Ford Global Technolgoies, LLC

Andrew Patrick Thomas

Chi Li

Justin Lee Healy

A side pillar air curtain guide includes a main body having an air curtain ramp formed by a plurality of ribs. Those ribs project from the main body at an acute and included angle with the main body so as to provide enhanced deformability in a horizontal direction as an energy absorbing countermeasure in the event of a head impact by an occupant of the vehicle when in a side impact collision.

Side pillar air curtain guide

A trim cover () fabricated of synthetic material that has a temperature-sensitive fragmentation characteristic fractures as a passenger restraint is deployed through a wall of the trim cover. A laminated backing () disposed on a back face of the trim cover wall contains fragments of the wall resulting from its fracturing by the deploying restraint. The laminated backing has a stretchable foam layer () having a front face adhered to the back of the wall and a non-tearable layer () that has a front face adhered in covering relation to a back face of the stretchable foam layer and that does not tear as a result of the fracturing of the wall by the deploying restraint.

Laminated backing for containing fragments of a fractured trim cover during deployment of a passenger restraint

An automotive vehicle electric door latch mechanism includes a striker, a catch, a pawl, a key actuatable lock cylinder lever, an electrically driven output gear, and a manually actuatable release lever. The catch has a striker receiving surface and a pawl engaging surface. The pawl has a pin projecting therefrom, a catch engaging surface, and a cam contacting surface, the pawl being pivotally movable from a biased, catch engaging position to a catch disengaging position. The key actuatable lock cylinder lever has a pin striking surface and is pivotally movable between a biased, neutral position and a pin striking, pawl pivoting, catch disengaging position. The electrically driven output gear has at least one cam that is electrically movable between a neutral position and a pawl contacting, pawl pivoting, catch disengaging position. The manually actuatable release lever has a pin contacting surface and is manually pivotally movable from a biased, neutral position to a pin contacting, pawl pivoting, catch disengaging position.

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Northville, MI, United States of America

Andrew Patrick Thomas