Patent Application
20250196742
The present specification generally relates to armrest structures for vehicle doors and, more specifically, adjustable beltline armrest structures for vehicle doors.
It is somewhat common for vehicle drivers and passengers to rest their arm at the beltline of vehicle doors, above the armrest. For some vehicles, the beltline area can be somewhat elevated to a point where it may be uncomfortable to rest one's arm. Accordingly, it may be desirable to provide other armrest structures.
In one embodiment, a vehicle includes a door assembly that includes an adjustable beltline armrest structure including a trim body having an upper terminal edge that is adjacent an inner belt molding at a window frame of the door assembly and a laterally extending armrest portion. The trim body is moveable in a vehicle vertical direction between a raised position with the armrest portion closer to the beltline molding and a lowered position with the armrest portion farther from the beltline molding.
In another embodiment, a vehicle includes a door assembly that includes an interior door panel including a lower armrest including a first laterally extending armrest portion. An adjustable beltline armrest structure includes a trim body including a second laterally extending armrest portion above the first laterally extending armrest portion. The trim body moveable in a vehicle vertical direction between a raised position with the armrest portion closer to a beltline molding and a lowered position with the armrest portion farther from the beltline molding.
These and additional features provided by the embodiments described herein will be more fully understood in view of the following detailed description, in conjunction with the drawings.
The embodiments set forth in the drawings are illustrative and exemplary in nature and not intended to limit the subject matter defined by the claims. The following detailed description of the illustrative embodiments can be understood when read in conjunction with the following drawings, where like structure is indicated with like reference numerals and in which:
Embodiments described herein are generally related to vehicles including door assemblies with an adjustable beltline armrest structure. The adjustable beltline armrest structure includes a trim body having an upper terminal edge that is received by an inner beltline molding at a window frame of door assembly and a laterally extending armrest portion. The trim body is moveable in a vehicle vertical direction between a raised position with the armrest portion closer to the beltline molding and a lowered position with the armrest portion farther from the beltline molding.
As used herein, the term “vehicle longitudinal direction” refers to the forward-rearward direction of the vehicle (i.e., in the +/− vehicle X-direction depicted in
Referring to
The interior door panel 16 may form a lower armrest 24 that is provided at a laterally extending armrest portion 26 of the interior door panel 16. The lower armrest 24 may include a cushion 25 or padding located on the interior door panel 16 at the laterally extending armrest portion 26. An adjustable beltline armrest structure 30 is located above the lower armrest 24 and includes a trim body 32 having an upper terminal edge 34 and a lower terminal edge 36. The upper terminal edge 34 is received by a groove 38 within the beltline molding 20 at the window frame 22 of the door assembly 12. The trim body 32 is moveable in a vehicle vertical direction, represented by the arrow 40, between a raised position with the armrest portion 26 closer to the beltline molding 20 and a lowered position with the armrest portion 26 farther from the beltline molding 20 shown by dashed lines. In the raised position, the upper terminal edge 34 may move farther into the groove 38 and in the lowered position, the upper terminal edge may move farther out of the groove 38.
Referring also to
An actuator 56 may be operatively linked to the trim body 32 by linkage 58 and be configured to move the trim body 32 between the raised and lowered positions. The actuator 56 may be any suitable actuator, such as a motor, air or hydraulic cylinder, manually actuated lever, etc. As an example, referring to
Referring to
The above-described vehicle door assemblies include adjustable beltline armrest structures that can increase a comfort level of a passenger when resting an arm on the vehicle door assemblies near the beltline of the vehicles. The adjustable beltline armrest structures allow a portion of the outer door panel near the beltline to be placed in a lowered position so that the passenger does not need to raise the arm to an uncomfortable height near the beltline.
It is noted that the terms “substantially” and “about” may be utilized herein to represent the inherent degree of uncertainty that may be attributed to any quantitative comparison, value, measurement, or other representation. These terms are also utilized herein to represent the degree by which a quantitative representation may vary from a stated reference without resulting in a change in the basic function of the subject matter at issue.
While particular embodiments have been illustrated and described herein, it should be understood that various other changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the claimed subject matter. Moreover, although various aspects of the claimed subject matter have been described herein, such aspects need not be utilized in combination. It is therefore intended that the appended claims cover all such changes and modifications that are within the scope of the claimed subject matter.
