Drive assembly for driving a vehicle flap

Abstract

A drive assembly, in particular for driving a flap (), includes a hinge assembly (), comprising a first hinge part () connectable to a vehicle body and a second hinge part () connectable to a vehicle flap (), a joint assembly () comprising at least a first joint part () hingedly connecting said first hinge part () with said second hinge part () and a first actuator () for driving the second hinge part () to move between an opened and a closed position during a normal operation. The first actuator () has a first end () coupleable to a vehicle body pivotally about a first pivot axis (P) and a second end (). The drive assembly also includes a bearing element connected () to the first actuator () and a coupling assembly () for coupling the first actuator () to the hinge assembly (), comprising a first coupling part () having a first end () and a second end (). The first end () of the first coupling part () is coupled to one of the second hinge part () and first joint part () pivotally about a second pivot axis (P). The bearing element () of the first actuator () is coupled to the second end () of the first coupling part () pivotally about a third pivot axis (P) spaced apart from the second pivot axis (P). The drive assembly provides a possibility to move a vehicle flap drivingly between a closed and an opened position and further provides a reliable pedestrian protection function.