Actuator with actuating pin

• US 8,015,906 B2
• Filed: 06/04/2009
• Issued: 09/13/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 06/09/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyoda Gosei Company Limited (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyoda Gosei Company Limited (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Asaoka, Michihisa, Ito, Shun, Ishiguro, Naohiko
• Primary Examiner(s): Hayes; Bret
• Assistant Examiner(s): Freeman; Joshua
• Application Number:
  US12/457,217
• Publication Number:
  US 20090301339A1
• Time in Patent Office: 831 Days
• Field of Search: 089/1.14, 102/530, 102/531, 2807281-7432, 2808011-808
• US Class Current: 89/1.14
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2021/23384 having ends which are movable or detachable during deployment
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 21/239 characterised by their venting means

Abstract

An actuator includes a piston having an actuating pin, a squib, and a cylinder case. The cylinder case has a peripheral wall part that covers the circumference of the piston and a ceiling wall part having a through hole which allows an actuating pin to protrude from the through hole. The actuator is configured to make the a piston move backward along with the actuating pin by ejecting a driving gas generated from the squib to a space between the ceiling wall part and the piston during actuation. A sealing ring which is relatively movable with respect to the actuating pin while maintaining the state of sealing up a gap between the actuating pin and the through hole, is provided at an inner face side of the ceiling wall part.

Claims

1. An actuator with an actuating pin comprising:

a piston having an actuating pin;

a squib which is ignited during actuation to be capable of generating a driving gas; and

a cylinder case holding the piston, wherein

the piston is configured to make the actuating pin protrude from a leading end thereof,

the cylinder case has a substantially tubular peripheral wall part that covers a circumference of the piston, and a ceiling wall part which has a through hole which allows the actuating pin to protrude therethrough, the ceiling wall part blocks up a leading end side of the peripheral wall part,

during actuation of the actuator with the actuating pin, the driving gas generated from the squib is ejected to a space between the ceiling wall part and the piston in the cylinder case, to make the piston move backward along with the actuating pin,

a sealing ring which is relatively movable with respect to the actuating pin while maintaining a state of sealing up a gap between the actuating pin and the through hole, is provided at an inner face side of the ceiling wall part, and

a presser plate which is formed to have stiffness higher than that of the sealing ring, the presser plate is relatively movable with respect to the actuating pin, and is capable of regulating a backward movement of the sealing ring when the piston moves backward, is provided at a rear side of the sealing ring.

2. The actuator with the actuating pin according to claim 1, wherein the squib is formed separately from the piston, the squib is held at a side of the cylinder case so as to be capable of ejecting the driving gas to the space between the ceiling wall part and the piston in the cylinder case.

3. The actuator with the actuating pin according to claim 1, wherein the sealing ring is composed of an O-ring.

4. The actuator with the actuating pin according to claim 1, wherein the sealing ring is formed into a flat-plate discoid shape having a fitting, hole into which the actuating pin can be inserted to fit.

5. The actuator with the actuating pin according to claim 1, wherein a sealing ring capable of ensuring airtightness between the piston and the peripheral wall part in the cylinder case, is provided at a base side distant from the actuating pin in the piston.

6. The actuator with the actuating pin according to claim 1, wherein the squib is provided integrally with the piston, the squib is configured to be capable of ejecting the driving gas to the space between the ceiling wall part and the piston in the cylinder case.

7. The actuator with the actuating pin according to claim 6, wherein at least some part of the piston and the peripheral wall part in the cylinder case are formed such that their cross-sectional shapes along the axial rotation direction are substantially noncircular, so as to make a rotation along the axial rotation direction of the piston with respect to the peripheral wall part impossible.

8. The actuator with the actuating pin according to claim 6, wherein

the piston is configured to cover a leading end side of the squib and make the actuating pin protrude therefrom, and to provide ejection holes from which the driving gas can be ejected, around the actuating pin, and

the ejection holes are provided to be capable of pressing the presser plate disposed at a rear side of the sealing ring in a direction of forward movement by the driving gas ejected from the ejection holes.

9. The actuator with the actuating pin according to claim 8, wherein the ejection holes are disposed so as to face the presser plate at the rear of the presser plate, and are configured to be capable of ejecting the driving gas along an axial direction of the actuating pin.

10. The actuator with the actuating pin according to claim 9, wherein a temporary joint member that allows a backward movement of the piston during actuation, and regulates a backward movement of the piston before actuation, is provided between the peripheral wall part and the piston in the cylinder case.

11. The actuator with the actuating pin according to claim 10, wherein a forward movement of the piston before actuation is regulated by the presser plate supported by the ceiling wall part via the sealing ring.

12. The actuator with the actuating pin according to claim 10, wherein a tubular member which is formed by performing bending work on a sheet metal material, that makes the piston slidable on an inner circumferential surface thereof, is provided in a state in which a movement thereof along the axial direction with respect to the cylinder case is restricted, between the peripheral wall part and the piston in the cylinder case, and

the tubular member is formed as the temporary joint member on which locking protrusions which are formed to be cut to stand so as to protrude toward the inner circumferential surface, and are configured to lock a rim of a locking recessed portion provided on the piston in assembly with an outer circumference of the piston, to be capable of regulating a backward movement of the piston before actuation, and of unlocking the locking so as to allow a backward movement of the piston during actuation, are provided.

13. The actuator with the actuating pin according to claim 12, wherein

the tubular member is formed of a plate spring material, and is composed of a peripheral wall having the locking protrusions, which is a substantially cylinder shape whose both end sides in the axial direction are open, and

the peripheral wall is formed so as to be divided axially over an entire area by one slit formed along the axial direction, and is configured such that an inner diameter size except for the regions of the locking protrusions in an initial state before diameter expansion, is set to a size with which the peripheral wall can be tightly pressured onto the outer circumferential surface of the piston.

14. The actuator with the actuating pin according to claim 12, wherein the tubular member has a top plate serving as the presser plate disposed at the side of the ceiling wall part of the cylinder case so as to cover one end side in the axial direction, and a peripheral wall having the locking protrusions, which is provided between the peripheral wall part and the piston in the cylinder case.

15. The actuator with the actuating pin according to claim 14, wherein deforming parts which are deformable are provided so as to enable the top plate to relatively move forward with respect to the peripheral wall during actuation, near a rim of the top plate in the vicinities of the joining parts with the peripheral wall.

16. The actuator with the actuating pin according to claim 14, wherein

the tubular member is formed of a plate spring material,

the peripheral wall is composed of curved plate parts which are formed to divide an area at a side of an inner circumference of the peripheral wall part in the cylinder case into a plurality of pieces along the axial rotation direction, and are respectively jointed to the top plate, and

the respective curved plate parts are formed such that an inner diameter size except for regions of the locking protrusions in an initial state before diameter expansion, is set to a size with which the curved plate parts can be tightly pressured onto an outer circumferential surface of the piston.