DOOR DRIVE FOR VEHICLE SLIDING DOOR SYSTEM

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle sliding door system with a door portal and a door opening, at least one sliding door with a front side edge that is vertical in the closing direction of the sliding door and a rear side edge that is vertical in the closing direction of the sliding door and a door drive for moving the sliding door, wherein the door drive has a cable that is fastened to the sliding door with its first end in the region of the front vertical side edge and with its second end in the region of the rear vertical side edge.

[0002] Door drives for motor vehicles or rail vehicles are generally known. These door drives can be used to automatically move a sliding door, preferably arranged in a rail vehicle, between an open position and a closed position. A passage is opened in the open position and blocked in the closed position.

[0003] For example, DE 10 2014 101 036 A1 discloses an automatic sliding door with a drive unit and at least one movable door leaf. The door leaf can be moved between an open and a closed position. The drive unit has at least one electric drive motor with a gearbox and an endless toothed belt, to which the door leaf is attached via carriers on one strand. The sliding door has a locking device with which the movable door leaf can be locked or unlocked. The locking device acts on the motor shaft of the drive motor.

[0004] Further prior art can be found in the documents JP 2005 273 142 A, JP S57 104 781 A, and DE 20 2014 102 405 U1.

[0005] In most cases, the door drives are located in the upper portal area and usually consist of toothed belts or spindle drives. This significantly reduces the usable space above the door openings, which is disadvantageous. Combining a locking device with door drives located there is often difficult and unreliable in the long run.

[0006] The object of the present invention is to propose a vehicle sliding door system that requires as little installation space as possible above or below the door portal. The vehicle sliding door system should be as simple and robust as possible, so that, in particular, the maintenance and repair costs are kept to a minimum. Finally, the vehicle sliding door system should be suitable for combination with a reliable and robust locking device.

[0007] According to the invention, the object is achieved by a vehicle sliding door system having the features of patent claim 1.

[0008] The invention is essentially based on the arrangement of the door drive to the side, not above or below the door portal. The phrase "next to the door portal" used below and in the patent claims therefore refers only to a horizontal arrangement next to the door portal, not above or below it. This is essentially achieved by using a cable that is attached to the sliding door with its first end in the region of a front vertical side edge in the closing direction and with its second end in the region of a rear vertical side edge in the closing direction. The cable is movable via a door drive, which is connected to the cable via a coupling element, so that, depending on the direction of movement of the coupling element, the sliding door moves in the opening or closing direction due to the applied tensile forces.The coupling element is firmly connected to the rope, meaning it cannot move relative to the rope and always moves the rope along its longitudinal direction. The coupling element, in turn, is movable via a motor, particularly an electric motor.

[0009] What is important is that the movement of the coupling element acts on the sliding door in such a way that it is moved along its travel path, i.e. in the horizontal direction out of the door opening or in. For this purpose, in a first embodiment variant according to the invention the cable extends in a first section in the horizontal direction from the front vertical side edge to a first roller arranged on the door portal. In a second section the cable then extends in a vertical direction from the first roller to a second roller arranged below the first roller and also on the portal, is deflected around the second roller and then runs in a third section in a vertical direction from the second roller back to a third roller. The third roller is located in the immediate vicinity of the first roller and is also rotatably mounted on the door portal.Starting at the third pulley, the cable then extends in a fourth section in a horizontal direction, i.e., in the direction of travel, to the rear vertical side edge of the sliding door. The rollers, coupling element, and drive are therefore not located above or below the door opening, but to the side. Only the first and third pulleys can be positioned above or below the door opening, depending on their vertical arrangement, but still beside it horizontally. Only the cable runs above or below the door opening, creating space in these areas for other uses.

[0010] Advantageously, the coupling element is attached to one of the two vertically extending cable sections, i.e., the second section or the third section. If the coupling element, which is firmly connected to the cable, is moved vertically upwards or downwards, the cable moves accordingly and, depending on the direction of movement of the coupling element, pulls the sliding door either via the attachment on the front vertical side edge or via the attachment on the rear vertical side edge. The sliding door can thus be opened and closed via the coupling element.

[0011] The coupling element can, for example, be designed as a spindle nut that can be moved on a spindle running parallel to the second and third sections of the cable. The spindle is rotated by the motor and thus moves the coupling element and the sliding door connected to it via the cable.

[0012] Advantageously, all components of the door drive—the motor, the coupling element, and, if applicable, the rollers—are fixed to the door frame, and the connection to the sliding door is established exclusively via the cable. However, it is also conceivable for individual components to be attached to the sliding door itself. The motor, however, is always attached to the door frame.

[0013] The vehicle sliding door system is particularly suitable for use with an advantageous locking unit. For this purpose, the motor housing is mounted on the door portal so that it can rotate relative to the motor itself. This allows both the rotation required to drive the cable pulley and cable, and thus the drive torque of a motor output shaft, and the rotation of the motor housing to be utilized. For example, when using a spindle nut as a coupling element, if the spindle nut reaches the end of the spindle in the closed end position of the sliding door and cannot be moved any further, the rotatably mounted motor housing rotates and acts on a locking lever. The locking lever moves into a recess or depression in the sliding door or rests against a corresponding counterbearing, thus blocking the sliding door from moving in the opening direction.

[0014] In a particularly advantageous design variant, another articulated lever is arranged between the locking lever and the motor housing. One free end of the articulated lever is pivotally connected to the motor housing and the other end is pivotally connected to the locking lever. When the locking lever is in the recess or on the counterbearing of the sliding door, the locking lever, the articulated lever, and the motor housing form an over-center position that prevents the sliding door from moving in the opening direction. To open the sliding door, the motor housing must first be rotated in the opposite direction and the over-center position must be overcome.

[0015] The combination of the inventive door drive with the locking unit is particularly advantageous because the motor housing is already located on the side of the sliding door at the door portal. This allows the sliding door to be securely locked using just two levers.

[0016] The invention is explained in more detail with reference to the following figures. The illustrated embodiments are not limiting, but rather are to be understood as examples, and are intended to enable those skilled in the art to implement the invention. The figures are to be understood merely as schematic representations; dimensions and shapes may vary.

[0017] They show: Fig. 1: a vehicle sliding door system according to the invention with closed sliding door, Fig. 2: the vehicle sliding door system according to the invention from Fig. 1 with the sliding door open, Fig. 3: the vehicle sliding door system according to the invention from Fig. 2 in plan view from above, Fig. 4: the vehicle sliding door system according to the invention with a locking unit in plan view Fig. 5: a second embodiment of a vehicle sliding door system according to the invention.

[0018] The Figures 1 to 3show a first advantageous embodiment of the invention. Shown is a vehicle sliding door system 20 as viewed from the vehicle interior. Two sliding doors 22 are arranged in a door portal 24 and can be moved from a closed end position to an open end position. A vehicle sliding door system 20 with two sliding doors 22 is shown as an example, but the invention can also be used with only one sliding door.

[0019] The sliding door 22 has a front vertical side edge 26 in the closing direction and a rear vertical side edge 28 in the closing direction.

[0020] The door drive according to the invention comprises a cable 30, which is connected to the sliding door via a first fastening 32 in the region of the front vertical side edge 26 and via a second fastening 34 in the region of the rear vertical side edge 28. In the illustrated embodiment, the cable 30 is connected to the sliding door 22 by its free ends at each of the two fastenings 32, 34.

[0021] Furthermore, a first pulley 36, a second pulley 38, and a third pulley 40 are rotatably mounted on the door portal, over which the cable 30 is deflected. This results in the following four sections of the cable 30: a first section 42 extends horizontally from the first attachment 32 to the first roller 36, a second section 44 extends vertically from the first roller 36 to the second roller 38, a third section 46 extends vertically from the second roller 38 to the third roller 40, and a fourth section 48 extends horizontally from the third roller 40 to the second attachment 34.

[0022] The first roller 36 and the third roller 40 are arranged at approximately the same height in the vertical direction, preferably at the same height as the two fastenings 32, 34 on the sliding door 22. In the embodiment shown, the second roller 38 is located vertically below the other two rollers 36, 40 (preferably centrally between the two rollers 36, 40 in the horizontal direction).

[0023] The cable 30 is fixedly connected to a coupling element 50; a movement of the coupling element 50 leads to a movement of the cable 30. In the exemplary embodiment shown, the coupling element 50 is connected to the cable 30 in the second section 44, but alternatively it can also be connected to the third section 44. It is essential that the door drive causes the coupling element 50 to move in a vertical direction, i.e. parallel to the second section 44 or third section 46. In the exemplary embodiment shown, this is achieved via a spindle 52 which is driven by a motor 54. In the exemplary embodiment shown, the coupling element 50 is designed as a movable spindle nut.

[0024] Figure 1 shows the vehicle sliding door system 20 with closed sliding doors 22. The coupling element 50 is in its upper position. Figure 2shows the vehicle sliding door system 20 with open sliding doors 22, the coupling element 50 is accordingly in its lower position. Figure 3 shows this design variant with closed sliding door 22 in a top view.

[0025] Figure 4 illustrates an advantageous locking device 58 that interacts with the door drive according to the invention. The motor 54, which is attached to the door portal, has a motor housing 60 on which an articulated lever 62 is pivotally mounted at one end. The other free end of the articulated lever 60 is connected to a locking lever 64, which is also rotatably mounted on the door portal 24. The locking lever 64 has a free end 66, which, in the illustrated embodiment, can be pivoted into a recess 68 in the sliding door 22 in order to lock it in the closed end position. An inner wall of the recess 68 thus serves as a counterbearing 70 for the locking lever 64.

[0026] The locking device 58 is activated when the sliding door 22 is in its closed end position and the coupling element 50 can no longer move on the spindle 52. This causes the motor housing 60 to rotate, pivoting the articulated lever 60 or the locking lever 62 into its locked position. The motor housing 60 rotates, so to speak, around the internal motor 54.

[0027] The representation in Figure 4 clarifies that the locking device 58 is in an over-center position when the sliding door 22 is closed. Moving the sliding door 22 into the open end position is not possible; for this, the over-center position must first be released by rotating the motor housing 58.

[0028] The invention is not limited to the illustrated embodiment, but also encompasses other reasonable modifications of the illustrated design, provided they fall within the scope of the appended claims. For example, it would be possible to provide a toothed belt drive instead of the spindle 52. Reference symbol

[0029] 20Vehicle sliding door system 22Sliding door 24Door portal 26Front vertical side edge 28Rear vertical side edge 30Cable 32First attachment in the area of ​​the front vertical side edge 34Second attachment in the area of ​​the front vertical side edge 36First pulley 38Second pulley 40Third pulley 42First section (horizontal) 44Second section (vertical) 46Third section (vertical) 48Fourth section (horizontal) 50Coupling element 52Spindle 54Motor 56Cable pulley 58Locking device 60Motor housing 62Counter lever 64Locking lever 66Free end 68Recess 70Counter bearing

Claims

1. Vehicle sliding door system (20) having a doorway (24) and a door opening, at least one sliding door (22) with a vertical front side edge (26) in the closing direction of the sliding door (22) and a vertical rear side edge (28) in the closing direction of the sliding door (22) and a door drive for moving the sliding door (22), wherein the door drive has - a cable (30), which is attached to the sliding door (22) with its first end in the region of the front vertical side edge (26) and with its second end in the region of the rear vertical side edge (28), characterized in that the door drive has - a coupling element (50) which is firmly connected to the cable (30) and connected to a motor (54) attached to the doorway (24) and arranged laterally next to the doorway (24), which motor drives the coupling element (50) in such a way that the cable (30) can be moved along its longitudinal extension in both directions of movement and moves the sliding door (22), wherein the coupling element (50) always entrains the cable (30) during its movement along a longitudinal direction of the cable (30).

2. Vehicle sliding system (20) according to Claim 1, characterized in that a first pulley (36), a second pulley (38) and a third pulley (40) are rotatably mounted on the doorway (24), via which the cable (30) is deflected, wherein the following cable sections result: - a first section (42), which extends in a horizontal direction from a first attachment (32) of the cable (30) in the region of the front vertical side edge (26) to the first pulley (36), - a second section (44), which extends from the first pulley (36) in a vertical direction to the second pulley (38), - a third section (46), which extends from the second pulley (38) in a vertical direction to the third pulley (40), - a fourth section (48), which extends from the third pulley (40) in a horizontal direction to a second attachment (34) of the cable (30) in the region of the rear vertical side edge (28).

3. Vehicle sliding door system (20) according to Claim 2, characterized in that the coupling element (50) is connected to the cable (30) in one of the two vertical sections (44, 46).

4. Vehicle sliding door system (20) according to Claim 3, characterized in that the coupling element (50) is designed as a spindle nut, which is arranged on a spindle (52) driven by the motor (54).

5. Vehicle sliding door system (20) according to one of Claims 1 to 4, characterized in that a locking device (58) is further provided, via which the sliding door (22) can be locked in a closed end position.

6. Vehicle sliding door system (20) according to Claim 5, characterized in that an articulated lever (62) is pivotably mounted at the end of a motor housing (60) which is rotatable relative to the motor (54) and is connected at its other free end to a locking lever (64) which is rotatably mounted on the doorway (24), wherein the locking lever (64) can be pivoted with its other free end (66) on an abutment (70) on the sliding door (22) and thus locks the sliding door (22) in the closed end position.

7. Vehicle sliding door system (20) according to Claim 6, characterized in that the locking device (58) is in an over dead centre position when the sliding door (22) is closed.