Vehicle door locking system with separate power operated inner door and outer door locking mechanisms

Abstract
A power-operated vehicle door locking assembly including separate inner and outer door locking mechanisms connected with a housing assembly and an electric motorized system operable to selectively move (1) the inner door locking mechanism between an inoperative and an inner door locking position in response to inner manual electric motor energizing actuations and (2) the outer door locking mechanism between an inoperative and an outer door locking positions in response to outer manual electric motor energizing actuations. The arrangement is such that an outer manual electric motor energizing actuation without a corresponding inner manual electric motor energizing actuation causes a door latching assembly when in a door latching position to be incapable of being moved into a door unlatching position by an outer door latch releasing mechanism while at the same time the door latching assembly is capable of being moved into the door unlatching position thereof by an inner door latch releasing mechanism.
Description




This invention relates to vehicle door locking assemblies and more particularly to vehicle door locking assemblies of the power-operated type.




A typical vehicle door locking assembly for a vehicle door movable between open and closed positions with respect to a vehicle body opening includes the following basic components. The assembly itself includes a housing assembly which is constructed and arranged to be mounted in the vehicle door. The vehicle door itself has inner and outer manually movable actuating members. The assembly includes a door latching assembly carried by the housing assembly so as to be moved (1) into a door latching position in response to the engagement of a striker in the vehicle body opening therewith occasioned by a movement of the vehicle door into the closed position thereof so as to latch the door in a closed position within the vehicle body opening and (2) from the door latching position thereof into a door unlatching position in order to allow the door to be moved into the opened position thereof. The assembly also includes outer and inner door latch releasing mechanisms which are mounted in the housing assembly to be moved (1) from inoperative positions into latch releasing positions in response to the manual movements of the outer and inner actuating members respectively from inoperative positions into door releasing positions and (2) from the latch releasing positions thereof into the inoperative position thereof.




The outer and inner latch releasing mechanism are operable such that when the vehicle door is closed movement of either from the inoperative position thereof to the latch releasing position thereof moves the door latching mechanism from the door latching position thereof to the door unlatching position thereof to allow the door to be moved to its open position.




The typical assembly includes a mechanical door locking mechanism which includes a key actuated assembly on the outer side of the door and a manual actuated assembly on the inside of the door. The mechanical locking mechanism simply effects a locking action simultaneously with regard to both the outer and inner door latch releasing mechanisms.




Beyond the typical mechanical door locking assembly, there have been many assemblies in which the locking mechanism is powerized by an electrical system energized by a source of electricity on the vehicle, such as the battery. These systems sometimes embodied solenoids and sometimes electrical motors with speed reduction gears. There is a need to provide locking assemblies in which the power operation is more versatile and more universally applicable to all of the various desirable functions which are required with respect to both front doors and rear doors in four door vehicles.




It is an object of the present invention to fulfill the need expressed above. In accordance with the principles of the present invention, this objective is obtained by providing a power-operated vehicle door locking assembly for a vehicle door movable between open and closed positions with respect to a vehicle body opening, the vehicle door having inner and outer manually movable actuating members. A housing assembly is constructed and arranged to be mounted in the vehicle door. A door latching assembly is carried by the housing assembly and is constructed and arranged to be moved (1) into a door latching position in response to the engagement of a striker in the vehicle body opening therewith occasioned by a movement of the vehicle door into the closed position thereof so as to latch the door in a closed position within the vehicle body opening and (2) from the door latching position thereof into a door unlatching position to allow the door to be moved into the open position thereof. The outer door latch releasing mechanism is constructed and arranged with respect to the door latching assembly so that when the vehicle door is in its closed position movement of the outer door latch releasing mechanism from the inoperative position thereof to the latch releasing position thereof moves the door latching assembly from the door latching position thereof to the door unlatching position thereof to allow the door to be moved into its open position. An outer door latch releasing mechanism is provided which is constructed and arranged with respect to the housing assembly to be moved (1) from an inoperative position into a latch releasing position in response to the manual movement of the outer actuating member from an inoperative position into a door releasing position and (2) from the latch releasing position thereof into the inoperative position thereof. An inner door latch releasing mechanism is provided with respect to the housing assembly constructed and arranged to be moved (1) from an inoperative position into a latch releasing position in response to the manual movement of the inner actuating member from an inoperative position into a door releasing position and (2) from the latch releasing position thereof into the inoperative position thereof. The inner door latch releasing mechanism is constructed and arranged with respect to the door latching assembly so that when the vehicle door is in its closed position movement of the inner door latch releasing mechanism from the inoperative position thereof to the latch releasing position thereof moves the door latching assembly from the door latching position thereof to the door unlatching position thereof to allow the door to be moved into its open position. Separate inner and outer door locking mechanisms are connected with the housing assembly. The outer door locking mechanism is constructed and arranged with respect to the housing assembly to be moved between inoperative and outer door locking positions. The outer door locking mechanism is constructed and arranged with respect to the outer door latch releasing mechanism to disable the outer door latch releasing mechanism from moving from the inoperative position thereof into the latch releasing position thereof when the outer door locking mechanism is in the door locking position thereof. The inner door locking mechanism is constructed and arranged with respect to the housing assembly to be moved between inoperative and inner door locking positions. The inner door locking mechanism is constructed and arranged with respect to the inner door latch releasing mechanism to disable the inner door latch releasing mechanism from moving from the inoperative position thereto into the latch releasing position thereof when the inner door locking mechanism is in the door locking position thereof. An electrically operable system is provided constructed and arranged to convert a source of electricity on the vehicle into mechanical motion in response to manual electrical energizing actuations. The electrically operable system is constructed and arranged with respect to the inner and outer door locking mechanisms to selectively move (1) the inner door locking mechanism between the inoperative and inner door locking position thereof in response to inner manual electrical energizing actuations and (2) the outer door locking mechanism between the inoperative and outer door locking positions thereof in response to outer manual electrical energizing actuations, the arrangement being such that an outer manual electrical energizing actuation without a corresponding inner manual electrical energizing actuation causes the door latching assembly when in the door latching position thereof to be incapable of being moved into the door unlatching position thereof by the outer door latch releasing mechanism while at the same time the door latching assembly is capable of being moved into the door unlatching position thereof by the inner door latch releasing mechanism.




Preferably, the assembly includes a key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly which is constructed and arranged with respect to the housing assembly to be moved between a locked mode and an unlocked mode in response to the manual movement of a key therein. The key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly is preferably constructed and arranged with respect to the electrically operable system to provide outer electrical energizing actuations for said electrically operable system when moved away from the locked and unlocked modes thereof by manual movements of a key therein. In addition, it is preferable that the key actuated assembly is capable of overriding the electrically operable system to effect movement of the outer door locking mechanism between its inoperative and latch releasing positions when the source of electricity on the vehicle is no longer available. The key actuated assembly are provided with access from the outside of the front doors. Preferably, the rear doors do not include outside access but instead access to the door only when the door is open as by being mounted to provide access at the edge of the door which is enclosed when the door is closed.




Finally, preferably there is circuitry including a processor which is capable of providing various actuating and deactuating capabilities for the electrically operated systems.




These and other objects of the present invention will become more apparent during the course of the following detailed description and appended claims.











DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS





FIG. 1

is an exterior side elevational view of a four-door vehicle having incorporated therein an automatic vehicle door locking system with separate inner door and outer door locking mechanisms embodying the principles of the present invention;





FIG. 2

is a fragmentary side elevational view of the inside driver's side door of the vehicle shown in

FIG. 1

;





FIG. 3

is a perspective view of an automatic vehicle door locking assembly embodying the principles of the present invention, the view is looking at the inside and free end of the assembly as it would be mounted in a vehicle door, the end plate of the assembly is shown broken away to more clearly illustrate the components;





FIG. 4

is a perspective view looking in the opposite direction as the perspective of

FIG. 3

, with certain housing components being removed for purposes of clear illustration;





FIG. 5

is a perspective view of a housing component of the assembly shown in

FIGS. 3 and 4

with the components associated therewith shown in contained relation therein;





FIG. 6

is a view similar to

FIG. 5

, with the housing component removed, and portions of the gear housing being broken away to show the gears housed therein;





FIG. 7

is a view looking directly down into the housing component shown in

FIG. 5

with all of the components therein removed except for the switch operating gear and the gear of the key assembly which meshes therewith;





FIG. 8

is a view similar to

FIG. 7

with the components of the outer door locking mechanism added and shown in an unlocked position;





FIG. 9

is a view similar to

FIG. 8

showing the components in a locked position;





FIG. 10

is a perspective view showing the door latching and releasing assembly and the interface thereof with the key-actuated door locking assembly, the components of the outer door locking mechanism being shown in an unlocked position and the components of the inner door locking mechanism in a locked position;





FIG. 11

is a view of the structure shown in

FIG. 10

, illustrating the outer door latch releasing mechanism and its interface with the outer door locking mechanism and with the inner door latch releasing mechanism and its interface with the inner door locking mechanism being removed, the parts being shown in an unlocked position;





FIG. 12

is a view similar to

FIG. 11

showing the components in a latch released position;





FIG. 13

is a view similar to

FIG. 11

showing the components in a locked position;





FIG. 14

is a view similar to

FIG. 13

illustrating the position of the parts after the outer door actuating mechanism has been moved into its normal actuating position when the outer door locking mechanism is in its locked position;





FIG. 15

is a cross-sectional view taken along the line


15





15


of

FIG. 3

showing the vehicle key-actuated door locking assembly installed in a closed rear vehicle door;





FIG. 16

is a schematic wiring diagram of an electrical control circuit for automatically controlling the automatic vehicle door locking system of the present invention;





FIG. 17

is a perspective view similar to

FIG. 3

of a modified power operated vehicle door locking assembly embodying the principles of the present invention;





FIG. 18

is a perspective view similar to

FIG. 4

of the door locking assembly shown in

FIG. 17

;





FIG. 19

is a perspective view similar to

FIG. 5

of the assembly shown in

FIG. 17

, illustrating the parts in an outside and inside unlocked position;





FIG. 20

is a view similar to

FIG. 6

of the door locking assembly of

FIG. 17

, illustrating the parts in an outside and inside unlocked position;





FIG. 21

is a view similar to

FIG. 7

of the door locking assembly of

FIG. 17

, illustrating the parts in an outside and inside unlocked position;





FIG. 22

is a view similar to

FIG. 8

of the door locking assembly of

FIG. 17

, illustrating the parts in an outside and inside unlocked position;





FIG. 23

is a view similar to

FIG. 22

, illustrating the parts in an outside and inside unlocked position;





FIG. 24

is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken along the line


24





24


of

FIG. 20

with the parts shown in an outside and inside unlocked position, with parts broken away for clearness of illustration;





FIG. 25

is a view similar to

FIG. 24

with the parts shown in an outside and inside locked position, with parts broken away for clearness of illustration;





FIG. 26

is a view similar to

FIG. 25

showing the parts after they have been manually moved from the unlocked position shown in

FIG. 24

so that the outside is locked and the inside is unlocked;





FIG. 27

is a perspective view similar to

FIG. 10

showing another vehicle locking assembly embodying the principles of the present invention with the parts shown in a position with the outside locked and the inside unlocked;





FIG. 28

is a top plan view of the components of the key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly of the vehicle door locking assembly shown in

FIG. 27

;





FIG. 29

is a sectional view taken along the line


29





29


of

FIG. 28

showing the parts in an outside and inside unlocked position;





FIG. 30

is a view similar to

FIG. 29

showing the parts in an outside and inside locked position;





FIG. 31

is a view similar to

FIG. 29

showing the parts in an outer locked and inner unlocked position into which they have been manually moved from the position shown in

FIG. 29

;





FIG. 32

is a sectional view taken along the line


32





32


of

FIG. 28

with the parts shown in an outside and inside unlocked position;





FIG. 33

is a view similar to

FIG. 32

with the parts shown in an outside locked and inside unlocked position;





FIG. 34

is a view similar to

FIG. 32

with the parts shown in an outside and inside unlocked position;





FIG. 35

is a view similar to

FIG. 32

with the parts shown in an outside unlocked and inside locked position;





FIG. 36

is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken along the line


36





36


of

FIG. 28

;





FIG. 37

is an enlarged schematic view similar to

FIG. 16

relating to the vehicle door locking assembly shown in

FIGS. 27-36

;





FIG. 38

is a graph of the pulse train transmitted by the sensor shown in

FIG. 36

;





FIG. 39

is a flow chart of a program carried out by the processor shown in FIG.


37


.











DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT SHOWN IN THE DRAWINGS




Referring now more particularly to the drawings, there is shown in

FIG. 3

an automatic vehicle door locking assembly, generally indicated at


10


, which embodies the principles of the present invention. The automatic vehicle door locking assembly


10


includes, in general, a housing assembly, generally indicated at


12


, which includes separate mechanism carrying housings which are combined together so as to be mounted as a unit within each of four vehicle doors


14


, the front and rear right hand doors


14


being shown in FIG.


1


. See also

FIG. 15

which illustrates a cross-section of the assembly


10


mounted in the closed rear door


14


. The housing assembly


12


provides a recess structure


16


in the free end of the door which is adapted to receive a conventional striker


18


suitably mounted in a cooperating vehicle door frame


20


and shown in FIG.


16


.




The mechanisms carried by the housing assembly


12


include a door latching assembly, generally indicated at


22


, components of an outer door latch releasing mechanism, generally indicated at


24


, components of an inner door latch releasing mechanism, generally indicated at


26


, and a key-actuated door locking and unlocking assembly, generally indicated at


28


, which includes a separate power operated outer door locking mechanism, generally indicated at


30


, and a separate power operated inner door locking mechanism, generally indicated at


32


.




As best shown in

FIG. 3

, the recess providing structure


16


forms a fixed part of a main housing sub-assembly


34


. Fixed to the main housing sub-assembly


34


, as by suitable bolts or the like, is an outer plate


36


which likewise has a recess therein confirming to the recess-defining structure


14


.




The door latching assembly


22


includes a latching member, generally indicated at


38


, which is pivotally mounted, as by a pivot pin


39


, on the plate


36


for movement between a striker latching position and a striker releasing position. The latching member


38


is generally in the form of a U-shaped element with one leg


40


shaped to lead the striker


18


into a position between the legs and another leg


42


having a portion adapted to cooperate with a pivoted holding and releasing lever, generally indicated at


44


, which constitutes an essential part of the door latching assembly


22


. As best shown in

FIG. 4

, the latching member


38


includes a projection


46


on one side thereof which is adapted to engage a coil spring


48


which serves to resiliently bias the latching member


38


into its releasing position.




As best shown in FIGS.


10


and


11


-


14


, the holding and releasing lever


44


includes a holding and releasing arm


50


which is engaged with one end of a coil spring


52


, the opposite end of which is suitably fixed to the main housing sub-assembly


34


. The spring


48


serves to resiliently bias the holding and releasing lever


40


into a holding position. The holding and releasing lever


40


is pivoted as by a pivot pin


54


to the main housing sub-assembly


34


, in a position to extend the holding and releasing arm


46


thereof into a holding position to be engaged by the end of the leg


42


of the latch member


38


during the movement thereof from its releasing position into its locking position so as to pivot the holding and releasing lever


44


out of its holding position by the engagement thereof with the end of the leg


42


of the latching member


38


so that, as the end of the leg


42


passes beyond the free end of the holding and releasing arm


46


, the latter will be biased into its holding position wherein the free end engages the end of the leg


42


of the latching member


38


and prevents the same from being moved out of its latching position.




The holding and releasing lever


44


also includes a releasing arm


56


having a laterally extending abutting portion


58


fixed thereon for cooperating with components of the outer door latch releasing mechanism


24


and the inner door latch releasing mechanism


26


.




The outer door latch releasing mechanism


24


includes a conventional outer door manually actuated releasing assembly, generally indicated at


60


, which includes the usual manual actuating member


62


which is manually movable from the exterior of the vehicle door


14


. As best shown in

FIG. 4

, the outer manually actuated releasing assembly includes an interior connecting rod


64


which is moved downwardly when the outer door manual actuating member


62


is actuated. The end of the connecting rod


64


is pivotally connected with an arm


66


of a bell crank, generally indicated at


68


, which also constitutes a component of the outer door latch releasing mechanism


24


. The bell crank


68


is pivoted to the main housing sub-assembly


34


, as by a pivot pin


70


, which provides a pivotal axis parallel with the pivot axes provided by the pivot pins


39


and


54


.




As best shown in

FIGS. 11-14

, bell crank


68


includes a second depending arm


72


which carries a pivot pin


74


parallel with the pivot pin


70


on which is pivotally mounted a releasing arm


76


. The releasing arm


76


includes an upstanding portion


78


which is adapted to engage a stop structure


80


formed on the bell crank


68


between the arms


66


and


72


. A spring


82


is coiled about the hub of the bell crank


68


and has one end connected with the main housing sub-assembly


34


and the opposite end connected with the upstanding portion


78


of the releasing arm


76


so as to bias the releasing arm


76


in a counter-clockwise direction as viewed in

FIGS. 11-12

so that the upstanding portion


78


is biased into engagement with the stop structure


80


of the bell crank


68


. The releasing arm


76


extends radially from the pivot pin


74


into a position so that a free end thereof will engage the abutting portion


58


of the releasing arm


56


. When the bell crank


68


is pivoted in a counter-clockwise direction, as viewed in

FIGS. 12-15

, from the normal inoperative position, shown in

FIG. 12

, to the operative position, shown in

FIG. 13

, the releasing arm


56


moves the holding and releasing lever


44


from its holding position into its releasing position.




As best shown in

FIGS. 2

,


3


and


10


, the inner door releasing mechanism


26


includes the usual inner door manually actuated assembly, generally indicated at


84


, which includes the usual manual actuating member


86


which is manually moved from inside the vehicle. The inner door manually actuated assembly


84


also includes an interiorly mounted Bowden wire assembly, generally indicated at


88


, which includes an outer sheath


90


, one end of which is suitably fixed to the main housing sub-assembly


34


as indicated at


92


. The Bowden wire assembly


88


includes an inner cable


94


which extends outwardly from the end of the sheath


90


and has an end fixed to one arm


96


of a bell crank, generally indicated at


98


. The bell crank


98


is pivoted to the main housing sub-assembly


24


as by a pivot pin


100


which provides a pivotal axis which is perpendicular to the pivotal axes provided by the pivot pins


39


,


54


and


70


.




The bell crank


98


includes a second arm


102


with an inwardly bent end which engages the end of an arm


104


of a bell crank, generally indicated at


106


, which is of a similar construction to the bell crank


68


previously defined. The bell crank


106


is pivoted on the pivot pin


70


and includes a second depending arm


108


which carries a spring-biased pivoted releasing arm


110


which is similar to the releasing arm


76


previously described. The releasing arm


110


includes an outer end which likewise is disposed in a position to engage the abutting portion


58


of the releasing arm


56


. The movement of the releasing arm


110


with the bell crank


106


has a similar effect on the holding and releasing lever


44


as the movement of the arm


56


as previously indicated.




The key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly


28


, like the latch releasing mechanisms


24


and


26


, include components which are essentially separate from the assembly


10


. These components will vary depending upon whether the assembly


10


is mounted in a front or rear door


14


. Front doors provide exterior key access while rear doors do not. However, rear doors do have manual locking capability when open and vehicle power is lost.





FIG. 1

illustrates a conventional front door type key actuated actuating assembly, generally indicated at


112


. The key actuating assembly


112


includes the usual key receiving turnable member and a lock cylinder arrangement which enables the turnable member to be turned only when a proper key is properly inserted. The turnable member, when turned, is connected to effect movement of an elongated longitudinally outwardly extending splined actuating shaft


114


. The turnable member and shaft


114


are normally retained in a central key entering and exiting position. In accordance with usual practice. When the turnable member is turned in one direction, the turning action will effect a movement of the actuating shaft


114


which moves the key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly


28


from an unlocked mode into a locked mode. When the turnable member is turned from the key entering and exiting position in an opposite direction, this turning movement will effect a movement of the actuating shaft


114


which moves the key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly


28


from a locked mode into an unlocked mode.




The key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly


28


also includes an actuated assembly


116


which is carried by a secondary housing sub-assembly, generally indicated at


118


. The secondary housing assembly


118


includes two cooperating housing parts


120


and


122


which are capable of being secured together and to the main housing sub-assembly


34


. The actuated assembly


116


includes an annular member


124


which has its interior shaped to receive the splined actuating shaft


114


therein.




The annular member


124


is mounted within a housing


126


for pivotal movement, about an axis parallel with the axis provided by pivot pin


100


. The housing


126


is, in turn, mounted within the secondary housing sub-assembly


118


. One end of the annular member


124


has formed on the periphery thereof an annular series of gear teeth


128


which form essentially a gear on the annular member


124


.




As best shown in

FIG. 7

, the gear


128


meshes with a spur gear


130


rotatably mounted on a shaft


132


carried by the secondary housing sub-assembly part


120


. The meshing spur gear


130


includes two peripheral annularly spaced abutting surfaces


134


which are adapted to engage an actuator arm


136


of an electrical switch assembly


138


suitably mounted in the secondary housing sub-assembly part


120


. The switch assembly


138


is used in a locking system control circuit, generally indicated at


140


, and shown in FIG.


16


. The circuit


140


is, in turn, connected to control the power operated outer door locking mechanisms


30


and the power operated inner door locking mechanism


32


.




The key actuated locking and unlocking assembly


28


, while normally operating on a power basis through the switch assembly


138


and control circuit


140


, also has the capability of manual operation in the event of a power downage. To this end, the annular member


124


includes a second series of teeth


142


spaced from the gear teeth


128


which form a second manual actuated gear, the operation of which will be explained hereinafter.




Referring now more particularly to

FIGS. 6-9

, the power operated outer door locking mechanism


30


is power operated by an electric motor which is generally indicated at


144


. The electric motor


144


is mounted within the housing part


120


of the secondary housing sub-assembly


118


. The electric motor


144


includes an output shaft


146


on which is mounted a worm gear


148


. The worm gear


148


meshes with a series of teeth


150


formed on a sector gear member


152


which is pivotally mounted on the shaft


132


so as to pivot about the same axis as the gear


130


. The worm gear


148


has a relatively large pitch such that it is not self-locking but is capable of being turned in reverse in response to a pivotal movement manually imparted to the sector gear member


152


.




The sector gear member


152


has mounted thereon a pivot pin


160


at a position spaced radially from the pivot shaft


132


. Mounted on the pivot pin


160


is one end of a connecting rod or member


162


. The opposite end of the connecting member


162


has a pin extending transversely therefrom which engages within an elongated opening


164


formed in an arm


166


fixed to a collar


168


. As shown, the collar


168


is, in turn, fixed to a shaft


170


which is suitably journalled between the housing sub-assembly parts


120


and


122


, so as to pivot about an axis which is essentially parallel with the axes provided by the pivot pins


39


,


54


, and


70


. Fixed to the opposite end of the shaft


170


is a cam


172


which is disposed in engagement with the actuating arm of the outer door releasing mechanism


24


.




The power operated inner door locking mechanism


32


includes components which duplicate those of the power operated outer door locking mechanism


30


. The power operated inner door locking mechanism


32


is power operated by a motor which is generally indicated at


174


. The electric motor


174


is mounted adjacent the motor


144


and includes an output shaft


176


which is parallel with the shaft


146


. The shaft


176


has mounted thereon a worm gear


178


which meshes with teeth


180


of a sector gear member


182


. The sector gear member


182


is mounted on the same shaft


132


as the sector gear member


152


in spaced relation thereto and in a mirror image relationship thereto. The sector gear member


182


carries a pin similar to the pin


160


on which is pivotally mounted one end of a connecting member


186


which extends initially in parallel relation with the connecting member in the direction of the axis of the shaft and then extends around so as to be disposed in parallel relation with the outer end of the connecting member in the direction of the axis of the shaft. As before, the connecting member


186


includes a pin which is mounted within an elongated opening


188


in an arm


190


fixed to a collar


192


. The collar


192


is pivotally mounted on the shaft


170


and includes a cam portion


194


on the opposite axial end thereof which is disposed in cooperating relation with the actuating arm


110


of the inner door releasing mechanism


26


.




Each of the sector gear members


152


and


182


includes a hub portion having a pair of outwardly directed stop lugs


196


. As before, the stop lugs


196


of the two sector gear members


152


and


182


are disposed in a mirror image relationship with respect to one another. Mounted on the shaft


132


between the hubs of the motion transmitting members


154


and


182


is a manual actuation gear


198


(see

FIG. 6

) which is disposed in meshing relation with the gear teeth


142


of the key assembly. Mounted on opposite sides of the gear


198


is a pair of projecting lugs


200


which are adapted to cooperate with the stop lugs


196


of the sector gear members


152


and


182


respectively.




The manner in which the outer door locking mechanism


30


interacts with the door latching assembly


22


and the outer door latch releasing mechanism


24


is best illustrated in

FIGS. 11-14

. It will be understood that the cooperation of the inner door locking mechanism


32


with the door latching assembly


22


and inner door latch releasing mechanism


26


is similar to that of the outer door mechanisms as shown in

FIGS. 11-14

.

FIG. 11

illustrates the condition of the door latching assembly


22


when the door


14


containing the assembly


10


is closed in latched relation. It will be noted that the striker


18


is captured between the legs


40


and


42


of the latching member


38


and that the latching member


38


is retained against movement by virtue of the holding arm


50


of the holding and releasing lever


44


disposed in its holding position engaging the outer end of the leg


42


of the latching member


38


. The outer door latch releasing mechanism


24


is shown in

FIG. 11

in its inoperative position wherein the free end of the actuating arm


76


is disposed in a position to engage the abutting portion


58


of the releasing arm


56


of the holding and releasing lever


44


. It will be noted that the cam


172


of the outer door locking mechanism


30


is disposed in abutting relation with the upper surface of the actuating arm


76


. When the various mechanisms are in the position shown in

FIG. 11

, the door


14


can be opened by actuating the outer door manual actuating assembly


112


.

FIG. 12

illustrates the position of the various mechanisms after the actuation has taken place.




It will be noted that the bell crank


68


has been pivoted about its pivot pin


70


and that the actuating arm


76


has thus been moved to the right as shown in

FIG. 12

into engagement with the abutment portion


58


of the releasing arm


56


so as to pivot the holding and releasing lever


44


in a counterclockwise direction, as viewed in FIG.


12


. During this movement, the holding arm


50


is moved out of engagement with the end of the leg


42


of the latching member


38


so that the latching member


38


is now free to pivot about pivot pin


38


in a counterclockwise direction allowing the door


14


to be opened.

FIG. 11

shows the striker


18


just in its releasing position from the latching member


38


.





FIG. 13

illustrates the position of the various mechanisms when the outer door locking mechanism


30


is moved from its unlocked mode or position to its locked mode or position. Essentially, it will be noted that the door latching assembly


22


is still in its closed latched position with respect to the door


14


and the outer door latch releasing mechanism


24


is still in its inoperative position. The only movement that has taken place is the turning of the cam


172


from its unlocked position as shown in

FIGS. 11 and 12

to its locked position, as shown in FIG.


13


. This movement of the cam


172


takes place in the counterclockwise direction, as viewed in

FIG. 13

, which has the effect of pivoting the actuating arm


76


downwardly against the bias of the spring


82


. In this position, the door


14


is locked so that it cannot be opened from the outside without the outer door locking mechanism


30


being returned to its unlocked mode or position.





FIG. 14

illustrates the position of the parts when the outer door latch releasing mechanism


24


is actuated when the outer door locking mechanism


30


is disposed in its locked mode position. In

FIG. 12

, the door latching assembly


22


is still in its door closed latching position and the outer door latch releasing mechanism


24


has been actuated so as to move the same through the same motion that occurs when a releasing action takes place, such as shown in FIG.


12


. However, since the cam


172


is holding the actuating arm


76


in a position so that, when it moves forwardly, it will not engage the abutment portion


58


of the releasing arm


56


of the holding and releasing lever


44


, there will be no movement of the latter into its releasing position but rather it will be retained in its holding position.




The manner in which the cam


172


of the outer door locking mechanism


30


is moved from its unlocked position, as shown in

FIGS. 11 and 12

, to its locked position, as shown in

FIGS. 13 and 14

, is best understood with reference to

FIGS. 6-9

. It will be understood that the operation of the inner door locking mechanism


32


is similar to that of the outer door locking mechanism


30


and hence a description of the one should suffice to provide an understanding of both.




As a convenience, the unlocked mode of the outer door locking mechanism


30


is chosen as a starting position. The first step is to engage a key within the key actuating mechanism


112


and to turn the same so that the spline actuating shaft


114


moves clockwise as viewed in FIG.


7


. This movement is directly transmitted to the annular member


124


which, in turn, will cause a corresponding angular movement of the gear


130


by virtue of the gear teeth


128


meshing therewith. The movement of the gear


130


causes the abutment surface


134


to engage the switch arm


136


to actuate the switch


138


. The manner in which the signal from the switch


138


is transmitted to the electric motor


144


will be described in detail hereinafter. Suffice it to say that a very small turn on the key by the operator will actuate the switch assembly


138


and also the electric motor


144


. As soon as the electric motor


144


is energized, the shaft


146


turns carrying with it the worm gear


148


. The meshing of the worm gear


148


with the teeth


150


of the sector gear member


152


causes the sector gear member


152


to pivot in a counter-clockwise position, as viewed in

FIG. 8

about the shaft


132


. As the sector gear member


152


moves its pivot pin


160


carries with it the connecting member


162


so that the latter is moved with an essentially transitional movement in a direction to pivot the shaft


170


in a counter-clock wise direction as viewed in

FIGS. 4 and 10

. This movement of the shaft


170


is accomplished by the engagement of the pin on the end of the connecting member


168


moving within the opening


164


so as to cause the arm


166


to move. Since the collar


168


is fixed to the arm


166


and to the shaft


170


, the shaft


170


is therefore turned. The cam


172


is fixed to the shaft


170


to move therewith into the position shown in

FIGS. 9

,


13


and


14


. Consequently, the movement of the cam


172


will affect a locking action with respect to the outer door releasing mechanism


24


and the door latching assembly


22


in the manner previously stated. The movement of the outer locking mechanism


30


from its locked position into its unlocked position starts with a reverse key movement and concludes with a repeat of the functional movements noted above in reverse.





FIG. 10

also illustrates a movement of the outer door locking mechanism


30


into the locked position thereof by a manual movement of the key, such as when a power shut-off to the vehicle has occurred. It can be seen that, if the small angular movement of the key necessary to actuate the switch


38


does not result in a power actuated movement of the outer door locking mechanism


30


from its unlocked position into its locked position, the operator can continue to turn the key manually which will have the effect of continuing to move the annular member


124


. It will be noted that the turning movement of the member


124


not only serves to rotate the gear


130


by virtue of the meshing gear teeth


128


on the member


124


but, in addition, the other set of gear teeth


142


on the member


124


will cause a turning of the gear


198


which carries the projecting lugs


200


. The gear


198


and lugs


200


move during a normal power operated movement but not enough to engage the stop lugs


196


on the sector gear members


152


and


182


. The greater amount of angular movement of the member


124


which occurs in a manual manipulation without power will be enough not only to engage the stop lugs


196


but to move the sector gear members


152


and


182


after engagement has taken place. The sector gear members


152


and


183


can move because the pitch of the worm gears


148


is such that a reverse drive is possible. Since the motor


144


is not powerized shaft


146


will allow the worm gear to turn in response to the manual movement of the sector gear member


152


. The movement of the sector gear members


152


and


182


above has the same effect as when the gear sector members


152


and


182


are moved by the motors


144


and


174


; namely, the cams


172


and


194


move between unlocked and locked positions depending upon the direction of manual key movement.




As was previously indicated, it is contemplated that only the two front doors of a four door sedan would be equipped with a key actuating assembly


112


which interfaces with the actuating assembly


116


.

FIG. 15

illustrates the installation of the unit


10


in a rear door


14


of a four door car which is essentially the same for both rear doors. Specifically,

FIG. 15

shows how the actuated assembly


116


of the unit


10


is made available for use in locking the rear door in the event of a power failure. As shown in

FIG. 15

, the unit


10


is mounted in the door


14


so that the splined interior of the member


124


is accessible through an opening


202


formed in the interior of the door


14


at a position which is covered by the door frame


20


when the door is closed. In the event of a vehicle power failure at a location where it would be necessary to have the vehicle unattended while seeking help, it would be possible to manually lock the front doors with a key actuation in the manner previously described. If the power failure occurred with the rear doors unlocked, it would be possible to lock each of them by simply opening each door and then engaging the key through the opening


202


and into the interior splines of the member


124


and affecting a manual turning action which will have the effect of moving the outer door locking mechanism


30


into its locked position in the manner previously described. Thereafter, when the door


14


is closed, it will remain locked.




Referring more particularly to

FIG. 16

, processor


210


receives inputs from the various sensors and switches of the vehicle door locking system, on signal lines


212


-


230


. Signals on lines


212


indicate the state of the inside lock switches of, for example, the front doors. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention only the front doors have inside lock switches, such as


232


shown in

FIG. 2

for the front driver side door. As an alternative, another embodiment of the present invention includes only one inside lock switch position on the front console or in place of, for example, the switch


232


shown in FIG.


2


.




Signal line


214


provides the PRNDL signal from the gear shift. This signal indicates whether or not the vehicle is, for example, in park (P), reverse (R), neutral (N), drive (D) or low (L). Signal lines


216


provide inputs from the key FOB. Typically the signals are “LOCK” or “UNLOCK.” Signal lines


218


provide the signals from key switches, such as


138


shown in FIG.


7


. Typically, there is one such key switch associated with each key lock for the vehicle doors. Commonly, only the two front doors have such key switches. Signal line


220


provides an input from the child lock switch (discussed below) indicating whether or not the rear doors are in the child lock or state.




Signal lines


222


,


224


,


226


and


228


provide inputs from the door ajar sensors. The signals indicate whether or not the respective front left, rear left, front right or rear right doors are fully closed or are ajar. Signal line


230


is an input from the vehicle crash sensor. This signal is activated when the vehicle crash sensor senses that the vehicle has crashed.




Output signals


234


-


242


drive various indicator lamps in the vehicle. For example, in an embodiment of the present invention, signal


234


drives a front left door ajar lamp; signal


236


drives a front right door ajar lamp; signal


238


drives a rear left door ajar lamp; and


240


drives a rear right door ajar lamp. Signal


242


drives a lock status lamp which is discussed below.




As shown in

FIG. 16

, the processor


210


drives a set of motors


244


-


258


. For example, the motor


244


can correspond to the inner motor


174


shown in

FIG. 6

, and the motor


246


can correspond to the outer motor


144


shown in FIG.


6


. In a similar manner, motor


248


drives the front right inside handle lock, while motor


250


drives the front right outside handle lock. In a corresponding manner, motor


252


drives the rear left inside handle lock and motor


254


drives the rear left outside handle lock. Finally, motor


256


drives the rear right inside handle lock and motor


258


drives the rear right outside handle lock.




As shown in

FIG. 16

, motor drive circuits


260


-


274


drive corresponding ones of the motors


244


-


258


. While

FIG. 16

illustrate transistor pair motor drivers, any suitable motor driver can be used in accordance with the present invention, depending upon the drive requirements of the motor. Transistor pair


276


establishes the reference polarity for each of the motors


244


-


258


; and in turn the rotational direction of each of these motors.




In one embodiment of the present invention, the processor


210


shown in

FIG. 16

provides the following functions. When the processor


210


senses that an inside lock switch, such as


242


shown in

FIG. 2

, is in the lock position, then the processor would move, for example, motor


246


to place the outside handle in a lock position; where the motor


246


could correspond to, for example, motor


144


shown in FIG.


6


. If the processor


210


determines that an inside lock switch, such as


232


is in the unlock position, then the processor


210


reverses the state of transistor pair


276


and moves motor


246


to unlock the outside door handle. In the case of only one inside lock switch located in, for example, a front console, then upon sensing the inside lock switch in the lock position, the processor would place each of the outside motors in the lock position. Upon sensing the inside lock switch in the unlock state, then the processor


210


would unlock each of the outside handles as outlined below. In doing so, the processor


210


drives, for example, motor driver


260


to move motor


244


. Depending upon the type of motor employed, the transistor driver


260


drives the motor for approximately 0.2 seconds or until the limit switch confirms that the motor


244


has moved, for example, gear


182


by a sufficient amount.




The PRNDL signals are provided by a sensor that is commonly available in many of today's modern vehicles. When the processor


210


senses that the shift lever is moved out of park, each of the outside handles is placed in a lock position following the lock procedure as described below. Alternatively, the outside handles can be locked whenever the PRNDL signal indicates that the shift lever is moved into the drive position.




The following describes the processor


210


operation in response to receiving signals from the key FOB. Typically a key FOB includes two buttons: LOCK and UNLOCK. The processor


210


can control the vehicle entry system in any number of ways in response to the key FOB signals. The following describes one such manner of operation. When the processor


210


detects that the key FOB LOCK button has been pressed once, the processor proceeds through a lock procedure. In particular, processor


210


places the transistor pair


276


to a logic one state (i.e., V


out


approximately equals V


vatt


). Each of the inside motor driver (e.g.,


260


,


264


,


268


and


270


) are placed the same state as the transistor pair


276


, that is, a logic 1. Each of the motor drivers for the outside handles (e.g.,


262


,


266


,


270


and


274


) are placed in the opposite state as the transistor pair


276


. This supplies a drive voltage to each of the corresponding motors. This drive voltage is applied for approximately 0.2 seconds or until a limit switch as described above detects that the motor has caused the appropriate movement. The motor drivers for each of the outside door handles is then placed at the same potential as the transistor pair


276


, i.e., a logic 1. In this state, the potential across the respective motor is approximately 0 volts.




When processor


210


detects that the key FOB LOCK button has been pushed twice, then all door handles, inside and outside, are locked. To accomplish this, the processor


210


performs the same function as when the key FOB LOCK button is pressed once, with the addition of each motor driver for the inside door handles being placed in the logic 0 state (i.e., a potential opposite that of the transistor pair


276


) for the 0.2 seconds or until a limit switch determines that the corresponding motor has moved the desired gear the appropriate amount.




When processor


210


detects that the key FOB UNLOCK button is depressed once, the processor


210


will unlock the driver's side door, both inside and outside handles. To effect this operation within the system shown in

FIG. 16

, the processor


210


places the transistor


276


in a logic 0 state, the driver side inside and outside motor drivers (e.g., motor drivers


260


and


262


) are then placed in a state opposite to that of the motor driver


276


, e.g., a logic 1 state. To ensure that none of the other motors move during this operation, the processor


210


can set the motor drivers for all of the other motors to the same state as the transistor pair


276


. The processor


210


allows the driver's side inside and outside handle motors to move for approximately 0.2 seconds, or until the appropriate limit switch detects that the corresponding gear has moved the desired amount. After the expiration of the desired amount of time or upon receipt of appropriate signal from a limit switch, the processor


210


changes the driver side motor drivers (e.g.,


260


and


262


) to the same state as the transistor pair


276


; that is, to a logic 0 state. This function unlocks the driver's side inside and outside locks.




When the processor


210


detects that the key FOB UNLOCK button has been depressed twice, the processor


210


unlocks the inside and outside door handles for each of the doors. To effect this operation, the processor


210


places the transistor pair


276


in a logic 0 state. The processor


210


then places the rear drivers


260


-


274


in a state opposite that of the transistor pair


276


; that is, a logic 1 state. This condition is held for approximately 0.2 seconds, or until the limit switches, if any, indicate that the respective motors have moved the appropriate gears by the desired amount. After the lapse of the appropriate time or detection of the limit switch signals, the processor changes the state of each of the motor drivers


260


-


274


to the same potential as the transistor pair


276


, that is, a logic 0 state. This sequence unlocks all of the vehicle doors.




The processor


210


also senses operation of a key via switch


138


such as shown in

FIG. 7

, via signals on lines


212


. If the key cylinder is moved in the lock direction once, then the outside handle for the corresponding door is locked. To accomplish this, the processor drives the associated motor drivers and transistor pair


276


as discussed above with respect to the lock operation. The key cylinder is turned in the lock direction twice, then the processor will lock all of the vehicle doors. To effect this operation, the processor performs the operations such as described with respect to the key FOB when the key FOB LOCK button is pressed twice. If the key cylinder is rotated once in the unlock direction, then the processor


210


will drive the corresponding motor driver to unlock the outside lock associated with the key being moved. To effect this operation, the processor drives the motor driver and transistor pair


276


to unlock the door as described above.




Activation of the child lock switch causes the processor


210


to lock the inside rear door handles. To effect this operation, the processor first places the transistor pair


276


in the logic 1 (i.e., lock state). The motor drivers for the front inside handles and the rear outside handles are also placed in the same state as the transistor pair


276


; that is, the logic 1 state. The motor drivers for the inside handle of the rear doors (i.e.,


272


,


274


) are then placed in the opposite state as the transistor pair


276


; that is, in the logic 0 state. The processor maintains this condition for 0.2 seconds or until the appropriate limit switch indicates that the inside handle drive motors have moved the appropriate gears the desired amount. After the lapse of the appropriate time or reception of the limit switch input, the processor


210


changes the state of the rear motor drivers (


272


,


274


) to have the same potential as the transistor pair


276


; that is, the logic state 1.




When the processor


210


detects that the child lock switch has been turned off, the processor operates to unlock the inside rear doors. To effect this operation, the processor


210


first places the transistor pair


276


in the unlock, logic 0 state. The motor drivers for the front inside handles (


260


,


264


) and each outside motor driver (


262


,


266


,


270


and


274


) are placed in the same potential as the transistor pair


276


; that is, the logic 0 state. The processor maintains this condition for approximately 0.2 seconds (or until the appropriate limit signal is received). Following this, the processor changes the state of the motor drivers for each rear door inside handle (


268


,


272


) to have the same potential as the transistor pair


276


; that is, the logic 0 state.




The appearance of a door ajar signal on one of the signal lines


222


,


224


,


226


or


228


causes the processor


210


to unlock the door associated with the door ajar signal. For example, if the front left door ajar signal is received on line


222


, then the processor


210


unlocks the outside lock door handle for the front left door. The processor also lights the corresponding door ajar lamp.




Referring to

FIG. 16

, a crash sensor applies a signal on line


230


to processor


210


. As shown in

FIG. 16

, the crash sensor signal slowly charges C


1


through D


1


. In the event of a crash being detected by the crash sensor, the charge stored on capacitor C


1


is sufficient to allow the processor to unlock all outside door handles. To effect the unlock operation, the processor follows the unlock sequence of operations as discussed above. The lock status signal on line


242


indicates the lock state of the associated door. For example, in a preferred embodiment of the present invention, each front door would have its own lock status lamp driven by a separate signal on line


242


. When the associated door has both the inside and outside door handles locked, the lock status lamp flashes at a low rate (e.g., 1 Hz) for ten minutes upon startup of the vehicle. If only the inside door is locked, then the lock status light for that door remains on as long as the PRNDL signal indicates that the vehicle is not in the parked condition; and remains on for an additional period of time (e.g., 10 seconds) when the vehicle is placed in the park state.




The above description of the present invention as embodied in the circuit of

FIG. 16

can also be embodied using relays instead of the motor drivers. In such a case, the one end of the relay coils would be driven by, for example, a signal such as Vout that is provided by transistor pair


276


in the case of the

FIG. 16

embodiment. The other side of each relay coil would be driven by the appropriate output from the processor depending upon the door with which that relay coil is associated.




Referring now more particularly to

FIGS. 17 and 18

of the drawings, there is shown therein a modified power operated vehicle door locking assembly which embodies the principles of the present invention. The modified door locking assembly of

FIGS. 17 and 18

has been designated generally by the numeral


10


′ since it contains many components which are identical with the components of the door locking assembly


10


and these common identical components have been designated by the same numerals with an added prime where included in

FIGS. 17-24

illustrating the door locking assembly


10


′. The common basic components of the door locking assembly


10


′ include the housing assembly, generally indicated at


12


′, the door latching assembly, generally indicated at


22


′, the outer door latch releasing mechanism, generally indicated at


24


′, and the inner door latch releasing mechanism, generally indicated at


26


′. The construction and operation of these components are like those of the comparable components previously described and their construction and operation need not be repeated. The component which is varied in the door locking assembly


10


′ is the key-actuated door locking and unlocking assembly, generally indicated by the new reference numeral


328


, which includes a separate power operated outer door locking mechanism, generally indicated at


330


, and a separate power operated inner door locking mechanism, generally indicated at


332


.




The construction and operation of the key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly


328


will vary depending upon whether the assembly


10


′ is mounted in a front or rear door. Front doors provide exterior key access while rear doors do not. However, rear doors do have manual locking capability when open and vehicle power is lost.




When the key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly


329


is used in a front door, the front door will include a conventional front door type key actuated actuating assembly. The key actuating assembly includes the usual key receiving turnable member and a lock cylinder arrangement which enables the turnable member to be turned only when a proper key is properly inserted. The turnable member, when turned, is connected to effect movement of an elongated longitudinally outwardly extending splined actuating shaft, illustrated at


334


in FIG.


18


. The turnable member and shaft


334


are normally retained in a central key entering and exiting position. In accordance with usual practice. When the turnable member is turned in one direction, the turning action will effect a movement of the actuating shaft


334


which moves the key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly


328


from an unlocked mode into a locked mode. When the turnable member is turned from the key entering and exiting position in an opposite direction, this turning movement will effect a movement of the actuating shaft


334


which moves the key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly


328


from a locked mode into an unlocked mode.




The key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly


328


also includes an actuated assembly


336


which is carried by a secondary housing sub-assembly, generally indicated at


118


′. The secondary housing assembly


118


′ includes two cooperating housing parts


120


′ and


122


′ which are capable of being secured together and to the main housing sub-assembly


34


′. The actuated assembly


336


includes an annular member


338


which has its interior shaped to receive the splined actuating shaft


334


therein.




The annular member


338


is mounted within the housing


118


′ for pivotal movement, about an axis parallel with the axis provided by pivot pin


100


′. One end of the annular member


338


has formed on the periphery thereof two annularly spaced abutting surfaces


340


which are adapted to engage an actuator arm


136


′ of an electrical switch assembly


138


′ suitably mounted in the secondary housing sub-assembly part


120


′. The switch assembly


138


′ is used in the locking system control circuit


140


, as shown in FIG.


16


. The circuit


140


is, in turn, connected to control the power operated outer door locking mechanisms


330


and the power operated inner door locking mechanism


332


.




The key actuated locking and unlocking assembly


328


, while normally operating on a power basis through the switch assembly


138


′ and control circuit


140


, also has the capability of manual operation in the event of a power downage.




Referring now more particularly to

FIGS. 17-23

, the power operated outer door locking mechanism


330


is power operated by an electric motor


342


. The electric motor


342


is mounted within the housing part


120


′ of the secondary housing sub-assembly


118


′. The electric motor


342


includes an output shaft on which is mounted a small spur gear


344


. The spur gear


344


meshes with a mating relatively large spur gear


348


which is rotatably mounted on a shaft


350


mounted in the housing sub-assembly


118


′ with its axis parallel to the axis of the output shaft of the motor


342


. Fixed to the large spur gear


348


is a pinion gear


352


which, in turn, meshes with rack teeth


354


formed on a motion transmitting member


356


.




Motion transmitting member


356


is mounted within the housing sub-assembly


118


′ for reciprocating movement between limiting positions. As best shown in

FIG. 18

, the end of the motion transmitting member


356


opposite from the end on which the rack teeth


354


are formed includes a bifurcation defining a recess


358


. Extending into the recess


358


is an appropriately shaped end of an arm


360


, fixed to a shaft


362


, as by an integral collar


364


.




The shaft


364


is suitably journalled between the housing sub-assembly parts


120


′ and


122


′, so as to pivot about an axis which is essentially parallel with the axes provided by the pivot pins


39


′,


54


′ and


70


′. Fixed to the collar


364


is an actuation tab


366


which activates a cam position switch assembly


368


. Fixed to the opposite end of the shaft


362


is a cam


369


which is disposed in engagement with the actuating arm


76


′ of the outer door releasing mechanism


24


′.




The power operated inner door locking mechanism


332


includes components which duplicate those of the power operated outer door locking mechanism


330


. The power operated inner door locking mechanism


332


is power operated by a motor


370


. The electric motor


370


is mounted adjacent the motor


342


and includes an output shaft which is parallel with the output shaft of the motor


342


. Mounted on the output shaft of the motor


370


is a spur gear


372


which meshes with a mating larger spur gear


374


. The larger spur gear


374


is rotatably mounted on a shaft


376


which is parallel to the shaft


350


. As before, a pinion


378


is fixed to the large spur gear


374


, which, in turn, meshes with rack teeth


380


formed on a motion transmitting member


382


mounted for reciprocating movement in side-by-side relation with the motion transmitting member


356


. As before, the motion transmitting member


382


includes a recess


384


which receives an end of an arm


386


fixed to a collar sleeve


388


pivotally mounted on the shaft


362


. The collar


388


includes a cam portion


390


on the opposite axial end thereof which is disposed in cooperating relation with the actuating arm


110


′ of the inner door releasing mechanism


26


′. The arm


386


also has an activation tab


392


which activates a switch assembly


393


.




The manner in which the outer and inner door locking mechanisms


330


and


332


interact with the door latching assembly


22


′ and the outer and inner door latch releasing mechanism


24


′ and


26


′ is the same as previously described, since the movement of the cams


369


and


390


are the same as cams


172


and


194


. The only difference is in the specific transmission of the movement of the motors to the cams. That is, meshing spur gears and a rack and pinion set are used instead of meshing worm and sector gears and a pivoted connecting member.




Referring now more particularly to

FIGS. 20

,


24


,


25


and


26


, these figures illustrate the interrelation between the annular member


338


of the actuated assembly


336


and the power operated outer and inner door locking mechanisms


330


and


332


and more particularly the manner in which the manual turning of the annular member


338


by the shaft


334


can effect manual movements of the outer and inner door locking mechanisms


330


and


332


when the source of electricity on the vehicle is no longer available, as by the battery going dead.




The annular member


338


includes a lower portion which is essentially cylindrical but has a pair of diametrically opposed integral moving lugs or elements


392


extending radially outwardly from the exterior periphery thereof. Mounted on the lower tab containing portion of the annular member


338


are outer and inner moving arms


394


and


396


respectively. One end of the outer moving arm


394


is in the form of a collar whose interior periphery engages the cylindrical exterior periphery of the annular member


338


and has diametrically opposed recesses formed therein to receive the turning lugs


392


therein. The recesses are bounded at one end by lug abutting surfaces


398


and at the other by lug abutting surfaces


400


. The other end of the outer moving arm


394


is shaped to pivotally move within a confining recess


402


formed in the adjacent end of the outer motion transmitting member


356


.




In a similar manner, the inner moving arm


396


has one end shaped as a collar with a dual recessed interior periphery. The recesses are bounded by lug engaging surfaces


404


and


406


. The opposite end of the inner moving arm


396


is shaped to pivotally move within a confining recess


408


formed in the adjacent end of the inner motion transmitting member


382


.





FIG. 24

, like

FIGS. 19 and 20

, illustrates the moving arms


394


and


396


in the unlocked positions thereof.

FIG. 25

shows the arms


394


and


396


in the locked position thereof. It will also be noted that the annular member


338


is in a position which corresponds with the central key entering and exiting position of the normal turnable member of the key actuation assembly. It will be noted that the lugs


392


are disposed within a central portion of the recesses spaced from the recess defining surfaces


398


,


400


,


404


and


406


. As shown in

FIG. 24

, the lug engaging surfaces


400


and


406


of the outer and inner moving arms


394


and


396


respectively are in alignment whereas the surfaces


398


and


404


are spaced from one another. It will also be noted that the annular member


338


can be turned slightly in either direction from the center key entering and exiting positions shown without engaging a lug engaging surface. During this movement, the switch


138


′ will normally be actuated so that the power operation of the power operated door locking mechanisms


330


and


332


will complete their movement without further manual movement of the annular member


338


or, in other words, further key turning movement by the operator.




In the event that the source of electricity for energizing the motors


342


and


370


is lost, as for example, by the battery going dead, the moving arms


394


and


396


can be used to move both the outer and inner door locking mechanisms


330


and


332


from the locked position thereof shown in

FIG. 25

into the unlocked position thereof shown in FIG.


24


. This movement can take place by a clockwise movement of the annular member


338


as viewed in FIG.


25


. It will be noted that, after a few degrees of movement, the lugs


392


will engage the aligned lug engaging surfaces


400


and


406


so as to thereafter effect a movement of both of the moving arms


394


and


396


with the movement of the annular member


338


. The engagement of the outer ends of the arms


394


and


396


within the recesses


402


and


408


within the motion transmitting members


356


and


382


will effect a movement of the latter from the locking positions thereof into the unlocking positions thereof. In this regard, it will be noted that the motors


342


and


370


will free-wheel as will the spur gears


344


,


348


,


372


and


374


as well as the pinions gears


352


and


378


thus allowing the manual movement to take place.





FIG. 24

illustrates the position of the arms


394


and


396


after they have been moved into the locked positions thereof and the annular member


338


has been moved back into a position corresponding to the central key entering and exiting position of the key actuating assembly. In this position, it will be noted that a turning movement of the annular member


338


in a counterclockwise direction will have the effect of bringing the lugs


392


into engagement with the lug engaging surfaces


398


of the outer moving arm


394


so that further movement of the annular member


336


will effect movement of the outer arm


394


from its unlocked position into a locked position wherein the lug engaging surfaces


398


will align with the lug engaging surfaces


404


. This condition is shown in FIG.


26


. Consequently, in this embodiment, the manual override is capable of moving only the outer locking mechanism


330


into a locked position and not the inner locking mechanism


332


.




It will be understood that the circuit system shown in

FIG. 16

is utilized with the embodiment described above with respect to

FIGS. 17-26

. The switches


368


and


393


are used in the circuit only as monitoring switches to determine that the movement into a locking position has taken place. The de-energization of the motors


342


and


370


is still accomplished in the same fashion.




Referring now more particularly to

FIGS. 27-35

, there is shown therein another door locking assembly embodying the principles of the present invention. The modified door locking assembly of

FIGS. 27 and 28

has been designated generally by the numeral


10


″ since, as before, it contains many components which are identical with the components of the door locking assembly


10


. These common identical components have been designated by the same numerals with an added double prime where included in

FIGS. 27-34

illustrating the door locking assembly


10


″. The common basic components of the door locking assembly


10


″ include the housing assembly, generally indicated at


12


″, the door latching assembly, generally indicated at


22


″, the outer door latch releasing mechanism, generally indicated at


24


″, and the inner door latch releasing mechanism, generally indicated at


26


″. The construction and operation of these components are like those of the comparable components previously described and their construction and operation need not be repeated. The component which is varied in the door locking assembly


10


″ is, as before, the key-actuated door locking and unlocking assembly, generally indicated by the new reference numeral


528


, which includes a separate power operated outer door locking mechanism, generally indicated at


530


, and a separate power operated inner door locking mechanism, generally indicated at


532


.




The construction and operation of the key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly


528


will vary, as before, depending upon whether the assembly


10


″ is mounted in a front or rear door. Front doors provide exterior key access while rear doors do not. However, rear doors do have manual locking capability when open and vehicle power is lost. In this embodiment, the rear doors are capable of being locked on the inside and not on the outside whereas this capability is not used on the front doors.




As before, when the key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly


532


is used in a front door, the front door will include a conventional front door type key actuated actuating assembly. The key actuating assembly includes the usual key receiving turnable member and a lock cylinder arrangement which enables the turnable member to be turned only when a proper key is properly inserted. The turnable member, when turned, is connected to effect movement of an elongated longitudinally outwardly extending splined actuating shaft, illustrated at


534


in FIG.


28


. The turnable member and shaft


534


are normally retained in a central key entering and exiting position. In accordance with usual practice. When the turnable member is turned in one direction, the turning action will effect a movement of the actuating shaft


534


which moves the key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly


528


from an unlocked mode into a locked mode. When the turnable member is turned from the key entering and exiting position in an opposite direction, this turning movement will effect a movement of the actuating shaft


534


which moves the key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly


528


from a locked mode into an unlocked mode.




The key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly


528


also includes an actuated assembly


536


, similar to the assembly


336


. The actuated assembly


535


includes an annular member


537


, which has formed on the periphery thereof two annularly spaced abutting surfaces


541


adapted to engage an actuator arm


136


″ of an electrical switch assembly


138


″. The switch assembly


138


″ is used in the locking system control circuit


140


″. The control circuit


140


″ is, in turn, connected to control the power operated outer door locking mechanisms


530


and the power operated inner door locking mechanism


532


.




The key actuated locking and unlocking assembly


528


, while normally operating on a power basis through the switch assembly


138


″ and a control circuit


140


″, also has the capability of manual operation in the event of a power downage.




A basic difference in the vehicle door locking assembly


10


″ from the assemblies


10


and


10


′ resides in the utilization of a single motor


536


in the electric control system


140


″ to supply the power to both the outer door locking mechanism


530


and the inner door locking mechanism


532


.




As best shown in

FIG. 28

, the single motor


536


has a spur gear


538


on the output shaft thereof which meshes with a larger spur gear


540


fixed to a shaft


542


. As best shown in

FIG. 27

, the shaft


542


is mounted in the same position with respect to the door latching assembly


22


″ and outer and inner door latch releasing mechanisms


24


″ and


26


″ as the shaft


170


.




The power operated outer locking mechanism


530


comprises an outer cam


544


fixed on the shaft


542


. The power operated inner locking mechanism


532


comprises an inner cam


546


. The outer and inner cams


544


and


546


are shown in abutting relation and may be formed as one piece. The term “separate” as it is used herein to describe the power operated outer and inner locking mechanisms


30


and


32


,


330


and


332


, or


530


and


532


, is used in an operative sense rather than a physical sense. Physically, they constitute two separate entities but they need not be separated physically. The separate entities operate separately in that the outer locking mechanism


530


can be power operated separately into a locked position while the inner locking mechanism


532


is in an unlocked position and, in the case of the back doors, the outer locking mechanism


530


can be power operated separately into an unlocked position while the inner locking mechanism is in a locked position.




The annular member


537


which is turned by the key is connected to mechanically turn the shaft


542


in the following manner. The annular member


537


includes a blade like extension


548


which is fixed to turn with the annular member


537


and the key. As best shown in

FIGS. 29-31

, the blade


548


extends within a central opening


550


formed in an annular member


552


fixed to a shaft


553


suitably journalled to pivot or rotate about an axis perpendicular to the axis of the shaft


542


. Extending radially inwardly within the opening


550


is a pair of diametrically opposed blade engaging lugs


554


.




A portion of the periphery of the annular member


552


includes a series of four V-shaped notches therein indicated at


556


,


558


,


560


and


562


. A spring


564


having a V-shaped free end


566


is mounted in cooperating relation with the annular member


552


so that the V-shaped end


566


of the spring


564


will enter and be biased out of successive notches as the annular member


552


is moved from the position shown in

FIG. 29

in a counterclockwise direction. The spring


564


serves as an indexing means to define four different positions for the annular member


552


when the V-shaped end


566


is within the four different notches.




Fixed to the shaft


553


is a large bevel gear


570


disposed in meshing engagement with a bevel gear


571


fixed to the shaft


542


. In this way, the four indexing positions of the annular member


552


are interrelated to four indexed positions of the shaft


542


which are displaced 90° apart. In order to relate the position of the shaft


542


with respect to the four indexing positions, a position senser


572


is fixed on the shaft


542


.




The outer cam


544


is movable between locked and unlocked positions by the shaft


542


. The unlocked position corresponds to the indexed positions of the shaft


542


when notches


556


and


562


are entered by the spring end


566


. The locked position corresponds to the indexed positions of the shaft


542


when notches


558


and


560


are entered by the spring end


566


. Similarly, the inner cam


546


is movable between locked and unlocked positions by the shaft


542


. The unlocked position corresponds to the indexed positions of the shaft


542


when notches


556


and


558


are entered by the spring end


566


. The locked position corresponds to the indexed positions of the shaft


542


when notches


560


and


562


are entered by the spring end


566


.




When the spring end


566


is disposed within the notch


556


, the cam


544


of the outer door locking mechanism


530


is in an unlocked position and the cam


546


of the door locking mechanism


532


is also in an unlocked position which is illustrated in FIG.


32


. As shown in

FIG. 29

, the blade


548


can have a few degrees of turning movement before engaging the lugs


554


. During this movement, the switch arm


136


″ is moved to actuate the switch


138


″ which energizes the motor


536


to effect a counterclockwise movement of the shaft


542


. After the shaft


542


has been moved 90°, the outer cam


544


has been moved from the unlocked position thereof into the locked position thereof while the inner cam


546


is retained in the unlocked position thereof. This position is illustrated in FIG.


33


and it corresponds with the position of the spring end


566


when entered within the notch


558


. During the next 90° of movement of the shaft


542


in a counterclockwise direction, the outer cam


544


is retained in its locked position and the inner cam


546


is moved from the unlocked position thereof into the locked position thereof. This position is illustrated in FIG.


34


and it corresponds to the position of the spring end


566


within the notch


560


, as shown in FIG.


30


. During the next 90° of movement of the shaft


542


in a counterclockwise direction, the outer cam


544


is moved from the locked position thereof into the unlocked position thereof and the inner cam


546


is position is illustrated in FIG.


35


and corresponds with the position of the annular member


552


when the spring end


566


is disposed within the notch


562


.




It will be noted that the position of the lugs


554


with respect to the blade


548


is such that all of the power movements of the annular member


552


can take place without the lugs


554


engaging the blade


548


while it is retained in the centered position shown in

FIGS. 29 and 30

. It will also be understood that a power movement in the opposite direction can be achieved simply by reversing the direction of movement of the motor


536


. The cooperation of the outer door locking mechanism


530


and inner door locking mechanism


532


with respect to the door latching assembly


22


″, the outer latch releasing mechanism


24


″ and the inner door releasing mechanism


26


″ is the same as previously described since the cams


554


and


556


act in the same manner as the cams


172


and


194


.




The manual operation of the inner and outer locking mechanisms


530


and


532


can best be understood with reference to

FIGS. 29

,


30


and


31


. As can be seen from

FIG. 29

, if the blade


548


is turned in a counterclockwise direction, it will effect a corresponding movement of the annular member


552


once the lost motion necessary for actuation of the switch


138


″ has been taken up. Movement of the annular member


552


is allowed to take place when the motor


536


is without power since the motor


536


will free-wheel and so will the spur gear set


538


and


540


, thus allowing the shaft


542


to be turned. After the annular member


552


has been moved a sufficient number of degrees to allow the spring end


566


to enter the notch


558


, the cams


544


and


546


will be moved into the position shown in

FIG. 33

, so that the outside of the door is locked by the outer door locking mechanism


530


and the inside of the door is unlocked. The member


548


can be provided with a stop which would prevent further manual movement beyond this position if desired or it can be enabled to move further so as to further move the annular member


552


into a position where the spring end


566


enters the notch


560


in which case both the inside and outside of the door will be locked, as shown in FIG.


34


. It will be understood that further movement of the blade


548


in a counterclockwise direction could be provided for moving the annular member


552


in a position where the spring


566


is engaged within the notch


562


. However, it would be desirable to provide a stop for the movement of the blade


548


which would prevent this movement. It will also be understood that, if the door is locked on the inside and outside a condition which is illustrated in

FIG. 30

, a clockwise movement of the blade


558


will serve to effect a movement of the member


552


from the position shown in

FIG. 30

into the position shown in FIG.


29


.




As illustrated in

FIG. 36

, the position sensor


572


of the embodiment illustrated in

FIG. 27

includes a plurality of trigger elements mounted for rotation with the shaft


542


and a stationary electronic element which detects passage of each trigger element. Preferably, a magnet-carrying disk


700


(or alternatively, a drum) is fixedly mounted to the shaft


542


for rotation therewith. A stationary magnetic field sensor


702


serves as the stationary electronic element and emits an electrical pulse each time one of the magnets on the magnet-carrying disk


700


passes by the sensor


702


.




The disk


700


preferably includes about thirty-five individual magnets (or magnetic elements)


704


which serve as the trigger elements and which are evenly spaced about the circumference of the disk


700


except at a reference spot


706


on the disk


700


. A larger separation between magnets


704


is provided at the reference spot


706


.




When the disk


700


rotates, the sensor


702


responds to the passing of each magnet


704


by emitting an electrical pulse. An exemplary pulse train is graphically illustrated by way of example in FIG.


38


. When the reference spot


706


passes by the sensor


702


, a temporal gap (missing pulse MP) appears in the train of pulses being emitted by the sensor


702


. This temporal gap thus provides a way of detecting when the disk is rotationally oriented such that the reference spot


706


is immediately adjacent to the sensor


702


.




In

FIG. 36

, the positions P


1


, P


2


, P


3


and P


4


, which correspond to the positions of the cams


544


and


546


shown in

FIGS. 32-35

respectively, are aligned with the sensor


702


when the first, second, third, and fourth orientations, respectively, of the shaft


542


are achieved according to the embodiment of FIG.


27


. Thus, the positions P


1


, P


2


, P


3


and P


4


are aligned with the sensor


702


when the first, second, third and fourth locking and unlocking operations of the

FIG. 27

embodiment are achieved. Preferably, the reference spot


702


lies between two such positions.




As illustrated in

FIG. 37

, the circuitry, generally indicated at


140


″, is provided for controlling the energization and deenergization of the motor


536


.




The circuitry


140


″ preferably includes a processor


710


; four motors


536


; four drive circuits


715


; a common drive circuit


717


; and four position sensors


572


of the type illustrated in FIG.


36


. The signals


712


-


742


at the processor


710


correspond respectively to the signals


212


-


242


which were described in connection with the circuitry


140


.




Each motor


536


is mechanically connected so as to rotatably drive a respective one of the shafts


542


which carry the cams


544


and


546


. Electrically, each motor


536


has one of its power terminals connected to a respective one of the drive circuits


715


. The other power terminal of each motor


536


is electrically connected to an output from the common drive circuit


717


. By selectively applying logic signals (i.e., logic 1, or logic 0) to each drive circuit


715


and to the common drive circuit


717


, the processor


710


can selectively activate each motor


536


and reverse its direction of a rotation.




For example, one or more of the motors


536


can be rotated in a first rotational direction by applying a “logic 1” signal to its (or their) respective drive circuit(s)


715


and a “logic 0” signal to the common drive circuit


717


. The “logic 1” signal at the drive circuit(s)


715


causes the battery voltage Vbatt to appear as the output voltage Vout of such drive circuit(s)


715


, while the output of the common drive circuit


717


remains grounded. Electrical current therefore flows through the windings of the activated motors


536


to provide a desired rotation in a first direction.




Rotation of the activated motor(s)


536


can be stopped by applying the same logic signal to their respective drive circuit(s)


715


as is being applied to the common drive circuit


717


. Since there is no potential differences across the power terminals of the previously activated motor(s)


536


, the motor(s) are effectively deactivated.




If reversal of motor rotation is desired, the processor merely applies a “logic 1” signal to the common drive circuit


717


and a “logic 0” signal to the drive circuit(s)


715


of any motor(s)


536


which is (are) to be rotated in the reverse direction. Since this reverses the direction of current flow through the windings of such motors


536


, the motors


536


rotate in a reverse direction.




The motors


536


which are not to rotate are again kept stationary by applying a logic signal to their respective drive circuits


715


which is equal to the logic signal being applied to the common drive circuit


717


.




The amount of rotation imparted to each motor


536


is monitored by the processor


710


via the pulse trains received from the sensors


702


associated with each vehicle door.




Depending on the inputs received from the signals


712


-


730


, the processor


710


determines which of the four rotational orientations is desired for each of the shafts


542


. The processor


710


then applies appropriate logic signals to the drive circuits


715


and the common drive circuit


717


, and monitors the pulse trains from the respective position sensors


572


. When such monitoring indicates that the desired orientation has been achieved in any of the motors


536


, the processor


710


deactivates that (those) motor(s)


536


and continues to monitor and deactivate other motors until all of the motors


536


which were activated have achieved the desired shaft orientations.




This application of logic signals is controlled in the processor


710


by an appropriate program. The program can be provided using known programming techniques, and variations in such programming can be made depending on the operation desired at each of the doors' locking arrangements. The programming, for example, could preclude the shafts


542


in the front doors of the vehicle from achieving the orientation associated with the “child lock” operation described above. Other combinations of locking arrangements can be provided or precluded in response to the signals


712


-


730


. Examples of such combination have been described in connection with the embodiment illustrated in

FIG. 16

; however, it is understood that numerous other combinations can be achieved depending on the particular locking and unlocking responses desired at the different doors of the vehicle under varying circumstances and in response to different user inputs.





FIG. 39

is a flow chart illustrating a preferred program carried out by the processor


710


in determining the rotational orientation of a single shaft


542


.




Upon initialization of the processor


710


(step


780


), the motor


536


is actuated in a predetermined direction while the pulse train is monitored by the processor


710


. The cycle time (tc) of a nominal trigger is approximated by averaging the timing of all received pulses. After the average stabilizes, the processor monitors the pulse train for a specific deviation from the average, which deviation is indicative of the presence of the reference spot


706


at the sensor


702


.




Alternatively, if the mechanical assembly must be rotated at varying rates, compensation for such varying rates can be provided by monitoring the supply voltage of the motor


536


and detecting passage of the reference spot


706


accordingly.




Once the presence of the reference spot


706


has been detected by the processor


710


, the processor


710


achieves a predetermined initial orientation of the shaft


542


by appropriately activating the corresponding motor


536


as described above.




Upon achieving the predetermined orientation of the shaft


542


, the processor


710


monitors (step


782


) the signals


712


-


730


for user inputs. If a user input represented by one of the signals


712


-


730


indicates that at least one of the locking or unlocking operations described in connection with the embodiment of

FIG. 26

is desired, the processor


710


activates the appropriate motor(s)


536


, as described above, by applying the appropriate combination of logic signals to the drive circuits


715


and the common drive circuit


717


.




Preferably, the program which controls operation of the processor


710


includes program modules which determine which direction of rotation is more desirable during rotation of the shaft


542


from the present orientation to the orientation which achieves the desired one of the four aforementioned locking or unlocking operations. This direction of rotation is determined during programming of the processor


710


and preferably after considering several factors. Such factors may include, for example, the desirability of minimizing the travel delay from one orientation to the next, and/or the desirability of avoiding transitions through an orientation which achieves a particular one of the four locking or unlocking operations.




Upon determining which direction of rotation is desired (step


784


), the processor


710


activates the appropriate motor(s)


536


to effect rotation of the corresponding shaft(s)


542


.




The processor


710


is programmed to detect (step


786


) a predetermined number of pulses before deactivating the activated motor(s)


536


, which number of pulses corresponds to the number of trigger elements (or magnets


704


) located between the start position and the destination position of the disk


700


. Upon receiving the appropriate number of pulses, the processor


710


stops (


782


) rotation of the motor


536


and awaits further user inputs.




If, for example, the processor


710


determines based on the signals


712


-


730


that one of the shafts


542


is to be rotated from an orientation wherein the reference spot


706


is located at the sensor


702


to an orientation wherein position P


2


of the disk


700


is adjacent to the sensor


702


, then clockwise rotation of shaft


542


would continue under the processor's control until thirteen pulses are detected, at which time the motor


536


associated with that particular shaft


542


is deactivated by the processor


710


.




Preferably, the processor


710


stores, in an appropriate memory element, a value indicative of the present orientation of the shaft


542


before, during, or after deactivation of the motor


536


. This memory element may be included in the processor


710


or may be provided by virtue of a separate memory unit (not shown). The memory element preferably is updated upon each rotation of the shaft


542


so that the processor


710


always has access to the starting position of the shaft


542


before any further rotations.




For additional confirmation of position, additional deviations in trigger separation can be provided for detection by the processor


710


. Based on detected variations in the pulse train caused by such deviations, the processor


710


achieves verification of the detected position of the disk


700


. In the event such verification indicates that a discrepancy exists, the processor may be programmed to rerun the reference spot finding sequence. The additional deviations in trigger separation can be located anywhere around the circumference of the disk


700


.




Although the preferred embodiment illustrated in

FIGS. 34 and 35

includes four sets of motors and position sensors for a four-door vehicle arrangement, it is understood that the present invention is not limited to such an arrangement. To the contrary, two motors and two position sensors can be provided, for example, in a two-door vehicle. Generally, one motor and one position sensor are provided for each door which is to be locked and unlocked in accordance with the operations provided by this embodiment.




Furthermore, it is understood that various other known position sensing arrangements can be used in place of the position sensor


572


without deviating from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Examples of such arrangements include optical position sensors, metal wipers with separate electrified pads which electrically contact the metal wipers to provide the desired pulses, and the like. The position sensor


542


also can be realized using linear components, as opposed to rotary components. A linear component advantageously provides limits to the rotation of the shaft


542


. Similar rotational limits can be realized in a rotary arrangement by providing stops on the trigger-carrying member (e.g. the disk


700


).




The illustrated positioning arrangement is preferred because it strikes a desirable balance between such factors as response speed, accuracy of positioning, component minimization, costs, applicability, and reliability. A primary advantage of the illustrated arrangement is the ability to use a single sensor which, in turn, translates into cost reductions and savings in the amount of space required by the illustrated arrangement. Additional benefits can be achieved by appropriately selecting components and software in the processor


710


, to achieve direction feedback and velocity reduction for accurate positioning.




The interconnection between each motor


536


and the respective shaft


542


preferably is provided using gear reduction. The amount of gear reduction is selected to achieve a desired amount of torque and speed, and also to minimize overrun of various positions by the shaft


542


. The tolerances of positioning will be largely determined by factors such as the rate of rotation of the shaft


542


and the time (td) elapsed after deactivating the motor


536


before the shaft


542


comes to rest. Dynamic braking of the electric motors


536


or similar techniques can be employed to improve positional accuracy.




The processor


710


preferably is selected so that its electronic response time is orders of magnitude smaller than the mechanical delays and hence negligible for most applications.




The present invention also is not limited to the number and arrangement of trigger elements shown in FIG.


34


. To the contrary, many different arrangements are possible, and the number of trigger elements can be changed to achieve different resolutions and levels of accuracy. These differences in resolution and accuracy result from the fact that a larger number of trigger elements allows smaller angles of rotation to generate a pulse, and thereby permits detection of such smaller angles of rotation.




The exemplary angle (in radians) circumscribed by the active state of a nominal sensor trigger is shown in

FIG. 34

as aon and that of the inactive state is shown as aoff. Where the rate of rotation of the disk


700


is w, the on and off times (ton and toff) of the pulse train generated by the sensor


702


will be:








t


on=


a


on/


w,








and








t


off=


a


off/


w.








By decreasing aon, the positional accuracy is increased since the disk


700


may be travelling in either direction, signaling the processor


710


at two different locations respectively. Preferably, ton would be chosen as 2td, minimizing positional difference in these two locations. If the delay time is too great to stop within a reasonable pulse duration, the processor


710


can be programmed to slow the shaft upon approaching the destination pulse, thereby improving stopping tolerances.




The value of aoff can be chosen to provide a sufficient number of triggers per revolution to allow for the identification of the deviations(s) in the pulse train as described above.




The rise and fall times of typical electronic sensors is on the order of 10-100 nanoseconds (ns) and a microcontroller which can be used as processor


710


can be expected to monitor and analyze such a signal with a period of about 10-100 mseconds. To switch an electromechanical driver such as a relay and for the mechanical device to run to operating levels may take on the order of 10-100 ms. Starting and stopping times also are strongly influenced by the mass and inertia of the mechanical system. These factors all can be compensated for using appropriate programming of the processor


710


to achieve a sufficient accurate actuation of the shaft into any one of the four exemplary positions described above.




It thus will be seen that the objects of this invention have been fully and effectively accomplished. It will be realized, however, that the foregoing preferred specific embodiment has been shown and described for the purpose of this invention and is subject to change without departure from such principles. Therefore, this invention includes all modifications encompassed within the spirit and scope of the following claims.



Claims
  • 1. A power-operated vehicle door locking assembly for a vehicle door movable between open and closed positions with respect to a vehicle body opening, the vehicle door having inner and outer manually movable actuating members, said power-operated vehicle door locking assembly comprising:a housing assembly constructed and arranged to be mounted in the vehicle door, a door latching assembly carried by said housing assembly constructed and arranged to be moved (1) into a door latching position in response to the engagement of a striker in the vehicle body opening therewith occasioned by a movement of the vehicle door into the closed position thereof so as to latch the door in a closed position within the vehicle body opening and (2) from the door latching position thereof into a door unlatching position to allow the door to be moved into the open position thereof, an outer door latch releasing mechanism constructed and arranged with respect to said housing assembly to be moved (1) from an inoperative position into a latch releasing position in response to the manual movement of the outer actuating member from an inoperative position into a door releasing position and (2) from the latch releasing position thereof into the inoperative position thereof, said outer door latch releasing mechanism being constructed and, arranged with respect to said door latching assembly so that when the vehicle door is in its closed position movement of said outer door latch releasing mechanism from the inoperative position thereof to the latch releasing position thereof moves said door latching assembly from the door latching position thereof to the door unlatching position thereof to allow the door to be moved into its open position, an inner door latch releasing mechanism constructed and arranged with respect to said housing assembly to be moved (1) from an inoperative position into a latch releasing position in response to the manual movement of the inner actuating member from an inoperative position into a door releasing position and (2) from the latch releasing position thereof into the inoperative position thereof, said inner door latch releasing mechanism being constructed and arranged with respect to said door latching assembly so that when the vehicle door is in its closed position movement of said inner door latch releasing mechanism from the inoperative position thereof to the latch releasing position thereof moves said door latching assembly from the door latching position thereof to the door unlatching position thereof to allow the door to be moved into its open position, separate inner and outer door locking mechanisms connected with said housing assembly, said outer door locking mechanism being constructed and arranged with respect to said housing assembly to be moved between inoperative and outer door locking positions, said outer door locking mechanism being constructed and arranged with respect to said outer door latch releasing mechanism to disable said outer door latch releasing mechanism from moving from the inoperative position thereof into the latch releasing position thereof when said outer door locking mechanism is in the outer door locking position thereof, said inner door locking mechanism being constructed and arranged with respect to said housing assembly to be moved between inoperative and inner door locking positions, said inner door locking mechanism being constructed and arranged with respect to said inner door latch releasing mechanism to disable said inner door latch releasing mechanism from moving from the inoperative position thereof into the latch releasing position thereof when said inner door locking mechanism is in the door locking position thereof, and an electrically operable system constructed and arranged to convert a source of electricity on the vehicle into mechanical motion in response to manual electrical energizing actuations, said electrically operable system being constructed and arranged with respect to said inner and outer door locking mechanisms to selectively move (1) said inner door locking mechanism between the inoperative and inner door locking position thereof in response to inner manual electrical energizing actuations and (2) said outer door locking mechanism between the inoperative and outer door locking positions thereof in response to outer manual electrical energizing actuations, the arrangement being such that an outer manual electrical energizing actuation without a corresponding inner manual electrical energizing actuation causes said door latching assembly when in the door latching position thereof to be incapable of being moved into the door unlatching position thereof by said outer door latch releasing mechanism while at the same time said door latching assembly is capable of being moved into the door unlatching position thereof by said inner door latch releasing mechanism, said power-operated vehicle door locking assembly further including a key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly constructed and arranged with respect to said housing assembly to be moved between a locked mode and an unlocked mode in response to the manual movement of a key therein, said key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly being constructed and arranged with respect to said electrically operable system to provide outer electrical energizing actuations for said electrically operable system when moved away from the locked and unlocked modes thereof by manual movements of a key therein, wherein said key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly is constructed and arranged to be manually moved when in said locked mode from a key entering and exiting position in one turning direction into an unlocked position in said unlocked mode and when in said unlocked mode from the key entering and exiting position in an opposite turning direction into a locked position in said locked mode, said outer and inner manual electrical energizing actuations including electric signals generated in response to the manual movement of said key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly out of the key entering and exiting position in either of said turning directions, wherein said key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly is constructed and arranged with respect to said outer and inner door locking mechanisms to effect a mechanical movement thereof in the event of a failure of the electricity source from the locked position thereof to the unlocked position thereof in response to the turning movement of said key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly when in said locked mode in said one direction from the key entering and exiting position thereof into the unlocked position thereof, and wherein said door latching assembly includes a holding and releasing lever movable between holding and releasing positions, said outer door latch releasing mechanism including an outer releasing arm movable from an inoperative position into a releasing position to move said holding and releasing lever from the holding position thereof into the releasing, position thereof, said inner door latch releasing mechanism including an inner releasing arm movable from an inoperative position into a releasing position to move said holding and releasing lever from the holding position thereof into the releasing position thereof.
  • 2. A power-operated vehicle door locking assembly as defined in claim 1, wherein said outer door locking mechanism includes an outer cam movable between unlocked and locked positions, said outer cam being constructed and arranged with respect to said outer releasing arm to (1) allow the outer releasing arm to be moved from the inoperative position thereof into the releasing position thereof when said outer cam is in the unlocked position thereof and (2) to move the outer releasing arm from the inoperative position thereof into a disabled position from which said outer releasing arm cannot move into the releasing position thereof, said inner door locking mechanism including an inner cam movable between unlocked and locked positions, said inner cam being constructed and arranged with respect to said inner releasing arm to (1) allow the inner releasing arm to be moved from the inoperative position thereof into the releasing position thereof when said inner cam is in the unlocked position thereof and (2) to move the inner releasing arm from the inoperative position thereof into a disabled position from which said inner releasing arm cannot move into the releasing position thereof.
  • 3. A power-operated vehicle door locking assembly for a vehicle door movable between open and closed positions with respect to a vehicle body opening, the vehicle door having inner and outer manually movable actuating members, said power-operated vehicle door locking assembly comprising:a housing assembly constructed and arranged to be mounted in the vehicle door, a door latching assembly carried by said housing assembly constructed and arranged to be moved (1) into a door latching position in response to the engagement of a striker in the vehicle body opening therewith occasioned by a movement of the vehicle door into the closed position thereof so as to latch the door in a closed position within the vehicle body opening and (2) from the door latching position thereof into a door unlatching position to allow the door to be moved into the open position thereof, an outer door latch releasing mechanism constructed and arranged with respect to said housing assembly to be moved (1) from an inoperative position into a latch releasing position in response to the manual movement of the outer actuating member from an inoperative position into a door releasing position and (2) from the latch releasing position thereof into the inoperative position thereof, said outer door latch releasing mechanism being constructed and, arranged with respect to said door latching assembly so that when the vehicle door is in its closed position movement of said outer door latch releasing mechanism from the inoperative position thereof to the latch releasing position thereof moves said door latching assembly from the door latching position thereof to the door unlatching position thereof to allow the door to be moved into its open position, an inner door latch releasing mechanism, constructed and arranged with respect to said housing assembly to be moved (1) from an inoperative position into a latch releasing position in response to the manual movement of the inner actuating member from an inoperative position into a door releasing position and (2) from the latch releasing position thereof into the inoperative position thereof, said inner door latch releasing mechanism being constructed and arranged with respect to said door latching assembly so that when the vehicle door is in its closed position movement of said inner door latch releasing mechanism from the inoperative position thereof to the latch releasing position thereof moves said door latching assembly from the door latching position thereof to the door unlatching position thereof to allow the door to be moved into its open position, and separate inner and outer door locking mechanisms connected with said housing assembly, said outer door locking mechanism being constructed and arranged with respect to said housing assembly to be moved between inoperative and outer door locking positions, said outer door locking mechanism being constructed and arranged with respect to said outer door latch releasing mechanism to disable said outer door latch releasing mechanism from moving from the inoperative position thereof into the latch releasing position thereof when said outer door locking mechanism is in the outer door locking position thereof, said inner door locking mechanism being constructed and arranged with respect to said housing assembly to be moved between inoperative and inner door locking positions, said inner door locking mechanism being constructed and arranged with respect to said inner door latch releasing mechanism to disable said inner door latch releasing mechanism from moving from the inoperative position thereof into the latch releasing position thereof when said inner door locking mechanism is in the door locking position thereof, an electrically operable system constructed and arranged to convert a source of electricity on the vehicle into mechanical motion in response to manual electrical energizing actuations, said electrically operable system being constructed and arranged with respect to said inner and outer door locking mechanisms to selectively move (1) said inner door locking mechanism between the inoperative and inner door locking position thereof in response to inner manual electrical energizing actuations and (2) said outer door locking mechanism between the inoperative and outer door locking positions thereof in response to outer manual electrical energizing actuations, the arrangement being such that an outer manual electrical energizing actuation without a corresponding inner manual electrical energizing actuation causes said door latching assembly when in the door latching position thereof to be incapable of being moved into the door unlatching position thereof by said outer door latch releasing mechanism while at the same time said door latching assembly is capable of being moved into the door unlatching position thereof by said inner door latch releasing mechanism, wherein said door latching assembly includes a holding and releasing lever movable between holding and releasing positions, said outer door latch releasing mechanism including an outer releasing arm movable from an inoperative position into a releasing position to move said holding and releasing lever from the holding position thereof into the releasing position thereof, said inner door latch releasing mechanism including an inner releasing arm movable from an inoperative position into a releasing position to move said holding, and releasing lever from the holding position thereof into the releasing position thereof.
  • 4. A power-operated vehicle door locking assembly as defined in claim 3, wherein said outer door locking mechanism includes an outer cam movable between unlocked and locked positions, said outer cam being constructed and arranged with respect to said outer releasing arm to (1) allow the outer releasing arm to be moved from the inoperative position thereof into the releasing position thereof when said outer cam is in the unlocked position thereof and (2) to move the outer releasing arm from the inoperative position thereof into a disabled position from which said outer releasing arm cannot move into the releasing position thereof, said inner door locking mechanism including an inner cam movable between unlocked and locked positions, said inner cam being constructed and arranged with respect to said inner releasing arm to (1) allow the inner releasing arm to be moved from the inoperative position thereof into the releasing position thereof when said inner cam is in the unlocked position thereof and (2) to move the inner releasing arm from the inoperative position thereof into a disabled position from which said inner releasing arm cannot move into the releasing position thereof.
  • 5. A power-operated vehicle door locking assembly as defined in claim 4, wherein said electrically operable system includes (1) an outer reversible electric motor constructed and arranged with respect to said outer door locking mechanism to move the same between the inoperative and outer door locking positions thereof and (2) an inner reversible electric motor constructed and arranged with respect to said inner door locking mechanism to move the same between the inoperative and door locking positions thereof.
  • 6. A power-operated vehicle door locking assembly as defined in claim 5, wherein said outer door locking mechanism includes a first shaft on which said outer cam is fixed, an outer motion transmitting member constructed and arranged with respect to said housing assembly to be moved between unlocked and locked positions, an outer speed reduction gear train operatively connected between said outer electric motor and said outer motion transmitting member and an outer arm fixed to said first shaft and operatively connected to said outer motion transmitting member, said door locking mechanism includes a second shaft on which said inner cam is fixed, an inner motion transmitting member constructed and arranged with respect to said housing assembly to be moved between unlocked and locked positions, an inner speed reduction gear train operatively connected between said inner electric motor and said inner motion transmitting member, and an inner arm fixed to said second shaft and operatively connected to said inner motion transmitting member.
  • 7. A power-operated vehicle door locking assembly as defined in claim 6, wherein said outer and inner speed reduction gear trains include outer and inner worm gears fixed to output shafts of said outer and inner electric motors respectively and outer and inner sector gears meshing with said outer and inner worm gears, the arrangement being such that motion imparted to said sector gears will move said worm gears and motors when said motors are without a source of electricity, said outer and inner motion transmitting members being pivoted to said outer and inner sector gears respectively.
  • 8. A power-operated vehicle door locking assembly as defined in claim 6, wherein said outer and inner speed reduction gear trains include outer and inner relatively small outer and inner spur gears fixed to output shafts of said outer and inner electric motors, relatively large outer and inner spur gears meshing with said outer and inner small spur gears respectively, outer and inner pinions fixed to turn said outer and inner relatively large spur gears respectively and outer and inner rack teeth on said outer and inner motion transmitting members respectively, said outer and inner pinions meshing with said outer and inner rack teeth respectively.
  • 9. A power-operated vehicle door locking assembly as defined in claim 4, wherein said electrically operable system includes a single motor constructed and arranged to move said outer and inner door locking mechanisms between the unlocked and locked positions thereof, said single motor being operatively connected through a speed reduction gear train to drive a shaft on which said inner and outer cams are fixed through four indexed positions including (1) an indexed position where said outer and inner cams are both in unlocked positions, (2) an indexed position where said outer cam is in a locked position and said inner cam is in an unlocked position, (3) an indexed position in which said outer and inner cams are both in locked positions, and (4) an indexed position in which said outer cam is in an unlocked position and said inner cam is in a locked position.
  • 10. A power-operated vehicle door locking system for a vehicle having a plurality of vehicle doors movable between open and closed positions with respect to a corresponding plurality of vehicle body openings, said power-operated vehicle door locking system comprising:a plurality of power-operated vehicle door locking assemblies operatively associated with said plurality of vehicle doors, each one of said plurality of power-operated vehicle door locking assemblies being carried by one of said plurality of vehicle doors and comprising a housing assembly constructed and arranged to be mounted in the vehicle door, a door latching assembly carried by said housing assembly constructed and arranged to be moved (1) into a door latching position in response to the engagement of a striker in the vehicle body opening therewith occasioned by a movement of the vehicle door into the closed position thereof so as to latch the door in a closed position within the vehicle body opening and (2) from the door latching position thereof into a door unlatching position to allow the door to be moved into the open position thereof, an outer door latch releasing mechanism constructed and arranged with respect to said housing assembly to be moved (1) from an inoperative position into a latch releasing position in response to the manual movement of the outer actuating member from an inoperative position into a door releasing position and (2) from the latch releasing position thereof into the inoperative position thereof, said outer door latch releasing mechanism being constructed and arranged with respect to said door latching assembly so that when the vehicle door is in its closed position movement of said outer door latch releasing mechanism from the inoperative position thereof to the latch releasing position thereof moves said door latching assembly from the door latching position thereof to the door unlatching position thereof to allow the door to be moved into its open position, an inner door latch releasing mechanism with respect to said housing assembly constructed and arranged to be moved (1) from an inoperative position into a latch releasing position in response to the manual movement of the inner actuating member from an inoperative position into a door releasing position and (2) from the latch releasing position thereof into the inoperative position thereof, said inner door latch releasing mechanism being constructed and arranged with respect to said door latching assembly so that when the vehicle door is in its closed position movement of said inner door latch releasing mechanism from the inoperative position thereof to the latch releasing position thereof moves said door latching assembly from the door latching position thereof to the door unlatching position thereof to allow the door to be moved into its open position, separate inner and outer door locking mechanisms connected with said housing assembly, said outer door locking mechanism being constructed and arranged with respect to said housing assembly to be moved between inoperative and outer door locking positions, said outer door locking mechanism being constructed and arranged with respect to said outer door latch releasing mechanism to disable said outer door latch releasing mechanism from moving from the inoperative position thereof into the latch releasing position thereof when said outer door locking mechanism is in the door locking position thereof, said inner door locking mechanism being constructed and arranged with respect to said housing assembly to be moved between inoperative and inner door locking positions, said inner door locking mechanism being constructed and arranged with respect to said inner door latch releasing mechanism to disable said inner door latch releasing mechanism from moving from the inoperative position thereof into the latch releasing position thereof when said inner door locking mechanism is in the door locking position thereof, and an electrically operable system constructed and arranged to convert a source of electricity on the vehicle into mechanical motion in response to manual electrical energizing actuations, said electrically operable system being constructed and arranged with respect to said inner and outer door locking mechanisms to selectively move (1) said inner door locking mechanism between the inoperative and inner door locking position thereof in response to inner manual electrical energizing actuations and (2) said outer door locking mechanism between the inoperative and outer door locking positions thereof in response to outer manual electrical energizing actuations, the arrangement being such that an outer manual electrical energizing actuation without a corresponding inner manual electrical energizing actuation causes said door latching assembly when in the door latching position thereof to be incapable of being moved into the door unlatching position thereof by said outer door latch releasing mechanism while at the same time said door latching assembly is capable of being moved into the door unlatching position thereof by said inner door latch releasing mechanism, each one of said power-operated vehicle door locking assemblies further including a key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly constructed and arranged with respect to said housing assembly to be moved between a locked mode and an unlocked mode in response to the manual movement of a key therein, said key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly being constructed and arranged with respect to said electrically operable system to provide outer electrical energizing actuations for said electrically operable system when moved away from the locked and unlocked modes thereof by manual movements of a key therein, wherein said key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly is constructed and arranged to be manually moved when in said locked mode from a key entering and exiting position in one turning direction into an unlocked position in said unlocked mode and when in said unlocked mode from the key entering and exiting position in an opposite turning direction into a locked position in said locked mode, said outer and inner manual electrical energizing actuations including electric signals generated in response to the manual movement of said key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly out of the key entering and exiting position in either of said turning directions, wherein said key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly is constructed and arranged with respect to said outer and inner door locking mechanisms to effect a mechanical movement thereof in the event of a failure of the electricity source from the locked position thereof to the unlocked position thereof in response to the turning movement of said key actuated door locking and unlocking assembly when in said locked mode in said one direction from the key entering and exiting position thereof into the unlocked position thereof, and wherein said door latching assembly includes a holding and releasing lever movable between holding and releasing positions, said outer door latch releasing mechanism including an outer releasing arm movable from an inoperative position into a releasing position to move said holding and releasing lever from the holding position thereof into the releasing position thereof, said inner door latch releasing mechanism including an inner releasing arm movable from an inoperative position into a releasing position to move said holding and releasing lever from the holding position thereof into the releasing position thereof.
  • 11. A power-operated vehicle door locking system as defined in claim 10, wherein said electrically operable system includes a crash sensor and wherein each outer door locking mechanism is moved to the inoperative position by the electrically operable system whenever a signal from said crash sensor indicates that a crash has occurred.
  • 12. A power-operated vehicle door locking system as defined in claim 11, wherein said electrically operable system further includes a charge storage device which provides sufficient power to said electrically operable system to effect movement of each outer door locking mechanism to the inoperative position even if a power supply to the power-operated vehicle door locking system is interrupted.
  • 13. A power-operated vehicle door locking system as defined in claim 10, further comprising a manually actuatable child lock switch electrically connected to said electrically operable system, said electrically operable system being responsive to actuation of said child lock switch by moving at least one of the inner door locking mechanisms to the inner door locking position thereof whenever the child lock switch is actuated.
  • 14. A power-operated vehicle door locking system as defined in claim 13, wherein said electrically operable system is further responsive to actuation of the child lock switch by moving at least one of the outer door locking mechanisms to the inoperative position whenever the child lock switch is actuated.
  • 15. A power-operated vehicle door locking system as defined in claim 10, wherein said electrically operable system is adapted to receive a status signal indicative of whether a transmission is in a PARK status, said electrically operable system being responsive to said status signal by moving at least one of said outer door locking mechanisms into the door locking position thereof whenever said status signal indicates that said transmission is not in PARK.
  • 16. A power-operated vehicle door locking system as defined in claim 10, wherein said electrically operable system is adapted to receive a status signal indicative of whether a transmission is in a drive status, said electrically operable system being responsive to said status signal by moving at least one of said outer door locking mechanisms into the door locking position thereof whenever said status signal indicates that said transmission is in a drive status.
  • 17. A power-operated vehicle door locking system as defined in claim 10, further comprising a manually actuatable lock switch electrically connected to said electrically operable system, said electrically operable system being responsive to said manually actuatable lock switch such that a first kind of actuation of said manually actuatable lock switch causes said electrically operable system to move at least one of said outer door locking mechanism and said inner door locking mechanism in at least one of said assemblies into one of four position combinations, said four position combinations including:a first position combination wherein said inner and outer door locking mechanisms are in said inoperative position; a second position combination wherein said inner door locking mechanism is in the door locking position and said outer door locking mechanism is in the inoperative position; a third position combination wherein said outer door locking mechanism is in the door locking position and said inner door locking mechanism is in the inoperative position; and a fourth position combination wherein said inner and outer door locking mechanisms are both in said door locking position.
  • 18. A power-operated vehicle door locking system as defined in claim 17, wherein said electrically operable system is further responsive to said manually actuatable lock switch such that a second kind of actuation of said manually actuatable lock switch causes said electrically operable system to move at least one of said outer door locking mechanism and said inner door locking mechanism of said at least one assembly into another one of said four position combinations which is different from that which is achieved by said first kind of actuation.
  • 19. A power-operated vehicle door locking system as defined in claim 18, wherein said electrically operable system is further responsive to said manually actuatable lock switch such that a third kind of actuation of said manually actuatable lock switch causes said electrically operable system to move at least one of said outer door locking mechanism and said inner door locking mechanism of said at least one of said assemblies into yet another one of said four position combinations which is different from that which is achieved by said first and second kinds of actuation.
  • 20. A power-operated vehicle door locking system as defined in claim 19, wherein said electrically operable system is further responsive to said manually actuatable lock switch such that a fourth kind of actuation of said manually actuatable lock switch causes said electrically operable system to move at least one of said outer door locking mechanism and said inner door locking mechanism of said at least one of said assemblies into a last one of said four position combinations which is different from that which is achieved by said first, second and third kinds of actuation.
  • 21. A power-operated vehicle locking system as defined in claim 20, wherein said manually actuatable switch is a single switch, wherein said first kind of actuation involves pressing said single switch in a first direction, said second kind of actuation involves successively pressing said single switch twice in said first direction, said third kind of actuation involves pressing said single switch in a second direction, and said fourth kind of actuation involves successively pressing said single switch twice in said second direction.
  • 22. A power-operated vehicle locking system as defined in claim 10, wherein said power-operated vehicle locking system is adapted for a vehicle having two front doors and two rear doors, and wherein said plurality of power-operated vehicle door locking assemblies includes two front door power-operated vehicle door locking assemblies and two rear door power-operated vehicle door locking assemblies.
  • 23. A power-operated vehicle door locking system as defined in claim 22, wherein said electrically operable system includes a crash sensor and wherein each outer door locking mechanism is moved to the inoperative position by the electrically operable system whenever a signal from said crash sensor indicates that a crash has occurred.
  • 24. A power-operated vehicle door locking system as defined in claim 23, wherein said electrically operable system further includes a charge storage device which provides sufficient power to said electrically operable system to effect movement of each outer door locking mechanism to the inoperative position even if a power supply to the power-operated vehicle door locking system is interrupted.
  • 25. A power-operated vehicle door locking system as defined in claim 22, further comprising a manually actuatable child lock switch electrically connected to said electrically operable system, said electrically operable system being responsive to actuation of said child lock switch by moving the inner door locking mechanisms of said two rear door power-operated vehicle door locking assemblies to the inner door locking position thereof whenever the child lock switch is actuated.
  • 26. A power-operated vehicle door locking system as defined in claim 25, wherein said electrically operable system is further responsive to actuation of the child lock switch by moving the outer door locking mechanisms of said two rear door power-operated vehicle door locking assemblies to the inoperative position whenever the child lock switch is actuated.
  • 27. A power-operated vehicle door locking system as defined in claim 22, wherein said electrically operable system is adapted to receive a status signal indicative of whether a transmission is in a PARK status, said electrically operable system being responsive to said status signal by moving at least one of said outer door locking mechanisms into the door locking position thereof whenever said status signal indicates that said transmission is not in PARK.
  • 28. A power-operated vehicle door locking system as defined in claim 22, wherein said electrically operable system is adapted to receive a status signal indicative of whether a transmission is in a drive status, said electrically operable system being responsive to said status signal by moving at least one of said outer door locking mechanisms into the door locking position thereof whenever said status signal indicates that said transmission is in a drive status.
  • 29. A power-operated vehicle door locking system as defined in claim 22, further comprising a manually actuatable lock switch electrically connected to said electrically operable system, said electrically operable system being responsive to said manually actuatable lock switch such that a first kind of actuation of said manually actuatable lock switch causes said electrically operable system to move at least one of said outer door locking mechanism and said inner door locking mechanism in at least one of said assemblies into one of four position combinations, said four position combinations including:a first position combination wherein said inner and outer door locking mechanisms are in said inoperative position; a second position combination wherein said inner door locking mechanism is in the door locking position and said outer door locking mechanism is in the inoperative position; a third position combination wherein said outer door locking mechanism is in the door locking position and said inner door locking mechanism is in the inoperative position; and a fourth position combination wherein said inner and outer door locking mechanisms are both in said door locking position.
  • 30. A power-operated vehicle door locking system as defined in claim 29, wherein said electrically operable system is further responsive to said manually actuatable lock switch such that a second kind of actuation of said manually actuatable lock switch causes said electrically operable system to move at least one of said outer door locking mechanism and said inner door locking mechanism of said at least one assembly into another one of said four position combinations which is different from that which is achieved by said first kind of actuation.
  • 31. A power-operated vehicle door locking system as defined in claim 30, wherein said electrically operable system is further responsive to said manually actuatable lock switch such that a third kind of actuation of said manually actuatable lock switch causes said electrically operable system to move at least one of said outer door locking mechanism and said inner door locking mechanism of said at least one of said assemblies into yet another one of said four position combinations which is different from that which is achieved by said first and second kinds of actuation.
  • 32. A power-operated vehicle door locking system as defined in claim 31, wherein said electrically operable system is further responsive to said manually actuatable lock switch such that a fourth kind of actuation of said manually actuatable lock switch causes said electrically operable system to move at least one of said outer door locking mechanism and said inner door locking mechanism of said at least one of said assemblies into a last one of said four position combinations which is different from that which is achieved by said first, second and third kinds of actuation.
  • 33. A power-operated vehicle locking system as defined in claim 32, wherein said manually actuatable switch is a single switch, wherein said first kind of actuation involves pressing said single switch in a first direction, said second kind of actuation involves successively pressing said single switch twice in said first direction, said third kind of actuation involves pressing said single switch in a second direction, and said fourth kind of actuation involves successively pressing said single switch twice in said second direction.
  • 34. A power-operated vehicle locking system as defined in claim 29, wherein said electrically operable system includes:a motor at each of said assemblies for moving outer and inner door locking mechanisms at respective ones of said assemblies into a selectively chosen one of said four position combinations; a processor capable of selectively activating, based on a programmed operation scheme, each motor to achieve any one of said four position combinations at each vehicle door locking assembly in a manner dependent upon input signals.
  • 35. A power-operated vehicle locking system as defined in claim 34, wherein each vehicle door locking assembly includes a position sensor, said input signals including at least one position indicative signal from each position sensor.
  • 36. A power-operated vehicle locking system as defined in claim 29, wherein said electrically operable system includes:a first motor at each of said assemblies for individually moving each outer door locking mechanism between said inoperative and said door locking positions; a second motor at each of said assemblies for individually moving each inner door locking mechanism between said inoperative and said door locking positions; a processor capable of selectively activating, based on a programmed operation scheme, each motor to achieve any one of said four position combinations at each vehicle door locking assembly in a manner dependent upon input signals.
  • 37. A power-operated vehicle locking system as defined in claim 22, wherein said electrically operable system includes:a motor at each of said assemblies for moving outer and inner door locking mechanisms at respective ones of said assemblies to achieve any combination of said inoperable position, said inner door locking position, and said outer door locking position; a processor capable of selectively activating, based on a programmed operation scheme, each motor to achieve any combination of said inoperable position, said inner door locking position, and said outer door locking position at each vehicle door locking assembly in a manner dependent upon input signals.
  • 38. A power-operated vehicle locking system as defined in claim 37, wherein each vehicle door locking assembly includes a position sensor, said input signals including at least one position indicative signal from each position sensor.
  • 39. A power-operated vehicle locking system as defined in claim 22, wherein said electrically operable system includes:a first motor at each of said assemblies for individually moving each outer door locking mechanism between said inoperative and said door locking positions; a second motor at each of said assemblies for individually moving each inner door locking mechanism between said inoperative and said door locking positions; a processor capable of selectively activating, based on a programmed operation scheme, each motor to achieve any one of said four position combinations at each vehicle door locking assembly in a manner dependent upon input signals.
Parent Case Info

This is a Continuation of application Ser. No. 09/865,480, filed May 29, 2001 now U.S. Pat. No. 6,341,807, which is a continuation of Ser. No. 09/441,461, filed Nov. 17, 1999, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,254,148, which is a continuation of Ser. No. 09/018,467, filed Feb. 4, 1998, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,102,453, and further claims priority from provisional application No. 60/036,850, filed Feb. 4, 1997.

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Provisional Applications (1)
Number Date Country
60/036850 Feb 1997 US
Continuations (3)
Number Date Country
Parent 09/865480 May 2001 US
Child 10/040454 US
Parent 09/441461 Nov 1999 US
Child 09/865480 US
Parent 09/018467 Feb 1998 US
Child 09/441461 US