Vehicle latch

1. A latch assembly, comprising:

a fork bolt movably secured to the latch assembly, the fork bolt being capable of movement between a latched position and an unlatched position;

a detent lever movably secured to the latch assembly, the detent lever being capable of movement between an engaged position and a disengaged position, the detent lever retains the fork bolt in the latched position when the detent lever is in the engaged position and the detent lever has a stop member and a guide member each protruding away from a surface of the detent lever, the stop member being in a spaced relationship with respect to the guide member; and

an actuator for moving the detent lever from the engaged position to the disengaged position by contacting the guide member, the stop member being positioned so that the actuator will contact the stop member and prevent further movement of the actuator when the fork bolt is in the unlatched position and the detent lever is in the disengaged position, wherein at least a portion of the detent lever and at least a portion the fork bolt rotate in a similar plane and the actuator rotates in a plane that is not parallel to the plane in which the portion of the fork bolt and the portion of the detent lever rotate and the guide member and the stop member extend away from the detent lever in a direction parallel to the plane the actuator rotates in, wherein the actuator is coupled to a motor configured to move the actuator.

2. The latch assembly as in claim 1 , wherein the actuator rotates in a plane that is orthogonal with respect to the plane in which the portion of the detent lever rotates.

3. The latch assembly as in claim 1 , further comprising a microswitch positioned to engage a cam surface of the fork bolt as the fork bolt rotates between the unlatched position and the latched position.

4. The latch assembly as in claim 3 , wherein the microswitch provides a signal to a controller when the fork bolt is in the unlatched position and the cam surface engages the micro switch.

5. The latch assembly as in claim 1 , wherein the detent lever further comprises a stabilizing feature for limiting of movement of the detent lever when the actuator engages the stop member.

6. The latch assembly as in claim 1 , wherein the actuator is a gear comprising an integrally formed protrusion configured to engage the stop member and the guide member of the detent lever.

7. The latch assembly as in claim 6 , wherein the protrusion has a curved peripheral surface configured to engage a cam surface of the guide member.

8. The latch assembly as in claim 1 , wherein the actuator is a gear rotationally actuated by the motor and the gear further comprises an integrally formed protrusion configured to engage the stop member and the guide member of the detent lever, wherein the stop member and guide member are configured such that rotational movement of the gear in a first direction is prevented when the detent lever is in the disengaged position and the protrusion contacts the stop member.

9. A method of operating a latch assembly, the method comprising:

rotating a fork bolt into a latched position from an unlatched position;

engaging a detent lever with the fork bolt when the fork bolt is in the latched position;

releasing the detent lever from the fork bolt by rotating an actuator with a motor until it engages a guide member of the detent lever and moves the detent lever into a disengaged position with respect to the fork bolt;

rotating the fork bolt from the latched position to the unlatched position; and

preventing the actuator from contacting the guide member by locating a stop member of the detent lever such that rotation of the actuator in a first direction is limited by the stop member when the detent lever is in the disengaged position, wherein at least a portion of the detent lever and at least a portion of the fork bolt rotate in a similar plane and the actuator rotates in a plane that is not parallel to the plane in which the portion of the fork bolt and the portion of the detent lever rotate and the guide member and the stop member extend away from the detent lever in a direction parallel to the plane the actuator rotates in.

10. The method as in claim 9 , wherein the actuator rotates in a plane that is orthogonal with respect to the plane in which the portion of the detent lever rotates.

11. The method as in claim 9 , further comprising a microswitch positioned to engage a cam surface of the fork bolt as the fork bolt rotates from the unlatched position to the latched position, wherein the microswitch provides a signal to a controller when the fork bolt is in the unlatched position and the cam surface engages the micro switch.

12. The method as in claim 9 , wherein the detent lever further comprises a stabilizing feature for limiting movement of the detent lever when the actuator engages the stop member.

13. The method as in claim 9 , wherein the actuator is a gear comprising an integrally formed protrusion configured to engage the stop member and the guide member of the detent lever.

14. The method as in claim 13 , wherein the protrusion has a curved peripheral surface configured to engage a cam surface of the guide member.

15. The method as in claim 9 , wherein the actuator is a gear rotationally actuated by the motor and the gear further comprises an integrally formed protrusion configured to engage the stop member and the guide member of the detent lever, wherein the stop member and guide member are configured such that rotational movement of the gear in a first direction is prevented when the detent lever is in the disengaged position and the protrusion contacts the stop member.