Vehicle door latch, related vehicle door, and related method

Abstract

The present invention provides a vehicle door latch device equipped with an electric release mechanism that allows the door to be opened in a short time and that can apply sufficient force to open the door under all conditions. [Solution] The vehicle door latch (1) is - An engagement mechanism (7) configured to engage with the striker, -The system includes a release motor (19) and an electric release mechanism (17) configured to operate the engagement mechanism (7) from a closed position in which the striker is held by the engagement mechanism (7) to an open position in which the striker is released, The present invention is characterized by comprising an additional electric release mechanism (27) which operates in parallel with the electric release mechanism (17) and includes a release motor (29), wherein the additional electric release mechanism (27) is configured to displace components of the electric release mechanism (17) or the engagement mechanism (7) to provide an additional force to operate the engagement mechanism (7) toward the open position.

Claims

1. A vehicle door latch (1), wherein the vehicle door latch (1) is - An engagement mechanism (7) configured to engage with the striker, - The system includes a release motor (19) and an electric release mechanism (17) configured to operate the engagement mechanism (7) from a closed position in which the striker is held by the engagement mechanism (7) to an open position in which the striker is released, The vehicle door latch (1) is characterized in that it includes an additional electric release mechanism (27) which operates in parallel with the electric release mechanism (17) and includes an additional release motor (29), wherein the additional electric release mechanism (27) is configured to displace components of the electric release mechanism (17) or the engagement mechanism (7) to provide an additional force to operate the engagement mechanism (7) toward the open position.

2. The vehicle door latch (1) according to claim 1, wherein the electric release mechanism (17) comprises a worm (21) disposed on the output shaft (19a) of the release motor (19) and a gear wheel (23) configured to mesh with the worm (21), and the rotation of the gear wheel (23) causes the driver (15) of the engagement mechanism (7) to rotate toward the release position, thereby causing the pole (13) of the engagement mechanism (7) to rotate toward the release position associated with the open position.

3. The vehicle door latch (1) according to claim 2, characterized in that the additional electric release mechanism (27) comprises an additional worm (31) disposed on the output shaft (29a) of the additional release motor (29), and an additional gear wheel (33) configured to mesh with the additional worm (31) and displace a sliding lever (35) configured to push a component of the electric release mechanism (17) or the engagement mechanism (7).

4. The vehicle door latch (1) according to claim 3, wherein the engagement mechanism (7) also includes an intermediate rotating lever (25) configured to rotate between a resting position and an operating position, the intermediate rotating lever (25) rotates the driver (15) toward the release position, the intermediate rotating lever (25) is rotated by the gear wheel (23) of the electric release mechanism (17), and the sliding lever (35) of the additional electric release mechanism (27) is configured to push the intermediate rotating lever (25).

5. The vehicle door latch (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the electric release mechanism (17) is configured to operate the engagement mechanism (7) toward its open position at a first speed, and the additional electric release mechanism (27) is configured to operate the engagement mechanism (7) toward its open position at a second speed slower than the first speed.

6. The vehicle door latch (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the additional force applied by the additional electric release mechanism (27) to activate the engagement mechanism (7) is greater than the force applied by the electric release mechanism (17) to activate the engagement mechanism (7).

7. The vehicle door latch (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the additional release motor (29) is configured to operate when the release motor (19) is activated.

8. The vehicle door latch (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the additional release motor (29) is configured to operate when a malfunction is detected in the electric release mechanism (17).

9. The engagement mechanism (7) is - A claw (11) configured to rotate between a closed position that holds the striker and a released position that releases the striker and opens the vehicle door, - A sensor associated with the claw (11) and configured to switch from a first state to a second state when the claw (11) is in the release position, The vehicle door latch (1) according to claim 8, characterized in that a malfunction is detected if the sensor remains in the first state even after a predetermined time has elapsed since the release motor (19) was started.

10. A vehicle door (100) equipped with the vehicle door latch (1) according to claim 1 or 2.

11. A method for controlling a vehicle door latch (1) according to claim 1 or 2, - Step (101) of activating both the release motor (19) and the additional release motor (29) in order to open the vehicle door latch (1), A method for controlling a vehicle door latch (1), comprising the step (102) of driving the release motor (19) and the additional release motor (29) in opposite directions to reset the electric release mechanism (17) and the additional electric release mechanism (27) to their resting positions after the vehicle door latch (1) has been opened.

12. A method for controlling a vehicle door latch (1) according to claim 1 or 2, - Step (201) of activating the release motor (19) in order to open the vehicle door latch (1), - Step (202) of detecting the opening of the vehicle door latch or a malfunction of the electric release mechanism (17), - If the vehicle door latch is detected to be open, step (203) of driving the release motor (19) in the opposite direction in order to reset the electric release mechanism (17) to the rest position, - If a malfunction is detected in the electric release mechanism (17), the additional release motor (29) is activated (204) in order to open the vehicle door latch 1. A method for controlling a vehicle door latch (1), characterized in that when a malfunction is detected in the electric release mechanism (17), after the vehicle door latch (1) has been opened, the release motor (19) and the additional release motor (29) are driven in opposite directions to reset the electric release mechanism (17) and the additional electric release mechanism (27) to a resting position.

13. A method for controlling a vehicle door latch (1) according to 12, wherein the step (201) of activating the release motor (19) to open the vehicle door latch (1) includes a substep (2011) of starting a timer for a predetermined time, and the step (202) of detecting a malfunction in the electric release mechanism (17) includes detecting that the timer has elapsed.

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