Patent attributes
A power door latch assembly consists of a ratchet (50) for engaging a door striker, a pawl (52), a rotary actuator (54) for rotating the ratchet (50) towards the closed position and for disengaging the pawl (52) and a drive actuator (96) for driving the rotary actuator (54). The drive actuator (96) includes a prime mover (98) an output member (104) in engagement with the rotary actuator (54), and releasable coupling (102) coupled between the prime mover (98) and the output member (104) for selectively transferring torque between the prime mover (98) and the rotary actuator (54). A drive controller (108) is coupled to the releasable coupling (102) and is configured for disengaging the prime mover (98) from the rotary actuator (54) when the ratchet (50) is disposed in either the open or closed positions.