Patent Publication Number: US-6658964-B2

Title: Acceleration pedal device of automobile

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to an acceleration pedal of an automobile, and more particularly to an acceleration pedal of an automobile constructed to prompt an acceleration pedal to be moved to a direction distancing from a driver when the automobile collides, thereby preventing injuries in the shin of the driver. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art 
     In an acceleration pedal device in the known art, as illustrated in FIG. 1, a mounting bracket  11  is fixed to a dash panel  10  comprising a body of the automobile via fastening means such as bolts and the like, an acceleration pedal arm  12  is rotatively mounted at a predetermined portion thereof to an approximate lengthwise central protruding portion of the mounting bracket  11  via a hinge. The acceleration pedal arm  12  is integrally attached at a lower end thereof with a pedal pad  13  and connected at an upper end thereof with an end of an acceleration cable  14 . 
     Furthermore, the acceleration cable  14  is connected at the other end thereof to a throttle valve (not shown) through the dash panel  10 . 
     When a driver manipulates the acceleration pad  13  to accelerate the automobile, the acceleration pedal arm  12  is pivoted clockwise via the hinge while the acceleration cable  14  connected to the acceleration pedal arm  12  is pulled by the pivot motion of the acceleration pedal arm  12  to rotate the throttle valve connected to the acceleration cable  14  such that much more mixed air is introduced into an engine through the throttle valve to accelerate the automobile. 
     However, there is a problem in the acceleration pedal device thus described according to the prior art in that, when an automobile collides while running, shock thereof is transmitted to a body of the automobile, which in turn is applied to dash board, to cause a dash panel to protrude toward a driver, as illustrated in FIG. 2, and an acceleration pedal arm mounted at the dash panel to protrude toward the driver as well, thereby colliding with a shin part of the driver to his or her injury. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention is presented to solve the aforementioned problem and it is an object of the present invention to provide an acceleration pedal device of automobile constructed to prompt an acceleration pedal to be moved back to a direction distancing from a driver when the automobile collides, thereby preventing injuries in the shin of the driver. 
     In accordance with the object of the present invention, there is provided an acceleration pedal device of an automobile, the device comprising: 
     an acceleration pedal arm movably mounted by manipulating power of a driver; 
     an acceleration cable connected to the acceleration pedal arm for being strained or relaxed according to movement of the acceleration pedal arm; and 
     forcibly moving means of acceleration pedal arm for utilizing a shock generated in the course of collision to reduce a protruding height of the acceleration pedal arm toward a driver when the shock is transmitted to the acceleration cable. 
     It is preferred that the acceleration cable is supported by the dash panel such that the shock can be transmitted to the acceleration cable through the dash panel comprising the body of the automobile. 
     It is also preferred that the acceleration cable includes an external tube mounted at the dash panel for moving toward the driver along with the dash panel when the shock is applied to the dash panel; and an inner cable so installed as to be strained or relaxed according to movement of the acceleration pedal arm inside the external tube. 
     It is further preferred that the forcibly moving means of acceleration pedal arm includes a rack bar connected to the inner cable so as to be moved forward and backward by the inner cable according straining and relaxing movement of the inner cable and formed with a gear unit at one side thereof, a pinion rotatively meshed to the gear unit of the rack bar, and a gear unit formed at the acceleration pedal arm so as to be meshed to the pinion. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     For fuller understanding of the nature and objects of the invention, reference should be made to the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which: 
     FIG. 1 is a side view of an acceleration pedal mounted at a dash panel at a boy of the automobile according to the prior art; 
     FIG. 2 is a side view of an acceleration pedal protruded toward a driver after collision according to the prior art; 
     FIG. 3 is a schematic structural drawing of an acceleration pedal device according to the present invention; 
     FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line A—A of FIG. 3; and 
     FIG. 5 is an operation explaining drawing where an acceleration pedal according to the present invention is accommodated into a housing upon collision. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Now, preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. 
     FIG. 3 is a schematic structural drawing of an acceleration pedal device according to the present invention and FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line A—A of FIG. 3, where a housing  22  having a predetermined inner space is fixedly mounted at a portion adjacent to a dash panel  21  and the floor panel  20  comprising a body of the automobile, and the housing  22  is located therein with a rack bar  23  which is in turn put on a floor surface of the hosing and supported for horizontal movement, while the rack bar  23  is connected at a front end thereof to an end of an inner cable rod  24  comprising an acceleration cable. 
     Furthermore, an external tube  25  of the acceleration cable is supportively inserted into a holder mounted on the housing  22  for sliding thereon, and penetrates to extend through the dash panel  21 . 
     A gear unit of the rack bar  23  is rotatatively coupled with a pinion  26  while the pinion  26  is meshed with a gear unit formed at an acceleration pedal arm  27 . The acceleration pedal arm  27  is inserted into a guide groove  22   a  formed within the housing  22  to supportively move along the guide groove  22   a  while one end thereof is protruded externally out of the housing  22  where a pedal pad  28  is fixedly mounted. Meanwhile, a spring  29  resiliently supporting the acceleration pedal arm  27  is connected between an inner surface of the housing  22  and the acceleration pedal arm  27 . 
     As illustrated in FIG. 4, the pinion  26  is integrally formed at both sides thereof with support shaft  26   a  which penetrates an inner wall of the housing  22  to be rotatatively coupled thereto. The housing  22  is formed at a floor surface thereof with a guide groove  22   b  for movably guiding the rack bar within the housing  22 . 
     When the pedal pad  28  is manipulated in order to accelerate an automobile, the acceleration pedal arm  27  is moved along the guide groove  22   a , being inserted into the guide groove  22   a , and the pinion  26  is rotated clockwise by the gear unit mounted at the acceleration pedal arm  27 , where the gear unit of the rack bar  23  is moved to the right on the drawing by the rotary movement of the pinion  26  to make the acceleration cable pulled, thereby increasing openedness of the throttle valve to accelerate the automobile. 
     Furthermore, when a driver releases the manipulating force of the pedal pad  29 , the acceleration pedal arm  27  is returned to its original position by restoring resilient force of the return spring  29  to rotate the pinion  26  counterclockwise and to move the rack bar  23  to the left on the drawing, where the acceleration cable is relaxed by the movement of the rack bar to reduce the openedness of the throttle valve. 
     Meanwhile, when an automobile collides with another vehicle or obstacle while running, shock generated therefrom is applied to the dash panel  21 , as illustrated in FIG. 5, to push the dash panel  21  toward a driver, resulting in the external tube  25  of the acceleration cable supported to the dash panel  21  to be pulled along toward the driver and to be protruded into the housing  22 , where the protruding movement of the external tube  25  is realized along with the inner cable to push the rack bar  23  connected to the inner cable to the right on the drawings. 
     As explained above, when the rack bar  23  is pushed, the pinion  26  meshed with the rack bar  23  is rotated counterclockwise, the rotary movement of the pinion being transmitted to the acceleration pedal arm  27  via the gear unit mounted at the acceleration pedal arm  27 , and the acceleration pedal arm  27  is forced into the housing and the pedal pad  28  disposed at the acceleration pedal arm  27  is reduced at its height thereof, such that shin part of the driver is prevented from being injured by colliding with the pedal pad  28  and the acceleration pedal arm  27 . 
     As apparent from the foregoing, there is an advantage in the acceleration pedal device of automobile thus described according to the present invention in that an acceleration pedal arm of acceleration pedal device is accommodated into a housing by rotary movement of a pinion and retrograding movement of a rack bar when a shock generated in the course of collision of the automobile is transmitted to the acceleration pedal device via a dash panel, thereby reducing a protruding height of the acceleration pedal arm toward a driver such that the driver is saved from injury on shin part resulting from collision with the acceleration pedal arm and pedal pad.