Land vehicles: bodies and tops – Bodies – Body shell
Reexamination Certificate
2000-12-29
2002-10-08
Patel, Ken (Department: 3612)
Land vehicles: bodies and tops
Bodies
Body shell
C296S193040, C180S069250, C180S069210
Reexamination Certificate
active
06460916
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of Invention
The invention relates to a utility vehicle having a load carrying platform at a rear portion thereof.
2. Description of Related Art
A four-wheel utility vehicle is generally formed as shown in FIGS.
11
(A) and
11
(B). The utility vehicle includes a metal body frame
10
, a total of four wheels inclusive of front and rear wheels
2
,
3
, driving members (not shown), such as an engine, and a driver's seat
4
, a load carrying platform
5
being provided at the back of the driver's seat
4
. The wheels have, in many cases, large-width tires which make the vehicle travel suitably on rough ground.
At the front side of the load carrying platform
5
, a cabin frame
20
′ is usually provided so as to surround the front and rear and left and right sides of the driver's seat
4
. The cabin frame
20
′ is formed by iron pipes so as to protect a driver, and also enable a roof (not shown) or a hood (not shown) to be fixed to the cabin frame, whereby it is rendered possible to shelter the driver's seat
4
from the rain, shade the driver's seat
4
from the sunlight, and fix lighting equipment
7
to the cabin frame
20
′ for carrying out night work easily. A front portion
21
′ of the cabin frame
20
′ has a rectangular frame structure as shown in FIG.
11
(A), and is fixed to upper portions of the body frame
10
so as to superpose horizontal plate shaped flanges
23
′ provided at left and right lower ends of the front portions
21
′ on the upper portions of the body frame
10
from above.
Although this type of utility vehicle is provided with a cabin frame
20
′, doors are not provided at side portions of the driver's seat
4
, nor is a windshield provided at the front portion thereof. One reason why doors and windshield are not provided are that a speed (upper limit of the capability) at which the vehicle can travel is set low as the vehicle is used off road. Further, it is desired the driver's getting into and out of the vehicle should be done easily in view of the need to maintain a satisfactory work efficiency of the vehicle.
Such a type related art utility vehicle has a cover, or fender, over the wheels
2
, a steering unit and the like. However, openable bonnets covering a trunk (storage case) having a large volume are not provided. Articles can be placed on the load carrying platform
5
at the back of the driver's seat
4
or inserted in a box provided near the driver's seat
4
. The utility vehicle of FIGS.
11
(A) and
11
(B) is disclosed in Japanese Utility Model No. 202579/1988.
Because the utility vehicle shown in FIGS.
11
(A) and
11
(B) is not provided with a bonnet and a storage case of a large volume, and articles have to be placed on the load carrying platform
5
at the back of the driver's seat
4
or in the box near the driver's seat
4
, the driver feels inconvenienced in some cases when the articles are of a certain kind and have certain quantities. That is, in the case where a driver carries somewhat large clothes, such as the driver's upper garment and coat, on the utility vehicle, such clothes put on the load carrying platform
5
could get wet with rain or be soiled. While storage boxes are provided near the driver's seat
4
, the boxes of the utility vehicle do not have a sufficient space for accommodating such clothes. Therefore a vehicle having a large volume storage case with a bonnet is required.
However, a storage case with a bonnet suitable for such as a utility vehicle cannot be formed easily. The reasons reside in the following. The bonnet of a utility vehicle must be smoothly and easily opened and closed by a driver seated in the seat, be capable of being kept in a fully opened state, and be of a simple structure. Moreover, a storage case with the bonnet must have a large volume and still able to be opened and closed easily by a driver in the seat. Because of the above reasons, a large volume bonnet in front of the driver's seat is required. But such a utility vehicle, as shown in FIGS.
11
(A) and
11
(B), having a front portion
21
′ cannot provide a large volume bonnet in front of the driver's seat.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention has been made in view of the above circumstances. The object of the invention is to provide a utility vehicle having a storage case of comparatively large dimensions, and a bonnet which covers the storage case permitting articles to be easily loaded into and unloaded from by the driver from the driver's seat.
To achieve the above object, the invention provides a utility vehicle having a load carrying platform at a rear portion thereof, a cabin frame formed of a bent rod around a driver's seat and an engine provided under the load carrying platform, comprising a storage case provided in front of the driver's seat; and a bonnet covering the storage case that is openable and closable at a rear portion thereof. In this specification, words and phrases, such as “left”, “right”, “front”, “rear” including “rear portion” and “in front of” are used. When these words and phrases are used without special mention, they refer to the direction in which the utility vehicle advances. The words “lateral”, “longitudinal”, “perpendicular” and “horizontal” used in the specification do not refer to directions in a strict sense but the generally understood directions.
Although the utility vehicle has a bonnet covering the storage case, the bonnet can be opened and closed by the driver from the driver's seat. In a regular vehicle that travels generally on finished roads, the opening and closing of the bonnet cannot be done unless the operations are carried out by a driver who has gotten out of the vehicle, or the operations are carried out using a special remote control member. However, in the utility vehicle according to the invention, a bonnet body or a bonnet opening and closing mechanism can be operated directly by the hand extended forward of a driver on the driver's seat. Because the bonnet is opened at a rear portion thereof, as mentioned above, articles can be easily loaded into or unloaded from a storage case under the bonnet.
The possibility of loading and unloading articles from the storage case provided on the inner side of the bonnet by a driver from the driver's seat is directly linked with the advantage of the utility vehicle, i.e. the possibility of improving the efficiency of an operation thereof.
Preferably, the bonnet has a bonnet body fixed to a body frame of the vehicle via a support arm, with a pivot portion provided on a front section of the body frame and a fixed end portion supporting the bonnet body in a position radially spaced from the pivot portion. Thus, when the bonnet body is opened, the bonnet body is moved to a front upper position and thereby separated from parts provided under the bonnet at a front portion of the vehicle.
According to the invention, when the bonnet body is opened, if the bonnet body is moved to a front upper position and thereby separated from parts provided under the bonnet at a front portion of the vehicle, the utility vehicle can easily prevent the bonnet body and other parts, such as a headlamp grill, from contacting each other.
Preferably, the support arm is formed of a bent rod, the bent rod has the pivot portion extending in the widthwise direction of the vehicle and connected pivotally to the body frame. End portions, extending in the longitudinal direction of the bonnet body, are fixed to the bonnet body. With this structure, the support arm is formed easily at low cost and is lightweight.
Preferably the cabin frame has front lower portions combined with the body frame, by superposing vertical joint surfaces of the cabin frame on the body frame from left and right outer sides thereof, and has left and right edge portions of the bonnet body positioned above the joint surfaces.
With this structure, the openable bonnet of the utility vehicle can be formed having a large
Kawasaki Jukogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
Oliff & Berridg,e PLC
Patel Ken
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