Sliding floor panel in combination with articulating cargo door
AssigneeDaimlerChrysler AG
InventorsDarren Schurig, Jonathan L. Rundels
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A lid assembly for a motor vehicle having an articulating closure member which is retractable into a cavity below the level of the floor of the vehicle. The lid assembly includes a lid member and a conveyance assembly having a support structure and a drive assembly. The lid member is supported over the cavity by the support structure and the drive assembly moves the lid member between a first position wherein the lid member substantially covers the cavity, and a second position wherein the lid member at least partially clears the cavity.
Claims20
In a vehicle having a body defining an under-floor storage cavity, a lid assembly for selectively covering the storage cavity, the lid assembly comprising:
- a lid member;
- and
- a conveyance assembly having
- a support structure coupled to the lid member and adapted for supporting the lid member at a predetermined distance away from the vehicle body to permit the lid member to be slid between a first position at least partially clearing the storage cavity and a second position substantially covering the storage cavity;
- and
- a drive assembly coupled to the lid member at a first end and adapted for coupling to the vehicle body at a second end, the drive assembly operable for conveying the lid member between the first and second positions.
A motor vehicle comprising:
- a body defining an opening and including first and second laterally spaced apart sides;
- a floor extending between the pair of laterally spaced apart sides, the floor including a substantially horizontal portion and a cavity recessed below the horizontal portion;
- a closure panel for selectively closing the opening in the body, the closure panel attached to the body for movement between a closed position and an open position such that in the closed position the closure panel at least partially closes the opening and in the open position the closure panel is disposed at least partially within the cavity and completely below the horizontal portion of the floor;
- and
- a lid assembly having a lid member and a conveyance assembly, the conveyance assembly including a support structure and a drive assembly, the support structure coupled to the lid member and operable for supporting the lid member at a predetermined relationship relative to the floor to permit the lid member to be slid between a first position at least partially clearing the cavity and overlapping the horizontal portion of the floor, and a second position substantially covering the cavity, the drive assembly coupled to the lid member and one of the vehicle body and the floor, the drive assembly operable for conveying the lid member between the first and second positions.
An improved method of adjusting a closure panel of a motor vehicle of the type in which a closure panel is positioned in a first panel position immediately above a rear bumper assembly and oriented substantially vertically, and in which the closure panel is subsequently translated into a second panel position in which the closure panel is located in a cavity completely below a floor of the vehicle, the improvement comprising the steps of:
- providing a lid member;
- translating the lid member from a first lid position substantially covering the cavity to a second lid position clearing at least a part of the cavity before the closure panel is moved from either of the first and second panel positions;
- and
- translating the lid member from the second lid position to the first lid position after the closure panel after the closure panel has been moved to either of the first and second panel positions.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.