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Title:
FRAME OF A BUS OR AN INDUSTRIAL TRANSPORT VEHICLE
Document Type and Number:
WIPO Patent Application WO/2016/174570
Kind Code:
A1
Abstract:
The frame of a vehicle, such as a bus or industrial transport vehicle, is formed of a plurality of welded elements including ribs (16), cross members (14) and uprights (10). At least one upright (10) is formed by a first section bar (18) welded to a second section bar (20), thereby forming a closed, hollow cross section.

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Inventors:
PASSONE PIETRO (IT)
Application Number:
PCT/IB2016/052347
Publication Date:
November 03, 2016
Filing Date:
April 26, 2016
Export Citation:
Click for automatic bibliography generation   Help
Assignee:
PASSONE PIETRO (IT)
International Classes:
B62D25/00; B62D25/04; B62D31/02; B62D33/04; B62D47/02
Domestic Patent References:
WO2014163203A12014-10-09
WO2015008739A12015-01-22
Foreign References:
JP2010064669A2010-03-25
DE19903724A12000-08-03
DE102010016474A12011-10-20
Attorney, Agent or Firm:
GERBINO, Angelo et al. (Corso Emilia 8, Torino, IT)
Download PDF:
Claims:
CLAIMS

1. Frame of a vehicle, such as a bus or industrial transport vehicle, formed by a plurality of welded elements, said frame being characterized in that at least one of said elements is an upright (10) comprising a first section (18) welded to a second section (20) to form a hollow closed cross section.

2. Frame according to Claim 1, wherein said first section (18) has a cross section with a recessed centre portion (22) and protruding end portions (24) and said second section (20) has an open end inserted into said centre portion (22) of the first section (18) and an opposite closed end that is narrower than the width of the open end.

3. Frame according to Claim 1 or 2, wherein said second section (20) has a substantially V-shaped cross section with inward folded ends (26), and a flattened or acute- angled vertex (28).

4. Frame according to Claim 1 or 2, wherein said second section (20) has a cross section with a substantially V-shaped portion, the arms (30) of which lead to respective rectilinear lengths (32) that are substantially perpendicular to the first section (18), the ends (34) of which are folded inwards.

5. Frame according to any one of the previous claims, further comprising at least one cross member (14) formed by a third section, preferably having a cross section with two closed cavities (36) positioned side by side.

6. Frame according to Claim 5, wherein said closed cavities (36) positioned side by side have a polygonal shape, in particular rectangular or square.

7. Frame according to Claim 5 or 6, wherein said cross member (14) has at least one side notch (38), within which said upright (10) is welded.

8. Frame according to any one of the previous claims, further comprising at least one rib (16) formed by a fourth section, preferably having a substantially V-shaped cross section with outward folded ends (44) and a flattened vertex (46).

9. Frame according to Claim 8, wherein at an upper end of said upright (10) the second section (20) has a length (48) protruding from the first section (18) that is inserted into a lower end of said rib (16), said ends of the upright (10) and the rib (16) being joined by spot welds (50, 52).

10. Frame according to any one of the previous claims, wherein said elements are selected from a group consisting of uprights (10), cross members (14) and ribs (16), each upright (10) being formed by two sections (18, 20) welded together and each cross member (14) and rib (16) being formed by a respective single section.

11. Frame according to any one of the previous claims, wherein said first section (18) and said second section (20) are made from different materials and/or are of different thicknesses.

12. Bus or industrial transport vehicle having a frame according to any one of the previous claims.

Description:
Frame of a bus or an industrial transport vehicle

The present invention relates to a frame of a vehicle, such as a bus or an industrial transport vehicle, formed by a plurality of elements welded together.

In the prior art, such frames are made using substantially manual techniques by welding together, typically using an arc welder, elements including one-piece pipes, each of which can for example form an upright, rib or cross member.

One objective of the present invention is to provide an improved frame in relation to the frames described in the prior art, and that can in particular be made using industrial methods and that is lightweight.

According to the invention, this objective is achieved using a frame having the features indicated in Claim 1 below. In particular, at least one of the elements making up the frame is an upright formed by a first section welded to a second section to form a hollow, closed cross section. Preferably, the first section has a cross section with a recessed centre portion and protruding end portions and the second section has an open end inserted into said centre portion of the first section and an opposite closed end that is narrower than the width of the open end. Preferential embodiments of the frame according to the invention are set out in the dependent claims.

Forming each upright of the frame by joining together two sections, which may be made of different materials and be of different thicknesses, makes it possible to optimize the structure, making same suitable for specific usage requirements. For example, only one of the two sections (typically the one arranged on the inside, which is subject to greater stress) need be made of high or very-high strength steel and/or be of a conventional thickness, while the other section can be thinner and made of a different material, such as conventional steel. Naturally, two sections made of the same material and of the same thickness may be used, as may any other combination of materials and thicknesses be selected independently for each of the two sections. This helps to significantly reduce both the cost and the weight of the frame, without adversely affecting the performance of same. Furthermore, the size of the cross section of the element can be appropriately reduced in relation to the size required when using a one-piece tube, which helps to further reduce overall weight.

Preferably, the other elements making up the frame, such as ribs and cross members, may also be made from a respective profiled element, for which the desired constituent material and cross section may be used, thereby enhancing the aforementioned advantages.

The greater flexibility provided in terms of choice of the cross section of each element of the frame also makes it possible to use shapes that facilitate the assembly of the different elements, for example using spot welding techniques in up to 90% of joints, and simplifying assembly on the frame of bodywork elements, windows, internal coverings, etc.

Consequently, the method for producing the frame and the vehicle as a whole can be streamlined and applied using industrial techniques, making same simpler and cheaper.

The present invention also relates to a bus or industrial transport vehicle with a frame of the type described above.

Further advantages and features of the present invention are clearly set out in the detailed description below, provided as a non-limiting example with reference to the attached drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a schematic perspective view of a frame according to the invention, Figures 2a, 2b and 2c are cross-sectional views, along the line Π-Π in Figure 1, of respective embodiments of an upright of the frame according to the invention,

Figure 3 is a perspective view of a length of a cross member of the frame according to the invention,

Figures 4 and 5 are respective perspective views from different angles of the upright and of the cross member in the previous figures, welded together,

Figure 6 is a cross- sectional view along the line VI- VI in Figure 1 of a rib of the frame according to the invention, Figures 7 and 8 are respective perspective views showing the coupling of an upright and a rib from the previous figures,

Figure 9 is a magnification of a detail from Figure 8, and

Figures 10 and 11 are cross-sectional views along the lines X-X and XI-XI respectively in Figure 9.

A bus frame is formed (Figure 1) by a plurality of elements welded together. In particular, such elements notably include uprights 10 that extend linearly along the sides of the frame substantially perpendicular to the horizontal plane containing the longitudinal axis 12 of the bus, cross members 14 that extend linearly and substantially parallel to the horizontal plane containing the axis 12, and arch-shaped ribs 16 that extend transversely across said axis 12, forming the roof and joining the uprights 10 located on opposing sides of the bus.

Each upright 10 is formed (Figure 2a) by a first section 18 welded to a second section 20, thereby as a whole forming a closed, hollow cross section. In particular, the first section 18 has a cross section with a recessed centre portion 22 and protruding end portions 24, while the second section has a substantially V-shaped cross section with inward folded ends 26 and an acute-angle vertex 28. The ends 26 of the second section 20 are welded into the central portion 22 of the first section 18 at the points indicated by reference sign 29.

Figures 2b and 2c illustrate respective alternative embodiments of the cross section of the upright 10 in which the second section 20 in all cases has an open end with end portions welded into the central portion 22 of the first section 18, and an opposing closed end 28 that is narrower than the width of the open end, such that the section of the upright 10 is in all cases closed as a whole and tends to taper inwards.

In detail, in the embodiment shown in Figure 2b, the second section 20 has a substantially V-shaped cross section with inward folded extremities 26 and a flattened vertex 28.

On the other hand, in the embodiment shown in Figure 2c, the second section 20 has a cross section with a substantially V-shaped portion, the arms 30 of which lead to respective rectilinear lengths 32 that are substantially perpendicular to the first section 18, the ends 34 of which are folded inwards.

Each cross member 14 is formed (Figure 3) by a third section with a cross section having two closed cavities 36 that are positioned side by side and have a polygon shape, in particular square or rectangular. The two cavities 36 are divided by an internal wall 37 welded at the ends 39 to the external wall. The cross member 14 also has side notches 38 substantially perpendicular to the horizontal plane containing the longitudinal axis 12 of the bus. In particular, the notches 38 are located at the crossing points with the uprights 10 and the cross section of the former fits the cross section of the latter. Consequently, once (Figures 4 and 5) a respective length of the upright 10 has been inserted into the notch 38, the two parts 10, 14 can be welded together using welds extending either parallel 40 or transversely 42 in relation to the horizontal plane containing the longitudinal axis 12.

Each rib 16 is generally arch-shaped and is formed by a fourth section with (Figure 6) a substantially V-shaped cross section with outward folded ends 44 and a flattened vertex 46.

As shown in Figures 7 and 8, at each top end of the uprights 10, the second section 20 has a length 48 protruding beyond the first section 18. The length 48 may be inserted into a lower end of the rib 16. The portions of said ends that are in contact are then welded together, thereby attaching the rib 16 to the upright 10 extending up one side of the frame. Naturally, the other lower end of the rib 16 can be similarly welded to an upright 10 extending up the opposite side of the frame.

Figures 9, 10 and 11 show in detail the positioning of the spot welds: in particular, there are spot welds 50 between the arms respectively in contact with the V-section portions of the protruding length 48 of the second section 20 of the upright 10 and of the rib 16, as well as spot welds 52 between the end portions 24 of the first section 18 of the upright 10 and the outward folded ends 44 of the rib 16.

It should also be noted that the protruding portions of the elements described above, such as the end portions 24 of the first section 18 of the uprights 10 and the outward folded ends 44 of the arms of the ribs 16, significantly facilitate the assembly on the frame of additional components of the bus, such as bodywork components, windows, internal coverings, etc., without in principle requiring any additional work. Indeed, the presence of these protruding portions can be determined when the sections are being shaped, which must in all cases be done to ensure same have the shape required to satisfy the remaining usage requirements.

Naturally, leaving untouched the principle of the invention, the implementation details and the embodiments may be varied significantly from the description, which is provided purely by way of example, without thereby moving outside the scope of the invention as defined in the attached claims. For example, in a given frame, all of the uprights, cross members and ribs could have the same respective section and be made of the same material, or the most appropriate section and material for each of these elements could be selected independently. It is also possible that some or all of the elements making up the frame may be made from sections while the remaining elements may be conventional elements, such as tubes.