Steering mechanism for car

The invention relates to a vehicle steering mechanism in which the shoulder axles (2) can be locked at different distances from each other to adjust the track width and in which the effective length of the tie rod (3 ', 3, 6', 6) connecting the shoulder axles (2) can be varied accordingly. According to the invention, the ends of the tie rod are articulated (5) on opposite sides of the shoulder axles (2) and the tie rod is divided into two substantially parallel racks (3 ', 3) which are operatively connected to each other by a gear (Ö) mounted between them.

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Auxiliary means of operation are provided, in which case one of the axle pins (2) is left as far as possible for the adjustment of the spheres and the pulsation of the effective axle pins (3 ', 3, 6', 6) of the axle pins (2) ändras pä motsvarande provision. The parallel operation is parallel to the parallel control (5) and the parallel operation is connected to the axle (2) and the parallel operation is parallel to the axle suspension (3).¹, 3 ”) are functionally different from a variety of devices (8).

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Vehicle steering mechanism

This invention relates to a vehicle steering mechanism in which the shoulder axles are lockable at different distances from each other to adjust the track width and in which the effective length of the tie rod connecting the shoulder axles can be varied accordingly.

In many cases, it would be advantageous and desirable for the track gauge of the vehicle to be adjustable. This would be particularly advantageous in agricultural tractors and garden tractors for adjusting the track width so that the tractor wheels hit the furrows in the plowed field or garden land. When driving on uneven ground, it would also be advantageous to be able to adjust the track width as much as possible and, on the other hand, to reduce it as little as possible during transport, for example when transporting a garden tractor with a car trailer. Otherwise, it would be advantageous if the track gauge of the vehicle could be temporarily reduced, for example when driving on narrow lanes or when parking.

Numerous problems have hitherto been encountered in the attempt to provide vehicle gauges with adjustable track gauge. When the distance between the shoulder axles has been changed to adjust the track width, at the same time the length of the tie rod has had to be adjusted, in addition to which the steering angles have had to be checked again. In order to provide an effective length adjustable tie rod, this has had to be formed by two telescopically interlocking parts which can be locked together. However, such a structure is relatively weak and easily bends under the influence of mechanical stresses and impacts on it. In addition, the adjustment can be difficult to perform because the tie rod is exposed to dirt2

771 91, as a result of which the telescopingly entering parts often adhere to each other, so that they are awkward or impossible to separate from each other. When using the steering gear, the point of attachment of the steering lever to the tie rod must be changed when adjusting the effective length of the tie rod. On the other hand, when using clamshell and arm steering directly acting on the other shoulder axle, dead or near-dead angles are easily created if the track gauge is spread wide and the steering arm falls on the same straight line or almost the same straight line as the wheel axle.

In addition, the previously proposed solutions presented above take up a lot of space, are complex, and operate in practice with uncertainty. It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a vehicle steering mechanism in which the shoulder axles can be locked at different distances to adjust the track gauge and in which the effective length of the tie rod connecting the shoulder axles changes accordingly without having to check the steering angles after adjusting the track gauge. It is a further object of the present invention to provide a vehicle steering mechanism which is more reliable, easier to use and structurally simpler, and the main features of the invention appear from the appended claims.

In contrast to the previously known solutions, the ends of the tie rod in the control mechanism according to the invention are now articulated to opposite sides of the shoulder axles, whereby the effective length of the tie rod changes not only when adjusting the track gauge but also when turning the wheels. The tie rod is divided into two substantially parallel racks, which are spaced a short distance apart and operatively connected to each other by a medicated gear, which is preferably connected to the steering of the vehicle. In contrast to normal rack-and-pinion steering, the steering forces in the mechanism of the present invention are evenly distributed over two racks which move in opposite directions when the gear is rotated, causing the wheels to rotate in the same direction because the opposite end of each rack The tie rod arms of both shoulder axles are thus in opposite directions. When adjusting the track width, the movement of the second rack is automatically transmitted via the gear to the second rack in the opposite direction of equal movement, so that the steering angles do not have to be checked after adjusting the track width.

According to the present invention, there is further provided a unitary, very small space and dirt-protected structure by fitting racks to a tubular shaft in which a gear is also mounted and having telescopically projecting arms on opposite ends of the tubular shaft and locking arms to the tubular shaft. the shafts are mounted. The arms to be locked to the tubular shaft are preferably hollow, so that the racks can be fitted inside them, the arms and the tubular shaft, respectively, having elongate openings or slots through which each rack is articulated to its shoulder shaft.

The steering mechanism according to the invention is preferably fitted to the front axle of the vehicle, but it can also be fitted to the rear axle of the vehicle to provide four-wheel steering. Particularly preferably, the steering mechanism according to the present invention is adapted to a 2- or 4-wheel drive tractor, for example a garden tractor with a hydraulic transmission.

The invention will be described in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 shows a schematic top view of an embodiment of the invention, and Figure 2 shows a vertical view of a preferred embodiment of the invention.

As can be seen in the schematic diagram of Figure 1, the steering mechanism according to the invention differs from the conventional rack steering mechanism in that the tie rod is divided into two parallel and in the case of Figure 1 successive racks 3 'and 3 connected by a joint 5 and a shaft 6' or 6. own shoulder axle 2 Tie rod arm 4. In this context, a tie rod means an assembly consisting of racks 3 'and 3, and arms 6' and 6 connected to them by means of a joint 7, which in turn are connected by means of a joint 5 to the rods 4 of the shoulder axles 2. Shoulder axle 2 or shoulder joint.

As can be seen in more detail in Figure 1, a gear 8 is mounted between the parallel successive racks 3 'and 3, which is either connected to the handlebar or freely rotatable. If the gear 8 is freely rotatable, the steering rod is connected to one of the two racks 3 'or 3 in a manner known per se, for example by means of a steering gear. The gear 8 arranged between the racks 3 'and 3 causes the rotation of the gear 8 to cause equal opposite movement in both racks 3' and 3 of the rack 5 or the movement of the second rack 3 'or 3, respectively. . As a result, and since the rods 4 of the shoulder axles 2 are in opposite directions, the wheels 1 turn equally in the same direction (curved arrows in the figure) when the steering wheel is turned.

To adjust the track width, the shoulder shafts 2 are detached from their attachments and moved axially equally away from each other or towards each other. In this case, the vehicle is raised so that the wheels 1 are off the chassis. The steering angles remain unchanged despite the track gauge adjustment. The attachment of the shoulder axles 2 is preferably stepped, the steps on each side of the vehicle preferably being at the same distance from the center line of the vehicle.

In the preferred embodiment shown in Figure 2, the control mechanism is encapsulated in a rectangular tubular shaft 9, at opposite ends of which the arms 10 'and 10 of substantially uniform cross-section are telescopically arranged and locked to the tubular shaft 9 by means of bolts 11. The shoulder shafts 2 are mounted on the free ends of these arms 10 'and 10. The arms 10 'and 10 are also hollow. A helically gear 8 rotatable substantially about a horizontal axis is mounted in the middle of the tubular shaft 9 and racks 3 'and 3 with corresponding toothing are arranged inside the tubular shaft 9 so as to protrude into the hollow arms 10' and 10 at the same time. The shoulder shafts 2 are articulated by means of arms 6 'and 6 to a rack 3' or 3 inside the tubular shaft 9 and arms 10 'and 10, the hinge 7 of the rack 3' and 3 being arranged to move laterally horizontally back and forth in the arm 10 'or 10. in the elongate slot 12 and at a corresponding point in the section 13 in the tubular shaft 9.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. . However, adjusting the track width in the solution according to the present invention does not require checking the steering angles when both shoulder axes 2 are moved equally in opposite directions, the racks 3 'and 3 respectively moving equally in opposite directions by means of a freely rotating gear 8 between them. However, if the shoulder axles 2 are not moved as much in opposite directions, the steering angles can be maintained by turning each wheel 1 to its other extreme position and holding them in this position until the shoulder axles 2 are locked in place.