JP2009133340A - Opening / closing body driving rack belt and opening / closing body driving apparatus using the opening / closing body driving rack belt - Google Patents

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to improve the degree of freedom of arrangement of a rack belt. Furthermore, there exists in improving the vehicle mounting property of an opening-closing body drive device.
A rack belt 8 (8a, 8b) is connected to a movable panel 4 and meshed with a spur gear 77 rotated by an operation of an electric motor 71. The rack belt 8 (8a, 8b) is driven by the rotation of the spur gear 77 to move the movable panel. 4 is opened and closed. The rack belt 8 (8a, 8b) includes a plurality of teeth 81 arranged in parallel at equal intervals on the same plane so as to mesh with the spur gear 77, and the teeth 81 are arranged side by side. And at least one of the plurality of connection portions 82 has a width in a direction coinciding with the tooth width direction of the gear 77 in the meshed state with the gear. It has the narrow part 84 set narrower than the width | variety of the same direction, It is characterized by the above-mentioned.
[Selection] Figure 4

Description

  The present invention relates to an opening / closing body driving rack belt for transmitting and driving power from a driving source to a vehicle opening / closing body and an opening / closing body driving apparatus using the opening / closing body driving rack belt.

  Conventionally, for example, sunroofs disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2 are known as opening / closing body driving devices to which a rack belt is applied.

  As shown in Patent Document 1, the roof (11) of the vehicle is provided with an opening (13) indicated by a two-dot chain line, and the movable panel (18) moves through the opening (13). Thus, the opening (13) is opened and closed (see FIG. 1 of Patent Document 1).

  The opening / closing body drive device extends in the vehicle width direction at a pair of guide rails (14, 15) extending in the front-rear direction along the left and right side edges of the opening (13) and the front edge of the opening (13). A housing (16) for connecting the front ends of the guide rails (14, 15) at the left and right ends, a drive unit (30) supported at the front center of the housing (16), and the housing ( 16) A pair of casings (27, 28) (curved rearward from the vehicle width direction) along the front edge and both side edges supported by the opening (13), and in the pair of casings (27, 28) A pair of rack belts (25, 26) that are slidably housed and guided into the guide rails (14, 15) and transmit the driving force of the drive unit (30), and the rack belts (25 , 26) at one end of the support member (21 And a movable panel (18) which is connected via a 24).

  As shown in FIG. 10, which is an exploded perspective view of a part of the opening / closing body drive device of Patent Document 1, the drive unit (30) has a spur gear (31) and meshes with the spur gear (31). Thus, the rack belts (25, 26) in which the tooth portions (251) are arranged at equal intervals on the same plane extend in one direction. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 11, the rack belt (25, 26) includes a plurality of tooth portions (251) arranged in parallel at equal intervals on the same plane, and the tooth portions (251). It has a plurality of connecting parts (252) respectively connected in the juxtaposed direction of the tooth parts (251) (tooth part juxtaposed direction: Y direction). Each tooth portion (251) is formed so as to protrude from each connection portion (252) in a direction perpendicular to the parallel plane of the tooth portions (251) (tooth portion projecting direction: X direction). That is, the rack belts (25, 26) have a tooth portion (251) convex and a connection portion (252) concave when the spur gear (31) is viewed in the tooth width direction (tooth width direction: Z direction). It has a shape in which similar unevenness is repeated in the installation direction (Y direction).

With the configuration described above, the rack belt (25, 26) transmits the driving force generated by the drive unit (30) to the movable panel (18), so that the movable panel (18) opens and closes the opening (13). It becomes possible.
JP 2002-154328 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2005-240851

  However, in the conventional rack belt (25, 26), bendability in the tooth projecting direction (X direction), that is, the convex surface of one tooth portion (251) of the rack belt (25, 26) and the other tooth portion. One of the connecting parts (252) in the tooth width direction (Z direction), that is, one of the connecting parts (252) in the tooth width direction (Z direction) as opposed to the flexibility in the direction of contacting (separating) the convex surface of (251). The end (252a) extends (shrinks) and the other end (252b) contracts (extends). For this reason, the rack belt (25, 26) is hardly bent in the tooth width direction (Z direction) even if a force that is bent in the tooth width direction (Z direction) is applied. There is a risk of bending in the tooth projecting direction (X direction) which acts in the (X direction) and is easily bent.

  As a result, when the rack belt (25, 26) is bent in the tooth width direction (Z direction), a part of the rack belt (25, 26) is, for example, the guide rail (14, 15) or the casing (27, 28). For example, the sliding resistance of the rack belt (25, 26) may be increased due to the strong pressure applied to the rack belt (25, 26). Therefore, in order to operate the conventional opening / closing body driving device smoothly, for example, as shown in FIG. 12, the drive unit (30) and the rack belts (25, 26) must be arranged on the same plane. . However, in this structure, the vehicle mountability of the opening / closing body drive device is poor, and the rack belts (25, 26) are similarly located under the vehicle when the drive unit (30) is offset in the vehicle downward direction as indicated by an arrow in FIG. As a result, the opening / closing body drive device protrudes into the interior space of the vehicle and sacrifices the head clearance.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to improve the degree of freedom of arrangement of the rack belt. Furthermore, there exists in improving the vehicle mounting property of an opening-closing body drive device.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, in the invention according to claim 1, the opening / closing body is connected to a vehicle opening / closing body, meshed with a rotating gear by operation of a drive source, and driven by the rotation of the gear. A rack belt for driving an opening / closing body for opening and closing a plurality of teeth portions arranged in parallel at equal intervals on the same plane so as to mesh with the gears, and connecting each tooth portion, A plurality of connecting portions configured to be thinner than the thickness of each tooth portion in a direction orthogonal to the parallel plane of the portions, and at least one of the plurality of connecting portions is in the meshed state with the gear. The gist of the present invention is to have a narrow portion in which the width in the direction coincident with the tooth width direction is set narrower than the width in the same direction in the tooth portion.

  According to the above configuration, since at least one connection portion having a narrow portion exists in the rack belt, the flexibility of the connection portion having the narrow portion in the tooth width direction is improved. When a part of the bend is bent in the tooth width direction, the bending in the tooth projecting direction can be suppressed. Therefore, even when such a rack belt is applied to an opening / closing body driving device and a part of the rack belt is bent in the tooth width direction, the opening / closing body driving device can be operated smoothly.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the opening / closing body driving rack belt according to the first aspect, the narrow portion is a portion provided over the entire area of the connecting portion along the juxtaposed direction of the tooth portions. It is a summary.

  According to the above configuration, when a narrow portion is provided over the entire area of the connection portion, the bendability of the connection portion in the tooth width direction is more preferably improved, so that a portion of the rack belt bends in the tooth width direction. In addition, it is possible to more suitably suppress the bending in the tooth projecting direction. Therefore, even when such a rack belt is applied to an opening / closing body driving device and a portion of the rack belt is bent in the tooth width direction, the opening / closing body driving device can be operated more smoothly and smoothly. .

  The gist of the invention according to claim 3 is that in the opening / closing body driving rack belt according to claim 1 or 2, all of the plurality of connecting portions have the narrow portion.

  According to the above configuration, since all of the connecting portions have narrow portions, the flexibility of all the connecting portions in the tooth width direction is improved, so that the tooth portion when the entire rack belt is bent in the tooth width direction. Bending in the protruding direction can be suppressed. Therefore, even when such a rack belt is applied to an opening / closing body drive device and the entire rack belt is bent in the tooth width direction, the opening / closing body drive device can be operated smoothly.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the opening / closing body driving rack belt according to any one of the first to third aspects, the connection portion is perpendicular to the tooth width direction and includes a plane including the center point of the connection portion. On the other hand, it is a symmetric shape.

  According to the said structure, since a connection part has a narrow part which is a symmetrical shape, a part of rack belt has the same flexibility in any direction of a tooth width direction. Therefore, even when such a rack belt is applied to an opening / closing body driving device and a portion of the rack belt is bent in any tooth width direction, the opening / closing body driving device can be operated smoothly. it can.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the opening / closing body driving rack belt according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the tooth portion and the connection portion are integrally formed of the same resin material. To do.

  According to the said structure, since a tooth | gear part and a connection part can be integrally molded, manufacture of a rack belt can be made easy.

  In invention of Claim 6, in the rack belt for opening-and-closing body drive in any one of Claims 1-4, the said tooth | gear part and the said connection part are shape | molded by the different resin material, The said connection part is the said The gist is that it is formed of a resin material having a larger elastic force than the tooth portion.

  According to the above configuration, when the rack belt is bent in the tooth width direction, the connecting portion is made of a resin material having a larger elastic force than the tooth portion, thereby more favorably improving the flexibility in the tooth width direction. Bending in the tooth projecting direction can be more suitably suppressed. Therefore, even when such a rack belt is applied to an opening / closing body drive device and the rack belt is used while being bent in the tooth width direction, the opening / closing body drive device can be operated more smoothly and smoothly.

  According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the opening / closing body driving device using the opening / closing body driving rack belt according to any one of the first to sixth aspects, the opening / closing body driving device is disposed along at least the front edge of the opening formed in the vehicle. A frame member, a pair of guide rails extending along both side edges of the opening and having one end connected to both ends of the frame member, and a pair disposed along the frame member And a pair of opening / closing body driving rack belts slidably guided from each guide member into each guide rail, and driving the opening / closing body driving rack belt. The gist of the present invention is to include a drive unit having a drive source for driving and a gear rotated by the drive source, and the opening / closing body that is opened and closed by the opening / closing body driving rack belt.

  According to the above configuration, the opening / closing body driving device can be smoothly operated even when the rack belt is bent in the tooth width direction. In addition, since the rack belt having a high degree of freedom of arrangement is used, it is possible to make it difficult to be restricted by the correlation between the arrangement position of the drive unit and the direction in which the rack belt is laid.

  As described above in detail, according to the present invention, the degree of freedom of arrangement of the rack belt can be improved. Therefore, the vehicle mountability of the opening / closing body driving device can be improved by using the rack belt.

  DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments embodying the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.

<Configuration of opening / closing body driving device>
As shown in FIG. 1, the opening / closing body driving device 100 has the following structure.

  A pair of guide rails 1a and 1b extending in the vehicle front-rear direction along the left and right side edges of an opening 120 (shown by a two-dot chain line in the figure) formed in the vehicle roof 110 are disposed. A housing 2 (frame member) extending in the vehicle width direction is disposed at the front portion of the opening 120, and the left and right end portions of the housing 2 are connected to the front ends of the guide rails 1a and 1b, respectively. ing. The guide rails 1 a and 1 b and the housing 2 are fixed to the lower surface of the vehicle roof 110. Further, the guide rails 1 a and 1 b are connected to each other by the subframe member 3 at a rear portion from the rear edge of the opening 120. Support mechanisms 5a and 5b for supporting the movable panel 4 (vehicle opening / closing body) from below are attached to the guide rails 1a and 1b so as to be slidable in the front-rear direction. That is, the movable panel 4 is attached on each support mechanism 5a, 5b.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a pair of casings 6a and 6b (guide members) curved along the front edge and both side edges of the opening 120 (along the housing 2), that is, rearward from the vehicle width direction, and the movable panel A drive unit 7 having an electric motor 71 (drive source) for driving 4 is supported by the housing 2.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the pair of casings 6a and 6b are connected to the front ends of the guide rails 1a and 1b at one rear part thereof, and the other rear part extends along the side surfaces of the guide rails 1b and 1a. Are locked.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the drive unit 7 includes an electric motor 71 and a spur gear 77 (gear). A pair of rack belts (opening / closing body driving rack belts) 8 (8a, 8b) is employed as a driving force transmitting member for transmitting the driving force of the driving unit 7. The rack belts 8a and 8b have the same shape, and are laid in the casings 6a and 6b so as to face each other via the spur gear 77.

  The central axis of the shaft 75 of the spur gear 77 substantially coincides with the vehicle vertical direction. That is, the spur gear 77 is disposed substantially in the horizontal plane of the vehicle, and the rack belts 8a and 8b mesh with the spur gear 77 so as to face each other while extending substantially parallel to the vehicle width direction. More specifically, one rack belt 8a meshes with the spur gear 77 from the rear of the vehicle, and the other rack belt 8b meshes with the spur gear 77 from the front of the vehicle. As shown in FIG. 1, the rack belt 8a (8b) is guided in the casing 6a (6b) from the vehicle width direction to the rear. One end of the rack belt 8a (8b) is guided from the casing 6a (6b) into the guide rail 1a (6b) and then connected to the support mechanism 5a (5b). The other end of the rack belt 8a (8b) is a free end in the casing 6a (6b) near the guide rail 1b (1a).

<Operation of the opening / closing body driving device>
In the opening / closing body driving apparatus 100 configured as described above, when the spur gear 77 rotates forward or reverse by the operation of the electric motor 71, the pair of rack belts 8a and 8b meshing with the spur gear 77 are driven simultaneously. Thereby, the support mechanisms 5a and 5b respectively connected to the rack belts 8a and 8b move in the same direction along the guide rails 1a and 1b. Therefore, the movable panel 4 supported by the support mechanisms 5a and 5b moves in the vehicle front-rear direction to open and close the opening 120. Specifically, when the spur gear 77 rotates forward (rotates in the clockwise direction shown in FIG. 3) by the operation of the electric motor 71, the movable panel 4 moves to the rear of the vehicle to open the opening 120, and the spur gear When 77 reversely rotates (rotates counterclockwise as shown in FIG. 3), the movable panel 4 moves forward of the vehicle and closes the opening 120.

<Configuration of rack belt>
As shown in FIG. 4 (A), the rack belt 8 includes a plurality of tooth portions 81 arranged in parallel on the same plane (YZ plane shown in the same figure) at equal intervals, and the tooth portions 81. It has a plurality of connecting portions 82 respectively connected in the direction in which the tooth portions 81 are arranged side by side (tooth portion side-by-side direction: Y direction). Each tooth part 81 is formed so as to protrude from each connection part 82 in a direction perpendicular to the parallel plane of the tooth parts 81 (tooth protrusion direction: X direction). In other words, the thickness of each connecting portion 82 in the tooth projecting direction (X direction) is formed to be thinner than the thickness of each tooth portion 81. Accordingly, the rack belt 8 has a tooth portion 81 convex and a connection portion 82 concave in the tooth width direction (tooth width direction: Z direction) of the meshing spur gear 77, and in the tooth portion juxtaposition direction (Y direction). It has a shape in which similar unevenness is repeated.

  Next, the relationship between the tooth part 81 and the connection part 82 will be described in detail.

  As shown in FIG. 4B, when the length (tooth width) in the tooth width direction (Z direction) of each tooth portion 81 is H1, the length in the same direction of each connection portion 82 is H2 (<H1). Is set to That is, each connecting portion 82 has a length H1 in the tooth width direction (Z direction) and a length W1 in the tooth side direction (Y direction) as in the conventional case (two points in the figure). The length in the tooth width direction (Z direction) is set to H3 (= (H1−H2) / 2) and the length in the tooth portion juxtaposition direction (Y direction) is set to W1 at both ends of the chain line. The notch part 83 is provided. For this reason, the entire connection portion 82 is configured as a narrow portion 84 by the cutout portion 83.

  The connecting portion 82 and the narrow portion 84 in the present embodiment are configured to satisfy all of the following conditions (a) to (c).

  (A) The narrow part 84 is provided over the whole area of the connection part 82 along the tooth part juxtaposition direction (Y direction).

  (B) All of the plurality of connecting portions 82 have a narrow portion 84.

  (C) The connecting portion 82 is symmetric with respect to a plane (XY plane) including a tooth portion protruding direction (X direction) including the center point and a tooth portion juxtaposed direction (Y direction).

  That is, as shown in FIG. 4B, the width W1 of the tooth portion juxtaposed direction (Y direction) of all the connecting portions 82 in the rack belt 8 and the width W1 of the notch portion 83 are equal. The connecting portions 82 are all configured as a narrow portion 84, and the rack belt 8 is symmetric with respect to the center line Y1 in the tooth portion juxtaposed direction (Y direction).

  In the rack belt 8 configured as described above, for example, as shown in FIG. 5B, one end side (P1) of each tooth portion 81 in the tooth width direction (Z direction) is brought close to the other end side (P2). Even when a bend that separates the teeth (bend in the tooth width direction (Z direction)) is required, the bend becomes easy. The same applies to the case where the one end side (P1) of the rack belt 8 is separated and the other end side (P2) is bent so as to be close to each other. However, FIG. 5B is drawn extremely for easy understanding of the bending.

  Therefore, according to the rack belt 8 of the present embodiment and the opening / closing body driving device 100 using the rack belt 8, the following effects can be obtained.

  (1) By providing the narrow portion 84 in the connecting portion 82, the flexibility of the connecting portion 82 in the tooth width direction (Z direction) is improved, so that a part of the rack belt 8 is in the tooth width direction (Z direction). When bending, it is possible to suppress bending in the tooth projecting direction (X direction). Therefore, the degree of freedom of arrangement of the rack belt 8 can be improved.

  Therefore, in the switchgear drive device 100 to which such a rack belt 8 is applied, the switchgear drive device 100 operates smoothly even when a part of the rack belt 8 is bent in the tooth width direction (Z direction). It becomes possible to make it. Further, it is not necessary to dispose the drive unit 7 and the rack belt 8 on the same plane, and the degree of freedom of the disposition position of the drive unit 7 can be improved. As a result, it becomes difficult to be restricted by the correlation between the arrangement position of the drive unit 7 and the laying direction of the rack belt 8, and the mountability of the opening / closing body drive device 100 on the vehicle can be improved. Therefore, for example, the opening / closing body driving device 100 adapted to the shape of the vehicle roof 110 can be manufactured. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5A, the belt drive unit 7 is moved from the position of the conventional drive unit (30) in the vehicle front lower direction (arrow direction in the figure) along the shape of the vehicle roof 110. It is also possible to move, and the opening 120 can be widened forward without sacrificing the head clearance. In FIG. 5A, the broken lines indicate the positions of the conventional rack belts (25, 26) and the conventional drive unit (30), and the two-dot chain line indicates the rack belt 8 of the present embodiment. FIG. 5B shows an enlarged view of a part of the rack belt 8 surrounded by a one-dot chain line.

  (2) Since the narrow portion 84 is provided in the entire region of the connecting portion 82 along the juxtaposed direction of the tooth portions 81, the flexibility of the connecting portion 82 in the tooth width direction (Z direction) is more preferable. In order to improve, when a part of the rack belt 8 bends in the tooth width direction (Z direction), bending in the tooth portion protruding direction (X direction) can be more suitably suppressed. Therefore, the degree of freedom of arrangement of the rack belt 8 can be improved more suitably. Therefore, even when such a rack belt 8 is applied to the opening / closing body driving device 100 and a portion of the rack belt 8 is bent in the tooth width direction (Z direction), the opening / closing body driving device 100 operates smoothly. Thus, the vehicle mountability of the opening / closing body driving apparatus 100 can be improved.

  (3) Since all the connection portions 82 provided between the respective tooth portions 81 have the narrow portion 84, the flexibility of all the connection portions 82 in the tooth width direction (Z direction) is improved. When the entire belt 8 is bent in the tooth width direction (Z direction), bending in the tooth portion protruding direction (X direction) can be suppressed. Therefore, the degree of freedom of arrangement of the rack belt 8 can be improved. Therefore, even when such a rack belt 8 is applied to the opening / closing body driving device 100 and the entire rack belt 8 is bent in the tooth width direction (Z direction), the opening / closing body driving device 100 is operated smoothly. Therefore, the vehicle mountability of the opening / closing body driving device 100 can be improved.

  (4) Since the connecting portion 82 is symmetrical, a part of the rack belt 8 can have the same flexibility in either direction (± Z direction) in the tooth width direction. Therefore, even when such a rack belt 8 is applied to the opening / closing body driving device 100 and a portion of the rack belt 8 is bent in any tooth width direction (± Z direction), the opening / closing body driving device is equivalently used. 100 can be operated smoothly, and the vehicle mountability of the opening / closing body driving device 100 can be improved.

  In addition, you may change embodiment of this invention as follows.

(Modification 1)
The conditions (a) to (c) of the connection portion 82 and the narrow portion 84 in the above embodiment do not necessarily satisfy all, and may satisfy only the conditions (a) and (b), for example. That is, as shown in FIG. 6A, the rack belt 8 does not need to have the connecting portions 82 that are symmetrical with respect to the central axis Y1 as in the above-described embodiment. May have a structure having a notch 83 having a width W1 in the tooth portion juxtaposed direction (Y direction) and a length H3 in the tooth width direction (Z direction) alternately with one end and the other end. . When changed in this way, the effects described in the above (1) to (3) can be obtained by providing the narrow portion 84 in the entire region of all the connection portions 82 of the rack belt 8.

(Modification 2)
In the above embodiment, for example, only the conditions (b) and (c) may be satisfied. That is, as shown in FIG. 6B as an example, the rack belt 8 does not have to have the narrow portion 84 provided over the entire area of the connection portion 82 as in the above embodiment. The width of the notch portion 83 (the narrow portion 84) in the tooth portion juxtaposition direction (Y direction) may be changed from W1 to W2 (<W1). When changed in this way, the effects described in (1), (3), and (4) can be obtained because all the connecting portions 82 have the narrow portion 84 and are symmetrical.

(Modification 3)
In the above embodiment, for example, only the conditions (a) and (c) may be satisfied. That is, as shown in FIG. 6C as an example, the rack belt 8 does not need to have the notches 83 in all the connecting portions 82 as in the above embodiment, but only a part of the connecting portions 82. Further, a structure having a notch 83 similar to that in the above embodiment may be used. When the change is made in this way, the narrow portion 84 is provided in the entire area of the partial connection portion 82 and the connection portion 82 is symmetrical, so that the description in (1), (2), and (4) An effect can be obtained.

(Modification 4)
In the above embodiment, for example, only the condition (a) may be satisfied. That is, as shown in FIG. 7A as an example, the cutout portion 83 on one end side (the other end side) of the rack belt 8 in the modified example 3 of the above embodiment may be eliminated. When the change is made in this manner, the narrow portion 84 is provided in the entire region on the one end side (the other end side) of some of the connection portions 82, thereby obtaining the effects described in (1) and (2). be able to.

(Modification 5)
In the above embodiment, for example, only the condition (b) may be satisfied. That is, as shown in FIG. 7B as an example, the width of the notch portion 83 (the narrow portion 84) in the tooth portion juxtaposition direction (Y direction) in the first modification of the embodiment is changed from W1 to W2 (< The structure may be changed to W1). When it changes in this way, the effect as described in (1) and (3) can be acquired because all the connection parts 82 have the narrow part 84. FIG.

(Modification 6)
In the above embodiment, for example, only the condition (c) may be satisfied. That is, as shown in FIG. 7C as an example, the width of the notch portion 83 (narrow portion 84) in the tooth portion juxtaposition direction (Y direction) in the third modification of the embodiment is changed from W1 to W2 (< The structure may be changed to W1). When changed in this way, the effects described in (1) and (4) can be obtained because the connecting portion 82 is symmetrical.

(Modification 7)
In the above embodiment, all the conditions (a) to (c) are satisfied. However, for example, the conditions (a) to (c) may not be satisfied. That is, as shown in an example in FIG. 8A, the cutout portion 83 on one end side (the other end side) of the rack belt 8 in the modified example 6 of the above embodiment is eliminated. When changed in this way, the effect described in (1) can be obtained by providing the narrow portion 84 on one end side (the other end side) of some of the connection portions 82.

(Modification 8)
-In the said embodiment which satisfy | filled conditions (a)-(c) in the said embodiment, as shown in an example in FIG.8 (B), the some connection part 82 is any one direction of a tooth width direction ( It may be a structure moved in either the + Z direction or the −Z direction. However, all the connection parts 82 have moved the same distance in the same direction. Further, the condition (c) is an initial condition, and the form after movement does not satisfy the condition (c). When the change is made in this way, the narrow portion 84 is provided in the entire region of all the connecting portions 82, and the central axis Y <b> 2 in the tooth portion juxtaposed direction (Y direction) of the connecting portion 82 is either in the tooth width direction. Since the structure moves in one direction (either the + Z direction or the −Z direction), in addition to the effects described in (1) to (3), the following effects can be obtained. .

  (5) If the connecting portion 82 is structured to move in one direction (+ Z direction) in the tooth width direction, the rack belt 8 can improve the flexibility in one direction (+ Z direction) in the tooth width direction. Further, if the connecting portion 82 is structured to move in the other direction (−Z direction) in the tooth width direction, the rack belt 8 can improve the flexibility in the other direction (−Z direction) in the tooth width direction. . Therefore, the rack belt 8 can be suitably bent in one direction (+ Z direction) or the other direction (−Z direction) in the tooth width direction. Therefore, the degree of freedom of arrangement of the rack belt 8 can be improved.

(Modification 9)
-In the rack belt 8 of each said embodiment and the modification examples 1-8, the length H3 of the notch part 83 of the tooth width direction (Z direction) is constant with respect to the displacement of a tooth part juxtaposition direction (Y direction). Although it was a certain structure, H3 may be a structure which changes with respect to the displacement in the tooth portion juxtaposition direction (Y direction). In other words, the length H2 of the connecting portion 82 in the tooth width direction (Z direction) changes with respect to the displacement in the tooth portion juxtaposed direction (Y direction). That is, as shown in FIGS. 9A and 9B, the notch 83 of the rack belt 8 has a substantially U-shaped or V-shaped shape. Of course, as shown in FIG. 9C, the cutout portions 83 may have different shapes (different cutout portions 83 have different shapes).

(Modification 10)
-In the rack belt 8 of the said embodiment and the modifications 1-9, you may integrally mold the tooth | gear part 81 and the connection part 82 with the same resin material. In this case, the rack belt 8 can be easily manufactured.

(Modification 11)
-In the rack belt 8 of the said embodiment and the modifications 1-9, the tooth part 81 and the connection part 82 may each be shape | molded with a different resin material, for example, the connection part 82 has a larger elastic force than the tooth part 81. If it forms with a resin material, compared with the case where both the members 81 and 82 are comprised with the same resin material, the flexibility in a tooth width direction improves more suitably. Therefore, when the rack belt 8 is bent in the tooth width direction (Z direction), the bending in the tooth portion protruding direction (X direction) can be more suitably suppressed. Therefore, the degree of freedom of arrangement of the rack belt 8 can be improved more suitably. Therefore, even when such a rack belt 8 is applied to the opening / closing body driving device 100 and the rack belt is bent and used in the tooth width direction (Z direction), the opening / closing body driving device 100 can be operated smoothly. Therefore, the vehicle mountability of the opening / closing body driving apparatus 100 can be improved more suitably.

  -In above-mentioned embodiment and the modifications 1-11, although the opening-and-closing body drive device 100 was set as the structure which has the housing 2, it does not necessarily need to have the housing 2 and the structure which does not have the housing 2 It may be.

  -In above-mentioned embodiment and the modifications 1-11, although the opening-and-closing body drive device 100 was set as the structure which has casing 6a, 6b, it does not necessarily need to have casing 6a, 6b, and casing 6a, 6b. The structure which does not have this may be sufficient.

  -In above-mentioned embodiment and the modifications 1-11, although the opening-and-closing body drive device 100 set it as the structure which has a pair of guide rail 1a, 1b (1), it needs to necessarily have a pair of guide rail 1. Instead, a structure having one guide rail 1 or a plurality of guide rails 1 may be used. In addition, the guide rail 1 extends in the vehicle front-rear direction along the side edge of the opening 120 formed in the vehicle roof 110, but the guide is not necessarily along the side edge of the opening 120. It is not necessary to have the rail 1, and you may have the guide rail 1 extended to the opening part 120 vicinity.

  -In above-mentioned embodiment and the modifications 1-11, although the opening-and-closing body drive device 100 was actualized as a sunroof, it is not limited to this, but it is actualized as a power slide door etc. Any device that drives the body is applicable.

The top view of the opening-closing body drive device in embodiment of this invention. The disassembled perspective view which shows a part of opening-closing body drive device in embodiment of this invention. The disassembled perspective view which shows the combination of the drive part (spur gear) and rack belt of the opening-and-closing body drive device in embodiment of this invention. (A) The perspective view of the rack belt in embodiment of this invention. (B) The schematic diagram of the X direction view of the rack belt in embodiment of this invention. (A) Center sectional drawing of the opening-closing body drive device in embodiment of this invention. (B) The enlarged view of a part of rack belt in FIG. 5 (A). The schematic diagram of the X direction view of an example of the rack belt considered by the combination of conditions (a)-(c) in the embodiment of the present invention. The schematic diagram of the X direction view of an example of the rack belt considered by the combination of conditions (a)-(c) in the embodiment of the present invention. The schematic diagram of the X direction view of an example of the rack belt considered by the combination of conditions (a)-(c) in the embodiment of the present invention. The schematic diagram of the X direction view of an example of the rack belt considered by the combination of conditions (a)-(c) in the embodiment of the present invention. The disassembled perspective view which shows the combination of the drive part (spur gear) of the conventional opening-closing body drive device, and a rack belt. The perspective view of the conventional rack belt. The center sectional view of the conventional opening-and-closing body drive device (center sectional view of Drawing 1 of reference 1).

Explanation of symbols

1a, 1b Guide rail 2 Housing (frame member)
4 Movable panel (vehicle opening / closing body)
6a, 6b Casing (guide member)
7 Drive unit 71 Drive motor (drive source)
77 Spur Gear (Gear)
8 (8a, 8b) rack belt (rack belt for opening / closing body drive)
81 Tooth part 82 Connection part 84 Narrow part

Claims (8)

An opening / closing body driving rack belt linked to a vehicle opening / closing body, meshed with a gear rotating by operation of a drive source, and opening / closing the opening / closing body according to rotation of the gear;
A plurality of tooth portions arranged in parallel on the same plane so as to mesh with the gears, and connecting between the tooth portions, respectively, and each tooth portion in a direction orthogonal to the parallel arrangement plane of each tooth portion With a plurality of connecting portions configured to be thinner than the wall thickness,
At least one of the plurality of connecting portions has a narrow portion in which a width in a direction coinciding with a gear width direction of the gear in a meshed state with the gear is set narrower than a width in the same direction of the tooth portion. Opening and closing body drive rack belt characterized by   The opening / closing body driving rack belt according to claim 1, wherein the narrow portion is a portion provided over the entire area of the connection portion along the direction in which the tooth portions are arranged in parallel.   The rack belt for driving an opening / closing body according to any one of claims 1 and 2, wherein all of the plurality of connecting portions have the narrow portion.   The said connection part is perpendicular | vertical to the said tooth width direction, and is a symmetrical shape with respect to the plane containing the center point of the said connection part, The any one of Claims 1-3 characterized by the above-mentioned. Rack belt for opening / closing body drive.   The rack belt for opening and closing body driving according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the tooth portion and the connection portion are integrally formed of the same resin material.   The tooth portion and the connection portion are formed of different resin materials, and the connection portion is formed of a resin material having a larger elastic force than the tooth portion. The rack belt for opening-and-closing body drive of any one of them. A guide rail disposed along the opening and closing operation direction of the opening that is opened and closed by the opening and closing body;
The rack belt for opening and closing body driving according to any one of claims 1 to 6, which is laid in the guide rail,
An opening / closing body driving device using an opening / closing body driving rack belt, comprising: a driving source for driving the opening / closing body driving rack belt; and a driving section having a gear rotated by the driving source. . A pair of the guide rails disposed opposite to both side edges of the opening;
A frame member extending along the front edge of the opening and connecting the front ends of the guide rails;
The rack for driving an opening / closing body according to claim 7, further comprising a pair of guide members disposed along the frame member and guiding the rack belt for driving the opening / closing body from each of the guide rails. Opening and closing body drive device using a belt.

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