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:
Oct. 31, 2000
Filed:
Aug. 06, 1997
Yoshiyuki Fujita, Nagoya, JP;
Toyoda Gosei Co., Ltd., Aichi-ken, JP;
Abstract
A steering wheel is disclosed which includes a steering wheel main body, a horn-switching assembly, and an air bag assembly. The horn-switching assembly includes a stationary member mounted on the steering wheel main body, a support plate, a movable member movable away from the stationary member into non-activated and activated positions, and a plurality of horn-switching subassemblies mounted on the support plate of the stationary member. The horn-switching subassemblies each includes a spring, a limiting member, and a switch main body. The springs are mounted between the stationary member and the movable member to collectively bias the movable member upward towards the non-activated position. The limiting member interconnects the support plate with the movable member to form an installable unit which is mountable to the stationary member, and limits the distance by which the movable member moves away from the stationary member. The switch main body includes stationary contacts mounted on the stationary member and movable contacts mounted on the movable member. The air bag assembly, which includes an air bag and inflator, is supported by the movable member and is interconnected to the support plate by the limiting members. The springs are mounted higher than the inflator.