JP7586390B2 - Vehicle sliding door opening and closing device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a vehicle sliding door opening and closing device for automatically opening and closing a vehicle sliding door.

Patent Document 1 discloses a vehicle sliding door opening and closing device that includes a guide rail fixed to a vehicle body panel, a moving member supported on the guide rail so as to be movable in the opening and closing direction and connected to the sliding door, and a cable that is looped around one end and the other end of the guide rail and connected to the moving member, thereby transmitting the rotation of the motor to the moving member as a force in the opening and closing direction, and that opens and closes the sliding door by moving the cable using the power of the motor.

Patent Document 2 discloses a vehicle sliding door opening and closing device that includes a belt guide portion that is fixed to a vehicle body panel and has a structure separate from a guide rail for supporting the sliding door so that it can move in the opening and closing direction, and has a generally C-shaped longitudinal section, an endless belt that is guided by the belt guide portion so that it moves in a circular motion, a belt connector connected to the endless belt, and a motor that drives the endless belt. The belt connector connected to the endless belt is connected to the sliding door via an arm that is movably attached to the guide rail, and the sliding door is opened and closed by the circular motion of the endless belt driven by the power of the motor.

Patent No. 5796238 Patent No. 6697826

However, in the vehicle sliding door opening and closing device disclosed in Patent Document 1, the door opening and closing drive unit including the motor and the cable are directly attached to an extremely heavy metal guide rail that is rigid enough to support the sliding door, which increases the size of the vehicle sliding door opening and closing device, resulting in a problem of poor handling when transporting the vehicle sliding door opening and closing device and attaching it to a vehicle body panel.

In the vehicle sliding door opening and closing device disclosed in Patent Document 2, the endless belt is supported on the belt guide section, so the height of the belt guide section arranged on the upper side of the guide rail must be at least high enough to support the belt so that it can circulate. Therefore, since the endless belt is far above the arm attached to the guide rail, the belt connector needs to be shaped to extend significantly downward. However, if the belt connector is extended significantly downward, the strength of the belt connector needs to be increased in order to efficiently transmit the circulating movement of the endless belt to the arm, but this increases the weight of the vehicle sliding door opening and closing device, and deteriorates the handling characteristics when transporting the vehicle sliding door opening and closing device and attaching it to a vehicle body panel.

In view of the above problems, the present invention aims to provide a vehicle sliding door opening and closing device that allows for improved handling during transportation and installation on a vehicle body panel.

According to the present invention, the above problems are solved as follows.
A vehicle slide door opening and closing device comprising: a guide member fixed to a vehicle body panel so as to follow an upper surface of a guide rail for slidably supporting a slide door on the vehicle body panel; a cable wound around a rotating drum rotated by a motor so as to be able to be wound up and fed out, and hung around one end and the other end of the guide member, respectively, so as to be able to move along the longitudinal direction of the guide member by the rotation of the rotating drum; and a cable connecting member connected to the cable and connected to the sliding door via a guide roller unit assembled to the guide rail so as to be able to move in the longitudinal direction, wherein the guide member has a vertical wall portion whose lower end surface faces the upper surface of the guide rail, and a horizontal portion extending from the upper end of the vertical wall portion toward the interior of the vehicle, and has a longitudinal cross-sectional shape that is approximately inverted L-shaped.

Preferably, the portion of the cable that is routed on the vehicle interior side of the guide member is routed between the horizontal portion of the guide member and the upper surface of the guide rail.

Preferably, the guide member has a holding portion that is connected to the cable and can temporarily hold the cable connection member in a predetermined position in a freely attachable and detachable manner when the cable connection member is not connected to the guide roller unit.

Preferably, the retaining portion is an opening that penetrates the vertical wall portion of the guide member and into which a temporary retaining engagement portion provided on the cable connecting member fits.

Preferably, when the cable connection member is temporarily held in the holding portion, it is held in a position that is outside the movement path of the guide roller unit.

Preferably, the cable is wound around the rotating drum several times at approximately the middle of its length, and a closed cable section is looped around one end of the guide member and connected to the cable connection member, and an open cable section is looped around the other end of the guide member and connected to the cable connection member, all of which are made of a single cable.

Preferably, the cable connection member is provided with an extension section to absorb the extension of the cable.

Preferably, the stretching portion is provided on a support portion facing the up-down direction of the cable connection member and has a coil spring that applies a biasing force to the cable in the tension direction.

Preferably, the guide member is made of synthetic resin.

According to the present invention, the element for transmitting the motor's power to the sliding door is a cable, the guide member is a separate structure from the guide rail , and the cross-sectional shape is approximately an inverted L-shape. This allows the guide member to be positioned close to the upper surface of the guide rail and the cable and guide roller unit to be close to each other in the vertical direction. Therefore, there is no need for the cable connecting member to have a shape that extends significantly downward, which makes it possible to reduce the weight and size of the vehicle sliding door opening and closing device and improves handling.

1 is a side view of a vehicle equipped with a vehicle slide door opening and closing device according to the present invention; FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the vehicle slide door opening and closing device and a perspective view of a center guide rail. 1 is a side view of a vehicle sliding door opening and closing device and a center guide rail as viewed from the vehicle exterior side. 1 is a side view of a vehicle slide door opening and closing device as viewed from the vehicle exterior side. 1 is a side view of a vehicle slide door opening and closing device as viewed from the vehicle interior side. FIG. 5 is a plan view seen from the direction of arrow VI in FIG. 4 . 7 is an enlarged vertical cross-sectional view taken along line VII-VII in FIG. 8 is a vertical cross-sectional view of a portion similar to FIG. 7 when the cable connecting member is in a temporarily held state.

One embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiment described below, and includes appropriate modifications of the embodiment described below within the scope obvious to those skilled in the art.

As shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle sliding door opening and closing device 1 according to this embodiment is disposed inside a left-side body panel 4 of a small wagon-type vehicle 2, and automatically opens and closes a left-side sliding door 3 supported on the body panel 4 so as to be freely opened and closed in the fore-and-aft direction by the power of a motor 8, which will be described later.
In the following description, unless otherwise specified, the directions refer to the directions when the vehicle sliding door opening and closing device 1 is attached to the vehicle 2.

The sliding door 3 is supported so that it can be opened and closed in the front-to-rear direction by having the upper guide roller unit 31 attached to the front-top portion attached to the upper guide rail 41 that extends in the front-to-rear direction and is fixed to the top of the vehicle body panel 4, the center guide roller unit 32 attached to the central rear portion attached to the center portion of the vehicle body panel 4 in the up-down direction and is fixed to the center of the vehicle body panel 4, and the lower guide roller unit 33 attached to the front-to-rear lower portion attached to the lower guide rail 43 that extends in the front-to-rear direction and is fixed to the bottom of the vehicle body panel 4, all of which are assembled so as to be freely movable in the front-to-rear direction.

As shown in Figures 2 to 6, the vehicle sliding door opening and closing device 1 is disposed inside the vehicle body panel 4 and includes a motor module 5 that outputs power for automatically opening and closing the sliding door 3, and a guide module 6 to which the motor module 5 is attached and which transmits the power of a motor 8 output from the motor module 5 to the sliding door 3 to automatically open and close the sliding door 3. Note that Figure 3 shows the vehicle sliding door opening and closing device 1 and center guide rail 42 in a state in which a cable connection member 14 (described later) constituting part of the guide module 6 is connected to the center guide roller unit 32, while Figures 4 to 6 show only the vehicle sliding door opening and closing device 1.

(Motor module 5)
The motor module 5 is configured to include a roughly cylindrical upper casing 7 made of synthetic resin facing vertically, a motor 8 attached to the top of the upper casing 7, and a reduction mechanism 9 housed within the upper casing 7.

The upper casing 7 is fixed to the top of the lower casing 11 of the guide module 6, which will be described later.

The motor 8 is attached to the top of the upper casing 7 so that its rotating shaft faces downward. The reduction mechanism 9 reduces the rotation speed of the motor 8 and is composed of a planetary gear mechanism in which multiple planetary gears rotate and revolve around a sun gear fixed to the rotating shaft of the motor 8. Preferably, an electromagnetic clutch (not shown) capable of connecting/disconnecting the power transmission path is provided between the rotating shaft of the motor 8 and the reduction mechanism 9.

(Guide module 6)
As shown in Figures 2 to 8, the guide module 6 is arranged above the center guide rail 42 and includes a guide member 10 made of synthetic resin that is fixed to the body panel 4, a lower casing 11 provided on the portion of the guide member 10 facing the inside of the vehicle, a rotating drum 12 that is rotatably supported within the lower casing 11 around an axis that faces in the vertical direction, a cable 13 that is wound around a spiral groove provided on the outer peripheral surface of the rotating drum 12 so as to be able to be wound up and unwound, and a cable connecting member 14 for connecting the cable 13 to the sliding door 3.

The guide member 10 has a shape that follows the longitudinal direction (front-rear direction) of the center guide rail 42 in a plan view, and as shown in particular in Figures 7 and 8, is disposed above the center guide rail 42 and has a vertical wall portion 102 that is formed along the longitudinal direction of the center guide rail 42 to guide the cable 13 in the longitudinal direction, and a horizontal portion 103 that extends from the upper end of the vertical wall portion 102 toward the interior of the vehicle, so that the longitudinal cross-sectional shape is formed into a substantially inverted L shape.

Furthermore, as shown in Figures 7 and 8, the guide member 10 is fixed to the vehicle body panel 4 in such a manner that the lower end surface 102a of the vertical wall portion 102 faces the upper surface 42a of the center guide rail 42. Fixing the guide member 10 to the vehicle body panel 4 is achieved by fixing the front bracket 15 provided at the front end (one end) of the curved portion 101 formed at the front of the guide member 10 and the rear bracket 16 provided at the rear end (the other end) of the guide member 10 to the vehicle body panel 4 with bolts (not shown).

2, 7, and 8, a holding portion 104 is provided at the rear of the vertical wall portion 102 of the guide member 10 to temporarily hold the cable connection member 14 connected to the cable 13 on the guide member 10 in a detachable manner. The holding portion 104 is formed by a rectangular opening hole that penetrates the vertical wall portion 102 in the left-right direction (inside/outside direction of the vehicle) and has a predetermined opening width in the front-rear direction. The cable connection member 14 is temporarily held in the holding portion 104 in a position as shown in FIG. 8 until the cable connection member 14 connected to the cable 13 is connected to the center guide roller unit 32. The cable connection member 14 is temporarily held on the guide member 10 in a detachable manner by fitting a temporary holding engagement portion 143 provided on the upper portion into the holding portion 104.

As described above, by making the guide member 10 have a substantially inverted L-shaped longitudinal section, the lower end surface 102a of the vertical wall portion 102 can be brought closer to the upper surface 42a of the center guide rail 42, so that the cable 13 can be brought closer to the arm portion 32c of the center guide roller unit 32, compared to the conventional guide member having a substantially C-shaped longitudinal section. This allows the cable connection member 14 to be connected to the arm portion 32c of the center guide roller unit 32 without having to be significantly extended downward, making it possible to reduce the size and weight of the vehicle sliding door opening and closing device 1 and improve handling. Furthermore, even if the height of the guide member 10 is lowered, a sufficient space can be secured between the horizontal portion 103 of the guide member 10 and the upper surface 42a of the center guide rail 42, so that, for example, the outer tubes 13a and 13b of the cable 13, which will be described later, can be arranged in the space.

The rotating drum 12 is supported in the lower casing 11 so that it can rotate around an axis that faces the vertical direction, and its center is connected to the output shaft of the reduction mechanism 9 in the motor module 5, so that it rotates in conjunction with the reduced rotation of the reduction mechanism 9 that accompanies the rotation of the motor 8.

The cable 13 is composed of a Bowden cable in which an inner cable is inserted axially movably into the flexible outer tubes 13a and 13b. In the description of this embodiment, the cable 13 corresponds to the inner cable of the Bowden cable.

The cable 13 is wound multiple times around a spiral groove provided on the outer circumferential surface of the rotating drum 12, approximately at the middle of its length. As the rotating drum 12 rotates, the closed side cable 131 extending forward from the rotating drum 12 and the open side cable 132 extending backward are wound up and let out.

One end of the cable 13, i.e., the close side cable portion 131, is inserted through the close side lead-out portion 111 provided in the lower casing 11 and led out forward from the front outer tube 13a, and is turned around the front pulley 17 supported rotatably around an axis in the vertical direction at the front end of the curved portion 101 of the guide member 10, thereby changing direction and extending rearward, and is guided by the vertical wall portion 102 of the guide member 10 and connected to the cable connection member 14. In this embodiment, the front end of the front outer tube 13a is fixed to the guide member 10, and the rear end is fixed to the close side lead-out portion 111 so as to be accommodated in the gap between the horizontal portion 103 of the guide member 10 and the upper surface 42a of the center guide rail 42.

The other end of the cable 13, i.e., the open-side cable portion 132, is inserted through an open-side lead-out portion 112 provided in the lower casing 11, led out rearward from the rear outer tube 13b, and is turned around a rear pulley 18 supported on the rear end of the guide member 10 so as to be rotatable about an axis in the vertical direction, thereby changing direction and extending forward, and is guided by the vertical wall portion 102 of the guide member 10 and connected to the cable connecting member 14. In this embodiment, the rear end of the rear outer tube 13b is fixed to the guide member 10, and the front end is fixed to the open- side lead-out portion 112 so as to be accommodated in the gap between the horizontal portion 103 of the guide member 10 and the upper surface 42a of the center guide rail 42.

As described above, by arranging the outer tubes 13a and 13b, i.e., the portion of the cable 13 that is routed along the vehicle interior side of the guide member 10, in the gap between the horizontal portion 103 of the guide member 10 and the upper surface 42a of the center guide rail 42, the cable 13 can be routed in a narrow space, improving the handling of the vehicle sliding door opening and closing device 1.

The rotating drum 12 rotates in one direction by the power of the motor 8, winding up the closed side cable section 131 and sending out the open side cable section 132, and rotates in the other direction by the power of the motor 8, winding up the open side cable section 132 and sending out the closed side cable section 131.

When the close side cable portion 131 is wound around the rotating drum 12, the cable connection member 14 moves forward along the longitudinal direction of the guide member 10 as the close side cable portion 131 is pulled forward. When the open side cable portion 132 is wound around the rotating drum 12, the cable connection member 14 moves backward along the longitudinal direction of the guide member 10 as the open side cable portion 132 is pulled backward.

In the present embodiment, the cable 13 is wound around the rotating drum 12 at approximately the middle portion in the length direction multiple times, and the closed side cable portion 131 and the open side cable portion 132 are formed from a single cable. Preferably, an engagement portion (not shown) that engages with the outer circumferential surface of the rotating drum 12 in the rotational direction is fixed to the portion of the cable 13 that is wound around the rotating drum 12. In this way, by forming the cable 13 from a single cable, the assembly work to the rotating drum 12 can be performed efficiently and costs can be reduced.

The cable connection member 14 has a support portion 141 facing in the vertical direction, a coupling portion 142 extending from the lower end of the support portion 141 toward the outside of the vehicle, a temporary retaining engagement portion 143 protruding from the upper end of the support portion 141 toward the outside of the vehicle, and an extension portion 19 to which the end of the close side cable portion 131 and the end of the open side cable portion 132 are respectively connected. In other words, the close side cable portion 131 and the open side cable portion 132 are connected to the cable connection member 14 via the extension portion 19.

As shown in FIG. 8, the cable connection member 14 is temporarily held in a state in which the temporary holding engagement portion 143 is detachably fitted into the holding portion 104 until it is connected to the arm portion 32c of the center guide roller unit 32. Finally, as shown in FIG. 7, the connecting portion 142 is connected to the arm portion 32c by a bolt (not shown), thereby connecting the cable 13 and the sliding door 3 to each other.

The extension portion 19 is fixed to the side of the support portion 141 of the cable connection member 14 facing the outside of the vehicle, and has two upwardly arcuate guide grooves 191, and a front cylindrical portion 192 and a rear cylindrical portion 193 that extend straight downward from the front and rear lower portions of the guide grooves 191, as shown in the enlarged view of FIG. 4. The orientation of the front cylindrical portion 192 and the rear cylindrical portion 193 is not limited to this embodiment, and may be diagonally downward toward the rear or diagonally downward toward the front.

The close side cable part 131 is connected to the stretching part 19 by inserting the end part 131a, which is fixed to the end part, into the rear cylindrical part 193 while being guided by the guide groove 191 of the stretching part 19. In this embodiment, the end part 131a is inserted into the rear cylindrical part 193 so that it can move freely in the vertical direction, and a coil spring 194 is provided inside the rear cylindrical part 193, thereby applying tension to the close side cable part 131 and absorbing slack in the close side cable part 131.

The open-side cable portion 132 is connected to the extension portion 19 by inserting the end portion 132a, which is fixed to the end portion, into the front tubular portion 192 while being guided by the guide groove 191 of the extension portion 19. In this embodiment, the end portion 132a is inserted into the front tubular portion 192 so that it can move freely in the vertical direction, and a coil spring 195 is provided inside the front tubular portion 192, thereby applying tension to the open-side cable portion 132 and absorbing slack in the open-side cable portion 132.

The cable connection member 14 is held in a temporary holding position as shown in FIG. 8 relative to the guide member 10 while the vehicle sliding door opening and closing device 1 is being transported and while it is being assembled to the vehicle body panel 4. This prevents the cable 13 and the cable connection member 14 from swinging and coming into contact with other components or the sliding door 3, thereby causing damage, and also improves the handleability of the vehicle sliding door opening and closing device 1.

When the cable connection member 14 is in the temporary holding position, it is in a position retracted outside the movement trajectory of the center guide roller unit 32. As a result, after the vehicle sliding door opening and closing device 1 is assembled to the vehicle body panel 4, when the center guide roller unit 32 is assembled to the center guide rail 42, the center guide roller unit 32 does not interfere with the cable connection member 14, so that the center guide roller unit 32 can be easily assembled to the center guide rail 42.

To temporarily hold the cable connection member 14 in the holding portion 104 of the guide member 10, as shown in FIG. 8, the cable connection member 14 is rotated upward by approximately 120 degrees from the normal position (the position shown in FIG. 7), and in this state, the temporary holding engagement portion 143 of the cable holding member 14 is fitted into the holding portion 104 of the guide member 10 from the outside of the vehicle, and the tip of the temporary holding engagement portion 143 is engaged with the upper edge of the holding portion 104 from the inside of the vehicle, and the base portion is engaged with the lower edge of the holding portion 104 from the outside of the vehicle, so that the cable connection member 14 is held in a temporary holding position tilted upward by approximately 30 degrees toward the outside of the vehicle, as shown in FIG. 8.

When removing the cable connection member 14 from the holding portion 104, the cable holding member 14 is pulled out toward the outside of the vehicle while being rotated slightly upward from the temporary holding position shown in FIG. 8. This allows the cable connection member 14 to be easily removed from the holding portion 104. After this, the cable connection member 14 is returned to the normal position and connected to the arm portion 32c of the center guide roller unit 32 assembled to the center guide rail 42, whereby the cable 13 is connected to the sliding door 3 via the cable connection member 14 and the center guide roller unit 32.

As described above, when the cable connection member 14 is temporarily held in the guide member 10, the end portions 131a, 132a of the cable 13 are displaced outward from the normal track path, so that the close side cable portion 131 and the open side cable portion 132 are each in a tensioned state, suppressing the vibration of the cable 13 and unnecessary movement of the cable connection member 14 in the front-rear direction. This further improves the handling properties of the vehicle sliding door opening and closing device 1 during transportation and assembly to the vehicle body panel 4.

(Connection of the vehicle sliding door opening/closing device 1 to the sliding door 3)
First, the guide member 10 is placed above the center guide rail 42 which has been preliminarily fixed to the vehicle body panel 4, and the front bracket 15 and the rear bracket 16 are fixed to the vehicle body panel 4 with bolts not shown, thereby assembling the vehicle sliding door opening and closing device 1 to the vehicle body panel 4.

When the vehicle sliding door opening/closing device 1 is assembled to the vehicle body panel 4, the cable connection member 14 is temporarily held in the holding portion 104 of the guide member 10. By temporarily holding the cable connection member 14 in the holding portion 104, unnecessary movement of the cable 13 and the cable connection member 14 is suppressed during transportation of the vehicle sliding door opening/closing device 1 and assembly to the vehicle body panel 4, improving the handleability of the vehicle sliding door opening/closing device 1. It is also possible to prevent the cable 13 and the cable connection member 14 from coming into contact with and damaging the vehicle body panel 4 or the sliding door 3.

The vehicle sliding door opening and closing device 1 may be assembled to the vehicle body panel 4 with the motor module 5 already assembled to the guide module 6, or the motor module 5 and guide module 6 may be separated as in the conventional technology, and the guide module 6 may be assembled to the vehicle body panel 4 first, and then the motor module 5 may be assembled to the guide module 6.

Next, the guide rollers (not shown) of each guide roller unit 31, 32, 33 attached to the sliding door 3 (for the center guide roller unit 32, the guide roller 32a rotatable around a vertical axis and the guide roller 32b rotatable around a horizontal axis shown in Figures 7 and 8) are inserted into the corresponding rails 41, 42, 43 from the rear end. Then, the sliding door 3 is moved forward, i.e., in the closing direction, to align the center guide roller unit 32 with the position of the cable connection member 14 temporarily held by the holding portion 104. In this case, since the cable connection member 14 is in a temporarily held position and is in a position outside the movement trajectory of the center guide roller unit 32, it is possible to avoid a situation in which the center guide roller unit 32 collides with the cable connection member 14. This makes it possible to prevent damage to the center guide roller unit 32 and the cable connection member 14.

Next, a special jig is inserted into the gap between the vehicle body panel 4 and the rear end of the sliding door 3, and the cable connection member 14 is removed from the holding portion 104 to return the cable connection member 14 to the correct position. Then, the connecting portion 142 of the cable connection member 14 is connected to the arm portion 32c of the center guide roller unit 32 with a bolt (not shown). As a result, the cable 13 and the sliding door 3 are connected via the cable connection member 14 and the center guide roller unit 32.

(Function of Vehicle Slide Door Opening and Closing Device 1)
The motor 8 is driven in response to the operation of a wireless remote switch carried by the user or a door handle for opening the door provided on the sliding door 3. In response to this, an electromagnetic clutch (not shown) provided in the upper casing 7 of the motor module 5 is engaged. As a result, the power of the motor 8 is transmitted to the cable 13 via the electromagnetic clutch, the reduction mechanism 9, and the rotating drum 12. As a result, either the close side cable portion 131 or the open side cable portion 132 is wound into the rotating drum 12, and the other is sent out from the rotating drum 12, so that the sliding door 3 moves to open if it is in the closed position, or moves to close if it is in the fully open position, in accordance with the movement of the cable connecting member 14.

When the sliding door 3 is opened or closed manually, the electromagnetic clutch is in a disengaged state. Therefore, the opening and closing operation of the sliding door 3 is transmitted to the cable 13 and the reduction mechanism 9, but not to the motor 8. This allows the sliding door 3 to be manually opened and closed with little force.

Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, various modifications, changes, and combinations can be made to the above embodiment without departing from the spirit of the present invention, as follows:

(1) The temporary holding position of the cable connection member 14 is changed from facing diagonally upward toward the outside of the vehicle to facing vertically or horizontally.

(2) Instead of an opening that penetrates the retaining portion 104 in the vehicle interior/exterior direction, an opening that faces up/down or diagonally is used.

(3) The vehicle sliding door opening and closing device 1 is installed under the vehicle body, and the cable 13 is connected to the lower guide roller unit 33.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 Vehicle sliding door opening and closing device 2 Vehicle 3 Sliding door 31 Upper guide roller unit 32 Center guide roller unit 32a, 32b Guide roller 32c Arm portion 33 Lower guide roller unit 4 Vehicle body panel 41 Upper guide rail 42 Center guide rail 42a Upper surface 43 Lower guide rail 5 Motor module 6 Guide module 7 Upper casing 8 Motor 9 Reduction mechanism 10 Guide member 101 Curved portion 102 Vertical wall portion 102a Lower end surface 103 Horizontal portion 104 Holding portion 11 Lower casing 111 Close side lead-out portion 112 Open side lead-out portion 12 Rotating drum 13 Cable 13a, 13b Outer tube 131 Close side cable portion 131a End portion 132 Open side cable portion 132a End portion 14 Cable connecting member 141 Support portion 142 Connecting portion 143 Temporary holding engagement portion 15 Front bracket 16 Rear bracket 17 Front pulley 18 Rear pulley 19 Expansion portion 191 Guide groove 192 Front cylindrical portion 193 Rear cylindrical portion 194, 195 Coil spring

Claims (9)

a guide member fixed to the vehicle body panel along an upper surface of a guide rail for supporting the sliding door slidably on the vehicle body panel;
a cable that is wound around a rotating drum that is rotated by a motor so as to be capable of being wound up and unwound, and that is wound around one end and the other end of the guide member, and that is movable along the longitudinal direction of the guide member by the rotation of the rotating drum;
a cable connecting member connected to the cable and connected to the sliding door via a guide roller unit assembled to the guide rail so as to be movable in the longitudinal direction;
a horizontal portion extending from the upper end of the vertical wall portion toward the interior of the vehicle, the vertical wall portion having a vertical cross-sectional shape that is approximately an inverted L-shape, and a lower end surface of the guide member facing the upper surface of the guide rail. The vehicle sliding door opening and closing device according to claim 1, characterized in that the portion of the cable that is routed on the vehicle interior side of the guide member is routed between the horizontal portion of the guide member and the upper surface of the guide rail. The vehicle sliding door opening and closing device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the guide member has a holding portion that is connected to the cable and can temporarily hold the cable connection member in a predetermined position in a freely detachable manner when not connected to the guide roller unit. The vehicle sliding door opening and closing device according to claim 3, characterized in that the holding portion is an opening hole that penetrates the vertical wall portion of the guide member and into which a temporary holding engagement portion provided on the cable connection member is fitted. 5. The vehicle sliding door opening and closing device according to claim 3, wherein the cable connecting member is held at a position retracted outside a movement path of the guide roller unit when the cable connecting member is temporarily held by the holding portion.
The vehicle sliding door opening and closing device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the cable is wound around the rotating drum at approximately the middle of its length multiple times, and the close side cable part that is looped around one end of the guide member and connected to the cable connection member, and the open side cable part that is looped around the other end of the guide member and connected to the cable connection member are formed from a single cable. The vehicle sliding door opening and closing device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the cable connection member is provided with an extension section for absorbing the extension of the cable. The vehicle sliding door opening and closing device according to claim 7, characterized in that the stretching portion is provided on a support portion facing the up and down direction of the cable connection member and has a coil spring that applies a biasing force in the tension direction to the cable. The vehicle sliding door opening and closing device according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the guide member is made of synthetic resin.

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