JP6303768B2 - Vehicle door lock device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle door lock device attached to a vehicle door.

  Patent Document 1 discloses an example of a vehicle door lock device. This vehicle door lock device includes a housing that houses a latch mechanism, a lock mechanism, and the like that are constituent elements thereof. The housing is configured such that a first housing component disposed on the vehicle outer side and a second housing component disposed on the vehicle inner side are integrally coupled by a coupling mechanism. The coupling mechanism includes an engagement claw provided in the first housing component and an engagement arm provided in the second housing component and having an opening engageable with the engagement claw. It has a structure utilizing a so-called “snap-fit engagement” in which the claw engages with the opening of the engagement arm.

JP 2010-248899 A

(Problems to be solved by the invention)

  In the vehicle door lock device described above, it is assumed that when a theft member such as a wire is hooked on the engagement arm and pulled, the snap fit engagement between the engagement arm and the engagement claw is released. Is done. In such a case, it becomes difficult to protect door lock components such as a lock mechanism housed in the housing, and for example, a problem may arise that the lock mechanism is switched to an unlocked state by a theft member.

  Accordingly, the present invention has been made in view of the above points, and one of the objects thereof is a vehicle door in which a first housing constituent member and a second housing constituent member of a housing are connected by snap-fit engagement. It is an object of the present invention to provide a technique effective in improving the reliability of a coupling structure by snap-fit engagement in a lock device.

(Means for solving the problem)
In order to achieve the above object, a vehicle door lock device according to the present invention includes a latch mechanism, a lock mechanism, and a housing. The latch mechanism is configured to be able to hold the vehicle door in a closed state with respect to the vehicle body. The lock mechanism is configured to set the latch mechanism in an unlocked state in which the engagement with the striker provided in the vehicle body can be released, or in a locked state in which the engagement with the striker cannot be released. The housing is configured as a housing member that houses at least the latch mechanism and the lock mechanism.

  The housing further includes a first housing component disposed outside the vehicle, a second housing component disposed inside the vehicle, and a coupling mechanism for coupling the first housing component and the second housing component. And comprising. The coupling mechanism includes an engagement claw, an engagement arm, and a protection unit. The engaging claw is provided in a protruding shape on one of the first housing component and the second housing component. The engagement arm has an opening provided in the other housing component of the first housing component and the second housing component and engageable with the engagement claw. The protection part is provided in one housing component so as to surround the arm outer peripheral surface of the engagement arm in order to protect the engagement arm. Thereby, it is possible to make it difficult for a theft member such as a wire to directly act on the engagement arm. For example, it is possible to prevent a theft member such as a wire from entering a gap formed between the surface of the first housing component and the engagement arm. In this case, it is possible to prevent the snap fit engagement between the engagement claw and the opening of the engagement arm from being released, and it is possible to improve the reliability of the connection structure by the snap fit engagement. As a result, enhanced protection of the door lock component housed in the housing is possible.

  In the vehicle door lock device having the above configuration, the protection portion is configured as a standing wall that is erected in the protruding direction of the engagement claw on one housing component and is opposed to the arm outer peripheral surface of the engagement arm. Preferably it is done. In this case, since a protection part can be constituted using a part of one housing composition object, the structure of the door lock device for vehicles can be simplified.

  In the vehicle door lock device having the above-described configuration, it is preferable that the standing wall includes an inclined surface that is inclined so that the wall height gradually decreases as the wall is separated from the arm outer peripheral surface of the engagement arm in the wall thickness direction. As a result, when the theft member acts on the surface of the standing wall, the theft member moves the specified portion of the surface of the standing wall by sliding the tip portion of the theft member along the inclined surface. It can be made difficult to stay in position. As a result, it is difficult for the load received from the theft member to concentrate on a specific part of the standing wall, and it is possible to prevent the crime prevention performance from being deteriorated due to breakage of the standing wall.

  In the vehicle door lock device having the above-described configuration, the engagement arm preferably extends along a plane defined by both the vertical direction and the horizontal direction of the vehicle door. In this case, it is preferable that the standing wall includes a wall constituting portion disposed above the highest portion of the arm outer peripheral surface of the engagement arm. There is a high possibility that a theft member such as a wire that has entered downward from the outside of the vehicle door will act on the highest part (upper part) of the outer peripheral surface of the engagement arm. Therefore, by protecting the upper part with a predetermined wall component of the standing wall, it is possible to reliably prevent the theft member acting downward from directly acting on the upper part of the engagement arm. .

  In the vehicle door lock device having the above-described configuration, the engagement arm has a fixed end portion at the other housing component side, and a free end portion extending from the fixed end portion and extending in the left-right direction of the vehicle door The free end portion is preferably configured to release the engagement with the engaging claw by rotating around the fixed end portion. In the case of the engagement arm having such a configuration, the input direction of the load necessary for releasing the engagement with the engagement claw is the action direction of the load by the theft member that has entered downward from the outside of the vehicle door. Is different. Therefore, even if the wall component of the standing wall loses the protection function for the engagement arm due to the load from the theft member, the engagement arm receives the load from the theft member and engages with the engagement claw. As a result, the engagement arms and the engagement claws are hardly disengaged.

  As described above, according to the present invention, in the vehicle door lock device in which the first housing constituent member and the second housing constituent member of the housing are connected by the snap fit engagement, the reliability of the connection structure by the snap fit engagement is achieved. It became possible to improve the performance.

FIG. 1 is a view of the vehicle door lock device 100 of the present embodiment as viewed from the outside of the vehicle. FIG. 2 is a view of the vehicle door lock device 100 in FIG. 1 as viewed from the front of the vehicle. FIG. 3 is a view of the vehicle door lock device 100 in FIG. FIG. 4 is a plan view of the coupling mechanism 130 in the region A in FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB of the coupling mechanism 130 in FIG. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along line CC of the coupling mechanism 130 in FIG. FIG. 7 is a partially enlarged view of the coupling mechanism 130 in the region A in FIG. 3, and is a diagram for explaining a further protection function for the theft member of the coupling mechanism 130. FIG. 8 is a plan view of a coupling mechanism 230 according to a modified example of the coupling mechanism 130.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the drawing, the front and rear of the vehicle are indicated by arrows X1 and X2, respectively, the upper and lower sides of the vehicle are indicated by arrows Y1 and Y2, and the right and left sides of the vehicle are indicated by arrows Z1 and Z2, respectively. Is shown. These directions can be applied to the vehicle door lock device in a state before being attached to the vehicle door, and to the vehicle door lock device in a state after being attached to the vehicle door.

  A vehicle door lock device (hereinafter also simply referred to as a “door lock device”) 100 of the present embodiment shown in FIG. 1 includes a door outer panel (vehicle outer panel) and a door inner panel (vehicle inner panel) of the vehicle door DR. It is attached to the area partitioned by FIG. 1 shows a vehicle door on the right side of the vehicle as a typical example of the vehicle door DR.

  The door lock device 100 includes a housing 101 that houses a door lock component 110 of the door lock device, and a cover member 120 that is attached over the housing upper surface and the housing front surface. Both the housing 101 and the cover member 120 are configured as resin members.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the housing 101 has a main door lock in a space defined by a first housing component 101a disposed on the vehicle exterior side and a second housing component 101b disposed on the vehicle interior side. The component 110 is assembled. The housing 101, the first housing component 101a, and the second housing component 101b here correspond to the “housing”, “first housing component 101a”, and “second housing component 101b” of the present invention, respectively. The cover member 120 functions to protect the door lock component 110 housed in the housing 101 from water and theft members entering from the outside of the vehicle door DR.

  The door lock component 110 includes a known latch mechanism 111, lock mechanism 112, and the like. The latch mechanism 111 is configured to be able to hold the vehicle door DR in a closed state by engagement with a striker ST attached to the vehicle body BD. The lock mechanism 112 is configured to set the latch mechanism 111 in an unlocked state where the engagement with the striker ST can be released, or in a locked state where the engagement with the striker ST cannot be released. The latch mechanism 111 and the lock mechanism 112 correspond to the “latch mechanism” and the “lock mechanism” of the present invention, respectively. For further specific configuration of the door lock component 110, reference is made to, for example, “locked mechanism” and “first operating mechanism” disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2010-248899.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the first housing component 101 a and the second housing component 101 b of the housing 101 are integrally connected by a plurality (four in FIG. 2) of connecting mechanisms 130. In this embodiment, one connection mechanism 130 is provided on the front surface of the housing 101, and three connection mechanisms 130 are provided on the lower surface of the housing 101. The connecting mechanism 130 corresponds to the “connecting mechanism” of the present invention.

  4 to 6 are referred to for the detailed structure of each coupling mechanism 130. FIG. The coupling mechanism 130 described in these drawings includes an engagement claw 140, an engagement arm 150, and a protection unit 160.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the engaging claw 140 is provided in a protruding shape on the first housing component 101 a and protrudes from the surface of the first housing component 101 a in a predetermined protruding direction (first direction D <b> 1 in FIG. 5). ). The engagement arm 150 is provided in the second housing component 101 b and includes an opening 151 for engagement with the engagement claw 140. The engagement arm 150 extends in a ring shape (annular) so as to surround the engagement claw 140 on a plane that intersects the protruding direction of the engagement claw 140 (second direction D2 in FIG. 5). doing. The engagement claw 140 and the engagement arm 150 here correspond to the “engagement claw” and the “engagement arm” of the present invention, respectively.

  In this case, a structure in which each of the coupling mechanisms 130 engages so that the engaging claw 140 is fitted into the opening 151 of the engaging arm 150, that is, a so-called “snap fit engagement” is employed. Specifically, when the arm inner peripheral surface 152 of the engagement arm 150 is caught by the claw side surface 141 of the engagement claw 140, a locking force between the engagement claw 140 and the engagement arm 150 is generated. When the engagement claw 140 is engaged with the opening 151 of the engagement arm 150, the engagement claw 140 is surrounded by the engagement arm 150. According to this snap-fit engagement, the first housing component 101a and the second housing component 101b are integrally connected, and relative movement in the direction away from each other (vertical direction in FIG. 4) is prevented. .

  As shown in FIG. 5, the protection portion 160 is provided on the first housing component 101 a so as to surround the arm outer peripheral surface 153 of the engagement arm 150 in order to protect the engagement arm 150. More specifically, the protective portion 160 is erected on the first housing constituting body 101a so as to protrude in the first direction D1 and along the arm outer peripheral surface 153 of the engaging arm 150, like the engaging claw 140. It is configured as an upright wall ("rib"). That is, the protection portion 160 faces the arm outer peripheral surface 153 opposite to the arm inner peripheral surface 152 of the engagement arm 150 in the second direction D2, and one wall side surface 161 follows the arm outer peripheral surface 153. It has a different shape. In this case, the engagement arm 150 is interposed in a space 142 defined by the engagement claw 140 and the protection part 160 of the first housing component 101a. The protective portion 160 has a structure having two standing walls 160 and 160 separated by a space 162 that is a die-cutting region as a structure that takes into account the ease of die-cutting at the time of molding, that is, the outer periphery of the arm The structure has two standing walls 160 and 160 extending intermittently along the surface 153 (see FIG. 4).

  According to the protection unit 160, a theft member such as a wire that has entered the vehicle door DR can be prevented from acting directly on the engagement arm 150. For example, a theft member such as a wire can be prevented from entering a gap formed between the surface of the first housing component 101a and the engagement arm 150 (a gap corresponding to the space 142 in FIG. 4). . In this case, the snap-fit engagement between the engaging claw 140 and the opening 151 of the engaging arm 150 is released by preventing the theft member from being pulled by being pulled by the engaging arm 150. Can be prevented. The protective portion 160 is a “hook preventing means” for preventing the theft member from being hooked on the engagement arm 150, or “snap fit engagement release for preventing the snap fit engagement from being released”. It can also be referred to as “prevention means”.

  As a result, the reliability of the connection structure between the first housing component 101a and the second housing component 101b by snap-fit engagement can be improved, and the protection of the door lock component 110 housed in the housing 101 can be enhanced. become. Moreover, the protection part 160 is a standing wall configured by using a part of the first housing component 101a, and thus the structure of the door lock device 100 can be simplified.

  The protection part 160 having the above-described configuration includes an inclined surface 163 that is inclined so that the wall height gradually decreases as the distance from the arm outer peripheral surface 153 of the engagement arm 150 increases in the wall thickness direction of the standing wall. The inclined surface 163 may be a flat surface with a constant degree of inclination or a curved surface. According to such a configuration, when the theft member acts on the surface of the protection unit 160, the theft member is protected by sliding the tip portion of the theft member along the inclined surface 163 to escape. It is possible to make it difficult to stay at a specific position on the surface of 160. As a result, it is difficult for the load received from the theft member to concentrate on a specific part of the protection unit 160, and it is possible to prevent the crime prevention performance from being reduced due to the damage of the protection unit 160.

  In the door lock device 100 configured as described above, the connection mechanism 130 in the region A in FIG. 3 is located at the highest position among the plurality (four in the present embodiment) of the connection mechanisms 130, and is located in the vehicle door DR. It is easy to be affected by a theft member such as a wire that has entered the door. For this reason, in this Embodiment, the connection mechanism 130 of A area | region located in the highest place needs to have a further function in addition to the above-mentioned protection function with respect to a theft member. This further function will be described with reference to FIG.

  In the coupling mechanism 130 shown in FIG. 7, the engagement arm 150 extends along a plane E defined by both the vertical direction and the horizontal direction of the vehicle door. Further, in this connection mechanism 130, the standing wall 160 is a wall disposed above the uppermost portion (upper outer peripheral surface 153a in FIG. 7) of the highest arm position of the arm outer peripheral surface 153 of the engagement arm 150. It is comprised so that the structure part 160a may be included. This wall constituent portion 160a corresponds to the “wall constituent portion” of the present invention. Therefore, the wall constituting part 160a fulfills the function of preferentially protecting the upper outer peripheral surface 153a, which is highly likely to be acted on by a theft member such as a wire that has entered downward from the outside of the vehicle door. In FIG. 7, the direction of action of the theft member is indicated by an arrow F. Accordingly, it is possible to reliably prevent the theft member acting downward from directly acting on the upper outer peripheral surface 153a of the engagement arm 150.

  Further, the engaging arm 150 has a fixed end portion 150a at a portion on the second housing component 101b side, and a free end portion 150b at a tip portion extending from the fixed end portion 150a and extending in the left-right direction of the vehicle door. The free end portion 150b is configured to release the engagement with the engaging claw 140 by rotating in the arrow G direction around the fixed end portion 150a (the rotation axis L). In the case of this engagement arm 150, the input direction of the load necessary for releasing the engagement with the engagement claw 140 is the direction of the load applied by the theft member that has entered downward from the outside of the vehicle door (FIG. 7). The direction of the arrow F in the middle). Therefore, even if the wall constituting portion 160a of the standing wall 160 loses the protection function for the engagement arm 150 due to the load from the theft member, the engagement arm 150 is engaged by receiving the load from the theft member. It does not easily move in the direction of releasing the engagement with the claw 140. That is, the engagement arm 150 may be bent in the same direction by a downward load in the direction of arrow F received from the theft member, but is unlikely to rotate in the direction of arrow G. As a result, it is difficult for the engagement arm 150 and the engagement claw 140 to be disengaged.

  The present invention is not limited to the above exemplary embodiment, and various applications and modifications are possible. For example, each of the following embodiments to which the above embodiment is applied can be implemented.

  In the above embodiment, the connection mechanism 130 shown in FIG. 4 has been described with respect to the case where the protective portion 160 is composed of two standing walls extending intermittently. A protection part can also be formed only by a standing wall. FIG. 8 is referred to for the configuration of such a protection unit. The connection mechanism 230 shown in FIG. 8 is different from the structure of the connection mechanism 130 shown in FIG. 4 only in that the protection unit 260 is used instead of the protection unit 160, and the other configurations are the same. The protection part 260 is formed by only one standing wall extending continuously so as to surround the entire arm outer peripheral surface 153 of the engagement arm 150. According to the protection part 260, it is possible to more reliably prevent a theft member such as a wire from directly acting on the engagement arm 150 by eliminating the space 162 in FIG.

  In the above embodiment, the case where the engagement claw 140 and the protection portions 160 and 260 are provided in the first housing component 101a and the engagement arm 150 is provided in the second housing component 101b of the housing 101 has been described. In the present invention, the engagement arm 150 may be provided in the first housing component 101a, and the engagement claw 140 and the protection parts 160, 260 may be provided in the second housing component 101b.

  In the above-described embodiment, the case where the protection parts 160 and 260 are configured by standing walls has been described. However, in the present invention, the protection part can also be constructed using elements other than the standing walls, such as protrusions.

  In the present invention, the protection units 160 and 260 of the above-described embodiment may be configured to surround at least the arm outer peripheral surface 153 of the engagement arm 150, and are erected so as to face each other along the arm outer peripheral surface 153. It is also possible to adopt a structure in which a covering portion that covers the upper surface (the upper surface in FIG. 5) of the engagement arm 150 is added to the wall. Accordingly, when the theft member acts from above in FIG. 5 in the gap formed between the arm outer peripheral surface 153 of the engagement arm 150 and the protection portions 160, 260, the theft member enters the gap. Can be prevented.

  In the present invention, the essential structure of the door lock device 100 described above can be applied to each vehicle door of the vehicle. For example, the essential structure of the door lock device 100 of the present invention is applied to the left and right doors for the front seat of the vehicle, the left and right doors for the rear seat of the vehicle, and the door (back door) at the rear of the vehicle. Can do.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 ... (For vehicles) Door lock apparatus, 101 ... Housing, 101a ... 1st housing structure, 101b ... 2nd housing structure, 110 ... Door lock component, 111 ... Latch mechanism, 112 ... Lock mechanism, 120 ... Cover Members 130, 230 ... coupling mechanism, 140 ... engagement claw, 142 ... space, 150 ... engagement arm, 150a ... fixed end, 150b ... free end, 151 ... opening, 152 ... arm inner peripheral surface, 153 ... Arm outer peripheral surface, 153a ... Upper outer peripheral surface, 160, 260 ... Protective part (standing wall), 160a ... Wall constituent part, 161 ... Wall side, 162 ... Space part, 163 ... Inclined surface

Claims (5)

A latch mechanism capable of holding the vehicle door closed by engagement with a striker attached to the vehicle body;
A lock mechanism that sets the latch mechanism to an unlocked state in which the engagement with the striker can be released, or a locked state in which the engagement with the striker cannot be released;
A housing that houses at least the latch mechanism and the lock mechanism;
A vehicle door lock device comprising:
The housing includes a first housing component disposed on the vehicle exterior side, a second housing component disposed on the vehicle interior side, and a connection for coupling the first housing component and the second housing component. A mechanism,
The coupling mechanism includes an engaging claw projectingly provided on one of the first housing component and the second housing component, and the first housing component and the second housing component. An engagement arm provided in the other housing component of the body and having an opening engageable with the engagement claw, and surrounding an arm outer peripheral surface of the engagement arm for protection of the engagement arm And a protective portion provided on the one housing component. The vehicle door lock device according to claim 1,
The protection part is configured as a standing wall that is erected on the one housing component in the protruding direction of the engagement claw and that is opposed to the outer circumferential surface of the engagement arm. Door lock device. The vehicle door lock device according to claim 2,
The said standing wall is a vehicle door lock apparatus provided with the inclined surface inclined so that wall height may reduce gradually as it separates from the said arm outer peripheral surface of the said engagement arm about the wall thickness direction. The vehicle door lock device according to claim 2 or 3,
The engagement arm extends along a plane defined by both the vertical direction and the horizontal direction of the vehicle door,
The said standing wall is a vehicle door lock apparatus including the wall structure part arrange | positioned above the site | part in the highest place among the arm outer peripheral surfaces of the said engagement arm. The vehicle door lock device according to claim 4,
The engaging arm has a portion on the other housing component side as a fixed end portion, a distal end portion extending from the fixed end portion and extending in the left-right direction of the vehicle door as a free end portion, and the free end portion is A vehicle door lock device configured to release engagement with the engagement claw by rotating around a fixed end.

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