Abstract:
A novel system, surgical method, and tools for performing a total ankle replacement are described. The total ankle replacement system includes the calcaneus in fixation of a lower prosthesis body, thereby significantly increasing the amount of bone available for fixation of the lower prosthesis body and allowing the lower prosthesis body to be anchored with screws. The total ankle replacement system further includes a long tibial stem which can also be anchored into the tibia The novel surgical arthroscopic method allows introduction of ankle prostheses into the ankle joint through an exposure in the tibial tubercle. Various novel surgical instruments, such as a telescoping articulating reamer and a talo-calcaneal jig, which facilitate the novel surgical method, are also described.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION  
       [0001]    This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. Ser. No. 09/169,451 filed Oct. 9, 1998. 
     
    
     
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    1. Field of the Invention  
           [0003]    This invention relates to window wiper systems and, more particularly, to a wiper system and method for coupling a wiper arm to a drive motor and also for retaining a window in a closed position.  
           [0004]    2. Description of the Related Art  
           [0005]    In the field in windshield wiper systems, such as rear window wiper systems, a window wiper arm is mounted on a rear window hatch or door of a vehicle. The rear window is pivotable between an open and closed position to provide access inside the vehicle. The window wiper arm is usually directly coupled to a wiper motor which, in turn, is mounted directly on the window or below the window on the door.  
           [0006]    In one prior art system, for example, the window wiper arm is mounted on a wiper motor which is mounted on a rear door of a vehicle. When it is desired to open the window, the window wiper arm and wiper blade are driven below the bottom of the window to permit the rear window to swing open. Unfortunately, this design approach has several disadvantages, including requiring and causing the wiper blade to be driven below the window and onto the door.  
           [0007]    In several prior art systems, the window requires a separate latch to latch and lock the window in a closed position. Because it is desired to place the window wiper arm at an approximate center of the rear window, this latch would have to be located “off center.” Because of the non-centered location of the window latch, it was not uncommon that the window would not seal properly to the door, thereby resulting in undesirable wind noise during vehicle operation or even water leakage into the interior compartment of the vehicle.  
           [0008]    In some prior art systems, both the latch assembly, including any latch motor, and a window wiper motor were mounted in the door. Such systems oftentimes required the use of multiple motors and apparatus to accomplish the functions of wiping the window and locking the window in a closed position to the door.  
           [0009]    What is needed, therefore, is a simple system and method for both wiping the window and locking the door that reduces or eliminates the problems with the prior art.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0010]    It is, therefore, a primary object of the invention to provide a system and method for locking a window, such as a rear window, to a door and also for wiping the window free of debris.  
           [0011]    It is another object of the invention to provide a window wiper arm having an end which is rotatably mounted in a window and which can be coupled to a drive motor in order to lock the window to a door and also to permit the drive motor to drive the wiper arm to clean the window.  
           [0012]    In one aspect, this invention comprises a wiper arm window latch system comprising a wiper arm rotatably mounted in a window for wiping a window, a drive motor for driving a wiper arm, and a drive coupler for coupling a wiper arm to a drive motor in order to latch a window to a door and also for coupling a wiper arm to a drive motor such that when a window is in a closed position a wiper arm may be rotatably driven by a drive motor.  
           [0013]    In another aspect, this invention comprises a wiper system comprising a wiper arm, a wiper system comprising a wiper motor comprising an output shaft having a drive latch assembly, a drive latch assembly comprising a latch release for detachably latching a wiper arm to a wiper motor so that a window becomes locked to a door, and a resilient detent for detachably coupling a wiper arm to an output shaft, regardless of a rotational position of a wiper arm.  
           [0014]    In still another aspect, this invention comprises a method for locking a window onto a door and a wiper arm onto an output shaft of a motor comprising the steps of rotatably mounting a wiper arm onto a window, mounting a drive motor for driving a wiper arm onto a door, and situating a drive latch onto a drive motor, a drive latch latching a window to a door when a window is in a closed position and substantially simultaneously coupling a wiper arm to a drive motor such that when a window is in a closed position a wiper arm may be driven by a drive motor.  
           [0015]    In yet another aspect, this invention comprises a method for latching a window to a door, with the method comprising the steps of rotatably mounting a wiper arm on a window, using a drive coupler to couple a wiper arm to a drive motor and to also retain the window in a closed position.  
           [0016]    Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description, the accompanying drawings, and the appended claims. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS  
       [0017]    [0017]FIG. 1 is a fragmentary view showing a window in an open position;  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 2 is a fragmentary view showing the window in a closed position;  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 3 is a fragmentary view taken along the line  3 - 3  in FIG. 2;  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line  4 - 4  in FIG. 3;  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 5 is a sectional view showing details of an end of the wiper arm for receipt into a receiving area and a detent engaging a locking member;  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 6 is a sectional view similar to FIG. 3 showing the wiper arm in a fully locked position;  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 7 is a view taken along the line  7 - 7  in FIG. 6 and showing a coupler in a first wipe position;  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 8 is a view similar to FIG. 7 illustrating the coupler driven to a second wipe position which is opposite to the wipe position shown in FIG. 7; and  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 9 is a view showing a cam member of a lock or locking member engaging a cam wall to permit the wiper arm to be biased out of the drive coupler. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0026]    Referring now to FIG. 1, a wiper arm window latch system  10  is shown for use on a vehicle  12  having a window, such as a rear window  18  which is hingably attached to the vehicle  12  to permit movement between an open position (shown in FIG. 1) and a closed position (shown in FIG. 2). The wiper system  10  comprises a wiper arm  16  having a wiper blade  16   a  which is driven between a first wipe position A (shown in FIG. 2) to a second wipe position B in order to wipe the window  18  which is situated in a frame  20  (FIG. 1), free of debris, such as rain, snow or ice. Although not shown, it is envisioned that the wiper arm window latch system  10  may be used with a window  18  which itself is hingably attached to the vehicle  12  without the use of a frame  20 .  
         [0027]    The wiper arm window latch system  10  comprises a rotatable and generally cylindrical rotatable member or post  22  on which the wiper arm  16  is mounted. The rotatable member  22  cooperates with a receiving drive coupler  24  to couple the wiper arm  16  to an output shaft  26  (FIG. 3) of a drive motor  28  which is mounted in a door  30  (FIGS. 1 and 2) of the vehicle. As will be appreciated from the description later herein, the drive coupler  24  not only couples the wiper arm  16  to the drive motor  28 , but also provides the locking mechanism for retaining and locking the window  18  in the closed position shown in FIG. 2.  
         [0028]    Referring now to FIG. 3, the drive motor  28  may be any suitable drive motor for driving wiper arm  16 , such as drive motor  4 BE available from Valeo, Auburn Hills, Mich. The drive motor  28  has the output shaft  26  which is secured by conventional means, such as a cotter pin, screw, key or retention ring to an end  24   a  of the drive coupler  24 . As mentioned earlier herein, the drive coupler  24  couples and locks the wiper arm  16  to the drive motor  28  in order to latch the window  18  to the door  30  (FIG. 2). The drive coupler  24  also couples the wiper arm  16  to the drive motor  28  so that when the window  18  is in the closed position, the drive motor  28  may be energized by a controller  32  in order to rotatably drive the wiper motor  28  between the wipe positions A and B (FIG. 2) in order to wipe the window  18  free of debris.  
         [0029]    The controller  32  is coupled to an operator switch  34  for controlling the operation of the wiper motor  28  in the manner described herein. The switch  34  is situated in the vehicle compartment  35  (FIG. 1) and may be any suitable switch, such as a rotary switch integrated into a turn signal indicator (not shown) or light control switch (not shown).  
         [0030]    The drive coupler  24  comprises a receiving area  36  for receiving the rotatable member  22  and for securing the rotatable member  22  to the wiper arm  16 . Note in FIG. 3 that the rotatable member  22  is rotatably secured in a bearing  38  in the window  18  as shown. In the embodiment being described, the bearing  38  may be a ? (Rick, what type of bearing would this be mounted in ?) which, in turn, is mounted in an aperture  18   a  in the glass  18  as shown.  
         [0031]    Note that the rotatable member  22  comprises means for securing the rotatable member  22  to the drive coupler  24 . In the embodiment being described, such means includes a plurality of recessed sockets  40  which cooperate with a plurality of balls  42  which are biased by springs  44  to lock into sockets  40  when the rotatable member  22  is fully received in receiving area  36  in order to lock the rotatable member  22  in the receiving area  36  of the drive coupler  24 . It should also be appreciated that any suitable means may be used to couple the rotatable member  22  to the drive coupler  24 .  
         [0032]    The drive coupler  24  has a first end  24   a  mounted to the output shaft  26  of drive motor  28 , as mentioned earlier, and a second end  24   b  rotatably mounted in a bearing  46  mentioned in a housing  48  in which the drive motor  28  is also securely mounted. Although not shown, it should be appreciated that the housing  48  may be integral with a housing  28   a  of drive motor  28 . In the embodiment being described, the bearing  46  may be a sleeve bearing or ball bearing.  
         [0033]    As previously mentioned, a feature of the wiper arm window latch system  10  is that it functions to retain, latch or lock the window  18  to the door  30  (FIG. 2) in order to retain the window  18  in a locked and closed position. In order to facilitate achieving this function and feature, the rotatable member  22  comprises a conically-shaped detent  50  (FIG. 3) and cylindrical connector portion  50   b  which is situated on an end  22   a  of the rotatable member  22 . The detent  50  cooperates with a movable or actuatable lock or latch  52  which is driven among several positions, including a closed and locking position (shown in FIGS. 3, 7 and  8 ), a partially open position (shown in FIG. 5) and a fully opened position (shown in FIG. 9). The movement among these positions will be described in further detail later herein.  
         [0034]    Note that the lock  52  is received in a slot  48   a  in drive coupler  24  (FIG. 5) is biased by a spring  54  (FIG. 3) to the locking position. The latch system further comprises a spring  56  situated in drive coupler  24  for biasing and forcing a flange  50   a  of detent  50  against a bottom surface  52   a  of lock  52  when the drive coupler  24  is in the locked and latched position.  
         [0035]    As illustrated in FIGS.  4 ,  7 - 9 , the latch  52  comprises an aperture  51  in wall  52   b  for receiving the detent  50 . It should be appreciated that the spring  56  biases the rotatable member  22  in the direction of arrow A in FIG. 3 so that when the lock  52  is actuated to an open position (shown in FIG. 9 as described later), the detent  50  of rotatable member  22  is biased out of wall  52   b  and the rotatable member  22  is actuated out of receiving area  36 . This enables the wiper arm  16  to be forced, biased or actuated towards the open position shown in FIG. 1.  
         [0036]    When the rotatable member  22  is driven into receiving area  36 , conically-shaped flange  50   a  having an engaging surface  50   c  of detent  50  acts upon wall  52   b  to become driven in a direction opposite arrow A in FIG. 3 until flange  50   a  passes bottom surface  52   a . At this point, wall  52   b  engages a cylindrical connector portion  50   b  which couples detent  50  to rotatable member  22 . As best illustrated in FIGS. 4-6, note that once the rotatable member  22  is driven until flange  50   a  clears bottom surface  52   a , the lock  52  is biased by spring  54  to the right (as viewed in FIG. 6). Note also that spring  56  biases the rotatable member  22  in the direction of arrow A in FIG. 6 such that the surface  50   c  becomes biased against the bottom surface  52   a . This causes the rotatable members  22  to be locked in drive coupler  24  and also causes the wiper arm  16  to be locked to drive motor  28 , thereby also simultaneously locking window  18  to door  30 .  
         [0037]    It should be appreciated that it is only until the lock  52  is again biased to the left (as viewed in FIG. 6) to compress the spring  54  that the rotatable member  22  becomes unlocked from drive coupler  24 . As illustrated in FIG. 9, in order to move aperture  51  and wall  52   b  such that a center axis of aperture  51  and a center axis of detent  50  and cylindrical connector portion  50   b  becomes coaxial as shown in FIG. 9. This alignment causes the detent  50  to be capable of being forced through aperture  51  of lock  52 .  
         [0038]    In order to cause the lock  52  to compress spring  54  and move to the left (as viewed in FIG. 6), the lock  52  is provided with a cam end  52   c  which is driven into engagement with a cam wall  58  on housing  48  when an operator actuates the operator switch  34  (FIG. 3) to open the window  18 , as will be described later herein.  
         [0039]    As illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 7- 9 , after the wiper arm  16  is locked to drive motor  28  (by moving the window  18  to the closed position in FIG. 2), an operator may actuate the operator switch  34  when it is desired to either wipe or open the window  18 . In response to an open command, the controller  32  energizes drive motor  28  to drive the wiper arm  16  and wiper blade  16   a  between the wipe positions A and B in order to remove any debris from the window  18  in a wipe zone defined between the area between positions A and B. As the drive motor  28  drives the wiper blade  16 , the drive coupler  24  is also rotatably driven or oscillated between wipe positions A and B, as illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 8, in response to a window wipe signal from controller  32 , which is generated in response to an operator actuating the operator switch  34 . When it is desired to open the window  18  (for example, when the vehicle is stopped), the operator actuates the operator switch  34  to cause controller  32  to energize drive motor  28  to rotatable drive the drive coupler  24  and lock  52  until the wiper arm  16  is driven into a stop  71  (FIG. 2), causing the motor torque to overcome the balls  42  and socket  40  drive couple, thereby de-coupling the drive coupler  24  from the rotatable member  22 . Past this point, the wiper arm  16  remains in the park position on the glass while the cam end  52   c  is driven against a cam wall  58 , as illustrated in FIG. 9. This forces the lock  52  to move in the direction of arrow B in FIG. 9, thereby compressing spring  54  until the center axis defined by wall  52   b  and the axis of connector portion  50   b  of detent  50  becomes coaxial. At this point, spring  56  forces surface  50   c  of detent  50  in the direction of arrow A (FIG. 3), thereby forcing the rotatable member  22  out of receiving area  36 . This, in turn, causes thereby moving the window  18  to be driven towards the open position shown in FIG. 1.  
         [0040]    Advantageously, this system  10  provides a system and method for latching the window  18  to the door  30  by rotatably mounting the wiper arm  16  onto the window  18  and also for retaining the window  18  in the closed and locked position shown in FIG. 2.  
         [0041]    Advantageously, this system and method provides means for using the drive motor  28  to not only drive the window wiper arm  16 , but also to lock the window  18  to the door  30 .  
         [0042]    Another advantage of this invention is the balls  42  and sockets  40  design which permits the wiper arm  16  to be in any rotated  180 E position when the rotatable member  22  is received in receiving area  36  of drive coupler  24 , yet still be capable of being received in the receiving area  36 . If the rotatable member  22  is received in receiving area  36  and the balls  42  and sockets  40  are not aligned when the drive motor  28  is energized by controller  32 , the drive coupler  24  is rotatably driven and the balls  42  are biased against the rotatable member  22  and will “hunt” until they find the sockets  40 , thereby locking the rotatable member  22  and wiper arm  16  to the wiper motor  28 . This could be achieved by either manually moving the wiper arm or turning on the wiper motor.  
         [0043]    It should be understood that a wiper torque, defined by the torque which the balls  42  and sockets  40  secure rotatable member  22  to the drive coupler  24  is less than a resilient detent torque, defined by a torque required to drive lock  52  to the open position (i.e., to the leftmost position shown in FIG. 6). The resilient detent torque and wiper torque are both less than the torque of the drive motor  28 .  
         [0044]    It should also be understood that the drive coupler  24  could be arranged on an end of wiper arm  16 , with the shaft  26  of drive motor  28  being configured to snap fit or lock onto the drive coupler  24 .  
         [0045]    Finally, although not shown, the system and method may include a mechanical stop  71  (FIG. 2) or software  73  for causing controller  32  to stop the wiper arm  16  in order to keep the arm  16  and blade  16   a  on the window  18  during open and close operations. This also facilitates actuation of the latch and preventing the wiper arm  16  from interfering with or disturbing an operator.  
         [0046]    While the methods herein described, and the forms of apparatus for carrying these methods into effect, constitute preferred embodiments of this invention, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to these precise methods and forms of apparatus, and that changes may be made in either without departing from the scope of the invention, which is defined in the appended claims.