JP2008290512A - Mowing machine - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To realize a rapid changing in forwarding direction during a high-speed running operation or realize a speed limiting control at the time of turning operation as a safety device related to a steering operation irrespective of the facts that a machine body of mowing machine becomes unstable and even shows the possibility of overturning through a steering operation in the case of high-speed running operation during a mowing operation under the setting of a relative high speed as compared with other agricultural machines and the mowing machine almost runs on an irregular ground even in the case of motion and it shows a quite dangerous state when a steering wheel is rapidly turned during its high-speed running. <P>SOLUTION: This mowing machine is constituted so that a connector cooperated with a connecting part is connected to a part of the connecting part between a rod for adjusting a turning of an HST adjustment shaft or a wire, HST lever, or an HST pedal, the connector is operated by an actuator to brake an operation of the HST lever or the pedal and the HST adjustment shaft can be controlled and its speed can be controlled. Further, a steering sensor is arranged at a steering mechanism and when a steering wheel is placed at a substantial turning and running directional position, the actuator is operated. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

The present invention is mainly a small riding type of mowers or similar lawn mowers, and relates to the traveling safety control thereof.

In the past, most of the small-sized passenger mowers have been widely used in the four-wheel rear-wheel drive-front-wheel steering type. (Patent documents 1, 2) This is common as a drive control system. In addition, most of the mowers use HST for running speed control in the same way as other agricultural machines. Conventionally, the adjustment speed of the HST is rotated by a lever operation to control the traveling speed and the forward and backward movement. In recent years, it has become possible to perform this lever operation by a stepping pedal operation as well as a demand similar to that of driving a car (Patent Document 2).
Japanese Utility Model 06-55320 JP 2003-320864 A

Mowers are set to be relatively fast compared to other agricultural machines. Although it is from the efficiency at the time of movement, when it runs at high speed at the time of work, depending on steering, the body becomes unstable and there is even a risk of rollover. Even when moving, mowers often run on rough terrain, and it was very dangerous if the steering wheel was cut off during high-speed driving. As a safety device related to this steering, there is a sudden change of traveling direction during high-speed traveling and a speed limit during turning. However, since the HST of the speed adjustment device is a pure mechanical type and it is assumed that the adjustment shaft is manually operated with a lever or a foot pedal, automatic control has been difficult. The present invention innovates this conventional HST concept, realizes automatic control of HST, that is, enables a speed limit for safety, and provides a mower with excellent stability and safety.

The means taken in the present invention to solve the above problems is a connecting body that interlocks with the connecting portion at a part of the connecting portion between the rod or wire for rotating and adjusting the HST adjusting shaft and the HST lever or HST pedal. And the operation of the HST lever or pedal is controlled or urged by controlling the HST adjustment shaft and the speed can be controlled. Furthermore, a steering sensor is provided in the steering mechanism, and the actuator is operated when the steering wheel or the handle is substantially in the turning traveling direction position.

  The present invention has the following effects by applying the above means.

  Since the HST can be adjusted separately from the operator's operation by operating the coupling body, speed limit control is possible, and the traveling safety of the mower is improved.

  By linking the operation of the connecting body with the steering sensor, it is possible to control the deceleration during cornering operations such as cornering during high-speed driving, improving the driving safety of the mower, and realizing a mowing machine with excellent driving stability. .

By breaking down the conventional concept of HST adjustment and developing a new control mechanism, a mower with excellent operability and workability of the mower can be realized.

By setting the speed limit to the fastest value that does not cause fear for unskilled people such as elderly people and girls, it is possible to achieve a steering feeling that is relatively uncomfortable for the skilled people. Although it was suitable for girls, even a skilled person could make it a speed limit safety device with little dissatisfaction.

  A first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. 1 is a right side view of an embodiment of the mower of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a speed limiting mechanism for controlling the HST of the mower of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a mechanism 9 of a connecting body for controlling the HST. 4 is a view showing an actuator mechanism for driving the coupling body, and FIG. 5 is a view showing a steering sensor mechanism. The illustration is partially omitted for clarity. The mower can receive the rotational output of the engine 2 from the engine pulley 21 by the cutting blade pulley 12 and rotate the cutting blade 11 to mow the grass. On the other hand, it is received by the transmission pulley 31 separately from the engine pulley 21, driven by the traveling drive wheel 6 through the transmission 3, and the front wheel 5 is steered and operated by operating the steering wheel 41.

  A linkage structure of the HST arm 33 that rotates and adjusts the HST adjustment shaft 32 of the transmission 3 of the mowing machine of the present invention, the HST pedal P1 or lever L1 (omitted) that operates the traveling speed, and the coupling mechanism 9 will be described. For speed adjustment, the HST adjustment shaft 32 of the transmission 3 can be rotated in the clockwise and counterclockwise directions in FIG. Conventionally, the HST arm 33 is fixed to the adjustment shaft 32, the rod a34 is pivotally supported at one end thereof, and the crank 35, the rod b36, the rod c37 and the HST pedal P1 are connected to each other to connect the HST pedal P1. The speed was adjusted by operating with the feet. The HST pedal P1 is pivotally supported by a support shaft P12 and can be operated by stepping. In FIG. 1, the speed can be adjusted according to the forward and stepping amounts by depressing clockwise, and the reverse and its speed can be adjusted by depressing counterclockwise. Each connecting element is pivotally supported by each connecting portion so as to be rotatable. The crank 35 is for turning direction conversion. Although omitted in FIG. 1, an HST lever L1 (FIG. 8) is also connected to a series of connecting mechanisms. In the past, most lever operations have been performed, but in recent years, there are an increasing number of devices that can be operated by pedal operations because of the aforementioned demands. Experienced persons are familiar with the conventional lever L1, and pedals P1 are familiar with beginners and inexperienced persons. Either way, you can adjust the forward / reverse speed.

  In the present invention, a connecting mechanism 9 that is actuated by an actuator is newly connected to the conventional connecting mechanism of this pedal-rod-HST adjusting shaft so that speed control can be performed. The main components are a cam 91, a lever lever a92, and a lever lever b93. A control wire 47 and a brake wire 48 are joined to the levers. The cam 91 rotates around the support shaft in conjunction with the operation of the pedal P1 or the lever L1 during normal steering. The notch-like groove has a substantially heart cam shape, and has a reverse cam configuration in which the tip roller of the lever b93 is brought into contact with the notch groove so as to rotate around the support shaft. A brake wire 48 is joined to the lever lever b93, and normally the gear 48 is pulled in conjunction with the stepping operation of the brake pedal P2 (FIG. 8), and the lever b93 tip roller contacts the heart cam notch contact surface of the cam 91. Abutting and rotating to the buttocks, the HST adjustment shaft is pushed back to the neutral position (speed 0). As described above, the lever lever b93 is normally used for controlling the interlocking speed during the brake operation, but also interlocks with the operation of one lever lever a92. This has a speed limiting function. The interlocking operation of the lever lever b93 when the lever lever a92 is operated is not limited to the speed 0 and is set to be limited to a constant low speed. In the present invention, this is used for speed limitation during high-speed turning. That is, when the steering wheel 41 is turned off, the motor control unit 45 supplies the electric power of the battery 7 through the harness 8 to the motor & wire unit 46 that is an electric actuator in accordance with the detection of the steering sensor 44. The motor & wire unit 46 pulls the control wire 47 joined to the lever lever a92, rotates the lever lever a92, and rotates the lever lever b93. At this time, if the cam 91 is in the high speed position, it is pushed back to the set low speed position by this lever operation.

  The connection mechanism 9 for HST control of the mower of the present invention will be described. The upper diagram of FIG. 3 shows a state where the HST pedal P1 is stepped on at a substantially high speed position in the forward direction and the two levers are free. One end of a cam 91 is connected to a connecting portion between a rod b36 and a rod c37, which is an HST adjustment connecting mechanism, and the cam 91 normally rotates around a support shaft 911 in conjunction with a pedal operation. The wavy diagram shows the position corresponding to the HST neutral of the cam 91 (horizontal position). When the control wire 47 is pulled from this state, the lever lever a92 rotates around the support shaft 921, and the lever tip end roller 922 contacts and rotates the contact surface of the lever lever b93 to support the lever lever b93. Rotate around shaft 931. Then, the lever tip end roller 932 of the lever lever b93 contacts and rotates the substantially heart cam notch contact surface of the cam 91, and rotates the cam 91 to push it back to the set low speed position. In accordance with the operation of the cam 91, the HST adjustment shaft connected and interlocked with the rod b36 returns to the set speed position, and the pedal P1 interlocked with the rod c37 is also pushed back to the corresponding position. This series of control operations is shown in the middle diagram of FIG. The above description is in the order a-b-c-d-e in the figure. The lower diagram of FIG. 3 shows the single operation of the lever lever b93. When the brake wire 48 is pulled (the brake pedal is stepped on), the lever rotates and the tip roller contacts and rotates to the heart cam notch contact surface collar at either the forward or backward rotation position of the cam. Push back to HST neutral equivalent position. On the other hand, in FIG. 3, the new connecting mechanism 9 describes the case of the forward travel speed control, but the reverse speed control can be similarly performed by adding a contact roller to the cam 91. This is also why the roller contact surface of the cam 91 has a substantially heart cam shape.

  The motor & wire unit 46 which is an electric actuator of the mower of the present invention will be described. The upper two of FIG. 4 are two views. The unit 46 mainly includes a motor 461, a reduction gear pair 462 and 463, a cam plate 464, a limit switch pair 466 and 467, and the like, and one end of a control wire 47 is pivotally supported on a support shaft 465 fixed to the cam plate 464. Yes. The motor 461 rotates forward and backward, but the corner portion of the cam plate 464 fixed to the shaft of the reduction gear 463 is stopped at the moment when the limit switch 466 or 467 is operated. The cam plate 464 is indicated by an arrow in the figure. Rotate between limit switches 466 and 467 in the direction. The control wire 47 is “pulled” and “returned” by the rotation of the cam plate 464. The center view is a view in which the cam plate 464 is rotated in the clockwise direction and the limit switch 466 is operated, and the wire 47 is stopped in the “return” state. On the other hand, the lower figure is a figure stopped in the “pulling” state of the wire 47 at the position where the limit switch 467 is operated by rotating counterclockwise.

  The steering sensor 44 and the related configuration of the mower of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The steering mechanism mainly includes a steering wheel 41, a steering shaft 42, and a rack and pinion unit 43. In conjunction with the rotation of the steering wheel 41, the rack in the rack and pinion unit 43 linearly moves in the horizontal direction in the figure. Along with this operation, the tie rod connected to the rack bracket 431 fixed to the left and right ends of the rack is pushed and pulled to rotate the knuckle arm of the wheel hub to perform steering. This is the very basic configuration of a rack and pinion type steering mechanism. The steering sensor 44 detects the left / right linear operation position instead of detecting the rotation angle of the steering wheel 41, and includes a limit switch 441, a switch bracket 442, a sensor guide 443, and the like. The limit switch 441 is a roller type contact portion and is fixed to the machine body by a bracket 442 (not shown). The sensor guide 443 is fixed to the left and right ends of the rack together with the rack bracket 431, and moves linearly in the left-right direction in the drawing in conjunction with the rotation of the steering wheel 41. A contact surface with the switch 441 is provided to detect the operation position of the rack. A plan view of the contact surface of the sensor guide 443 with the switch 441 is shown below. The roller contact portion of the limit switch 441 traces on the A line in the range B in conjunction with the rotation of the steering wheel 41. The contact surface of the guide 443 is provided with a pair of left and right contact adjustment plates 444L and 444R so as to be adjustable this time. If the roller contact portion of the limit switch 441 is in contact with the contact adjusting plate 444, it can be detected that the vehicle is turning, and if it is in the gap and is in the non-contact state, it is detected that the vehicle is running substantially straight.

  With the above configuration, speed limit control in which the HST is directly operated can be realized. When the steering wheel is turned off from high-speed substantially straight running, the speed is immediately reduced to the set speed, and dangers such as the driver falling over or the aircraft overturning can be prevented. When traveling below the set speed, the vehicle continues traveling at the same speed. The control speed setting is determined by the pulling amount of the control wire 47, that is, the rotation angle and shape of the cam plate 464 of the motor & wire unit 46 and the shaft support position of the control wire 47. As a result of several trial tests, both experienced and inexperienced people tested the test ride sensitivity test, and as a result, the elderly and girls (that is, inexperienced people) are set to the fastest value that does not cause fear. did. By doing so, it was originally a safety control for the inexperienced person, but even a skilled person can be set so that there is no sense of incongruity, and it has become a safety device that can handle from inexperienced person to skilled person.

  6, 7, and 8 show the control block and other component configurations. Normally, when the switch 49 is turned on, the motor & wire unit 46 is driven by the motor control unit 45 in conjunction with the turning on / off of the steering sensor 44, and the coupling mechanism 9 that controls the HST is turned "on" and "off". Speed limit. Considering safety first, the switch 49 may be eliminated and a constant control operation may be performed. The motor control unit 45 is mounted in the front bonnet. The other units in the bonnet are for control other than this system. The switch 49 is disposed on the steering panel below the steering wheel 41 so as to be easily operated. Other switches are for control other than this system. Since the HST pedal P1 is interlocked with the HST lever L1, the shape thereof is slightly larger than that of an automobile pedal. The shape of the brake pedal P2 is close to that for automobiles.

In the embodiment, a motor is used as the actuator. However, a linear actuator such as a cylinder may be used. The actuator unit is large and somewhat expensive, but more precise wire stroke control is possible. The embodiment succeeds in the electric control of the HST without greatly changing the conventional structure of the airframe. In addition, all of the small passenger mowers currently used are speed control systems based on HST. However, when an electronic governor or an engine with an electronic throttle function is installed, the HST linkage control configuration of the embodiment should be replaced with these controls as it is. I can do it. Even when a power motor is mounted and driven by a motor, the steering position detection-control configuration can be used as it is, and the speed reduction control of the drive motor can be performed.

  The present invention can be used for all small and medium-sized riding work machines such as small and medium-sized riding agricultural machines and civil engineering construction machines that use HST or the HST built-in transmission as a drive transmission.

It is a right view of the mowing machine which shows this 1st Example. It is a top view which shows the electric pedal control mechanism which performs the conventional pedal lever connection mechanism and speed limit control which operate the HST adjustment axis | shaft of this 1st Example mowing machine. It is detail drawing of the connection mechanism which performs speed restriction control of the 1st Example mowing machine. It is detail drawing of the electric actuator which performs speed restriction control of the 1st Example mowing machine. It is a figure which shows the steering sensor part in connection with the speed limiting control of the 1st Example mowing machine. It is a block diagram which shows the speed limit control of the 1st Example mowing machine. It is a front view which shows the mounting state of the control unit in connection with the speed limit control of the 1st Example mowing machine. It is a perspective view which shows arrangement | positioning of the operating devices which operate or control HST of this 1st Example mowing machine.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Mowing part 2 Engine 3 Drive transmission 4 Steering 5 Front wheel 6 Drive rear wheel 7 Battery 8 Wire harness 11 Cutting blade 12 Cutting blade pulley 21 Engine pulley 31 Transmission input pulley 32 HST adjustment shaft 35 Rod a
35 Crank 36 Rod b
37 Rod c
41 Steering wheel 42 Steering shaft 43 Rack & pinion unit 44 Steering sensor 45 Motor control unit 46 Motor & wire unit 47 Control wire 48 Brake wire 49 Switch 91 Cam 92 Lever lever a
93 Lever lever b
P1 HST pedal P2 Brake pedal L1 HST lever

Claims (4)

  In a small riding mower equipped with an engine or a motor and having a pair of left and right steering front wheels, a driving rear wheel or a driving front wheel or a driving front and rear wheel, and a cutting portion between the front and rear wheels. A small riding mower that decelerates and decelerates an engine, a motor, or a drive transmission when the mower is in a corner or cornering of the mower and is in a high speed running state.   In a small riding mower using an HST or a built-in HST transmission as a drive transmission mechanism, the connecting portion is part of a connecting portion between a rod or wire for rotating and adjusting an HST adjusting shaft and an HST lever or an HST pedal. The small passenger according to claim 1, wherein the connecting body interlocked with the vehicle is connected, and the connecting body is actuated by an actuator so that the operation of the HST lever or the pedal is restrained, and the HST adjusting shaft is controlled to control the deceleration. Mowing machine.   2. A compact riding mower that travels and steers using a steering wheel or steering handle, etc., wherein a steering sensor is disposed in a steering mechanism, and the actuator is operated when the wheel or handle is in a substantially turning traveling direction position. Or the small riding mower according to claim 2.   The small riding mower according to claim 1, wherein the actuator is an electric actuator such as a motor or a cylinder.

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