Brakes – Vehicle – Ground-engaging
Reexamination Certificate
1999-10-12
2001-09-04
Swann, J. J. (Department: 3611)
Brakes
Vehicle
Ground-engaging
C188S005000, C188S006000, C188S007000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06283254
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a braking device for a snow vehicle in particular of the snowbike type, comprising:
a front steering assembly comprising at least one steering column secured to at least one ski, and articulated in rotation around a spindle,
and a rear support assembly, equipped with at least one driving caterpillar track.
STATE OF THE TECHNIQUE
At the present time, braking devices of this type of vehicle act on the driving caterpillar track. Although they can slow down and even stop rotation of this track, they prove insufficient to brake the vehicle efficiently on downhill stretches where the caterpillar track is no longer bearing the load, due to its rear position, the weight being transferred due to the slope mainly onto the front of the vehicle, and in particular onto the steering ski or skis of the vehicle.
OBJECT OF THE INVENTION
The object of the device according to the invention is therefore to fit an efficient brake on a motorized snow vehicle.
According to the invention, the front steering assembly comprises at least one mobile braking element, operated by control means between a rest position at least partly retracted inside a cavity of the ski, and an active braking position in which said element protrudes out under the sliding surface of the ski in a middle zone situated appreciably at the level of the articulation spindle between the steering column and the ski.
According to one feature of the invention, the braking element is movable in sliding either with respect to the ski, or with respect to the steering column, said sliding taking place obliquely with respect to the ski according to an axis extending from the front and top to the rear and bottom of the ski, or according to an axis extending from the rear and top to the front and bottom of the ski.
According to another feature of the invention, the braking element is movable in rotation with respect to a transverse spindle extending perpendicularly with respect to the longitudinal plane of symmetry of the ski, movement of the braking element in rotation from the active position to the rest position taking place upwards with respect to the bottom surface of the ski. The braking clement comprises a brake shoe formed by at least one gripping blade designed to achieve a progressive braking effect according to the depth of penetration in the snow.
The brake shoe in the retracted rest position can be either outside the body of the ski, or in a rest cavity situated inside the body of the ski, or in a window passing over the whole thickness of the ski.
According to a preferred embodiment, the brake shoe in the form of a jaw comprises two lateral notched blades appreciably parallel to the longitudinal plane of symmetry, and a transverse notched blade joining the lateral blades at their rear end.
The control means comprise for example an electrical actuator controlled by a contactor and operating in conjunction with two end-of-travel contacts enabling the power supply of the actuator to be cut off in said extreme active and rest positions. The control means can also comprise a hydraulic or pneumatic jack.
These different control means can be integrated in a housing of the ski or in the steering column.
According to a particular arrangement, the rotation spindle of the braking element is coaxial with the articulation spindle of the steering column. The control means comprise a drive motor device operating in conjunction with transmission means coupled with the braking element. The transmission means can be formed by a couple of conical cogs, or a complete cogwheel, or by a circular sector of cogwheel actuated by an endless screw extending perpendicularly with respect to the rotation spindle of the braking element.
According to a development of the invention, the bottom edge of each braking element comprises a first front part with a toothless edge acting as a blade, and a second rear notched part whose teeth are set back in the vertical direction with respect to the edge, so as to be situated above the snow in the non-braking position.
REFERENCES:
patent: 3104116 (1963-09-01), Knight
patent: 3682495 (1972-08-01), Zaimi
patent: 3957131 (1976-05-01), Perkins
patent: 4768794 (1988-09-01), Bibollet
patent: 5203424 (1993-04-01), Gogo
patent: 5642788 (1997-07-01), Mabbott
patent: 5673722 (1997-10-01), Martin
patent: 5865445 (1999-02-01), Svensson
patent: 5931481 (1999-08-01), Hoffman
patent: 6062650 (2000-05-01), Smith
patent: 403186464 (1991-08-01), None
Divine David
Oliff & Berridg,e PLC
Swann J. J.
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