Vehicle Door Lock Lever Mechanism Collision Prevention
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional vehicle door lock apparatuses face challenges in reducing manufacturing costs while preventing unintentional door opening during vehicle collisions and eliminating the need for repeated unlocking operations when door unlocking and opening overlap.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle door lock apparatus with a housing, a fork, a pawl, a first lever, a second lever, a biasing member, and a third lever, where the second lever pivots due to inertial force to avoid contact with the pawl during collisions, and the third lever manages the locking and unlocking states to prevent unintended door opening and overlap operations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a motion accumulating mechanism is added to eliminate the need for repeated unlocking operations, then the door can be opened even when unlocking and opening operations overlap, but the number of components and assembly complexity increases, raising manufacturing costs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the motion accumulation function into the existing third lever mechanism. The third lever serves dual purposes: it controls the locking/unlocking states and simultaneously accumulates motion when the unlocking and opening operations overlap, eliminating the need for a separate motion accumulation mechanism.
Solution Approach 2:
The third lever is designed to perform multiple functions: it controls the transition between locked and unlocked states, and it also accumulates motion to enable door opening when the unlocking and opening operations occur simultaneously. This multi-functionality reduces the overall component count.
2Reliability
If the second lever is designed to pivot due to inertial force during collisions, then unintentional door opening is prevented, but the mechanism becomes more complex with additional components
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the collision prevention function with the existing third lever mechanism. The third lever's positioning relative to the second lever creates a mechanical interlock that prevents the second lever from pivoting during collisions, thereby preventing unintentional door opening without requiring separate collision prevention components.
Solution Approach 2:
The mechanism is designed so that in the locked state, the third lever preliminarily prevents (anti-action) the second lever from pivoting due to inertial force during collisions. This preliminary prevention mechanism is built into the normal locking structure, avoiding additional collision-specific components.
3Ease of manufacture
If a single biasing member is used to perform multiple functions, then manufacturing costs are reduced and assembly is simplified, but the reliability of each individual function may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The single biasing member is designed to perform multiple functions: it biases the third lever to maintain the locked state, and it also provides the force necessary for the third lever to transition between locked and unlocked states. The patent ensures reliable performance of each function through careful design of the lever geometry and biasing force.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent optimizes the parameters of the biasing member (such as spring constant, pre-load force, and lever arm lengths) to ensure that a single biasing member can reliably perform multiple functions. By adjusting these parameters, the system achieves both cost reduction and maintained reliability.
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 solution reduces manufacturing costs and prevents unintentional door opening during collisions, while eliminating the need for repeated unlocking operations by using a single biasing member to perform multiple functions, thereby simplifying assembly and reducing component count.
Implementation Method 1
a biasing member provided between the housing and the second lever... The biasing member biases the second lever toward the first position
Implementation Method 2
enabled to pivot from a first position to a second position by application of inertial force greater than a preset value... at the time of, for example, a vehicle collision, the second lever is displaced to the second position while resisting a biasing force of the biasing member and separates from the pawl
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicle door lock apparatus includes a housing, a fork in the housing, a pawl selectively preventing pivoting movement of the fork, a first lever having one end coupleable to a door handle and a second lever pivotably supported at a second end of the first lever and shiftable from a first position to a second position by application of inertial force. When the first lever pivots and the second lever is in the first position the second lever comes into contact with the pawl and releases the fork and when the second lever is in the second position it moves with the first lever independently of the pawl. A third lever selectively places the second lever in the second position and a retention device prevents the second lever from moving the pawl when first lever moves and the third lever is holding the second lever in the second position.