Vehicle fenders – With car control – Electric circuit
Patent
1990-12-27
1992-12-01
Focarino, Margaret A.
Vehicle fenders
With car control
Electric circuit
293120, 200 6144, B60R 1900
Patent
active
051674327
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a safety bumper having a bumper body consisting of an elastic foamed material and having a supporting plate and an electric switching device in the form of a strip-shaped contact arrangement which switches when outside pressure is exercised on the bumper body.
Safety bumpers of this type are known (Safety Bumper Brochure of MAYSER Polymer Electric, Imprint SB/5/2.89/D). Safety bumpers of this type are used, for example, for being mounted on robots or unmanned transport systems in order to cause an immediate stoppage of such devices should these come in contact with persons in an unintended manner. The advantage of such safety bumpers is the fact that such shut-off devices, because of the construction of the foamed-material bumper, have no sharp edges and also cannot be bent.
In the known constructions, the design is such that the switching device consists of two flexible strips. As a rule, one strip is fastened directly to a supporting plate arranged on the rear of the safety bumper while the other strip is arranged at the foamed bumper body at a corresponding distance to the first strip in a hollow space created for this purpose. Since, as a rule, the foamed bodies are covered toward the front with an airtight and watertight skin, it is necessary to leave the supporting plates open toward the rear so that the foamed material which is used as the elastic element for the approaching and moving away of the switching strip can be compressed in the desired manner while discharging part of its air volume and, mainly because of the returning air, can resume its initial position which had existed before a deformation. Safety bumpers of this type can therefore be used only to a limited extent at locations with high air pollution or high humidity because the relatively sensitive switching strips are affected in an undesirable manner. In addition, the fastening of one of the switching strips to the foamed body requires a relatively expensive manufacturing.
It is an object of the invention to develop a safety bumper of the initially mentioned type in such a manner that the device becomes less sensitive to outside influences and its manufacturing is facilitated.
For achieving this object, it is provided in the case of a safety bumper of the initially mentioned type that the supporting plate is equipped with a frame and in that the contact arrangement is constructed as a switching strip fastened to the supporting plate inside the hollow space formed by the frame, an elastically bendable pressure strip, which is arranged on the opposite wall of the hollow space and is provided particularly with elevations for the contacting of the switching strip, being assigned to the switching strip. By means of this design, the foamed material takes over only a shock absorber function and, at points at which it is pressed from the outside, exercises a force on the pressure strip which will elastically bend at this point. It touches the switching strip, which is completely sealed in itself, for the purpose of making contact. The elastic pressure strip restores itself automatically. In the case of the design according to the invention, the elastic pressure strip forms the elastic restoring element which, in the known arrangements was formed by the foamed material. By means of the new development, the making of contact cannot be disadvantageously affected by environmental influences (dusty or humid air) because the contact takes place inside the switching strip which is sealed off. Nevertheless, a sensitive triggering is maintained. The elastic pressure strip, in each case, provides the required switching pressure. In this case, it is advantageous that the switching strip is arranged inside a hollow space which is surrounded by firm walls and which is fixedly connected with the supporting plate carrying the switching strip. This permits an extensive pre-assembling and creates a robust construction.
According to certain preferred embodiments, it is advantageous to provide
REFERENCES:
patent: 3133167 (1964-05-01), Miller
patent: 3493257 (1970-02-01), Fitzgerald et al.
patent: 3599744 (1971-08-01), Satterfield
patent: 4293752 (1981-10-01), Koenig
patent: 4596412 (1986-06-01), Everett et al.
Buchien Fritz D.
Buttner Manfred
Focarino Margaret A.
Mayser GmbH & Co.
Pape Joseph D.
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