TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to an adjusting mechanism employed in a head light unit, more particularly, the present disclosure relates to an improved and durable adjusting mechanism capable of adjusting a head light unit in a horizontal and/or a vertical direction.

BACKGROUND

This section is intended to provide information relating to the field of the invention and thus, any approach or functionality described below should not be assumed to be qualified as prior art merely by its inclusion in this section.

Vehicles are commonly known to employ a light unit, to illuminate ambient environment while a user drives the vehicle. The light unit may include, such as but not limited to a head light unit and a tail light unit. The head light unit is adapted to project light on at least a portion of road positioned in front of the vehicle, while the tail light unit is adapted to increase a visibility of the vehicle to other vehicles positioned on rear side of the vehicle. The head light unit is a combination of a plurality of lamps, for example, a head lamp, a day time running lights (DRL) lamp, and/or an indication lamp, each of which is housed in a singular housing. Each such lamp has a defined function, for example, the head lamp is activated to project light on at least a portion of the road for illumination thereof. The head light unit is commonly known to employ an adjusting mechanism, to adjust the head light unit either vertically or horizontally.

The adjusting mechanism, is also referred to as an aiming gear mechanism, adapted to adjust the head light unit either vertically or horizontally. The adjusting mechanism includes a gear arrangement and a connecting mechanism. The gear arrangement is a couple of a drive annular gear and a driven annular gear, such that a rotational motion of the drive annular gear (by use of a adjuster tool) corresponds to a rotational motion of the driven annular gear. Further, the connecting mechanism includes a screw rod member and a nut member, such that the screw rod is coaxially fixed to the driven annular gear, while the nut member engages with the screw rod member and is fixedly attached to the housing of the head light unit. With such arrangement, the rotational motion of the driven annular gear corresponds to a linear movement of the nut member along with the housing, to adjust the head light unit either horizontally or vertically.

In conventional gear arrangement of the adjusting mechanisms, each of the drive annular gear as well as the driven annular gear of the gear arrangement are made up of thermoplastic material. Accordingly, the adjuster tool is engaged with the drive annular gear, by engaging with an adjuster cavity defined therein, to rotate the drive annular gear for further imparting rotational motion to the driven annular gear for causing either of horizontal or vertical adjustment of the head light unit. Notably, as the drive annular gear is made up of thermoplastic material, while the adjuster tool is at least partially made of metal material, such engagement of the adjuster tool with the drive annular gear causes wear and tear of the drive annular gear, resulting in slippage of the adjuster tool with respect to the drive annular gear, and thereby resulting in poor reliability for the gear arrangement for enabling adjustment of the head light unit either horizontally or vertically.

Accordingly in light of the aforementioned drawbacks and several other inherent in the existing arts, there is a well felt need to provide an improved adjusting mechanism which provides relative reliability, and improved structural strength qualities, which could sustain the adjustment made by an adjusting tool. Further, this would significantly reduce the maintenance cost of the head light unit. OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

This section is intended to introduce certain objects of the disclosed method and system in a simplified form, and is not intended to identify the key advantages or features of the present disclosure.

One object of the present disclosure relates to an adjusting mechanism for adjusting either vertically or horizontally a head light unit of a vehicle. The adjusting mechanism comprising a gear arrangement, comprising: a driven annular gear unit connected to the head light unit, the driven annular gear unit defining a plurality of drive teeth thereon; and a drive annular gear unit, comprising: a first annular member made up of a thermoplastic material, the first annular member including a cylindrical top portion defining a housing cavity therein, and a teethed bottom portion defining a plurality of teeth engaged with the plurality of driven teeth of the driven annular gear unit; and a second annular member made up of a metal material, and fitted within the housing cavity defined by the cylindrical top portion of the first annular member, the second annular member defining an adjuster cavity designed to receive at least partially an adjustment tool therein, such that a rotational motion of the drive annular gear unit, by use of the adjustment tool, corresponds to a rotational motion of the driven annular gear unit to further correspond to either of vertical or horizontal adjustment of the head light unit thereof. With such an arrangement, the adjusting mechanism improves the structural strength of the adjuster cavity of the drive annular gear. Moreover, improving the lifespan and reducing the wear and tear noted due to the adjustments made by the adjustment tool.

BRIEF DESORPTION OF DRAWINGS

In order to explain the technical solution in the embodiments of the present application more clearly, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. It is obvious that the drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the application. For those skilled in the art, without any creative work, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a portion of a head light unit, illustrating an adjusting mechanism, in accordance with the concepts of the present invention.

FIG. 2 shows a rear view of the head light unit, illustrating the adjusting mechanism, in accordance with the concepts of the present invention. FIG. 3 shows an exploded view of a first embodiment of a drive annular gear of the gear arrangement, in accordance with the concepts of the present disclosure.

FIG 4 shows an exploded view of another embodiment of the drive annular gear of the gear arrangement, in accordance with the concepts of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following description, for the purposes of explanation, various specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments of the present invention. It will be apparent, however, that embodiments of the present invention may be practiced without these specific details. Several features described hereafter can each be used independently of one another or with any combination of other features. An individual feature may not address any of the problems discussed above or might address only one of the problems discussed above. Some of the problems discussed above might not be fully addressed by any of the features described herein. Exemplified embodiments of the present invention are described below, as illustrated in various drawings in which like reference numerals refer to the same parts throughout the different drawings.

The embodiments of the present invention relate to an adjusting mechanism deployed in a light assembly, wherein the adjusting mechanism is capable of adjusting a head light unit of the light assembly in a horizontal and/or vertical direction via the aiming gear mechanism.

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a portion of a head light unit [100], illustrating an adjusting mechanism [104] FIG. 2 shows a rear view of the head light unit [100], illustrating the adjusting mechanism [104], Figures 1, and 2, should be referred to in conjunction with each other, in order to clearly understand the concepts of the present disclosure. The head light unit [100] is provided to projects light on a section of the road while a user drives the vehicle. The head light unit [100] may include a housing [102] supported on a base support member, a plurality of light units installed and supported within the housing [102], and an adjusting mechanism [104],

The plurality of light units are housed and supported within the housing [102], and includes a head lamp, an indicator lamp, and/or a day running lamp (DRL) thereof. It may be customarily known that one or more of the head lamp, an indicator lamp, and/or a day running lamp (DRL) are supported within the housing [102], while being at least partially surrounded by a reflector member, for improved lighting thereof. For ease in reference and understanding, the fog lamp, the indicator lamp, and the DRL, along with their installation within the housing [102], is not shown and described in the present disclosure.

Furthermore, the adjusting mechanism [104] is deployed to adjust the head light unit [100] either vertically or horizontally. For ease in reference and understanding, the adjusting mechanism [104] hereinafter will be describes for horizontal adjustment of the head light unit [100], however it may be obvious to a person skilled in the art that a similar adjusting mechanism [104] may additionally be deployed in the head light unit [100] for vertical adjustment of the head light unit [100] thereof. The adjusting mechanism [104] comprises of a gear arrangement [106] and a connecting mechanism [108],

In figures 3, the gear arrangement [106] is a bevel gear arrangement installed in the head light unit [100], Although, the present disclosure describes the gear arrangement [106] as a bevel gear arrangement, it may be obvious to a person skilled in the art that the gear arrangement [106] may include any other gear arrangement, such as but not limited to, a spur gear arrangement, a helical gear arrangement, a bevel gear arrangement, a zerol gear arrangement, a face gear arrangement, a screw gear arrangement, a hypoid gear arrangement and the like. The gear arrangement [106] comprises of a couple of a drive annular gear unit [116], and a driven annular gear unit [114] mechanically engaged with the drive annular gear unit [116], such that a rotational motion of the drive annular gear unit [116] impart the rotational motion to the driven annular gear. A structure and arrangement of the driven annular gear unit [114] and the drive annular gear unit forthcoming disclosure. Further, the gear arrangement [106] is mechanically connected to the head light unit [100] via the connecting mechanism [108],

The connecting mechanism [108] is provided to translate the rotational motion of the driven annular gear unit [114] into a linear motion of the housing [102], to adjust the head light unit [100] in the horizontal direction. The connecting mechanism [108] comprises of a screw rod member [110] and a nut member [112], The screw rod member [110] at least partially defines an external threaded region thereof, and is axially connected to the driven annular gear unit [114] of the gear arrangement [106], such that the rotational motion of the driven annular gear unit [114] corresponds to the rotational motion of the screw rod member [110], The nut member [112] at least partially defining an internal threaded region engaged with the external threaded region screw rod member [110], and being fixedly attached to the housing [102] of the head light unit [100], With such arrangement, the rotational motion of screw rod member [110] is converted into linear translatory motion of the nut member [112], Accordingly, the rotation motion of driven annular gear unit [114] of the gear arrangement [106] results in a rotational motion of the screw rod member [110], which further induces a linear movement in the nut member [112], thereby inducing the horizontal adjustment of the head light unit [100], Although, the present invention is directed towards the adjusting mechanism [104] deployed in the head light unit [100] of a vehicle, it may be obvious to a person skilled in the art that the adjusting mechanism [104] can be deployed in other light unit such as, but limited to, light unit employed in outdoor lighting, indoor lighting, street lights, etc.

A structure and arrangement of the driven annular gear unit [114] and the drive annular gear unit [116], will be described in details hereinafter. The driven annular gear unit [114] is made up of a thermoplastic material. The driven annular gear unit [114] defines a plurality of driven teeth on the circumference therein. In a preferred embodiment, the driven annular gear unit [114] is a bevel gear installed on the driven annular gear unit [114], Although, the present disclosure describes the driven annular gear as a bevel gear, it may be obvious to a person skilled in the art that the driven annular gear may include any other gear, such as but not limited to, a spur gear unit, a helical gear unit, a double helical gear unit, a screw gear unit, and a herringbone gear unit and the like.

In a preferred embodiment, the drive annular gear unit [116] is a bevel gear installed on the drive annular gear unit [116], Although, the present disclosure describes the drive annular gear unit [116] as a bevel gear, it may be obvious to a person skilled in the art that the drive annular gear may include any other gear, such as but not limited to, spur gear unit, helical gear unit, double helical gear unit, screw gear unit, and a herringbone gear unit and the like. The drive annular gear unit [116] is made-up of two-part component structure, comprising of a first annular member [118] and a second annular member [120], wherein the first annular member [118] is made up of a thermoplastic material, while the second annular member [120] made up of a metal material.

In one embodiment, the first annular member [118] is made up of thermoplastic material, and includes a cylindrical top portion [122] and a teethed bottom portion [126], The teethed bottom portion [126] is extended directly from the cylindrical top portion [122], and formed integrally thereof. The cylindrical top portion [122] defines a housing cavity [124] therein, while the teethed bottom portion [126] defines a plurality of teeth engaged with the plurality of driven teeth of the driven annular gear unit [114], With such arrangement, the first annular member [118] is capable of receiving and housing the second annular member [120], such that a relative rotational motion between the first annular member [118] and the second annular member [120], is restricted. It may be obvious to a person skilled in the art that the second annular member [120] can be fitted into the housing cavity [124] of the first annular member [118] by any of the known locking mechanisms, such as but not limited to bayonet coupling, thread screw coupling, push-pull coupling, breakaway coupling, push & press to release coupling and etc.

In another embodiment, as depicted in Fig. 4. the first annular member [118] comprising a cylindrical top portion [122], an elongated intermediate portion [128], and a teethed bottom portion [126], such that the elongated intermediate portion [128] extends between the teeth bottom portion and the cylindrical top portion [122], In one embodiment, the cylindrical top portion [122], the elongated intermediate portion [128], and the teethed bottom portion [126], of the first annular member [118], are formed integrally. Alternatively, in another embodiment, the cylindrical top portion [122], the elongated intermediate portion [128], and the teethed bottom portion [126], may be formed as separate components and connected together to form the first annular member [118], With such arrangement, the first annular member [118] is capable of receiving and housing the second annular member [120], such that a relative rotational motion between the first annular member [118] and the second annular member [120], is restricted. It may be obvious to a person skilled in the art that the second annular member [120] can be fitted into the housing cavity [124] of the first annular member [118] by any of the known locking mechanisms, such as but not limited to bayonet coupling, thread screw coupling, push-pull coupling, breakaway coupling, push & press to release coupling and etc.

The second annular member [120] of the drive annular gear unit [116] is made up of metal material. The second annular member [120] defining a extended portion [130] on a bottom side, and an adjuster cavity [132] on a top side, wherein the extended portion [130] on the bottom side is fitted within the housing cavity [124] to affix the second annular member [120] to the first annular member [118], The extended portion [130] defined by cylindrical top portion [122] of the first annular member [118] to receive the second annular member [120] therein. The adjuster cavity [132] designed to receive at least partially an adjustment tool [134] therein. Further, the adjuster cavity [132] having a hexagonal outline on the inner periphery and capable of receiving an adjustment tool [134], For example, the adjuster cavity [132] adapted to receive a philips head screw driver to adjust the aiming mechanism. Although the present disclosure describes the adjustment tool [134] to be a Philips head screw driver, it may be obvious to a person skilled in the art that the adjust cavity maybe capable of receiving an adjustment tool [134], such as, but not limited to, flat head screw driver, star bit screw driver, Robertson head screw driver, Allen wrench and the like.

In assembly, the drive annular gear unit [116] includes the first annular member [118] and the second annular member [120] attached by fitting means, to restrict relative rotational motion, therein. Thereafter, the driven annular gear unit [114] is engaged with the drive annular gear unit [116], Upon such engagement, the driven annular gear unit [114] is fixed to the screw rod of the connecting mechanism [108], to be mechanically linked to the housing [102] of the head light unit [100], Notably, the driven annular gear unit [114] is coaxially connected to the screw rod member [110], while at least partially defining an external threaded region thereof. The screw rod member [110] engages with the nut member [112], while being fixedly attached to the housing [102] of the head light unit [100], The nut member [112] at least partially defines an internal threaded region engaged with the external threaded region of the screw rod member [110], Thus, the drive annular gear unit [116] and the driven annular gear unit [114] of the gear arrangement are coupled to the housing, to be capable of adjusting the head light unit [100] either horizontally or vertically.

In operation, a user may use an adjustment tool [134] to adjust the head light unit [100] either vertically or horizontally. For such operations, the user may manually insert/engage the adjustment tool [134] into the adjuster cavity [132] defined in the second annular member [120] of the drive annular gear unit [116], and thus rotate the drive annular gear unit [116], A rotational motion induced in the drive annular gear unit [116] of the gear arrangement [106], further corresponds to the rotational motion of the driven annular gear unit [114] of the gear arrangement [106], which in turn rotates the screw rod member [110] of the connecting mechanism [108], As the nut member [112] is fixed to the housing, the rotation of the screw rod member [110] causes a linear motion of the nut member [112] resulting in the adjustment of the head light unit [100] either vertically or horizontally.

As the drive annular gear unit [116] is formed of two-part arrangements, wherein the first annular member [118] is m'ade up of thermoplastic material, while the second annular member [120] is made up of metallic material, an engagement of the adjustment tool [134] with the adjuster cavity [132] defined in the second annular member [120] of the drive annular gear unit [116] of the disclosed adjusting mechanism, results in a metal-to-metal contact. Therefore, a wear and tear of the drive annular gear unit [116] is highly reduced, resulting in low maintenance costs of the adjusting mechanism. With such an arrangement, the disclosed adjusting mechanism [104] improves the structural strength of the adjuster cavity [132] of the drive annular gear unit [116], Moreover, improving the lifespan and reducing the wear and tear noted due to the adjustments made by the adjustment tool [134],

While the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described hereinabove, it should be understood that various changes, adaptations, and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention and the scope of the appended claims. It will be obvious to a person skilled in the art that the present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from its spirit or essential characteristics. The described embodiments are to be considered in all respects only as illustrative and not restrictive.

LIST OF COMPONENTS

100 - Head Light unit

102 - Housing

104 - Adjusting Mechanism

106 - Gear Arrangement - Connecting Mechanism - Screw Rod Member - Nut Member - Driven Annular Gear Unit - Drive Annular Gear Unit - First Annular Member - Second Annular Member - Cylindrical Top Portion - Housing Cavity - Teethed Bottom Portion - Elongated Intermediate Portion - Extended Portion - Adjuster Cavity - Adjustment Tool