Vehicle headlamp assembly locator

A vehicle headlamp assembly locator is provided for proper positionment of a vehicle headlamp assembly in a vehicle in alignment with the hood of the vehicle. The locator includes an elongated spacer element for determining the horizontal distance between a designated portion of the vehicle headlamp assembly and a forward portion of the vehicle hood. An upright spacer element is provided to position the elongated spacer element in the desired vertical position.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
1. Field of the Invention 
A vehicle headlamp assembly locator is provided for positioning a vehicle 
headlamp assembly both vertically and horizontally with respect to the 
forward portion of the vehicle hood prior to securing the vehicle headlamp 
assembly in place on the vehicle. 
2. Prior Art 
The vehicle headlamp assembly locator of the present invention is provided 
for mounting a vehicle headlamp assembly onto a vehicle body. It is 
necessary that the forward or lens portion of the headlamp assembly be in 
alignment with the forward portion of the vehicle hood so that these 
elements will present a relatively continuous surface appearance. If the 
headlamp assembly is secured too far forwardly or too far rearwardly or 
too high or too low, an objectionable appearance results. 
Conventionally, headlamp assemblies are mounted on a vehicle after the 
vehicle hood has been mounted. Proper positioning of the headlamp assembly 
has been achieved in the manufacturing process by means of a full-sized 
fixture. Such fixtures are used to properly locate the headlamp assemblies 
on the vehicle body. The fixtures are quite expensive. Additionally, the 
tolerance range and the accuracy of said fixtures is frequently not as 
close as desired. Further, such fixtures are bulky and heavy and difficult 
to handle. This latter point results in relatively inefficient use of the 
time of production workers. 
In accordance with the present invention, a vehicle headlamp assembly 
locator is provided for mounting the headlamp assembly and does not 
require the use of a fixture for proper location of the headlamp assembly. 
This substantially reduces manufacturing costs and tends to improve the 
quality of the finished vehicle. The locator is a relatively inexpensive 
item and can be discarded after use or reused if desired. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
A vehicle headlamp assembly locator for positioning a vehicle headlamp 
assembly both vertically and horizontally with respect to the forward 
portion of the vehicle hood prior to securing the vehicle headlamp 
assembly in place on the vehicle is provided. The locator comprises an 
elongated spacer element equal in length to the desired horizontal 
distance between a designated portion of the vehicle headlamp assembly and 
a forward portion of the vehicle hood. Fastening means are provided on the 
elongated spacer element for removably securing the elongated spacer 
element to the designated portion of the vehicle headlamp assembly. 
An upright spacer element is carried on the forward end of the elongated 
spacer element. The upright spacer element has a downwardly extending 
portion for contacting the vehicle headlamp assembly when the elongated 
spacer element is fastened thereto to position the elongated spacer 
element at a desired vertical location with respect to the headlamp 
assembly. The upright spacer element also has an upwardly extending 
portion for contacting, along with the elongated spacer element, the 
forward portion of the vehicle hood to thereby position the vehicle 
headlamp assembly both vertically and horizontally with respect to the 
forward portion of the vehicle hood. The juncture of the upright spacer 
element upwardly extending portion and the elongated spacer element 
defines a surface area for positioning the vehicle headlamp assembly as 
aforesaid. 
The rearward portion of the elongated spacer element is bifurcated and 
defines the fastening means. The bifurcated portion is receivable on the 
edge of a panel forming part of the vehicle headlamp assembly. The 
bifurcated portion defines two spaced apart prongs. At least one of the 
prongs has a catch adjacent the rearward end thereof for engagement with a 
protrusion on the panel to secure and position the locator in place.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
Referring to the figures, it will be noted that a vehicle headlamp assembly 
locator 10 is provided for positioning the vehicle headlamp assembly 12 
both vertically and horizontally longitudinally with respect to the 
forward portion 14 of the vehicle hood 16. 
The vehicle headlamp assembly 12 is of the type currently coming into use 
and referred to as an "aero headlamp". In this construction, the lens 18 
is integral with the assembly casing 20. A sealed beam headlight is not 
used, rather a bulb (not shown) is plugged into the rear of the assembly 
and is sealed at its point of insertion from the atmosphere to provide the 
equivalent of a sealed beam headlamp. The advantage of such a construction 
is that the headlamp may be configured to conform to the contours of the 
vehicle. Bulbs are easily replaced at low cost. The headlamp assembly 
includes an outer adapter casing panel member 22 which is utilized in 
accordance with the present invention to properly mount the headlamp 
assembly. The panel member 22 includes an edge portion 24 which receives 
the locator 10. The edge portion 24 inherently has a specific, designated 
position with respect to the overall structure of the headlamp assembly 12 
and thus provides structure for positioning the headlamp assembly. Other 
similar structure on the headlamp assembly may be employed for this 
purpose as desired. 
The vehicle hood 16 comprises the standard outer panel member 26. Hood 
interior panel structures 28 are used as is conventional. The vehicle hood 
16 is mounted on the vehicle prior to mounting of the vehicle headlamp 
assembly 12. Due to differences in body build dimensions, the headlamp 
assembly 12 cannot be secured in a specific place with reference to its 
mounting structure but must be positioned with respect to the position 
taken by the vehicle hood 16. The mounting structure for the vehicle 
headlamp assembly 12 normally includes slotted openings which permit 
shifting of the headlamp assembly as needed to provide for proper 
alignment with the vehicle hood. The structure for mounting the headlamp 
assembly is not shown inasmuch as this structure is conventional and has 
been in long use in connection with fixturing devices for mounting the 
headlamp assembly. 
The locator 10 comprises an elongated spacer element 30 which is equal in 
length to the desired horizontal distance between a designated portion of 
the vehicle headlamp assembly (in this case, the edge portion 24) and the 
forward portion 14 of the vehicle hood 16. Fastening means are provided on 
the elongated spacer element 30 for removably securing the element 30 to 
the edge portion 24 of the vehicle headlamp assembly 12. As will be noted, 
the rearward portion of the elongated spacer element 30 is bifurcated and 
defines the fastening means. The bifurcated portion defines two spaced 
apart prongs 32, 34. At least one of the prongs 32 has a catch 36 adjacent 
the rearward end 38 thereof. The catch 36 is for engagement with a 
protrusion 40 provided on the edge portion 24. As will appreciated, when 
the catch 36 engages the protrusion 40, the locator 10 is removably 
secured in place and properly positioned with respect to the vehicle 
headlamp assembly. The locator 10 is preferably fabricated of an 
inexpensive plastic material so that it may be discarded or reused as 
desired. The locator 10 is mounted on the edge portion 24 by forcing the 
prongs 32, 34 over the edge portion. In order to achieve proper 
positioning of the locator 10, it should be pulled forwardly until the 
catch 36 engages the protuberance 40. 
An upright spacer element 42 is carried on the forward end of the elongated 
spacer element 30. The upright spacer element 42 has a downwardly 
extending portion 44 for contacting the vehicle headlamp assembly 12 when 
the elongated spacer element 30 is fastened to the panel member 22. The 
downwardly extending portion 44 positions the elongated spacer element 30 
at the desired vertical location with respect to the headlamp assembly 12. 
As will be noted, the lower edge 46 of the downwardly extending portion 44 
contacts the headlamp lens 18. A sealing gasket 50 extends around the 
headlamp assembly and is externally visible. The gasket 50 nestles against 
the inner surface of the portion 44 and assists in positive positionment 
of this element. 
The upright spacer element 42 has an upwardly extending portion 52 for 
contacting, along with the elongated spacer 30, the forward portion 14 of 
the vehicle hood 16 to thereby position the vehicle headlamp assembly 12 
both vertically and horizontally with respect to the forward portion 14 of 
the hood. As will be noted, the area adjacent the juncture of the upright 
spacer element upwardly extending portion 52 and the elongated spacer 
element 30 defines a generally right angle surface, portions of which 
contact the forward portion 14 of the hood for the desired positioning 
function. 
In operation, the locator 10 is first mounted on the vehicle headlamp 
assembly 12. This may be done prior to placing the assembly 12 in position 
beneath the hood 16. The assembly 12 is roughly mounted beneath the hood 
16 with the hood in a raised position as shown in FIG. 4. The hood 16 is 
then lowered to the position illustrated in FIG. 3 with the assembly 12 
being manipulated so that the contact of the forward portion 14 of the 
hood is as shown in FIG. 3 is made. After securement of the headlamp 
assembly 12 in place, the locator 10 is removed and either discarded or 
saved for future use.