Land vehicles: bodies and tops – Tops – Roof structure
Reexamination Certificate
2001-03-12
2002-10-01
Pedder, Dennis H. (Department: 3612)
Land vehicles: bodies and tops
Tops
Roof structure
C296S214000, C296S220010
Reexamination Certificate
active
06457770
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a motor vehicle roof including a fixed roof structure having front and rear roof openings, two selectively adjustable covers for closing a respective roof opening, whereby at least one of the covers is selectively movable longitudinally from a closed position into an open position to at least partially clear a respective roof opening, and whereby the covers are pivotable out of the closed position into a ventilation position. The invention, furthermore, relates to a headliner arrangement for a motor vehicle roof with a roof opening which is made in the fixed roof structure and with two successive adjustable covers for closing and partially clearing the roof opening, and the front headliner unit can be pushed out of the covering position which is assigned to the front cover to the rear into the open position, and the rear headliner unit can be pushed out of the covering position assigned to the rear cover, forward into the open position.
2. Description of the Prior Art
European Patent Publication EP 0 447 781 A2 describes a sliding and lifting roof with two covers which are located in succession in a closed position which closes the roof opening. The front cover can be raised at its rear edge from the closed position into a ventilation position. When the front cover is raised into the ventilation position, the displacement means forcibly lowers the front edge of the rear cover. In the raised ventilation position of the front cover, it can be shifted to the rear to over the rear cover, or the rear cover can be pushed under the front cover in order to clear the front or the rear section of the roof opening.
With known headliner arrangements of the type the invention is directed toward, two comparatively large-area headliner elements are guided on respective guide rails which are located with a vertical offset relative to one another under the fixed roof structure so that they can be stowed at the same time on top of one another under the middle part of the roof. However, the free head space for vehicle passengers is reduced by the guide rail which has been offset down.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The object of the invention is to devise the initially mentioned motor vehicle roof in which optimized ventilation of the motor vehicle can be achieved by different cover positions.
Another object of the invention is to devise a headliner for a motor vehicle roof of the initially mentioned type which can be stowed under the roof in its open position with little space requirement.
These and other objects may be achieved in accordance with the present invention in the initially mentioned type of motor vehicle roof in that the front cover and the rear cover can be raised with their respective rear edges about their front edges into their ventilation positions. The rear edges can be raised by pivoting the cover about its front edge or about a transverse axis which runs in the continuing area about the front edge of the cover. Accordingly, two sliding and lifting roofs are combined, and the rear sliding and lifting roof or the rear cover can be moved forward to under the front cover by a guide mechanism from its closed position.
The objects may also be achieved in the initially mentioned type of motor vehicle roof in accordance with the present invention also in that the front cover can be lowered about its rear edge into its ventilation position and the rear cover can be raised about its front edge into its ventilation position. The front, lowerable cover, as a result of the lowering of its front edge, is also called the “front vent”. By way of the lowered front edge on the front cover and the raised rear edge of the rear cover two ventilation openings which are distant from one another are made available with improved ventilation action for the entire motor vehicle interior.
Furthermore, the objects may be achieved in accordance with the present invention in the initially mentioned motor vehicle roof in that the front cover can be pivoted about its front edge into its ventilation position and the rear cover can be lowered about its rear edge into its ventilation position.
Finally, the objects of the invention may be achieved such that the front cover and the rear cover can be lowered on their respective front edges about their respective rear edges into their ventilation positions. In addition, in a preferred embodiment, the motor vehicle roof includes a pivotable wind deflector in front of the front cover, the wind deflector being pivotable so that a draft can be produced for ventilating the interior of the motor vehicle, and especially for the front cover which can be lowered on its front edge, a clearly larger ventilation opening can be set when the pivoted-out wind deflector also clears an additional opening.
The objects may also be achieved with respect to the aforementioned headliner in that the two headliner units are guided roughly in a common plane near the roof out of their cover positions in the direction to their open positions and that at least one of the two headliner units in the longitudinal direction is divided into at least two headliner elements which can be displaced or pivoted relative to one another, and while it is being pushed to its open position, it is guided from its arrangement near the roof to under the other headliner unit. The division of the large-area headliner unit into at least two or even more headliner elements which are shorter in the longitudinal direction makes the headliner unit flexible about one or more transverse axes such that it can be moved into a stowed position and can be deposited therein, and the guides to the stowage position can be located near the roof. In this way, the head space for the vehicle passengers is not unduly limited. The headliner unit can have individual, separate elements which can be flexibly or pivotably joined to one another, or alternatively, it can be made in one piece with sections divided in the longitudinal direction with varied bending flexibility in order, for example, to be able to follow a guideway which is bent in a S-shape.
Preferably, a headliner unit is movably supported on a guide which essentially follows the roof contour and which extends from the assigned cover to the middle part of the headliner, and the other headliner unit is movably guided on a guide which runs in the area of the middle part of the headliner underneath the other guide. If the two headliner units can be moved independently of one another, according to the requirements of the vehicle passengers, then only one of the headliner elements can be partially or completely closed.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4852938 (1989-08-01), Hirshberg et al.
patent: 5002334 (1991-03-01), Meiler et al.
patent: 5601330 (1997-02-01), Ulbrich et al.
patent: 37 25 982 (1989-02-01), None
patent: 40 41 908 (1992-01-01), None
patent: 44 13 704 (1996-01-01), None
patent: 195 03 786 (1996-08-01), None
patent: 197 01 211 (1998-02-01), None
patent: 0 447 781 (1991-09-01), None
patent: 854061 (1996-01-01), None
De Gaillard Francois
Pfalzgraf Manfred
Schätzler Walter
Schleicher Bernd
Nixon & Peabody LLP
Pedder Dennis H.
Safran David S.
Webasto Vehicle Systems International GmbH
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