Vehicle Door Handle Lever Assembly With Two-Stage Spring Engagement
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional vehicular door outer handle devices are susceptible to disengagement due to impact or vibration, making it difficult to maintain the handle lever in the operating position during assembly and transportation, which complicates the assembly process and increases the risk of the handle lever being disengaged.
Innovation Solution
A vehicular door outer handle device with a return spring having first and second engaging portions, where the second engaging portion is initially not engaged with the handle lever during assembly, allowing easy insertion into the outer panel, and engages with the handle base only after assembly is complete, using a torsion spring and cam mechanism to maintain the handle lever in the operating position.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the connecting arm portion is engaged with the handle base in a door opening operation state to maintain the handle lever in the operating position, then the handle lever can be held in the operating position, but the engagement may be disengaged due to impact or vibration during assembly or transportation
Solution Approach 1:
The return spring is divided into two functional segments: a first engaging portion that connects to the handle lever and a second engaging portion that connects to the handle base. This segmentation allows the spring to provide continuous elastic force while enabling independent engagement and disengagement of each portion, resolving the contradiction between maintaining engagement stability and facilitating easy assembly operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The return spring is pre-installed on the handle lever with the first engaging portion already connected, but the second engaging portion is deliberately left unconnected during assembly. This preliminary action allows the handle lever to be freely positioned in the operating state during assembly without the constraint of a fully engaged spring, simplifying the assembly process while ensuring reliability is established after assembly completion.
2Ease of manufacture
If the handle lever is held in the operating position during assembly, then insertion into the outer panel is facilitated, but the connecting arm portion and handle base may be disengaged due to slight impact or assembly work
Solution Approach 1:
The return spring provides dynamic elastic force that adapts to the assembly process. During assembly, the second engaging portion remains unconnected, allowing the handle lever to be dynamically positioned in the operating state without rigid constraints. After assembly, the spring is fully engaged to provide continuous dynamic force maintaining the operating position, thus achieving both assembly ease and engagement reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The return spring acts as an intermediary element between the handle lever and handle base. By controlling which portion of the spring is engaged, the system can transition between two states: during assembly, the spring partially engages to guide positioning without full constraint; after assembly, the spring fully engages to provide reliable maintenance of the operating position, thus mediating between ease of manufacture and engagement reliability.
3Reliability
If the second engaging portion is engaged with the handle base during assembly, then the handle lever is held in the operating position, but dedicated parts for temporary holding are required
Solution Approach 1:
The return spring serves multiple functions: it acts as both a positioning guide during assembly (when partially engaged) and a position maintenance mechanism after assembly (when fully engaged). The same spring structure performs both temporary holding and permanent maintenance functions, eliminating the need for dedicated temporary holding parts and reducing overall device complexity while maintaining position reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The return spring is designed to automatically perform both assembly assistance and operation maintenance functions without requiring additional dedicated components. By controlling the engagement state of its two portions, the spring self-adjusts to provide appropriate force during assembly and after assembly, making the system self-sufficient and eliminating the need for extra parts for temporary holding.
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
Facilitates easy assembly by allowing the handle lever to be inserted into the outer panel without spring force during assembly and maintains the handle lever in the operating position despite impacts or vibrations, reducing the likelihood of disengagement and eliminating the need for dedicated parts for temporary holding.
Implementation Method 1
a return spring, that is interposed between the handle base and the handle lever and elastically urges the handle lever toward the non-operating position
Implementation Method 2
the return spring is a torsion spring having a coil portion that surrounds the support tube portion
Data Source
AI summary
In a vehicular door outer handle device, when a handle base, to which a handle lever that is interlocked with and connected to a connecting arm portion of an outer handle is assembled, is assembled to a vehicle door, insertion of the handle lever into an opening of the vehicle door is allowed when the handle lever is in an operating position. In the vehicle door outer handle device, a state of holding the handle lever in the operating position is reliably maintained so that the handle lever is placed in the operating position. A return spring 35, that causes a first engaging portion 35b to be in contact with and engaged with a handle lever 36, is attached to the handle lever 36 so as to be able to switch between a state in which when a handle base 25 is assembled to the vehicle door, in a temporary holding state in which a connecting arm portion 16 is placed in a door opening operation position, a second engaging portion 35c is not engaged with the handle base 25, and a state in which after assembly of the handle base 25 to the vehicle door is completed, the second engaging portion 35c is in contact with and engaged with the handle base 25.