United States Patent [19]
`Plisky
`
`[54] WINDSHIELD WIPER ASSEMBLY
`[75] Inventor: John J. Plisky, Munster, Ind.
`[73] Assignee: The Anderson Company, Gary, Ind.
`[22] Filed:
`Aug. 29, 1972
`[21] Appl. No.: 284,950
`
`[52] US. Cl. ........................................... .. l5/250.42
`[51] Int. Cl. .......................... .. B605 l/04, B605 H38
`[58] Field of Search ................... .. l5/250.42, 250.36
`
`[56]
`
`References Cited
`UNITED STATES PATENTS
`3,629,898
`15/250,42
`12/1971
`Plisky ............
`3,673,631
`7/1972 Yamadai et ................ .. l5/250.42
`FOREIGN PATENTS 0R APPLICATIONS
`1,077,089
`3/1960 Germany ....................... .. l5/250.42
`
`Primary Examiner-Peter Feldman
`Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Hofgren Wegner, Allen,
`Stellman & McCord
`
`ABSTRACT
`[57]
`This invention relates to windshield wiper assemblies
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`3,818,536
`[11]
`[45] June 25, 1974
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`which include a wiping element comprising a ?exible
`support member and a resilient wiping member and a
`pressure-distributing superstructure comprising elon
`gate members operatively connected together so as to
`transmit and distribute the pressure received by the
`pressure-distributing superstructure from the wiper
`arm to spaced locations along the length of the wiping
`element. The pressure-distributing superstructure has
`members whose ends are slidably engaged with the
`?exible support member of the wiping element. At
`least two of the members of the pressure-distributing
`superstructure are slidably engaged with said support
`member and have on at least one end thereof a gener- ,
`ally V-shaped upper part, tabs adapted to engage the
`undersides of the edges of the support member and
`arcuate portions joining the V-shaped upper part and
`the tabs. Each V-shaped upper part has, at the outer
`end thereof, a portion of each side displaced down
`wardly so as to be parallel to the plane of and above
`the ?exible support member and thereby slidably en
`gages the support member with minimum lateral rota
`tional play.
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`5 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures
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`Costco Exhibit 1023, p. 1
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`

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`PATENTEDJUN251974
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`3.818.536
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`Costco Exhibit 1023, p. 2
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`Costco Exhibit 1023, p. 2
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`1
`WINDSHIELD WIPER ASSEMBLY
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`3,818,536 ,
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`5
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`transmit such pressure to said wiping element adjacent
`the ends of said wiping elementand to at least one in
`termediate location, said pressure-distributing assem
`bly comprising elongate members pivotally connected
`together to form an articulated structure whose mem
`bers move relative to each other generally in a plane
`perpendicular to the surface to be wiped, and which
`has members with ends which are slidably engaged with
`said ?exible support member, at least two of said mem
`bers slidably engaged with said support member having
`on at least one end thereof a generally V-shaped upper
`part, tabs adapted to engage the undersides of the
`edges of said support member and arcuate portions
`joining said V-shaped upper part and said tabs. In ac
`cordance with the invention, each of said V-shaped
`upper parts has, at the outer end thereof, a portion of
`each side displaced downwardly so as to be parallel to
`the plane of and above said ?exible support member
`and thereby slidably engage said support member with
`minimum lateral rotational play.
`The above construction provides a close fit between
`the support member of the wiping element and the ends
`of members of the superstructure slidably engaged
`therewith. As explained more fully below, such close
`ness of fit results in a low level of noise at the connec
`tion, increased control of layover and reduced wear. It
`also results in a product which behaves in a more uni
`form manner in spite of variations in manufacture.
`
`BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
`1. Field of the Invention
`This invention relates to improvements in windshield
`wiper assemblies of the type which have a wiping ele
`ment comprising a ?exible support member and a resil
`ient wiping member and a pressure-distributing super
`structure comprising elongate members which are op
`eratively connected together to transmit and distribute
`pressure received from the wiping arm to spaced loca
`tions along the length of the wiping element and some
`of which have ends slidably engaging the support mem
`ber of the wiping element.
`2. Description of the Prior Art
`Since the introduction in the 1940’s of windshield
`wiper assemblies of the type generally shown in the
`John W. Anderson US. Pat. No. 2,596,063, such wind
`shield wiper assemblies and variations thereof have
`been generally used throughout the automotive indus
`try. These windshield wiper assemblies typically in
`clude a wiping element and a superstructure which
`consists of articulated parts so that pressure received
`from the wiper arm is transmitted through the super
`structure to spaced locations along the wiping element
`for conformance to the windshield to be wiped. The
`wiping element consists of a ?exible backing strip or
`support member, typically made of metal, and a resil
`ient wiping member, typically made of rubber, which
`has a lower most portion or lip adapted to wipe a wind
`shield.
`'
`One successful variation of such windshield wiper as
`semblies has been one in which the superstructure is
`made of articulated parts or members which generally
`have inverted V-shaped cross sections, the upper and
`lower members being rockably connected to each
`other. The ends of the members of the superstructure '
`connected to the ?exible support member are slidably
`engaged therewith in order to permit ?exing of the wip
`ing element when the windshield wiper assembly passes
`over a curved portion of the windshield. The slidable
`connections at the ends of members of the superstruc
`ture are commonly referred to as claws and, in respect
`to the type of superstructure described above, consist
`45
`of a generally V-shaped upper part, tabs adapted to en
`gage the undersides of the edges of the support member
`and arcuate portions joining the V-shaped upper part
`and the tabs. Since present day automobile manufac
`turers demand substantial control of the action of wind
`shield wiper assemblies, the precision of the fit between
`the claws and the support member of the wiping ele
`ment is important. When claws do not ?t the support
`member with considerable precision, they can rotate
`laterally and rattle against each other to produce unde
`sirable noise, the layover or tilt of the wiping element
`is not adequately controlled with resultant poor wiping
`and undesired movement in relation to each other pro
`duces wear.
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`BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
`The details of construction and operation of the in
`vention are more fully described with reference to the
`accompanying drawings which form a part hereof and
`in which like reference numerals refer to like parts
`throughout.
`In the drawings:
`FIG. 1 is a side view of a windshield wiper assembly
`illustrating an embodiment of the invention;
`FIG. 2 is an enlarged side view of a portion of the
`windshield wiper assembly of FIG. 1;
`FIG. 3 is a greatly enlarged cross-sectional view of
`the wiping element and the inner end of a lower mem
`ber of the pressure-distributing superstructure taken
`along the lines 3-3 of FIG. 2; and,
`.
`FIG. 4 is a greatly enlarged end view of the inner end
`of the lower member of the pressure-distributing super
`structure shown in FIG. 3.
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`1 DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED
`EMBODIMENT
`The windshield wiper assembly shown in FIG. 1 com
`prises a wiping element indicated generally at 20 and
`an articulated pressure-distributing means or super
`structure, indicated generally at 22, which receives
`pressurefrom a wiper arm (not shown but attachable
`at 24) and then distributes (i.e., transmits and propor
`tions) such pressure to a plurality of positions, spaced
`locations or longitudinal points adjacent the ends and
`along the length of wiping element 20. Wiping element
`20 is conformable to both ?at and curved surfaces and,
`when urged toward a windshield by the pressure
`distributing superstructure 22, automatically follows
`surfaces of varying curvatures such as those involved in
`wiping curved Windshields.
`Wiping element 20 comprises a resilient wiping mem~
`ber or squeegee 26 which may be made of rubber or
`other elastomeric material and which has a lowermost
`
`55
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`SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
`A windshield wiper assembly of the type with which
`the invention is concerned comprises a wiping element
`comprising a ?exible support member and a resilient
`wiping member engaged with said support member and
`having an edge adapted to contact and wipe a wind
`shield, an arm-pressure distributing assembly adapted
`to receive pressure from a windshield wiper arm and
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`Costco Exhibit 1023, p. 3
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`3,818,536
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`or bottom portion which has a wiping edge or lip 28
`and a ?exible support member or ?exor 30 made of re
`siliently ?exible material, such as metal or plastic of
`suitable thickness (see FIG. 2). Flexor 30 is maintained
`in association with the resilient wiping member 26 by
`various constructions known to the art, such as by re
`taining it in longitudinal grooves in the resilient wiping
`member 26. Flexor 30 may be unitary (i.e., joined at
`one or both ends) or may consist of two separate rib
`bons or strips, as is known to the art.
`The pressure-distributing superstructure 22, shown
`in FIG. 1, comprises a primary or upper member,
`bridge or yoke 32 which is rockably connected at its
`ends to secondary or lower members, bridges or yokes
`34 at the ends of each of which are claws 36 and 38
`which transmit pressure to spaced locations on wiping
`element 20 and keep the. articulated pressure
`distributing superstructure 22 in operative association
`with blade element 20. At least some of the claws slide
`with respect to blade element 20 so that it can bow or
`?ex without restriction by the pressure-distributing su
`perstructure as it moves across various parts of the
`windshield. Various means known to the art may be
`used to prevent the pressure-distributing superstruc
`ture 22 from being longitudinally moved or slid off the
`wiping element in either direction. Those skilled in the
`art will understand that various arrangements of pres
`sure-distributing superstructures-other than that shown
`in FIG. 1 may be used in accordance with the inven
`tion. Such arm-pressure distributing superstructures
`characteristically transmit the arm pressure to the wip
`ing element adjacent the ends of the wiping element
`and to at least one intermediate location spaced along
`its length and comprise elongate members rockably
`connected together to form an articulated structure
`whose members move relative to each other generally
`in a plane perpendicular to the surface to be wiped.
`The windshield wiper assembly may be constructed so
`that the wiping element 20 can be replaced, an appro
`priate construction being shown in US. Pat. No.
`2,897,530, issued Aug. 4, 1959, to John W. Anderson.
`
`Upper member 32 and lower members 34 are advan
`tageously constructed so they have generally inverted
`V-shaped cross sections over most of their lengths al
`though the width of any particular member may be dif
`ferent at various sections. Lower member 34 is arched,
`that is, the outboard portion 340 and the inboard por~
`tion 34b are inclined downwardly from the midpoint of
`member 34 (see FIG. 2). Accordingly, there is space
`between the inboard portion 34b of the lower member
`34 and the underside of the end of upper member 32
`so that, when the blade element if ?exed upwardly
`when wiping a curved portion of the windshield, the in
`board portion 34b of the lower member can pivot up
`wardly and nest within the corresponding portion of the
`upper member 32. A pivotal connection between mem
`bers 32 and 34 is effected by notching the top of lower
`member 34 on each side of its bottom edges at 40 (see
`FIG. 2). Both sides of the upper member 32 have in
`turned ?ngers or tabs 42 which seat in the notches 40
`in the bottom edges of the top of lower member '34.
`Tabs 42 can pivot or rock in the notches 40 and thus
`provide the desired pivotal movement.
`Claws 36 (at the outer or outboard ends of lower
`members 34) and 38 (at the inner or inboard ends of
`members 34) slidably embrace ?exor 30 (see FIG. 3).
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`As shown in FIG. 3, claws 36 and 38 comprise a gener
`ally V-shaped upper part 44, tabs 46 adapted to engage
`the undersides of they edges of ?exor 30 and arcuate
`portions 48 joining upper part 44 and tabs 46. The pre
`cision of the ?t between claws 36 and 38 and ?exor 30
`determine the amount of relative movement between
`these members. Because of the inverted V-shape of the
`ends of lower members 34, it is dif?cult to control the
`preciseness of the ?t between the claws and the ?exor.
`When the ?t is not sufficiently precise, due, for exam
`ple, to variations in manufacture, there is excessive rel
`ative movement between the claws and the ?exor (i.e.,
`lateral rotation), resulting in noise, wear, improper lay
`over and chatter of the windshield wiper assembly.
`As shown particularly in FIGS. 3 and 4 and in accor
`dance with the invention, a portion 50 of each side of
`the inverted V-shaped upper part 44 of the claw 38 at
`the inner end of lower members 34 is sheared or dis
`placed downwardly so as to beparallel to the plane of
`20
`‘and above ?exor 30. Because of this construction the
`claws 38 engage the ?exor 30 with more controllable
`precision of ?t, resulting in minimum rotational or lat
`eral play and consequent improved wiping perform
`ance. If desirable, claws 36, at the outer ends of lower
`members 34 may have a similar construction to that de
`scribed in connection with FIGS. 3 and 4, although it
`is particularly advantageous to have at least the inner
`endsso constructed.
`'
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`It will, of course, be understood that various details
`of construction may be varied without departing from
`the principles of this invention, and it is, therefore, not
`the purpose to limit the patent granted herein other
`wise than necessitated by the scope of the appended
`claims.
`I claim:
`'
`l. A windshield wiper assembly comprising a wiping
`element comprising a ?exible support member and a
`resilient’ wiping member engaged with said support
`member and having an edge adapted to contact and
`wipe a windshield, an arm-pressure distributing assem
`bly adapted to receive pressure from a windshield
`wiper army and transmit such pressure to said wiping el
`ement adjacent the ends of said wiping element and to
`at least one intermediate location, said pressure
`distributing assembly comprising elongate members
`pivotally connected together to form an articulated
`structure whose members move relative to each other
`generally in a plane'perpendicular to the surface to be
`wiped, and which has members with ends slidably en
`gaged with said flexible support member, at least two
`of said members slidably engaged with said support
`member having on at least one end thereof a generally
`inverted V-shaped upper part, tabs adapted to engage
`the undersides of the edges of said support member and
`arcuate portions joining said inverted V-shaped upper
`part and said tabs, each inverted V-shaped upper part
`having, at the outer end thereof, a partially severed
`portion of each side being displaced downwardly so as
`to lie parallel to the plane of and spaced above a por
`tion of said tabs with said partially severed portions and
`said tabs slidably engaging the top and bottom edge
`portions of said support member to permit a minimum
`lateral rotational play therebetween.
`2. A windshield wiper assembly comprising a wiping
`element having a ?exible support member and a resil
`ient wiping member engaged with said support member
`and having an edge adapted to contact and wipe a
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`Costco Exhibit 1023, p. 4
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`3,818,536
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`20
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`generally inverted V-shaped upper part, tabs adapted
`to engage the undersides of the edges of said support
`member and arcuate portions joining the ends of said
`inverted V-shaped upper part and said tabs, each in
`verted V-shaped upper part being vertically cut above
`said tab and having, at the outer end thereof, a portion
`of each side displaced downwardly so as to be parallel
`to the plane of and above said ?exible support member
`and thereby slidably engage said support member with
`minimum lateral rotational play.
`5. A windshield wiper assembly comprising a wiping
`element and an arm-pressure distributing assembly,
`said wiping element having a ?exible support member
`and a resilient wiping member engaged with said sup
`port member and having an edge adapted to contact
`and wipe a windshield, said pressure-distributing as
`sembly being adapted to receive pressure from a wind
`shield wiper arm and to transmit such pressure to said
`wiping element, said pressure-distributing assembly
`comprising at least two elongate members pivotally
`connected together to form an articulated structure
`whose members move relative to each other generally
`in a plane perpendicular to the surface to be wiped, one
`of said members having at least one pair of laterally
`spaced-apart inwardly turned tabs joined together by a
`portion of said last-named member, said portion of said
`last-named member having a slit cut therein in a direc
`tion substantially perpendicular to a plane of said tab
`and in overlying relation to said tab, a part of each side
`of said portion of said last-named member being dis
`placed downwardly into a plane parallel to and spaced
`above the plane containing said tabs, said tabs slidably
`engaging the underside of the edges of said support
`member and the displaced part of said portion of said
`member slidably engaging the topside of the edges of
`said support member in overlapping relation to said
`tabs so as to minimize the rotational play between the
`support member and the pressure-distributing assem
`bly.
`
`5
`windshield, an arm~pressure distributing assembly
`adapted to receive pressure from a windshield wiper
`arm and transmit such pressure to said wiping element,
`said pressure-distributing assembly comprising elon
`gate members pivotally connected together to form an
`articulated structure whose members move relative to
`each other generally in a plane perpendicular to the
`surface to be wiped, at least one of said members hav
`ing spaced-apart tabs joined together by a shaped por
`tion, said tabs being adapted to engage the undersides
`of the edges of said support member, said shaped por
`tion being cut above the tab and having a part of each
`side displaced downwardly into a plane parallel to the
`plane of and above said ?exible support member to
`thereby slidably engage said support member with min
`imum lateral rotational play.
`3. A wiper assembly as claimed in claim 2 wherein
`said pressure-distributing assembly comprises upper
`and lower elongate members, said lower members hav
`ing at both ends thereof a generally inverted V-shaped
`upper section, said spaced-apart tabs being joined to
`the outer end portions of the V-shaped section, each
`V-shaped section having said cut above said tab and
`said downwardly displaced part formed in the outer
`end portion thereof in close proximity to and spaced in
`a plane above and parallel to said tabs.
`4. In a windshield wiper assembly comprising a wip
`ing element having a ?exible support member and a re
`silient wiping member engaged with said support mem
`ber and having an edge adapted to contact and wipe a
`windshield, an arm-pressure distributing assembly
`adapted to receive pressure from a windshield wiper
`arm and transmit such pressure to said wiping element,
`said pressure-distributing assembly comprising an
`upper and two lower elongate members pivotally con
`nected together to form an articulated structure whose
`members move relative to each other generally in a
`plane perpendicular to the surface to be wiped, said
`lower members having ends slidably engaged with said
`flexible support member in combination with each of
`said lower members having at the inner end thereof a
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`*****
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`Costco Exhibit 1023, p. 5