# US 11,027,766 B2 · Steering apparatus

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- Number: US 11,027,766 B2
- Document ID: US11027766B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 16/686,507
- Filed: 2019-11-18
- Published: 2020-06-25
- Granted: 2021-06-08
- Earliest claimed: 2018-12-25
- Assignees: Jtekt Corporation
- Applicants: Jtekt Corporation
- Inventors: Satoshi Abe; Yoshitaka Miyanaga; Norihito Tanaka; Satoshi Matoba
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11027766B2

## CPC

- B62D 1/184: Mechanisms for locking columns at selected positions
- B62D 1/197: {incorporating devices for preventing ingress of the steering column into the passengers space in case of accident}
- B62D 1/192: {Yieldable or collapsible columns}
- B62D: MOTOR VEHICLES; TRAILERS (steering, or guiding on a desired track, of agricultural machines or implements A01B69/00; wheels, castors, axles, increasing wheel adhesion B60B; vehicle tyres, tyre inflation or tyre changing B60C; connections between vehicles of a train or the like B60D; vehicles for use on rail and road, amphibious or convertible vehicles B60F; suspension arrangements B60G; heating, cooling, ventilating or other air treating devices B60H; windows, windscreens, non-fixed roofs, doors or similar devices, protective coverings for vehicles not in use B60J; propulsion plant arrangements, auxiliary drives, transmissions, controls, instrumentation or dashboards B60K; electric equipment or propulsion of electrically-propelled vehicles B60L; power supply for electrically-propelled vehicles B60M; passenger accommodation not otherwise provided for B60N; adaptations for load transportation or to carry special loads or objects B60P; arrangement of signalling or lighting devices, the mounting or supporting thereof or circuits therefor, for vehicles in general B60Q; vehicles, vehicle fittings or vehicle parts not otherwise provided for B60R; servicing, cleaning, repairing, supporting, lifting, or manoeuvring, not otherwise provided for, B60S; brake arrangements, brake control systems or parts thereof B60T; air-cushion vehicles B60V; motor-cycles, accessories therefor B62J, B62K; testing of vehicles G01M)

## Abstract

A steering apparatus includes: a column shaft; a column tube supporting the column shaft; a housing movably supporting the column tube; a fastener configured to fix the position of the column tube by pressing on radial ends of the housing; a first impact absorber configured to generate a first dynamic friction force with the column tube; and a second impact absorber configured to generate a second dynamic friction force with the housing during a secondary collision by being moved by the first impact absorber. The first impact absorber is structured such that a distal static friction coefficient in a distal region located further from a squeezing portion of the fastener is less than a proximal static friction coefficient in a proximal region closer to the squeezing portion.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A steering apparatus comprising:
a column shaft coupled to a steering member;
a column tube rotatably supporting the column shaft;
a housing through which the column tube is inserted and that supports the column tube movably in an axial direction;
a fastener configured to fix a position of the column tube by squeezing the housing from outside the column tube such that a portion of the housing in the axial direction is reduced in diameter;
a first impact absorber including an annular portion attached to and in contact with an outer perimeter of the column tube, the first impact absorber being configured to generate a first dynamic friction force with the column tube during a secondary collision; and
a second impact absorber fixedly connected to the housing by a squeezing force of the fastener, the second impact absorber being configured to generate a second dynamic friction force with the housing during the secondary collision by being moved by the first impact absorber moving together with the column shaft, wherein
the first impact absorber has a proximal static friction coefficient in a proximal region and a distal static friction coefficient less than the proximal static friction coefficient in a distal region,
the proximal region is located close to a squeezing portion of the fastener in a radial direction crossing both the axial direction and a fastening direction of the fastener, and
the distal region is located further from the squeezing portion than the proximal region in the radial direction.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The steering apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a contact area between the first impact absorber and the column tube is less in the distal region than in the proximal region so that the distal static friction coefficient is less than the proximal static friction coefficient.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The steering apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:
at least one of the first impact absorber and the column tube has protrusions in contact with another of the first impact absorber and the column tube, a first number of the protrusions is located in the distal region, a second number of the protrusions is located in the proximal region; and
the first number is less than the second number so that the distal static friction coefficient is less than the proximal static friction coefficient.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The steering apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:
at least one of the first impact absorber and the column tube has a recess portion that is located at least in the distal region and that is not in contact with another of the first impact absorber and the column tube; and
the recess portion causes a contact area between the first impact absorber and the column tube to be less in the distal region than in the proximal region so that the distal static friction coefficient is less than the proximal static friction coefficient.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The steering apparatus according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the contact surfaces between the first impact absorber and the column tube has surface textures that are different in the proximal region and in the distal region such that the distal static friction coefficient is less than the proximal static friction coefficient.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The steering apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the annular portion has an overall thickness in the axial direction, and the proximal region and the distal region each encompass the overall thickness.

### Claim 7 (depends on 1)

The steering apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the distal static friction coefficient being less than the proximal static friction coefficient in the distal region reduces the likelihood of the first impact absorber being twisted relative to the column tube due to the secondary collision.