Motor vehicle lock with rotary latch support

Abstract

A motor vehicle lock including a rotary latch and a pawl for latching the rotary latch in a latching position, in particular main latching position, and also a lock plate with a screw-on point for attaching the motor vehicle lock to a vehicle door or vehicle flap, wherein the rotary latch comprises a support which is provided in such a manner that, in the latching position, in particular main latching position, the rotary latch can be supported on the screw-on point via the support in the event of an overload. Opening of a vehicle door or flap can thus be avoided even in the event of a crash.

Claims

1. A motor vehicle lock comprising: a rotary latch; a pawl for latching the rotary latch in a latching position; and a lock plate with a screw-on point configured to receive a fastener for attaching the motor vehicle lock to a vehicle door or vehicle flap, wherein the screw-on point is formed as a sheathing of a screw-on opening, wherein the sheathing protrudes from the lock plate, wherein the rotary latch includes a support that is engageable against the screw-on point, wherein during normal operation, when the rotary latch is in the latching position, the support is spaced from the screw-on point so that the support and the screw-on point are non-contacting, wherein during a collision in which an overload acts on the rotary latch in the latching position, the overload being greater than a force acting on the rotary latch during the normal operation, the rotary latch or an axis of the rotary latch is deformed so that the support of the rotary latch comes into direct contact with the screw-on point, whereby the screw-on point both connects the motor vehicle lock to the vehicle door or vehicle flap and supports the rotary latch during the collision, and wherein the sheathing protruding from the lock plate is funnel-shaped.

2. The motor vehicle lock according to claim 1, wherein the rotary latch forms a supporting protrusion as the support.

3. The motor vehicle lock according to claim 1, wherein the support, when the rotary latch is in the latching position, has a surface that is arranged proximate the screw-on point without an interposed part between the surface and the screw-on point.

4. The motor vehicle lock according to claim 1, wherein the sheathing protruding from the lock plate is collar-shaped, cylindrical or funnel-shaped.

5. The motor vehicle lock according to claim 1, wherein the support supports itself on a screw on the screw-on point.

6. The motor vehicle lock according to claim 1, wherein the support and the screw-on point have complementary contours.

7. The motor vehicle lock according to claim 1, wherein the support is arranged on a load arm of the rotary latch.

8. The motor vehicle lock according to claim 1, wherein the support extends radially to a rotary latch axis.

9. The motor vehicle lock according to claim 8, wherein a radial extension of the support corresponds to at least 0.5-fold and a maximum of 2.0-fold of a diameter of the screw-on opening.

10. The motor vehicle lock according to claim 9, wherein the support extends to a radial side in an arch shape in a circumferential direction to the rotary latch axis, with expansion in a circumferential direction of at least 1.0-fold and a maximum of 2.0-fold of the diameter of the screw-on opening or the sheathing.

11. The motor vehicle lock according to claim 1, wherein a thickness of the support is less than a thickness of a main body portion of the rotary latch.

12. The motor vehicle lock according to claim 1, wherein the screw-on point is located on a side of a rotary latch that faces an inlet of an inlet slot of the lock plate.

13. The motor vehicle lock according to claim 1, wherein a pivot bearing or the axis of the rotary latch is mounted by a rivet connection with the lock plate.

14. The motor vehicle lock according to claim 1, wherein the lock plate or a lock case with the lock plate are made from a sheet metal.

15. The motor vehicle lock according to claim 1, wherein the sheathing is formed as part of the lock plate, the sheathing being formed of a material that forms the lock plate.

16. The motor vehicle lock according to claim 1, wherein the support is bonded to a main body of the rotary latch.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

(1) Exemplary embodiments of the invention are explained in further detail hereinafter on the basis of figures. Features of the exemplary embodiment can be individually or jointly combined with the claimed object.

(2) The following are shown:

(3) FIG. 1: Illustration of the inside of a motor vehicle lock in the main latching position

(4) FIG. 2: Lateral view of the supporting protrusion and screw-on point inside the motor vehicle lock in the main latching position

(5) FIG. 3: Diagrammatic illustration of a top view of the lock plate from the inside in the main latching position

(6) FIG. 4: Motor vehicle lock in the opening position

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(7) The motor vehicle lock shown encompasses a metallic lock case, with a lock plate 3 and a lock case wall 12 which was produced by bending one end of the lock plate 3 or was connected as a separate part with the lock plate 3. The locking mechanism with the rotary latch 1 and the pawl 2 is mounted on the lock plate 3.

(8) The rotary latch 1 has a rotary latch axis 11 which is connected in particular like the pawl 2 with a rivet connection with a rivet head 13 with the lock plate 3, whereby the rivet head 13 has a larger diameter than a boring on an external side of the lock plate 3 on the rivet point—covered by the rivet head 13 in FIG. 4—behind which the axis is preferably located in turn, which also has a larger diameter than the boring in principle. A pivot bearing for the rotary latch 1 and/or the pawl 2 is thus executed especially simply. The lock plate 3 is equipped with an inlet slot 10 of the lock plate 3, by means of which a locking bolt 14 (FIG. 3) can reach into the motor vehicle lock in order to be accommodated by the pivotably mounted rotary latch 1 of the locking mechanism and to be held by ratcheting of the pawl 2 with the rotary latch 1.

(9) The rotary latch 1 of the motor vehicle lock usually has a load arm 8 and an arresting arm 9 which together form a fork-shaped inlet slot of the rotary latch 1, in which a locking bolt 14 of a motor vehicle door or flap, for example a hood or a trunk flap, goes during passage of the inlet slot 10 of the lock plate 3 if the motor vehicle door or flap is locked. The locking bolt 14 then rotates the rotary latch 1 from an opening position (FIG. 4) to a locked position (FIGS. 1 to 3). If the rotary latch 1 has reached the locked position, it is ratcheted via the pawl 2 in this position.

(10) The locking bolt 14 can no longer leave the inlet slot of the rotary latch as the way is blocked by the load arm 8. This latching position is called a main latching position.

(11) In one embodiment, the motor vehicle lock has a second latching position, namely the so-called pre-latching position. The purpose of the pre-ratcheting position is to intercept the relevant door or flap if it does not reach the main latching position during closure. In the pre-ratcheting position the rotary latch 1 is consequently not completely locked, however, an opening movement of the rotary latch 1 is already prevented by a pawl 2. Therefore, the area of the rotary latch 1 which accommodates the pawl 2 in this position is called pre-ratchet. Finally, in the main latching position the rotary latch 1 is completely locked. The pre-latching is therefore a transitional state between the open state and the main latching and is provided for safety reasons.

(12) In one embodiment, the motor vehicle lock has a blocking lever (not illustrated) in addition to the pawl to hold the pawl 2 in the main latching position. In the case of a motor vehicle lock so designed, the relative position between the rotary latch 1 and the pawl 2 is not formed in such a way that the force exerted by the rotary latch 1 runs through the pawl rotational axis 15 and consequently enables independent fixing of the rotary latch 1 by means of the pawl 2.

(13) Instead, in particular to provide an especially low-noise lock unit, the pawl 2 is formed or arranged such that the force exerted by the rotary latch 1 causes torque on the pawl 2 which favors release of the rotary latch 1. To this extent, the rotary latch 1 causes an opening moment with regard to the first pawl 2, so that it can easily be moved into the open position as a result of spring pre-tensioning of the rotary latch 1.

(14) In order to guarantee a durable bolted state equally, the blocking lever is provided for which fixes the pawl 2 in the bolting position so that in particular shifting of position in relation to the locking mechanism—for example, by compression of the door seals, the driving operation and such like—cause no opening of the lock unit or no loosening of the contact of the pawl 2 and the rotary latch 1. The “self-opening mechanism” of the locking mechanism is thus blocked. Opening of the lock is thus possible with especially little expenditure of force.

(15) In FIG. 3, the locking bolt 14 is held in a main latching position, i.e. in the closure position of the motor vehicle door or flap, by the load arm 8. In the case of a crash, centrifugal forces act on the locking bolt 14 in the direction of the lock case wall 12 or in the direction of the inlet of the inlet slot 10 of the lock plate 3.

(16) In this direction, a screw-on point 4 is located at a certain distance from the customary radial circumferential contour of the rotary latch 1, so that the rotary latch 1 does not impact against the screw-on point 4 during rotation around the rotary latch axis 11.

(17) Exactly this distance is now, as shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, bridged by the supporting protrusion 5 of the rotary latch 1 at a ratio of at least 80% or 90% of the total distance between the supporting protrusion 5 and the screw-on point in such a way that a gap remains directly between the supporting protrusion 5 and the screw-on point 4. In normal operation, this gap enables unimpeded rotation of the rotary latch 1.

(18) However, in the case of overload, the forces transmitted by means of the locking bolt 14 onto the rotary latch 1 cause a deformation, shifting or tipping of the rotary latch axis 11, the pivot bearing or the rotary latch 1 itself only in such a way that the gap is locked.

(19) Due to this upper limit of the deformation, shifting or tipping unscheduled loosening of the latching between the pawl 2 and the rotary latch 1 or in an embodiment of the blocking lever of the pawl 2 and/or the rotary latch 1 can be prevented. Therefore the locking bolt 14 is always fixed in the main latching position safely in the case of overload. Unwanted opening of a door or flap during a crash and wanted opening of a door or flap after the crash to leave the driver's cabin can thus be enabled. The latter demands that the rotary latch 1 remains pivotable, even after an overload. The suspension or mounting or rivet connection of the rotary latch axis 1 or shaft are namely generally not damaged in such a way by means of the aforementioned limitation of the deformation, shifting or tipping such that the rotary latch 1 can no longer be brought from a locked position into an open position.

(20) As shown in FIG. 1, the external contour of the supporting protrusion 5 is adjusted to the contour of the funnel-shaped sheathing 6 of the screw-on point 4 so that a lining which is as flat as possible and thus uniform load distribution can be attained. The section of the external contour of the supporting protrusion 5 oriented orthogonally to the lock plate ensures a reliable stop to the cylindrical part of the sheathing 6 of the screw-on point 4 so that the supporting protrusion 5 does not glide off during supporting on the sheathing 6.

(21) In the installed state of the motor vehicle lock screw ends protrude from the screw-on openings 7 of the screw-on points 4, equipped in particular with a thread inside the motor vehicle lock, i.e. from the lock plate 3 upwards. The supporting protrusion 5 can also additionally support itself on this protruding screw end.