Rearview assembly having an integral crush zone
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A rearview assembly comprising:
- a rearview element having a front surface and a rear surface;
a crush bracket connected to the rear surface of the rearview element, the crush bracket including a support panel directly connected to the rear surface of the rearview element and at least two legs extending from the support panel in a direction opposite to the rearview element; and
a mount interconnected to the at least two legs of the crush bracket;
the at least two legs being configured to collapse in a direction between the rear surface of the rearview element and the mount as a striking force strikes the front surface of the rearview element.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A rearview assembly comprising a rearview element, a rearview element support assembly supporting the rearview element and a mount adjacent the housing. The mount is configured to connect the rearview assembly to a windshield. At least one of the rearview element support assembly and the mount comprises a crush bracket having at least two legs adapted to be compressed as a force strikes a front of the rearview element. The crush bracket can include at least one tab contacting a heat emitting component and/or an electrically conductive component of a circuit to provide a heat sink for the heat emitting component or a ground for the electrically conductive component, respectively.
125 Citations
92 Claims
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1. A rearview assembly comprising:
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a rearview element having a front surface and a rear surface; a crush bracket connected to the rear surface of the rearview element, the crush bracket including a support panel directly connected to the rear surface of the rearview element and at least two legs extending from the support panel in a direction opposite to the rearview element; and a mount interconnected to the at least two legs of the crush bracket; the at least two legs being configured to collapse in a direction between the rear surface of the rearview element and the mount as a striking force strikes the front surface of the rearview element. - 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, 24, 25)
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26. A rearview assembly comprising:
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a rearview element having a front surface and a rear surface, the rearview element having a portion of a circuit provided directly on the rear surface; a crush bracket connected to the rear surface of the rearview element, the crush bracket including at least two legs; and a mount interconnected to the at least two legs of the crush bracket; the at least two legs being configured to collapse in a direction between the rear surface of the rearview element and the mount as a striking force strikes the front surface of the rearview element. - View Dependent Claims (27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46)
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47. A rearview assembly comprising:
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a rearview element having a front surface and a rear surface; a support plate supporting the rearview element; a crush bracket connected to the support plate, the crush bracket including a support panel connected to the support plate and at least two legs extending from the support panel; and a mount interconnected to the at least two legs of the crush bracket; the at least two legs being configured to collapse in a direction between the rear surface of the rearview element and the mount as a striking force strikes the front surface of the rearview element. - View Dependent Claims (48, 49, 50, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67)
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51. The rearview assembly of clam 47, further including:
a printed circuit board connected to the support plate.
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68. A rearview assembly comprising:
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a rearview element; a housing having the rearview element therein; an electrical circuit in the housing, the electrical circuit including a heat emitting component; and a crush bracket interconnected to the rearview element, the crush bracket including at least a portion thereof contacting the heat emitting component to provide a heat sink for the heat emitting component; wherein the crush bracket is connected to a rear surface of the rearview element and the crush bracket includes at least two legs; and further including a mount interconnected to the at least two legs of the crush bracket; wherein the at least two legs are configured to collapse in a direction between the rear surface of the rearview element and the mount as a striking force strikes the front surface of the rearview element. - View Dependent Claims (69)
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70. A rearview assembly comprising:
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a rearview element; a rearview element housing having the rearview element therein; an electrical circuit in the rearview element housing, the electrical circuit including an electrically conductive component; and a crush bracket interconnected to the rearview element, the crush bracket including at least a portion thereof contacting the electrically conductive component to provide a ground for the electrically conductive component; wherein the crush bracket is connected to a rear surface of the rearview element and the crush bracket includes at least two legs; and further including a mount interconnected to the at least two legs of the crush bracket; wherein the at least two legs are configured to collapse in a direction between the rear surface of the rearview element and the mount as a striking force strikes the front surface of the rearview element. - View Dependent Claims (71)
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72. A rearview assembly for a vehicle comprising:
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a rearview element having a reflective surface; a rearview element housing having at least a portion of the rearview element therein; and a mount for connecting the rearview element and the rearview element housing to a windshield of the vehicle; wherein a portion of the rearview assembly non-elastically compresses at least 1.0 mm without breaking the rearview element as the reflective surface of the rearview element is subjected to a force no greater than 400 N (90 pounds) in any direction that is not more than 45°
from a forward longitudinal direction of motion of the vehicle. - View Dependent Claims (73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 92)
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Specification