Patent Application
20240200368
The invention relates to a mechanical rotary latch for a vehicle door, and having dampening bumper for soft opening and closing, and having a snap fit actuation barrel for releasing the rotor from the closed position to the open position.
Conventional mechanical door latches have a rotor and a catch reciprocally, rotatably mounted with spring bias on axles between opposing latch plates. The latch assembly is mounted on door frame of a vehicle. The rotor is adapted to capture a striker mounted on the door to retain the door in a closed position. The catch holds the rotor in the closed position. One or more trip levers are operatively connected to the catch, to rotate the catch and thereby release the rotor from the closed position to an open position, and thereby release the striker so the door can be opened. The latch assembly may include a soft rubber or elastomeric bumper or stop which is engaged by the rotor during closing, thereby isolating and dampening noise during closing. During opening, conventional latch assemblies allow the rotor to contact a latch plate to stop rotation, thereby creating an annoying clicking noise upon opening. Also, the captured striker sometimes rattles against the rotor during vehicle travel, thereby creating an undesirable noise.
Another problem with prior art door latches arises during assembly of the components. More particularly, the actuator barrel, which is connected to one of the trip levers and controls movement of the catch, is mounted using a C-clip for retention to the latch plates. However, this retaining clip is small, and can be missed or forgotten during assembly and possibly fall-out in operation, so that the barrel is not securely retained. The clip also adds cost to the latch.
Accordingly, a primary objective of the present invention is the provision of a quieter door latch having noise dampening in both fully open and closed positions.
Another objective of the present invention is the provision of a door latch having a resilient bumper to dampen noise from the rotor as the rotor rotates between open and closed positions.
A further objective of the present invention is the provision of a door latch having an actuator barrel which is snap fit to one of the latch plates, to simplify the assembly process and to reduce cost of the latch.
Still another objective of the present invention is the provision of a door latch assembly having a barrel actuator for the catch which is mounted without use of a retaining clip.
These and other objectives will become apparent from the following description of the invention and drawings.
The latch assembly of the present invention includes front and back plates fastened by a pair of axles. A rotor is pivotally mounted on one axle and a catch is pivotally mounted on the other axle. The rotor is adapted to capture and release a striker on a vehicle door to secure the door when closed and to allow the door to open. A resilient bumper is sandwiched between the plates to engage the rotor upon movement to both the open and closed positions, thereby providing a “soft” opening and closing, which substantially minimizes noise from the rotor movement. The bumper also engages the striker when the rotor is closed to eliminate rattling noise that can be caused by vibration between the striker and the rotor.
A barrel actuator is mounted on one plate using a snap fit, and extends into the other plate with a rotational stop. A trip lever is attached to the barrel actuator to rotate the actuator, which in turn pivots the catch to release the rotor from the closed position to a spring-biased open position.
A latch assembly 10 is intended for use on a vehicle door to control the opening and closing of the door. The latch assembly 10 includes a front plate 12 and a back plate 14, and a pair of axles 16, 18 extending between the plates 12, 14 to connect the plates 12, 14 together. The first and second axles 16, 18 can be secured to the plates 12, 14 in any convenient manner, such as staking or swedging.
A rotor 20 is mounted on the second axle 18, and a catch 22 is mounted on the first axle 16. The rotor 20 and catch 22 pivot in reciprocal manners on their respective axles. When the rotor 20 is in an open position, the rotor is adapted to receive a striker 75 on the vehicle door frame, and then pivot to a closed position as the door is fully closed, thereby capturing the striker 75 and maintaining the door in the closed position. When the catch 22 is actuated, a finger 23 of the catch disengages from a finger 21 on the rotor to release the rotor from its closed position for spring biased movement to its open position, wherein the striker 75 is released so that the door can be opened. Springs 24 are mounted on the axles 16, 18 and have ends engaging the rotor 20 and catch 22, so as to bias the rotor and the catch in their open positions.
In a preferred embodiment, the spring 24 is a double torsion spring formed from a single piece of wire, with the opposite ends being wound in opposite clockwise and counterclockwise directions. A V-shaped notch or transition 27 is formed in the wire between the opposite ends. The notch 27 isolates the spring force at each end, and thereby prevents transmission of forces between the rotor and the catch, so that the rotor and catch rotate independently of one another.
A bumper 26 is sandwiched between the front plate 12 and the back plate 14. The bumper 26 is to provide a soft opening and closing of the rotor 20, as described below.
The actuator 28 is mounted on the plates 12, 14 for reciprocal pivotal motion. A first trip lever 30 is mounted to the plates 12, 14 with a pin or rivet 32 for reciprocal pivotal movement. A second trip lever 34 is mounted to the barrel actuator 28 with a screw 36 for reciprocal pivotal movement. The bumper 26 is made of a soft sound absorbing material, such as rubber. The bumper 26 includes a body 38, a first tab 40, and a second tab 42. The tabs 40, 42 are received within the notches 44, 46 and the plates 12, 14, respectively. Receipt of the tabs 40, 42 in the notches 44, 46 retains the bumper 26 in position between the plates 12, 14. The body 38 of the bumper 26 has a curved surface 39 to substantially match the curvature on the bottom edge of a rotor leg 25 which engages the surface 39 when the rotor 20 moves to the closed position, thereby dampening or muffling the sound so as to provide a soft closing for the rotor. The bumper body 38 has a second damping area 47 which engages a tab 49 on the rotor 20 when the rotor moves to the open position, thereby dampening the sound of such engagement to provide a soft opening of the rotor 20. The bumper body 38 also includes a V or U shaped notch 48 adapted to receive the striker 75 when the door is fully closed. Engagement of the striker 75 with the bumper 26 eliminates any rattle noise for the latch, for example, when the vehicle is moving.
The barrel actuator 28 includes a body 50 having a shoulder 52 and resilient tabs 54 extending from one end of the barrel actuator 28. Each tab 54 has a fixed end 56 and a free end 58. The free ends 58 are spaced from the shoulder 52 a distance greater than the thickness of the plate 14. The barrel actuator 28 is designed to be mounted to the front plate 14 by pushing the legs 55 through a hole 60 in the back plate 14. The tabs 54 are resilient and compressed as the actuator 28 is pushed through the hole 60. As the tabs 54 are completely pushed through the hole 60, the tabs spring outwardly so as to sandwich the plate 54 between the shoulder 52 and the tabs 54. This snap fit assembly of the actuator 28 and plate 14 eliminates the need for a mounting clip, as in prior art latches. The barrel 28 includes a torsional brace 61 to provide strength, and to prevent the tabs 54 from shearing off under torsional load.
The first end 62 of the actuator 28 extends into a key hole 64 in the back plate 14. The opposite end or head 66 of the actuator 28 includes a projection 67. The second trip lever 34 has a slot 68 with the shape matching the projection 67 for projection. Actuation of the trip lever 34 rotates the barrel 28, which in turn pivots the catch 22 when the striker 75 is captured in the rotor. The front plate 12 includes a detent 70 to stop rotation of the catch 22 as the catch moves via bias of the spring 24 to the open position.
The embodiments, variations, and figures described above are provided as an indication of the utility and versatility of the present invention. Other embodiments that do not provide or otherwise utilize all of the features, processes and advantages set forth herein may also be utilized, without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Such modifications and variations are considered to be within the scope of the principles of the invention as defined by the claims set forth below.
