Cabriolet door with adjustable window regulator rail and corresponding method of assembly

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ADJUSTABLE RAIL CONVERTIBLE DOOR AND PROCESS

CORRESPONDING ASSEMBLY

The invention relates to automobile doors and window regulators, and in particular to convertible doors and window regulators.

Convertibles are known, in particular the Peugeot 206CC, in which the door does not have a window frame. It is then in this case particularly important to ensure the adjustment of the position of the top of the window in the transverse direction of the vehicle.

The Peugeot 206CC includes a door window regulator with adjustable rail in the transverse direction. The window regulator includes two rails extending vertically inside a front door. These rails have a slider guide groove. A tab is attached to the bottom of the rail. This tab forms approximately an angle of approximately 90 ° with respect to the rail and thus protrudes in the transverse direction of the vehicle. A screw is welded to this leg. A trigger guard is arranged against a lower sheet return of the door or of the frame. The return has an access opening to the trigger guard. This bridge has an oblong hole extending in the transverse direction of the vehicle. The screw passes through the oblong hole, and is fixed by a nut on the trigger guard. During assembly on a production line, the nut is put in place and tightened from below the door. This causes the operator to mount the nut tedious and not very ergonomic.

There is therefore a need for a window regulator solving one or more of these problems.

The subject of the invention is thus a window regulator comprising a slider guide rail, a substantially vertical screw, each end of which has a drive head, a flat surface substantially perpendicular to the guide rail and integral with the rail, capable of sliding. transversely with respect to the screw, in which an oblong hole traversed by the screw is made, an outer panel, a plate, fixed relative to the panel, having a thread in which the screw is engaged.

According to one variant, the panel is a door panel.

According to yet another variant, the window regulator is capable of having access to each head of the screw at least during assembly of the vehicle.

The invention also relates to a method of assembling a door according to one of the preceding claims, comprising the steps of inserting the thread of the screw into the thread of the plate, of adjusting the transverse position of the rail. relative to the screw, tightening the screw via the upper screw head, loosening the screw via the lower screw head,

H: \ DACTYLO \ l8300 \ 1835l.doc-31/08 / 01- 10 08 - 1/6 retouching of the adjustment of the transverse position of the rail with respect to the screw, tightening of the screw via the head lower screw.

Other characteristics and advantages of the invention will become apparent on reading the following description of embodiments of the invention, given by way of example and with reference to the appended drawings which show:

- Figure 1, a cross-sectional view of a door part according to the invention;

- Figure 2, a longitudinal sectional view of the door of Figure 1.

The invention proposes to assemble a window regulator rail on a door or on a frame by means of a vertical screw with two heads. The upper head is used to make a first adjustment of the transverse position of the rail. The lower head is used to make a touch-up adjustment of the transverse position of the rail.

In the following description, the transverse direction corresponds to the normal to the mean plane of the door or of a side body panel as the case may be.

Figures 1 and 2 show a door 1 comprising a window regulator rail 2 according to the invention. The window regulator rail 2 has a slider guide 3. The slider 4 slides in this guide, which can be produced for example in the form of a slot 5. The guide allows the slider to slide on the upward or downward stroke of the slider 4. The slider 4 is integral with a window 6. The rail has a tab 7, which is arranged approximately at a right angle to the guide 3.

The tab 7 has an oblong hole 8, extending in the transverse direction of the door or of the frame where appropriate. A double-headed screw 9 is inserted into the oblong hole 8. The screw has an upper head 10 and a lower head 11. The thread of the screw is inserted into a thread of a corresponding nut 12. The nut 12 is fixed. by welding to a bridge 13. The trigger guard is preferably made in the bottom of the door, at the level where the lower end of the rail must be placed. The nut is fixed on a flat surface or on a plate of the trigger guard 13.

The tab 7 can for example be made in a folded sheet of the guide rail or with an attached and welded part, if necessary. The upper surface of the tab forms a bearing for the upper screw head 10, so that this screw head can apply a compressive force to the tab. The lower surface of the tab forms a bearing surface to come into contact with a corresponding surface of the bridge 13.

The oblong hole 8 makes it possible to slide the guide transversely with respect to the screw during an adjustment. Thus, when the screw is held in place without tightening, the tab is free to slide to fix the transverse position of the rail relative to the outer panel. The transverse position of the window can therefore be changed in this way.

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When a tightening force is applied between the screw 9 and the nut 12, the contacting surfaces, respectively of the bridge and of the tab are immobilized by friction. Provision can also be made to immobilize the surfaces, respectively of the bridge and of the lug by means of suitable stops if the friction force between the bridge and the lug proves to be insufficient.

The screw is preferably disposed substantially vertical in the door. Thus, access to its two heads is facilitated. The screw have screw heads 10 and 11 suitable for being driven in rotation by a corresponding tool. The upper screw head allows for placement and clamping from above, which is ergonomic and therefore reduces the time to place and tighten the screw. For example, a hexagonal top head can be used to exhibit good remote gripping ability. Indeed, the screw is generally disposed at the bottom of the door during assembly of the rail on the door and it is desirable to promote its gripping. The lower screw head allows tightening or loosening from below. Thus, when ancillary elements of the door are fitted, such as a window, enclosures, a lock or an interior protective panel, although access to the upper screw head is difficult, access to the head lower screw remains easy to carry out a possible new adjustment of the transverse position of the window, for example in the event of impacts. Furthermore, it is preferable to use a so-called headless lower head. This head can thus pass through the thread of the nut 9. A standard drive recess, of the split type, with hexagon or torx, which can be actuated with standard tools, is preferably chosen.

In the example of Figures 1 and 2, the lower screw head opens out at the bottom, out of the door. This provides good access for more precise adjustment after fitting additional door components. The lower screw head preferably opens into a lower recess of the door. The screw head thus remains barely visible to the user. The plate and the withdrawal are then preferably made in the form of a bridge, for example by bending or stamping a sheet.

The invention also relates to a method of assembling a door. Insert the thread of the screw into the thread of the trigger guard or into the nut, with the lower screw head facing down. The transverse position of the screw in the oblong hole is adjusted, for example on a serial door assembly line. The screw is tightened through the upper screw head. Then the screw is loosened through the lower screw head. The adjustment of the transverse position of the screw in the oblong hole is retouched, for example at the end of the door assembly line when most of the ancillary elements of the door are assembled. The screw is then tightened to immobilize the transverse position of the screw in the oblong hole, and consequently the transverse position of the glass and the rail.

H: \ DACTYLO \ 18300 \ 18351 doc- 31/08 / 01- 10:08 -3/6 in relation to the exterior panel. The transverse position of the screw in the oblong hole has a great influence on the transverse position of the top of the pane. This tightening is carried out by means of the lower screw head.

Of course, the present invention is not limited to the examples and embodiments described and shown, but it is susceptible of numerous variants accessible to those skilled in the art. Thus, although a nut has been previously described and welded to the bridge, it is also possible to use any other suitable means, such as a thread produced directly in the thickness of the bridge. Moreover, although the invention has been described mainly in the case of mounting in a door, the invention also applies to the mounting of this window regulator for the rear seats in a frame having no doors. back.

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