Adjustable vehicle transmission shifters
AssigneeNissan North America, Inc.
InventorsStephen William Baluch, Brandon Dawe
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Disclosed herein are embodiments of a vehicle transmission shifter and methods of adjusting the vehicle transmission shifter. The vehicle transmission shifter comprises a stalk, a paddle extending from the stalk, and an adjustment mechanism responsive to a driver input to position the paddle in relation to the steering wheel. The paddle is configured to receive a driver's fingers while manually engaging the steering wheel. The method comprises providing driver input to the adjustment mechanism through a user control and adjusting the adjustment mechanism in response to the driver input to position the paddle in relation to the steering wheel.
Claims18
A vehicle transmission shifter mounted to a steering column of a steering wheel comprising:
- a stalk;
- a paddle extending from the stalk, the paddle configured to receive a driver's fingers while manually engaging the steering wheel;
- and
- an adjustment mechanism responsive to a driver input to position the paddle at a plurality of locations along one or more axes in relation to the steering wheel to maintain contact between a driver's hands and the steering wheel during shifting, wherein the paddle is configured to shift the transmission in response to movements of the paddle by the driver in the same manner in each of the plurality of locations once the paddle is positioned by the adjustment mechanism.
A method of using a vehicle transmission shifter comprising an adjustment mechanism, a stalk, and a paddle, wherein the vehicle transmission shifter is mounted on a steering column of a steering wheel, the method comprising:
- providing driver input to the adjustment mechanism;
- adjusting the paddle to one of a plurality of positions in relation to the steering wheel with the adjustment mechanism in response to the driver input, the positions configured such that a driver's hand maintains contact with the steering wheel while a driver's fingers contacts the paddle;
- and
- shifting the transmission with the paddle when the paddle is in any one of the plurality of positions.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.