JP2009275407A - Door lock device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a structurally-simple door lock device which suppresses a bump noise during a release operation of a latch mechanism. <P>SOLUTION: A door handle 23a and a driving lever 16a of a releaser 14 are connected to an L-shaped link member 19a of a remote control unit 19 which is connected to a ratchet lever 7 for unlatching the door lock device. The running of an electric motor 13 is transmitted to a speed reducing gear 16, integrated with the driving lever, via a worm 15a and a worm wheel 15b; and the worm wheel is spring-urged by a spiral spring 17, so as to return the electric motor 13 to an initial position during nondriving. When unlatching is performed by the normal running of the electric motor, regenerative braking is applied by establishing a short circuit in a feeder terminal during the reverse running of the electric motor after that. A simple structure makes the return of the electric motor slow by virtue of the regenerative braking, even if the electric motor is returned to the initial position by a strong spring urging force. This can prevent the generation of the loud bump noise. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a door lock device having a ratchet mechanism that prevents an operation of a latch mechanism in an unlatching direction when the latch mechanism and a striker are engaged.

Conventionally, in a door lock device for holding a door in a closed state, a latch mechanism provided on one of the vehicle body and the door and a striker provided on the other engage with each other when the door is closed. Some of them are provided with a ratchet mechanism that prevents the latch mechanism from moving in the unlatching direction in the combined state. In addition, there is one that automatically unlocks a door lock device by driving a ratchet mechanism with an electric motor (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2).
JP-A-9-209627 JP 2000-038792 A

  In Patent Document 1, an operating lever to which a locking arm for locking a door lock device is coupled is driven by an electric motor, and the rotation of the electric motor is decelerated by a worm and a worm wheel and transmitted to the operating lever. I am doing so. The locking is released by the rotation of the operating lever. After the release, the worm wheel is spring-biased to the initial position by the spring in order to return the electric motor (armature) to the initial position. However, in order to reverse the worm, that is, the armature from the worm wheel side, a large tension spring is used. When the electric motor (armature) is returned to the initial position by the large tension spring, a part of the speed reduction mechanism is used. There is a problem that the hitting sound is loud when hitting the stopper.

  In Patent Document 2, the actuator for releasing the locking by the latch mechanism is an electric motor, a reduction gear mechanism composed of a worm and a worm wheel, and both members are friction-joined between the reduction gear mechanism and the output member. And a coil spring provided so as to be configured. According to this structure, since the coil spring acts as a clutch, the electric motor does not reverse when the output member is returned to the initial position after the electric motor is operated to release the lock. In addition to the increase, there was a problem that the structure was complicated.

  In order to solve such a problem and realize a door lock device having a simple structure in which an impact sound is suppressed during the release operation of the latch mechanism, in the present invention, either the vehicle body or the door is provided. A door lock device comprising: a latch mechanism provided; a striker provided on the other; and a ratchet mechanism that prevents the latch mechanism from moving in a latch release direction when the latch mechanism is engaged with the striker. An electric motor drivingly connected to the ratchet mechanism, spring means for biasing the electric motor toward an initial position when the electric motor is not driven, and a control device for controlling the electric motor. And the controller is configured to drive the ratchet mechanism from the blocked state to the latch release side by a predetermined amount with respect to the electric motor by a door open signal. And dynamic state, and it shall make control to apply a regenerative braking after the said non-driven state.

  In particular, the control device may perform the control to apply the regenerative braking by opening the power supply terminal of the electric motor once to make the non-driving state, and short-circuiting the power supply terminal after the opening. And a door operation recognition switch that outputs a switch signal to the control device in conjunction with a door operation and the ratchet mechanism, and the control device receives the switch signal when the switch signal is input after the non-driven state. It is preferable to perform control to apply the regenerative braking by short-circuiting the power supply terminal of the motor. Further, the control device may include a timer that counts a predetermined time from the start of driving the predetermined amount by the electric motor, and performs control to apply the regenerative braking after the predetermined time is counted by the timer.

  Thus, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the release operation blocking state with respect to the latch mechanism by the ratchet mechanism is released by driving the electric motor by a predetermined amount, and then the electric motor is set in the non-driven state by the spring means. When the electric motor is returned to, the electric motor is regeneratively braked through the non-driven state after being driven by the predetermined amount, so even if the electric motor is returned to the initial position with a strong spring biasing force, the regenerative braking causes a gradual return. It is possible to prevent the generation of a large hitting sound that occurs when returned only by a strong spring force. Since the above structure is realized without using a clutch, the number of parts is small and the structure is not complicated.

  According to the second aspect, since the power supply terminal is short-circuited and temporarily opened before regenerative braking is applied, the electric motor can be quickly returned to the initial position by the spring biasing force during the opening. Therefore, even if regenerative braking is applied thereafter, it can be returned to the initial position in a short time as a whole.

  According to the third aspect of the present invention, in the case where the door operation recognition switch is provided, the timing for applying the regenerative braking of the electric motor can be taken by the switch signal, and the door operation can be reliably controlled. Alternatively, according to the fourth aspect, since the control is performed by the timer, the electric motor can be controlled without using the door recognition switch, and can be controlled without any problem even when the switch does not operate for some reason. It is.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 conceptually shows a door lock device for a vehicle door to which the present invention is applied. The door lock device 1 includes a striker 2 fixed on the vehicle body side and a latch mechanism 3 fixed on the door side. In addition, the fixed part of the striker 2 and the latch mechanism 3 may be reverse to the above.

  The striker 2 is formed in a stud pin shape or a U-shape obtained by bending a round bar. The latch mechanism 3 is formed with a U-shaped groove-shaped notch 4 that receives the striker 2 that enters when the door is closed, and is capable of rotating by being pushed by the striker 2 when the door is moved in the closing direction, and is not shown. It has a latch member 5 that is always urged to rotate in the unlocking (unlatching) direction (arrow A in the figure) by a spring means. The latch member 5 is provided with a pair of ratchet engaging portions 6a and 6b. One end of the ratchet lever 7 constituting the ratchet mechanism is appropriately engaged with the ratchet engaging portions 6a and 6b so as to prevent the latch member 5 from rotating in the unlocking direction. The ratchet lever 7 is always urged to rotate in a direction (arrow B in the drawing) in which the ratchet lever 7 is engaged with the ratchet engaging portions 6a and 6b by a return spring 12 as a spring means.

  The other end of the ratchet lever 7 is connected to a door handle (not shown) via a connecting rod 8, and the direction in which the ratchet lever 7 is disengaged from both ratchet engaging portions 6 a and 6 b by operating the door handle (what is the arrow B)? It can be rotated in the reverse direction.

  The ratchet lever 7 is provided with a ratchet switch 9 that is turned on when the ratchet lever 7 is engaged with both ratchet engaging portions 6a and 6b. The latch member 5 is a half latch switch that is turned on at a position where the latch member 5 is slightly rotated after the ratchet lever 7 is engaged with the ratchet engaging portion 6a at the half latch position (position immediately after entering the half latch area). 10 and a full latch switch 11 which is turned on at a position where the latch member 5 is rotated just before the ratchet lever 7 is engaged with the ratchet engaging portion 6b at the full latch position (a position immediately before the full latch region). Yes.

  Note that the illustrated positions of the switches 9, 10, and 11 are explanatory positions, and do not indicate an accurate switching operation. For example, the half latch switch 10 is provided to be turned on from the half latch detection position to the full latch state.

  The door lock device 1 includes, for example, a closure (automatic closing) driven reciprocally by an electric motor 21 in order to rotationally drive the latch member 5 against a biasing force of a spring means (not shown) from a half latch position to a full latch position. (Mechanism) 22 is attached. In the illustrated example, the closure 22 is projected by forward rotation of the electric motor 21 and the latch member 5 is pushed to rotate in the full latch direction (opposite to the arrow A), and the closure 22 is returned to the initial position by the reverse rotation of the motor 21 (arrow). (C direction). Note that the closure does not hinder the opening movement of the latch member 5 during the opening operation, and it is sufficient that the driving force is applied to the latch member 5 only when the fully-closed drive is necessary. An electric drive mechanism can be applied.

  In addition, between the door handle and the ratchet lever 7, a mechanism for disconnecting these interlocks when the silkcon knob is pressed, a one-way mechanism for preventing the force from the ratchet lever 7 toward the door handle, and the like are attached. However, these may be known mechanisms, and the description thereof is omitted.

  The door lock device 1 is provided with a releaser (automatic unlocking mechanism) 14 for releasing the engagement between the ratchet lever 7 and the latch mechanism 3 by the electric motor 13. The electric motor 13 rotates the ratchet lever 7 against the spring biasing force of the return spring 12. This rotation direction is a direction to be detached from the ratchet engaging portions 6a and 6b as indicated by an arrow D in FIG.

  A drive connection structure between the ratchet lever 7 and the electric motor 13 will be described below with reference to FIG. As shown in the figure, the releaser 14 provided between the ratchet lever 7 and the electric motor 13 is disposed so as to mesh with the worm 15a integrally provided on the drive shaft of the electric motor 13 and the worm 15a. The worm wheel 15b, a reduction gear 16 that meshes with the worm wheel 15b and decelerates, and a drive lever 16a that is coaxially coupled to swing when the reduction gear 16 rotates. The worm wheel 15b is always biased toward the initial position by, for example, a spiral spring 17 provided coaxially. Thus, when the electric motor 13 is not driven (not energized), the worm wheel 15b is rotated in the direction opposite to the arrow G (rotation direction when the latch is released) in FIG. The electric motor 13 is urged toward the initial position through the meshing.

  One end of the latch release link rod 18 is connected to the extended end of the drive lever 16a, and the other end of the latch release link rod 18 is connected to one end of an L-shaped link member 19a of the remote control 19, for example. . The other end of the L-shaped link member 19 a is connected to the ratchet lever 7 via the connecting rod 8. The remote control 19 is provided with a remote control switch 19b which is turned on / off by the rotation of the L-shaped link member 19a. The remote control switch 19b is set so as to be turned on in the rotation range on the half latch state side from a position corresponding to between the open state and the half latch state of the L-shaped link member 19a in FIG.

  Further, an inner door handle 23a and an outer door handle 23b provided on the door 23 are connected to the drive lever 16a via connecting rods 24a and 24b. When the door handles 23a and 23b are opened, the drive lever 16a is rotated in the direction indicated by the arrow D in FIG. 2, whereby the ratchet lever 7 is indicated by the arrow E in the figure via the L-shaped link member 19a. Rotate in the direction. The direction of rotation of the ratchet lever 7 in the direction of arrow E is the latch release direction. As a result, the latch member 5 is released from the rotation preventing state in the latch release direction by the ratchet lever 7 and is in a free state. Therefore, the latch member 5 is displaced by the spring means (not shown) and the displacement of the striker 2 accompanying the opening operation of the door 23. It can rotate until it reaches the open state.

  The electric motors 13 and 21 are driven and controlled by the control device 25. The control device 25 includes, for example, a door opening signal output from a receiving device 26 that receives a remote operation signal from a user's portable switch, a switch signal from a remote control switch 19b, a driver's seat operation switch (not shown), and vehicle body information. Etc. are to be entered.

  When the door opening signal output from the receiving device 26 is input, the control device 25 drives the electric motor 13 to rotate forward to release the ratchet. In the illustrated example, the forward rotation of the electric motor 13 is the direction of rotation of the ratchet lever 7 toward the ratchet release (arrow E in FIG. 2), and the reverse rotation is the rotation direction of the electric motor 13 to the initial position.

  A motor drive circuit in the control device 25 will be described with reference to FIG. 3 is a circuit for driving the electric motor 13 of the releaser 14 and the electric motor 21 of the door lock device 1. As shown in the figure, one power supply terminal 13a of the electric motor 13 is connected to the normally open terminal of the first relay RY1, and the other power supply terminal 13b is grounded. The common terminal of the first relay RY1 is connected to the common terminal of the second relay RY2. The normally closed terminal of the first relay RY1 is connected to the common terminal of the third relay RY3 via the electric motor 21. The normally open terminals of the second relay RY2 and the third relay RY3 are connected to the power supply terminals, and the normally closed terminals of the relays RY2 and RY3 are grounded. Moreover, each relay drive circuit DR1-3 which controls each exciting coil of each relay RY1-3 is provided.

  The operation procedure of the door lock device 1 configured as described above will be described below with reference to the time chart of FIG. First, in the fully closed state of the door 23, the door lock device 1 is in the full latch state of FIG. 5, the half latch switch 10, the full latch switch 11, and the ratchet switch 9 are on, and the remote control switch 18b is off. The power supply terminals 13a and 13b of the motor 13 are in the open state shown in FIG. 3, and the door drive motor (not shown) is in the stopped state.

  In order to release the latch by the door opening signal output from the receiving device 26, as shown in FIG. 6, the first relay RY1 and the second relay are driven by the door opening signal both relay drive circuits DR1 and 2 output from the receiving device 26, as shown in FIG. Turn on RY2. Electric power is supplied from the power supply terminal to the electric motor 13 through the closed contacts of the second relay RY2 and the first relay RY1, and the electric motor 13 rotates forward in the latch release direction. As a result, the drive lever 16a rotates in the direction indicated by the arrow D in FIG. 2, and the L-shaped link member 19a rotates in the direction of the arrow F accordingly, so the remote control switch 19b is first turned on. Next, the ratchet lever 7 which is also interlocked with the drive lever 16a is rotated by a predetermined amount in the direction of arrow E, and the ratchet switch 9 is turned off.

  When the striker 2 moves away from the notch 4 of the latch member 5 by a spring means (not shown) or the like, the latch member 5 rotates from the full latch state to the half latch state, and the full latch switch 11. Turns off. Further, when the latch member 5 rotates from the half latch state to the open state, the half latch switch 10 is turned off. The timing at which the full latch switch 11 is turned off is the timing indicating that the state of preventing the latch member 5 from moving in the latch release direction has been released.

  The door automatic opening drive in the automatic door (power slide door or the like) is performed after the engagement state of the latch mechanism 3 and the striker 2 is released, and the full latch switch 11 is turned off to start the drive. It is designed to receive a signal. The operation timing of the door drive motor shown in FIG. 4 includes a signal switching time lag.

  The electric motor 13 is returned to the initial position after a lapse of time when it is determined that the electric motor 13 is reliably released from the latch. The determination time can be set in advance by a program, an internal timer of the CPU, or the like as a time considering that the electric motor 13 is delayed at high and low temperatures.

  After a predetermined time has elapsed with respect to the forward rotation of the electric motor 13, the electric power supply of the electric motor 13 is stopped and the electric motor 13 is returned to the initial position by the spring biasing force of the spiral spring 17 as described above. As shown in FIG. 4, only the first relay RY1 is turned on to short-circuit the power supply terminals 13a and 13b. As a result, regenerative braking is applied to the electric motor 13 and a resistance force against the spring biasing force of the spiral spring 17 is generated, so that the rotational speed when the electric motor 13 is reversely rotated is slower than when regenerative braking is not applied. Therefore, the motor sound when the electric motor 13 reverses is reduced, and a high-quality automatic door device can be provided. Since the electric motor 13 returns to the initial position due to the slow rotation, the sound when the electric motor 13 is reversed is small, and the occurrence of an impact sound when returning to the initial position and hitting a stopper or the like is prevented. The

  Next, a second embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. The process up to the forward rotation operation of the electric motor 13 described in FIG. In the case of the above-described embodiment, an example in which the control device 25 does not particularly recognize the signal of the remote control switch 18b is shown. However, in the present embodiment, the output of the remote control switch 19b is input to the control device 25. It is like that. As described above, the remote control switch 19b rotates the drive lever 16a in the direction indicated by the arrow D in FIG. 2 when the electric motor 13 rotates forward in the latch release direction, and accordingly, the L-shaped link member 19a. Is turned on by rotating in the direction of arrow F, but the inner door handle 23a and the outer door handle 23b are connected to the L-shaped link member 19a via the connecting rods 24a and 24b. Therefore, the remote control switch 19b is also turned on by operating the door handles 23a and 23b. In addition, when the door handles 23a and 23b are re-operated during the door opening operation, the control device 25 performs control to stop the operation. Thus, since the remote control switch 19b is configured to be turned on when the electric motor 13 is rotated forward and when the door handles 23a and 23b are operated, the electric motor 13 is rotated forward and the latch member 5 is latched. When the door handles 23a and 23b are operated while the L-shaped link member 19a is turning (while the remote control switch 19b is on) after the release of the full latch switch 11 and the full latch switch 11 is turned off. In the range of t, the operation cannot be recognized, and there may be a time lag until the electric motor 13 rotates reversely, the L-shaped link member 19a returns, and the remote control switch 19b is turned off.

  In the second embodiment, the power supply terminals 13a and 13b are opened for a predetermined time t1 from the end of forward rotation of the electric motor 13 (state shown in FIG. 3). As a result, the electric motor 13 can be quickly reversed by the spring biasing force of the spiral spring 17. If it is left as it is, a large reversal noise or a large collision noise to the stopper may occur. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 7, only the first relay RY1 is turned on and the power supply terminals 13a and 13b are turned on. Short circuit and apply regenerative braking. As a result, the electric motor 13 returns to the initial position by slow rotation in the same manner as described above, so that the sound during reverse rotation of the electric motor 13 is small, and the impulsive sound when returning to the initial position and hitting the stopper or the like Is also prevented.

  In the second embodiment, a time t1 for temporarily opening the power supply terminals 13a and 13b is provided. The opening time t1 is a time necessary and sufficient for the L-shaped link member 19a to be turned by the spring biasing force of the spiral spring 17 and the remote control switch 19b to be turned off, and the spiral spring when the electric motor 13 is not driven. 17 is set shorter than the time for reverse rotation and return to the initial position.

  According to the second embodiment, since the regenerative braking is performed after the remote control switch 19b is turned off once by performing the quick reverse operation by the spring biasing force without performing the regenerative braking immediately after the latch release. The operation of each door handle 23a / 23b can be recognized after a short time (t2 in FIG. 8).

  Further, in the second embodiment, the adjustment is made by setting the opening time of the electric motor 13, but the control device 25 is provided with a timer 27 that starts timing from the start of the forward rotation operation, and the time-up time t3 is adjusted. The same control as in the second embodiment can be performed. Thus, even if the remote control switch 19b does not operate for some reason, control can be performed without any problem.

  Needless to say, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. For example, in the present embodiment, the timing at which the full latch switch 11 is turned off is set as a timing indicating that the state of preventing the operation of the latch member 5 in the latch release direction has been released. Without being limited, it can be arbitrarily set according to the control timing of the closure 22 and the releaser 14, such as switching timing of the half latch switch 10 and the ratchet switch, and the specifications of the latch mechanism 3.

It is a figure which shows notionally the door lock apparatus to which this invention was applied. It is a typical explanatory view showing a reaser to which the present invention is applied. It is a figure which shows the drive circuit of an electric motor. It is a time chart which shows the control point based on this invention. It is a figure similar to FIG. 1 which shows a latch release state. It is a figure corresponding to FIG. 3 which shows the electric motor drive state at the time of ratchet cancellation | release. It is a figure corresponding to FIG. 3 which shows the short circuit state of an electric power feeding terminal. It is a figure corresponding to FIG. 4 which shows 2nd Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Door lock apparatus 2 Striker 3 Latch mechanism 5 Latch member 6a * 6b Ratchet engaging part 7 Ratchet lever 8 Connecting rod 9 Ratchet switch 13 Electric motor 14 Releaser 19 Remote control 19a L-shaped link member 19b Remote control switch 23 Door 25 Control apparatus 26 Reception Device 27 timer

Claims (4)

A latch mechanism provided on one of the vehicle body and the door, a striker provided on the other, and a ratchet that prevents the latch mechanism from operating in the latch release direction when the latch mechanism and the striker are engaged. A door lock device having a mechanism,
An electric motor drivingly connected to the ratchet mechanism, spring means for biasing the electric motor toward an initial position when the electric motor is not driven, and a control device for controlling the electric motor,
The control device drives the ratchet mechanism from the blocking state to the latch release side by a predetermined amount from the blocking state to a non-driving state by the door open signal, and applies regenerative braking to the electric motor after switching to the non-driving state. A door lock device characterized by performing control.   2. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the control device performs a control of applying the regenerative braking by opening the power supply terminal of the electric motor once to set the non-driving state and short-circuiting the power supply terminal after the opening. The door lock device described. A door operation recognition switch that outputs a switch signal to the control device in conjunction with a door operation and the ratchet mechanism;
3. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the control device performs control to apply the regenerative braking by short-circuiting a power supply terminal of the electric motor when the switch signal is input after the non-driving state. The door lock device described.   2. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the control device includes a timer that counts a predetermined time from the start of driving the predetermined amount by the electric motor, and performs control to apply the regenerative braking after the predetermined time is counted by the timer. Item 3. A door lock device according to any one of Items 2 to 3.

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