US 4,905,487 AGranted

Steering locking apparatus

AssigneeKabushiki Kaisha Tokai Rika Denki Seisakusho

InventorsMinoru Morikawa, Yonetsugu Umemoto, Toru Tanaka

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Abstract

A steering locking apparatus for a vehicle is designed in such a way that the rotation of a key rotor located at an unlocking position to a locked position by the rotation of a key is prevented by a restricting lever and the prevention of the rotation of the key rotor is removed by pressing a pressing button so as to allow the key rotor to be rotated to the locked position. In a state wherein the pressing of the pressing button is prevented by operating an electromagnetic solenoid under predetermined conditions and thereby engaging a plunger supported by a plunger of the electromagnetic solenoid with the pressing button, the load applied to the pressing button is received by a car body through the stopper plate. In consequence, no load is exerted on the plunger.

Claims18

Dependent claims

A steering locking apparatus for a vehicle, comprising:

a key rotor that can be rotated from a first position at which a key can be inserted into and removed therefrom to a second position at which said key inserted cannot be removed therefrom by means of the key inserted thereinto;
first and second cam means rotated together with said key rotor;
a locking member moved back and forth between a locking position at which it locks steering and an unlocking position at which it unlocks steering by rotating said first cam means;
a lever that can be moved between a third position which is outside the locus of rotation of said second cam means and at which said lever allows rotation of said key rotor and a fourth position which is inside the locus of rotation of said second cam means and at which said lever prevents said key rotor from rotating from said second position to said first position, said lever being located at said third position when said key rotor is located at said first position and being moved to said fourth position when said key rotor is rotated from said first position to said second position;
a pressing button for moving said lever from said fourth position to said third position by being pressed in a state where said lever is at said fourth position so as to allow said key rotor to be rotated from said second position to said first position;
and
a pressing button locking means including an electromagnetic solenoid operated under predetermined conditions, and a stopper member supported by a plunger of said electromagnetic solenoid, said stopper member being movable between a fifth position at which it prevents the pressing of said pressing button and at which it transmits the load from a pressing force applied to said pressing button to a car body of a vehicle and a sixth position at which it allows the pressing of said pressing button, said stopper member being moved from said sixth position to said fifth position by the operation of said electromagnetic solenoid.

4 more elements

A steering locking apparatus for a vehicle, comprising:

a housing fixed to a car body;
a key rotor supported by said housing, said key rotor allowing a key to be inserted thereinto and removed therefrom when it is located at a locked position, said key rotor being capable of being rotated from said locked position to an unlocked position by inserting said key;
a cam shaft coupled to said key rotor so that it can be rotated together with said key rotor, the outer peripheral portion of said cam shaft being provided with a locking cam and a restricting cam with recessed and convex portions formed thereon;
a locking member moved back and forth between a first position where it locks steering and a second position where it unlocks steering by the rotation of said locking cam;
a restricting lever that is opposed to said convex portion of said restricting cam so that it allows rotating of said key rotor when said key rotor is at said locked position, said restricting lever being moved in one direction and opposed to said recessed portion of said restricting cam so that it prevents rotating of said key rotor from said unlocked position to said locked position by rotating said key rotor to said unlocked position;
a pressing button for moving said restricting lever in an opposite direction and thereby disengaging it from said recessed portion of said restricting cam so as to allow said key rotor to be rotated from said unlocked position to said locked position when it is pressed;
and
a pressing button locking means including an electromagnetic solenoid operated under predetermined conditions, a stopper plate supported by a plunger of said electromagnetic solenoid, said stopper plate being capable of being moved between a pressing preventing position at which it prevents pressing of said pressing button and at which it transmits the load applied to said pressing button to said housing so that the load can be supported by said housing and a pressing permitting position at which it permits pressing of said pressing button, said stopper plate being moved from said pressing permitting position to said pressing preventing position by the operation of said electromagnetic solenoid.

5 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.