GB2494833A

GB2494833A - Window regulator

Info

Publication number: GB2494833A
Application number: GB1300398.3A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Ken-Ichirou Seo
Original assignee: Hi Lex Corp
Current assignee: Hi Lex Corp
Priority date: 2010-06-11
Filing date: 2011-06-13
Publication date: 2013-03-20
Anticipated expiration: 2031-06-13
Also published as: JP2011255866A; GB201300398D0; GB2494833B; WO2011155631A1; JP5623799B2

Abstract

Disclosed is a window regulator without an outer casing, of simple construction and with excellent anti-theft properties. Specifically disclosed is a window regulator (1) comprising: inner cables (6, 7) that are substantially linearly routed between direction change members (5a, 5b) and a drum (4c); and an outer tube (9) in the longitudinal direction on the outside of the substantially linearly routed inner cable for elevation (6). The vicinity of the top end of the outer tube is held by an outer holder (8) and the lower end section on the drum side can oscillate to follow the oscillation of the inner cable which arises from the winding and feeding by the drum.

Description

DESCRIPTION

WINDOW REGULATOR

TECHNICAL FIELD

(0001) The present invention relates to a window regulator for moving a window glass upward and downward, more particularly to a window regulator used for a vehicle and the like.

BACKGROUND ART

(0002) A light weight of parts used on a vehicle is demanded for improving fuel efficiency, and reduction of a weight of a window regulator is also demanded. As a light weight type of a window regulator, delta type window regulators (having a motor around the center of a guide rail), so-called outerless window regulators, in which inner cables are installed without an outer casing from upper and lower ends of a guide rail to a drive unit in the vicinity of the center of the guide rail, are used conventionally. In such outerless window regulators, there is a possibility of pillage in the inside of a vehicle caused by dropping downward the window glass hung on an inner cable by cutting the inner cable not covered with an outer casing (not housed in an outer cable) with a sharp knife inserted through a gap of a door.

(0003) Therefore, in order to prevent invasion into the inside of a vehicle, Patent Document 1 discloses an antitheft protector for a window regulator (hereinafter, protector) which covers an outer periphery of a control cable. This protector comprises a braided layer of metal wire covering at least a part of an outer periphery of an outer casing and an outer layer which is made of rubber, has flexibility and is covered on the outer periphery of braided layer of the metal wire.

(0004) In addition, antitheft security technologies have been progressing and prevailing recently, and an antitheft security alann for a vehicle which senses vibration and impact on a door and a glass and generates a warning sound is prevailing. Therefore, when there is a theft in a vehicle equipped with an antitheft security alarm for a vehicle, an owner of the vehicle residing in the neighborhood of the parked vehicle rushes to the vehicle due to the warning sound. In this case, it is desirable that the theft is not finished and the vehicle is not carried away until the owner arrives at the vehicle.

PRIOR ART DOCUMENT

(0005) PATENT DOCUMENT 1: JP 4021346 B

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED BY THE INVENTION

(0006) Generally in window regulators without an outer casing, since an inner cable is not covered with an outer casing, such window regulators are defenceless against cutters and bolt clippers.

Meanwhile, when an inner cable is housed inside of an outer casing, it may be useless for protection from a clipper, but it has a merit of delaying cutting of the inner cable as compared with the case of no cover as mentioned above. However, when the outer casing is used, the weight of the whole device and the number of parts thereof increase. For example, an outer casing is subject to a constraint force (a reaction force to a tensile force of an inner cable, namely a compressive force) from an inner cable by a motor when a carrier plate stops at an upper or lower end of a guide rail as a result of the inner cable being moved in an axial direction of the guide rail by a drive unt.

Further, the inner cable swings in the widthwise direction of a drum when wound or unwound to or from the drum, and comes into contact with an end of the outer casing at the side of the drum. Therefore, the outer casing needs enough rigidity to withstand the above-mentioned compressive force and the contact of the inner cable therewith, thus resulting in increasing in its weight. Further, a cushioning mechanism using a spring so as to be capable of absorbing the compressive force is used at the end of the outer casing. Thus, in the case of using the window regulator of Patent Document 1, the inner cable cannot be easily cut with a cutter or a clipper, but the number of parts and a weight are increased.

(0007) Therefore, a problem to be solved in the present invention is to provide a window regulator without an outer casing which is of a simple configuration and has a high antitheft property.

MEANS TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM

(0008) The window regulator of the present invention comprises a carrier plate for holding a window glass, a guide rail being movable for guiding the carrier plate, an orientation changing member provided at upper end and/or lower end of the guide rail, an inner cable wound on the orientation changing member and connected to the carrier plate, and a drive unit for moving the inner cable in an axial direction of the guide rail, and is characterized in that the drive unit has a drum for winding the inner cable, the inner cable is installed substantially linearly between the orientation changing member and the drum, and an outer tube is provided in a longitudinal direction outside the inner cable installed substantially linearly, and is held by an outer tube holder such that at least an end of the outer tube at the side of the drum is able to swing to follow the swing of the inner cable due to winding and unwinding by the drum.

EFFECT OF THE INVENTION

(0009) (1) The window regulator of the present invention has an outer tube and therefore, is superior in an antitheft property. In particular, the window regulator of the present invention is superior in an antitheft property as compared with conventional window regulators without an outer casing.

In addition, since the inner cable is installed linearly from the drum to the orientation changing member, the outer tube is not subject to a constraint force by a motor. Therefore, the outer tube does not have to be fixed rigidly on the drum side or the guide rail side.

Namely, since it is enough to hold the outer tube simply, it is possible to make a holding portion lighter and realize space-saving.

Further, since it is enough to hold the outer tube simply, by holding the outer tube with an outer tube holder and not fixing the end of the outer tube at the side of the drum (to be freely movable), the outer tube can swing following the swing of the inner cable due to winding and unwinding by the drum. In addition, the term "installed linearly" includes "installed substantially linearly" and also includes a state of the inner cable being slightly bent at the outer tube holder when the inner cable moves in the widthwise direction of the drum.

(0010) (2) In the case where such an outer tube holder of the window regulator holds the outer tube in the vicinity of an end of the outer tube at the side of orientation changing member, the end of the outer tube at the drum side becomes free. Thus, the outer tube can swing following the swing of the inner cable in the widthwise direction of the drum which is caused by winding and unwinding of the inner cable. Therefore, it is possible to prevent abrasion of the outer tube and generation of vibration caused by limitation of a motion of the inner cable by the outer casing.

(0011) (3) When the drive unit is mounted between the upper end and the lower end of the guide rail, since the position of the drive unit is determined, and therefore, the inner cable can be easily installed linearly. Particularly, it is preferable to arrange the drive unit in the vicinity of the center between the upper end and the lower end of the guide rail.

(0012) (4) Further, it is possible that the inner cable is protected by the outer tube up to the vicinity of the drum, and from the vicinity of the drum to a position where the inner cable comes into contact with the drum by a drum cover covering the drum so as to enable the drum to wind and unwind the inner cable. In this case, the outer tube is arranged apart from the drum, cutting of the inner cable in the vicinity of the drum can be prevented efficiently and there is no collision of the outer tube with the drum.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(0013) FIG. 1 is a partial cross-sectional front view showing one embodiment of the window regulator of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exploded view of a drive unit.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a drum cover.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line I -I of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a back side of the outer tube holder of FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is a view taken in the direction of an arrow A of FIG. 1.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line II -II of FIG. 6.

EMBODIMENT FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

(0014) FIG. 1 shows the window regulator of the present invention.

The window regulator 1 comprises a guide rail 2, a carrier plate 3 being slidably arranged on the guide rail 2 and holding a window glass W, and a drive unit 4 being fixed in the vicinity of the center of the guide rail 2. Orientation changing members Sa and Sb are provided on the upper end and lower end of the guide rail 2, respectively. In addition, an inner cable 6 for moving upward extending upward along the guide rail 2 and an inner cable 7 for moving downward extending downward are engaged to the carrier plate 3. The inner cable 6 for moving upward and the inner cable 7 for moving downward are changed in the orientations substantially reversely by the orientation changing members Sa and 5b, respectively and are engaged to the drum 4c of the drive unit 4 (See FIG. 2). The window regulator 1 shown in the drawing is one to be mounted on a right rear door, and the drawing shows the mounted window regulator viewed from the inside of a vehicle.

(0015) The window regulator 1 can be used on a front door of a vehicle. Further, the window regulator 1 may be used for window glasses for conveyances such as ships, air planes or trains.

(0016) An outer tube 9 is provided in the lengthwise direction of a periphery of the inner cable 6 for moving upward in a range from the upper orientation changing member 5a to the drum 4c. The outer tube 9 contains the inner cable 6 for moving upward inside of it and prevents the inner cable 6 for moving upward from being cut, and the cut of the inner cable is prevented. The outer tube 9 is fixed to the guide rail 2 by means of the outer tube holder 8. In addition, though not illustrated, the outer tube 9 can be provided on the periphery of the inner cable 7 for moving downward for assuring further safety. In other case, when the drive unit 4 is mounted on an upper portion of the guide rail 2 (when mounted on a position higher than the position in the vicinity of the center portion in the drawing), it results in the inner cable 7 for moving downward in the vicinity of the drum 4c being located at an upper position accordingly, and there is a possibility that a cutting tool can reach the inner cable 7 for moving downward from the above. Therefore, in the case of a window regulator in which the drive unit 4 is mounted on an upper side or upper end of a guide rail, the outer tube 9 may also be provided for the inner cable 7 for moving downward.

(0017) The guide rail 2 is an elongated metal member extending vertically, and a conventional one can be used. In the case of a window regulator without a guide rail, the outer tube holder 8 may be mounted on a member of a vehicle body (an inner panel or an outer panel).

(0018) The carrier plate 3 is provided with a cable engagement portion 3a on its center for engaging the cable ends 6a, 7a of the inner cable 6 for moving upward and the inner cable 7 for moving downward, respectively. The cable engagement portion 3a is substantially in the form of a box being able to contain the cable ends therein and is open toward the outside of a vehicle. Slits 3b, 3b are formed on the upper and lower walls forming the box, and the cable ends 6a and 7a are hooked thereon via a spring member 3c (compression coil spring) for absorbing cable expansion. In addition, the mounting holes 3d, 3d for fixing the window glass W are formed on both sides around the cable engagement portion 3a of the carrier plate 3. It is preferable that the carrier plate 3 is produced by integral molding of a synthetic resin. It is preferable that the synthetic resin material is polybutylene terephthalate (PBT) or polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and especially a material having high abrasion resistance such as polyoxymethylene (POM) is preferable.

(0019) As shown in FIG. 2, the above-mentioned drive unit 4 comprises a drive unit bracket 4a fixed to the surface of the guide rail 2 on an interior side of a vehicle, a drive motor assembly 4b (including a motor, reduction gear and the like) which is fixed to the drive unit bracket 4a from an interior side of a vehicle using a fastening member 4g (bolts and the like) and is provided with an output shaft protruding through the drive unit bracket 4a toward an exterior side of a vehicle, a drum 4c to be connected to the output shaft, and a drum cover 4d covering the top of the drum 4c.

(0020) Returning to FIG. 1, the drive unit bracket 4a of the drive unit 4 is mounted in the vicinity of the center between the orientation changing members 5a and 5b on the guide rail 2. This window regulator is a delta type window regulator. Meanwhile, the window regulator can be of a type driving at a lower end by fixing the drive unit 4 at a lower end of the guide rail 2, though riot illustrated. Even in either of the both types of window regulators, since the drive unit 4 is fixed to the guide rail 2, the inner cable 6 for moving upward and the inner cable 7 for moving downward can be installed substantially linearly. Therefore, no outer casing for guiding the inner cable 6 for moving upward and the inner cable 7 for moving downward is necessary. The drive unit bracket 4a may be mounted on a member of a vehicle door (an inner panel or an outer panel) without being fixed to the guide rail 2.

(0021) As shown in FIG. 3, the drum cover 4d comprises a cylindrical peripheral wall covering the periphery of the drum 4c, and the top end of the peripheral wall is closed with a top plate and the bottom end is open. On the two upper and lower portions of the peripheral wall of the drum cover 4d, openings 4e, 4e are formed for introducing the inner cable 6 for moving upward and the inner cable 7 for moving downward to the drum 4c inside of the drum cover 4d.

These openings 4e and 4e are larger than a width of swinging of the cables 6, 7 so that the cables 6, 7 do not come into contact with the edge of the openings even if the cables 6, 7 swing in the widthwise direction of the drum 4c when wound or unwound to or from the drum 4c. In addition, protection walls 4f, 4f are formed from the opening edge of the openings so as to cover the peripheries of the cables 6, 7.

In the case of providing no outer tube 9 for the inner cable 7 for -10 -moving downward, the above-mentioned protection wall 4f is not necessary to be formed on the opening 4e for the inner cable 7 for moving downward. However, in the embodiment of the present invention, the openings 4e and the protection walls 4g are formed on both upper and lower portions so that the drive unit 4 can be used on both right and left doors of a vehicle to share the parts.

(0022) The orientation changing member 5a provided on the upper end of the guide rail 2 is a pulley. The orientation changing member 5b provided on the lower end is a slide guide. These pulley and slide guide are conventional ones. In addition, a pulley may be used as the lower orientation changing member and a slide guide may be used as the upper orientation changing member.

(0023) The above-mentioned inner cable 6 for moving upward and inner cable 7 for moving downward are conventional ones produced by twisting a plurality of metal wires.

(0024) As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the above-mentioned holder 8 comprises an outer bracket 10 mounted to the guide rail 2 and a clip 11 mounted to the front end of the outer bracket 10. The above-mentioned outer bracket 10 is a strip-like member. The outer bracket 10 comprises a mounting piece ba mounted to the guide rail 2 and a supporting piece lOb which is bent vertically toward an exterior side of a vehicle from the end of the supporting piece lOb and then extending from the end of the bent portion in a direction opposite to and in parallel with the mounting piece l0a. In the vicinity of the end of the supporting piece lob, an engagement hole lOc is formed.

In the outer tube holder 8, the mounting piece lOa is mounted below the orientation changing member 5a on the guide rail 2 in a state of -11 -the supporting piece lob being extended inclined upwardly (See FIG. 1).

The mounting piece lOa of the outer tube holder 8 can be mounted on a member of a vehicle body (an inner panel or an outer panel).

(0025) The clip 11 comprises a plate-like base portion 1 la, a protruding portion 1 lb protruding from the surface of the base portion 1 la and fitting to the engagement hole lOc of the supporting piece lOb, and a holding portion 11 c which is provided at an end of the base portion 1 la and elastically holds the outer periphery of the outer tube 9. The protruding portion 1 lb may be configured so as to be a shaft member being rotatable in the engagement hole lOc.

(0026) The holding portion 1 ic is a substantially cylindrical member shaping a plate into cylindrical shape. A space having a width being the same as or a little bit smaller than the outer diameter of the outer tube 9 is formed at the edge of the plate formed into cylindrical shape. The outer tube 9 is pushed into the space while opening the plate shaping into cylindrical shape, and the outer tube 9 is held in the interior of the cylindrical member due to a reaction force resulting from the pushing force. In addition, as shown in FIG. 5, the clip 11 is held in the vicinity of the end of the outer tube 9 with the holding portion 1 lc being interposed between a casing cap 12 and a stopper 13 fixed to the outer tube 9 by means of a fixing means such as adhesion or caulking. Since the clip 11 is held with the holding portion 1 lc being interposed between the casing cap 12 and the stopper 13, the outer tube 9 is prevented from moving in the longitudinal direction. It is preferable that the clip 11 is formed using a synthetic resin such as polyoxymethylene (PaM), polyamide resin like nylon or polybutylene terephthalate (PBT). In addition, in the case of -12 -forming the clip using a metal, the clip may be configured such that a thin metal piece shaping into a cylindrical shape is used and the holding portion 1 lc is subjected to caulking from the outside after inserting the outer tube 9.

(0027) The supporting piece lOb is extended diagonally upward so that the clip 11 at the end of the holder is located in the region (symbol S in FIG. 6) at the back side (interior side of a vehicle) of the carrier plate 3 being positioned at the upper end. In such arrangement, the carrier plate 3 or the vicinity of the lower end of the window glass W becomes interruption, thereby preventing the clip 11 made of a synthetic resin from being broken with a cutter or the like. When the clip 11 is formed using a material having flexibility, the clip can deflect following the swinging (shown by an arrow in FIG. 6) of a free end of the outer tube 9 as explained below and surely hold the outer tube 9 while deflecting by the swinging as a base point of the swinging and a force to be applied on the outer tube by winding or unwinding the inner cable 6 with the drum 4c can be reduced. Further, when the protruding portion 1 lb of the clip 11 can rotate in the engagement hole lOc, even if an unexpected load acts on the clip 11 via the outer tube 9, the load can be released in the rotating direction. Therefore, the outer tube 9 can be prevented from coming off from the holding portion 1 lc due to the unexpected load, and also, damage of the clip 11 itself can be prevented. The clip may be configured so as to follow the swinging of the outer tube 9 by allowing the strip-like supporting piece lOb to deflect in the direction perpendicular to its plate surface.

(0028) The outer tube 9 is a member covering the periphery of the inner cable 6 for moving upward, and is not limited particularly as far -13 -as it covers the inner cable and is lighter as compared with an outer casing including a braided layer of metal wire. Thus, a tube having high rigidity such as a metal pipe and a tube which is not easily pulled and torn off, such as a sticky rubber, to delay its cutting, can be used.

From the viewpoint of easy handling and availability, it is preferable to use a tube made of synthetic resin. For example, it is preferable to form the tube using a material such as polypropylene (PP), polyethylene (FE) or polyvinyl chloride (PVC). Further, a steel-reinforced outer tube, in which two straight steel wires are arranged in parallel with the longitudinal axis of the tube and opposite to each other within the wall of an outer tube made of synthetic resin, may be used.

In addition, as explained below, it is preferable that the outer tube 9 is one having flexibility so that the lower end (at the side of the drum 4c) of the outer tube 9 swings easily together with the inner cable 6 for moving upward. It should be noted that if flexibility of the outer tube 9 is high, it may be a source for generating vibration. Therefore, by deflecting the whole of the outer tube 9 and the clip 11 (and the outer bracket 10), the whole may follow the swinging of the inner cable 6 for moving upward.

(0029) The outer tube 9 does not cover the inner cable 6 for moving upward in the nearest side of the upper orientation changing member 5a. The outer tube 9 covers the outer periphery of the inner cable 6 for moving upward from a position apart at a space (shown by a symbol 5) from the lower end of the upper orientation changing member Sa (See FIGS. 1 and 6). This is because since the lower part of the closed window glass W is positioned in the space S, a cutting -14 -tool cannot enter into this space even if the inner cable is not covered with the outer tube 9 there. On the other hand, the opposite end of the inner cable is contained in the protection wall 4f of the drum cover 4 (See FIG. 7). Therefore, by the drum cover 4, there is no space from the vicinity of the drum 4c to the position where the inner cable 6 contacts the drum 4c arid there is no space between the upper end of the guide rail 2 and the drum 4c enabling a cutting tool to come into contact with the inner cable 6 for moving upward.

(0030) FIG. 6 is a view taken in the direction of an arrow A of FIG. 1. For making the explanation easy, in the drawing, the carrier plate 3 is illustrated by a solid line when being positioned at its upper limit, and is illustrated by a two-dot chain line when being located at its original position. As shown in FIG. 6, the upper end of the outer tube 9 is held by the holder 8. On the other hand, another end thereof is not held and is free. When the inner cable 6 for moving upward is wound/unwound on the drum 4c, the cable 6 swings in the widthwise direction of the drum 4c (See an arrow). However, the outer tube 9 can deflect or swing following the swinging of the inner cable 9, since it is free except its upper end. Therefore, the inner cable 6 for moving upward comes into contact with the end portion of the outer tube 9 at the side of the drum 4c and is not damaged (See FIG. 7). In addition, when the upper end of the outer tube 9 is fixed with the holder 8, the lower end of the outer tube 9 can swing widely.

Description of the Reference Numerals]

1: Window Regulator -15 - 2: Guide Rail 3: Carrier Plate 3a: Cable Engagement Portion 3b: Slit 3c: Spring Member 3d: Mounting Hole 4: Drive Unit 4a: Drive Unit Bracket 4b: Motor Assembly 4c: Drum 4d: Drum Cover 4e: Opening 4f: Protection Wall 4g: Fastening Member Sa: Upper Orientation Changing Member Sb: Lower Orientation Changing Member 6: Inner cable for moving upward 6a: Cable End 7: Inner cable for moving downward 7a: Cable End 8: Outer tube Holder 9: Outer Tube 10: Outer Bracket lOa: Mounting piece lOb: Supporting Piece lOc: Engagement Hole 11: Clip -16 - 1 la: Base Portion 1 ib: Protruding Portion 1 ic: Holding Portion 12: Casing Cap 13: Stopper W: Window Glass

Claims

<claim-text>-17 -CLAIMS1. A window regulator comprising: a carrier plate for holding a window glass, a guide rail for movably guiding the carrier plate, an orientation changing member provided at. upper end and/or lower end of the guide rail, an inner cable wound around the orientation changing member and connected to the carrier plate, and a drive unit for moving the inner cable in an axial direction of the guide rail, wherein the drive unit has a drum for winding the inner cable, the inner cable is installed substantially linearly between the orientation changing member and the drum, an outer tube is provided in a longitudinal direction outside the inner cable installed substantially linearly, and the outer tube is held by an outer tube holder such that at least an end of the outer tube at the side of the drum is able to swing to follow the swing of the inner cable due to winding and unwinding by the drum.</claim-text> <claim-text>2. The window regulator of claim 1, wherein the outer tube holder holds the vicinity of an end of the outer tube at the side of orientation changing member.</claim-text> <claim-text>3. The window regulator of claim 1 or 2, wherein the drive unit is mounted between the upper end and the lower end of the guide rail.-18 - 4. The window regulator of any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the inner cable up to the vicinity of the drum is protected by the outer tube, and the inner cable from the vicinity of the drum to a position where the inner cable conies into contact with the drum is protected by a drum cover for covering the drum so as to enable the drum to wind and unwind the inner cable.</claim-text>