Device and method for attaching a cover to a vehicle

Abstract

Device for attaching a shade (10) to a vehicle (1), wherein said shade (10) can provide a shaded area on the windscreen (3) of the vehicle (1) after attachment and which comprises the means (50, 60) for attaching the shade (10) to an upper area (2a) of the vehicle (1), wherein said means (50, 60) for attaching the shade (10) to said upper area (2a) comprise the means (50) for holding said shade (10) before attaching the shade (10) to said upper area (2a), characterized in that said means (50) for holding the shade (10) to said upper area (2a) is used to simultaneously attach additional components (70) to said upper area (2a), wherein each additional component (70) comprises at least one opening (74a) for alignment with an opening (52) of said shade (10).

Description

Technical FieldThe invention relates to a device for attaching a visor to a vehicle according to the preamble of claim 1. Moreover, the invention relates to a vehicle.Prior ArtSun visors for mounting on the exterior of the vehicle, for example on an upper portion of the vehicle adjacent to the front window of the vehicle, are known. Sun visors can provide a shaded area on the front window of the vehicle after attachment.It is desirable to improve the mounting of appropriate sun visors by reducing the assembly time.US 5 669 697 A describes a sun visor for mounting on a vehicle without drilling special holes or providing additional supports. The invention provides an attachment connection for providing a mechanical connection between an attachment extension and clearance lights or features on a vehicle cab. The visor includes integral intermediate fasteners for connection to a vehicle cab.US 6 099 064 A describes a windscreen visor with integrated intermediate fastening elements for attachment to the roof and door construction of the vehicle. However, it is necessary to further improve the attachment of a visor to a vehicle, for example a truck.U.S. Pat. No. 2,606,788 A describes the generic prior art.Objects of the InventionAn object of the present invention is to provide a device for mounting a visor on a vehicle, which facilitates the mounting method and enables better aerodynamics and aero acoustics.An object of the present invention is to provide a method for attaching a visor to a vehicle, which facilitates the attachment method and enables better aerodynamics and aeroacoustics.SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONThese and other objects, which will be apparent from the following description, are achieved by an apparatus, a method and a vehicle according to the appended independent claims. Preferred embodiments of the apparatus and method are set forth in the appended dependent claims.An object of the invention is concretely achieved by a device for attaching a visor to a vehicle, said visor providing a shaded area on the front window of the vehicle after attachment. The apparatus comprises means for attaching the visor to the upper portion of the vehicle, said means for attaching the visor comprising means for retaining said visor prior to securing the visor to said upper portion. By holding the panel prior to attachment, the method of attachment is simplified in that the assembler can retrieve the appropriate tools for attachment of the panel when the panel is held. Consequently, the assembly time can be reduced. In addition, the method enables better aerodynamics and aero acoustics, since the panel can be mounted close to the upper region of the vehicle.According to an embodiment of the device, said means for retaining the screen on said upper portion comprises at least two laterally separated openings, each opening being able to cooperate with a respective protruding element to retain the screen on said upper portion. This achieves a simple and efficient way of holding the panel before fastening. This allows better aerodynamics and aero acoustics, since the panel can be mounted close to the upper region of the vehicle. As a result, it is not necessary to attach the diaphragm to the A-pillars.According to an embodiment of the device, each opening has a keyhole configuration with a hole portion for receiving the protruding element and a slot portion for holding the protruding element thus received. This achieves a simple and efficient way of holding the panel before fastening. This allows better aerodynamics and aero acoustics, since the panel can be mounted close to the upper region of the vehicle.According to an embodiment of the device, at least two openings are located in the aperture and said protruding elements are located at said upper region. This achieves a simple and efficient way of holding the panel before fastening. This makes it possible to attach additional components simultaneously, since the panel is held, wherein a said additional component comprises corresponding openings aligned with the opening of the panel. Consequently, the opening is supplemented by corresponding additional components as an additional layer. A corresponding additional component can be a near-field front mirror. This further facilitates mounting insofar as more than one component can be mounted easily at the same time.According to an embodiment of the device, said panel comprises a fastening part for attachment to said upper portion and a cover part for attachment to the fastening part. A separate fastening part makes the upper region of the vehicle easily accessible for the mounting of the panel there. By a cover member covering the fixing member, the fixing member can be protected from external influences such as rain, snow, wind, etc. Moreover, this provides an aesthetic function.According to the device of the invention, said means for holding the screen at said upper portion is used to simultaneously attach additional components to said upper portion. A corresponding additional component can be a near-field front mirror. This further facilitates mounting insofar as more than one component can be mounted easily at the same time.According to the device according to the invention, said additional components comprise at least one opening for alignment with an opening of said aperture. This further facilitates mounting insofar as more than one component can be mounted easily at the same time.According to an embodiment of the device, said means for holding the screen at said upper portion comprises three laterally separated openings. As a result, the panel is secure in an efficient and sufficient manner for the named holding and the subsequent fastening.Brief Description of the DrawingsThe present invention will be better understood by reading the following detailed description with the aid of the accompanying drawings, wherein like numerals refer to the same parts throughout the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic side view of a vehicle according to the present invention; FIG. 2 ais a schematic front view of a visor mounted on an upper portion of the vehicle with a device for mounting the visor according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 2 bis a schematic front view of the panel of FIG. 2 awith a cover part, FIG. 3 ais a schematic front view of a portion of the bezel of FIG. 2 a; FIG. 3 bis a cross-sectional view of the portion of the aperture of FIG. 3 a; FIG. 4 ais a schematic perspective view of a portion of the bezel of FIG. 2 a; FIG. 4 bis a schematic perspective view of a portion of FIG. 4 a showing a means for holding the bezel; and FIG. 5 is a schematic illustration of a block diagram of a method for attaching a visor to a vehicle.Detailed DescriptionIn the following, the term "bezel" refers to any suitable unit for attachment to an upper portion of the vehicle in communication with the front windshield of the vehicle and for providing a shaded area on the front windshield while the sun shines to reduce sun impairment to the driver / s / in and possible occupants of the vehicle. The term "screen" can also be referred to as a sun visor or front screen or sun protection device.FIG. 1 is a schematic side view of a vehicle 1 according to the present invention. The example vehicle 1 is a heavy vehicle in the form of a truck. The vehicle according to the present invention could be any suitable vehicle, such as a truck or a passenger car. The vehicle comprises a device for attaching a visor to a vehicle according to the present invention.FIG. 2 ais a schematic front view of a panel 10 on an upper region 2 aof the vehicle with a device for attaching the panel 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 bis a front view of the panel 10 from FIG. 2 awith a cover part 30, FIG. 3 ais a front view of a part of the panel 10 from FIG. 2 a, FIG. 3 bis a cross-sectional view of a part of the panel 10 from FIG. 2 a, and FIG. 4 ais a perspective view of a part I of the panel 10 from FIG. 2 a. FIG. 4 bis a schematic perspective view of a portion of FIG. 4 a showing the panel attachment means 50, 60.Figures 2a-b, 3a-b and 4a-b show an embodiment of the present invention.FIG. 2 ashows the fastening part 20 of the panel 10. The attachment part 20 could, according to one embodiment, represent the panel 10.The fixing member 20 includes a fixing portion 20a for fixing to an upper portion 2a and a visor portion 20b for providing the shaded portion on the front glass 3 after mounting.The panel 10 has an elongated shape.The fastening part 20 comprises the means 22 for receiving the cover part 30, the means 22 for receiving the cover part 30 comprises, according to one embodiment, a snap-opening element with snap-projection elements (not shown) of the cover part 30, Consequently, the cover part 30 is, according to one embodiment, connected to the fastening part 22, i.e. to the fastening region 22 aof the fastening part 22, by a snap connection.The fastening part 20 comprises the means 24 for receiving light elements, i.e. lamps. The fastening part 20 comprises two lamp receiving means 24 which are laterally separated, one lamp receiving means 24 being placed at one end region of the fastening part 20 and the other lamp receiving means 24 being placed at the opposite end region of the fastening part 20.Said cover part 30 comprises openings for allowing light from the light elements on said lamp receiving means 24 to be emitted from said cover part. This indicates the width of the vehicle.The vehicle, here the driver's cab 2 of the vehicle, has top side regions 2 a, 2 bwith A pillars.The panel 10 can provide a shaded area on the front window 3 of the vehicle after fastening. Due to the device for attaching the panel 10 described above, no fastening to the A-pillars is required.FIGS. 2 a- b, 3 a- b, 4 a- b show a device for attaching the panel 10 to the upper region 2 aof the vehicle, here to the vehicle cab 2. The means 50, 60 for attaching the panel 10 to said upper portion comprises the means 50 for holding said panel 10 prior to securing the panel 10 to said upper portion 2a.The means 50 for holding the screen 10 at said upper portion 2a comprises three laterally separated openings 52, each opening 52 being able to cooperate with a respective protruding element 54 in order to hold the screen 10 at said upper portion. Protruding element 54 is a screw element 54 according to one embodiment. As can be seen, for example, in FIG. 4 b, screw element 54 comprises a screw region 54 aand a head region 54 bwhich has a larger diameter than screw region 54 a.For example, as seen in FIG. 4 b, each opening 52 according to this embodiment has a keyhole configuration including a hole portion 52 afor receiving the protruding member 54, i.e., the screw member 54, and a slot portion 52 bfor holding the protruding member 54 thus received. The slot portion 52 bhas dimensions such that the screw portion 54 aof the screw member 54 but not the head 54 bof the screw member 54 fits, i.e., the diameter of the head 54 bof the screw member 54 exceeds the lateral dimensions of the slot portion 52 b. As a result, the panel 10 is held during assembly.According to this embodiment, said openings 52 are located in the panel 10, i.e. in the attachment part 20 of the panel, and said protruding elements 54 are located on said upper portion 2a of the vehicle, here on the cab 2 of the vehicle. Consequently, the protruding members 54, i.e., the screw members 54 in this embodiment, are placed on the upper portion 2 ato protrude.According to the device of the invention, said means 50 for holding the screen 10 at said upper portion is used to simultaneously attach additional components 70 to said upper portion 2a. A corresponding additional component 70 is a near-field front mirror element 70 in this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 2 a- band 3 a- b. Mirror element 70 has a mirror portion 72 and an arm portion 74 and a pivot point 70 for rotating mirror 70, as seen in Figure 3b.The mirror element 70 comprises an opening 74a which can be aligned with an opening 52 of said aperture 10. The opening 74a is located at an end portion of said arm portion 74. the opening 74a has the same shape and dimensions as an opening 52 in the panel 10, i.e. in the mounting portion 20a of the panel. The opening 74a has a keyhole configuration with a hole portion and a slot portion.This makes it possible to attach additional components, here a mirror element 70, simultaneously, since the aperture is held, wherein a named additional component comprises corresponding openings aligned with the opening of the aperture. Consequently, the opening of corresponding additional components, here mirror element 70, is provided as an additional layer. This further facilitates mounting insofar as more than one component can be mounted easily at the same time. Additional additional components may be added in the same manner to align (a) corresponding opening / s with openings of the aperture 10. Another example of a corresponding component is a handle which can be connected to the visor, for example directly under the visor region 20 b, and which according to one embodiment comprises a rod or the like which runs horizontally under the visor region 20 a, which rod is used for cleaning the front window 3 of the vehicle, whereby the person cleaning the front window 3 can hold himself on the handle during cleaning.The means 60 for attaching the panel 10 also comprises the fastening means 60. the fastening means 60 comprises the openings 62 in communication with the respective opening 52 of the means 50 for holding the panel 10. the fastening means thus comprises three laterally separated openings 62. the respective opening 62 is located under each opening 52 of the means 50.Each opening 62 may receive a fastener in the form of a screw member 64. As can be seen, for example, in FIG. 4 b, the screw element 64 comprises a screw region 64 aand a head region 64 bhaving a wider diameter than the screw region 64 aprotruding beyond the opening, so that the attachment of the screw element for fastening the fastening part 20 of the panel to the upper region 2 ais made possible.In attaching the bezel 10, the fastening member 20 is attached so that the respective screw member 54 is inserted into the hole portion 52 aof the opening 54 corresponding to the screw member 54, and the fastening member 20 is lowered so that the screw members 54, i.e., the screw portions 54 aof the screw members 54 are inserted into the respective slot portion 52 bto hold the fastening member 20 of the bezel 10.Then, the fixing part 20 of the panel 10 is fixed by screwing the screw members 64 into the openings 62. In addition, the screw members 54 are screwed so as to be screw-connected to the slit portion 52b.Thereafter, the cover member 30 is attached to the fixing member 20. The cover member 30 is attached by a snap connection.In the embodiment described above, said openings 52 are located in the panel 10, i.e. in the attachment part 20 of the panel, and said protruding elements 54 are located on said upper portion 2a of the vehicle. According to an alternative embodiment, the openings are located in the upper region of the vehicle and the protruding elements are located in the panel.In the above-described embodiment, the openings 52 are located in the bezel 10, i.e., in the fixing part 20 of the bezel 10, and the keyhole configuration is arranged such that the hole portion 52 ais located below the slit portion 52 b, so that the fixing part 20 is lowered for holding after the screw members 54 are inserted into the respective hole portions 52 aas described above. The keyhole configuration of the aperture may have any suitable orientation. For example, in one embodiment, the keyhole configuration of the opening 52 ais arranged horizontally such that the hole portion 52 aand the slot portion 52 bare arranged laterally, i.e., side by side, wherein the fastening part 20 of the panel 10 is moved laterally for holding after the screw members 54 are inserted into the respective hole portions 52 a, such that the screw members 54 are inserted into the respective slot portions 52 b.Consequently, when attaching the bezel 10 / the fixing part 20 of the bezel 10 for holding the bezel 10 / the fixing part 20, the protruding members 54, for example, screw members 54, are received in the hole portions 52 aof the openings 52, and a sliding movement of the bezel 10 / the fixing part 20 is performed, so that the protruding members 54, for example, the screw members 54, are inserted into the slit portions 52 b, so that the bezel 10 / the fixing part 20 is held.FIG. 5 is a schematic illustration of a block diagram of a method for attaching a visor to a vehicle, said visor providing a shaded area on the front window of the vehicle after attachment, according to an embodiment of the present invention.According to one embodiment, the method for attaching a visor to a vehicle comprises a step S 1. In this step, the bezel is attached to an upper portion of the vehicle.According to one embodiment, the step of attaching the visor to an upper portion of the vehicle comprises a step S 1 a. In this step, the shutter is held before the shutter is fixed to said upper portion by means for holding said shutter.According to an embodiment of the method, said means for retaining the screen at said upper portion comprises at least two laterally separated openings, each opening being able to cooperate with a respective protruding element to retain the screen at said upper portion.According to an embodiment of the method, said opening has a keyhole configuration with a hole portion for receiving the protruding element and a slot portion for holding the protruding element thus received.According to an embodiment of the method, at least two openings are located in the aperture and said protruding elements are located at said upper region.According to an embodiment of the method, said panel comprises a fastening part and a cover part, wherein said step of attaching the panel comprises the step of attaching the fastening part to said upper region and the cover part to the fastening part.According to one embodiment of the method, said step of holding the panel at said upper portion comprises the step of using said means for holding the panel to simultaneously attach additional components to said upper portion.According to an embodiment of the method, said additional components comprise at least one opening for alignment with an opening of said aperture.The above description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention is provided for purposes of illustration and explanation. It is not intended to be exhaustive and is not intended to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed. Many modifications and variations are expected to occur to those skilled in the art. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and its practical applications, to thereby enable others skilled in the art to understand the invention for various embodiments and with the various modifications as are suited to the intended application.

Claims

A device for mounting a visor (10) on a vehicle (1), wherein said visor (10) can provide a shaded area on the front window (3) of the vehicle (1) after mounting and which comprises the means (50, 60) for mounting the visor (10) on an upper area (2a) of the vehicle (1), said means (50, 60) for mounting the visor (10) on said upper area (2a) comprising the means (50) for holding said visor (10) before the fixing of the visor (10) on said upper area (2a), characterized in that said means (50) for holding the visor (10) on said upper area (2a) is used for simultaneously mounting additional components (70) on said upper area (2a), wherein the respective additional component (70) comprises at least one opening (74a) for alignment with an opening (52) of said panel (10).Device according to claim 1, wherein said means (50) for holding the screen (10) at said upper portion (2a) comprise at least two laterally separated openings (52), each opening (52) being able to cooperate with a respective protruding element (54) in order to hold the screen (10) at said upper portion (2a).The device of claim 2, wherein each opening (52) has a keyhole configuration having a hole portion (52a) for receiving a protruding member (54) and a slot portion (52b) for holding the protruding member (54) so received.Device according to claim 2 or 3, wherein at least two openings (52) are provided in the screen (10) and said protruding elements (54) are provided at said upper portion (2a).A device according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said panel (10) comprises a fixing part (20) for attachment to said upper portion (2a) and a cover part (30) for attachment to the fixing part (20).Device according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said means (50) for holding the screen at said upper portion comprise three laterally separated openings (52).Method for mounting a visor (10) on a vehicle (1), in which said visor (10) can provide a shaded area on the front window (3) of the vehicle (1) after mounting, and which comprises the step of mounting (S1) the visor (10) on an upper area (2a) of the vehicle (1), the step of mounting the visor (10) on said upper area comprising the step of holding (S1a) said visor (10) before the fixing of the visor (10) to said upper area (2a) by the means (50) for holding the visor, characterized in that, said step of holding the screen (10) to said upper portion (2a) comprising the step of using said means (50) for holding the screen (10) to simultaneously attach additional components (70) to said upper portion (2a), the respective additional component (70) comprising at least one opening (74a) for alignment with an opening (52) of said screen (10).Method according to claim 7, wherein said means (50) for holding the screen at said upper portion (2a) comprises at least two laterally separated openings (52), each opening (52) cooperating with a respective protruding element (54) to hold the screen (10) at said upper portion (2a).The method of claim 8, wherein each opening (52) has a keyhole configuration having a hole portion (52a) for receiving the protruding member (54) and a slot portion (52b) for holding the protruding member (54) so received.A method according to claim 8 or 9, wherein at least two openings (52) are provided in the aperture (10) and said protruding elements (54) are provided at said upper portion (2a).The method of claim 10, wherein said panel (10) comprises a mounting portion (20) and a cover portion (30), said step of mounting the panel (10) comprising the step of mounting the mounting portion (20) to said upper portion (2a) and the cover portion (30) to the mounting portion (20).A method according to claim 10 or 11, wherein said means (50) for retaining the aperture at said upper portion comprises three laterally separated apertures (52).Vehicle (1) comprising a device according to any of claims 1-6.

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