JP3381659B2 - Automotive brake pedal device - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vehicle brake pedal device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 6-1113, a brake pedal device for an automobile includes a dash lower panel and a dash lower panel which includes a pedal bracket rotatably supporting an upper end of a pedal arm. It is fastened and fixed to the lower surface of the dash upper panel that is joined to the lower panel and protrudes toward the passenger compartment side. , The master back is activated.

[0003]

According to the conventional structure,
When the master back or the dash lower panel fixing the master back is deformed and moves backward toward the passenger compartment during a frontal collision of the vehicle, a turning force in the direction opposite to the stepping direction is applied to the pedal arm via the push rod of the master back. This may cause the brake pedal depression position to shift rearward and cause a feeling of strangeness.

In view of this, the present invention prevents the occurrence of discomfort by preventing the collision load from acting on the pedal arm via the push rod of the master back during a frontal collision of the vehicle. Is provided.

[0005]

According to the invention of claim 1, a pedal bracket fixed across the dash lower panel and a vehicle body member above and behind the dash lower panel, and a pedal shaft provided on the pedal bracket are rotated. In a structure including a pedal arm that is rotatably supported, and a push rod lever that is rotatably supported by the pedal shaft and that is connected to a push rod of a master back,
The front wall of the pedal bracket is fixed to the dash lower panel, and the upper wall of the pedal bracket is fixed to the lower surface of the vehicle body member so as to be relatively movable in the front-rear direction and detachable. Either of them is slidable in the axial direction of the pedal shaft to form a meshing portion that engages with each shaft portion of the pedal arm and the push rod lever, while engaging the pedal bracket with the push rod lever. Is fixed to the lower surface portion of the vehicle body member, and when the lower surface portion and the pedal bracket move relative to each other in the front-rear direction, they enter between the pedal arm and the push rod lever, It is characterized in that a release means for disconnecting the engagement between the pedal arm and the push rod lever is provided.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the positioning means according to the first aspect is deformed with respect to a load of a predetermined value or more to allow the sliding movement of the pedal arm or the push rod lever. It is characterized by being composed of a plate.

According to the invention of claim 3, claims 1 and 2 are provided.
When the lower surface of the vehicle body member and the pedal bracket move relative to each other in the front-rear direction, the releasing means described in (4) is inserted between the pedal arm and the push rod lever to widen the gap and to disengage the both. It is characterized in that it is configured by a slide plate having a portion.

The invention of claim 4 is characterized in that the positioning means according to claim 3 is provided on the slide plate on the sliding side of the pedal arm or the push rod lever.

According to the invention of claim 5, claims 1 to 4 are provided.
The engagement portion described in (1) is formed by a shaft portion interposed between pedal brackets, a boss portion protruding from the shaft portion, and an engagement hole formed in the push rod lever and which is clock-fitted to the boss portion. It is characterized by being configured.

According to the invention of claim 6, claims 1 to 4 are provided.
The spring is bridged between the pedal arm fixed to the lower surface of the vehicle body member and movable forward relative to the pedal arm, and the pedal arm is moved by the spring when the fixing member moves forward. Is characterized in that it was pulled forward.

According to a seventh aspect of the invention, the spring according to the sixth aspect is positioned in the vicinity of the pedal shaft of the pedal arm in a normal state, and the fixing member is located relatively forward with respect to the pedal arm. The feature is that the pedal arm is arranged so as to be biased to the front side when moved.

According to the invention of claim 8, the fixing member according to claim 7 enters between the pedal arm and the push rod lever when moved to the front side relative to the pedal arm. , And is configured as a slide plate that widens the space and separates the engagement of the both.

[0013]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, in a normal state, the engagement of the engagement portion between the pedal arm and the push rod lever is maintained by the positioning means. The push rod lever can rotate integrally with the brake pedal device to perform a master back operation which is the same as that of a general brake pedal device.

On the other hand, at the time of a frontal collision of the vehicle, the pedal arm and the push rod lever are separated by the action of the releasing means, so that the master back moves backward, or the dash lower panel is deformed toward the passenger compartment to push the master back push rod. Even if the vehicle moves backward, the push rod lever can be rotated by idling and the collision load can be prevented from being input to the pedal arm.

According to a second aspect, in addition to the effect of the first aspect, the positioning means is deformed with respect to a load of a predetermined value or more to permit the sliding operation of the pedal arm or the push rod lever. Since the lock plate is used, it is possible to enhance the connection strength between the pedal arm and the push rod lever under normal conditions and enhance the reliability.

According to claim 3, in addition to the effects of claims 1 and 2, when the lower surface of the vehicle body member and the pedal bracket relatively move in the front-rear direction, the releasing means moves the pedal arm and the push rod. Since it is composed of a slide plate that has an expansion part that enters into the lever and widens the gap to separate the engagement between them, the structure is simple and cost-effective, and part management is possible. It is possible to reduce man-hours and assembly man-hours.

According to claim 4, in addition to the effect of claim 3, since the positioning means is provided on the slide plate on the sliding side of the pedal arm or the push rod lever, the lower surface portion of the vehicle body member. When the pedal bracket and the pedal bracket relatively move in the front-rear direction, the positioning means moves relatively with the slide plate as the releasing means in the direction of separating from the pedal arm or the push rod lever, and the pedal arm and the push rod by the releasing means. The connection with the lever can be released promptly.

According to the fifth aspect, in addition to the effects of the first to fourth aspects, the thrust load applied to the pedal arm can be transmitted from the shaft portion to the pedal bracket, and lateral rattling of the pedal arm can be suppressed.

According to the sixth aspect, in addition to the effects of the first to fourth aspects, the pedal arm can be reliably pulled toward the dash lower panel side at the time of a full-scale collision of the vehicle.

According to the seventh aspect, in addition to the effect of the sixth aspect, in the normal state, since the pulling direction urging force of the spring hardly acts on the pedal arm, it has little influence on the pedal effort and its stroke.

According to the eighth aspect, in addition to the effect of the seventh aspect, the slide plate can simultaneously separate the pedal arm and the push rod lever and pull the pedal arm forward, so that the structure is simplified. You can

[0022]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION A first embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

In FIGS. 1 to 4, 1 is a pedal bracket, 2 is a pedal arm whose upper end is rotatably supported by a pedal shaft 3 fixed to both side walls 1C, 1C of the pedal bracket 1, and at the lower end thereof. It has a pedal pad (not shown).

The pedal bracket 1 is formed in an inverted L shape on the side surface, and its front wall 1A is fastened and fixed to the dash lower panel 4 with bolts 7 and nuts 8, and the rear end of the upper wall 1B is The vehicle body side bracket 6 joined to the dash lower panel 4 and joined to the lower surface portion of the dash upper panel 5 protruding toward the vehicle compartment is fastened and fixed in a forward tilted state by bolts 7 and nuts 8.

Particularly, the upper wall 1B of the pedal bracket 1
The window portion 19 has a long hole shape, and when a load of a predetermined value or more is input at the time of a frontal collision of the vehicle, the rear end portion of the pedal bracket 1 moves forward and backward with respect to the lower surface portion of the dash upper panel 5. The upper wall 1 so that the upper wall 1 can be detached by relatively moving in the direction
B is fixed.

A cylindrical collar 9 is fitted and arranged on the pedal shaft 3, while a cylindrical boss portion 10 for accommodating the pedal shaft 3 is provided on the upper end portion of the pedal arm 2.

Reference numeral 11 is fixed to a side surface of the dash lower panel 4 on the engine room side, and a push rod 12 penetrating the dash lower panel 4 is pushed by the depression of the pedal arm 2 to apply hydraulic pressure to a brake unit (not shown). The master back to generate is shown.

The push rod 12 of the master back 11 is connected to the lower end of a push rod lever 13 rotatably supported on the pedal shaft 3 via a pin 14.

The push rod lever 13 has its upper end fitted to the collar 9 of the pedal shaft 3 so as to be rotatable and axially slidable, and the pedal shaft 3 is internally provided at the upper end. A cylindrical boss portion 15 is provided.

The pedal arm 2 and the push rod lever 13 described above are provided with boss portions 10 and 15 provided at their upper ends.
In the normal state, they are integrally connected by engaging the engagement end surfaces 10A and 15A having the concavo-convex shapes opposed to each other, but one of them is provided slidably in the axial direction of the pedal shaft 3, In the event of collision of the
By the action of 6, the engagement of the boss portions 10 and 15 is released and the pedal arm 2 and the push rod lever 13 are separated.

In this embodiment, the push rod lever 1
3 is provided slidably in the axial direction of the pedal shaft 3.

Reference numeral 16 denotes a releasing means fixed to the vehicle body side bracket 6 provided on the lower surface of the dash upper panel 5 together with the pedal bracket 2 with the bolts 7 and nuts 8. The releasing means 16 is the dash upper panel. When the lower surface of 5 and the pedal bracket 1 relatively move in the front-rear direction, the pedal arm 2 and the push rod lever 13
The push rod lever 14 slides in the axial direction of the pedal shaft 3 so that the pedal arm 2 and the push rod lever 13 are disengaged from each other.

Particularly in this embodiment, the releasing means 16
Is the upper end of the pedal arm 2 and the push rod lever 1
Pedal arm 2 which is arranged between the upper end of the pedal arm 3 and the pedal 3
When the insertion portion 16a having a width a which is slightly narrower than the distance between the upper end of the pedal and the upper end of the push rod lever 13, the lower surface of the dash upper panel 5 and the pedal bracket 1 move relative to each other in the front-back direction, The sloped portion 16c that can be brought into contact with the push rod lever 13 side that enters between the upper end portion of the arm 2 and the upper end portion of the push rod lever 13 and widens the gap between them to disengage the engagement and the front and rear of the pedal arm 2 side. It is composed of a thick-walled metal slide plate having a straight plane portion 16d in the direction and an expanding portion 16b having a flat surface portion 16d.

Further, an upper protrusion 13A is formed at the upper end of the push rod lever 13 so as to protrude above the slide plate 16, and the upper protrusion 13A is formed.
As a result, the contact with the inclined surface portion 16c is more reliably performed.

Further, the upper end portion of the pedal arm 2 and the insertion portion 1
6A is wrapped in a side view (see FIG. 1).

Reference numeral 16h is a through hole through which the bolt 7 can pass, and the slide plate 16 does not slide back and forth with respect to the through hole 16h.

Reference numeral 17 denotes a positioning means for keeping the engagement of the boss portions 10 and 15 provided on the pedal arm 2 and the push rod lever 13, and in the present embodiment, the positioning means 17 has a predetermined value or more. Deform to the load,
The pedal arm 2 or push rod lever 13
It is composed of a lock plate that allows the sliding operation of.

Further, in this embodiment, the lock plate 17 as the positioning means is provided with the pedal arm 2
Also, the slide plate 1 is brought into contact with the boss end surface 15B on the side opposite to the engaging end surface 15A on the push rod lever 13 side, which is the sliding side of the push rod lever 13.
6 is provided so as to be connected to the front bent portion 16e.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 18 denotes a dash insulator provided on the side surface of the dash lower panel 4 on the vehicle compartment side.

According to the structure of the first embodiment described above, the pedal arm 2 is moved by the positioning means 17 in the normal state.
Since the engagement between the upper end of the pedal arm 2 and the bosses 10 and 15 provided at the upper end of the push rod lever 13 is maintained, the pedal arm 2 and the push rod lever 13 Can rotate integrally to perform a master back operation which is the same as that of a general brake pedal device.

On the other hand, at the time of a frontal collision of the vehicle, the pedal arm 2 and the push rod lever 13 are separated by the action of the releasing means 16, so that the master back 11 moves backward or the dash lower panel 5 is deformed toward the vehicle compartment. Even if the push rod 12 of the master back 11 moves backward, the push rod lever 13 can be simply pivoted in an idling manner to prevent the collision load from being input to the pedal arm 2. For example, the releasing means 16 may be replaced by the pedal arm 2 and the push rod lever 1.
3 and the lower end portion of the dash upper panel 5 and the pedal bracket 1 relatively move in the front-rear direction, the upper end portion of the pedal arm 2 and the upper end portion of the push rod lever 13. Since it is configured by the slide plate 16 having the expanding portion 16b which is inserted between the two and expands the gap between them to disengage the engagement, the structure is simple and the cost can be advantageously obtained. It is possible to reduce man-hours for parts management and assembly work.

Since the front and rear straight plane portion 16d on the side of the pedal arm 2 overlaps the upper end portion of the pedal arm 2 in a side view, the pedal arm 2 and the push rod lever 13 are separated from each other in the process of disconnection. 2 can be reliably prevented from being dragged by the movement of the push rod lever 13 in the axial direction, and the two can be smoothly separated.

Further, since the positioning means 17 is constituted by the lock plate 17 which is deformed with respect to a load of a predetermined value or more and allows the sliding operation of the push rod lever 13, these pedals under normal conditions are used. It is possible to enhance the connection strength between the arm 2 and the push rod lever 13 and enhance the reliability.

Moreover, since the lock plate 17 as the positioning means is provided so as to be connected to the slide plate 16 on the sliding side of the push rod lever 13 in the axial direction, the lower surface of the dash upper panel 5 and the pedal. When the bracket 1 relatively moves in the front-rear direction, the lock plate 17 as the positioning means together with the slide plate 16 as the release means push rod lever 13
And the push rod lever 1 by the slide plate 16 are moved relative to each other.
The connection with 3 can be released promptly.

That is, the lock plate 17 is provided so as to come into contact with the boss end surface 13B of the push rod lever 13 in the normal state, and the insertion portion 1 of the slide plate 16 is also provided.
Since it is connected to the front bent portion that is bent from the front side of 6a to the push rod lever 13 side, the slide plate 16
During the forward movement of the boss, the slide plate 16 moves forward relative to the boss end surface 13B to release the axial sliding retainer, thereby promptly releasing the connection.

The one shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 is the first one described above.
This is a modification of the above embodiment, and a portion 17A of the boss portion 15 of the lock plate 17 that abuts the boss end surface 15B is formed in a bifurcated shape so as to straddle the pedal shaft 3 and the collar 9. Is fixed to the front bent portion 16e by a screw (not shown) on the slide plate 16. In addition, BS is a bush interposed in the pedal shaft 3, and OP is a through hole formed in a side wall through which the pedal shaft 3 penetrates. Other configurations are substantially the same as those of the above-described first embodiment, and therefore description thereof will be omitted.

FIGS. 7 to 9 show a second embodiment of the present invention, which is a modification of the configuration relating to the collar 9 and the boss portions 10 and 15 in the first embodiment.

That is, as shown in FIG. 9, a collar 9'which is an axial portion of the pedal arm 2 interposed between the side walls 1C and 1C of the pedal bracket 1 and a boss portion 15 'which is provided so as to project from around the collar 9'are integrally formed. As a molded shape, it is fixed to a through hole (not shown) formed in the pedal arm 2 by welding or the like. On the other hand, at the upper end of the push rod lever 13, there is formed a locking hole-shaped engaging hole 13B which is inserted into the collar 9'and engages with the unevenness of the boss portion 15 '. Note that description of the same structures as those of the above-described first embodiment and its modification will be omitted here.

According to this structure, the pedal arm 2
When the pedal is depressed, the thrust load around the pedal shaft 3, which is generated due to an oblique depression, can be transmitted to the side wall 1C of the pedal bracket 1.
Compared with the embodiment described above, it is not necessary to use expensive parts such as a metal bush for bearing a high load for the part that bears the load, such as the bush BS (a resin bush can be used in this structure). Further, since the extra thrust load at the time of depressing the pedal arm 2 does not act on the lock plate 17 and only the load of the push rod lever 13 which hardly generates the thrust load at the time of the normal operation, the lock plate 17 can be handled. The support will be stable and the plate thickness will not be so large. Further, the engaging end surfaces 10A, 15 of the boss portions 10, 15
Even if the engagement backlash in A is small, the pad (not shown) of the stepping portion of the pedal arm 2 has a large lateral backlash due to the lever ratio, but with the above structure, the backlash of the pedal arm 2 is , The length L of the collar 9'is suppressed, so that the lateral play at the pad portion becomes as small as possible. Since the engaging hole 13B of the push rod lever 13 can be formed by hole processing such as pressing, it can be manufactured at a lower cost than the boss portion 15 formed by cutting or forging. The lock plate 17 directly abuts the side surface of the push rod lever 13 to suppress the movement in the axial direction, but the invention is not limited to this. For example, a bush fitted on the collar 9 ′ may be further interposed. Good.

FIG. 10 and FIG. 11 show a third embodiment of the present invention. This structure has a lock plate 17 attached to the lower surface of the front bent portion 16e of the slide plate 16 and an abutting portion 17A. Extending part 17 on the opposite axial side
B is provided and one end portion of the spring SP is locked therein, and a locking portion 2A for locking the other end portion on the opposite side of the spring SP is formed on the front side edge portion of the pedal arm 2. Is. The other configuration is the same as that of the first embodiment, and therefore omitted.

According to this structure, in the normal state as shown in FIG. 11, the pedal arm 2 is biased in the returning direction by the return spring (not shown), and the spring SP is the rotating shaft of the pedal arm 2. Since it is close to the pedal shaft 3, the urging force in the pulling direction is the pedal arm 2
Has almost no effect on the direction of the rotation trajectory of. Therefore, the spring SP has little influence on the pedal effort and its stroke.

On the other hand, at the time of a frontal collision, the dash lower panel 4
When the slide plate 16 moves backward, the slide plate 16 relatively moves forward as described above in the first embodiment.
As shown by the broken line in FIG. 11, the engaging portion of one end of the spring SP with the extending portion 17B moves forward with respect to the pedal shaft 3 of the pedal arm 2 and is stretched to attach the spring SP to the front. As the force increases, the pedal arm 2 is positioned so as to pull it forward. Therefore, the pedal arm 2 can be reliably pulled in toward the dash lower panel 4 side.

According to this structure, the spring SP
Since the slide plate 16 to which the lock plate 17 that locks is fixed has the above-described widened portion 16b, the pedal arm 2 and the push rod lever 13 can be separated and the pedal arm 2 can be pulled forward at the same time. The configuration is simpler than that in which the plate 16 and the fixing member of the spring SP are separately provided, and the degree of freedom of layout around the spatially narrow foot is increased. In addition,
Although one end of the spring SP is locked to the extending portion 17B of the lock plate 17, the slide plate 16
The locking portion may be formed on itself.

As the positioning means, a spring may be used for the pedal shaft 3 instead of the lock plate 17 described above.

Further, although the push rod lever 13 side is slidable in the above embodiment, the pedal arm 2 side may be slidable. In this case, the push rod lever 13 is extended downward in FIGS. Becomes a pedal arm, and the pedal arm 2 is shortened to become a push rod lever.

The pedal bracket 1 is fixed to the lower surface of the dash upper panel 5, but the invention is not limited to this. For example, a steering member located behind the dash lower panel 4 and extending in the vehicle width direction may be used. It may be a vehicle body member.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway side view showing a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the same embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing the main parts of the same embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a releasing means and a positioning means of the same embodiment.

FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view showing a modified example of the first embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a horizontal sectional view of a pedal shaft portion of a modified example of the first embodiment.

FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view of a second embodiment of the present invention corresponding to FIG.

FIG. 8 is a horizontal sectional view of a pedal shaft portion of the second embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a color boss portion of the same embodiment.

FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view of a third embodiment of the present invention corresponding to FIG. 5 with a part of the configuration omitted.

FIG. 11 is a side view of the same embodiment as FIG. 1.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 pedal bracket 1A front wall 1B Upper wall 2 pedal arm 3 pedal shaft 4 dash lower panel 5 Dash upper panel 10 Pedal arm boss 11 masterback 12 push rod 13 Push rod lever 15 Push rod lever boss 16 Release means (slide plate) 16a insertion part 16b Expansion part 17 Positioning means (lock plate)

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of front page (56) References JP-A-11-301431 (JP, A) International Publication 97/28029 (WO, A1) (58) Fields investigated (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B60T 7/06 B60R 21/02 B62D 25/08

Claims (8)

(57) [Claims] 1. A pedal bracket fixed across a dash lower panel and a vehicle body member above and behind the dash lower panel, a pedal arm rotatably supported by a pedal shaft provided on the pedal bracket, and the pedal shaft. And a push rod lever rotatably supported and connected to a push rod of a master back, wherein a front wall of the pedal bracket is fixed to a dash lower panel, and an upper wall of the pedal bracket is fixed to the vehicle body member. The push rod lever or the pedal arm is slidably fixed in the axial direction of the pedal shaft while being fixed to the bottom surface of the pedal so as to be relatively movable in the front-rear direction and detachable. The pedal bracket is formed with a meshing portion that engages with each other. Positioning means for restricting the push rod lever to a predetermined position for maintaining engagement and a lower surface portion of the vehicle body member are fixed, and when the lower surface portion and the pedal bracket relatively move in the front-rear direction, the pedal arm and the push rod. A brake pedal device for an automobile, characterized in that a release means is provided which is inserted between the lever and the lever to disconnect the engagement between the pedal arm and the push rod lever. 2. The positioning means is constituted by a lock plate which is deformed under a load of a predetermined value or more to allow sliding operation of the pedal arm or the push rod lever. Brake pedal system for automobiles. 3. The releasing means is inserted between the pedal arm and the push rod lever when the lower surface of the vehicle body member and the pedal bracket relatively move in the front-rear direction, and the gap between them is widened to disengage the both. The brake pedal device for an automobile according to any one of claims 1 and 2, wherein the brake pedal device comprises a slide plate having an expanded portion. 4. The brake pedal system for an automobile according to claim 3, wherein the positioning means is provided on the slide plate on the sliding side of the pedal arm or the push rod lever. 5. A meshing portion is formed on a pedal arm, a shaft portion interposed between pedal brackets, a boss portion projecting from the shaft portion, and an engagement hole formed in a push rod lever for clocking the boss portion. The brake pedal device for an automobile according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein 6. A spring is bridged between a pedal arm and a fixed member that is fixed to the lower surface of the vehicle body member and is movable relative to the pedal arm in the forward direction, and the spring is used when the fixed member moves forward. The brake pedal device for an automobile according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the pedal arm is pulled forward. 7. In a normal state, the spring is located near the pedal shaft of the pedal arm, and biases the pedal arm forward when the fixing member moves forward relative to the pedal arm. The brake pedal device for an automobile according to claim 6, wherein the brake pedal device is arranged as described above. 8. The fixing member serves as a slide plate which, when moved to the front side relative to the pedal arm, enters between the pedal arm and the push rod lever to widen the gap and separate the engagement between the two. The brake pedal device for an automobile according to claim 7, wherein the brake pedal device is configured.