Power fold mechanism for double arm mirrors

• US 20050243448A1
• Filed: 07/05/2005
• Published: 11/03/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 04/27/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Schefenacker Vision Systems USA Incorporated (The Sumi Motherson Group)
• Original Assignee: Schefenacker Vision Systems USA Incorporated (The Sumi Motherson Group)
• Inventors: Flynn, Daniel Joseph, Olijnyk, Mark
• Granted Patent: US 7,163,300 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 359/877
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 1/074 for retracting the mirror arrangements to a non-use position alongside the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 1/076 yieldable to excessive external force and provided with an indexed use position B60R1/0617, B60R1/074 take precedence

Abstract

An exterior rear vision mirror assembly (10) for a motor vehicle, the assembly (10) having a base (14) to be attached to the vehicle, at least one arm (15, 16) extending from the base (14) and a mirror head (11) mounted to the at least one arm (15, 16) and having a mirror (13), the mirror head (11) and arm (15, 16) is adapted to be rotated about an axis in the base (14), a power fold system having a motor assembly (24) in the at least one arm or each arm (15, 16) to drive the mirror (13) from a driving position to a foldaway position and from the foldaway position to the driving position and an override system including a clutch (64) is provided so that the mirror (13) can be manually moved to the foldaway position.

Claims

1. An exterior rear vision mirror assembly for a motor vehicle, the mirror assembly comprising:

a base to be attached to the vehicle, at least one arm extending from the base and a mirror head mounted to the at least one arm to be supported thereby and a mirror in the mirror head, the mirror head and said at least one arm adapted to be rotated about an axis in the base to a foldaway position, a power fold system having a motor assembly in said at least one arm to drive the mirror from a driving position to the foldaway position and from the foldaway position to the driving position and an override system whereby the mirror can be manually moved to the foldaway position.

2. An exterior rear vision mirror assembly as in claim 1 wherein the mirror head and said at least one arm is adapted to be moved manually or by impact from the driving position to a forward or rearward breakaway position and the power fold system is adapted to drive the mirror head and arms from the forward breakaway position to the driving position and from the rearward breakaway position or foldaway position to the driving position.

3. An exterior rear vision mirror assembly as in claim 1 wherein the override system includes a clutch system.

4. A power fold system for an exterior rear vision mirror for a motor vehicle, the mirror comprising:

a base in use to be attached to the vehicle, two arms extending from the base and a mirror head mounted to the two arms to be supported thereby, the mirror head and arms adapted to be rotated about a pivot axis in the base to a foldaway position, the power fold system including a motor assembly in each arm to drive the mirror from a driving position to the foldaway position and from the foldaway position to the driving position and an override system whereby the mirror can be manually moved to the foldaway position.

5. A power fold system for an exterior rear vision mirror as in claim 4 wherein each motor assembly includes an electric motor.

6. A power fold system for an exterior rear vision mirror as in claim 4 wherein each motor assembly is contained in a motor housing in the respective arm.

7. A power fold system for an exterior rear vision mirror as in claim 4 wherein each motor assembly has a through axle extending through the motor housing with the through axle being on the pivot axis of the mirror head and arms.

8. A power fold system for an exterior rear vision mirror as in claim 7 having upper and lower fixed mounts for attaching each motor assembly to the base by clamping each through axle outside the motor assembly to the base whereby the through axles are fixed with respect to the base.

9. A power fold system for an exterior rear vision mirror as in claim 4 wherein each motor assembly includes a clutch mechanism whereby manual movement of the mirror to the forward or rearward breakaway position causes disengagement of the clutch mechanism.

10. A power fold system for an exterior rear vision mirror as in claim 9 wherein each clutch mechanism is loaded by a spring arrangement.

11. A power fold system for an exterior rear vision mirror as in claim 10 wherein the spring arrangement is a negative spring rate disc spring.

12. A power fold system for an exterior rear vision mirror as in claim 11 wherein each clutch mechanism includes ramped dogs or detents bearing against corresponding ramped dogs or detents on a drive gear whereby the ramped dogs or detents enable the force generated as the detents are rotated against each other to overcome the load on the clutch provided by the spring arrangement to enable the clutch to disengage.

13. A power fold system for an exterior rear vision mirror as in claim 5 wherein each motor assembly is double worm drive electric motor in which the electric motor drives a motor worm gear which drives a drive worm gear which in turn drives the drive gear.

14. A power fold system for an exterior rear vision mirror as in claim 13 wherein ball bearing assemblies are provided to take axial and tangential loads on both the motor and drive worm gears.

15. A power fold system for an exterior rear vision mirror as in claim 12 wherein the detents on the clutch are circumferentially spaced apart from detents on the drive gear to give a delay angle upon rotational movement of the arm with respect to the mirror base whereby there is provided a delay in movement of the clutch until the respective detent on the clutch mechanism engages the corresponding detent on the drive gear.

16. A power fold system for an exterior rear vision mirror as in claim 15 wherein the delay angle is arranged so that the delay occurs when the mirror is moved manually from the driving position to a forward foldaway position.

17. A power fold system for an exterior rear vision mirror as in claim 15 wherein the delay angle is arranged so that there is no delay angle when the mirror is moved from the driving position to a rearward foldaway position whereby the clutch is caused to disengage immediately by inter-engagement of the detents on the clutch mechanism and drive gear.

18. A power fold system for an exterior rear vision mirror as in claim 15 wherein there are evenly spaced respective detents on the clutch mechanism and the drive gear.

19. A power fold system for an exterior rear vision mirror as in claim 15 wherein the clutch mechanism is fixed rotationally with respect to the mirror base but can move axially to disengage from the drive gear.

21. A power fold system for an exterior rear vision mirror as in claim 4 further including a spring loaded external detent bar in the base which is adapted to engage stops on the motor housing to limit movement at both a forward and a backward breakaway position.

22. A power fold system for an exterior rear vision mirror as in claim 21 further including a central stop for the spring loaded external detent bar for preventing movement from the driving position to the forward breakaway position.

23. A power fold system for an exterior rear vision mirror as in claim 21 further including a support arm on each axle which holds the detent bar off engagement with each motor housing.

24. A power fold system for an exterior rear vision mirror as in claim 21 wherein the detent bar includes a roller to assist with movement over a ramp on the motor housing between the forward stop position and the central stop.

25. A power fold system for an exterior rear vision mirror as in claim 21 further including a current sensing circuit for each motor whereby during operation when the detent bar reaches one of the stops on the motor housing electrical load increase is detected and the motor is shut off.

20. A power fold system for an exterior rear vision mirror as in claim 20 wherein the clutch mechanism is mounted on a spline arrangement on the through axle.