Latching device and accessory for vehicle

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12291906-B2
Application number	US-202318133328-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 11, 2023
Priority date	Apr 12, 2022
Publication date	May 6, 2025
Grant date	May 6, 2025

Abstract

A latching device for releasably latching to a support member is disclosed. The latching device has a housing with a first lateral wall, a second lateral wall, and a transverse wall extending between the first lateral wall and the second lateral wall. The first lateral wall and the second lateral wall define respective recesses with a first recess portion and a second recess portion. The first recess portion has a first width, and the second recess portion has a second width. The first width is larger than the second width. The first recess portion is configured for guiding the latching device when positioning the latching device relative to the support member. The second recess portion is shaped for receiving the support member when the latching device is latched to the support member. The latching device also has a rotary latching mechanism with a jaw, a pawl, and an actuator.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A latching device for releasably latching to a support member, the latching device comprising:
a housing including a first lateral wall, a second lateral wall, and a transverse wall extending between the first lateral wall and the second lateral wall,
the first lateral wall and the second lateral wall defining respective recesses with a first recess portion and a second recess portion,
the first recess portion having a first width and the second recess portion having a second width, the first width being larger than the second width,
the first recess portion being configured for guiding the latching device when positioning the latching device relative to the support member,
the second recess portion being shaped for receiving the support member when the latching device is latched to the support member; and

a rotary latching mechanism including:
a rotary jaw disposed in the housing between the first lateral wall and the second lateral wall, the rotary jaw for selectively receiving the support member;
a rotary pawl disposed in the housing between the first lateral wall and the second lateral wall, the rotary pawl for selectively engaging the rotary jaw to latch and release the latching device to and from the support member;
the rotary jaw being configured to rotate between an opened position and a closed position, the rotary pawl being configured to rotate between a restraining position and a releasing position,
the rotary jaw being disengaged from the rotary pawl when in the opened position and engaged with the rotary pawl when in the closed position,
when the rotary pawl is in the restraining position and is engaged with the rotary jaw, the rotary jaw is prevented from moving from the closed position to the opened position,
when the rotary pawl is moved from the restraining position to the releasing position, the rotary pawl is disengaged from the rotary jaw thereby allowing the rotary jaw to move from the closed position to the opened position;

a rotary actuator for at least partially transferring rotational movement to the rotary pawl;
the rotary actuator being configured to rotate from a secured position to an unsecured position,
when the rotary actuator is moved from the secured position to the unsecured position, the rotary actuator engages the rotary pawl and at least partially transfers the rotational movement to the rotary pawl,
thereby moving the rotary pawl from the restraining position to the releasing position.

2. The latching device of claim 1 , wherein the first recess portion tapers from an opening formed by the respective recess towards the second recess portion.

3. The latching device of claim 1 , wherein the housing forms a transverse channel having ends corresponding to the respective recesses.

4. The latching device of claim 1 , wherein the second recess portion is shaped for snuggly receiving the support member when the latching device is latched to the support member.

5. The latching device of claim 1 , wherein the second recess portions have a first height, the support member having a second height, the first height being at least half of the second height for retaining the latching device on the support member when the latching device is inadvertently unlatched from the support member.

6. The latching device of claim 1 , wherein the positioning the latching device relative to the support member is performed by a human operator, and wherein the rotational movement is caused by the human operator.

7. The latching device of claim 1 , wherein the second recess portions are formed by respective recess edges of the first lateral wall and the second lateral wall, the respective recess edges having a complimentary shape to the support member.

8. The latching device of claim 7 , wherein the respective recess edges of the first lateral wall and the second lateral wall are covered with a restraining material.

9. The latching device of claim 1 , wherein the housing further includes a mounting interface for engaging an accessory.

10. The latching device of claim 1 , wherein the support member is an elongated member of a vehicle.

11. The latching device of claim 1 , wherein the rotary jaw is configured to rotate about a jaw rotation axis between the opened position and the closed position, the rotary pawl being configured to rotate about a pawl rotation axis between the restraining position and a releasing position, the rotary actuator being configured to rotate about an actuator rotation axis.

12. The latching device of claim 11 , wherein the pawl rotation axis and the actuator rotation axis are a same axis.

13. The latching device of claim 1 , wherein the rotary jaw has a notch for selectively engaging with the rotary pawl when in the closed position.

14. The latching device of claim 1 , wherein the rotary jaw has a cavity for selectively receiving the support member, the cavity having a cavity edge, and
when the rotary jaw is in the closed position and a first portion of the support member is received in the cavity and second portions of the support member are received in the respective second recess portions of the first lateral wall and the second lateral wall:
the first portion of the support member is engaged with the cavity edge while the second portions of the support member are engaged with the respective ones of the first lateral wall and the second lateral wall.

15. The latching device of claim 14 , wherein when the first portion of the support member is received by the cavity, half of a peripheral surface of the first portion of the support member is engaged with the cavity edge.

16. The latching device of claim 1 , wherein the latching mechanism further includes a jaw biasing element for biasing the rotary jaw towards the opened position.

17. The latching device of claim 1 , wherein the rotary pawl has a pawl notch, and the rotary actuator has a tab for selectively engaging with the pawl notch,
when the rotary pawl is in the restraining position and the rotary actuator is in the secured position, the tab is spaced apart from the pawl notch by a pre-determined distance;
when the rotary actuator is moved from the secured position to a trigger position between the secured position and the unsecured position, the tab engages with the pawl notch; and
when the rotary actuator is moved from the trigger position to the unsecured position, the tab transfers rotational movement caused by the operator, for moving the rotary actuator from the trigger position to the unsecured position, to the rotary pawl,
thereby allowing a range of movement of the rotary actuator between the secured position and the trigger position without inadvertently unlatching the latching device from the support member.

18. The latching device of claim 1 , wherein the rotary latching mechanism is a first rotary latching mechanism, the latching device further comprising a second rotary latching mechanism disposed in the housing between the first lateral wall and the second lateral wall.

19. The latching device of claim 18 , wherein the first rotary latching mechanism and the second rotary latching mechanism share a same rotary actuator.

20. The latching device of claim 1 , wherein the rotary actuator is a tool-less rotary actuator.

Assignees

• Soucy Int Inc

Inventors

• Leblanc Etienne
• Roy Normand
• Jaillet-Gosselin Philippe
• Morin Vincent

Classifications

• E05B85/045

  for bifurcated bolts · CPC title

• E05B83/16

  Locks for luggage compartments, car boot lids or car bonnets · CPC title

• F16B5/0685

  Joining sheets or plates to strips or bars (F16B5/0692 takes precedence) · CPC title

• E05C3/24 Primary

  in the form of a bifurcated member {(automatic catches with a bifurcated latch E05C19/024; locks with a bifurcated bolt E05B65/0046, E05B85/243)} · CPC title

• F16B2/06 Primary

  external, i.e. with contracting action (F16B2/14 - F16B2/18 take precedence) · CPC title