Vehicle door check

• US 10,604,976 B2
• Filed: 12/11/2017
• Issued: 03/31/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 06/10/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hella Gmbh & Co. Kgaa (Forvia SE)
• Original Assignee: Hella Gmbh & Co. Kgaa (Forvia SE)
• Inventors: Kirchhoff, Friedhelm
• Primary Examiner(s): Morgan, Emily M
• Application Number:
  US15/837,319
• Publication Number:
  US 20180100334A1
• Time in Patent Office: 841 Days
• Field of Search: 16 82, 16 85, 16 86 B
• CPC Class Codes: E05B 47/0004 said core being linearly movable
• CPC Class Codes: E05B 51/02 by pneumatic or hydraulic means E05B17/0029 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: E05C 17/003 Power-actuated devices for limiting the opening of vehicle doors
• CPC Class Codes: E05C 17/006 with means for detecting obstacles outside the doors
• CPC Class Codes: E05C 17/203 concealed, e.g. for vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: E05C 17/22 with braking, clamping or securing means in the guide E05C17/203 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2201/21 Brakes
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2201/26 Mechanical friction
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2900/531 Doors

Abstract

A door check for vehicle doors, e.g. car doors having a door strap for being mounted to the chassis and a retainer for being mounted to the door movably and supporting the door strap relative to the retainer and provides a particular precise control over the door movement if the retainer has a cylinder supporting a piston which is spring loaded against the door strap and if an actuator is configured to augment the pressure in the cylinder upon demand to thereby augment the friction between the piston and the door strap.

Claims

1. A door check comprising:

a door strap for being movably mounted to a vehicle chassis;

a retainer for being mounted to a vehicle door, the door strap being movably attached to the retainer such that a movement of the door strap relative to the retainer is enabled along a longitudinal axis of the door strap, the retainer comprising at least one cylinder with a cylinder axis, a cylinder bottom and an opposed cylinder opening, the at least one cylinder accommodating a piston, the piston being movable along the cylinder axis and being spring loaded by a spring to transmit a force to the door strap thereby creating a frictional force opposite to a movement of the door strap; and

a linear drive adapted to increase a force exerted via the piston to the door strap,

wherein the at least one cylinder has a further opening that extends through the cylinder bottom to receive a plunger, wherein the plunger protrudes from an end of a linearly movable armature of the linear drive and wherein the plunger extends through the further opening,

wherein a fluid is provided inside the at least one cylinder, the fluid being contained in a chamber formed within the at least one cylinder between the piston and the cylinder bottom,

wherein an upper end of the spring directly contacts an inner surface of the cylinder bottom,

wherein the spring is positioned in the at least one cylinder between the cylinder bottom and the piston, the spring loading the piston towards the door strap, and

wherein an activation of the linear drive to push the plunger toward the piston compresses the fluid inside the chamber of the at least one cylinder to increase the force exerted via the piston to the door strap.

2. The door check of claim 1, wherein an activation of the linear drive to move the plunger away from the piston reduces a fluid pressure of the fluid inside the chamber of the at least one cylinder thereby reducing the force exerted via the piston to the door strap.

3. The door check of claim 1, wherein the linear drive comprises a coil and the linearly movable armature, wherein a current through the coil exerts a force on the armature that is transmitted to the plunger and by the plunger to the piston.

4. The door check of claim 1, wherein when a portion of the plunger extends into the at least one cylinder through the further opening in the cylinder bottom, the portion of the plunger is encircled by the spring.

5. The door check of claim 1, wherein the cylinder opening is closed by a retaining plate, such that the door strap is retained between the retaining plate and the piston.

6. The door check of claim 5, further comprising a first friction pad and a second friction pad,

wherein the first friction pad is positioned between the piston and the door strap, and the second friction pad is positioned between the retaining plate and the door strap, such that door strap is retained between, and directly contacted by, the first friction pad and the second friction pad.

7. The door check of claim 1, wherein the at least one cylinder and the cylinder bottom are unitary, such that the cylinder bottom remains stationary during linear movement of the plunger.

8. A door check comprising:

a door strap for being movably mounted to a vehicle chassis;

a retainer for being mounted to a vehicle door, the door strap being movably attached to the retainer such that a movement of the door strap relative to the retainer is enabled along a longitudinal axis of the door strap, the retainer comprising at least one cylinder with a cylinder axis, a cylinder bottom and an opposed cylinder opening, the at least one cylinder accommodating a piston, the piston being movable along the cylinder axis and being spring loaded by a spring to transmit a force to the door strap thereby creating a frictional force opposite to a movement of the door strap;

a linear drive adapted to increase a force exerted via the piston to the door strap,

wherein the linear drive comprises a coil and a linearly movable armature, wherein a current through the coil exerts a force on the armature that is transmitted to a plunger and by the plunger to the piston, and

the door check further comprising a booster with a magnetic coupling plate, wherein the magnetic coupling plate is positioned at the end of the armature facing away from the piston.

9. The door check of claim 8, wherein the coupling plate extends over a front facing side of the coil.

10. The door check of claim 8, wherein a booster spring is positioned inside a booster housing of the booster, between the coupling plate and an abutment plate of the booster housing.

11. The door check of claim 10, wherein the abutment plate is releasably connected to the booster housing.