GB2053114A

GB2053114A - A sun visor arrangement for motor vehicles

Info

Publication number: GB2053114A
Application number: GB8020299A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: Daimler Benz AG
Current assignee: Daimler Benz AG
Priority date: 1979-06-22
Filing date: 1980-06-20
Publication date: 1981-02-04
Also published as: FR2459734A1; IT8049029A0; GB2053114B; DE2925184A1; IT1128108B

Abstract

A sun visor 12 is mounted on the side wall of the driver's cab of a motor vehicle through a pair of bearing blocks 11 on which the visor 12 is mounted. The bearing blocks are slidable in a guide rail 10 mounted on the side wall so as to extend in the longitudinal axis of the vehicle. The guide rail 10 is of C-shaped cross-section so that the bearing blocks extend clear of the guide rail 10. The sun visor is pivotably mounted on the blocks 11 so as to be pivoted about a substantially horizontal axis. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION A sun visor arrangement for motor vehicles The invention relates to a sun visor arrangement for motor vehicles, particularly but not exclusively for commercial vehicles, in which the sun visor is arranged in a side wall region of the driver's cab and is pivotable about an approximately horizontal axis through the intermediary of at least one bearing block.

In known constructions of this type for sun visors arranged in the side wall region of the driver's cab, said visors have only a mobility about the approximately horizontal pivot axis, and it is therefore not possible, particularly in the case of storage compartments arranged in the end wall region of the driver's cab above the windscreen, to achieve a lateral shielding having a direct continuation between the sunvisors associated with the windscreen and sun visors arranged in the side wall region. The consequence is that it is in fact impossible to prevent solar irradiation disturbing the driver by passing through the gap between the sun visors in the front corner region.

In contradistinction to the above the invention seeks to produce a sun visor arrangement which permits shielding in the front corner region adjoining the windscreen.

According to the invention there is provided a sun visor arrangement for motor vehicles having a driver's cab in which the sun visor is adapted to be arranged in the side wall region of the driver's cab so as to be pivotable about an approximately horizontal pivot axis on at least one bearing block, the sun visor being guided slidingly through the intermediary of the bearing block upon an alongate guide rail the longitudinal axis of which is approximately parallel to said pivot axis, By this means it is initially possible to provide for the sunvisor a folded-up rest position in which it is set back sufficiently far with reference to the wind-screen to be located outside the generally flat roof attachment regions of the windscreen and behind any possible roof storage compartments provided adjacent to the wind-screen.

It is also possible, by the division between longitudinal slidability and pivotability, i.e. by the separation of the pivot axis from the guide rail, to position the pivot axis so that interference between the sun visor arrangement and any possible curtain arrangements etc., which may be provided, are prevented. The guide rail can in fact be staggered farther upwards towards the roof region without impairing the functionally convenient position of the pivot axis, whilst simultaneously the pivot axis, due to its guidance by at least one bearing block, can be positioned in a way most convenient from the standpoint of the function of the sun visor.Particularly, by appropriate sloping of the bearing block/s a curtain rail guide means, if present, can be arranged to be between guide rail and pivot axis, so that particularly when the sun visor is folded into the rest position, the latter simultaneously conceals the curtain guide means and also the guide rail itself.

Preferably, the guide rail has a C-shape profile in cross section open towards the vision or inside of the cab which permits a particularly simple assembly on the one hand and a particularly stable and secure guidance for the bearing block on the other hand.

A particularly convenient construction is obtained if the bearing block/s is/are arranged substantially in the longitudinally median region of the sun visor, so that relative to the actual length of the guide rail the sun visor can extend over a relatively large distance beyond the axis of the rail with the result that the sun visor can be pushed at least virtually up to the wind-screen in the desired manner even if the guide rail as such cannot be taken so far towards the wind-screen.

Preferably, the sun visor is guided by two bearing blocks, the downwardly projecting arms of which are provided with two coaxial pivot pins extending in opposite directions, which engage into housing bores in the sun visor extending in opposite directions starting from a longitudinally median cavity provided in the upper marginal region of the sun visor.

An embodiment of the invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawing in which: Figure 1 shows in a perspective schematic view a detail of a lorry driver's cab with a sun visor arrangement according to the invention, in which the sun visor is pivoted into its rest position, Figure 2 shows a view corresponding to Fig. 1, in which the sun visor is pivoted into its operative position, and Figure 3 shows schematically a section through the guide rail, in which the sun visor is guided longitudinally slidably by bearing blocks, and which has a C-shape profile in cross-section.

The driver's cab schematically illustrated in the Figures is designated 1. In front the driver's cab is provided with a conventional wind-screen 2 which, as is not visible here, is arranged in customary manner above a sill (not shown) and extends as far as the roof region. Laterally adjacently to the windscreen 2 is shown a window pillar 3 constituting the corner boundary of the driver's cab, on which the driver's cab door 4 is hung, being provided with a front opening window (or quarter-light) 5 and with a further door window 6.

In the upwardly domed roof space 7 of the driver's cab 1 there is arranged, in front, in the region above the wind-screen 2 a storage compartment 8 and sun visors 9 are mounted on the compartment so as to be foldable downwardly in front of the wind-screen. Said sun visors 9 are pivotable about axes oriented in the transverse direction of the driver's cab out of their rest position as shown in Fig. 1 into their protective position shown in Fig. 2.

In said protective position they mask the upper region of the wind-screen 2 internally.

Laterally above the driver's cab door 4 in the side wall region of the roof which is curved upwards in hood-shaped configuration, i.e., on the side wall of the roof, there is arranged a guide rail 10 which extends approximately horizontally in the longitudinal direction of the driver's cab and which, as Fig.

3 particularly shows, has a C-shaped crosssection open towards the inside of the cab. In said guide rail 10 there are retained slidably two bearing blocks 11 which carry pivotably a side sun visor 1 2 arranged on the side wall.

The sun visor 1 2 is mounted on the bearing blocks through the intermediary of two pivot pins which are mutually aligned and conjointly determine the pivot axis of the sun visor 1 2 which is parallel to the guide rail. The pivot pins are preferably firmly connected to the bearing blocks 11 through arms 14 and extend in opposite directions to engage into housing bores of the sun visor.Said housing bores start from the lateral boundaries of a recess 1 3 arranged in the longitudinally median region of the sun visor 12, into which the bearing blocks 11 project by their arms 1 4 carrying the pivot pins, whilst the depth of engagement of the arms 1 4 of the bearing blocks, corresponding approximately to the depth of the cavity 13, is substantially determined by the dimensioning of the pivot pins.

The bearing blocks 11 are fixed spaced apart when the sun visor 1 2 is assembled, so that they are conjointly slidable in the guide rail 10 via the sun visor 1 2. Because the spacing of the bearing blocks 11 is substantially shorter than the length of the sun visor, for a comparatively short guide rail 10 a comparatively long sliding stroke is obtained which, in conjunction with the approximately central arrangement of the bearing blocks 11 to the sun visor 12, also makes it possible to slide the sun visor 1 2 forward in the longitudinal direction virtually up to the windscreen 2, without the necessity for the guide rail 10 itself to project into that region.The latter can on the contrary terminate outside the pivotal region of the sun visors 9 associated with the wind-screen 2, so that the latter can be constructed of maximum width and can thus ensure anti-dazzle protection across the total width of the wind-screen 2. As Fig. 2 shows, said front sun visors 9 may be adjoined directly, and optionally even with overlap, by the sun visor 1 2 arranged on the side wall in its protective position, so that complete antidaule protection is also ensured towards the side. No obstruction of the sliding mobility of the sun visor 1 2 by the storage compartment 8 exists when the sun visor 12, in its foldeddown protective or operative position, is slid towards the wind-screen 2.

In the same manner, the sun visor 1 2 can also be slid practically far back in the opposite direction, so that in case of need appropriate protection can also be obtained from irradiation from the side rear. In this position particularly, the sun visor 1 2 can simultaneously also be used to prevent a direct draught e.g., from a slightly opened window.

Due to the separation of the guide rail 10 from the pivot axis 1 5 of the sun visor 1 2 (which is determined by the pivot pins), it is possible in a simple manner to provide the sun visor in addition to a curtain arrangement in which the curtain 1 6 runs in a curtain rail 1 7 extending on a side wall. According to the invention the arrangement with reference to said curtain rail 1 7 is made so that the guide rail 10 extends above said curtain rail and that the bearing blocks 11 overlap said curtain rail with their cantilevered arms 14. In addition the vertical staggering of the guide rail 10 with reference to the position of the pivot axis 1 5 determined by the bearing blocks 11 has the result that when the sun visor 1 2 is pivoted into the rest position, i.e., upwards, it at least substantially masks the guide rail 10, so that the latter is invisible and the mechanism dictated by the longitudinal sliding mobility of this sun visor 12 does not detract from the overall appearance.

Claims

1. A sun visor arrangement for motor vehicles having a driver's cab in which the sun visor is adapted to be arranged in the side wall region of the driver's cab so as to be pivotable about an approximately horizontal pivot axis on at least one bearing block, the sun visor being guided slidingly through the intermediary of the bearing block upon an elongate guide rail the longitudinal axis of which is approximately parallel to said pivot axis.

2. A sun visor arrangement according to Claim 1, wherein the guide rail has a Cshaped profile in cross-section open towards the inside of the cab.

3. A sun visor arrangement according to Claim 1 or 2, wherein said pivot axis is offset in the vertical direction with reference to the guide rail.

4. A sun visor arrangement according to Claim 3, wherein the pivot axis is offset downwards with reference to the guide rail.

5. A sun visor arrangement according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the sun visor is guided by two bearing blocks, having downwardly projecting arms, which are provided with respective pivot pins extend ing in opposite directions and which engage into housing bores extending in opposite directions starting from a longitudinally median recess provided in the top marginal region of the sun visor.

6. A sun visor arrangement substantially as described herein with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.