Title of Invention

MOTORCYCLE AIR CLEANER

Abstract

The air cleaner 13 has been caused to bulge forward of a side body cover 27 for covering the vehicle body frame 11 in such a manner that a part of the air cleaner 13 can be seen when the vehicle body is viewed from the side. space to be occupied by the air cleaner within the vehicle body cover can be reduced, the vehicle body cover can be miniaturized and there is no need for causing the vehicle body cover to locally bulge so that the air cleaner can be formed into an appearance having a smooth shape. Therefore, appearance quality of the vehicle body cover can be improved. In addition, it is possible to reduce the width of the rear part of the vehicle body cover, and to make the height lower so that a feeling of slimness of the vehicle body can be acquired and the rider's ease of egress and ingress can be enhanced.

Full Text

FORM 2 THE PATENTS ACT 1970 [39 OF 1970] COMPLETE SPECIFICATION [See Section 10] "MOTORCYCLE AIR CLEANER" HONDA GIKEN KOGYO KABUSHIKI KAISHA, a corporation of Japan, having a place of business at 1-1, Minamiaoyama 2-chome, Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan, The following specification particularly describes the nature of the invention and the manner in which it is to be performed:- [Detailed Description of the Invention] [0001] [Technical Field of the Invention] The present invention relates to an air cleaner for a motorcycle which has a vehicle body having a feeling of slimness and smooth in appearance and is preferred to further enhance an occupant"s ease of egress and ingress. [0002] [Prior Art] As an air cleaner for a motorcycle, there is known, for example, "Air Cleaner Device of an Internal Combustion Engine for a Motorcycle" disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 63-12074. In Fig. 2 of the above described official gazette, there is described a motorcycle in which a main pipe 2 extends from a head pipe H (for the reference numeral, one specified in the official gazette is used and so forth. ) ; in the lower part of this main pipe 2, there is mounted an air cleaner A; at this air cleaner A, there are provided air intake pipes 7, 7 for extending above the main pipe 2; an air cleaner A including these air intake pipes 7, 7 is housed within a leg shield 1; and the leg shields 1 at positions corresponding to the air intake pipes 7, 7 have been caused to bulge upwardly. [0003] [Problems to be solved by the Invention] In the above described technique specified in the official gazette, since the leg shield 1 becomes large-sized and locally bulges because of arrangement of the air cleaner A inside the leg shield 1, a feeling of slimness of the vehicle body cannot be acquired, but it can be also conceived that the 2 rider"s ease of egress and ingress might be impaired because the leg shield 1 becomes large-sized. [0004] Thus, it is an object of the present invention to obtain a vehicle body which has a feeling of slimness and is smoother in appearance by improving the air cleaner for the motorcycle and to further enhance the occupant"s ease of egress and ingress by making the height of the vehicle body cover lower. [0005] [Means for solving the Problems] In order to achieve the above described object, Claim 1 is characterized in that in a motorcycle in which a vehicle body frame extends obliquely below backward from a head pipe, an engine is mounted onto this vehicle body frame and an air cleaner is arranged above in front of this engine, the air cleaner is caused to bulge forward of a vehicle body cover for covering the vehicle body frame in such a manner that a part of the air cleaner can be seen when the vehicle body is viewed from the side. [0006] The air cleaner is caused to bulge forward of the vehicle body cover, whereby it is possible to reduce space to be occupied by the air cleaner within the vehicle body cover, and to miniaturize the vehicle body cover and there is no need for causing the vehicle body cover to locally bulge so that it becomes easier to design the vehicle body cover in shape. In addition, it is possible to reduce the width of the rear part of the vehicle body cover, and to make the height 3 lower so that a feeling of slimness of the vehicle body can be acquired and the rider"s ease of egress and ingress can be enhanced. [0007] Claim 2 is characterized in that an intake port of the air cleaner is opened turned downward and a shield plate for preventing rainwater from entering from a road surface side into the intake port is caused to project from the air cleaner. The intake port of the air cleaner is opened turned downward, whereby there is no possibility that rainwater enters the intake port from above, but the shield plate is capable of preventing rainwater from splashing from a road surface side to enter the intake port. [0008] Claim 3 is characterized in that on both sides of a front part of the air cleaner, there is provided a stand-up wall each in an up-and-down direction and between the stand-up wall and an inside portion of the air cleaner, there are provided horizontal ribs. With the provision of a plurality of horizontal ribs, it is possible to enhance stiffness of the air cleaner. Also, when the front surface of the air cleaner is viewed, the air cleaner can be given, for example, an appearance like a radiator by the plurality of horizontal ribs. [Brief Description of the Drawings] Fig. 1 is a side view showing a motorcycle equipped with an air cleaner according to the present invention; Fig. 2 is a front part plan view showing a motorcycle equipped with an air cleaner according to the present invention; Fig. 3 is a side view showing an air cleaner according to the present invention; Fig. 4 is an explanatory view illustrating an air cleaner case of an air cleaner according to the present invention; Fig. 5 is an explanatory view illustrating a cover for an air cleaner according to the present invention; and Fig. 6 is an operation view illustrating an operation of an air cleaner according to the present invention; [0009] [Embodiments of the Invention] Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings, the description will be made of embodiments of the present 5 invention. In this respect, the drawings are to be viewed in accordance with the direction of the symbol. Fig. 1 is a side view showing a motorcycle equipped with an air cleaner according to the present invention, and the motorcycle 10 has: a vehicle body frame 11 arranged in a back-and-forth direction of the vehicle body; an engine 12 mounted below the front part of this vehicle body frame 11; an air cleaner 13 for purifying air to be supplied to this engine 12; a housing box 14 mounted at an intermediate portion of the vehicle body frame 11; a fuel tank 15 arranged behind this housing box 14; and a rear fender 17 arranged over the rear part of the vehicle body from below these housing box 14 and fuel tank 15, for covering the upper part of a rear wheel 16. [0010] In this case, a reference numeral 11a designates a front-side bracket fixed to the vehicle body frame 11 in order to mount the front part of the housing box 14 ; lib, a rear bracket fixed to the vehicle body frame 11 in order to mount the rear part of the housing box 14 and the front part of the fuel tank 15; lie, a rear part mounting portion provided on the vehicle body frame 11 in order to mount the rear part of the fuel tank 15; 12a, 12b, 12c, an engine 12 side mounting portion for mounting the engine 12 to the vehicle body frame 11 respectively; 13a, 13a (the back side symbol 13a is not shown) , air cleaner-side mounting portions for mounting the air cleaner 13 onto a pair of left and right side vehicle body covers 27 (the back-side side vehicle body cover 27 is not shown) for covering the sides of the front of the vehicle body frame 11; 6 14a, 14b, 14c, installation seats provided on the housing box 14 for mounting the housing box 14 on the vehicle body frame 11 side; 21, a head pipe mounted to the front end of the vehicle body frame 11; 22, a handlebar; 23, a front folk; 24, a front wheel; 25, a carburetor; 26, an upper vehicle body cover for covering above the front of the vehicle body frame 11; 28, a seat: 31, a rear cushion unit; 32, a rear folk to be swingably mounted to a pivot portion 33 provided on the vehicle body frame 11 and mounted with a rear wheel 16 at the rear part; and 34, a hinge for mounting a seat 28 to the housing box 14 so as to be able to open and close. [0011] The air cleaner 13 is caused to bulge forward of a side body cover 27 in such a manner that a part thereof can be seen when the vehicle body is viewed from the side. In this respect, a portion, which has bulged forward of the side body cover 27 of the air cleaner 13, has been cross-hatched for the sake of clarity. [0012] Fig. 2 is s front-part plan view showing a motorcycle equipped with an air cleaner according to the present invention, and shows a state in which an upper body cover 26 for covering the upper part of the air cleaner 13 has been removed. The air cleaner 13 has both sides of the rear part to be covered with the side body covers 27 , 27, and has been mounted to these side body covers 27, 27. [0013] Fig. 3 is a side view showing the air cleaner according 7 to the present invention, and the air cleaner 13 consists of: an air cleaner case 35; an air cleaner cover 36 for blocking an opening portion of this air cleaner case 35; a filter element 37 mounted onto the inner parts of these air cleaner case 35 and air cleaner cover 36; and an intake pipe 38 mounted to the discharge port of the air cleaner case 35 and connected to the carburetor 25 (See Fig. 1). [0014] The air cleaner case 35 is constructed such that intake ducts 39,39 (the back side intake duct 39 is not shown) for taking in air within the air cleaner 13 are mounted onto the upper part thereof, that these intake ducts 39, 39 are opened with an intake port 41 turned downward respectively, and that shield plates 42, 43 (the reference numeral 43 of the back side is not shown) for preventing rainwater from entering these intake ports 41 are caused to project from the outer surface thereof. [0015] Figs. 4(a) and 4(b) are explanatory views illustrating the air cleaner case of the air cleaner according to the present invention. Fig. 4(a) is a rear view showing the air cleaner case 35, and the air cleaner case 35 is constructed such that two intake ports 41, 41 are provided in the upper part thereof, and that mounting portions 13a, 13a are mounted to brackets 11a, 11a mounted to the lower part of the vehicle body frame 11 (See Fig. 1) with a bolt 44a and a nut 44b. Fig. 4(b) is a b-arrow view of Fig. 4(a), showing the shape of two shield plates 42, 43. These shield plates 42, 43 have been formed in a shape in which these go round to the rear surface from the left and right sides of the air cleaner case 35. In this respect, a reference numeral 46 designates an intake pipe mounting hole for mounting the intake pipe 38 {See Fig. 3). [0016] Figs. 5(a) and 5(b) are explanatory views illustrating the air cleaner cover of the air cleaner according to the present invention. Fig. 5(a) is a front view showing the air cleaner cover 36, showing that both side portions of the front surface of the air cleaner cover 36 have been integrally molded with a plurality of horizontal ribs 47 respectively. Reference numerals 48, 4 9 designate stand-up walls provided at the left and right edge portions of the front surface of the air cleaner cover 36. Fig. 5(b) is a view when the front surface of the air cleaner cover 36 shown in Fig. 5(a) has been inclined so as to be directed slightly upwardly, and shows that the horizontal ribs 47 have integrally been laid across the stand-up wall 48 and the wall surface 52 and have integrally been combined with a wall surface 51, and that the horizontal ribs 47 have integrally been laid across the stand-up wall 49 and the wall surface 52 and have integrally been combined with the wall surface 51. [0017] As described inFigs. 5{a) and 5(b), thepresent invention 9 is characterized in that both sides of the front part of the air cleaner cover 36 constituting the air cleaner 13 (See Fig. 3) are provided with stand-up walls 48, 49 in an up-and-down direction, and that between each of the stand-up walls 48, 49 and the wall surface 52 as the inner part of the air cleaner, there have been provided the horizontal ribs 47. With the provision of the plurality of horizontal ribs 47, it is possible to enhance stiffness of the air cleaner cover 36 of the air cleaner 13, and accordingly to enhance stiffness of the entire air cleaner 13. Thereby, it is possible to make wall thickness of the air cleaner 13 thinner and to reduce the weight of the air cleaner 13. [0018] Further when the front surface of the air cleaner 13, that is, the front surface of the air cleaner cover 36 is viewed, the plurality of horizontal ribs 47 are capable of giving the air cleaner 13, for example, such an appearance as a radiator, and a small - sized motorcycle (including a motor-bike) equipped with no radiator can give a new impression. [0019] Hereinafter, the description will be made of an operation of the air cleaner 13 described above. Fig. 6 is an operation view explaining an operation of the air cleaner according to the present invention. Into the intake port 41 of the air cleaner 13, air flows from below the intake port 41 as indicated by an arrow CD. [0020] For example, in the case where it is splashed from a road surface side toward the air cleaner 13 side, rainwater is blocked by the shield plates 42, 43 (the reference numeral 43 of the back side is not shown) provided on the air cleaner 13 as indicated by an arrow (D shown by broken line so that it does not reach the intake port 41 of the air cleaner 13. Also, even if it falls from above the air cleaner 13 as indicated by an arrow (D shown by broken line, rainwater does not enter the intake port 41 because the intake port 41 of the air cleaner 13 is opened below. [0021] As described in Figs. 3, 4 and 6, the present invention is characterized in that the intake port 41 of the air cleaner 13 has been opened turned downward and shield plates 42, 43 for preventing rainwater from entering from a road surface side into the intake port 41 have been caused to project from the air cleaner case 35 of the air cleaner 13. The intake port 41 of the air cleaner 13 has been opened turned downward, whereby there is no possibility that rainwater enters the intake port 41 from above, but the shield plate 42 is capable of preventing rainwater from splashing from a road surface side to enter the intake port 41. [0022] Also, as described in Figs . 1 and 2, the present invention is characterized in that in a motorcycle 10 in which a vehicle body frame 11 extends obliquely below backward from a head pipe 21, an engine 12 is mounted onto the vehicle body frame 11 and an air cleaner 13 is arranged above in front of this engine 12, the air cleaner 13 is caused to bulge forward of a side body cover 27 for covering the vehicle body frame 11 in such a manner that a part of the air cleaner 13 can be seen when the vehicle body is viewed from the side. [0023] The air cleaner 13 is caused to bulge forward of the side body cover 27, whereby it is possible to reduce space to be occupied by the air cleaner 13 within the side body cover 27, the side body cover 27 can be miniaturized and there is no need for causing the side body cover 27 to locally bulge so that it becomes easier to design the side body cover 27 in shape. [0024] Also, the air cleaner 13 has been caused to bulge forward, that is, the air cleaner 13 has been moved more forward than in the conventional case, whereby the width B of the rear part of the side body cover 27 can be made smaller as shown in Fig. 2, the height can be made lower, a feeling of slimness of the vehicle body can be acquired and the rider"s ease of egress and ingress can be enhanced. [0025] [Effect of the Invention] The present invention exhibits the following effect because of the above described structure. In the air cleaner for the motorcycle according to Claim 1, since the air cleaner has been caused to bulge forward of the vehicle body cover for covering the vehicle body frame in such a manner that a part thereof can be seen when the vehicle body is viewed from the side, it is possible to reduce space to be occupied by the air cleaner within the vehicle body cover, 12 the vehicle body cover can be miniaturized and there is no need for causing the vehicle body cover to locally bulge so that it becomes easier to design the vehicle body cover in shape. In addition, it is possible to reduce the width of the rear part of the vehicle body cover, and to make the height lower so that a feeling of slimness of the vehicle body can be acquired and the rider"s ease of egress and ingress can be enhanced. [0026] In the air cleaner for the motorcycle according to Claim 2 , since an intake port of the air cleaner has been opened turned downward and a shield plate for preventing rainwater from entering from a road surface side into the intake port has been caused to project from the air cleaner, there is no possibility that rainwater enters the intake port from above, but the shield plate is capable of preventing rainwater from splashing from a road surface side to enter the intake port. [0027] In the air cleaner for the motorcycle according to Claim 3, since on both sides of the front part of the air cleaner, there is provided a stand-up wall each in an up-and-down direction and between the stand-up wall and an inside portion of the air cleaner, there are provided horizontal ribs, it is possible to enhance stiffness of the air cleaner, to reduce the wall thickness of the air cleaner and to reduce the weight of the air cleaner. Also, when the front surface of the air cleaner is viewed, the air cleaner can be given, for example, an appearance like a radiator by the plurality of horizontal ribs. 13 WE CLAIM: 1. An air cleaner for a motorcycle in which a vehicle body frame extends obliquely below backward from a head pipe, an engine is mounted onto said vehicle body frame and an air cleaner is arranged above in front of said engine, characterized in that said air cleaner is caused to bulge forward of a vehicle body cover for covering said vehicle body frame in such a manner that a part of said air cleaner can be seen when said vehicle body is viewed from the side. 2. The air cleaner for the motorcycle according to claim 1, characterized in that an intake port of said air cleaner is opened turned downward and a shield plate for preventing rainwater from entering from a road surface side into said intake port is caused to project from said air cleaner. 3. The air cleaner for the motorcycle according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that on both sides of a front part of said air cleaner, there is provided a stand-up wall each in an up-and-down direction, and between said stand-up wall and an inside portion of said air cleaner, there are provided horizontal ribs. 4. An air cleaner for a motorcycle substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Dated 3rd day of January, 2002. [JAYANTA PAL] Of Remfry & Sagar Attorney for the supplicants

Documents:

5-MUM-2002-ABSTRACT(GRANTED)-(21-2-2008).pdf

5-mum-2002-abstract.doc

5-mum-2002-abstract.pdf

5-mum-2002-cancelled pages(27-7-2006).pdf

5-mum-2002-claims(3-1-2002).pdf

5-mum-2002-claims(amended)-(27-7-2006).pdf

5-mum-2002-claims(cancelled).pdf

5-mum-2002-claims(granted)-(21-2-2008).pdf

5-mum-2002-claims.doc

5-mum-2002-claims.pdf

5-mum-2002-correspondence(ipo)-(21-4-2008).pdf

5-mum-2002-correspondence(ipo).pdf

5-mum-2002-correspondence.pdf

5-mum-2002-declaration.pdf

5-mum-2002-description(complete)-(3-1-2002).pdf

5-mum-2002-description(granted)-(21-2-2008).pdf

5-mum-2002-description(granted).doc

5-mum-2002-descriptoin(granted).pdf

5-mum-2002-drawing(25-1-2002).pdf

5-mum-2002-drawing(3-1-2002).pdf

5-mum-2002-drawing(cancelled).pdf

5-mum-2002-drawing(granted)-(21-2-2008).pdf

5-mum-2002-drawing.pdf

5-mum-2002-form 1.pdf

5-mum-2002-form 18.pdf

5-mum-2002-form 2(complete)-(3-1-2002).pdf

5-mum-2002-form 2(granted)-(21-2-2008).pdf

5-mum-2002-form 2(granted).doc

5-mum-2002-form 2(granted).pdf

5-mum-2002-form 2(title page)-(3-1-2002).pdf

5-mum-2002-form 2(title page)-(granted)-(21-2-2008).pdf

5-mum-2002-form 2(title page).pdf

5-mum-2002-form 3(1-4-2002).pdf

5-mum-2002-form 3(1-4-2004).pdf

5-mum-2002-form 3.pdf

5-mum-2002-form 5(27-7-2006).pdf

5-mum-2002-form 5.pdf

5-mum-2002-other.pdf

5-mum-2002-power of attorney.pdf

5-mum-2002-u.s patents.pdf

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