The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Nov. 23, 1999
Filed:
May. 06, 1998
Peter J Smith, Newmarket, CA;
Atoma International Inc., Newmarket, CA;
Abstract
A window regulator assembly comprising a window panel, a track, a slider member, a slider moving assembly including a drive assembly and a coupling assembly. The track is constructed and arranged to guide the window panel during movement of the window panel between opened and closed positions. The slider member is constructed and arranged to be movable along the track between a first position wherein the window panel assumes the closed position and a second position wherein the window panel assumes the open position. The slider moving assembly is constructed and arranged to move the slider member between the first and second position. The coupling assembly of the slider moving assembly is constructed and arranged to couple an output movement of the drive assembly to the slider member. The drive assembly includes a drivable input structure and a driven output structure, which structures are rotatable about a common axis. The coupling assembly is connected with the output structure to receive the output of the output structure, thereby enabling the coupling assembly to couple the output movement of the drive assembly to the slider member. The drive assembly includes roller and spring members disposed within a housing and constructed and arranged to prevent movement of the output structure upon predetermined external force being applied thereto via the coupling assembly. The output structure has ramp surfaces each converging toward the housing. Each of the ramp surfaces frictionally engages an associated one of the rollers, the rollers being biased by the spring members in a converging surface direction towards the converging surfaces between the ramp surfaces and the housing. The rollers are thus biased into wedging relation between the ramp surfaces and the housing. Friction between the ramp surfaces and the associated rollers during application of the predetermined external force to the output structure urges rolling movement of the rollers in the converging surface direction and into further wedging relation between the ramp surfaces and the housing.