Vehicle glove box latch
A vehicle glove box latch includes a housing, a paddle pivotably connected to the housing, a rotor pivotably connected to the housing, a pawl coupled to the rotor and having an end that is engaged with an opening in the vehicle, and a lock barrel mounted to the housing for locking and unlocking the vehicle glove box latch. In a locked state of the lock barrel, the pawl cannot be disengaged from the opening in the vehicle. In an unlocked state of the lock barrel, the pawl can be disengaged from the opening for opening the vehicle glove box. The lock barrel, the rotor and the rotor mounting portion are concentrically aligned along an axis, which reduces the depth of the latch, which reduces the space in the glove box necessary for accommodating the latch, thereby resulting in an increase in the available storage space in the glove box.
1 . A vehicle glove box latch in combination with a vehicle glove box, the vehicle glove box latch comprising:
a housing that is configured to be mounted to the vehicle glove box, the housing having a front surface configured to face away from the vehicle glove box, a rear surface opposite the front surface, and at least one side surface interconnecting the front surface and the rear surface;
a retention feature on the housing that extends in a lateral direction beyond the at least one side surface of the housing for mounting to an opening formed in the vehicle glove box;
a user operated paddle that is pivotably connected to a paddle mounting portion of the housing, the paddle configured for movement between a home position and a deployed position;
a rotor that is pivotably connected to a rotor mounting portion of the housing;
a spring disposed on the rotor and configured to bias the rotor toward a direction, the spring having a first leg positioned into a first spring mounting recess extending tangentially from an annular recess of the rotor and a second leg movable relative to the rotor to be positioned into a second spring mounting recess formed on the rotor during assembly of the vehicle glove box latch; and
at least one pawl coupled to the rotor and having opposing ends, wherein one end of the opposing ends of the at least one pawl includes an engagement portion that is configured to be engaged with an opening in the vehicle in which the vehicle glove box is mounted, and the other end of the opposing ends of the at least one pawl includes a post that is mounted in an opening in the rotor for securing the at least one pawl to the rotor.
2 . The vehicle glove box latch in combination with the vehicle glove box of claim 1 , wherein a fastener is configured to engage a hole in the vehicle glove box and a hole in the rear surface of the housing.
3 . The vehicle glove box latch in combination with the vehicle glove box of claim 1 , wherein the retention feature is a clip.
4 . The vehicle glove box latch in combination with the vehicle glove box of claim 1 , wherein the opening in the rotor is defined within a C-shaped clip having a non-continuous perimeter.
5 . The vehicle glove box latch in combination with the vehicle glove box of claim 1 , wherein the post is pivotably mounted within the opening in the rotor.
6 . The vehicle glove box latch in combination with the vehicle glove box of claim 1 , wherein the post and the opening in the rotor are configured such that the post is configured to be inserted into the opening from two different directions that are orthogonal to one another.
7 . The vehicle glove box latch in combination with the vehicle glove box of claim 1 , wherein the post includes a shaft that extends from the at least one pawl, a bulbous portion at a free end of the shaft, and an annular channel defined between the shaft and the bulbous portion.
8 . The vehicle glove box latch in combination with the vehicle glove box of claim 7 , further comprising a rib formed in the opening of the rotor that is configured to be inserted into the annular channel of the post.
9 . The vehicle glove box latch in combination with the vehicle glove box of claim 1 , wherein the vehicle glove box comprises:
a door having the opening to which the housing of the vehicle glove box latch is mounted and a hole, the door being configured to pivot between open and closed positions relative to a vehicle dashboard;
wherein a fastener is configured to be mounted through the hole of the door and into the rear surface of the latch for mounting the housing to the door; and
wherein the user operated paddle is positioned in front of the front surface.
10 . The vehicle glove box in combination with the vehicle glove box of claim 9 , wherein the fastener is configured to engage a hole in the rear surface of the housing.
11 . The vehicle glove box in combination with the vehicle glove box of claim 9 , wherein the vehicle glove box latch is configured to be at least partially positioned within the recessed region.
12 . The vehicle glove box in combination with the vehicle glove box of claim 11 , wherein the hole of the vehicle glove box is disposed on a rear facing wall of the recessed region, and the opening for the retention feature is disposed on a side surface of the recessed region.
13 . The vehicle glove box in combination with the vehicle glove box of claim 9 , wherein the retention feature is a clip.
14 . The vehicle glove box latch in combination with the vehicle glove box of claim 1 , wherein the housing includes at least one rotation limiter extending from the at least one side surface of the housing.
15 . The vehicle glove box latch in combination with the vehicle glove box of claim 14 , wherein the at least one rotation limiter is configured for engagement with the paddle to limit movement of the paddle beyond the deployed position.
16 . The vehicle glove box latch in combination with the vehicle glove box of claim 15 , wherein the at least one rotation limiter is configured for engagement with a surface formed on the paddle.
17 . The vehicle glove box latch in combination with the vehicle glove box of claim 1 , further comprising barbs formed on the housing and configured to be received into slots formed on the rotor.
18 . The vehicle glove box latch in combination with the vehicle glove box of claim 1 , wherein the spring is positioned against a stop surface formed on an exterior surface of the housing.