Gm Global Technolgoy Operations, Inc.

Delphi Technologies, Inc.

Mark Manuel

Lloyd W Rogers

Brian Hale Staser

David E Compeau

William L Priest

Mark D Nicholas

Lloyd Walker Rogers, Jr

Ronald Helmut Haag

Waldemar Wawrzyniec Gmurowski

Danny W Figlioli

James Edward Ochenski

Harry Duane Miller

Valentin Enache

Timothy Bartholomew Madeja

Rick Mahan

Robert P Racklyeft

A modular vehicle door has a hollow door shell of sheet metal panels that are secured together at their abutting periphery, a crash beam that is attached to hollow door shell so as to extend across the length of the door, and a module that supports several parts of vehicle door that is preassembled and assembled to the hollow door shell as the preassembled module. The hollow door shell has a hinge reinforcement at a forward end and a latch reinforcement at an aft end. The module has a metal support beam that is attached to the hinge reinforcement at one end and to the latch reinforcement at the other end so that the metal support beam extends across the length of the door and forms a box section with the crash beam. The metal support beam has upper and lower channels and the module includes an insert molded carrier that has a plurality of ribs that cooperate with the channels of the metal support beam to increase the torsional ridgidity of the metal support beam. When attached to the door shell, the module improves the crashworthiness of the modular vehicle door.

Modular vehicle door

A vehicle door module including window glass is presented which includes a box section belt having an angled bolt attachment and a double overlap attachment to maintain strength and rigidity of the door assembly. The incorporation of the box section belt to the vehicle door module permits the inclusion of the window glass and various parts of the lift system. The angled bolt attachment provides for efficient load transfer between the belt and the door frame through load sharing face contact and a bolt. The double overlap attachment provides for efficient load transfer through a lap joint and clamping forces provided by a bolt. The double overlap attachment further includes features which facilitate assembly while compensating for manufacturing tolerances and build variability. An embodiment of the double overlap joining includes interlocking ridges which engage to further enhance load transfer capability. The vehicle door module further includes a hardware support cross member, a window and lift system, an inside latch system, wire harness assembly, speaker, and other door components.

Vehicle door module

A vehicle has a side opening that is closed by a sliding door. The door has an articulating lower roller assembly at the front end that translates in a track adjacent the bottom of the side opening. The roller assembly is attached to the door by a slide mechanism that allows the door to open further after the roller assembly reaches the end of the track. The slide mechanism is controlled by a spring biased clutch pin that is retracted by a cam on the vehicle body to release the slide mechanism as the door travels to the open position.

Articulating lower roller assembly for sliding vehicle door

An apparatus for installing a window, a window drive mechanism, and a latch carrier mechanism within a vehicle door includes a one-piece cable regulator having a molded passage thereabout for guiding at least one length of cable between the window and the window drive mechanism, a molded vertical passage for guiding motion of the window, a molded cantilever beam for contacting and gradually reducing the downward motion of the window near a window stop position and a molded guide for slideable cooperation with the door latch carrier, whereby the door latch carrier, once slideably secured within the guide, may be shifted over the cable regulator to a compact shipping and installation position, and then may be shifted outward from the cable regulator to a final assembly position within the door.

Vehicle door hardware

A pivoting glass run channel provides the ability to pre-assemble the glass run channel to a door module in a position such that it does not interfere with insertion of the module into a vehicle door or assembly of other hardware components into the vehicle door. The pivoting glass run channel is pivotable to an operative position after mounting the module in the vehicle door.

Pivoting below belt glass run channel

A door lock actuator having unlock, lock and superlock modes includes a rotary input member that positions a pivotally mounted output lever in an unlock position, a lock position or a superlock position. The door lock actuator also includes a pivotally mounted superlock lever that has a bypass position and a block position. The rotary input member maintains the superlock lever in the bypass position when the actuator is changed between lock and unlock modes so that the output lever can be moved back and forth between the locked and unlocked positions and moves the superlock lever from the bypass position to the block position when the actuator is changed to a superlock mode so that the superlock lever is moved to the block position to prevent the output lever being moved to the unlock position.

Door lock actuator with superlock feature

A sliding door in a van is mounted on tracks for sliding movement between open and closed positions. At the closed position a weather strip is compressed and a door latch is latched. A cable is attached to the door and routed through the vehicle body via pulleys so that pulling the first cable end opens the door and pulling the second cable end closes the door. A motorized drive mechanism includes first and second reels mounted concentrically and having the cable ends wrapped respectively about the reels in opposite directions. A motor drives in one direction rotating the first reel to open the door and is reversible to rotate the second reel to close the door. Each of the reels has a large diameter portion for winding the cable to provide relatively high speed and low force door movement over the greatest portion of travel and a small diameter portion for winding the cable to provide relatively low speed and high force movement of the door during the lesser portion of travel of the door closest to the closed position. The reels have cable set grooves to receive the cable and a spiral ramp groove to connect the large and small diameter portions. A tension retaining spring acts between the two reels to always maintain the cable under tension.

Power sliding door closer

A sliding door in a van is mounted on tracks for sliding movement between open and closed positions. At the closed position a weather strip is compressed and a door latch is latched. A cable is attached to the door and routed through the vehicle body via pulleys so that pulling the first cable end opens the door and pulling the second cable end closes the door. A motorized drive mechanism includes first and second reels mounted concentrically and having the cable ends wrapped respectively about the reels in opposite directions. A motor drives in one direction rotating the first reel to open the door and is reversible to rotate the second reel to close the door. Each of the reels has a large diameter portion for winding the cable to provide relatively high speed and low force door movement over the greatest portion of travel and a small diameter portion for winding the cable to provide relatively low speed and high force movement of the door during the lesser portion of travel of the door closest to the closed position. The reels have cable seat grooves to receive the cable and a spiral ramp groove to connect the large and small diameter portions. A tension retaining spring acts between the two reels to always maintain the cable under tension.

An actuating means for a vehicle body closure latch includes a driver or passenger controlled electric motor driving a reciprocable rack through a gear train. The rack is resiliently biased to a neutral position and shifts an actuator from neutral to an operating position when the rack is moved from the neutral position to a driving position. The actuator is engageable with a latch operator to control movement of the latch bolt to unlatched position when the actuator moves to an operating position. When the actuator reaches the operating position, the actuator is positively stopped to stall the motor or power operator. When the power is removed from the stalled motor or power operator by the driver or passenger releasing a switch, the bias of the resilient centering means returns the rack to its initial neutral or starting position and back drives the motor through the gear train.

Closure latch

An electronic door lock/unlatch control in which the latching mechanisms latch mechanically upon door closing and include electric motor driven unlatching mechanisms but no mechanical locking apparatus. Locking is accomplished electronically for each door by a flip-flop which enables or disables a power MOSFET connected in series with the unlatch motor and unlatch switch for the door and an electric power source. The flip-flop for each door also controls lock status indicating lights. A rear door unlatch disable switch is included additionally in series with the rear door unlatch switch to allow operator disabling of the rear doors.

Growing community of inventors

Mt. Clemens, MI, United States of America

Mark Manuel