RETAINING ELEMENT FOR A VEHICLE SIDE WINDOW THAT CAN BE RAISED AND LOWERED

Abstract

A retaining element for a side window of a vehicle, includes at least one contact section for securing to a first surface of the side window, wherein the contact section has a contact surface that is provided for being connected to the first surface via an adhesive, a securing section connected to the contact section and for securing to the vehicle, and a filling opening for injecting the adhesive into the intermediate space between the contact section and the first surface of the side window, wherein the contact surface has a plurality of channels that are directed toward the filling opening and are distributed over the contact surface in a fan-like manner.

Claims

1. A retaining element for a side window of a vehicle, comprising at least one contact section for securing to a first surface of the side window, wherein the contact section has a contact surface that is provided for being connected to the first surface via an adhesive, a securing section connected to the contact section and for securing to the vehicle, and a filling opening for injecting the adhesive into the intermediate space between the contact section and the first surface of the side window, wherein the contact surface has a plurality of channels that are directed toward the filling opening and are distributed over the contact surface in a fan-like manner.

2. The retaining element according to claim 1, wherein the channels are suitable for influencing the flow direction of the adhesive.

3. The retaining element according to claim 2, wherein the channels are arranged such that the adhesive is distributed more evenly over the contact surface than without the channels.

4. The retaining element according to claim 1, wherein a channel is associated with at least one corner of the contact surface, toward which it is directed.

5. The retaining element according to claim 1, wherein the channels have a depth of 0.5 mm to 1.5 mm and a width of 1 mm to 2 mm.

6. The retaining element according to claim 1, which has exactly one contact section, which is connected to the securing section via a step section.

7. The retaining element according to claim 1, which has a first contact section for securing to the first surface of the side window and a second contact section for securing to an opposite second surface of the side window, wherein the first contact section is connected to the securing section via a first step section and the second contact section is connected to the securing section via a second step section.

8. A side window for a vehicle, having a first surface, a second surface opposite thereto, and a lower edge, and having at least one retaining element according to claim 1 attached in the region of the lower edge, wherein the at least one contact section is secured to the first surface by means of an adhesive.

9. The side window according to claim 8, wherein the thickness of the adhesive is from 0.5 mm to 5 mm.

10. The side window according to claim 8, wherein the adhesive has a modulus of elasticity of at least 20 MPa.

11. A method for producing a side window having a retaining element for a vehicle, comprising: providing a retaining element according to claim 1 and a side window having a first surface, a second surface opposite thereto, and a lower edge, arranging the retaining element in the desired position relative to the side window, wherein the contact surface is directed toward the first surface, and injecting an adhesive through the filling opening into the intermediate space between the contact surface and the first surface.

12. The method according to claim 11, which is carried out without sealing the intermediate space between the contact surface and the first surface.

13. The method according to claim 11, wherein at least 95% of the contact surface is wetted with adhesive before the adhesive flows beyond the contact surface.

14. A method comprising utilizing a side window according to claim 8 as an openable side window of a motor vehicle.

15. The side window according to claim 9, wherein the thickness of the adhesive is from 1 mm to 4 mm.

16. The side window according to claim 15, wherein the thickness of the adhesive is from 2 mm to 4 mm.

17. The side window according to claim 10, wherein the adhesive has a modulus of elasticity of at least 150 MPa.

18. The side window according to claim 17, wherein the adhesive has a modulus of elasticity from 400 MPa to 600 MPa.

19. The method according to claim 14, wherein the motor vehicle is a passenger car.

Description

[0046] In the following, the invention is explained in detail with reference to drawings and exemplary embodiments. The drawings are a schematic representation and not to scale. The drawings in no way restrict the invention.

[0047] They depict:

[0048] FIG. 1 a plan view of a side window with two generic retaining elements,

[0049] FIG. 2 a cross-section through two side windows with different embodiments of the retaining element 1,

[0050] FIG. 3 a plan view of the surface of an embodiment of the retaining element 1 facing the side window I,

[0051] FIG. 4 a section A-A through the retaining element 1 of FIG. 3,

[0052] FIG. 5 a cross-section through another embodiment of the side window with retaining element 1, and

[0053] FIG. 6 a flow chart of an embodiment of the method according to the invention.

[0054] FIG. 1 depicts a plan view of a generic side window I, which is intended as an openable side window for the front side window of a passenger car. Two retaining elements 1, which are intended for connecting to a raising mechanism within the vehicle door, are attached in the region of the lower edge U of the side window. For this, the retaining elements 1 have passages 8 to which the raising mechanism can be secured.

[0055] FIG. 2 depicts a cross-section through two different embodiments of a side window I with the retaining element 1. FIG. 2a shows a retaining element 1 attached on one side. The retaining element 1 is composed of a single contact section 2, which is secured to the first surface Ia of the side window I. For this purpose, the contact surface 2a of the contact section 2 facing the side window of the side window I is bonded to the surface Ia. A securing section 3 with the passage 8 is connected to the contact section 2 via a step section 5. The retaining element 1 covers a region of the lower edge U and a region of the surface Ia adjacent thereto. The securing section 3 protrudes beyond the lower edge U of the side window I, is offset laterally relative to the contact section 2 such that it is arranged roughly in the plane of the side window I, and is directed toward its lower edge U. FIG. 2b shows a retaining element 1 attached on both sides with an essentially Y-shaped cross-section. The retaining element 1 comprises two contact sections 2.1, 2.2 opposite one another, which are secured to the two surfaces Ia, Ib in the region of the lower edge U of the side window I. For this, the contact surface 2.1a of the contact section 2.1 facing the side window I is glued to the surface Ia, and the contact surface 2.2a of the contact section 2.2 facing the side window I is glued to the surface Ib. The retaining element 1 thus surrounds a region of the lower edge U and an adjacent region of the surfaces Ia, Ib. Adjoining the contact sections 2.1, 2.2 via, in each case, an associated step section 5.1, 5.2 is a securing section 3 that is positioned below the side window I and is directed toward the lower edge U. The securing section 3 has here, as well, a passage 8 for connecting to the raising mechanism.

[0056] The retaining elements 1 are manufactured in one piece from glass-fiber-reinforced polyamide 66. The contact section 2, 2.1, 2.2, the securing sections 3, and the step sections 5, 5.1, 5.2 have a thickness D (material thickness) of 3 mm. The width B of the retaining elements 1 is, for example, 80 mm. The length L of the contact sections 2, 2.1, 2.2 is, for example, 30 mm. The length L of the securing sections 3 is, for example, 50 mm.

[0057] For the sake of simplicity, the adhesive layers between the contact surfaces 2a, 2.1a, 2.2a and the side window I are not shown. The adhesive is, for example, DOW Betaforce 9050S with a modulus of elasticity of 400 MPa, elongation at break of 80%, tensile strength of 15 MPa, and pot life of 6 min. The thickness of the adhesive layers is, for example, 3 mm.

[0058] The side window I is, for example, implemented as single-pane safety glass (ESG) made of 3.85-mm-thick soda lime glass. For the sake of simplicity, the side window I is depicted flat in the figure; however, in reality, it has a curvature as is usual for passenger car windows.

[0059] FIG. 3 depicts a plan view of the side facing the side window I of a retaining element 1 to be attached on one side according to FIG. 2a with the securing section 3 together with the passage 8, the step section 5, and the contact section 2. In the plan view, the contact surface 2a of the contact section 2, which is connected to the side window I, can be seen. The contact surface has, near the edge facing the step section 5, a filling opening 6 through which an adhesive is injected into the intermediate space between the side window I and the contact section 2 during assembly of the retaining element 1. A plurality of channels 4 are introduced into the contact surface 2a. The channels 4 are provided to distribute the adhesive injected through the filling opening 6 as homogeneously as possible over the contact surface 2a. Thus, good wetting of the contact surface 2a and the region of the surface la opposite it are achieved without the risk of excess adhesive escaping from the intermediate space, which had to be prevented in prior art retaining elements 1 by a sealing device or remedied by post-processing. The channels 4 are straight and are directed, on the one hand, toward the filling opening 6 and, on the other, toward the side edge of the contact surface 2a. The channels 4 are distributed in a fan-like manner around the filling opening and run radially between the filling opening 6 and the side edge of the contact surface 2a to distribute the adhesive.

[0060] The contact surfaces 2.1a, 2.2a of the retaining elements 1 of FIG. 2b are likewise implemented with the channels 4 according to the invention around filling openings 6.

[0061] In the figure, arrows indicate the dimensions of the width B and the length L in the context of the invention.

[0062] FIG. 4 depicts a section along A-A through the retaining element 1 of FIG. 3. In addition, an arrow indicates the dimension of the thickness D (material thickness) in the context of the invention. The channels 4 that are introduced into the contact surface 2a can be seen. They have, for example, a width of 1.5 mm and a depth of 1 mm.

[0063] FIG. 5 depicts a cross-section through a side window I according to the invention with another embodiment of the retaining element 1. The retaining element is to be attached on one side with a single contact section 2 and a securing section 3 connected thereto via a step section 5. Here, the filling opening 6 for injecting the adhesive 9 is arranged in the step section 5. In this case, it can be advantageous for the distribution of the adhesive 9 for the channels 4 to continue beyond the contact section 2 into the step section 5.

[0064] FIG. 6 depicts a flow chart of an exemplary embodiment of the method according to the invention for producing a side window according to the invention with a retaining element. Since the uniform distribution of the adhesive 9 is ensured by the channels 4, the sealing of the intermediate space between the retaining element 1 and the side window I can be dispensed with at the time of injection of the adhesive 9.

LIST OF REFERENCE CHARACTERS

[0065] (1) retaining element for a side window of the vehicle [0066] (2) contact section of the retaining element 1 [0067] (2.1) first contact section of the retaining element 1 [0068] (2.2) second contact section of the retaining element 1 [0069] (2a) contact surface of the contact section 2 [0070] (2.1a) contact surface of the contact section 2.1 [0071] (2.2a) contact surface of the contact section 2.2 [0072] (3) securing section of the retaining element 1 [0073] (4) channel [0074] (5) step section of the retaining element 1 [0075] (5.1) first step section of the retaining element 1 [0076] (5.2) second step section of the retaining element 1 [0077] (6) filling opening [0078] (8) passage through the securing section 3 [0079] (9) adhesive [0080] I side window of a vehicle [0081] Ia first surface of the side window I [0082] Ib second surface of the side window I [0083] (O) upper edge of the side window I [0084] (U) lower edge of the side window I [0085] (V) front edge of the side window I [0086] (H) rear edge of the side window I [0087] (L) length/height [0088] (B) width [0089] (D) thickness/material thickness [0090] A-A section line