# US 10,480,221 B2 · Illuminated virtual handle for power door system in motor vehicles > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 10,480,221 B2 - Document ID: US10480221B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 16/038,330 - Filed: 2018-07-18 - Published: 2019-01-24 - Granted: 2019-11-19 - Earliest claimed: 2017-07-20 - Assignees: Magna Closures Inc. - Applicants: Magna Closures Inc. - Inventors: Francesco Cumbo - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10480221B2 ## CPC - E05B 81/76: Detection of handle operation; Detection of a user approaching a handle; Electrical switching actions performed by door handles - B60Q 1/0011: {with light guides for distributing the light between several lighting or signalling devices} - B60Q 1/2669: {on door or boot handles (lighting devices for vehicle interior on door handles B60Q3/267)} - B60Q 1/543: {for indicating other states or conditions of the vehicle (indicating taxis' state of hire or fare G07B13/045)} - B60R 25/241: {whereby access privileges are related to the identifiers} - E05B 17/10: Illuminating devices on or for locks or keys; {Transparent or translucent lock parts; Indicator lights} - E05C 17/003: {Power-actuated devices for limiting the opening of vehicle doors} - E05C 17/006: {with means for detecting obstacles outside the doors} - E05F 15/00: Power-operated mechanisms for wings (motor-operated accessories in locks for completing closing or initiating opening of a wing E05B17/00) - E05F 15/611: for swinging wings - E05F 15/73: responsive to movement or presence of persons or objects - E05F 15/76: responsive to devices carried by persons or objects, e.g. magnets or reflectors (E05F15/77 takes precedence) - G07C 9/00174: {Electronically operated locks; Circuits therefor; Nonmechanical keys therefor, e.g. passive or active electrical keys or other data carriers without mechanical keys (mechanical locks with electric permutation E05B49/00; arrangements for sensing or reading record carriers G06K7/00; electronic switching H03K17/00)} - G07C 9/00309: {operated with bidirectional data transmission between data carrier and locks} - B60R 25/23: using manual input of alphanumerical codes - E05Y 2400/858: by body parts, e.g. by feet - E05Y 2900/531: Doors - G07C 2209/62: Comprising means for indicating the status of the lock - E05B: LOCKS; ACCESSORIES THEREFOR; HANDCUFFS - B60Q: ARRANGEMENT OF SIGNALLING OR LIGHTING DEVICES, THE MOUNTING OR SUPPORTING THEREOF OR CIRCUITS THEREFOR, FOR VEHICLES IN GENERAL - B60R: VEHICLES, VEHICLE FITTINGS, OR VEHICLE PARTS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR - E05C: BOLTS OR FASTENING DEVICES FOR WINGS, SPECIALLY FOR DOORS OR WINDOWS (latching means for sideboard or tailgate structures for vehicles B62D, {B62D33/02}; fastening devices for constructional or engineering elements E04, F16B; locks, fastening devices structurally or operatively combined or having significant cooperation with locks E05B; means for operating or controlling wing fasteners in conjunction with mechanisms for moving the wing E05F) - E05F: DEVICES FOR MOVING WINGS INTO OPEN OR CLOSED POSITION; CHECKS FOR WINGS; WING FITTINGS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR, CONCERNED WITH THE FUNCTIONING OF THE WING - G07C: TIME OR ATTENDANCE REGISTERS; REGISTERING OR INDICATING THE WORKING OF MACHINES; GENERATING RANDOM NUMBERS; VOTING OR LOTTERY APPARATUS; ARRANGEMENTS, SYSTEMS OR APPARATUS FOR CHECKING NOT PROVIDED FOR ELSEWHERE - E05Y: INDEXING SCHEME ASSOCIATED WITH SUBCLASSES E05D AND E05F, RELATING TO CONSTRUCTION ELEMENTS, ELECTRIC CONTROL, POWER SUPPLY, POWER SIGNAL OR TRANSMISSION, USER INTERFACES, MOUNTING OR COUPLING, DETAILS, ACCESSORIES, AUXILIARY OPERATIONS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR, APPLICATION THEREOF ## Abstract A closure system for a handleless door of a motor vehicle equipped with a power release latch assembly, a power opening presenter assembly, and an illumination assembly configured to illuminate a grasp area (virtual handle) of the handleless door upon the handleless door being moved to a partially-open position via the power opening presenter assembly. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A closure panel system for a motor vehicle comprising: a handleless closure panel pivotably mounted to a vehicle body for movement between a closed position and a fully-open position, said handleless closure panel having a grasp area; a latch assembly mounted to the handleless closure panel and equipped with a latch mechanism and a power-operated latch release mechanism to provide a power release function; a presenter assembly operably disposed between the vehicle body and the handleless closure panel and equipped with a power-operated presenter mechanism to provide a power open function for moving the handleless closure panel from its closed position to a partially-open position; an illumination assembly mounted on the handleless closure panel in proximity to the grasp area and having an illumination source operable to provide illumination; and an electronic control system operable to actuate the power-operated latch release mechanism to release the latch mechanism and shift the latch assembly into an unlatched mode for releasing the handleless closure panel from latched engagement with the vehicle body; actuate the power-operated presenter mechanism to shift the presenter assembly from a non-deployed mode to a deployed mode to move the handleless closure panel from its closed position to its partially-open position; and activate the illumination assembly to an illuminated state to illuminate the grasp area of the handleless closure panel and provide a visual indication to a user that the handleless closure panel is in the partially-open position and ready to be moved to the fully-open position. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The closure panel system of claim 1, wherein the electronic control system is configured to deactivate the illumination assembly to a non-illuminated state upon the handleless closure panel remaining in the partially-open position for a predetermined period of time. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The closure panel system of claim 2, wherein the electronic control system is configured to actuate the power-operated presenter mechanism to shift the presenter assembly from the deployed mode to the non-deployed mode to move the handleless closure panel from its partially-open position to its closed position after deactivating the illumination assembly to the non-illuminated state. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The closure panel system of claim 1, wherein the illumination assembly is incorporated into a portion of the handleless closure panel adjacent an edge of the handleless closure panel. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The closure panel system of claim 4, wherein the illumination assembly is incorporated into a window pillar section of the handleless closure panel. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The closure panel system of claim 5, wherein the illumination assembly is incorporated into an applique mounted to the window pillar section of the handleless closure panel. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The closure panel system of claim 6, wherein the applique is translucent and the illumination assembly is located beneath the applique to backlight the applique. ### Claim 8 (depends on 4) The closure panel system of claim 4, wherein the illumination assembly is incorporated into a portion of the handleless closure panel below a window pillar section of the handleless closure panel. ### Claim 9 (depends on 4) The closure panel system of claim 4, wherein the illumination assembly includes at least one light-emitting diode (LED). ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The closure panel system of claim 9, wherein the illumination assembly includes a plurality of light-emitting diodes (LEDs). ### Claim 11 An illumination assembly for a handleless closure panel pivotably mounted to a motor vehicle body for movement between a closed position and a partially-open position via actuation of a power-operated presenter mechanism in response to a signal from an electronic control system to the power-operated presenter mechanism, the illumination assembly comprising: an illumination source configured to be mounted on the handleless closure panel in proximity to a grasp area of the handleless closure panel; and where the illumination source is configured to be connected in operable communication with the electronic control system for selective activation to an illuminated state to illuminate the grasp area of the handleless closure panel when the handleless closure panel is in the partially-open position. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The illumination assembly of claim 11, wherein the illumination source is configured to be deactivated to a non-illuminated state by the electronic control system upon the handleless closure panel remaining in the partially-open position for a predetermined period of time. ### Claim 13 (depends on 11) The illumination assembly of claim 11, wherein the illumination source is configured to be incorporated into a portion of the handleless closure panel adjacent an edge of the handleless closure panel. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) The illumination assembly of claim 13, wherein the illumination source is configured to be incorporated into a window pillar section of the handleless closure panel. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) The illumination assembly of claim 14, further including an applique configured to be mounted to the window pillar section of the handleless closure panel, wherein the illumination source is mounted to the applique. ### Claim 16 (depends on 15) The illumination assembly of claim 15, wherein the applique includes a translucent region and the illumination source is located beneath the translucent region to backlight the applique. ### Claim 17 (depends on 13) The illumination assembly of claim 13, wherein the illumination source is configured to be incorporated into the handleless closure panel below a window pillar section of the handleless closure panel. ### Claim 18 (depends on 11) The illumination assembly of claim 11, wherein the illumination source includes at least one light-emitting diode (LED). ### Claim 19 (depends on 18) The illumination assembly of claim 18, wherein the illumination source includes a plurality of light-emitting diodes (LEDs).