Abstract
A system including a component which can be mounted movably in or on an automobile and an actuating apparatus for the component, the actuating apparatus having a push-push mechanism which interacts with the component, it being possible for the component to be moved out of a closed position by manual exertion of a pressing force counter to the prestress of a spring into an unlocked position in order to unlock the push-push mechanism, out of which unlocked position the component is moved into a partially open position driven by the prestress of the spring, out of which partially open position the component can be moved into an open position by manual exertion of a pulling force.
Claims
1. A system comprising a component mounted movably in or on an automobile and an actuating apparatus for the component, the actuating apparatus having a push-push mechanism which interacts with the component, the component movable out of a closed position by manual exertion of a pressing force counter to the prestress of a spring into an unlocked position in order to unlock the push- push mechanism, out of which unlocked position the component is moved into a partially open position driven by the prestress of the spring, out of which partially open position the component is moved into an open position by manual exertion of a pulling force, wherein tensioning means are provided which prestress the spring during the movement of the component out of the partially open position into the open position, with the result that the component is subsequently moved out of the open position into the closed position without a counterforce by the spring and the tensioning means includes a pivotably mounted actuator connected to the component via the spring.
2. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the prestress of the spring or of another spring element moves the component out of the open position back into the closed position.
3. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the component is a door handle which is mounted pivotably on the automobile, and the door handle terminates flushly with inner skin or outer skin of the automobile.
4. The system as claimed in claim 3, wherein the door handle and actuator are pivotably mounted to pivot about pivot axes which are different and parallel to one another, and a tappet of the push-push mechanism being arranged on the actuator, on the outer side of which tappet a control cam is formed, the tappet being surrounded, at least in the closed position and the unlocked position of the door handle, by a control ring of the push-push mechanism, which control ring is mounted rotatably and axially fixedly in a housing of the push-push mechanism, the control ring having, on its inner side, at least one control projection which is guided in the control cam of the tappet.
5. The system as claimed in claim 4, wherein the spring is a leg spring or helical spring which is held fixedly with one end on the door handle and fixedly with its other end on the actuator.
6. The system as claimed in claim 4, wherein the door handle and the actuator in each case have an actuating section, the actuating sections movable to be brought into contact with one another, as a result of which the door handle, during its movement out of the closed position into the unlocked position, likewise moves the actuator between a closed position and an unlocked position, and as a result of which the actuator, during its movement out of the unlocked position into a partially open position, likewise moves the door handle between the unlocked position and the partially open position.
7. The system as claimed in claim 4, wherein, in the partially open position, the actuator assumes a pivoting position such that the tappet is situated outside the housing of the push-push mechanism.
8. The system as claimed in claim 7, wherein the tappet of the actuator, during a movement of the door handle out of the partially open position into the open position, enters into the housing of the push-push mechanism again, the at least one control projection of the control ring being received in a locking recess of the control cam, with the result that the tappet is locked in the housing in a locked position.
9. The system as claimed in claim 4, wherein a first cam is formed on the actuator and a second cam is formed on the door handle, the cams interacting in such a way that the actuator, during a movement of the door handle out of the partially open position into the open position, is pivoted in such a way that the spring is prestressed.
10. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein damping means are provided which damp a movement of the component directly or indirectly.
Description
(1) Exemplary embodiments of the invention will be described in more detail below with reference to figures, in which schematically:
(2) FIG. 1 shows a system according to the invention in a partially sectioned side view in a first operating state,
(3) FIG. 2 shows the system from FIG. 1 in a second operating state,
(4) FIG. 3 shows the system from FIG. 1 in a third operating state,
(5) FIG. 4 shows the system from FIG. 1 in a fourth operating state,
(6) FIG. 5 shows a system according to the invention according to a further exemplary embodiment in a sectional view in a first operating state,
(7) FIG. 6 shows the system from FIG. 5 in a second operating state,
(8) FIG. 7 shows the system from FIG. 5 in a third operating state, and
(9) FIG. 8 shows the system from FIG. 5 in a fourth operating state.
(10) Unless stated otherwise, identical reference numbers in the figures designate identical objects. FIGS. 1 to 4 are intended to illustrate a first exemplary embodiment of a system according to the invention. Reference number 10 represents a housing. A door handle 12, in the present case an outer door handle 12 which terminates flushly with the outer skin of an automobile body, is mounted pivotably about a pivot axis 14. An actuator 16 is mounted pivotably about a pivot axis 18 which runs parallel to and at a distance from the pivot axis 14. The door handle 12 and the actuator 16 are connected to one another via a leg spring 20 which is attached fixedly with one end 22 to the door handle 12 and is attached fixedly with its other end 24 to the actuator 16. Moreover, the leg spring 20 is tensioned freely between its ends 22, 24. Reference number 26 shows a lock actuator which, independently of the actuator 16, can likewise be pivoted about the pivot axis 18. For example, the lock actuator 26 is connected via a projection 28 to a Bowden cable which unlocks and locks a door lock of the door provided with the door handle, as is known per se. The actuator 16 has a cam 30. The door handle 12 has a first cam 32 and a second cam 34. Moreover, the door handle 12 has an actuating lever 36 whose free end forms an actuating section 38. It interacts with an opposite actuating section 40 of the actuator 16. On the side opposite the actuating section 40, a tappet 42 of a push-push mechanism is formed on the actuator 16. Moreover, the push-push mechanism comprises a housing 44 which is arranged fixedly on the housing 10 and a control ring 46 which is mounted axially fixedly and rotatably in the housing 44. The control ring 46 has one or more control projections on its inner side which is or are in engagement with a control cam formed on the outer side of the tappet 42. A push-push function is implemented in this way. Here, the control cam can be formed such as explained above in principle. Moreover, reference number 48 shows a damper having a damper gearwheel 50 mounted rotatably in a damping liquid, for example silicone. The damper gearwheel 50 meshes with a toothing 52 formed on the door handle 12.
(11) FIG. 1 shows the closed position of the door handle 12 in which it terminates flushly with the outer skin of the body of the automobile. The spring 20 is prestressed and tends to pivot the actuator 16 in the counterclockwise direction about the pivot axis 18. This is prevented in FIG. 1 by virtue of the fact that the tappet 42 is locked on the control ring 46, with the result that the tappet 42 cannot exit from the housing 44 of the push-push mechanism. The spring 20 stresses the door handle 12 in this position additionally with its actuating section 38 against the actuating section 40 of the actuator 16, with the result that the door handle 12 is held in the closed position.
(12) To unlock the push-push mechanism, the door handle 12 is pressed inwardly out of the position shown in FIG. 1, that is to say downward in FIG. 1 into an unlocked position shown in FIG. 2. In this unlocked position, the tappet 42 enters further into the housing 44 of the push-push mechanism with the rotation of the control ring 46 guided in the control cam of the tappet 42. Here, the tappet 42 is unlocked from the control ring 46. It can additionally be seen in FIG. 2 that the first cam 32 of the door handle 12 forms a stop for the cam 30 of the actuator 16. The lever ratios on the door handle 12 and the actuator 16 in respect of the respective attachment to the ends 22, 24 of the spring 20 and in respect of the stop formed by the cams 30, 32 are selected in such a way that the spring 20 is prestressed during the pressing of the door handle 12 into its unlocked position, or the pressing-in of the door handle 12 takes place counter to the prestress of the spring 20.
(13) If the door handle 12 is released from the position shown in FIG. 2, the spring 20 pivots the actuator 16 in the counterclockwise direction about the pivot axis 18, the actuator 16, via the interaction of the actuating sections 38, 40, pivoting up the door handle 12 about the pivot axis 14 into the partially open position shown in FIG. 3. In particular, the force exerted by the prestress of the spring 20 in the region of the actuating sections 38, 40 is greater than the force exerted by the spring 20 on the door handle 12 via its end 22. The pivoting movement of the actuator 16, induced by the spring 20, is limited by the abutment of the cam 30 against the second cam 34 of the door handle 12. The damper 48 can be embodied in particular as a free-running damper, with the result that it displays no damping effect on the door handle 12 during this movement. It can be seen that the tappet 42 has exited from the housing 44 of the push-push mechanism.
(14) In the partially open position shown in FIG. 3, the door handle 12 can be gripped manually and be pivoted up further into the open position shown in FIG. 4. As explained, in the position shown in FIG. 3, the second cam 34 of the door handle 12 forms a stop for the cam 30 of the actuator 16. This stop leads, during the manual movement of the door handle 12 into the open position shown in FIG. 4, to the actuator 16 being pivoted back in the clockwise direction about the pivot axis 18, to the tappet 42 again entering into the housing 44 of the push-push mechanism and, in particular, to the tappet 42 being locked on the control ring 46 again. As can be seen in FIG. 4, the spring 20 is also prestressed again during this movement. In parallel to this, the lock actuator 26 is pivoted about the pivot axis 18 and the door lock is thus unlocked, for example via a Bowden cable connected to the lock actuator 26. Here, the lock actuator 26 pivots in the clockwise direction about the pivot axis 18.
(15) If the door handle 12 is released from the position shown in FIG. 4, the prestress of the spring 20 in this case ensures, via the connection of its end 22 to the door handle 12, that the door handle 12 is pivoted in the clockwise direction about the pivot axis 14 back into the closed position shown in FIG. 1. Here, the spring 20 can reduce its prestress only via a pivoting of the door handle 12, since the actuator 16 is locked via its tappet 42 in the housing 44 of the push-push mechanism and is thus blocked against pivoting about the pivot axis 18 apart from a small return stroke in the housing 44. Thus, in this case, not only does the spring 20 exert no counterforce, but the door handle moves actively back into the closed position. The lock actuator 26 likewise moves back into the starting position shown in FIG. 1, induced by a lock force, for example the tensioning of a Bowden cable.
(16) FIGS. 5 to 8 are intended to illustrate a further exemplary embodiment of a system according to the invention, only the actuating apparatus for the component, but not the component itself, being shown in FIGS. 5 to 8 for reasons of clarity. The component can for example again be a door handle of an automobile. However, it can also be another component.
(17) The actuating apparatus has a, for example, hollow cylindrical housing 60 which in the present case is composed of two sections. The housing 60 has a closed bottom 62. At its opposite end, the housing 60 has an opening 64 through which a tappet 66 projects in each axial position in the housing 60. The tappet 66 has an actuating end 68 which, at least in a closed position, an unlocked position and a partially open position of the component, interacts with the component, for example bears on a corresponding surface of the component, in a manner which is not shown in more detail. The tappet 66 has an axial through-bore through which a, for example, cylindrical tensioning rod 70 is guided in such a way that the tappet 66 and tensioning rod 70 are movable relative to one another in the axial direction. The tensioning rod 70 likewise has an actuating end 72 which, at least during a movement of the component between a partially open position and an open position, interacts therewith, in particular is connected to the component in such a way that it is driven by a movement of the component out of the partially open position into the open position. The tensioning rod 70 is part of an inner housing 74 mounted axially displaceably in the housing 60. In particular, the tensioning rod 70 is connected integrally to a closed bottom 76 of the inner housing 74. In the region of its end connected to the bottom 76 of the inner housing 74, the tensioning rod 70 is surrounded by a cylindrical helical spring 78 which is supported, on the one hand, on the bottom 76 of the inner housing 74 and, on the other hand, on an annular stop face 80 of the tappet 66. A control ring 84 is mounted axially fixedly and rotatably in an annular recess 82 of the inner housing 74. The control ring 84 has, on its inner side, at least one control projection 86 which is guided in a control cam 88 formed on the outer face of the tappet 66. Together with the control ring 84 and in particular at least one control projection 86, the control cam 88 forms a push-push mechanism. For this purpose, the control cam can be designed as explained above in principle.
(18) FIG. 5 shows the starting position of the actuating apparatus in which the component, not shown, is in its closed position. The spring 78 is prestressed and tends to press the tappet 66 axially further out of the housing 60. This is prevented in that, as can be seen in FIG. 5, the control projection 86 of the control ring 84 is caught in a locking recess 90 of the control cam 88 and is thus locked. If the component is now pressed in manually such that via the interaction with the actuating end 68, it presses the tappet 66 into the housing 60 counter to the prestress of the spring 78, the control projection 86 comes out of the locking recess 90 and the tappet 66 is unlocked from the control ring 86. The component is now in an unlocked position. If the component is then released, it is moved into a partially open position through the interaction with the actuating end 68 of the tappet 66 and driven by the spring 78. As can be seen from a comparison of FIGS. 6 and 7, the tappet 66 is here pressed by the spring 78 out of the housing 60 into its position in which it is extended furthest axially. For this purpose, the control projection 86 of the control ring 84 is guided in an axially parallel groove of the control cam 88. In the position shown in FIG. 7, the component is in a partially open position out of which it can then be moved manually into an open position. In particular, for this purpose, the component is pulled further away from the tappet 66. Whereas in the movement state shown in FIGS. 5 to 7 the inner housing 74 remains with the tensioning rod 70 in an unchanged position on the bottom 62 of the housing 60, during a movement of the component out of the partially open position into the open position the tensioning rod 70 is pulled along via its actuating end 72, as a result of which the inner housing 74 is also pulled in the axial direction in the housing 60 in the direction of the housing opening 64 into the position shown in FIG. 8.
(19) In FIG. 8, the component in its completely open position. It can be seen that the movement of the tensioning rod 70 with the inner housing 74 here takes place relative to the tappet 66, which is here not pulled axially further out of the housing 60. As explained, the tappet 66 in the state shown in FIG. 7 is already in its position in which it is extended furthest axially. This position can be defined by suitable stops, not shown in the figures, between the tappet 66 and the housing 60. The relative movement between the inner housing 74 with the tensioning rod 70 and the tappet 66 results in a compression and thus prestressing of the spring 78, as can be seen in FIG. 8. The control ring 84 is displaced, together with the inner housing 74, in the axial direction in the housing 60, the control projection 86 again being guided in the axial groove of the control cam 88 until the control projection 86 is again locked in the locking recess 90, as can be seen in FIG. 8. The push-push mechanism is thus locked again when the spring 78 is prestressed.
(20) The tensioning rod 70 with the inner housing 74 and the tappet 66 coupled thereto via the control ring 84 can now again be pushed back out of the position shown in FIG. 8 into the starting position shown in FIG. 5 in the housing 60 without the spring 78 exerting a counterforce. The return movement in the housing 60 can take place manually or else driven by an additional spring element, for example an additional spring, which is not shown. Since the spring 78 does not exert a counterforce here, this spring can in principle be more weakly dimensioned than the spring 78.
