Movable or removable closures – Closure seal; e.g. – striker gasket or weatherstrip – Tubular or tubular portion
Reexamination Certificate
1999-12-28
2002-05-28
Cohen, Curtis A. (Department: 3634)
Movable or removable closures
Closure seal; e.g., striker gasket or weatherstrip
Tubular or tubular portion
C049S475100
Reexamination Certificate
active
06393766
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This application claims priority from Japanese patent application No. Hei 10-372216; the substance of which is incorporated herein.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a sealing structure of a door weather strip, and more particularly to a sealing structure for effecting a seal between the door weather strip and a periphery of a vehicle door, to which the door weather strip is attached.
2. Description of Related Art
As illustrated in
FIG. 1
, a door weather strip (hereinafter referred to as “weather strip”)
10
is continuously attached to a door frame
12
and door panel
14
of a vehicle door
16
over the entire periphery thereof. In the drawing, reference numeral
18
designates a door glass.
As illustrated in FIGS.
2
(A) and
2
(B), the weather strip
10
includes a base portion
20
, tubular main seal portion
24
and seal lip
28
. The base portion
20
is attached to a peripheral surface
22
of the door frame
12
and door panel
14
(FIG.
1
). The tubular main seal portion
24
comes into pressing contact with a surface
26
around a door opening when the door
16
is closed. The seal lip
28
projects outwardly and abuts an inner surface of a door projecting edge
30
formed around the door frame
12
and door panel
14
(FIG.
1
). A roof-side part
10
A of the weather strip
10
, which is to be attached to a roof-side part
12
A of the door frame
12
, is further provided with a sub-seal lip
32
which is adapted to come into pressing contact with an outside surface
34
around the door opening when the door
16
is closed.
Conventionally, the weather strip
10
has been attached to the door
16
by securing the base portion
20
to the peripheral surface
22
of the door frame
12
using clips at predetermined intervals.
However, if only clips are used, gaps may exist between the bottom surface of the base portion
20
of the weather strip and peripheral surface
22
of the door frame
12
between the adjacent clips.
In addition, another gap may be generated between the seal lip
28
and the door projecting edge
30
depending on how the weather strip
10
is positioned to the door frame
12
. Rain water, washing water or the like may leak into the vehicle compartment through these gaps.
Such water leakage may be prevented by bonding the base portion
20
to the peripheral surface
22
closely with a double-sided adhesive tape
36
, as illustrated in FIGS.
2
(A) and
2
(B).
However, bonding the weather strip
10
with the double-sided adhesive tape (hereinafter referred to as “adhesive tape”)
36
, requires that the adhesive tape be previously bonded to the base portion
20
of the weather strip
10
, and that the base portion
20
be pressed on the peripheral surface
22
of the door frame
14
via the adhesive tape
36
while peeling off a releasing sheet therefrom. Additionally, this bonding work must be carried out carefully so as to not allow the adhesive tape
36
to meander. Thus, troublesome operations are required, and the production costs are increased, as compared to the case using clips.
On the other hand, in the vertical parts of the periphery of the door
16
, water which has leaked between the seal lip
28
and door projecting edge
30
flows down along the vertically extending peripheral surface
22
and discharges outside of the vehicle. Therefore, if the weather strip is attached to the vertical parts of the door
16
with clips, leaked water does not enter into the vehicle compartment.
From this fact, the following attaching method would seem possible. The weather strip
10
is attached to the roof-side part
12
A and corner part
12
C of the door frame
12
with the adhesive tape
36
, and is attached to the remaining part of the periphery of the door with clips. With this method, troublesome adhesive tape-bonding operations can be decreased, and the production costs can be reduced, as compared to the method using the adhesive tape over the entire length of the door frame.
However, using the adhesive tape in both the roof-side part
12
A and the corner part
12
C of the door frame exhibits another problem. The bottom surface of the base portion
20
of the weather strip
10
, which is bonded with the adhesive tape
36
, is raised from the peripheral surface
22
of the door frame
12
by an amount corresponding to the thickness of the adhesive tape
36
. Consequently, a tunnel-like opening
64
is created at an end of the adhesive tape
36
(hereinafter referred as “tape end”), which is located in a vertical side of the corner part
12
C between the bottom surface of the base portion
20
and the door frame
12
, as shown in FIG.
1
. The tunnel-like opening is greater than the gap generated due to the clips so that water flowing down along the peripheral surface
22
of the door frame
12
may partly enter the tunnel-like opening
64
, and intrude into the vehicle compartment.
In FIGS.
2
(A) and
2
(B), the base portion
20
is provided with beads
38
along both side edges thereof. The height of the beads
38
is made less than the thickness of the adhesive tape
36
such that the beads
38
do not abut the peripheral surface
22
of the door frame
12
when the adhesive tape
36
is pressed on the peripheral surface
22
of the door frame
12
. Consequently, the beads
38
do not prevent water from leaking into the vehicle compartment through the tunnel-like opening
64
.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a sealing structure of a door weather strip, and more particularly a door weather strip wherein one part is attached to a door frame with a double-sided adhesive tape, and a remaining part is attached to a remaining part of the vehicle door with clips at predetermined intervals, such that water is prevented from leaking into a vehicle compartment through a gap formed between a periphery of the door frame and the door weather strip.
In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the base portion of the door weather strip is attached with double-sided adhesive tape to a periphery of a vehicle door so as to be bonded to a roof-side part of a vehicle door frame and a corner part, which curves from the roof-side part to a pillar-side part thereof, and secured to a remaining part of the vehicle door with clips at predetermined intervals.
The weather strip has a seal lip for abutment on an inner surface of a door projecting edge projecting from the periphery of a vehicle door. The seal lip is formed in an outer side surface of the weather strip. The weather strip has a secondary seal lip for abutment on the inner surface of the door projecting edge under and along the above-described seal lip. The secondary seal lip is formed as part of the corner part of the weather strip, which is to be attached to the corner part of the door frame, and surrounds an outer side edge of the base portion.
With the sealing structure of the present invention, water leaking between the seal lip and door peripheral edge is received by the secondary seal lip and flows down along a vertical side of the secondary seal lip instead of being caught in a tunnel-like opening between the base portion of the door weather strip and the door frame along the end of the adhesive tape. Then, water is discharged from a vertical end thereof.
Other objects, features, and characteristics of the present invention will become apparent upon consideration of the following description and the appended claims with reference to the accompanying drawings, all of which form a part of this specification.
REFERENCES:
patent: 3927493 (1975-12-01), Tsuneishi et al.
patent: 4496186 (1985-01-01), Tuchiya et al.
patent: 4817336 (1989-04-01), Kisanuki
patent: 4858385 (1989-08-01), Bright
patent: 4884370 (1989-12-01), Nozaki et al.
patent: 4928431 (1990-05-01), Kuzuha et al.
patent: 5042201 (1991-08-01), Vaughn
patent: 5048887 (1991-09-01), Kunishima et al.
patent: 5155938 (1992-10-01), Nozaki
patent: 5207029 (1993-05-01), Nozaki et al.
patent: 5269101 (1993-12-01), Nozaki et al.
Mizutani Yasushi
Nozaki Masahiro
Cohen Curtis A.
Pillsbury & Winthrop LLP
Toyoda Gosei Co,., Ltd.
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