Wiper blade, especially for a motor vehicle

Description

State of the art

[0001] The invention relates to a wiper blade, in particular for a motor vehicle, according to the preamble of the independent claim.

[0002] Numerous wiper blades for motor vehicles are already known to have a heating element. For example, DE 10 2005 032 698 A1 discloses the arrangement of a heating wire in an outer cavity of the wiper blade rubber. However, such wiper blades require a relatively large amount of energy for heating, which is problematic from both an ecological and economic perspective.

[0003] Further state of the art is known from US 3 619 556 A, US 2013 / 192017 A1 and DE 202 10 288 U1. Disclosure of the invention Advantages of the invention

[0004] The wiper blade according to the invention, with the features of the main claim, has the advantage that an insulating element is provided for thermal insulation. In this way, the energy required for heating is reduced. According to the invention, the insulating element has or forms at least one air chamber and is arranged on a top surface of the mounting area of ​​the wiper blade facing away from the wiper lip, since heat input is particularly necessary in the area of ​​the wiper lip.

[0005] According to the invention, the wiper strip has a mounting area and a wiping lip which are connected via a tilting bridge. In this way, good cleaning performance is achieved.

[0006] The measures listed in the dependent claims result in advantageous further developments and improvements of the features specified in the main claim.

[0007] It is particularly advantageous if the insulating element in cross-section insulates the mounting area and at least partially the wiper lip. This results in significant energy savings.

[0008] To achieve a good wiping result, it is advantageous to attach the wiper blade to a spring rail.

[0009] A particularly simple and cost-effective heating of the wiper blade is advantageously achieved by heating the spring rail through the heating device.

[0010] It is also considered advantageous if the mounting area of ​​the wiper strip is heated by the heating device.

[0011] It is particularly advantageous if the insulating element is multi-layered in order to create particularly good thermal insulation. Drawings

[0012] Various embodiments of the invention are illustrated in the drawings and explained in more detail in the following description. They show: Figure 1 shows a wiper blade according to the prior art in an extrusion view, Figure 2 shows a cross-section through a wiper blade according to the invention in a schematic representation, and Figures 3 to 8 show variations of a wiper blade according to the invention in a schematic cross-sectional view, wherein the Figures 3 to 6 They serve only for illustrative purposes and are not part of the invention. Description of the exemplary implementations

[0013] In Figure 1 A wiper blade 10 according to the prior art is shown. In the following figures, a wiper blade 10 according to the invention is shown, which demonstrates the modifications according to the invention.

[0014] The wiper blade 10 comprises a two-part spring rail 12, a wiper strip 14, a wind deflector strip 16, and a fastening element 18. Along a longitudinal extension (L), the wiper blade 10 is closed at each end by an end cap 20. The fastening element 18 serves to attach the wiper blade 10 to a wiper arm, which is not shown here for clarity. The wiper strip 14 is located on the side of the spring rail 12 facing away from the fastening element 18. This side is referred to below as the underside. The side of the spring rail 12 facing the fastening element 18 is referred to below as the top side. The wind deflector strip 16 is located on this top side and attached to the spring rail 12.

[0015] In Figure 2Figure 1 shows a cross-section through a wiper blade 10 according to the invention. The wiper strip 14 has a wiping lip 22 and a mounting area 24. The mounting area 24 serves to attach the wiper strip 14 to the spring rail 12. The wiping lip 22 is attached to the mounting area 24 by means of a tilting web 26. The spring rail 12 is guided within the mounting area 24 and has a heating element 30, which is arranged on the upper side, i.e., on the side of the spring rail 12 that is in contact with the wiping lip 22. This heating element 30 first heats the spring rail 12 and thus the mounting area 24 as well as the wiping lip 22. The resulting heat radiation is represented by the radiation arrows 34. The mounting area 34 and thus the spring rail 12 are enclosed by an insulating element 34, which extends in an inverted U-shape towards the wiping lip 22. The insulating element 34 is attached to the mounting area 24.Three retaining bridges 36 are provided for this purpose, however, fastening can also be carried out by other holding devices.

[0016] The distance that the insulating element 34 maintains from the mounting area 24 via the retaining bridge 36 creates at least one air chamber 38, which further enhances the thermal insulation of the mounting area 24. A second air chamber 40 is also formed here. In one variation, the air chamber 38 and / or the second air chamber 40 can also be located within the insulating element 34.

[0017] As described above, the insulating element 34 has an approximately inverted U-shaped cross-section. This forms a base 42 at the ends of which a skirt 44 and a further skirt 46 are arranged. The skirt 44 and the further skirt 46 extend from the mounting area 24 down over the tilting web 26 into the area of ​​the wiper lip 22. In a variation of the invention, only the skirt 44 can extend down to the wiper lip 22, and the further skirt 46 can be correspondingly shorter. The base 42 simultaneously forms the wind deflector strip 16 ( Figure 1 ) and is therefore slanted in cross-section.

[0018] In the embodiment shown here, the wiper strip 14, together with the wiper lip 22, the tilting web 26, and the mounting area 24, is formed integrally with the retaining bridges 36 and the insulating element 34. This can be achieved, for example, simply by an extrusion process.

[0019] The heating device 30 is designed here as a heating foil applied to the spring rail 12. However, other designs are also possible, for example, integrated heating wires.

[0020] In Figure 3 is a variation of the in Figure 2 The wiper blade shown is depicted. All explanations and reference symbols from Figure 2 also apply to Figure 3 To avoid repetition, only the differences to the training from [previous training source] are mentioned here. Figure 2 explained.

[0021] The retaining bridges 36 are formed integrally with the mounting area 24 of the wiper strip 14. At the free end, facing away from the mounting area 24, the retaining bridges 36 have positive locking elements that interact with counter-positive locking elements of the insulating element 34, thus ensuring secure attachment of the insulating element 34 to the mounting area 24 of the wiper strip 14. The in Figure 3The training shown therefore differs from that in Figure 2 The illustrated design differs only in that the insulating element 34 is attached to the wiper strip 14 by a positive locking connection, whereas in Figure 2 A one-piece formation of insulating element 34, retaining bridges 36 and fastening area 24 is shown.

[0022] Furthermore, but completely independent of the design of the insulating element 34, the heating element 30 is arranged here on the underside of the spring rail 12, which faces the wiper lip 22. Of course, as in the previous embodiment, even when using positive locking elements to fasten the insulating element 34, the heating element 30 can also be arranged on the upper side of the spring rail 12. The positive locking elements are T-shaped in this case. In a variation of the invention, however, the positive locking elements can have a different shape that creates a suitable undercut.

[0023] In Figure 4A further variation of the wiper blade 10 according to the invention is shown. The wiper blade 10 according to the invention has an intermediate rail 47. The intermediate rail 47 holds the spring rail 12 and the mounting area 24 of the wiper strip 14. For this purpose, the intermediate rail 47 encloses the spring rail 12, the heating element 30, and partially the mounting area 24 of the wiper strip 14. The heating element 30 is arranged here on the underside of the spring rail 12 and on the side of the mounting area 24 facing the spring rail 12. In other words, the heating element 30 is arranged between the spring rail 12 and the mounting area 24 of the wiper strip 14. The intermediate rail 47 then has the retaining bridges 36, which hold the insulating element 34. For this purpose, the retaining bridges 36, as shown in the exemplary embodiment, Figure 3, positive locking elements which interact with opposing locking elements of the insulating element 34. To avoid repetition, the preceding embodiments, in particular the one described in [reference to previous embodiments], are also referred to with regard to the other elements. Figure 2 shown, referred to.

[0024] On the upper side, i.e., the side facing away from the wiper blade 22, the air chamber 38 and the second air chamber 40 are formed to improve the thermal insulation upwards and to direct as much of the heat generated by the heating element 30 as possible towards the wiper blade 22, which rests on the windshield during operation. In a variation of the invention, the insulating element 34 can also be formed integrally with the retaining bridges 36 and these can be, for example, glued to the mounting area 24 of the wiper strip 14 or the intermediate rail 47, or held at this point by positive locking elements.

[0025] In Figure 5A further variation of a wiper blade 10 according to the invention is shown. Basically, the wiper blade 10 in this embodiment is constructed like the one in Figure 2 As shown, however, the insulating element 34 is constructed as a double-walled structure. This creates additional air chambers 48 inside the insulating element 34. In a variation of the invention, both the air chamber 40 and the additional air chambers 48 can be filled individually or collectively with an insulating gas. They can also be evacuated, i.e., without any air or gas filling.

[0026] As in the exemplary embodiment from Figure 2 As already shown, the embodiment in also features Figure 5The spring rail 12 is enclosed by the mounting area 24 of the wiper strip 14. The heating element 30 is arranged on the underside of the spring rail 12 facing the wiper lip 22. The retaining bridges 36, which support the insulating element 34, are arranged on the mounting area 24 that encloses the spring rail 12 and the heating element 30. Here, the insulating element 34 is formed integrally with the wiper strip 14. However, a multi-part design, such as in [reference to a specific example], is also possible in a variation. Figure 4As shown, this can also be provided for a multi-layered insulating element 34 as shown here. The multi-layered design of the insulating element 34 thus results in the additional air chambers 48, which are arranged in the upper area forming the base 42 of the insulating element 34. Furthermore, an inner skirt 50 is formed, which runs essentially parallel to the skirt 44. Correspondingly, a further inner skirt 52 is formed, which runs parallel to the further skirt 46. In a variation of the invention, the inner skirt 50 and / or the further inner skirt 52 can also be omitted, so that the additional air chambers 48 are only formed on the upper side.

[0027] In Figure 6A further embodiment of the invention is shown. The wiper strip 14 comprises the wiper lip 24, which is connected to the mounting area 24 via the tilting web 26. The mounting area 24 has two mounting grooves 54 into which a portion of the two-part spring rail 12 is inserted, thus securely holding the mounting area 24 of the wiper strip 14. The heating element 30 is at least partially arranged on the spring rail in the area inserted into the mounting grooves 54. The insulating element 34 is formed integrally with the mounting area 24 and substantially completely encloses the mounting area 24 in the area of ​​the spring rail 12. This creates an air chamber 38, at least in the area of ​​the mounting area 24. To further improve the insulation, support struts 56 are provided in the insulating element 34, which are in supporting contact with the spring rail 12, thus creating further air chambers 58.The support struts 56 are arranged both on the underside of the spring rail 12 facing the wiper lip 22 and on the top side of the spring rail 12.

[0028] In Figure 7 is a variation of the in Figure 6 The embodiment shown is illustrated. The wiper strip 14 has two mounting grooves 54 in its mounting area 24. A portion of the two-part spring rail 12, on which the heating element 30 is arranged, is inserted into each of these mounting grooves. The insulating element 34 is designed as a separate part and surrounds the spring rail 12 and partially the mounting area 24 in an inverted U-shape. The insulating element is in contact with the top and bottom surfaces of the spring rail 12 at the support struts 56. This forms the air chamber 38 and the further air chambers 58, which provide optimal insulation for the spring rail 12, which is heated by the heating element 30.

[0029] The fastening area 24 is designed separately from the insulating element 34.

[0030] In one variation of this embodiment, the heating element 30 can also be arranged on the underside of the support element 12, the side facing the wiper lip 22. In another variation, the heating element 30 can also be arranged on the mounting area 24 of the wiper strip. In this way, the mounting grooves 54 form a T-shaped section 60, on the upper transverse area of ​​which the heating element 30 can be arranged.

[0031] In Figure 8 is a combination of the exemplary embodiments from Figure 7 and Figure 5 As shown in the exemplary embodiment of Figure 5The insulating element 34 is constructed as a two-layer structure and therefore comprises an outer insulating element 62 and an inner insulating element 64. The outer insulating element 62 is attached to the inner insulating element 64 by the retaining bridges 36. This creates the additional air chambers 48 between the inner insulating element 64 and the outer insulating element 62. The inner insulating element 64 is identical to the one in Figure 7 The insulating element shown is constructed as shown. To avoid repetition, the explanations regarding the inner insulating element are referred to below. Figure 7 referred.

[0032] The outer insulating element 62 is constructed similarly to the one in Figures 4 and 5 Insulating element 34 shown. The outer insulating element 62 therefore forms an inverted U-shaped structure and thus a base 42 from which the skirt 44 and the further skirt 46 extend towards the wiper lip 22. The base 42 also serves here as a wind deflector strip 16 ( Figure 1 Therefore, the base 42 features a spoiler structure that is already known from the state of the art.

[0033] For clarity, heating unit 30 is located in Figure 8 not shown separately. The heating unit 30 can be, as well as in Figure 7 The heating element 30 can be arranged on the spring rail 12 in the area of ​​the mounting grooves 54. Likewise, the heating element 30 can be provided on the mounting area 24, for example on the T-shaped section 60.

[0034] In all embodiments, the insulating element 34 is made of an elastic plastic. For this purpose, the insulating element 34 can be formed as a plastic injection molded part or manufactured by an extrusion process. In a variation of the invention, the skirt 44 and / or the further skirt 46 can serve as an additional scraper element, i.e., to wipe snow or larger contaminants, such as debris or dirt, from the pane before the final cleaning is carried out by the wiper lip 22. In this case, the skirt 44 and / or the further skirt 46 are extended downwards, towards the pane or towards the wiper lip 22, so that they rest on the pane during operation.

[0035] The wiper strip 14 is also made of elastic plastic, in particular rubber, i.e., natural rubber or EPDM, extruded or injection-molded. The same applies to the intermediate rail 47. This can be extruded or manufactured using injection molding.

Claims

1. Wiper blade (10), in particular for a motor vehicle, comprising a wiper strip (14) with a longitudinal extent (L) that has a fastening region and a wiper lip which are connected via a tilting web, and comprising a heating device (30), wherein at least one insulating element (34) is provided for thermal insulation, characterized in that the insulating element (34) has an approximately upside-down-U-shaped structure, as a result of which there is formed a base (42), there being arranged at the ends of the latter a skirt (44) and a further skirt (46) which extend from the fastening region (24) down into the region of the wiper lip (22) via a tilting web (26), wherein the insulating element (34) is fastened by at least one holding bridge (36), and wherein the wiper strip (14), with the wiper lip (22), the tilting web (26) and the fastening region (24), is formed in one piece with the holding bridges (36) and the insulating element (34).

2. Wiper blade (10) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that, in cross section, the insulating element (34) insulates the fastening region (24) and, at least partially, the wiper lip (22).

3. Wiper blade (10) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the wiper strip (14) is fastened to a spring rail (12).

4. Wiper blade (10) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the spring rail (12) is heated by the heating device (30).

5. Wiper blade (10) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the fastening region (24) is heated by the heating device (30).

6. Wiper blade (10) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the insulating element (34) is of multi-shell form.