WO2007123447A1

WO2007123447A1 - An access system for a vehicle

Info

Publication number: WO2007123447A1
Application number: PCT/SE2006/000500
Authority: WO
Inventors: Carl STÅLHAMMAR; Kjell Efraimsson
Original assignee: Volvo Lastvagnar Ab
Priority date: 2006-04-26
Filing date: 2006-04-26
Publication date: 2007-11-01
Also published as: EP2013071A1; JP2009535534A; BRPI0621624A2

Abstract

The invention relates to an access system (2) for a vehicle (1 ). The system comprises a pivotable door (3) mountable in the body of the vehicle and a pivotable lid (6) mountable in the chassis of the vehicle for covering at least one step (9) adjacent to the door. The system further comprises a means (10) for sensing the position of the door (3) relative to its pivot axis, a member (11 ) for automatically pivoting the lid (6) around its pivot axis, and a means (12, 15) for transmitting an signal emitted from the door sensing means (10) to the lid pivoting member (11 ) so as to position the lid (6) relative to its pivot axis as a function of the sensed position of the door (3).

Description

AN ACCESS SYSTEM FOR A VEHICLE

TECHNICAL FIELD

The invention relates to an access system for a vehicle according to the preamble of claim 1. The invention is applicable on different vehicles, in particular trucks.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Usually a truck is provided with steps for facilitating entrance into the vehicle cab of the truck. Some of the steps are covered by the vehicle cab door, and some further lower steps can be covered by a door extension component mounted at the lower edge of the door. However, such a design has drawbacks since the door extension component which can only be attached to the door along a limited area tends to be very flexible and instable. A one-piece door has improved strength in comparison with such a door system using a door extension component. The use of a door extension component also implies a heavier door, and a door which is more affected by windy weather due to a larger continuous surface. Furthermore, it is desired to limit the height of the doors for logistics reasons. The cab provided with the doors is often made in a factory and then transported to another factory where the cab is mounted on the truck. If the doors are too high the allowed maximum height of the cab during transport can be exceeded.

At the same time there is a need for a system that can cover also lower steps, because covered steps has several advantages. These advantages are related to aerodynamic and security aspects. By covering also the lower steps, the side of the cab becomes an even surface which will cause less air resistance during driving. Due to the risk the driver of the truck being subjected to robbery, the possibility that someone can jump up on the truck and stand on the steps has to be avoided. Furthermore, by using covered steps soiling of the steps can be prevented, and the appearance of the truck can be changed.

The lower steps of the truck can be arranged in the chassis of the truck and these steps can be covered by a hinged lid. Such a lid can be opened manually or be opened by use of a mechanical connection between the lid and the door. The Swedish Patent No SE 505 097 discloses a lid for covering a step which step can be folded out from the cab by opening the door. The lid is connected to the door for pivoting the lid together with the door. Another device for preventing unauthorized access to the steps of a vehicle is described in US 5 566 962. A horizontally hinged lid covers steps on a vehicle, and this lid can be locked to avoid unauthorized use of the steps. When unlocked, the lid pivots inwardly, thereby allowing a foot hold to be established by pressing a foot against the Nd.

The prior art systems which aim to provide covered steps without causing any extra work to the driver of the truck for opening a lid, for instance, tend to be very complicated mechanically. A lid arranged in the chassis for covering a step will not be able to absolutely follow the movement of the vehicle cab. Thus, the door covering the upper steps and the lid covering the lower steps have to be arranged moveably relative to each other so as to enable relative movements. The relative movements of the cab and the chassis of a truck are usually in the size of 50-100 mm in the vertical direction and in the size of 10-30 mm in the horizontal direction. At the same time the door and the lid have to be connected for transmitting the opening motion of the door to the lid so as to get access to the steps. A further complication is that the cab is sometimes tilted forwardly, which implies that the door and the lid have to be disconnectable from each other or the connection must allow such a tilted cab condition. In addition, a lid moved by the door implies that the mass to be moved when the door is to be opened or closed is larger. The forces used to open and close the door are increased, and the total surface of the door system which can be affected by the wind is larger.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the invention is to provide a vehicle access system of the kind referred to in the introduction where at least some of the problems of such prior art devices discussed above is reduced to a substantial extent.

The object is achieved by an access system for a vehicle according to claim 1.

By the provision of a means for sensing the position of the door relative to its pivot axis, a member for automatically pivoting the lid around its pivot axis, and a means for transmitting an signal emitted from the door sensing means to the lid pivoting member so as to position the lid relative to its pivot axis as a function of the sensed position of the door, the lid can be controlled to follow the movement of the door and be opened when the driver opens the door and steps into or out from the vehicle, and the lid can be closed when the door is closed. Thereby, the driver has access to the steps when so is required, and during other periods the lid can be closed and locked for preventing unauthorized use of the steps. Thanks to the invention there is no need of any mechanical connection between the door and the lid, and, thus the relative movements between a door mounted in the vehicle cab and a lid mounted in the chassis of the vehicle is not a problem. Furthermore, the lid may be designed and mounted such that the lid does not contribute to the requisite force for opening/closing the door.

The invention relates also to a vehicle comprising an access system according to the invention, and to a method according to claim 7.

Further advantages and advantageous features of the invention are disclosed in the following description and in the dependent claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

With reference to the appended drawings, below follows a more detailed description of embodiments of the invention cited as examples.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a lateral view illustrating a front part of a truck having an access system according to the invention, and

Fig. 2 is a perspective view from inside the truck in figure 1 , illustrating the access system according to the invention, and

Fig. 3 is a perspective view illustrating a variant of the access system in figure 2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION Fig. 1 is a lateral view illustrating a front part of a truck 1. The truck 1 is provided with an access system 2 according to the invention. A vehicle cab door 3 of the truck 1 is pivotally mounted for pivot motion around a substantially vertical axis 4 (see also figures 2 and 3) formed by means of hinges 5. In a similar way a lid 6 arranged immediately below the door 3 is pivotally mounted for pivot motion around a substantially vertical axis 7 (see also figures 2 and 3) formed by further hinges 8. The lid 6 is used for covering at least one step 9 adjacent to the door 3. In the embodiment illustrated in the figures, in the closed condition the lid 6 can prevent use of two steps 9, 9b by covering one step 9 and covering the space immediately above the lowest step 9b. The steps 9, 9b are preferably fixedly arranged in the chassis of the vehicle 1.

The access system 2 according to the invention comprises said pivotable door 3 which is mountable in the body of the vehicle 1 , and said pivotable lid 6 which is mountable in the chassis of the vehicle 1 for covering said at least one step 9 adjacent to the door 3. The system further comprises a means 10 for sensing the position of the door 3 relative to its pivot axis 4, and a member 11 for automatically pivoting the lid 6 around its pivot axis 7. The sensing means 10 can be a sensor of so called linear type. Such a sensor can be arranged in the door stopper device, for instance, (not illustrated). The position of the door measured with the linear sensor corresponds to a certain pivot angle or percentage opening of the door. Another kind of sensor, which is illustrated in figures 2 and 3, is a rotary sensor measuring the pivot angle of the door. For example a non-contacting inductive rotary sensor can be used. The pivoting member 11 can be a linear actuator or a rotary actuator. A linear actuator is illustrated in figure 2 and is usually constituted by a cylinder-piston mechanism having a certain stroke length. A rotary actuator is illustrated in figure 3 and is usually built up by an electric motor and a gear mechanism which converts the fast rotation of the motor into a slow pivot movement of a lever providing a high torque. Such various sensors and actuators are well known in the prior art and are available on the market. Some adaptation of such equipment can be required to make them useful for accomplishment of the invention.

Although the pivot axis 7 of the lid 6 is preferably substantially vertical when the lid 6 is installed for use in a vehicle 1 as illustrated, the pivot axis 7 could also have another direction. The pivot axes 4, 7 of the lid and the door are preferably substantially parallel with each other when the lid 6 and the door 3 are installed for use in a vehicle, but this is not necessary to apply the invention since the movement of the lid 6 is not mechanically coupled to the movement of the door 3. Instead the access system 2 has a means for transmitting a signal emitted from the door sensing means 10 to the lid pivoting member 11 so as to position the lid 6 relative to its pivot axis 7 as a function of the sensed position of the door 3. The door sensing means 10 and the lid pivoting member 11 are preferably electrically connected to each other by wires 15 or similar, preferably via a control unit 12, for transmitting the signal emitted from the door sensing means 10 to the lid pivoting member 11. In another embodiment of the invention, however, any kind of wire-less equipment could be used for establishment of communication between the door sensing means and a control unit, and/or between the lid pivoting member and a control unit, and/or between the door sensing means and the lid pivoting member.

The control unit 12 may be achieved based on known electrical and/or mechanical control components and corresponding software. A computer program comprising software code portions for instructing a processor can be used to accomplish the method according to the invention when the program is run on a computer. The computer program may comprise an instruction set stored in an internal memory of the computer to be used to instruct the processor. The control unit 12 may be designed for receiving a computer readable medium having a stored program or data thereon intended to cause the computer to control the steps of the method according to the invention. The computer program can be provided via a network, such as the Internet.

The access system 2 and the method according to the invention can work as follows. The position of the door 3 relative to its pivot axis 4 can be sensed, and the lid 6 can be automatically pivoted around its pivot axis 7 as a function of the sensed position of the door 3. By controlling the lid 6 to substantially follow the movement of the door 3, access to the step or steps 9, 9b can be obtained when a driver needs to get in or out from the truck. During normal operation when opening the door 3, the lid 6 is controlled to follow the movement of the door, i.e. the lid is opened to enable access to the step 9 which is covered by the lid 6 when the lid is closed. However, the lid movement can be somewhat delayed relative to the door movement due to the reaction time of the electronic and mechanical components. In addition, the lid 6 can be controlled to obtain a delay between the door 3 and the lid 6 in the size of 5-10 degrees by using a certain start point for the lid. Thus, the door 3 has preferably to be pivoted to a certain percentage opening of the door before the lid 6 is started to open. A pivot angle of the door which pivot angle implies that the door 3 has been moved from the closed position but is still in a position where it is impossible to get into the truck 1 , can be the starting point for the opening operation of the lid 6. The starting point of the lid movement can correspond for example to the maximum pivot angle of the door 3 where it is still impossible to get into the truck 1.

During normal operation when closing the door 3, the lid 6 is controlled to follow the movement of the door, i.e. the lid is closed to cover the step 9 and thus prevent access to the step/steps 9, 9b. Since the door velocity is usually higher during closing the door than opening the door, the closing operation of the lid 6 can advantageously be somewhat faster than the opening operation of the lid 6. Since the lower portion of the door and the upper portion of the lid usually overlap each other, and the lower door portion is arranged outside the upper portion of the lid, the lid 6 must not move slower than the door during closing so as to avoid clash between the door and the lid. The movement of the lid 6 is in both movement directions preferably a stepless movement to any angular position determined by the angular position of the door 3.

There are cases where the lid 6 not necessarily should follow the door movement. For example when the cab is tilted forwardly or when the truck 1 is in absence of current. In the tilted state of the cab the door 3 will usually be closed but it may be desirable to open the lid 6 to get access to the steps 9, 9b in order to reach any component of the truck 1.

As a security function the lid 6 can be deactivated, or in other words the lid is held closed and preferably locked, as long as the driver is seated in the seat of the truck 1 even if the door 3 is opened. For example, the deactivation of the lid 6 can be accomplished by a gauge for indication of the safety belt. I addition to the angular position of the door 3, also other parameters can be used to control the movement of the lid 6. It is possible to obtain information about angular position, movement direction and velocity of the door from the sensing means 10.

It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above and illustrated in the drawings; rather, the skilled person will recognize that many changes and modifications may be made within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. An access system (2) for a vehicle (1 ), comprising a pivotable door (3) mountable in the body of the vehicle and a pivotable lid (6) mountable in the chassis of the vehicle for covering at least one step (9) adjacent to the door (3), characterized in that the system (2) comprises a means (10) for sensing the position of the door (3) relative to its pivot axis (4), a member (11) for automatically pivoting the lid (6) around its pivot axis (7), and a means (15, 12) for transmitting an signal emitted from the door sensing means (10) to the lid pivoting member (11 ) so as to position the lid (6) relative to its pivot axis (7) as a function of the sensed position of the door (3).

2. An access system according to claim 1 , characterized in that the pivot axis (7) of the lid (6) is substantially vertical when the lid (6) is installed for use in a vehicle.

3. An access system according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that the pivot axes (4, 7) of the lid (6) and the door (3) are substantially parallel with each other when the lid and the door are installed for use in a vehicle.

4. An access system according to any of claims 1-3, characterized in that the door sensing means (10) and the lid pivoting member (11 ) are electrically connected to each other via a control unit (12).

5. An access system according to any of claims 1-4, characterized in that the lid (6) is adapted to cover a step (9) fixedly arranged in the chassis when the lid (6) is installed for use in a vehicle.

6. A vehicle comprising an access system (2) according to any of claims 1 -5.

7. A method for controlling a pivotable lid (6) mounted on the chassis of a vehicle (1) for covering a step (9) adjacent to a pivotable door (3) of the vehicle, characterized by sensing the door position relative to its pivot axis, and automatically pivoting the lid (6) around its pivot axis as a function of the sensed position of the door (3).

8. A method according to claim 7, characterized by controlling the lid (6) to substantially follow the movement of the door (3) when being opened or closed.

9. A method according to claim 8, characterized by controlling the lid (6) to follow the movement of the door (3) during opening thereof such that the lid (6) is moved with a certain delay relative to the door (3) corresponding to a difference between the angular positions of the door (3) and the lid (6) in the interval 5-10 degrees.

10. A computer program comprising software code portions for instructing a processor to accomplish the steps according to any of claims 7-9 when the program is run on a computer.

11. A computer program according to claim 10 provided at least partly via a network, such as the Internet.

12. A computer readable medium having a stored program thereon intended to cause a computer to control the steps according to any of claims 7-9.