Land vehicles: bodies and tops – Tops – Roof structure
Reexamination Certificate
1999-05-21
2002-04-23
Pedder, Dennis H. (Department: 3612)
Land vehicles: bodies and tops
Tops
Roof structure
C296S216070
Reexamination Certificate
active
06375253
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an open roof construction for a vehicle.
2. Description of the Related Art
An open roof construction is known from German Gebrauchsmuster DE 94 10 623 U1. The cover strip which is used in the open roof construction according to the prior art is provided with a fixing part to be fixed to the frame and an adaptation part which is connected thereto. The adaptation part is connected to the fixing part on the side remote from the opening. The connecting means for connecting the adaptation part to the fixing part are present on the outer circumference of the fixing part. The cover strip must be so connected to the frame that it is vertically adjustable, in order to compensate for the differences in the distance from the underside of the roof trim to the roof that cannot be bridged by the flap of the adaptation part. This makes the construction and the fitting of the cover strip rather complicated.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The object of the invention is to provide an open roof construction which does not exhibit the aforesaid problems.
In order to accomplish that objective, the open roof construction according to the invention is characterized in that the connecting means between said fixing part and said adaptation part is provided at a location inwardly of the outer circumference of the frame.
This manner of connecting the adaptation part to the fixing part enables a greater adjusting range in a vertical direction of the adaptation part, since the flap will have a larger effective length if a distance between the outer circumference of the frame and the free end of the flap remains constant. An adjusting possibility of the fixing part with respect to the frame will no longer be required in that case.
If the fixing part extends upwards from the connecting means in an the direction of the outer circumference, the flap is given maximum freedom of movement, also in upward direction.
The fixing part is preferably made of a relatively stiff material, so that a solid fixation to the frame of the open roof construction is obtained. The adaptation part, on the other hand, must be made of a more flexible material to enable it to bend through a relatively large angle and engage properly with the roof trim of the vehicle, irrespective of the mounting height of the roof trim. Accordingly, the adaptation part is made of a material which is different, in particular more flexible, from the material of the fixing part.
Any material that possesses a suitable degree of stiffness may be selected as the material for the fixing part and for the adaptation part. For the fixing part, it is preferred to use a material having a relatively large modulus of flexure, for example a mixture of acrylonitrile butadiene styreme (ABS) and polycarbonate (PC) or a similar (co) polymer. For the adaptation part, it is preferred to use a material having a lower modulus of flexure, for example thermoplastic elastomer TPE or a similar (co)polymer.
It is also possible, of course, to realise differences between the flexibility of the fixing part and that of the adaptation part by using different thicknesses or shapes and providing special stiffening features, such as providing ribs, or contrarily by omitting such features.
It is preferred to have the adaptation part cover the fixing part completely, seen from below, because only the adaptation part will be exposed to view in the interior of the vehicle in that case, while other unsightly parts will remain hidden from view.
Furthermore it is preferred for the adaptation part to have a continuous outside surface, which makes it possible to obtain a gradual transition from the adaptation part to the roof trim and realize an aesthetic appearance without any interfering parts being present.
The invention also relates to a cover strip to be fixed to the underside of the frame of the above-described open roof construction.
The invention will be explained in more detail hereafter with reference to the drawing, which schematically shows an embodiment of the invention.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4585269 (1986-04-01), Lievesley
patent: 4750781 (1988-06-01), Betteridge
patent: 5722715 (1998-03-01), Patel et al.
patent: 94 10 623 (1995-12-01), None
patent: 0 286 952 (1988-10-01), None
patent: 0 648 631 (1995-04-01), None
patent: 2215284 (1989-09-01), None
patent: 88008375 (1988-11-01), None
Altorf Erich
Johannes Sanders Joseph Petrus
Verkaik Marcel
Inalfa Industries B.V.
Koehler S.
Pedder Dennis H.
Westman Champlin & Kelly P.A.
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