Receiving arrangement for a steering column of a motor vehicle

• US 4,732,050 A
• Filed: 06/03/1987
• Issued: 03/22/1988
• Est. Priority Date: 06/06/1986
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Daimler-Benz AG (Mercedes-Benz Group AG)
• Original Assignee: Daimler-Benz AG (Mercedes-Benz Group AG)
• Inventors: Vollmer, Meinrad
• Primary Examiner(s): Herrmann, Allan D.
• Application Number:
  US07/056,888
• Time in Patent Office: 293 Days
• Field of Search: 74/493, 74/527, 280/775, 248/287
• US Class Current: 74/493
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 1/184 Mechanisms for locking columns at selected positions
• CPC Class Codes: F16B 5/0225 allowing for adjustment parallel to the plane of the plates
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 74/20636 Detents

Abstract

A receiving arrangement for a steering column that can be adjusted in its height and inclination comprises two receiving plates fixed at the vehicle, one locking plate respectively having an oblong hole being assigned to each receiving plate via a plane toothing, a bearing shaft supporting the steering column being guided through said oblong hole into one of two directions that extend vertically with respect to one another, while the opposite locking plate is slid along its receiving plate and by means of its toothing, is locked by means of a clamping arrangement.

Claims

1. A receiving arrangement for a steering column of a motor vehicle that carries the steering column by means of a bearing shaft at two receiving plates fixed at the vehicle at opposite lateral sides of the steering column, said steering column being adjustable in its inclination and height by movement of the bearing shaft along oblong holes and being lockable in different positions by means of a clamping arrangement, wherein

a locking plate is assigned to each receiving plate, said locking plate having a respective oblong hole,

each receiving plate containing a square cutout, the dimensions of which correspond to the maximum sliding path of the adjustment of the height and inclination,

the receiving plates and the locking plates, at their surfaces facing one another, are equipped with toothings that engage with one another, the tooth profiles of said toothings each extending in the direction of the longitudinal course of the oblong hole of the adjacent locking plate.

2. A receiving arrangement according to claim 1, wherein each locking plate is aligned relative to its receiving plate by, means of guide surfaces that delimit the longitudinal course of its tooth profiles.

3. A receiving arrangement according to claim 2, wherein said guide surfaces are formed as bent away sections of the receiving plates.

4. A receiving arrangement according to claim 2, further comprising clamping means in the form of interengageable clamping track means at the bearing shaft and locking plate for accommodating forced axial movement of the bearing shaft in response to rotation of the bearing shaft.