Window guide for a motor vehicle

Abstract

A window guide for a motor vehicle configured to be mounted on an inner periphery of a door frame of a motor vehicle door for guiding a vertical movement of a glass window, comprising: a disc guide main body having a substantially U-shaped cross section and comprising a bottom wall (40), an outer side wall (20) extending from an outer side edge portion of the bottom wall (40), and an inner side wall (30) extending from an inner side edge portion of the bottom wall (40), an outer sealing lip (21) and an inner sealing lip (31) extending in the direction of the interior of the substantially U-shaped cross section of the main body and provided on the outer side wall (20) and the inner side wall (30) for sealing an outer surface and an inner surface of the glass window by the outer sealing lip (21) and the inner sealing lip (31), an outer cover lip (23) formed from a distal end of the outer side wall (20) so as to face an outer surface of the substantially U-shaped cross-section, and an inner cover lip (33) formed from a distal end of the inner side wall (30) so as to face an outer surface of the substantially U-shaped cross-section, wherein the disc guide is designed so that, when attached to the inner circumference, an edge portion (2f) at a distal end of a door outer wall surface (2c) of the door frame is held in an outer holding channel (27) formed between the outer side wall (20) and the outer cover lip (23), an edge portion (2j) at a distal end of a door inner wall surface of the door frame is held in an inner holding channel (37) formed between the inner side wall (30) and the inner cover lip (33), the lower wall (40) is held by and abuts a door reinforcement wall surface (2e) of the door frame, a gap being provided between the door reinforcement wall surface and the door outer wall surface (2c), an outer retaining protrusion portion (24) whose rigidity is greater than that of other portions of the outer side wall (20) is formed from the outer side wall (20) in the direction of the outer retaining channel (27), the outer retaining protrusion portion (24) protruding from a side of the outer side wall (20) closer to the lower wall (40), and one end of the retaining protrusion portion (24) abuts the door outer wall surface (2c), when the outer sealing lip (21) is drawn in by the glass window due to the raising or lowering of the glass window, the end of the outer retaining protrusion portion (24) is caused to abut against the door outer wall surface (2c) in a resistant manner, and the lower wall (40) is caused to abut against the door reinforcement wall surface (2e) in a resistant manner, whereby the outer retaining protrusion portion (24) is configured to prevent the outer side wall (20) from entering the gap between the door outer wall surface (2c) and the door reinforcement wall surface (2e), whereby the deformation of the outer side wall (20) can be prevented, and the outer retaining protrusion portion (24), whose rigidity is greater than that of the other portions of the outer side wall (20), is thicker than the other portions of the outer side wall (20).

Description

1. Field of the invention

[0001] The present invention relates to a window guide for a motor vehicle, which is mounted on a door frame of a front door of the motor vehicle for guiding a vertical movement of a glass window. 2. Description of the state of the art

[0002] Window guides for a motor vehicle are disclosed in JP 2009 - 83 544 A, JP 2009 - 227 242 A, US 2009 / 0039672 A1, JP 2014 - 69 653 A and JP 2014 - 65 373 A.

[0003] As it is in the Fig. 3, a window guide 110 is mounted on an inner periphery of a door frame 2 of a front door 1 of a motor vehicle for guiding a vertical movement of a glass window 5. Conventionally, as shown in Fig. 3, the glass guide 110 is mounted in a channel 103 of the door frame 2 not only to guide the vertical movement of the glass window 5, but also to form a seal between the glass window 5 and the door frame 2.

[0004] Furthermore, the disc guide 110 comprises, as shown in the Fig. 2, straight portions 111 formed by extrusion, and glass guide corner portions 112 formed to have shapes that match corner portions 2h of the door frame 2. The straight portions 111 are formed of a glass guide top portion 113 attached to a top portion 2b of the door frame 2, a front vertical glass guide side portion 114 attached to a front vertical side portion 2a of the door frame 2, and a rear vertical glass guide side portion 115 attached to a rear vertical portion 2a of the door frame 2.

[0005] Sealing between the front door 1 and a body is achieved with door weather strips (not shown) attached to outer peripheries of a door panel and the door frame 2 and / or an opening trim weather strip (not shown) attached to an edge of an opening portion in the body.

[0006] As it is in the Fig. As shown in Fig. 4, the window guide 110 has a substantially U-shaped cross section defined by an outer side wall 120, an inner side wall 130, and a bottom wall 140. An outer sealing lip 121 is provided on the outer side wall 120 so as to extend from a distal end portion thereof toward an interior of a main body of the window guide 110, which has a substantially U-shaped cross section. In addition, an inner sealing lip 131 is provided on the inner side wall 130 so as to extend from a distal end portion thereof toward the interior of the substantially U-shaped cross section.Further, an outer cover lip 123 is formed to extend from the distal end portion of the outer side wall 120 in parallel to an outer surface of the outer side wall 120, and an inner cover lip 133 is formed to extend from the distal end portion of the inner side wall 130 in parallel to an outer surface of the inner side wall 130.

[0007] The outer side wall 120, the inner side wall 130 and the bottom wall 140 of the main body of the glass guide 110 are attached to edge portions of a door outer wall surface 2c and a door inner wall surface 2d of the door frame 2 (see, for example, JP 2014-65373 A).

[0008] The edge portion of the door outer wall surface 2c is sandwiched between the outer side wall 120 and the outer cover lip 123. The bottom wall 140 is held by a flat surface portion of a door reinforcement wall surface 2e. An edge portion of the door reinforcement wall surface 2e and the edge portion of the door inner wall surface 2d are sandwiched between the inner side wall 130 and the inner cover lip 133.

[0009] When the glass window 5 is lifted, a distal end of the glass window 5 is caused to abut against the outer sealing lip 121 and the outer sealing lip 121 is moved together with the glass window 5 in a direction indicated by arrow A in the Fig. 4, wherein a base of the outer side wall 120 is bent in a direction indicated by arrow B in the Fig. 4, causing it to slide between the door outer wall surface 2c and the door reinforcement wall surface 2e. In addition, a distal end portion of the outer cover lip 123 is bent in a direction indicated by arrow C in the Fig. 4. This creates a gap between the outer cover lip 123 and the door outer wall surface 2c, causing the distal end portion of the outer cover lip 123 to move away from the door outer wall surface 2c to create a gap, resulting in a problem that the appearance is deteriorated. SUMMARY

[0010] An object of the invention is to provide a glass guide in which no gap is generated between a cover lip and a door panel even when a glass window is raised or lowered.

[0011] The above-mentioned object is achieved by a window guide for a motor vehicle according to claim 1.

[0012] According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a glass guide for a motor vehicle, which is attached to an inner periphery of a door frame of a motor vehicle door for guiding a vertical movement of a glass window, comprising: a glass guide main body having a substantially U-shaped cross section and including a bottom wall, an outer side wall extending from an outer edge portion of the bottom wall, and an inner side wall extending from an inner edge portion of the bottom wall; an outer sealing lip and an inner sealing lip extending toward the inside of the substantially U-shaped cross section of the main body and provided on the outer side wall and the inner side wall for sealing an outer surface and an inner surface of the glass window by the outer sealing lip and the inner sealing lip; an outer cover lip;which is formed from a distal end of the outer side wall so as to face an outer surface of the substantially U-shaped cross section, and an inner cover lip formed from a distal end of the inner side wall so as to face an outer surface of the substantially U-shaped cross section, wherein: an edge portion at a distal end of a door outer wall surface of the door frame is held in an outer holding channel formed between the outer side wall and the outer cover lip, an edge portion at a distal end of a door inner wall surface of the door frame is held in an inner holding channel formed between the inner side wall and the inner cover lip, the bottom wall is held by a door reinforcement wall surface of the door frame, an outer holding protrusion portion whose rigidity is greater than that of other portions of the outer side wall,from the outer side wall in the direction of the outer holding channel, and causing one end of the outer holding protrusion portion to abut against the outer wall surface.

[0013] According to the first aspect of the invention, the glass guide includes the glass guide main body having the substantially U-shaped cross section formed by the bottom wall, the outer side wall extending from the outer side edge portion of the bottom wall, and the inner side wall extending from the inner side edge portion of the bottom wall. Due to this, when the door is closed, the distal end of the glass window can be accommodated within the glass guide main body having the substantially U-shaped cross section formed by the outer side wall, the inner side wall, and the bottom wall in the door frame, so that the glass window can be securely held when the glass window is raised or lowered. Here, when outer and inner are referred to,When reference is made to exterior(s) and interior(s), these refer to an exterior and an interior of a passenger compartment of the vehicle with the door closed.

[0014] The outer sealing lip and the inner sealing lip, which extend toward the interior of the substantially U-shaped cross section of the main body, are provided on the outer side wall and the inner side wall for sealing the outer surface and the inner surface of the glass window through the outer sealing lip and the inner sealing lip. Due to this, when the glass window is raised or lowered, the outer sealing lip and the inner sealing lip are caused to abut against the glass window at a top portion, thereby forming a seal between the door frame and the glass window through the outer sealing lip and the inner sealing lip.

[0015] The outer cover lip is formed from the distal end of the outer side wall so as to face the outer surface of the substantially U-shaped cross section, and the inner cover lip is formed from the distal end of the inner side wall so as to face the outer surface of the substantially U-shaped cross section. Therefore, the edge portion of the door outer wall surface can be covered with the outer cover lip, and the edge portion of the door inner wall surface can be covered with the inner cover lip, thereby covering the edge portions with the cover lips, providing a good appearance.

[0016] The edge portion at the distal end of the door outer wall surface of the door frame is held in the outer retaining channel formed between the outer side wall and the outer cover lip, and the edge portion at the distal end of the door inner wall surface of the door frame is held in the inner retaining channel formed between the inner side wall and the inner cover lip, and the bottom wall is held by the door reinforcement wall surface of the door frame. Due to this, the edge portion of the door outer wall surface can be held by the outer retaining channel, and the edge portion of the door inner wall surface can be held by the inner retaining channel, and the bottom wall can be held by the door reinforcement wall surface of the door frame, whereby the glass guide can be securely held at the edge.

[0017] The outer retaining protrusion portion, whose rigidity is greater than that of other portions of the outer side wall, is formed from the outer side wall in the direction of the outer retaining channel, and one end of the outer retaining protrusion portion is made to abut against the outer wall surface. Due to this, the outer side wall is prevented from sliding between the door outer wall surface and the door reinforcement wall surface when the glass window is raised or lowered, which in turn prevents the distal end of the outer cover lip from moving away from the door outer wall surface of the door frame.

[0018] According to a second aspect of the invention, the glass guide is such that an outer auxiliary protrusion portion is formed in the direction of the outer holding channel on the outer side wall at a position closer to an opening side of the glass guide main body than a portion where the outer holding protrusion portion is formed.

[0019] According to the second aspect of the invention, since the outer auxiliary protrusion portion is formed on the outer side wall at the position closer to the opening side of the glass guide main body than a portion where the outer holding protrusion portion is formed in the direction of the outer holding channel, when the glass window enters the glass guide main body so as to be raised or lowered with the outer sealing lip being caused to abut against the outer side wall, the deformation of the outer side wall is prevented, whereby the outer cover lip can be prevented from moving away from the door outer wall surface.

[0020] According to a third aspect of the invention, the glass guide is such that the outer holding protrusion portion of the outer side wall is formed on a vertical side portion of the glass guide which is mounted on a vertical side portion of the door frame.

[0021] According to the third aspect of the invention, since the outer support bulge portion of the outer side wall is formed on the vertical side portion of the glass guide mounted on the vertical side portion of the door frame, when the glass window enters the glass guide main body to be raised or lowered with the outer side wall being deformed, the outer side wall can be particularly strongly prevented from sliding between the door outer wall surface and the door reinforcement wall surface at the vertical side portion, which would otherwise cause the outer side wall to slide between them greatly.

[0022] According to a fourth aspect of the invention, the window guide is such that the outer holding protrusion portion, whose rigidity is greater than that of the other portions of the outer side wall, is formed thicker than the other portions of the outer side wall.

[0023] According to the fourth aspect of the invention, since the outer holding protrusion portion whose rigidity is greater than that of the other portions of the outer side wall is formed thicker than the other portions of the outer side wall, the formation of the outer holding protrusion portion becomes easy, which increases the productivity of the disk guide.

[0024] According to a fifth aspect of the invention, the glass guide is such that the door outer wall surface is held by the outer holding protrusion portion, the rigidity of which is greater than that of the other portions of the outer side wall, and the outer cover lip.

[0025] According to the fifth aspect of the invention, since the door outer wall surface is held by the outer holding protrusion portion whose rigidity is greater than that of the other portions of the outer side wall and the outer cover lip, the door outer wall surface can be firmly and rigidly held, whereby the glass guide can be firmly and rigidly attached to the door frame.

[0026] Since the outer support protrusion portion, whose rigidity is greater than that of the other portions of the outer side wall, is formed from the outer side wall in the direction of the outer support channel and one end of the outer support protrusion portion is caused to abut against the door outer wall surface, the outer side wall is prevented from sliding between the door outer wall surface and the door reinforcement wall surface when the glass window is raised or lowered, which in turn prevents the distal end of the outer cover lip from moving away from the door outer wall surface of the door frame. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0027] The present invention will become more fully understood from the detailed description given below and the accompanying drawings which are given by way of illustration only and are not limitative of the present invention, and wherein: Fig. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a glass guide according to an embodiment of the invention, showing a state in which the glass guide is mounted on a vertical side portion of a door frame, Fig. Figure 2 is a front view of the disc guide of the embodiment of the invention, wherein Fig. 1 the cross-sectional view along the line AA in the Fig. 2 is, Fig. 3 is a front view of a front door of a motor vehicle and Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a conventional disc guide mounted on a vertical side portion. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0028] An embodiment of the invention is based on the Fig. 1 to 3.

[0029] The Fig. 3 is a front view of a front door 1 of a motor vehicle and the Fig. Fig. 2 is a front view of a front door glass guide 10 mounted on a door frame 2 of the front door 1. As shown in the Fig. As shown in Figure 3, the door frame 2 is provided at an upper portion of the front door 1, and a glass window 5 is mounted therein so that it can be freely raised and lowered. Specifically, the glass guide 10 is attached to an inner periphery of the door frame 2 not only to guide a vertical movement of the glass window 5, but also to provide a seal between the glass window 5 and the door frame 2.

[0030] As it is in the Fig. As shown in Figure 2, the glass guide 10 includes straight sections 11 that have been extruded as a whole and corner sections 2h of the door frame 2 that have been formed. The corner sections 12 are attached to corner sections 2h of the door frame 2 to connect the straight sections 11 together.

[0031] The straight sections 11 each comprise a glass guide top section 13 attached to a top section 2b of the door frame 2, a rear vertical glass guide side section 15 attached to a rear vertical side section 2a of the door frame 2, and a front vertical glass guide side section 14 attached to a partition frame forming a front vertical side section 2a of the door frame 2.

[0032] The corner sections 12 are shaped to connect the straight sections 11 at the front and rear corner sections such that these extruded sections can have a shape that matches that of the door frame 2. The corner sections 12 of the glass guide 10 are mounted on the corner sections 2h of the door frame 2.

[0033] The door 1 and a body opening portion peripheral edge 6 are sealed from each other by abutting sealing strips (not shown) attached to outer peripheries of the door panel and the door frame 2 at the body opening portion peripheral edge 6, and the door frame 2 and the glass window 5 are sealed from each other by the glass guide 10.

[0034] As it is in the Fig. 1, the glass guide 10 is attached to the vertical side portion 2a of the door frame 2 of the pressed door at a door outer wall surface edge portion 2f and a door inner wall surface edge portion 2j, which are distal ends of a door outer wall surface 2c and a door inner wall surface 2d.

[0035] The cross-sectional shape of the rear vertical glass guide side portion 15 of the glass guide 10, which is attached to the vertical side portion 2a of the door frame 2, has a substantially U-shaped cross section, which, as shown in the Fig. 1, by a bottom wall 40, an outer side wall 20 extending substantially at a right angle or at a slightly obtuse angle to the bottom wall 40 from an outside edge portion of the bottom wall 40 downwards (downwards in the Fig. 1), and an inner side wall 30 is formed extending downward from an inner side edge portion of the lower wall 40 at substantially a right angle or a slightly obtuse angle to the lower wall 40. As described later, the inner side wall 30 is formed larger and thicker than the outer side wall 20, so that the substantially U-shaped cross section has an asymmetric shape in which the inner side is larger than an outer side thereof.

[0036] The outer side wall 20, the inner side wall 30 and the bottom wall 40 constituting a main body of the glass guide 10 basically have corresponding substantially U-shaped cross sections not only at portions to be attached to the top side portion 2b but also at portions to be attached to the vertical side portion 2a of the door frame 2.

[0037] It should be noted that in the above description, outside and inside or outside and inside indicate the outside and inside of a passenger compartment of the vehicle with the door closed, and top and bottom or upper and lower indicate an upward direction and a downward direction of the vehicle.

[0038] First, the outer side wall 20 is described.

[0039] The outer side wall 20 of the rear vertical window guide side section 15 has a substantially plate-shaped cross section.

[0040] An outer sealing lip 21 is provided near a distal end of the outer side wall 20 such that it extends therefrom into an interior of the substantially U-shaped cross section of the main body. The outer side wall 20 is thinner and smaller than the inner side wall 30.

[0041] The outer sealing lip 21 is provided on an inner side of the outer side wall 20 so as to extend obliquely toward the inside of the substantially U-shaped cross section of the main body of the window guide 10.

[0042] When the glass window 5 is lifted so that an upper end of the glass window 5 enters an interior of the glass guide top portion 13 of the glass guide 10, the outer seal lip 21 and an inner seal lip 31, which will be described later, are caused to elastically abut against both surfaces of the upper end of the glass window 5, so that a gap between the distal end of the glass window 5 and the door frame 2 is sealed. A member having low frictional resistance or a protruding rib may be formed on a surface of the outer seal lip 21, so that sliding resistance against the glass window 5 is reduced.

[0043] In addition, an outer cover lip 23 is formed on the outer side wall 20 so as to extend from the distal end thereof toward an outside of the substantially U-shaped cross section, that is, so as to extend parallel to the outer side wall 20 on an outside of the substantially U-shaped cross section of the main body portion.

[0044] An outer retaining channel 27 is formed between the outer side wall 20 and the outer cover lip 23. The door outer panel edge portion 2f at the distal end of the door outer panel 2c is inserted into this outer retaining channel 27. Due to this, the door outer panel edge portion 2f at the distal end of the door outer panel 2c can be covered by the outer cover lip 23, thereby providing a good appearance.

[0045] An outer retaining protrusion portion 24, whose rigidity is greater than that of other portions of the outer side wall, is formed from a side of the outer side wall 20 that is closer to the bottom wall 40 in the direction of the outer retaining channel 27. A distal end of the outer retaining protrusion portion 24 abuts a portion of the door outer wall surface 2c where a bent portion 2k is formed. As shown in FIG. Fig. 1, a gap is provided between a door reinforcement wall surface 2e, which is caused to abut against the bottom wall 40, and the door outer wall surface 2c.

[0046] When the outer sealing lip 21 is drawn in by the glass window 5 due to the raising or lowering of the glass window 5, thereby bending the outer side wall 20 in a direction that causes the outer side wall 20 to slide between the door outer wall surface 2c and the door reinforcement wall surface 2e, the outer retaining protrusion portion 24 is caused to abut against the door outer wall surface 2c in a resistant manner, and the bottom wall 40 is caused to abut against the door reinforcement wall surface 2e in a resistant manner, preventing the outer side wall 20 from entering the gap, whereby the deformation of the outer side wall 20 can be prevented. This prevents a distal end of the outer cover lip 23 from being pulled by the outer sealing lip 21 such that it moves away from the door outer wall surface 2c.

[0047] When the glass window 5 enters the main body portion of the glass guide 10 to be raised and lowered, the glass window 5 pulls the outer sealing lip 21 in a vertical direction, so that it deforms the outer side wall 20. Although the outer side wall 20 is caused to slide strongly between the door outer wall surface 2c and the door reinforcement wall surface 2e when the outer side wall 20 is deformed, since the outer support protrusion portion 24 of the outer side wall 20 is formed on the rear vertical glass guide side portion 15 mounted on the vertical side portion of the door frame 2, the outer support protrusion portion 24 can particularly prevent the rear vertical glass guide side portion 15 from sliding in.A holding protrusion portion similar to the outer holding protrusion portion 24 may also be formed on the disc guide top portion 13 and the front vertical disc guide side portion 14.

[0048] The outer support protrusion portion 24 has greater rigidity than that of the other portions of the outer side wall 20, and the outer support protrusion portion 24, which has greater rigidity, is formed thicker than the other portions of the outer side wall 20, thereby enabling it to have greater rigidity. This allows the outer support protrusion portion 24 and the other portions of the outer side wall 20 to be formed of the same material, which not only facilitates the formation of the outer support protrusion portion 24 but also improves the productivity of the window guide 10. In addition, as a material having high rigidity, for example, a material with high hardness can be used for the outer support protrusion portion 24.

[0049] Since the door outer wall surface 2c is held by the outer holding protrusion portion 24 having greater rigidity than those of the other portions of the outer side wall 20 and the outer cover lip 23, the door outer wall surface 2c can be firmly and rigidly held, whereby an outer side of the glass guide 10 can be firmly and rigidly attached to the door frame 2.

[0050] An outer auxiliary protrusion portion 25 may be formed on an outer surface of the outer side wall 20 at a position closer to an opening side of the main body of the glass guide 10 than a position where the outer holding protrusion portion 24 is formed so as to extend therefrom in the direction of the outer holding channel 27. Due to this, when the glass window 5 enters the main body portion of the glass guide 10, so that the outer sealing lip 21 is pressed, causing the outer sealing lip 21 to abut against the outer side wall 20, the outer auxiliary protrusion portion 25 is caused to abut against the door outer wall surface 2c, thereby preventing the deformation of the outer side wall 20, so that it is possible to prevent the distal end of the outer cover lip 23 from moving away from the door outer wall surface 2c.

[0051] Outer protrusion portions 28 may be formed on a portion of an inner surface of the outer side wall 20 that is caused to abut against the outer sealing lip 21. When the glass window 5 enters the interior of the main body of the window guide 10 so that the outer sealing lip 21 is pressed against the inner surface of the outer side wall 20, the outer protrusion portions 28 may prevent the outer sealing lip 21 from being brought into close contact with the inner surface of the outer side wall 20.

[0052] Next, the inner side wall 30 is described.

[0053] The inner side wall 30 is thicker and larger than the outer side wall 20. This allows the window guide 10 to be held on a side surface of the door frame 2.

[0054] An inner cover lip 33 is formed at a distal end of the outer side wall 30 so as to extend therefrom to face an outer surface of the inner side wall 30 or the substantially U-shaped cross section of the main body. Due to this, a door inner panel edge portion 2j at a distal end of the door inner panel 2d and a door reinforcement panel edge portion 2g at a distal end of the reinforcement panel 2e can be covered by the inner cover lip 33, providing a good appearance.

[0055] An inner retaining channel 37 is formed between the inner side wall 30 and the inner cover lip 33. The door inner wall surface edge portion 2j and the door reinforcement wall surface edge portion 2g are inserted into the inner retaining channel 37 so as to be retained there. As shown in the Fig. 1, a distal end of the door reinforcement panel edge portion 2g is slightly bent in the outward direction to form a bent portion 2m.

[0056] An inner retaining lip 34 is formed on the outer surface of the inner side wall 30 at a position corresponding to a distal end of the inner cover lip 33. Base portions of the door inner panel edge portion 2j and the door reinforcement panel edge portion 2g are held by the inner retaining lip 34 and the inner cover lip 33, and the inner retaining lip 34 is located at the bent portion 2m of the door reinforcement panel edge portion 2g. This allows one side of the glass guide 10 facing the inner side wall 30 to be held by the door inner panel surface 2d and the door reinforcement panel surface 2e.

[0057] An inner sealing lip 31 is provided at the distal end of the inner side wall 30 so as to extend obliquely therefrom into the interior of the substantially U-shaped cross section of the main body of the glass guide 10. Since the inner sealing lip 31 is formed longer and thicker than the outer sealing lip 21, when the glass window 5 enters the interior of the glass guide 10, the glass window 5 can be arranged outside, so that the level difference between the door frame 2 and the glass window 5 is reduced. This reduces air resistance and wind noise and is preferable in terms of appearance design.

[0058] An inner locking lip 35 is formed on an inner surface of the inner side wall 30 at a portion against which a distal end of the inner sealing lip 31 is caused to abut. When the glass window 5 enters the interior of the main body of the glass guide 10, so that the inner sealing lip 31 is pressed against the inner surface of the inner side wall 30, the inner sealing lip 31 can be prevented from being brought into close contact with an inner surface of the outer side wall 20.

[0059] The bottom wall 40 has a substantially plate shape, and channel portions of the bottom wall 42 are formed at a continuous portion connecting the inner side wall 30 to the outer side wall 20 such that the bottom wall 40 can be easily bent at the continuous portion. Bottom wall retaining lips 41, 41 are formed on an inner surface of the bottom wall 40 so as to be adjacent to the corresponding channel portions of the bottom wall 42. The bottom wall retaining lips 41, 41 abut portions of the outer side wall 20 and the inner side wall 30 that are near the base thereof, thus preventing the outer side wall 20 and the inner side wall 30 from collapsing toward the interior of the substantially U-shaped portion.

[0060] A plurality of grooves extending in the longitudinal direction are formed on an abutment surface of the bottom wall 43 on an inner surface of the bottom wall 40, so as to prevent the distal end of the glass window 5 from coming into close contact with the abutment surface of the bottom wall 43. Additionally, a layer having low sliding resistance may also be formed on the abutment surface of the bottom wall 43. In this case, the glass window 5 can be smoothly raised and lowered while causing the distal end of the glass window 5 to abut against the abutment surface of the bottom wall 43.

[0061] Then, as it is in the Fig. 1 and Fig.2, the door reinforcement wall surface 2e is attached to a part of the vertical side portion 2a of the door frame 2. When the rear vertical glass guide side portion 15 is mounted to the vertical side portion 2a, the bottom wall 40 of the glass guide 10 is held by the door reinforcement wall surface 2e at the portion where the door reinforcement wall surface 2e is attached. Consequently, the outer side wall 20 and the bottom wall 40 are never strongly pressed into the door frame 2, even if the glass window 5 is raised or lowered to press against the bottom wall 40.

[0062] The lower wall retaining lips 41 may be provided on an outer surface of the lower wall 40. The lower wall retaining lips 41 are caused to abut against the door reinforcement wall surface 2e, so that the lower wall 40 is held, and mitigate a shock generated when the distal end of the glass window 5 is caused to abut against the abutment surface of the lower wall 43, while providing a seal between the lower wall 40 and the door reinforcement wall surface 2e.

[0063] A synthetic rubber or a thermoplastic elastomer is used as the material to form the straight sections 11 of the disc guide 10. For example, EPDM rubber is used as the synthetic rubber material, and an elastomer of a polyolefin elastomer system is used as the thermoplastic elastomer.

[0064] In the case of synthetic rubber, extruded straight sections are transferred to a vulcanization tank for vulcanization by heating with hot air or high-frequency waves. In the case of a thermoplastic elastomer, extruded straight sections are cooled to solidify. The extruded straight sections are then cut to specified lengths for production.

[0065] Next, to form shaped portions for the corner portions 12 of the window guide 10, the extruded member produced in the manner described above is cut into predetermined lengths substantially at a right angle to the longitudinal direction of the extruded member. Then, end portions of the thus-cut extruded portion are inserted into molds for forming shaped portions, and a solid material from which the shaped portions are formed is injected into cavities of the molds. The cross-sectional shape of the shaped portion is substantially identical to the cross-sectional shape of the extruded portion. As the material for forming the shaped portions, a material of a similar type to that used for extruding the extruded portion is preferably used.When a thermoplastic material is used, the extruded section and sections to be molded are fused together integrally by heat and pressure because the thermoplastic elastomer material is melted when it is injected into the molds.

[0066] When the straight portions 11 of the disc guide 10 are formed from EPDM rubber, the corner portions 12 of the disc guide 10 are preferably formed from EPDM rubber or an olefin-based thermoplastic elastomer. When the straight portions 11 of the disc guide 10 are formed from the olefin-based thermoplastic elastomer, the corner portions 12 of the disc guide 10 are preferably formed from the olefin-based thermoplastic elastomer. In this case, materials of the same type are used, and thus the straight portion 11 and the corner portions 12 of the disc guide 10 can be well bonded to each other. In addition, the straight portions 11 and the corner portions 12 are formed from the olefin-based materials, and thus products that can be easily recycled, provide good weather resistance, and can be milled together can be obtained.When the olefin-based thermoplastic elastomers are used to manufacture the straight portions 11 and the corner portions 12 of the window guide 10, manufacturing can be facilitated because no vulcanization is required.

[0067] When a synthetic rubber is used to manufacture the corner portions 12 of the window guide 10, the synthetic rubber is injected into the molds and then vulcanized by heating the molds. Therefore, since the same materials or materials of the same type are used to manufacture the extruded and molded portions, they can be bonded together by vulcanization, thus integrally sealing them together.

[0068] It is explicitly emphasized that all features disclosed in the description and / or the claims are to be considered separate and independent of each other for the purpose of the original disclosure as well as for the purpose of limiting the claimed invention, regardless of the feature combinations in the embodiments and / or the claims. It is explicitly stated that all range specifications or specifications of groups of units disclose every possible intermediate value or subgroup of units for the purpose of the original disclosure as well as for the purpose of limiting the claimed invention, in particular also as a limit of a range specification.

Claims

[1] A window guide for a motor vehicle configured to be mounted on an inner periphery of a door frame of a motor vehicle door for guiding a vertical movement of a glass window, comprising: a disc guide main body having a substantially U-shaped cross section and comprising a bottom wall (40), an outer side wall (20) extending from an outer side edge portion of the bottom wall (40), and an inner side wall (30) extending from an inner side edge portion of the bottom wall (40), an outer sealing lip (21) and an inner sealing lip (31) extending in the direction of the interior of the substantially U-shaped cross section of the main body and provided on the outer side wall (20) and the inner side wall (30) for sealing an outer surface and an inner surface of the glass window by the outer sealing lip (21) and the inner sealing lip (31), an outer cover lip (23) formed from a distal end of the outer side wall (20) so as to face an outer surface of the substantially U-shaped cross-section, and an inner cover lip (33) formed from a distal end of the inner side wall (30) so as to face an outer surface of the substantially U-shaped cross-section, wherein the disc guide is designed so that, when attached to the inner circumference, an edge portion (2f) at a distal end of a door outer wall surface (2c) of the door frame is held in an outer holding channel (27) formed between the outer side wall (20) and the outer cover lip (23), an edge portion (2j) at a distal end of a door inner wall surface of the door frame is held in an inner holding channel (37) formed between the inner side wall (30) and the inner cover lip (33), the lower wall (40) is held by and abuts a door reinforcement wall surface (2e) of the door frame, a gap being provided between the door reinforcement wall surface and the door outer wall surface (2c), an outer retaining protrusion portion (24) whose rigidity is greater than that of other portions of the outer side wall (20) is formed from the outer side wall (20) in the direction of the outer retaining channel (27), the outer retaining protrusion portion (24) protruding from a side of the outer side wall (20) closer to the lower wall (40), and one end of the retaining protrusion portion (24) abuts the door outer wall surface (2c), when the outer sealing lip (21) is drawn in by the glass window due to the raising or lowering of the glass window, the end of the outer retaining protrusion portion (24) is caused to abut against the door outer wall surface (2c) in a resistant manner, and the lower wall (40) is caused to abut against the door reinforcement wall surface (2e) in a resistant manner, whereby the outer retaining protrusion portion (24) is configured to prevent the outer side wall (20) from entering the gap between the door outer wall surface (2c) and the door reinforcement wall surface (2e), whereby the deformation of the outer side wall (20) can be prevented, and the outer retaining protrusion portion (24), whose rigidity is greater than that of the other portions of the outer side wall (20), is thicker than the other portions of the outer side wall (20). [2] The glass guide according to claim 1, further comprising an outer auxiliary protrusion portion (25) formed on the outer side wall (20) at a position closer to an opening side of the glass guide main body than a portion where the outer holding protrusion portion (24) is formed in the direction of the outer holding channel (27). [3] A glass guide according to claim 1, wherein the outer retaining protrusion portion (24) of the outer side wall (20) is formed on a vertical side portion of the glass guide which is mounted on a vertical side portion of the door frame. [4] A window guide according to claim 1, wherein the door outer wall surface (2c) is held by the outer holding protrusion portion (24) whose rigidity is greater than that of the other portions of the outer side wall (20) and the outer cover lip (23).

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