the support shaft 66 has the sensor 73 assembled in this way, and the driven gear to be described later is supported at the end portion on the side opposite to the circuit board 74 of the support shaft 66 as described above.
It is installed in 26.

Thus, the sensor 73 is arranged in parallel with the rod support 40 while being coaxial with the worm wheel 69.

In addition, the rotating substrate 74 is a projection 93, 93 formed on the front half 27.
The casing 26 is supported by being supported (see FIG. 1).
The position inside is fixed.

(D-1-f. Sensor driving means) [Figs. 1, 7, 8] 94 is a thin spur gear-shaped driven gear, and an oval hole formed in the center thereof. A portion of the support shaft 66 that projects rearward from the worm wheel 69 is inserted into the shaft 94a, and thus is supported by the support shaft 66 so as to rotate integrally therewith.

Reference numeral 95 denotes an intermediate gear, which is integrally formed with a large gear 95a and a small gear 95b, each of which has a spur gear shape and is coaxial with each other, and is rotatably supported by a support shaft 96 supported by the rear half 28. And the large gear 95a is the transmission gear 70 of the rotating body 68.
The small gear 95b is meshed with the driven gear 94.

Therefore, when the worm wheel 69 rotates, the rotation is reduced in speed via the transmission gear 70, the intermediate gear 95 and the driven gear 94 and transmitted to the support shaft 66, whereby the support shaft 66 and the rotor 82 are integrated. Will be rotated. The support shaft
66 and the rotating body 68 are rotated at different speeds.

(D-1-g. Sensor [Function]) The contacts 91, 91, ... Are divided into two groups, a first polarity side group and a second polarity side group, and the contacts 91, 91 ,.
Terminals 77, 77 in which two electrode contacts 91, 91 of 91, ... Are in contact are respectively connected to two input terminals having different polarities of the motor 54, and the other contacts are provided in the remote control section. The rotary switches are separately connected to the switched contacts of the two rotary switches that are interlocked with each other, and the rotary switch is connected to the power supply battery. By selecting any one set of the switched contacts in the rotary switch, The circuit consisting of the selected set of switched contacts and the two contacts 91, 91 connected to them, the conductors 90, 90 ', the motor 54 and the power supply is closed to rotate the motor 54 in the forward or reverse direction. It has become so.

Then, when the motor 54 rotates, the rotating body 68 and the drive gear 43 rotate, so that the drive gear 43 rotates the rod support body 40.
And the adjusting rod 46 are integrally moved forward or backward, and at the same time, the rotor 82 of the sensor 73 and the conductor support plate.
When 89 is rotated and they rotate a certain amount, conductors 90, 9
0'is separated from the selected contacts 91 and 91, the above-mentioned circuit is opened, and the rotation of the motor 54 is stopped. Therefore, the rotation amount and the rotation direction of the motor 54 are defined by the switched contacts selected by the rotary switch, and the position of the adjusting rod 46 is detected by the sensor 73.

The control system of the control mechanism equipped with such a sensor 73 is substantially the same as the control system of the control mechanism disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 59-209932.

(D-1-h. Attachment to lamp housing, connection of adjusting rod and headlamp unit) [Fig. 1, Fig. 3, Fig. 4] The leveling drive mechanism 25 as described above has its casing 26. Is arranged so as to be close to the rear wall 10 of the lamp housing 7 from the front side and the connecting portion 48 of the adjusting rod 46 is located in the operation shaft arrangement portion 9 provided in the lamp housing 7, and the rear wall of the lamp housing 7 is arranged. (Not shown) of the mounting bosses 97, 97 projecting forward from 10 and the casing 26
The holes 32a, 32'a of the projections 32, 32 'and the three holes 31, 31, 31 and 31', 31 ', 3 of the halves 27, 28 provided in the.
Long screws 98, 98 are inserted from the rear into one of 31, 31 'in 1', and nuts 99, 99 are attached to the tips of the screws 98, 98.
Is fixed to the lamp housing 7 by being screwed.

Further, 100 is a bracket attached to the lower end portion of the rear surface of the lamp body 3 of the headlight unit 2, and a nut 101 made of synthetic resin is supported on the bracket 100 with its axis extending in the front-rear direction. There is.

Then, the screw shaft portion 47 of the adjusting rod 46 is screwed into the nut 101, whereby the adjusting rod 46 and the headlight unit 2 are connected.

(D-2. Aiming operation unit) [Figs. 1, 3 and 4
FIG. 8, FIG. 8] 102 is an operating section for aiming.

(D-2-a. Aiming operation axis) 103 is an aiming operation axis, which is a cylindrical intermediate portion 1
04, a head 105 formed at the rear end of the intermediate portion 104, a connecting portion 106 located on the front side of the intermediate portion 104, and a truncated cone shape located between the connecting portion 106 and the intermediate portion 104. The portion 107 is formed coaxially and integrally with each other, and a flange 108 having a diameter larger than that of the head 105 is formed between the intermediate portion 104 and the head 105.
The connecting portion 106 is formed to have a substantially oval cross-sectional shape, and an engaging groove 109 is formed at a position closer to the connecting portion 106 side of the intermediate portion 104.

Further, such an aiming operation shaft 103 is provided at the rear side of the operation shaft arrangement portion 9 in which a portion between the flange 108 of the intermediate portion 104 and the engagement groove 109 is formed on the rear wall 10 of the lamp housing 7 from the rear side. The support hole 11a formed in the end wall 11 is rotatably inserted, and the retaining ring 110 is engaged with the engaging groove 109, whereby the position in the axial direction with respect to the operation shaft arranging portion 9, that is, the front-rear direction is fixed. In addition, the connecting portion 106 is rotatably supported by the lamp housing 7 in a state where the connecting portion 106 is positioned inside the operation shaft arrangement portion 9.

Then, the aiming operation unit 102 has the leveling mechanism 2
5, the aiming operation shaft 103 is coaxially close to the adjusting rod 46 from the rear.

The moving range of the adjusting rod 46 is the position when the rear surface of the intermediate portion 41 of the drive shaft 40 supporting the adjusting rod 46 protrudes from the front surface of the drive gear 43 as shown by the solid line in FIG. Position ") and the drive shaft 40 as indicated by the two-dot chain line in the same figure.
Between the position where the front surface of the intermediate portion 41 of the lamp contacts the inner surface of the front wall 33 of the casing 26 (hereinafter referred to as the “maximum forward position”), and The relative relations such as the dimensions and the lengths of the adjusting rod 46 and the aiming operation shaft 103 are determined by a predetermined distance l between the rear end of the adjusting rod 46 and the front end of the aiming operation shaft 103 in the retracted position. (See FIG. 1).

Reference numeral 111 is a waterproof O-ring that is fitted in the annular projection 11b of the operation shaft arrangement portion 9.

(D-2-b. Connection body) 112 is a connection body for connecting the aiming operation shaft 103 and the adjusting rod 46, and has a substantially cylindrical shape and has a hole.
113 has a substantially oval shape when viewed from the axial direction, and a retaining wall 114 is formed at a substantially intermediate portion thereof.

Further, in such a connecting body 112, the connecting portion 106 of the aiming operation shaft 103 and the connecting portion 48 of the adjusting rod 46 extending to the outside of the casing 26 from both ends of the connecting body 112 are particularly slidably inserted, Thereby, the aiming operation shaft 103
And the adjusting rod 46 are connected so as to rotate integrally.

The distance 1 between the adjusting rod 46 and the aiming operation shaft 103 when the adjusting rod 46 is in the retracted position is larger than the thickness of the retaining wall 114 of the connecting body 112, for example, approximately the thickness. And the length of the connector 112 is such that the adjusting rod 46 is moved to the maximum forward position and the connector 112 is
Even when the retaining wall 114 comes to a position where the retaining wall 114 comes into contact with the rear end of the adjusting rod 46, the length is such that the retaining wall 114 does not slip forward from the aiming operation shaft 103.

Therefore, the adjusting rod 46 and the aiming operation shaft 103 are
The adjustment rods 46 are always separated from each other in the axial direction and are connected so as to be integrally rotated via the connection body 112 regardless of which position in the movement range the adjustment rods 46 come to.

(D-3. Operation) (d-3-a. Vertical aiming adjustment) When performing the initial aiming adjustment in the vertical direction, the aiming operation shaft 103 is rotated. Then, the connecting body 112 and the adjusting rod 46 are rotated integrally with the aiming operation shaft 103, and the adjusting rod 46 is screwed into the nut 101 supported by the headlight unit 2 without changing the position in the axial direction. Or it is screwed back so that the nut
101 is relatively moved in the front-rear direction along the adjusting rod 46, whereby the distance between the headlight unit 2 and the lamp housing 7 in the tilting device 24 is changed, and the headlight is changed. The unit 2 is tilted substantially vertically with the straight line connecting the rotation fulcrum A and the adjustment point B as the rotation center axis. Thereby, the irradiation direction is adjusted in the vertical direction.

(D-3-b. Leveling) When performing leveling adjustment, the motor 54 is rotated by remote control. Then, as described above, the rod support 40 is moved in the front-rear direction together with the adjusting rod 46, so that the nut 101 supported by the headlamp unit 2 is moved in the front-rear direction, whereby the headlamp is moved. Since the distance between the unit 2 and the lamp housing 7 is changed and the headlamp unit 2 is tilted substantially in the vertical direction, the irradiation direction is adjusted in the vertical direction.

In this case, the connecting body 112 is the connecting portion 4 of the adjusting rod 46.
8 and / or the connecting portion 106 of the aiming operation shaft 103 is slid. Further, the moving direction and moving amount of the adjusting rod 46, in other words, the rotating direction and rotating amount of the motor 54 are controlled by the sensor 73 as described above.

(D-4. Absorption of Impact, etc.) As described above, the connecting portion 48 of the adjusting rod 46 and the aiming operation shaft 103 are always separated from each other in the axial direction while being integrally rotated. Even if a shock is applied to the aiming operation shaft 103 from the rear, the shock is
When the connecting body 112 is at a position where the retaining wall 114 comes into contact with the front end of the aiming operation shaft 103, the connecting body 112 is transmitted to the connecting body 112 and is withdrawn at the connecting body 112, or the connecting body 112.
When the retaining wall 114 is in a position where it does not come into contact with the forehead of the aiming operation shaft 103, it is released at the aiming operation shaft 103, so in any case, it does not reach the adjusting rod 46, and therefore, The impact does not apply an unreasonable force to each meshing portion among the rod support 40, the drive gear 43, the rotating body 68, the worm body 60, the pinion gear 58, and the like of the leveling mechanism 25.

Further, the aiming operation unit 102 is the lamp housing 7.
Since it is supported separately from the leveling mechanism 25, the adjustment rod 46 is supported on the lamp housing 7 via an appropriate supporting member when used in another headlamp device that does not have the leveling mechanism 25. By connecting the 46 and the aiming operation shaft 103 via the connecting body 112, the aiming operation unit 1
02 can be used as a whole, and therefore, the aiming operation unit 102 can be commonly used for both a headlight device having a leveling adjustment function and a headlight device not having the above function, and a large number of parts can be used. Common can be achieved.

(F-2. Second Embodiment) [FIG. 9] FIG. 9 shows a second embodiment of the tilting device for a vehicle headlamp according to the present invention.

The headlight device 115 shown in the second embodiment is different from the headlight device 1 shown in the first embodiment in that the connecting structure between the adjusting rod and the headlight unit and its relation are related. Only the part that was done. Therefore, the description of the parts which are not different from those of the headlight device 1 will be omitted by giving the same reference numerals to the respective parts shown in the figure, which are the same as those of the headlight device 1 of the first embodiment. The usage of such a code is the same in the application example described later.

116 is a bracket 1 formed integrally with the lamp body 3
The receiving member 17 is made of synthetic resin and is supported by 17, and has a spherical recess 116a that is open rearward.

Further, a screw hole 118 is formed through the center of the rod support 40.

Reference numeral 119 is an adjusting rod, in which a spherical body 120 is formed at the front end, a rear end 121 is formed as a non-cylindrical connecting portion having an oval cross section, and most of the remaining portion 122 is formed as a screw shaft portion. Is formed, and the screw shaft portion 122 is formed in the screw hole 118 of the rod support 40.
The connecting portion 121 is slidably connected to the connecting portion 106 of the aiming operation shaft 103 through the connecting body 112, and the spherical body 120 is rotatably fitted in the spherical concave portion 116a of the receiving body 116. Have been combined.

Then, when the aiming operation shaft 103 is rotated, the adjusting rod 119 is screwed or unscrewed with respect to the rod support 40 to move in the axial direction, so that the receiving body 116 is moved in the substantially front-back direction, whereby The headlight unit 2 is tilted substantially vertically and is changed to the irradiation direction.

The leveling is performed in the same way as in the first embodiment.

(F-3. Application Example) [Figs. 10 and 11] Figs. 10 and 11 show an application example of the tilting device for a vehicle headlight according to the present invention. The headlamp device 123 shown in this application example is a so-called movable reflector mirror headlamp device, that is, a reflector rotatably supported by the lamp body is used as a tilting member, and the reflector is mounted on the lamp body. A headlight device of a type in which an irradiation direction is changed by tilting with respect to the headlight device. The first headlight device is only at this point and a point related thereto.
Is different from the headlight device 1 shown in the embodiment.

Reference numeral 124 denotes a headlight unit, which is a lamp body 125 made of a synthetic resin and having an open front surface, a lens 126 attached to the lamp body 125 so as to cover the front opening, and an image formed by the lamp body 125 and the lens 126. A lamp body 125 is fixed to the lamp housing 7 and is composed of a reflecting mirror 128 arranged in the formed lamp space 127 and a light bulb 129 supported on the rear top of the reflecting mirror 128.

Reference numeral 130 denotes an operation shaft arrangement portion formed so as to project rearward from the lower end portion of the rear wall 131 of the lamp body 125, which is the same as the operation shaft arrangement portion 9 of the lamp housing shown in the first embodiment. It has a structure.

Then, the reflecting mirror 128 is 3 of A, B and C shown in FIG.
Supported by the lamp body 125 at three points, these three
One of the two points A, B and C is a rotation fulcrum portion, and this rotation fulcrum portion is constituted by the above-mentioned rotation fulcrum mechanism 12. Further, the other two supporting points B and C are the reflecting mirrors 12.
The distance between the lamp body 125 and the lamp body 125 is adjusted, which is an adjusting portion.
The point adjusting unit is composed of, for example, an adjusting mechanism similar to the aiming adjusting mechanism 16 shown in the first embodiment.

Further, the adjusting portion at the point C is constituted by the tilting device 24 described above, and in this application example, the leveling drive mechanism 25 is attached to the inside of the rear wall 131 of the lamp body 125 and the front end of the adjusting rod 46 thereof. Part is reflector 128
It is screwed to a nut 133 fixed to a bracket 132 protruding from the.

Further, the aiming operation shaft 103 is supported by the operation shaft arrangement portion 130 of the lamp body 125, and the aiming operation shaft 103 and the adjusting rod 46 are connected via the connecting body 112.

Thus, when the operating member of the aiming adjustment section at the point B is operated, the reflecting mirror 128 is tilted substantially in the left-right direction with the straight line connecting the points A and C as the rotation center axis, and
When the operation shaft 103 of the tilting device 24 is rotated or the motor 54 is rotated, the tilting device 24 is tilted in a substantially vertical direction with the straight line connecting the points A and B as the rotation center axis. In this way, the irradiation direction is changed.

(G. Effects of the Invention) As is clear from the above description, the tilting device for a vehicle headlight according to the present invention supports the tilting member tilted when changing the irradiation direction on the support member so as to be tiltable. In the tilting device for a vehicle headlamp, a casing is provided in which a leveling mechanism having an adjusting rod whose front end is connected to the tilting member and a driving means for axially moving the adjusting rod is housed in the supporting member. , The aiming operation portion is arranged on the rear support member of the leveling mechanism, and its output shaft is coaxially opposed to the rear end portion of the adjusting rod and is coaxially opposed to adjust the substantially tubular coupling body. It is characterized in that the rear end portion of the rod protruding rearward from the casing and the front end portion of the output shaft are fitted slidably and non-rotatably.

Therefore, according to the tilting device for a vehicle headlamp of the present invention, the rotation generated by operating the aiming operation portion is transmitted to the adjusting rod via the connecting body, but is applied to the aiming operation portion. Since the impact is not released at the fitting portion between the output portion of the aiming operation portion and the connecting body and is not transmitted to the adjusting rod, external impact can be applied to the adjusting rod or the leveling mechanism without impairing the predetermined operation function for the adjusting rod. Can be prevented from being added to.

Further, in the headlight device having no leveling mechanism, the aiming operation part in the tilting device according to the present invention is used as it is, and the intermediate part of the predetermined adjusting rod is supported by the supporting member and the front end part is connected to the tilting member. By connecting the rear end to the output section of the aiming operation section via the connecting body,
Since the necessary initial aiming adjustment unit can be configured, it is possible to largely share the parts.

The leveling mechanism and the aiming operation section in the present invention are not limited to those having the structures shown in the above-mentioned embodiments, and particularly, the aiming operation section has a so-called orthogonal conversion gear unit. Well, in this case,
The output section of the aiming operation section may be connected to the adjusting rod via the connecting body.

[Brief description of drawings]

1 to 8 show a first embodiment of a tilting device for a vehicle headlight according to the present invention, and FIG. 1 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing an enlarged lower end portion of the headlight unit and the tilting device. Fig. 2 is a front view, Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line III-III in Fig. 2, Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line IV-IV in Fig. 2, and Fig. 5 is a second view. FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along the line VV in FIG. 6, FIG. 6 is an enlarged exploded perspective view showing a casing of the leveling mechanism, and FIG. 7 is VII- of FIG.
FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken along line VII, FIG. 8 is an enlarged exploded perspective view of the tilting device, and FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of essential parts showing a second embodiment of the tilting device for a vehicle headlight according to the present invention. And FIG. 11 shows an application example of the tilting device for a vehicle headlight of the present invention, FIG. 10 is a front view, FIG. 11 is a sectional view taken along the line XI-XI of FIG. 10, and FIG. FIG. 11 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing an example of a conventional tilting device for a vehicle headlamp. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Vehicle headlamp, 2 ... Tilt member, 7 ... Support member, 24 ... Tilt device, 25 ... Leveling mechanism, 26 ... Casing, 43,54,60,68 ... Drive means, 46 ... Adjusting rod, 48 ... (Adjusting rod) rear end, 102 ... Aiming operation unit, 103 ... Output shaft, 106 ... (Output shaft) front end, 112 ... Connection Body, 40 …… Rod support, 47 ……
Front end (of adjusting rod), 49 ... middle part, 101 ... nut, 115 ... vehicle headlight, 119 ... adjusting rod, 120 ...
… (Adjustment rod) front end, 122 …… (Adjustment rod)
Middle part, 123 …… Vehicle headlight, 128 …… Tilt member, 133
……nut

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. A tilting device for a vehicle headlamp, wherein a tilting member tilted when changing an irradiation direction is tiltably supported by a supporting member, and an adjusting rod having a front end portion connected to the tilting member. A casing for accommodating a leveling mechanism having a drive means for moving the adjusting rod in the axial direction is provided on a supporting member, and an aiming operation portion is arranged on a supporting member at the rear of the leveling mechanism, and its output shaft is arranged at the rear of the adjusting rod. A substantially cylindrical connecting body having a space between the end portion and the end portion is coaxially opposed, and is slidable on each of the rear end portion protruding rearward from the casing of the adjusting rod and the front end portion of the output shaft. And a tilting device for a vehicle headlight, characterized in that it is fitted so as not to rotate. 2. When the front end portion of the adjusting rod is screwed into a nut supported by the tilting member, the intermediate portion is rotatably and immovably supported by the rod support body which is moved in the front-rear direction by the driving means. The tilting device for a vehicle headlamp according to claim 1, wherein 3. The adjusting rod has a front end portion connected to a tilting member in a ball joint shape, and an intermediate portion screwed to a rod support body which is moved in the front-rear direction by a driving means. The tilting device for a vehicle headlamp according to claim 1