Mounting assembly for wiper blade and wiper arm

1. A mounting assembly for mounting a wiper blade to a wiper arm, said mounting assembly comprising:

an adaptor adapted to be mounted to the wiper blade, said adaptor including a base wall and a plurality of side walls extending upwardly from said base wall, and a plurality of hinge pins extending outwardly from said side walls; and

a coupler for connection to the wiper arm, said coupler including a base wall, a plurality of side walls depending from said base wall, and a plurality of openings extending into said side walls to receive said hinge pins to allow said coupler and said adaptor to be connected together;

wherein said coupler further includes an aperture extending therethrough, an engaging member disposed in said aperture that cooperates with the wiper arm for releasably engaging the wiper arm, an end portion extending longitudinally from said base wall and said side walls to define an end wall, and at least one raised strip extending longitudinally from said base wall and spaced longitudinally between said aperture and said end wall for abutting the wiper arm;

wherein said engaging member includes a cantilevered body and a head disposed at a terminal end of said cantilevered body that cooperates with the wiper arm, and wherein said head includes a raised portion with filleted edges and a ramp, said ramp facing away from said terminal end for cooperating with the wiper arm to move said engaging member downwardly until said engaging member releasably engages the wiper arm.

2. A mounting assembly as set forth in claim 1 , wherein said adaptor includes a plurality of channel walls extending from said base wall and forming grooves adapted to receive a support structure of the wiper blade.

3. A mounting assembly as set forth in claim 1 wherein said engaging member includes a retention tab that is adapted to be disposed in a corresponding aperture of the wiper arm.

4. A mounting assembly as set forth in claim 1 wherein said coupler includes chamfered walls interconnecting said base wall and said side walls and extending at a reflex angle thereto to allow said coupler to be inserted into the wiper arm.

5. A wiper system as set forth in claim 4 wherein said end wall of said coupler is perpendicular to each of said chamfered walls of said coupler.

6. A mounting assembly as set forth in claim 1 wherein said wiper includes at least one raised portion extending outwardly from each of said side walls to allow said side walls to frictionally engage the wiper arm and prevent said coupler from being dislodged from the wiper arm.

7. A wiper system as set forth in claim 1 wherein said raised strip extends longitudinally from said aperture.

8. A wiper system as set forth in claim 1 wherein said aperture is defined in said base wall of said coupler.

9. A wiper system as set forth in claim 1 wherein said end wall of said coupler is perpendicular to each of said base wall and said side walls of said coupler.

10. A wiper system for a vehicle comprising:

a wiper blade adapted to contact a surface to be wiped, a wiper arm adapted to support said wiper blade as it moves across a surface to be wiped, and a mounting assembly that operatively interconnects said wiper blade and said wiper arm; and

said mounting assembly including an adaptor mounted to said wiper blade, said adaptor including a base wall and a plurality of side walls extending upwardly from said base wall, and a plurality of hinge pins extending outwardly from said side walls, and a coupler connected to said wiper arm, said coupler including a base wall, a plurality of side walls depending from said base wall, and a plurality of openings extending into said side walls to receive said hinge pins to allow said coupler and said adaptor to be connected together;

wherein said coupler further includes an aperture extending therethrough, an engaging member disposed in said aperture that cooperates with said wiper arm for releasably engaging said wiper arm, and an end portion extending longitudinally from said base wall and said side walls to define an end wall, and at least one raised strip extending longitudinally from said base wall and spaced longitudinally between said aperture and said end wall for abutting said wiper arm;

wherein said engaging member includes a cantilevered body and a head disposed at a terminal end of said cantilevered body that cooperates with the wiper arm, and wherein said head includes a raised portion with filleted edges and a ramp, said ramp facing away from said terminal end for cooperating with the wiper arm to move said engaging member downwardly until said engaging member releasably engages the wiper arm.

11. A wiper system as set forth in claim 10 wherein said adaptor includes a plurality of channel walls extending from said base wall and forming grooves adapted to receive a support structure of said wiper blade.

12. A wiper system as set forth in claim 10 wherein said coupler includes chamfered walls interconnecting said base wall and said side walls and extending at a reflex angle thereto to allow said coupler to be inserted into said wiper arm.

13. A wiper system as set forth in claim 12 wherein said end wall of said coupler is perpendicular to each of said chamfered walls of said coupler.

14. A wiper system as set forth in claim 10 wherein said base portion includes at least one raised portion extending outwardly from each of said side walls to allow said side walls to frictionally engage said wiper arm and prevent said coupler from being dislodged from said wiper arm.

15. A wiper system as set forth in claim 10 wherein said raised strip extends longitudinally from said aperture.

16. A wiper system as set forth in claim 10 wherein said aperture is defined in said base wall of said coupler.

17. A wiper system as set forth in claim 10 wherein said end wall of said coupler is perpendicular to each of said side walls of said coupler.