Movable or removable closures – Closure seal; e.g. – striker gasket or weatherstrip – U-shaped member or portion mounts seal
Reexamination Certificate
1997-12-15
2001-06-12
Redman, Jerry (Department: 3634)
Movable or removable closures
Closure seal; e.g., striker gasket or weatherstrip
U-shaped member or portion mounts seal
Reexamination Certificate
active
06243990
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an article equipped with an elastomer bead by extrusion in situ and, more particularly, to an assembling element which has a fastening edge onto which the elastomer bead, intended particularly to form a leaktight seal between the article it is equipping and another article with respect to which it is able to move, is fastened.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Document EP-A-0,524,092 describes a technique for equipping an article with a profiled bead which is extruded in situ. The bead is made from elastomer and can equip various articles, car windows and diverse car components, such as doors, bonnets or casings, doors or windows or glazing intended for buildings, and also domestic-appliance doors or elements.
In this document, the elastomer bead is fastened to the article by bonding, this being achieved by virtue of the choice of elastomer and the treatment given to the surface of the article.
In the case of car-bodywork elements, extrusion of the elastic rubber leaktight seal directly onto the bodywork element, particularly onto a door, is known from document DE 3,833,887 A1. Extrusion is carried out by a programme-controlled automatic manipulator, the process conditions, in this case also, being chosen so that durable bonding is obtained between the extruded leaktight seal and the bodywork element.
When the leaktight seal is bonded permanently to the bodywork element, it has to be torn off when it impedes a repair which has become necessary. After the repair has been carried out, a new leaktight seal must firstly be extruded in a repeat extrusion operation. In the repair workshops where repairs are carried out, the devices required for this operation are, however, generally unavailable, so the subsequent extrusion of weatherstrips is not trouble-free.
A first object of the invention is to prepare an assembling element which includes an extruded leaktight seal which, if necessary, may be removed simply from the assembling element and later be reused on this same element.
Moreover, when bonded elastomer seals are stressed by tearing-away under particularly rough conditions or when, owing to the nature of the substrate, for example, the bond may prove insufficient, it is necessary to improve the attachment of the seal to its support.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
To achieve its objects, the invention proposes an assembling element equipped with an elastomer bead by extrusion in situ on a fastening edge of the element in which the fastening edge is provided with anchoring notches or anchoring projections, the elastomer material having penetrated into intimate contact with the said notches or projections.
In a first variant, the elastomer and the fastening edge do not form an adhesive joint and the anchoring notches or projections have a re-entrant angle which is limited so as to produce a solely mechanical anchoring which enables the elastomer bead to be detached from the fastening edge and to be subsequently refastened.
In a second variant, the anchoring notches or the anchoring projections have a re-entrant angle such that the elastomer bead cannot be detached from the fastening edge without damage.
The characteristics of the invention thus make it possible to continue with the economic process of extruding weatherstrips and simultaneously to avoid the drawbacks hitherto associated with this process since, on the one hand, they may, if necessary, be detached from the bodywork element and subsequently reused. This is made possible by the fact that the adhesive joint which was produced hitherto during extrusion is replaced by a suitable mechanical joint. Although, in the case of the invention in its final form, this is a press-in weatherstrip, it is substantially without the drawbacks which are linked to known press-in strips. In particular, it is ideally suited to the shape of the fastening edge and therefore guarantees a complete seal against water infiltration between the weatherstrip and the fastening edge. On the other hand, in the second variant of the invention, the use of a reinforced assembling technique makes it possible to ensure that, even under the most difficult conditions of use, the bead can never be torn away from the assembling element.
In the first variant, to avoid bonding the strip to the fastening edge, the elastomer used for the extrusion operation and/or the surface of the fastening edge must be of such a nature that they do not bond to each other. This may be achieved, for example, through the choice of a suitable elastomer which does not adhere, without further processing, to the surface of the fastening edge. Adhesion may also be prevented by suitably treating the surface of the fastening edge, for example by depositing a suitable separating agent. The notches and/or the projections producing mechanical anchoring on the fastening edge may be formed, in principle, in any way, provided they allow the weatherstrip moulding to be detached mechanically and reinserted. In the second variant, by contrast, the conditions for satisfactory adhesion may advantageously be set up, it being possible, in fact, for adhesion to be combined with mechanical attachment to ensure fail-safe assembling. Moreover, continuous adhesion guarantees a satisfactory seal.
In all cases, during extrusion of the elastomer forming the weatherstrip, the extrusion die and the fastening edge must be formed in such a manner that the eroded hollows which are formed by the anchoring projections or the anchoring notches are filled during the extrusion operation.
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patent: 2679667 (1954-06-01), Angus
patent: 2968072 (1961-01-01), Bright
patent: 5261721 (1993-11-01), Conger et al.
patent: 5336349 (1994-08-01), Cornils et al.
patent: 5613327 (1997-03-01), Sauve
patent: 38 33 887 A1 (1990-04-01), None
patent: 0 524 092 A1 (1992-07-01), None
patent: 655299 (1951-07-01), None
patent: 1070547 (1967-06-01), None
Cornils Gerd
Kotte Rolf
Ziesen Stefan
Pennie & Edmonds LLP
Redman Jerry
Saint-Gobain Vitrage
William C
LandOfFree
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