GB2446802A

GB2446802A - Motor vehicle door with rotatable handle

Info

Publication number: GB2446802A
Application number: GB0703331A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Stephen David Fleming; William Farrelly; Gary Brown; Jonathan Young; Daniel Edward Stanesby
Original assignee: Ford Global Technologies LLC
Current assignee: Ford Global Technologies LLC
Priority date: 2007-02-21
Filing date: 2007-02-21
Publication date: 2008-08-27
Also published as: GB0703331D0

Abstract

A motor vehicle door 3 comprises a handle 14 rotatably connected to a lever 13 pivotally connected to the door for rotation about a pivot axis X to open the door, wherein the handle is rotatable about an axis of rotation Y parallel to the pivot axis of the lever. The lever may be connected by a cable 17 to a door latch such that rotation of the lever releases the latch. The handle may be a tubular member rotatably mounted on a rod 23 attached at one end of the lever. Alternatively, the handle (55, Fig. 6) may be a tubular member rotatably mounted on a rod (59, Fig. 6) connected between two levers (53a, 53b, Fig. 5).

Description

A Motor Vehicle Door.

Ths invention relates to doors for motor vehicles and in particular to a handle for a. motor vehicle door having improved ease of use.

It s well known t.o provide a motor vehicle with various types of doors such as side hinged, top hinged (sometimes called a tailgate) and sliding. When an operator o wishes to open any of these types of door the door moves from its original resting place to a new position and this movement requires considerable hyperextension (dorsi-flexion) or flexion (palmar-flexion) of the wrist. Such bending of the wrists is both uncomfortable and potentially damaging if a high load is required to open the door.

It is an object of this invention to provide an improved handle for a motor vehicle door that is more comfortable to use and reduces the risk of wrist injuries. 2C

According to a first aspect of the invention there is provided a motor vehicle door having a handle rotatably connected to a lever pivotally connected to the door for rotation about a pivot axis so as to open the door wherein the handle is rotatable about an axis of rotation that is parallel to the pivot axis of the lever.

The handle may be a tubular member rotatably mounted on a rod attached at one end to the lever.

The lever may be pivotally connected near to one end to the door and the handle may be rotatably connected to the lever near to an opposite end of the lever.

The lever may be used as an actuating member to selectively release a door latch so as to permit the door to he opened.

The lever may he connected by a cable to the door latch such that rotation of the lever relative to the door releases the door latch.

Alternatively, the handle may be a tubular member rot.atahly mounted on a rod attached at one end to a first Jever and connected at a second end to a second lever, the first and shcorid levers being pivotably connected to the door for rotation about a common pivot axis that is arranged parallel to the axis of rotation of the handle.

The first lever may be pivotally connected near to one end to the door and a first end of the rod may be connected to the first lever near to an opposite end of the first lever and the second lever may be pivotally connected near to one end to the door and a second end of the rod may be connected to the second lever near to an opposite end of the second lever.

One of the first and second levers may be used as an actuating member to selectively release a door latch so as to permit the door to be opened.

The respective lever operating as an actuating member may he connected by a cable to the door latch such that rotation of the first and second levers relative to the door releases the door latch.

According to a second aspect of the invention there is provided a motor vehicle having at least one door constructed in accordance with said first aspect of the invention.

The invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawing of which:-Fig.1 is a side view of a motor vehicle having a two side hinged doors, a sliding door and a top hinged door; Fig.2 is a pictorial view of the top hinged door shown in Fig.1; Fig.3 is a part. sectioned plan view of part of a side hinged door having a handle assembly according to a first embodiment of the invention; Fig.4 is a pictorial view of the handle assembly forming part of the door shown in Fig.3; Fig.5 is a cross-sectional plan view showing part of a top hinged door having a handle assembly according to a second embodiment of the invention; and Fig.6 is a side cross-sectional view along the line F- F on Fig.2 of the handle assembly shown in Fig.5.

With reference to Figs.l and 2 there is shown a motor vehicle 2 having a side hinged door 3, a sliding door 4 and a top hinged door in the form of a tailgate 5.

The side hinged door 3 is pivotally connected to the motor vehicle 2 at a front end by two hinges (riot shown) and has a door handle assembly 10 near to a rear end of the door 3 used to assist with opening of the door 3.

The sliding door 4 has a door handle assembly 30 used to assist with opening and closing of the door 4.

The tailgate 5 has a door handle assembly 50 used to assist with opening of the tailgate 5. The door handle assembly 50 is located in a recess 6 in the tailgate 5.

With particular reference to Figs.3 and 4 the door handle assembly 10 comprises of a handle 14 rotatably connected to an actuating member in the form of a lever 13 for a door.]..atch (not shown) The lever 13 and the hondle 14 are positioned in a recess 11 in the door 3 so that, as shown, they do not project beyond the outer edge of the door 3 when the lever 13 is in a resting position. An aperture 12 is formed in the door 3 to allow the lever to pivot relative to the door 3 about a pivot axis X-X. The pivot axis X-X is preferably arranged substantially parallel to a pivot axis of the door 3. Alternatively, the pivot axis X-X could be arranged at an angle to the pivot axis of the door 3.

Although the door is in this case a side hinged door it will be appreciated that it could be a top or bottom hinged door such as a tailgate.

The lever 13 is pivotally connected to the door near to one end by a pivot pin 15 engaged with an aperture 19 in the lever 13 and with a lug 16 on the door 3. The lever 13 has the handle 14 rotatably connected to it towards an opposite end of the lever 13 to the position where the lever 13 is pivotally connected to the door 3 by an upstanding rod 23 fastened to the lever 13 and engaged with a bore in the handle 14 for rotation about an axis of rotation Y-Y. The handle 14 is therefore a tubular object having a bore for accommodating the rod 23 and in the example shown it is cylindrical.

The handle 14 is rotatably connected to the lever 13 at a position such that axis of rotation Y-Y of the handle 14 is spaced apart from the pivot axis X-X of the lever 13. In addition, the axis of rotation Y-Y of the handle 14 is positioned parallel to the pivot axis X-X of the lever 13 such that, when the lever 13 is rotated relative to the door 3, the handle 14 rotates relative to the lever 13 and also relative Lo the door 3.

At the opposite end of the lever 13 to the position where the handle 14 is rotatably connected, a lug 20 extends downwardly from the lever 13 for use in securing a Bowden cable 17 to the lever 13. An inner part of the Bowden cable 17 extends through an aperture 21 in the lug 20 and a nipple 22 is fastened to the end of the inner cable to transfer c force from the lever 13 to the Inner part of the Bowden cable 17 when the lever 13 is moved in the direction of the arrow "C" on Fig.3 in order to release the door latch. An outer part of the Bowden cable 17 is fastened to the door 3 by a bracket 18. It will however be appreciated that other means could be used to connect the lever 13 to the door latch such as for example a mechanical linkage having one or more rods or levers.

Therefore when an operator wishes to open the door 3 they grasp the handle 14 and pull it towards them thereby causing the lever 13 to rotate in the direction of arrow "C". This pulls on the Bowden cable 17 and releases the door latch. The door 3 can then be rotated open to allow the operator to enter the motor vehicle 2.

Although this embodiment has been described with respect to use on a side hinged door it will be appreciated that it could also be used for other types of door.

With particular reference to Figs. 2, 5 arid 6 there is shown a second embodiment of door handle assembly 50 which is in many respects similar to that previously described except that instead of using a single lever to connect the handle to the door two parallel handles are used.

The door 5 has a recess 6 in which is mounted a door handle assembly 50 such that a handle 55 forming part of the door handle assembly 50 lies within the recess 6 when the door handle assembly 50 is in a resting position.

The handle 55 is rotatably connected to two levers 53a, 53b one at either end of the handle 55 by a rod 59 that is engaged with a bore (not shown) in the handle 55. The rod 59 is fixed at each end to a respective one of the two levers 53a, 53h such t.hat he handle 55 is free to rotate on the rod 59 about an axis of rotation R-R.

The two levers 53a, 53h are both pivotally connected at their inner ends to the door 5 by means of upstanding lugs 51a, Sib; 52a, 52b for rotation about a pivot axis P-P.

The handle 55 is rotatably connected to the two levers 53a, 53b such that axis of rotation R-R of the handle 55 is spaced apart from the pivot axis P-P of the levers 53a, 53b.

The axis of rotation R-R of the handle 55 is positioned parallel to the pivot axis P-P of the levers 53a, 53b so that when the levers 53a, 53b are rotated relative to the door S the handle 55 rotates relative to the levers 53a, 53b and relative to the door 5.

That is to say, the handle 55 is a tubular member rotatably mounted on the rod 59 attached at one end to a first lever 53a and connected at a second end to a second lever 53b, the first and second levers 53a, 53b being pivotably connected to the door 6 for rotation about a common pivot axis P-P that is arranged parallel to hut offset from the axis of rotation R-R of the handle 55.

The lever 53a is rotatably connected to the door S by a pivot pin 58 which is engaged with apertures in the two lugs 5la, Slh, similarly the lever 53b is rotatably connected to :5 the door 5 by a pivot pin (not shown) which is engaged with apertures in the two lugs 52a, 52b. The lever 53a forms an actuating member for a door latch (not shown) used to hold the door 5 in a ciosed position.

At the opposite end of the lever 53a to the position where the handle 55 is rotatah].y connected to the lever 53a a Bowden cable 17 is connected to the lever-53a. An inner part of the Bowden cable 56 is fastened to the lever 53a by means of a nipple 60. An outer part of the Bowderi cable 56 s fastened to the door 5 by a bracket 57. It will however in be appreciated that other means could he used to connect the lever 53a to the door latch such as for example a mechanical linkage having one or more rods or levers.

Therefore when an operator pulls on the handle 55 the levers 53a, 53b rotate about the pivot axis P-P pulling on the Bowden cable 56 which releases the door latch to which the Bowden cable 56 is connected thereby allowing the door 5 to he opened. Further pulling on the handle 55 causes the door 5 to open in an upward direction.

During opening of the door 5 the rotation of the handle relative to both the levers 53a, 53b and the door 5 greatly reduces the bending of an operators wrist required to operate the door latch and open the door 5.

Although this embodiment has been described with respect to use on a top hinged door it will he appreciated that it could also be used for other types of door.

Although the invention has been described above with respect to its use for motor vehicle external door handles it will be appreciated that it could also be applied to a motor vehicle interior door handle.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that although the invention has been described by way of example with reference to one or more embodiments it is not limited to the disclosed embodiments and that one or more modifications to the disclosed embodiments or alternative embodiments could he constructed without departing from the scope of the invention.

Claims

Claims 1. A motor vehicle door having a handle rotatably connected to a

lever pivotally connected to the door for rotation about a pivot axis so as to open the door wherein the handle is rotatable about an axis of rotation that is parallel to the pivot axis of the lever.
2. A door as claimed in claim 1 wherein the handle is a tubular member rotatably mounted on a rod attached at one end to the lever.
3. A door as claimed in claim 1 or in claim 2 wherein the lever is pivotaily connected near to one end to the door and the handle is rotatably connected to the lever near to an opposite end of the lever.
4. A door as claimed in any of claims 1 to 3 wherein the lever is used as an actuating member to selectively release a door latch so as to permit the door to be opened.
5. A door as claimed in any of claim 4 wherein the lever is connected by a cable to the door latch such that rotation of the lever relative to the door releases the door latch.
6. A door as claimed in claim 1 wherein the handle is a tubular member rotatably mounted on a rod attached at one end to a first lever and connected at a second end to a second lever, the first and second levers being pivotably connected to the door for rotation about a common pivot axis that is arranged parallel to the axis of rotation of the handle.
7. A door as claimed in claim 6 wherein the first lever is pivotally connected near to one end to the door arid a first end of the rod is connected to the first lever near -10 -to an opposite end of the first lever and the second lever is pivotally connected near to one end to the door and a second end of the rod is connected to the second lover near to an opposite end of the second lover.
8. A door as claimed in claim 6 or in claim 7 wherein one of the first arid second levers is used as an actuating member to selectively release a door laLch so as to permit the door to be opened. 1 0
9. A door as claimed in claim 8 wherein the respective lever operating as an actuating member is connected by a cable to the door latch such that rotation of the first and second levers relative to the door releases the door latch.
10. A motor vehicle having at least one door as claimed in any of claims 1 to 9.
11. A motor vehicle door substantially as described herein with reference to Figures 3 and 4 of the accompanying drawing.
12. A motor vehicle door substantially as described herein with reference to Figures 5 and 6 of the accompanying drawing.
13. A motor vehicle substantially as described herein with reference to Figures 1, 3 arid 4 of the accompanying drawing.
14. A motor vehicle substantially as described herein with reference to Figures 1, 2, 5 and 6 of the accompanying drawing.