US 9,428,217 B2Granted

Steering apparatus

AssigneeShowa Corporation

InventorsShinichi Tokura, Ryo Takahashi

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Abstract

To suppress the loosening of a bush when an ambient temperature varies. A motor-driven power steering apparatus according to the present invention includes a rack shaft moving steered portions based on the steering in a steering wheel, an end case covering the rack shaft and having an inner peripheral groove along a circumferential direction of the rack shaft on an inner peripheral surface facing the rack shaft and a bush arranged inside the inner peripheral groove of the end case and supporting the rack shaft so as to slide. Here, an outer peripheral surface of the bush includes a first protrusion and a second protrusion protruding toward a bottom portion of the inner peripheral groove at different positions in an axial direction of the rack shaft. The bottom portion of the inner peripheral groove includes a first groove and a second groove receiving the first protrusion and the second protrusion.

Claims18

Dependent claims

A steering apparatus comprising:

a rack shaft moving steered portions based on a steering in a steering portion;
a cover portion covering the rack shaft and having, on an inner peripheral surface of the cover portion facing the rack shaft, an inner peripheral groove extending along a circumferential direction of the rack shaft;
and
a bush arranged inside the inner peripheral groove of the cover portion and supporting the rack shaft so as to slide,
wherein one of a bottom portion of the inner peripheral groove and an outer peripheral surface of the bush has plural protruding portions protruding to other of the bottom portion of the inner peripheral groove and the outer peripheral surface of the bush at different positions in an axial direction of the rack shaft,
the other of the bottom portion of the inner peripheral groove and the outer peripheral surface of the bush has plural recessed portions receiving the protruding portions, and
the bush has a dimension in which gaps are formed between the bush and the cover portion at both ends of the bush in the axial direction of the rack shaft in a state of being arranged in the inner peripheral groove.

4 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 14/606,571Filed 27 Jan 2015
Priority: JP 2014-06719727 Mar 2014
Published: US 2015/0274195 A11 Oct 2015
Granted: 30 Aug 2016
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification8 codes

B62D 3/126
Of rack-and-pinion type: characterised by the rack
B62D 3/12
Mechanical: of rack-and-pinion type
B62D 5/0409
Electrical, e.g. using an electric servo-motor connected to, or forming part of, the steering gear: electric motor acting on the steering column
F16C 29/02
Bearings for parts moving only linearly: sliding-contact bearings