Service door and latching assembly for cowls on marine propulsion devices

A cowling for a marine drive, the cowling comprising:

• a top cowl defining a cowling interior;
• a service door that is movable into an open position providing access to the cowling interior and a closed position enclosing the cowling interior;
• and
• a latching mechanism comprising:
• a lock assembly movable into a locked position in which the service door is retained in the closed position and an unlocked position in which the service door is movable between the closed position and the open position, and
• an actuator assembly comprising a rocker button that is pivotable about a pivot axis to actuate the lock assembly, the actuator assembly being remote from the lock assembly and accessible from outside the top cowl,
• wherein the rocker button has a center of gravity located along the pivot axis.

A cowling for a marine drive the cowling comprising:

• a top cowl defining a cowling interior;
• a service door that is movable into an open position providing access to the cowling interior and a closed position enclosing the cowling interior;
• and
• a latching mechanism comprising:
• a lock assembly movable into a locked position in which the service door is retained in the closed position and an unlocked position in which the service door is movable between the closed position and the open position, and;
• an actuator assembly configured to actuate the lock assembly to move from the locked position to the unlocked position;
• wherein the actuator assembly is remote from the lock assembly and accessible from outside the top cowl;
• a flexible connector comprising a sleeve and a cable extending through the sleeve from a first cable end coupled to the actuator assembly to a second end coupled to the lock assembly, the cable being slidable in the sleeve, and
• wherein the actuation assembly is configured to pull the first cable end to actuate the lock assembly.

A latching mechanism for a service door on a cowling for a marine drive the service door movable into an open position and a closed position, the latching mechanism comprising:

• a lock assembly movable into a locked position in which the service door is retained in the closed position and an unlocked position in which the service door is movable between the closed position and the open position;
• an actuator assembly configured to actuate the lock assembly to move from the locked position to the unlocked position, wherein the actuator assembly is remote from the lock assembly and accessible from outside the cowling;
• and
• a flexible connector operatively connecting the actuator assembly to the lock assembly the flexible connector having a first end coupled to the actuator assembly and a second end coupled to the lock assembly, wherein the lock assembly is located proximate the service door on a top side of the cowling and wherein the actuator assembly is located in an air inlet on a lateral side of the cowling.

A latching mechanism for a service door on a cowling for a marine drive, the service door movable into an open position and a closed position, the latching mechanism comprising:

• a lock assembly movable into a locked position in which the service door is retained in the closed position and an unlocked position in which the service door is movable between the closed position and the open position;
• an actuator assembly configured to actuate the lock assembly to move from the locked position to the unlocked position, wherein the actuator assembly is remote from the lock assembly and accessible from outside the cowling;
• and
• a flexible connector operatively connecting the actuator assembly to the lock assembly the flexible connector having a first end coupled to the actuator assembly and a second end coupled to the lock assembly,
• wherein the actuator assembly comprises a rocker button that is pivotable about a pivot axis between an unpressed position and a pressed position;
• and
• wherein the rocker button is balanced so that a center of gravity of the rocker button is located along the pivot axis.

A latching mechanism for a service door on a cowling for a marine drive, the service door movable into an open position and a closed position, the latching mechanism comprising:

• a lock assembly movable into a locked position in which the service door is retained in the closed position and an unlocked position in which the service door is movable between the closed position and the open position;
• an actuator assembly configured to actuate the lock assembly to move from the locked position to the unlocked position, wherein the actuator assembly is remote from the lock assembly and accessible from outside the cowling;
• a flexible connector operatively connecting the actuator assembly to the lock assembly, the flexible connector having a first end coupled to the actuator assembly and a second end coupled to the lock assembly,
• wherein the lock assembly comprises a latch member movable into a latched position in which the latch member retains the service door in the closed position and an unlatched position in which the service door is movable between the closed position and the open position;
• a lock member configured to retain the latch member in the latched position prior to actuation of the lock member by the actuator assembly, wherein the lock member is movable into an unactuated position in which the latch member is retained in the latched position and an actuated position in which the latching member is movable from the latched position to the unlatched position;
• and
• a first biasing device configured to bias the lock member into the unactuated position and a second biasing device configured to bias the latch member into the unlatched position.

A latching mechanism for a service door on a cowling for a marine drive, the service door movable into an open position and a closed position, the latching mechanism comprising:

• a lock assembly movable into a locked position in which the service door is retained in the closed position and an unlocked position in which the service door is movable between the closed position and the open position;
• an actuator assembly configured to actuate the lock assembly to move from the locked position to the unlocked position, wherein the actuator assembly is remote from the lock assembly and accessible from outside the cowling;
• and
• a flexible connector operatively connecting the actuator assembly to the lock assembly the flexible connector having a first end coupled to the actuator assembly and a second end coupled to the lock assembly, wherein the flexible connector comprises a sleeve and a cable extending through the sleeve from a first cable end coupled to the actuator assembly and a second cable end coupled to the lock assembly, the cable being slidable within the sleeve,
• wherein the actuation assembly is configured to pull the first cable end of the cable to actuate the lock assembly to move from the locked position to the unlocked position.