Footrest for vehicle

Details Footrest for vehicle Footrest for vehicle

2000-12-07

2001-09-04

Dayoan, D. Glenn (Department: 3612)

Land vehicles: bodies and tops

Bodies

Foot rests

C296S182100

Reexamination Certificate

active

06283529

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a footrest for a vehicle.
Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication (kokai) No. 11-20533 discloses a footrest fixed on a sidewall at a front passenger's foot and positioned apart from a toe board on the underside of a dash panel, Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication (kokai) No. 9-183332 a footrest arranged on the toe board on the underside of the dash panel 20533 and provided with a weakened part to reduce a moment acting on the passenger's ankle with the deformation of the toe board toward a passengers ' room when the vehicle collides on its front side, and Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication (kokai) No. 10-310011 discloses a footrest which springs the passenger's heel by means of an actuator thereby to forcibly separate the heel from the toe board at the vehicle front collision.
Although all of the above-mentioned footrests are commonly directed to protect the passenger's feet against the deformation of the toe board toward the passenger's room at the vehicle front collision, there are desired more effective improvements for lightening various loads exerted on the passenger's ankle, as possible.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Under the above circumstance, it is an object of the present invention to provide a footrest for a vehicle, which is capable of moderating an impact applied on the whole sole from a passenger's toe to the heel when the toe board is deformed toward the passengers' room by the vehicle front collision and which can restrain the passenger's ankle from cambering or bending backward to protect the passenger's foot effectively.
According to the invention, the above-mentioned object is accomplished by a footrest arranged on a toe board which is formed on an underside of a dash panel of a vehicle fixed permanently to a floor panel of the vehicle, the footrest has; at a position between a footrest pedal surface for resting a passenger's foot thereon and the toe board,
an energy absorbing unit which can be compressively deformed to absorb a collision energy when the toe board is deformed toward a passenger's room at a vehicle front collision; and
a footrest moving mechanism for moving the passenger's foot lying on the footrest pedal surface, obliquely upward of the toe board simultaneously with the absorption of the collision energy by the energy absorbing unit.


REFERENCES:
patent: 2654420 (1953-10-01), Rogers
patent: 2994365 (1961-08-01), Ziegler
patent: 3860284 (1975-01-01), Lichtig
patent: 4726438 (1988-02-01), Stuertz et al.
patent: 4984838 (1991-01-01), Kim
patent: 5183308 (1993-02-01), Koga et al.
patent: 6102466 (2000-08-01), Kanazawa et al.
patent: 9-183332 (1997-07-01), None
patent: 10-310011 (1998-11-01), None
patent: 11-20533 (1999-01-01), None

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