WO2013107358A1

WO2013107358A1 - Door stopper and vehicle comprising the same

Info

Publication number: WO2013107358A1
Application number: PCT/CN2013/070589
Authority: WO
Inventors: Dehe Mao; Jianping TANG; Chao Wang; Bin Li; Chengzhi SONG; Libo QU
Original assignee: Shenzhen Byd Auto R&D Company Limited; Byd Company Limited
Priority date: 2012-01-17
Filing date: 2013-01-17
Publication date: 2013-07-25
Also published as: CN103206125A; CN103206125B

Abstract

A door stopper (100) and a vehicle comprising the same are provided. The door stopper (100) comprises: a body mounting bracket (1), a door mounting bracket (2), a position-limiting arm (3) and a position-limiting assembly (4). The position-limiting arm (3) is rotatably connected to the body mounting bracket (1). The position-limiting assembly (4) is mounted on the door mounting bracket (2) and cooperated with the position-limiting arm (3) to retain the door mounting bracket (2) at a door retaining position. The position-limiting assembly (4) includes a gear (41), an elastic member (44), a roller (42) and a rotating arm (43).

Description

DOOR STOPPER AND VEHICLE COMPRISING THE SAME

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to and benefits of Chinese Patent Application No.

201210013788.0, filed with the State Intellectual Property Office of P. . China on January 17, 2012, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD

Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to vehicles, more particularly to a door stopper and a vehicle comprising the same.

BACKGROUND

The door stopper is generally used for retaining the door of the vehicle at a predetermined door retaining position during opening or closing of door, so as to prevent a sudden closing of the vehicle door and to avoid damage to the vehicle door and injury to the passers when the door is opened with an excessive external force. Generally, there are two or three door retaining positions when the door is moved from the closed position to the fully opened position, and the door stopper offers a retaining torque and a opening-closing assisting torque during opening and closing of the door.

Door stoppers may be divided into two types, i.e. the independent type door stoppers and the combined type door stoppers. The independent type door stopper generally employs a structure comprising a position-limiting arm having a position-limiting groove, a sliding assembly cooperating with the position-limiting arm. The sliding assembly may comprise a spring and a ball. The ball is slidable in the position-limiting arm. Under the pressure applied to the ball by the spring, the ball may cooperate with the position-limiting groove to limit the position of a position-limiting arm.

After use for a predetermined period, the position-limiting groove may be worn, so that the retaining force or the opening-closing assisting force may be insufficient, thus causing inaccuracy of position limiting and decreased reliability of the door stopper.

SUMMARY

The present invention seeks to solve at least one of the problems existing in the prior art to at least some extent.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a door stopper may be provided. The door stopper comprises: a body mounting bracket adapted to be mounted onto a body of a vehicle; a door mounting bracket adapted to be mounted onto a door of the vehicle; a position-limiting arm defining a first end pivotably connected to the body mounting bracket and a second end; and a position-limiting assembly mounted on the door mounting bracket and cooperated with the position-limiting arm to retain the door mounting bracket at a door retaining position, the position-limiting assembly includes a gear rotatably mounted on the body mounting bracket and meshed with the position-limiting arm, an elastic member mounted on the door mounting bracket, a roller mounted on the door mounting bracket, the position-limiting arm being sandwiched in between the roller and the gear, a rotating arm defining a first end fixedly connected to a shaft and a second end pivotably connected to the elastic member, wherein the gear is mounted on the shaft and rotated with the shaft synchronously so that the rotating arm is driven by the gear to twist and untwist the elastic member periodically.

According to another embodiment of the present disclosure, a vehicle may be provided. The vehicle comprises the door stopper as described above.

With the door stopper and vehicle according to embodiments of the present disclosure, when the rotating arm is driven by the gear to make one rotation, the elastic force of the elastic element changes from small to big and then from big to small, under the elastic force, the gear tends to rotate along the position-limiting arm to a position where the elastic force of the elastic element is small, thus the position, where the elastic force is smallest, naturally defines a door retaining position. Therefore, the stop of the vehicle door is accurate during opening and closing. Moreover, with the meshing of the gear and the position-limiting arm, the door stopper may be not easy to wear.

Additional aspects and advantages of the embodiments of present disclosure will be given in part in the following descriptions, become apparent in part from the following descriptions, or be learned from the practice of the embodiments of the present disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Fig. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a door stopper according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

Fig. 2 is a schematic view showing cooperation of the gear and the position-limiting arm according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

Fig. 3 is a schematic view showing a door mounting bracket of the door stopper according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

Fig. 4 is schematic view of a door stopper according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, in which the gear is at a first door retaining position;

Fig. 5 is schematic view of a door stopper according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, in which the gear is rotates by 180 degrees from the first door retaining position;

Fig. 6 is schematic view of a door stopper according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, in which the gear is at a second door retaining position; and

Fig. 7 is schematic view of a door stopper according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, in which the gear is at a third door retaining position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Reference will be made in detail to embodiments of the present disclosure, samples of described embodiments are indicated in the drawings. The same or similar elements and the elements having same or similar functions are denoted by like reference numerals throughout the descriptions. The embodiments described herein with reference to drawings are explanatory, illustrative, and used to generally understand the present disclosure. The embodiments shall not be construed to limit the present disclosure.

Unless specified or limited otherwise, the terms "mounted," "connected," "coupled," and "secured" and variations thereof are used broadly, such as rigid attachments, also movable attachments, or integrated attachments; mechanical connections, also refer to a relationship wherein structures are secured or attached to one another either directly or indirectly through intervening structures, or structures having their interiors connected. As to those skilled in the art, specific meaning of the above mentioned terms in the present invention can be understood in accordance with specific conditions.

Embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail in the following descriptions. It is to be understood that the embodiments described herein are merely used to generally understand the present disclosure, but shall not be construed to limit the present disclosure.

A door stopper 100 for a vehicle according to embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to Figs.1-7.

As shown in Figs .1 to 3, the door stopper 100 may comprise: a body mounting bracket 1, a door mounting bracket 2, a position-limiting arm 3 and a position-limiting assembly 4.

The body mounting bracket 1 may be mounted onto a body of a vehicle (not shown). The door mounting bracket 2 may be mounted onto a door (not shown) of the vehicle. The position-limiting arm 3 may define a first end 31 pivotably connected to the body mounting bracket 1 and a second end 32.

The position-limiting assembly 4 may be mounted on the door mounting bracket 2 and cooperated with the position-limiting arm 3 to retain the door mounting bracket 2 at a predetermined door retaining position. The position-limiting assembly 4 may include a gear 41, an elastic member 44, a roller 42 and a rotating arm 43. The gear 41 may be rotatably mounted on the door mounting bracket 2 and meshed with the position-limiting arm 3. The elastic member 44 may be mounted on the door mounting bracket 2. The roller 42 may be mounted on the door mounting bracket 2, and the position-limiting arm 3 is sandwiched in between the roller 42 and the gear 41. In other words, the roller 42 rotatably contacts a side surface of the position-limiting arm 3 and the gear 41 is meshed with another side surface of the position-limiting arm 3 opposite to the side surface with which the roller 42 contacts.

The rotating arm 43 may define a first end 431 fixedly connected to a shaft 45 and a second end 432 pivotably connected to the elastic member 44. The gear 41 is mounted on the shaft 45 and rotated with the shaft 45 synchronously, so that the rotating arm 43 is driven by the gear 41 to twist and untwist the elastic member 44 periodically.

In some embodiments, the gear 41 is fixed on the shaft 45 or formed integrally with the shaft 45, so that the shaft 45 and the gear 41 rotate synchronously.

As shown in Figs. 1 and 3, the door mounting bracket 2 may comprise an upper plate 21, a lower plate 22 and a bolt 23. The bolt 23 may be disposed between the upper and lower plates 21, 22. The roller 42 may be rotatably fitted over the bolt 23.

The position-limiting arm 3 may have a straight or involute shape to improve the universality thereof.

A rack 33 is disposed on a side surface of the position-limiting arm 3 and meshed with the gear 41. The rack 33 may be formed integrally on the position-limiting arm 3. The side surface 34 opposed to the side surface on which the rack 33 is disposed is a smooth surface. The roller 42 contacts the smooth surface 34 of the position-limiting arm 3 so as to move therealong. In this embodiment, the position- limiting arm 3 and the rack 33 are straight.

Without the elastic member 44, the force supplied through meshing of the gear 41 and the position-limiting arm 3 may not be enough to retain the door at a predetermined door retaining position during opening or closing of the door. With the elastic member 44, the engagement force between the gear 41 and the position-limiting arm 3 is increased, so that the force for retaining the door is increased. During opening or closing of the door, the position-limiting arm 3 drives the gear 41 to rotate together with the rotating arm 43, and the elastic member 44 connected with the rotating arm 43 applies a resisting torque or assisting torque to the position-limiting arm 3 periodically, thereby realizing the position limiting of the door during opening or closing of the door.

The elastic member 44 may be configured as an extension spring, a compression spring or a torsion spring. In this embodiment, the elastic member 44 is a torsion spring. The torsion spring may define a first end 441 pivotably connected to the door mounting bracket 2 and a second end 442 pivotably connected to the rotating arm 43. In some embodiments, a sleeve 24 may be disposed between the upper plate 21 and the lower plate 22. The first end 441 of the torsion spring may be pivotably fitted in the sleeve 24 and locked by a washer 25 to prevent the torsion spring escaping from the sleeve 24.

In some embodiments, a stop lug 35 configured to prevent the door mounting bracket 2 from escaping from the position-limiting arm 3, may be formed at the second end 32 of the position-limiting arm 3. More specially, the stop lug 35 is formed on the smooth surface 34 of the position-limiting arm 3.

During opening or closing of the door, the position-limiting arm 3 drives the gear 41 to rotate together with the rotating arm 43. The torsion spring is driven by the rotating arm 43 and thereby applies a resisting torque or an assisting torque to the gear 41 periodically.

In some embodiments, the rotating arm 43 may be configured as an eccentric block. The rotating arm 43 may have a mounting hole 433, in which an end of the shaft 45 is fixedly fitted. A mounting part 4421 is formed at the second end 442 of the torsion spring44, and the eccentric block 43 has a joint column 434 rotatably fitted in the mounting part 4421.

In some embodiments, one rotation of the gear 41 may be corresponding to one door retaining position, that is, the gear 41 is moved from a door retaining position to another door position adjacent thereto when the gear 41 makes one rotation. In some embodiments, the gear 41 may make at least two rotations along the rack 33, that is, there may be at least two door retaining positions. The tooth number of the rack 33 between the adjacent door retaining positions is equal to the tooth number of the gear 41.

Referring to Figs.4, 6 and 7, in this embodiment, there are three door retaining positions: a first door retaining position 331 (Fig. 4), a second door retaining position 332 (Fig. 6) and a third door retaining position 333 (Fig.7). The first door retaining position 331 may be referred as the closed position at which the door is fully closed. The third door retaining position 333 may be referred as the fully opened position at which the door is fully opened. The second door retaining position 332, at which is the door is half opened, is defined between the first door retaining position 331 and the third door retaining position 333.

When assembling, the door mounting bracket 2 is firstly fastened onto a door (not shown) of the vehicle by bolts. The body mounting bracket 1 is mounted onto the body (not shown) of the vehicle by bolts. The first end 31 of the position-limiting arm 3 is pivotably connected to the body.

When the door is fully closed, the gear 41 engaged with the rack 33 of the position-limiting arm 3 is at the first door retaining position 331 (see Fig.4), where the torque generated by the torsion spring is smallest.

The position-limiting arm 3 is moved relative to the door mounting bracket 2 during opening or closing of the door. The gear 41 may rotate together with the rotating arm 43 when an external force is applied to the door. For example, the torsion spring may be untwisted by the driving force of the rotating arm 43 when the gear 41 rotates from 0 degree to 180 degrees. During this, the torsion spring applies a resisting torque to the gear 41. The resisting torque of the torsion spring is increased gradually as the torsion spring is untwisted gradually. When the gear 41 rotates by 180 degrees (see Fig.5), the resisting torque of the torsion spring is biggest.

When the external force urges the gear 41 continue to rotate, the torsion spring may be twisted and apply an assisting torque to the gear 41 until the gear 41 rotates by 360 degrees (see Fig.6). When the gear 41 rotates by 360 degrees, the gear 41 is at the second door retaining position 332 and the door is half opened. When the gear 41 makes one rotation, the resisting torque of the torsion spring changes from small to big and then changes from big to small. The torque of the torsion spring may urge the gear 41 to rotate to a position at which the torque of torsion spring is smaller, so that the position at which the torque of the torsion spring is smallest may be defined as a door retaining position, therefore, the position-limiting of the door is accurate during opening or closing of the door. Moreover, with the engagement of the gear 41 and the position-limiting arm 3, the position-limiting assembly may slide smoothly along the position-limiting arm and is not easy to wear.

When the external force continues to apply to the door, the gear 41 will repeat the operation as described above until the gear 41 makes another rotation and arrives at the third door retaining position 333 (see Fig.7). That is, the door is fully opened. When the gear 41 is at the third door retaining position 333, the stop lug 35 contacts and stops the roller 42 to prevent the door mounting bracket 2 from escaping from the position-limiting arm 3.

The operation of the door stopper 100 during closing is contrary to that during opening as described above, the gear 41 rotates in a reverse direction, thus realizing the position-limiting during closing of the door.

A vehicle will be described below. The vehicle may comprise a door stopper 100 as described above.

With the door stopper 100 and the vehicle according to embodiments of the present disclosure, the gear 41 meshed with the position-limiting arm is mounted on the shaft 45 and rotated with the shaft 45 synchronously, so that the rotating arm 43 driven by the gear 41 twists and untwists the elastic member 44 periodically. The elastic member 44 may apply a resisting torque or an assisting torque to the gear 41 accordingly. The position at which the torque of the elastic member 44 is smallest may be defined as a door retaining position. Therefore, the position-limiting of the door is accurate during opening or closing of the door. Moreover, with the meshing of the gear 41 and the position-limiting arm 3, the position-limiting assembly 4 may slide smoothly along the position-limiting arm 3 and is not easy to wear.

Although explanatory embodiments have been shown and described, it would be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes, alternatives, and modifications may be made in the embodiments without departing from spirit and principles of the disclosure. Such changes, alternatives, and modifications all fall into the scope of the claims and their equivalents.

Claims

WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:

1. A door stopper for a vehicle, comprising

a body mounting bracket adapted to be mounted onto a body of a vehicle;

a door mounting bracket adapted to be mounted onto a door of the vehicle;

a position-limiting arm defining a first end pivotably connected to the body mounting bracket and a second end; and

a position-limiting assembly mounted on the door mounting bracket and cooperated with the position-limiting arm to retain the door mounting bracket at a predetermined door retaining position, the position-limiting assembly including

a gear rotatably mounted on the body mounting bracket and meshed with the position-limiting arm;

an elastic member mounted on the door mounting bracket;

a roller mounted on the door mounting bracket, the position-limiting arm being sandwiched in between the roller and the gear;

a rotating arm defining a first end fixedly connected to a shaft and a second end pivotably connected to the elastic member;

wherein the gear is mounted on the shaft and rotated with the shaft synchronously so that the rotating arm is driven by the gear to twist and untwist the elastic member periodically.

2. The door stopper for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein a rack is disposed on the position-limiting arm and meshed with the gear.

3. The door stopper for a vehicle according to claim 2, wherein the rack is a straight rack.

4. The door stopper for a vehicle according to claim 2, wherein at least two door retaining positions are defined on the position-limiting arm,

wherein the door mounting bracket is moved from one door retaining position to another door retaining position adjacent to the one door retaining position when the gear makes one rotation, a number of the teeth of the rack between adjacent door retaining positions is equal to that of the gear.

5. The door stopper for a vehicle according to any one of claims 1-4, wherein the gear is fixed on the shaft or formed integrally with the shaft.

6. The door stopper for a vehicle according to any one of claims 1-5, wherein the door mounting bracket comprises

an upper plate,

a lower plate, and

a bolt disposed between the upper and lower plates, the roller being rotatably fitted over the bolt.

7. The door stopper for a vehicle according to any one of claims 1-6, wherein the elastic member is a torsion spring.

8. The door stopper for a vehicle according to claim 7, wherein the torsion spring defines a first end pivotably connected to the door mounting bracket and a second end pivotably connected to the rotating arm.

9. The door stopper for a vehicle according to any one of claims 1-8, wherein a stop lug configured to prevent the door mounting bracket from escaping from the position-limiting arm, is disposed at the second end of the position-limiting arm.

10. The door stopper for a vehicle according to claim 7, wherein the rotating arm is configured as an eccentric block.

11. The door stopper for a vehicle according to claim 10, wherein the eccentric block has a mounting hole in which an end of the shaft is fixedly fitted.

12. The door stopper for a vehicle according to claim 10 or 11, wherein a mounting part is formed at the second end of the torsion spring, and the eccentric block has a joint column rotatably fitted in the mounting part.

13. A vehicle comprising a door stopper for a vehicle according to any one of claimsl-12.