Motor vehicles – Special wheel base – Having only two wheels
Patent
1990-08-28
1993-02-23
Hill, Mitchell J.
Motor vehicles
Special wheel base
Having only two wheels
180 2405, 180221, 180222, 280277, 280279, B62K 2100
Patent
active
051881926
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
The present invention concerns a motorized or tractor drawn vehicle designed for travel on a particular surface, said vehicle comprising at least two wheels, at least one of which is a steering wheel, each wheel comprising a central portion connected to the base structure of the vehicle and a peripheral portion concentric to the said central portion and disposed to turn about the central portion, said central portion and said peripheral portion being interconnected by means of at least one ring shaped bearing, said first bearing comprising at least one interior annular element integral with the said central portion of the wheel and at least one peripheral annular portion concentric to the said interior annular portion and integral with the said peripheral portion, said latter portion having a contact means appropriate to the nature of the surface with which the vehicle will be in contact, and the said central portion of the wheel being connected to the base structure of the vehicle at at least one connection point which is off-center on the wheel, wherein the said steering wheel is connected to the base structure of the vehicle by at least one second bearing disposed in a plane perpendicular to the plane of the said first bearing and comprising one of the interior or exterior elements integral with the said interior annular element of the said first bearing and with the other exterior or interior element integral with the base structure of the vehicle.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
With motorcycles, particularly high performance motorcycles for racing, the proper regulation of inclination of the steering axis of the steering axis affords the driver a fundamental advantage. At high speed and along a straight line significant rearward inclination considerably increases vehicle stability and allows the driver to safely increase speed to the maximum. Conversely, the greater the angle, the harder the handlebar is to turn. Thus, it is obvious that on slopes with frequent sharp curves or on mountain roads, inclination should be minimal to eliminate wasting driver time on turns or forcing the driver to exert too great an effort to guide the vehicle. An ideal solution would be to achieve a vehicle wherein inclination could be regulated on course, that is, increased for travel in straight lines and reduced for curves.
This is the aim which the present invention proposes to achieve.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to the invention, the vehicle defined herein is characterized in that the said second bearing is pivotably mounted on the base structure of the vehicle, which comprises means to cause this bearing to pivot and thereby modify the inclination of the steering wheel (caster angle of the steering wheel).
According to a particularly advantageous embodiment, one of the elements of the second bearing is mounted, at one end, on at least one arm of the base structure of the vehicle by means of a pivoting device and at the other end, is connected to a hydraulic piston integral with said structure, and the other element is integral with the interior annular element of the first bearing.
Preferably, the hydraulic piston is a two-way piston and is supplied with hydraulic fluid by a pump. Said pump may be controlled by an independent manual control means.
Preferably, the pump is controlled by a mechanical device connected to the gearshift, said device being disposed to increase inclination of the steering wheel in successive stages, said increase corresponding to the order of shifting to higher gears, and to reduce inclination in successive stages, said reduction corresponding to the order of shifting to lower gears.
The pump is advantageously connected to an electrical motor and said electrical motor is associated with an electrical supply circuit designed to supply the motor during predetermined time intervals, with each shift of gears.
The said electrical supply circuit is preferably disposed to cause the hydraulic pump to function in a first direction, transmitting hydraulic fluid to the piston so that the angl
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Hill Mitchell J.
SM Sbarro Mottas Engineering S.A.
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