JPH11208232A - Configuration of suspension - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enhance strength of a mounting portion of a spindle and to adequately prevent toeing out of a wheel in turning while avoiding a suspension arm being made larger as much as possible, even if a bearing portion which receives a suspension spring at the rear of the suspension arm made of so called a hollow metal sheet is provided. SOLUTION: In this configuration, a suspension arm 1, which is freely movable in the vertical directions of a vehicle centered on a connected portion between a vehicle body and a front portion, is formed like a hollow shape by a member 10a made by press forming of a metal sheet. A bearing portion 18 is provided to receive a suspension spring at the rear top face portion thereof. A base end portion of a spindle 5 for mounting wheels is inserted into an opening 17 provided on the rear outer side in the lateral directions of the vehicle. Peripheral surface of the base end portion of the spindle 5 and the fringe of the opening 17 are welded. This suspension has a supporting member 8 that is separately formed from the suspension arm 1. In addition, the spindle 5 and a portion of the suspension arm 1 distant from the spindle 5 are connected via the supporting member 8.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a suspension structure.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art The applicant of the present invention has disclosed Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 8-21639.
The suspension described in the official gazette was previously proposed. As shown in FIG. 6 of the present application, the suspension includes a pair of left and right suspension arms 1e, 1e extending in the vehicle front-rear direction at intervals in the vehicle width direction.
The suspension arms 1e, 1e are provided with seats 18e, 18e for receiving a suspension spring on the rear upper surface thereof, and are provided on the outer surfaces in the vehicle width direction. , Rear wheel 4e,
Spindles 5e, 5e for attaching 4e are attached. Each of the front portions of the suspension arms 1e, 1e is rotatably connected to a bracket 7e attached to the vehicle body 6e, and the suspension arms 1e, 1e are moved in the vehicle height direction (up and down) about the connection point. Direction).

In the suspension having such a configuration, when there is an upward input from the road surface to the rear wheels 4e, 4e,
The torsion beam 2e undergoes torsional deformation or bending deformation, and the pair of suspension arms 1e, 1e can swing up and down at different angles, so that the ride comfort of a vehicle similar to an independent suspension type suspension can be obtained.

On the other hand, each suspension arm 1e of the suspension is made of a so-called sheet metal, and as shown in FIG. 7, joins an upper member 19a and a lower member 19b formed by pressing a metal plate. By doing so, it is formed in a hollow shape. According to such a configuration, while reducing the weight and securing the strength of the entire suspension arm, the manufacturing cost can be considerably reduced as compared with a case where the suspension arm is manufactured by, for example, casting. In the suspension, as a means for attaching the spindle 5e to each suspension arm 1e, the base end of the spindle 5e is inserted into an opening 17e provided at the rear side of the suspension arm 1e in the vehicle width direction. Then, the welding W1 is applied to the outer peripheral surface of the base end of the spindle 5e and the peripheral edge of the opening 17e. According to such a configuration, the work of mounting the spindle 5e can be easily performed.

[0005]

However, the suspension having the above structure has the following disadvantages.

That is, in the prior art, the welding W1 is performed by inserting the spindle 5e into the opening 17e of the suspension arm 1e.
This is done only at one point on the periphery of e. For this reason, the spindle 5e is, in effect, structured to be supported only by the peripheral edge of the opening 17e. On the other hand, when the rear wheel 4e is mounted on the spindle 5e, the rear wheel 4e does not interfere with other portions of the suspension arm 1e on the outer surface in the vehicle width direction at the rear of the suspension arm 1e where the opening 17e is formed. Thus, the suspension arm 1e needs to be formed so as to protrude outward in the vehicle width direction from the other portion of the outer surface of the suspension arm 1e.
Therefore, conventionally, when the suspension arm 1e is formed by processing a relatively thin metal plate, the strength of the mounting portion of the spindle 5e and its peripheral portion tends to be insufficient. When there is a large input in the vehicle width direction from the road surface to the rear wheel 4e at the time, the input causes a deformation of the mounting portion of the spindle 5e, thereby changing the direction of the spindle 5e and causing the rear wheel 4e to toe out. There was a possibility that it might be a little. In this case, oversteer occurs during turning of the vehicle, and the stability and maneuverability of the vehicle are deteriorated, which is not appropriate. On the other hand, if the suspension arm 1e is manufactured using a thick metal plate in order to solve such a situation, it is difficult to manufacture the suspension arm 1e lightweight and inexpensively. The original purpose made of sheet metal is lost.

As a means for solving the above-mentioned problem, for example, as shown in FIG. 2 of Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 57-15006, instead of welding only one spindle to a suspension arm, There is a means for welding two portions, a rear end portion and an intermediate portion, of the spindle to the suspension arm. However, such means requires the spindle to be provided so as to straddle the left and right side surfaces of the suspension arm in the vehicle width direction. Therefore, it is necessary to make the overall length of the spindle longer than necessary. And a problem that leads to an increase in component costs occurs. Also,
Although the means described in the above publication is suitable when the width of the suspension arm in the vehicle width direction at the portion where the spindle is attached is small, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the rear part of the suspension arm 1e is used in the vehicle width direction. Width L
Is not suitable when is large. In particular, spindle 5
In the case where a relatively wide seat portion 18e for supporting one end of the suspension spring is provided on the side of the mounting portion of e, the width L becomes considerably large. It is practically difficult to adopt

The present invention has been devised in view of such circumstances, and has a case in which a seat for receiving a suspension spring is provided at the rear of a suspension arm made of a so-called hollow sheet metal. Even so, while minimizing the size of the suspension arm as much as possible, the strength of the mounting part of the spindle is increased by simple means so that the toe-out phenomenon of the wheel when turning the vehicle can be appropriately prevented. That is the subject.

[0009]

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above problems, the present invention employs the following technical means.

According to the present invention, a suspension structure is provided. The structure of the suspension includes a suspension arm extending in the front-rear direction of the vehicle and swinging in the vehicle height direction around a connection portion between the front portion and the vehicle body, and the suspension arm is formed by pressing a metal plate. The suspension arm is formed in a hollow shape, and a seat portion for receiving a suspension spring is provided on a rear upper surface portion of the suspension arm, and is provided on a vehicle width direction outer surface of a rear portion of the suspension arm. A base end of a spindle for wheel attachment is inserted into the opening, and an outer peripheral surface of the base end of the spindle and a periphery of the opening are welded to each other; A reinforcing member formed separately from the suspension arm, and spaced apart from the spindle of the suspension arm by a distance The part and the spindle, characterized in that it is connected via the reinforcing member.

In the present invention, since the portion of the suspension arm spaced apart from the spindle and the spindle are connected via a reinforcing member, the structure may be such that the spindle is supported by being stretched by the reinforcing member. it can. Supporting the spindle in such a structure not only increases the support strength of the spindle itself, but also increases the strength of the periphery of the opening of the suspension arm that is welded to the spindle and its vicinity. Thus, it is possible to prevent those portions from being easily deformed. Therefore, in the present invention, even if the suspension arm is not manufactured using a very thick metal plate, it is possible to suppress the mounting portion of the spindle from being unduly deformed due to the input to the wheel when the vehicle turns. Thus, it is possible to avoid a change in the direction of the spindle, and to eliminate the oversteer phenomenon of the vehicle. As a result, according to the present invention, it is possible to obtain the effect that the stability and the maneuverability of the vehicle can be improved without greatly increasing the weight of the suspension arm or significantly increasing the manufacturing cost.

As a further important effect, when the reinforcing member is attached in the present invention, the reinforcing member is connected to an appropriate portion such as a portion protruding outside the suspension arm of each portion of the spindle and an outer surface portion of the suspension arm. It may be fixedly connected to the two places by means such as bolting or welding, and the mounting operation can be easily performed. Further, according to the present invention, unlike the conventional means in which the rear end portion and the intermediate portion of the spindle are welded to the suspension arm, it is not necessary to make the overall length of the spindle longer than necessary. Is a relatively short and inexpensive one. Furthermore, in the present invention, the mounting operation of the reinforcing member can be appropriately performed even if the seat portion of the suspension spring is formed on the side of the mounting portion of the spindle. As a result, in the present invention, the seat portion of the suspension spring can be provided as close to the rear of the suspension arm as possible without being affected by the attachment of the spindle. With this configuration, the suspension spring can be set at a position distant from the swing center of the suspension arm, and the spring force can be efficiently applied to the suspension arm. As a result, it is only necessary to use an inexpensive suspension spring with a small spring constant, and it is not necessary to increase the strength of the seat portion of the suspension arm that supports the suspension spring and the spring receiving portion of the vehicle body. It becomes possible.

[0013]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an example of a suspension to which the present invention is applied. FIG. 2 is a partial cross-sectional plan view showing a main part of the suspension shown in FIG. FIG.
FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of a main part of the suspension shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a main part of the suspension shown in FIG. In each of the drawings, the arrow Fr indicates the front of the vehicle, the arrow Up indicates the upper direction in the vehicle height direction, and the arrow w indicates the vehicle width direction.

The suspension shown in FIG. 1 is configured as a so-called trailing arm type suspension, and is used as a rear suspension of an automobile. This suspension includes a pair of left and right suspension arms 1, 1, a torsion beam 2 connecting the pair of suspension arms 1, 1, a pair of left and right spindles 5, 5, and reinforcing members 8, 8.

Each of the suspension arms 1 and 1 extends in the front-rear direction of the vehicle, and is opposed to each other at regular intervals in the vehicle width direction. The pair of suspension arms 1 and 1 have left-right symmetric shapes. FIG.
4, each of the suspension arms 1 has a so-called monaka-like hollow shape formed by joining an upper and lower bisected upper member 10a and a lower member 10b. The upper member 10a and the lower member 10b are formed by pressing (deep drawing) a metal plate such as an iron plate having a predetermined thickness, and a lower peripheral edge of the upper member 10a and the lower member 10b are formed. Flanges 12a, 1 that are in face-to-face contact with each other
2b is appropriately formed. These flanges 12a, 1
2b are welded to each other, whereby the upper member 10a and the lower member 10b are joined.

As is clearly shown in FIG. 3, the torsion beam 2 is provided in a predetermined area in front of the longitudinally intermediate portion of the inner surface of the suspension arm 1 in the vehicle width direction.
A first opening 14 is provided for inserting the end of the first opening. As shown in FIG. 4, a second opening 15 is provided at a longitudinally intermediate portion of the outer surface of each of the suspension arms 1 in the vehicle width direction. The second opening 15 is formed by a part of the flange 12a of the upper member 10a being curved upward and a part of the flange 12b of the lower member 10b being curved downward.

As shown in FIG. 3, the torsion beam 2 has an inclined upper piece 21a forming an opening 20 at the front side of the vehicle so as to be able to perform appropriate bending deformation and torsional deformation. It has a substantially V-shaped cross section or a substantially U-shaped cross section provided with a lower piece portion 21b, and is formed by, for example, bending or bending a metal plate having a constant thickness. The torsion beam 2 extends in the vehicle width direction, and both ends in the longitudinal direction are inserted into positions near the rear of the first opening 14 of each suspension arm 1, and the tip thereof is formed in the second opening 14. It is also inserted into the part 15 and penetrates each of the suspension arms 1 and 1. The width of the torsion beam 2 is smaller than the width S1 of the portion to be inserted into the first opening 14 by the width S2 of the portion to be inserted into the second opening 15.
Is made smaller, and the second opening 15 is made as small as possible so that the strength of each suspension arm 1 is not reduced as much as possible. Welds Wa and Wb are applied to the peripheral edge of the first opening 14 and the peripheral edge of the second opening 15, respectively, so that the longitudinal intermediate portions of the suspension arms 1 and 1 and the torsion beam are respectively provided. 2 are firmly connected to both ends in the longitudinal direction.

A cylindrical boss 16 is welded to the front end of each suspension arm 1.
A rubber bush 3 is fitted and mounted therein. A bolt 9 is inserted through the rubber bush 3, and the bolt 9 is supported by a bracket 7 fixedly attached to the vehicle body 6, thereby forming a pair of suspension arms 1, 1.
Is swingable about the two bolts 9 in the vehicle height direction.

As best shown in FIG. 2, the spindle 5 comprises a shaft 50, a substantially disk-shaped flange plate 51 fixedly attached to a longitudinally intermediate portion of the shaft 50, and the shaft 5 described above. And a cap-shaped auxiliary body 52 attached to the base end of the body 50. A bearing (not shown) for rotatably supporting the rear wheel 4 is attached to a distal end portion of the shaft body 50. The flange plate 51 is for mounting a brake plate (not shown) of the rear wheel 4, and has a plurality of bolt insertion holes formed in a peripheral portion thereof. The outer diameter of the auxiliary body 52 is considerably larger than the base end of the shaft body 50. When the spindle 5 is welded to the suspension arm 1, welding is performed on the outer periphery of the auxiliary body 52. Helps to increase its welding length. The auxiliary body 52 has one end welded to the back surface of the flange plate 51 and the other end welded to the outer peripheral surface of the base end of the shaft body 50. Flange plate 51 for 50
Also exerts the role of increasing the mounting strength of

The auxiliary body 52 at the base end of the spindle 5 is inserted into an opening 17 provided at the rear side of the suspension arm 1 on the outer side in the vehicle width direction. By being welded to the periphery and the outer peripheral surface of the auxiliary body 52, the auxiliary body 52 is fixedly attached to the suspension arm 1. Opening 17
Is an opening whose upper half is surrounded by the edge of the upper member 10a and whose lower half is surrounded by the edge of the lower member 10b.

The outer surface of the suspension arm 1 in the vehicle width direction is formed so as to protrude outward in the vehicle width direction toward the rear of the vehicle. It bulges outward in the width direction. As a result, the rear wheel 4 attached to the spindle 5 and the suspension arm 1 are prevented from being unduly contacted.
A seat 18 for supporting a suspension spring is provided on the rear upper surface of the suspension arm 1. In the suspension of the present embodiment, the suspension spring is provided at the rear of the suspension arm 1 as much as possible.
This is convenient because it makes it possible to use a suspension spring with high efficiency and a small spring constant. For this reason, in the suspension of this embodiment, the seat 1
8 is located on the side of the mounting portion of the spindle 5.

The reinforcing member 8 is formed, for example, by stamping a flat hard metal plate, and has an arm shape extending in a certain direction. The reinforcing member 8 is disposed along the upper surface of the flange 12 a at a position in front of the mounting portion of the spindle 5, and a side surface of one end 8 a in the longitudinal direction is a part of a peripheral edge of the opening 17. Also, the spindle 5 is in contact with a part of the outer peripheral surface of the auxiliary body 52 located outside the opening 17 and is welded to these parts. A part of the reinforcing member 8 in the vicinity of the other end 8b in the longitudinal direction is connected to the flange 1
It is welded to at least one of 2a and 12b. After all, the reinforcing member 8 has two regions La and Lb shown in FIG.
Are welded to the suspension arm 1 and the spindle 5, but between these welding areas La and Lb,
An area Lc where welding is not performed is provided. As a result, a part of the spindle 5 is rigidly connected to the region Lb at a distance from the spindle 5 via the reinforcing member 8, and the spindle 5 is stretched from the oblique side by the reinforcing member 8. The structure is supported by

The reinforcing member 8 has two holes 8
Although 0 and 81 are provided, they are used for positioning when the reinforcing member 8 is welded to the suspension arm 1. That is, when positioning the reinforcing member 8 at a predetermined position of the suspension arm 1, two positioning pins (not shown) are set up in advance at the positions where the holes 80 and 81 are to be located, and By fitting the holes 80 and 81, each part of the reinforcing member 8 can be accurately brought into contact with a predetermined position of the suspension arm 1 or the spindle 5, and the welding operation can be performed. The hole 80 is arranged at a position overlapping with the flanges 12a, 12b of the suspension arm 1, and of course, the flanges 12a, 12b are also provided with positioning holes.

Next, the operation of the suspension will be described.

As described above, the spindle 5 of the suspension is not only welded to the periphery of the opening 17 of the suspension arm 1 but also supported by the reinforcing member 8. Further, a part of the periphery of the opening 17 is also supported by the reinforcing member 8. Accordingly, not only the supporting strength of the spindle 5 is increased, but also the strength of the peripheral portion of the opening 17 to which the spindle 5 is attached and the vicinity thereof is increased. In particular, the reinforcing member 8 is arranged such that the spindle 5 and the opening 1
Since a part of the periphery of the opening 7 is stretched, the periphery of the opening 17 and the vicinity thereof are more difficult to deform in the vehicle front-rear direction. As a result, for example, in FIG.
Due to the turning of the vehicle in the direction of the arrow N1, a horizontal force as a reaction of the cornering force acts on the rear wheels 4, 4 from the road surface during the turning, and the front of the rear wheels 4, 4 is moved to the arrow N2. Even if a direction-directing force is generated, the direction of the spindle 5 is not easily changed by the force. For this reason, the phenomenon that the rear wheels 4 and 4 are toe-out can be suppressed and oversteer can be prevented, and the running stability and maneuverability of the vehicle can be improved.

In addition, the suspension has an opening 17.
One end 8a of the reinforcing member 8 is welded to a part of the spindle 5 exposed to the outside, and the other part of the reinforcing member 8 is connected to the flanges 12a,
12b, the welding operation is easy. A seat 18 to which a suspension spring is attached is provided on the side of the spindle 5. Even in such a case, regardless of the presence of the seat 18, the reinforcing member 8 The strength of the mounting portion and its vicinity can be increased.

FIG. 5 is a partial sectional plan view showing a main part of another example of the suspension to which the present invention is applied. Note that the same parts as those in the previous embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted.

In the structure shown in FIG. 3, one end 8c of the reinforcing member 8A is attached to the flange plate 51 by using a hole 53 provided in the flange plate 51 of the spindle 5 and a bolt 90 inserted therethrough. Fixedly connected. The other end 8d of the reinforcing member 8A is formed by using a hole 91 formed in the flanges 12a and 12b of the suspension arm 1 and a bolt 90a inserted into the hole 91. The fixed connection is made at a position separated from the spindle 5 by a certain distance. The above reinforcing member 8
As A, for example, one obtained by pressing both ends of a pipe material into a flat shape and bending one end thereof, or one obtained by bending one end of a slender flat plate-like member is used. Thus, in the present invention, means for bolting the reinforcing member to the spindle or the suspension arm may be used. The specific shape of the reinforcing member is not particularly limited.

In addition, the specific configuration of each part of the structure of the suspension according to the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be variously changed in design.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an example of a suspension to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a partial sectional plan view showing a main part of the suspension shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a main part of the suspension shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a main part of the suspension shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a partial sectional plan view showing a main part of another example of the suspension to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 6 is a plan view showing an example of a conventional suspension.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along line VII-VII of FIG. 6;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Suspension arm 2 Torsion beam 4 Rear wheel 5 Spindle 6 Body 8,8A Reinforcement member 10a Upper member 10b Lower member 17 Opening 18 Seat

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A suspension arm which extends in the front-rear direction of a vehicle and is swingable in a vehicle height direction around a connection portion between a front portion thereof and a vehicle body, and the suspension arm is a member formed by pressing a metal plate. And a seat portion for receiving a suspension spring is provided on a rear upper surface portion of the suspension arm, and provided on a vehicle width direction outer surface of a rear portion of the suspension arm. The suspension structure, wherein a base end of a wheel mounting spindle is inserted into the opening, and an outer peripheral surface of the base end of the spindle and a periphery of the opening are welded. A reinforcing member formed separately from the arm, and a portion of the suspension arm spaced apart from the spindle; The spindle, characterized in that it is connected via the reinforcing member, the structure of the suspension.