JP6361050B2 - Back door lock device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a back door lock device that is mounted on a vehicle and performs a closing operation or an opening operation by a driving force from a driving source.

  For example, a back door lock device that is provided on a back door of a one-box car or the like and locks the door by engaging a meshing mechanism with a striker on the vehicle body side has a configuration that can be electrically closed and opened. May be. In the closing operation, the latch of the meshing mechanism that engages and holds the striker is moved from the half latch position to the full latch position by the power of the motor. In the open operation, the ratchet of the engagement mechanism that maintains the engagement state of the latch with the striker by engaging with the latch is operated, and the engagement state of the latch and the ratchet is released.

  In such a back door lock device, Patent Document 1 discloses a meshing mechanism having a latch and a ratchet, and a sector gear (rotating member) that changes a meshing state of the meshing mechanism by rotating by a driving force from a motor. A back door lock device is disclosed.

JP 2007-51490 A

  By the way, when the back door lock device having the configuration as in Patent Document 1 is attached to the body panel of the back door, the latch case that houses the meshing mechanism is fixed in an inclined posture with respect to the surface of the body panel. For this reason, a gap is formed between the mounting hole of the vehicle body panel and the latch case, and the internal sector gear and the like can be seen through this gap, so that it does not look good.

  Therefore, conventionally, there has been a method in which the entire back door lock device attached to the vehicle body panel is covered with a resin cover to ensure the appearance quality. However, in the configuration in which the resin cover is provided in this way, the number of parts of the back door lock device increases, resulting in an increase in cost and a problem of weight and size. In particular, since the back door of a vehicle is a heavy object, there is a great demand for reducing the weight of the back door lock device.

  The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-described problems of the prior art, and provides a back door lock device capable of improving the appearance quality when attached to a vehicle body panel and reducing the cost and weight. For the purpose.

  The back door lock device according to the present invention includes a latch that engages and holds the striker at the half latch position and the full latch position, and the engagement between the striker and the latch at the half latch position and the full latch position by meshing with the latch. A back door lock device for a vehicle comprising a meshing mechanism having a ratchet for maintaining a state, and a latch case for housing the meshing mechanism, wherein the latch case is attached to the body panel of the vehicle. A wall portion that is disposed outside a mounting hole formed in the panel and projects toward the edge of the mounting hole in the mounting state, and conceals a gap between the latch case and the mounting hole. Is provided.

  According to such a configuration, when the back door lock device attached to the door is viewed with the door opened, the wall portion provided in the latch case is blinded so that the latch case and the attachment hole are The gap between them is hidden. For this reason, without providing a resin cover for covering the latch case, components such as a drive mechanism inside the vehicle body panel can be hidden from the appearance from the gap. Accordingly, it is possible to improve the appearance quality when the back door lock device is attached to the door. And since the said resin cover becomes unnecessary, the number of parts of a back door lock device can be reduced, manufacturing cost and weight can be reduced, and miniaturization is also attained.

  The latch case may be configured to be attached to the vehicle body panel in an inclined posture. As described above, in the configuration in which the latch case is mounted in an inclined posture with respect to the mounting surface in which the mounting hole of the vehicle body panel is formed, it is difficult to avoid the generation of the gap, but the exposure of the gap is minimized by the wall portion. Therefore, the appearance of the back door lock device attached to the door can be further improved.

  The wall portion may be provided on one side of the latch case protruding outward from the attachment hole in the attached state, and may include a front plate that is erected over the entire length in the width direction of the latch case. If it does so, the space | interval of the width direction which is conspicuous when seeing a door can be reliably concealed with a front board.

  The wall portion may have a pair of side plates that are bent from both sides in the width direction of the front plate and inserted into the mounting holes. If it does so, the clearance gap at the time of visually recognizing a back door lock device from the side can be blinded with a side board.

  According to the present invention, since the gap between the back door lock device and the mounting hole of the vehicle body panel is hidden by the wall portion provided in the latch case, the appearance quality of the back door lock device when attached to the door is improved. The manufacturing cost and weight can be reduced.

FIG. 1 is a side view schematically showing a state in which a back door lock device according to an embodiment of the present invention is attached to a back door. FIG. 2 is a side view of the back door shown in FIG. 1 in a fully opened state. FIG. 3 is a side view of the back door lock device shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 4 is a view of the back door lock device shown in FIG. 3 as viewed from the direction of the arrow IV in FIG. FIG. 5 is a front view of the back door lock device shown in FIG. 1. 6 is a perspective view of the back door lock device shown in FIG. FIG. 7 is a plan view schematically showing the engagement state between the striker and the latch provided in the vehicle main body and the engagement state between the latch and the ratchet at that time, and FIG. 7 (A) shows the latch in the unlatched position. FIG. 7B shows a state where the latch is in the half latch position, and FIG. 7C shows a state where the latch is in the full latch position. FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the drive mechanism. FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the sector gear constituting the drive mechanism as seen from the back side. FIG. 10 is an explanatory front view showing the state of the drive mechanism when it is electrically opened. FIG. 11 is an explanatory front view showing the state of the drive mechanism when in the neutral position. FIG. 12 is an explanatory front view showing the state of the drive mechanism when the latch is electrically operated and the latch is in the full latch position. FIG. 13 is a time chart showing an example of a closing operation and an opening operation in the back door lock device.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the back door lock device according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a side view schematically showing a state in which a back door lock device 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention is attached to a back door D, and shows a state in which the back door D is fully closed. FIG. 2 is a side view of the back door D shown in FIG. 1 in a fully opened state.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the back door lock device 1 according to the present embodiment engages a meshing mechanism 2 with a striker S provided on a vehicle body (vehicle body) B of a four-wheeled vehicle, thereby A back door D called a tailgate is maintained in a closed state with respect to B. The back door lock device 1 is an electric opening / closing type lock device that is attached to a vehicle body panel Da that is a sheet metal that defines the bottom surface of the back door D and that operates the meshing mechanism 2 by an electric drive mechanism 4. The back door D is supported on the upper edge portion of the rear end of the vehicle main body B, and opens and closes the rear end opening of the vehicle main body B by rotating around the axial center along the left-right direction.

  In the following, the vehicle inner side (the vehicle front side, which is the right side in FIG. 1) in the direction in which the back door lock device 1 shown in FIG. 1 is attached to the back door D is the front side, and the vehicle outer side (the vehicle rear side, which is the left side in FIG. 1). Side) is referred to as the rear, and the height direction is referred to as the vertical direction (upward and downward). The definition of these directions is for convenience of explanation, and the direction of the back door lock device 1 in the vehicle main body B naturally changes depending on the mounting position thereof.

  3 is a side view of the back door lock device 1 shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 4 is a view of the back door lock device 1 shown in FIG. 3 as viewed from the direction of the arrow IV in FIG. 5 is a front view of the back door lock device 1 shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the back door lock device 1 shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 to 6, the back door lock device 1 includes a cover plate 10 having an accommodating portion 14 with an upper opening, a body body 40 that covers the upper front of the cover plate 10, and an upper portion of the cover plate 10. A back plate 50 that covers the rear side and a bracket 70 that stands on the back side of the cover plate 10 are provided. The meshing mechanism 2 is disposed in the accommodating portion 14 of the cover plate 10, and an upper portion thereof is covered with the main body 40 and the back plate 50. That is, the cover plate 10, the main body 40 and the back plate 50 constitute a latch case 6 that accommodates the meshing mechanism 2. Most components of the drive mechanism 4 are held by the bracket 70.

  The cover plate 10 serves as a base of the back door lock device 1 and is formed of a metal plate having a relatively large thickness. In the cover plate 10, striker entry grooves 11 are provided in a plate base portion 10 a that forms a concave accommodating portion 14 that gradually becomes shallower from the front end toward the rear end, and a latch shaft 12 and a ratchet shaft 13 are disposed on both sides of the striker entry groove 11. Is provided (see FIGS. 4 and 7). Attachment pieces 19 project from both side portions of the accommodating portion 14 of the cover plate 10. Each mounting piece 19 is a portion fixed to the vehicle body panel Da of the back door D by inserting a mounting bolt (not shown) through a pair of formed through holes.

  The accommodating part 14 is a recessed part which accommodates the latch 20 and the ratchet 30 which comprise the meshing mechanism 2 in the inside (refer FIG. 7). The striker entry groove 11 is a notch formed from the center of the front end of the plate base portion 10a toward the back, and has a width that allows the striker S to be inserted. The latch shaft 12 and the ratchet shaft 13 protrude from the inner surface of the plate base portion 10a and are arranged in parallel to each other. A latch 20 is rotatably supported on the latch shaft 12, and a ratchet 30 is rotatably supported on the ratchet shaft 13 (see FIG. 7).

  As shown in FIG. 7, the latch 20 is a plate-like member into which the latch shaft 12 is inserted through a through hole formed substantially at the center. The latch 20 includes an engagement groove 21 that opens to the outer peripheral surface, a hook portion 22 that is positioned on the right side of the engagement groove 21, and a striker contact portion (full latch locking portion) 23 that is positioned on the left side of the engagement groove 21. And an outer peripheral claw portion (half latch locking portion) 24 located on the left side of the striker contact portion 23. On the upper surface of the latch 20 and on the opposite side of the engagement groove 21 with the latch shaft 12 interposed therebetween, a ridge 20b extending in the circumferential direction about the latch shaft 12 is formed. The latch 20 rotates about the axis of the latch shaft 12 so that the engagement groove 21 intersects the striker entry groove 11. The latch 20 is biased counterclockwise in FIG. 7 about the latch shaft 12 by a latch spring (not shown) disposed between the main body 40 and the latch 20. When the detection part of the half switch (half SW) 17 arranged in the accommodating part 14 contacts the ridge 20b, the rotation position (unlatch position, half-latch position and full-latch position) of the latch 20, which will be described later, particularly A switching state from the unlatched position to the half-latch position and a switching state from the full latch position to the unlatched position are detected. The detection result of the half switch 17 is used for rotation control of a motor 150 (sector gear 120) described later.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, a latch lever 110 that is rotatably supported near the upper end of the latch shaft 12 is provided on the upper surface of the back plate 50 above the latch 20. The latch lever 110 is non-rotatably fitted with the latch 20 and rotates integrally with the latch 20. The latch lever 110 is used when the drive mechanism 4 is closed.

  The ratchet 30 regulates the rotational position of the latch 20, and as shown in FIG. 7, the ratchet 30 is a plate-like member into which the ratchet shaft 13 is inserted through a through hole formed substantially at the center. The ratchet 30 includes a latch engagement portion 31 that extends radially outward on the outer periphery of the through hole through which the ratchet shaft 13 is inserted, a release operation portion 32, and a stop piece 34. The ratchet 30 rotates about the axis of the ratchet shaft 13 and is urged clockwise around the ratchet shaft 13 by a ratchet spring (not shown) disposed between the ratchet shaft 13 and the back plate 50. . The latch meshing portion 31 extends radially outward from the ratchet shaft 13 and meshes with the striker abutting portion 23 or the outer peripheral claw portion 24 of the latch 20, as shown in FIGS. 7B and 7C. Thus, the counterclockwise rotation of the latch 20 is restricted. The stop piece 34 extends outward in the radial direction on the opposite side of the ratchet shaft 13 with respect to the latch engagement portion 31 and the release operation portion 32, and is formed of an elastic member or the like protruding from the upper surface of the plate base portion 10a. By contacting the stopper 16, rotation of the ratchet 30 in FIG. 7 in the clockwise direction is restricted.

  Here, the engaging operation between the meshing mechanism 2 and the striker S will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 7 is a plan view schematically showing the engagement state between the striker S and the latch 20 provided in the vehicle main body B and the meshing state between the latch 20 and the ratchet 30 at that time. FIG. 7B shows a state in which the latch 20 is in the half latch position, and FIG. 7C shows a state in which the latch 20 is in the full latch position.

  First, as shown in FIG. 7A, the opening of the engagement groove 21 matches the opening of the striker entry groove 11 formed in the plate base portion 10a, and the hook portion 22 is located on the right side of the engagement groove 21. Is in a state of being retracted from the striker entry groove 11, the latch 20 is not engaged with the striker S. Hereinafter, the case where the latch 20 is in the position shown in FIG. 7A where it is not engaged with the striker S is referred to as the “unlatched position” of the latch 20. When the latch 20 is in the unlatched position, the back door D can be opened and closed without operating an operation handle (not shown) or the like provided on the back door D.

  Next, when the back door D is closed, the back door locking device 1 approaches so as to engage with the striker S provided in the vehicle main body B. As a result, the latch 20 rotates in the clockwise direction (hereinafter referred to as “engagement direction”) about the latch shaft 12 as it engages with the striker S, and as shown in FIG. 22 will be in the state which crosses this, moving gradually from the front-end side of the striker approach groove | channel 11 to the back | inner side. In this state, the latch 20 is engaged with the striker S in front of the full latch position, which will be described later. However, since the latch engagement portion 31 of the ratchet 30 is engaged with the outer peripheral claw portion 24, the counterclockwise direction ( Hereinafter, rotation in the “opening direction”) is restricted. Hereinafter, the case where the latch 20 is in the position shown in FIG. 7B is referred to as the “half latch position” of the latch 20. When the latch 20 is in the half latch position, the back door D cannot be opened unless the operation handle or the like is operated to switch the latch 20 to the unlatched position. At this time, the detection unit of the half switch 17 detects the ridge 20b to detect that the latch 20 is in the half latch position.

  When the latch 20 further rotates in the clockwise direction from the half latch position, the hook portion 22 crosses the inner portion of the striker entry groove 11 to close the opening of the striker entry groove 11. In this state, the latch 20 is completely engaged with the striker S, and the latch engagement portion 31 is in contact with the striker contact portion 23, so that rotation in the opening direction is restricted. Hereinafter, the case where the latch 20 is in the position shown in FIG. 7C is referred to as the “full latch position” of the latch 20. When the latch 20 is in the full latch position, the back door D can be opened if the drive mechanism 4 is driven by operating the back door open button Db (see FIGS. 1 and 2) and the latch 20 is not switched to the unlatched position. Can not.

  The release operation part 32 of the ratchet 30 releases the meshing state with the latch 20 by rotating the ratchet 30 away from the latch 20 which is the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 7 and returning the latch 20 to the unlatched position. Functions as an operation unit. That is, by operating the release operation unit 32, the engagement state between the engagement mechanism 2 and the striker S shown in FIGS. 7B and 7C (the engagement state between the latch 20 and the ratchet 30) is released. can do. The release operation portion 32 extends radially outward from the outer periphery of the through hole through which the ratchet shaft 13 is inserted, and is adjacent to the latch engagement portion 31.

  3 to 6, the main body 40 is fitted into the accommodating portion 14 from above the latch 20 and the ratchet 30 disposed on the upper surface of the plate base portion 10 a, and the rear end side thereof is held by the back plate 50. Is. The main body 40 includes two shaft insertion holes (not shown) formed at positions corresponding to the latch shaft 12 and the ratchet shaft 13, and a buffer groove 43 formed at a position corresponding to the striker entry groove 11. The front end side is bifurcated by the buffer groove 43 and protrudes. The shaft insertion hole is a through hole having an inner diameter into which the latch shaft 12 and the ratchet shaft 13 are fitted. The buffer groove 43 is a notch provided from the center of the front end of the main body 40 toward the base end, and is formed to have a slightly narrower width than the striker entry groove 11. The buffer groove 43 has a size that allows the end of the opening to pass through the striker S, and is formed so that the width gradually decreases toward the back.

  A front plate 41a that is erected over substantially the entire length in the width direction and a pair of side plates 41b and 41b that are bent backward from both sides in the width direction of the front plate 41a are formed on the rear surface of the upper surface of the main body 40. The wall part 41 which has is provided. As shown in FIG. 3, when the back door lock device 1 is attached to the vehicle body panel Da of the back door D, the bracket 70 and the drive mechanism 4 are located inside the attachment hole Dc formed in the vehicle body panel Da (the back door D The latch case 6 (the cover plate 10, the main body 40 and the back plate 50) and the meshing mechanism 2 are disposed outside the mounting hole Dc (outside the back door D).

  When the back door lock device 1 is attached to the back door D, the latch case 6 is inclined with respect to the vehicle body panel Da as shown in FIG. At this time, the front plate 41a of the wall portion 41 protrudes toward the edge of the mounting hole Dc and is arranged so as to cover and hide the gap G between the latch case 6 and the mounting hole Dc. Accordingly, when the back door D opened as shown in FIG. 2 is looked up from below, that is, when the back door locking device 1 attached to the back door D is viewed from the direction of arrow IV in FIG. The gap G is hidden by 41a, and the drive mechanism 4 and the like inside the gap G are hardly visible (see also FIG. 4). Further, the side plate 41b of the wall portion 41 is inserted into the mounting hole Dc and arranged so as to hide the side portion of the gap G. Thereby, the gap G when the back door D opened as shown in FIG. 2 is looked up obliquely from below is also hidden by the side plate 41b.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the main body 40 has a chamfered shape 45 a at a front end corner where the meshing mechanism 2 is not provided. Thereby, the main body 40 is reduced in size and weight by the portion 45b indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. In addition, when such a chamfered shape 45a is provided in the main body 40, there is a problem that it is easy to look into the gap G from below, but in this embodiment, the wall portion 41 is provided behind the chamfered shape 45a. The occurrence of this problem can be prevented (see FIG. 3).

  The back plate 50 is a plate-like member that covers the vicinity of the central portion of the housing portion 14 in which the main body 40 is disposed, and is formed of a metal plate. The back plate 50 is formed with shaft mounting holes (not shown) at positions corresponding to the latch shaft 12 and the ratchet shaft 13, and the ratchet shaft 13 is more than the surface on which the shaft mounting hole for inserting the latch shaft 12 is formed. The surface on which the shaft mounting hole for inserting is inserted is lowered. Attachment pieces 51 are provided on both sides of the back plate 50 in a protruding manner. Each attachment piece 51 is a portion that is fastened together with the attachment piece 19 of the cover plate 10 and the vehicle body panel Da by inserting attachment bolts (not shown) through the formed pair of through holes.

  The bracket 70 is a plate-like member that stands up and down behind the meshing mechanism 2 and is formed of a metal plate. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the bracket 70 has a substantially triangular shape when viewed from the front, and a pair of attachment pieces 71, 71 formed to bend on both sides of the lower portion are provided on the cover plate 10 and the back plate 50. The cover plate 10 and the back plate 50 are fixed integrally with each other by being sandwiched between the attachment pieces 19 and 51 provided on both sides.

  Next, a drive mechanism 4 that functions as a close / open mechanism that electrically opens and closes the meshing mechanism 2 will be described with reference to FIGS. 5, 6, 8, and 9. FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the drive mechanism 4, and FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the sector gear 120 constituting the drive mechanism 4 as seen from the back side.

  The drive mechanism 4 meshes with the latch 20 and the closing operation in which the latch 20 in the half latch position (see FIG. 7B) is rotated to move to the full latch position (see FIG. 7C). By rotating the ratchet 30, an opening operation for releasing the meshing state of the latch 20 and the ratchet 30 is executed. The drive mechanism 4 is provided on the bracket 70 at an upper position of the meshing mechanism 2.

  As shown in FIGS. 5, 6, 8, and 9, the drive mechanism 4 includes a latch lever 110, a sector gear (rotating member) 120, an open lever 130, a pinion gear 140, and a motor (drive source). 150. In the drive mechanism 4, the sector gear 120 and the pinion gear 140 are provided on the front surface of the bracket 70, the motor 150 is provided on the back surface of the bracket 70, the latch lever 110 is provided on the upper surface of the back plate 50, and the open lever 130 is the back plate. 50 is provided on the back surface of the mounting member 56 protruding upward from the rear end.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the latch lever 110 is a rectangular plate member having arc portions at both ends, and the upper end portion of the latch shaft 12 is non-rotatably inserted into one end side, whereby the upper surface of the back plate 50. Above, it can rotate with the latch 20 about the latch shaft 12. On the other end side of the latch lever 110, a contact portion 114 protruding upward is provided. As shown in FIG. 5, the abutting portion 114 is a cylindrical pin (shaft) that stands up to a position slightly below the gear portion 121 of the sector gear 120.

  As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the sector gear 120 is pivotally supported by a sector gear shaft 122 fixed to the bracket 70 at a height position similar to the upper surface of the back plate 50. The sector gear 120 is a fan-shaped thin plate member that is provided between the back plate 50 and the bracket 70 and has a step in the front-rear direction (plate thickness direction). And a pressing portion 124 protruding forward from the left side position of the front surface.

  The gear portion 121 is engaged with a pinion gear 140 that rotates when the driving force from the motor 150 is transmitted through a gear mechanism (not shown). As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the pressing portion 124 is a circular pin (shaft) protruding in the horizontal direction from the front surface of the sector gear 120 to the front. The pressing portion 124 is set to a length that can contact the peripheral surface of the contact portion 114 of the latch lever 110 regardless of the rotation position of the latch lever 110.

  As shown in FIGS. 5, 6, 8, and 9, a cam member 128 having a cam surface 128 a protrudes at a position slightly below the gear portion 121 on the front surface of the sector gear 120. The cam member 128 is fixed to the sector gear 120 by a screw 119 and is prevented from rotating by fitting two bosses 123 and 123 (see FIG. 9). As a result, the cam member 128 rotates integrally with the sector gear 120, and the cam surface 128 a has an arc shape along the rotation locus of the sector gear 120. That is, the arc shape of the cam surface 128a is parallel to the rotation direction of the sector gear 120. The cam surface 128a can be slidably contacted with the detecting portions 125a and 127a of the close switch (close SW) 125 and the open switch (open SW) 127 attached to the bracket 70.

  The close switch 125 and the open switch 127 detect the rotational position (neutral position, close operation or open operation) of the sector gear 120 by detecting the cam surface 128a of the sector gear 120. The close switch 125 and the open switch 127 are provided in steps in the width direction of the cam surface 128a (see FIG. 8). The detection results of the close switch 125 and the open switch 127 are used for rotation control of the motor 150 (sector gear 120). In the case of this embodiment, the close switch 125 and the open switch 127 are push button type detection switches in which the hemispherical detection portions 125a and 127a are advanced and retracted by contact with the cam surface 128a.

  As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the motor 150 is fixed on the back side of the bracket 70 in a state where the longitudinal direction thereof is along the horizontal direction (the left-right width direction). The driving force of the motor 150 is transmitted to the pinion gear 140 via a gear mechanism (not shown) accommodated in the gear case 151. The pinion gear 140 is rotatably supported on a pinion shaft (not shown) on the back side of the mounting portion 141 that protrudes forward from the upper center of the bracket 70 and bends downward, whereby a gear portion on the outer peripheral surface of the sector gear 120 is provided. 121 is engaged. The sector gear 120 can be rotated about the sector gear shaft 122 by rotating the pinion gear 140 by the driving force from the motor 150.

  The open lever 130 constitutes a release means for releasing the engagement between the latch 20 and the ratchet 30, and as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the open lever 130 is pivoted on the open lever shaft 101 protruding to the back side of the mounting member 56. By being supported, it is rotatably provided between the attachment member 56 and the sector gear 120. The open lever 130 receives an urging force that always rotates counterclockwise in FIGS. 5 and 6 by an open lever spring 138 provided between the open lever 130 and the mounting member 56.

  Below the open lever shaft 101 in the open lever 130 is provided an input portion 132 with which the pressing portion 124 of the sector gear 120 on its side abuts (see FIG. 5). When the sector gear 120 is rotated in the door opening direction (counterclockwise direction in FIG. 5), the input portion 132 of the open lever 130 is pressed by the pressing portion 124. Then, the open lever 130 rotates in the clockwise direction in FIG. 5 against the urging force of the open lever spring 138, and an output portion (not shown) provided at the lower end moves the release operation portion 32 of the ratchet 30 to the left. The latch 20 is switched to the unlatched position shown in FIG.

  An auxiliary input arm 136 protrudes above the open lever shaft 101 in the open lever 130. For example, in the event of an emergency in which power cannot be supplied to the motor 150 due to a failure in the electric system or battery consumption, and the back door lock device 1 cannot be unlatched, a cover body (not shown) is removed from the vehicle interior of the back door D. By manually rotating the auxiliary input arm 136, the meshing state of the latch 20 and the ratchet 30 can be manually released.

  Next, the closing operation and the opening operation by the drive mechanism 4 configured as described above will be described with reference to the operation diagrams of FIGS. 10 to 12 and the time chart of FIG. FIG. 10 is an explanatory front view showing the state of the drive mechanism 4 when it is electrically opened, FIG. 11 is an explanatory front view showing the state of the drive mechanism 4 when it is in the neutral position, and FIG. FIG. 6 is an explanatory front view showing the state of the drive mechanism 4 when it is electrically closed.

  First, in a state where the back door D is opened with respect to the vehicle body B (before time t1 in FIG. 13, that is, after time t7 in FIG. 13), the half switch 17, the close switch 125, and the open switch 127 are Is also in an operating (ON) state, and the motor 150 is stopped. In this state, the sector gear 120 is in the neutral position (see FIG. 11), and the latch 20 is in the unlatched position (see FIG. 7A).

  When the back door D is closed from this state and the back door D is in a half-open state, the striker S provided on the vehicle body B side enters the striker entry groove 11 and eventually the striker S enters the engagement groove 21 of the latch 20. Abut. As a result, the latch 20 rotates in the engagement direction against the urging force of a latch spring (not shown). When the back door D is further closed from this state, the latch 20 is further rotated in the engaging direction, the latch meshing portion 31 of the ratchet 30 is engaged with the outer peripheral claw portion 24 of the latch 20, and the half latch position is reached ( (See FIG. 7B).

  During this time, at time t1 in FIG. 13, the half switch 17 is inactivated (OFF), and it is detected that the latch 20 is in the half latch position, so the motor 150 starts to rotate in the closing direction, and the sector gear 120 also It starts to rotate in the closing direction (clockwise direction in FIG. 11).

  Then, the pressing portion 124 of the sector gear 120 contacts and presses the contact portion 114 of the latch lever 110 (see FIG. 12), and the latch lever 110 is rotated in the clockwise direction in FIG. As a result, the latch 20 is further rotated in the engagement direction in conjunction with the latch lever 110, the latch meshing portion 31 is brought into contact with the striker contact portion 23 to be in the full latch position, and the hook portion 22 is located at the back of the striker entry groove 11. The opening of the striker entry groove 11 is closed across (see FIG. 7C).

  During this time, at time t2 in FIG. 13, the open switch 127 is deactivated (OFF). Further, at the subsequent time t3, when the close switch 125 is deactivated (OFF) (see FIG. 12), it is detected that the latch 20 is in the full latch position, so the motor 150 is rotated in the reverse direction and the sector gear 120 is turned on. In FIG. 12, it is rotated counterclockwise to return from the closed operation state to the neutral position.

  During this operation, the close switch 125 is again activated (ON) between times t3 and t4. Subsequently, when the open switch 127 is activated (ON) (time t4), it is detected that the sector gear 120 has returned to the neutral position (see FIG. 11), and the back door D is held in the fully closed state.

  Thus, in the drive mechanism 4, the back door D can be closed by electrically moving the latch 20 in the half latch position to the full latch position.

  Subsequently, at time t5 in FIG. 13, when the back door open button Db is operated to enter the operation (ON) state, the motor 150 starts to rotate in the open direction, and the sector gear 120 also rotates in the open direction (counterclockwise in FIG. 11). The close switch 125 is inactivated (OFF).

  Thereafter, when the sector gear 120 further rotates in the open direction (see FIG. 10), the pressing portion 124 presses the input portion 132 of the open lever 130, so that the open lever 130 resists the biasing force of the open lever spring 138. 5, the release operation portion 32 of the ratchet 30 is pressed in the clockwise direction, and the engagement between the latch 20 and the ratchet 30 is released. As a result, the latch 20 is switched to the unlatched position shown in FIG.

  At time t6, when the half switch 17 is activated (ON) and the open switch 127 is deactivated (OFF) after the close switch 125 (see FIG. 10), it is detected that the latch 20 is in the unlatched position. Therefore, the motor 150 is rotated in the reverse direction, and the sector gear 120 is rotated in the clockwise direction in FIG. 10 to perform the operation of returning from the open operation state to the neutral position.

  During this operation, the open switch 127 is again activated (ON) between times t6 and t7. Subsequently, when the close switch 125 is activated (ON) (time t7), it is detected that the sector gear 120 has returned to the neutral position (see FIG. 11). Thereafter, the back door D is manually opened to perform the back operation. The door D can be fully opened.

  Thus, in the drive mechanism 4, the back door D can be opened by electrically moving the latch 20 in the full latch position to the unlatched position.

  As described above, according to the back door lock device 1 according to the present embodiment, the latch case 6 that accommodates the meshing mechanism 2 is outside the attachment hole Dc formed in the vehicle body panel Da in the attachment state to the vehicle body panel Da. On the other hand, the bracket 70 that holds the drive mechanism 4 is disposed inside the mounting hole Dc. Here, the latch case 6 is provided with a wall portion 41 that protrudes toward the edge of the mounting hole Dc in a state of being attached to the back door D and hides the gap G between the latch case 6 and the mounting hole Dc. Yes.

  Thereby, even if the back door D opened as shown in FIG. 1 is looked up from the direction of the arrow IV in FIG. 3, for example, the gap G is hidden by the front plate 41 a of the wall portion 41. Therefore, components such as the drive mechanism 2 inside the vehicle body panel Da can be hidden from the appearance from the gap G without separately providing a resin cover for covering the latch case 6 as in the prior art described above. Therefore, the appearance quality of the back door lock device 1 attached to the back door D can be improved. And since the said resin cover becomes unnecessary, the number of parts of the back door lock apparatus 1 can be reduced, manufacturing cost and weight can be reduced, and size reduction is also attained.

  In particular, in the back door lock device 1, as shown in FIG. 3, the latch case 6 is mounted in an inclined posture with respect to the mounting surface on which the mounting hole Dc of the vehicle body panel Da is formed. There are difficult circumstances to avoid. Therefore, by providing the wall portion 41 in the main body 40 as described above, the exposure of the gap G is suppressed to the minimum, and the appearance of the attachment portion of the back door lock device 1 to the back door D is improved. .

  In this case, the wall 41 is provided on the one surface (front surface) side of the latch case 6 (main body 40) protruding outward from the mounting hole Dc, and is a front plate that is erected over the entire length of the latch case 6 in the width direction. 41a. Thereby, the gap G in the width direction that is conspicuous when looking up at the back door D can be surely hidden by the front plate 41a.

  Furthermore, the wall 41 has a pair of side plates 41b and 41b that are bent from both sides of the front plate 41a in the width direction and are inserted inside the attachment holes Dc. Thereby, the gap G when the back door lock device 1 is viewed from the side can also be blinded by the side plate 41b.

  Further, according to the back door lock device 1 according to the present embodiment, the sector gear 120 that has the pressing portion 124 that can press the contact portion 114 of the latch lever 110 and is rotated by the motor 150 has its rotation locus. Is provided with an arc-shaped cam surface 128a. The cam surface 128a is disposed opposite to the cam surface 128a so that the detecting portions 125a and 127a are advanced and retracted to detect the operating state of the back door lock device 1 (drive mechanism 4). A close switch 125 or an open switch 127 which is a push button type detection switch.

  Thereby, even when the rotation of the sector gear 120 is repeated and the detection portions 125a and 127a of the close switch 125 and the open switch 127 and the cam surface 128a are repeatedly brought into sliding contact, the close switch 125 and the open switch 127 The occurrence of breakage and malfunction can be avoided as much as possible. For this reason, durability and reliability of the back door lock device 1 can be improved.

  Here, the close switch 125 and the open switch 127 are provided so as to be arranged along the cam surface 128a, and one close switch 125 is used to detect the close operation (see time t3 in FIG. 13), and the other open switch. 127 is used to detect the open operation (see time t6 in FIG. 13). Therefore, even if either the close switch 125 or the open switch 127 breaks down, the sector gear 120 stops after moving to the neutral position, so that a big problem does not occur. When the switch is configured with only one of them, the sector gear 120 cannot be stopped at the neutral position.

  In this case, the detection portions 125a and 127a that are the contact portions of the close switch 125 and the open switch 127 with respect to the cam surface 128a are arranged along the arc direction of the cam surface 128a so as to be arranged on the rotation locus of the sector gear 120. Has been. For this reason, the detection operation becomes smoother, the load at the time of sliding contact with the cam surface 128a of the detection portions 125a and 127a is minimized, and the durability can be further enhanced.

  Further, since the close switch 125 and the open switch 127 are provided so as to be displaced in the width direction of the cam surface 128a (see FIG. 8), the contact timing of the close switch 125 and the open switch 127 and the cam surface 128a is determined. The degree of freedom of setting is improved, and the close switch 125 and the open switch 127 can be operated at a desired detection timing.

  It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and it is needless to say that the present invention can be freely changed without departing from the gist of the present invention.

  For example, in the above-described embodiment, the close switch 125 and the open switch 127 are push button type detection switches that detect the operating state of the close operation or the open operation by advancing and retreating by abutting against the cam surface 128a provided on the sector gear 120. However, only one of the close switch 125 and the open switch 127 may be used as the detection switch.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Back door lock device 2 Engagement mechanism 4 Drive mechanism 6 Latch case 10 Cover plate 20 Latch 30 Ratchet 40 Main body body 41 Wall part 41a Front plate 41b Side plate 50 Back plate 70 Bracket 110 Latch lever 114 Contact part 120 Sector gear 124 Press part 125 Close switch 125a, 127a detector 127 open switch 128 cam member 128a cam surface 150 motor B vehicle body D back door Da vehicle body panel Dc mounting hole G clearance S striker

Claims (4)

A latch that engages and holds the striker at the half-latch position and the full-latch position, and a meshing mechanism that has the ratchet that meshes with the latch to maintain the striker and the latch at the half-latch position and the full-latch position. ,
A latch case for accommodating the meshing mechanism ;
A drive mechanism for electrically operating the meshing mechanism;
A back door lock device for a vehicle comprising:
The latch case includes a cover plate that accommodates the meshing mechanism in a housing portion having an upper opening, and a body body that covers an upper front of the cover plate,
The drive mechanism is held by a bracket erected on the rear side of the cover plate,
When the back door lock device is mounted on the vehicle body panel, the latch case is disposed outside the mounting hole formed in the body panel, and the bracket and the drive mechanism are disposed inside the mounting hole. ,
The main body body projects toward the edge of the mounting hole in the mounting state, and the gap between the latch case and the mounting hole is hidden to expose the drive mechanism from the gap. A back door lock device characterized in that a wall portion for preventing this is provided. The back door lock device according to claim 1,
The back door lock device according to claim 1, wherein the latch case is attached to the vehicle body panel in an inclined posture. In the back door lock device according to claim 1 or 2,
The wall, possess together provided on one side of the latch case projecting outwardly from the mounting hole in the mounting state, a front plate that is formed upright over the width direction entire length of the latch casing,
The main body includes a back door lock device characterized in that it have a chamfered shape that the front portion is formed lower than the front plate. The back door lock device according to claim 3,
The wall door has a pair of side plates bent from both sides in the width direction of the front plate and inserted into the mounting hole.

Images