ACTUATOR, PARTICULARLY FOR A MOTOR VEHICLE PARKING BRAKE

• US 20150321647A1
• Filed: 07/20/2015
• Published: 11/12/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 01/16/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Brose Fahrzeugteile GmbH & Co. Kommanditgesellschaft Wuerzburg
• Original Assignee: Brose Fahrzeugteile GmbH & Co. Kommanditgesellschaft Wuerzburg
• Inventors: Deutloff, Norbert, Kraft, Ekkehard, Roos, Stephan, Sauer, Armin
• Granted Patent: US 9,873,411 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 13/746 and mechanical transmission of the braking action
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 7/085 by electrical means, e.g. travel, force sensors
• CPC Class Codes: F16D 2121/24 using motors
• CPC Class Codes: F16D 65/28 arranged apart from the brake

Abstract

An actuator (1), especially for a motor vehicle parking brake has a telescopic device (2) that actuates a brake cable (6), and a drive unit which is equipped with an electromechanical drive for actuating the telescopic device (2). The actuator (1) further has a displacement sensor unit for detecting the actuating travel of the telescopic device (2) as well as a force sensor unit for detecting the force applied to the brake cable (6) by the drive unit. The displacement sensor unit and the force sensor unit are disposed next to each other in or on the housing (3) of the telescopic device (2) while being separated from the brake cable (6). The assembly has a particularly simple and compact design while reducing the constructive and mounting effort required during the production of the actuator.

Claims

1. An actuator (1), in particular for a motor vehicle parking brake, which has

a drive device comprising an electromechanical drive

a telescopic device (2) that actuates a brake cable (6) in a housing (3), which is drivingly-connected to the drive device,

with a displacement sensor unit for detecting the adjustment travel of the telescopic device (2), comprising a displacement signal sensor (27) and a displacement signal receiver (22) and

with a force sensor unit for detecting the force applied to the brake cable (6) by means of the telescopic device (2), comprising a force signal sensor (26) and a force signal receiver (15),

with the displacement sensor unit and the force sensor unit being disposed spatially adjacent to each other in the housing (3) of the telescopic device (2) and separate from the brake cable (6).

2. The actuator (1) as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the displacement signal sensor and the force signal sensor are combined in one assembly.

3. The actuator (1) as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the displacement signal sensor and the force signal sensor are combined in one single component.

4. The actuator (1) as claimed in one of the claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the telescopic device (2) has a hollow shaft (5) and a spindle shaft (7) axially connected to said hollow shaft in a manner that enables it to rotate and advance as well as a drive gear wheel (8), which in respect of rotation and axial displacement is fixed to the hollow shaft (5) in a defined fashion and which is drivingly-connected to the electromechanical drive,

with the telescopic device (2) in its housing (3) being axially mounted in a movable fashion along the longitudinal axis (31) of the actuating unit (1) and being supported against the housing (3) with a spring element (11).

5. The actuator (1) as claimed in claim 4, characterized in that the force signal sensor (26) and/or the displacement signal sensor (27) is disposed on the hollow shaft (7).

6. The actuator (1) as claimed in one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that displacement signal receiver (22) and force signal receiver (15) are disposed adjacent to each other on a common support unit (21) in or on the housing (3) of the telescopic device (2) in such a way that they can pick up the sensor signals from displacement signal sensor (27) and force signal sensor (26).

7. The actuator (1) as claimed in claim 6, characterized in that the support unit (21) is a circuit support, on which further components (29, 30) of an electronic control unit of the actuator are disposed.

8. The actuator (1) as claimed in one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the displacement signal sensor (27) is a rotational travel sensor, which transmits one or several signals proportional to the rotational travel of a drive element (8, 5) to the displacement signal receiver (22) or generates said signals with the help thereof.

9. The actuator (1) as claimed in one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the force signal sensor (26) is a translation displacement sensor, which transmits one or several signals proportional to a translational movement of the telescopic device (2) against the spring element (11) to the force signal receiver (15) or generates said signals with the help thereof.

10. The actuator (1) as claimed in one of the claims 1 to 9 characterized in that the force signal receiver (15) and/or the displacement signal receiver has a Hall element (18).