Anisotropic weatherstrip

• US 6,968,649 B2
• Filed: 12/29/2000
• Issued: 11/29/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 01/18/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Laird Holdings Ltd. (Laird Limited)
• Original Assignee: Laird Holdings Ltd. (Laird Limited)
• Inventors: Van Den Oord, Henricus
• Primary Examiner(s): Strimbu, Gregory J.
• Application Number:
  US10/169,888
• Publication Number:
  US 20030150168A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,796 Days
• Field of Search: 494/751, 494/771, 494/901, 494/981
• US Class Current: 49/498.1
• CPC Class Codes: B60J 10/16 consisting of two or more plastic materials having different physical or chemical properties B60J10/17 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B60J 10/17 provided with a low-friction material on the surface
• CPC Class Codes: B60J 10/248 having two or more tubular cavities, e.g. formed by partition walls
• CPC Class Codes: B60J 10/32 using integral U-shaped retainers
• CPC Class Codes: B60J 10/84 arranged on the vehicle body

Abstract

A sealing arrangement comprising a channel-shaped mounting portion which includes a support member supporting a seal portion. A covering covers the seal portion and a portion of both the mounting portion and the support member. The support member includes a metal reinforcement for preventing wrinkling of the seal portion at bends of the sealing arrangement. The sealing arrangement further includes an anisotropic web made of a textile or similar material which connects the mounting portion to the support member to counteract the forces of gravity on the seal portion. The web is more stretchable in a longitudinal direction of the web than in a lateral direction of the web.

Claims

1. In combination, a frame defining a closable opening and a longitudinally extending sealing arrangement for disposal between a closure member for the opening and the frame, the sealing arrangement comprising

a longitudinal mounting portion mounting the sealing arrangement on the frame,

a longitudinally extending hollow tubular sealing portion of flexible resilient material defining an interior volume,

a longitudinally extending flexible support material extending alongside the mounting portion and attached to a linear first region of the mounting portion which extends along the length of the mounting portion, the flexible support material extending generally transversely to said region,

the flexible support material being attached to the sealing portion exteriorly to the interior volume of the sealing portion so that the sealing portion is carried by and alongside the mounting portion and is adapted to run along at least part of the frame and to be sealingly compressed by the closure member for the opening as the closure member closes the opening,

the flexible support material extending angularly and upwardly away from the mounting portion along at least a portion of a length of the frame,

said flexible support material being flexible to allow the sealing portion to move angularly towards the mounting portion in response to the sealing compression of the sealing portion by the closure member, and

a connecting member made of a fabric web and extending along the length of the sealing arrangement,

the connecting member being mounted on the mounting portion along a linear second region of the mounting portion which is substantially parallel to and spaced from said first region,

the connecting member extending from said second region thru a gap defined between said mounting portion and said sealing portion and mounted on the sealing portion at a location on the sealing portion exteriorly of said internal volume to interconnect the sealing portion and the mounting portion,

the fabric web of the connecting member comprising an anisotropic material which is relatively stretchable in the longitudinal direction of the sealing arrangement, said anisotropic material being resistant to widthwise stretching in a direction generally transverse to the longitudinal direction of the sealing arrangement, whereby the fabric web limits an extent of angular movement of the sealing portion away from the mounting portion in response to gravitational forces acting on said sealing portion along said part of the frame, to hold the sealing portion in a desired attitude prior to its compression by the closure member.

2. The combination according to claim 1, wherein the flexible support material is flexibly supported by the mounting portion, the sealing portion being attached to the flexible support material so as to be presented thereby to the closure member, said connecting member extending between the flexible support material and the mounting portion.

3. The combination according to claim 2, wherein the mounting portion is channel-shaped for embracingly gripping the frame, the connecting member extending from an outside of one channel side wall of the mounting portion.

4. The combination according to claim 2, wherein the flexible support material comprises a resilient material which is embedded a reinforcement.

5. The combination according to claim 2, where in the sealing portion has an outer covering, the covering extending over the sealing portion and partially over the flexible support material, for at least partially securing hte sealing protion to the flexible support material.

6. The combination according to claim 1, wherein the mounting portion is channel-shaped for embracingly gripping the frame.

7. The combination according to claim 1, wherein the mounting portion comprises a flexible resilient material.

8. The combination according to claim 7, wherein the flexible resilient material is a plastics material.

9. The combination according to claim 7, wherein the flexible resilient material is a rubber material.

10. The combination according to claim 1, further comprising a reinforcing resilient carrier embedded in the mounting portion.

11. The combination according to claim 1, wherein at least the sealing portion substantially comprises a thermoplastic elastomer material.

12. The combination according to claim 11, wherein the sealing portion has an outer covering.

13. The combination according to claim 12, wherein the sealing portion comprises a flexible open-cellular thermoplastic elastomer material and the covering comprises a closed-cellular material.

14. In combination, a frame defining a closable opening in a motor vehicle body and a sealing arrangement for sealing around the opening, said opening being closable by a closure member, said frame having a part extending non-vertically with respect to the motor vehicle body, the sealing arrangement comprising

a mounting portion made of a flexible and resilient material embracingly gripping the frame and defining a channel, the channel of the mounting portion having a base and first and second side walls defining a mouth of the channel, the mouth of the channel facing away from the opening defined by the frame,

a resilient and flexible seal extending longitudinally along the sealing arrangement and made of a resilient material,

an anisotropic fabric web strip,

a flexible support member extending longitudinally along the sealing arrangement and projecting from the base of the channel of the mounting portion and inclining outwardly away from an outside of said first side wall of the channel, the flexible support member defining a first surface facing away from the mounting portion and a second surface facing the outside of said first side wall of the channel, the seal being mounted on said first surface and thereby supported by the flexible support member to be movable angularly towards and away from the mounting portion by flexing of the support member and so as to be sealingly compressed towards the mounting portion by the closure member as the closure member closes the opening, and

a covering extending from an outside of the mounting portion over an outside of the seal and extending partially over the support member on said second surface thereof but being clear of said first side wall,

the web strip interconnecting the outside of the first side wall at a position displaced from the base of the channel of the mounting portion with the second surface of the support member, the strip extending along the length of the sealing arrangement and being longitudinally stretchable, the strip being more resistant to width-wise stretching, in a direction perpendicular to its length than to stretching in said direction parallel to its length so as to limit an extent of the angular movement of the seal away from the mounting portion as the support member flexes in response to gravitational forces acting on said seal along said part of the frame to hold the seal in a desired attitude prior to its sealing compression by the closure member, the strip being readily compressible in the direction perpendicular to its length so as to provide substantially no resistance to movement of the seal towards the mounting portion in response to the sealing compression of the seal by the closure member.

15. The combination according to claim 14, wherein the seal is of hollow tubular form.

16. The combination according to claim 15, wherein the resilient material of the seal comprises an open-cellular thermoplastic elastomer material and the covering comprises a closed-cellular material.

17. The combination according to claim 14, wherein the material of the mounting portion has embedded within it a resilient channel-shape reinforcing carrier.

18. The combination according to claim 14, wherein an inner face of at least one of the side walls of the channel includes an integral lip extending into the channel and along the length of the sealing arrangement for frictionally contacting the frame.

19. The combination according to claim 14, wherein the support member incorporates a reinforcing material which is compressible in a longitudinal direction of the support member than in a lateral direction of the support member.

20. The combination according to claim 14, wherein the mounting portion is made of a plastics material.

21. The combination according to claim 14, wherein the mounting portion is made of a rubber material.

22. The combination according to claim 14, wherein the mounting portion is made of a thermoplastic elastomer material.