Motor vehicle lock, in particular motor vehicle door lock

Abstract

The invention relates to a motor vehicle lock, in particular a motor vehicle door lock, equipped with a locking mechanism (1, 2) consisting essentially of a latch (1) and a pawl (2) as locking mechanism parts (1, 2). Furthermore, a locking element (3) is provided, which is arranged in the engagement region between the two locking mechanism parts (1, 2) and is pivotably mounted on the rotary latch (1) or pawl (2), mostly in the plane (E) of the locking mechanism spanned by the two locking mechanism parts (1, 2). Furthermore, at least one guide element (4) is provided for additionally axially and / or radially guiding the locking element (3). According to the invention, the guide element (4) is designed to overlap the retaining plate of the locking element (3) in the lateral direction and to be oriented substantially parallel to the plane (E) of the locking mechanism.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a motor vehicle lock, in particular a motor vehicle door lock, which has a locking mechanism, which is mainly composed of a rotary lock fork and a lock claw as locking mechanism components, and also has a locking element, which is arranged in the joining area between the two locking mechanism components and can be pivotally mounted on the rotary lock fork or the lock claw and is mostly in the plane of the locking mechanism spanned by the two locking mechanism components, and has at least one guide element for additional axial and / or radial guidance of the locking element. Background Art

[0002] A motor vehicle lock is a lock in or on a motor vehicle, such as a motor vehicle door lock, and also includes a motor vehicle hood lock, a motor vehicle tailgate lock, a motor vehicle fuel tank lock, a seat locking mechanism lock, a charging port locking mechanism, etc. Due to the acoustic optimization carried out in and on motor vehicles over the years, the noise performance requirements for motor vehicle locks are getting higher and higher. At the same time, the focus is on improving comfort. The engagement area between the rotary lock fork and the lock claw as two locking mechanism components has a decisive influence on the acoustics, tactile feel and comfort during operation. In principle, a rotary lock fork and a pivotable locking element opposite to the lock claw can also be used. In this case, a rolling locking mechanism is considered, which involves the engagement area between the rolling locking element and the lock claw or the engagement area between the lock claw and the rotary lock fork or these two engagement areas.

[0003] In the general prior art according to WO 2020 / 083435 A1, the locking element is provided with a guide extension protruding relative to the plane of the locking mechanism in order to provide additional axial and / or radial guidance for the locking element. This prevents any tilting of the locking element.

[0004] In the comparable prior art example according to FR 2 472 651 A1, the guide element is implemented in the form of a spring. However, such a guide element can change the guidance conditions under certain circumstances and cannot guarantee precise axial and / or radial guidance of the locking element in all circumstances and over the entire service life of the motor vehicle lock.

[0005] The first-mentioned general prior art according to WO 2020 / 083435 A1 has basically proven to be feasible. However, the guide extension is usually formed in one piece with the locking element, for example as a relief pattern. In some cases, this leads to increased production costs. The present invention aims to solve this problem. Summary of the invention

[0006] The invention is based on the technical problem of further developing such a motor vehicle lock, in particular a motor vehicle door lock, in such a way that the production costs are reduced while achieving an additional axial and / or radial guidance of the locking element by means of the guide element.

[0007] To solve this technical problem, in a general motor vehicle lock, in particular a motor vehicle door lock, the present invention proposes that the guide element is designed to overlap with the retaining plate of the locking element in the lateral direction and is oriented approximately parallel to the plane of the locking mechanism.

[0008] In the context of the present invention, firstly, the guide element is designed to be independent and separate from the locking element, so that, contrary to the general prior art according to WO 2020 / 083435 A1, it is no longer an integral part of the guide element. Instead, the guide element and the retaining plate are designed to be separate from each other and are therefore manufactured independently of each other.

[0009] At the same time, as before and unchanged, the retaining plate ensures satisfactory axial and / or radial guidance of the locking element. This is because the retaining plate extends approximately parallel to the locking mechanism plane and is therefore mainly arranged in a plane parallel to the locking plane. This plane can be located above or below the locking mechanism plane spanned by the two locking mechanism components. Therefore, the retaining plate can overlap the locking element laterally. This lateral overlap of the locking element by the retaining plate means that the locking element can be axially and / or radially guided as desired and any tilting of the locking element is avoided - as in the general prior art according to WO 2020 / 083435 A1. Therefore, with the motor vehicle lock of the present invention, a particularly low-force and almost silent operation or corresponding actuation of the locking mechanism can still be achieved and remain unchanged.

[0010] According to an advantageous embodiment, the retaining plate is designed as a rotatably mounted retaining plate lever. That is, the retaining plate lever is mounted so as to be rotatable about an axis of rotation. It has proven to be particularly useful if the axis of rotation of the retaining plate lever coincides with the axis of rotation of the associated locking mechanism component. The production of the motor vehicle lock according to the invention is therefore particularly simple and straightforward.

[0011] This is because the general approach is to rotatably mount the retaining plate rod on the bearing pin of the rotary catch. This means that the bearing pin, which is implemented and provided for the rotary catch in any case, simultaneously serves as a bearing pin or bearing bolt for the retaining plate rod additionally provided according to the invention. For this purpose, the bearing pin is generally connected to the locking plate.

[0012] In order to enable the retaining plate rod or the retaining plate in general for axial and / or radial guidance of the locking element to fulfil its intended function while taking into account all movements of the rotary latch during the functional operation of the locking mechanism, the retaining plate rod is generally coupled to the rotary latch in a rotationally fixed manner. This means that as soon as the rotary latch performs any pivoting movement about its bearing pin, the retaining plate rod synchronously follows the rotary latch, since the retaining plate rod is coupled to the rotary latch in a rotationally fixed manner and, on the other hand, is mounted coaxially with the rotary latch on its common bearing pin.

[0013] In order to enable the retaining plate lever to follow the rotary latch during its rotational movement and to achieve a rotationally fixed connection with the rotary latch, the retaining plate lever generally has a guide pin which extends through the drive opening of the rotary latch. This automatically ensures that the retaining plate lever can follow the rotary latch synchronously with the pivoting movement of the rotary latch about the bearing pin.

[0014] Furthermore, it is generally the case that the locking element engages in the recess of the rotary latch via a guide pin. The guide pin thus serves to limit the movement of the locking element. The recess for accommodating the guide pin of the locking element generally has a more or less radial extent compared to the axis of rotation of the rotary latch and thus to its support pin. This means that the locking element can rotate or pivot in the recess of the rotary latch in order to move in conjunction with the pawl.

[0015] As a further special feature, the invention proposes that the guide pin associated with the locking element simultaneously extends through the guide opening in the retaining plate rod. This results in additional guidance of the locking element on the retaining plate rod portion. This guidance is ensured both in the axial and radial direction because the pivot pin of the locking element extends through the guide opening in the retaining plate rod.

[0016] According to a further advantageous embodiment, the retaining plate rod is arranged on the locking plate side of the relevant locking mechanism component. In the specific example, this means that the rotating lock fork is mounted on the locking plate, with the retaining plate rod inserted in the middle, which in turn carries and fixes the support pin for the rotating lock fork and the retaining plate rod. The invention is based on the discovery that any tilting of the locking element controlled by means of the retaining plate rod occurs mainly in the direction of the height below the locking mechanism plane and is observed in practice. In principle, it is of course also possible to use a retaining plate rod arranged on the surface side of the locking mechanism component according to the invention, i.e. in the specific example it covers the upper side of the rotating lock fork. In addition, it is of course within the scope of the invention that there are such embodiments in which two retaining plate rods are provided, which receive the relevant locking mechanism component or the rotating lock fork between them.

[0017] A particularly flexible embodiment is characterized in that the retaining plate rod is made completely or partially of plastic. The retaining plate rod can thus be optionally adapted to the respective operating conditions and the shape and design of the relevant locking mechanism components. Furthermore, this design allows for any forces exerted by the locking element on the retaining plate rod to be absorbed in principle by the plastic component. In principle, the retaining plate rod can also be manufactured as a sandwich component made of plastic material and metal.

[0018] Therefore, a motor vehicle lock, in particular a motor vehicle door lock, is provided, in which the locking mechanism can be actuated with low noise and low force. This can be traced back essentially to the locking element which is generally pivotably mounted on the rotary latch.

[0019] By means of the retaining plate rod or retaining plate additionally provided here according to the invention, an axial and / or radial displacement of the locking element is prevented. Thus, a functionally suitable actuation can also be achieved over a long period of time. This is a major advantage. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0020] The invention is explained in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings which show only one exemplary embodiment.

[0021] In the figure:

[0022] Figure 1 shows a motor vehicle lock according to the invention viewed from above the associated locking mechanism;

[0023] Figure 2 is based on Figure 1 A view of the locking mechanism of FIG. 1 showing the rotating locking fork;

[0024] Figure 3 It is a three-dimensional view of the locking mechanism, without showing the rotating locking fork. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0025] The motor vehicle lock shown in the drawings is not limited to a motor vehicle door lock. To this end, the motor vehicle lock according to the present invention has a locking mechanism 1, 2, which is mainly composed of a rotary lock fork 1 and a lock claw 2 as two locking mechanism components 1, 2. The two locking mechanism components 1, 2 span the locking mechanism plane E. In addition, a locking element 3 is implemented that is arranged in the engagement area between the two locking mechanism components 1, 2. According to an embodiment, the locking element 3 is an element that is rotatably mounted on the rotary lock fork 1. To this end, the locking element 3 has a guide pin 3a, which engages in the notch 1a of the rotary lock fork 1 (see Figure 2 ).

[0026] According to the invention, at least one guide element 4 is now additionally implemented, by means of which the locking element 3 is axially and / or radially guided. The guide element 4 is a retaining plate which overlaps the locking element 3 laterally, is oriented approximately parallel to the locking mechanism plane and is designed as a retaining plate rod 4 according to the embodiment.

[0027] In particular, compare Figure 1 , 2 As can be seen from Figures 3 and 4, the retaining plate lever 4 is rotatably mounted, in particular on the locking plate 5. For this purpose, a bearing pin 6 is implemented which is anchored to the locking plate 5 and which, according to an exemplary embodiment, is used not only for the rotatable mounting of the retaining plate lever 4 but also simultaneously for the rotatable mounting of the rotary lock fork 1. This means that the axes of rotation of the locking mechanism components 1, 2 involved here, i.e. the axis of rotation of the rotary lock fork 1 and the axis of rotation of the retaining plate lever 4, coincide within the scope of the invention and are in fact defined by a common bearing pin 6 which in turn is connected to the locking plate 5.

[0028] The retaining plate lever 4 is coupled to the rotary catch 1 in a rotationally fixed manner. For this purpose, the retaining plate lever 4 has a guide pin 4a. The retaining plate lever 4 engages in the drive opening 1b of the rotary catch 1 by means of the guide pin 4a. Figure 2 It is shown that the drive opening 1b of the guide pin 4a of the retaining plate rod 4 in the rotary lock 1 is arranged radially on the inside relative to the bearing pin 6 defining the rotation axis of the rotary lock 1. In contrast, the recess 1a of the guide pin 3a of the locking element 3 in the rotary lock 1 is located radially on the outside relative to the bearing pin 6 defining the rotation axis. In addition, with particular reference to Figure 2 It can be seen that the recess 1 a in the rotary latch 1 for the guide pin 3 a of the locking element 3 has an axial extension in the radial direction relative to the bearing pin 6 or the axis of rotation of the rotary latch 1 .

[0029] The locking element 3 can thus be pivoted about its pivot axis in the rotary catch 1 , but is radially limited in the recess 1 a by means of the guide pin 3 a relative to the rotation axis of the rotary catch 1 or its bearing pin 6 .

[0030] As already explained, the retaining plate rod 4 is non-rotatably coupled to the rotary lock fork 1, since the retaining plate rod 4 engages with its guide pin 4a in the drive opening 1b of the rotary lock fork 1 or extends through said drive opening 1b of the rotary lock fork 1. It can also be seen that the guide pin 3a on the locking element 3 not only engages in the notch 1a of the rotary lock fork 1, but also extends through the guide opening 4b in the retaining plate rod 4. The locking element 4 is therefore fixed and guided axially and radially as desired. This is because the guide pin 3a of the locking element 3 engages in the guide opening 4b of the retaining plate rod 4 or extends through this guide opening 4b, so that the locking element 3 is thereby radially guided. Supplementary axial guidance of the locking element 3 is also achieved due to the fact that the retaining plate rod 4 overlaps with the locking element 3 in each case, which can be seen by comparing Figure 1 and 3 It is particularly understood that for this purpose the retaining plate lever 4 is oriented in a plane parallel to the locking mechanism plane.

[0031] Furthermore, the design is such that the retaining plate rod 4 is arranged on the locking mechanism components 1, 2 and in particular on the locking plate side of the rotary lock fork 1. This means that the two locking mechanism components 1, 2, namely the rotary lock fork 1 and the pawl 2, first jointly define the plane E of the locking mechanism. According to the invention, the retaining plate rod 4 is now oriented and arranged parallel to the locking mechanism plane E and below the relevant plane of the locking mechanism, and is actually in contact with the locking plate 5, namely on the locking plate side of the rotary lock fork 1. However, in principle, the retaining plate rod 4 can also overlap with the rotary lock fork 1 on the upper side or upper surface of the rotary lock fork 1. Furthermore, within the scope of the invention there are embodiments in which the two retaining plate rods 4 clamp the rotary lock fork 1 between them, although this is not shown.

[0032] The retaining plate lever 4 can generally be made completely or partially of plastic material. According to this embodiment, the retaining plate lever 4 is a molded plastic part, which is lightweight on the one hand and can be easily adapted to the specific design of the rotary latch 1 or the locking mechanism parts 1, 2 in general on the other hand. In addition, such molded plastic parts can absorb the forces that may be exerted on them by the locking element 3 with low noise. In principle, it is also within the scope of the invention that the retaining plate lever 4 has a sandwich structure, for example it can be made of a composite metal plate and a plastic plate.

[0033] The operation modes are as follows: Figure 2 Starting from the view shown, the opening of the locking mechanism 1, 2 in this embodiment leads to a counterclockwise pivoting movement of the rotary latch 1 about its axis of rotation defined by the bearing pin 6, so that the locking bolt (not explicitly shown) is released by the rotary latch 1. In order to open the locking mechanism 1, 2, Figure 2The pawl 2 shown is also pivoted in the counterclockwise direction shown. In this case, the locking element 3 now ensures that the rotary latch 1 and the pawl 2 can roll against each other with particularly low force and noise when the locking element 3 pivoted here is inserted. At the same time, the retaining plate lever 4 ensures that any tilting of the locking element 3 is avoided in this process.

[0034] Reference numerals

[0035] Locking mechanism 1,2

[0036] Rotate the lock fork 1

[0037] Gap 1a

[0038] Drive opening 1b

[0039] Locking claw 2

[0040] Locking element 3

[0041] Guide pin 3a

[0042] Hold plate rod 4

[0043] Locking element 4

[0044] Guide pin 4a

[0045] Guide opening 4b

[0046] Lock plate 5

[0047] Support pin 6

Claims

1. A motor vehicle lock, in particular a motor vehicle door lock, comprising a locking mechanism (1, 2), the locking mechanism mainly consisting of a rotary lock fork (1) and a pawl (2) as locking mechanism components (1, 2), and also comprising a locking element (3), the locking element being arranged in the joining area between the two locking mechanism components (1, 2) and being pivotally mounted on the rotary lock fork (1) or the pawl (2), mostly in a plane (E) of the locking mechanism spanned by the two locking mechanism components (1, 2); and having at least one guide element (4) for additional axial and / or radial guidance of the locking element (3), characterized in that The guide element (4) is designed as a retaining plate which overlaps the locking element (3) in the laterally direction and is oriented approximately parallel to the plane (E) of the locking mechanism.

2. The motor vehicle lock according to claim 1, characterized in that: The retaining plate is designed as a pivotably mounted retaining plate lever (4).

3. The motor vehicle lock according to claim 2, characterized in that: The rotation axis of the retaining plate rod (4) coincides with the rotation axis of the associated locking mechanism components (1, 2).

4. The motor vehicle lock according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that: The retaining plate rod (4) is rotatably mounted on a supporting pin (6) of the rotary lock fork (1).

5. The motor vehicle lock according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that: The retaining plate rod (4) is connected to the rotary lock fork (1) in a non-rotatable manner.

6. The motor vehicle lock according to claim 5, characterized in that: The retaining plate rod (4) extends through the drive opening (1b) of the rotary lock (1) via a guide pin (4a).

7. The motor vehicle lock according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that: The locking element (3) engages with a guide pin (3a) in a recess (1a) of the rotary latch (1).

8. The motor vehicle lock according to claim 7, characterized in that: The guide pin (3a) simultaneously extends through a guide opening (4b) in the retaining plate rod (4).

9. The motor vehicle lock according to any one of claims 3 to 8, characterized in that: The retaining plate rod (4) is arranged on the lock plate side of the locking mechanism components (1, 2).

10. The motor vehicle lock according to any one of claims 3 to 9, characterized in that: The retaining plate rod (4) is made completely or partially of plastic material.

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