MOTOR VEHICLE DOOR HANDLE BRACKET AND DOOR HANDLE INCLUDING SUCH A BRACKET

Abstract

The invention relates to a bracket (1, 1') for a motor vehicle door handle, characterized in that said bracket (1, 1') comprises a cavity (7) configured to house a balancing piece (9). Figure to be published with the abbreviation: [Fig. 1]

Description

Title of the invention: MOTOR VEHICLE DOOR HANDLE BRACKET AND DOOR HANDLE INCLUDING SUCH A BRACKET

[0001] The present invention relates to the general field of passive safety of motor vehicles, and more particularly to the field of occupant protection in the event of a vehicle-to-vehicle side impact.

[0002] The invention thus relates to the field of motor vehicle doors, and more particularly to the field of door handles comprising external opening controls.

[0003] Indeed, in the event of an accident, particularly in the event of side collisions between two vehicles, regulatory requirements and Euro NCAP standards require that the vehicle doors must not open, as this is associated with a risk of ejection of the occupants.

[0004] Among all the solutions implemented on the car, the vehicle's door handles thus include a pull handle, a bracket on which said pull handle is mounted, and an opening and closing control including a system called an "anti-g system" (or "inertia lock" in English) which allows the door handle to be locked during the impact to prevent a "handle pull" by inertia effect leading to the opening of the door.

[0005] The anti-g system is therefore a system acting by inertia on moving parts (of significant mass) of the opening control to prevent their movement by inertial forces, in particular during an accident, causing the door to open.

[0006] Anti-g systems can adopt diverse and varied architectures and technologies, each with its own advantages and disadvantages; however, one of the drawbacks of some of these anti-g systems is their behavior related to vibrations (of all the components of the door handle).

[0007] Indeed, under the effect of the resonance of the different elements of the door handle (pull handle, bracket, anti-g system, opening control, etc.), the vibrations thus generated can prevent the operation of the anti-g system of the door handle during a shock, and therefore make the behavior of the vehicle unsafe during an accident (and not in accordance with regulations and standards).

[0008] The present invention thus proposes to remedy at least one of the aforementioned drawbacks by proposing a new type of bracket for a motor vehicle door handle, characterized in that said bracket includes a reception cavity configured to house a balancing piece.

[0009] Providing a cavity, for example internal to the bracket, into which a balancing piece can be inserted makes it possible to change the mass of the handle, in this case the bracket, and to modify the natural frequencies of the bracket, and by extension, of the door handle in which the bracket is installed. Thus, adding a balancing piece to the bracket makes it possible to reduce, or even eliminate, problems related to resonance frequencies that prevent the proper functioning of certain components of the door handle, in particular the anti-g system (related to the external opening control of the door handle).

[0010] The caliper according to the invention has the advantage of being simple to manufacture and allows for a single caliper model that can be adapted to different types of vehicle doors, therefore with different components (handle, anti-g system, etc.), which have varying resonance frequencies, the mass of the balancing piece being able to be adapted according to the problematic resonance frequency or frequencies (therefore for the door handle considered).

[0011] According to one possible feature, said receiving cavity and said balancing piece are configured so that said balancing piece can fit into said cavity by cooperation of form.

[0012] Advantageously, the cooperation of form between cavity and balancing piece makes it possible to optimize the contact between these elements, to limit any movement of the balancing piece in said cavity, thus preventing said balancing piece from coming out of said cavity under the effect of vibrations.

[0013] According to another possible feature, said receiving cavity and said balancing piece are configured so that, when said balancing piece is housed in said cavity, said cavity and said balancing piece have a mechanical connection of the plane-to-plane type between them. When the balancing piece is housed in the caliper cavity, it is advantageous for the contact to be made via planes, increasing the friction forces between the balancing piece and the receiving cavity, but also allowing a better distribution of forces on the balancing piece and the cavity when the caliper is subjected to stress.

[0014] According to another possible feature, said receiving cavity and said balancing piece are configured to be fixed to each other by at least one fixing point. Advantageously, there is at least one fixing point allowing the balancing piece to be secured in the receiving cavity, in order to secure the position of the balancing piece.

[0015] According to another possible feature, said receiving cavity and said balancing piece are configured to be fixed by at least one fixing screw, a clip and / or a weld point. The fixing point is advantageously a fixing screw, a clip and / or a welding point, that is to say a simple and inexpensive means of fixing.

[0016] According to another possible feature, said stirrup includes a balancing piece housed in said receiving cavity.

[0017] According to another possible characteristic, said balancing piece, which is for example a rigid piece, has a stiffness of at least 180 GPa, and preferably of at least 200 GPa.

[0018] According to another possible characteristic, said balancing piece has a mass greater than 2% of the total mass of said caliper. Advantageously, the mass of the balancing piece is at least 10 g, that is to say a mass greater than 2% of the mass of the caliper in which said balancing piece is housed, this being sufficient to modify, or even eliminate, troublesome resonance frequencies.

[0019] According to another possible feature, said receiving cavity and said balancing piece each have a substantially polygonal shape.

[0020] According to another possible characteristic, said balancing part is made of plastic or metal, such as steel.

[0021] The invention also relates to a door handle for a motor vehicle, characterized in that said handle comprises a bracket as defined above.

[0022] The object of the invention further relates to a motor vehicle, for example thermal, hybrid or electric, characterized in that said vehicle has a door handle as defined above.

[0023] The invention will be better understood, and other objects, details, features and advantages thereof will become more apparent from the following description of two particular embodiments of the invention, given solely by way of illustration and not limitation, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: - Fig. 1 illustrates a schematic rear and three-quarter perspective view of a stirrup according to a first embodiment of the invention; - Fig. 2 illustrates a schematic rear and three-quarter perspective view of a stirrup according to a second embodiment of the invention; - Figs. 3 and 4 illustrate schematic, partial, and longitudinal section views of a cavity and balancing piece of a caliper from Fig. 2.

[0024] In the following description, the term "include" is synonymous with "include" and is not limiting in that it permits the presence of other elements in the vehicle, or the structure to which it relates. It is understood that the term "include" includes the terms "consist of". Furthermore, it should be noted that in the different figures, the same references designate identical or similar elements.

[0025] Fig. 1 illustrates a schematic rear and three-quarter perspective view of a stirrup 1, according to a first embodiment of the invention, which is intended to be integrated into a door handle (not shown) of a motor vehicle.

[0026] The stirrup 1 thus comprises a main body 3, an external opening control 5 which is housed in said main body 3. In addition, said main body 3 comprises a receiving cavity 7 which is configured to house (or accommodate) a balancing piece 9.

[0027] The main body 3 is generally made of plastic material, such as glass fiber-reinforced polypropylene, in which several cavities or alveoli are provided for housing different components of the door handle, at least one of these cavities or alveoli being configured to serve as a receiving cavity 7.

[0028] The receiving cavity 7 is thus a cavity delimited by internal walls of the main body 3, and has an opening, for example flush with the periphery of the main body 3 of the stirrup, through which the balancing piece 9 can be inserted.

[0029] The receiving cavity 7 and the balancing piece 9 are advantageously configured to have complementary shapes, that is to say that the balancing piece 9 can be housed by cooperation of shape in said cavity 7.

[0030] The balancing piece 9 has, for example, a substantially polygonal shape, for example rectangular, trapezoidal, etc., the flat surfaces of the balancing piece 9 being, when said piece 9 is housed in said cavity 7, in contact with the walls delimiting the cavity 7, so that there is a mechanical connection of the plane-to-plane type between said balancing piece 9 and the receiving cavity 7.

[0031] Said receiving cavity 7 and said balancing piece 9 are advantageously configured to be fixed to each other by at least one fixing point 11. The fixing point 11, as is more particularly illustrated in [Fig. 1], is for example a fixing screw 1a configured to secure the balancing piece in the receiving cavity 7. Said fixing screw 1a is thus configured to be inserted into the main body 3 and the cavity 7, this by means of a threaded opening extending into the balancing piece 9 and through one of the walls of the receiving cavity 7.

[0032] In an alternative embodiment not shown of the invention, the attachment point 11 may be a weld point between the balancing piece 9 and one of the walls of the cavity 7.

[0033] Figure 2 illustrates a schematic rear and three-quarter perspective view of a caliper 1' according to a second embodiment of the invention. Unlike the caliper 1 of Figure 1, said caliper 1' has a balancing piece 9' which comprises less a protuberance 9a configured to snap into place or cooperate with a complementary form 7a arranged in one of the walls of the cavity 7. The mechanical cooperation of the protuberance 9a thus acts as a fixing point 11 between the balancing piece 9' and the cavity 7.

[0034] It should also be noted that the protrusion 9a can also act as a keying device, preventing incorrect positioning of the balancing piece 9' in the cavity 7, even if the shape of the piece 9 or 9' itself can also act as a keying device.

[0035] Figs. 3 and 4 illustrate partial and sectional views of a balancing piece 9' and a cavity 7 of a stirrup 1' according to the second embodiment.

[0036] The balancing piece thus has two protrusions or clips 9a arranged on either side of the balancing piece 9. Said protrusions are thus configured to cooperate with complementary shapes 7a arranged in the receiving cavity 7, the walls of the cavity 7 being configured to deform during the passage of the balancing piece 9, and to return to contact with the balancing piece 9 when the protrusions 9a are arranged in the complementary shapes 7a of the cavity 7.

[0037] Regardless of the embodiment, said balancing piece 9 or 9' is a rigid piece, advantageously made of plastic or metal, such as glass fiber reinforced polypropylene or steel. Said balancing piece 9 or 9' also has a stiffness of at least 180 GPa, and preferably at least 200 GPa.

[0038] In addition, said balancing piece 9 or 9' advantageously has a mass greater than 2% of the total mass of said caliper 1, in particular of the main body 3, and preferably a mass of at least 10 g, this generally corresponding between 2 and 10% of the total mass of the main body 3. Said main body generally has a mass between 200 and 400 g.

Claims

Demands

1. Bracket (1, 1') for motor vehicle door handle, the bracket (1, 1') comprising a receiving cavity (7) configured to house a balancing piece (9), characterized in that said bracket (1, 1') comprises a balancing piece (9, 9') housed in said receiving cavity (7), said balancing piece (9, 9') having a mass greater than 2% of the total mass of said bracket (1, 1').

2. Stirrup (1, 1') according to the preceding claim, characterized in that said receiving cavity (7) and said balancing piece (9, 9') are configured so that said balancing piece (9, 9') can fit by cooperation of form into said cavity (7).

3. Stirrup (1, 1') according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said receiving cavity (7) and said balancing piece (9, 9') are configured so that, when said balancing piece (9, 9') is housed in said cavity (7), said cavity (7) and said balancing piece (9, 9') have a mechanical connection of the plane-to-plane type between them.

4. Stirrup (1, 1') according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said receiving cavity (7) and said balancing piece (9, 9') are configured to be fixed to each other by at least one fixing point (11).

5. Stirrup (1, 1') according to the preceding claim, characterized in that said receiving cavity (7) and said balancing piece (9, 9') are configured to be fixed by at least one fixing screw (1a), a clip (11b) and / or a weld point.

6. Stirrup (1, 1') according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said balancing piece (9, 9') has, for example, a stiffness of at least 180 GPa.

7. Door handle for motor vehicle, characterized in that said handle comprises a bracket (1, 1') according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

8. Motor vehicle, characterized in that said vehicle comprises a door handle according to the preceding claim.

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