Adjustable steering column for motor vehicle
First Claim
1. A steering column for a motor vehicle includinga mast jacket supported on a body of said motor vehicle for adjustment in one of a horizontal direction and a vertical direction, anda clamp for releasably capturing a selected position of said mast jacket,characterized in that said clamp comprises:
- a screw shaft supported on a first one of said mast jacket and said vehicle body for rotation about a centerline of said clamp having an outside screw thread thereon,a thrust bearing means operative to prevent linear translation of said screw shaft relative to said one of said mast jacket and said vehicle body in the direction of said centerline of said clamp,a clamp body having a variable diameter passage around said screw shaft and an inside screw thread in said passage meshing with said outside screw thread on said screw shaft,an attachment means operative to attach said clamp body to a second one of said mast jacket and said vehicle body so that said inside and said outside screw threads cooperate to induce idling rotation of said screw shaft in response to adjustment of said mast jacket in said one of said horizontal and said vertical directions of adjustment, anda control means operative to reduce the diameter of said variable diameter passage in said clamp body in response to pivotal movement of a manual control lever from an unlocked position thereof to a locked position thereof thereby to capture the position of said mast jacket by frictionally coupling together said inside and said outside screw threads and preventing idling rotation of said screw shaft.
10 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A steering column including a mast jacket pivotable up and down for vertical adjustment of the steering column and variable lengthwise for horizontal adjustment of the steering column. A clamp includes a first rotatable screw shaft on a stationary bracket perpendicular to a longitudinal centerline of the steering column, a second rotatable screw shaft on the mast jacket parallel to the longitudinal centerline of the steering column, a first split nut on the first screw shaft, and a second split nut on the second screw shaft. The first split nut and the first screw shaft cooperate in converting vertical adjustment of the steering column into idling rotation of the first screw shaft. The second split nut and the second screw shaft cooperate in converting horizontal adjustment of the steering column into idling rotation of the second screw shaft. A manual operating lever of the clamp rotates a control shaft which squeezes the first and the second split nuts against the first and the second screw shafts to frictionally couple the split nuts and the screw shafts and thereby capture the position of the steering column.
29 Citations
9 Claims
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1. A steering column for a motor vehicle including
a mast jacket supported on a body of said motor vehicle for adjustment in one of a horizontal direction and a vertical direction, and a clamp for releasably capturing a selected position of said mast jacket, characterized in that said clamp comprises: -
a screw shaft supported on a first one of said mast jacket and said vehicle body for rotation about a centerline of said clamp having an outside screw thread thereon, a thrust bearing means operative to prevent linear translation of said screw shaft relative to said one of said mast jacket and said vehicle body in the direction of said centerline of said clamp, a clamp body having a variable diameter passage around said screw shaft and an inside screw thread in said passage meshing with said outside screw thread on said screw shaft, an attachment means operative to attach said clamp body to a second one of said mast jacket and said vehicle body so that said inside and said outside screw threads cooperate to induce idling rotation of said screw shaft in response to adjustment of said mast jacket in said one of said horizontal and said vertical directions of adjustment, and a control means operative to reduce the diameter of said variable diameter passage in said clamp body in response to pivotal movement of a manual control lever from an unlocked position thereof to a locked position thereof thereby to capture the position of said mast jacket by frictionally coupling together said inside and said outside screw threads and preventing idling rotation of said screw shaft. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. A steering column for a motor vehicle including
a mast jacket supported on a body of said motor vehicle for adjustment in a horizontal direction and in a vertical direction, and a clamp for releasably capturing coincidentally a selected horizontal position and a selected vertical position of said mast jacket, characterized in that said clamp comprises: -
a first screw shaft supported on said vehicle body for rotation about a first centerline of said clamp parallel to said vertical direction of adjustment having an outside screw thread thereon, a second screw shaft supported on said mast jacket for rotation about a second centerline of said clamp parallel to said horizontal direction of adjustment having an outside screw thread thereon, a thrust bearing means operative to prevent linear translation of said first screw shaft relative to said vehicle body in said vertical direction of adjustment, a thrust bearing means operative to connect said second screw shaft to said mast jacket for linear translation as a unit therewith in said horizontal direction of adjustment, a first split nut having a variable diameter passage around said first screw shaft and an inside screw thread in said variable diameter passage meshing with said outside screw thread on said first screw shaft, a second split nut having a variable diameter passage around said second screw shaft and an inside screw thread in said variable diameter passage meshing with said outside screw thread on said second shaft, a counterbore in said first split nut, a tubular boss on said second split nut seated in said counterbore in said first split nut and cooperating therewith and with said first and said second screw shafts in effecting unitary linear translation of said first and said second split nuts relative to said vehicle body in said vertical direction of adjustment and in restraining linear translation of each of said first and said second split nuts relative to said vehicle body in said horizontal direction of adjustment thereby to induce idling rotation of said first screw shaft in response to vertical adjustment of said mast jacket and idling rotation of said second screw shaft in response to horizontal adjustment of said mast jacket, and a control means operative to concurrently reduce the diameter of said variable diameter passage in each of said first and said second split nuts in response to pivotal movement of a manual control lever from an unlocked position thereof to a locked position thereof thereby to capture coincidentally a vertical adjusted position and a horizontal adjusted position of said mast jacket. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9)
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Specification