Fixture to set a door striker

Details Fixture to set a door striker Fixture to set a door striker

1999-12-17

2001-04-03

Hughes, S. Thomas (Department: 3726)

Metal working

Method of mechanical manufacture

Assembling or joining

C029S271000, C029S281500, C029S464000, C029S407100

Reexamination Certificate

active

06209186

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to vehicle assembly tooling and more particularly to a tool for aligning a door striker to a vehicle body.
2. Discussion
Despite widespread use of striker positioning fixtures, variations in the various components which affect striker alignment have not eliminated the need to manually verify and adjust the alignment of a striker structure to a latch mechanism. Many of the tools currently in use are based on nominal dimensions and lack the capability to accurately adjust for normal manufacturing and assembly tolerances. Consequently, vehicle manufactures expend tremendous amounts of labor to measure the alignment between the striker and a latch mechanism, and to adjust the alignment of the striker when it is determined to be out of position.
To gage the alignment between a striker and a latch mechanism, a technician will repeatedly open and close a vehicle door to “feel” whether the striker is dragging on the latch mechanism. This process is heavily dependent upon the skill and experience to the technician and several iterations of unfastening, moving, refastening and rechecking are typically necessary to obtain satisfactory alignment.
Despite the effort that vehicle manufactures expand to achieve proper alignment between a striker and a latch mechanism, complaints regarding improperly aligned strikers are relatively frequent. Consequently, there remains a need in the art for tool for aligning a striker to a latch mechanism that provides more accurate results.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is one object of the present invention to provide a tool for coupling a striker to a structure in operative alignment with a latch mechanism.
It a more specific object of the present invention to provide a tool for aligning a striker to a latch mechanism which compensates for the variances in the manufacturing and assembly which affect striker alignment.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a method for aligning a striker to a latch mechanism.
A tool for coupling a striker to a first structure in operative alignment with a latch mechanism is provided. The tool includes a body locating portion and first and second locating portions. The body locating portion selectively couples the tool to a first structure, such as a vehicle body. The first location portion has a wedge member and a post member. The post member engages a latch ratchet in the latch mechanism and the tapered surfaces of the wedge member engage either the latch mechanism or the structure to which the latch mechanism is mounted. The second location portion includes a plate member, a positioning member and a positioning structure. The plate member has a first cavity which receives the positioning member. The plate member also has a slot which receives a leg member of the striker. The positioning structure is coupled to the plate member and slidable thereon along an axis parallel to the first cavity. The positioning structure adapted to contact a rear surface of the second structure. The positioning member disposed at least partially within the first cavity and coupled to the positioning structure such that axial movement of the positioning structure in a first axial direction causes positioning member to move an equal amount in an axial direction opposite the first axial direction. Contact between the positioning structure and the rear surface of the second structure causes the positioning member to move within the slot such that a tip of the positioning member defines a desired position of an outermost portion of the leg of the striker. A method for aligning a striker to a latch mechanism is also provided.


REFERENCES:
patent: 4744135 (1988-05-01), Roels
patent: 4930337 (1990-06-01), Schaap
patent: 4989313 (1991-02-01), Dzurko et al.
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patent: 5653012 (1997-08-01), Pasternak et al.
patent: 5694675 (1997-12-01), Pasternak et al.
patent: 5979952 (1999-11-01), Dering et al.
patent: 6029335 (2000-02-01), Hui et al.

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