Door handle structure

• US 20070130837A1
• Filed: 12/07/2006
• Published: 06/14/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 12/08/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Kusunoki, Kiichi
• Granted Patent: US 8,505,241 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 49/460
• CPC Class Codes: E05B 81/76 Detection of handle operation; Detection of a user approaching a handle; Electrical switching actions performed by door handles
• CPC Class Codes: E05B 85/16 a longitudinal grip part being pivoted at one end about an axis perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the grip part
• CPC Class Codes: E05F 15/40 Safety devices, e.g. detection of obstructions or end positions
• CPC Class Codes: E05F 15/632 for horizontally-sliding wings
• CPC Class Codes: E05F 15/646 allowing or involving a secondary movement of the wing, e.g. rotational or transversal
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2201/214 Disengaging means
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2201/244 by manual operation
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2201/676 Transmission of human force
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2201/68 Handles, cranks
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2400/854 Switches
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2400/856 Actuation thereof
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2400/86 by hand
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2600/46 in or on the wing
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2900/531 Doors

Abstract

An opening and closing control apparatus includes an automatic sliding door controller that controls a drive of an opening and closing driving mechanism. The automatic sliding door controller determines whether a request is a manual operating request or an automatic operating request on the basis of a signal from a press switch that is switched on by a press-on operation. In the case of the automatic operating request, the automatic sliding door controller is configured so that an automatic opening and closing determination process determines whether a request is an opening operating request or a closing operating request based on the detection of door state detection section, and an opening and closing process is then executed by operating the opening and closing driving mechanism based on the determination.

Claims

1. An opening and closing control apparatus for a door, comprising:

a door lever positioned on the door for manually opening or closing the door;

an operation output unit positioned at the door lever, the operation output unit outputting an operating signal responsive to a predetermined operation of the door lever different from an opening or closing operation on the door lever for manually opening or closing the door; and

a driving unit operable to open or close the door based on the operating signal.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the door lever is operable to perform a pull operation as the opening or closing operation;

and wherein the operation outputting unit is a switch operable to output the operating signal in response to a press-on operation, the press-on operation having an opposite direction of the pull operation of the door lever.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the operation outputting unit is a switch of the door lever.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a locking mechanism for the door switchable between a lock state and an unlock state; and

wherein the controller is further operable to detect whether the locking mechanism is in the lock state or the unlock state and to release the lock state when the locking mechanism is in the lock state and an automatic operating request is for an automatic opening operation.

5. The apparatus according to claim 4 wherein the controller is further operable to determine whether a previously registered portable instrument exists in a communication area and to prohibit release of the locking state when the previously registered portable instrument does not exist.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a locking mechanism for the door switchable between a lock state and an unlock state; and

wherein the controller is further operable to determine whether an automatic operating request is for an automatic closing operation to close the door only or the automatic operating request is an automatic closing operation to close the door and lock the door, and to lock the locking mechanism after a closure of the door when the automatic operating request is for the automatic closing operation to close the door and lock the door.

7. The apparatus according to claim 6 wherein the controller is further operable to determine if a previously registered portable instrument exists in a communication area and to prohibit locking by the locking mechanism when the portable instrument does not exist.

8. The apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising:

an informing unit responsive to the controller for announcing an execution of the closure of the door and the lock state of the locking mechanism when the automatic operating request is for the automatic closing operation to close the door and lock the door.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the controller is further operable to determine that a request is an automatic operating request when the operating signal is output and to determine that the automatic operating request is for an automatic opening operation when the door is in a fully-closed position when the operating signal is output.

10. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the controller is further operable to determine that a request is an automatic operating request when the operating signal is output and to determine that the automatic operating request is for an automatic closing operation when the door is in a fully-opened position when the operating signal is output.

11. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the controller is further operable to determine that the request is the automatic operating request when the operating signal is output and to determine that the automatic operating request is for the automatic opening operation when the door is between a fully-opened and a fully-closed position when the operating signal is output.

12. The apparatus of claim 11 wherein the controller is further operable to change from the automatic opening operation to an automatic closing operation when the operating signal is output during the automatic opening operation.

13. An opening and closing control apparatus for a door, comprising:

manual means, disposed at the door, for manually opening or closing the door;

operation outputting means positioned at the manual means for outputting an operating signal responsive to a predetermined operation of the manual means different from an opening or closing operation of the manual means for manually opening or closing the door; and

driving means for opening or closing the door based on the operating signal.

14. A door lever for a door of a vehicle body, comprising:

a pivotable attachment attaching the door lever to the door located at a first end of the door lever wherein a pivoting operation of the door handle indicates at least one of a manual opening and closing operation of the door; and

a signaling device for signaling at least one of an automatic opening and an automatic closing of the door by a different operation from the pivoting operation, the signaling device positioned proximate to the pivotable attachment or at an opposed end of the door lever.

15. A method for opening and closing a door of a vehicle body, comprising:

detecting an operation condition of a door lever for unlatching the door; and

determining whether the operation condition is a request for manual operation or for automatic operation.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

detecting an opening or closing position of the door;

determining whether an automatic opening operation or an automatic closing operation is desired when the operation condition is a request for automatic operation based on the opening or closing position of the door; and

opening or closing the door based on whether the automatic opening operation or the automatic closing operation is desired.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

detecting a position of a locking mechanism for the door between a locked position and an unlocked position; and

releasing the position of the locking mechanism from the locked position when the automatic opening operation is desired and the locking mechanism is locked.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

determining whether a previously registered portable instrument exists in a communication area; and

prohibiting the releasing step if the portable instrument does not exist in the communication area.

19. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

detecting a position of a locking mechanism for the door between a locked position and an unlocked position; and

determining whether the automatic closing operation includes a request for locking the door after the door is closed when the operation is a request for automatic operation and the automatic closing operation is desired.

20. The method of claim 15 wherein detecting the operation condition of the door comprises detecting a condition of a switch attached on the door lever.