Patent Application
20080148509
The present disclosure relates to windshield wiper blade assemblies. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to connector means for attaching windshield wiper blades to a wiper arm.
The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.
Beam style wiper blades use connectors to attach the beam of the windshield wiper blade to the wiper arm using various systems. One system is a slip-on connector snapped into a slot on the beam. A variety of adapters are used in conjunction with the connector to attach to a wiper arm. Most of these adapters do not fit more than one or two styles of wiper arms. There are several dozen styles of wiper arms in the market place; however, there are only about five styles that currently account for about 95% of all domestic U.S. wiper arm styles. Therefore, some adapters are designed to combine these five primary wiper arm styles. Some of these adapters are two-piece constructions, while others are of one-piece construction. Additionally, a new wiper arm connection style recently introduced in the European markets is beginning to have a presence in the U.S. market.
Some current product variations of beam style wipers in the market place provide a single adapter version for a specific application. Other product variations of beam style wipers provide a variety of adapters, which the consumer selects from to assemble to match their specific application. In both of these variations on the theme of current methods, a separate portion is assembled over the connector to hide or shroud the connector from view. In current methods, the shroud is not provided as an interchangeable component. Rather, in some prior art, the shroud provides a fixed cover over the connector for a specific attachment means. In other prior art, the shroud provides a fixed cover over the connector, which further serves as a mating component to accept a specific connector for a specific attachment means.
Disadvantages of the prior art forms of adapters are apparent in that many adapters require multiple pieces in the product package for the consumer, which are difficult to discern how to use and/or attach. Loose pieces are easily lost and/or the wrong piece is used to install the wiper—all leading to poor wipe quality and/or customer dissatisfaction with the product. Disadvantages of universal adapters that are multi-piece systems introduce some of the problems just discussed. One disadvantage of one-piece universal adapters is that they have no ability to accommodate new systems similar to the European arm styles growing rapidly in popularity. Another disadvantage is that some adapters require some kind of tool to facilitate assembly.
In addition, the fixed nature of the shroud portion requires that either the shroud must be designed for a specific attachment application or that the shroud portion must be made to accept a specific adapter application. The fixed nature of the shrouds in the current methods mandates that the shroud component must be assembled by the manufacturer, further mandating that the cost of the shroud assembly is incurred by the manufacturer.
In view of the above shortcomings in the prior art, it is an object of the present invention to provide a firm and secure method of connection between the connector and the wiper arm.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a shroud around the connector to cooperate with the connector to hide and/or assist the crimping and stabilization functions of the wiper assembly.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a shroud to cooperate with the connector to make a smooth transition between the wind deflector of the wiper blade and the connector to provide aerodynamic performance at the shroud and connector location.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a stylized cosmetic appearance around the connector.
A further objective of the present invention is to provide a shroud-adapter that provides attachment to the most popular wiper arm styles and the European arm style, either by universal design and/or individual specific design application.
Another objective is to provide a product that allows the customer to select which shroud-adapter fits their specific application and make an easy assembly at point of purchase and installation.
Lastly, it is an objective to provide the shroud-adapter components unassembled in the package so that the manufacturer does not incur the incremental cost of the assembly of a fixed shroud-adapter component.
These objectives are accomplished in a preferred embodiment providing a connector made of formed steel with crimp tabs bendable to impinge upon the wiper beam. The connector can be made from plastics or other suitably-engineered polymers or castings known in the field. The shroud-adapter portion can be molded from plastic or suitably-engineered materials or cast from any one of numerous materials. If a separate adapter portion is used in cooperation with the shroud, it can be molded from a plastic or suitably-engineered material as well, but can also be cast, machined or formed by other appropriate methods. The shroud-adapter is easily assembled to the connector by way of snapping, and may be either assembled on the connector by the manufacturer or placed loose in the selling package to be assembled by the customer after purchase.
Further areas of applicability will become apparent from the description provided herein. It should be understood that the description and specific examples are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.
The drawings described herein are for illustration purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure in any way.
a is a perspective view of a first embodiment of a connector for attachment to the wiper blade assembly;
b is a perspective view of a second embodiment of a connector for attachment to the wiper blade assembly;
a is a perspective view of a first embodiment of shroud-adapter for attaching large J-style wiper arms;
b is a perspective view of a second embodiment of shroud-adapter for attaching small J-style wiper arms;
c is a perspective view of a third embodiment of shroud-adapter for attaching side-pin style wiper arms; and
d is a perspective view of a fourth embodiment of shroud-adapter for attaching twist-lock style wiper arms.
The following description is merely exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit the present disclosure, application, or uses. It should be understood that throughout the drawings, corresponding reference numerals indicate like or corresponding parts and features.
Referring now to the figures, particularly
The connector 30 in a preferred embodiment is formed from steel with crimp tabs 32, 34 bendable to impinge upon the wiper beam, but alternatively can be made from plastics or other suitable engineered polymers or castings known in the field. Pairs of downward, position-orienting legs 36 retain the wiper blade in position during crimping and further prevent lateral movement between the connector 30 and the wiper blade assembly. A mid portion is defined with attachment legs 38, which serve as the snapping lock for the subsequently-attached shroud-adapter assembly 20.
b illustrates an alternative-embodiment connector generally shown as 40. Crimp tabs 42, 44 are bendable to impinge upon the wiper beam, but alternatively can be made from plastics or other suitable engineered polymers or castings known in the field. Pairs of downward, position-orienting legs 46 retain the wiper blade in position during crimping and further prevent lateral movement between the connector 40 and the wiper blade assembly. A mid portion is defined with attachment legs 48, which serve as the snapping-lock means for the subsequently-attached shroud-adapter assembly 20.
In either of the two above embodiments, the crimp tabs 32, 34, 42, 44 may be preformed and set into final place during the assembly-crimping process. The crimp tabs can be formed with multiple angles, sides, and bends as may be necessary for the application. The crimp tabs can also be preformed prior to assembly, or some contours of the specific connector crimp tabs may be formed during the actual assembly process. Crimp tabs molded from polymers can also be utilized to lock the connector in place and, as shown in
The shroud-adapters shown in
The shroud-adapters easily snap onto the connector without the use of tools and can be removed without damage to the shroud-adapter or connector. The connection method provides a positive lock between the shroud-adapter and the connector to prevent accidental separation or removal.
One specific shroud-adapter 50, shown in
A second shroud-adapter 60, shown in
Referring now to
The shroud-adapter comprises a pair of ridges 76, one on each end for receiving the wind deflector portion of the wiper blade, maintaining the continuity of the aerodynamics of the blade. A pair of deflectable snap-locking legs 78 extends downward along the lateral sides of the blade/beam assembly and subsequently snap-locks onto the connector (shown in
In a further embodiment, shown in
The description of the invention is merely exemplary in nature and, thus, variations that do not depart from the gist of the invention are intended to be within the scope of the invention. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the spirit and scope of the invention.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/875,184, filed on Dec. 15, 2006. The disclosure of the above applications is incorporated herein by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60875184 | Dec 2006 | US |
