Source: http://www.freepatentsonline.com/y2008/0185829.html
Timestamp: 2019-12-16 02:35:38
Document Index: 320559324

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 3', 'art 4', 'art 3', 'art 4', 'art 3', 'art 3', 'art 4', 'art 3', 'art 6', 'art 4', 'art.\n20', 'art.\n21', 'art 4', 'art 3', 'art 3', 'art 4', 'art 4', 'art 4', 'art 3', 'art 4', 'art 3']

Adjustable steering column for a motor vehicle - Senn, Mathias
United States Patent Application 20080185829
The invention proposes an adjustable steering column 1 for a motor vehicle with a setting part 3 displaceable in at least one setting direction for setting the position of the steering column, a holding part 4 nondisplaceable in this setting direction and a securement device 5, in the opened state of which the setting part 3 is displaceable with respect to the holding part 4 for setting the position of the steering column 1, and in the closed state of which the setting part 3 is secured in place by the securement device. A crash blocking device is provided, by which at least in the event of a crash, an additional holding force can be exerted against a dislocation of the setting part 3 with respect to the holding part 4, which comprises a blocking element 6, 7 united with the setting part 3 and a blocking part 6, 7 united with the holding part 4, wherein one of the blocking elements 6 comprises scales 8 acting resiliently out of the surface and the other of the two blocking elements 7 has recesses 9, in such manner that at least some of the scales 8 projecting resiliently from the surface of the one blocking element 6 can be brought at least partially into engagement in corresponding recesses 9 of the other blocking element 7 in the closed state of the securement device 5.
Senn, Mathias (Sevelen, CH)
12/010057
Download PDF 20080185829 PDF help
20100001496 MOTOR VEHICLE WITH A-PILLAR AND AIRBAG MOUNTED THEREIN January, 2010 Schirm et al.
15. An adjustable steering column for a motor vehicle, said adjustable steering column comprising: a setting part displaceable in at least one setting direction for setting the position of the steering column; a holding part nondisplaceable into the setting direction; a securement device, in an opened state of which the setting part is displaceable with respect to the holding part for setting the position of the steering column, and in a closed state of which the setting part is secured in place by the securement device with respect to the holding part; and a crash blocking device by which an additional holding force against a dislocation of the setting part with respect to the holding part can be exerted, a first blocking element united with the setting part, and a second blocking element united with the holding part; wherein one of said first and second blocking elements comprises at least one scale, which, in an unloaded state, projects resiliently from a surface of the blocking element, and the other of said first and second blocking elements has at least one recess, and, in a closed state of the securement device, at least one scale is located in the proximity of the recess or, upon an onsetting slipping-through of the setting part with respect to the holding part reaches the proximity of the recess and the at least one scale located in the proximity of the recess, or reaching such, projects into the recess and is located opposite one edge of the recess.
16. The adjustable steering column for a motor vehicle as claimed in claim 15, wherein the at least one scale in the opened state of the securement device is brought out of engagement with the at least one recess.
17. The adjustable steering column for a motor vehicle as claimed in claim 16, wherein a spring is provided, whose spring force in the opened state of the securement device brings the at least one scale out of engagement from the at least one recess.
18. The adjustable steering column for a motor vehicle as claimed in claim 15, wherein the securement device comprises a clamping axle jointly moved with the setting part at least in one displacement direction, which axle bears one of the first and second blocking elements, wherein said one of the first and second blocking elements is nondisplaceable in the displacement direction with respect to the clamping axle.
19. The adjustable steering column for a motor vehicle as claimed in claim 15, wherein one of said first and second blocking elements is fastened directly on the setting part.
20. The adjustable steering column for a motor vehicle as claimed in claim 15, wherein one of said first and second blocking elements is held by the holding part nondisplaceably into the displacement direction in which it acts, or is implemented integrally with the holding part.
21. The adjustable steering column for a motor vehicle as claimed in claim 15, wherein the one of the first and second blocking elements that comprises the at least one scale is formed of a metal sheet, the at least one scale and the blocking element that comprises the at least one scale are implemented integrally with one another, and the at least one scale is formed preferably by punching out a portion of its periphery and stamping.
22. The adjustable steering column for a motor vehicle as claimed in claim 15, comprising one of said crash blocking device for each displacement direction.
23. The adjustable steering column for a motor vehicle as claimed in claim 15, wherein the securement device comprises at least one lamella connected with the setting part and at least one lamella connected with the holding part, wherein at least one of these lamellae is formed as a blocking element, provided with at least one scale, of the crash blocking device.
24. The adjustable steering column as claimed in claim 22, wherein at least one of the lamellae connected with the setting part as well as also at least one of the lamellae connected with the holding part is formed as a blocking element, provided at least with at least one scale, of the crash blocking device.
25. The adjustable steering column for a motor vehicle as claimed in claim 15, wherein the crash blocking device is integrated in the securement device.
26. The adjustable steering column as claimed in claim 15, wherein the one of said first and second blocking elements comprises several scales for cooperating with the at least one recess of the other of said first and second blocking elements.
27. The adjustable steering column as claimed in claim 26, wherein scales are provided pointing with their free ends in opposite directions.
28. The adjustable steering column as claimed in claim 15, wherein the other of said first and second blocking elements comprises several recesses for cooperating with the at least one scale of the one of the first and second blocking elements.
These systems already permits the securement of the steering column with few lamellae and a short actuation stroke and a relatively low clamping force. However, in order to be able to absorb the high holding forces, such as are required for the event of a crash, the number of lamellae and/or the clamping force must be increased. The securement device becomes thereby more complex, more expensive and occupies greater installation space. The strokes and forces for actuating the clamping lever, furthermore, become greater. In addition, the energy dissipation upon a slipping-through of the securement device can only be set imprecisely in the event of a crash.
The Figures depict therein the following:
In the closed state of the securement device the blocking elements 6, 7 are placed in contact on one another, wherein individual scales 8b are pressed back into the surface of the blocking element 6 and other scales 8a project into the recesses 9 of the other blocking element 7 (cf. FIG. 2).
In the event of a crash, a dislocation force acts in the direction of the arrow onto the blocking element 6 united with the setting part, whereby in the example a small relative dislocation occurs until the end face 19 of the scale 8a comes into contact with the edge of the recess and here effects a blocking force against the further dislocation in the direction of the arrow (cf. FIG. 3).
The other blocking element 6 is preferably formed as a planar sheet metal stamped part, in which scales 8 are generated by punching and stamping. This embodiment is schematically illustrated in FIG. 9. At least some of the end faces 19 of the scales 8 are so oriented that, when they project in the closed state of the securement device into a recess 9 of the other blocking element 7, they are located oppositely to the edge of the recess 9 (=the inner wall delimiting the recess 9, which wall is preferably at right angles to the displacement direction) and can thereby come to rest in contact on the edge of recess 9 and can effect the blocking of the setting part with respect to the holding part. Accordingly, in this embodiment through the stamping process a folding line 18a is formed in the transition from the blocking element to the formed-out scale.
In the closed state of the securement device both blocking elements 6, 7 are in contact on one another. Through the securement device the set position of the steering column is secured in place for “normal operation”. For this purpose, in the depicted embodiment example the side jaws forming the holding part 4 are pressed onto the planar side faces of the setting part 3.
Furthermore, the side, facing away from the cam disk 13, of the connecting link disk 14 is pressed onto the one side jaw. Further, the surface, facing the blocking element 6, of the blocking element 7, in the region in which there are no recesses, is pressed onto the blocking element 6, whereby a further friction-lock seizing is effected.
In an advantageous further development of the invention, such spring is laid out analogously to the scales 8 or in the simplest further development at least one of the scales 8 of the blocking element 6, which does not engage into one of the recesses 9 of the other blocking element 7, exerts through contact with the surface of the blocking element 7 a spring force, which presses the blocking elements 6, 7 with the opened securement device 5 apart from one another and therewith permits the displaceability of the setting part 3 with respect to the holding part 4. In particular preferred is an additional scale integrated as a scale spring 21 into the blocking element 6, which can never engage into one of the recesses 9 of the other blocking element and preferably has a greater spring excursion than the remaining scales 8. For this purpose the blocking element 6 is, for example, implemented with two scale springs 21 whose folding edge 18b is oriented orthogonally to the folding edges 18a of the scales 8, as is schematically shown in FIGS. 9 and 10.
FIG. 10 shows an alternative embodiment of a blocking element 6. This alternative embodiment is suitable for the alternative disposition, described in the preceding paragraph, of the blocking elements 6, 7 in the securement device 5, in which the blocking elements 6 and 7 are interchanged compared to the disposition shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. The blocking element 6 is here formed as a sheet metal punched part with four scales 8. In addition, two scale springs 21 are integrated in the sheet metal punched part, whose folding edge 18b is orthogonal to the folding edges 18a of scale 8. The blocking element is supported on a carrier element 22 by means of positive closure. The carrier element 22 according to this embodiment is guided via a cutout 23, through which is guided a clamp bolt, connected with the clamp bolt, and consequently with the setting part, nondisplaceably in the setting direction in which the blocking elements 6, 7 act, which is not further shown in FIG. 10.
It is also conceivable and feasible that at least one scale spring 21 is disposed on one of the blocking elements and at least one scale 8 on the other of the two blocking elements.
Further, two such pairs of blocking elements can be provided, wherein each assumes the crash blocking for one of the two possible displacement directions of the setting part with respect to the holding part 4. The directions, in which the scales 8 cooperate correspondingly with the recesses 9, are oriented accordingly.
Even if in the embodiment shown here the crash blocking device is only disposed on one side of the holding part 4 and on the side facing away from the setting part 3, the crash blocking device can also be disposed on both sides and/or between holding part 4 and setting part 3.
The scales can further also be represented by separately formed plates, which are pressed out of the blocking element with springs.
8a Scale
8b Scale
18a Folding edge [sic: line] scale
18b Folding edge [sic: line] scale spring
Next Patent: Collapsible steering column support