JP5606505B2 - Vehicle door lock device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an improvement in a vehicle door lock device provided on a vehicle body and a door.

  2. Description of the Related Art A vehicle door lock device is known in which a latch unit operates via a rod by pulling a door outer handle, and a door latch is released (see, for example, Patent Document 1 (FIG. 8)).

  The vehicle door lock device disclosed in Patent Document 1 is provided with a latch unit capable of latching and unlatching motion, and a door outer handle for performing a latch releasing operation of the latch unit. The latch unit performs a latching and unlatching motion with respect to a striker provided in the vehicle body.

  In general, by operating the door outer handle, the rod connected to the door outer handle is pushed down, and when the rod pushes down the latch release lever of the latch unit, the latch of the latch unit is released. The lower end portion of the rod is connected to the latch release lever, and the latch release lever moves as the rod moves.

  By the way, the door of a motor vehicle may be deformed and recessed due to a side collision, for example. When the door is deformed, the door outer handle is pulled toward the hollow side, and the rod is also pulled by following the door outer handle. The pulled rod can be deformed in contact with the latch unit or a sash disposed in the vicinity of the latch unit, and can be displaced in a direction to push down the latch release lever by twisting the connecting portion with the latch release lever.

  As another case, when the rod is pulled due to the door deforming and sinking during a side collision, the latch release lever may also be displaced in the pulling direction. Thereafter, the recess of the door is pushed back outward in the vehicle width direction by a springback action. As a result, the door outer handle and the rod are pushed back and can be displaced in the direction of pushing down the latch release lever.

  The fact that the latch release lever is pushed down at the time of a side collision is disadvantageous in improving the protection performance of the occupant in the vehicle. As a countermeasure, it is conceivable to separately provide a latch release prevention mechanism at the time of a side collision in the vehicle door lock device. However, the mechanism for preventing latch release at the time of a side collision tends to be complicated and expensive.

JP 2001-295533 A

  It is an object of the present invention to provide a vehicle door lock device with improved occupant protection performance at the time of a side collision with a low-cost and simple configuration.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, the striker provided in the vehicle body, the latch unit capable of latching and unlatching the striker, and the latch release lever of the latch unit via the rod are released. A door outer handle to be operated, and the latch unit and the door outer handle positioned higher than the latch unit are provided on a door, and an upper end portion of the rod is coupled to the door outer handle. The lower end of the rod is connected to the latch release lever so as to be able to be displaced by pushing the latch release lever downward in the latch release direction in conjunction with the latch release operation of the door outer handle. In the locking device, when the door is viewed from the front-rear direction, against the door sash extending vertically The rod and the latch unit are located on opposite sides of the door sash, and the upper end of the rod and the lower end of the rod are opposite to each other when the door is viewed from the vehicle width direction. The lower connection portion of the lower end portion of the rod with the latch release lever is provided at substantially the same height as a side view when the door sash and the rod intersect.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, preferably, the rod includes a vertically extending portion extending downward from an upper connection portion with the door outer handle at an upper end portion of the rod, and a horizontal direction from the lower connection portion. A horizontally extending portion that extends, and a bent portion is provided between the horizontally extending portion and the vertically extending portion, and the bent portion is provided at a position where the door sash and the rod intersect each other in a side view. .

  More preferably, the upper end portion of the rod is provided to be rotatable around an axis in the vertical direction with respect to the door outer handle.

  As described in claim 4, more preferably, the latch release lever has an engaging hole penetrating vertically, and the lower connecting portion has a penetrating portion penetrating the engaging hole downward. The penetrating part is formed at an obtuse angle in the vertical direction with respect to the horizontal extending part.

  More preferably, the penetrating portion is formed to be inclined toward the vehicle interior side with respect to the axial direction of the engagement hole.

  More preferably, the latch release lever has an engaging hole penetrating vertically, and the lower connecting portion has a penetrating portion penetrating the engaging hole downward. The through portion is formed to be inclined toward the vehicle interior side with respect to the axial direction of the engagement hole.

  In the invention according to claim 1, when the door is viewed from the front-rear direction of the vehicle, the rod and the latch unit are located on the opposite sides with respect to the door sash extending vertically, and the door is viewed from the vehicle width direction. The upper end of the rod and the lower end of the rod are located on opposite sides of the door sash. When a collision force acts on the door from the side outside the vehicle, the door is deformed so as to be pushed into the vehicle interior, and the upper end of the rod connected to the door outer handle follows the deformation of the door to the vehicle interior. It is displaced so that it is pushed into. The rod contacts to cross the door sash. Even in such a case, the lower connecting portion of the lower end portion of the rod with the latch release lever is provided at substantially the same height as the side view, the position where the door sash and the rod intersect with each other. The side connecting portion does not rotate in the vertical direction with the intersection as a fulcrum, and at that height, the rod is entirely displaced toward the inside of the vehicle. Since the rod is restrained from rotating in the vertical direction with the intersection of the rod and the door sash as a fulcrum, the latch release lever does not rotate downward in the latch release direction. As a result, it is possible to provide a vehicle door lock device that prevents the door from being released and has an improved occupant protection performance at the time of a side collision with a low-cost and simple configuration.

  In the invention according to claim 2, the rod includes a vertically extending portion extending downward from the upper connecting portion with the door outer handle, a horizontal extending portion extending horizontally from the lower connecting portion, and the horizontal extending portion. A bent portion is provided between the vertically extending portion. Since the bent portion is provided at a position where the door sash and the rod intersect in a side view, the bent portion does not extend to the upper connecting portion side beyond the position where the horizontally extending portion intersects. For this reason, even if the upper connecting portion is largely displaced toward the inside of the vehicle, it is possible to prevent the rod from rotating greatly in the horizontal direction. As a result, the lower connecting portion of the rod can be prevented from being twisted with the latch release lever.

  In the invention according to claim 3, the upper end portion of the rod is provided so as to be rotatable around the vertical axis with respect to the door outer handle. Therefore, even if the door outer handle is displaced inward of the vehicle, the door The rod rotates with respect to the outer handle. For this reason, the rod itself does not rotate with respect to the latch unit. Since the rod is restrained from moving inward of the vehicle following the displacement of the door outer handle, the rotation of the latch release lever due to the rotation of the rod can be prevented.

  In the invention according to claim 4, the latch release lever has an engaging hole penetrating vertically, and the lower connecting portion has a penetrating portion penetrating the engaging hole downward. The penetrating part is formed with an obtuse angle in the vertical direction with respect to the horizontal extension part, so when the rod is displaced inward and rotated up and down around the intersection with the door sash, it penetrates The part does not get caught in the engagement hole and faces in a direction in which it can be easily removed. Since the penetrating part can be easily removed from the engagement hole, the rotation of the latch release lever due to the rotation of the rod can be suppressed.

  In the invention according to claim 5, since the penetrating portion is formed to be inclined toward the vehicle interior side with respect to the axial direction of the engagement hole, when the upper end portion of the rod is displaced inward of the vehicle at the time of the vehicle side collision, the penetrating portion is penetrated. The portion is positioned along the axial direction of the engagement hole. For this reason, in addition to the effect that the penetrating portion is formed at an obtuse angle in the vertical direction with respect to the horizontal extending portion, the penetrating portion is more easily removed from the engagement hole, and the rotation of the latch release lever due to the rotation of the rod is suppressed. Can do.

  In the invention which concerns on Claim 6, a penetration part inclines to the vehicle interior side with respect to the axial direction of an engagement hole, and is formed. When the upper end of the rod is displaced toward the inside of the vehicle at the time of a vehicle-side collision, the penetrating portion is positioned along the axial direction of the engagement hole. For this reason, a penetration part becomes easy to pull out from an engagement hole, and rotation of a latch release lever by rotation of a rod can be controlled.

It is a side view around the vehicle door lock device of the vehicle according to the present invention. It is a figure explaining the basic principle of the door lock device for vehicles shown by FIG. It is a principal part enlarged view of FIG. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the vehicle door lock device shown in FIG. 3. FIG. 5 is a view taken in the direction of arrow 5 in FIG. 4. FIG. 6 is a view taken in the direction of arrow 6 in FIG. 4. It is a perspective view of the state where the latch unit concerning the present invention was attached to the door inner panel. FIG. 8 is a view taken in the direction of arrow 8 in FIG. 6. FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 9-9 in FIG. 6. It is sectional drawing which shows another aspect of FIG. It is an effect | action figure which the door outer handle of the vehicle door lock device which concerns on a comparative example displaces inside a vehicle. It is an effect | action figure in the middle of the displacement of the rod of the vehicle door lock device which concerns on a comparative example. It is an effect | action figure in the case of rotating centering on the position which the rod of the vehicle door lock device which concerns on a comparative example has tolerance. It is an effect | action figure in the middle of the displacement of the rod of the door lock device for vehicles which concerns on this invention. It is an action figure in which the rod of the door lock device for vehicles concerning the present invention comes off from an engagement hole.

  EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION The form for implementing this invention is demonstrated below based on an accompanying drawing.

  The side part of the vehicle to which the vehicle door lock device according to the embodiment is attached will be described. As shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle 10 is an automobile in which a vehicle body 11 includes left and right front doors 12, left and right rear doors 13, and wheels 14.

  Hereinafter, the vehicle door lock device 20 attached to the right rear door 13 will be described. The vehicle door lock device 20 includes a striker 15 provided in the vehicle body 11, a latch unit 30 provided inside the rear end of the door 13, and a door outer handle 40 provided outside the rear portion of the door 13. Including.

  The latch unit 30 performs a latching and unlatching operation on the striker 15, and the door 13 is closed by being latched, and the door 13 is released by being unlatched.

  A center sash 16 is provided at the front part of the door 13, and a rear sash 17 (hereinafter referred to as a door sash 17) is provided at the rear part of the door 13. A glass 18 is supported by the center sash 16 and the door sash 17 so as to be movable up and down. The door sash 17 extends upward from the vicinity of the latch unit 30 inside the door 13.

Next, the basic principle of the vehicle door lock device will be described.
As shown in FIG. 2, the vehicle door lock device 20 includes a door outer handle 40 that is swingably provided on a door 13 (see FIG. 1) with a handle shaft 41 as a fulcrum, and the door outer handle 40. A locking piece 43 that is connected and extends rearward with a pivot 42 as a fulcrum, and a bell crank-shaped cam plate 45 that is swingably provided with a camshaft 44 as a fulcrum and swings with the locking piece 43. And a rod 50 provided in the rod support hole 46 of the cam plate 45.

  The locking piece 43 is urged inward in the vehicle width direction by the first elastic member 47. The cam plate 45 is urged inward in the vehicle width direction by the second elastic member 48. By pulling the door outer handle 40 outward in the vehicle width direction, the rear portion of the locking piece 43 moves outward in the vehicle width direction, and when the rear portion of the locking piece 43 moves outward in the vehicle width direction, the cam plate 45 woken up. As a result, the rod 50 is pushed downward.

  The latch unit 30 includes a latch unit main body 31, a latch release lever 32 which is provided on the latch unit main body 31 so as to be swingable up and down and is connected to the lower connecting portion 51 of the rod 50, And a latch 34 that is swingably provided on the striker 15. The latch 34 is urged in a direction to be hooked on the striker 15 by the third elastic member 35. When the latch release lever 32 is pushed down, the latch 34 is released.

  That is, by pulling the door outer handle 40 outward in the vehicle width direction, the rod 50 is pushed and displaced so as to push the latch release lever 32 in the latch release direction, and the latch release lever 32 is pushed and displaced, so that the latch 34 is the striker. 15 is released, and the door 13 (see FIG. 1) is released. Thereafter, the rod 50 is returned in the pulling direction and returned to the original position.

  The lower end 52 of the rod 50 is connected to the latch release lever 32. The lower end 52 includes a through portion 57 inserted through an engagement hole 37 that penetrates the latch release lever 32 vertically, and a horizontal extension portion 58 that is bent from the upper end of the through portion 57 and pushes down the latch release lever 32. Consists of.

  Further, the rod 50 has an upper connecting portion 53 connected to the rod support hole 46 of the cam plate 45, and a vertical extending portion 54 extending downward from an end portion of the upper connecting portion 53. An upper connecting portion 53 is provided at the upper end portion 55 of the rod 50, and a horizontal extending portion 58 extends from the lower end of the vertically extending portion 54. That is, the rod 50 extends from the door outer handle 40 side to the latch release lever 32. Hereinafter, the rod 50 and the latch unit 30 will be described in detail.

Next, the mounting position of the latch unit will be described.
As shown in FIG. 3, the door 13 includes a door inner panel 61 and a door outer panel 62. The door outer handle 40 is provided at the rear part of the door outer panel 62, and the latch unit 30 is provided at the rear part of the door inner panel 61 and at a lower position of the door outer handle 40. The door outer handle 40 is positioned higher than the latch unit 30.

  The rod 50 connected to the rear portion of the door outer handle 40 via the cam plate 45 (see FIG. 2) extends downward, and is connected to the latch release lever 32 by the lower connection portion 51 formed at the lower end portion 52 of the rod 50. Connected.

  The door sash 17 is arranged on the inner side in the vehicle width direction (back side in the figure) than the door outer handle 40 and on the inner side in the vehicle width direction (front side in the figure) than the latch unit main body 31. That is, the door sash 17 is disposed between the rod 50 and the latch unit 30.

Next, the rod will be described in detail.
As shown in FIG. 4, the latch release lever 32 is formed with an engagement hole 37 penetrating vertically for inserting the rod 50. Since the inner diameter of the engagement hole 37 is larger than the outer diameter of the rod 50, the rod 50 is movably inserted into the engagement hole 37.

  The lower end portion 52 of the rod 50 includes a linear through portion 57 that is inserted through the engagement hole 37 and a horizontal extending portion 58 that is bent and extends from the upper end of the through portion 57. A vertically extending portion 54 extends obliquely upward from an end portion of the horizontally extending portion 58.

  When the door outer handle 40 is pulled as shown by an arrow a, the rod 50 moves as shown by an arrow b, and the horizontal extending portion 58 displaces the latch release lever 32 in a direction of pushing down as shown by an arrow c.

  As shown in FIG. 5, an upper connection portion 53 is provided at the upper end portion 55 of the rod 50, and the upper connection portion 53 is located higher than the latch unit main body 31. The upper connection portion 53 is provided with a pin 53a, and this pin 53a is engaged with the rod support hole 46 (see FIG. 2).

  As shown in FIG. 6, when the door 13 (see FIG. 3) is viewed from the front-rear direction, the rod 50 and the latch unit 30 are located on the opposite sides with respect to the door sash 17. The rod 50 is disposed along the door sash 17, and the angle formed by the axis 57 a of the penetrating portion 57 of the rod 50 and the axis 37 a of the engagement hole 37 is α. The through portion 57 is formed to be inclined toward the vehicle interior side (inside) with respect to the direction of the axis 37 a of the engagement hole 37.

Next, the arrangement of the latch unit with respect to the door inner panel will be described.
As shown in FIG. 7, the door inner panel 61 includes an inner wall portion 63 that forms an inner side in the vehicle width direction and to which the latch unit 30 is attached, and is bent outward from the rear end of the inner wall portion 63 in the vehicle width direction. 15 (see FIG. 1), and a flange portion 65 that extends rearward from the outer end of the wall 64 and is fitted to the door outer panel 62.

Next, the positional relationship among the latch unit, door sash, and rod in a side view will be described.
As shown in FIG. 8, when the door 13 (see FIG. 3) is viewed from the vehicle width direction, the upper end portion 55 of the rod 50 and the lower end portion 52 of the rod 50 are opposite to each other with respect to the door sash 17. Located in. The rod 50 has a bent portion 56 between the vertically extending portion 54 and the horizontal extending portion 58. The bent portion 56 is provided at a position where the door sash 17 and the rod 50 intersect with each other in a side view. The position where the door sash 17 and the rod 50 intersect with each other is provided at substantially the same height as the lower connecting portion 51.

  That is, the lower connecting portion 51 of the lower end portion 52 of the rod 50 and the latch release lever 32 is provided at substantially the same height as the bent portion 56, and the bent portion 56 and the door sash 17 are viewed from the side. Are overlapping.

  The angle formed by the axis 57a of the penetrating portion 57 of the rod 50 and the axis 58a of the horizontal extending portion 58 is β. The angle β is set to an obtuse angle. The penetrating part 57 is formed with an obtuse angle in the vertical direction with respect to the horizontal extending part 58.

Next, an upper connection part is demonstrated based on sectional drawing.
As shown in FIG. 9, a male screw portion 55 a is provided at the upper end portion 55 of the rod 50. A female screw portion 53 b is provided in the upper connection portion 53. By screwing the male screw portion 55a into the female screw portion 53b, the rod 50 is restricted from moving in the vertical direction with respect to the upper connecting portion 53.

  The male screw portion 55a and the female screw portion 53b are fixed in advance with an adhesive. For this reason, when assembling the rod 50 to the door outer handle 40 (see FIG. 2), the upper connecting portion 53 does not rotate with respect to the rod 50, so that the position adjustment of the upper connecting portion 53 with respect to the rod 50 is unnecessary, and the assembling property is eliminated. Will improve.

  On the other hand, the door outer handle 40 (see FIG. 1) is displaced toward the inside of the vehicle during a side collision with the door 13 (see FIG. 1). Accordingly, the upper connecting portion 53 receives a force rotating around the axis of the rod 50, but the adhesion between the rod 50 and the upper connecting portion 53 is disconnected by a predetermined rotating force or more. For this reason, the rod 50 rotates with respect to the upper connection portion 53. That is, the upper end portion 55 of the rod 50 is provided so as to be rotatable about the vertical axis with respect to the door outer handle 40, and the vertical movement is restricted.

Next, another aspect of FIG. 9 will be described.
As shown in FIG. 10, a disk portion 55 b is provided on the upper end portion 55 of the rod 50. The upper connection portion 53 is provided with a recess 53c. A disk portion 55b is accommodated in the recess 53c so as to be rotatable around the axis of the rod 50. The concave portion 53 is provided with a lid member 53d so that the disk portion 55b does not come off. The rod 50 is provided so as to be rotatable about an axis in the vertical direction with respect to the upper connecting portion 53 and movement in the vertical direction is restricted.

Next, the effect | action at the time of the vehicle side collision in the vehicle door lock device which concerns on a comparative example is demonstrated using FIGS.
Fig.11 (a) is the figure which looked at the normal state of the vehicle door lock apparatus 100 of a comparative example from the top. In the vehicle door lock device 100, a door sash 109 is disposed outside the latch unit 101, a rod 103 is disposed outside the door sash 109, and a door outer handle 110 is disposed outside the rod 13. . When the vehicle collides, the door receives an impact force indicated by an arrow F, and the door outer handle 110 is displaced toward the vehicle interior side.

  FIG.11 (b) is the figure which looked at the displacement of the rod of the door lock apparatus 100 for vehicles of a comparative example from the top. Pulled by the door outer handle 110, the rod 103 moves as indicated by the arrow d and contacts the door sash 109.

  Fig.12 (a) is the figure which looked at the normal state of the door lock device 100 for vehicles of a comparative example from the side. In the vehicle door lock device 100, a rod 103 is movably inserted into a latch release lever 102 of a latch unit 101. The rod 103 includes an upper connecting portion 104 connected to the door outer handle, a straight portion 105, an inclined portion 106, an extending portion 107, and a penetrating portion 108. The latch of the door is released when the latch release lever 102 is pushed and displaced downward by the rod 103.

  The door sash 109 is disposed between the latch unit 101 and the rod 103. When viewed from the side, the position 111 where the door sash 109 and the rod 103 intersect is higher than the lower connection portion 112 between the latch release lever 102 and the rod 103. An angle formed by the axis of the extending portion 107 and the axis of the penetrating portion 108 is γ. The angle γ is 90 ° or an acute angle.

  FIG. 12B is a side view of the door lock device 100 for a comparative example, in which the door is deformed due to a side collision. The door is deformed and recessed due to a side collision. When the door is deformed, the door outer handle 110 (see FIG. 11) is pulled toward the recess, the rod 103 follows the door outer handle 110, and is pulled and displaced as indicated by an arrow d. The penetrating portion 108 is pulled from the latch release lever 102 in the direction of arrow e. However, the lower connecting portion 112 is in a state of biting into a through hole penetrating the latch release lever 102 vertically, and the through portion 108 cannot be removed from the latch release lever 102.

  FIG. 13 (a) is a view of the vehicle door lock device 100 of the comparative example as seen from the rear of the vehicle in the state of a vehicle side collision. In the latch release lever 102, the through portion 108 is inclined to the vehicle outer side with respect to the axis 113 of the through hole of the rod 103. For this reason, even if the penetrating portion 108 is pulled from the latch release lever 102 in the direction of the arrow e, the lower connecting portion 112 is in a state of biting into the through hole of the latch release lever 102, and the penetrating portion 108 is in the latch release lever. Can't escape from 102.

  FIG. 13B is a diagram illustrating a state in which the latch is released in the vehicle door lock device 100 of the comparative example. The rod 103 deforms in contact with the door sash 109 disposed in the vicinity of the latch unit 101, and rotates as indicated by an arrow f with a position 111 where the door sash 109 and the rod 103 intersect as a fulcrum. Then, the latch release lever 102 is twisted and can be displaced in the direction of pushing down as indicated by an arrow g. That is, as the rod 103 is displaced in the pulling direction, the latch release lever 102 is consequently pushed down, which is disadvantageous in improving the occupant protection performance in the vehicle.

Next, the operation at the time of a vehicle side collision in the vehicle door lock device according to the embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.
Fig.14 (a) is the figure which looked at the normal state of the door lock apparatus 20 for vehicles of an Example from the side. The lower connection portion 51 is provided at substantially the same height as the position of the bent portion 56 in a side view. The bent portion 56 is provided at a position where the door sash 17 and the rod 50 intersect with each other in a side view.

  FIG. 14B is a side view of the door lock device 20 for the vehicle according to the embodiment when the door is deformed due to a side collision. At the time of a vehicle side collision, the door 13 (see FIG. 3) is deformed and the door outer panel 62 (see FIG. 3) is depressed. When the door 13 is deformed, the door outer handle 40 (see FIG. 3) is pulled into the recess, the rod 50 follows the door outer handle 40, and is pulled and displaced as shown by the arrow h. The bent portion 56 of the rod 50 contacts the door sash 17. The penetrating portion 57 is pulled from the latch release lever 32 in the direction of arrow i.

  The position where the bent portion 56 contacts the door sash 17 is set to be substantially the same height as the lower connecting portion 51. For this reason, in the embodiment, the distance from the upper connecting portion 53 (power point) to the bent portion 56 (fulcrum) where the door sash 17 and the rod 50 intersect with each other is longer than the comparative example of FIG. The distance from the bent portion 56 (fulcrum) to the lower connecting portion 51 (operation point) is shortened. As a result, even if the rod 50 moves with the bent portion 56 as a fulcrum, the displacement of the latch release lever 32 can be reduced and the latch release lever 32 cannot be pushed down. It will be advantageous to increase.

  FIG. 15A is a diagram of the vehicle door lock device 20 according to the embodiment when the vehicle side collision is seen from the rear of the vehicle. The upper connecting portion 53 (joint 53) is displaced so as to rotate with respect to the vertical axis of the rod 50 in accordance with the displacement of the door outer handle 40 (see FIG. 3). However, when a force exceeding a predetermined value is applied, the upper end portion 55 of the rod 50 rotates with respect to the upper connecting portion 53 (joint 53). For this reason, the force of the rotation direction with respect to the rod 50 of the door outer handle 40 is made. As a result, the rod 50 does not receive a force around the vertical axis, and the displacement of the lower connecting portion 51 can be reduced.

  Further, in the latch release lever 32, the through portion 57 is inclined toward the vehicle interior side with respect to the axis 37 a of the engagement hole 37 of the rod 50. When the rod 50 is displaced, the penetrating portion 57 is pulled in the direction of the arrow i, but moves in the pulling direction with respect to the engaging hole 37, so that the penetrating portion 57 comes out of the engaging hole 37. For this reason, it is difficult for the rod 50 to bend the latch release lever 32.

  FIG. 15B is a side view of the state of the vehicle door lock device 20 according to the embodiment when the vehicle side collision occurs. An angle β formed by the horizontal extending portion 58 and the penetrating portion 57 is set to an obtuse angle. When the rod 50 is displaced, the penetrating portion 57 is pulled in the direction of the arrow i, but moves in the pulling direction with respect to the engaging hole 37, so that the penetrating portion 57 comes out of the engaging hole 37. For this reason, it is difficult for the rod 50 to bend the latch release lever 32.

The vehicle door lock device described above will be collectively described below.
As shown in FIGS. 3, 6, and 8, when the door 13 is viewed from the vehicle front-rear direction, the rod 50 and the latch unit 30 are opposite to each other with respect to the door sash 17 that extends vertically. When the door 13 is viewed from the vehicle width direction, the upper end portion 55 of the rod 50 and the lower end portion 52 of the rod 50 are located on the opposite sides with respect to the door sash 17. When a collision force is applied to the door 13 from the side outside the vehicle, the door 13 is deformed so as to be pushed into the vehicle interior, and the upper end portion 55 of the rod 50 connected to the door outer handle 40 is deformed. It follows that and is displaced so as to be pushed inside the vehicle. The rod 50 contacts the door sash 17 so as to intersect. Even in such a case, the lower connection portion 51 of the lower end portion 52 of the rod 50 and the latch release lever 32 is substantially the same height as the position where the door sash 17 and the rod 50 intersect in a side view. Therefore, the lower connecting portion 51 does not rotate in the vertical direction with the intersecting portion as a fulcrum, and at that height, the rod 50 is entirely displaced toward the vehicle interior. Since the rod 50 is prevented from rotating in the vertical direction with the intersection of the rod 50 and the door sash 17 as a fulcrum, the latch release lever 32 does not rotate downward in the latch release direction. As a result, it is possible to provide the vehicle door lock device 20 that prevents the door 13 from being released and has an improved occupant protection performance at the time of a side collision with a low-cost and simple configuration.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the rod 50 includes a vertically extending portion 54 extending downward from the upper connection portion 53 with the door outer handle 40 (see FIG. 3), and a horizontal extension extending horizontally from the lower connection portion 51. There is a bent portion 56 between the extending portion 58 and the horizontally extending portion 58 and the vertically extending portion 54. Since the bent portion 56 is provided at a position where the door sash 17 and the rod 50 intersect in a side view, the horizontal extending portion 58 does not extend to the upper connecting portion side 53 beyond the intersecting position. For this reason, even if the upper connection part 53 is largely displaced toward the inside of the vehicle, it is possible to suppress the rod 50 from rotating greatly in the horizontal direction. As a result, the lower connection portion 51 of the rod 50 can be prevented from being twisted with the latch release lever 32.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 9, the upper end portion 55 of the rod 50 is provided so as to be rotatable about an axis in the vertical direction with respect to the door outer handle 40. The rod 50 rotates with respect to the door outer handle 40 even if it is displaced. For this reason, the rod 50 itself does not rotate with respect to the latch unit 30. Since the rod 50 is restrained from being displaced toward the inside of the vehicle following the rotation of the door outer handle 40, the rotation of the latch release lever 32 due to the rotation of the rod 50 can be prevented.

  As shown in FIGS. 8 and 15, the latch release lever 32 has an engaging hole 37 penetrating vertically, and the lower connecting portion 51 has a penetrating portion 57 penetrating the engaging hole 37 downward. . The penetrating portion 57 is formed with an obtuse angle in the vertical direction with respect to the horizontal extending portion 58, so that the rod 50 is displaced inward of the vehicle and rotates in the vertical direction around the intersection with the door sash 17. In this case, the penetrating portion 57 does not get caught in the engagement hole 37 and faces the direction in which it can be easily removed. Since the through portion 57 can be easily removed from the engagement hole, the rotation of the latch release lever 32 due to the rotation of the rod 50 can be suppressed.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 and 15, the through portion 57 is formed to be inclined toward the vehicle interior side with respect to the direction of the axis 37 a of the engagement hole 37. Is displaced inward of the vehicle, the through portion 57 is positioned along the direction of the axis 37 a of the engagement hole 37. For this reason, in addition to the effect that the penetrating portion 57 is formed at an obtuse angle in the vertical direction with respect to the horizontal extending portion 58, the penetrating portion 57 is more easily removed from the engagement hole, and the rotation of the latch release lever 32 due to the rotation of the rod 50 Movement can be suppressed.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 and 15, the through portion 57 is formed to be inclined toward the vehicle interior side with respect to the direction of the axis 37 a of the engagement hole 37. When the upper end portion 55 of the rod 50 is displaced toward the vehicle interior at the time of a vehicle side collision, the through portion 57 is positioned along the axial direction of the engagement hole 37. For this reason, the penetration part 57 can be easily removed from the engagement hole 37, and the rotation of the latch release lever 32 due to the rotation of the rod 50 can be suppressed.

In the embodiment, the case where the rod comes in contact with the rear sash at the time of a side collision with the vehicle and the case where the rod deforms as the door rebounds are shown, but the present invention is not limited to this. It may be applied when there is a possibility that the latch may be released due to the pulling displacement of the rod, such as when the rod comes into contact with the latch unit at the time of side collision.
In the embodiment, the vehicle door lock device is provided on the rear door on the right side of the vehicle. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and may be provided on the front door on the right side of the vehicle and the front and rear doors on the left side of the vehicle. Absent.

  The technology according to the present invention is suitable for a vehicle door lock device in which a rod connected to a door outer handle is inserted into an engagement hole of a latch release lever.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Vehicle (automobile), 11 ... Vehicle body, 12 ... Front door (door), 13 ... Rear door (door), 15 ... Striker, 17 ... Door sash (rear sash), 20 ... Door lock device for vehicles, 30 ... Latch Unit: 32 ... Latch release lever, 34 ... Latch, 37 ... engagement hole, 40 ... door door handle, 50 ... rod, 51 ... lower connection part, 52 ... lower end part, 53 ... upper connection part (joint), 54 ... vertical extension part, 55 ... upper end part, 56 ... bending part, 57 ... penetration part, 58 ... horizontal extension part.

Claims (6)

A striker provided on the vehicle body, a latch unit capable of latching and unlatching with respect to the striker, and a door outer handle for performing latch release operation of the latch release lever of the latch unit via a rod,
The latch unit and the door outer handle positioned higher than the latch unit are provided on the door,
The upper end of the rod is connected to the door outer handle,
The lower end portion of the rod is connected to the latch release lever so as to be able to push and displace the latch release lever downward in the latch release direction in conjunction with the latch release operation of the door outer handle. In the device
When the door is viewed from the front-rear direction, the rod and the latch unit are located on opposite sides of the door sash extending vertically.
When the door is viewed from the vehicle width direction, the upper end portion of the rod and the lower end portion of the rod are located on opposite sides of the door sash,
The vehicle door, wherein a lower connecting portion of the lower end portion of the rod and the latch release lever is provided at substantially the same height as a side view when the door sash and the rod intersect. Locking device. The rod includes an upper and lower extension portion extending downward from an upper connection portion with the door outer handle, a horizontal extension portion extending in a horizontal direction from the lower connection portion, and a horizontal extension at an upper end portion of the rod. A bent portion between the portion and the vertically extending portion,
2. The vehicle door lock device according to claim 1, wherein the bent portion is provided at a position where the door sash and the rod intersect in a side view. 3.   3. The vehicle door lock device according to claim 1, wherein an upper end portion of the rod is provided to be rotatable about an axis in a vertical direction with respect to the door outer handle. The latch release lever has an engagement hole penetrating vertically.
The lower connection portion has a through portion that penetrates the engagement hole downward,
The vehicle door lock device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the penetrating portion is formed at an obtuse angle in the vertical direction with respect to the horizontal extending portion.   The vehicle door lock device according to claim 4, wherein the through portion is formed to be inclined toward the vehicle interior side with respect to the axial direction of the engagement hole. The latch release lever has an engagement hole penetrating vertically.
The lower connection portion has a through portion that penetrates the engagement hole downward,
4. The vehicle door lock device according to claim 1, wherein the penetrating portion is formed to be inclined toward the vehicle interior side with respect to the axial direction of the engagement hole. 5.

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