Electric remote control back-mirror assembly

• US 4,572,626 A
• Filed: 12/05/1983
• Issued: 02/25/1986
• Est. Priority Date: 12/05/1983
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Tokai RIKA Denki Seisakusho
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Tokai RIKA Denki Seisakusho
• Inventors: Suzuki, Masaru
• Primary Examiner(s): NOT, DEFINED
• Application Number:
  US06/558,177
• Time in Patent Office: 813 Days
• Field of Search: 350/634, 350/633, 350/636, 350/637, 403/115, 403/114, 248/487
• US Class Current: 359/874
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 1/072 for adjusting the mirror relative to its housing
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 7/1827 Motorised alignment
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 403/32573 Ball stud passes through confining opening

Abstract

A back-mirror angle adjustment assembly, wherein a mirror holder is so held by a spherical bearing as to be freely inclined, the heads of screw rods are connected to each of the two connecting portions which are crossed at right angles with respect to an inclination center at the back face of the mirror holder, and which drives the mirror holder to be inclined by way of pushing and pulling the screw rods, and both the rooms and openings of the connecting rods are formed in a rectangular shape along a radial direction centering the spherical bearing, while the heads of the screw rods in square are inserted within the rooms so as to be maintained unrotatably and at the same time movably in relation to the mirror holder.

Claims

1. An electric remote control back-mirror assembly which comprises, in combination:

a mirror unit including a mirror holder and a mirror supported by the mirror holder;

a spherical mounting member for clamping the mirror holder thereon for pivotal movement around horizontal and vertical axes;

a support member for carrying the spherical mounting member;

a pair of sockets provided on the mirror holder in spaced relation to the spherical mounting member and spaced a predetermined angle from each other with respect to the spherical mounting member;

a pair of rod members mounted at one end in the respective sockets against rotational and axial displacement relative to the mirror holder, said rod members protruding from the mirror holder;

a pair of drive members rotatably supported by said support member in driving engagement with respective end portions of the rod members; and

an electric drive means for selectively rotating the drive members to pivotally adjust the mirror unit about the spherical mounting member to adjust the angularity of the mirror unit with respect to the horizontal and vertical axes,

each of said rod members being capable of movement relative to the mirror holder along a line to be connected between the spherical mounting member and the respective socket.

2. The electric remote control back-mirror assembly as defined in claim 1, wherein each of said rod members include a head formed on said one end thereof and where each of said sockets has a room for receiving the head of the respective rod member therein, the room and the head being formed so as to enable the displacement of each head along a line to be connected between the spherical mounting member and the respective socket, even though the rotation of each rod member around its axis and the movement of each rod member relative to the mirror holder is restricted.

3. The electric remote control back-mirror assembly as defined in claim 2, wherein said room is formed in a rectangular shape having a long and a short side, with the long side arranged parallel to a line to be connected between the spherical mounting member and each socket, while the head of each rod member is of a square shape with each side thereof being slightly smaller than the short side of the respective room.

4. The electric remote control back-mirror assembly as defined in claim 2, wherein the head of each rod member forms a curved surface to provide smooth contact with the room surface of said socket.

5. The electric remote control back-mirror assembly as defined in claim 4, wherein said curved surface of each of the heads has a radius approximately equal to the average distance between the center of the spherical mounting member and the head of the respective rod member.