Vehicle door handle and powered latch system
First Claim
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1. A vehicle door, comprising:
- a door structure having an interior surface;
a powered latch mechanism that can be actuated to shift from a latched configuration to an unlatched configuration;
an interior door handle disposed on the door structure, the handle having first and second ends attached to the interior surface and an elongated graspable portion that is spaced apart from the interior surface to define a gap, the graspable portion having an inner tubular structure, an outer cover and an intermediate space between them;
the graspable portion defines a first side that generally faces the interior surface and a second side that generally faces away from the interior surface;
a controller;
first sensors mounted on one outer side of the inner tubular structure on the first side of the graspable portion that are configured to detect the presence of a user'"'"'s hand to generate a first input to the controller;
second sensors mounted on an opposite outer side of the inner tubular structure on the second side of the graspable portion that are configured to detect the presence of a user'"'"'s hand to generate a second input to the controller;
an unlatch switch on one of the ends of the handle that can be actuated to generate a third input to the controller; and
wherein;
the controller is operably connected to the powered latch mechanism, the first sensors, the second sensors, and the unlatch switch, and wherein the controller does not cause the powered latch mechanism to unlatch by shifting from the latched configuration to the unlatched configuration unless the unlatch switch is actuated to generate the third input to the controller and the first and second sensors simultaneously generate the first and second inputs to the controller to detect the presence of the user'"'"'s hand.
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Abstract
A vehicle door includes a powered latch mechanism and an interior door handle having first and second sensors disposed on opposite sides of the interior door handle. The first and second sensors are configured to detect the presence of a user'"'"'s hand to control operation of the powered latch mechanism. The powered latch may be unlatched if an unlatch switch is actuated and the first and second sensors detect the presence of a user'"'"'s hand.
115 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A vehicle door, comprising:
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a door structure having an interior surface; a powered latch mechanism that can be actuated to shift from a latched configuration to an unlatched configuration; an interior door handle disposed on the door structure, the handle having first and second ends attached to the interior surface and an elongated graspable portion that is spaced apart from the interior surface to define a gap, the graspable portion having an inner tubular structure, an outer cover and an intermediate space between them;
the graspable portion defines a first side that generally faces the interior surface and a second side that generally faces away from the interior surface;a controller; first sensors mounted on one outer side of the inner tubular structure on the first side of the graspable portion that are configured to detect the presence of a user'"'"'s hand to generate a first input to the controller; second sensors mounted on an opposite outer side of the inner tubular structure on the second side of the graspable portion that are configured to detect the presence of a user'"'"'s hand to generate a second input to the controller; an unlatch switch on one of the ends of the handle that can be actuated to generate a third input to the controller; and
wherein;the controller is operably connected to the powered latch mechanism, the first sensors, the second sensors, and the unlatch switch, and wherein the controller does not cause the powered latch mechanism to unlatch by shifting from the latched configuration to the unlatched configuration unless the unlatch switch is actuated to generate the third input to the controller and the first and second sensors simultaneously generate the first and second inputs to the controller to detect the presence of the user'"'"'s hand. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 14, 15, 16)
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11. A vehicle door, comprising;
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a door structure; an interior handle having an inner tubular structure, a cover, and a space between them; capacitive sensors disposed on opposite sides of the tubular structure and an unlatch switch at an end thereof; a powered latch; and a controller that unlatches the powered latch if the capacitive sensors simultaneously detect a hand and the switch is actuated within a predefined time interval of the sensors detecting a hand. - View Dependent Claims (13, 17)
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18. A method of controlling a powered door latch of a vehicle, the method comprising;
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providing a door having an interior handle including an inner tubular structure, a cover, and a space between them, the door structure further including a powered latch configured to selectively retain the door in a closed position; providing sensors on opposite sides of the tubular structure of the interior handle; and unlatching the powered latch only if a user manually actuates an unlatch switch and the sensors on opposite sides of the tubular structure of the handle simultaneously detect a user'"'"'s hand. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20)
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Specification