Wiper blade having cover member

• US 7,636,980 B2
• Filed: 09/20/2005
• Issued: 12/29/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: ASMO Company Limited (DENSO Corporation)
• Inventors: Nakano, Hiroyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Graham; Gary K
• Application Number:
  US11/229,605
• Publication Number:
  US 20060064841A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,561 Days
• Field of Search: 152/504.3, 152/503.2, 152/504.4, 152/504.6, 152/503.1, 152/502.01, 152/503.61
• US Class Current: 15/250.201
• CPC Class Codes: B60S 1/3806 Means, or measures taken, for influencing the aerodynamic quality of the wiper blades

Abstract

A wiper blade includes a wiper strip, a lever assembly and a cover member. The lever assembly has a connecting arrangement and holding claws. The connecting arrangement is connected to a wiper arm. The holding claws hold the wiper strip. The cover member has a cover opening, which is opened on a wiper strip side thereof. The cover member receives the lever assembly through the cover opening. In an interior space between the cover member and the wiper strip, holder end side openings, each of which is a part of the cover opening, are covered by two connecting arrangement end side cover parts. In this way, in the interior space between the cover member and the wiper strip, spaces, into which fluid intrudes, are reduced.

Claims

1. A wiper blade comprising:

an elongated wiper strip that wipes a wiping surface of a vehicle;

a lever member that includes;

a connecting arrangement that is connected to a wiper arm of the vehicle; and

at least one holding part that holds the wiper strip;

a cover member that includes;

a cover opening, which is opened on a wiper strip side of the cover member, wherein the cover member receives at least a portion of the lever member through the cover opening; and

a connecting arrangement receiving part, which receives the connecting arrangement; and

a flow regulating means that is arranged in an interior space between the cover member and the wiper strip, wherein

the flow regulating means is for limiting a flow of fluid in a longitudinal direction of the wiper strip in the interior space,

the flow regulating means includes two connecting arrangement end side cover parts that cover at least a portion of wiper strip side openings of the interior space, which are opened on a wiper strip side of the interior space at longitudinal ends of the connecting arrangement receiving part, and

the flow regulating means further includes two partition walls, which are arranged at the longitudinal ends of the connecting arrangement receiving part and extend transversely to the longitudinal direction of the wiper strip to partition the interior space.

2. The wiper blade according to claim 1, wherein:

the wiper strip has a top surface that is opposed to the cover opening of the cover member; and

the interior space is formed between the top surface of the wiper strip and an interior of the cover member and extends in the longitudinal direction of the wiper strip.

3. The wiper blade according to claim 1, wherein the flow regulating means further includes at least one cover part connector, which is formed integrally with the two connecting arrangement end side cover parts and which connects the two connecting arrangement end side cover parts.

4. The wiper blade according to claim 1, wherein:

the cover member includes a vehicle front side lateral wall and a vehicle rear side lateral wall, which form the cover opening; and

a height of the vehicle rear side lateral wall, which is measured from a contact surface of the wiper strip, which is adapted to contact the wiping surface, to the vehicle rear side lateral wall, is greater than a height of the vehicle front side lateral wall, which is measured from the contact surface of the wiper strip to the vehicle front side lateral wall.

5. The wiper blade according to claim 4, wherein:

the flow regulating means further includes a vehicle front side lateral wall and a vehicle rear side lateral wall, which are formed separately from and correspond to the vehicle front side lateral wall and the vehicle rear side lateral wall, respectively, of the cover member; and

a height of the vehicle rear side lateral wall of the flow regulating means, which is measured from the contact surface of the wiper strip to the vehicle rear side lateral wall of the flow regulating means, is greater than a height of the vehicle front side lateral wall of the flow regulating means, which is measured from the contact surface of the wiper strip to the vehicle front side lateral wall of the flow regulating means.

6. The wiper blade according to 4, wherein a space between a vehicle front side lateral surface of the wiper strip and an opposed vehicle front side opening edge of the cover opening is smaller than a space between a vehicle rear side lateral surface of the wiper strip and an opposed vehicle rear side opening edge of the cover opening.

7. The wiper blade according to claim 6, wherein:

the flow regulating means further includes a vehicle front side lateral wall and a vehicle rear side lateral wall, which are formed separately from and correspond to the vehicle front side lateral wall and the vehicle rear side lateral wall, respectively, of the cover member; and

a space between a vehicle front side lateral surface of the wiper strip and an opposed edge of the vehicle front side lateral wall of the flow regulating means is smaller than a space between a vehicle rear side lateral surface of the wiper strip and an opposed edge of the vehicle rear side lateral wall of the flow regulating means.

8. The wiper blade according to claim 1, wherein the flow regulating means further includes a structure, in which a transverse center of the wiper strip is deviated from a transverse center of the cover member on a vehicle front side in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the wiper strip.

9. A wiper blade comprising:

a wiper strip that wipes a wiping surface of a vehicle;

a lever member that includes;

a connecting arrangement that is connected to a wiper arm of the vehicle; and

at least one holding part that holds the wiper strip;

a cover member that includes a cover opening, which is opened on a wiper strip side of the cover member, wherein the cover member receives at least a portion of the lever member through the cover opening; and

a flow regulating means that is arranged in an interior space between the cover member and the wiper strip, wherein;

the flow regulating means is for limiting a flow of fluid in a longitudinal direction of the wiper strip in the interior space;

the cover member includes a vehicle front side lateral wall and a vehicle rear side lateral wall, which form the cover opening;

a height of the vehicle rear side lateral wall, which is measured from the wiping surface to the vehicle rear side lateral wall, is greater than a height of the vehicle front side lateral wall, which is measured from the wiping surface to the vehicle front side lateral wall;

the flow regulating means includes a vehicle front side lateral wall and a vehicle rear side lateral wall, which are formed separately from and correspond to the vehicle front side lateral wall and the vehicle rear side lateral wall, respectively, of the cover member; and

a height of the vehicle rear side lateral wall of the flow regulating means, which is measured from the wiping surface to the vehicle rear side lateral wall of the flow regulating means, is greater than a height of the vehicle front side lateral wall of the flow regulating means, which is measured from the wiping surface to the vehicle front side lateral wall of the flow regulating means.

10. A wiper blade comprising:

a wiper strip that wipes a wiping surface of a vehicle;

a lever member that includes;

a connecting arrangement that is connected to a wiper arm of the vehicle; and

at least one holding part that holds the wiper strip;

a cover member that includes a cover opening, which is opened on a wiper strip side of the cover member, wherein the cover member receives at least a portion of the lever member through the cover opening; and

a flow regulating means that is arranged in an interior space between the cover member and the wiper strip, wherein;

the flow regulating means is for limiting a flow of fluid in a longitudinal direction of the wiper strip in the interior space;

the cover member includes a vehicle front side lateral wall and a vehicle rear side lateral wall, which form the cover opening;

a height of the vehicle rear side lateral wall, which is measured from the wiping surface to the vehicle rear side lateral wall, is greater than a height of the vehicle front side lateral wall, which is measured from the wiping surface to the vehicle front side lateral wall;

a space between a vehicle front side lateral surface of the wiper strip and an opposed vehicle front side opening edge of the cover opening is smaller than a space between a vehicle rear side lateral surface of the wiper strip and an opposed vehicle rear side opening edge of the cover opening;

the flow regulating means includes a vehicle front side lateral wall and a vehicle rear side lateral wall, which are formed separately from and correspond to the vehicle front side lateral wall and the vehicle rear side lateral wall, respectively, of the cover member; and

a space between a vehicle front side lateral surface of the wiper strip and an opposed edge of the vehicle front side lateral wall of the flow regulating means is smaller than a space between a vehicle rear side lateral surface of the wiper strip and an opposed edge of the vehicle rear side lateral wall of the flow regulating means.