Claims
- 1. A vehicle door comprising:
- a door inner panel and door outer panel attached together to form a door hingedly mounted on the vehicle body, said inner panel having a plurality of openings therein, a plurality of door operating components adapted for mounting on the inner panel within the openings of the inner panel, and a plurality of energy absorbing means extending between the inner panel and the individual door operating components to individually mount the operating components on the door inner panel and enable energy absorbing movement of the operating components relative to the door upon impact of the occupant against the door.
- 2. A vehicle door comprising:
- a door inner panel and door outer panel attached together to form a door hingedly mounted on the vehicle body, said inner panel having a plurality of openings therein, a plurality of door operating components adapted for mounting on the inner panel within the openings of the inner panel,
- and a plurality of yieldable straps extending between the door inner panel and the individual operating component to effectively mount the operating component on the door, said yieldable straps yielding upon the imposition of a occupant there against to enable individual and independent energy absorbing movement of the door operating component into the space between the inner panel and the outer panel.
- 3. The combination of claim 2 further characterized by the plurality of yieldable straps being of one piece integral stamped construction with the door inner panel and being bolted to the door operating components.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 07/633,629 filed on Dec. 24, 1990, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,048,234.
The invention relates to a vehicle door having door operating components individually mounted on the door by a plurality of yieldable corrugated straps which absorb energy upon occupant impact against the door.
It is well known to provide a vehicle door comprised of an outer panel and inner panel which are attached together in spaced apart relation defining a cavity in which door operating components such as window regulators, latches, handles, etc., are mounted. It is also well known to mount these door components on a module panel which is subsequently bolted to the door inner panel. In this way, the module panel with the door components may be produced and assembled at a location remote from the vehicle assembly plant and tested and inspected before assembly into the vehicle door.
The present invention relates to a new and improved vehicle door construction in which a plurality of yieldable energy absorbing devices are employed to attach a door component module panel on the vehicle door inner panel so that the module panel is permitted to move laterally relative the door upon energy absorbing yielding of the energy absorbing devices.
The present invention also relates to a new and improved vehicle door construction in which any one or more of the plurality of operating components of the door are mounted on the door panel by a yieldable energy absorbing device so that the operating components are permitted to move individually laterally relative to the door to absorb energy.
A vehicle door is comprised of a door inner panel and a door outer panel attached together in spaced apart relation defining a cavity. The door inner panel has an opening therein and the door components such as the window regulator and door handle are mounted on the module panel. A plurality of energy absorbing devices extend between the module panel and the door inner panel to effectively mount the module panel within the opening of the door inner panel. The energy absorbing devices yield upon the imposition of an occupant thereagainst to enable energy absorbing movement of the module panel and the door components into the cavity space between the inner and outer panels. The energy absorbing devices are preferably comprised of stamped steel straps having convolutions therein with one end of the strap welded to the module panel and the other end bolted to the door inner panel.
In a second embodiment the door inner panel has a plurality of openings therein and the door components are individually mounted on the inner panel within these openings by a plurality of energy absorbing devices which are preferably comprised of convoluted straps.
Accordingly, the object, feature and advantage of the invention resides in the mounting of a door module panel within an opening of the door inner panel via energy absorbing devices which enable energy absorbing movement of the module panel into the door cavity upon imposition of an occupant thereagainst.
A further object, feature and advantage of the invention resides in the provision of convoluted straps mounting a module panel on a vehicle door inner panel with the convolutions yielding upon imposition of an occupant force there against to absorb energy and permit the module panel and components to move into the cavity space between the door inner and door outer panels.
A still further object, feature and advantage of the invention resides in the individual mounting of vehicle door components within openings of the door panel by convoluted mounting straps so that the convolutions yield upon imposition of an occupant force against the door component to thereby permit the door component to move into the cavity space between the door inner and outer panels.
US Referenced Citations (9)
Foreign Referenced Citations (1)
| Number |
Date |
Country |
| 1267116 |
May 1968 |
DEX |
Continuation in Parts (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
| Parent |
633629 |
Dec 1990 |
|
Patent Grant
5111620
