The Anderson Company of Indiana

The Anderson Company

Other

Cooper Industries, Inc.

Michael G Mohnach

William H Harbison

John J Plisky

Robert O Wittwer

Philip M Baerenwald

An antilift wiper blade assembly for clearing a generally nonplanar vehicular windshield includes a pressure-distributing superstructure and a resilient wiping element. An elongated flexor interconnects the wiping element and the superstructure and has a longitudinally extending channel engaging the wiping element. A pair of laterally extending flanges are spaced above the bottom wall of the flexor and are engaged by the yoke elements, with the wiping element projecting through an elongated opening formed in the bottom wall of the flexor and into contact with the windshield. An upwardly curved airfoil extends tangentially from the bottom face of the flexor to generate an aerodynamic force which urges the wiping element into engagement with the windshield. A number of parallel slits are spaced along the length of the airfoil to partition the airfoil into a plurality of independently deformable aerodynamic force generating fins.

Antilift wiper blade assembly with integral flexor and airfoil

According to the invention, an attachment structure is provided and has a body with a configuration for connection to a wiper arm. The attachment structure may have one or any combination of an airfoil, a washer fluid conduit or receptacle or an air dam integrally formed on or carried by the body. The attachment structure is elongate and may have an airfoil, an air dam and/or a washer fluid conduit or receptacle integrally formed on the body and will extend lengthwise of the wiper arm in assembled relationship therewith. The cross-sectional configuration of the body and wiper arm is substantially uniform throughout the length of the structure. Because extrusion molding is cheaper than injection molding, a high integrity, plastic device can be produced at a lower cost than conventional injection molded structures.

Attachment structure

A refill unit for a windshield wiper blade having a resilient wiping element and a backing member with sidewardly extending flanges. A wiper blade superstructure has at least two articulated yokes or holders with claws on one of the yokes or holders engaging the flanges on said backing member. A clip is provided for holding the superstructure assembled with the refill and includes a tab engaging in one of at least two apertures in the backing member. Detents and lugs on the clip seat below the flanges for retaining the clip on the backing member. The clip has forwardly extending legs with hook-shaped parts extending outwardly for engaging the claws on the holder for holding the superstructure assembled on the refill.

Clip for a wiper blade refill

Connector apparatus is provided for permitting rapid connection and disconnection of a wiper blade from a wiper arm. The blade portion of the connector includes a pair of spaced apart parallel slots. To accommodate different styles of wiper arm ends, two longitudinally spaced pins are provided on the blade. One of the two pins is used with an arm end having two parallel spaced tabs with forwardly facing pin slots and the other pin is used with an arm end having two parallel spaced tabs, forwardly facing pin slots and rearwardly spaced guide portions. Both of the last named two arm ends have structure for retaining the blade on the arm end even when the blade and arm are lifted from the windshield. In an additional embodiment, one of the two pins is removable to accommodate attachment of the side pin of a side pin style connector. Since the arm is secured to the blade along two transversely spaced planes, the chances of rollover of the blade relative to the arm is minimized.

Rock-to-lock connection arm-to-blade

An adaptor for mounting a pin-type wiper blade on a hook-type wiper arm includes first and second walls separated by a shouldered pin and a pair of struts. A U-shaped spring clip is disposed over the shouldered pin, the spring clip is disposed over the shouldered pin, the spring clip having outwardly directed tangs in the legs thereof which are captured within apertures disposed in the hooked end of the hook-type wiper arm. Each of the walls of the adaptor includes an opening, the openings being aligned with apertures in the primary yoke of the wiper blade such that a retention pin can pass therethrough and be captured by a spring clip in the wiper blade.

Connector adaptor for pin-type blade

In a windshield wiper assembly (10), a connecting adaptor (14) converts a center mounted pin connection between a wiper arm (11) and a pressure-distributing yoke (13) to a side mounted pin connection. In assembled position, the connecting adaptor (14) is disposed over the cross rivet (28) within a center open space (20) defined by the yoke (13). The connecting adaptor (14) has deflectable claw elements (42,43) with tabs (44,45) which engage the bottoms (48,49) of the shoulders (22,23) of the yoke (13) and flanges (54,55) which engage the tops of the shoulders (22,23) to fixedly maintain the connecting adaptor (14) in proper assembled position. A connecting pin (33) carried by the connecting adaptor (14) and extending laterally outward therefrom provides a side mounted pin connection for pivotally receiving the terminal end (68) of the wiper arm (11).

Windshield wiper connecting pin adaptor

A windshield wiper (10) is provided with parts for connecting a plastic windshield wiper blade assembly (11) to a wiper arm (14). The connecting parts include a side pin (30) carried by the wiper arm (14) having a keyway (75) at the end (71) thereof and a pin-receiving aperture (42) defined in a yoke (17) with a U-shaped spring (50) extending in chordal fashion through the aperture (42) and a key (66) projecting into the aperture (42). When the side pin (30) is fully inserted into the aperture (42), spring portions (57,58) will releasably seat in a reduced diameter constricted segment (69) of the side pin (30) to secure the yoke (17) on the wiper arm (14). If the side pin (30) is not fully inserted, engagement of the key (66) and the keyway (75) will lock the yoke (17) and the wiper arm (14) in skewed relation to prevent proper contact of a wiping element (27) carried by the yoke (17) with a windshield (16).

Connection for windshield wiper

A windshield wiper blade connector (20) is provided for connecting a plastic windshield wiper blade (14) to the side pin (61) of a side pin wiper arm. The connector includes a U-shaped spring (52) seated in a cavity (32) in the bridge of a wiper blade (14). Intermediate portions of the sides of the U-shaped spring (52) intersect in a chordal fashion the transverse pin-receiving aperture (42) in the yoke (16) of the blade. The pin (61) with a reduced diameter portion (62) is inserted in the aperture (42) so that the intermediate portions (55,57) of the U-shaped spring (52) will seat in the reduced diametered portion (62) of the pin (61) to lock the blade (14) to the arm. The U-shaped spring (52) can be flexed to release the pin (61) from the blade (14).

Connector for windshield wiper blade

A fine angular adjustment is provided between a windshield wiper arm and a windshield wiper drive shaft without changing the standard drumhead or drive burr carried by said drive shaft. Provision is made for fine adjusting the angular orientation of the arm by increments of one degree. In two embodiments, the mounting head of the arm is in two parts with the first part fixed to the drumhead of the drive shaft and the second part having incremental teeth being spring urged into contact with mating incremental teeth on the first part, such that actuating the spring separates said incremental teeth of the two parts making it possible to rotate the second part relative to the first part in approximately one degree increments. Another embodiment provides for offset openings in the mounting head with flutes in each opening being offset from a centerline a predetermined amount such that assembly of the mounting head on a drumhead in one or the other of said openings will provide the arm with one degree increments of orientation.

Finer adjustment windshield arm mounting head

A wiper blade is comprised of a superstructure for applying pressure to a backing strip which carries a resilient wiping element in contact with a surface to be wiped. The backing strip has projections which engage with the superstructure in such a way that pressure from the superstructure is transmitted through the projections to the backing strip and on through to the wiping element.

Universal wiper refill

A backing strip of a wiper blade refill unit is provided with a narrower element engaging slot to reduce wiper element disengagement from the backing strip, with a greater width to reduce backing strip disengagement from the claws of the superstructure and with a retaining tab for positive engagement with a flat U-shaped end clip to eliminate accidental end clip separation from the backing strip.

Windshield wiper refill unit

A washer jet assembly is provided with a housing adapted to be suspended on a wiper arm and having an inlet sleeve communicating into a distribution chamber. A plurality of grooves are formed in the open end wall of the distribution chamber of the housing to form passageways from the distribution chamber to the outside. A cover button with a head portion and a shank portion is secured to the housing with the head portion closing the distribution chamber and with the shank portion passing through the distribution chamber and the housing and being secured to the housing by upsetting the exposed end of the shank portion.

Growing community of inventors

Valparaiso, IN, United States of America

Michael G Mohnach