Vehicle hood locking device

Abstract

The secondary latch lever can be used interchangeably between hood locking devices for right-hand drive vehicles and left-hand drive vehicles, allowing for proper control of the secondary latch lever's movement. [Solution] The system comprises a base plate 11 with a bent portion 27 formed by bending its lower end, and a secondary latch lever 16 that is pivotably supported on the base plate 11. The secondary latch lever 16 has a base portion 51 and a restraining contact portion 59 that contacts the base plate 11 and restricts the swing of the secondary latch lever 16 when the secondary latch lever 16 swings to a restraining position A1. The restraining contact portion 59 is formed by bending a protruding piece 57 that protrudes downward from the base portion 51 toward the base plate 11, and when the secondary latch lever 16 swings to a restraining position A1, it makes surface contact with the bent portion 27.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a hood lock device for a vehicle.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, as a hood lock device for a vehicle, there is one in which the contact portion of a secondary latch lever contacts a stopper portion formed by bending a part of a base plate to restrict the swing of the secondary latch (see Patent Document 1). This hood lock device for a vehicle includes a base plate, a secondary latch lever (secondary latch) pivotally supported on the base plate and engaging with a striker to hold the hood in a half-open position, and a second spring for biasing the secondary latch lever. In this hood lock device for a vehicle, the contact portion of the secondary latch lever contacts the stopper portion formed by bending a part of the base plate to restrict the swing of the secondary latch lever, so that the secondary latch lever can be prevented from swinging excessively and interfering with other components.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, in the above hood lock device for a left-hand drive vehicle, when trying to use the secondary latch lever for a hood lock device for a right-hand drive vehicle, the position of the stopper portion formed by bending a part of the base plate and the arrangement position of the detection switch of the primary latch overlap, and there is a problem that the stopper portion cannot be formed. As a result, the swing of the secondary latch lever cannot be appropriately restricted.

[0005] Therefore, the present invention aims to provide a vehicle hood locking device in which the secondary latch lever can be used interchangeably between a hood locking device for a right-hand drive vehicle and a hood locking device for a left-hand drive vehicle, and in which the swinging of the secondary latch lever can be appropriately restricted. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] To achieve the above objective, the present invention provides a vehicle hood locking device for locking a hood that opens and closes an opening formed in a vehicle body, comprising: a base plate having a bent portion formed by bending its vertical end; and a secondary latch lever supported on the base plate so as to be able to swing between a restraining position for restraining a striker and a release position for releasing the striker, wherein the secondary latch lever has a base portion that is pivotably attached to the base plate, and a restraining-side contact portion that contacts the base plate to restrict the swing of the secondary latch lever when the secondary latch lever swings to the restraining position, wherein the restraining-side contact portion is formed by bending a protruding piece that protrudes vertically from the base portion toward the base plate, and when the secondary latch lever swings to the restraining position, it makes surface contact with the bent portion. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] The vehicle hood locking device according to the present invention allows the secondary latch lever to be used interchangeably between a hood locking device for a right-hand drive vehicle and a hood locking device for a left-hand drive vehicle, and enables appropriate restriction of the swinging of the secondary latch lever. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] This is a front perspective view (a) and a rear perspective view (b) of a vehicle hood lock device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2]This is an exploded perspective view showing a vehicle hood locking device. [Figure 3] This is a rear view showing a vehicle hood locking device. [Figure 4] (a) is a front view showing a vehicle hood locking device with the secondary latch lever swung to the restrained position, and (b) is a front view showing a vehicle hood locking device with the secondary latch lever swung to the released position. [Figure 5] These are front view (a), bottom view (b), and right side view (c) of the base plate. [Figure 6] These are front view (a), top view (b), and left side view (c) showing the secondary latch lever. [Figure 7] These are a front perspective view (a) and a rear perspective view (b) showing a hood locking device for a right-hand drive vehicle to which the secondary latch lever of this embodiment is applied. [Figure 8] (a) is a front view showing the hood lock device for a right-hand drive vehicle with the secondary latch lever swung to the restrained position, and (b) is a front view showing the hood lock device for a right-hand drive vehicle with the secondary latch lever swung to the released position. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] The following describes a vehicle hood locking device according to one embodiment of the present invention, with reference to the attached drawings. This vehicle hood locking device is for left-hand drive vehicles and is installed in an opening for the engine compartment located at the front of the vehicle body (e.g., an automobile) to lock the hood (bonnet) that opens and closes the opening in the closed position. In particular, this vehicle hood locking device employs a secondary latch lever that can be used interchangeably between a right-hand drive vehicle hood locking device and a left-hand drive vehicle hood locking device. As shown in each figure, left and right, front and rear, and up and down are defined and described accordingly. In this embodiment, for example, the up and down direction of the vehicle hood locking device coincides with the up and down direction of the vehicle, the left and right direction of the vehicle hood locking device coincides with the vehicle width direction, and the front and rear direction of the vehicle hood locking device coincides with the front and rear direction of the vehicle.

[0010] (Configuration of a vehicle hood locking device) As shown in Figures 1 to 3, the vehicle hood locking device 1 locks the hood by restraining a striker S fixed to the hood, and comprises a base plate 11 fixed to the vehicle body, a latch 12 pivotably supported on the right rear side of the base plate 11 and restraining the striker S when the hood is closed, a lock lever 13 pivotably supported on the left rear side of the base plate 11 and locking the latch 12, a first biasing spring 14 that biases the latch 12 and the lock lever 13, and a detection switch 15 disposed below the latch 12 and detecting the operation of the latch 12. The latch 12, lock lever 13 and first biasing spring 14 disposed on the rear side of the base plate 11 constitute a primary latch function that locks the hood in the closed state via the striker S.

[0011] Furthermore, as shown in Figures 1, 2, and 4, the vehicle hood locking device 1 includes a secondary latch lever 16 that is pivotably supported on the front side of the base plate 11 and restrains the striker S when the hood is in a partially open state, and a second biasing spring 17 that biases the secondary latch lever 16. The secondary latch lever 16 and the second biasing spring 17, which are located on the front side of the base plate 11, constitute a secondary latch function that locks the hood in a partially open state via the striker S.

[0012] As shown in Figure 5, the base plate 11 is made of sheet metal and has a flat plate portion 21, an entry groove 22 formed in the left-right center of the flat plate portion 21 into which the striker S enters, a right rising portion 23 and a left rising portion 24 rising to the rear from both left and right ends of the flat plate portion 21, a right flange portion 25 formed extending to the right from the tip of the right rising portion 23 and having a right mounting hole 25a, and a left flange portion 26 formed extending to the left from the tip of the left rising portion 24 and having a left mounting hole 26a. The base plate 11 is fixed to the vehicle body with screws at two locations, the right mounting hole 25a and the left mounting hole 26a.

[0013] Furthermore, the base plate 11 has a bent portion 27 formed at the lower end of the flat plate portion 21, which is created by bending the lower end of the flat plate portion 21 forward. In this embodiment, this bent portion 27 functions as a rigidity-enhancing portion that improves the rigidity of the flat plate portion 21, and also functions as a restraining stopper portion. Additionally, an extension portion 28 is formed on the left side of the bent portion 27, extending forward from the front end of the bent portion 27, and a release-side stopper portion 29 is formed at the right end of the extension portion 28 by raising the extension portion 28 upward.

[0014] As shown in Figures 1 to 3, the latch 12 is attached to the right side of the entry groove 22 of the base plate 11 by a latch pin 18, and is pivotably supported on the base plate 11 between a latch position that restrains the striker S and an unlatch position that releases the striker S and accepts its entry.

[0015] Also, as shown in FIG. 2, the latch 12 is formed of a plate-shaped and U-shaped metal member, and includes a base 31 swingably attached to the latch pin 18, a first claw portion 32 extending leftward from the base 31 and contacting the striker S from below, a second claw portion 33 extending leftward from the base 31 so as to face the first claw portion 32 and contacting the striker S from above, an engaged claw 34 formed at the tip of the first claw portion 32 and engaging with the lock lever 13, and a spring engagement hole 35 formed at the upper portion of the base 31 and engaging with the first biasing spring 14. A restraint groove 36 for restraining the striker S is formed between the first claw portion 32 and the second claw portion 33.

[0016] As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the lock lever 13 is attached to the left side of the base plate 11 sandwiching the entry groove 22 by the lock pin 19, and is swingably supported between a lock position for locking the latch 12 at the latch position and an unlock position for releasing the lock of the latch 12 with respect to the base plate 11.

[0017] Also, as shown in FIG. 2, the lock lever 13 is formed of a plate-shaped metal member extending in the vertical direction, and includes a base portion 41 extending in the vertical direction, an engagement claw 42 formed at the lower right side of the base portion 41 and engaging with the engaged claw 34 of the latch 12, a spring engagement portion 43 formed at the upper end portion of the base portion 41 and engaging with the first biasing spring 14, and an operation portion 44 extending downward from the lower end portion of the base portion 41 and operated by a release cable not shown. Since the hood lock device 1 for this vehicle is a hood lock device for a left-hand vehicle, the lock lever 13 is configured to swing to the unlock position by pulling the operation portion 44 to the left by the release cable.

[0018] As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the first biasing spring 14 is a torsion spring, one end of which is attached to the spring engagement hole 35 of the latch 12, and the other end of which is attached to the spring engagement portion 43 of the lock lever 13. Thereby, the first biasing spring 14 swings and biases the latch 12 toward the unlatch position side and swings and biases the lock lever 13 toward the lock position side.

[0019] (Locking and Unlocking by Primary Latch Function) When the hood is closed, the striker S fixed to the hood enters the entry groove 22 and the restraint groove 36 and pushes down the latch 12, causing the latch 12 to swing to the latch position. In this state, the engaged claw 34 of the latch 12 and the engaging claw 42 of the lock lever 13 engage with each other, locking the latch 12 at the restraint position A1. Thereby, the striker S is restrained by the latch 12 locked at the latch position, and the hood to which the striker S is fixed is locked in the closed state (locking operation of the primary latch function). On the other hand, when the operation portion 44 is operated by the release cable in this state (when the operation portion 44 is pulled to the left), the lock lever 13 swings to the unlock position, and the engagement between the engaged claw 34 and the engaging claw 42 is released. Thereby, by the biasing force of the first biasing spring 14, the latch 12 swings toward the unlatch position side, and the hood is pushed open via the striker S (unlocking operation of the primary latch function).

[0020] As shown in FIG. 4, the secondary latch lever 16 is swingably supported with respect to the base plate 11 between a restraint position A1 (see FIG. 4(a)) for restraining the striker S and a release position A2 (see FIG. 4(b)) for releasing the striker S.

[0021] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 6, the secondary latch lever 16 integrally comprises a base 51 pivotably attached to the base plate 11, an arm 52 extending upward from the base 51, a hook 53 formed on the tip side of the arm 52 and engaging with the striker S, an operating part 54 formed extending diagonally upward to the left from the base 31 and receiving operation by the user, a spring engaging part 55 formed on the left side of the base 31 and engaging with the second biasing spring 17, a first release-side contact part 56 formed on the right side of the base 31, and a second release-side contact part 58 and a restraining-side contact part 59 formed by bending a protruding piece 57 that protrudes downward from the base 51 toward the rear (base plate 11 side). In this embodiment, the left side of the integral protruding piece 57, which has its tip bent toward the rear, is the second release-side contact part 58, and the right side of the integral protruding piece 57 is the restraining-side contact part 59.

[0022] The first release-side contact portion 56 is a release-side contact portion used when the secondary latch lever 16 is adapted for use in a hood lock device for a right-hand drive vehicle. Specifically, in a hood lock device for a right-hand drive vehicle, when the base plate 11 swings to the release position A2, the first release-side contact portion 56 contacts the release-side stopper portion 29A of the base plate 11, thereby restricting the swing of the secondary latch lever 16 in the release direction (clockwise).

[0023] The second release-side contact portion 58 is formed by bending a protruding piece 57, and its left end surface 58a is a contact surface that abuts against the release-side stopper portion 29 of the base plate 11. That is, when the secondary latch lever 16 swings to the release position A2, the left end surface 58a of the second release-side contact portion 58 abuts against the release-side stopper portion 29, restricting the swing of the secondary latch lever 16 in the release direction (clockwise). The left end surface 58a of the second release-side contact portion 58 is formed to be substantially parallel to the right surface of the release-side stopper portion 29 when the secondary latch lever 16 swings to the release position A2. Therefore, when the secondary latch lever 16 swings to the release position A2, the left end surface 58a of the second release-side contact portion 58, which extends in an "L" shape, contacts the right surface of the release-side stopper portion 29, thereby restricting the swing of the secondary latch lever 16.

[0024] The restraining contact portion 59 is formed by bending the protruding piece 57 and is located to the right of the pivot axis of the secondary latch lever 16. Its upper surface 59a is a contact surface that abuts against the bent portion 27 of the base plate 11. In other words, when the secondary latch lever 16 swings to the restraining position A1, the upper surface 59a of the restraining contact portion 59 abuts against the bent portion 27, restricting the swing of the secondary latch lever 16 in the restraining direction (counterclockwise). The upper surface 59a of the restraining contact portion 59 is formed to be substantially parallel to the lower surface of the bent portion 27 when the secondary latch lever 16 swings to the restraining position A1. Therefore, when the secondary latch lever 16 swings to the restraining position A1, the upper surface 59a of the restraining contact portion 59 makes surface contact with the lower surface of the bent portion 27, restricting the swing of the secondary latch lever 16.

[0025] As shown in Figures 1, 2, and 4, the second biasing spring 17 is made of a coil spring, with one end attached to the spring engagement portion 55 of the secondary latch lever 16 and the other end attached to the extension portion 28 of the base plate 11. As a result, the second biasing spring 17 biases the secondary latch lever 16 to swing (counterclockwise) toward the restrained position A1.

[0026] (Lock and unlock via secondary latch function) As shown in Figure 4(a), in the locked state by the secondary latch function, the secondary latch lever 16 swings to the restrained position A1 by the biasing force of the second biasing spring 17, and the striker S is restrained by the hook portion 53 of the secondary latch lever 16 that has swung to the restrained position A1. As a result, the hood is locked in a half-open state. At this time, the restraining side contact portion 59 of the secondary latch lever 16 that has swung to the restrained position A1 makes surface contact with the bent portion 27 of the base plate 11, thereby restricting the swinging of the restraining side of the secondary latch lever 16. On the other hand, if the secondary latch lever 16 is operated by the user in this state, as shown in Figure 4(b), the secondary latch lever 16 swings to the release position A2, the restraint of the striker S by the hook portion 53 of the secondary latch lever 16 is released, and the striker S is released. As a result, the locked state by the secondary latch function is released, and the lock on the hood in the half-open state is released. At this time, the second release-side contact portion 58 of the secondary latch lever 16, which has swung to the release position A2, comes into contact with the release-side stopper portion 29 of the base plate 11, thereby restricting the swing of the secondary latch lever 16 to the release side. In this way, the contact of the restraining-side contact portion 59 with the bending portion 27 and the contact of the second release-side contact portion 58 with the release-side stopper portion 29 restrict the swing of the secondary latch lever 16 to a predetermined swing range.

[0027] (Example of application of secondary latch lever to hood locking device for right-hand drive vehicles) Next, referring to Figures 7 and 8, we will describe an example of a hood lock device 1A for a right-hand drive vehicle to which the secondary latch lever 16 of this embodiment is applied, in which case the secondary latch lever 16 of this embodiment is adapted for use in a hood lock device for a right-hand drive vehicle. As shown in Figure 7, the hood lock device 1A for a right-hand drive vehicle has a configuration in which the latch 12, lock lever 13, first biasing spring 14, detection switch 15, latch pin 18, and lock pin 19, which are arranged on the rear side of the base plate 11, are reversed on the left and right sides compared to the above-mentioned hood lock device 1, with the detection switch 15 being arranged on the left side. Furthermore, by pulling the operating part 44 of the lock lever 13 to the right with a release cable (not shown), the lock lever 13 is swung to the unlocked position. In addition, the base plate 11 has a release-side stopper part 29A formed by cutting and bending a part of the flat plate part 21 forward at the lower right of the flat plate part 21, instead of a release-side stopper part 29 formed by raising the extension part 28 upward.

[0028] In this right-hand drive vehicle hood lock device 1A, when the secondary latch lever 16 swings to the restrained position A1, the restrained-side contact portion 59 of the secondary latch lever 16 makes surface contact with the bent portion 27 of the base plate 11, thereby restricting the swing of the secondary latch lever 16 on the restrained side. On the other hand, when the secondary latch lever 16 swings to the released position A2, the first released-side contact portion 56 of the secondary latch lever 16 contacts the released-side stopper portion 29A of the base plate 11 at the lower right position of the flat plate portion 21, thereby restricting the swing of the secondary latch lever 16 on the released side. In this way, even when the secondary latch lever 16 is used in the right-hand drive vehicle hood lock device 1A, the formation positions of the stopper portions 27 and 29A of the base plate 11 and the placement position of the detection switch 15 do not overlap, and the swing of the secondary latch lever 16 can be appropriately restricted.

[0029] (Effects and Effects of the Embodiment) As described above, with the configuration of the embodiment described above, by providing a restraining-side contact portion 59 that contacts the bent portion 27 of the base plate 11 to restrict the restraining-side swing of the secondary latch lever 16, the contact position of the restraining-side contact portion 59 with respect to the base plate 11 does not overlap with the placement positions of other parts in both the hood lock device 1A for right-hand drive vehicles and the hood lock device 1 for left-hand drive vehicles. Therefore, the secondary latch lever 16 can be used in both the hood lock device 1A for right-hand drive vehicles and the hood lock device 1 for left-hand drive vehicles, and the swing of the secondary latch lever 16 can be appropriately restricted. This reduces the manufacturing cost of the vehicle hood lock device 1. Furthermore, by forming the restraining-side contact portion 59 by bending the protruding piece 57 toward the base plate 11 and configuring it to make surface contact with the bent portion 27, the swing of the secondary latch lever 16 can be restricted more appropriately. In other words, the load on the restraining contact portion 59 and the bent portion 27 can be distributed by surface contact, thereby suppressing damage or breakage to the restraining contact portion 59 and the bent portion 27. Furthermore, since there is no need to cut and bend a part of the base plate 11 to form the restraining stopper portion, the rigidity of the base plate 11 can be improved.

[0030] Furthermore, the secondary latch lever 16 has a first release-side contact portion 56 that, in the right-hand drive vehicle hood lock device 1A, contacts the release-side stopper portion 29A to restrict the swinging of the secondary latch lever 16 when it swings to the release position A2, and a second release-side contact portion 58 that, in the left-hand drive vehicle hood lock device 1, contacts the release-side stopper portion 29A to restrict the swinging of the secondary latch lever 16 when it swings to the release position A2, thus allowing the secondary latch lever 16 to be used in both the right-hand drive vehicle hood lock device 1A and the left-hand drive vehicle hood lock device 1.

[0031] Furthermore, when the secondary latch lever 16 swings to the release position A2, the L-shaped side end face of the second release-side contact portion 58 contacts the release-side stopper portion 29. This configuration allows for a wider contact area between the second release-side contact portion 58 and the release-side stopper portion 29, thereby suppressing damage or breakage to the second release-side contact portion 58 and the release-side stopper portion 29.

[0032] (Regarding other embodiments) Although embodiments of the present invention have been described above, these embodiments do not limit the invention as defined in the claims. Furthermore, it should be noted that not all combinations of features described in the embodiments are necessarily essential for solving the problem of the invention. The present invention can be implemented with appropriate modifications without departing from its spirit.

[0033] For example, in the above embodiment, the restraining contact portion 59 abuts against the bent portion 27 of the base plate 11, and the release-side contact portions 56 and 58 are configured such that in the hood lock device 1A for right-hand drive vehicles, there is a first release-side contact portion 56 that abuts against the release-side stopper portion 29A, and in the hood lock device 1 for left-hand drive vehicles, there is a second release-side contact portion 58 that abuts against the release-side stopper portion 29. However, the release-side contact portions 56 and 58 may be configured to abut against the bent portion 27. That is, the release-side contact portions 56 and 58 may be configured to make surface contact with the bent portion 27 when the secondary latch lever 16 swings to the release position A2. In this case, one of the two release-side contact portions 56 and 58 can be omitted.

[0034] Furthermore, the restraining contact portion 59 may be configured such that the hood lock device 1A for right-hand drive vehicles has a first restraining contact portion 59 that restricts the swinging of the restraining side of the secondary latch lever 16, and the hood lock device 1 for left-hand drive vehicles has a second restraining contact portion 59 that restricts the swinging of the restraining side of the secondary latch lever 16.

[0035] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the striker S was provided on the hood side and the vehicle hood locking device 1 was provided on the vehicle body side (opening side). However, it is also possible to provide the vehicle hood locking device 1 on the hood side and the striker S on the vehicle body side (opening side). In this case, the vehicle hood locking device 1 is configured to be inverted vertically.

[0036] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the present invention was applied to a vehicle hood locking device 1 that is located at the front of the vehicle and locks the hood for the engine compartment (engine hood). However, the present invention is not limited to this, and may also be applied to a vehicle hood locking device that is located at the rear of the vehicle and locks the hood for the trunk compartment (trunk hood). Moreover, the present invention may be applied to any vehicle locking device that locks a lid that opens and closes an opening provided in the vehicle body, for example, a vehicle locking device that locks a lid that opens and closes a charging opening (a so-called charging lid). [Explanation of Symbols]

[0037] 1: Vehicle hood locking device, 1A: Right-hand drive vehicle hood locking device, 11: Base plate, 16: Secondary latch lever, 27: Bent part, 51: Base, 56: First release side contact part, 57: Protruding piece, 58: Second release side contact part, 59: Retaining side contact part, A1: Retaining position, A2: Release position, S: Strike

Claims

1. A vehicle hood locking device for locking a hood that opens and closes an opening formed in the vehicle body, A base plate having a bent portion formed by bending the upper and lower ends, The base plate is supported by a secondary latch lever that is pivotable between a restraining position that restrains the striker and a release position that releases the striker, The secondary latch lever is A base that is pivotably attached to the base plate, The secondary latch lever has a restraining contact portion that contacts the base plate to restrict the swing of the secondary latch lever when the secondary latch lever swings to the restraining position, The vehicle hood locking device is characterized in that the restraining contact portion is formed by bending a protruding piece that extends vertically from the base portion toward the base plate, and when the secondary latch lever swings to the restraining position, it makes surface contact with the bent portion.

2. The secondary latch lever is In a hood locking device for a right-hand drive vehicle, when the secondary latch lever swings to the release position, a first release-side contact portion contacts the base plate to restrict the swinging of the secondary latch lever, The vehicle hood lock device according to claim 1, further comprising: a hood lock device for a left-hand drive vehicle, wherein when the secondary latch lever swings to the release position, a second release-side contact portion contacts the base plate to restrict the swinging of the secondary latch lever.

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