Kiekert Ag

Johannes-Theodor Menke

Frank Kleefeldt

Stefan Armbruster

Ulrich Nass

Michael Scholz

Holger Schiffer

Ömer Inan

Peter Bartel

Uwe Reddmann

Damien Labonde

Wilfried Ostermann

Andreas Ziganki

Thomas Schonenberg

Thorsten Torkowski

Thomas Schönenberg

Werner Pohle

Christian Jokiel

Frank Kunst

Dirk Eichel

Heiko Hemmer

Gerhard Zimmermann

Klaus-Peter Reis

Andreas Schmitz

Philippe Mih

Klaus Gruhn

Milan Koubek

Thomas Sch&ouml;nenberg

Lars Kretschmer

Frank Kunt

Myriam Kellmann

Darius Schendzielorz

Jürgen Kill

A motor vehicle door lock comprising a locking mechanism () and a closing/opening device (to) with at least one drive (toand), at least one transfer element () and a driving pawl (), in which the drive acts on the driving pawl with the assistance of the transfer element to open and close the locking mechanism, wherein a mechanical and/or electrical opening drive (to) and a mechanical and/or electrical closing drive () each with a respective opening transfer lever () and closing transfer lever () are provided, in which the opening drive (to) including the opening transfer lever () in addition to the opening function for the locking mechanism () is also designed to interrupt a closing function initiated by the closing drive () in connection with the closing transfer lever ().

Motor vehicle door lock

A drive unit () comprising at least one electric drive motor () that moves a functional element (), wherein the functional element () assumes, during its movement, a stop position () for switching off an electric drive motor (), and at least one frictional element () cooperating with the functional element (), wherein the frictional element () is disposed along a segment of a motion pathway () before the functional element () reaches the stop position (). In addition, a motor vehicle lock () having a central locking mechanism () with such a drive unit ().

Drive unit comprising a blocked functional element for a central locking mechanism

The invention discloses a vehicle with a front door and a rear door without a B column between the two doors, with the front door latch being designed as a power latch with a door-closing assistance and the rear door latch containing a power latch holder with an adjustable locking bolt, in order to achieve a stable door connection with low closing forces.

Motor vehicle

A power-closing bolt assembly for a motor-vehicle door latch has a housing, a bolt pivotal in the housing about a pivot axis between a pair of angularly offset end positions, and interengaging bolt and housing abutments respectively on the bolt and on the housing bearing angularly of the pivot axis on each other in each of the end positions. A drive displaces the bolt between the end positions. The housing abutments are spaced apart relative to the pivot axis by more than 180&deg;.

Power-closing bolt for motor-vehicle door latch

A motor-vehicle door holding a lock provided with actuating elements operable to lock the door has an actuating system having an outside opening handle displaceable on the door, a pivot on the door, a first compensating lever pivotable on the pivot and having an outer end forming a seat, and a first rod part having an outer end connected to the handle and an inner end bearing on the seat in a predetermined direction. A second rod part having an outer end connected to the lock actuating elements and an inner end connected to an outer end of a second compensating lever pivotable on the pivot. A spring braced between the levers urges their outer ends angularly apart with the outer end of the first compensating lever bearing against the predetermined direction on the first rod-part inner end. A screw engaged between the levers offset from the pivot can releasably fix the levers together for joint pivoting. This screw is loosenable for relative pivoting of the levers.

Motor vehicle door lock with locking elements

A power operator for opening and closing a trunk lid of a motor vehicle has a spring engaged between the vehicle and the lid for urging the lid from a closed position into an open position, a rod having an outer end connected to the door and an inner end, and a clutch rotatable about a clutch axis and having an output member connected to the rod inner end and an input member. A drive motor connected to the input member is energizable for rotating the clutch elements and thereby displacing the rod and door. Another spring in the clutch rotationally decouples the clutch elements from each other only when a torque applied to the input element exceeds a predetermined limit. A controller energizes the motor for a predetermined amount of time.

Power operator for motor-vehicle trunk lid

A motor vehicle has a body, electrical devices including a controller and a power supply mounted in the body, a door slidable on the body between a closed position and an open position, and electrical devices mounted in the door. The devices in the body and in the door are interconnected by an electrical-cable connecting system that has a nonrotatable pivot pin fixed on the body adjacent the door, a drum rotatable about the pin, and a flexible multiconductor electrical cable wound in the closed position of the door about the drum and having an inner end fixed to the pin and connected to the devices mounted in the body and an outer end fixed to the door and connected to the devices mounted in the door. A winder connected between the body and the drum rotatably biases the drum to rotate in a direction winding the cable onto the drum and urging the door into the closed position.

Electrical-cable system for motor-vehicle sliding door

A motor-vehicle latch system has a latch having a locking element displaceable between a locked position and an unlocked position and a latching element actuatable in the unlocked condition of the latch to unlock the latch and ineffective when actuated in the locked condition of the latch. An outside door handle connected to the latching element is movable between an actuated position and an unactuated position and a key having a transponder can fit in a rotatable body carrying an electrically powered transponder reader that can read a code of the transponder of the key. An electrically powered electromagnetic coupling has one part connected to the body and another part connected to the locking lever and can be energized to close and couple the two parts together and thereby connect the body with the locking lever. An electrically powered controller connected to the transponder reader and the coupling can energize and close the coupling when the transponder in the key matches a predetermined code. A dynamo adjacent the door handle is connected to the coupling and to the controller. An energy-storage unit connected to the dynamo receives electricity therefrom and supplies it to the reader, coupling, and controller. The dynamo is coupled to the door handle for operation of the dynamo and charging of the storage unit on displacement of the handle between the actuated and unactuated positions.

Electrical self-powered motor-vehicle door latch

A cable drive for a motor-vehicle sliding door has a pair of cable sections of predetermined diameter and each having one end attached to the vehicle and an opposite end, a pin fixed on the vehicle, defining an axis, and having a screwthread of a pitch at least equal to the cable diameter, and a gear having a core threaded onto the pin. A pair of coaxial drums having smooth outer surfaces are axially coupled to but rotatable on the core and are each connected to a respective one of the opposite ends of the cable sections. A spring is engaged between and urges the drums rotationally oppositely to tension the cable sections. Interengaging formations on the gear and on the drums rotationally couple the drums to the gear and a reversible drive motor coupled to the gear simultaneously rotates the gear about the axis, axially displaces the gear on the pin, winds up one of the cable sections on the surface of the respective drum, and unwinds the other of the cable sections from the surface of the respective drum.

Cable drive for motor-vehicle sliding door

An electrical connection system for interconnecting an electrical element of a mount with an electrical element of a subassembly has a foil secured to a face of the mount and provided with a plurality of conductive strips connected to the respective electrical element and a plurality of contacts fixed on a face of the subassembly and engageable with the strips of the foil. The two faces are pressed together as the subassembly is secured to the mount to press the two faces together and thereby engage the contacts against the strips. The contacts project from the face of the subassembly.

Electrical connection system for motor-vehicle subassembly

A key cylinder rotatable about an axis and a motor-vehicle door latch having a housing are used with a position-sensing system having a selector nut made of a nonferromagnetic material and coaxial with and coupled to the key cylinder for joint rotation about the axis therewith, an actuating permanent magnet imbedded in the selector nut and movable in an orbit about the axis on rotation of the selector nut about the axis, and a hall-effect sensor mounted on the latch housing at a small spacing from the orbit.

Position-sensor system for motor-vehicle door latch

A motor vehicle has a body provided with at least one generally horizontal rail having a bent end portion and along which a sliding door is displaceable between a closed position in against the body and an open position out from the body. A sliding-door assembly has a door drive on the body including a flexible toothed belt extending along the rail and having an end and a link assembly fixed to the door, riding along the rail, connected to the belt end, and engaged in the bent end portion of the rail in the closed position of the door. A guide extends along the rail and laterally confines the belt so an actuator on the body can displacing the belt in one sense and thereby tension the belt and move the door in one direction and displace the belt in the opposite sense and thereby longitudinally compress the belt and move the door in the opposite direction. A door latch on the door and a keeper on the body communicating therewith secure the door tightly to the body in the closed position of the door and a closed position of the latch and release the door to ride along the rail in an open position of the latch. A controller connected between the door latch and the door actuator operates the actuator to move the door into the respective open position on displacement of the latch into the respective open position.

Motor-vehicle sliding-door system

A motor vehicle has a body, a door movable on the body between a closed position and an open position, an electric power source mounted in the body, and a latch having interengageable parts on the vehicle body and on the door engageable in a latched position to retain the door in the closed position, and an electrical actuator energizable to put the latch in an unlatched position. A drive on the body connected to the door is energizable from the source for moving the door between the open and closed positions and a battery is provided in the door separate from the body-mounted power source. An electronic controller in the door powered by the battery is connected to the latch actuator for operating same to unlatch the door and to a transmitter for transmitting a signal indicating the position of the door and of the latch. Another electronic controller in the body includes a receiver for receiving the signal from the transmitter in the door is connected to the drive and to the body power source for operating the drive in accordance with the signal received by the body receiver.

Motor-vehicle sliding-door system with electronic controller

A motor-vehicle door latch has a door-mounted fork displaceable between an open and a fully latched position and through an intermediate semilatched position and a body-mounted door bolt engageable with the fork and retainable thereby only in the semilatched and fully latched positions. A door-mounted pawl can pivot about a pawl axis between a holding position engaging and retaining the fork in the fully latched and semilatched positions and a freeing position permitting the fork to move freely between its positions. A controller is connected to a servomotor in turn coupled to the door bolt for displacing same between an outer and an inner position so that, when the bolt is engaged with the fork in the fully latched position, movement of the bolt into the inner position pulls a door carrying the latch tightly closed. A switch lever can pivot about the pawl axis. Interengaging formations on the switch lever, on the pawl, and on the fork displace the switch lever into a first position with the fork in the semilatched and open positions and with the pawl in the open position and displace the switch into a second position with the fork in the fully latched position. A switch between the control means and the switch lever prevents operation of the servomotor except in the second position of the switch lever.

Servo-tightening motor-vehicle door latch

A motor-vehicle door latch has a pivotal fork and a latch element interfittable in a latched position and disengageable from each other in an unlatched position, a latch pawl engageable in a holding position with the fork to retain same in the latched position and disengageable in a releasing position from the fork to allow the fork to move into the unlatched position, and a pawl-actuating lever coupled to the pawl for displacing same between its holding and releasing positions. An inside actuating element and an outside lock cylinder can each displace the pawl between its positions. An actuator connected to the lever and electrically energizable from a rest position to an energized position displaces the pawl from its holding to its releasing position. A bistable relay having an input connected to a vehicular power supply and an output is displaceable between a closed position connecting its input and output together and an open position electrically disconnecting its output from its input. An outside actuating switch between the relay output and the actuator closes for electrically energizing the actuator from the power source in the closed position of the relay. A receiver is connected to the relay for displacing same into the closed position on receiving a predetermined signal from a remote transmitter.

Growing community of inventors

Velbert, Germany

Johannes-Theodor Menke