US 7,562,884 B2
Vehicle having at least one axle steerable via a knuckle steering gear
Friedrich Saibold, Passau (Germany); Stefan Wallner, Friedrichshafen (Germany); and Klaus Kruber, Künzing (Germany)
Assigned to ZF Friedrichshafen AG, Friedrichshafen (Germany)
Filed on Nov. 01, 2005, as Appl. No. 11/264,796.
Claims priority of application No. 10 2004 053 722 (DE), filed on Nov. 06, 2004.
Prior Publication US 2006/0096800 A1, May 11, 2006
Int. Cl. B60G 7/00 (2006.01)
U.S. Cl. 280—93.502 19 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A vehicle having at least one axle (3) with left and right wheels (2A, 2B) which are steerable via a knuckle steering system (4), wherein the knuckle steering system (4) comprises a main steering cylinder device (6) flexibly connected with respective left and right track rods (8A, 8B) which, in turn, are respectively operatively connected with left and right wheel carriers (10A, 10B), and each of the left and the right wheel carriers (10A, 10B) being fixedly connected with a respective wheel hub (11A, 11B) which supports one of the left and the right wheels (2A, 2B), a left lever element (13A) being flexibly connected to the left track rod (8A), in an area between the main steering cylinder device (6) and the left wheel carrier (10A, 10B), while a right lever element (13B) being flexibly connected to the right track rod (8B), in an area between the main steering cylinder device (6) and right wheel carrier (10A, 10B);
the left track rod (8A) comprises a first partial left track rod (8A_1) flexibly connected to a second partial left track rod (8A_2) by at least one connecting joint (8A_3, 15A) such that the first partial left track rod (8A_1) being movable relative to the second partial left track rod (8A_2), and the the right track rod (8B) comprises a first partial right track rod (8B_1) flexibly connected to a second partial right track rod (8B_2) by at least one connecting joint (8B_3, 15B) such that the first partial right track rod (8B_1) being movable relative to the second partial right track rod (8B_2); each of the left and the right lever elements (13A, 13B) being rotatably about a respective fixed pivot (14A, 14B) such that, according to a position of the fixed pivot (14A, 14B) and a position of the left and the right lever elements (13A, 13B), deviation from a desired steering angle of one of the left and the right wheels (2A or 2B) traveling along an outside a curve in relation to a desired steering angle of the other of the left and the right wheels (2B or 2A) traveling along an inside the curve is minimized.