Land vehicles: bodies and tops – Bodies – Enclosed compartment
Patent
1996-08-02
1998-04-07
Hoge, Gary C.
Land vehicles: bodies and tops
Bodies
Enclosed compartment
780748, B62D 3304
Patent
active
057355649
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
This invention relates to an improved safety screen or barrier for motor vehicles such as station wagons, vans and the like, and particularly relates to an improved motor vehicle safety screen which, when mounted within the vehicle, extends transversely from side to side and from the roof to the floor of the vehicle and against which any unrestrained forwardly moving loads can impact in a situation wherein the vehicle comes to a sudden halt or suddenly decelerates.
Safety screens or barriers for inhibiting the forward movement of an unrestrained load carried behind a driver or passenger in a motor vehicle are well-known to the applicant. In this regard reference is made to the applicant's earlier filed Australian Patent No. 583738 entitled "Vehicle Safety Screen Fixing Means" which discloses a safety screen assembly comprising a tubular metal peripheral frame to which is secured a heavy wire mesh infill panel, and a plurality of rearwardly extending rigid metal securing straps positioned one at or adjacent each corner of the screen, with each of the straps having its forward end pivotally attached to a bracket connected to the safety screen frame and its trailing or rear end securable to an anchorage point fixed with respect to the vehicle body. While the safety screen made in accordance with that invention has met with commercial success for a number of years, its construction does have a number of drawbacks. Firstly, the weight of the metal screen is quite significant and hence is heavy to handle and as well adds increased weight to the vehicle. Secondly, the metal mesh infill panel impairs, at least to some extent, the rearward view of the driver from the central interior rear vision mirror. Thirdly, where significant impact forces are impacted against the metal screen, the screen suffers permanent structural damage and cannot be reused and has to be discarded. Fourthly, the metal fabricated construction is not aesthetically pleasing, a factor which is likely to deter some people from installing such a barrier in their vehicle.
The applicant is also aware of U.S. Pat. No. 4,621,856 (McKenzie) which teaches the use of a demountable safety partition for motor vehicles and which comprises a rigid forwardly bowed panel made of transparent sheet polycarbonate, with the panel being removably fixed in position by means of elongate mounting brackets which extend along the upper and lower edges of the panel and which are fastened to anchorage plates secured in the roof and floor of the vehicle by means of fasteners. While the polycarbonate partition of McKenzie obviates at least some of the above-stated disadvantages associated with the safety screen disclosed in our earlier Australian Patent No. 583738; however, it is not without its practical problems. For example, the means by which the rigid sheet panel is mounted within the vehicle is quite inflexible and requires accurate alignment between the various mounting components for fastening the upper and lower edges of the screen to the roof and floor respectively of the vehicle. None of the mounting components have any ability to flex or twist during installation--it being appreciated that, a certain amount of "play" is of considerable benefit when securing the mounting componentry to their anchorage points. In addition, the mounting means of McKenzie do not have any load impact attenuating capability and hence where severe impact forces are imparted to the partition panel, significant forces will be transmitted to the anchorage points resulting in the panel being torn from its anchorage points. Still further, the polycarbonate panel of McKenzie is made from a flat sheet of polycarbonate material which is then shaped to form a number of flat panel portions offset to one another and essentially relies on two different factors for its ability to withstand impact loading, the first being the nature of the material from which the panel is made, ie polycarbonate, the second, being the bowed or arched configuration of the partition panel. No yieldability of the panel
REFERENCES:
patent: D215051 (1969-08-01), Feth
patent: D288553 (1987-03-01), Diener
patent: 3632155 (1972-01-01), Parker
patent: 3931994 (1976-01-01), Palmiter
patent: 4035014 (1977-07-01), Sellers
patent: 4621856 (1986-11-01), McKenzie
patent: 4919467 (1990-04-01), Guimelli
Hoge Gary C.
Rees Operations Pty. Ltd.
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