Closure device

A closure device for opening and closing an opening by moving a closure member substantially vertically has a motor for driving the closure member. The motor is secured to a lower portion of the closure member and within substantially the same plane as the plane of movement of the closure member. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent an eccentric load from being applied to the closure member.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
1. Field of the Invention 
The present invention relates to a closure device, and more particularly to 
a closure device suitably used for opening and closing a window, sun-roof 
panel, etc., of an automobile or the like. 
2. Statement of the Related Art 
A power window regulator, which has become popular in recent years, for use 
on, for example, passenger cars, will be described as an example of the 
conventional closure device of this type. 
As a mechanism for raising and lowering window glass, the X-arm system, the 
tape system, the wire system, etc. are adopted for the conventional power 
windows, and in the respective cases a drive motor is fixed to a door 
body. 
In the X-arm system, the X-arm is moved vertically by the drive motor. In 
the case of the tape system and the wire system, on the other hand, the 
window glass is opened or closed by taking up or paying out the tape or 
wire by the drive motor. 
With the above-described mechanisms, the following drawbacks have been 
encountered: 
(1) Since the mechanism takes up practically the entire inner space of the 
door, it is difficult to mount door lock parts and others in the limited 
space of the door interior, and it is difficult to make the door thin. In 
particular, the number of parts accommodated inside the door has increased 
in recent years, so that if this mechanism is adopted, restrictions are 
inevitably imposed on special functions of door portions. 
(2) In the X-arm system, numerous regulator parts are used, and since most 
of these parts are made of metal in view of the strength, it has been 
difficult to adopt lightweight drive portions. In addition, since the 
driving efficiency is poor, it has been necessary to use a motor having a 
large torque. 
(3) In the case of the tape system and the wire system, it is possible to 
make the parts lightweight as compared with the aforementioned X-arm 
system, but since the tape or wire is bent, durability has been 
unsatisfactory. In addition, since the driving efficiency is poor as in 
the case of the X-arm system, a large-torque motor has been similarly 
required. 
Accordingly, to solve such problems, improvements have been proposed to 
permit a substantial reduction in the number of parts used by causing the 
drive motor to move together with the window glass, thereby making it 
possible to make effective use of the inner space of the door. 
These proposals are disclosed in, for instance, Japanese Utility Model 
Laid-Open No. 68284/1985 and Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 286485/1986, 
but the arrangement of Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 68284/1985 
will be described herein by way of example. 
As shown in FIG. 8, the power window disclosed in this publication 
comprises a glass holder 12 fixed to the lower end of a window glass 10, a 
reversible motor 14 fixed to the glass holder 12, a pinion gear 18 
rotatively driven by the motor 14 via a worm gear 16, and a rack 20 fixed 
vertically to an inner panel of the door and meshing with the pinion gear 
18. 
In accordance with this power window, since a system is adopted in which 
the window is driven by the rack 20 and the pinion gear 18, the number of 
parts used is small. In addition, since only the rack 20 is fixed 
vertically to the inner panel of the door, it is possible to make 
effective use of the inner space of the door. 
However, with the above-described power window employing the rack-and 
pinion system, although it is possible to overcome the drawbacks 
experienced with the conventionally available X-arm system and the like, 
new problems have emerged, as will be described below. 
In other words, in the system shown in FIG. 8, as shown in FIG. 9 in which 
the mechanism shown in FIG. 8 is viewed in the direction of arrow A in the 
drawing, distance L2 between the central line of a window glass 10, i.e., 
an operating point, and a central line of the rack and pinion assembly 
which generates a driving force for vertically driving the window glass 10 
becomes large as it is restricted by the thickness of the glass holder 12, 
motor 14, and pinion gear 18 that are sequentially superposed on each 
other. Accordingly, in addition to the vertical driving force, angular 
moment proportional to the aforementioned distance L2 acts on the window 
glass 10, i.e., a closure member, and the driving efficiency has therefore 
been appreciably aggravated. 
In consequence, at the time of opening or closing the window glass 10, a 
frictional force attributable to the aforementioned angular moment 
constantly acts on the window glass 10, so that there has been a problem 
in that, in order to obtain a positive opening and closing operation, a 
torque which is more than is necessary is required of the motor 14. 
Furthermore, since the motor 14 is disposed at a position offset from the 
path of travel of the closure member, the motor 14 which has a substantial 
weight exerts an eccentric load on the closure member, so that there has 
been another problem in that the aforementioned frictional force is 
disadvantageously increased. 
Moreover, as described above, since the arrangement is such that the glass 
holder 12 motor 14, and pinion gear 18 are superposed sequentially on each 
other, there has been a further problem in that these members occupy the 
inner space of the door in the direction of the thickness of the door. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a closure 
device which is based on a rack-and-pinion system and is yet capable of 
reducing the space occupied by the closure mechanism to a greater degree 
than a conventional closure device based on the rack-and-pinion system and 
of opening and closing a closure member with a smaller motor torque while 
reducing the number of parts used and securing the effective use of the 
surrounding space, thereby overcoming the above-described drawbacks of the 
conventional art. 
To this end, in accordance with the present invention, there is provided a 
closure device for opening and closing an opening by moving a closure 
member substantially vertically, comprising: a rack secured to the opening 
member along the direction of movement thereof; a pinion gear meshing with 
the rack; and a motor having an output shaft connected to the pinion gear, 
the motor being supported by a lower portion of the closure member in such 
a manner that the output shaft is located in substantially the same plane 
as the plane of movement of the closure member, and the motor being 
adapted to rotatively drive the pinion gear via the output shaft in a 
reversible manner. 
With the above-described closure device, the driving force of the motor is 
transmitted to the pinion gear, and the pinion gear travels along the rack 
as the pinion gear rotates. Accordingly, the closure member supporting the 
motor and the pinion gear also travels as a unit with the pinion gear, 
thereby making it possible to perform an opening and closing operation. 
Since the arrangement is such that the output shaft of the motor is located 
in substantially the same plane as the plane of movement of the closure 
member, and the motor is disposed in the vicinity of a lower portion of 
the closure member, the distance between the central line of the closure 
member and the central line of a rack and pinion assembly for generating a 
driving force for driving the closure member in the opening and closing 
direction becomes shorter than that of the conventional arrangement. 
In other words, with the conventional arrangement, since the motor is fixed 
to the side surface of the support member (glass holder 12 in FIG. 8), the 
overall thickness of the motor has substantially affected the 
aforementioned distance, so that it has been impossible to dispose the 
rack in proximity to the closure member. 
In accordance with the present invention, since the motor is disposed in 
face-to-face relation with the moving end surface of the closure member, 
it is possible to positively shorten the aforementioned distance by the 
portion of the thickness of the motor. 
Accordingly, the angular moment exerted on the closure member can be made 
small, with the result that it is possible to use a motor having a smaller 
torque than a conventional one and to effect an efficient and positive 
opening and closing operation. 
Furthermore, if the above-described arrangement is adopted, since it is 
possible to have the center of gravity of the motor substantially aligned 
with the central line of the closure member, the effect of an eccentric 
load can be reduced substantially, which also contributes to a reduction 
in the motor torque required. If the required torque is small, the weight 
of the motor itself could be reduced, so that the advantage of the 
arrangement described can be further appreciated. 
Moreover, as a result of shortening the aforementioned distance, it is 
possible to reduce the thickness of the driving mechanism in the 
thickness-wise direction of the closure member, thereby making it possible 
to make more effective use of the surrounding space of the closure device.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
Referring now to the accompanying drawings, a description will be given of 
the preferred embodiments of the present invention. 
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a power window to which an embodiment of a 
closure device in accordance with the present invention is applied 
comprises a rack 40 fixedly supported along a path of movement of a window 
glass 30, i.e. a closure member; a pinion gear 50 meshing with the rack 
40; a motor 60 for rotatively driving the pinion gear 50 in a reversible 
manner; and a support member 70 for supporting and fixing the motor 60 to 
the lower end of the window glass 30. 
The rack 40 has teeth 40a in a direction perpendicular to the direction of 
movement of the window glass 30, i.e., in the breadthwise direction of the 
window glass 30, and is secured to a rack mounting bracket (hereinafter 
referred to as the bracket) shown in FIGS. 1 to 3. The bracket 41 extends 
in the same direction as the rack 40 and is arranged to cover the rack 40. 
As shown by lines P and R in FIG. 3, the rack 40 and the bracket 41 are 
curved with substantially the same curvature as that of the curved window 
glass 30. In addition, the bracket 41 is secured by tightening a pair of 
U-shaped mounting pieces 41a formed at upper and lower ends of the bracket 
41, respectively, onto an inner panel 32 of the door by means of a pair of 
bolts 33. 
The bracket 41 has at its opposite ends in its breadthwise direction a pair 
of hook-shaped engaging portions 42, 43 which are adapted to be retained 
by first and second engaging projections 65, 66 which will be described 
later. 
As shown in detail in FIG. 4, the motor 60 comprises a motor body 61 and a 
gear housing unit 62 secured to the motor body 61. 
An output shaft 61a of the motor body 61 is disposed in alignment with line 
P shown in FIG. 5, and this line P is also in alignment with the 
center-of-gravity line of the motor body 61. Furthermore, this line P is 
in substantially the same plane as the plane of movement of the window 
glass 30, and is located in the vicinity of a lower portion of the window 
glass 30. The gear housing unit 62 is adapted to decelerate the output of 
the motor body 61 and transmit the same to the pinion gear 50 having an 
axis of rotation in a direction perpendicular to the aforementioned line 
P, i.e., in a direction perpendicular to the motor shaft. 
To give a more detailed description of the gear housing unit 62, the gear 
housing unit 62 has a member for fixing the motor body 61 to the support 
member 70 and a member for positioning the bracket 41. 
In other words, as shown in FIG. 5, a pair of mounting pieces 63, 64 for 
mounting the gear housing unit 62 to the support member 70 are formed on 
the upper side of the gear housing unit 62, and the first engaging 
projection 65 for retaining one engaging portion 42 of the bracket 41 is 
also formed thereon (see FIG. 1 as well). In addition, the second engaging 
projection 66 for retaining the other engaging portion 43 of the bracket 
41 is formed at one end of the gear housing unit 62 extending in such a 
manner as to be aligned with the aforementioned line P. In FIG. 5, line Q 
indicates the central line of the pinion gear 50. 
A description will now be given of the support member 70 with specific 
reference to FIGS. 6(A) and 6(B). 
This support member 70 comprises a clamp 71 for clamping the lower end of 
the window glass 30 and being bonded thereto by means of, for instance, an 
adhesive; a pair of fixing portions 72, 73 for fixing the motor 60 via the 
gear housing unit 62; a vertical surface 74 formed by orthogonally bending 
an edge portion of one fixing portion 73; and a parallel surface 75 formed 
during assembly in such a manner as to be parallel with the window glass 
30. 
As the motor 60 is mounted on the window glass 30 by this support member 
70, as shown in FIG. 1, when this mechanism is viewed from the moving end 
of the window glass 30, line P aligned with the output shaft 61a of the 
motor 60 is also aligned with the central line of the window glass 30 in 
its widthwise direction. 
The assembling of the support member 70 is effected in such a manner that 
one engaging portion 42 of the bracket 41 is first inserted between the 
vertical surface 74 and the first engaging projection 65 formed on the 
gear housing unit 62, and then the parallel surface 75 is arranged to 
cover the outside of the engaging portion 42, as shown in FIG. 1. 
The operation of the power window thus constructed will be described 
hereinunder. 
In terms of the driving principle of this power window, in the same manner 
as conventional proposals concerning the rack-and-pinion system, the 
output of the motor body 61 is decelerated by the gears of the gear 
housing unit 62, and is then transmitted to the pinion gear 50 having an 
axis of rotation in a direction perpendicular to the output shaft 61a of 
the motor body 61. 
When this driving force is transmitted, the pinion gear 50 rotates while 
being meshed with the rack 40. Since the rack 40 is secured to the inner 
panel 32 of the door via the bracket 41, the pinion gear 50 moves along 
the rack 40 as the pinion gear 50 rotates. 
Since the pinion gear 50 is supported integrally with the motor 60, support 
member 70, and window glass 30, i.e., the closure member, these members 
move as a unit together with the pinion gear 50. Hence, as the motor 60 is 
rotatively driven forwardly and backwardly, it is possible to close and 
open the window glass 30. 
In this embodiment, as viewed from the moving end of the window glass 30, 
the output shaft 61a of the motor body 61 (which is aligned with central 
line P) is in alignment with the central line of the window glass 30 in 
the direction of its thickness. Accordingly, distance L1 between the 
central line (i.e., central line P) of the window glass 30, i.e., the 
closure member, and the central line (line R shown in FIGS. 1 and 3) of 
the rack and pinion assembly which produces a driving force for vertically 
driving the window glass 30 becomes far shorter than distance L2 
corresponding to the case of the conventional rack-and-pinion system. More 
specifically, in this embodiment distance L1 can be shorter by half the 
respective thickness of the motor and the support member of the 
conventional arrangement. 
In consequence, angular moment exerted on the window glass 30 can be made 
substantially smaller in proportion to the aforementioned distance than 
the conventional arrangement, and the frictional force generated during an 
opening and closing operation can be reduced. Accordingly, it is possible 
to mount the motor 60 having a smaller torque than a conventional one, and 
to ensure a more efficient and positive opening and closing operation. 
Furthermore, in this embodiment, since the center of gravity of the motor 
60 is aligned with the central line of the window glass 30 in the 
direction of its thickness, the eccentric load on the closure member is 
reduced substantially, which produces the advantage that the 
aforementioned angular moment can be reduced. 
In addition, by virtue of the above-described arrangement, an additional 
advantage can be obtained in that the overall thickness of the support 
member 70, motor 60, rack 40, etc., can be made less than in the case of 
the conventional arrangement. Accordingly, in the situation where a large 
number of parts have in recent years come to be incorporated in the inner 
space of the door in pursuit of sophisticated functions, the reduction of 
space occupied by the mechanism for the power window has a great advantage 
in designing the layout of the door interior. 
Thus, the fact that the thickness of the door can be made smaller is 
particularly effective in the case of the curved door having a specified 
curvature as in the case of this embodiment. In other words, as shown in 
FIG. 3, since the inner panel 32 of the door usually has a flat surface, 
the inner space at the upper and lower ends of the door is particularly 
narrow. If it is possible to reduce the inner space of the door in the 
direction of its thickness as in the case of this mechanism, it is 
possible to adopt this type of mechanism even if the door is not made 
thick, so that the mounting of a power window on a compact car, in 
particular, can be facilitated appreciably. 
Furthermore, in this embodiment, the first and second engaging projections 
65, 66 of the engaging portions 42, 43 are provided as members for 
securing positive meshing engagement between the rack and the pinion gear. 
The window glass 30 is ordinarily guided by the inner edge of the door, 
but this guide alone cannot provide a positive engagement between the rack 
and the pinion gear. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, one engaging 
portion 42 of the bracket 41 is made to abut against the outer surface of 
the first engaging projection 65 formed on the gear housing unit 62, and 
the other U-shaped engaging portion 43 of the bracket 41 is engaged with 
and supported by the second engaging projection 66 formed on the gear 
housing unit 62 by being hooked thereon. As a result, since the position 
of the bracket 41 in its lateral direction (i.e., breadthwise direction of 
the window glass 30) is restricted, the meshing engagement between the 
rack and the pinion gear can be maintained positively. 
It should be noted that, to prevent the engaging portion 42 retained by the 
first engaging projection 66 from coming off, an arrangement is provided 
such that the engaging projection 42 is covered from the outside by the 
vertical surface 74 and the parallel surface 75 formed in the support 
member 70. 
It should be understood that the present invention is not restricted to the 
embodiment described above, and various modifications are possible within 
the scope of the gist of the invention. 
In the described embodiment, the power window in accordance with the 
present invention is constructed such that the rack 40 is provided with 
the teeth 40a in the breadthwise direction of the window glass 30 
perpendicular to the direction of movement of the window glass 30, while 
the pinion gear 50 is secured to the rotating shaft perpendicular to the 
output shaft 61a of the motor, the gear housing unit 62 being provided to 
transmit the rotational force of the output shaft 61a to that rotating 
shaft. However, the power window in accordance with the present invention 
is not necessarily confined to this arrangement. 
For instance, the present invention can also be adopted in a case where the 
rack 40 is provided with the teeth 40a in face-to-face relation with the 
surface of the window glass 30 and the pinion gear 50 is secured to the 
output shaft of the motor. In this case, since a mechanism for 
transmitting the motor output to the rotating shaft perpendicular to 
output shaft of the motor is not required, it is possible to reduce the 
weight of the mechanism. Nevertheless, since the pinion gear 50 is 
normally driven by torque obtained by decelerating the motor output, it 
suffices to provide an arrangement for obtaining an output thus 
decelerated from the output shaft of the motor. 
Referring now to FIG. 7, a description will be given of a second embodiment 
of the present invention. 
In this embodiment, a recess 130a is formed at a lower end surface of a 
window glass 130 at an intermediate portion thereof in its breadthwise 
direction. A support member 170 is constituted by an elongated member in 
the form of a channel. This support member 170 has at its opposite ends a 
pair of bent portions 170a extending in the direction of the window glass 
130 (i.e., upwardly). The support member 170 is fixed to the window glass 
130 by superposing the bent portions 170a on one surface of the window 
glass 130 at the lower end thereof and securing the same by means of 
unillustrated mounting members such as screws. In addition, a 
longitudinally intermediate portion of the support member 170 has a 
U-shaped projection 170b formed by being bent in such a manner as to 
extend from one side to the other side of the window glass 130 in 
correspondence with the recess 130a. A space defined by the inner side of 
this projection 170b and the recess 130a serves as a space for 
accommodating a motor 160. A pair of slits 170c extending in the 
longitudinal direction of the support member 170 are formed at the bottom 
of the projection 170b. 
The motor 160 includes a motor body 161 and a gear housing unit 162 secured 
to the motor body 161 in the same way as the first embodiment. 
The gear housing unit 162, in the same way as the first embodiment, has a 
pair of mounting pieces 163, 164 for mounting the motor body 161 on the 
support member 170, and a first engaging projection 165 and a second 
engaging projection 166 are formed thereon in a projecting manner. 
Meanwhile, a rack 140 is formed of resin and includes the following: a 
teeth portion 140a for meshing with a pinion gear 150 rotatively driven by 
the motor 160 reversibly; an engaging portion 142 into which the first 
engaging projection 165 is inserted in correspondence with the first 
engaging projection 165; and a U-shaped engaging portion 143 in which the 
second engaging projection 166 is accommodated, the engaging portions 142, 
143 being disposed at opposite ends of the rack 140 in its breadthwise 
direction. 
Accordingly, with the pinion gear 150 meshing with the teeth portion 140a 
of the rack 140, the movement of the pinion gear 150 in the breadthwise 
direction of the window glass 130 is restricted by the first engaging 
projection 165 and the engaging portion 142, while the movement of the 
pinion gear 150 in the direction of the thickness of the window glass 130 
is restricted by the second engaging projection 166 and the engaging 
portion 143, so as to ensure that a meshing condition between the pinion 
gear 150 and the rack 140 can be maintained positively. In addition, since 
the rack 140 is formed of resin, the generation of noises due to the 
meshing engagement between the rack 140 and the pinion gear 150 can be 
controlled. 
A description will now be given of the assembling of the motor 160 to the 
support member 170. 
The motor 160 is positioned at the projection 170b of the support member 
170, and the slits 170c are arranged facing the mounting pieces 163, 164. 
The motor 160 is position at the projection 170b of the support member 170, 
and the slits 170c and the mounting pieces 163, 164 are made to oppose 
each other. 
Then, the motor 160 and the support member 170 are fixed by means of a pair 
of screws 180 in such a manner that the output shaft of the motor body 161 
(the center of gravity of the motor 160) is substantially aligned with the 
path of movement of the window glass 130 to which the support member 170 
is fixed, i.e., the central line of the window glass 130 in the direction 
of its thickness (line P in FIG. 3). Incidentally, the position of the 
motor 160 in the breadthwise direction of the window glass 130 can be 
adjusted by means of the slits 170c. 
Since this embodiment is thus arranged, the angular moment exerted on the 
window glass 130 can be reduced substantially as compared with the prior 
art. 
In addition, since the center of gravity of the motor 160 is in alignment 
with the central line of the window glass 130 in the direction of its 
thickness, the eccentric load applied to the window glass 130 can be 
reduced appreciably. 
Although in this embodiment the window glass 130 is provided with the 
recess 130a, and the support member 170 is provided with the projection 
170b, only either one of them may be provided in the present invention. 
In addition, the present invention is not necessarily applied solely to the 
power window, and is applicable to apparatuses in various fields for 
opening and closing a closure member by the use of a motor. 
To cite an automobile by way of example, the present invention may be 
applied to opening and closing sun-roof panels that have become popular in 
recent years. 
As described above, in accordance with the present invention, it is 
possible to effect a reduction in the number of parts used, which is an 
advantage of the rack-and-pinion system, and secure the effective inner 
space of the door. In addition, it is possible to shorten the distance 
between the operating point of the closure member and the driving point of 
the rack and pinion assembly as compared with the prior art. Accordingly, 
it is possible to drive the closure member efficiently, thereby allowing 
an opening and closing operation to be carried out positively with a 
smaller motor torque than the prior art. 
Furthermore, since the thickness of the mechanism parts corresponding to 
the thickness-wise direction of the closure member can be made far 
smaller, it is possible to make effective use of the inner space for other 
usages.