JP7306611B2 - steering knuckle - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a steering knuckle to which brake calipers, tie rods, and the like are attached.

A wheel bearing support is provided at the center of a steering knuckle that rotatably holds a wheel hub that supports the wheels, and a suspension strut mounting arm, a tie rod mounting arm, a caliper mounting arm, and a suspension lower arm mounting arm are provided around the wheel bearing support. is provided. A wheel hub is attached to the wheel bearing support portion via a bearing. A suspension strut mounting arm is attached to the bottom of the suspension strut. A ball stud is attached to the tie rod mounting arm, and the tie rod is rotatably attached to the ball stud. A suspension lower arm is attached to the suspension lower arm attachment arm.

A pair of upper and lower caliper mounting arms are provided, and a brake caliper is attached to the upper and lower caliper mounting arms with bolts. When the brake is actuated to brake the rotation of the wheel, a force in the circumferential direction of the tire rotation axis is applied to the steering knuckle as a reaction force to the braking force via the caliper. In particular, stress is concentrated around the caliper mounting portion of the lower caliper mounting arm where the brake caliper is mounted.

Conventionally, in order to reduce localized stress, the section modulus is increased by increasing the thickness of the caliper mounting arm. However, a lightweight steering knuckle cannot be realized. Also, the increased thickness of the caliper mounting arm results in a longer mounting bolt. Calipers and bolts, which are normally used as common parts for multiple vehicle models, cannot be shared, increasing the risk of incorrect assembly of different parts and causing quality problems.

Further, Patent Document 1 describes that a rib is formed between a suspension strut mounting arm and a caliper mounting arm. This increases the strength of the arm without increasing the thickness of the caliper mounting arm.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2014-91468

However, the ribs described above are not provided around the caliper mounting portion where the stress generated during braking concentrates. Therefore, it is necessary to increase the strength of the stress concentrated portion, and it becomes necessary to add reinforcement to this portion, which hinders weight reduction.

Therefore, in view of the above, the present invention provides a steering knuckle that can both secure the required strength and reduce the weight by alleviating stress concentration during braking without increasing the thickness of the caliper mounting arm. aim.

The steering knuckle of the present invention has a caliper mounting arm provided with a caliper mounting portion for mounting a brake caliper on the tip side, and the lower ridge from the caliper mounting arm to the caliper mounting portion is separated from the outer circumference of the brake caliper. formed in

When the brake is operated, stress is concentrated on the lower side of the caliper mounting portion of the caliper mounting arm via the brake caliper. By forming the lower ridgeline from the caliper mounting arm to the caliper mounting portion away from the outer circumference of the brake caliper, the area under the caliper mounting portion that receives stress increases, and stress concentration is alleviated. be.

According to the present invention, by expanding the caliper mounting arm in the direction in which the stress is applied, stress concentration during braking can be alleviated without increasing the thickness of the caliper mounting arm. It can also be made into

1 is a side view of a steering knuckle according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. Bottom view of steering knuckle Top view of steering knuckle Perspective view of the steering knuckle seen diagonally from behind Side view of steering knuckle with brake caliper Side view of the underside of the steering knuckle with the brake caliper installed Perspective view of the steering knuckle with the brake caliper attached, seen obliquely from below Cross-sectional view of the caliper mounting part with a conventional brake caliper Sectional view of the caliper mounting portion to which the brake caliper of the present invention is mounted

A steering knuckle according to an embodiment of the invention is shown in FIGS. The steering knuckle includes a wheel bearing support 1 that rotatably holds a wheel hub that supports a wheel, a suspension strut mounting arm 2 to which the lower end of a suspension strut is mounted, a tie rod mounting arm 3 to which a tie rod is mounted, and a brake caliper. 4, and a suspension lower arm mounting arm 7 to which a suspension lower arm is mounted.

Two suspension strut mounting arms project obliquely upward toward the inside of the vehicle body, and a suspension lower arm mounting arm 7 projects toward the inside of the vehicle body. be. A tie rod mounting arm 3 projects obliquely rearward toward the inside of the vehicle body on the rear side of the wheel bearing support portion 1, and caliper mounting arms 5 and 6 project forward on the upper and lower front sides.

A caliper mounting portion 10 for mounting the brake caliper 4 is provided on the tip side of the upper and lower caliper mounting arms 5 and 6, and a bolt hole 11 is formed in the caliper mounting portion 10. As shown in FIG. The caliper mounting portion 10 is formed in a circular shape, and the bolt hole 11 is positioned in the center thereof. As shown in FIGS. 5 to 7, the brake caliper 4 is aligned with the outer surface of the caliper mounting portion 10, and the brake caliper 4 is tightened and fixed to the caliper mounting arms 5 and 6 by the bolts 12 inserted into the bolt holes 11. .

Here, when the brake is operated, stress is applied to the caliper mounting arms 5 and 6 via the brake caliper 4 . As indicated by the arrows in FIGS. 5 and 6, this stress is tangentially downward around the circumference of the wheel bearing support 1 . In particular, the stress concentrates on the lower portion of the outer surface of the caliper mounting portion 10 of the lower caliper mounting arm 6 that contacts the brake caliper 4 . Therefore, in order to alleviate this stress concentration, the lower ridgeline from the caliper mounting arm 6 to the caliper mounting portion 10 is formed away from the outer circumference of the brake caliper 4 .

As shown in FIG. 1, in the lower caliper mounting arm 6, the arm lower portion 15 on the tip end side is expanded so as to swell downward. The distance from the center of the bolt hole 11 to the arm lower part 15 on the tip side is longer than the distance to the arm upper part 16 on the tip side. The outer circumference of the arm lower portion 15 on the tip side approaches the outer circumference of the caliper mounting portion 10 toward the arm front portion 17 . The outer periphery of the caliper mounting portion 10 is concentric with the bolt hole 11, but the outer periphery of the arm lower portion 15 on the tip side connected to the caliper mounting portion 10, that is, the ridgeline is away from the center of the bolt hole 11, and the arm The caliper mounting portion 10 is approached toward the front portion 17 .

The outer circumference of the brake caliper 4 attached to the caliper mounting arms 5 and 6 overlaps the outer circumference of the caliper mounting portion 10 . However, as shown in FIG. 9 , the outer circumference of the arm lower portion 15 on the tip side of the lower caliper mounting arm 6 is separated from the outer circumference of the brake caliper 4 . In this manner, the arm lower portion 15 extends downward in the tangential direction of the circumference centered on the wheel bearing support portion 1 with respect to the caliper mounting portion 10 . As a result, the area of the tip side of the caliper mounting arm 6 that receives stress from the brake caliper 4 is increased, and the section modulus is increased, so that stress concentration can be alleviated.

Therefore, the strength of the caliper mounting arm 6 can be ensured without increasing the thickness of the caliper mounting arm 6 . Moreover, since the caliper mounting arm 6 is only expanded locally, compared to the conventional case of thickening the caliper mounting arm 6 or providing ribs, it is possible to increase the strength while reducing the weight. Moreover, since the length of the bolt 12 is not changed, the common bolt 12 can be used, the need for increasing the types of the bolt 12 is eliminated, and the increase in man-hours for management in the assembly line and the erroneous assembly of the bolt 12 can be eliminated.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 7, recesses 18 are formed on the inner side surfaces of the brake caliper 4 that come into contact with the caliper mounting arms 5 and 6 so that the caliper mounting portions 10 are fitted therein. Since the concave portion 18 faces the arm front portion 17 on the tip side, it is not affected by the expansion of the arm lower portion 15 and has the same shape as the conventional one. Therefore, the strength of the brake caliper 4 itself is not lowered.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and of course many modifications and changes can be made to the above-described embodiments within the scope of the present invention. Stress is also concentrated on the lower portion of the contact portion of the outer surface of the caliper mounting portion 10 of the upper caliper mounting arm 5 with the brake caliper 4 . Therefore, not only the lower caliper mounting arm 6 but also the arm lower portion 15 on the tip side of the upper caliper mounting arm 5 may be formed so as to bulge downward. That is, in the upper and lower caliper mounting arms 5 , 6 , the ridgeline from the caliper mounting arms 5 , 6 to the caliper mounting portion 10 is formed away from the outer circumference of the brake caliper 4 .

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 wheel bearing support 2 suspension strut mounting arm 3 tie rod mounting arm 4 brake caliper 5 upper caliper mounting arm 6 lower caliper mounting arm 7 suspension lower arm mounting arm 10 caliper mounting portion 11 bolt hole 12 bolt 15 lower arm 17 front arm Department

Claims (1)

A steering knuckle having a caliper mounting arm provided with a caliper mounting portion for mounting a brake caliper on the tip side, wherein the caliper mounting portion is located below a contact portion with the brake caliper on the lower outer surface of the caliper mounting portion. A steering knuckle characterized in that a lower portion of an arm on the tip side of the arm is formed so as to bulge downward .

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