JPH0667751B2 - Front protection structure for saddle type four-wheeled vehicle for running on rough terrain - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION a. Field of Industrial Application The present invention relates to a front protection structure for a saddle-ride type four-wheel vehicle for traveling on uneven terrain, which can protect the front part of a vehicle body.

b. Conventional technology Vehicles used for running on rough terrain are required to have good balance and easy maneuverability when the driver is on board and runs. Therefore, conventionally, a three-wheeled vehicle, which is an improved two-wheeled vehicle, has been widely used. However, structurally, the frame of the two-wheeled vehicle is provided with two rear wheels, which is within the range of the two-wheeled vehicle.

Therefore, the prior art was developed to provide a four-wheeled vehicle by providing two front wheels on the steering shaft of a three-wheeled vehicle (JP-A-56)
-73694).

In the four-wheeled vehicle described in this prior art, forks having a bifurcated lower end portion of a shaft are used to support the front wheels, and the front wheels are provided outside the branched forks, respectively.
Moreover, tires having the same diameter as the rear wheels are mounted on the front wheels, and the front fenders and the rear fenders that cover the upper portions of these tires are integrally formed with the cover part that covers the center of the frame.

Therefore, even if the front wheels are two wheels in the prior art, since they are directly connected to the forks, they have only the same function as one wheel. In particular, since the two wheels with the same diameter as the rear wheels are mounted, the handlebar is It became extremely heavy, and the steering performance was deteriorated.

Similar related prior arts include JP-A-55-102714, JP-B-55-138123, and Design Registration No. 538800.

c. Problems to be Solved by the Invention In such an all-terrain vehicle, a four-wheeled vehicle having a front and rear wheel with balloon tires is steered on a bar handle on an uneven ground such as snow, a muddy land, or a forest road. Since it is driven by a car, it requires a light steering force that cannot be overwhelmed. Further, it is necessary to prevent the obstacle from coming into contact with the leg on the step during traveling and increase the chances that the side surface of the front wheel comes into contact with the stone or the tree, so that the damage to the vehicle body component (front fender) must be prevented.

In particular, in a saddle riding type four-wheeled vehicle for traveling on rough terrain, the front portion of the vehicle body is insufficiently protected from obstacles such as stones from the front, and therefore the engine or the like may be hit by the obstacle.

The present invention solves the above problems, protects the front part of the vehicle body against obstacles from the front such as stones, and is suitable for traveling on rough terrain. The purpose is to provide a protective structure.

d. Means for Solving the Problems In order to solve the above problems, the present invention includes two front wheels and two rear wheels equipped with balloon tires on the front left and right sides and the rear left and right sides of a frame, and a steering shaft with respect to the frame. A longitudinally long seat is placed in the approximate center of the frame from the rear of the shaft supporting the rotatably supporting the frame toward the rear of the frame, and the front wheel side linked to the lower end of the steering shaft by a bar handle provided at the upper end of the steering shaft. A saddle-riding type that steers the front two wheels via the knuckle arm and arranges steps between the front and rear wheels on the left and right sides of the vehicle body below the seat, and drives the wheels with an engine mounted between the front and rear wheels to drive on rough terrain. a four-wheeled vehicle, smaller than the tire width W of the rear wheel tire width W ₁ of the front wheels (W ₁ <W) is set, the preceding vehicle the outer edge width l ₁ of said right and left steps Disposed inside than the width l ₂ of (l ₁ <l _2), covering the front wheel upper portion of the left and right, and the left and right was positioned from the front wheels the outside to the inside of the outer edge and the fender, between these fender cross A center fender that covers the upper center of the frame, a front wall that rises diagonally rearward from the rear of the center fender to cover the upper front of the steering shaft, and the inside of the left and right fenders that covers the upper side of the steering shaft. A top cover composed of a front side wall facing upward, respectively, each front edge of the left and right fenders and the center fender is located rearward of the front edge of the front wheel, and on the left and right of the frame front portion between the left and right front wheels, The left and right guard legs that extend diagonally upward and forward are provided so as to have an interval substantially equal to the width of the center fender, and the tips between the guard legs are attached to the center fender. Behind the position from the front edge of the leading edge front left and right a front of the wheel, lies in the connection by a bridge member of circular cross section.

e. Work The saddle-ride type four-wheeled vehicle for traveling on uneven terrain of the present invention straddles the seat, puts a foot on the step, grips the bar handle, and rides on the tower. The riding posture is similar to that of a motorcycle. Then, the engine is operated to start traveling. Balloon tires are low-pressure and wide tires, so when they come into contact with stones or other obstacles or ride on them, they deform freely and absorb some impact. Since the outer edge width l ₁ of the left and right steps is arranged inside the front wheel width l ₂ (l ₁ <l ₂ ), obstacles do not come into contact with the legs during running.

When the bar handle is operated during a curve, the left and right front wheels are steered from the steering shaft via the link mechanism and the knuckle arm. At this time, the driver stiffens his / her feet in steps to assist in steering in a curve by moving the weight. Since the tire width W ₁ of the front wheels is set smaller than the tire width W of the rear wheels (W ₁ <W), steering is easy.

Left and right fenders that cover the above left and right front wheels and have outer edges located inside the outside of the front wheels, a center fender that covers the frame center upper part between these fenders, and a diagonal rear from the rear of this center fender The front left and right sides of the steering shaft, and a top cover formed of a front side wall facing upward so as to cover the upper side of the steering shaft. The front edges of the fenders and the center fenders are located rearward of the front edges of the front wheels, and the front and left sides of the frame between the left and right front wheels are diagonally upward and forward with a space approximately equal to the width of the center fender. The left and right guard legs facing each other are projected, and the tip between the guard legs is located in front of the front edge of the center fender and in front of the left and right front wheels. In a more rearward position, so linked by a bridge member of circular cross section, there is no fear that directly strikes Center fender against obstacles from the front.

f. Embodiment One embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a side view showing an embodiment of a front protection structure for a saddle-ride type four-wheeled vehicle for traveling on rough terrain, FIG. 2 is a plan view of FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is of FIG. Fourth perspective view showing a frame structure
The drawing is a plan view showing the cover and the sheet of FIG.

In FIGS. 1 and 2, reference numeral 1 denotes a saddle-riding type body, which is a front wheel 3 and a rear wheel of a frame 2 configured as shown in FIG. Two tires 4 are provided, and a tire having a low internal pressure and a wide contact surface with the ground, a so-called balloon tire 5, is provided on each of the front wheel 3 and the rear wheel 4. The steering mechanism for steering the front wheels 3 includes a link mechanism 6 as shown in FIG.
A bar handle 7 having grips 701 at both ends is used as a handle for operating the link mechanism 6.

The structure of the frame 2 will be described with reference to FIG. The frame 2 includes a pair of upper frames 8 ₁ and 8 ₂ and lower frames 9 ₁ and 9 ₂ and a predetermined space between the upper frames 8 ₁ and 8 ₂ and between the lower frames 9 ₁ and 9 _{2, respectively.} And a plurality of spacer frames 10 kept at In the upper frames 8 ₁ and 8 ₂ , the tip portion 801 is bent forward and obliquely downward, and a slanted portion 803 that slants downward at a gentle angle is formed to a predetermined length behind the bent portion 802, and the slanted portion 803 is slanted. A rear end portion 804 behind the portion 803 is bent horizontally or slightly upward. The upper frames 8 ₁ and 8 ₂ have their tips connected to the axle 11 that supports the front wheel 3, and the U-shaped fixing frame for screwing the front cover 12 between the tip portions 801. 13 is installed. Upper frame 8 ₁ , 8 ₂
The bent portion 802 is provided with a steering shaft support portion 15 that supports the steering shaft 14 of the bar handle 7.

On the other hand, the lower frames 9 ₁ and 9 ₂ have their front ends connected to the axle 11, the rear end portion 901 is bent to stand up, and connected to the rear end portions 804 of the upper frames 8 ₁ and 8 ₂ , respectively. Has been done.

A bar step 16 for a driver is mounted in the middle of the lower frames 9 ₁ , 9 ₂ . The width l ₁ between the outer edges of the bar step 16 is l with respect to the width l ₂ between the left and right front wheels 3, 3.
₁ <l ₂ is set, and the width l ₂ between the front wheels 3 and 3 is set to l ₂ <l ₃ with respect to the width l ₃ between the rear wheels 4 and 4. There is.

The diameter d ₁ of the front wheels 3,3 and the tire width W ₁ are set to d ₁ <D, W ₁ <W with respect to the diameter D and the tire width W of the rear wheels 4,4. It facilitates steering.

A supporting portion 903 that supports the drive shaft 17 of the rear wheel 4 is provided on the bent portions 902 of the lower frames 9 ₁ and 9 ₂ .

An engine 18 including a cylinder portion 18a and a crankcase portion 18b, a fuel tank 19 and the like are mounted in a space portion A formed by the upper frames 8 ₁ and 8 ₂ and the lower frames 9 ₁ and 9 _2. .

Next, a steering mechanism for steering the front wheels 3 will be described with reference to FIG.

The front wheels 3 are steerably attached to U-shaped frames 20 attached to both ends of the axle 11 as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, and this attachment structure is provided by a kingpin 21.
This is performed by pivotally supporting the support pipe 22a integrally provided on the wheel support shaft 22 on the frame 20. A spacer 221 and a bush 222 are loosely fitted between the support pipe 22a and the king pin 21.

The steering shaft 14 is composed of a single rigid body as shown in FIG. 7 and FIG. 8, and is arranged in the vehicle width direction center of the front part of the frame 2 in the vertical direction of the front downward slope, and at least the upper part and the lower part. It is pivotally supported at two locations separated by.

That is, the steering shaft 14 has a plate-shaped steering shaft supporting portion 15 whose upper end is bridged from the bent portion 802 of the upper frames 8 ₁ and 8 ₂ to a portion following the tip portion 801 via a resin spacer 151. Installed. The resin spacer 151 is composed of two split holding bodies 151a, 151b having a semicircular split surface provided with a support hole for rotatably supporting the central steering shaft 14, and a bolt 152 and a nut.
It is attached to the steering shaft support 15 via 153. On the other hand, the lower end of the steering shaft 14 is
Is rotatably inserted and supported by a support member 23 provided at an intermediate position. The support member 23 is a plate 231 supported by a plate 231 attached to the axle 11 by welding or the like,
In this pipe 232, the shaft portion 141 at the lower end of the steering shaft 14
Is inserted and the nut 142 is used to prevent the nut from coming off. An arm 24 is attached to a lower end portion of the steering shaft 14, and one end portions of left and right tie rods 25 are rotatably supported by the arm 24 via a pin 26. The other end of the tie rod 25 is rotatably supported by a knuckle arm 28 mounted on the wheel support shaft 22 by a pin 27.
As a result, the steering shaft 14 and the front wheel 3 are
The front wheels 3 are steered by being linked by the link mechanism 6 and operating the bar handle 7.

On the other hand, the rear wheel 4 is supported by a drive shaft 17 that transmits power from the engine 18 via a power transmission mechanism (not shown).

Next, returning to FIGS. 1 and 2, the cover provided as the exterior of the body 1 is divided into two parts, that is, the front cover 12 and the rear cover 29 combined with the front cover 12. The front cover 12 and the rear cover 29 are
A front fender 121 and a rear fender 291 are integrally formed on the left and right.

The front cover 12 includes a front fender 121 that covers the upper portions of the left and right front wheels 3, a center fender 122 that connects the front fenders 121 with each other, and a rear fender of the center fender 122 that is raised diagonally rearward. A front wall 123a that covers the front of the steering shaft 14 and the left and right front fenders 121 have the steering shaft 1
(4) A front cover device is configured to include a top cover 123 including a front side wall 123b directed upward so as to cover the upper side and a side cover 124 extending rearward from an inner edge of the front fender 121 and extending in a substantially vertical direction. is doing.

A projecting piece 33 having a screw hole 32 is provided at the rear edge of the side cover 124. The projecting piece 33 is screwed and attached to the projecting piece 34 in which the screw holes 34a provided in the inclined portions 803 of the upper frames 8 ₁ and 8 ₂ are drilled. Front wall 12 above
3a and the left and right front side walls 123b have a substantially pyramid-shaped top cover
123 is formed, and the steering shaft 14 is arranged so as to project through the top cover 123 having a substantially truncated pyramid shape.

The left and right front fenders 121 are framed so that the outer edge 121a is located inside the balloon tire 5 of the front wheel 3 and the front fender 121 and the center fender 122 are located so that their front edges are located behind the front edge of the balloon tire 5. Two
It is detachably fixed to.

This front fender 121 has an outermost portion O of the outer edge 121a.
To a front portion f, the taper is formed so as to be gradually narrowed so as to have an action of scraping grass and the like when running through a bush or a forest.

The center fender 122 has a front fender 121 on its upper surface.
The center fender 12 is formed on the
The front edge of 2 is located behind and below the front edge of the front fender 121.

The front wall 123a is provided with an air inlet 30 for taking in cooling air for cooling the cylinder 18a and the like of the engine 18 and a screw hole 31 for mounting the front cover 12.

In addition, the rear cover 29 has an upper surface opened and an opening 29
2 is formed, and the engine 18 and the fuel tank 19 are arranged below the opening 292. The rear cover 29 is screwed to the upper frames 8 ₁ and 8 ₂ at several places, and the seat 35 is placed on the upper portion of the rear cover 29.

On the other hand, a bumper 36 for protecting the front surface of the body 1 is mounted on the axle 11, and the bumper 36 has a space substantially equal to the width of the center fender 122 and is located on the left and right sides that are diagonally forward and upward. The guard leg 37a is projected, and the tip between the legs of the guard 37a is attached to the center fender 122.
In front of and behind the front edges of the balloon tires 5 of the left and right front wheels, the main guard member 37 is connected by a bridge member 37b having a circular cross section, and the reinforcing pipe 38 is connected between the guard legs 37a. ing.

If the protection plate 39 is attached to the lower side of the bumper 36, the engine portion can be further protected.

The front fender 121 and the rear fender 291 are arranged so as to be located inside the outer side 5a of the balloon tire 5, and prevent contact with rocks or obstacles. The front fender 121 and the rear fender 291 have at least a flap 4 formed of a soft material such as rubber or vinyl chloride that extends outward from the rear end portion to the outside.
0,41 are provided. The flaps 40 and 41 are provided so as to project outward from the front fender 121 and the rear fender 291. However, since the flaps 40 and 41 are made of a soft material, they are free to bend and therefore will not be damaged even if they come into contact with an obstacle.

It is to be noted that the front fender 121 and the rear fender 291 are equipped with so-called over fenders or auxiliary fenders, which are formed of a band-shaped rubber or a soft material such as vinyl chloride, on the entire outer side or the front side, when traveling in a wetland or a muddy area. It goes without saying that the mudguard function can be increased. In this case, the over fender or the auxiliary fender can be detachably attached to the front fender 121 and the rear fender 291 by using a clip or the like so as to project to the outside of the balloon tire 5. Then, when traveling in the bush or the forest, the over fender or the auxiliary fender can be removed to prevent the damage caused by the bush or the like.

Next, a case where the saddle riding type four-wheeled vehicle for traveling on uneven terrain according to the present invention is driven will be described.

First, the driver steps the seat 35 and barsteps his foot.
Place it on 16 and hold the grip 701 of the bar handle 7 in both hands to drive. Then, in order to make a left turn, a right turn, a turn, etc., the bar handle 7 is rotated in a desired traveling direction like an ordinary motorcycle. In response to this, the steering shaft 14 rotates by a predetermined angle, and the link mechanism 6 is operated in accordance with the rotation of the arm 24.

As a result, the front wheel 3 having a smaller diameter and a smaller width than the rear wheel 4 is easily steered by a necessary angle, despite the balloon tire having a larger tire contact area than the normal tire.
It can be changed to the direction of travel of the car body. When making a sharp turn or the like, when the direction of the bar handle 7 is changed and the weight is moved at the same time, the balloon tire 5 on the inner wheel side is dented, which has a function similar to that of a differential gear of a normal four-wheel vehicle. As a result, a sharp turn is made.

Since the balloon tires 5 of the front wheels 3 mainly run on rough terrain, the balloon tires 5 ride on or contact obstacles such as rocks, stones, trees, and the like. At this time, the outer edge 1 of the front fender 121
21a is located inside the balloon tire outside 5a, so
There is little chance that the outer edge 121a of the front fender 121 comes into contact with an obstacle and is damaged. Since the flaps 40 and 41 flex freely, they will not be damaged even if they come into contact with an obstacle.

In particular, since the outer edge 121a of the front fender 121 is formed to have a taper that gradually becomes thinner from the outermost portion O toward the front portion f, the standing tree is scraped off when running in a yab such as a footpath. To work.

When traveling, obstacles such as stones that collide with the front of the body 1
Protected by bumper 36. The bumper 36 has left and right guard legs 37a protruding diagonally upward and forward with a space approximately equal to the width of the center fender 122, and
The tips of the guards 37a are connected to each other by a bridge member 37b having a circular cross section at the front position of the center fender 122, and the bumper 36 is provided at the front position of the center fender 122.
As a result, the obstacles do not directly hit the center fender 122. The bumper 36 can be used as a handle for lifting the body 1 when changing the direction of the body 1.

g. Effects of the Invention As described above, according to the steering shaft support structure for a saddle-ride type four-wheeled vehicle for traveling on uneven terrain according to the present invention, the following effects can be obtained by providing each constituent element in a single vehicle. .

Since the tire width W ₁ of the front wheels is set smaller than the tire width W of the rear wheels (W ₁ <W), the steering force of the steering wheel can be reduced to improve the steering performance.

Further, since the outer edge width l ₁ of the left and right steps is arranged inside the front wheel width l ₂ (l ₁ <l ₂ ), after the front wheel traverses on grass, trees, etc., those feet ( It does not hit the bar step).

Furthermore, the left and right fenders that cover the upper parts of the left and right front wheels, and the outer edges are located inside the outer side of the front wheels, the center fender that covers the upper center part of the frame between these fenders, and the diagonal from the rear of this center fender. A front wall which is raised rearward to cover the steering shaft upper front side, and a top cover formed of a front side wall facing upward to cover the steering shaft upper side inside the left and right fenders. Since the front edges of the left and right fenders and the center fender are located behind the front edge of the front wheels, rocks or trees contact the front end of the fender or the center fender and damage the fender or the center fender while driving. There is nothing.

In addition, right and left front portions of the frame between the left and right front wheels are provided with left and right guard legs projecting obliquely upward and forward with a space approximately equal to the width of the center fender, and the tip ends of the guard legs are Since the bridge members having a circular cross-section are connected at positions in front of the front edge of the fender and behind the front edges of the left and right front wheels, there is no risk of the center fender directly hitting an obstacle from the front and damaging the obstacle.

[Brief description of drawings]

1 and 2 show an embodiment of a front protection structure for a saddle-ride type four-wheel vehicle for traveling on uneven terrain according to the present invention. FIG. 1 is a side view,
FIG. 2 is a plan view. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the frame structure of FIG. 1, FIG. 4 is a plan view showing the cover and seat of FIG. 2 removed, and FIG. 5 is a sectional view showing a connecting portion between an axle and a front wheel. 6, FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. 5, FIG. 7 is a partial sectional view showing the support structure of the steering shaft, and FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. 1 ... Body, 2 ... Frame, 3 ... Front wheel, 4 ... Rear wheel, 5 ... Balloon tire, 6 ... Link mechanism, 7 ... Bar handle, 11 ... Axle, 12 ... Front cover , 14 …… Steering shaft, 16 …… Step, 28 …… Knuckle arm, 29 …… Rear cover, 30 …… Air intake, 36 …… Bumper 121 …… Fender, 122 …… Center fender, 123a …… Front wall , 123b …… side wall 37a …… guard leg, 37b …… bridge member.

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Yoshiki Shinohara 1299-54 Tomitsuka-cho, Hamamatsu-shi, Shizuoka (56) References: Development 55-138181 (JP, U) Japanese Utility Model Publication 56-73694 (JP, U) Japanese Utility Model Publication 51-78560 (JP, U) US Patent 4082155 (US, A) Design Publication 422304 (JP, S) Similar to Design Publication 365488 (JP, S)

Claims (1)

[Claims] Claims: 1. A front wheel and a rear wheel of a frame are provided with two front wheels and two rear wheels on which balloon tires are mounted, respectively, and a rear portion of a shaft support portion that rotatably supports a steering shaft with respect to the frame, and a rear portion of the frame. A vertically long seat is placed approximately in the center of the frame, and the front two wheels are steered through a knuckle arm on the front wheel side linked to the lower end of the steering shaft by a bar handle provided on the upper end of the steering shaft. Is a saddle-type four-wheeled vehicle in which front and rear wheels are arranged on the left and right sides of the vehicle body below the seat, and the engine mounted between the front and rear wheels drives the wheels to drive on rough terrain. ₁ is set smaller than the tire width W of the rear wheels (W ₁ <W), and the outer edge width l ₁ of the above left and right steps is arranged inside the width l _{2 of the} front wheels (l ₁ <l ₂ ).
However, the left and right fenders that cover the above left and right front wheel upper parts and whose outer edges are located inside the front wheel outer side, the center fender that covers the frame center upper part between these fenders, and from the rear of this center fender A front wall that rises diagonally rearward and covers the steering shaft upper front side; and a top cover that includes a front side wall that faces upward inside the left and right fenders so as to cover the steering shaft upper side, respectively. The front edges of the left and right fenders and the center fender are located rearward of the front edge of the front wheels, and the front and left sides of the frame between the left and right front wheels are diagonally forward with a space approximately equal to the width of the center fender. The left and right front wheels are provided with the left and right guard legs projecting upward, and the tip between the guard legs is located forward of the front edge of the center fender. Behind the position from the front edge, front protective structure for off-road for a straddle-type four-wheeled vehicle, characterized in that linked by a bridge member of circular cross section.