Vehicle Door Handle Lever Assembly With Decreasing Actuation Force
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing motor vehicle door handle mechanisms require high and increasing forces for mechanical opening, especially in quasi-fixed handles, making them uncomfortable and strenuous, particularly in system failures or power outages.
Innovation Solution
A lever system is integrated into the door handle assembly, comprising a deflection device and mechanical resistance element that opposes the handle's movement with a decreasing resistance force, allowing for comfortable mechanical operation by reducing the required actuation force as the handle is pivoted.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a return spring is used to push the door handle back into its home position, then the door handle returns to its original position, but the force required to move the door handle increases with the length of the swing
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the parameter of resistance force from constant or increasing to decreasing. The mechanical resistance element (torsion spring) is designed to exert a resistance force that decreases continuously as the door handle moves from the home position to the actuated position, making the actuation process comfortable and reducing the required force at later stages of movement.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a dynamic resistance force characteristic where the resistance force is not static but varies with the position of the door handle. The torsion spring is configured to provide a decreasing resistance force during actuation, creating a dynamic interaction that improves ease of operation while maintaining reliable return to home position.
2Stability of the object's composition
If a mechanical resistance element exerts a predetermined threshold force to hold the door handle in the home position, then the door handle remains stable, but high force is required for mechanical opening in emergencies
Solution Approach 1:
The patent modifies the force characteristic from a constant high threshold force to a decreasing resistance force. The mechanical resistance element provides a predetermined threshold force at the home position to ensure stability, but this force decreases continuously during actuation, allowing mechanical opening in emergencies with progressively lower required force.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a dynamic force profile where the resistance force transitions from a stable threshold at the home position to a decreasing force during actuation. This dynamic characteristic allows the door handle to remain stable during normal operation while enabling easy mechanical opening in emergency situations as the force requirement reduces during the actuation process.
3Ease of operation
If the resistance force decreases continuously in the direction of the actuated position, then the actuation force required by the user decreases, but the mechanical resistance element must be precisely designed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent achieves the decreasing resistance force characteristic through a carefully designed torsion spring mechanism. The spring is configured with specific geometric parameters and mounting arrangements that automatically produce the desired decreasing force profile during actuation, eliminating the need for complex active control systems while maintaining ease of operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs a self-regulating mechanical resistance element where the torsion spring automatically adjusts its resistance force based on the position of the door handle. The spring's physical characteristics and the lever system geometry work together to provide the decreasing resistance force profile without requiring external control mechanisms, simplifying the overall device design.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The lever system provides a comfortable and easy mechanical opening experience by decreasing the force needed to operate the door handle, offering tactile feedback and efficient use of installation space while ensuring operation in emergencies.
Implementation Method 1
the deflection device and the mechanical resistance element form a lever system which is designed to exert a resistance force that counteracts the movement of the door handle moved from the basic position in the direction of its actuation position
Implementation Method 2
a mechanical resistance element which is designed to push the door handle back into its home position after it has been moved out of its home position
Data Source
Figure 1~2
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Figure 6~7
AI summary
The invention relates to a door handle assembly (3) having a handle support (8), a door handle (4) mounted on the handle support (8) to pivot between an initial position and an operational position, a deflection device (9) coupled for movement with the door handle (4), which is mounted for rotation about a rotational axis (15) on the handle support (8), and a mechanical resistance element (10), which is designed to force the door handle (4), once moved out of the initial position, back into the initial position, wherein, when the door handle (4) is in the initial position, the mechanical resistance element (10) is designed to apply to the door handle (4) a predefined threshold force (16) holding the door handle (4) in the initial position. The deflection device (9) and the mechanical resistance element (10) form a lever system (20), which is designed to apply a resistance force (21) counteracting the movement of the door handle (4) towards the operational position of same and continuously decreasing towards the operational position.