Patent ID: 7070214

Claim:
A lock mechanism for a vehicle, the lock mechanism comprising: a manually actuable element; a lock lever having a locked position, an unlocked position and a superlocked position relating to a locked condition, an unlocked condition and a superlocked condition of the lock mechanism, respectively, the manually actuable element being connected to the lock lever via a transmission path, wherein the lock lever is rotatable about an axis of rotation between the locked position and the unlocked position by operation of the manually actuable element; an actuator that rotates the lock lever about the axis of rotation between the locked position, the unlocked position and the superlocked position; and a rigid link in the transmission path, wherein the rigid link is pivotable relative to the manually actuable element and has a first end in driven connection with the manually actuable element and a second end defining an abutment for selectively driving the lock lever via a drive feature, wherein the drive feature couples the abutment to the lock lever so that the abutment follows an arcuate path centered on the axis of rotation when the lock lever is rotated about the axis of rotation between the locked position and the unlocked position by operation of the manually actuable element, wherein the drive feature decouples the abutment from the lock lever when the manually actuable element is actuated in an attempt to move the lock lever from the superlocked position such that the abutment moves relative to the lock lever, and wherein the drive feature includes an elongate slot in the lock lever, the elongate slot including a slot end and a notch arranged at the slot end for engaging the abutment, and the abutment rests partly in the notch and partly in the elongate slot when the lock lever is in one of the locked position and the unlocked position.