Land vehicles: bodies and tops – Tops – Roof structure
Reexamination Certificate
2000-08-07
2001-12-18
Pedder, Dennis H. (Department: 3612)
Land vehicles: bodies and tops
Tops
Roof structure
C296S214000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06331031
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a solar motor vehicle roof with a closure element for a roof opening which forms a primary solar generator and which can is displaceable between a closed position and an open position
2. Description of Related Art
A generic motor vehicle roof of the initially mentioned type is known, for example, from published German Patent Application No. DE 37 13 854 A1, the closure element being formed by the cover of a spoiler roof. The cover comprises a transparent pane which on its outside is in part provided with a lining which renders it opaque and which is formed by solar cells. Underneath the cover there is a movable headliner which likewise bears solar cells on its top.
Published German Patent Application No. DE 37 13 853 A1 discloses a spoiler roof for motor vehicles in which there are solar cells on the bottom of the rear part of the spoiler cover or on a roof-mounted installation surface on the rear edge of the roof opening.
German Utility Model DE 296 18 379 U1 discloses a separate mobile solar module for motor vehicles which can be attached on the body or in the vehicle interior.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,076,634 discloses a solar module which is located in the interior of a motor vehicle and which is integrating into the front sun visor. The sun visor is made to unfold in two parts so that in its unfolded position the active surface of the solar module is enlarged.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The primary object of this invention is to devise a motor vehicle roof which offers the maximum possible solar-generated power at a production cost that is minimally increased relative to the increased power obtained.
It is a filter object of the invention to obtain the foregoing object without a solar generator in the interior of the vehicle.
These objects are achieved in accordance with the invention by a motor vehicle roof in which the closure element is provided with an additional element which has an additional solar generator that, in the open position of the closure element, can be coupled to the closure element such that the additional element assumes a working position on the outside of the vehicle to generate solar current.
In this approach, in accordance with the invention, it is advantageous that the active solar surface, and thus the generated solarpower of the solar generator, can be easily increased without the additional solar generator provided for this purpose needing to satisfy the requirements for permanently external motor vehicle parts, by which the increased production costs are low relative to the attained increase in solar power.
The closure element is preferably a cover which is raised in the open position at its rear edge. This can be the cover of a lifting roof, a spoiler roof, or a lifting and sliding roof
To save money, the additional element is preferably made to operate only with the vehicle stationary.
The closure element and the additional element are preferably made such that, when the additional element is in the working position, an electrical contact between the closure element and the additional element is closed.
According to a first embodiment, the closure element and the additional element are also coupled to one another outside the working position of the additional element. Here, the additional element can be, preferably, a headliner part for concealing the cover from underneath, i.e. the cover which is movably guided on the bottom of the cover. With the cover closed, the headliner part is concealed from above by the cover, while the headliner part in the working position with the cover opened can be pushed so far to the rear that the additional solar generator is essentially no longer concealed by the cover.
According to one alternative embodiment, the closure element and the additional element are coupled to one another only in the working position of the additional element. The additional element and the cover are made such that the additional element in inserted manually from the rear into the cover when the cover is raised.
In the following, a preferred embodiment of the invention is explained by way of example using the accompanying drawings.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5076634 (1991-12-01), Müller et al.
patent: 37 13 853 (1987-10-01), None
patent: 37 13 854 (1987-10-01), None
patent: 286 18 379 (1997-03-01), None
patent: 393437 (1990-10-01), None
patent: 459180 (1991-12-01), None
Ganz Thomas
Patz Werner
Teschner Helmut
Wecker Reinhard
Nixon & Peabody LLP
Pedder Dennis H.
Safran David S.
Webasto Vehicle Systems International GmbH
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