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:
Mar. 01, 2005
Filed:
Aug. 25, 2003
Pat A. Bolen, Carthage, IL (US);
Christopher K. Wyatt, Hamilton, IL (US);
Pat A. Bolen, Carthage, IL (US);
Christopher K. Wyatt, Hamilton, IL (US);
Methode Electronics, Inc., Chicago, IL (US);
Abstract
The present invention is directed to a modular clockspring to be used in automobile steering columns that allow modular parts of the clockspring to be modified without the need to alter the design of the entire clockspring. The clockspring is composed of at least six modules, a cover module, a housing module, an inner diameter (ID) connector module, an outer diameter (OD) connector module, a locking module, and a flat electrical cable module. The modular nature of the clockspring allows a single generic clockspring to be used in various steering columns. Minor differences in mounting styles, connector styles or the number of circuits within the differing steering columns can be accommodated with minor changes to the relevant modules without having to redesign the entire clockspring.