WO2023138808A1

WO2023138808A1 - Armoured vehicle having an emergency exit hatch

Info

Publication number: WO2023138808A1
Application number: PCT/EP2022/081156
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jan Wintjen
Original assignee: Rheinmetall Landsysteme Gmbh
Priority date: 2022-01-18
Filing date: 2022-11-08
Publication date: 2023-07-27
Also published as: DE102022101040A1

Abstract

The invention relates to an armoured vehicle (1) having an emergency exit hatch (3), wherein the vehicle has a vehicle floor (1). Provided in the vehicle floor (1) is an emergency exit hatch (3) which, when in a closed position, is arranged in the vehicle in an opening in the vehicle floor (1). On a side facing the inside of the vehicle, the emergency exit hatch furthermore has a frame (4) which has at least one slide rail (4.1) and at least one toothed rack. At an edge of the opening, the vehicle has an articulatedly arranged drive unit (5) having at least one rotatable gear. Using a releasable lever (6), the drive unit (5) can be pivoted towards the emergency exit hatch (3) such that the gear (5.5) can be caused to mesh with the toothed rack. The emergency exit hatch can thus be lifted and moved, such that the emergency exit hatch can be transferred from its closed position into an opened position.

Description

DESCRIPTION

Armored vehicle with emergency exit hatch

The present invention relates to an armored vehicle with an emergency exit hatch. The armored vehicle referred to in this invention is equipped with a vehicle floor, for example with a trough construction. This vehicle floor is to be understood as the outward delimitation of the vehicle and, in normal operation, runs parallel to the floor outside of the vehicle on which the vehicle is driving.

The currently known emergency exit hatches on armored wheeled or tracked vehicles allow safe exit in an emergency situation, such as an accident or major damage such as a mine detonation.

The emergency exit is often designed as an opening closed by a hatch in the tub floor of the vehicle. The degree of protection of this hatch usually corresponds to that of the tub floor (first vehicle floor) of the vehicle.

This is the reason for their high mass (up to 180 kg). In the normal case (normal position of the vehicle standing on the ground), this is unlocked if necessary, falls to the ground following gravity and releases an emergency exit opening for the evacuation of the crew.

Such an emergency exit hatch is known, for example, from DE 10 2018 112 671 A1. This document discloses such a floor hatch in an armored vehicle, which can be used as an emergency exit hatch.

External forces (accident, blasting, etc.) can cause the vehicle to come to a standstill in a position in which the normal access points (hatches on the top or on the side of the vehicle) cannot be opened (e.g. upside down or on its side). Opening the emergency exit hatch in the floor of the vehicle is then also no longer possible with standard on-board equipment due to its high weight. In this case, the emergency exit can only be opened from the outside and requires outside help. This situation can be extremely life threatening for the trapped crew. Scenarios are also possible in which the crew has to be evacuated under enormous time pressure (upside down in the water or in a combat situation).

The object of the present invention is therefore to design an emergency exit hatch for armored vehicles in such a way that the emergency exit hatch can still be opened even in difficult situations or unusual situations in order to be able to evacuate the crew of the vehicle.

The invention is also intended to serve to support the opening of the emergency exit hatch if, as a result of a deformation caused by the use of force, it cannot be opened by the action of gravity, even in the normal position.

These objects are solved by the features of the main claim.

The invention accordingly relates to an armored vehicle with an emergency exit hatch which is arranged in a closed position in an opening in a vehicle floor. The emergency exit hatch can assume said closed position and at least one open position.

In order to transfer the emergency exit hatch from the closed to an open position or vice versa, the emergency exit hatch has a frame which points to the inside of the vehicle. The frame can thus be reached from inside the vehicle, at least in the closed position.

The frame also has at least one slide rail and at least one toothed rack. The slide rail is arranged on the side of the rack and preferably runs parallel to the rack. In a preferred embodiment, the slide rail protrudes beyond the toothed rack. The slide rail is intended to support a shifting of the emergency exit hatch on a firm surface. For example, the sliding rail can support the movement of the emergency exit hatch on the chassis or the tub of the vehicle.

The armored vehicle further includes a power unit articulated at an edge of the opening. Due to this articulated arrangement, the drive unit can be pivoted in such a way that it can be brought into operative connection with the toothed rack or can be pivoted out of the area of the emergency exit hatch. To act on the toothed rack, the drive unit has at least one gearwheel that can be rotated. As many gears are preferably provided as there are racks, so that at least one gear can act with each rack. The emergency exit hatch can be moved along the path of the toothed rack by rotating the gear wheel.

In order to pivot the drive unit, a detachable lever is provided, by means of which the drive unit can be pivoted in the direction of the emergency exit hatch. The gear wheel can then be brought into engagement with the toothed rack.

After the drive unit has been pivoted, it can be used to raise the emergency exit hatch. For this purpose, the drive unit is preferably arranged at the edge of the opening in such a way that the toothed wheel engages in the region of one of the ends of the toothed rack. With a further pivoting movement, the emergency exit hatch is then raised on one side, so that the emergency exit hatch is arranged at an angle in the opening. The emergency exit hatch is then lifted out of the opening on one side, with the opposite side of the emergency exit hatch still being in the area of the opening.

The detachable lever is inserted into a ratchet for pivoting. This ratchet is placed on a shaft on which the gear wheel is located. By means of the lever, the shaft can then be rotated by the ratchet, with the ratchet ensuring that the shaft can only move in one direction. If the lever is moved in the direction of the opening after it has been inserted into the ratchet, the shaft is set in rotation and the gears rotate accordingly. If the lever is moved back, this movement is not transmitted through the ratchet to the shaft and the shaft does not rotate.

The ratchet is preferably held in place on the shaft by a locking ring. This limiting ring is releasably attached to the shaft so that the ratchet can be easily assembled and disassembled on the shaft.

The drive unit also includes a crossbar, which limits the radius of action of the lever. The lever can thus interact with the crossbar during its movement, this interaction ensuring that the pivoting movement of the drive unit is carried out. The drive unit contains pivoting elements, by means of which the drive unit can be articulated on corresponding weld-on parts. The pivotal connection can be brought about by screws or bolts.

If the drive unit is pivoted in such a way that the gear wheel is brought into engagement with the rack, the shaft and thus the gear wheel can now be rotated by means of the lever, so that the gear wheel moves the emergency exit hatch along the rack. In this way, the previously raised emergency exit hatch can be moved out of the area of the opening into an open position. Moving the emergency exit hatch can be facilitated by the sliding rail.

The drive unit can follow the emergency exit hatch during the opening process due to the pivotability and thus remain in engagement with the toothed rack during the opening process by the toothed wheel. The drive unit can also protrude at least partially out of the opening in the vehicle.

The emergency exit hatch can thus be moved by the drive unit, but also manually.

The armor of the vehicle is preferably implemented by at least one first anti-mine plate, which is arranged on the outside of the vehicle. In order to provide the emergency exit hatch with armor as well, it is also preferably provided with at least one second mine protection plate, which is also arranged on the outside. This means that the first and second armor are in one plane when the escape hatch is in its closed position.

The emergency exit hatch is preferably provided with a lock so that the emergency exit hatch can be locked in at least one of its positions to be assumed. For this purpose, the emergency exit hatch can rest, for example, in its closed position on the shoulders of the opening and the locking mechanism ensures locking in the closed position, for example via displaceable bolts on the inside.

In order to secure the position of the emergency exit hatch when the drive unit is brought into operative connection with the emergency exit hatch, it is also preferably proposed to provide the drive unit with a locking pawl. Accordingly, a ratchet wheel is proposed in the world which is engageable with the pawl. This means that the movement of the shaft can only be secured in one direction. More preferably, the frame forms at least one groove in which at least one pin can engage. This groove can, for example, be arranged on the toothed rack. It is also proposed here to provide as many grooves as there are toothed racks.

By engaging a pin in such a groove, the drive unit can be locked after engaging in the toothed rack. This increases the effectiveness of the drive unit. It is preferably proposed that the pin is arranged on a pen holder, with the pin holder being arranged on the drive unit such that it can pivot via a rocker arm. As a result, the pin can be introduced into the groove in a simple manner.

In addition, the rocker arm can preferably be loaded with a spring force by means of a spring, which preloads the rocker arm and thus the pin in the direction of the groove

In order to keep the lever ready for use at all times, it is proposed to store the lever in a holder, which is located in the area of the opening. In this way, the lever can be stored in a space-saving manner and ready for use as long as it is not in the ratchet.

Further features emerge from the figures. Show it:

1 : Exploded view of a vehicle according to the invention with an emergency exit hatch

Fig. 2: Exploded view of the drive device

3: Perspective view of an emergency exit hatch according to the invention in the closed position;

4: Perspective view of an emergency exit hatch according to the invention in a raised position;

5: Perspective view of an emergency exit hatch according to the invention in an open position;

FIG. 1 shows an exploded view of the opening of an armored vehicle according to the invention, with a corresponding emergency exit hatch 3 and a corresponding drive unit 5. The opening is located in the vehicle floor 1 of the armored vehicle according to the invention.

An opening for an emergency exit hatch 3 is present in the vehicle floor 1 . If the vehicle is provided with mine protection, at least one first mine protection plate 2 is attached to the vehicle floor. At least one second mine protection plate 3.1 is attached to the emergency exit hatch 3 . A frame 4 with at least one toothed rack is fastened to the emergency exit hatch 3 from inside the vehicle. In the present example, a frame 4 with two toothed racks is shown. The racks are designed to have lateral grooves. The outer grooves can be used to attach at least one slide rail 4.1. In the present example, one slide rail is provided for each toothed rack.

The slide rails 4.1 preferably protrude beyond the toothed racks and facilitate the movement of the emergency exit hatch when it rests on the slide rails 4.1. The slide rails 4.1 thus prevent the racks on the vehicle from tilting when the emergency exit hatch is moved.

The vehicle also has at least one weld-on part 1.1, with two weld-on parts 1.1 being shown in the present example. A drive unit 5 can be attached pivotably to the welding points 1.1. Thus, the welding parts should be arranged in an edge area of the opening. The emergency exit hatch can be raised, locked and moved on one side by means of the drive unit 5, particularly when the vehicle is in an overhead position.

A lock 3.2 on the emergency exit hatch can at least lock it in the closed position, ie in the opening of the vehicle floor 1 .

FIG. 2 shows an exploded view of details of the drive unit 5 from FIG.

By means of the pivoting elements 5.3, a shaft 5.4 is rotatably mounted, which holds at least one gear wheel 5.5, so that this gear wheel 5.5 is rotatably mounted with the world 5.4. A ratchet 5.8 can be placed on the shaft 5.4. The shaft 5.4 can be moved in one direction of rotation by means of the ratchet 5.8, whereas the opposite direction of rotation is not effected by the ratchet 5.8. For this purpose, the ratchet 5.8 can be placed, for example, on a profile of the shaft 5.4.

The ratchet 5.8 is held in its position by a limiting ring 5.6, so that the above-described effect can be exerted on the shaft 5.4. The drive unit further includes a crossbar 5.2, which is held by the swivel element 5.3. The crossbar 5.2 is then in the radius of action of the ratchet 5.8.

To secure the shaft 5.4, a ratchet wheel 5.7 is also provided on the shaft 5.4. This is fixed in place on the shaft 5.4 and can interact with a pawl 5.1. This interaction ensures that the rotational movement of the shaft 5.4 can only be carried out in one direction. If the opposite direction of rotation is to be enabled, the pawl 5.1 must be disengaged from the ratchet wheel 5.7.

Furthermore, at least one pen holder 5.9 is provided, which can hold a pen 5.12. The pen holder 5.9 is pivotally held on the drive unit via a rocker arm 5.10. The rocker arm 5.10 can be loaded with a spring force by a spring 5.11 in order to preload the rocker arm 5.10. The pin 5.12 is used to lock the drive unit and can engage in corresponding grooves in the frame.

FIG. 3 shows the initial situation in the area of the emergency exit when the vehicle is in an overhead position. The emergency exit hatch 3 is arranged in the opening of the vehicle floor 1 and closes it.

In order to open the emergency exit hatch 3, the lock 3.2 must first be unlocked. Then the movement of the emergency exit hatch 3 is possible.

The drive unit 5 is pivoted out of the area of the emergency exit hatch and is preferably locked in this position. A locking of the emergency exit hatch can be provided for this locking.

The above-described armoring of the vehicle by at least a first 2 and at least a second mine protection plate 3.1 causes continuous mine protection in this position.

The frame 4 of the emergency exit hatch 3 is arranged inside the vehicle and shows the two racks in the interior of the vehicle. Two slide rails 4.1 are arranged on the frame 4 and the frame has grooves in which some of the slide rails are fastened. Further grooves are accessible, e.g. for inserting the pins of the drive unit 5. FIG. 4 shows the raising of the emergency exit hatch 3. For this purpose, a lever 6 is first introduced into the ratchet 5.8 of the drive unit. The drive unit can now be pivoted in the direction of the emergency exit hatch 3 by means of the lever. The gears of the drive unit engage in the racks of the frame 4.

The pivoting of the drive unit is facilitated by the crossbar of the drive unit. During the pivoting movement of the lever 6, this reaches the crossbar during its movement and thus takes the drive unit with it during the further movement of the lever 6.

If the gears have been brought into engagement with the toothed rack, the emergency exit hatch 3 can be raised by the lever 6 with further pivoting of the drive unit, so that it can be lifted out of the opening at least on one side. This is done by power transmission of the pivoting movement of the drive unit by means of the gears on the racks or the frame 4 of the emergency exit hatch 3.

During the lifting of the emergency exit hatch 3, the pins guided by the rocker arm and preloaded by the spring slide into the groove of the frame. This locks the drive unit to the emergency exit hatch 3.

The emergency exit hatch can be moved and opened further with the lever 6 attached to the ratchet. For this purpose, when the lever is moved, the shaft of the drive unit can be set in rotary motion, so that the gears on the shaft transfer the lever movement into a linear movement via the toothed rack.

During this movement, the slide rails 4.1 prevent the toothed rack from jamming with the first mine protection plate 2. The emergency exit hatch 3 is prevented from sliding back by the above-described pawl, which engages in the ratchet wheel located on the shaft.

Figure 5 accordingly shows a fully opened emergency exit hatch 3. If the emergency exit hatch is pushed far enough out of the opening by lever movement, the emergency exit hatch 3 tilts onto the first mine protection plate 2 by gravity and can be opened further into the position shown manually or by means of the drive unit. The maximum displacement results from the length of the racks. When the gears are no longer in engagement with the toothed rack as a result of moving the emergency exit hatch 3, the maximum displacement of the emergency exit hatch has been reached. 9

Above the slide rails 4.1, a displacement of the emergency exit hatch 3 on the first anti-mine plate 2 is favored and further prevents the racks from jamming with the first anti-mine plate.

In order to be able to use the emergency exit in the open state, the drive device is pivoted out of the area of the opening again. The lever can then be pulled out of the ratchet again and, if necessary, stowed away in its holder.

The present invention is not limited to the aforesaid features. Rather, other versions are conceivable. For example, the drive device can be operated by an electric, pneumatic or hydraulic motor instead of or in addition to the lever. Accordingly, it is proposed to provide connections for the required energy supply on the drive unit. Furthermore, the toothed racks could be curved in order to allow a defined lifting of the emergency exit hatch out of the opening.

REFERENCE LIST

1 vehicle floor

1.1 Welding parts

2 First mine protection plate

3 emergency exit hatch

3.1 Second mine protection plate

3.2 Interlock

4 frames

4.1 Slide rail

5 drive unit

5.1 pawl

5.2 Crossbar

5.3 Pivoting element

5.4 Worlds

5.5 Gear

5.6 Restriction Ring

5.7 ratchet wheel

5.8 Ratchet

5.9 Pen holder

5.10 Rocker Arms

5.11 Spring

5.12 Pen

6 levers

Claims

PATENT CLAIMS Armored vehicle with an emergency exit hatch (3), wherein the vehicle has a vehicle floor (1) and the emergency exit hatch (3) is arranged in a closed position in an opening in the vehicle floor (1) in the vehicle, characterized in that the emergency exit hatch has a frame (4) on a side facing the inside of the vehicle, the frame (4) having at least one slide rail (4.1), the frame (4) having at least one rack that the vehicle has an articulated drive unit (5) on one edge of the opening, the drive unit (5) having at least one rotatable gear wheel (5.5) and that the drive unit (5) can be pivoted towards the emergency exit hatch (3) by means of a detachable lever (6) in such a way that the gear wheel (5.5) can be brought into engagement with the toothed rack. Armored vehicle according to Claim 1, characterized in that the lever (6) can be inserted into a ratchet (5.8). is, this ratchet (5.8) as well as the gear wheel (5.5) are arranged on a shaft (5.4) and the ratchet (5.8) is designed in such a way that the shaft can only be rotated in one direction. Armored vehicle according to Claim 2, characterized in that the ratchet (5.8) is held on the shaft (5.4) by a limiting ring (5.6). Armored vehicle according to one of Claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the drive unit (5) contains a crossbar (5.2) via which the drive unit (5) is pivoted by means of interaction with the lever (6). Armored vehicle according to one of Claims 1 to 4, characterized in that weld-on parts (1.1) are provided on the vehicle in order to produce the articulated arrangement of the drive unit (5). Armored vehicle according to one of Claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the vehicle has at least one first anti-mine plate (2) on the outside and the emergency exit hatch (3) has at least one second anti-mine plate (3) on the outside. Armored vehicle according to one of Claims 1 or 6, characterized in that a lock (3.2) is arranged on the emergency exit hatch (3). Armored vehicle according to one of Claims 1 to 7, characterized in that a pawl (5.1) is provided on the drive unit (5) and a ratchet wheel (5.7) which can be brought into engagement with the pawl (5.1) in order to prevent the rotary movement of the shaft (5.4) in one direction of rotation and to permit it in the other direction of rotation. Armored vehicle according to one of Claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the drive unit (5) is articulated on the vehicle by means of pivoting elements (5.3). Armored vehicle according to one of Claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the slide rail 4.1 protrudes beyond the toothed rack. Armored vehicle according to one of Claims 1 to 10, characterized in that the frame forms at least one groove in which at least one pin (5.12) can engage in order to lock the drive unit (5). Armored vehicle according to Claim 11, characterized in that the pin (5.12) is pivotably attached to the drive unit (5) via a rocker arm (5.10), the rocker arm (5.10) being articulated to the drive unit (5) by means of a pin holder (5.9). Armored vehicle according to Claim 12, characterized in that a force is applied to the rocker arm (5.10) by means of a spring (5.11). Armored vehicle according to one of Claims 1 to 13, characterized in that a holder is provided for the lever (6).