The present disclosure described herein, in general, relates to a door panel structure for improving rear downward and upward visibility from inside a vehicle. In particular, the present disclosure relates to a vehicle back door for improving rearward visibility of, say, a driver of a vehicle.
BACKGROUND
[0002] The background description includes information that may be useful in understanding the present disclosure. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art.
[0003] Vehicle back doors generally include a back door pane to provide rearward visibility to drivers and/or passengers of the vehicle. The back door pane includes a frame-shaped ceramic lining formed on an edge portion on the inner surface of the back door pane. The dimensions, say, width from the edge of the back door pane, of the ceramic lining are defined to hide interior trim lines such as back door flange, interior trim, wiper motor, defogger terminals, and so forth. Generally, the width of the ceramic lining is defined around 33 to 40 mm from the edge of the back door pane for preventing the visibility of the interior trim lines from outside the vehicle. However, such defined dimensions of the ceramic lining obstruct the rear downward and/or upward visibility of a driver of the vehicle.
[0004] One solution proposed to resolve this issue is to increase the size of a pane mounting portion in a vehicle back door panel so that a large size rear door pane can be assembled in the vehicle back door. However, such modification in the vehicle back door may alter the existing styling or design of a vehicle and may ruin the aesthetic appeal of the vehicle.

[0005] Accordingly, there is a need in the state of the art to modify a vehicle door structure in such a way that the rear downward and upward visibility is enhanced without altering the existing exterior styling or design of the vehicle.
OBJECTS OF THE DISCLOSURE
[0006] Some of the objects of the present disclosure, which at least one embodiment herein satisfy, are listed hereinbelow.
[0007] It is a general object of the present disclosure to provide a vehicle door structure that enhances rear downward and upward visibility without altering the existing exterior styling or design of the vehicle.
[0008] It is another object of the present disclosure to modify a vehicle door structure, with the same exterior styling, in which a back door pane is extended below a top edge of a garnish.
[0009] Another object of the present subject matter is to modify a back door pane to reduce the dimensions of ceramic lining formed on an edge portion on the inner surface of the back door pane.
[0010] Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle door structure having a back door pane with reduced dimensions of the ceramic lining in downward and/or upward-end regions.
[0011] These and other objects and advantages will become more apparent when reference is made to the following description and accompanying drawings.
SUMMARY
[0012] This summary is provided to introduce concepts related to a vehicle back door for improving rearward visibility. The concepts are further described below in the detailed description. This summary is not intended to identify key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter.

[0013] The subject matter disclosed herein relates to a vehicle back door for improving rearward visibility. The vehicle back door includes a back door pane with a frame-shaped ceramic lining formed on an edge portion on the inner surface side of the back door pane. A lower-end region of the back door pane is formed with through-holes or cut-outs for facilitating mounting of a garnish. Further, the vehicle back door includes mounting holes formed on a door outer panel. The mounting holes are in positional alignment to the through-holes of the back door pane. The vehicle back door further includes a garnish having a mounting plate on its rear side. The mounting plate is formed with snap-fit mounting units or positive mounting units, say snap-fit clips, that pass the through-holes of the back door pane and lock into the mounting holes formed on the door outer panel, such that interior trim lines, such as back door flange, interior trim, wiper motor, defogger terminals, and so forth, lie below an outer periphery of the garnish.
[0014] In an aspect, the vehicle back door includes a back door flange formed at the door outer panel to receive an adhesive bead for attaching the back door pane on the door outer panel, and includes a reception pad formed, below the backdoor flange, on the door outer panel to support the lower-end region of the back door pane.
[0015] In an aspect, the mounting holes are formed in between the back door flange and the reception pad.
[0016] In an aspect, the back door pane is formed with a cut-out in a central portion of the lower-end region to accommodate other features, say, rear wiper, of a vehicle.
[0017] In an aspect, the back door pane is extended on the upper-end region to mount a rear spoiler on mounting holes formed on the door outer panel.
[0018] 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 the scope of the present subject matter.
[0019] Various objects, features, aspects, and advantages of the inventive subject matter will become more apparent from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments, along with the accompanying drawing figures in which like numerals represent like components.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0020] 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. The illustrated embodiments of the subject matter will be best understood by reference to the drawings, wherein like parts are designated by like numerals throughout. The following description is intended only by way of example, and simply illustrates certain selected embodiments of devices, systems, and methods that are consistent with the subject matter as claimed herein, wherein:
[0021] FIG. 1A illustrates an exemplary vehicle back door in which a back door pane is stacked above a top edge of a garnish;
[0022] FIG. IB illustrates an exemplary existing back door pane;
[0023] FIG. 1C illustrates a cross-sectional view of a lower-end region of the existing vehicle back door;
[0024] FIG. 2 illustrates an outer surface of a back door pane of a vehicle back door, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;
[0025] FIG. 3 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a lower-end region of a vehicle back door, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0026] FIG. 4 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the upper-end region of the existing vehicle back door; and
[0027] FIG. 5 illustrates a cross-sectional view of an upper-end region of a vehicle back door, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.
[0028] 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 methods illustrated herein may be employed without departing from the principles of the disclosure described herein.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0029] The detailed description of various exemplary embodiments of the disclosure is described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be noted that the embodiments are described herein in such details as to clearly communicate the disclosure. However, the amount of details provided herein is not intended to limit the anticipated variations of embodiments; on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims.
[0030] It is also to be understood that various arrangements may be devised that, although not explicitly described or shown herein, embody the principles of the present disclosure. Moreover, all statements herein reciting principles, aspects, and embodiments of the present disclosure, as well as specific examples, are intended to encompass equivalents thereof.
[0031] The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of example embodiments. As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be

further understood that the terms "comprises", "comprising", "includes" and/or "including," when used herein, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components and/or groups thereof.
[0032] It should also be noted that in some alternative implementations, the functions/acts noted may occur out of the order noted in the figures. For example, two figures shown in succession may, in fact, be executed concurrently or may sometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon the functionality/acts involved.
[0033] Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which example embodiments belong. It will be further understood that terms, e.g., those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art and will not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein.
[0034] The present disclosure relates to vehicle back door for improving rearward visibility of, say, a driver of a vehicle. An exemplary vehicle back door 100 in which a back door pane 102 is stacked above a top edge of a garnish 104 is shown in FIG. 1A. A conventional back door pane 102 is shown in detail in FIG. IB
[0035] FIG. 1C illustrates a cross-sectional view, along A-A, of a lower-end region of the existing vehicle back door 100. As can be seen from FIG. 1C, the existing vehicle back door 100 includes a back door pane 102 attached to a back door flange 106 formed on a joinery of door outer panel 108 and door inner panel 118, through a sealer 110 (adhesive bead shown in triangular profile).

[0036] Further, the garnish 104 is fixed, below the back door pane 102, on the door outer panel 108 using snap-fit mounting units or positive mounting units 112.
[0037] As mentioned previously, the back door pane 102 includes a frame-shaped ceramic lining 114 formed on an edge portion on the inner surface of the back door pane 102. The dimensions, say, width from the edge of the back door pane 102, of the ceramic lining 114 are defined to hide interior trim lines such as back door flange 106, interior trim 116, wiper motor, defogger terminals, and so forth. Generally, the width of the ceramic lining 114 is defined around 33 to 40 mm from the edge of the back door pane 102 for preventing the visibility of the interior trim lines from outside the vehicle. However, such defined dimensions of the ceramic lining obstruct the rear downward and/or upward visibility of a driver of the vehicle.
[0038] To resolve this issue, the present disclosure proposes to expand the size of the back door pane in a downward and upward direction. An exemplary back door pane 202 extended in the downward direction, as per an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown in FIG. 2. The back door pane 202 includes a frame-shaped ceramic lining formed on an edge portion on the inner surface side of the back door pane 202. Further, a lower-end region of the back door pane 202 is formed with through-holes 204-1, 204-2, 204-3.. .204-N, collectively referred to as 204 hereinafter. Although four through-holes 204 are shown in FIG. 2, the number of through-holes 204 may increase or decrease based on the length of the back door pane 102. These through-holes 204 are used for mounting of the garnish on the back door flange of the vehicle back door.
[0039] Apart from the through-holes 204, the back door pane 202 may include a cut-out (206) in a central portion of the lower-end region to accommodate other features, say, rear wiper, of the vehicle on the vehicle back door.
[0040] A cross-sectional view of the lower-end region of an exemplary vehicle back door 200 is shown in FIG. 3, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. As can be seen from FIG. 3, vehicle back door 200

includes a back door flange 208 formed at the joinery of door outer panel 210 and door inner panel 224 to receive sealer or adhesive bead 212 for attaching the back door pane 202 on the back door flange 208. Further, the vehicle back door 200 includes a reception pad 214 formed, below the backdoor flange 208, on the door outer panel 210 to support the lower-end region of the back door pane 202.
[0041] In an aspect, mounting holes are formed on the door outer panel 210. The mounting holes are in positional alignment to the through-holes 204 of the back door pane 202. Also, in the present aspect, the number of mounting holes corresponds to the number of the through-holes 204 formed on the back door pane
202.
[0042] The vehicle back door 200 further includes a garnish 216 having a mounting plate 218 on its rear side. The mounting plate 218 is formed with snap-fit mounting units, say snap-fit clips or positive mounting 220. Again, the snap-fit clips or positive mounting 220 are in positional alignment with the mounting holes and the through-holes 204. The snap-fit clips or positive mounting 220 pass the through-holes 204 of the back door pane 202 and lock into the mounting holes formed on the door outer panel 210. In this way, the garnish 216 is mounted on the door outer panel 210 by sandwiching the back door pane 204, such that interior trim lines, such as back door flange 208, interior trim, wiper motor, defogger terminals, and so forth, lie below an outer periphery of the garnish 216. Now, since the lower-end region of the back door pane 202 extends under the garnish 216, the visibility of the ceramic lining 222 formed on the lower edge portion on the inner surface side of the back door pane 202 is reduced. In an aspect, only a 5 mm width of the ceramic lining 222 is visible from outside the vehicle. This, in turn, enhances the driver's rearward visibility, specifically, in a downward direction.
[0043] In another embodiment of the present disclosure, the back door pane 202 may be extended in an upward direction. For instance, as shown in FIG. 4, a cross-sectional view of an upper-end region of the existing vehicle back door 200

where the ceramic lining 222 is obstructing the upward visibility of the vehicle's driver. To enhance the upward visibility, the back door pane 202 may be extended in an upward direction so that a panel flange 226 FIG. 5, can be shifted upward and stacked till bottom edge of a rear spoiler 404. Such a modified mounting of the back door pane 202 may reduce the visibility of the ceramic lining 222 formed on the upper edge portion on the inner surface side of the back door pane 202. This, in turn, enhances the driver's rearward visibility, specifically, in an upward direction.
TECHNICAL ADVANTAGES
[0044] The present disclosure provides a vehicle door structure that enhances rear downward and upward visibility without altering the existing exterior styling or design of the vehicle.
[0045] The present disclosure modifies a vehicle door structure, with the same exterior styling, in which a back door pane is extended under a garnish.
[0046] The present disclosure modifies a back door pane to reduce the dimensions of ceramic lining formed on an edge portion on the inner surface of the back door pane.
[0047] The present disclosure provides a vehicle door structure having a back door pane with reduced dimensions of the ceramic lining in downward and/or upward end regions
[0048] While the foregoing describes various embodiments of the present disclosure, other and further embodiments of the present disclosure may be devised without departing from the basic scope thereof. The scope of the invention is determined by the claims that follow. The present disclosure is not limited to the described embodiments, versions or examples, which are included to enable a person having ordinary skill in the art to make and use the present

disclosure when combined with information and knowledge available to the person having ordinary skill in the art.

We claim:

1.A vehicle back door (200) for improving rearward visibility, the vehicle
back door (200) comprising:
a garnish (216) having a mounting plate (218) on rear side, a mounting plate (218) being formed with snap-fit mounting units (220); and
a back door pane (202) having a lower-end region that is extended below a top edge of the garnish (216) to allow the snap-fit mounting unit (220) to pass through the back door pane (202) for mounting of the garnish (216) on the vehicle back door (200).
2. The vehicle back door (200) as claimed in claim 1, wherein a frame-shaped ceramic lining (222) is formed on an edge portion on an inner surface side of the back door pane (202).
3. The vehicle back door (200) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the lower-end region of the back door pane (202) is being formed with through-holes (204) or cut-outs to allow passage of the snap-fit mounting unit (220).
4. The vehicle back door (200) as claimed in claim 3, wherein vehicle back door (200) comprises mounting holes formed on a door outer panel (210).
5. The vehicle back door (200) as claimed in claim 4, wherein the mounting holes being in positional alignment to the through-holes (204) or cut-outs of the back door pane (202) for allowing snap-fit mounting unit (220) to pass the through-holes (204) or cut-outs of the back door pane (202) and lock into the mounting holes formed on the door outer panel (210).
6. The vehicle back door (200) as claimed in claim 5, comprising:

a back door flange (208) formed at the joinery of door outer panel (210) and door inner panel (224) to receive an adhesive bead (212) for attaching the back door pane (202) on the back door flange (208); and
a reception pad (214) formed, below the back door flange (208), on the door outer panel (210) to support the lower-end region of the back door pane (202).
7. The vehicle back door (200) as claimed in claim 6, wherein the mounting holes are formed in between the back door flange (208) and the reception pad (214).
8. The vehicle back door (200) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the back door pane (202) is formed with a cut-out (206) in a central portion of the lower-end region to accommodate other features of a vehicle.
9. The vehicle back door (200) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the snap-fit mounting units (220) are snap-fit clips
10. The vehicle back door (200) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the snap-fit mounting unit (200) are positive mountings.