Suspended pedal support

• US 6,446,525 B1
• Filed: 01/22/2001
• Issued: 09/10/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 04/21/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: ED Scharwachter GmbH & Company KG
• Original Assignee: ED Scharwachter GmbH & Company KG
• Inventors: Borchers, Wolf-Dieter
• Primary Examiner(s): LUONG, VINH
• Application Number:
  US09/673,712
• Time in Patent Office: 596 Days
• Field of Search: 745/12, 745/60, 745/13, 745/625, 403/153, 403/154, 403/166, 384/428
• US Class Current: 74/512
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 23/02 for main transmission clutches
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 26/02 of initiating means or elements
• CPC Class Codes: G05G 1/36 Mounting units comprising an assembly of two or more pedals, e.g. for facilitating mounting
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 403/32885 Expanded pin or end
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 74/20528 Foot operated
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 74/20534 Accelerator
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 74/20888 Pedals

Abstract

A disengageable pedal support for a foot control unit has a bearing bracket with two bearing arms and one bearing eyelet formed in each, the bearing eyelet having a continuation projecting laterally to the side of that bearing arm and facing the other bearing arm, an annular plain bearing shell in each bearing eyelet continuation having graduations forming graduated supports that have a smaller and a larger internal diameter part, a first suspended pedal supported by the smaller internal diameter parts and pivotable around an axis, and a second suspended pedal supported by the larger internal diameter parts, pivotable around the axis and suspended beside the first pedal. The support of one of the two pedals is designed as a plug-in support. Each annular plain bearing shell is formed by a molding made of self lubricating plastic material and provided with a radial opening in the larger internal diameter parts.

Claims

1. A disengageable pedal support for a foot control unit, comprising:

a bearing bracket with two bearing arms, each of said bearing arms having a bearing eyelet, said bearing eyelet having a bearing eyelet continuation projecting laterally to the side of its assigned bearing arm, which is facing the respective other bearing arm,

an annular plain bearing shell in each of the bearing eyelet continuations, said annular plain bearing shell having graduations which form graduated supports, said graduated supports each having a smaller internal diameter part and a larger internal diameter part,

a first suspended pedal which is supported by said smaller internal diameter parts of said graduated supports, said first pedal being pivotable around an axis, and

a second suspended pedal, which is supported by said larger internal diameter parts of said graduated supports, said second pedal being able to be pivoted around the axis and being suspended besides the first pedal, wherein the support of one of the two pedals is designed as a plug-in support.

2. The disengageable pedal support according to claim 1, wherein the first pedal is a brake pedal and the second pedal is a clutch pedal.

3. The pedal support according to claim 2, wherein the brake pedal is of two part design comprising a first pedal bearing half of the brake pedal, said first half being connected in a rotationally secure manner to a first bearing body, and a second half of the brake pedal, said second half forming an actuator lever for actuating a braking system, said second half being connected in a rotationally secure manner to a second bearing body and said actuating lever being spaced apart from the first half of the brake pedal, said first and second bearing bodies being spaced apart from each other and being coupled in a rotationally secure manner to one another by a polyhedral element engaging in said first and second bearing bodies with a form fit, said first and second bearing bodies each being accommodated in the smaller internal diameter parts of the graduated supports of the annular plain bearing shells.

4. The pedal support according to claim 3, further comprising

a spacer sleeve,

a screw bolt provided with a head,

an internal thread provided at the first bearing body, it being the case that the first and second bearing bodies are braced against the two end sides of the spacer sleeve by the screw bolt passing through said first and second bearing bodies and being engaged with said internal thread of the first bearing body, wherein the head of the screw bolt engages over one end side of the spacer sleeve and wherein the described arrangement of the spacer sleeve, the screw bolt and the two bearing bodies forms a brake pedal shaft.

5. The pedal support according to claim 4, further comprising a tube, which is arranged concentrically with the brake pedal shaft and encloses said brake pedal shaft, wherein said tube is accommodated in the larger internal diameter parts of the graduated supports of the annular plain bearing shells.

6. The pedal support according claim 5, wherein the pedal lever of the clutch pedal is connected to the tube in a rotationally secure manner through welding.

7. The pedal support according to claim 6, further comprising

radial openings in the bearing eyelet continuations,

other radial openings in the larger internal diameter parts of the graduations of the annular plain bearing shells, wherein said radial openings in the bearing eyelet continuations and the other radial openings in the larger internal diameter parts have a same diameter inside.

8. The pedal support according to claim 7, wherein the tube has a larger external diameter than the diameter inside of the radial openings.

9. The pedal support according to claim 8, wherein in a region of its two ends, the tube is provided with two mutually opposite outer circumference flattened formations such that an external diameter over said flattened formations is smaller or equal to the clear diameter of the radial openings.

10. The pedal support according to claim 9, wherein in relation to the radial openings, the two flattened formations of the tube which is connected to the clutch pedal are arranged in a range which is located outside a normal operation pivoting angle range of the plug-in support.

11. The pedal support according to claim 1, wherein the annular plain bearing shells are each formed by a molding made of self lubricating plastic material and are provided with a radial opening in the said larger internal diameter parts of said graduations of said annular plain bearing shells.

12. The pedal support according to claim 1, wherein said foot control unit comprises a further pedal.