Vehicle Latch Cinching Mechanism That Avoids Open-Position Claw Contact
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vehicle latches with cinching mechanisms risk undesired interaction between the cinch drive link and claw when the door is in an open position, potentially causing damage and undesired performance.
Innovation Solution
An internal cinching mechanism with an override clutch link and cinching lever system that prevents contact between the cinch drive link and claw in the open position by using a post and cam interaction to control lever movements, ensuring the latch only cinches from a secondary position.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the cinching mechanism is connected to the latch via a cable to allow cinching operation, then the door can be drawn from secondary position to primary closed position, but the latch may perform undesired cinching function when the door is in open position causing interaction between cinch drive link and claw
Solution Approach 1:
The override clutch link is positioned and configured in advance to prevent the cinch drive link from contacting the claw when the door is in the open position. The lateral tab and post features are pre-positioned to interact with the door ajar cam and cinching lever respectively, establishing preventive constraints before any undesired interaction can occur.
Solution Approach 2:
The override clutch link acts as an intermediary component between the cinch drive link and the claw. It includes a lateral tab that interacts with the door ajar cam and a post that interacts with the cinching lever, thereby mediating and controlling the interaction between the cinch drive link and claw to prevent undesired contact during open position cinching operations.
2Reliability
If the override clutch link includes a lateral tab that interacts with the door ajar cam to limit movement of the override clutch lever, then contact between cinch drive link and claw is prevented in open position, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The override clutch link serves multiple functions within a single component: it limits movement of the override clutch lever through the lateral tab interacting with the door ajar cam, provides restraint on the override clutch lever through the post interacting with the cinching lever, and prevents undesired interaction between the cinch drive link and claw. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate components for each function.
3Reliability
If the post interacts with the cinching lever to provide restraint on the override clutch lever when the latch is in open position, then component integrity is maintained, but the manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The override clutch link incorporates specific local features (lateral tab and post) with precisely defined geometries and positions that interact with corresponding features on the door ajar cam and cinching lever. These localized interaction points are designed with specific dimensional tolerances and spatial relationships to ensure proper functioning while maintaining overall component integrity.
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicle latch, including: a cinching mechanism internal to the vehicle latch, the cinching mechanism including: a cinching lever operably coupled to an actuator via a cable, the cinching lever being rotatably mounted to the latch for movement about a pivot, the cinching lever being secured to a cinch blank lever, the cinch blank lever being pivotally mounted to a cinch drive link via a pivot; a claw pivotally mounted to the latch for movement between an open position and a primary position, the cinch drive link being configured to contact a claw blank of the claw in order to move the claw into the primary position during a cinching operation of the latch; a bearing secured to the cinch drive link via a pivot, the bearing travels through a canal of an override lever during interaction between the claw blank and the cinch drive link; an override clutch lever; a pawl release lever operably coupled to a pawl; and an override clutch link pivotally secured to the override clutch lever and the pawl release lever, wherein the override clutch link includes a lateral tab that interacts with a door ajar cam operably coupled to the claw of the latch in order to limit movement of the override clutch lever when the claw the latch is in the open position.