JPH03213411A - Independent suspension type suspension device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To improve the protection and rigidity of a ball joint by specifying the connecting position of a knuckle with a knuckle side upper arm, and mounting positions on the vehicle body of a vehicle side upper arm and the knuckle side upper arm respectively. CONSTITUTION:In a pair of upper and lower arm members 3, 4, each of its front ends is pivotally fixed to a knuckle 2 mounted on a wheel 1, and each of its rear ends is pivotally fixed to the vehicle body 5 side. The upper arm member 3 is divided into a pair of right and left arm members 6, 7. The upper right arm member 7 and the lower arm member 4 are connected with each other so that they may oscillate freely through a rigid body 9. With the above constitution, the knuckle 2 and the upper left arm member 6 are connected with each other by a ball joint 12, and the connecting part is located more inwards than the outer periphery end 1a of the wheel 1. Respective mounting positions to the vehicle body side of the upper right arm member 7 and the upper left arm member 6 are set higher than the ball joint 12 respectively.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Technical Field of the Invention) The present invention relates to an independent suspension applied to front or rear wheels of an automobile, and particularly to a wishbone type independent suspension.

(Technical background of the invention and its problems) In order to absorb various vibrations and shocks received from the road surface while the automobile is running, a suspension device with a buffering effect is installed between the body and the axle. It is being Such suspensions support the vehicle on the road surface and transmit the propulsion force from the drive shaft to the body. At the same time, they protect the vehicle from damage by cushioning the impact from the road surface. They also play an important role in improving ride comfort and driving stability. Because of their functions, as cars become faster, their functions become increasingly important as they determine the limits of speed increases, and scientific research into devices in general has progressed and many mechanism types and elements have been developed. .

Suspensions generally need to be soft in the -L downward direction and stiff in the front, rear, left and right directions, and can be broadly classified into axle suspensions and independent suspensions based on their structure. Axle suspensions are generally used for the front and rear wheels of trucks and the rear wheels of passenger cars, while independent suspensions are often used for the front and rear wheels of passenger cars, where ride comfort and driving stability are important. There is.

Independent suspension allows the left and right wheels to move independently without being connected by a single axle, and can be roughly divided into three types based on their structure: Wishbone type, MacPherson type, and trailing type. It can be classified into arm type and swing axle type. Compared to an axle-type suspension, this type of independent suspension has one of the left and right wheels resting on road bumps.It also works like a human knee joint, with only that wheel moving up and down, and the body moving up and down. It has the advantage of not tilting, suppressing rolling (sideways shaking), and allowing stable travel.

The most widely used independent suspension type suspension is the wishbone type suspension (see, for example, Japanese Utility Model Application No. 53-26,020). The feature of this type is that the link mechanism with two arms acts like a parallelogram, so the wheels move up and down almost vertically, and as a result, the tires are always in horizontal contact with the road surface, which improves lubrication. It is in good condition. In addition, the structure is more complex than the McPherson type, so there are various improvements that need to be made in terms of weight and cost, and the two arms protrude into the engine room, which makes the engine room narrower. Although it has some issues, it has recently come back into the spotlight for its robustness and excellent stability during cornering.

Wishbone type independent suspension is the fifth
As shown in Fig. , 6, the knuckle 2 is attached to the body or frame 5 by two control arms 3 and 4, which are similar in shape to the wishbone of a chicken breast. control arm 3
, 4 are attached to the body side 5, and the other ends are connected at the top and bottom at the knuckle 2. The connection side between the body 5 and the control arms 3 and 4 has a bushing of 10° and 11°.
On the other hand, the knuckle spindle 2 and the control arms 3 and 4 are connected by a ball joint 1-12.
．． Generally, they are connected by 13.

As a result, the two control arms 3.4 and the knuckle 2 form a link mechanism. In addition,
In addition to the wishbone type suspension in which the two control arms are both A-shaped, there are also known suspensions in which the lower arm is not A-shaped but is configured to use a tension rod to compensate for the force acting in the longitudinal direction. ing(
so-called rIJ type arm).

When a car body equipped with such a Witschborn suspension turns, an external force is applied from the tires in the direction shown in Fig. 5. Therefore, due to the rigidity of the control arm, the upper arm should be mounted at a higher position on the car body. It is preferable to set it (high mount).

However, when mounting the upper arm on the vehicle body at a high mount, there are various design constraints such as roll center height change characteristics, scuff change characteristics, and camber change characteristics, so it is necessary to fully utilize the suspension function. In order to make the most of it, the upper arm and knuckle must be attached to a higher position. In this case, there is a risk of dust, water, etc. entering the ball joint used in this connection, and even though it is equipped with a dust boot, the ball joint is an important component of the suspension. In view of this, there is a big problem with reliability.

In this way, there has never been a suspension that satisfies the protection of the ball joint and the rigidity of the control arm at the same time.

(Object of the Invention) The present invention has been made in view of the problems of the prior art, and its purpose is to provide a suspension that has excellent rigidity and can sufficiently protect the ball joint. Our goal is to provide the following.

(Summary of the Invention) A first invention to achieve the above object has a pair of control arms consisting of an upper arm and a lower arm whose tips are swingably connected to a knuckle attached to a wheel. A wishbone type independent suspension in which the base end of the upper arm is pivotably pivoted to the vehicle body side, the upper arm is divided into a knuckle side upper arm and a vehicle body side upper arm, and both upper arms are connected to the vehicle body side. In an independent suspension suspension, the knuckle and the knuckle-side upper arm are connected to each other so as to be swingable in the vertical movement direction of the wheels, and the vehicle body side upper arm and the lower arm are connected by a rigid body whose both ends are swingable. are connected by a ball joint, and this connecting part is located inside the outer periphery of the wheel, and the upper arm on the vehicle body side is connected to the vehicle body at the 1st position and the upper arm on the knuckle side of the upper arm on the vehicle body side. The independent suspension is characterized in that the mounting position is set higher than the ball joint in the vertical direction of the vehicle body.

Further, a second invention for achieving the above object has a pair of control arms consisting of an upper arm and a lower arm whose tips are swingably connected to a knuckle attached to a wheel, and a base end of the control arm. is a wishbone type independent suspension in which the upper arm is divided into a knuckle side upper arm and a vehicle body side upper arm, and one end of the rigid body is attached to the upper and lower sides of the wheel. The rigid body is connected to the vehicle body side upper arm so as to be swingable in the direction of movement, and the other end of the rigid body is swingably connected to the lower arm so as to be swingable in the vertical movement direction of the wheel. In an independent suspension in which one end of the knuckle-side upper arm is swingably connected to a rigid body, the knuckle and the knuckle-side upper arm are connected by a ball joint, and this connection part is located inside the outer periphery of the wheel. Further, the attachment position of the vehicle body side upper arm to the vehicle body and the attachment position of the vehicle body side upper arm to the knuckle side upper arm are set higher than the ball joint in the downward direction. It is an independent suspension.

In the first and second inventions configured in this way,
Since the ball joint is located inside the outer peripheral edge of the wheel, it is possible to prevent dust, water, etc. from entering the ball joint.

In addition, the mounting position of the upper arm on the vehicle body side to the vehicle body and the attachment position of the upper arm on the vehicle body side to the knuckle side upper arm are set higher than the ball joint in the downward direction of the vehicle body. , the rigidity against lateral external forces applied to the suspension from the wheels is increased.

As described above, the suspension of the present invention has excellent rigidity and can sufficiently protect the ball joint.

(Detailed description of the invention) Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present invention will be described based on the drawings.

1st embodiment @ Figure 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the first invention, 1 Figures 2 and 3 are conceptual diagrams explaining the operation of the embodiment, and Figure 2 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the first invention. FIG. 3 is a planar surface view showing the suspension of this embodiment when the wheels of the same embodiment are moved upward, as seen from the front of the vehicle. The same members as in the conventional suspension shown are given the same reference numerals.

The knuckle 2 to which the wheel 1 is rotatably attached includes a spindle 18 that supports the wheel 1 via a bearing 27 (see FIG. 2), and a bifurcated arm 19 that branches upward and downward from the base end of this spindle. .20 and a knuckle arm 2 connected to a steering mechanism (not shown) to appropriately change the steering angle of the wheel 1.
Consists of 1.

As shown in Fig. 1, two A-type control arms 3 and 4 are connected to the tips of the bifurcated arms 19.20 via ball joints 12.13, and when the wheel 1 moves downward by -L. Even when the wheel 1 is steered by the steering mechanism, the knuckle 2 is connected to the control arm 3,
It is swingable with respect to 4. Note that the caster is determined by the inclination of the straight line connecting the centers of both ball joints 12°213.

As shown in FIG. 2, the ball joint 12 of this embodiment is installed inside the outer periphery 1a of the wheel 1, especially on the wheel 29, in order to protect the tire 28 from dust, water, etc. splashed up while the tire 28 is running. It is located inside.

The upper arm 3 according to this embodiment consists of a knuckle side upper arm 6 and a vehicle body side upper arm 7, both of which are configured as A-type arms. Both upper arms 6
．． 7 is an arm portion 6 a of the upper arm 6 on the knuckle side;
6b and the tip 7c of the vehicle body side upper arm 7 are connected by a swing shaft 8, and the knuckle side upper arm 6 and the vehicle body side upper arm 7 rotate relative to each other around this swing shaft 8. The base end side of the vehicle body side upper arm 7, that is, the arm portions 7a and 7b, is connected to the vehicle body or frame 5 by a bushing 10 (see FIG. 2), similarly to the aforementioned lower arm 4, and the vehicle body side upper arm is connected around an axis 15. 7 rotates. Therefore, the upper arm 6 on the vehicle body side rotates around the swing axis 8 with respect to the upper arm 7 on the vehicle body side, but the vehicle body (frame 5)
It rotates around the shaft 15 via the upper arm 7 on the vehicle body side.

Further, in this embodiment, the mounting positions of the swing shaft 8 and the shaft 15 are set higher than the mounting position of the ball joint 12 in the vertical direction of the vehicle body. Conventionally, when trying to increase the rigidity of the suspension against lateral external forces applied to the wheels 1 when the vehicle body turns, it was considered to mount the upper arm 3 at a high level. The setting position of the joint 12 is on the outside of the wheel 1, that is, the tire 2.
Since the suspension had to be set in a part that is susceptible to the effects of muddy water etc. thrown up by the 8, it was not possible to obtain an appropriate structure that could simultaneously satisfy suspension rigidity and protection of the ball joint. However, as in this embodiment, by dividing the upper arm 3 into the vehicle body side upper arm 7 and the knuckle side upper arm 6, the ball joints 4 l and 12 can be arranged inward from the outer peripheral edge 1a of the wheel 1. In addition, the rigidity of the suspension can be achieved by arbitrarily setting the roll center of the vehicle body and by mounting the upper arm 7 on the vehicle body side at a high level.

On the other hand, the lower arm 4 has a pair of front and rear arm portions 4 on the base end side.
The arm portion 4a of the A-type lower arm 4 is a so-called A-type arm that is branched into a and 4b.

4b is attached to the body or frame 5 via a bushing 11, and rotates around a shaft 14 against the shearing force of the bushing 11. Also, as shown in Figure 2,
A suspension spring 2 is provided between the lower arm 4 and the frame 5.
2 is provided to urge the lower arm 4 downward.

In the suspension of this embodiment, the tip 4c of the lower arm 4 and the tip 7c of the upper arm 7 on the vehicle body side are connected by a rigid body 9. The rigid body 9 and the lower arm 4 are connected to each other so that the rigid body 9 rotates relative to the lower arm 4 around an axis 16. Further, the rigid body 9 and the vehicle-side upper arm 7 are connected to each other so that the rigid body 9 rotates relative to the vehicle-side upper arm 7 around a five-axis 17 .

As described above, the vehicle body side upper arm 7, the knuckle side upper arm 6, the knuckle 2, and the rigid body 9 constitute a link mechanism.

Next, the operation of the suspension of this embodiment will be explained.

As shown in FIG. 2, when the vehicle is traveling straight, the arm length of the upper arm 3 is the straight line length L1 connecting the ball joint 12 and the bushing 10. From this state,
If the vehicle turns, or if the wheel 1 hits a protrusion on the road.
In the case where the wheel 1 is overturned, the relative position of the wheel 1 with respect to the frame 5 moves upward, and accordingly, the lower arm 4 rotates upward around the bush 11.

Then, the rigid body 9 attached to the lower arm 4 pushes up the vehicle body side upper arm 7. At this time, in this embodiment, the lengths of the bushing 11 and the lower end of the rigid body 9 and the lengths of the bushing 10 and the -L end of the rigid body 9 are set to be different. The swing angle of the upper arm 7 on the vehicle body side is different from the swing angle of the upper arm 7 on the vehicle body side. As a result, the connecting portion between the vehicle body side upper arm 7 and the knuckle side upper arm 6, that is, the swing shaft 8, is bent by a predetermined angle, and the arm length of the upper arm 3 is the straight line length connecting the ball joint 12 and the bushing 10. L2, which is a predetermined length shorter than when traveling straight. Therefore, the wheel 1 has a predetermined camber angle.

As described above, in the suspension of this embodiment, the attachment positions of the upper arm 3 and lower arm 4 to the frame 5, the attachment positions to the knuckle 2, both arms 3,
4, the same roll center height can be achieved by appropriately selecting the lengths of the upper arm 7 on the vehicle body side and the upper arm 6 on the knuckle side, the length of the rigid body 9, and the mounting positions of the upper and lower ends of the rigid body 9. Even with the same scuff change, different camber change characteristics can be provided, and the degree of freedom in suspension design is greatly improved, and driving stability can be set to within 7 degrees.

Further, in this embodiment, since the ball joint 12 is located inside the outer peripheral edge 1a of the wheel 1, it is possible to prevent dust, water, etc. from entering the ball joint 12. Further, the attachment position 10 of the vehicle body side upper arm 7 to the vehicle body and the attachment position of the vehicle body side upper arm 7 to the knuckle side upper arm 6 are set higher than the ball joint 12 with respect to the vehicle body''-downward direction. Therefore, the rigidity against the external force in the lateral direction applied to the suspension from the wheel l increases.

As described above, the suspension of this embodiment has excellent rigidity and can sufficiently protect the ball joint.

Second example Next, an embodiment of the second invention will be described.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the second invention,
The same parts H as the embodiment of the first invention shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 and the conventional suspension shown in FIG. 7.8 are given the same reference numerals.

8 The knuckle 2 to which the wheel 1 is rotatably attached includes a spindle 18 that supports the wheel 1 via a bearing (not shown), and bifurcated arms 19 and 20 that branch upward and downward from the base end of this spindle and extend. and a knuckle arm 21 to which a steering mechanism (not shown) is connected to change the steering angle of the wheel 1 as appropriate. As shown in FIG. 4, two A-type control arms 3 and 4 are connected to the tips of the bifurcated arms 19.20 via ball joints 12.13, and when the wheel 1 moves downward by 2. Even when the wheels 1 are steered by the steering mechanism, the knuckles 2 are swingable relative to the control arms 3 and 4. Note that the caster is determined by the inclination of the straight line connecting the centers of both pole joins 1-12 and 13.

Similar to the first embodiment described above, the ball joint 12 of this embodiment is installed inside the outer periphery of the wheel 1, especially on the inside of the wheel, in order to protect the tire from dust, water, etc. splashed while the tire is running. It is located inside.

The upper arm 3 according to this embodiment is composed of a knuckle side 9 upper arm 6 and a vehicle body side upper arm 7, both of which are configured as A-type arms. The base end side of the upper arm 7 on the vehicle body side, that is, the arm portions 7a and 7b, is connected to the vehicle body or frame 5 by a bushing 10 (see FIG. 5), similarly to the lower arm 4 described above. 7 rotates. In addition, in the suspension of this embodiment, the tip 4 of the lower arm 4
c and the tip 7c of the upper arm 7 on the vehicle body side are connected by a rigid body 9. The rigid body 9 and the lower arm 4 are connected to the axis 1
A rigid body 9 is connected around the lower arm 6 so as to rotate with respect to the lower arm 4. The rigid body 9 and the vehicle body side upper arm 7 are arranged so that the rigid body 9 and the vehicle body side upper arm 7 are connected to each other around the shaft 17.
It is connected to rotate relative to the

Furthermore, in this embodiment, the swing shaft 8 and the shaft 15.
17 is attached to the ball joint 12 described above.
It is set at a higher position with respect to the lower part of the vehicle body than the mounting position of. Conventionally, when trying to increase the rigidity of the suspension against lateral external forces applied to the wheels 1 when the vehicle body turns, it was considered to mount the upper arm 3 at a high level. Since the position of the ball joint 12 had to be set on the outside of the wheel 1, that is, in a part easily affected by muddy water splashed up by the tires 28, it was necessary to simultaneously satisfy the rigidity of the suspension and the protection of the ball joint. I couldn't get a suitable structure that could do that. However, as in this embodiment, by dividing the upper arm 3 into the vehicle body side upper arm 7 and the knuckle side upper arm 6, the ball joint 12 can be disposed inward from the outer peripheral edge 1a of the wheel 1. The rigidity of the suspension can be achieved by arbitrarily setting the roll center of the vehicle body and by mounting the upper arm 7 on the vehicle body side high.

On the other hand, the lower arm 4 has a pair of front and rear arm portions 4 on the base end side.
The arm portion 4a of the A-type lower arm 4 is a so-called A-type arm that is branched into a and 4b.

4b is attached to the body or frame 5 via a bushing 111, and rotates around an axis 14 against the shearing force of the bushing 11. Further, a suspension spring (not shown) is provided between the lower arm 4 and the frame 5, and urges the lower arm 4 downward.

Furthermore, the arm portions 6a, 6 of the knuckle side upper arm 6
b and a rigid body 9 are connected by a swing shaft 8, and the knuckle-side upper arm 6 and the rigid body 9 rotate relative to each other around this swing shaft 8. Therefore, the knuckle side upper arm 6 rotates around the swing axis 8 with respect to the rigid body 9, and rotates around the axis 17 with respect to the vehicle body side upper arm 7, but it rotates around the axis 17 with respect to the vehicle body (frame 5). On the other hand, it rotates around the shaft 15 via the rigid body 9 and the upper arm 7 on the vehicle body side.

As described above, the vehicle body side upper arm 7, the knuckle side upper arm 6, the knuckle 2, and the rigid body 9 constitute a link mechanism.

Even in the suspension of this embodiment configured in this way, the attachment of the upper 2 arm 3 and lower arm 4 to the frame 5 (=
I position, attachment position with knuckle 2, both arms 3,
By appropriately selecting the lengths of the vehicle body side upper arm 7 and the knuckle side upper arm 6, the length of the rigid body 9, and the attachment position of the knuckle side upper arm 6 with respect to the rigid body 9, the same roll center can be achieved without changing the length of the knuckle side upper arm 6. Even if the height and scuff change are the same, different camber change characteristics can be provided, and the degree of freedom in suspension design is greatly improved, and driving stability can be set to a satisfactory level.

Further, in this embodiment, since the ball joint 12 is located inside the outer peripheral edge of the wheel 1, it is possible to prevent dust, water, etc. from entering the ball joint 12. Further, the mounting position 10 of the vehicle body side upper arm 7 to the vehicle body, the mounting position of the vehicle body side upper arm 7 to the rigid body 9, and the mounting position of the rigid body 9 and the knuckle side upper arm 6 are set from the pole joint 12 to the vehicle body. Since the suspension is set high relative to the downward direction, the rigidity against external forces in the lateral direction applied to the suspension from the wheels 1 is high.

In this way, the suspension of this embodiment has excellent rigidity and can sufficiently protect the pole joint.

Note that the present invention is not limited to the series of examples, and can be modified in various ways without departing from the gist of the present invention.

(Effects of the Invention) As described above, according to the present invention, the upper arm and knuckle on the vehicle body side can be fixed without changing the mounting position of the upper arm and lower arm on the vehicle body, the mounting position with the knuckle, the length of both arms, etc. By appropriately selecting the length of the side upper arm, the length of the rigid body, and the attachment position of the knuckle side upper arm relative to the rigid body, it is possible to give different camber change characteristics even with the same roll center height and the same scuff change. The degree of freedom in suspension design is greatly improved, and driving stability can be set to a satisfactory level.

In addition to this, it has excellent rigidity and can sufficiently protect hole joints.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the first invention;
FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram explaining the operation of the same embodiment, and FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram explaining the operation of the same embodiment.
FIG. 5.6, a perspective view showing an embodiment of the second invention, is a conceptual diagram showing a conventional suspension. 1...wheel, 2...knuckle, 3
...Upper arm, 4...Lower arm, 5.
... Vehicle body (frame), 6. Knuckle side upper arm, 7. Vehicle body side upper arm, 9. Rigid body.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1) A pair of control arms consisting of an upper arm (3) and a lower arm (4) whose tips are swingably connected to a knuckle (2) attached to a wheel (1); This is a wishbone type independent suspension in which the base end of the control arm is pivotally connected to the vehicle body side (5), and the upper arm (3) is connected to the knuckle side upper arm (6) and the vehicle body side upper arm (3). 7), and these upper arms (6, 7) are connected so as to be swingable in the vertical movement direction of the wheel (1), and the upper arm (7) on the vehicle body side and the lower arm (4) ) are connected by a rigid body (9) that is swingable at both ends, and the knuckle (2) and the knuckle-side upper arm (6) are connected by a ball joint (12), and this connection The upper arm (7) of the vehicle body side (5) is located inside the outer peripheral edge (1a) of the wheel (1).
The independent suspension is characterized in that the mounting position of the upper arm (7) on the vehicle body and the upper arm (6) on the knuckle side are set higher than the ball joint (12) in the vertical direction of the vehicle body. 2) It has a pair of control arms consisting of an upper arm (3) and a lower arm (4) whose tips are swingably connected to a knuckle (2) attached to a wheel (1), and the base end of this control arm is The wishbone type independent suspension is pivotally connected to the vehicle body side (5), and the upper arm (3) is divided into a knuckle side upper arm (6) and a vehicle body side upper arm (7). , one end of the rigid body (9) is attached to the vehicle body side upper arm (7) so as to be swingable in the vertical movement direction of the wheel (1).
), and the other end of the rigid body (9) is connected to the wheel (
1) is swingably connected to the lower arm (4) so as to be swingable in the vertical movement direction, and further, one end of the knuckle side upper arm (6) is swingably connected to the rigid body (9). In the suspension type suspension, the knuckle (2) and the knuckle-side upper arm (6) are connected by a ball joint (12), and this connection part is located inside the outer peripheral edge (1a) of the wheel (1). , the vehicle body (5) of the vehicle body side upper arm (7)
The independent suspension is characterized in that the mounting position of the vehicle body side upper arm (7) to the knuckle side upper arm (6) is set higher than the ball joint (12) in the vertical direction of the vehicle body.