A REMOTELY CONTROLLED DRIVING DEVICE FOR SLIDING DOORS

Abstract: The remotely controlled driving device for sliding doors (9), particularly for motor vehicles, is displaceable in guides (17) between an open position in which the door is situated adjacent the vehicle side (3) and a closed position in which the door is located in an opening in the side of the vehicle and where the swinging motion of the door is guided by a pivotable swinging lever (5) one end of which is supported by a displaceable trolley (4) and opposite end of which is hingedly connected to the sliding door (9). The device incorporates a pliable member (1) which is driven along a track along the movement distance of the sliding door by means of the remotely controlled motor and a pliable actuation member (10) which with one of its ends is connected to the pliable member (1) and with its other end to the door (9) or alternatively to the swinging lever (5) for bringing about at least its swinging in at the end of the closing function of the sliding door and preferably also its swinging out at the beginning of the opening function of the sliding door.

Description: A remotely controlled driving device for sliding doors The present invention refers to a remotely control driving device for sliding- doors, particulary for mo vehicles and of the type which is slidable in guides betw and open position in which the door is located adjacent side of the vehicle and a closed position in which the d is located in an opening in the side of the vehicle flush with said side and where the swinging motion betw said position is guided by a swinging lever one end of wh is supported by a displaceable trolley and the opposite of which is pivotally connected to the sliding door. Background of the invention Sliding doors of the type which are displaceable between open position in which the door hangs in parallel with a adjacent the side of the vehicle and a closed position which the door is located in an opening in the vehicle si and lays flush with this are earlier known in sever different embodiments. Such doors are usually arranged slide in guides along the. vehicle side and at one su expedient arrangement the swinging motion of the door guided by a foldable shackle. These earlier known sliding doors operate saticfactori when it concerns manual operation, but there . are available remotely controlled driving devices by means which it is possible to open and close the sliding doo e.g. from the driver's ' seat . Such a remotely controll driving device is a desire e.g. in small buses for passeng transport but also for such vehicles which are used f cargo transport particulary for mail delivery. Attempts which have been made to produce motor drive remotely controlled doors of this type have failed due difficulties is to bring about the complex movement which O " required at the opening of the door, which includes accurately guided swinging motion and a subsequent ' line displacement to fully open door and vice versa. Anoth problem has been that the driving device may not encroa 5 upon the free space in the vehicle which has not be possible to fulfill with conventional devices. Purpose and most essential features of the invention 0 The purpose of the present invention is to provide a we operating, simple and reliable remotely controlled drivi device for sliding doors of motor vehicles, which devi shall be space saving and which should be attachable insi existing cavities in the vehicle body. It shall also 5 designed thus that it can be operated manually. These tas have been solved with the invention by the features defin in the accompanying claim 1. Description of the drawings 0 The invention will hereinafter be further described wi reference to embodiments shown in the accompanying drawing Figure 1 shows a section through the rearmost part of sliding door and an adjacent vehicle side wall, provid 5 with the driving device according to the invention and wi . the sliding door in a swinged out position, Figure 2 is a corresponding view with the sliding door closed position, Figures 3-5 show schematically use of the driving devi Q according to the invention during different stages of t opening movement, and Figure 6 shows a longitudial section through a pliab member forming part of the device according to t invention. 5 Figure 7 is a view corresponding to figure 1 and showing a modified embodiment of the device according to the inventi Description of the embodiments '*, .The driving device according to the invention incorpora an endless chain 1, which runs over two chain wheels 2 5 12 located at a distance from each other and recessed in vehicle side 3 with the axes of the chain wheels arran vertically. The chain drives a trolley 4 which rolls o guide 17 and attached to the trolley is one end of swinging lever 5 which is limited pivotable about a pi 10 shaft 6 fitted to the trolley 4 and which swinging lever with its opposite end is hingedly connected to a bracke about a shaft journal 7, which bracket projects from one of the sliding door 9 and runs mainly in the longitudi direction of the door. A link 18 of the endless chain 15 supports the end of a pliable actuation member 10, which the embodiment shown is a helically wound spring 19, wh at its opposite end is attached to an attachment 11 fit to the swinging lever 5. The movement of the trolley 4 limited in the left hand direction in figures 1 and 2 20 means of a stop 13. The trolley is further provided with carriage wheel 15, indented to run on said guide 17. Th type of door suspension and operation is earlier known a further described in Swedish patent specification 201 83 In connection to the chain wheel 2 situated nearest to t 25 door opening there is arranged a guiding track 14, which • , concentric with and has a curvature which adapts itse mainly to the curvature of the chain part which is arrang around the chain wheel 2. The track 14 has an arc form cross section ^ and is slightly larger than the spring 30 which has a corresponding cross section. In this mann spring 19 will be safely guided during its entire moveme whereby the guiding track 14 and the chain arranged arou the wheel 2 will support the spring 19 in its curv position thus that it thereby has ability of transferri 35 push forces without thereby being bent out laterally. The trolley 4 is provided with an elongated stop portion which is adapted to cooperate with the driving chain 1 at position between the actuation member 10 and the drivi chain 1 preferably at an attachment link 18. Hereby it avoided that the entire force is transferred via t swinging lever 5 which eliminates the risk for tilting the trolley. Figure 1 shows the sliding door 9 during beginning of i opening whereby the chain 1 moves toward the right hand si according figure 1. In this position the spring 19, due the fact that it for axial thrust acts as a rigid pushi member, urges the swinging lever 5 to the position shown figure 1, whereby the door leaf of the sliding door 9 influence of a spring 20 which acts between the door leaf and the pivot point 7 of the swinging lever, has reached positon outside the plane of the vehicle body wall 3 fr which position the sliding door is displaceable along t guide 17. During the driving of chain 1 in the opposi direction the actuation member 10 will pull the trolley along the guide 17 until it pushes against the stop 13. continued driving of the chain 1 in the left hand directi according to figure 1 the actuation member 10 will be urg by the guiding track 14 to a curved position and to foll the curvature of the chain about the chain wheel 2 where the actuation member 10 provides a secure swinging in of t swinging lever and thereby a pulling in of the door leaf to the position shown in figure 2, where the sliding do fills the door opening and lays flush with the vehicle bo wall. Figures 3-5 show the operating mode for the device accordi to the invention whereby figure 3 shows a portion of t sliding door 9 and the entire extension of the endless chai 1 with its two chain wheels 2 and 12 in a position corre ponding to figure 2, whereas figure 4 corresponds to t position of figure 1 and figure 5 shows the device in maximum open position and just at the beginning of t closing process. Figure 6 shows in a longitudinal section the plia actuation member 10, which incorporates said helically wo 5 spring 19 arranged between two connection members 21 and of which the first connection member 21 has an attachm hole 22 intended for flexible connection with the chai via a chain link 18 and a second attachment hole 23 arran inside the spring 19. The second attachment member 10 consists of two parts 25 and 26 which are inteconnected means of a screw 27 and each of which has one attachme -hole 28 and 29 respectively. The connecting member - 24 intended to be connected to the attachment 11 on t swinging lever 5. Between the two connection members 21 a 15 24 is arranged a pliable pulling member 31 which is fitt in the holes 23 and 28 and which has such a length that t spring 19 is not subjected to pulling forces. The pulli member 31 is preferably made from ' a number of threads fr aramide fibre (KEVLAR) , which are thread through the hol 20 23-- and 28 and are fixed in suitable manner. The driving chain 1 is driven in a manner known per se by (not shown) suitable motor, which via a gear device driv one of the chain wheels, but which can also transfer mov 25 ment to the driving chain in other known manners. The mot " .- is preferably an electric motor, which is remote controlled from the driver's seat and possible also fr other locations in or outside the vehicle. 30 By the invention is provided.a simple, but at the same ti efficient and reliable, remotely controlled opening devi for a sliding door at a vehicle or the like. The invention is not limited to the embodiments shown in t 35 drawings and described in connection thereto but variatio and modifications are possible within the scope of t appended claims. The actuation member 10 thus needs not be helically wound spring but it is a also possible to us other similar machine members with ability of be.ing be under influence of axial and/or lateral forces. Instead of spring it is thus possible to design the actuation member a pulling member only, e.g. in form of a short length chain 32 and to bring about. the swinging out of the swingi lever 5 by means of a spring 33, such as shown in figure The endless driving member 1 needs not necessarily be chain but can for instance also be a wire whereby t •-forward pulley wheel can be a wheel on any suitable type.

Claims: CLAIMS 1. A remotely controlled driving device for sliding do (9) , particularly for motor vehicles and of the type wh 5 is slideable in guides (17) between an open position which the door is located adjacent the side (3) of vehicle and a closed position in which the door is loca in an opening in the side of the vehicle and flush with s side and where the swinging motion between said positions 10 guided by a swinging lever (5) one end of which is suppor by a displaceable trolley (4) -and the opposite end of wh is pivotally connected to the sliding door (9) , c h a r a c t e r i z e d t h e r e b y that the device incorporates a pliable member (1) which 15 driven along a track extending along the distance movement of the sliding door by means of a remot controlled motor, that a pliable actuation member (10) fitted with one of its ends to said pliable member (1) a with its opposite end to the door (9) or alternatively 20 the swinging lever (5) in order to bring " about at least t swinging in of the sliding door at the end of the closi function of the sliding door and preferably also i swinging out at the beginning of the opening function f the sliding door. 25 :•' . • 2. A device ' according to claim 1, c h a r a c t e r i z e d t h e r e b y that the pliable member (1) is a chain, the movement tra of which is adapted to extend along the guide (17) between 30 forward pulley wheel (2) in front of the guide, at the re edge of the sliding door opening in the vehicle side (3 and a rear pulley wheel (12) located at the rear end of t guide (17) . 35 3. A device according to claim 2, c h a r a c t e r i z e d t h e r e b y that the actuation member (10) is bendable about a porti of the forward pulley wheel (2) circumference, along t pliable member (1) . 4. A device according to claim 3, c h a r a c t e r i z e d t h e r e b y 5 that the actuation member (10) is composed of a chain (32 which brings about the swinging in motion of the swingi lever (5) and thereby the door (9) , whereas a spring (33) provided for the swinging out of the door, which spring arranged to pivot the swinging lever (5) about its suppo 10 in the trolley (4) . 5. A device according to claim 3, c h a r a c t e r i z e d t h e r e b y that the actuation member (10) is a helically wound spri 15 (19) provided with a pliable tension member (31) , adapted take up pulling power acting upon the actuation member (10 6. A device according to claim 5, c h a r a c t e r i z e d t h e r e b y 20 that a guiding track (14) is arranged about a portion of t circumference of the forward pulley wheel (2) , which guidi track (14) guides the actuation member (10) laterally th that this acts as a pushing member at the opening of t door. 25 •' . 7. A device according to one or more of the preceedi claims, c h a r a c t e r i z e d t h e r e b y that a stop portion (16) is arranged at the trolley (4) a 30 designed to be driven by the pliable member (1) or attachment (18) fitted thereto resp. at the movement of t pliable member during opening of the sliding door (9) . 35 y f

Inventors: LILJA TONNY, LILJA, TONNY
Applicants: LILJA TONNY, LILJA, TONNY
Application year: 1983
Main classification: B60J5
IPC codes: B60J5, E05D15, E05F15, E06B3