CN112761437B

CN112761437B - Motor vehicle door lock, in particular motor vehicle door lock

Info

Publication number: CN112761437B
Application number: CN202011130583.1A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 孙淳镐
Original assignee: Kiekert AG
Current assignee: Kiekert AG
Priority date: 2019-10-21
Filing date: 2020-10-21
Publication date: 2023-09-19
Anticipated expiration: 2040-10-21
Also published as: KR20210047815A; DE102019128289A1; CN112761437A

Abstract

The invention relates to a motor vehicle lock, in particular a motor vehicle door lock, which is equipped with a locking mechanism and further comprises at least one locking element (1) and an electric drive (2, 3, 4). Furthermore, a stop profile (5) is provided which is common to the lock element (1) and the drive (2, 3, 4). According to the invention, the stop profile (5) is provided with a single central cavity (6) which is surrounded by a circumferential ridge, wherein the ridge defines at least one stop (7) for the drive (2, 3, 4) and at least one stop (8) for the lock element (1).

Description

Motor vehicle door lock, in particular motor vehicle door lock

Technical Field

The invention relates to a motor vehicle lock, in particular a motor vehicle door lock, having a locking mechanism, having at least one lock element and an electric drive, and having a stop profile which is common to the lock element and the drive.

Background

Motor vehicle locks include in particular motor vehicle door locks, but also motor vehicle tailgate locks, motor vehicle bonnet locks, motor vehicle locks for fuel tank caps, tailgates, etc. In order to lock and unlock such a vehicle lock, for example centrally, the above-mentioned electric drive acts on a lock element, which in the example described is a locking lever or, in general, a locking element. Thus, by means of the electric drive, the locking element can be transferred to at least an "unlocked" and a "locked" position. In principle, functional positions such as "anti-theft", "non-anti-theft", "child-resistant" and "non-child-resistant" are possible and can be achieved in this way, depending on the design of the lock element or locking element.

In principle, however, the locking element can also be designed as an actuating lever or release lever. In this case, the electric drive is not used for locking or unlocking a motor vehicle lock, but rather for example provides an electric opening thereof. For this purpose, the electric drive acts on a locking element, which is designed, for example, as a release lever, so that with the aid of the release lever the locking pawl, which is engaged with the locking fork, is lifted out of its engagement, the locking pawl and the locking fork being two parts of the locking mechanism. This releases the lock fork and thereby the lock bolt engaged thereby. In this way, the associated motor vehicle door can be opened. That is, the electric drive typically acts on the lock element.

In most cases, this procedure results in the locking or unlocking of the motor vehicle lock being carried out by means of an electric drive. This generally corresponds to the fact that in this way, at least in the "locked" state, an additionally provided lever system for opening the previously described locking mechanism is meaningless or non-functional. In contrast, the functional position "unlocking" corresponds to the fact that the locking mechanism can be opened via the lever system. This can in turn be done mechanically or manually, or by means of an additional drive, or even by the same electric drive.

In the approach of different functional positions, what is known as "after-run" (Nachlaufen) of the electric drive is sometimes seen, so that in the prior art described in EP 2 820 B1, the stop profile is shared by the lock element and the drive. Different stops are formed at the stop profile. The stop interacts with the electric drive on the one hand and with the lock element on the other hand. In this way, an overall simple and cost-effective production has been achieved when both the lock element and the electric drive are equipped with equally configured stops. This has been demonstrated in principle.

In addition, in the prior art according to GB 2 321,928A, a vibration-damping stop is generally described, which interacts with a fork or an associated lock bolt. This prior art has been proven in principle, but there is still room for improvement. In this respect, in the overall teaching according to EP 2 820,207b1, the stop profile is relatively complex. In fact, each associated stop is provided with a cavity assigned to it, by means of which the desired damping is achieved or assisted. As a result, the known stop profile not only has an arcuate course with a thickening at the end face, but also has overall rough/uneven features due to the multiplicity of cavities. In practice, the known stop profile is advantageously produced by injection molding of plastic. However, the rough features of the known stop profile do not facilitate a simple and quick installation. This is the origin of the present invention.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention is based on the technical problem of further improving such a motor vehicle lock, in particular a motor vehicle door lock, so that the assembly of the stop profile is simplified in particular in comparison with the prior art.

In order to solve the technical problem, the invention provides that: in general motor vehicle locks, in particular motor vehicle door locks, the stop profile is provided with a single central cavity which is surrounded by a circumferential ridge/web, wherein the ridge defines at least one stop for the drive and at least one stop for the lock element.

Unlike the prior art, the claimed stop profile is therefore provided with only a single central cavity according to the invention, so that in this way the rough features previously observed in the prior art according to EP 2 820 207B1 due to the plurality of cavities will no longer be observed. For this purpose, this also results in the central cavity in question being surrounded by a surrounding ridge, wherein the ridge defines at least one stop for the drive means and the lock element.

In this way, a stop molding having a simple structure from the standpoint of manufacturing and assembly techniques is provided and realized in the present invention. This is particularly important in view of the great cost pressures for realizing motor vehicle locks, especially because even small amounts of time savings can have a significant impact due to the large number.

The single central cavity together with the surrounding ridges performs the desired vibration damping function. This is further improved compared to the prior art, since by omitting a plurality of separate cavities, the ridge can be subjected to a particularly pronounced deformation, which in general in any case significantly exceeds the deformation with a single, much smaller cavity, if this is comparable. In connection with the fact that the stop profile according to the invention is advantageously made of an elastic material (wherein in this connection plastic injection molding has proven to be particularly advantageous as a stop profile), a particularly large deformation area of the respective stop is provided and achieved overall, i.e. by the surrounding ridge and the central cavity enclosed by it.

As suitable plastics, elastomers or very general thermoplastics, such as PUR (polyurethane), have proven to be particularly advantageous, in particular because such plastics have the temperature stability necessary for use in connection with motor vehicle locks, in particular motor vehicle door locks. In practice, the highest use temperatures observed here are generally above 100 ℃, so that such plastics are inherently suitable for use in motor vehicle locks, in particular in motor vehicle door locks.

In principle, in the realization of the stop molding according to the invention, two plastics can also be used by a two-component injection molding process. The same applies to the case that according to an advantageous embodiment the stop profile is mechanically connected to and/or formed integrally with a lock housing which at least partially accommodates the motor vehicle lock. The lock housing in question may be a lock cover which together with the lock housing which normally supports the locking mechanism forms the outer shell of a motor vehicle lock, in particular a motor vehicle door lock. In this case, for example, the lock housing or the lock cover may be made of Polyethylene (PE) or polypropylene (PP). However, the stop molding can be made of the already mentioned PUR (polyurethane), in which case the lock cover or the lock housing and the stop molding are manufactured in one piece (i.e. by a two-component injection molding process) as a plastic injection molding.

The design chosen according to the invention has a single central cavity surrounded by a surrounding ridge, which in any case not only ensures simple manufacture and assembly. But also the design is advantageous in order to achieve the damping properties of the stop profile in this way. The invention is based on the recognition that, in this case, the stop defined by means of the ridge surrounding the cavity corresponds to the deformation of the entire ridge when a force is applied. Such deformation of the entire ridge is possible because the central cavity enclosed by the ridge allows such deformation. In view of the damping path, a damping of a large elastic range can thus be achieved, or in another aspect, a relatively large damping path can be provided at the relevant stop, which in any case exceeds the damping distance observed in the prior art according to EP 2 820 207 B1. This is a major advantage.

It has proven useful for the stop profile to be T-shaped. In this case, the stop profile has a substantially horizontally extending T-shaped ridge/T-shaped crosspiece and a vertically oriented T-shaped shank/T-shaped stem. In the case of this preferred variant, two stops may be formed at each end of the T-shaped ridge, respectively. Furthermore, the T-shaped shank may define two additional stops on both sides.

In this case, in addition, in particular, the two stops formed at the ends of the T-shaped ridge are drive stops, i.e. stops which interact with the electric drive and serve to limit its travel. Since the electric drive is usually equipped with a worm wheel on the output side, two drive stops are provided for both directions of rotation of the worm wheel.

The two stops on either side of the T-shaped shank are typically lock element stops, i.e. stops that interact with the lock element. If the locking element is usually a locking lever or a locking element, the invention is based on the recognition that, by means of a stop, the locking element can thus take up, for example, an "unlocked" and a "locked" position safely and in a mechanically defined manner.

A variant which is particularly easy to manufacture and assemble is characterized in that the stop profile is formed symmetrically with respect to the central mirror image axis. The same is true of course for the respective stops which are also symmetrically opposite one another with respect to the mirror axis. That is, both the drive means stops and both the lock element stops are each oriented and arranged on either side of and opposite the central mirror axis. Furthermore, it is proposed that the stop profile is arranged at least partially overlapping the already mentioned worm wheel as part of the drive.

In this case, the invention is based on the further recognition that the worm wheel generally consists of a base part and a worm wheel ring which describes a pitch circle. The base is typically a disk and the worm gear depicts an annular segment, such as a 180 ° annular segment. Thus, the stop profile may be arranged at least partially overlapping the worm wheel, i.e. overlapping the base and arranged in the missing area of the worm wheel ring or arranged opposite the worm wheel ring. Thus, the desired interaction of the respective stop ends of the worm wheel annulus with the two drive stops formed at the ends of the T-shaped ridge and inclined as it is in the annular travel path of the worm wheel annulus is easily achieved. Thus, a motor vehicle lock, in particular a motor vehicle door lock, is provided which has a particularly simple construction and assembly technique. This is mainly due to the fact that the stop profile is provided with a single central cavity surrounded by a surrounding ridge. Furthermore, by this design, particularly effective damping with a significant damping path is provided and achieved at the stops defined on the surrounding ridges. This is a major advantage.

Drawings

Hereinafter, the present invention will be explained in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings showing only one exemplary embodiment, in which:

fig. 1 shows a motor vehicle lock according to the invention in the form of a motor vehicle door lock in a perspective view; and

fig. 2 shows a side view of a detail of fig. 1.

Detailed Description

A motor vehicle lock is shown in the drawings. The motor vehicle lock is here a motor vehicle door lock, but is not limited to a motor vehicle door lock. It has a locking mechanism, not explicitly shown, which is substantially composed of a locking fork and a locking claw interacting therewith. Another basic structure further comprises a lock element 1, which in the case of the exemplary embodiment is a lock lever 1, which lock lever 1 performs the linear positioning movement shown in fig. 1 essentially along the double arrow shown in fig. 1.

For this purpose, the lock element or locking lever 1 is connected to an electric drive 2, 3, 4. The electric drive devices 2, 3, 4 are composed of an electric motor 2, an output worm 3 driven by the electric motor 2, and a worm wheel 4 meshed with the output worm 3.

As can be seen from a comparison of fig. 1 and 2, the worm wheel 4 is specifically equipped with a base portion 4a and a worm wheel annular portion 4b. The base 4a is a disk. While the worm wheel ring 4b is arranged coaxially to the base 4a on this base 4a and is constructed as an annular section, preferably 180 °. In this way, the rotary movement of the output worm 3 produced by the motor 2 ensures that the worm wheel 4, which meshes with the output worm 3, can perform a rotary movement about its axis a, which is indicated by the double arrow in fig. 2. This rotational movement of the worm wheel 4 is transmitted via a connection 1' in the form of a crank to the lock element or locking lever 1, so that a linear movement along the double arrow shown in fig. 1 can be achieved by the rotational movement of the worm wheel 4.

The electric drives 2, 3, 4 are in this exemplary embodiment locking drives, since with the aid of which the locking lever 1 can be switched to at least two different functional positions, for example "unlocked" and "locked". In the process, the locking lever 1 moves against the right lock element stop 8 visible in fig. 2. The other functional position may correspond to the locking lever 1 being moved against the other left lock element stop 8. As a result, in this exemplary case, the two functional positions "unlocked" and "locked" of the locking lever 1 are additionally mechanically limited and defined.

In addition, fig. 2 shows two additional drive stops 7 which interact with the electric drives 2, 3, 4. This design allows the electric drive 2, 3, 4 or its worm wheel 4 to rotate in a counter-clockwise direction around the left drive stop 7 when rotating around its axis a, whereas the clockwise rotation of the worm wheel 4 is limited by the right drive stop 7.

According to the invention, a common stop profile 5 is now achieved, which stop profile 5 provides and defines stops 7, 8 for the lock element and the locking lever 1 as well as the electric drive 2, 3, 4. In the present invention, the relevant stop profile 5 is provided with a single central cavity 6. The cavity 6 is surrounded by a circumferential ridge, wherein the ridge defines at least one stop 7 for the electric drive 2, 3, 4 and at least one stop 8 for the lock element or the locking lever 1.

The stop 7 for the electric drive 2, 3, 4 is the drive stop 7 mentioned above. While the other stop 8 is designed as a corresponding lock element stop 8.

In particular, on the basis of a comparison of fig. 1 and 2, it can be seen that the stop profile 5 realized according to the invention has a single central cavity 6 surrounded by ridges, which overall shape is T-shaped. In fact, there is on the one hand a substantially horizontally extending T-shaped ridge 5a and on the other hand a substantially vertically oriented T-shaped shank 5b. In particular, the design provided now is such that two previously mentioned drive means stops 7 are formed on the end side of the T-shaped ridge 5 a. While the two lock element stops 8 are located on either side of the T-shaped shank 5b.

The stop profile 5 is generally symmetrical with respect to the central mirror axis S. Thus, the two drive stops 7 and the two lock element stops 8 are opposite the central mirror axis S. The stop profile 5 is generally arranged to at least partially overlap the worm wheel 4. Indeed, in this exemplary embodiment, the T-shaped ridge 5a at least partially covers the base 4a of the worm wheel 4, which is designed as a disc. Thus, the two drive stops 7 formed at each end of the T-shaped ridge 5a can be directly engaged in the path of movement of the worm wheel annulus 4b and mechanically slow down the movement of the electric drive 2, 3, 4 in both clockwise and anticlockwise directions as described above.

Since the stop profile 5 is made of an elastic material, in particular a thermoplastic or an elastomer, and is advantageously a plastic injection-molded part, any driving movement of the worm wheel 4 against the associated drive stop 7 and of the lock element or the locking lever 1 against the associated lock element stop 8 ensure that the respective stop 7, 8 can be deformed significantly, so that, as already described in the introduction, particularly effective damping is ensured. The stop formation 5 can be mechanically connected to a lock housing 9 which is only shown in fig. 1. A one-piece design with the lock housing 9 is also possible. Indeed, in the context of the description, the lock housing 9 may be a lock cover which, together with a lock housing (not shown) holding the locking mechanism, encloses the illustrated motor vehicle lock as a whole.

List of reference numerals

1. Lock element/locking lever

1' crank

2. Motor with a motor housing having a motor housing with a motor housing

3. Output worm

4. Worm wheel

4a worm wheel base

4b worm wheel ring part

5. Stop forming piece

5a T shaped ridge

5b T shaped handle

6. Cavity cavity

7. Stop part of driving device

8. Lock element stop

Axis of axis

S mirror axis.

Claims

1. Motor vehicle lock with a locking mechanism, with at least one lock element (1) and an electric drive (2, 3, 4), and with a stop profile (5) common to the lock element (1) and the drive (2, 3, 4), characterized in that the stop profile (5) is provided with a single central cavity (6), the central cavity (6) being surrounded by a surrounding ridge, wherein the ridge defines at least one stop (7) for the drive (2, 3, 4) and at least one stop (8) for the lock element (1).

2. Motor vehicle lock according to claim 1, characterized in that the stop profile (5) is formed as a T-shaped piece and has two stops (7) at the two ends of the T-shaped ridge (5 a), respectively.

3. Motor vehicle lock according to claim 2, characterized in that the T-shaped shank (5 b) defines two additional stops (8) on both sides.

4. A motor vehicle lock according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that the two stops (7) are formed as drive means stops (7) at the ends of the T-shaped ridge (5 a).

5. A motor vehicle lock according to claim 3, characterized in that the two stops (8) on both sides of the T-shaped shank (5 b) are designed as lock element stops (8).

6. Motor vehicle lock according to any of claims 1 to 3, 5, characterized in that the stop profile (5) is formed symmetrically with respect to a central mirror axis (S).

7. Motor vehicle lock according to any of claims 1 to 3, 5, characterized in that the stop profile (5) is made of an elastic material.

8. Motor vehicle lock according to claim 7, characterized in that the stop profile (5) is designed as a plastic injection-molded part.

9. Motor vehicle lock according to any of claims 1 to 3, 5, characterized in that the stop profile (5) is mechanically connected to the lock housing (9) or is formed integrally therewith.

10. Motor vehicle lock according to any of claims 1 to 3, 5, characterized in that the stop profile (5) is arranged to at least partially overlap a worm wheel (4) as part of the drive (2, 3, 4).

11. A motor vehicle lock according to any one of claims 1 to 3, 5, characterized in that the motor vehicle lock is a motor vehicle door lock.

12. Motor vehicle lock according to claim 9, characterized in that the lock housing (9) is a lock cover.