Jidosha Kiki Co., Ltd.

Hiroshi Nishikiori

Takeshi Ohe

Yoshiaki Taniguchi

Hideo Konishi

An electric power steering apparatus includes a gear wheel on a driven side having a gear portion on one side surface thereof on a steering shaft and a pinion to be laterally meshed with a gear portion of the gear wheel on a shaft capable of transmitting a rotational driving force from an electric motor. The gear wheel and the pinion constitute a gear mechanism for transmitting a rotational force as a gear pair with non-parallel, non-intersecting axes. The gear wheel is axially supported on the steering shaft so as to be coupled in only a rotational direction and movable in an axial direction of the shaft. A biasing unit is provided on the other side of the gear wheel opposite to a portion of the pinion to be meshed with the gear portion and laterally urges the gear wheel toward the pinion.

Electric power steering apparatus

An electric power steering apparatus includes a torsion bar, input and output shafts, an electric motor, and a detecting mechanism. The input and output shafts are coupled to each other by the torsion bar so as to be pivotally displaced in relation to each other. The electric motor is coupled to the output shaft so as to apply an auxiliary steering force. The detecting mechanism detects a relative, pivotal displacement of the input and output shafts. Main portions of the input and output shafts are coaxially arranged. One of the shafts is a cylindrical member having an outer end in which the torsion bar is housed. An inner end of one shaft is pivotally inserted in an opening of a cylindrical inner end of the other shaft. The detecting mechanism is arranged on the outer surface of an outer shaft of the input and output shafts at their overlap portion. A displacement transmitting portion for transmitting a displacement of one shaft to the detecting mechanism is formed in the inner end of one shaft so as to extend through the other shaft. The detecting mechanism can obtain a relative, pivotal displacement of the input and output shafts from a displacement of one shaft transmitted from the displacement transmitting portion.

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Saitama, Japan

Hiroshi Nishikiori