Patent ID: 8708404

Claim:
A moveable panel system for a roof of a passenger compartment of a vehicle, comprising: a roof wall of the vehicle, a left lateral edge, a right lateral edge, a front edge, and a rear edge with said roof wall defining a passenger compartment opening between said edges; a pair of tracks disposed in said roof wall and longitudinally extending from said front edge towards said rear edge including a left track extending along said left lateral edge and a right track extending along said right lateral edge; a panel sized to close said opening; a set of mechanical linkages disposed in said tracks and moveably coupling said panel to said tracks, said set of mechanical linkages including a left mechanical linkage coupled to a left side of said panel and a right mechanical linkage coupled to a right side of said panel; a left mechanical interface coupled to said left mechanical linkage having an open mode that moves said left side towards said rear edge and said left mechanical interface having a close mode that moves said left side towards said front edge; a right mechanical interface, independent from said left mechanical interface, coupled to said right mechanical linkage having an open mode that moves said right side towards said rear edge and said right mechanical interface having a close mode that moves said right side towards said front edge; a pair of motors mounted to the vehicle and responsive to a plurality of motor control signals, said pair of motors including a left motor coupled to said left mechanical interface and controlling said modes of said left mechanical interface and including a right motor coupled to said right mechanical interface and controlling said modes of said right mechanical interface, wherein said left mechanical interface includes a left conduit extending from said left motor to said left track and a left flexible cable extending from a reel of said left motor to said left mechanical linkage through said left conduit; wherein said right mechanical interface includes a right conduit extending from said right motor to said right track and a right flexible cable extending from a reel of said right motor to said right mechanical linkage through said right conduit; and wherein said modes of said mechanical linkages are controlled by winding/unwinding said cables; and a motor controller coupled to said motors and generating said plurality of motor control signals including an open control signal and a closed control signal with said open control signal causing said motors to operate their coupled mechanical interfaces in said open mode and with said close control signal causing said motors to operate their coupled mechanical interfaces in said close mode.