Steering apparatus

• US 10,053,135 B2
• Filed: 03/24/2017
• Issued: 08/21/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 04/07/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Jtekt Corporation (Toyota Motor Corporation), Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Jtekt Corporation (Toyota Motor Corporation), Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Sakuda, Masayoshi, Sugiura, Tomonori, Kubota, Tatsuro, Ishimura, Shoji, Hoshino, Shigeru
• Primary Examiner(s): Condra, Darlene P
• Application Number:
  US15/468,786
• Publication Number:
  US 20170291632A1
• Time in Patent Office: 515 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 1/184 Mechanisms for locking columns at selected positions
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 1/189 the entire column being tiltable as a unit
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 1/195 Yieldable supports for the steering column

Abstract

A support shaft includes a first supported portion and a second supported portion supported by respective support holes of a pair of fastened portions. The support shaft includes a large-diameter portion including the first supported portion, a small-diameter portion including the second supported portion and having a diameter smaller than the large-diameter portion, and a stepped portion formed between the large-diameter portion and the small-diameter portion. The small-diameter portion includes a tapered portion provided in the small-diameter portion so as to be adjacent to the stepped portion and having a diameter gradually decreasing toward the stepped portion, a first to-be-broken portion placed in a smallest-diameter portion of the tapered portion so as to be broken at a time of a secondary collision, and a second to-be-broken portion placed adjacent to the second supported portion so as to be broken at the time of the secondary collision.

Claims

1. A steering apparatus comprising:

a column jacket including a steering shaft stretchable in a column axial direction, an outer jacket including a slit and a pair of fastened portions placed on both sides of the slit, and an inner jacket fitted to the outer jacket, the column jacket being configured to rotatably support the steering shaft and to be stretchable in the column axial direction;

a fastening mechanism including a fastening shaft passed through fastening shaft passing holes of the pair of fastened portions, and an operating lever rotating the fastening shaft, the fastening mechanism being configured to fasten the pair of fastened portions via the fastening shaft so that the outer jacket holds the inner jacket;

a first tooth formation member forming first teeth and fixed to the inner jacket;

a support shaft including a first supported portion and a second supported portion supported by respective support holes of the pair of fastened portions; and

a second tooth formation member including a second tooth engaging with a corresponding one of the first teeth, the second tooth formation member being rotatably supported by the support shaft so as to rotate according to an operation of the operating lever such that the second tooth engages with or disengages from the corresponding one of the first teeth, wherein;

the support shaft includes a large-diameter portion partially including the first supported portion in a support shaft direction, a small-diameter portion partially including the second supported portion in the support shaft direction and having a diameter smaller than the large-diameter portion, and a stepped portion formed between the large-diameter portion and the small-diameter portion; and

the small-diameter portion includes a tapered portion provided in the small-diameter portion so as to be adjacent to the stepped portion and having a diameter gradually decreasing toward the stepped portion, a first to-be-broken portion placed in a smallest-diameter portion of the tapered portion so as to be broken at a time of a secondary collision, and a second to-be-broken portion placed adjacent to the second supported portion so as to be broken at the time of the secondary collision.

2. The steering apparatus according to claim 1 further comprising

a reinforcing member configured to be fitted to an outer peripheral surface of the small-diameter portion between the first to-be-broken portion and the second to-be-broken portion, the reinforcing member being formed in a tubular shape and having a strength higher than a strength of the support shaft, wherein

the second tooth formation member is supported by the support shaft via the reinforcing member.