JPH0418578B2 - - Google Patents

Description

Claim 1 (a) Head 2 fixed to the output shaft 1 of the drive mechanism
(b) an arm 6 having a connecting means connected to a wiper mount at one end and mechanically connected to the head by a housing 5 at the other end; (c) an arm 6 that connects the head and the housing. (d) cylindrical joints 3 and 4 provided between the head 2 and the housing 5;
(e) at least one stopper provided to limit movement of the arm relative to the head; The compression coil spring 16 is disposed in a box-shaped guide member 12 with one end closed, and the compression coil spring 16 is supported on the bottom portion 13 of the guide member substantially parallel to the axis of the guide member. In the wiper element, the wiper element is supported on the head 2 near the opposite end of the guide member 12 and connects the output shaft 1 of the drive mechanism and the wiper fitting to each other. A member 12 is rotatably supported by the housing 5 and slidable relative to the head 2, and the member 12 is supported by the compression coil spring 16.
is supported on the head via a piece 2d connected to the head 2.

2. The guide member 12 is provided with two mutually parallel side walls 11a, 11b extending orthogonally to the axis 4 of the cylindrical joint of the housing 5 to the head 2, and supported by the head. 2. A wiper element as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the shaft (9) has two sliding grooves (10) parallel to each other in which both ends move.

3. The axis 9 supported by the head 2 is parallel to the axis 4 of the cylindrical joint of the housing 5 to the head 2, and the axis 9 is placed between the two mutually parallel side walls 11a, 11b of the guide member 12. characterized in that the area 17 of said guide member 12 is cut out in such a way that said side piece 2c can pass between said two side walls 11a, 11b. A wiper element according to claim 2.

4. The two sliding grooves 10 are connected to the guide member 1.
The wiper element according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that the wiper element is substantially parallel to the axis of the wiper element.

5. The wiper element according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein the guide member 12 has a square cross section.

6. On the exterior of said guide member 12, two recesses are provided which cooperate with two male pivot pieces arranged on the sides of its bottom 13 and supported by said housing 5, these recesses 6. The wiper element according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the bearing of the male-shaped pivoting piece is configured by the following.

7. A recess is formed in each side wall 11a, 11b of the guide member 12, these two recesses are of the same shape, and the recess is provided in a part of the wall adjacent to the bottom 13 of the guide member 12, A wiper element according to claim 2 or 6, characterized in that it consists of a circular recess (19).

8. A wiper element according to claim 6, characterized in that each male pivot piece supported by the housing (5) is constituted by a tongue-like piece (18a, 18b) projecting into the housing (5).

9. The wiper element according to claim 8, wherein the tongue-like pieces 18a, 18b are formed by notches obtained by punching the housing.

10 The guide member 12 is provided with a structure that protrudes outward near the bottom 13 of the guide member 12 and
10. The wiper element according to claim 1, further comprising at least one rib (21) arranged transversely to the axis (12) of the wiper element.

11 on said rib 21, which is oblique to the axis of said guide member 12 and contacts said housing 5 in such a way as to form a stop when the wiper is in a raised position at the end of its travel path; Claim 10 characterized in that a central plane is provided.
Wiper element as described in section.

12 The housing 5 has a U-shaped cross section,
This U-shaped web part is connected to at least one part which cooperates with said rib 21 and forms a stop for the end of the travel.
The wiper element according to claim 11, characterized in that it is formed to have two bosses (24, 25).

13. said guide member 12 is provided with at least one protruding portion on its outer surface of its wall 14 facing the web portion 5c of said housing 5, disposed near the end of the web portion facing its bottom 13; 13. A wiper element according to claim 12, characterized in that the wiper element forms a stop when it reaches the end of its travel path in the direction in which the wiper is supported on the surface to be cleaned.

14 the protruding portion being arranged longitudinally on the tubular guide at least one rib 20a, 20b;
14. A wiper element as claimed in claim 13, characterized in that the ribs are arranged perpendicularly to the wall (14) of the guide member on which it rests.

15 The guide member 12 has its two side walls 11
Claims 3, 11 and 11 are characterized in that two ribs 20a and 20b are provided which are parallel to the ribs 20a and 11b and supported by a rib 21 that protrudes near the bottom 13. The wiper element according to any one of clauses 14 to 15.

16 The outer surface of one of the ribs 20a, 20b is
Adjacent side walls 11a, 11b of the guide member 12
The ribs 20a, 20b are perpendicular to the bottom 13 of the guide member 12, and the ribs 20a, 20b are perpendicular to the bottom 13 of the guide member
16. Wiper element according to claim 15, characterized in that it is extended by further ribs 22a, 22b located beyond.

Description The present invention relates to a wiper element designed to connect the output shaft of a drive mechanism and a wiper mounting. More particularly, the present invention relates to wipers for motor vehicles.

It is well known that when it is desired to maintain good visibility through glass surfaces that are subject to splashes such as water, these surfaces are acted upon by a wiper which generally performs a reciprocating cleaning motion.

The action of the wiper on the glass surface to be cleaned is carried out by the wiper blade being driven by a motor through a wiper element that is mechanically coupled between the wiper blade and the drive mechanism. To explain in detail, the drive mechanism is generally
The wiper arm is equipped with a rotary shaft on which an assembly head is mounted, which is pivotally connected to a housing fixed to the wiper arm through a cylindrical joint. By inserting an elastic body between the housing and the assembly head, the wiper blade can
It rests elastically on the surface to be cleaned.
This elastic body is generally a coil spring that can be actuated by tension or compression.

French Patent Application No. 79-19195 of July 25, 1979 describes a wiper element of this type using a compression spring.

In the above-mentioned French Patent Application No. 79-19195, the helical compression spring is provided with a plate piece which is pivotally connected to the drive head and has a recess formed in the center for receiving the helical compression spring. This plate piece is
It must slide relative to the housing and prevent movement of the helical compression spring in a direction perpendicular to this plate. An anti-buckling rod is arranged along the axis of the compression coil spring. Attaching such a compression spring does not pose any major problems, but it is very difficult to attach it automatically. Moreover, because of the loads carried by the plate connected to the compression coil spring, this plate had to be made of metal.

An object of the present invention is to provide a wiper element that can support the force exerted by a compression coil spring and that is easy to install automatically.

According to the present invention, the head is fixed to the output shaft of the drive mechanism, and the arm has a connecting means connected to the wiper mount at one end and is mechanically connected to the head by a housing at the other end. a cylindrical joint provided between the head and the housing; a compression coil spring supported by the head and the housing; and at least one member provided to limit movement of the arm relative to the head. The compression coil spring is arranged in a box-shaped guide member with one end closed by a bottom, and the compression coil spring is arranged substantially parallel to the axis of the guide member. The output shaft of the drive mechanism and the wiper mounting are supported on the bottom of the guide member and on the head near the end of the guide member opposite the bottom, and the output shaft of the drive mechanism and the wiper mounting are connected to each other. In the wiper element, the guide member is rotatably supported on the housing and slidable relative to the head, and the compression coil spring is connected to the head through a piece connected to the head. A wiper element is provided, characterized in that the wiper element is supported on the head.

In a preferred embodiment, the guide member has two mutually parallel sliding grooves extending perpendicularly to the axis of the cylindrical joint of the housing relative to the head and in which each end of the shaft carried by the head moves. It has two parallel side walls forming a . In a first embodiment, each sliding groove is a simple cut-out section cut out from each side wall of the guide member. In another embodiment, these sliding grooves are formed by walls projecting from the outside of the guide. The axis supported by the head is parallel to the axis of the cylindrical joint of the housing relative to this head. The axis of the head is the axis of the tubular guide parallel to each other.
It is supported by side pieces that can move between the two walls. One area of the guide member is cut out so that the side piece can pass between the two walls. The two sliding grooves are approximately parallel to the axis of the guide. The cross section of the guide member is square.

The exterior of this guide member may be provided with two recesses that cooperate with two male pivot elements arranged on the sides of its bottom and supported by the housing. These recesses constitute bearings for each of said male pivot elements. A recess is formed in each side wall of the tubular guide. These two recesses are identical to each other and are formed by removing a portion of the side wall of the guide member adjacent to the bottom along a rounded contour. Each male pivot element carried by the housing is a tongue having a rounded end and projecting into the housing. These tongues are formed by cutouts obtained by punching the housing.

Due to the cylindrical joint between the housing and the drive head, the wiper can be released from the glass by pivoting the wiper about the axis of this joint. However, it is well known that the release movement of the wiper arm relative to the windshield must be limited so that the deterioration area of the wiper element or the vehicle body is prevented from deteriorating both of these simultaneously. In order to limit the release path of the wiper relative to the windshield, the guide element is provided near its bottom with at least one rib projecting outwardly and arranged transversely to the axis of the guide element. This rib has a central plane that is inclined with respect to the axis of the guide member. This rib comes into contact with the housing to form a stop when the wiper is in a raised position at the end of its travel path. The housing has a U-shaped cross section. This U-shaped web portion is then formed with at least one boss that cooperates with the rib to form an end-of-travel stop.

Furthermore, it is well known that it is advantageous to provide a stop piece which limits the release path of the wiper arm relative to the head in the support direction on the windshield. This stop piece is useful when the wiper is not mounted on the vehicle body, since the scraper blade of the wiper must always be elastically supported on the surface to be cleaned by the compression spring of the wiper element according to the invention. The stopper becomes operational. To form this second stop, the guide member is provided with at least one protruding portion on the outer surface of the guide wall opposite the web portion of the housing and located near the opposite guide end of the bottom. The wiper is arranged to form a stop when it reaches the end of its travel path in a direction in which it is supported on the glass surface to be cleaned. The projecting portion is formed by at least one rib, which is arranged longitudinally on the guide member and perpendicularly to the guide wall supporting said rib.

The guide member has two ribs parallel to its two side walls and supported crosswise by a rib projecting near the bottom and forming a first stop. The outer surface of one of the ribs merges with the inner surface of the adjacent side wall. The rib extends perpendicularly to and beyond the bottom of the guide member.

In this way, a box-shaped guide member is provided, a compression coil spring is accommodated therein, the guide member is rotatably supported with respect to the housing, and is slidable with respect to the head, so that the compression coil spring is partially disposed. The wiper element according to the invention, which is supported on the head via a piece, has the advantage that the force of the helical compression spring is supported by the guide member and that automatic installation is facilitated.

The present invention will be explained based on illustrated embodiments.

1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a wiper element according to the invention in the position in which the scraper blade of the wiper is supported on the windshield to be cleaned; FIG.

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal section similar to that of FIG. 1 when the wiper arm is at the end of its path of travel relative to the windshield.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the - line in FIG. 1. FIG. 4 is an exterior elevational view of FIG. 1 with the housing cover in the lowered position.

FIG. 5 is an outside elevational view similar to that of FIG. 4 with the cover of the housing in the raised position.

6 is a plan view of the wiper element of FIG. 5; FIG.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the guide member of the compression spring of the wiper element of FIGS. 1 to 6;

FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken along the line - in FIG. 9, which will be described later.

9 is a bottom view of the wiper element of FIG. 1; FIG.

As shown, the drive shaft (not shown) of the drive head 2 of the wiper element according to the invention has an axis 1. The drive head 2 includes a plate piece 2a provided with a housing 2b for the drive shaft, and a side piece 2c having a plane perpendicular to the plane of the plate piece 2a. The plate piece 2a is provided with a journal bearing 3 on the opposite side of the side piece 2c. Journal bearing 3
cooperates with an axis 4 whose axis is orthogonal to axis 1.

The shaft 4 constitutes the axis of articulation between the drive head 2 of the wiper element according to the invention and the housing 5. A housing 5 connects the drive head 2 to the wiper arm 6. The end of the wiper arm 6 (not shown) is provided with a hinge on which a wiper scraper fitting is assembled. The housing 5 is formed by two mutually parallel wing parts 5a, 5b connected to each other by a web part 5c.

In the direction perpendicular to the plate part 2a of the head 2, the web part 5c of the housing 5 is removed, so that the head 2 can be accessed freely. Therefore, a nut is screwed into the drive shaft to fix the head 2 to the drive shaft. The head 2 is covered by a movable cover 8. This cover 8
is centered around two pivot pieces 7a and 7b,
It is designed to be able to rotate relative to the housing.
These two pivot pieces 7a, 7b are supported by the cover and engage in holes formed in the wing parts 5a and 5b of the housing 5, respectively.

The cover 8 covers the end of the housing at which the drive head 2 is located, ie the end opposite the wiper arm 6. In other words, the cover 8 is
It is formed by two mutually parallel wing sections 8a, 8b connected to each other by a web section and extending from the respective wing sections 5a, 5b on both sides. The web portion of the cover 8 is attached to the cover 8 as shown in FIG.
When the cover 8 is lowered, the drive head 2 is covered, but when the cover 8 is lifted up as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the drive head 2 can be operated. The side piece 2c of the drive head 2 is arranged in the longitudinal center of the wiper element according to the invention. A certain number of holes are formed in the plate piece 2a and the side pieces 2c to reduce the weight of the drive head 2. Side piece 2c
On the opposite side of the plate piece 2a at the end thereof, a rounded protrusion 2d is provided. Projection part 2d
is provided with a shaft 9. The shaft 9 has a protrusion 2d
protrudes on both sides. Both ends of the shaft 9 slide within grooves 10 formed in the side walls 11a, 11b of the prismatic guide member 12.

The guide member 12 has a substantially square cross section,
It is a box with a bottom 13 and an open end. The guide member 12 is made of molded plastic material. Side walls 11a, 11b of guide member 12
are connected to each other by a top surface 14, a bottom surface 15 and a bottom portion 13. The guide member 12 is connected to the housing 5
The upper surface 14 faces the web portion 5c of the housing 5, and each side wall 11a, 11b is located within the lateral wall or wing portion 5a, 5b of the housing 5, respectively.
It is becoming more and more opposite.

The bottom part 13 of the guide member 12 is connected to the wiper arm 6
is located near. Side wall 1 of guide member 12
A groove 10 formed in 1a, 11b is arranged in the vicinity of the side piece 2c and its axis 9. The coil spring 16, which acts by compression, is connected to the guide member 12.
It is located inside. The coil spring 16 is supported by the bottom 13 of the guide member 12 and compressed by the protrusion 2d of the side piece 2c. The side piece 2c and the protrusion 2d are located on the lower surface 1 located at the height of the groove 10.
It is inserted into the guide member 12 through a notch 17 provided in a part of the guide member 5 . Each projecting end of the shaft 9 slides in a respective groove 10 and changes the degree of compression of the coil spring 16 by the relative movement of the side piece 2c with respect to the guide member 12.

One end of the coil spring 16 is supported by the protrusion 2d, and the other end is supported by the bottom 13 of the guide member 12. Guide member 12 by coil spring 16
Since the elastic force applied to the guide member 12 is transmitted to the housing 5, the guide member 12 is reliably supported by the housing 5.

This supporting action is provided by each wing section 5 of the housing 5.
Two tongue-like pieces 18a, 1 punched from a, 5b
8b. Each tongue-like piece 18a, 18b
has a rounded end and each wing portion 5a, 5
It protrudes into the space formed by b.

In the guide member 12, walls 11a, 11b near the bottom 13 correspond to the tongues 18a, 18b.
A semicircular recess 19 is provided in the. These recesses 19 are formed by partially cutting out the walls 11a, 11b. The tongues 18a, 18b are arranged in the recess 19 and are connected to the guide member 12 of the housing 5.
A rotation support part is formed on the.

Two longitudinal ribs 20a, 20b are formed on the upper surface 14 of the guide member 12, parallel to the axis of the guide member 12 and perpendicular to the upper surface 14.

The ribs 20a and 20b are respectively connected to the guide member 12.
adjacent to the side walls 11a, 11b of and supported near the bottom 13 by a lateral rib 21. The ribs 21 are substantially flat and their faces are inclined with respect to the axis of the guide member 12. The ribs 20a, 20b are
Extending beyond the bottom 13 are ribs 22a, 2, respectively.
2b. The ribs 22a and 22b are the ribs 2
1 and 23. The ribs 23 extend beyond the bottom 13 of the top surface 14. rib 20
a, 22a and ribs 20b, 22b have the same shape.

The outer surface of each rib 20a, 22a lies in the same plane as the outer surface of side wall 11a. Similarly, each rib 20b,
The outer surface of 22b lies in the same plane as the outer surface of sidewall 11b. This structure allows the guide member 12 to be formed with a relatively simple mold without using a lateral slider to form the rear recesses of the side walls 11a, 11b. The guide member 12 can be made of plastic material due to the large moment of inertia of the box structure. This box structure makes it possible to compensate for the relatively weak mechanical properties of the plastic material and, in turn, allows the member 12 to support the forces exerted by the coil spring 16.

When the aforementioned wiper element is in the position shown in FIG. 2, that is, when the wiper is at its furthest distance from the windshield to be cleaned, the rib 21 contacts the web portion 5c of the housing 5. The relative movement of the guide member 12 with respect to the housing 5 is rotation about the pivot axis defined by the tongues 18a, 18b and the recess 19. The ends of the ribs 21 contact the web portion 5c of the housing 5 along a circular path. The plane of the web portion 5c lies tangentially in close contact with this path, eliminating the risk of contact occurring even if local deformations of the material occur. To avoid this risk, the web portion 5c is deformed at the contact point of the rib 21 so that the rib 21 is in contact with the housing 5.
An internal boss 24 and an external boss 25 are formed which are connected to each other by a front section 26 which is substantially perpendicular to the path of one end. In this way, the front part 26
cooperate with the ribs 21 to form a stop piece which limits the path of movement of the wiper relative to the windshield.

Between the positions shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the wiper element according to the invention passes through an unstable equilibrium position when the axis of the guide member 12 lies in the plane defined by the axes 4, 9. It is clear that
Therefore, when mounted, a stop piece is formed that limits the rotation of the wiper arm 6 relative to the drive head in a direction opposite to the direction corresponding to the release of the wiper relative to the windshield. Preferably, the element is in a position that facilitates positioning of the drive head 2 on its drive shaft. This second rotation-limiting stop piece connects the upper edge of the ribs 20a, 20b to the web portion 5 facing each rib 20a, 20b.
This can be obtained by supporting it on the plane c. This supporting effect takes place on the side of the open end of the guide element 12, so that the stop piece is not punctate. Each rib 20a, 2
The height of 0b decreases obliquely in the direction of the open end of the guide member 12 so that this second stop piece is activated only before the wiper is attached to the vehicle body or when the windshield is broken. I come to do it. In such a case, this stop provides no resistance to the wiper blade.

This wiper blade has each rib 20a, 20
The diagonal part b is the web part 5c of the housing 5.
move until it touches. During normal operation of the wiper, the position of the wiper arm is at some point between the contact position and the unstable equilibrium position.

It goes without saying that the embodiments described above do not limit the present invention, and any desired changes and modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the claims.