GB1559176A - Cover for motor vehicle - Google Patents

Description

(54) COVER FOR MOTOR VEHICLE (71) I, DENISE JOYCE SHORT, British, of Sunnyside, Forest Green, Nr. Dorking, Surrey, do hereby declare the invention, for which I pray that a patent may be granted to me, and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following statement: - This invention relates to a cover for a motor vehicle comprising a compartment for a driver and any passengers, the compartment being closable to access by a door lockable from the outside. It is, more particularly but not exclusively, concerned with a cover for the passenger compartment of a saloon car.

One way of reducing the temperature rise in the driver's compartment of a saloon car which occurs when the car is parked for extended periods of time in strong incident sunlight is to provide the compartment with a cover. Covers which may freely be detached from the vehicles on which they are disposed are vulnerable to theft. It is one object of the present invention to reduce the vulnerability to theft of such covers.

According to the present invention there is provided a method of furnishing a motor vehicle of the kind specified with a cover, the method comprising the steps of placing the cover on the vehiele, placing a retaining element of the cover in a retaining position in the compartment, and closing and locking the door, the retaining element being releasable from the retaining position only by unlocking and opening the door of the vehicle.

The retaining element may be placed in its retaining position by inserting it between a surface of the door and another surface of the compartment, e.g. between the roof of the compartment and the door or between a window and a window frame element of the door. In these cases, the retaining element may comprise a strap of flexible material for location between the surfaces and a rigid end portion for location within the compartment. In vehicles whose compartment has more than one door, two or more retaining elements can be provided, each in a different one of the doors. Where the compartment has sides comprising glazed areas and a roof, the cover can comprise a roof sheet, one or more flexible side sheets depending from the roof sheet and tethering means to restrain the cover from moving relative to the compartment.

A cover according to the present invention and suitable for a saloon car will generally have a side sheet comprising four panels, a first of which covers the windscreen, a second of which covers the rear screen and a third and fourth of which covers the nearside and offside side windows.

In one embodiment of such a cover, a tethering means comprising an elastic tether is provided at the junction of each of the panels with an adjacent panel, in the Iower, free edge of the side sheet. The tethers can terminate in hooks suitable to engage conveniently located parts of the motor vehicle such as the bumpers or wheel arches.

The surface layers of the hooks are preferably composed of a material, such as a synthetic plastics material, which is .ignifi- cantly softer than the structural components of the vehicle so that use of the cover will be unlikely to damage the surfaces of the structural components.

In other embodiments, the cover has panels which extend over the bonnet and the boot of the vehicle.

The roof sheet and the side sheet or sheets of the covers can be made from, for example, cotton, canvas or an acrylic fibre material which may be, for example, of plain colour or striped pattern.

An embodiment af the present invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of a cover according to the invention partly covering the driver's compartment of a motor vehicle, and Figure 2 is a perspective view of the vehicle and cover shown in Figure 1 with the cover fully fitted to the vehicle.

The drawings show a cover A compris ing a roof sheet A5 and a side sheet with four panels A1-4 (of which only Al and A4 are visible) viewed in perspective from a position near the front of the vehicle on which the cover is fitted. Four elastic tethers C1-4 (of which only C1 and C4 are visible) extend from the lower edge of the side panels and terminate in plastics-covered hooks Hl-4 which engage with the wheel arches of the vehicle to apply to the cover forces which restrain the cover from moving relative to the vehicle. A flap B1 can be trapped between the vehicle body and frame of the front nearside door of the vehicle and a similar flap B2 is provided to be trapped by the rear nearside door. Each flap is provided at its free end with a wooden bar W1 and W2 which is stitched into a pocket of the flap to prevent the flaps from being withdrawn from their respective doors.

When the cover is not in use, it is folded and stored in any convenient place such as the luggage compartment of the vehicle.

The cover is fitted (as shown in Figure 1) by placing the cover on the roof of the vehicle with the nearside doors of the driver's compartment open to receive the flaps B1 and B2 and side panels Al, A2 and A3 depending from the roof sheet A5, placing the flaps B1 and B2 in a retaining position relative to the nearside doors of the vehicle, and then closing and locking these doors to trap each of the flaps between the roof of the vehicle and one of the nearside doors. Thereafter, the side panel A4 is lowered from the roof of the vehicle over the glazed surfaces of the nearside doors and the elastic tethers Cl to C4 are hooked to the vehicle.

Removal and storage of the cover can be erected - as follows. The hooks on the tethers are released from engagement with the car body and the side panels are folded over onto the roof sheet. The nearside doors of the car are unlocked and opened thereby releasing the flaps. The front and rear panels of the cover are folded over onto the roof sheet taking care to enclose the tethers and hooks between the folds.

The -cover is then folded again to reduce it to size convenient for storage in, for ex- ample, the boot of the car.

It will be appreciated that the illustrated embodiment of cover prevents excess heating of the steering wheel and seats of the car and can be used to protect the compartment from frost in cold weather. It is strong but lightweight and cannot be removed while the nearside doors of the car remain locked.

WHAT I CLAIM IS: 1. A method of furnishing a motor vehicle of the kind specified with a cover, the method comprising the steps of placing the cover on the vehicle, placing a retaining element of the cover in a retaining position in the compartment, and closing and locking the door, the retaining element being releasable from the retaining position only by unlocking and opening the door of the vehicle.

2. A method according to claim 1 wherein the step of placing the retaining element in a retaining position includes inserting it between a surface of the door and another surface of the compartment.

3. A method according to claim 2 wherein the retaining element comprises a strap of flexible material for location between the said surfaces and a rigid end portion for location within the compartment.

4. A method according to claim 3 wherein the end portion comprises a pocket on the flap containing a bar - of a rigid material.

5. A method according to any one of claims 2 to 4 wherein said door is a lockable door located on the nearside of the vehicle, and wherein the step of placing the retaining element in a retaining position includes inserting it between a surface of the said nearside door and another surface of the compartment.

6. A method of providing a cover on a motor vehicle substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

**WARNING** end of DESC field may overlap start of CLMS **.

Claims (6)

**WARNING** start of CLMS field may overlap end of DESC **. ing a roof sheet A5 and a side sheet with four panels A1-4 (of which only Al and A4 are visible) viewed in perspective from a position near the front of the vehicle on which the cover is fitted. Four elastic tethers C1-4 (of which only C1 and C4 are visible) extend from the lower edge of the side panels and terminate in plastics-covered hooks Hl-4 which engage with the wheel arches of the vehicle to apply to the cover forces which restrain the cover from moving relative to the vehicle. A flap B1 can be trapped between the vehicle body and frame of the front nearside door of the vehicle and a similar flap B2 is provided to be trapped by the rear nearside door. Each flap is provided at its free end with a wooden bar W1 and W2 which is stitched into a pocket of the flap to prevent the flaps from being withdrawn from their respective doors. When the cover is not in use, it is folded and stored in any convenient place such as the luggage compartment of the vehicle. The cover is fitted (as shown in Figure 1) by placing the cover on the roof of the vehicle with the nearside doors of the driver's compartment open to receive the flaps B1 and B2 and side panels Al, A2 and A3 depending from the roof sheet A5, placing the flaps B1 and B2 in a retaining position relative to the nearside doors of the vehicle, and then closing and locking these doors to trap each of the flaps between the roof of the vehicle and one of the nearside doors. Thereafter, the side panel A4 is lowered from the roof of the vehicle over the glazed surfaces of the nearside doors and the elastic tethers Cl to C4 are hooked to the vehicle. Removal and storage of the cover can be erected - as follows. The hooks on the tethers are released from engagement with the car body and the side panels are folded over onto the roof sheet. The nearside doors of the car are unlocked and opened thereby releasing the flaps. The front and rear panels of the cover are folded over onto the roof sheet taking care to enclose the tethers and hooks between the folds. The -cover is then folded again to reduce it to size convenient for storage in, for ex- ample, the boot of the car. It will be appreciated that the illustrated embodiment of cover prevents excess heating of the steering wheel and seats of the car and can be used to protect the compartment from frost in cold weather. It is strong but lightweight and cannot be removed while the nearside doors of the car remain locked. WHAT I CLAIM IS:

1. A method of furnishing a motor vehicle of the kind specified with a cover, the method comprising the steps of placing the cover on the vehicle, placing a retaining element of the cover in a retaining position in the compartment, and closing and locking the door, the retaining element being releasable from the retaining position only by unlocking and opening the door of the vehicle.

2. A method according to claim 1 wherein the step of placing the retaining element in a retaining position includes inserting it between a surface of the door and another surface of the compartment.

3. A method according to claim 2 wherein the retaining element comprises a strap of flexible material for location between the said surfaces and a rigid end portion for location within the compartment.

4. A method according to claim 3 wherein the end portion comprises a pocket on the flap containing a bar - of a rigid material.

5. A method according to any one of claims 2 to 4 wherein said door is a lockable door located on the nearside of the vehicle, and wherein the step of placing the retaining element in a retaining position includes inserting it between a surface of the said nearside door and another surface of the compartment.

6. A method of providing a cover on a motor vehicle substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.