DK2770292T3 - Armored vehicle comprising a tilting access ramp - Google Patents

Description

The technical field of the invention is that of armoured vehicles, and particularly armoured vehicles the body of which comprises a tilting panel forming an access ramp to the cab interior which is delimited by the body.

It is known to provide such vehicles comprising a rear access ramp. The ramp is hinged on the body and entirely closes an opening of the body.

Indeed, once lowered, the ramp constitutes a tilted plane allowing soldiers to easily and quickly enter and exit from the vehicle.

Nowadays, it is required to provide armoured vehicles the floor of which is arranged at a relatively large distance from the ground (about 1,2 m) . Indeed, such a distance is required to limit the blast effects of mines or improvised explosive devices and also to allow the implementation of ballistic protections for the floor.

This therefore leads to move away from the ground the hinge of the tilting panel. However, such an arrangement results in providing the ramp formed by the open panel with a slope which is excessive for the soldiers .

It is known from patent FR2977020 to provide a vehicle in which the body comprises a lower plate which has a portion which gradually tilts towards the rear of the body, vehicle in which the door in open position has a first end which is separated from the ground by a first threshold and a second end which is separated from the lower plate by a second threshold.

Such an arrangement allows providing a vehicle body in which the floor is at a large distance from the ground, and for which the ramp maintains a reduced slope.

However, this vehicle presents disadvantages.

Thus, the ergonomics of the boarding is not optimum. Crew members who exit the vehicle must keep their head down when crossing the vehicle/ramp threshold, thereby increasing the risks of falling on the ramp.

Patent EP1120625 provides an armoured vehicle the rear part of which has a transverse beam and a double-walled door which can take intermediary positions in which the door provides a gap at the rear of the vehicle able to accommodate armed infantrymen. This vehicle has an extremely low ceiling. The ergonomics of the exit of the vehicle which could be provided by the rear ramp is therefore absolutely not obvious when reading this patent.

Patent FR1433082 describes an amphibious armoured vehicle comprising a winch at its front part and allowing a load to be loaded from a rear gate. This document gives no indication of means which can improve the ergonomics of the rear boarding of infantrymen.

Patent EP1839918 provides a modular amphibious vehicle in which a main section can be connected to a rear section in order to form a longer vehicle. In this vehicle, the gates are pivotable with respect to vertical axes. This document also does not allow solving a problem of ergonomics of the boarding from a rear ramp.

The invention aims to provide an armoured vehicle body architecture in which the floor is at a large distance from the ground, but the ramp maintains however a reduced slope, the architecture facilitating the ergonomics of the boarding and landing of crew members.

The invention also has the advantage of reducing the mass of the rear part of the vehicle body.

According to a particular embodiment, lowering the hinge of the ramp is obtained without imposing the implementation of a tilted inner floor which is not always easy to incorporate in a vehicle.

Thus, the invention relates to an armoured vehicle comprising a body forming a cab interior comprising a rear opening provided at a rear wall of the body, and which is closed by a tilting panel constituting a door which is hinged with respect to the body on a pivot and which forms, in open position, an access ramp to the cab interior, the pivot of the door being arranged below a lower plate of the body, the vehicle being characterized in that the rear wall of the body carrying the opening is tilted with respect to the vertical towards a front part of the vehicle, this front part of the vehicle being thus closer to an upper edge of the opening than a lower edge of the opening, and in that the lower plate of the body is arranged closer to the ground than a floor of the cab interior, a step inside the cab interior being thus formed between the lower plate and the floor.

Advantageously, the rear wall could be tilted with respect to the vertical by an angle ranging between 5° and 15°.

The inner step could have a height of about 300 mm.

The lower plate of the body could extend between a lower edge of the rear opening and the inner step on a length lower than 500 mm.

Other advantages of the invention will become more apparent when reading the following description of a particular embodiment, description made with reference to the appended drawings in which: - Figure 1 shows a schematic side view of an armoured vehicle according to an embodiment of the invention, - Figure 2 shows a rear view of this armoured vehicle with a tilting panel closed, - Figure 3 shows a rear perspective partial view of this armoured vehicle with a tilting panel opened, - Figure 4a shows a rear side view of the vehicle with the tilting panel closed, - Figure 4b shows a rear side view of the vehicle with the tilting panel opened.

When referring to Figures 1 to 3, an armoured vehicle 1 according to the invention comprises a body 2 delimiting a cab interior for soldiers (not shown). This body is formed by several mechanically-welded walls and it has, at a rear wall 2a, an opening 2b which is closed by a tilting panel 3 constituting a door.

This panel 3 is hinged with respect to the body 2 on a horizontal pivot 4.

Here, the vehicle 1 is a wheeled vehicle 5. The wheels are connected two by two by axles 6 which are themselves connected to transmission cases 7 connected to a motorization (not shown) by driving shafts 8.

The body 2 has, at its lower part, side walls in the form of folded shielding sheet metal 9. These folded walls extend vertical walls 2c and 2d of the body 2 and form concave profile shifts covering the wheels 5 of the vehicle. Such an arrangement of wheel profile shifts is described by patent FR2932557.

According to the invention, the rear wall 2a of the body, which carries the opening 2b, is tilted with respect to the vertical towards a front part AV of the vehicle. The front part AV of the vehicle is the part which is located at the front of the vehicle in the normal advancing direction thereof (forward direction).

The rear part AR of the vehicle is the part where the door 3 is located (see Figure 1).

Thus, the rear wall 2a forms a plane P which is tilted by an angle a with respect to a vertical plane Pv passing through the lower edge 2bi of the opening 2b. The tilt direction is such that the upper edge 2b2 of the opening 2b is closer to the front AV of the vehicle than the lower edge 2bi.

On Figure 1 is shown, by the dotted line PE, a plane passing through the axis of a front axle. This plane PE is thus located towards the front AV of the vehicle with respect to the rear wall 2a.

The tilt of the rear wall 2a is such that the distance D1 between the upper edge 2b2 of the opening and the plane PE is lower than the distance D2 between the lower edge 2bi of the opening and the plane PE.

In other words, considering a cross-section of the body 2 of the vehicle by a median vertical plane, the angle φ between the upper wall 2e of the body 2 and the rear wall 2a is an obtuse angle (φ = 90° + a).

The angle a is ranging between 5° and 15°, and preferably is 10°. Such an arrangement allows not reducing too much the volume of the cab interior. Furthermore, the panel is slightly elongated with respect to a panel which would be applied on a vertical rear wall.

This tilt also allows reducing the mass of the vehicle body. Indeed, the side and upper walls being shortened by the slope of the rear wall 2a, the volume of shielding sheet metal used is also reduced. With an angle of 10°, the saved mass is about 120 kg.

The pivot 4 of the door 3 is located below a lower plate 10 of the body 2. This lower plate 10 is located closer to the ground S than a floor 11 of the cab interior. The floor 11 is horizontal and, thus, there is a step 12 (inside the cab interior) which is formed between the lower plate 10 and the floor 11.

The pivot 4 is formed by drilled tabs 13 which are arranged on either side of the door 3 (Figure 2) and through each of which is going through a pin 14 integral with the door 3.

The door 3 is moved from its closed position (Figure 4a) to its open position (Figure 4b) using actuating means 15 (shown only in Figure 3) comprising two actuators which are here constituted by two hydraulic cylinders. The cylinders 15 are shown in Figure 3 as being attached outside the vehicle body between high attachment points 16, connected to the rear wall 2a, and low attachment points 17, connected to the door 3. It would be of course possible to attach the actuating cylinders within the vehicle, between the body 2 and the door 3, or to provide cylinder bodies directly connected to the outer face of the door and acting on hinges attached below the lower plate 10 of the body 2.

The cylinders 15 are supplied with fluid by the hydraulic unit of the vehicle 1 (not shown).

Figure 4b shows the rear part of the vehicle with the door 3 in open position.

It is noted that the door 3 is hinged with respect to the body 2 on a pivot 4 and forms, in open position, an access ramp to the cab interior. The pivot 4 of the door is located below the lower plate 10 of the body. Thus, in open position, with the vehicle on a flat horizontal ground S, the door 3 has a first end which is separated from the ground S by a first threshold SI and a second end which is separated from the lower plate 10 by a second threshold S2.

The first and second thresholds are about 300 mm.

Furthermore, the inner step 12 has a height of about 300 mm which thus forms a third threshold S3 (step-height ranging between 280 mm and 320 mm). These thresholds are reduced and do not impede the boarding into the vehicle 1.

The lower plate 10 of the body extends between the lower edge 2bi of the rear opening 2b and the inner step 12 over a length L lower than 500 mm. This reduced length of the step 12 barely encroaches on the cab interior of the body.

The presence of the step 12 allows lowering the pivot 4 of the door with respect to the ground S. It results in a ramp formed by the door 3 which has a reduced angle β with the ground S (of about 15°), despite a distance D between the floor 11 and the ground S which is large (of about 1 meter). The access to the cab interior is thus made easier.

The presence of a rear wall 2a tilted by an angle a of about 10° thus allows to reduce the mass of the vehicle, but also facilitates an ergonomic access to the vehicle .

Indeed, the distance d between the vertical plane Pv passing through the lower edge 2bi of the opening 2b and the upper edge 2b2 of said opening is about 350 mm for a height H of about 2 meters. This distance is enough for the crew members, when exiting from the vehicle, to have their head which emerges from the cab interior before they put their foot on the ramp formed by the door 3.

It allows a passage on the entire length of the door 3 without any risks of impact of the head on the vehicle body.

The ergonomics is further improved by the combination of the presence of a step 12 and a tilted rear wall 2b. Indeed, the crew members put their foot on the lower plate 10 before walking on the ramp of the door 3. Thus, they go down a step 12 of about 300 mm and even more easily avoid the upper edge 2b2 of the opening 2b.

Obviously, in order to ensure the resistance of the body against the effects of a mine explosion with blast effect, the lower plate 10 and the floor 11 are in ballistic support on the side walls 9 of the vehicle body.

The ballistic supports are preferably provided in the form of shape matchings between the lower plate 10 and the side wall 9, for example with slots and tabs. Such a solution is described in patent FR2927990. This assembly allows providing a mutual support point of the lower plate with respect to the side wall when an outer mechanical stress is applied to either of these parts. A similar assembly with ballistic support will be provided between the vertical walls 2c and 2d of the body 2 and the concave side walls 9, as well as between the lower plate 10 and the rear wall 2a of the body 2.

The techniques of assembly with ballistic support are known, in particular from FR2977020 and FR2927990. They are not part of the invention, and it is thus not necessary to described them in more detail.

Claims (4)

An armored vehicle (1) comprising a body (2) forming a residence comprising a rear opening (2b) arranged at the rear wall (2a) of the body, and which is closed by a tilting panel (3) constituting a hinged hatch in relation to the body of a pivot (4) and which in an open position forms an access ramp to the place of residence, the pivot of the hatch (4) is arranged below the lower plate (10) of the body, the vehicle being characterized in that the rear wall (2a) of the body, which contains the opening (2b), slopes relative to the vertical (Pv) towards the front (AV) of the vehicle, thus the front of the vehicle is closer to the upper edge (2b2) of the opening than the lower edge (2bi) of the body (2b) ) lower plate (10) is located closer to the ground (S) than the floor (11) of the residence, thus forming an inner step (12) of the residence between the lower plate (10) and the floor (11). Armored vehicle according to claim 1, characterized in that the rear wall (2a) is inclined relative to the vertical at an angle (oc) comprising between 5 ° and 15 °. Armored vehicle according to one of claims 1 or 2, characterized in that the inner step (12) has a height of about 300 mm. Armored vehicle according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the lower plate (10) of the body extends between the lower edge (2bi) of the rear opening and the inner step (12) for a length of less than 500 mm.