Motor vehicle steering column
US5537890A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | May 17, 1995 |
| Grant date | Jul 23, 1996 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | May 17, 2015 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY10T403/7077
- WIPO fieldTransport
- WIPO sectorMechanical engineering
Abstract
A motor vehicle steering column including a stationary support, a moveable support on which a steering wheel is rotatably mounted, and a position control apparatus which achieves both positive retention of the position of the moveable support and substantially infinite positional adjustability. The position control apparatus includes a gate on the stationary support, a stack of thin plates on the moveable support which moves back and forth with the moveable support in front of the gate, and a slide on the stationary support which moves a segment of the stack of thin plates partially into the gate to immobilize the moveable support relative to the stationary support. In a preferred embodiment, a spring strokes the slide to a position partially overlapping the stock of thin plates and the gate when an operating lever is pivoted from an unlocked position to a locked position and a cam rotatable with the operating lever strokes the slide in the opposite direction when the operating lever is pivoted form the locked position to the unlocked position.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.