Energy absorbing steering assembly
AssigneeToyota Jidosha Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
InventorsGenyo Murase, Hisahal Mineda, Yozo Yamaguchi
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A steering wheel supporting assembly including first and second hubs secured on the upper end of a steering shaft and on the central portion of the spokes of the steering wheel, respectively, and a shearable connecting means collapsibly connecting the hub members to each other whereby a forward impact energy exerted on the steering column supporting assembly is at least partially absorbed by means of the collapsible connection; the hub members and collapsible connecting means are molded integrally with synthetic resin.
Claims6
A steering wheel mounting apparatus comprising:
- a hub member securely mounted on the top end of a steering shaft of a vehicle and provided with a convex spherical periphery;
- a supporting member connected to the spokes of a steering wheel and provided with a concave spherical inner circumference corresponding with said convex periphery of said hub member;
- and
- radially extending connecting means for shearably connecting said hub member and said supporting member coupled to each other.
A steering wheel mounting apparatus, comprising:
- a hub member fixed to a steering shaft of a vehicle and having a concave part-spherically exterior surface;
- a support member fixed to a steering wheel of the vehicle and having a part-spherically shaped interior surface complementary to said concave surface of said hub member, said support member interior surface extending over said hub member to contain said hub member within said support member and to inhibit substantial relative longitudinal movement of said hub and support members;
- and
- radially extending connecting means for shearably connecting said hub and supporting members to each other.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.