Land vehicles: bodies and tops – Tops – Let-down type top
Reexamination Certificate
1999-10-13
2001-07-10
Dayoan, D. Glenn (Department: 3612)
Land vehicles: bodies and tops
Tops
Let-down type top
C296S107010, C296S107170
Reexamination Certificate
active
06257650
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a so-called truck-type automobile including an occupant seat section and a loading platform or deck section adjoining a rear side of the seat section, and particularly, to an automobile provided with a movable roof which is capable of opening and closing a top opening formed in the occupant seat section.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a conventional automobile of the above truck type, no cover is provided on an opened upper surface of the loading platform section, and loads are placed within the loading platform section in an exposed state.
In an open or convertible-type automobile in which a top opening in an occupant seat section is opened and closed by a movable roof, the roof, when it is not in service, is enclosed within a vehicle body, and is not utilized as a cover and the like, for its trunk section.
In the above truck-type automobile, loads are placed within the loading platform section in the exposed state. For this reason, it is necessary to specially cover the loads with an exclusive protecting cover in order to prevent their flying out of the platform section or to protect the loads from direct sunlight, and hence, the cost is increased correspondingly, and the handling operation of the protecting cover and the management of the cover when not in service are troublesome.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an automobile with a movable roof, wherein a movable roof for opening and closing an top opening of an occupant seat section is constructed so that it can also be used as a protecting cover for a loading platform section, thereby solving the above problem.
To achieve the above object, according to a first aspect and feature of the present invention, there is provided an automobile provided with a movable roof, including an occupant seat section, and a loading platform section adjoining a rear side of the occupant seat section, the automobile comprising a movable roof which is selectively movable between a closed position which closes a top opening in the occupant seat section, and an opened position which opens the top opening, the movable roof covering at least a portion of the loading platform section at the opened position.
With this feature, in a state in which the movable roof has been retained in the opened position to open the top opening in the occupant seat section, at least a part of loads within the loading platform section can be covered with the roof and hence, it is possible to effectively prevent such loads from being exposed to direct sunlight and from flying out of the loading platform section. Moreover, the structure is simplified by utilizing the movable roof for the occupant seat section as a protecting cover for the loading platform section, which contributes to a reduction in cost and the simplification of the handling operation. In addition, the movable roof in the opened position is located above the loading platform section and hence, the movable roof can be utilized as a rear spoiler by properly selecting the shape of the roof, thereby preventing the traveling wind from entering into the loading platform section to alleviate the resistance to the traveling of the vehicle.
According to a second aspect and feature of the present invention, in addition to the first feature, a roof guide mechanism is provided between the movable roof and a vehicle body for guiding and moving the movable roof between the closed position and the opened position. With this feature, the movable roof is guided and moved smoothly along a constant rout between the closed position and the opened position and hence, the opening and closing motions of the roof can be conducted easily and precisely.
According to a third aspect and feature of the present invention, in addition to the second feature, the roof guide mechanism includes four front, rear, left and right arms which are connected at their upper ends to an inner surface of the movable roof for longitudinal pivotal movement with longitudinal and lateral distances provided between the upper ends, and at their lower ends to the vehicle body for longitudinal pivotal movement with longitudinal and lateral distances provided between the lower ends, so that the movable roof is swung longitudinally between the closed position and the opened position. With this feature, the movable roof can be swung longitudinally between the closed position and the opened position through the front, rear, left and right arms interposed between the movable roof and the vehicle body. Therefore, the movable roof can be moved lightly between the opened position and the closed position with an alleviated resistance to the movement of the roof. Moreover, the locus of movement of the roof can be curved upwards at an intermediate portion between the opened position and the closed position and hence, even if a protrusion such as roll bar is located at a boundary between the occupant seat section and the loading platform section, the movable roof can be moved in a single motion between the closed position and the opened position without difficulty while detouring the protrusion.
REFERENCES:
patent: D. 184043 (1958-12-01), Dodge
patent: 3278221 (1966-10-01), Jaulmes
patent: 3823977 (1974-07-01), Fioravanti
patent: 4750778 (1988-06-01), Hoban
patent: 4805956 (1989-02-01), Saunders
patent: 5098148 (1992-03-01), Hoban
patent: 6068326 (2000-05-01), Shiromura
Herner Donald M.
Lee Bernard G.
Arent Fox Kintner Plotkin & Kahn
Coletta Lori L.
Dayoan D. Glenn
Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
LandOfFree
Automobile provided with movable roof does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Automobile provided with movable roof, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Automobile provided with movable roof will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2548595