Power back door for vehicle

• US 20100007170A1
• Filed: 10/24/2007
• Published: 01/14/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/06/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Shatai Kabushiki Kaisha
• Original Assignee: Toyota Shatai Kabushiki Kaisha
• Inventors: Fukuda, Takayuki, Sugiyama, Kunihiko, Etou, Shinsuke, Fukui, Ryuji
• Granted Patent: US 7,837,252 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 296/146.400
• CPC Class Codes: B60J 5/101 for non-load transporting vehicles, i.e. family cars including vans
• CPC Class Codes: E05F 15/63 operated by swinging arms
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2201/11 Covers
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2800/422 against vibration or noise
• CPC Class Codes: E05Y 2900/546 Tailgates

Abstract

An opening, through which a connection section between a drive arm and a rod of a power back door enters and exits, is covered with cover members to improve external appearance, and interference between the connection section and the cover members is eliminated when the connection section passes through the opening to prevent abnormal noise and damage to the cover members during the passage of the connection section. A pair of cover members 6a and 6b are provided along right and left vertical edges of a vertically long opening 50 that is formed in a side edge defining a door opening 1, through which a connection section S between a drive arm 3 and a rod 4 of a power back door for automatically driving a back door 2 adapted to close and open the door opening 1 can enter and exit, such that lip-shaped end edges thereof face and contact each other. The cover members 6a and 6b are gradually expanded in width so that they have a greater width on the lower side thereof, and a contacting position is shifted downwardly and inwardly of the opening 50, thereby forming an entrance/exit opening 64 surrounded by lower edges of expanded sections of the cover members 6a and 6b, through which the connection section S enters and exits.

Claims

1. A power back door for a vehicle, in which a hatchback-type back door for opening and closing a door opening provided in a back surface of a vehicle body is automatically driven with a drive device, the power back door being connected to the drive device with a drive arm that is turned upwardly and downwardly by the drive device and a rod that is tiltably connected to an end of the drive arm, and when the door is opened and closed, a connection section between the drive arm and the rod entering and exiting from a vertically long opening formed in a side edge defining the door opening, wherein

a pair of cover members, each having a lip-shaped end edge, are provided along right and left vertical edges of the vertically long opening such that lip-shaped end edges of said cover members face and contact each other,

said cover members being gradually expanded in width so that they have a greater width on the lower side thereof, a contacting position of said end edges of said cover members shifts downwardly and inwardly of said vertically long opening, and

an entrance/exist opening through which the connection section enters and exits is formed with lower edges of expanded sections of said cover members.

2. A power back door for a vehicle, as claimed in claim 1, wherein

lower halves of said cover members are gradually expanded in width so that they have a greater width on the lower side thereof, and said entrance/exit opening is formed between said lower edges of said lower halves of said cover members and a lower edge of said vertically long opening.

3. A power back door for a vehicle, as claimed in claim 2, wherein

said cover members respectively have a base part that is attached along each of the right and side vertical edges of the vertically long opening to extend inwardly of the vertically long opening in parallel to each other, and a lip part that bends from an end edge of said base part and extends so as to face each other, thereby defining a generally L-shaped cross-section,

said base parts in said lower halves of said cover members gradually expanded in width toward said lower edges of said cover members, and

said entrance/exit opening width a generally rectangular configuration is formed between said lower edges of said cover members and said lower edge of said vertically long opening

4. A power back door for a vehicle, as claimed in one of claims 1 through 3, wherein

said cover members are composed of an elastic rubber material, and metal cores adapted to hold a configuration of said base parts are embedded in said base parts.