A METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING PEDALS

Abstract: A method for manufacturing a pedal of the type, which comprises a pedal pad (2) a pedal lever (3) extending therefrom, a pedal hub (4) with bearing seats (5) arranged at the opposite end of the pedal lever and an attachment member (6) intended for an actuation means and situated at a distance from the bearing seat, whereby the hub portion (4) and the attachment member are produced by detaching a profile part from an extruded profile, which profile part is there-upon provided with bores (5) for bearing seats and to which is connected one end of the pedal lever (3).

Description: A METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING PEDALS Backαround of the invention The present invention refers to a method for manufacturing a foot pedal preferably for motor vehicles and of the type incorporating a pedal pad, a pedal lever extending therefrom, a pedal hub with bearing seats arranged at the opposite end of the pedal lever and an attachment member for actuation means situated at a distance away from the bearing seat. Motor vehicles are equipped with a number of operating pedals intended to transfer the drivers pedal pressure to acutation means adapted to bring about clutch movements, braking and throttle movements resp. Pedals of this type have earlier been formed out of solid steel, e.g. by forging, which has given a heavy non-flexible product, which furthermore due to the big material consumption and the comprehensive machining has been expesive in manufacture. In order to overcome these problems producers have ear3.ier changed to manufacturing at least the pedal lever from a tubular material and to weld this to the pedal plate and to the pedal hub. This presents a lighter design with substan¬ tially the same strenght characteristics as earlier. Pedals for different types or brands of vehicles can also have a most varying geometry with levers arranged in different angles, which are pivotatable about the bearings of the pedal hub and at the free end of which there is supported an • actuation means to which the pedal pressure shall be transferred. The geometry of the construction is often such that the point of load, i.e. the pedal pad, is situated far to the side in relation to the pedal hub, which means that the demand for strength of the entire construction is very high and particularly on the connection betv.'een the pedal hub and the pedal lever. Car manufacturers have from this reason put up demands on a maximum deflection during a certain load at the same time as it is a desire further to reduce the weight of the construction, which thus cannot be obtained unless the strength of the construction in relation to its weight is at the same time increased and the present invention has for its purpose to provide a method for manufacturing a pedal particularly for a motor vehicle and of the type in¬ corporating a pedal pad, a pedal lever extending therefrom and with a pedal hub with bearing seats arranged at its other end and at least one attachment means arranged at a distance away from the bearing seat and intended for actuation means such as brake cylinders, wires or the like and the invention is characterized thereby that a longitudinal continuous profile with a centre portion and flange members extending therefrom is produced by means of extrusion, that a pedal hub portion of desired width is detached from this profile by means of chip removal or shearing, that bearing seats are drilled through a portion of the pedal hub in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the initial profile, that means are arranged spaced apart from the bearing seat intended for attachment of actuation means and that a pedal arm with an associated pedal pad is attached to the pedal hub whereby said flange portions are utilized as attachment parts for the pedal lever and/or as attachment members for said actuation means. Description of the drawings The invention will hereinafter be further described with reference to the embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings. Figure 1 shows in a perspective view a pedal according to the invention, Figure 2 is a partial view from above of the peda.1 with pedal hub according to figure 3 , Figure 3 shows in a side view a section of a profile intended for the manufacture of the pedal hub to the pedal according to figure 1, Figure 4 shows in perspective a portion of the profile according to figure 3, Figure 5 is a view corresponding to figure 2 of another embodiment of a pedal hub, Figure 6 shows in a view corresponding to figure 5 a further embodiment of the pedal according'to the invention, Figure 7 shows a fourth embodiment of the pedal according to the invention in a viev/ from above, Figure 8 is a side viev; of the pedal hub forming part of the pedal according to figure .7, Figure 9 shows a fifth embodiment in perspective. Figure 10 is a perspective view of the sixth embodiment, and Figures 11 and 12 show side view of alternative to the embodiment according to ' figure 10. Description of embodiments In figure 1 is shown in perspective a foot pedal 1 intended as a operating member of a motor vehicle and of the type which comprises a pecal pad 2, /hich is connected to one end of a pedal lever 3, the opposite end of which is connected to a pedal hub 4, v/hich is provided with bearing seats 5 for supporting bearings for the pivoting of the pedal about a shaft. At a distance from the pivot axes of the hub - i.e. the bearing seat 5 - there is at least one attachment point 6 for an actuation means to which the pedal movement shall be transferred. In figure 2 is shown in a view from above a portion of the pedal according to figure 1 and as can be seen from this viev; the very pedal hub 4 in this case is designed as a mainly A- shaped profile where the flanges 7, 8 which form the shanks cf the A encloses and form attachment surfaces for the pedal lever 3, which is preferably welded to the pedal hub at 9 and 10. The bearing seats 5 are drilled perpendicularly to the longitudinal direction of the profile in the area above the cross bar of the A-profile. As shown in figure 3 a pedal hub 4 is formed from a longitudinal continuous profile 11, v/hich is manufactured by extrusion or another similar method, preferably from aluminium or an aluminium alloy and from which profile hub portions 4 of desired length are detached with cuts 12 substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the profile hub. These detached, profile parts are then drilled for making desired bearing seat 5 and attachment points 6, whereupon the profile part without need of ether machining is ready for use as a pedal hub. As mentioned above the pedal hub is thereupon connected to the preferably tubular pedal arm 3 by means of welding 9, 10 or in another suitable manner. In figure 4 is shown in perspective a portion of the produced profile 11 and as shown here the extruded goods is provided v/ith thicker portions in the areas which before or after cutting of the pedal hub blank shall be drilled for bearing seats, attachment points etc. It is on the whole comparatively easy to form the extrusion matrise or the like in such a manner that the detail will require a minimum of machining after it has been cut from the profile. Machining can also be made after the hub part and the pedal lever has been welded together and tempered in order to obtain the best possible measure accuracy. In figure 5 is shown a modified embodiment of the pedal hub according to the invention, whereby the pedal hub 14 corresponds to the embodiment according to figure 2 beside that the cross bar in the earlier embodiment has been eliminated in this embodiment. The end of the pedal lever 3 can in this case rest against the bottom of the profile piece 14 and it can be welded to the pedal hub at 9 as well as at 10. In this case the bores 15 for the bearing seat will pass through the forward end of the pedal lever. In figure 6 is shown a further embodiment of the pedal hub 24 according to the invention. This hub, which has another geometry than the two earlier shown is in a similar way as those provided v/ith bores 25 for bearing seats and it has also a bore 26 for attachment of an actuation means. The - y E pedal hub has also two shanks 27, 28 against which the pedal lever 3 is fitted, e.g. . by welding. In the large open construction defined by the pedal hub is from stability aspects arranged reinforcing lattice walls 29, v/hich also can be made at the extrusion operation or in a corresponding manufacturing operation, whereby a longitudinal profile is produced from which pieces of appropriate lengths are thereupon cut, v/hich pieces without appreciable further machining can be used as pedal hubs. It is also possible to provide the profile with lugs 30 or the like, which can be used as movement delimiting stops or the like at the use of the pedal. In figures 7 and 8 is shown a further embodiment of a pedal hub according to the invention in a view from above and from the side resp. The pedal hub 34 here incorporates a central, rectangular sleeve-shaped body, which is provided v/ith reinforcing intermediate walls 39 and bores 35 for bearing seats. In one direction from the central body of the pedal hub extend flanges 37, 38, to which the pedal lever 3 with the pedal pad 2 arranged thereupon, is fitted, e.g. by v/elding. In this embodiment the attachment point for an actuation device is arranged as a bore 36 in a lever or flange 36 extending in the opposite direction from the central body as compared to the flanges 37, 38. As can be seen from figure 8 which shows the side of the pedal hub 34 the lever 36a extends from the central body of the hub in the opposite direction relative to the flanges but aligned with these. It is however also possible to arrange the lever 36a at an angle against the shanks 37, 38 by bending the comparatively thin lever 3βa after the pedal hub has been detached from the profile in v/hich it has been produced by extrusion or the like. It is also possible to detach pedal hub blanks from the profile with cuts which are - not perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the profile and hereby to obtain another geometrical location of the attachment point of the actuation device than what can be achieved with the perpendicular cut. Figure 9 shows in a perspective view a modified embodiment of the portion of a pedal according to the invention having a part of a tubular pedal 3 and. a pedal hub 44 v/hich is detached from an extruded profile 41 of aluminium or an appropriate aluminium alloy. The profile 41 differs only to ' a small extent from the profile of the pedal hub 34 in figures o 7 and 8 but in this case the pedal lever has been turned 90 in relation to the location according to figure 7, whereby the lever 46 and the attachment device 46a will have quite another geometry in relation to the pedal lever than what is the case at the location according to figure 7. The pedal lever 3 is preferably fitted to the shanks 47, 48 of the pedal hub by means of welding and the bores 45, 46 are drilled in the same manner as at the preceding embodiments, whereupon the unit can be tempered. In figure 10 is shown in perspective one further modified embodiment, whereby the tubular pedal lever 3 at its end turned away from the pedal pad 2 is fitted in a recess 51 in a pedal hub 54, which is detached from an extruded aluminium or aluminium alloy profile. The recess 51 like the other openings 52, the intermediate walls 59 and the shanks 57, 58, which extend from the hub are formed already at the production of the profile, whereas the bores 55 for the bearing of the pedal hub and 56 for attachment of actuation means, e.g. brake cylinder or the like are made prior to or after the pedal hub has been detached from the profile. Due to the fact that the attachment device 56 in this case is located in the shanks 57, 58 v/hich extand away from the supporting axes 55 of the hub a longer moment lever is obtained than at the embodiments according to figures 1-8. It is as intimated with the dash-line 53 also possible to machine away material portions from the hub if so is desired. Figures 11 and 12 show in side viev/s different possibilities of amending the geometry of the moment lever by using the same extruded profile as at the embodiment according to f igur e 10 . In figure 11 is thus shown how the profile has been detached v/ith a cut which is inclined to the left in the figure, whereby the pedal hub 54a will have its shanks 57a, 58a (not shown) arranged at an obtuse angle in relation to the pedal lever 3, whereby the bores 56a can be located thus that the geometry of the lever will be entirely different to that according to figure 10. In the embodiment according to figure 12 a profile has been detached in a corresponding manner with a cut which is inclined tov/ards the right hand side, whereby the pedal hub 54b produced has its shanks 57b arranged at an accute angle relative to the pedal lever 3. After the pedal hub has been detached from the profile, been provided with bores and possibly been attached to the pedal lever 3 it is preferably sub] ected to a tempering operation. This can however be made at another occasion in the manu¬ facturing process. By using profile pieces of the defined type it is possible without manufacturing problems and without appreciable weight increase to obtain bearing seats of required width over a long series of different hubs widths and also if the width must be very large - see e.g. the embodiment according to figure 6. The invention is not limited to the embodiments and methods shown in the drawings and described in connection thereto but modifications and variations are possible within the scope of the appended claims. It is thus e.g. possible to produce the pedal hub from a profile of reinforced plastic material or the like and the pedal lever can be attached to the pedal hub, e.g. by riveting instead of by welding. *

Claims: CLAIMS 1. A method for manufacturing pedals of the type incorporating a pedal pad, a pedal lever extending therefrom, a pedal hub with bearing seat arranged at the opposite end of the pedal lever and an attachment member for actuation means situated at a distance away from the bearing seat, c h a r a c t e r i z e d t h e r e b , that a longitudinal continuous profile (11, 41) with a centre portion and flange members (7, 8; 27, 28; 36a, 37, 38; 46a, 47, 48; 57, 58) extending therefrom is produced by means of extrusion, that a pedal hub portion (4, 14, 24, 34, 44, 54, 54a, 54b) of desired width is detached from this profile (11) by means of chip removal or shearing, that bearing seats (5, 15, 25, 35, 45, 55, 55a, 55b) are drilled through a portion of the pedal hub in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the initial profile, that means (6, 26, 36, 46, 56, 56a, 56b) are arranged spaced apart from the bearing seat intended for attachment of actuation means, and that a pedal arm (3) with an associated pedal pad (2) is attached to the pedal hub, whereby said flange portions are utilized as attachment parts for the pedal lever and/or as attachment members for said actuation means. 2. A method according to claim 1, c h a r a c t e r i z e d t h e r e b , that the pedal lever (3) is attached to a pedal hub by means of welding in a space (51) formed between different material portions (7, 8; 27, 28; 37, 38; 47, 48; 5S) of the pedal hub. 3. A method according to claims 1 or 2, c h a r a c t e r i z e d t h e r e b y, that the profile (11, 41) is detached under an angle relative to the longitudinal direction of the profile (11, 41) , which angle is varied for obtaining different lever geometry for the attachment point of the actuation means with use of the same profile. - R 4. A method according to anyone of claims 1-3, c h a r a c t e r i z e d t h e r e b y, that a profile (11, 41) of aluminium or an aluminium alloy is used and that the structure is tempered after the hub portion (4, 14, 24, 34, 44, 54, 54a, 54b) has been detached and connected to the pedal lever and the pad. OMPI

Inventors: CLAESSON G
Applicants: CLAESSON G, JOHANSSON CLAES VERKSTADS, VERKSTADS AB CLAES JOHANSSON
Application year: 1980
Main classification: G05G1
IPC codes: G05G1