Patent ID: 7090264

Claim:
A latch mechanism for securing a vehicle door by engaging a striker of the vehicle, the latch mechanism comprising: a housing a face plate spaced apart from the housing; a fork bolt movably received between said housing and said face plate, said fork bolt being capable of traveling between an open door position, a closed door position and a locked door position, said fork bolt engaging the striker as said fork bolt moves from the open door position to the closed door position; a first protrusion disposed on a surface of said housing, said first protrusion having a length corresponding to the movement of the fork bolt from the open door position to the closed door position and the locked door position, said protrusion gradually increasing in height from said surface along said length wherein said protrusion makes contact with the fork bolt as the fork bolt travels from the open door position to the closed door position and the locked door position; and a second protrusion disposed on a surface of the face plate, said second protrusion having a length corresponding to the movement of the fork bolt from the open door position to the closed door position and the locked door position, said second protrusion gradually increasing in height from said face plate along said length wherein said second protrusion makes contact with the fork bolt as the fork bolt travels from the open door position to the closed door position and the locked door position, said first protrusion and said second protrusion each make initial contact with said fork bolt when said fork bolt is in the closed door position; and wherein tolerances between said fork bolt, said housing and said face plate are minimized as said fork bolt moves from the closed door position to the locked door position, and wherein said fork bolt further comprises a pair of protrusions disposed on said fork bolt such that one is disposed on one side of said fork bolt and the other is disposed on another side of said fork bolt, said pair of protrusions each having a length corresponding to the movement of the fork bolt from the open door position to the closed door position and the locked door position, said pair of protrusions gradually increasing in height from said fork bolt along said length and said pair protrusions being configured to engage said first protrusion and said second protrusion in an interlocking fashion wherein said pair of protrusions increase in height in an opposite direction with respect to said first protrusion and said second protrusion.