JPH0421988Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Technical Field of the Invention] The present invention is an improvement of a hood lock device that locks in a closed state a hood that opens and closes the top opening of an engine compartment, which is provided at the front of a vehicle such as an automobile. Regarding.

[Technical background of the invention and its problems]

As shown in FIG. 1, an engine compartment, for example, is provided in the front part of a vehicle body 1 of a general automobile, and the upper opening of the engine compartment is opened and closed by a hood 2. That is, the rear end side of the hood 2 is attached to the vehicle body 1 via a hinge part, and the free end side, which is the front part, is rotatable in the vertical direction about the hinge part. Further, a hood striker, which is an engaging portion, is provided on the back surface of the free end side, and a hood lock device is provided on a portion of the vehicle body 1 that opposes this.

This hood lock device is conventionally constructed as shown in FIG. 4, and includes a latch 3 that detachably engages with the hood striker to lock the hood 2 in a closed state. A secondary lock 4 is provided which engages with the engaging portion on the hood 2 side to prevent the hood 2 from opening when the lock is released. A release lever 5 is provided at the lower end of the secondary lock 4 in an integrally branched state. The upper end of the release lever 5 is bent in the horizontal direction, and is provided with an operating section 6 which is coated with a heat-resistant coating, for example, black.

When opening the hood 2, the latch 3 is first disengaged from the hood striker using a hood lock release lever disposed inside the vehicle. Then, the free end side of the hood 2 rises slightly from the front of the vehicle body 1. Next, insert your fingers into these gaps and operate the operating section 6 of the release lever 5. Secondary lock 4 is release lever 5
and completely disengages from the engaging portion on the hood 2 side. Therefore, the hood 2 can be rotated to the open position. In other words, the secondary lock 4 is activated when the hood 2 is erroneously opened due to an erroneous operation of the hood lock release lever.For example, in an engine equipped with a turbocharger, the engine compartment becomes hot and the release lever 5 becomes relatively high in temperature. Even when heated, there is no risk of burning your fingers.

By the way, since the release lever 5 has a shape branching from the lower end of the secondary lock 4, the operating section 6 that is the end thereof is separated from the base plate 7 provided on the vehicle body 1 corresponding to the free end of the hood 2. It is unavoidable that it protrudes greatly and the entire device becomes larger. In addition, the operation part 6 is located extremely far away from the secondary lock 4, so it feels strange to operate, and it is difficult to confirm that the lock has been released, resulting in poor operability.The operation part 6 is painted black, so visual confirmation is not easy. There are other inconveniences.

Note that, conventionally, a secondary lock 4a and a release lever 5a as shown in FIG. 5 are sometimes used. In this case, the operation part 6a of the release lever 5a is located near the center of rotation of the secondary lock 4a.
will be provided.

Although such a shape allows the device to be made smaller, the radius of rotation for operating the release lever 5a becomes extremely small, requiring strong force and resulting in poor operability. Further, since the operating section 6a is painted black like the above-mentioned one, the disadvantage that it is difficult to see with the naked eye remains unsolved.

[Purpose of invention]

The present invention was developed in view of the above circumstances, and its purpose is to provide a release lever that improves the operability of releasing the secondary lock, and to make it easy to confirm the operating end of this release lever. The purpose of this invention is to provide a food lock device that can improve safety and improve safety.

[Summary of the idea]

That is, the present invention includes a hood that is pivotally attached to an upper opening at the front of the vehicle body so as to be openable and closable, a base plate provided on the vehicle body corresponding to the free end of the hood, and a latch that locks the hood in a closed state on the base plate. A secondary lock is provided that engages with the engaging portion formed on the hood side when the latch is disengaged to prevent the hood from opening, and a spring is tensioned between the secondary lock and the base plate to prevent the secondary lock from opening. In the device that constantly biases the lock into engagement with the engaging portion, a hook is formed at one end in the longitudinal direction of the secondary lock, the spring is locked at the other end, and a gap is formed on the front side of the secondary lock. The hood lock device is characterized in that a release lever is provided which extends parallel to the hook portion so as to face each other, and a brightly colored protective cover is attached to the tip of the release lever. .

Therefore, since the release lever is arranged to overlap with the secondary lock, if there is space for releasing the hook, the release lever can also be operated, reducing the space required. Moreover, the rotation radius of the release lever can be increased, the operating force is reduced, and the operability is improved. No special parts are required to attach the spring, making assembly and parts management easier. Since the protective cover is brightly colored, it is not only easy to confirm the position of the release lever with this protective cover attached, but also the position of the secondary lock that is parallel to the release lever. There is no need to get your fingers caught in the hook.

[Example of idea]

Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present invention will be described based on the drawings. However, since the shape and structure of the front part of the automobile may be the same as that previously explained in FIG. 1, this figure will be applied and new explanation will be omitted here. The food lock device is designed as shown in FIG.
Except for the secondary lock 14 and release lever 15, which will be described later, the latch 3 provided on the base plate 7 and the lock mechanism (not shown) can all be conventionally used. The secondary lock 14 has a pin 2 at its approximate center.
It is rotatably supported on the base plate 7 via the base plate 7 and extends substantially vertically. The lower end of this secondary lock 14 and the base plate 7
A spring 21 is tensioned between the lock 14 and the lock 14 so as to bias the secondary lock 14 clockwise. There is a hook part 22 at the upper end.
are integrally provided, and when the hood 2 is in the closed state, the elastic action of the spring 21 elastically engages the engaging portion provided on the hood 2 side. The release lever 15 has its base end 23, which is its lower end, fixed to the vicinity of the pivot portion of the pin 20 of the secondary lock 14 by, for example, welding. The upper portion of the proximal end portion 23 is bent to extend parallel to the hook portion 22 so as to face the secondary lock 14 with a gap in front of it. The uppermost end is an operating end 24, to which a protective cover 25 is attached.
The protective cover 25 is made of synthetic rubber material and has heat resistance. At the time of this molding, titanium white is mixed into the synthetic rubber material, and a yellow, orange, or white pigment is further supplemented. As shown in FIG. 3, the lever attachment hole 26 of the protective cover 25 is integrally provided with constricted portions 27, 27 on the side surface thereof. On the other hand, the operating end portion 24 of the release lever 15 is provided with notches 28, 28 at both ends thereof. By inserting the mounting hole 26 into the operation end 24, the constricted portions 27, 27 are fitted into the notches 28, 28 and are prevented from coming off, so that the protective cover 25 is securely attached and fixed. When the hood lock release lever is operated to release the latch 3, the hood 2 is slightly lifted from the entire end of the vehicle body 1. When viewed through these gaps, the light-colored protective cover 25 can be seen very easily. By operating this protective cover 25, the release lever 15 rotates together with the secondary lock 14. Here, checking the position of the release lever 15 means knowing the positions of the secondary lock 14 and the hook 22 at the same time. Never. The secondary lock 14 is disengaged from the engaging portion of the hood 2, and the hood is completely free to rotate. As the protective cover 25 is operated, the release lever 15 rotates together with the secondary lock 14 while facing the same. At this time, since the radii of curvature are substantially the same, the operation is extremely smooth and only requires a small operating force.

[Effect of idea]

As explained above, according to the invention, the operability of the release lever can be improved, the device can be made smaller, and the position of the protective cover provided at the operating end of the release lever can be easily confirmed. The positions of the secondary lock and the hook can be confirmed, and there is no chance of fingers getting caught in the hook when operating the release lever, contributing to improved safety.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a partial perspective view of a general automobile as a vehicle, Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a hood lock device showing an embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 3 is a partially assembled explanatory view.
The fourth is a perspective view of a hood lock device showing a conventional example of the present invention, and the fifth is a perspective view of a secondary lock and a release lever used in a different hood lock device. 1... Vehicle body, 2... Hood, 7... Base plate, 3... Latch, 14... Secondary lock, 21... Spring, 22... Hook, 15
...Release lever, 25...Protective cover.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] A hood pivotably mounted to an upper opening at the front of the vehicle body, a base plate provided on the vehicle body corresponding to the free end of the hood, a latch provided on the base plate for locking the hood in a closed state, and a latch for locking the hood in a closed state. a secondary lock that engages with an engaging portion formed on the hood side when the engagement is released and prevents the hood from opening; and a secondary lock that is stretched between the secondary lock and the base plate and that constantly engages the secondary lock. In the device having a spring that engages and biases the part,
A hook is formed at one end in the longitudinal direction of the secondary lock, the spring is locked at the other end, and the hook is oriented toward the hook so as to face each other with a gap in front of the secondary lock. 1. A food lock device comprising: a release lever extending in parallel with the release lever; and a brightly colored protective cover attached to the tip of the release lever.