External mirror assembly for vehicles and method of assembling same
AssigneeMekra Lang GmbH & Co. KG
InventorsHeinrich Lang, Alfred Kolb, Wolfgang Seiboth, Albrecht Popp
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A rear view mirror assembly for commercial vehicles comprises a tubular support structure having a first end fixable to a commercial vehicle and a second end extending from the commercial vehicle, and a support arm including a molded part and at least one core element. The molded part encapsulates the core element and a substantial portion of the tubular support structure. The molded part and the core element each have a respective density, the core element density being less than the molded part density, whereby the presence of the core element within the molded part reduces the overall weight of the support arm.
Claims23
A rear view mirror assembly for a vehicle made by the process comprising the steps of:
- providing a support frame having a first end, a second end and a surface, the first end configured for attachment to the vehicle, the second end disposed apart from the first end and configured to attachably receive a mirror;
- molding a core member with a complementary surface, the core member having a first density;
- placing the core member about at least a portion of the support frame such that the complementary surface mates about the surface, wherein the placing step occurs after the molding steps;
- and
- molding a molded part about the core member and the at least a portion of the support frame such that the molded part encapsulates the core member and the at least a portion of the support frame.
A rear view mirror assembly for a vehicle made by the process comprising the steps of:
- providing a support frame configured for attachment to the vehicle;
- molding a core member;
- forming a recess on the core member;
- placing the core member about a portion of the support frame such that the support frame is matingly received in the recess;
- and
- encasing the core member and the portion of the support frame in a shell.
A rear view mirror assembly for a vehicle made by the process comprising the steps of:
- providing a support frame configured for attachment to the vehicle;
- molding a core member;
- forming a complementary surface on the molded core member;
- placing the molded core member about a portion of the support frame such that the complementary surface mates about the surface;
- molding a shell about the core member and the portion of the support frame;
- and
- lacquering the shell.
A core member for a rear view mirror assembly having a support structure disposed in a molded part, the core member comprising a polyurethane element defining a complementary surface, the polyurethane element configured for placement adjacent the support structure before overmolding of the molded part over the core member and support structure such that a surface of the support structure is received in the complementary surface, the core member having a lesser density than the molded part.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.