Vehicle door lock
First Claim
1. A vehicle door lock (1) releasably connectable to a striker (15) and comprising a fork (2) which rotates about a first axis (A) between a release position and at least one lock position engaging the striker (15), and a latch (3) which rotates about a second axis (B), is loaded elastically towards said fork (2), and has a catch portion (25) which clicks onto a tooth (11) of said fork (2) to releasably lock said fork (2) in said lock position;
- said fork (2) comprising a main body (6) made of rigid material, and an outer coating (7) made of relatively yielding material and having, adjacent to said tooth (11), an enclosed slot (33) defining a peripheral edge (34) which flexes inwards of said slot (33) when struck by said catch portion (25) of said latch (3) engaging said tooth (11) of said fork (2);
characterized in that said main body (6) comprises a recessed surface (14) adjacent to said tooth (11) having a generally U-shaped recess (36) at the root of said tooth (11), said recess (36) extending into said tooth (11);
wherein said enclosed slot (33) is disposed along said recessed surface (14) and extends at least partly into said recess (36) to allow said edge (34) to flex inwards of said enclosed slot (33) wherever said catch portion (25) of said latch (3) strikes said fork (2).
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A vehicle door lock (1) having a fork (2) which rotates about a first axis (A) between a release position and at least one lock position engaging a fixed striker (15), and a latch (3) which rotates about a second axis (B), is loaded elastically towards the fork (2), and has a catch portion (25) which clicks onto a tooth (11) of the fork (2) to lock the fork (2) releasably in the lock position. The fork (2) is defined by a main body (6) made of rigid material, and by an outer coating (7) made of relatively yielding material and having, adjacent to the tooth (11), a slot (33) defining a peripheral edge (34) which flexes inwards of the slot (33) when struck by the catch portion (25) of the latch (3) engaging the tooth (11) of the fork (2). The main body (6) has a recess (36) close to the root of the tooth (11); and the slot (33) is at least partly superimposed over the recess (36) to allow the peripheral edge (34) to flex inwards of the slot (33) wherever the catch portion (25) of the latch (3) strikes the fork (2).
26 Citations
7 Claims
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1. A vehicle door lock (1) releasably connectable to a striker (15) and comprising a fork (2) which rotates about a first axis (A) between a release position and at least one lock position engaging the striker (15), and a latch (3) which rotates about a second axis (B), is loaded elastically towards said fork (2), and has a catch portion (25) which clicks onto a tooth (11) of said fork (2) to releasably lock said fork (2) in said lock position;
- said fork (2) comprising a main body (6) made of rigid material, and an outer coating (7) made of relatively yielding material and having, adjacent to said tooth (11), an enclosed slot (33) defining a peripheral edge (34) which flexes inwards of said slot (33) when struck by said catch portion (25) of said latch (3) engaging said tooth (11) of said fork (2);
characterized in that said main body (6) comprises a recessed surface (14) adjacent to said tooth (11) having a generally U-shaped recess (36) at the root of said tooth (11), said recess (36) extending into said tooth (11);
wherein said enclosed slot (33) is disposed along said recessed surface (14) and extends at least partly into said recess (36) to allow said edge (34) to flex inwards of said enclosed slot (33) wherever said catch portion (25) of said latch (3) strikes said fork (2). - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5)
- said fork (2) comprising a main body (6) made of rigid material, and an outer coating (7) made of relatively yielding material and having, adjacent to said tooth (11), an enclosed slot (33) defining a peripheral edge (34) which flexes inwards of said slot (33) when struck by said catch portion (25) of said latch (3) engaging said tooth (11) of said fork (2);
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6. A vehicle door lock (1) releasably connectable to a striker (15) comprising:
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a fork (2) rotatably coupled to said door lock (1) for rotation about a first axis (A) between a release position and at least one lock position engaging the striker (15), said fork (2) including a main body (6) having a tooth (11) and a recessed surface (14), said tooth (11) defining a tooth face (20), said recessed surface (14) adjacent to said tooth (11) and including an undercut (36) at the root of said tooth (11) extending into said tooth (11) past said tooth face (20); a latch (3) rotatably coupled to said door lock (1) for rotation about a second axis (B), said latch (3) loaded elastically towards said fork (2), and including a catch portion (25) for engaging said tooth face (20) of said tooth (11) to releasably lock said fork (2) in said lock position; and wherein said fork (2) includes an outer coating (7) made of relatively yielding material, said outer coating (7) defining an enclosed slot (33) extending along said recessed surface (14) and at least partly into said undercut (36), said enclosed slot (33) having a peripheral edge (34), wherein said peripheral edge (34) flexes inwards of said enclosed slot (33) when struck by said catch portion (25) of said latch (3).
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7. A vehicle door lock (1) releasably connectable to a striker (15) comprising:
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a fork (2) rotatably coupled to said door lock (1) for rotation about a first axis (A) between a release position and at least one lock position engaging the striker (15), said fork (2) including a main body (6) having a first tooth (10) disposed between a second tooth (11) and a third tooth (12), said first tooth (10) and said third tooth (12) defining a seat (8) for receiving the striker (15), a first recessed surface (13) extending along said first tooth (10) adjacent said seat (8), a second recessed surface (14) extending along said first tooth (10) adjacent said second tooth (11), said second recessed surface (14) including an undercut (36) at the root of said second tooth (11) extending into said second tooth (11) past a tooth face (20); a latch (3) rotatably coupled to said door lock (1) for rotation about a second axis (B), said latch (3) loaded elastically towards said fork (2), and including a catch portion (25) for engaging said tooth face (20) of said second tooth (11) to releasably lock said fork (2) in said lock position; and wherein said fork (2) includes an outer coating (7) made of relatively yielding material, said outer coating (7) defining an enclosed slot (33) extending along said recessed surface (14) and including an end portion (37) contained inside said undercut (36), said enclosed slot (33) having a peripheral edge (34), wherein said peripheral edge (34) flexes inwards of said enclosed slot (33) when struck by said catch portion (25) of said latch (3).
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Specification