Abstract:
A side window visor can be moved from a stored position to a side window position and includes a body framing a transparent window made of a tinted, polarized, micro-louver, phototropic or electro-optical material, such that, when the visor is moved to a side window position, the driver still has visibility through the window of the visor while simultaneously receiving significant sun-blocking protection. The visor can be an auxiliary visor working in cooperation with a nested visor system to provide the desired sun protection while providing peripheral visibility to the operator.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/592,060 entitled AUXILIARY SIDE WINDOW VISOR WITH SEE-THROUGH GLARE SHIELD, filed on Jan. 30, 2012, by Jonathan P. Marcus, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The present invention relates to vehicle sun visors and particularly to a visor which can be moved to the side window and has a see-through window. 
         [0003]    Conventional vehicle visors are typically rotated down from a stored position against the headliner and can be released from the front window position and moved to a side window position providing sun blocking protection from the side. Although it is frequently desirable to have sun blocking from the side window panel, a totally opaque visor panel also blocks the driver&#39;s peripheral vision on the side. In urban traffic settings, it may be desirable to be able to observe activities on the side of the vehicle as much as possible while still preventing entry of bright sunlight. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0004]    The present invention solves this dilemma by providing a visor which can be moved from a stored position to a side window position and includes a body framing a transparent window made of a tinted, polarized, micro-louver, phototropic, or electro-optical material, such that, when the visor is moved to a side window position, the driver still has visibility through the window of the visor while simultaneously receiving significant sun-blocking protection. The visor can be a single visor or an auxiliary visor working in cooperation with a nested visor system to provide the desired sun protection while providing peripheral visibility to the operator. 
         [0005]    These and other features, objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent upon reading the following description thereof together with reference to the accompanying drawings. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0006]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a visor system including a side window visor of the present invention shown being released from the primary visor; 
           [0007]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view illustrating the subsequent progressive motion of the side window visor from the front window position; 
           [0008]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view showing the further advancement of the preferred embodiment of the side window visor toward a side window position; 
           [0009]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view showing the advancement of the side window visor to the side window position; 
           [0010]      FIG. 5  is a perspective view showing the final movement of the side window visor to a raised side window position; 
           [0011]      FIG. 6  is a perspective view illustrating the see-through capabilities of the tinted window included in the side window visor; and 
           [0012]      FIG. 7  is an exploded perspective view of the pivot mounting structure of the side window visor. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
       [0013]    Referring to the drawing figures, there is shown a vehicle  10 , such as an automobile, SUV, truck or the like, which includes a roof with a headliner  12  above the windshield  14  and an A-pillar  13  separating the windshield  14  from the side window  16 . The vehicle includes a visor system  30  which can be of the type described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/633,309, entitled ROTATABLE SIDE WINDOW VISOR AND GLARE SHIELD, filed on Oct. 2, 2012, or, alternately, it can be of the type disclosed in PCT Application WO 2011/133791 entitled VISOR WITH PIVOTED SIDE WINDOW PANEL and filed on Apr. 21, 2011, the disclosures of both of these applications are incorporated herein by reference. 
         [0014]    The visor system includes a primary visor  40  which is hinged to tilt downwardly away from the windshield toward the driver when lowered and a side window visor  50  which can be nested within the pocket  45  of the primary visor  40  or released, as illustrated in  FIGS. 1-5 , for movement, as shown by arrow A in these figures to a position toward the side window  16 , as shown in  FIGS. 5 and 6 , adjacent the upper edge of side window  16  and near the headliner  12 . The pivot mechanism for the side window visor  50 , as well as the primary visor  40 , is shown in  FIG. 7 . 
         [0015]    The primary visor  40  is made of a resilient polymeric material, such as ABS, and includes a socket  47  in the upper right corner ( FIGS. 1-3 ), which receives a snap-in post  56  ( FIG. 3 ) on the side window visor  50 . The side window visor can thus be released from the primary visor as shown in  FIGS. 1-6  for movement to the vehicle&#39;s side window  16 . The side window visor  50  is pivotally coupled to a pivot mounting assembly  60  (best seen in  FIG. 7 ), which includes a pivot rod  62  fixedly secured to a knuckle  61  of assembly  60 . Pivot rod  62  extends into the vehicle roof support structure and is rotatably mounted therein under the control of a torque spring. Pivot rod  62  is supported at the knuckle end by a bushing  64 . The rod  62  also has flats  63  which are engaged by the fingers of a torque spring secured to the header of the vehicle roof structure. 
         [0016]    The side window visor  50  includes an angled bracket  58  ( FIG. 7 ), which is angled to provide a mounting surface  55  which engages angled knuckle surface  69 . The knuckle  61  is pivotally coupled to visor  50  by a second pivot connection including a mounting bolt  68  extending through aperture  57  in bracket  58 . Bolt  68  extends through a thrust washer  59 , a friction washer  66 , and is threaded into hollow internally threaded pivot rod  67  providing a pivot connection for visor  50  with respect to knuckle  61 . Pivot rod  67  is orthogonal to the axis of pivot rod  62 . The rotational interface between visor  50  and knuckle  61  is the aperture  57  in bracket  58  and the outer surface of pivot axle  67 . When the pivot knuckle  61  is attached to the header of the vehicle roof with pivot rod  62 , the two axis pivot arrangement allows the side window visor  40  to dip downwardly in the sequence illustrated in  FIGS. 1-5  as the visor is moved from the stowed position to a side window position (shown in  FIGS. 5 and 6 ). This occurs due to the initial rotation of the knuckle  61  and rod  62  in the vehicle roof structure as the side window visor  50  is initially released from the primary visor  40 . As seen in  FIGS. 2-5 , it dips downwardly out of the head space area of the user. Subsequently, as the user moves the visor toward the side window, the knuckle  61  rotates on pivot rod  62  to move the visor upwardly and toward the side window position illustrated in  FIGS. 5 and 6 . The mating surfaces  55  of bracket  58  and surface  69  of knuckle  61  incline visor  50  toward the side window  16  at about 20° to keep it away from the side of the driver&#39;s face when it is in the detented side window position shown in  FIG. 6  and allows the driver to see through the window  52  in the sun visor  50 . 
         [0017]    Side window visor  50  is unique in that it includes a window  52  surrounded by the visor body frame  54  which is hingedly coupled to the headliner roof by the pivot mounting assembly  60 . The frame  54  supports the see-through window  52 , which occupies the major area of the side window visor surface, such that, as seen in  FIG. 6 , visibility of objects outside the side window of the vehicle is provided. Window  52  can be made of any transparent, glare-reducing material and is typically made of a polymeric material, although it can be a laminate of several layers of polymeric material with different glare-reducing properties. Thus, the window  52  can be made of a tinted, transparent material, micro-louver material, polarized material, phototropic material, or electrically controlled variable density material, such that the opacity can be selectively controlled. 
         [0018]    The visor  50  can otherwise be of conventional construction with frame  54  being made of, for example, a polymeric body with suitably upholstered exterior surface to conform the appearance of visor  50  to that of the interior of the vehicle  10 . The window  52  is held within the frame  54  by conventional means such as sandwiching the edges of the window between two layers of material making up the frame  54  of visor  50 . The edges  53  of the interface between window  52  and frame  54  are trimmed to provide a finished appearance to the visor  50 . Thus, with the visor system of the present invention, the user is provided with a side window visor having sun-blocking properties sufficient to prevent unwanted glare and yet provide visibility through the visor to be able to see potentially important activity laterally of the vehicle. 
         [0019]    It will become apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications to the preferred embodiment of the invention as described herein can be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.