LIQUID CONTAINER(S) RECEPTION DEVICE WITH RETURN FORCE CONTROL, FOR VEHICLE EQUIPMENT

Abstract

A container mounting device (CD) is fitted to a vehicle and comprises: - a housing (BD) having a wall (PB) with a first part (P1), delimiting a container space (EA) for at least one liquid container, and a second part (P2), on which is mounted, for rotation under a restoring force, at least one retaining tab (PM1-PM4) partially housed within the container space (EA), and comprising on an external face (FE) N guide tabs (PG1-PG6), with N > 1, and - an elastic cord (EC) at least partially surrounding the container space (EA) while being guided by the guide tabs (PG1-PG6) and forming at least one loop (BC) around at least one guide tab (PG1, PG4) in order to control each restoring force. Figure to be published with the abbreviation: Fig. 2

Description

Title of the invention: LIQUID CONTAINER(S) HOLDING DEVICE WITH RETURN FORCE CONTROL, FOR VEHICLE EQUIPMENT Technical field of the invention

[0001] The invention relates to vehicles, and more specifically to reception devices intended to equip vehicle equipment. State of the art

[0002] Certain vehicles, possibly of the motor vehicle type, include at least one piece of equipment, such as for example a front center console, which includes at least one housing containing a device for holding at least one container of liquid, such as for example a glass, a cup, a bottle, a flask or a can.

[0003] Such a receiving device comprises a housing that defines its receiving space and which sometimes includes a wall comprising first and second parts joined together and, on one outer face, at least two guide tabs. The first part defines the receiving space, and on the second part, at least one retaining tab is rotatably mounted under a restoring force. This tab is partially housed within the receiving space to help secure a liquid container. The N guide tabs are designed to guide an elastic cord that at least partially surrounds the receiving space and generates the restoring force applied to each retaining tab. It will be understood that this elastic cord passes between the outer face of the housing wall and the guide tabs while being coupled to each retaining tab. This type of receiving device is notably described in US patent 5,782,448.

[0004] It frequently happens that the tension of the elastic cord generates a restoring force on each retaining tab that is unsatisfactory to some users, possibly in certain regions of the world (for example, due to different habits). This dissatisfaction generally results from undertension of the elastic cord, which induces an insufficient restoring force, rendering a retaining tab insufficiently active. This undertension can result from dimensional variations in the elastic cord and / or the housing, and / or variations in the elasticity of the elastic cords, and / or from the fact that the routing of the elastic cord around the receiving space is incorrect. In this last case, the incorrect routing of the elastic cord can result from the absence of a guide tab and / or an assembly error (possibly due to forgetting to pass the elastic cord between a guide tab and the outer face of the housing wall or because a finger of the assembler got caught in the elastic cord and moved it away from a guide tab).

[0005] The invention therefore aims in particular to improve the situation. Presentation of the invention

[0006] In particular, it proposes for this purpose a reception device intended to equip a vehicle and comprising:

[0007] - a casing comprising a wall, on the one hand, having a first part, delimiting a space for at least one liquid container, and a second part, on which is mounted, for rotation under a restoring force, at least one retaining tab partially housed within this space, and, on the other hand, comprising on an external face N guide tabs, with N > 1, and

[0008] - an elastic cord at least partially surrounding the reception space by being guided by these guide legs and generating the restoring force.

[0009] This reception device is characterized by the fact that its elastic cord makes at least one loop around at least one guide tab in order to control the return force.

[0010] Thanks to the invention, it is now possible to adapt, without any modification of the housing and without needing to use elastic cords having variable elasticities and / or lengths, the tension of the elastic cord to the requirements in terms of restoring force to be applied (or exerted) on each retaining tab.

[0011] The reception device according to the invention may include other features which may be taken separately or in combination, and in particular:

[0012] - its elastic cord can make a first number of loops around a second number of guide legs, these first and second numbers being chosen according to the intensity of the restoring force to be applied on each retaining leg;

[0013] - its elastic cord can make a closed loop around the entire space reception;

[0014] - N can be between 2 and 8;

[0015] - the first part of the wall may include an inner face participating in the delimitation of the reception area by subdividing it into M sub-parts, each suitable for accommodating a liquid container, with M > 2;

[0016] - in the presence of the last option, the inner face of the first part of the wall can subdivide the reception area into two sub-parts which are aligned along a main direction intended to be parallel to a longitudinal direction of the vehicle or parallel to a transverse direction of the vehicle.

[0017] The invention also proposes equipment intended to be fitted to a vehicle and comprising at least one housing containing a reception device of the type presented above.

[0018] For example, this equipment can be chosen from a front center console, a rear center console, an armrest and an interface between seat cushions.

[0019] The invention also proposes a vehicle, possibly of the automobile type, and comprising at least one piece of equipment of the type presented above. Brief description of the figures

[0020] Other features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from an examination of the detailed description below, and the accompanying drawings (one of which was obtained using CAD / CAM (“Computer-Aided Design / Computer-Aided Manufacturing”)), in which:

[0021] [Fig. 1] schematically illustrates, in a top view, an example of an embodiment of a reception device according to the invention before it becomes part of the equipment of a vehicle, and

[0022] [Fig.2] schematically illustrates, in a view from below, the reception device of the [Fig.l], Detailed description of the invention

[0023] The invention aims in particular to provide a DA reception device intended to equip a vehicle and to partially accommodate at least one liquid container by holding it by means of at least one PMj retaining tab having a controlled return force.

[0024] In the following, it is considered, by way of non-limiting example, that the DA reception device is intended to be part of a center console installed between the areas dedicated to the front passengers in a vehicle and connecting to the dashboard. However, the invention is not limited to this application. Indeed, the DA reception device can be part of any vehicle equipment directly accessible to at least one passenger. Thus, a DA reception device can, in particular, be part of a front center console, a rear center console, an armrest (side or center), or an interface between seat cushions, for example.

[0025] Furthermore, in what follows, by way of non-limiting example, the vehicle is considered to be of the automobile type. However, the invention is not limited to this type of vehicle. It relates in fact to any vehicle (land, sea (or river), or air) comprising at least one piece of equipment that may include at least one DA reception device.

[0026] In Figures 1 and 2, the X direction is the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, which is parallel to the lateral sides containing the side doors, the Y direction is the transverse direction of the vehicle, which is perpendicular to the X direction, and the Z direction is the vertical direction of the vehicle, which is perpendicular to the longitudinal X and transverse Y directions.

[0027] Figures 1 and 2 schematically illustrate an example of the realization of a DA reception device according to the invention, before it becomes part of equipment (here a central console) in a vehicle.

[0028] It should be noted that this equipment includes at least one housing unit (preferably fixed and permanent) containing a DA reception device.

[0029] As illustrated at least partially in Figures 1 and 2, a DA reception device, according to the invention, comprises a BD housing and a CE elastic cord.

[0030] The housing BD comprises a wall PB which includes, on the one hand, first PI and second P2 parts joined together, and, on the other hand, an external face FE comprising N guide tabs PGn, with n=1NetN>1. For example, the wall PB can be made by molding a plastic material.

[0031] The first part PI of the wall PB includes an inner face FI opposite to the outer face FE and participating in the delimitation of a reception space EA allowing to accommodate at least partially at least one container of liquid, such as for example a glass, a cup, a bottle, a flask or a can.

[0032] It should be noted, as illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, that the inner face FI of the first part PI of the wall PB can subdivide the receiving space EA into M sub-parts SPEm, each capable of holding a liquid container, with M > 2. However, this is not mandatory. Indeed, the receiving space EA could hold only a single liquid container. It should be noted that in the example illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, the inner face FI of the first part PI of the wall PB subdivides the receiving space EA into two sub-parts SPE1 and SPE2 (m = 1 or 2). But it could subdivide the receiving space EA into more than two sub-parts SPEm, for example, three or four.

[0033] For example, the SPEm sub-parts may be aligned along a principal direction intended to be parallel to the longitudinal direction X of the vehicle. But in an embodiment, the SPEm sub-parts could be aligned along a principal direction intended to be parallel to the transverse direction Y of the vehicle.

[0034] On the second part P2 of the wall PB, at least one retaining tab PMj is mounted for rotation under a controlled restoring force. This tab is partially housed within the receiving space EA in order to contribute to the securing (or holding) of a liquid container. It should be noted that in the example illustrated, but not limited to, in Figures 1 and 2, the receiving device DA comprises four retaining tabs PMI to PM4 (j = 1 to 4), two of which (PMI and PM2) are partially housed within the first. Sub-part SPE1 of the EA reception space, and the other two (PM3 and PM4) being partially housed in the second sub-part SPE2 of the EA reception space. But each SPEm sub-part of the EA reception space could partially house a single PMj support bracket or more than two PMj support brackets, for example three or four.

[0035] The N guide tabs PGn are intended to guide the elastic cord CE which at least partially surrounds the receiving space EA and which generates the restoring force that is applied to each retaining tab PMj. They can, for example, be in the form of protrusions such as studs or fingers. In the example illustrated, but not limited to, in [Fig. 2], the guide tabs PGn are erected substantially perpendicularly from the outer face FE of the second part P2 of the wall PB. However, in an alternative embodiment, they could be erected from the outer face FE of the first part PI of the wall PB.

[0036] The elastic cord CE passes between the outer face FE of the wall PB and the various guide tabs PGn along a predefined path, while being coupled to each retaining tab PMj so that it is subjected to a restoring force enabling it to be pressed against a liquid container (by rotational drive). For example, this coupling can be achieved by means of clipping means defined on each retaining tab PMj, which retain a portion of the elastic cord CE.

[0037] As illustrated non-limitingly in [Fig.2], the elastic cord CE makes at least one loop BC around at least one guide tab PGn in order to control the restoring force which is applied (or exerted) on each retaining tab PMj.

[0038] This is particularly advantageous because it allows the tension of the CE elastic cord to be adapted, without any modification to the BD housing and without needing to use CE elastic cords with varying elasticities and / or lengths, to the required restoring force to be applied (or exerted) on each PMj retaining tab. These requirements may, for example, vary from one region to another depending on the habits of their users or on the preferences of users within the same region. Furthermore, this allows the tension of the CE elastic cord to be adapted to dimensional variations in the CE elastic cord and / or the BD housing, and / or to variations in the elasticity of the CE elastic cords.

[0039] For example, the CE elastic cord can form a first number ni of loops BC around a second number n2 of guide tabs PGn. In this case, the first ni and second n2 numbers are chosen according to the intensity of the restoring force that must be applied to each retaining tab PMj. Thus, to control the tension and therefore the restoring force, the first number ni and / or the second number n2 can be chosen. As an example, a single loop BC can be made on a single guide tab PGn (and none on the others), or a single loop BC on several (at at least two) PGn guide tabs, or several (at least two) BC loops on a single PGn guide tab (and none on the others), or a single BC loop on one PGn guide tab and several (at least two) BC loops on at least one other PGn guide tab, or even several (at least two) BC loops on several (at least two) PGn guide tabs. As can be seen, the possibilities for controlling the tension of the CE elastic cord and therefore of each restoring force are very numerous, and particularly simple to implement since it is only necessary to appropriately choose the first number ni of BC loops, the second number n2 of PGn guide tabs to be used for each BC loop, as well as possibly the respective positions of the PGn guide tabs to be used for each BC loop.

[0040] It should be noted that the elastic cord CE can form a closed loop around the entire reception space EA. However, this is not mandatory. Indeed, it could be envisaged that the elastic cord CE has two opposite ends, free and fixedly attached to the wall PB at two different points.

[0041] It should also be noted, as illustrated in Figure 2, that the number N of guide lugs PGn can, for example, be between 2 and 8. Thus, in the example illustrated in Figure 2, the number N of guide lugs PGn is equal to 6 (i.e., PG1 to PG6 (n = 1 to 6)). This offers significant possibilities for controlling each restoring force via the loops BC of the electrical cord CE. In this purely illustrative example, the first number ni is equal to two and the second number n2 is equal to two. By way of example, a first loop BC is made on the first guide lug PG1 and a second loop BC is made on the fourth guide lug PG4.

Claims

Demands

1. Receiving device (RD) intended to equip a vehicle and comprising i) a housing (RD) having a wall (PB) having a first part (P1), delimiting a receiving space (ES) for at least one liquid container, and a second part (P2), on which is mounted for rotation under a restoring force at least one retaining tab (PMj) partially housed in said receiving space (ES), and comprising on an external face (EF) N guide tabs (PGn) in the form of protrusions such as studs or fingers, with N > 1, and ii) an elastic cord (EC) surrounding at least partially said receiving space (ES) by being guided by said guide tabs (PGn) and generating said restoring force, characterized in that said elastic cord (EC) makes at least one loop (BC) around at least one guide tab (PGn) in order to control said restoring force.

2. Reception device according to claim 1, characterized in that said elastic cord (CE) makes a first number of loops (BC) around a second number of guide tabs (PGn), said first and second numbers being chosen according to an intensity of said restoring force to be applied on each retaining tab (PMj).

3. Reception device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that said elastic cord (CE) makes a closed loop around the entirety of said reception space (EA).

4. Reception device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that N is between 2 and 8.

5. Reception device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that said first part (PI) of the wall (PB) comprises an internal face (FI) participating in the delimitation of said reception space (EA) by subdividing it into M sub-parts (SPEm) each suitable for receiving a liquid container, with M > 2.

6. Reception device according to claim 5, characterized in that said inner face (FI) subdivides said reception space (EA) into two sub-parts (SPEm) aligned along a principal direction intended to be parallel to a longitudinal direction of said vehicle or parallel to a transverse direction of said vehicle.

7. Equipment intended to be fitted to a vehicle, characterized in that it comprises at least one housing containing a reception device (RD) according to one of the preceding claims.

8. Equipment according to claim 7, characterized in that it is selected from a front center console, a rear center console, an armrest and an interface between seat cushions.

9. Vehicle, characterized in that it comprises at least one piece of equipment according to claim 7 or 8.

10. Vehicle according to claim 9, characterized in that it is of the automobile type.

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