US 5,207,393 AGranted

Electric-motor drive for a bowden-cable window lifter

OwnerKlaus Marschollinventor

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Abstract

The invention concerns an electric-motor drive system for a bowden-cable window lifter. The system includes a braking spring in the form of a helical spring in the manner known from manual bowden cable window lifters. This is made possible by the inclusion on the worm wheel of an arcuate slot crossed by a tab affixed to the cable reel and extending to the other side of the worm wheel into the clearance of a ring affixed to the worm wheel. The ring and the tab are enclosed by the helical spring of which the bent-off ends each enter the gap between the tab and ring. These components (ring, tab, and spring) are combined to one side of the worm wheel, and achieve the locking of the cable mechanism--by expanding the spring against a surrounding braking surface--when the mechanism is actuated in reverse by movement of the window pane. Owing to this braking mechanism it becomes possible to select the pitch of the worm and worm-wheel at the most advantageous angle irrespective of the otherwise required self-locking between the worm and worm wheel ordinarily used to stop undesired pane movement.

Claims5

Dependent claims

A drive system, powered by an electric motor, for a bowden-cable window pane lifter comprising:

a housing;
an electric motor mounted on said housing and driving a worm gear;
a cable reel mounted for rotation in said housing about an axis, and including a first tab element extending therefrom;
a worm wheel also mounted for rotation in said housing about said axis adjacent to said cable reel and driven by the motor through said worm gear, said worm wheel comprising on a side of said worm wheel facing said cable reel at least one axially projecting element entering a complementary recess in an opposite surface of said cable reel and driving the latter into rotation, said worm wheel also including a second tab element projecting therefrom;
a helical spring serving as a braking spring for said worm wheel, said spring being wrapped circumferentially in said housing in the region of said worm wheel and cable reel, said spring including two end portions each bent so as to engage either of said first or second tab elements;
wherein,
when said worm gear drives said worm wheel, said second tab element engages an end portion of said spring and causes said spring to rotate along with said worm wheel, and when said cable reel is rotated, said first tab element engages an end portion of said spring and causes said spring to contact said housing and brake rotation of said worm wheel.

4 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.