60/436, S72, filed December 27, 2003, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

Field of the Invention This invention is directed at a latch cover for the trunk compartment of a motor vehicle wherein the latch cover piece comprises double pivoting doors containing torsion springs which interface with barrel configurations to provide door return. The doors protect and conceal the trunk latch and pivot downward due to contact of the deck lid striker mechanism to expose the latch.

Background of the Invention Latching mechanisms for the trunk and hoods of motor vehicles are well known and provide security and safety for the motor vehicle. These mechanisms generally consist of a standard latch housing comprising a pin or bolt mountable on the trunk lid and a locking fork which engages the pin or bolt and pivots to lock the latch. Springs bias the fork and urge pivoting engagement with the pin or bolt. Activation of the latch may be manual through an opening lever and bowden cable or through a motorized drive. Alternatively, the bolt or pin may be mounted at the center of the rear perimetrical edge of the trunk space and the cooperating forked mechanism mounted on the trunk lid. The pin or bolt fixed portion often consists of a rod in the form of a closed end loop or hasp. The forked portion may be a snap lock mechanism which engages the hasp when the trunk is closed.

In typical applications, one or both of the bolt and forked mechanism protrude from the deck lid or perimetrical edge of the trunk space. This provides an interference to easy loading of the trunk as the mechanism protrudes above the trunk perimeter, and items must be lifted up from a poor ergonomic position when a person is bending into the trunk, to clear the protrusion. An alternate design places the forked pivoting mechanism on the trunk lid and recesses the bolt or hasp below the perimetrical edge of the trunk into an open cavity. This eliminates the protrusion of the mechanism into the trunk open space but creates a pocket for

small items and debris to fall into. In addition, the bolt in the small recess provides an area for hooked items including fingers to catch.

With the current popularity of minivans and sports utility vehicles (SW's) particularly in North America, the use of a recessed latch bolt is preferred in order that heavy items can be easily slid into the rear hatch area of the vehicle without having to lift them or chance damage from sliding over a protruding metal rod. The open cavity containing the latch bolt presents a hazard for catching or losing small items.

United States Patent No. 4,892, 339 assigned to Kiekert AG, describes a standard motor vehicle trunk latch system. United States Patent Nos. 5, 868, 444 and 5,816, 628, also assigned to Kiekert AG, describe trunk latch mechanisms which are improvements upon the '339 patent.

What is needed is a protective trim piece which covers the cavity that the trunk latch bolt is recessed into, yet easily deflects or pivots out of the way when the trunk lid is latched, and pivots back to at least partially cover the recess when the trunk lid is opened.

Objects of the Invention It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a trunk compartment latch cover that protects the trunk latch mechanism and the vehicle user and partially conceals the recess which the latch mechanism is located in.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a trunk latch cover that is pivotable or deflectable such that upon closing of the trunk lid, the latch cover can be deflected to expose the mating latch portion and upon trunk lid opening the latch cover recovers or pivots to protect the trunk latch mechanism and at least partially cover the recess.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a pivotable or deflectable door or doors which protect and at least partially conceal the recess for a latching mechanism for an exterior vehicle closure panel.

It is still a further object of the present invention to provide a pivotable cover for a latching mechanism which has adjustable levels of pivoting force.

Summary of the Invention In accordance with the present invention, a pivotable latch cover which protects and at least partially conceals a recess in which the bolt portion of a trunk latch mechanism is located, is provided. The preferably plastic latch cover in an extended condition lies adjacent a latch bolt located in a recess in the vehicle trunk rear wall and upon closure of the trunk lid, the mating latch fork on the trunk lid pivots the latch cover doors out of the way to expose the latch bolt. An apparatus for adjusting the torsion of the pivoting latch cover is also provided.

In accordance with the invention, the pivoting latch cover provides protection for the recessed latch bolt and for the vehicle user and prevents debris and other items from falling into or getting caught in the recess when the trunk lid of the vehicle is open.

Further, through the use of torsion springs, the force to deflect the doors can be adjusted.

Brief Description of the Drawings The above and other objects, features and advantages will become more readily apparent from the following description, reference being made to the accompanying drawings in which: FIG. 1 is a prospective view of the rear of a motor vehicle with the trunk in an open position.

FIG. 2 is a prospective view of the present invention ready to be installed in the vehicle.

FIG. 3 is an exploded view of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged sectional view of FIG. 2 taken along A-A.

Description of Preferred Embodiments The present invention comprises a protective cover for a recessed trunk latch which may be pivoted or deflected out of the way when a trunk lid or like exterior closure panel is closed. The cover returns to a position adjacent the latch bolt when the trunk lid is in an open position. This allows for normal engagement of the pivoting forked portion of the trunk latch mechanism to engage the latch bolt to secure the trunk in a closed position and further, allows

the recess in which the latch bolt resides to be at least partially covered to prevent items from falling into it. The use of a latch bolt recessed into the perimetrical rear wall of the trunk eliminates the problem of a latch bolt or loop protruding into the open space of the vehicle trunk and interfering with clearance. Further, it is anticipated that the same protective cover may also be used in a variety of closure panels inside, but particularly on the exterior of the vehicle, such as hoods, doors, filler doors, rear hatches, etc.

FIG. 1 is a view of the rear of a motor vehicle 11 with the trunk lid 10 in an open position and illustrates a standard fork mechanism 12 extending therefrom. Trunk lid 10 in a closed position engages with the trunk perimeter 14 and the fork mechanism 12 engages a latch bolt 16. A portion of the fork mechanism 12 pivots to latch the trunk lid shut. The latch bolt 16 is located in a recess 20 in the rear wall of the trunk so that the bolt 16 does not protrude into the open space of the trunk and hinder loading and unloading of items to and from the trunk of the vehicle. The present invention provides a latch bolt cover assembly 18 that includes a pivoting or deflecting door (s) 22 that at least partially protect the latch bolt 16 and conceal the recess 20.

The pivoting or deflecting doors 22 may include an integral living hinge located generally at 26, and therefore, the doors 22 and integral hinge may be of unitary construction.

In such case, a preferred material may include a polyolefin material such as polypropylene, and other thermoplastic or thermoset materials that provide integral hinge performance.

Alternatively, as shown, the doors 22 may contain a separate pivoting mechanism., FIG. 2 illustrates the assembled condition of the latch bolt cover 18. In one embodiment the cover 18 includes two doors 22A, 22B that can pivot from a closed position, as shown, adjacent a latch bolt 16. Upon closure of a trunk lid, the fork mechanism 12 (see FIG. 1) engages the two doors and deflects them downward and out of the way to allow the fork mechanism 12 to engage the latch bolt 16 and, subsequently secure the trunk lid 10 in a closed position. The doors 22A, 22B include cylindrical portions 26A, 26B which hold plastic barrels 30A, 30B and springs 32A, 32B (see FIG. 3) that can be torsionally adjusted to urge the doors 22A, 22B back to a closed position adjacent the latch bolt 16 when the trunk lid 10 is opened and the fork mechanism 12 is disengaged. The latch cover 18 is attached with screws to the top of the perimetrical edge of the trunk at the rear of the vehicle above the latch bolt 16 and recess 20. Depending on the position and type of latch bolt and fork mechanism used, it may be possible to use a single door rather than multiple doors that pivots or deflects upon lid closure.

Turning to FIG. 3, an exploded view of the latch cover assembly 18 of FIG. 2 is shown. The doors 22A, 22B have hollow cylindrical sections 26A, 26B which matingly engage into recesses 28A, 28B to hold the doors 22A, 22B in place. Springs 32A, 32B are assembled into the cylindrical hollow portion 26A, 26B of the doors 22A, 22B followed by insertion of the barrels 30A, 30B. Arrow"C"indicates the direction of insertion of the barrel 30A into the hollow cylindrical portion 26A. The barrels 30A, 30B each have notches or protrusions at one end 50A, 50B which interface with the ends 38A, 38B of the springs 32A, 32B to hold the spring 32A, 32B from rotating and at the opposite ends have notches or protrusions 60A, 60B to hold the barrel from rotating. By rotating the barrel 30A, 30B after insertion into the cylindrical hollow portions 26A, 26B and engaging the springs 32A, 32B, a torsional load can be applied to the door 22A, 22B such that when the door is assembled into the cover 18 by compressing the springs 32A, 32B, the door will be urged into a closed position. In this view, latches 52A, 52B are provided to prevent overtravel of the doors 22A, 22B beyond a horizontal position. Arrow"B"indicates the direction of rotation of barrel 30A in order to apply a torsional force to the spring 32A to in turn urge the door 22A to a closed position.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of FIG. 2 taken along line A-A. While not to scale, this view illustrates the assembled door 22B, including barrel 30B and spring 32B in place, under torsion, in the latch cover 18. As shown, the spring 32B, resides in the hollow cylindrical portion 26B of the door 22B and is engaged at one end with projection 64 in the hollow portion 26B to prevent free rotation of the spring 32B. At its other end, the spring 32B engages notch/protrusion 50B of the barrel 26B. The spring 32B is thus compressed and limited in rotation by the barrel 30B when it is inserted into the hollow cylindrical portion 26B of the door 22B and the protrusion 60B engaged with projection 66 of the latch cover frame. As shown in FIG. 3, the protrusions/notches 50B, 60B are preferably spaced 90 degrees from one another so as to mesh with projections 64,66 so that rotation of the spring 32B can be adjusted stepwise to yield an appropriate amount of torsional control for the doors to return to a closed condition.

As noted above, the preferred embodiment of the present invention includes two pivoting doors that partially close a recess with a latch bolt therein. Other embodiments may include a single door. Further, the recess may contain the fork mechanism rather than the latch bolt. Still further, the invention may apply to any of a variety of closures either inside or outside of a vehicle.

The description and drawings illustratively set forth the presently preferred invention embodiment. We intend the description and drawings to describe this embodiment and not to limit the scope of the invention. Obviously, it is possible to modify these embodiments while remaining within the scope of the following claims. Therefore, within the scope of the claims, one may practice the invention otherwise than as the description and drawings specifically show and describe.