Vehicle door lock device

Abstract

To provide a vehicle door lock device capable of reducing the noise when unlocking a door.SOLUTION: A vehicle door lock device includes: a base member fixed to a door that opens / closes an opening in a vehicle body; a striker fixed to an edge of the opening in the vehicle body; and a latch provided on the base member, having a latch groove that can be engaged with / disengaged from the striker, and that can rotate between a locked position in which the latch groove restrains the striker and an unlocked position in which the striker is released. A protrusion protruding inward into the latch groove is provided on a surface of the latch in the latch groove that comes into contact with the striker when the latch rotates.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle door lock device. [Background technology]

[0002] 2. Description of the Related Art In a vehicle, a weather strip is generally provided around an opening in the body to seal between the door and the opening. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0003] When the door lock device is controlled to unlock, the restoring force of the pressed weather strip can cause the door to be ejected in the opening direction. If the load that ejects the door is large, the distortion of the mating part between the striker fixed to the vehicle body and the latch installed on the door increases, and when the force is released, the door lock device generates a loud noise that may cause discomfort to passengers. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has as its object to provide a vehicle door lock device that can reduce the noise generated when unlocking the door. [Means for solving the problem]

[0004] In order to achieve the above object, one embodiment of the present invention provides a vehicle door lock device comprising: a base member fixed to a door that opens and closes an opening in a vehicle body; a striker fixed to an edge of the opening in the vehicle body; and a latch provided on the base member, having a latch groove that can be engaged and disengaged with the striker, and that can rotate between a locked position in which the striker is restrained by the latch groove and an unlocked position in which the striker is released, wherein a protrusion that protrudes inward of the latch groove is provided on a surface of the latch that comes into contact with the striker when the latch rotates.

[0005] With this structure, when the door is ejected during unlocking, the striker disengages from the latch groove along the protrusion, increasing the amount of interference between the latch groove and the striker during the process of disengagement. In this way, compared to when the protrusion is not provided, the speed at which the striker disengages can be slowed and the speed at which the door is ejected can be reduced. This effectively reduces noise during unlocking.

[0006] In the vehicle door lock device of the present invention, preferably, the amount of protrusion of the protrusion portion gradually increases and then gradually decreases as the striker moves in the disengagement direction from the latch groove.

[0007] With this structure, the speed at which the striker disengages can be reduced, and the striker can be smoothly disengaged from the latch groove without being hindered from disengaging.

[0008] In the vehicle door lock device of the present invention, the protrusion is preferably formed in an arc shape when viewed from the direction of the rotation axis of the latch.

[0009] This structure allows the striker to move smoothly and prevents the door from getting stuck when opening it.

[0010] In the vehicle door lock device of the present invention, the protrusion is preferably made of a resin material that covers the latch.

[0011] This structure allows the protrusion to be formed in a simple manner, and since the protrusion is made of resin, noise generated when the striker moves in the latch groove can be further reduced.

[0012] In the vehicle door lock device of the present invention, preferably, an abutment portion is provided on the latch and an abutted portion is provided on the base member, and abutment between the abutment portion and the abutted portion restricts further rotation of the latch that has rotated to the unlocked position, and the abutted portion is made of a material different from that of the base member.

[0013] With this structure, the abutting portion and the abutting portion, which are made of a material different from that of the base member, abut against each other, thereby reducing noise caused by positioning the latch when unlocking, thereby further reducing noise when unlocking.

[0014] In the vehicle door lock device of the present invention, the contacted portion is preferably a rubber stopper.

[0015] This structure can further reduce the noise when unlocking.

[0016] In the vehicle door lock device of the present invention, the base member is preferably provided with a base groove through which the striker passes.

[0017] With this structure, the base member does not interfere with the movement of the striker.

[0018] In the vehicle door lock device of the present invention, preferably, the striker has a portion that enters the latch groove and has an oval cross section when viewed from the direction of the rotation axis of the latch.

[0019] With this structure, the amount of interference between the protrusion and the striker can be satisfied not only by the protrusion but also by the shape of the striker, and the speed at which the door is ejected can be further reduced.

[0020] In the vehicle door lock device of the present invention, a weather strip is preferably provided around the opening, and the weather strip is pressed by the door and deformed when the door closes the opening.

[0021] This structure allows a seal to be formed between the door and the vehicle body, and when the latch is unlocked, the restoring force of the weather strip allows the vehicle body to be ejected. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0022] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram showing a vehicle door lock device according to an embodiment of the present invention, illustrating a state in which the latch is in an unlocked position. [Figure 2] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing a state in which the latch is in a locked position. [Figure 3] FIG. 10 is a perspective view illustrating a protrusion. [Figure 4] 10(a) to 10(c) are diagrams illustrating the process in which the striker is released from the latch groove. [Figure 5] 10(a) to 10(c) are enlarged views for explaining protrusions of other embodiments. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0023] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of a vehicle door lock device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0024] 1, the vehicle door lock device includes a base member 1 fixed to a door that opens and closes an opening in the vehicle body, a striker 2 fixed to the edge of the opening in the vehicle body, and a latch 3 provided on the base member 1 and having a latch groove 31 that can be engaged with and disengaged from the striker 2. The base member 1 is also provided with a base groove 12 through which the striker 2 passes.

[0025] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the latch 3 is rotatable between a locked position (position shown in FIG. 2) where the latch groove 31 restrains the striker 2, and an unlocked position (position shown in FIG. 1) where the striker 2 is released. The latch 3 is provided with an abutting portion 33, and the base member 1 is provided with an abutted portion 11, and abutment between the abutting portion 33 and the abutted portion 11 restricts further rotation of the latch 3 that has rotated to the unlocked position. The abutted portion 11 is made of a different material from the base member 1. In this embodiment, the base member 1 is a plastic-coated metal member, and the abutted portion 11 is a rubber stopper.

[0026] As shown in FIG. 3 , the latch groove 31 is provided with a protrusion 32 that protrudes inward of the latch groove 31 within the stroke range of the latch. In other words, the protrusion 32 is provided on a surface of the latch groove 31 that comes into contact with the striker 2 when the latch 3 rotates. The protrusion amount of the protrusion 32 gradually increases and then gradually decreases in the direction in which the striker 2 disengages from the latch groove 31, i.e., from the bottom of the latch groove 31 toward the opening. In this embodiment, the protrusion 32 is formed in an arc shape when viewed from the rotation axis direction of the latch 3. In this embodiment, the protrusion 32 is made of a resin material that covers the latch 3.

[0027] The vehicle door lock device further includes a locking member such as a pole (not shown), which is mounted on the base member 1 and is operable between an allowable position where the locking member is separated from the latch 3 and allows the latch 3 to rotate between the locked and unlocked positions, and a locked position where the locking member abuts against the latch 3 and restricts the rotation of the latch 3 in the locked position. The above function of the locking member is a common function in this field, and the specific structure of the locking member may be any common structure in this field.

[0028] Thus, when the door is in an unlocked state, the latch 3 is biased by a biasing member (not shown) to the unlocked position. At this time, as shown in FIG. 1, the abutting portion 33 abuts against the abutted portion 11, and the opening of the latch groove 31 faces the striker 2. When the door is fully closed and locked, as shown in FIG. 2, the striker 2 enters the latch groove 31 and rotates the latch 3 to the locked position via the latch groove 31. After the latch 3 has rotated to the locked position, the striker 2 and the latch 3 lock the door. In this state, the weather strip provided on the edge of the opening in the vehicle body is pressed by the door and deformed.

[0029] When the door is unlocked, the door is pushed out by the restoring force of the weather strip, which is deformed when pressed, and the base member 1 moves in a direction away from the striker 2 along with the door. Therefore, as shown in Figures 4(a) to 4(c), the latch 3 rotates to the unlock position as the striker 2 slides in close contact with the surface on which the protrusion 32 is provided. After the striker 2 leaves the latch groove 31, the latch 3 continues to rotate due to the biasing member (not shown) until the abutting portion 33 abuts against the abutted portion 11.

[0030] The effects of this embodiment will be described below. In this embodiment, a protrusion 32 is provided in the latch groove 31. Therefore, when the striker 2 is ejected by the weather strip when the door is unlocked, the striker 2 disengages from the latch groove 31 along the protrusion 32, which increases the amount of interference between the latch groove 31 and the striker 2 during the process of disengagement. In this way, compared to a case where the protrusion 32 is not provided, the speed at which the striker 2 disengages can be slowed, and the speed at which the door is ejected by the restoring force of the weather strip can also be reduced. This effectively reduces noise when unlocking.

[0031] Furthermore, the amount of protrusion of the protrusion 32 gradually increases and then gradually decreases as the striker 2 moves in the direction of disengagement from the latch groove 31, thereby slowing down the speed at which the striker 2 disengages and not impeding the disengagement of the striker 2, allowing the striker 2 to smoothly disengage from the latch groove 31. Furthermore, by forming the protrusion 32 in an arc shape, the striker 2 can be moved smoothly and the door can be prevented from getting caught when it is opened.

[0032] In this embodiment, when unlocking, the abutment portion 33 of the latch 3 abuts against the abutted portion 11, which serves as a rubber stopper, thereby reducing the sound when the latch 3 abuts against the base member 1, thereby further reducing the noise when unlocking.

[0033] (Other embodiments) The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and can be modified as follows.

[0034] In the above embodiment, the protrusion 32 is formed in an arc shape when viewed from the rotation axis direction of the latch 3, but this is not limited thereto. The shape of the protrusion 32 is not particularly limited as long as it effectively interferes with the striker 2 in the process of the striker 2 disengaging from the latch 3 groove.

[0035] Figure 5 shows a modified example of such a protrusion. Figure 5(b) is an enlarged view of the portion enclosed by the dotted line in Figure 5(a). As shown in Figure 5(b), in this modified example, the protrusion 32 is formed in a substantially triangular shape when viewed from the direction of the rotation axis of the latch 3. The protrusion 32 may also be formed in a trapezoidal shape or the like.

[0036] In order to ensure sufficient interference between the protrusion 32 and the striker 2, the shape of the portion of the latch 3 that is covered by the protrusion 32 may be changed as shown in Fig. 5(c) . This makes it easier to form the protrusion 32.

[0037] In the above embodiment, the protrusion 32 is described as being made of a resin material that covers the latch 3, but this is not limiting. The protrusion 32 may be formed integrally with the latch 3, or the protrusion 32 may be formed using other materials.

[0038] In the above embodiment, the portion of the striker 2 that enters the latch groove 31 has a circular cross section when viewed from the rotation axis direction of the latch 3, but this is not limited to this. In order to satisfy the interference amount, the striker 2 may have a circular cross section other than a perfect circle, such as an oval, or any other shape. In addition, the dimensions of the striker 2 may be increased.

[0039] In the above embodiment, the contact portion 11 is a rubber stopper, but this is not limiting. The contact portion 11 may be made of a material different from that of the base member 1. For example, the contact portion 11 may be a resin stopper.

[0040] The present invention has been described above with reference to specific examples. However, the present invention is not limited to these specific examples. Any design obtained by a person skilled in the art by making appropriate design modifications to these specific examples would fall within the scope of the present invention as long as it includes the features of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0041] 1 Base material 11 Abutted part 2 Striker 3 Latch 31 Latch groove 32 Protrusion 33 Contact part

Claims

1. a base member (1) fixed to a door that opens and closes an opening in a vehicle body; a striker (2) fixed to the edge of the opening in the vehicle body; a latch (3) provided on the base member, having a latch groove (31) engageable with and disengageable from the striker, and rotatable between a locked position where the latch groove restrains the striker and an unlocked position where the striker is released; Equipped with A weather strip is provided around the opening, A protrusion (32) protruding inwardly into the latch groove is provided on a surface of the latch groove that comes into contact with the striker when the latch rotates, The vehicle door lock device according to claim 1, wherein the protrusion is made of a resin material that covers the latch.

2. 2. The vehicle door lock device according to claim 1, The vehicle door lock device according to claim 1, wherein the protrusion amount gradually increases and then gradually decreases as the striker moves in a direction in which the striker disengages from the latch groove.

3. 3. The vehicle door lock device according to claim 2, The vehicle door lock device according to claim 1, wherein the protrusion is formed in an arc shape when viewed from the direction of the rotation axis of the latch.

4. 2. The vehicle door lock device according to claim 1, The latch is provided with an abutting portion (33), and the base member is provided with an abutted portion (11), The abutment between the abutting portion and the abutted portion restricts further rotation of the latch that has rotated to the unlock position, The vehicle door lock device, wherein the contact portion is made of a material different from that of the base member.

5. 5. The vehicle door lock device according to claim 4, The vehicle door lock device, wherein the contacted portion is a rubber stopper.

6. 2. The vehicle door lock device according to claim 1, The vehicle door lock device is characterized in that the base member is provided with a base groove (12) through which the striker passes.

7. The vehicle door lock device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, The vehicle door lock device according to claim 1, wherein the striker has a portion that enters the latch groove and has an oval cross section when viewed from the direction of the rotation axis of the latch.

8. A base member (1) fixed to a door that opens and closes an opening in a vehicle body; a striker (2) fixed to the edge of the opening in the vehicle body; a latch (3) provided on the base member, having a latch groove (31) engageable with and disengageable from the striker, and rotatable between a locked position where the latch groove restrains the striker and an unlocked position where the striker is released; Equipped with A weather strip is provided around the opening, A protrusion (32) protruding inwardly into the latch groove is provided on a surface of the latch groove that comes into contact with the striker when the latch rotates, The vehicle door lock device according to claim 1, wherein the striker has a portion that enters the latch groove and has an oval cross section when viewed from the direction of the rotation axis of the latch.

9. The vehicle door lock device according to any one of claims 1 to 6 and 8, The vehicle door lock device, wherein the weather strip is pressed by the door and deformed when the door closes the opening.

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