U.S. patent application number 12/094041 was filed with the patent office on 2008-12-04 for tachograph for a motor vehicle.
Invention is credited to Klaus Hug, Axel Hugle, Herbert Kirner, Benjamin Sager, Harald Trampert, Torsten Wahler.
Application Number | 20080297017 12/094041 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 37622473 |
Filed Date | 2008-12-04 |
United States Patent
Application |
20080297017 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Hug; Klaus ; et al. |
December 4, 2008 |
Tachograph for a Motor Vehicle
Abstract
In a tachograph (1) for a motor vehicle, a drawer (10) can be
extended through an opening (8) in a front panel frame (2). When
the drawer (10) is in the closed state, a recording disc (9) in the
drawer (10) is situated in the opening (8) in the front panel frame
(2) and holds a circumferential sealing lip (14). A second sealing
lip (16) seals off the recording disc (9) from a drawer panel (3).
When the drawer (10) is in the closed state, the sealing lip (14)
sealing off the recording disc (9) abuts an inwardly pointing edge
(15) of the opening (8) in the front panel frame (2).
Inventors: |
Hug; Klaus; (Oberndorf,
DE) ; Hugle; Axel; (Furtwangen, DE) ; Kirner;
Herbert; (Villingen-Schwenningen, DE) ; Sager;
Benjamin; (Villingen-Schwenningen, DE) ; Trampert;
Harald; (Villingen-Schwenningen, DE) ; Wahler;
Torsten; (Bad Durrheim, DE) |
Correspondence
Address: |
BAKER BOTTS L.L.P.;PATENT DEPARTMENT
98 SAN JACINTO BLVD., SUITE 1500
AUSTIN
TX
78701-4039
US
|
Family ID: |
37622473 |
Appl. No.: |
12/094041 |
Filed: |
October 26, 2006 |
PCT Filed: |
October 26, 2006 |
PCT NO: |
PCT/EP2006/067821 |
371 Date: |
May 16, 2008 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
312/330.1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G07C 7/00 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
312/330.1 |
International
Class: |
A47B 88/00 20060101
A47B088/00 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Nov 28, 2005 |
DE |
102005056605.7 |
Claims
1. A tachograph for a motor vehicle comprising a housing in which
an electric device is arranged, an opening in the housing and a
drawer which is inserted into the opening, a receiving plate of the
drawer, a drawer panel for covering the receiving plate, and a
sealing lip which seals off the opening from a front panel frame of
the housing, wherein the sealing lip is arranged on the receiving
plate and bears radially on the inside of an edge, bounding the
opening, of the front panel frame.
2. The tachograph according to claim 1, wherein the sealing lip
points away from the drawer and in the opened state of the drawer
the sealing lip protrudes beyond the outer edge of the receiving
plate.
3. The tachograph according to claim 1, wherein the receiving plate
has at least a second sealing lip, and wherein the second sealing
lip bears against the drawer panel.
4. The tachograph according to claim 3, wherein the sealing lip
which seals off the receiving plate from the front panel frame and
the second sealing lip are fabricated in one piece.
5. The tachograph according to claim 3, wherein at least one of the
sealing lips is fabricated from plastic using an injection molding
method.
6. The tachograph according to claim 3, wherein at least one of the
sealing lips is connected in a materially joined fashion to the
receiving plate.
7. The tachograph according to claim 1, wherein the receiving plate
and the drawer panel are connected to one another by means of a
latched connection.
8. The tachograph according to claim 1, wherein the latched
connection is configured in an annular shape.
9. The tachograph according to claim 1, wherein the receiving plate
is fabricated from plastic.
10. The tachograph according to claim 1, wherein at least one duct
is arranged between the receiving plate and the drawer panel, and
wherein the duct is opened toward the underside of the drawer.
11. The tachograph according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of
ducts are made to extend close to various latched connections.
12. The tachograph according to claim 1, wherein the drawer panel
covers the opening in the front panel frame.
13. A tachograph for a motor vehicle comprising a housing having an
opening, a drawer which is inserted into the opening having a
receiving plate, a drawer panel for covering the receiving plate,
and a sealing lip sealing off the opening from a front panel frame
of the housing, wherein the sealing lip is arranged on the
receiving plate such that it seals radially on the inside of an
edge around the opening of the front panel frame.
14. The tachograph according to claim 13, wherein the sealing lip
points away from the drawer and in the opened state of the drawer
the sealing lip protrudes beyond the outer edge of the receiving
plate.
15. The tachograph according to claim 13, wherein the receiving
plate has at least a second sealing lip which lies against the
drawer panel.
16. The tachograph according to claim 15, wherein the sealing lip
which seals off the receiving plate from the front panel frame and
the second sealing lip are fabricated in one piece.
17. The tachograph according to claim 13, wherein the sealing lips
is fabricated from plastic using an injection molding method.
18. The tachograph according to claim 13, wherein the receiving
plate and the drawer panel are connected to one another by means of
a latched connection.
19. The tachograph according to claim 13, wherein the latched
connection is configured in an annular shape.
20. The tachograph according to claim 13, wherein at least one duct
is arranged between the receiving plate and the drawer panel, and
wherein the duct is opened toward the underside of the drawer.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a U.S. national stage application of
International Application No. PCT/EP2006/067821 filed Oct. 26,
2006, which designates the United States of America, and claims
priority to German application number 10 2005 056 605.7 filed Nov.
28, 2005, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by
reference in their entirety.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] The invention relates to a tachograph for a motor vehicle
having a housing, having an electric device which is arranged in
the housing, having an opening in the housing and a drawer which is
inserted into the opening, having a receiving plate of the drawer,
having a drawer panel for covering the receiving plate and having a
sealing lip which seals off the opening from a front panel frame of
the housing.
BACKGROUND
[0003] Such tachographs are, in particular, frequently used in
industrially used motor vehicles nowadays and are known from
practice. The tachograph generally has a printer and has, in the
drawer, a magazine for holding a paper supply for the printer. For
use in contemporary motor vehicles they have provision for the
drawer to be reliably protected from deposition of dust and
penetrating spray water. In the tachograph which is known from
practice, the receiving plate is a sheet-metal part to which the
drawer panel is attached. The drawer panel secures the sealing lip
which, in the closed state, is pressed against the front panel
frame. In this context, the sealing lip is deformed and seals the
opening for the drawer.
[0004] A disadvantage of the known tachograph is, however, that the
sealing lip can buckle laterally when the drawer closes. In
addition, when the drawer is opened and closed repeatedly, the
sealing lip is permanently deformed. For this reason, permanent
tightness cannot be reliably ensured. Furthermore, tolerances in
the attachment of the drawer panel to the receiving plate bring
about a change in the prestress of the sealing lip, which also
adversely affects the tightness of the tachograph.
SUMMARY
[0005] A tachograph of the type mentioned at the beginning can be
developed in such a way that the seal of the drawer in the housing
is reliably ensured. According to an embodiment, a tachograph for a
motor vehicle may comprise a housing in which an electric device is
arranged, an opening in the housing and a drawer which is inserted
into the opening, a receiving plate of the drawer, a drawer panel
for covering the receiving plate, and a sealing lip which seals off
the opening from a front panel frame of the housing, wherein the
sealing lip is arranged on the receiving plate and bears radially
on the inside of an edge, bounding the opening, of the front panel
frame.
[0006] According to a further embodiment, the sealing lip may point
away from the drawer and in the opened state of the drawer the
sealing lip protrudes beyond the outer edge of the receiving plate.
According to a further embodiment, the receiving plate may have at
least a second sealing lip, and the second sealing lip may bear
against the drawer panel. According to a further embodiment, the
sealing lip which seals off the receiving plate from the front
panel frame and the second sealing lip can be fabricated in one
piece. According to a further embodiment, at least one of the
sealing lips may be fabricated from plastic using an injection
molding method. According to a further embodiment, at least one of
the sealing lips may be connected in a materially joined fashion to
the receiving plate. According to a further embodiment, the
receiving plate and the drawer panel can be connected to one
another by means of a latched connection. According to a further
embodiment, the latched connection can be configured in an annular
shape. According to a further embodiment, the receiving plate can
be fabricated from plastic. According to a further embodiment, at
least one duct can be arranged between the receiving plate and the
drawer panel, and the duct is opened toward the underside of the
drawer. According to a further embodiment, a plurality of ducts can
be made to extend close to various latched connections. According
to a further embodiment, the drawer panel may cover the opening in
the front panel frame.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0007] The invention permits numerous embodiments. In order to
clarify its basic principle further, one of these embodiments is
illustrated in the drawing and will be described below. In said
drawing:
[0008] FIG. 1 is a front view of a tachograph according to an
embodiment,
[0009] FIG. 2 is a sectional illustration through the tachograph
from FIG. 1 along the line II-II,
[0010] FIG. 3 is a sectional illustration through the tachograph
from FIG. 1 along the line III-III,
[0011] FIG. 4 is a sectional illustration through a receiving plate
with a drawer panel of the tachograph from FIG. 1,
[0012] FIG. 5 is a highly enlarged view of a sealing lip which is
attached to the receiving plate, with the joining areas of the
receiving plate and the drawer panel, and
[0013] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the receiving plate and the
drawer panel before assembly.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0014] According to various embodiments, the sealing lip can be
arranged on the receiving plate and may bear radially on the inside
of an edge, bounding the opening, of the front panel frame.
[0015] As a result of this embodiment, tolerances between the
receiving plate and the drawer panel no longer bring about a change
in the prestress of the sealing lip against the front panel frame.
Thus compression of the sealing lip can be avoided, resulting in
particularly low deformation forces of the sealing lip. In
addition, lateral and vertical tolerances of the printer drawer
with respect to the front panel frame are easily compensated by the
sealing lip. The tachograph according to various embodiments
therefore has a particularly reliable seal preventing the ingress
of spray water.
[0016] According to another embodiment, particularly low loading of
the sealing lip when the drawer is closed can be easily achieved if
the sealing lip points away from the drawer and, in the opened
state, protrudes beyond the outer edge of the receiving plate. This
embodiment ensures that when the drawer closes the sealing lip fits
snugly against the inside of the edge of the opening of the front
panel frame and in doing so is deformed only to a small degree.
This brings about the low loading and therefore leads to a long
service life of the sealing lip. The tightness of the seal of the
receiving plate with respect to the front panel frame is therefore
reliably ensured. A further advantage of this embodiment is that
possible clamping of the drawer as a result of large deformation
forces of the sealing lip is reliably avoided.
[0017] According to another embodiment, the seal of the drawer
panel with respect to the receiving plate is structurally
particularly simple if the receiving plate has at least a second
sealing lip and if the second sealing lip bears against the drawer
panel.
[0018] It helps to reduce the fabrication costs of the tachograph
according to an embodiment if the sealing lip which seals the
receiving plate against the front panel frame and the second
sealing lip are fabricated in one piece.
[0019] It helps to reduce the fabrication costs of the tachograph
according to an embodiment further if at least one of the sealing
lips is fabricated from plastic using an injection molding
method.
[0020] A reliable seal of the sealing lips with respect to the
receiving plate can be reliably ensured according to another
embodiment if at least one of the sealing lips is connected in a
materially joined fashion to the receiving plate. This also
contributes to further reducing the fabrication costs of the
tachograph according to an embodiment. The materially joined
connection of the sealing lip to the receiving plate is
advantageously produced by virtue of the fact that the sealing lip
is integrally injection molded onto the receiving plate during the
injection molding method.
[0021] The tachograph according to an embodiment is particularly
easy to assemble if the receiving plate and the drawer panel are
connected to one another by means of a latched connection.
[0022] Reliable orientation of the drawer panel with respect to the
receiving plate can be easily achieved according to another
embodiment if the latched connection is embodied in an annular
shape. A further advantage of this embodiment is that as a result
the receiving plate and the drawer panel have a particularly high
degree of rigidity while a small amount of material is used. The
small amount of material used for the drawer panel also avoids what
are referred to as collapsing points, and therefore produces a
uniform surface on the visible areas of the drawer panel.
[0023] According to another embodiment, the receiving plate can be
particularly easily fabricated and particularly easily fabricated
in one piece with a plurality of stiffening means and parts of the
latched connection if the receiving plate is fabricated from
plastic. Furthermore, the sealing lip can, as a result, easily be
integrally injection molded and the materially joined connection of
the sealing lip to the receiving plate can therefore be
produced.
[0024] According to another embodiment, the drawer panel can be
particularly easily removed if at least one duct is arranged
between the receiving plate and the drawer panel and if the duct is
opened toward the underside of the drawer. By virtue of this
embodiment it is easy to insert a simple tool, for example a
screwdriver, into the duct and force open the latched
connection.
[0025] Damage to the drawer panel can be reliably avoided during
its removal according to another embodiment if a plurality of ducts
are made to extend close to various latched connections.
[0026] According to another embodiment, the sealing lip is reliably
protected against dirt and/or mechanical loads if the drawer panel
covers the opening in the front panel frame.
[0027] FIG. 1 shows a tachograph 1 with a front panel frame 2 and a
drawer panel 3. A gap 4 for a paper feed 5 for a printer 6 which is
illustrated in FIG. 2 is arranged between the drawer panel 3 and
the front panel frame 2. The drawer panel 3 has a tear-off strip 7
for paper of the printer 6. FIG. 2 shows the tachograph 1 from FIG.
1 in a sectional illustration along the line II-II. The drawer
panel 3 covers an opening 8 in the front panel frame 2 and is
mounted on a receiving plate 9 of a drawer 10. The receiving plate
9 is attached to the drawer 10 by means of screws 11 which are
concealed by the drawer panel 3. A printer roller 12 of the printer
6 is arranged directly behind the paper guide 5. The drawer 10 also
has a receiving chamber 13 for a magazine (not illustrated in more
detail) of a paper supply. The paper supply is, for example, a
paper roll. FIG. 3 shows the tachograph 1 from FIG. 1 in a
sectional illustration along the line III-III. Consideration of
FIGS. 2 and 3 together makes it clear that the receiving plate 9
has a circumferential sealing lip 14 which seals the receiving
plate 9 with respect to the opening 8 in the front panel frame 2.
The sealing lip 14 bears against an edge 15 which bounds the
opening 8 toward the inside. Furthermore, the sealing lip 14 is
fabricated in one piece with a second sealing lip 16 which seals
the receiving plate 9 with respect to the drawer panel 3. The
tachograph 1 has an opening key 17 for opening the drawer 10 and an
operator control element 18 for operating the tachograph 1.
[0028] FIG. 4 shows, for the sake of clarification, the receiving
plate 9 with the sealing lips 14, 16 and adjoining areas of the
drawer panel 3 in a sectional illustration. It is apparent here
that the sealing lip 14 which seals the receiving plate 9 with
respect to the front panel frame 2 points away from the receiving
plate 9, and in the opened state of the drawer 10 it protrudes
beyond the outer periphery of the receiving plate 9. When the
drawer 10 closes, the sealing lip 14 moves against the edge 15 of
the opening 8 (illustrated in FIG. 1) of the front panel frame 2
and in the process is compressed slightly in the radial direction
with respect to the opening 8. As a result, the sealing lip 14 fits
snugly against the edge 15. Furthermore, FIG. 5 illustrates the
sealing lip 14 which seals the receiving plate 9 with respect to
the front panel frame 2, and FIG. 5 shows the configuration of said
sealing lip 14 in one piece with the second sealing lip 16 which
seals the receiving plate 9 with respect to the drawer panel 3.
[0029] FIG. 5 shows in the highly enlarged form a sectional
illustration of the receiving plate 9 in the region of a connection
to the drawer panel 3. The connection of the drawer panel 3 to the
receiving plate 9 has a latched connection 19 with an annular
latching element 20 which is arranged on the drawer panel 3, and a
second latching element 21 which is also arranged in an annular
shape on the receiving plate 9. The latching elements 20, 21 can be
pressed one into the other and connect the receiving plate 9 to the
drawer panel 3 in a positively locking fashion.
[0030] In order to release the latched connection 19 illustrated in
FIG. 5, a tool (not illustrated), for example a screwdriver, is
inserted into a duct 22 (illustrated in FIG. 4) between the
receiving plate 9 and the drawer panel 3, and the drawer panel 3 is
forced away from the receiving plate 9 by means of levers. In the
process, the latched connection 19 is released. The duct 22 is
essentially located in the receiving plate 9, while the webs 23 for
supporting the tool are arranged on the drawer panel 3.
[0031] FIG. 6 shows the receiving plate 9 and the front panel 3
before assembly. The receiving plate 9 has a plurality of recesses
24 for the insertion of the screws 11 (illustrated in FIG. 2) for
the connection to the drawer 10. Furthermore, a plurality of
latching elements 20, 21, which each produce a latched connection
19 (illustrated by way of example in FIG. 5), are arranged on the
receiving plate 9 and the drawer panel 3. In total, two ducts 22
and the webs 23 for a tool to be fitted against are arranged on the
side of the receiving plate 9 and of the front panel 3 which forms
the underside of the drawer 10. Furthermore, FIG. 6 shows that the
second sealing lip 16 for sealing the receiving plate 9 to the
drawer panel 3 branches into recesses 25, 26 for the operator
control element 18 (illustrated in FIG. 1) and the opening key 17,
and is made to extend around the circumference of the receiving
plate 9.
* * * * *