A new design concept for a mechanism to raise and lower side dropping automotive windows provides greater in-board/ outboard compliance than conventional window lift systems. These design aspects provide advantages over current technologies.
Among these advantages are:
A reduction and control of vectored load inputs on the associated window lift system, having the effect of improved efficiency.
A lower cost construction than conventional devices.
A window lift system that is more capable of providing one-touch-up functionality meeting the anti-pinch safety criteria outlined in the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 118.
Drastically reduced prototyping time. This reduction is achieved by producing a general purpose product, then shaping / modifying it to approximate door geometry. The freedom of the inboard / outboard constraints makes imperfect geometry inconsequential in the evaluation of the prototypes.
The method of research includes
data collection of comparative systems and demonstrations of performance.
a general financial analysis contrasting with conventional systems.
direct comparative examples, along with anecdotal examples of actual prototype lead times.
This new concept window lift regulator system, known as the Racklift™ system, due to its combination of material construction, mechanical drive geometry, low weight, consistently low power consumption, and dual axis directional flexibility, is unique in its ability to address these various functions and quality of operation.
The conclusions drawn support the effects of reduced load variation as measured through velocity, current draw, noise variation, and seal wear. The conclusions also demonstrate the financial advantages and rapid prototyping of the device over conventional systems.