Trapped cutline gasket for external side mirror
AssigneeFicosa North America Corporation
InventorsChristopher BORTOLON, Nicholas IRWIN
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An external side mirror is pivotable relative to a vehicle to which it is attached. The external side mirror includes an outer cover, and a housing bracket within the outer cover. The housing bracket is mounted or attached to the outer cover. A gasket is removably attached to the underside of the housing bracket. The gasket has a plurality of hooks that extend upwardly and attach to the housing bracket. Support ribs extending from the outer cover trap the hooks against the housing bracket. This allows the gasket to pivot along with the external side mirror relative to the vehicle to keep the gasket hidden from view even when the external side mirror is pivoted.
Claims20
An external side mirror configured to rotate relative to a connected vehicle, the external side mirror comprising:
- an outer cover;
- a housing bracket within the outer cover, the housing bracket having a lower flange defining an upper surface and a lower surface;
- and
- a gasket having a base mounted to the lower surface of the lower flange, the gasket including a plurality of projections extending upward therefrom and attached to the upper surface of the lower flange.
A gasket for an external side mirror, comprising:
- a base having a top surface, a bottom surface, and an edge surface about a perimeter of the gasket;
- a lip integral with the base and extending downward from the bottom surface about the perimeter, at least a portion of the lip located such that it is configured to seal against a base assembly of a vehicle;
- and
- a plurality of hooks integral with the base about the perimeter and configured to engage a flange of a housing bracket of the external side mirror, the hooks having a first portion extending transverse from the edge surface, a second portion extending upward and transverse from the first portion, and a top portion extending inward from the second portion, the top portion having a lower surface configured to contact the flange of the housing bracket of the external side mirror.
An external side mirrorassembly for a vehicle, comprising
- a lower cover;
- a skull cap connected to the lower cover and having a lower edge configured to at least partially define a cutline gap between the skull cap and a base assembly of the vehicle;
- a housing bracket within an interior of the connected lower cover and skull cap, the housing bracket having a lower surface and an upper surface;
- and
- a gasket removably mounted to the housing bracket, wherein the gasket includes an upper surface contacting the lower surface of the housing bracket, wherein the gasket is aligned with the cutline gap to seal the cutline gap with respect to the interior of the connected lower cover and skull cap.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.