JP7647595B2 - Door opening and closing device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a door opening and closing device.

In recent years, in order to improve the design and aerodynamic characteristics of vehicles, vehicle doors that are set so that the outer surface of the door handle is flush with the outer surface of the door panel when the vehicle door is not being opened have become widespread. For example, in the vehicle door handle device in Patent Document 1, when the vehicle door is not being opened, the operating handle 2 (door handle) is inserted into an opening provided in the outer door panel 11 to close the opening, and the outer surface of the operating handle 2 is positioned so that it is flush with the outer surface of the outer door panel 11. When the door is opened, an operator outside the vehicle performs a predetermined operation, which activates a parallel crank mechanism connected to the operating handle 2, causing the operating handle 2 to protrude (pop up) toward the outside of the vehicle from a state where it is flush with the outer surface of the outer door panel 11. This allows the operator to grasp the protruding operating handle 2 and pull it out to release the latch and open the vehicle door.

JP 2019-157424 A

However, in the door handle device described in Patent Document 1, the parallel crank mechanism for popping up the operating handle 2 is arranged not only in the space behind the operating handle 2 (inside the vehicle), but also in the space below the space behind the operating handle 2. Therefore, when the operating handle 2 is popped up, the parallel crank mechanism is visible through the gap between the operating handle 2 and the outer door panel 11 and through the opening provided in the exterior 11, which may impair the design. Furthermore, in the unlikely event that the door handle device breaks down and the vehicle is forced to drive with the operating handle 2 popped up, this may impair not only the design but also the aerodynamic characteristics.

The present invention was made in consideration of these circumstances, and aims to provide a door opening and closing device that can maintain good design and aerodynamic characteristics not only when the vehicle door is not being opened, but also when the vehicle door is being opened and in the event of a malfunction.

In order to solve the above problem, the door opening/closing operation device is provided with a latch release unit that is disposed in an operation space within a vehicle door and is operated from the outside of the door through an operation opening provided in the door to release the latch of the door, a panel cover that is disposed in the operation space and is movable between a closed position that closes the operation opening and an open position that exposes the operation space, and a drive unit that moves the panel cover between the closed position and the open position, the drive unit comprising a rotatable rotary drive shaft and an arm that is disposed in the operation space, has one end connected to the rotary drive shaft and the other end connected to the panel cover, and at least a portion of which is disposed on the inside side of the door relative to the position of the one end in the inside-outside direction of the door, and the rotary drive shaft is disposed above the movement trajectory of the panel cover.

In this way, the rotary drive shaft to which one end of the arm is connected is positioned above the movement trajectory of the panel cover, and the other end is connected to the panel cover. In other words, the arm is positioned extending from one end to the other toward the panel cover below. Therefore, the arm does not exist below the panel cover. As a result, for example, when the panel cover is in the open position, even if a person standing outside the vehicle looks below the operating space through the operating opening, the arm will not be visible, improving the design.

The panel cover is moved between a closed position where it closes the operation opening, and an open position where it moves from the closed position to the inside of the door and exposes the operation space. In other words, the panel cover is structured to be retracted toward the inside of the door without protruding from the outer surface of the door. In this way, since the movement between the closed position and the open position is limited to the inside of the door, the panel cover does not protrude to the outside of the door. This prevents the design from being damaged when the door is opened, and prevents the design from being damaged in the event of a malfunction of the door opening/closing operation device, and also prevents a decrease in aerodynamic characteristics while the vehicle is traveling.

1 is a partial external view of a door equipped with a door opening/closing operation device according to a first embodiment. FIG. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the door opening/closing operation device of FIG. 1 as viewed from inside the vehicle. 3 is a perspective view of the base cover shown in FIG. 2 with an upper cover removed. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line IV-IV in FIG. 1. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of FIG. 3 as seen from below. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the door opening/closing operation device of FIG. 3 with a door panel removed and viewed from the door side, with parts unnecessary for explanation removed. 11A and 11B are diagrams for explaining a panel cover and a closing position of the panel cover. 11A and 11B are diagrams illustrating an open position of a panel cover. FIG. 4 is a partial perspective view illustrating a latch release portion and a drive device. FIG. 10 is a diagram for aiding in understanding the connection portion, and is a diagram in which the peripheral portion of the panel cover has been removed from FIG. 9 .

1. First embodiment
(1-1. Door opening/closing device)
A first embodiment of a door opening/closing device according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. As shown in Figures 1 and 2, a door opening/closing device 10 according to the first embodiment is provided on a door panel 12 of a vehicle door 11. Figure 1 is a view of a part of the vehicle door 11 in a closed state relative to the vehicle, on which the door opening/closing device 10 according to the first embodiment is provided, as viewed from the outside of the vehicle.

The double-headed arrows shown in the lower right of Fig. 1 indicate vehicle directions (front/back, up/down) based on the door 11. In other drawings, double-headed arrows shown in the lower right also indicate vehicle directions (front/back, left/right, up/down) based on the door 11, as in Fig. 1. Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the door opening/closing device 10 of Fig. 1, as seen from inside the vehicle. As shown in Fig. 2, the door opening/closing device 10 is fixed to the back side (inside the vehicle) of the door panel 12.

In this embodiment, the door 11 shown in FIG. 1 is the left front door of the vehicle, and its front end is supported rotatably around a vertical axis relative to the vehicle body (not shown). As shown in FIG. 1, the door panel 12 forming the outer surface 12a of the door 11 has a rectangular operation opening 12b penetrating from the outer surface 12a to the back surface so that the longitudinal direction is the front-rear direction of the vehicle. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the door opening/closing operation device 10 includes a base cover 20, a latch release unit 30, a panel cover 40, and a drive unit 50. Note that FIG. 3 is a view in which the upper cover 21 of the base cover 20 shown in FIG. 2 has been removed so that the inside of the base cover 20 can be easily seen.

(1-1-1. Base cover 20)
2 and 3, the base cover 20 is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape and has an operation space M therein. The base cover 20 is made of, for example, resin, and is composed of an upper cover 21 (see FIG. 2) and a lower cover 22. As shown in FIG. 3, the lower cover 22 faces the upper cover 21 and has a rectangular bottom 22a, and side portions 22b, 22c, 22d, and 22e that extend in a vertical direction from each side of the bottom 22a toward the inside of the door 11.

As shown in FIG. 4, the bottom 22a of the lower cover 22 has a rectangular opening 22a2 that is pierced in the same shape as the operation opening 12b of the door panel 12. The lower cover 22 is fixed to the door panel 12 so that the surface 22a1 of the bottom 22a facing the outside of the door 11 faces the surface 12c of the door panel 12, and so that the opening 22a2 of the bottom 22a overlaps with the operation opening 12b. At this time, the fixing may be performed by any means, such as screwing or fitting.

As shown in FIG. 5, guide grooves 23, 23 are formed on the sides of the vehicle rear side 22d and the vehicle front side 22e, which face each other in the fore-and-aft direction and are located on the operation space M side. The guide grooves 23, 23 are formed in straight lines along the left-right direction to guide the panel cover 40 that moves between a closed position (see FIG. 7) and an open position (see FIG. 8) in the operation space M, which will be described in detail later.

The guide grooves 23, 23 engage with engaging protrusions 43, 43 (see Figures 5 and 6) provided on both sides of the panel cover 40 in the vehicle front-rear direction, which will be described in detail later. The guide grooves 23, 23 and the engaging protrusions 43, 43 guide the linear movement of the panel cover 40 in the vehicle left-right direction within the operation space M. In this way, the guide grooves 23, 23, together with the engaging protrusions 43, 43, form a guide mechanism.

As shown in Figures 3 and 4, the side portion 22c on the lower side of the vehicle is a partition wall that partitions the lower side of the operation space M below the panel cover 40 in the vehicle. Hereinafter, the side portion 22c will be referred to as the partition wall. The upper surface of the partition wall 22c is painted (corresponding to a surface treatment) similar to the paint (corresponding to a surface treatment) applied to the outer surface of the door panel 12 (door 11). In this case, the similar paint does not have to be exactly the same treatment, and may simply be a similar color.

The panel cover 40 is moved relative to the base cover 20 (including the partition wall 22c) in the left-right direction of the vehicle while the engagement protrusions 43 are engaged with the guide grooves 23. As a result, the partition wall 22c becomes visible from the outside of the door 11 through the operation opening 12b when the panel cover 40 is in the open position shown in FIG. 8. The upper cover 21 is formed in a substantially rectangular shape and closes the opening of the lower cover 22 on the inside side of the vehicle door 11.

(1-1-2. Latch release unit 30)
4 and 6, the latch release part 30 is disposed between the side parts 22d and 22e in the operation space M of the base cover 20 provided in the vehicle door 11, and is disposed above the operation opening 12b. The latch release part 30 includes a plate-shaped latch release handle 31 and rotating shafts 32, 32. The latch release handle 31 is rotatable around the rotating shafts 32, 32. One rotating shaft 32 is supported by the side part 22d, and the other rotating shaft 32 is supported by the side part 22e.

The rotating shafts 32, 32 are biased, for example, by a torsion spring (not shown) so that the latch release handle 31 rotates in a direction from the latch release position shown by the dashed line in FIG. 8 toward the latch engagement position shown by the solid line. As a result, when the operator releases the latch release handle 31, which has been rotated from the latch engagement position to the latch release position, it rotates in the direction biased by the torsion spring and is returned to the latch engagement position.

One of the rotating shafts 32 is connected to a door latch device (not shown) that controls the latch of the door 11. In this embodiment, the door latch device rotates the latch release handle 31 around the rotating shaft 32 to the latch release position, which drives an electric actuator (not shown) for release and releases the latch. Note that the door latch device has the same structure as known door latch devices, so further detailed description will be omitted.

However, the door latch device is not limited to the above embodiment, and may be configured such that the latch is mechanically unlocked (released) by moving the latch release handle 31 around the rotating shaft 32 to the latch release position, thereby pulling a wire (not shown) connected to the rotating shaft 32. Also, instead of the latch release handle 31, a push button switch may be provided, for example, so that the door latch device is activated when the operator presses the switch. Furthermore, the door latch device may be activated by detecting a change in capacitance caused by the operator approaching or touching a terminal.

(1-1-3. Panel cover 40)
3 and 4, the panel cover 40 is disposed in an operation space M of the base cover 20 provided in the vehicle door 11. The panel cover 40 is driven by a drive device 50, which will be described later in detail, to move between a closed position (see FIG. 7) where the operation opening 12b is closed and an open position (see FIG. 8) where the operation space M is exposed.

As shown in Figures 6 and 7, the panel cover 40 is composed of a design portion 41 and a peripheral portion 42 provided on the vehicle interior side of the design portion 41 (inner side of the door 11). As shown in Figures 6 and 7, the design portion 41 is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape with an internal space and an opening on the vehicle interior side. The design portion 41 is formed to a size corresponding to the operation opening 12b, that is, the outer shape of the outer surface 41a as viewed from the outside of the vehicle is slightly smaller than the shape of the operation opening 12b. This allows the design portion 41 to enter the opening 22a2 and the operation opening 12b when the panel cover 40 is in the closed position (see Figure 7).

The peripheral portion 42 is integrally provided along the outer edge of the design portion 41 on the outer side of the outer edge of the design portion 41. The peripheral portion 42 may be integrally formed with the design portion 41 as long as it can move integrally with the design portion 41, or may be formed separately from the design portion 41 and then attached to the design portion 41. The peripheral portion 42 has an outer surface 42a that is located on the inner side of the door 11 than the outer surface 41a of the design portion 41. For example, the peripheral portion 42 is formed in a rectangular plate shape and has a rectangular space in the center. The peripheral portion of the opening of the design portion 41 is fixed to the peripheral portion of the rectangular space formed in the peripheral portion 42 by a predetermined means such as welding, thereby forming the panel cover 40. With this configuration, the rear direction of the vehicle is not visible through the gap between the operation opening 12b and the outer shape of the design portion 41.

The peripheral portion 42 is located outside the vehicle interior peripheral portion of the operation opening 12b and the vehicle interior peripheral portion of the opening 22a2, which is formed to have the same size as the operation opening 12b. Also, as shown in FIG. 8, the distance d1 between the outer surface 42a of the peripheral portion 42 and the outer surface 41a of the design portion 41 is set to be equal to the distance d between the vehicle interior surface 22a3 of the bottom portion 22a of the lower cover 22 and the outer surface 12a of the door panel 12.

As a result, when the panel cover 40 moves from the open position shown in FIG. 8 to the closed position shown in FIG. 7, the design part 41 enters the opening 22a2 of the bottom part 22a and the operation opening 12b of the door panel 12. Then, the outer surface 42a comes into contact with the inner surface 22a3 of the bottom part 22a, which is the periphery of the opening 22a2, and the movement of the panel cover 40 is stopped, and the outer surface 41a of the design part 41 that has entered the operation opening 12b is made flush with the outer surface 12a of the door panel 12. This improves the design. Note that it is preferable that the outer surface 41a of the design part 41 and the outer surface 12a of the door panel 12 are painted (surface treated) in the same way. This further improves the design.

A seal groove may be formed on either the outer surface 42a or the inner surface 22a3 of the bottom 22a, and a seal member made of, for example, rubber may be fitted into the seal groove. This makes it easy to prevent rainwater, etc. from entering the operation space M inside the door 11.

(1-1-4. Drive device 50)
The driving device 50 is a device that moves the panel cover 40 between a closed position (FIG. 7) and an open position (FIG. 8). As shown in FIG. 3, the driving device 50 includes a driving motor 51, a rotatable rotary drive shaft 52, an arm 53, and a connection portion 54.

As shown in Figure 7, the rotary drive shaft 52 is positioned above the movement trajectory of the panel cover 40 that moves between the closed position and the open position, i.e., above the upper end TU of the movement trajectory. Also, as shown in Figures 9 and 10, the rotary drive shaft 52 is rotatably supported on the side portion 22d of the lower cover 22, and is connected to the output shaft (not shown) of the drive motor 51. The drive motor 51 is fixed by a specified means to the surface of the side portion 22d opposite the operation space M side.

In this embodiment, the output shaft of the drive motor 51 and the rotary drive shaft 52 are coaxial. However, this is not the only option, and the output shaft of the drive motor 51 and the rotary drive shaft 52 may not be coaxial, but may be arranged at different angles and connected via a gear or the like. Furthermore, the rotary drive shaft 52 may not be driven to rotate by the drive motor, but may be biased in the rotational direction by various springs such as a torsion spring, for example, to rotate the panel cover 40. In this case, to move the panel cover 40 from the closed position to the open position, for example, the operator may manually push the panel cover 40 into the open position against the biasing force of the torsion spring.

When the operator pushes the panel cover 40 to the open position against the biasing force of the torsion spring, the panel cover 40 can be stopped in the open position by, for example, locking it with a known push lock mechanism. Furthermore, when moving the panel cover 40 from the open position to the closed position, the panel cover 40 can be released by pushing it again toward the inside of the vehicle, and the biasing force of the torsion spring that biases the rotary drive shaft 52 in the rotational direction can be used to move the panel cover 40 to the closed position. This also fully achieves the effects of the invention.

3 and 4, the arm 53 is disposed in the operation space M and is formed between the side portion 22d and the side portion 22e. The arm 53 has a first bent arm portion 53c (corresponding to the bent arm portion), a second bent arm portion 53d (corresponding to the bent arm portion), and a connecting plate 55. The first bent arm portion 53c is disposed on the side portion 22d side. The second bent arm portion 53d is disposed on the side portion 22e side. The connecting plate 55 connects the first bent arm portion 53c and the second bent arm portion 53d. The first bent arm portion 53c is connected at both ends to the first arm portion 53c1 connected to the one end portion 53a and the second arm portion 53c2 connected to the other end portion 53b. The second bent arm portion 53d is connected at both ends to the first arm portion 53d1 connected to the one end portion 53e and the second arm portion 53d2 connected to the other end portion 53f. This forms the arm 53 shown in Figure 3. As shown in Figure 4, when viewed from the axial direction of the rotary drive shaft 52, the arm 53 has an L-shape.

One end 53a connected to the end of the first arm 53c1 is connected to the rotary drive shaft 52, and the other end 53b connected to the end of the second arm 53c2 is connected to the panel cover 40 via the connection part 54. One end 53e connected to the end of the first arm 53d1 is connected to the rotary shaft 56 (see FIG. 6), and the other end 53f connected to the end of the second arm 53d2 is connected to the panel cover 40 via the connection part 54.

As shown in FIG. 5, in this embodiment, the first bent arm 53c and the second arm 53c2, and the second bent arm 53d and the second arm 53d2 are formed with their positions shifted in the front-to-rear direction of the vehicle, and are connected to each other via connecting parts 57, 57 to form the arm 53.

As shown in Figures 7 and 8, when the arm 53 is viewed from the axial direction of the rotary drive shaft 52, at least a portion of the arm 53 is positioned on the inside of the door 11 relative to the positions of the ends 53a, 53e in the inward and outward directions of the door 11. In other words, at least a portion of the arm 53 is always positioned on the inside of the vehicle relative to the two-dot chain line P that hangs down from the axial center of the rotary drive shaft 52 in Figures 7 and 8.

8, when the panel cover 40 is in the open position, the first arms 53c1 and 53d1 extend horizontally from the ends 53a and 53e toward the vehicle interior (inner side of the door), and the second arms 53c2 and 53d2 extend vertically downward from the first bent arm 53c and the second bent arm 53d. When the panel cover 40 is in the closed position shown in FIG. 7, the first arms 53c1 and 53d1 extend diagonally downward from the ends 53a and 53e toward the vehicle interior (inner side of the door), and the second arms 53c2 and 53d2 extend diagonally downward from the first bent arm 53c and the second bent arm 53d toward the vehicle exterior.

As shown in Figures 1 and 3, the connection parts 54, 54 connect the other end parts 53b, 53f to the panel cover 40 at two locations so that they can move relative to each other. At this time, the two locations are positions on the peripheral portion 42 of the panel cover 40 that are spaced a predetermined distance apart in the vehicle front-rear direction. As shown in Figure 9, the connection part 54 (54) is composed of a protrusion 58 (58) provided on the other end part 53b (53f) of the arm 53 and a groove part 59 (59) provided on the panel cover 40 side.

In this embodiment, the protrusions 58 (58) are cylindrical members that protrude from the other end 53b (53f) on both sides in the front-rear direction of the vehicle as shown in Figures 9 and 10. At this time, the other end 53b (53f) is disposed passing through a through groove formed in the peripheral portion 42 that is disposed so as to close the opening on the vehicle interior side of the design portion 41, and is disposed within the space of a bottomed box-shaped container 61 whose end face on the opening side is fixed to the surface of the peripheral portion 42 on the design portion 41 side (see Figure 10).

The groove portion 59 (59) is engaged with the protrusion portion 58 (58) so as to be relatively movable in the vertical direction of the vehicle. As shown in FIG. 9, the groove portion 59 (59) is formed through two mating surfaces between the container 61 (61) and the peripheral portion 42 in the front-rear direction of the vehicle, and is formed to extend in the vertical direction. In other words, the groove portion 59 (59) on the outside of the vehicle is formed on the container 61 side, and the groove portions 59, 59 on the inside of the vehicle are formed on the peripheral portion 42 side. At this time, the vertical length of the groove portion 59 (59) is set according to the length of vertical movement of the protrusion portion 58 (58) when the panel cover 40 moves from the open position to the closed position.

<2. Action>
Next, the operation of the door opening/closing device 10 when opening the door 11 will be described. To open the door, the operator first touches or approaches a predetermined portion A (see FIG. 1) on the outer surface 41a of the design portion 41 of the door 11 in the closed state exposed to the outside of the vehicle. This changes the capacitance of an electrostatic sensor (not shown) embedded in the design portion 41, and the ECU, having detected the change in capacitance, drives the drive motor 51 of the drive unit 50. Specifically, the rotary drive shaft 52 connected to the output shaft (not shown) of the drive motor 51 and supported by the side portion 22d is rotated in the direction of the arrow shown near the rotary drive shaft 52 in FIG. 4.

When the rotary drive shaft 52 starts to rotate, the arm 53, one end 53a of which is connected to the rotary drive shaft 52, also rotates in the direction of the arrow at the same time. The arm 53 is also supported by a rotary shaft 56 that is supported on the side 22e that faces the side 22d in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle. In this way, the arm 53 is supported on both sides in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, and can therefore rotate stably around the rotary drive shaft 52 and the rotary shaft 56.

When the arm 53 rotates around the rotary drive shaft 52 (rotary shaft 56), the panel cover 40, which is connected at two points via the other end 53b, 53f of the arm 53 and the connection parts 54, 54, is biased in the direction of rotation of the connection parts 54, 54. However, the panel cover 40 is guided by the guide groove 23, which guides linear movement, and is only allowed to move linearly toward the inside of the vehicle. In addition, the groove parts 59, 59 and the protrusions 58, 58 that constitute the connection parts 54, 54 are configured to be able to move relatively in the vertical direction.

Therefore, even if the engaging grooves 59, 59 are urged in the rotational direction by the protrusions 58, 58 formed on the other ends 53b, 53f of the panel cover 40, the protrusions 58, 58 move downward relative to each other within the grooves 59, 59, absorbing the displacement in the rotational direction, and are guided by the guide groove 23, allowing linear movement toward the inside of the vehicle.

When the arm 53 is further rotated around the rotary drive shaft 52 (rotary shaft 56), the convex portions 58, 58 and the groove portions 59, 59 move vertically relative to each other, and the panel cover 40 reaches the open position shown in FIG. 8. When the panel cover 40 is in the open position, as described above, the first arms 53c1, 53d1 constituting the L-shaped arm 53 extend horizontally from the one ends 53a, 53e toward the inside of the vehicle, and the second arms 53c2, 53d2 extend vertically downward from the first bent arm 53c and the second bent arm 53d.

For this reason, when the panel cover 40 is in the open position, there is no need to provide extra space in the left-right direction of the vehicle for the placement space of the arm 53. Therefore, the position of the upper cover 21 in the left-right direction can be brought as close as possible to the surface of the panel cover 40 on the inside of the vehicle, so that the door opening/closing device 10 can be made smaller in size in the left-right direction.

When the arm 53 is viewed from the axial direction of the rotary drive shaft 52, at least a portion of the L-shaped arm 53 is positioned on the vehicle interior side (inner side of the door) relative to the positions of the ends 53a, 53e. In other words, the rotation angle of the arm 53 between the closed position and the open position is set to be small. This makes it possible to reduce the amount of relative movement in the vertical direction between the convex portions 58, 58 and the groove portions 59, 59 at the connection portions 54, 54, thereby realizing stable movement and improving reliability.

Furthermore, the connection parts 54, 54 connect the other ends 53b, 53f to the panel cover 40 at two points so that they can move relative to each other. This ensures stable linear movement of the panel cover 40 as the arm 53 rotates around the rotation drive shaft 52 (rotation shaft 56).

In addition, in this embodiment, the rotary drive shaft 52 (rotary shaft 56) connected to the arm 53 is positioned above the upper end TU of the movement trajectory of the panel cover 40, and the connection parts 54, 54 are provided on the vehicle interior side of the panel cover 40, which is positioned below the rotary drive shaft 52 (rotary shaft 56). Therefore, there is no need to provide a space below the panel cover 40 for providing a drive unit 50 that drives the panel cover 40. As a result, for example, when the panel cover 40 is in the open position shown in FIG. 8, even if something falls from outside the vehicle through the operation opening 12b and opening 22a2, it can be quickly removed.

In addition, according to this embodiment, the side portion 22c of the base cover 20 is a partition wall 22c that partitions the lower side of the operation space M below the panel cover 40. The upper surface of the partition wall 22c is painted in the same manner as the paint applied to the outer surface 12a of the door panel 12. Therefore, when the panel cover 40 is in the open position, even if there is a space below the panel cover 40, the operator standing outside the vehicle cannot see the space below the partition wall 22c through the operation opening 12b, and only the partition wall 22c painted in the same manner as the outer surface 12a is visible, improving the design. However, this is not limited to this embodiment, and the partition wall 22c does not have to be provided. Even in this case, since only a space is visible below the panel cover 40, the design is appropriately maintained even if the lower side of the panel cover 40 is visible through the operation opening 12b.

In addition, the upper surface of the partition wall 22c may be treated with a surface treatment similar to that of the outer surface 41a of the panel cover 40 on the vehicle exterior side (the side facing outward from the door) rather than being treated with a surface treatment similar to that applied to the outer surface 12a of the door panel 12. This can also be expected to produce the same effect.

In addition, in this embodiment, the panel cover 40 is moved between a closed position where it closes the operation opening 12b, and an open position where it moves from the closed position toward the inside of the door 11 and exposes the operation space M. In other words, the panel cover 40 is structured to be retracted toward the inside of the door 11 without protruding from the outer surface 12a of the door 11. Therefore, if the panel cover 40 malfunctions while in the open position and is unable to return to the closed position, the deterioration of the aerodynamic characteristics while the vehicle is traveling is suppressed, and the design is also maintained as described above.

When the panel cover 40 is in the open position, the latch release unit 30 can be operated. To release the latch, the operator first inserts his/her hand from the outside of the door 11 through the operation opening 12b into the upper part of the operation space M. Then, he/she places his/her finger on the inner surface 31a of the latch release handle 31 and rotates the latch release handle 31 from the latch engagement position shown by the solid line in FIG. 8 to the release position shown by the dashed line. This activates the door latch device (not shown), and the latch of the door 11 is released. After that, the operator can open the door 11 by pulling the entire door 11 while pulling the latch release handle 31, which is in the release position, toward the outside of the vehicle.

To move the panel cover 40 from the open position to the closed position, for example, an operator who has entered the vehicle compartment closes the door 11 from inside the vehicle compartment, and the ECU (not shown) detects the closing operation and drives the drive motor 51 to rotate the rotary drive shaft 52 in the opposite direction to the direction described above. This causes the opposite operation to that performed in moving the panel cover 40 from the closed position to the open position, and the panel cover 40 is moved from the open position to the closed position, and the outer surface 41a of the design portion 41 and the outer surface 12a of the door panel 12 are made flush with each other as described above.

3. Effects of the embodiment
According to the above first embodiment, the door opening/closing operating device 10 is disposed in an operating space M within a door 11 of a vehicle and includes a latch release unit 30 that is operated from the outside of the door 11 through an operating opening 12b provided in the door 11 to release the latch of the door 11, a panel cover 40 that is disposed in the operating space M and is movable between a closed position that closes the operating opening 12b and an open position that exposes the operating space M, and a drive unit 50 that moves the panel cover 40 between the closed position and the open position.

The drive unit 50 includes a rotatable rotary drive shaft 52 and an arm 53 that is disposed in the operating space M, has one end 53a, 53e connected to the rotary drive shaft 52 and the other end 53b, 53f connected to the panel cover 40, and is at least partially disposed on the inside side of the door 11 relative to the position of the one end 53a, 53e in the inside-outside direction of the door 11, and the rotary drive shaft 52 is disposed above the movement trajectory of the panel cover 40.

In this way, the rotary drive shaft 52 to which one end 53a, 53e of the arm 53 is connected is disposed above the movement trajectory of the panel cover 40, and the other end 53b, 53f is connected to the panel cover 40. In other words, the arm 53 is disposed extending downward from one end 53a, 53e to the other end 53b, 53f toward the panel cover 40. Therefore, the arm 53 does not exist below the panel cover 40. As a result, for example, when the panel cover 40 is in the open position, even if a person standing outside the vehicle looks downward into the operation space M through the operation opening 12b, the arm 53 will not be visible, improving the design.

The panel cover 40 is moved between a closed position where it closes the operation opening 12b, and an open position where it moves from the closed position to the inside of the door 11 and exposes the operation space M. In other words, the panel cover 40 is structured to be retracted toward the inside of the door 11 without protruding from the outer surface 12a of the door 11. In this way, since the movement between the closed position and the open position is limited to the inside of the door 11, the panel cover 40 does not protrude to the outside of the door 11. Therefore, the design is prevented from being damaged when the door 11 is opened, and the design is prevented from being damaged when the door opening/closing operation device 10 fails, and a decrease in aerodynamic characteristics while the vehicle is traveling is prevented.

In addition, according to the first embodiment, the arm 53 has first arms 53c1, 53d1 connected to one end 53a, 53e, second arms 53c2, 53d2 connected to the other end 53b, 53f, and a first bent arm 53c and a second bent arm 53d that connect the first arm 53c1, 53d1 and the second arm 53c2, 53d2 so as to form an L-shape when viewed from the axial direction of the rotation drive shaft 52. When the panel cover 40 is in the open position, the first arms 53c1, 53d1 extend horizontally from the one end 53a, 53e toward the inside of the door 11, and the second arms 53c2, 53d2 extend vertically downward from the first bent arm 53c and the second bent arm 53d.

For this reason, as described above, when the panel cover 40 is in the open position, there is no need to take up extra space in the left-right direction of the vehicle for the placement space of the arm 53, and therefore the position of the upper cover 21 of the base cover 20 in the left-right direction can be brought as close as possible to the interior surface of the panel cover 40, thereby making it possible to reduce the size of the door opening/closing device 10 in the left-right direction.

According to the first embodiment, the drive unit 50 includes a connection portion 54 that connects the other end 53b, 53f and the panel cover 40 so as to be relatively movable. The connection portion 54 is composed of a groove portion 59 that is provided on the panel cover 40 (corresponding to one side) and extends in the vertical direction, and a protrusion portion 58 that is provided on the other end 53b, 53f (corresponding to the other side) and engages with the groove portion 59 so as to be relatively movable. As a result, even if the protrusion portion 58 in the connection portion 54 biases the groove portion 59 in a direction associated with the rotation of the arm 53 that rotates around the rotary drive shaft 52, the groove portion 59 and the protrusion portion 58 move relative to each other to absorb the movement (displacement) in the rotation direction, so that the movement of the panel cover 40 can be converted into a linear movement in the left-right direction different from the biasing direction. Since the conversion can be performed with such a simple structure, it is possible to meet low costs. However, this is not the only option, and the grooves 59, 59 may be provided on the other end 53b, 53f (one side) of the arm 53, and the protrusions 58, 58 may be provided on the panel cover 40 (the other side). This also provides the same effect.

In addition, according to the first embodiment, a guide mechanism is provided to guide the panel cover 40 as it moves linearly between the closed position and the open position. This allows the panel cover 40 to move linearly stably.

In addition, according to the first embodiment, a partition wall 22c is provided below the panel cover 40 to partition the lower side of the operation space M, and the partition wall 22c is visible from outside the door 11 through the operation opening 12b when the panel cover 40 is in the open position. As a result, when the panel cover 40 is in the open position, even if there is a space below the panel cover 40, there is no arm, so the arm below the partition wall 22c cannot be seen from the operator through the operation opening 12b, and only the partition wall 22c is visible, thereby maintaining the design.

In addition, according to the first embodiment, the upper surface of the partition wall 22c visible from the operation opening 12b is surface-treated in the same manner as the outer surface 12a of the door 11 or the outer surface 41a of the panel cover 40 facing outward from the door 11. Therefore, when the panel cover 40 is in the open position, the operator can see only the partition wall 22c, which is painted in the same manner as the outer surface 12a or the outer surface 41a of the panel cover 40, through the operation opening 12b, improving the design.

According to the first embodiment, the panel cover 40 includes a design portion 41 formed to a size corresponding to the operation opening 12b, and a peripheral portion 42 having an outer surface 42a that is integrally provided along the outer edge of the design portion 41 and is positioned on the inner side of the door 11 than the outer surface 41a of the design portion 41. The peripheral portion 42 is located outside the periphery of the operation opening 12b.

As a result, when the panel cover 40 moves from the open position to the closed position, the outer surface 42a comes into contact with the inner surface 22a3 of the bottom 22a, which is the periphery of the opening 22a2, stopping the movement of the panel cover 40, and the outer surface 41a of the design part 41 that has entered the operation opening 12b is made flush with the outer surface 12a of the door panel 12, improving the design.

In addition, according to the first embodiment, the latch release part 30 is disposed above the operation opening 12b. As a result, the latch release part 30 is disposed below the panel cover 40, so there is no need to provide space below for disposition, and the same effect can be expected as when the rotation drive shaft 52 of the arm 53 is disposed above the movement trajectory of the panel cover 40.

＜4. Other＞
In the above embodiment, the door opening/closing device 10 is configured to include the base cover 20, but is not limited to this. The door opening/closing device 10 may be configured to not include all or at least one of the bottom 22a and the side portions 22b, 22c, 22d, and 22e of the lower cover 22 of the base cover 20. In this case, the side portions 22b, 22c, 22d, and 22e may be replaced by forming wall portions corresponding to each portion from the surface of the interior side (rear side) of the door panel 12 toward the interior side of the vehicle. In addition, if the bottom portion 22a is eliminated, all the side portions 22b, 22c, 22d, and 22e will necessarily be formed on the surface of the interior side of the door panel 12. This can also be expected to produce the same effect.

In the above embodiment, the arm 53 is formed to be L-shaped when viewed from the axial direction of the rotary drive shaft 52, but this is not limited to the above. The arm 53 may be C-shaped when viewed from the axial direction of the rotary drive shaft 52. The arm 53 may also be formed with the first arm and the second arm at an angle that is more open or closed than the L shape. As a result, when the panel cover 40 is in the open position, a gap is created between the panel cover 40 and the upper cover 21 of the base cover 20, which does not contribute to the miniaturization of the door opening and closing device 10, but other effects similar to those of the above embodiment can be expected.

In the above embodiment, the connection parts 54, 54 connect the other ends 53b, 53f to the panel cover 40 at two locations so that they can move relative to each other, but this is not limited to the embodiment. There may be one connection part or three or more connections. If there is one connection part, it is preferable that the connection part is provided at a position corresponding to the center of the panel cover 40 in the vehicle longitudinal direction. If there are three or more connections, it is preferable that the adjacent connection parts are arranged so that they are equidistant from each other in the vehicle longitudinal direction. This also provides the same effect as the above embodiment.

10; door opening/closing operation device, 11; door, 12; door panel, 12b; operation opening, 20; base cover, 22a; bottom, 22b, 22c, 22d, 22e; side, 22c; partition wall, 23, 23; guide groove, 30; latch release portion, 31; latch release handle, 32; rotating shaft, 40; panel cover, 41; design portion, 41a; outer surface, 42; peripheral portion, 42a; outer surface, 50; drive device, 51; drive motor, 52; rotating drive shaft, 53; arm, 53a, 53e; one end, 53b, 53f; other end, 53c; first bent arm portion (bent arm portion), 53d; second bent arm portion (bent arm portion), 53c1, 53d1; first arm portion, 53c2, 53d2: second arm, 54: connection, 58: protrusion, 59: groove, M: operation space, TU: upper end of movement trajectory.

Claims (7)

a latch release portion that is disposed in an operation space within a door of a vehicle and is operated from the outside of the door through an operation opening provided in the door to release the latch of the door;
a panel cover that is disposed in the operation space and is movable between a closing position that closes the operation opening and an opening position that exposes the operation space;
a drive device that moves the panel cover between the closed position and the open position,
The drive device is
A rotatable rotary drive shaft;
an arm that is disposed in the operation space, one end of which is connected to the rotary drive shaft and the other end of which is connected to the panel cover, and at least a portion of which is disposed on the inner side of the door relative to the position of the one end in the inside/outside direction of the door;
a connection portion that connects the other end portion and the panel cover so as to be relatively movable ,
The rotation drive shaft is disposed above a moving path of the panel cover ,
A door opening and closing operation device, wherein the connection portion is composed of a groove portion provided on one of the other end portion and the panel cover and extending in the vertical direction, and a convex portion provided on the other of the other end portion and the panel cover and engaging with the groove portion so as to be capable of relative movement . the arm has a first arm portion connected to the one end portion, a second arm portion connected to the other end portion, and a bent arm portion connecting the first arm portion and the second arm portion so as to form an L shape when viewed from an axial direction of the rotation drive shaft,
2. The door opening and closing operating device according to claim 1, wherein when the panel cover is located in the open position, the first arm portion extends horizontally from the one end toward the inside of the door, and the second arm portion extends vertically downward from the bent arm portion. The door opening and closing device according to claim 1 or 2 , further comprising a guide mechanism that guides the panel cover as it moves linearly between the closed position and the open position. a latch release portion that is disposed in an operation space within a door of a vehicle and is operated from the outside of the door through an operation opening provided in the door to release the latch of the door;
a panel cover that is disposed in the operation space and is movable between a closing position that closes the operation opening and an opening position that exposes the operation space;
a drive device that moves the panel cover between the closed position and the open position;
a partition wall that partitions a lower side of the operation space below the panel cover,
The drive device is
A rotatable rotary drive shaft;
an arm that is disposed in the operation space, one end of which is connected to the rotary drive shaft and the other end of which is connected to the panel cover, and at least a portion of which is disposed on the inner side of the door relative to the position of the one end in the inside/outside direction of the door,
The rotation drive shaft is disposed above a moving path of the panel cover,
A door opening/ closing operation device, wherein the partition wall is visible from outside the door through the operation opening when the panel cover is located in the open position. 5. The door opening/closing device according to claim 4 , wherein an upper surface of the partition wall is subjected to a surface treatment similar to an outer surface of the door or an outer surface of the panel cover on the outer side of the door. a latch release portion that is disposed in an operation space within a door of a vehicle and is operated from the outside of the door through an operation opening provided in the door to release the latch of the door;
a panel cover that is disposed in the operation space and is movable between a closing position that closes the operation opening and an opening position that exposes the operation space;
a drive device that moves the panel cover between the closed position and the open position,
The drive device is
A rotatable rotary drive shaft;
an arm that is disposed in the operation space, one end of which is connected to the rotary drive shaft and the other end of which is connected to the panel cover, and at least a portion of which is disposed on the inner side of the door relative to the position of the one end in the inside/outside direction of the door,
The rotation drive shaft is disposed above a moving path of the panel cover,
The latch release portion is disposed above the operation opening. The panel cover includes a design portion formed to a size corresponding to the operation opening, and a peripheral portion having an outer surface that is integrally formed along the outer edge of the design portion and is located on the inner side of the door than the outer surface of the design portion,
The door opening/closing operation device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the peripheral edge portion is located outside a peripheral edge of the operation opening.