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EP-4516545-B1 - ROOF SYSTEM FOR A VEHICLE

EP4516545B1EP 4516545 B1EP4516545 B1EP 4516545B1EP-4516545-B1

Inventors

  • NELLEN, MARCEL JOHAN CHRISTIAAN
  • Geurts, Ruud
  • Welmer, Bjorn Arnoldus Franciscus
  • JÜNGLING, Rainer Gerhard

Dates

Publication Date
20260513
Application Date
20240823

Claims (15)

  1. Roof system for a vehicle (1) having a fixed roof (2) with a roof opening (3), comprising: a stationary part (7) configured to be attached to the fixed roof (2); at least a first panel (4) movably supported on the stationary part (7) and configured to close the roof opening (3) in a closed position and to be moved at least rearwardly to an opened position in which the roof opening (3) is at least partly opened, the first panel having a front edge and a rear edge; a pair of parallel_guide rails (9) supported by the stationary part (7) and extending in longitudinal direction substantially parallel to opposite lateral sides of the roof opening (3); at least one transverse guide rail (8) extending in a direction at an angle to the pair of parallel guide rails (9); and at least one operating mechanism (10) for each one of the parallel guide rails (9) for operating the first panel (4), wherein each respective operating mechanism comprises: a front mechanism (20), capable of moving in the guide rail (9) in a longitudinal direction, and capable of moving the front edge of the first panel (4) in a vertical direction, the front mechanism (20) including a panel bracket (22) attached to the first panel (4); a tilting mechanism (24), capable of moving the rear edge of the first panel (4) in a vertical direction, the tilting mechanism (24) including a slide claw (32) in slidable contact with the panel bracket (22); a locking mechanism (62) for locking the tilting mechanism (24) to the guide rail (9) in order to keep the tilting mechanism (24) stationary to the guide rail (9) to enable the first panel (4) to slide with respect to the kept stationary tilting mechanism (24); and the parallel guide rails (9) each slidably supporting the front mechanism (20) and the tilting mechanism (24) of the respective operating mechanism (10); the at least one transverse guide rail (8) slidably supporting the locking mechanism (62) of each respective operating mechanism (10).
  2. Roof system according to claim 1, the operating mechanism (10) further comprising: a first drive member (12, 12') operatively connecting the front mechanism (20) to a drive motor (11); a second drive member (25 operatively connecting the front mechanism (20) to the locking mechanism (62); and a third drive member (66) operatively connecting the locking mechanism (62) to the tilting mechanism (24).
  3. Roof system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein: the at least one transverse guide rail (8) is positioned near a front end of the parallel guides; or the at least one transverse guide rail (8) is positioned near a rear end of the parallel guides (9); or the at least one transverse guide rail (8) is positioned rearward and remote from a rear end of the parallel guides (9); or the at least one transverse guide rail (8) is positioned remote from both the front and rear end of the parallel guides (9);
  4. Roof system according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the at least one transverse guide rail is supported by the stationary part (7); and wherein the at least one transverse guide rail (8) is positioned underneath the first panel (4).
  5. Roof system according to any of the preceding claims, further comprising at least a second panel supported on the stationary part (7); wherein the first panel (4) is configured to close a first part of the roof opening (3) in the closed position; and wherein the at least one second panel (4') is configured to close a second part of the roof opening (3); and wherein the at least transverse guide rail (8) is positioned underneath the second panel.
  6. Roof system according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the operating mechanism (10) is configured: to slide the front mechanism (20) out of the closed position towards an opened position, and to simultaneously slide the locking mechanism (62) via the second drive member (25) towards and into a locking position; to slide the tilting mechanism (24) out of the closed position into a tilted position; to slide and lock, when the locking mechanism (62) is in the locking position, the tilting mechanism (24) via the third drive member (66) while the tilting mechanism (24) is in the tilted position; and to slide the front mechanism (20into the opened position while the tilting mechanism (24) is in the locked position.
  7. Roof system according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the operating mechanism (10) is configured: to slide the front mechanism (20) out of the opened position towards the closed position while the tilting mechanism (24) is in the locked position; to slide the locking mechanism (62) via the second drive member (25) out of the locking position; to unlock and, when the locking mechanism (62) is out of the locking position, slide the tilting mechanism (24) towards the closed position via the third drive member (66) while the tilting mechanism (24) is in the tilted position; to slide the tilting mechanism (24) out of the tilted position into the closed position; and to slide the front mechanism (20) into the closed position.
  8. Roof system according to any of the preceding claims, the locking mechanism comprising: a locking slot (45) at an outer end of the second drive member (25); a hinge block (65) at an outer end of the third drive member (66, 66'); a locking locator (40) fixedly attached to the guide rail (9); and a locking lever (41) slidably guided by the locking locator (40), pivotally connected at one end to the hinge block (65), and releasably coupled at an opposite end with the locking slot (45); wherein the locking lever is movable between a sliding position and a tilt locking position via movement of the second drive member (25); wherein in the sliding position, the locking lever is unlocked in the locking locator (40) and locked in the locking slot (45); wherein in the tilt locking position, the locking lever (41) is locked in the locking locator (40) and decoupled from the locking slot (45).
  9. Roof system according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the locking mechanism (62) in the locking position is unlocked from the front mechanism when the second drive member (25) is unlocked from the locking lever (41) and locks the tilting mechanism when the third drive member (66) is locked via the locking lever (41) to the locking locator (40); and wherein the locking mechanism (62) in a sliding position is locked to the front mechanism (20) when the second drive member (25) is locked to the locking lever (41) and unlocks the tilting mechanism when the third drive member (66) is unlocked via the locking lever (41) from the locking locator (40).
  10. Roof system according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the front mechanism (20) comprises: a driving slide (23) slidably supported by the guide rial (9) and operatively connected to first drive member (12) for driving the driving slide (23); a pivot block (26) slidably supported by the guide rail (9); and at least one front lever (21, 21', 21") operatively joined to the driving slide (23) by a cam-curve joint (51, 52) and pivotally connected to the pivot block (26); and wherein the at least one front lever (21, 21', 21") is arranged for lifting and pivoting the front edge of the first panel (4) relative to the guide rail (9) by driving of the driving slide (23).
  11. Roof system according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the tilting mechanism (24) comprises: a sliding guide (36) slidably guided in the guide rail (9, 60) capable of moving one end of a tilting lever (63) in a substantially vertical direction; and wherein the tilting lever (63) at one end is pivotally connected to the slide claw (32) or to lifting levers (30, 30'), for moving the slide claw (32) in a vertical direction.
  12. Roof system according to any of the preceding claims, the transverse guide rail (8) comprising: for each of the parallel guide rails (9), a first guide channel (71) for guiding the second drive member (25, 25') of the respective parallel guide rail (9); for each of the parallel guide rails (9), a second guide channel (72) for guiding the third drive member (66, 66') of the respective parallel guide rail (9).
  13. Roof system according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the first guide channels (71) for the respective drive members are formed as an integral single guide channel.
  14. Roof system according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the second guide channels (72) for the respective drive members are formed as an integral single guide channel.
  15. Roof system according to any of the preceding claims, each guide channel further comprising: for each parallel guide rail (9) a cornering guide channel section (71', 72'), configured for allowing the second drive members (25, 25') and/or third drive members (66, 66') extend around a corner into the respective guide channel (71, 72).

Description

The present invention relates to a roof system for a vehicle, the vehicle having a fixed roof and a roof opening therein. In particular, the invention relates to a roof system having a closure panel movable between a closed position and one or more opened positions. BACKGROUND With the emergence of electric vehicles, the general layout of cars is changing. The space required for battery packs is commonly found at the bottom of cars, raising the ground level of the passenger compartment and in particular of the seats present therein. However, as the overall aerodynamic front face of vehicle is to be maintained, the roof is not raised resulting in a reduction of headroom. As a consequence, the height available for a roof system is reduced. To address this, car manufacturers have introduced fixed, stationary glazing panels to obtain the required reduction in what is referred to as Z-package. These stationary panels may provide a visually connecting experience with the exterior surroundings, but lack the flexibility to accommodate for different environmental circumstances, as fresh air on bright sunny mornings and cover on dark, rainy afternoons. Accordingly, there is a need to provide a roof system that can balance these conflicting requirements. Documents US 2020/276892 A1, US 2023/022266 A1 and US 8 870 276 B2 disclose examples of known roof systems. SUMMARY OF INVENTION It is an object of the invention to address the abovementioned requirement. According to one aspect, there is provided roof system for a vehicle having a fixed roof with a roof opening. The roof system including a stationary part configured to be attached to the fixed roof, at least a first panel movably supported on the stationary part and configured to close the roof opening in a closed position and to be moved at least rearwardly to an opened position in which the roof opening is at least partly opened, the first panel having a front edge and a rear edge. The roof system further including a pair of parallel guide rails supported by the stationary part and extending in longitudinal direction substantially parallel to opposite lateral sides of the roof opening, at least one transverse guide rail extending in a direction at an angle, preferably perpendicular, to the pair of parallel guide rails; and at least one operating mechanisms for each one of the parallel guide rails for operating the first panel. Wherein each respective operating mechanism includes a front mechanism capable of moving in the guide rail in a longitudinal direction and capable of moving the front edge of the first panel in a vertical direction. The front mechanism including a panel bracket attached to the first panel. Each operating mechanism further including a tilting mechanism capable of moving the rear edge of the first panel in a vertical direction, the tilting mechanism including a slide claw in slidable contact with the panel bracket. And each operating mechanism further including a locking mechanism for locking the tilting mechanism to the guide rail in order to keep the tilting mechanism stationary to the guide rail to enable the first panel to slide with respect to the kept stationary tilting mechanism. And wherein the parallel guide rails each slidably support the front mechanism and the tilting mechanism of the respective operating mechanism. And the at least one transverse guide rail slidably supports the locking mechanism of each respective operating mechanism. Such a configuration allows the front, tilting and locking mechanism to be mounted within the same plane and within a compact surface area. In this manner, the minimum height required for the roof system may be reduced. According to another aspect, the roof system includes a first drive member operatively connecting the front mechanism to a drive motor, a second drive member operatively connecting the front mechanism to the locking mechanism, and a third drive member operatively connecting the locking mechanism to the tilting mechanism. In case of a front drive with drive motor at the front of the roof system, the first drive member may be directly connected to the front mechanism. In case of a rear drive with drive motor at the rear of the roof system, the first drive member may be indirectly, yet operatively, connected to the front mechanism e.g. via the second drive member. According to another aspect, the at least one transverse guide rail of the roof system is positioned near a front end of the parallel guides, or near a rear end of the parallel guides, or rearward and remote from a rear end of the parallel guides, or remote from both the front and rear end of the parallel guides. According to a further aspect, the operating mechanism of the roof system may be configured to slide the front mechanism out of the closed position towards an opened position, and to simultaneously slide the locking mechanism, via the second drive member towards and into a locking position. And further configured to sl