GB2217189A

GB2217189A - Wiper blade

Info

Publication number: GB2217189A
Application number: GB8829745A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Akira Tanaka; Yoshiki Noro; Masashi Midorikawa; Akio Kagaya; Yoshimasa Kimura; Masayoshi Shirato; Seiichi Ogino; Jun Abe
Original assignee: Honda Motor Co Ltd; Mitsuba Electric Manufacturing Co Ltd
Current assignee: Honda Motor Co Ltd; Mitsuba Corp
Priority date: 1987-12-28
Filing date: 1988-12-21
Publication date: 1989-10-25
Anticipated expiration: 2008-12-21
Also published as: GB8829745D0; DE3843591A1; GB2217189B

Description

1 WIPER BLADE

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a blade structure for use on a wiper for wiping a windowpane of a passenger's car, bus, truck, or other vehicle.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A conventional wiper mounted on a windowpane of this kind comprises a rubber blade mounted at the front end of a reciprocating.C) wiper arm. A wiper blade as disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open, No. 128,862/1987 moves vertically to wipe a windowpane. In the known rubber blade, the wiping portion of the blade Js swung by movement of the body of the blade. The front edge of the wiping portion wipes the windowpane during both going and returning strokes. Therefore, water driven off during the upward stroke, is raised as it is. Then, the raised water runs down the windowpane during the subsequent downward stroke.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the foregoing problem, it is an object of the 20 invention to provide a wiper blade free of the problem.

The above object is achieved by a wiper blade having a wi-pingmember and mounted at the front end of a reciprocating wiper arm to wipe a windowpane, saidwilDing member comprising: a wiping portion which is swung by movement of the -Y,,i-o-ing-iumber in such a way that the front edge of the wiping portion wipes the windowpane; and a protrusion formed at one side of the wiping portion and making sliding contact with the windowpane to keep the front edge apart from the surface of the windowpane, whereby when the protrusion is placed between the front edge and the windowpane, the front edge is prevented from wiping the windowpane.

In the novel wiper blade, the front edge makes contact with the windowpane to wipe it during one of the going and returning strokes. However, during the other stroke, the front edge is kept -10 apart from the windowpane.

Other objects and features of the invention will appear in the course of the description thereof which follows.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a wiper having a blade according to the invention; Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the wiper shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the arm of the wiper shown in Figs. 1 and 2; Fig. 4 is a front elevation of the blade of the wiper shown 1 and 2; Fig. 5 is an enlarged cross section of the blade shown in in Figs.

Fig. 4; Fig. 6 is a front elevation of the rubber member of the blade shown in Fig. 4; 1 1 Fig. 7 is an enlarged cross section of the rubber member shown in Fig. 6; Fig. 8 is an enlarged plan view of the protruding portion of the rubber member shown in Fig. 7; Fig. 9 is a perspective view of a clip portion holding the rubber member shown in Figs. 6 and 7-, Figs. 10A and IOB are enlarged cross sections of the rubber member shown in Figs. 5 and 7 and a part of a windowpane, for illustrating the operation of the rubber member; Fig. 11 is a cross-sectional view of a chamber accommodating the blade shown in Fig. 5, and in which the chamber is closed; Fig. 12 is a view similar to F ig. 11, but in which the chamber is open; Fig. 13 is an exploded perspective view of the chamber shown in Fig. 11; Fig. 14 is a cross-sectional view of another chamber, and in which the chamber is closed; Fig. 15 is a view similar to Fig. 14, but in which the chamber is open; and Fig. 16 is an exploded perspective view of the chamber shown in Figs. 14 and 15.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring to Figs. 1-13, a side wiper 1 is mounted to a -10 -LL- r, door '2. The wiper 1 includes an arc-shaped arm 3. A rubber member 5 extending horizontally is mounted at the upper end of the arm 3 via a holder 4. The door 22 has an outer board 2a to which an arm guide 6 is mounted. When the arm 3 moves up and down, it is guided by the guide 6 having a support portion 6a and a pulley 6b that is disposed below the support portion 6a. An endless wire 7 is wound on the pulley 6b and held by the support portion 6a. The wire 7 is coupled to the arm 3 by a connector 8. The door 2 further includes a windowpane 2b, a pane guide 2c for guiding the front end of the I IJ pane 2b, an inner board 2d, a molding 2e mounted at the front end of the outer board 2a, and a lip member 2f bearing against the windowpane.

An electric motor 9 which drives the arm 3 is mounted to the inner board 2d. The motor 9 has a shaft (not shown) protruding -1 forward. A pulley (not shown) is mounted inside a pulley case 9a and rotated either forwardly or rearwardly by the motor 9. The wire 7 extends over the front end of the windowpane 2b in front of the pane, and is wound on the pulley. The portion actuating the arm is mounted in the space between the outer board 2a and the windowpane 2b. The portion driving the arm is mounted in the space between the windowpane 2b and the inner board 2d. That is, these two portions are dispersed. Therefore, the wiper 1 can be mounted in the door 2 without the need to increase the thickness of the door. When the wiper switch (not shown) is closed, the motor 9 is rotated either I- 11 1 r, forwardly or rearwardly to move the wire 7 back and forth. This drives the arm 3 up and down, causing the rubber member 5 to wipe the windowpane.

The holder 4 is cylindrical in shape and has a groove 41a on the side facing the wiped windowpane. The holder 4 further includes a protruding clip portion 4b in its center. This clip portion 4b is rigidly fixed to one side of the body of the holder 4; it is not connected at the position of the bottom wall which is opposite to the opening of the groove 4a. The clip portion 4b is designed not to change the effective height H (described later) of the wiper blade. The upper end of the arm 3 is detachably mounted to the clip portion 4b so that the holder 4 extends horizontally. The rubber member 5 is made of a resilient rubber and mounted in the groove 4a such that its held portion 5a is mounted in the groove 4a with a press f it. A core member 10 is fitted in the center of the held portion 5a to increase the rigidity. A narrow neck portion 5b extends from the held portion 5a. A wiping portion 5c protrudes from the neck portion 5b toward the windowpane 2b. As the arm 3 reciprocates vertically, the wiping portion 5c swings about the neck portion 5b against the windowpane 2b. The f ront end 5e of the wiping portion 5c: makes a sliding contact with the pane 2b to wipe it. A protrusion 5d is formed on the upper surface of the wiping portion 5c so as not to reach the front edge 5e. During the upward stroke of the rubber member 5, the protrusion 5d makes a sliding _i:- r lo contact with the windowpane 2b, and the front edge 5e is separated from the windowpane 2b. Hence, during this stroke, the pane 2b is not wiped. These members are chamfered or bent to remove rightangled corners. This prevents these members from interfering with other members including the molding. Consequently, the blade can be smoothly withdrawn.

A casing 11 is fitted in a recess formed in the molding 2e and bolted to a member 2g that reinforces the outer board 2a. The casing 11 forms a chamber accommodating the rubber member 5. The casing 11 is provided with a hole 11a through which the arm 3 extends.

A cover 12 is mounted to the casing 11 and has legs 12a extending downwardly through holes 11b formed in the casing 11. Support plates 11c protrude downward from the bottom of the casing 11. The cover 12 is pivotally mounted to the support plates llc via pivots 12b. The cover 12 is able to either open or close the casing 11. When the cover 12 is substantially flush with the molding 2e, it closes the casing 11. Working members 12c protrude from the inner surface of the cover 12. When the rubber member 5 is with- drawn, the holder 4 holding the member 5 approaches the working members 12c from above and bears against them. Resilient members 13 are wound on the pivots 12b to always urge the cover 12 to open. When the rubber member 5 is outside the casing 11 and performs a wiping operation, the cover 12 is urged to open by the action of the z 9 1 resilient members 13. After the wiping operation, the rubber membe,5 is withdrawn into the casing 11. At this time, the holder 4 approaches the working members 12c from above, bears against them, and pushes them downward. Thus, the cover 12 is automatically closed. After the rubber member 5 has been received in the casing 11, the arm 3 extends along the inner fringes of a hole Ila formed in the casing 11. Therefore, the wiping portion 5a on the front side is apart from the windowpane and is in contact with nothing.

The novel wiper constructed as described above operates as follows. When water adheres to the windowpane 2b, the wiper switch (not shown) is depressed. Then the motor 9 is driven to reciprocate the arm 3 vertically. During the upward stroke, the rubber member 5 does not wipe the pane. Only during the downward stroke, it wipes the pane. Specifically, the protrusion 5d of the rubber member is formed on the upper surface of the wiping portion 5c. During the upward movement, the protrusion 5d makes a sliding contact with the windowpane 2b, keeping the front edge 5e apart from the pane 2b. Therefore, during the upward stroke, the pane 2b is not wiped by the edge 5e. Water adhering to the pane is left as it is during the upward movement of the blade. During the subsequent downward stroke, the adhering water is wiped away.

In this way, the pane 2b is wiped by the rubber member 5 which reciprocates vertically. The pane is wiped only when the blade 5 is descending. During the upward movement, attaching water 1 C r) is left as it is. With the conventional rubber blade, a windowpane is wiped even during the upward stroke and so water adhering to the pane is raised during the upward stroke. Then, the water runs down the pane during the downward stroke. The novel blade does not suffer from such a drawback. Hence, the wiper blade is capable of wiping the pane well.

The holder 4 of the wiper blade is cylindrical in shape.

The held portion 5a is fitted in - the holder 4 and has the core member 10 and, 1herefore, the held portion is excellent in strength and prevented from being inadvertently deformed. Consequently, the pressure applied to the windowpane 2b is made uniform. Thus, the wiping capability is excellent, though its structure is simple. Since the held portion 5a of the rubber member 5 is reinforced with the core member 10 extending through the rubber member, when the rubber member 5 is mounted into the groove 4a, the held portion is prevented from being deformed. Hence, the mounting operation can be performed rapidly. This greatly improves the efficiency of the operation.

The clip portion 4b is mounted to the body of the holder 4 not at the position of the bottom wall of the groove but at one side of the body of the holder. Since the effective height H of the wiper blade is not altered, the casing 11 in which the rubber member is received can be made as small as possible. Because the rigidity of the rubber member 5 is increased by the core member 10, the R i Y G 11 -n_ member 5 is certainly prevented from inadvertently coming out of the groove 4a without the need to bond the held portion Sa to the wall of the groove 4a with adhesive. Where they are not bonded together with adhesive, the held portion 5a also rotates or resiliently deforms to follow the swinging movement of the wiping portion 5c. This further enhances the capability of the blade to wipe the windowpane.

It is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the above example. For instance, the invention is not restricted to a wiper blade reciprocating vertically.

1 r Of course, the invention can be applied to a wiper blade reciprocating horizontally.

The structure accommodating the wiper blade can have resilient members 14 as shown in Figs. 14-16 instead of the resilient members 13 of the above example. The resilient members 14 are mounted between shafts 11d protruding from the support plates 11c and the cover 12 to bias the cover 12 in such a way that while the cover 12 is being opened, the cover 12 is urged to go across the pivots 12b. That is, the resilient members 14 hold the cover 12 either closed or open. Therefore, when the cover 12 is closed, the arm 3 is not required to exert a force on the cover to retain it closed. For this reason, it is not necessary to place the blade 5 in its rest position with improved accuracy and to maintain the cover 12 closed, or to lock the motor 9, for maintaining the cover closed. This improves the structure further and simplifies it.

-.10- Since the novel wiper blade is constructed as described above, during one stroke of the blade, the protrusion of the wiping portion makes a sliding contact with the windowpane to keep the front edge apart from the pane. As a result, during this stroke, water adhering to the pane is left as it is. The remaining water is Wiped away during the other stroke. Whre the blade reciprocates vertically, adhering water is certainly prevented from being raised during the upward stroke. Hence, the performance of the wiper is improved.

In the wiper blade defined by claim 2, the holder of the blade is cylindrical in shape. The held portion of the rubber member that is held in the holder has the core member. Although the blade is simple in structure, it is certainly prevented from becoming deformed when a pressure is applied to it. As such, the blade is excellent in rigidity. Hence, the blade can wipe the windowpane with a force substantially uniform over the whole range. Since the held portion is reinforced with the core member, when it is mounted in the holder, it is prevented from being inadvertently deformed. This can greatly improve the efficiency of the mounting operation.

In the wiper blade defined by claim 3, the clip portion of the holder is rigidly fixed to the body of the holder not at the position of the bottom wall of the groove opposite to the opening but at one side of the body. Since the clip portion is placed i S 9 1 I within the effective height of the blade, the chamber accowwodating the blade can be rendered as swall as possible.

Claims

Claims:

1. A wiper blade having a wiping member and mounted at the front end of a reciprocating wiper arm to wipe a windowpane, said wiping member comprising: a wiping portion which is swung by movement of the wiping member in such a way that the front edge of the wips-ng portion wipes the windowpane; and a protrusion formed at one side of the wiping portion and making a sliding contact with the windowpane to keep the front edge apart from the surface of the windowpane, whereby when the protrusion is placed between the front edge and the windowpane, the front edge is prevented from wiping the windowpane.

lk 2. The wiper blade of claim 1, wherein said wiping member is a rubber member and the blade comprises a holder having a protruding clip portion attached to the arm of the wiper, the holder being cylindrical in shape and having a groove whose opening faces the wiped windowpane, the rubber member having a held portion fitted in the groove, the held portion having a core member extending therethrough to increase the rigidity of the held portion.

1 41 3. The wiper blade of claim 2, wherein said clip portion is rigidly fixed to the body of the holder not at the position of the bottom wall of the groove opposite to the opening but at one side of the body of the holder.

4. A wiper blade substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as shown in the accompanying drawings.

from The Patent Office.

hedl9S)atThe atent Office, State House, 3,71 iHolbo),Londoi WCIR 4TP. Further copies maybe obtained Sales Branch, St Maxy Cray, Orpington, Kent BRS 3RD. Printed by Multiplex techniques ltd, St Mary Cray, Kent, Con. 1/87