WO-2026093316-A1 - ADAPTER ASSEMBLY FOR A VEHICLE WIPER SYSTEM

Abstract

The present invention relates to an adapter assembly for a wiper system The adapter assembly includes a spacer member releasably mounted on a base member. The spacer member includes side walls having stud that are received in corresponding orifices provided in longitudinal walls of the base member, to mount and secure the spacer member on the base member. The spacer member further includes a flexible leg provided on its upper wall for receiving and locking the yoke of the wiper arm with the spacer member. The flexible leg includes a vertically deformable cantilever portion having a locking tab adapted to allow the yoke to slide over the spacer member and lock the yoke with the spacer member. Thus, the spacer member makes the adapter assembly compatible with the wiper arm having a cut-out in the yoke, more specifically a cut-out in a top wall of the yoke.

Inventors

• CAETANO, THOMAS
• HOUSSAT, STEPHANE
• Gaucher, Vincent

Assignees

• Valeo Systèmes d'Essuyage

Dates

Publication Date

20260507

Application Date

20251028

Priority Date

20241029

Claims (20)

1. 1. A spacer member of an adapter assembly for a wiper system, the spacer member comprising: a front end and a rear end longitudinally opposite to the front end; two side walls extending longitudinally between the front end and the rear end, the side walls being spaced apart from each other and connected to each other by an upper wall; a flexible leg extending longitudinally towards the rear end from a shoulder of the upper wall, the flexible leg including at least a cantilever portion being vertically offset from the upper wall; a locking tab provided at a predefined location on the cantilever portion of the flexible leg, the locking tab extending towards the upper wall; and a stud formed on an inner surface of at least one of the side walls, the stud being configured to be received in corresponding orifice provided in a base member of the adapter assembly.
2. 2. The spacer member according to claim 1, further comprising a projection extending in longitudinally forward direction from the shoulder of the upper wall, the projection having a predefined curvature.
3. 3. The spacer member according to claim 1, wherein the flexible leg includes a base portion fixed to the shoulder of the upper wall, and the cantilever portion extends longitudinally rearwards from the base portion.
4. 4. The spacer member according to claim 3, wherein the flexible leg includes a lip formed at an end of the cantilever portion longitudinally opposite to the base portion.
5. 5. The spacer member according to claim 1, wherein the locking tab includes an inclined surface facing in longitudinally rearward direction and a protrusion formed on longitudinally opposite side of the inclined surface.
6. 6. The spacer member according to claim 1, wherein each of the side walls include a front portion formed near the front end of the spacer member, a rear portion formed near the rear end of the spacer member, and a middle portion connecting the front portion with the rear portion.
7. 7. The spacer member according to claim 6, wherein the stud is provided on the middle portion of at least one of the side walls, the stud having substantially cylindrical shape.
8. 8. The spacer member according to claim 7, wherein the stud includes a slant portion formed on lower portion of the stud, the slant portion facing in vertically downward direction.
9. 9. The spacer member according to claim 6, wherein the middle portion further includes a supporting tab formed near a lower edge of the middle portion, the supporting tab extending transversely outwards from the middle portion.
10. 10. An adapter assembly for a wiper system, the adapter assembly comprising: a base member having a front end and a rear end longitudinally opposite to the front end; and a spacer member having two side walls spaced apart from each other and connected to each other by an upper wall, the spacer member being releasably mounted on the base member, wherein the spacer member includes a flexible leg extending longitudinally rearwards from a shoulder of the upper wall of the spacer member, the flexible leg including at least a cantilever portion being vertically offset from the upper wall of the spacer member, and wherein the spacer member further includes a stud formed on an inner surface of at least one of the side walls, the stud being configured to secure the spacer member to the base member.
11. 11. The adapter assembly according to claim 10, wherein the stud includes a slant portion formed on lower portion of the stud, the slant portion facing in vertically downward direction.
12. 12. The adapter assembly according to claim 10, wherein the base member includes a pair of longitudinal walls extending along a longitudinal axis, the longitudinal walls being spaced apart from each other and connected to each other by an upper wall.
13. 13. The adapter assembly according to claim 12, wherein the base member includes a head formed at the front end of the base member, the head being connected to the longitudinal walls and the upper wall of the base member.
14. 14. The adapter assembly according to claim 13, wherein the base member further includes a receiving space continuously formed in the upper wall and the head of the base member.
15. 15. The adapter assembly according to claim 14, wherein the spacer member further includes a projection extending in longitudinally forward direction from the shoulder of the upper wall of the spacer member, the projection being received through the receiving space of the base member.
16. 16. The adapter assembly according to claim 12, wherein the base member further includes an orifice formed on at least one of the longitudinal walls to receive the stud provided on at least one of the side walls of the spacer member.
17. 17. The adapter assembly according to claim 10, wherein the spacer member further includes a locking tab provided at a predefined location on the cantilever portion of the flexible leg, the locking tab extending towards the upper wall of the spacer member.
18. 18. The adapter assembly according to claim 17, wherein the locking tab includes an inclined surface facing in longitudinally rearward direction and a protrusion formed on longitudinally opposite side of the inclined surface.
19. 19. A wiper system for a motor vehicle, the wiper system comprising: a connector attached to a wiper blade; an adapter assembly pivotally connected to the connector; and a wiper arm releasably connected and secured to the adapter assembly, wherein the wiper arm includes a yoke having a top wall connecting two side walls, the top wall of the yoke including a cut-out, wherein the adapter assembly includes a spacer member having two side walls spaced apart from each other and connected to each other by an upper wall, and a flexible leg extending longitudinally rearwards from a shoulder of the upper wall, wherein the spacer member is releasably mounted on a base member, wherein the flexible leg includes at least a cantilever portion being vertically offset from the upper wall of the spacer member, wherein the flexible leg further includes a locking tab configured to cooperate with the cut-out of the yoke of the wiper arm, and wherein at least one of the side walls of the spacer member includes a stud configured to be received in corresponding orifice provided in the base member, to secure the spacer member to the base member.
20. 20. The wiper system according to claim 19, wherein the spacer member further includes a projection extending in longitudinally forward direction from the shoulder of the upper wall of the spacer member, the projection being received through a receiving space provided in the base member.

Description

ADAPTER ASSEMBLY FOR A VEHICLE WIPER SYSTEM TECH NICAL FIELD [0001] The present invention relates to a windscreen wiper system for a motor vehicle, and more particularly to an adapter assembly for connecting a windscreen wiper blade to an arm of a wiper system. BACKGROU ND OF THE INVENTION [0002] The wiper system traditionally consists of a wiper arm, one end of which is connected to an output shaft of a wiper motor through linkages and a wiper blade is attached to another end of the wiper arm. The wiper motor drives the wiper arm to swing between the predefined angular positions to wipe out the water and dirt present on the windshield. [0003] Each wiper blade comprises a structure supporting a wiper rubber intended to be placed in contact with the windscreen so that it can remove water and/or dirt from the windscreen panel. Additionally, each wiper blade comprises a connector rigidly connected to the structure of the wiper blade, and an adapter assembly may be mounted pivotally on the connector in order to allow the detachable fastening of the wiper arm to the adapter assembly. [0004] In a known manner, a yoke/clevis is formed at the end of the wiper arm and the yoke/clevis is engaged with the adapter assembly and locked therein. There are variety of wiper arms having different designs of the yoke, being used in different motor vehicles. This requires motor vehicle manufacturers to design adapter assembly specific to each type of wiper arm, an adapter assembly specifically making the link between a type of wiper arm and a connector. So, the equipment manufacturers needs to develop many different adapters, including at least one for each type of wiper arm on the market. Further, the users who need to change their wiper blade, needs to adapt and take extra care to choose the right adapter assembly for the type of wiper arm on which the wiper blade is to be mounted. This creates lot of inconvenience to the user while changing the wiper blades. Moreover, the part count of the adapter assembly may increase in order to make it compatible with different types of wiper arms. This may increase the material, weight, and/or cost associated with the adapter assembly. [0005] The prior art and the conventional adapter assembly have various disadvantages as described above and there is a need for an adapter assembly for vehicle wiper system, that can overcome the disadvantages of the conventional wiper system. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0006] An object of the present invention is to solve the disadvantages described above of known adapter assembly. In particular, an object of the present invention is to provide an adapter assembly compatible with multiple wiper arms. [0007] Another object of the present invention is to provide a spacer for an adapter assembly to make the adapter assembly compatible with a wiper arm having yoke with a cut-out in its top wall. [0008] Yet another object of the present invention is to provide an adapter assembly with reduced part count, the adapter assembly being compatible with multiple wiper arms having different yoke designs. [0009] In this context, the present invention is directed towards a spacer member of an adapter assembly for a wiper system. The spacer member may include a front end and a rear end longitudinally opposite to the front end. The spacer member may further include two side walls extending longitudinally between the front end and the rear end. The side walls may be spaced apart from each other and connected to each other by an upper wall. Preferably, the side walls may be substantially parallel to each other. The upper wall may be integrally formed with the side walls. A flexible leg may be provided extending longitudinally towards the rear end from a shoulder of the upper wall. The shoulder of the upper wall may be substantially positioned near front end of the spacer member. The flexible leg may include at least a cantilever portion being vertically offset from the upper wall. Preferably, the flexible leg may be integrally formed with the upper wall in such a way that the cantilever portion may be deformable along vertical axis i.e. the cantilever portion may be deformed towards the upper wall and/or away from the upper wall of the spacer member. A locking tab may be provided at a predefined location on the cantilever portion of the flexible leg, the locking tab extending towards the upper wall. A stud may be formed on an inner surface of at least one of the side walls. The stud may be adapted to be received in corresponding orifice provided in a base member of the adapter assembly. Preferably, the stud may be provided on each of the side walls of the spacer member. The studs provided on the side walls facilitates the mounting of the spacer member with a suitable base member to define the adapter assembly that can be attached to a wiper blade through a connector. Moreover, the flexible leg along with the locking tab facilitates attachment of a wiper arm to the adapter