Most van- or minivan-type automotive vehicle have a sliding side door on the passenger side of the vehicle. Typically, this door has an upper arm and a lower arm which connect the sliding side door with the vehicle. The lower arm has one end fixed with the door and a second end with a roller which rides within a track provided on the side of the vehicle. To keep the door in an open position when the door has been fully opened, typically the track in which the lower arm roller rides will have a slight mound or hump so that once the door is opened, it will remain in the opened position. The above-noted detent system works well, with the exception when the van is parked on declining terrain wherein the gravitational force exerted on the door will often cause it to close, even after it has been pulled back to a fully open position.
A second type of detenting system provides a positive acting latch which will hold the door in its open position even on an incline. However, this type of detenting system requires that there be a release handle which is activated by the vehicle operator when the operator wishes to close the door. Therefore, the door cannot return to the closed position by a simple pull upon the door. Efforts are now being made to offer automatically opening and closing doors on van-type vehicles. With an automatically opening van door, typically there is a power latch which retains the van door in the open position. To close the door automatically or manually, the latch must again be manipulated before the door can be pulled closed. Therefore, if a vehicle operator automatically opens the door to the checked position and then exits the vehicle, there must be some manual means to unlatch the door to allow it to return to the closed position. The automatic latching and unlatching for the check position or the latch for the manual-type system to allow door checking require the added expense of a release mechanism. It would be advantageous if a door checking system was arranged wherein the door would automatically be detented in the open position, would maintain that detented position even when the vehicle is parked on a steep slope and would allow the use of manual or automatic door opening systems wherein the door could then be closed without the expense of an added automatic release system or handle and would also allow the door to close by simply manually pulling the door closed.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds