Aisin Technical Center of America, Inc.

Nobuhiro Mizoguchi

Yoji Nagashima

Kevin Chauvin

Stefan Chlapecka

A vehicle sun roof device includes a panel for covering an opening in a roof of the vehicle. The panel can be moved horizontally to uncover the opening or tilted to raise its rear end section to a venting position. A drive system for tilting the panel includes front and rear shoes. The rear shoe tilts the panel by applying a force to the rear end section of the panel. The front shoe includes an upwardly facing support surface and a downwardly facing support surface. A bracket fixed to the panel and extending in the front-to-rear direction of the vehicle includes an upwardly facing bearing surface and a downwardly facing bearing surface arranged to slidably engage the downwardly facing support surface and the upwardly facing support surface, respectively, of the front shoe. The support surfaces and the bearing surfaces are configured to define a virtual pivot axis for the panel as the panel tilts.

Tiltable sun roof for vehicles

A dual panel sunroof is provided. The sunroof includes a front glass guide that supports a front glass panel and a rear glass guide that supports a rear glass panel. The rear glass panel is disposed rearward of the front glass panel when the dual panel sunroof is in a fully closed position. A front link is rotatably mounted to a front portion of the front glass guide such that the front link drives a front end of the front glass in an upward direction away from a vehicle body when the front link is driven in a rearward direction.

Growing community of inventors

Northville, MI, United States of America

Nobuhiro Mizoguchi