Electrically operable actuator

An electrically-operable actuator for a motor vehicle, which includes a housing, a reversible direct current electric motor, a reduction gear train, a reciprocable member adapted at one end to be coupled with a locking lever of a motor vehicle door latch and clutch means provided between said reversible electric motor and said reciprocable member, characterised in that said clutch means is a rotary load-sensitive releasable coupling within said reduction gear train which disengages said reciprocable member completely from said reversible electric motor at the end of each predetermined motorised movement of said reciprocable member, said rotary clutch having a driving member in the form of a toothed wheel pivotally mounted in said housing and having, on one side thereof, a radially-extending projection engageable with a radially-extending stop means within said housing, and, on the other side thereof, a spring-loaded radially-extending tooth aligned with said radially-extending projection;

• and a driven member in the form of a disc having, on one side, an output pinion operably associated with the reciprocable member and, on the other side, a depending annular skirt, said annular skirt co-axially engaging a bearing surface on said other side of said toothed wheel so as to enclose said spring-loaded tooth, there being a tooth-like projection on said depending annular skirt which is engageable with said spring-loaded tooth.