FR2702956A1 - Motor vehicle with easy access for a wheelchair - Google Patents

Abstract

This vehicle, which is provided with a door (2) opening at the rear, comprises an independent pair of rear wheels (12b) which are each mounted on an inflatable-bladder pneumatic suspension (4), and the floor (14) of the vehicle has, in its rear region, a central opening part (5) positioned between the rear wheels (12b), inflating of these bladders (4) making it possible to lower the rear of the vehicle (1) so that this opening part (5) bears against the ground (S), forming an access ramp for the wheelchair.

Description

EASILY ACCESSIBLE MOTOR VEHICLE
TO A WHEELCHAIR
The present invention relates to a motor vehicle which is designed, for example by conversion of an already existing vehicle, to facilitate access for a disabled person occupying a wheelchair.

 It has already been proposed vehicles whose floor has in its rear region a central disbursement, that is to say a lowered part, capable of receiving a wheelchair. In this type of vehicle, which is for example described in FR-A-2,598,362, there is provided not only a rear door, but also a ramp that can be folded back.

Once folded down, this ramp forms an inclined plane which allows access for the wheelchair inside the vehicle, and more precisely on the disbursement.

 If this type of vehicle is satisfactory in principle, it nevertheless presents certain difficulties of use. These are due to the fact that the disbursement is relatively high, since it is located above the rear axle. Furthermore, the ramp necessarily has a limited length since it must be able to be retracted by lifting it inside the vehicle. The angle of the inclined plane is therefore relatively large, which makes it difficult for both the ascent and descent operations for the disabled person.

 There is also known a vehicle facilitating access to a wheelchair, in which it is possible to lower the rear part of the vehicle by compressing the rear suspension thereof. Thus, the vehicle floor is brought closer to the ground, and an additional folding plate bearing against the ground allows easy access to the floor.

This type of vehicle, which is described for example in
FR-A-2 597 801, effectively facilitates getting in and out of the chair. It nevertheless poses problems linked to its price and to the complexity of the mechanisms used to compress the suspension members thoroughly, mechanisms which must develop very high power.

 The invention aims to solve these difficulties by providing a vehicle of the kind described above, which is extremely simple to manufacture and use, and which allows the user in a wheelchair to use it conveniently and safe.

These results are achieved, in accordance with the invention, thanks to the fact that it comprises a pair of independent rear wheels each mounted on an air suspension with an inflatable bladder, and that the floor has in its rear region a central dropout positioned between the rear wheels, deflating said bladders allowing the rear of the vehicle to be lowered so that said disbursement comes to bear against the ground, forming an access ramp for the wheelchair
Furthermore, according to a certain number of advantageous, but not limiting, characteristics of the invention:
- this vehicle has a folding plate (or flap), forming an entry threshold for disbursement
- It comprises a pneumatic cylinder allowing the said plate to be folded down and raised without manipulation
- this cylinder is supplied with compressed air by one of said bladders
- the rear wheels are each carried by an arm articulated around a transverse axis located at the front of the wheels and the pneumatic bladder is interposed between the chassis and this arm
- the inflation and deflation of the bladders are controlled by means of a distributor valve mounted at the rear of the vehicle
- the vehicle is fitted with a box placed inside the vehicle on one of the sides of the disbursement, this box serving both as a housing for the spare wheel and as a support shelf for the wheelchair user .

 Other characteristics and advantages of the invention will appear from the description and the attached drawings which show a preferred embodiment.

On these drawings
- Figure 1 is a schematic side view of a vehicle according to the invention, in the running position
- Figure 2 is a view similar to Figure 1, showing the vehicle in its lowered position, favorable for loading or unloading
- Figure 3 is a schematic cross section of the vehicle, the cutting plane being designated by III-III in Figure 1
- Figure 4 is a sectional view showing one of the pneumatic bladders, and its method of mounting on the vehicle, the bladder being in the inflated state
- Figure 4A is a view similar to Figure 4, showing the bladder in the deflated state
- Figure 5 is a schematic bottom view of the rear part of the vehicle, this view showing on the one hand the mounting of the independent wheels and the position of the inflatable bladders, and on the other hand the arrangement of the control tire circuit bladders.

 The vehicle 1 shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 is a vehicle of the type widely distributed by the company RENAULT under the trade name "ESPACE" (registered trademark).

 The vehicle 1 comprises a bodywork 10, a chassis 11, front wheels 12a, and rear wheels 12b, and seats 13 mounted on a floor 14.

 The ground is referenced S.

 The vehicle has at its rear part a door 2 hinged at the top around a transverse axis 20. The door 2 therefore opens by pivoting backwards and upwards, as symbolized by the arrow F in FIG. 1 .

 Compared to serial vehicles, this vehicle is slightly modified, in particular in that it comprises independent wheels mounted on pneumatic suspensions with inflatable bladders, and in that the rear part of the floor 14 has a lowered or lowered area.

 As seen more particularly in Figure 5, the axis 120 of each rear wheel is carried by an arm 3. This consists of a metal frame, having a top view in the shape of a trapezoid. It is articulated in yokes 110 integral with the chassis 11 around a transverse axis 30 situated in front, with respect to the wheel axis 120.

 The disbursement, referenced 5, is a recess with a rectangular outline, arranged in the central region of the floor. As can be seen in FIG. 5, in which the outline of the disbursement is shown in broken lines, this disbursement is positioned between the arms and the wheels 3, respectively 12b.

 As can be seen in FIG. 1, when the vehicle is in the driving position, this disbursement 5 is substantially horizontal, that is to say parallel to the ground S.

 Because there is no element of the vehicle, and in particular a transverse axle, below the floor in this zone, the disbursement can be relatively deep, and come at a low height above the ground.

 The inflatable pneumatic bladders constituting the suspension of the vehicle have been designated by the reference 4. Each of the bladders is inserted between the chassis 11 and an arm 3. Appropriate fixing means make it possible to secure the upper and lower parts of the bladder respectively to the chassis and to the arm 3.

 These bladders are of known type, for example with a diaphragm such as that shown in FIG. 4.

 This bladder 4 comprises a membrane in the form of a cylindrical sleeve 40, made of flexible and elastically deformable material such as an elastomeric synthetic material.

 The upper part of the sleeve is fixed to a mounting part 42 fixed to the chassis 11. The part 42 is traversed by a channel 420 allowing the passage of the compressed air which is supplied by a suitable conduit 74.

 At its lower part, the membrane 40 is fixed to a guide shoe 41.

 This type of diaphragm bladder has the particularity that its diameter remains substantially constant regardless of its degree of inflation.

 In FIG. 4A, the bladder is shown in the deflated state.

During the deflation, the membrane 40 turns inside on itself at its base, coming to be pressed against the shoe 41.

 As a result of deflation, the spacing between the arm 3 and the chassis 11 decreases, going from dimension hl to dimension h2.

 Such an air suspension therefore makes it possible not only - like any suspension - to absorb the unevenness of the ground, which provides the vehicle with the necessary comfort, but also to lower or raise the chassis relative to the ground.

 Of course, it can also be associated with this suspension of known type shock absorbers. These have not been shown here so as not to unnecessarily burden the drawings and the description. Instead of a diaphragm bladder, other types of bladders could be used, for example bellows bladders.

 There is provided on the rear edge of the disbursement 5 a pivoting flap 6, constituted by a plate articulated around a horizontal transverse axis 60. A pneumatic cylinder, designated 8 in FIG. 5, makes it possible to pivot the plate 6 so that it can occupy either a raised position, retracted inside the vehicle (position in Figure 1), or a folded back and outward position (position in Figure 2).

 According to an important characteristic of the invention, the lower end part of the rear door is integral with the rear bumper elements, at least in the zone corresponding to the central disbursement 5, so that the rear edge of this disbursement is uncovered and accessible when door 2 is in the raised position (position in Figure 2).

 There are of course provided means 21, of a type known per se, which make it possible to keep the door in its open position and to dampen the movement thereof when it is closed.

 FIG. 5 schematically represents the pneumatic circuit for controlling the suspension bladders 4.

 In known manner, this circuit comprises a compressor 7 which supplies compressed air, via a line 75, to a reservoir (bottle 70).

This reservoir 70 is connected by a conduit 76 to a valve 71 with manual control. The latter is mounted inside the vehicle, at the rear of the latter, in a perfectly accessible manner to the user, both from the inside and from the outside (when the rear door is open).

 The valve 71 is connected, via a conduit 73, to a dispensing valve 72, itself connected by the conduits 74 to the two inflatable bladders 4.

 The valve 72 also controls, via a conduit 77, a pneumatically controlled braking corrector 78, of a type known per se.

 One of these is connected, via a conduit 80, to the actuator 8 for controlling the rear flap 6.

 A return spring, not shown, constantly acts on the shutter 6 in the direction of its deployment towards the outside, the direction symbolized by the arrow G in FIG. 2.

 When the jack 8 is under pressure, it tends on the contrary to return it to its raised position (position of FIG. 6).

 In the transport position shown in FIG. 1, the valve 71 and the distributor 72 are open, so that the compressed air supplied by the bottle 70 supplies the inflatable bladders 4. These are therefore inflated, and are located at the state shown in Figure 4. The wheel arms 3 are therefore pushed down while the vehicle chassis is pushed up, the vehicle floor being substantially horizontal. The height correcting valve 72 is adapted to stabilize the chassis automatically at a predetermined height.

 To move the vehicle into its loading position in FIG. 2, we start by opening the rear door 2. By operating the valve 71, we then act on the distributor 72 to deflate the bladders 4 (by putting atmospheric pressure in the ducts 74).

 The vehicle therefore lowers, by contraction of the diaphragm bladders 4, which will pass to the deflated state of FIG. 4A. At the same time, the jack 8 is also placed at atmospheric pressure, so that, under the effect of the return spring, the flap 6 automatically pivots in the position of FIG. 2.

 In this position, the disbursement 5 comes, by its rear edge, close to the ground, while the flap 6 constitutes an access threshold to this disbursement.

 It is then easy for a disabled person in a wheelchair, either alone or with the help of an assistant, to get inside the vehicle by the access route 6, 5.

 Appropriate means known per se (not shown) are provided inside the recess 5 to allow the fast and secure fixing of the wheels of the wheelchair inside this disbursement.

 The chassis is then raised by maneuvering the valve 71, so as to again connect the bladders 4 with the source of compressed air 70. At the same time as the bladders inflate, the flap 6 is automatically raised under the action of the jack 8, the latter also being supplied with compressed air.

 The rear door 2 is then closed.

 I1 is provided on one side of the disbursement 5 a box designated by the reference 9 in Figure 1, which allows to accommodate the spare wheel in a vertical position, this spare wheel ordinarily occupying the space taken by the disbursement.

 Advantageously, the upper surface of this box 9 can serve as a support shelf for the user of the wheelchair.

 Of course, when it comes to getting the wheelchair out of the vehicle, the same operations are carried out to lower the rear of the vehicle, by deflating the bladders.

 In one embodiment of the invention, the vehicle can be designed in such a way that when the bladders are deflated to the maximum, the rear of the vehicle does not come fully into contact with the ground, in order to allow the vehicle to drive in the low position (at low speed) even if the pneumatic circuit is defective, for example in the event of a compressor failure. This can be obtained by means of two additional pneumatic bellows interposed between the suspension arms and the chassis and inflatable separately by an auxiliary air source, for example by means of a small electric compressor powered by the lighter socket - cigar fitted to the vehicle.

Claims (7)

 1. Motor vehicle easily accessible to a wheelchair, which is provided with a door (2) opening at the rear, characterized in that it comprises a pair of independent rear wheels (12b) each mounted on an air suspension inflatable bladder (4), and that the floor (14) has in its rear region a central recess (5) positioned between the rear wheels (12b), the deflation of said bladders (4) making it possible to lower the rear of the vehicle (1) so that said disbursement (5) comes to bear against the ground, forming an access ramp for the wheelchair.  2. Vehicle according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises a folding flap (6), forming entry threshold on the disbursement (5).  3. Vehicle according to claim 2, characterized in that it comprises a pneumatic cylinder (8) for folding and raising said flap (6).  4. Vehicle according to claim 3, characterized in that said cylinder (8) is supplied with compressed air by one of said bladders (4).  5. Vehicle according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the rear wheels (12b) are each carried by an arm (3) articulated around a transverse axis (30) located at the front of the wheels , and that the pneumatic bladder (4) is interposed between the chassis (14) and said arm (3).  6. Vehicle according to claim 5, characterized in that the inflation and deflation of the bladders (4) are controlled by means of a distributor valve (71) mounted at the rear of the vehicle.  7. Vehicle according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that it is equipped with a box (9) disposed inside the vehicle on one of the sides of the disbursement (5), this box serving both as a housing for the spare wheel (12c) and as a support shelf for the wheelchair user.