FR2632911A1 - WINDSCREEN WIPER AND FIXING BRACKET HAS A VEHICLE BODY - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a wiper assembly 1 for a motor vehicle. The set includes a support bracket 2 fixed to the body, two swing arms 3 articulated to the support bracket 2 and intended to carry wiper blades, an electric motor 5 and a mechanism 6 to convert the movement rotary of the output shaft 7 of the motor in a reciprocating movement of the oscillating arms 3. The support bracket 2 is made in a single piece of plastic material and comprises two arms 14, 15 comprising support means for the pivots 4 articulation of the arms. Application to the manufacture of light and reinforced windshield wipers.

Description

1. The present invention refers to a wiper assembly for a

vehicle and in particular to a

  fixing bracket to the body of a wiper assembly

ice with two swing arms.

  It is known that a wiper assembly of the type mentioned generally comprises a support bracket intended to be fixed to the body of the vehicle, an electric motor anchored on the caliper, and two oscillating arms articulated on the opposite ends of the vehicle. the stirrup -and controlled by the electric motor by means of a mechanism of the conventional type for converting the rotary motion of the motor shaft into an oscillatory movement of the arms themselves. The fixing bracket is usually made of several metal parts connected together by means of

welding and / or riveting.

  Known assemblies of the type briefly described

  above have some disadvantages. In part-

  In particular, the production of the support stirrup in several metal parts implies a rather large overall weight, a certain difficulty in obtaining acceptable dimensional tolerances, as well as the need for thermal and / or superficial treatments. to protect the rooms from the influence of water, which

  increases the overall price of the whole ..

  The purpose of the. The present invention is to provide a wiper assembly for a motor vehicle that does not have the known disadvantages of the assemblies described above. The mentioned object is achieved by the present invention which relates to a wiper assembly for a vehicle of the type comprising a support bracket intended to be fixed to a body of the vehicle, at least one oscillating arm articulated on the support bracket and for carrying a wiper blade, an electric motor and a mechanism for converting the rotary motion of an output shaft of the electric motor into an oscillatory movement of said arm, characterized in that the support bracket is made of one piece by stamping a

plastic material.

  For a better understanding of the present invention, a preferred embodiment is described below by way of non-limiting example and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: FIG. 1 is a front and partial view of an assembly of wiper made according to the present invention; Figures 2 and 3 are partial views, respectively, front and top plan of a support bracket of the assembly of Figure 1 on a larger scale; and FIGS. 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 are sectional views, on a larger scale, according to the respective sectional planes IV-IV, V-V, VI-VI, VII-VII and VIII-VIII of FIG.

figure 2.

  Referring to Figure 1, indicated as a whole by the reference number 1, a front wiper assembly for a motor vehicle. Group 1 comprises a support bracket 2 intended to be fixed to the body of the motor vehicle, two oscillating arms 3 articulated on the bracket 2 at their lower end by means of respective integral pivots 4, an electric motor 5 fixed on the stirrup 2 itself and a mechanism 6 connecting an output shaft 7 of the electric motor 5 to the pivots 4 and for transforming the continuous rotary motion of the shaft 5 into a movement

  rotary rotating, limited amplitude, pivots 4.

  In particular (FIGS. 2 and 3), the stirrup 2 comprises an element 8 of elongate shape and a substantially vertical plate 9 disposed opposite an intermediate portion 10 of the element 8 and integrally connected thereto. by two crosspieces 11, 12. The element 8 comprises two arms 14, 15 extending from the intermediate portion 10, respectively, in a horizontal direction and in a slightly inclined direction; the arms 14, 15 which have, respectively, a small and a great length carry at their respective ends hollow cylindrical bushes 16 in which the pivots 4 are housed and from which outwardly extend the respective fastening portions 17 of oblong oblong shape provided with respective holes 18 for

- attachment to the bodywork.

  The plate 9 has a hole 19 for housing the electric motor 5 and several holes 20 of smaller diameter for fixing the latter at the head on the plate 9 itself. Since the plate 9 extend from

  integrally downward two profiled fins 24.

  provided with other respective holes 25 for fixing

the caliper 2 to the bodywork.

  The mechanism 6 for controlling the oscillating arms 3 is substantially a double articulated quadrilateral comprising a crank 26 angularly coupled at one of its ends to the shaft 7, two rockers 27 angularly coupled to the respective pivots 4 and two rods 28 of different lengths which are articulate at one end

  free of the crank 26 and the respective balances 27.

  According to the present invention, the support stirrup 2 is made of a single piece by plastic stamping, preferably polyester filled with fiberglass, which has good mechanical properties (rigidity, dimensional stability) and

does not absorb moisture. -

  The pitch 14, 15 (FIGS. 4 and 5) have an open cross section C on the side facing the wafer 9 and are provided inside several ribs 30 which produce a honeycomb structure; this structure comprises in particular several rhomboid cells elongate in the longitudinal direction relative to the arms 14, 15 and joined by means of reduced vertical walls 31, corresponding to their lower and upper angles, to the corresponding lower walls 32,

  33 and the upper walls 34, 35 of the arms 14, 15.

  The central portion 10 of the element 8 has a hollow polygonal section of elongate shape and inclined downwardly in the direction opposite to the wafer 9; this central part 10 is open downwards and is divided longitudinally into two spaces by an inclined rib

median 36.

  The end portions 17 have respective peripheral ribs 37, having a reduced thickness in the area surrounding the hole 18 and increasing linearly towards the sockets 16 to which they are connected. Such parts also have a

medial longitudinal rib 38.

  The crosspiece 11 is substantially flat and tilts downward 90 at one of its ends o it is connected with the plate 9; the crosspiece 12 comprises a substantially horizontal upper portion 39 and a portion 40 substantially on the same plane as the plate 9; this part defines a curve at 90 "and meets laterally at an upper zone of the plate 9. The crosspieces 11, 12 have a plurality of longitudinal ribs 41, 42 which extend longitudinally on the wafer 9. The latter has a ribbed structure on In particular, it is provided with two concentric circular ribs 44, 45 arranged around the hole 19 and joined together by a plurality of radial ribs 46, of a plurality of horizontal ribs 47 which extend from the rib 45 to the ribs 40 and several vertical ribs 48 which extend downward from a

  meeting zone between the ribs 41 and the ribs 45.

  The operation of the wiper assembly

  Ice 1 is known per se and therefore is not described here.

  An examination of the characteristics of the wiper assembly 1 made according to the present invention clearly shows the advantages that it provides. In particular, the production of the support stirrup 2 of plastic material makes it possible to reduce the weight without any disadvantage for the mechanical rigidity. to the ribbed structure described, to eliminate any heat treatment or surface protection and any assembly operation and thus reduce the overall costs of production. Other advantages are the ease of stamping thanks to precise solutions resulting from the drawing of the various pieces and the possibility of obtaining a great

  precision and high dimensional stability.

  Finally, it is clear that the assembly 1 described here can undergo various modifications and can be made in various variants, provided that they do not go beyond the scope of protection of the invention. For example, the assembly may comprise a single oscillating arm and the shape of the support bracket 2 may be correspondingly modified.

Claims (13)

  A wiper assembly for a vehicle, of the type comprising a support bracket (2) for attachment to a vehicle body, at least one swing arm (3) pivotally attached to the support bracket and for carrying a wiper blade, an electric motor (5) and a mechanism (6) for converting the rotary motion of an output shaft (7) of the motor into an oscillating movement of said arms (3), characterized in that the support bracket (2) is made in one piece   by stamping a plastic material.   2. Wiper assembly according to the claim   1, characterized in that it comprises two oscillating arms (3), the support stirrup (2) comprising an elongate element (8) and a substantially vertical plate (9) arranged opposite an intermediate portion (10) of said element (8) and integrally connected thereto by two crosspieces (11, 12), the plate (9) being provided with support means (19, 20) of the electric motor (5) and of first fixing means (24, 25) of the stirrup (2) to said body, the element (8) comprising two arms (14, 15) extending from opposite sides of said intermediate portion (10) and being provided with at their ends support means (16) for the respective pivot pins (4) of the oscillating arms (3) and means and other connecting means (17) for said bodywork.   3. Wiper assembly according to the claim   2, characterized in that said arms (14, 15) have a C-shaped cross-section and   comprise a plurality of internal ribs (30, 31) defined   a honeycomb structure.   4. Wiper assembly according to the claim   2 or 3, characterized in that the central portion (10) of the element (8) has a hollow polygonal section of elongated shape and inclined downwardly in the opposite direction to the wafer (9), the central portion   (10) being open downward and being divided longitudinally   dutally in two spaces by an inclined median rib (36). 5. Wiper assembly according to one   any of claims 2 to 4, characterized in that   said pivot support means comprise respective hollow cylindrical bushings (16), the second connecting means comprising respective flattened oblong oblong connecting portions (17) extending outwardly from the bushes (16) and provided with respective holes (18) for attachment to the bodywork and respective peripheral ribs (37). as well as   medial longitudinal ribs (38).   6. Wiper assembly according to one   any of claims 2 to 5, characterized in that   the plate (9) and the crosspieces (11, 12) have a ribbed structure.   7. Wiper assembly according to one   any of the preceding claims; characterized in   the support stirrup (2) is made of polyester loaded with fiberglass.   8. Support bracket for a wiper assembly   mirror having two oscillating arms, intended for a motor vehicle, characterized in that it comprises an element (8) of elongated shape and. a substantially vertical plate (9) disposed opposite an intermediate portion (10) of said element (8) and integrally connected by two crosspieces (11, 12), said plate (9) being provided with support means (19); , 20) for the electric motor (5) and first connecting means (24, 25) of the stirrup (2) to a vehicle body, the element (8) comprising two arms (14, 15) extending from opposite portions of said intermediate portion (10) and provided at their ends with support means (16) for the respective articulation pivots (4) of the oscillating arms (3) and   other connecting means (17) to said body.   9. A stirrup according to claim 8, characterized in that the arms (14, 15) have a C-shaped cross section and comprise a plurality of internal ribs (30, 31) defining a honeycomb structure. 10. A stirrup according to claim 8 or claim 9, characterized in that the central portion (10) of the element (8) has a hollow polygonal section, of elongated shape and inclined downwardly in the opposite direction to the wafer ( 9), the central part   (10) being open downward and being divided longitudinally   tudinally in two spaces by an inclined rib median (36).   11. Stirrup according to any one of the   8 to 10, characterized in that the means of   support of the pivots (4) comprise cylindrical bushings   respective hollow portions (16), the second connecting means comprising respective flattened oblong-shaped connection portions (17) extending outwardly from the sockets (16) and provided with respective holes (18) for attachment. to the bodywork and respective peripheral ribs (37) as well as ribs longitudinal medians (38).   12. Stirrup according to any one of the   8 to 11, characterized in that said plate (9) and said crosspieces (11, 12) have a structure ribbed.   13. Stirrup according to any one of the   dications q to 12, characterized in that it is realized in   polyester filled with fiberglass.