JP2010202020A - Boot cover - Google Patents

Abstract

A boot cover capable of preventing damage to a dustproof boot is provided.
A boot cover 30 of the present invention surrounds and protects a dustproof boot 20 having a bellows-cylindrical structure, and is a cover main body formed by forming a net-like material of high-polymerization fibers into a bellows-cylindrical structure. It has a structure in which a plurality of reinforcing rings 37 are fixed to each valley portion and each mountain portion of 31. Further, a longitudinal cutting portion 32 is formed at one place in the circumferential direction of the boot cover 30 over the entire axial direction, so that the boot cover 30 can be attached from the side of the dustproof boot 20. Yes.
[Selection] Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to a boot cover for protecting a dustproof boot provided near a steered wheel of a vehicle.

  In general, a dustproof boot having a bellows-cylindrical cylindrical structure is attached to a boundary portion between a steered shaft that connects between a pair of steered wheels of a vehicle and a support sleeve that supports an intermediate portion of the steered shaft, Foreign matter such as pebbles, sand, and soil is prevented from entering the gap between the support sleeve and the steering shaft. The steered shaft moves linearly according to the rotation operation of the handle, and as a result, the boot cover expands and contracts in the axial direction (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2008-1314 A (paragraph [0002])

  By the way, during traveling of the vehicle, the dustproof boot may hit the pebbles and be damaged. Then, a situation may occur in which sand particles or the like enter the gap between the support sleeve and the steered shaft from the damaged portion of the dustproof boot and generate abnormal noise.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a boot cover capable of preventing damage to a dustproof boot.

  The boot cover (30) according to the invention of claim 1 made to achieve the above object includes a steered shaft (12, 13) connecting a pair of steered wheels, and a steered shaft (12, 13). 13) A boot cover (30) for protecting the bellows-cylindrical structure dustproof boot (20) provided at the boundary portion with the support sleeve (11) which supports the intermediate portion of the intermediate portion so as to be linearly movable, and has a high degree of polymerization. A cover body (31) having a bellows-cylindrical structure that can be surrounded by a gap with respect to the bellows part (21) of the dustproof boot (20), and a bellows-cylindrical structure in the cover body (31) A plurality of reinforcing rings (37) fixed to each valley portion and each ridge portion of each mountain portion, and provided at both ends of the cover main body (31), and axially with respect to both ends of the dustproof boot (20) A pair of cover fixing parts (3 , Having characterized in that with a 39) and.

  A second aspect of the present invention is the boot cover (30) according to the first aspect, wherein a portion of the boot cover (30) in the circumferential direction is cut over the entire axial direction, and a pair of waveforms is generated by the cutting. A longitudinal cutting section (32) provided with a cutting surface (33) in an opposed state, and a closing holding means (36) capable of holding the pair of corrugated cutting surfaces (33) in a closed state; It is characterized in that the dustproof boot (20) can be received in the cover body (31) from the side by opening between the pair of corrugated cut surfaces (33).

  The invention of claim 3 is characterized in that, in the boot cover (30) of claim 2, the reinforcing ring (37) is formed of a metal wire.

[Invention of Claim 1]
In the boot cover according to the first aspect, the cover main body surrounds the dustproof boot, so that the dustproof boot can be protected from pebbles flying while the vehicle is running, and the dustproof boot can be prevented from being damaged. Here, since a gap is interposed between the cover main body and the dustproof boot, even if the cover main body is recessed due to the collision of pebbles, the impact of the pebbles is absorbed while the cover main body is recessed. Thereby, even if the pebbles abut against the dustproof boot together with the cover body, the dustproof boot is prevented from being damaged. In addition, since the cover body is formed of a net-like material, water, small particles of sand, and the like are prevented from accumulating inside the boot cover. In addition, since the cover body has a bellows-tube structure similar to the dustproof boot, the boot cover also expands and contracts in the axial direction together with the dustproof boot as the steering shaft moves directly when the handle is turned off. As a result, a situation in which the boot cover receives a large axial force with the expansion and contraction of the dustproof boot and is displaced from the dustproof boot is prevented.

[Invention of claim 2]
In the boot cover according to claim 2, since the dustproof boot can be received in the cover body from the side by opening between the pair of corrugated cut surfaces provided in the vertical cut portion, the boot cover can be easily attached. Become.

[Invention of claim 3]
According to the boot cover of the third aspect, since the reinforcing ring is formed of the metal wire, the reinforcing ring is elastically deformed when the gap between the pair of corrugated cut surfaces is opened. The corrugated cut surface can be returned to the closed state.

The side view of the electric power steering device provided with the boot cover which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention An enlarged perspective view of a part of the electric power steering device Side view of boot cover and dustproof boot Perspective view of the occlusion holding mechanism

[First Embodiment]
Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 shows an electric power steering apparatus 10 to which a boot cover 30 according to the present invention is attached. The electric power steering apparatus 10 includes a linear movement shaft 12 inserted through a support sleeve 11 fixed to a vehicle body (not shown). In addition, a cylindrical motor (not shown) is built in an intermediate portion of the support sleeve 11 in the axial direction, and a ball nut is fixed to the rotor of the cylindrical motor so as to be integrally rotatable. On the other hand, a ball screw is formed at an intermediate portion in the axial direction of the linear motion shaft 12. The linear movement shaft 12 moves linearly with respect to the support sleeve 11 by a ball screw mechanism formed by screwing a ball nut and a ball screw.

  Both end portions of the linear motion shaft 12 protrude outward from both end portions of the support sleeve 11 (not shown). Tie rods 13, 13 are connected to both ends of the linear motion shaft 12 so as to be tiltable, and the connecting portions are covered with a dustproof boot 20. And the front-end | tip part of the tie rods 13 and 13 is connected with a pair of steered wheels (not shown) of the vehicle. In the present embodiment, the “steering shaft” according to the present invention is constituted by the linear motion shaft 12 and the pair of tie rods 13 and 13.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the dustproof boot 20 is provided with cylindrical fixing portions 22 and 23 integrally formed at both ends of a bellows-cylinder-shaped boot body 21 (corresponding to “the bellows portion” of the present invention). . The boot body 21 has a tapered shape in which the entire outer diameter gradually decreases from one end to the other end. Then, one cylindrical fixing portion 22 extending from the tapered tip end portion of the boot body 21 is fitted to the outer surface of the tie rod 13 as shown in FIG. And fixed to the tie rod 13.

  On the other hand, the other cylindrical fixing portion 23 extending from the base end portion of the boot body 21 is fitted to the outside of the cylindrical boot fixing portion 11C provided at both ends of the support sleeve 11, and the band 25 from the outside. Is fastened to the support sleeve 11.

  Now, a boot cover 30 according to the present invention is attached to the outside of the dustproof boot 20. The boot cover 30 includes a cover body 31 having a bellows-cylindrical structure formed of a network material of high-polymerization fibers, and a reinforcing ring is provided at each valley portion and each ridge portion of each mountain portion of the bellows-cylindrical structure in the cover body 31. 37 is fixed.

  The mesh material constituting the cover body 31 has a mesh size of about 1 to 3 [mm]. In addition, for example, polyparaphenylene terephthalamide (registered trademark: Kevlar) is used as the high polymerization degree fiber constituting the network material. Further, each reinforcing ring 37 is formed by annularly forming a metal wire (for example, spring steel). And each reinforcement ring 37 is being fixed to each trough part and each peak part of the cover main body 31 with the adhesive agent, for example.

  As shown in FIG. 3, in the present embodiment, the bellows-cylindrical structure of the cover body 31 and the bellows-cylindrical structure of the boot body 21 include the number of peaks and valleys, the pitch, and the spacing between the peaks. The intervals between the valleys are the same. The cover body 31 has a tapered shape with an outer diameter gradually decreasing from one end to the other end, as with the boot body 21.

  At both ends of the boot cover 30 in the axial direction, tapered walls 38 and 39 (corresponding to the “cover fixing portion” of the present invention) projecting inward from the apexes of the bellows of the both ends are provided. The inner diameters of these tapered walls 38 and 39 are smaller than the inner diameters of the valley portions near the tapered walls 38 and 39. The reinforcing ring 37 is also fixed to the inner edge portions of the tapered walls 38 and 39 with an adhesive. When the boot cover 30 is attached to the dustproof boot 20, as shown in FIG. 3, one tapered wall 38 is fitted to the boundary portion between the one cylindrical fixing portion 22 of the dustproof boot 20 and the boot body 21, The other tapered wall 39 is fitted to a boundary portion between the other cylindrical fixing portion 23 of the dustproof boot 20 and the boot main body 21. Further, in a state in which the tapered walls 38 and 39 are fitted with the dustproof boot 20, a gap is interposed between the entire boot cover 30 except the tapered walls 38 and 39 and the entire boot body 21 of the dustproof boot 20. become. Then, when the boot cover 30 and the dustproof boot 20 are expanded and contracted with both ends fixed, the valley of the boot cover 30 and the peak of the dustproof boot 20 do not interfere with each other. .

  As shown in FIG. 2, the boot cover 30 is formed with a longitudinal cut portion 32 by cutting one place in the circumferential direction over the entire axial direction. Further, the longitudinal cutting portion 32 is provided with a pair of corrugated cutting surfaces 33 and 33 facing each other, and the corrugated cutting surfaces 33 and 33 include, for example, a net-like material in which a corrugated resin plate forms the cover body 31 It is fixed to.

  The longitudinal cutting section 32 is provided with a closing holding mechanism 36 (corresponding to the “closing holding means” of the present invention) for holding the pair of corrugated cutting surfaces 33 and 33 in a closed state. A plurality of closure holding mechanisms 36 are provided at intervals in the axial direction of the boot cover 30, and each closure holding mechanism 36 includes a female hook 34 and a male hook 35, as shown in FIG. 4.

  The male hook 35 has a structure in which a conical engagement portion 35C having a part diameter larger than that of the column 35B is provided at the tip of a column 35B having a circular cross section protruding from the center of the disc portion 35D. The female hook 34 has a disk shape and is provided with an engagement hole 34A at the center. The male hook 35 and the female hook 34 project laterally from the apex of the peak portion of the cover main body 31 at the edges of the corrugated cut surfaces 33 and 33 in the cover main body 31. Further, the end face of the male hook 35 and the one corrugated cut surface 33 are flush with each other, the end face of the female hook 34 and the other corrugated cut surface 33 are flush with each other, and the female hook 34 is further engaged. The hole 34A and the support 35B of the male hook 35 are arranged on the same axis.

  This completes the description of the configuration of the boot cover 30 according to the present embodiment. Next, the function and effect of the boot cover 30 will be described. In order to mount the boot cover 30 of the present embodiment around the dustproof boot 20, the dustproof boot 20 is laterally opened by opening a pair of corrugated cut surfaces 33, 33 provided in the longitudinal cut portion 32 of the boot cover 30. To the inside of the cover main body 31 of the boot cover 30. When the space between the corrugated cut surfaces 33 and 33 is opened, the reinforcing ring 37 is elastically deformed, and the pair of corrugated cut surfaces 33 and 33 are returned to the closed state by the elastic force. When the conical engagement portion 35C is press-fitted into the engagement hole 34A of the female hook 34, the female hook 34 expands in diameter, and when the conical engagement portion 35C passes through the engagement hole 34A, the female hook 34 is elastically restored. Thus, the male hook 35 and the female hook 34 are fixed together. Thereby, the space between the pair of corrugated cutting surfaces 33 and 33 is kept closed. The tapered walls 38 and 39 provided at both ends of the cover main body 31 are fixed to the both ends of the dustproof boot 20 so as not to move in the axial direction. Thus, in the boot cover 30 of this embodiment, it can be easily mounted from the side of the dustproof boot 20 without removing the steered wheels.

  By the way, when the steering wheel is steered, the linear movement shaft 12 and the tie rods 13 and 13 are linearly moved with respect to the support sleeve 11. Here, since the boot cover 30 has a bellows cylindrical structure similar to the dustproof boot 20, the boot cover 30 expands and contracts together with the dustproof boot 20 as the linear motion shaft 12 and the tie rods 13, 13 are linearly moved. In addition, since the entire boot cover 30 except for the tapered walls 38 and 39 is in a state of floating from the dustproof boot 20 through a gap, the boot cover 30 can be expanded or contracted even if the boot cover 30 and the dustproof boot 20 are expanded or contracted. The troughs and the crests of the dustproof boot 20 do not interfere with each other. As described above, according to the configuration of the present embodiment, it is possible to prevent a large axial force from being applied to the boot cover 30 as the dustproof boot 20 expands and contracts, and to prevent a situation in which the boot cover 30 is displaced from the dustproof boot 20. It is.

  Now, there are cases where pebbles fly toward the dustproof boot 20 while the vehicle is running. However, according to this embodiment, since the cover main body 31 of the boot cover 30 surrounds the dustproof boot 20, it is possible to protect the dustproof boot 20 from flying pebbles and prevent the dustproof boot 20 from being damaged. In addition, since a gap is interposed between the cover main body 31 and the dustproof boot 20, even if the cover main body 31 is recessed due to the collision of pebbles, the impact of the pebbles is absorbed while the cover main body 31 is recessed. Thereby, even if the pebbles contact the dustproof boot 20 together with the cover main body 31, damage to the dustproof boot 20 is prevented. In addition, since the cover main body 31 is formed of a net-like material, it is possible to prevent water, small sand, and the like from accumulating inside the boot cover 30.

[Other Embodiments]
The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment. For example, the embodiments described below are also included in the technical scope of the present invention, and various other than the following can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. It can be changed and implemented.
(1) The boot cover 30 according to the embodiment includes the female hook 34 and the male hook 35 in order to hold the corrugated cutting surfaces 33 and 33 in a closed state. You may fix between these with an adhesive agent. Further, a configuration may be adopted in which a hook is provided at the edge of one corrugated cut surface and the hook is hooked to the edge of the other corrugated cut surface. Furthermore, you may use the clip etc. which pinch | pinch and fix the edge part of a pair of waveform cut surface.

(2) Although the boot cover 30 of the above embodiment includes the vertical cutting portion 32 and can be mounted from the side of the dustproof boot 20, it may have a structure that does not include the vertical cutting portion. In that case, the dustproof boot before being mounted on the electric power steering device is deformed so as to be thinned, the boot cover is inserted on the outside thereof, and the dustproof boot is restored and the dustproof boot and the boot cover are integrally assembled. . What is necessary is just to assemble | attach these dustproof boots and boot covers to the electric power steering device.

(3) The boot cover 30 of the above embodiment includes the tapered walls 38 and 39 fixed to both ends of the dustproof boot 20 as “cover fixing portions” according to the present invention. A cylindrical fixing portion similar to the cylindrical fixing portions 22 and 23 of the dustproof boot 20 may be provided, and the cylindrical fixing portions of the boot cover may be fixed to the support sleeve 11 and the tie rod 13 with a band.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 Support sleeve 12 Linear motion shaft 13 Tie rod 20 Dust-proof boot 21 Boot body (bellows-shaped cylinder part)
30 Boot Cover 31 Cover Body 32 Longitudinal Cut Part 33 Waveform Cut Surface 34 Female Hook 35 Male Hook 36 Closure Holding Mechanism 37 Reinforcement Ring 38, 39 Tapered Wall (Cover Fixing Part)

Claims (3)

A boot cover for protecting a dust-proof boot having a bellows-cylindrical structure provided at a boundary portion between a steered shaft connected between a pair of steered wheels and a support sleeve that supports an intermediate portion of the steered shaft so as to be linearly movable Because
A cover body having a bellows cylindrical structure that is formed of a net-like material of high polymerization degree fiber and can be surrounded by a gap with respect to the bellows part of the dustproof boot,
A plurality of reinforcing rings fixed to each valley portion and each ridge portion of each mountain portion of the bellows cylindrical structure in the cover body;
A boot cover comprising a pair of cover fixing portions provided at both ends of the cover main body and fixed so as not to move in the axial direction with respect to both ends of the dustproof boot. A longitudinal cutting portion that is formed by cutting one place in the circumferential direction of the boot cover over the entire axial direction, and is provided with a pair of corrugated cut surfaces by the cutting in an opposed state;
Occlusion holding means capable of holding the pair of corrugated cutting surfaces in a closed state;
2. The boot cover according to claim 1, wherein the dustproof boot can be received in the cover body from the side by opening between the pair of corrugated cut surfaces.   The boot cover according to claim 2, wherein the reinforcing ring is formed of a metal wire.