VEHICLE VENT VALVE ASSEMBLY
First Claim
1. An apparatus which prevents objectionable increases in air pressure in a passenger compartment of a vehicle upon closing of a door of the vehicle, said apparatus comprising:
- a vent valve which is movable between a closed condition blocking air flow through a vent opening and an open condition enabling air to flow through the vent opening;
a door position sensor assembly which is operable from a first condition to a second condition in response to movement of the door of the vehicle from a closed position to an open position, said door position sensor assembly being operable from the second condition to the first condition in response to movement of the door of the vehicle from the open position to the closed position; and
an actuator assembly which is connected with said door position sensor assembly and said vent valve, said actuator assembly being operable to operate said vent valve from the closed condition to the open condition upon operation of said door position sensor assembly from the first condition to the second condition, said actuator assembly being operable to release said vent valve for movement from the open condition to the closed condition upon operation of said door position sensor assembly from the second condition to the first condition.
4 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A vehicle vent valve assembly (30) is provided to prevent excessive air pressure in a passenger compartment (52) of a vehicle (36). The vent valve assembly (30) includes a vent valve (32) which is movable between a closed condition blocking fluid (air) flow from a passenger compartment of the vehicle and an open condition. An actuator assembly (34) is provided to operate the vent valve (32) from the closed condition to the open condition. The vent valve (32) is urged toward the closed condition by a closing spring (112). A damper (132) is connected with the vent valve (32) to delay closing of the vent valve. A force transmitting member (64) in the actuator assembly (34) is connected with the vent valve (32) by a slide connection (94) that enables relative movement to occur between the vent valve and the force transmitting member.
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Citations
45 Claims
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1. An apparatus which prevents objectionable increases in air pressure in a passenger compartment of a vehicle upon closing of a door of the vehicle, said apparatus comprising:
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a vent valve which is movable between a closed condition blocking air flow through a vent opening and an open condition enabling air to flow through the vent opening; a door position sensor assembly which is operable from a first condition to a second condition in response to movement of the door of the vehicle from a closed position to an open position, said door position sensor assembly being operable from the second condition to the first condition in response to movement of the door of the vehicle from the open position to the closed position; and an actuator assembly which is connected with said door position sensor assembly and said vent valve, said actuator assembly being operable to operate said vent valve from the closed condition to the open condition upon operation of said door position sensor assembly from the first condition to the second condition, said actuator assembly being operable to release said vent valve for movement from the open condition to the closed condition upon operation of said door position sensor assembly from the second condition to the first condition. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23)
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24. An apparatus which prevents objectionable increases in air pressure in a passenger compartment of a vehicle upon closing of a door of the vehicle, said apparatus comprising:
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a vent valve which is movable between a closed condition blocking air flow through a vent opening and an open condition enabling air to flow through the vent opening; and a damper which delays movement of said vent valve from the open condition to the closed condition for a period of time sufficient to enable air to be conducted from the passenger compartment of the vehicle after the vehicle door has closed. - View Dependent Claims (25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45)
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Specification