A CUSHION CLIP STRUCTURE
FIELD OF INVENTION:
[001] The present subject matter described herein, relates to a cushion clip, and, in particular, to a cushion clip made of soft and hard material for absorbing impact force and vibrations. More particularly, the present subject matter relates to a 5 cushion clip which has cushion member and a clip member where cushion member is over molded over the clip member strongly to absorb impact force and vibrations and avoid popping out of the cushion member from the clip member due to impact force and vibrations.
BACKGROUND AND PRIOR ART: 10
[002] Generally cushion clips are provided in between two frames where one frame strikes another frame during opening and closing operations. In vehicles, cushion clips are provided at door/trunk frames to absorb impact/vibration force of door/trunk closing operations. The cushion clip has two members a cushion member and a clip member. The clip member is attached to the door/trunk frame 15 of the vehicle. The cushion member is disposed over the clip member. The cushion member is made of soft rubber material to damp the impact/vibration force.
[003] US patent publication 6857166 discloses a cushion body of a rubber-like elastic element having cushioning function in which engagement holes including a 20 cave and a pit are formed. The cave is formed so that a horizontal head of a T-shaped clip is inserted into a space provided at the side of a bottom surface portion. The pit is formed so as to extend in a direction perpendicular to the cave, and to be opened in the bottom surface portion, permitting a vertical shaft of the clip to be inserted thereinto. The clip is formed with a plastic material and T-25 shaped and has a plurality of engaging claws flared toward the root portion from an end part of the vertical shaft of the T-shaped portion. The clip is engaged with the engagement holes of the cushion body. This patent suffers from weak joining between the cushion and clip. During the vehicle vibrations, lateral loads are also
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generated on to the cushion, under which cushion may pop out of its clip portion or generate internal cracks in cushion portion leading to delayed failure of this part as a whole due to its weak joinery. Further, the cushion and the clip are not chemically connected with each other in the US patent.
[004] Further, in the existing cushion clip does not properly damp the vibrations 5 and transfers the vibrations to clip portion and to the door frame, thereby generating noise. Thus, there is a need in the art for an improved cushion clip. In order to prevent popping out of the cushion member from the clip member during closing operations of the door/trunk. Further, in order to damp the vibrations efficiently by the cushion clip at the door/trunk frame. There is a need in the art to 10 provide a cushion clip structure that is more simple and inexpensive, and which restrict popping out of cushion member from the clip member and to absorb impact / vibrations efficiently.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION:
[005] The principal objective of the present invention is to provide a cushion clip 15 which absorbs impact/vibrations efficiently during closing of doors/trunk.
[006] Another object of the present subject matter is to provide a cushion clip which prevents popping out of cushion member from clip member.
[007] Another object of the present subject matter is to provide an integrated cushion clip structure where cushion is over molded onto the clip member. 20
[008] Yet another object of the present subject matter is to provide a clip with a plurality of channels to join cushion member strongly with the clip member during over molding process.
[009] Yet another object of the present subject matter is to provide a simple and cost efficient cushion clip structure which absorbs vibrations and the force during 25 impact, efficiently.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION:
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[0010] The subject matter disclosed herein relates to a cushion clip structure for absorbing impact and damping vibrations during closing of door/trunk frames in a vehicle. The cushion clip structure has two members, i.e., cushion member and clip member. The cushion member is made of soft material and the clip member is made of hard material. The cushion clip structure can be provided at the 5 door/trunk frames, for example, at back door/trunk lid frame. The cushion member is over molded onto the clip member for strong bonding between the cushion member and the clip member. The clip member has a vertical shaft, a horizontal circular base, and a horizontal head. The vertical shaft extends perpendicularly in downward direction from the horizontal circular base. The 10 horizontal circular head is provided over the horizontal circular base. The horizontal circular head extends in upward direction towards the cushion member from the horizontal circular base. A plurality of through channels is provided in between the horizontal circular head and the horizontal circular base. During the over molding process, material of cushion member enters the plurality of through 15 channels of the clip member and provides a strong lock between the cushion member and the clip member. The cushion member joins with the clip member through over molding process. Further, the necessary strength is provided by the over molding of cushion material with the plurality of through channels of the clip member. The present cushion clip structure absorbs the impact/vibration force of 20 the door/trunk during door/trunk closing operation and restricts transferring of vibrations into the door/trunk frame where the clip member is mounted. Present engagement of clip member and the cushion member through the plurality of through channels restrict popping out of cushion member from the assembly of the cushion member with the clip member. 25
[0011] In order to further understand the characteristics and technical contents of the present subject matter, a description relating thereto will be made with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the drawings are illustrative only but not used to limit scope of the present subject matter.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 30
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[0012] It is to be noted, however, that the appended drawings illustrate only typical embodiments of the present subject matter and are therefore not to be considered for limiting of its scope, for the invention may admit to other equally effective embodiments. The detailed description is described with reference to the accompanying figures. In the figures, the left-most digit(s) of a reference number 5 identifies the figure in which the reference number first appears. The same numbers are used throughout the figures to reference like features and components. Some embodiments of system or methods in accordance with embodiments of the present subject matter are now described, by way of example, and with reference to the accompanying figures, in which: 10
[0013] Fig. 1 illustrates front view of cushion clip structure, in accordance in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter;
[0014] Fig. 2 illustrates central hollow cylindrical structure in the cushion of the cushion clip structure, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter; 15
[0015] Fig. 3 illustrates perspective view of the cushion clip structure, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter;
[0016] Fig. 4 illustrates a clip member of the cushion clip structure with a plurality of empty channels, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter; 20
[0017] Fig. 5 illustrates front view of the clip member of the cushion clip structure with a plurality of empty channels, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter; and
[0018] Fig. 6 illustrates cross section view of the cushion clip structure, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter. 25
[0019] The figures depict embodiments of the present subject matter for the purposes of illustration only. A person skilled in the art will easily recognize from the following description that alternative embodiments of the structures and
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methods illustrated herein may be employed without departing from the principles of the disclosure described herein.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS:
[0020] The subject matter disclosed herein relates to a cushion clip structure for absorbing impact and damping vibrations during closing of door/trunk frames in a 5 vehicle. The cushion clip structure has two members, i.e., cushion member and clip member. The cushion member is made of soft material and the clip member is made of hard material. The cushion clip structure can be provided at the door/trunk frames, for example, at back door/trunk frame. The cushion member is over molded onto the clip member for strong bonding between the cushion 10 member and the clip member. The clip member has a vertical shaft, a horizontal circular base, and a horizontal head. The vertical shaft extends perpendicularly in downward direction from the horizontal circular base. The horizontal circular head is provided over the horizontal circular base. The horizontal circular head extends in upward direction towards the cushion member from the horizontal 15 circular base. A plurality of through channels is provided in between the horizontal circular head and the horizontal circular base. During the over molding process, material of cushion member enters the plurality of through channels of the clip member and provides a strong lock between the cushion member and the clip member. The cushion member joins with the clip member through over 20 molding process. Further, the necessary strength is provided by the over molding of cushion material with the plurality of through channels of the clip member. The present cushion clip structure absorbs the impact/vibration force of the door/trunk during door/trunk closing operation and restricts transferring of vibrations into the door/trunk frame where the clip member is mounted. Present engagement of clip 25 member and the cushion member through the plurality of through channels restrict popping out of cushion member from the assembly of the cushion member with the clip member.
[0021] It should be noted that the description and figures merely illustrate the principles of the present subject matter. It should be appreciated by those skilled 30
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in the art that conception and specific embodiment disclosed may be readily utilized as a basis for modifying or designing other structures for carrying out the same purposes of the present subject matter. It should also be appreciated by those skilled in the art that by devising various arrangements that, although not explicitly described or shown herein, embody the principles of the present subject 5 matter and are included within its spirit and scope. Furthermore, all examples recited herein are principally intended expressly to be for pedagogical purposes to aid the reader in understanding the principles of the present subject matter and the concepts contributed by the inventor(s) to furthering the art, and are to be construed as being without limitation to such specifically recited examples and 10 conditions. The novel features which are believed to be characteristic of the present subject matter, both as to its organization and method of operation, together with further objects and advantages will be better understood from the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying figures. 15
[0022] These and other advantages of the present subject matter would be described in greater detail with reference to the following figures. It should be noted that the description merely illustrates the principles of the present subject matter. It will thus be appreciated that those skilled in the art will be able to devise various arrangements that, although not explicitly described herein, embody the 20 principles of the present subject matter and are included within its scope.
[0023] Fig. 1 illustrates front view of cushion clip structure, in accordance in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter. The present cushion clip structure 300 has a two member cushion member 100 and clip member 200. The clip member 200 has shaft for engagement with mounting 25 member of vehicle. The mounting member can be door/trunk frame, such as back door/trunk frame and side door frame. The clip member 200 has a vertical shaft (as explained in figure 4) to mount the cushion clip structure 300 onto the mounting member, such as door/trunk frame. The cushion clip structure 300 receives and absorbs the impact force of door/trunk closing and also its vibrations. 30
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The cushion clip structure 300 restricts transferring of impact force/vibrations of the door/trunk to the door/body frame. Fig. 2 illustrates top view of the cushion clip structure, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter. The cushion clip structure 300 has the cushion member 100 which is mounted over the clip member to receive impact force of door. The cushion member 100 is 5 made of soft material, such as thermoplastic elastomers (TPE) and materials which has similar properties. The raw material of cushion member is not restricted to the TPE, it can be made of any other soft material, such as Rubber based polymeric compounds which provides necessary strength for absorbing the impact force and vibrations. The cushion member 100 has a circular hollow structure 101 10 for optimizing the impact and vibrations absorbing performance of the cushion member 100. Fig. 3 illustrates perspective view of the cushion clip structure, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter. In the present cushion clip structure 300, the cushion member 100 is over molded on the clip member 200 keeping optimized conditions for the over molding. The over 15 molding process is well known in the art. Therefore, in order to avoid any ambiguity about the present patent subject matter, requirements, constraint, temperature, pressure and other procedure of the over molding process are not explained in detail.
[0024] Fig. 4 and 5 illustrate structure of clip member of the cushion clip structure 20 with a plurality of empty channels, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter. The present cushion clip structure 300 has novel and inventive structure of the clip member 200. The clip member 200 has a vertical shaft 201, a horizontal circular base 202, and a horizontal circular head 203. The clip member 200 has a T shape structure where vertical part is made by the 25 vertical shaft 201 and upper horizontal part is made by the combination of horizontal circular base 202 and the horizontal circular head 203. The vertical shaft 201 extends in perpendicular downward direction from the horizontal circular base 202. The vertical shaft 201 has at least two snaps 206 to mount the clip member 200 via vertical shaft 201 on the mounting member of the vehicle. 30 The complete cushion clip structure 300 (as shown in figure 3) is snap fitted on
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the mounting hole or engagement hole of the mounting member of the vehicle via at least two snaps 206 of the vertical shaft 201. The horizontal circular head 203 extends in vertical upward direction from the horizontal circular base 203. The clip member 200 is made of hard material, such as polypropylene (PP), or any other similar material from Plastic Family. The raw material of clip member is not 5 only restricted to the PP, it can be made of any other hard material which provides necessary strength for keeping the clip member in the mounting condition and bear the load of impact force and vibrations.
[0025] Further, a plurality of through channels 204, 205 is provided in between the horizontal circular head 203 and the horizontal circular base 202. The plurality 10 of through channels 204, 205 is straight empty channels. The plurality of through channels 204, 205 receives the soft material of the cushion member 100 during over molding process and provides a strong lock between the cushion member 100 and the clip member 200. The joining of the cushion member 100 with the clip member 200 during over molding process via the plurality of through 15 channels 204, 205 prevents popping out of the cushion member 100 from the clip member 200 during impact/vibrations of door/trunk force.
[0026] Number of through channels in the plurality of through channels 204, 205 can be optimized as per the requirement of size and strength of the cushion clip structure 300. In the present subject matter, the number of through channels is two 20 in number. Where the through channels are not restricted only to two in number it can be more than two depends on the structure and strength requirement of the cushion clip structure. Figure 5 clearly illustrates the through channels 204, 205 and structure of the horizontal circular head 203 with the horizontal circular base 202. 25
[0027] Fig. 6 illustrates cross section view of the cushion clip structure, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter. The present cross section view 600 clearly shows how the cushion member 100 joins with the clip member 200 via the plurality of through channels 204, 205. The cushion member 100 has a circular/cylindrical hollow structure 101 to optimize the absorption of 30
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the impact force and vibrations. Further, the circular/cylindrical hollow structure 101 is closed from lower end by top surface of the horizontal circular head 203. The clip member 200 has at least two snaps 206 for snap fitting of the cushion clip structure 300 into the mounting hole or mounting member of the vehicle.
[0028] By the over molding process of the cushion member 100 with the clip 5 member 200, the cushion member 100 seems to be integrated with the clip member 200. Further, the plurality of through channels 204, 205 provides strong joint between the cushion member 100 and the clip member 200. The plurality of through channels 204, 205 and its joint with the cushion member 100 prevents popping out of the cushion member 100 from the clip member during high impact 10 loads and vibrations. The present cushion clip structure 300 is tested under several load conditions to check its durability. The present cushion clip structure 300 is tested by applying force in direction to remove the cushion clip structure from the door/trunk frame in outward direction. On the other hand, the lateral rigidity of the cushion clip structure is also tested by applying necessary force in horizontal 15 direction. In both the tests, the cushion member did not break out from the clip member.
[0029] It is easy to manufacture the present cushion clip structure using over molding process. Further, the present cushion clip structure can be implemented in the existing vehicles. The present cushion clip structure efficiently absorbs the 20 impact force and vibrations of the door during closing operation/vehicle running/usage. As there is no extra part or material is required in the present cushion clip structure, therefore it is cost efficient also. Further, the strength of the cushion clip structure can be optimized based on specific vehicle requirements. The present cushion clip structure is simple and inexpensive. 25
[0030] The term “vehicle” as used throughout this detailed description and in the claims refers to any moving vehicle that is capable of carrying one or more human occupants and is powered by any form of energy. The term “vehicle” is a motor vehicle which includes, but is not limited to: cars, trucks, vans, minivans, hatchback, sedan, MUVs, and SUVs. 30
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[0031] It will be further appreciated that functions or structures of a plurality of components or steps may be combined into a single component or step, or the functions or structures of one-step or component may be split among plural steps or components. The present invention contemplates all of these combinations. Unless stated otherwise, dimensions and geometries of the various structures 5 depicted herein are not intended to be restrictive of the invention, and other dimensions or geometries are possible. In addition, while a feature of the present invention may have been described in the context of only one of the illustrated embodiments, such feature may be combined with one or more other features of other embodiments, for any given application. It will also be appreciated from the 10 above that the fabrication of the unique structures herein and the operation thereof also constitute methods in accordance with the present invention. The present invention also encompasses intermediate and end products resulting from the practice of the methods herein. The use of “comprising” or “including” also contemplates embodiments that “consist essentially of” or “consist of” the recited 15 feature.
[0032] Although embodiments for the present subject matter have been described in language specific to structural features, it is to be understood that the present subject matter is not necessarily limited to the specific features described. Rather, the specific features and methods are disclosed as embodiments for the present 20 subject matter. Numerous modifications and adaptations of the system/component of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and thus it is intended by the appended claims to cover all such modifications and adaptations which fall within the scope of the present subject matter.

We claim:
1. A cushion clip structure (300) to damp vibrations, the cushion clip structure (300) comprising:
a cushion member (100);
a clip member (200) integrally connected with the cushion member 5 (100), wherein the clip member (200) comprises:
a vertical shaft (201);
a horizontal circular base (202) perpendicularly connected with the vertical shaft (201);
a horizontal circular head (203) extends in upward direction 10 from the horizontal circular base (202), wherein a plurality of through channels (204, 205) is provided in between the horizontal circular head (203) and the horizontal circular base (202).
2. The cushion clip structure (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the plurality 15 of through channels (204, 205) receives the cushion member (100) during over molding process and joins the cushion member (100) with the clip member (200).
3. The cushion clip structure (300) as claimed in claim 2, wherein joining of 20 the cushion member (100) with the plurality of through channels (204, 205) provide a lock between the cushion member (100) and the clip member (200).
4. The cushion clip structure (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the vertical 25 shaft (201) has at least two clips (206) for engagement of the clip member (200) with the mounting member.
5. The cushion clip structure (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the clip member (200) is made of hard material Polypropylene (PP), or similar 30 material from Plastic Family with same properties.
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6. The cushion clip structure (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cushion member (100) is made of Thermoplastic elastomers.
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7. The cushion clip structure (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cushion member (100) is over-molded onto the clip member (200).
8. The cushion clip structure (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the vertical shaft (201) extends in perpendicular downward direction of the horizontal 10 circular base (202).
9. The cushion clip structure (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the plurality of through channels (204, 205) is two in number.
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10. The cushion clip structure (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cushion member (100) has a central hollow structure (101).