US 2022/0090420 A1Published application

Door Handles

OwnerJenna Kadlec, Cian Brogan +2inventors

InventorsJenna Kadlec, Cian Brogan, Scott Huang, Sagar Shrivastava

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Abstract

A flush mounted door handle lever is at least partly received in a recess of a housing secured to a door panel using a reinforcement panel bonded to the door panel, with the recess aligned with holes through the door panel and reinforcement panel. Locator pins on the reinforcement panel register the hole therethrough with the hole through the door panel. Clips on the reinforcement panel enable quick mounting of the housing and door handle lever. The recess leaves an opening at one end of the door handle lever for insertion of at least one finger. A sensor detecting an outward pull on that end of the door handle lever may also function as a bump sensor, with either movement selectively triggering an electromechanical door actuation. Symmetrical housings and reinforcement panels allow mounting of the door handle with either orientation, as on adjacent “suicide” doors.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A vehicle door handle assembly, comprising:

a door handle lever having an elongated body with a first end and a second end and rotatably disposed within a door handle assembly housing, wherein the housing comprises a recessed region receiving at least a portion of the door handle lever and wherein the recess is longer than the body of the door handle lever;
a reinforcement panel to which the door handle assembly housing is attached, the reinforcement panel secured to a door panel in registration with an opening through the door panel;
a door actuation sensor mounted to a portion of the door handle assembly housing;
and
a connector electrically connected to the door actuation sensor and fixedly disposed on the reinforcement panel, the connector configured to electrically connect to an electromechanical door actuator,
wherein the door handle assembly housing is secured to the reinforcement panel with the recess in alignment with the opening through the door panel, and
wherein the door handle lever is mounted within the door handle assembly housing with an outermost surface of the door handle lever flush with an exterior surface of the door panel around the opening through the door panel.

4 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 17/448,495Filed 22 Sep 2021
Priority: 22 Sep 2020
Published: 24 Mar 2022
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification6 codes

E05B 81/76
Monitoring or sensing, e.g. by using switches or sensors: detection of handle operation; Detection of a user approaching a handle; Electrical…
E05B 79/06
Mounting of vehicle locks or parts thereof: mounting of handles, e.g. to the wing or to the lock
E05B 83/36
Vehicle locks specially adapted for particular types of wing or vehicle: locks for passenger or like doors
E05B 85/103
Handles: creating a completely closed wing surface