JPH0543554B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention relates to a rear-wheel drive vehicle having a bucket seat at the center in the width direction of the vehicle body.

(Prior art) When turning, the frame, along with the driver's body,
Conventionally, there are vehicles that turn while tilting their seats inward in the turning direction. In this type of vehicle, a so-called bucket seat or sit-in seat that supports the buttocks and lower back of the driver is provided in the center of the vehicle width direction, so that the driver can drive in a riding position similar to that of a normal passenger car. is considered. Such a seat has the advantage that it can firmly hold the driver's body and stabilize the driving posture.

It is also being considered to lower the seat position of this type of vehicle to lower the center of gravity when riding, thereby improving driving stability. On the other hand, the shorter the distance between the front wheels and the rear wheels (wheelbase), the smaller the minimum turning radius of the vehicle becomes, making it easier to turn.

(Problems with conventional technology) However, if you try to shorten the wheelbase while lowering the seat, the load distribution to the rear wheels will become excessive due to the limited space for installing the engine, or the rear wheel suspension system will A problem arises in that the range of vertical movement of the wheels is restricted, impairing driving performance.

(Object of the Invention) The present invention was made in view of the above circumstances, and it is possible to shorten the wheelbase while lowering the center of gravity by lowering the bucket seat.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a rear wheel drive vehicle that has good weight balance as a whole and can ensure a wide range of vertical movement of the rear wheels.

(Structure of the Invention) According to the present invention, the object is to provide a rear wheel drive vehicle equipped with a bucket seat disposed at the center in the width direction of the vehicle body and a unit swing type engine unit that holds the rear wheels. A frame having a pair of left and right seat rails extending obliquely upward and rearward from the bottom surface of the seat along the back surface of the backrest, and a cushion unit interposed between the rear inclined portion of the frame and the engine unit, A rear wheel characterized in that a seating surface of the seat is located below a surface connecting the upper ends of each wheel, and a cylinder of the engine unit is projected forward and located between seat rails below the seat. This is achieved by a driving vehicle.

(Embodiment) FIG. 1 is a side view of a tricycle which is an embodiment of the present invention, and FIGS. 2 and 3 are a side view and a plan view showing the internal structure of the vehicle body. The code 1 in these figures
0 is a frame, which includes a main pipe 12 that extends in the front-rear direction, a pair of left and right seat rails 14 that extend rearward from the main pipe 12 almost horizontally, and whose rear parts rise diagonally upward and rearward to form a loop; It includes a pair of left and right side bumpers 16 (16a, 16b) fixed to the rail 14.

18 is an engine unit, and engine 20
and a rear arm 22, and a rear wheel 24 is attached to the rear end of the rear arm 22.
The engine 20 has a crankcase 26 that houses an automatic transmission, an automatic centrifugal clutch, etc., and a cylinder 28 that projects forward from the crankcase 26 substantially horizontally. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the engine unit 18 has left and right seat rails 14,
14, and the pin 32 is inserted into the bracket 30 (30a, 30b) provided on the seat rail 14.
It is pivoted so that it can swing up and down. As a result, a known unit swing type rear wheel suspension is formed.

In Figures 1 and 2, 34 is this engine unit 18.
This cushion unit supports the seat rail 14 and is interposed between the rear inclined portion of the seat rail 14 and the rear portion of the rear arm 22. 36 is an exhaust muffling pipe, 38 is a carburetor disposed above the cylinder 28, and 40 is an air cleaning box.

A known Neidhardt spring 42 is attached to the front end of the main pipe 12, as shown in FIGS.
2, each of which is rotatably held independently.
48 (48a, 48b) is the front wheel, 50 (50a,
50b) is a wheel, 52 (52a, 52b) is a knuckle that rotatably holds this wheel 50, and an arm 54 (54a, 54b) extending rearward is fixed to this knuckle 52. The lower end of the nutcle 52 is connected to the Neidhart type spring 4.
The upper end of the knuckle 52 is connected to a lower arm 56 (56a, 56b) fixed to the inner and outer cylinders 44, 46 of the main pipe 12, and an upper arm 60 (60a, 60
connected by b). As a result, the front wheel 48 moves up and down while rotating the inner and outer cylinders 44 and 46, and at this time, the rubber baked between the inner and outer cylinders 44 and 46 is compressed, giving the front wheel 48 a downward return correction. .

In FIGS. 1 and 2, 62 is a handle column fixed to the frame 10, 62 is a handle shaft rotatably held by this column 60, and 66 is a handle fixed to this handle shaft 64. A bracket 68 shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 is fixed to the lower end of the handle shaft 64 so as to hang downward, and this bracket 68 is attached to tie rods 70 (70a, 70).
b) to the arm 54. Therefore, by rotating the handle 66 left and right, the bracket 68
, the tie rod 70 is moved left and right, and the front wheel 48 is rotated left and right.

72 is a front bumper attached in front of the Neidhardt spring 42, and 74 (74a, 74b) is a pair of left and right footrests fixed so as to protrude left and right from the main pipe 12. These footrests 74a, 74b are located at approximately the same height as the seating position of a seat 82, which will be described later. Reference numerals 76 and 78 indicate a fuel tank and an oil tank that are arranged below the handle column 50 so as to be stacked one above the other. These tanks 76 and 78 are made narrow in width.

80 is a body attached to the frame 10. The rear half of this body 80 is a sheet 82, while the front half is narrow in width, and the whole body 80 is approximately spoon-shaped. As shown in FIG. 1, the seat 82 is formed to wrap around the driver's body from the buttocks and lower back to the lower back, and is a so-called bucket-shaped or sit-in type seat.

The body 80 is raised near the front center of the seat 82 so as to wrap around the tanks 76 and 78.
The driver sits with both feet sandwiching this raised portion, and places both feet on the footrest 74.
That is, the raised portion of the body 80 has a width approximately equal to the distance between the pair of left and right footrests 74a, 74b, and is higher than the seating surface of the seat 82 in front of the seat 82.

The seat 82 is mounted on the left and right seat rails 14 so as to cover the upper part of the engine unit 18, and the back of the backrest portion of the seat 82 is supported by the rear inclined portion of the seat rail 14. Further, the bottom A of the seating surface of the seat 82 is located below the line connecting the upper ends B and C of each wheel 24 and 48, as shown in FIG.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be explained. The driver is seated on the seat 82 and starts the vehicle with at least one foot removed from the footrest 74 and placed on the road surface. Once the vehicle starts traveling, by operating the handlebar 66 and balancing the body weight, the vehicle can travel without touching the road surface while keeping the frame 10 independent. When turning, if you shift your weight inward in the turning direction while creating a tight corner by operating the handle 66, the frame 1 along with the front and rear wheels 48 and 24
0, the body 80 also tilts in the same direction. In other words, bank. The vehicle body turns due to side forces generated in the wheels 24 and 48 due to this bunk.

(Effects of the Invention) As described above, the present invention bends the rear portions of the left and right seat rails obliquely upward and rearward, positions this inclined portion between the seat and the rear wheel, and connects the engine to the seat rail below the seat. Since the seating surface of the seat is located below the surface connecting the upper ends of the wheels, the center of gravity of the vehicle is sufficiently lowered and driving stability is improved.

Additionally, the engine cylinder was moved forward and placed below the seat, allowing the wheelbase to be made sufficiently small. Furthermore, since the engine is located below the seat, the load distribution between the front and rear wheels is better, and the rear part of the frame extends diagonally upward to the rear, ensuring a sufficiently wide range of vertical motion for the rear wheels.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a side view of an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a side view showing the internal structure, and FIG. 3 is a plan view. 10...Frame, 14...Seat rail, 18...
Engine unit, 20...Engine, 24...Rear wheel, 28...Cylinder, 34...Cushion unit, 48...Front wheel, 82...Seat.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. In a rear-wheel drive vehicle equipped with a bucket-type seat disposed at the center in the width direction of the vehicle body and a unit-swing type engine unit that holds the rear wheels, the seat is mounted diagonally from the bottom surface of the seat along the back surface of the backrest. A frame having a pair of left and right seat rails extending upward and rearward, and a cushion unit interposed between a rear inclined portion of the frame and the engine unit, and a surface connecting the seating surface of the seat to the upper end of each wheel. while positioning it lower than the
A rear wheel drive vehicle characterized in that the cylinder of the engine unit projects forward and is located between the seat rails below the seat.