Abstract:
An auxiliary hood latch includes a striker mounted to the hood and a bolt mounted pivotally to the body for movement between latched and unlatched positions. The bolt engages with the striker in the latched position to cooperate with the primary latch in holding the hood in closed position. A blocking member is pivotally mounted to the body for movement between a blocking position wherein the blocking member blocks the movement of the bolt to maintain the bolt in latched position and an unblocking position, when engaged by the striker, to permit the bolt to move to unlatched position.
Application Number:
04/804548
Publication Date:
03/30/1971
Assignee:
General Motors Corporation (Detroit, MI)
Other Classes:
292/225, 292/128
International Classes:
E05B65/19; E05B65/12; E05C19/12
Field of Search:
292/125,128,129,336,201,216 (TC)/ 292/(D),(RDLL),225,227,228 70/240,241,256,(X)
US Patent References:
| 2138251 | Door latch mechanism | November 1938 | Linstrom et al. | |
| 2806727 | Deck latch | September 1957 | Johnstone | |
| 3312491 | Closure latch with auxiliary latch release | April 1967 | Peters | |
Primary Examiner:
Champion, Marvin A.
Assistant Examiner:
Wolfe, Robert L.
Claims:
I claim
1. In a vehicle body having a closure member mounted on a support member for movement between open and closed positions, the combination comprising, a striker mounted on one member, a bolt mounted on the other member for movement between latched and unlatched positions and engageable with the striker in the latched position to hold the closure in the closed position, means biasing the bolt toward the latched position, blocking means mounted on the other member for movement between blocking and unblocking positions, biasing means normally biasing the blocking means to the blocking position wherein the blocking means blocks movement of the bolt to unlatched position, means mounted to the one member for moving the blocking means to the unblocking position upon movement of the closure to the closed position and for maintaining the blocking means in the unblocking position in the closed position of the closure member to permit movement of the bolt between latched and unlatched positions.
2. In a vehicle body having a closure member mounted on a support member for movement between open and closed positions, the combination comprising, a striker mounted on one member, a bolt mounted on the other member for movement between latched and unlatched positions and engageable with the striker in the latched position to hold the closure in the closed position, spring means selectively and alternatively maintaining the bolt in the latched or unlatched position, blocking means mounted on the other member for movement between blocking and unblocking positions, biasing means biasing the blocking means to the blocking position, means maintaining the blocking means in the unblocking position when the closure is in the closed position to permit movement of the bolt from latched to unlatched positions, means moving the bolt from latched to unlatched positions, and means mounted on the one member for moving the bolt to the latched position as the closure moves to the open position.
3. In a vehicle body having a closure mounted on a support for movement between open and closed positions, the combination comprising, a striker mounted on one member and including a projection, a bolt mounted on the other member for movement between latched and unlatched positions and engageable with the striker in the latched position to hold the closure in the closed position, means moving the bolt from latched to unlatched positions operable from a remote position to the bolt, said projection engaging the bolt for moving the bolt from the unlatched to the latched position upon movement of the closure from the closed to the open position, a blocking lever pivotally mounted on the other member for movement between blocking and unblocking positions, the projection engaging the blocking lever to move the blocking lever from the blocking to the unblocking positions upon movement of the closure from the open to the closed position to permit movement of the bolt between latched and unlatched positions, spring means selectively and alternatively maintaining the bolt in either one of the latched and the unlatched positions, and means on the bolt engageable by the striker when the closure is moved to the closed position to move the bolt from the latched toward the unlatched position, said spring means thereafter returning the bolt to the latched position retainingly engaging the striker and holding the closure in the closed position.
Description:
This invention relates to auxiliary hood latches and more particularly to auxiliary hood latches providing a secondary latch means for a vehicle hood and being releasable from within the vehicle.
Conventionally, automobiles have a primary hood latch for releasably holding the hood in closed position. The primary hood latch is releasable from the front of the car allowing access to the engine compartment. The primary hood latch also incorporates a secondary hood latch to aid in holding the hood in a secondary closed position.
It is sometimes desirable to locate the auxiliary hood latch apart from the primary hood latch so that the hood is held down in more than one location. This invention provides such an auxiliary hood latch which can be placed in various locations on the vehicle body to hold the hood in closed position and be operated from various locations within the body to release the hood.
In its preferred embodiment, the auxiliary hood latch includes a bolt which is normally maintained in a latched position except when the hood is in partially or fully closed position. This is accomplished by a blocking member which is normally maintained in a blocking position but which is rotated to an unblocking position by the hood as it moves to at least the partially closed position. The blocking member thus maintains the bolt in latched position whenever the hood is not either closed position.
It is, therefore, an object of this invention to provide an auxiliary hood latch for a vehicle hood which is located apart from the primary hood latch. It is a further object of this invention to provide an auxiliary hood latch, which must be released independently of the primary hood latch. It is another object of this invention to provide an auxiliary hood latch which will automatically latch the hood upon movement of the hood to closed position. It is yet another object of this invention to provide an auxiliary hood latch in which the bolt is maintained in latched position by a blocking member whenever the hood is in the partially or fully opened position. It is still another object of this invention to provide an auxiliary hood latch which includes a striker engaged by a bolt when the hood moves to closed position and operable to move a blocking member to unblocking position as the hood moves to the closed position to allow the bolt to engage the striker.
These and further objects of this invention will become apparent from the following detailed description and drawings in which:
FIG. 1 is a view of the front portion of a vehicle having a hood latch according to this invention;
FIG. 2 is an enlarged view taken along the line 2-2 of FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is a view taken along the line 3-3 of FIG. 2 showing the latch, in full lines, in the latched position and, in phantom lines, in the unlatched position; and
FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 3 showing the bolt in latched position when the hood is in the open position.
Referring now to FIG. 1, a conventional vehicle body 10 has a conventional hood 12 pivotally mounted adjacent its rearward edge by conventional means to the body 10 for movement between a closed position, as shown, and an open position, not shown. The hood 12 is releasably attached to the body 10 by a conventional primary hood latch, not shown, adjacent its forward edge. The hood 12 is also releasably latched to the body 10 by an auxiliary hood latch 14, according to this invention, which is released from inside the passenger compartment, via a conventional Bowden wire 16 and a conventional lock cylinder 18 as will later be described.
Referring now to FIG. 2, the latch 69 includes a striker plate 181 having angled flanges 22 and 24 respectively bolted to the side flanges of the inner and outer hood panels and to an intermediate flange of the inner panel of the hood 12. The striker plate 20 includes an opening 26 therein with one portion of the material of the opening portion of the material of the opening being laterally bent upwards to provide a lip 28 and another portion being bent diagonally downward to provide an arm 30 having a horizontal tab 32. As best seen in FIG. 3, a hook-shaped bolt 34 is pivoted at 36 to a body mounted support bracket 38 for movement between a latched position shown in full lines in FIGS. 2 and 3 and an unlatched position shown in phantom lines in FIG. 3. The bolt 34 includes a neck portion 40 with a latching shoulder 42, a cam surface 44 adjacent the latching shoulder 42, and a protrusion 46 spaced from the shoulder 42. The hook-shaped bolt also includes a downwardly extending arm 48 with a horizontal tab 50 thereon and a horizontal extending arm 52 with a tab 54 thereon which has a centrally located hole 56 therein.
When the hood 12 is in the closed position as shown in FIG. 3, and the bolt 34 is in the latched position, the bolt 34 extends through the opening 26 in the striker and the shoulder 42 extends over and engages the lip 28 to hold the hood 12 in the closed position.
A conventional tension spring 58 has one end hooked to hole 56 in tab 54 of bolt 34 and the other end is attached to the body 10 by being hooked through hole 60 of tab 62 of bracket 38. The spring 58 will selectively and alternatively maintain the bolt in either the latched position or the unlatched position as will be later described.
A blocking member 64 is pivotally mounted at 66 to bracket 38 for movement between unblocking and blocking positions respectively as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. The blocking member 64 has an arm 68 provided with a lateral tab 70 which is engaged by the horizontal tab 32 when the hood 12 is in the closed position to locate the blocking member 64 in the unblocking position as shown in FIG. 3. The blocking member 64 is continually biased by a torsion spring 72 toward the blocking position, shown in FIG. 4 and is located in this position by engagement of arm 68 with a lateral tab 74 of the bracket 38.
A conventional Bowden wire 16 has a loop 76 formed in the hood latch end and surrounding tab 50 with the other end of the Bowden wire 16 being attached to the lock cylinder 18 within the compartment. The loop 76 enables the bolt 34 to move between latched and unlatched positions without moving the Bowden wire 16 and yet allows movement of the Bowden wire 16 to move the bolt 34 to the unlatched position.
When the hood is in the closed position, and both the primary hood latch and the auxiliary hood latch 14 are latched, the hood 12 is latched by unlocking the conventional lock cylinder 18 and pulling the lock cylinder 18 to the right. This moves the Bowden wire 16 to the right, rotating the bolt 34 from the latched position to the unlatched position shown in phantom lines in FIG. 3. The blocking member 64 is held in the unblocking position against the action of the torsion spring 72 by the tab 32 of arm 30. As the bolt 34 moves from the latched position to the unlatched position, the spring 58 moves over center of the bolt pivot 36 so that the spring 58 now holds the bolt 34 in the unlatched position. The hood 12 is now free to be conventionally opened by releasing the primary hood latch.
As the hood is opened, the tab 32 of arm 30 moves upwardly and engages protrusion 46 on the bolt 34 to rotate the bolt 34 to the latched position. The spring 58 goes over center again to maintain bolt 34 in the latched position. Also, as the tab 32 moves upwardly it releases the blocking member 64, enabling the torsion spring to rotate the blocking member 64 counterclockwise to the blocking position as shown in FIG. 4. The blocking member maintains the bolt 34 in the latched position so long as the hood 12 remains in the open position.
The hood 12 is closed in a conventional manner from the front. As the hood 12 closes, the striker 20 approaches the bolt 34 and the tab 32 of arm 30 passes the protrusion 46 on the bolt 34 and engages the tab 70 of the blocking member 64.
Upon continued closing movement of the hood 12, tab 32 rotates the blocking member 64 to unblocking position and lip 28 engages the surface 44 of bolt 34 to cam the bolt 34 partially toward unlatched position. However, the lip 28 does not rotate the bolt 34 far enough towards the unlatched position to cause the spring 58 to pass over center of the pivot 36. As the lip 28 moves below the shoulder 42 of the bolt 34, the spring 58 returns the bolt 34 to the latched position over the lip 28 to to latch the hood 12 to the body 10. The movement of the bolt 34 by the lip 28 does not move the Bowden wire 16 because of the loop 76 which permits limited movement of the tale 50 therein. The hood 12 is now locked by the auxiliary hood latch 14 to the body 10 until the occupant again releases the auxiliary hood latch.