Title of Invention

FRONT COMPARTMENT STRUCTURE FOR MOTORCYCLES AND THREE-WHEELED MOTORIZED VEHICLES

Abstract

[Problem] To provide a compartment with fewer parts and with a simple configuration at the rear part of the upper part of a leg shield while maintaining the original overall shape of the leg shield. [Resolving Means] A motorcycle 10 is provided with a compartment 48 having a rider-side opening at the rear part of the upper part of a leg shield 42. The legrshield comprises a lower half 60 and an upper half 70 attached to the upper ehd of the lower half 60. A lower compartment 63 having an opening that opens out upwards and towards the rider side is formed at the upper end of the lower half. A compartment recess 73 in which items can be stored and spanning substantially the en'tire width of the leg shield is formed at the upper half 70 on the rider side. An opening, substantially the entire surface of which opens out to the rider side and to the lower compartment side, is formed at this compartment recess. The compartment 48 is then formed by the lower compartment the compartment recess and a lid, as a result of the lid 80 covering the lower compartment opening and the compartment recess opening. [Selected Drawing] FIG. 2

Full Text

FORM 2 THE PATENTS ACT 1970 [39 OF 1970] COMPLETE SPECIFICATION [See Section 10) and Rule 13) n) "FRONT COMPARTMENT STRUCTURE FOR MOTORCYCLES AND THREE-WHEELED MOTORIZED VEHICLES" HONDA GIKEN KOGYO KABUSHIKI KAISHA, a corporation of Japan, having a place of business at 1-1, Minamiaoyama 2-chome, Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan, 15-6-2005 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] [Field of the Invention] The present invention relates to an improvement to a front compartment structure for motorcycles and three-wheeled motorized vehicles. [Prior Art] Motorcycles and motorized three-wheeled vehicles equipped with leg shields, at a front part of the vehicle body, for covering the legs of the rider, and a compartment at the upper rear part of the leg shield have been widely adopted. A structure for such a compartment is given in,for example, Utilit/Model Laid-open Publication No. Sho. 62-143582, "Accessory Case Assembly for a Vehicle such as a Motorcycle". In the above related technology, in FIG. 1 to FIG. 3 and FIG. 5 of this publication, an accessory case 16 is bolted to the rear of the upper part of a leg shield 8 (the numbers are cited from those listed in the publication, with the same going for the following). This accessory case 16 is bolt-fastened so as to be partitioned into two to the front and rear, i.e. partitioned into a rear case member 17 and a front case member 18. An opening at the back surface of the rear case member 17 is then covered by a lid 21 so as to form an accessory compartment 19. According to the aforementioned technology, an accessory case 16 can be provided at the leg shield 8 while maintaining the original overall shape of the leg shield 8. It is also easier for a rider to mount and dismount the vehicle than compared with the case where the accessory compartment 19 is provided at a lower part because the accessory case 19 is provided at the upper rear part of the leg shield 8. [Problems This Invention Sets Out To Solve] According to the aforementioned related technology, as the accessory case 16 is of a structure where partitioned rear and front cases 17 and 18 are joined together and attached to the leg shield 8, the structure is complicated, the number of parts is substantial and the number of assembly processes increases. However, even if the accessory case 16 is simply formed.integrally with the leg shield 8 in order to reduce the number of parts, forming the accessory compartment 19 while maintaining the original overall shape of the leg shield 8 puts a large load on the molds and manufacture is not straightforward. In particular, when a small opening is made in a relatively large capacity accessory compartment 19, a complicated mold is required in order to enable mold withdrawal and the load placed on the molds is further increased. The same can also be said for when an accessory case 16 formed as a single member is attached to the leg shield 8. It is therefore an object of the present invention to (1) provide a compartment with fewer parts and a simple structure at an upper rear part of a leg shield while maintaining the original overall shape of the leg shield covering the legs of a rider and (2) to provide a leg shield and compartment where the load placed on the molds is reduced and where the structure is simple. [Means for Solving the Problems] In order to achieve the aforementioned objects, a front compartment structure for motorcycles and three-wheeled motorized vehicles is provided with a compartment having a rider-side opening at a rear part of an upper part of a leg shield for covering the riders legs. The leg shield comprises a lower half and an upper half attached to the upper end of this lower half, a lower compartment having an opening that opens out upwards towards the rider-side is formed at the upper end of the lower half, a compartment recess for storing items is formed substantially across the entire width of the leg shield at the upper half on the rider-side, and an opening that opens out over substantially the entire surface on the rider side and opening at the lower compartment side is formed at the compartment recess. The compartment is constructed of the lower compartment, the compartment recess and a lid, as a result of covering the lower compartment opening and the compartment recess opening being covered by the lid. The lower half of the leg shield serves as the lower compartment, the upper half of the leg shield serves as the compartment recess, and the compartment is comprised of the lower compartment, the compartment recess and the lid, so that a compartment comprised of other members is not necessary. .. The leg shield is divided into a lower half serving as the lower compartment and an , ' upper half serving as the compartment recess, with the upper half being attached to the upper.end of the lower half. A compartment can therefore be provided at the rear part of the upper part of the leg shield while maintaining the original overall shape of the leg shield covering the riders' legs. Different directions of mold withdrawal can therefore be set when molding the separate lower compartment and compartment recess. Mold withdrawal when molding the compartment is therefore easy and the molds are simple. The lid is a member projecting along an edge of the compartment recess opening and an edge of the lower compartment opening on the rider side, and the depth of this projecting member is substantially the same as the depth of the compartment recess. The compartment opening is therefore large and storage is made substantially easier. Accordingly, the present invention relates to a front compartment structure for motorcycles and three wheeled motorized vehicles provided with a compartment having a rider-side opening at a rear part of an upper part of a leg shield for covering the riders legs, wherein the leg shield comprises a lower half and an upper half attached to the upper end of this lower half, a lower compartment having an opening that opens out upwards towards the rider-side is formed at the upper end of the lower half, a compartment recess for storing items is formed across the entire width of the leg shield at the upper half on rider side , and an opening that opens out over the entire surface on the rider-side and opening at the lower compartment side is formed at the compartment recess, with the compartment being constructed of the lower compartment, the compartment recess and a lid, as a result of the lower compartment opening and the compartment recess opening being covered by the lid. [Brief Description of the Accompany Drawing] FIG. 1 is a left-side view of a motorcycle of the present invention; FIG. 2 is a left side view of the surroundings of the leg shield of the present invention; FIG. 3 is a first perspective view of a front cover, leg shield and compartment of the present invention (one of two); FIG. 4 is a second perspective view of a front cover, leg shield and compartment of the present invention (two of two); FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of a front cover and leg shield of the present invention; FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 6-6 of FIG. 3; FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 7-7 of FIG. 3; FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the essential parts of the surroundings of the compartment opening of the present invention; and FIG. 9 is an exploded perspective view showing the external appearance of a structure .Embodiments] The following is a description based on the appended drawings of an embodiment of the present invention. Here, "front", "rear", "left", "right", "upper" and "lower" refer to directions as viewed by the rider, with Fr indicating the front, Rr indicating the rear, L indicating the left, R indicating the right and CL indicating the center of the vehicle in the lateral direction. It is also assumed that the drawings are viewed in the direction of the numerals. FIG. 1 is a left view of a motorcycle of the present invention. A motorcycle 10 is a two passenger motorcycle comprising a vehicle frame 11, a front fork 13 attached to a head pipe 12 of the vehicle frame 11 in such a manner as to be rotatable to the left and right, a front wheel 14 and front fender 15 attached to the front fork 13, handlebars 16 coupled to the front fork 13, a handlebar cover 17 covering the periphery of the handlebars 16, a power unit 22 with an engine 21 attached to the central part of the vehicle frame 11, a swing arm 23 attached to the rear part of the vehicle frame 11 in such a manner as to be capable of swinging up and down, a rear wheel 24 attached to a rear part of the swing arm 23, rear shock absorbers 25 suspended at a rear part of the swing arm 23, a seat 26 attached to a rear upper part of the vehicle frame 11, and a body cover 40 covering the vehicle frame 11. The vehicle frame 11 comprises a single main pipe 31 at the lateral center of the vehicle extending rearwards from the head pipe 12, a rear pipe 32 connected to the rear end of the main pipe 31 and extending towards the rear, and a reinforcing pipe 33 for reinforcing a connecting portion of the main pipe 31 and the rear pipe 32. The seat 26 is a two person seat with a detachable cushion for both the rider and a passenger to sit on. ine body cover 40 comprises a front cover 41 covering the front part of the head pipe 12, a leg shield 42 for covering the legs of the rider, a center cover 43 for covering from the center of the vehicle frame 11 to the rear, a side cover 44 covering the sides of the vehicle frame 11, and a fender 45 covering the upper part of the rear wheel 24. In the drawings, numeral 51 is a headlamp, numeral 52 is a carrier, numeral 53 is a bar-shaped step for the rider, numeral 54 is a shift pedal, numeral 55 is a main stand, numeral 56 is a bar-shaped step, numeral 57 is a rear wheel side cover, numeral 58 is a tail lamp, and numeral 59 is a chain cover. FIG. 2 is a left side view of the surroundings of a leg shield of this invention. The leg shield 42 is a cover member which, in addition to covering the front part of the legs of the rider, also covers the rear part of the head pipe 12 and the surroundings of the front part of the main pipe 31. A compartment 48 projecting towards the rider side (the right side in FIG. 2) is provided at the upper rear part of the leg shield 42, i.e. in the vicinity of the rear part of the head pipe 12. FIG. 3 is a first perspective view (one of two) of the front cover, leg shield and compartment of the present invention, and shows a lid 80 of the compartment 48 in a closed state. The leg shield 42 is partitioned into upper and lower halves of a lower half 60 and an upper half 70 attached to the upper end of the lower half 60, with the compartment 48 being provided between the lower half 60 and the upper half 70. The lower half 60 comprises a frame cover 61 with a back surface opening downwards at an incline provided at the lateral center of the vehicle and a pair of lower leg shields 62 and 62 extending at the left and right from the front end of the frame cover 61. The frame cover 61 covers the engine 21 shown in FIG. 2 and the front part of the main pipe 31 and the lower leg shields 62 and 62 cover the legs of the rider. The lid 80 is attached to a lower compartment 63 by lower left and right hinges 81 and 81 and a lock mechanism 83 which is locked and unlocked by a key 82 and is shown by imaginary lines is also attached. FIG. 4 is a second perspective view (two of two) of the front cover, leg shield and compartment of the present invention, and shows the lid 80 of the compartment 48 in an open state. The compartment 48 comprises the lower compartment 63 integrally formed at the upper end of the lower half 60 on the rider side (back surface), a compartment recess 73 integrally formed at the upper half 70 on the rider side, and a lid 80 covering an opening 64 of the lower compartment 63 and an opening 74 of the compartment recess 73. The lid 80 is a projecting member that runs along the edge of the opening 64 of the lower compartment 63 and the opening 74 of the compartment recess 73 so as to project towards the rider side. The front cover 41, lower half 60, upper half 70 and lid 80 are resin molded from polypropylene resin etc. FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of a front cover and leg shield of the present invention. The lower compartment 63 is a member projecting from the upper end of the leg shield 42 in such a manner as to form the opening 64 opening both upwards and towards the front. Specifically, the lower compartment 63 is a compartment case lower part that goes from the upper end of the frame cover 61 and across the upper ends of the left and right lower leg shields 62 and 62 extending from the upper end of the frame cover 61 so as to span the whole of the lateral direction of the vehicle and extend in such a manner as to be bent upwards and towards the rear. The upper opening 64 of the lower compartment 63, i.e. the level of the upper end is in the vicinity of the lower end of the head pipe 12 shown in FIG. 2. The upper half 70 is a member of a shape with a lower end outline that runs along the upper end of the frame cover 61, and along the outline of the upper end of the lower leg shields 62 and 62. The upper half 70 is provided with left and right upper leg shields 71 and 71 extending upwards from the left and right lower leg shields 62 and 62 and a pair of left and right partitioning plates 72 and 72 are formed at the lateral center of the vehicle spaced at a prescribed interval in order to allow the head pipe 12 (refer to FIG. 2) to pass through. T The compartment recess 73 is a recess that forms an opening 74 that opens to the driver side and to the side of the lower compartment 63. Side plates 75 and 75 extend towards the rider from the back surface of the upper leg shields 71 and 71 and this recess is then the compartment case upper part that provides the space enclosed by the upper leg shields 71 and 71 and the side plates 75 and 75. FIG. 6 is a cross-section taken along line 6-6 of FIG. 3 and shows that the compartment recess 73 spans roughly the entire width of the leg shield 42 on the driver side, i.e. roughly the entire width of the upper part 70, and is of a size which makes storage of accessories possible. An opening 74 of the compartment recess 73 opens to the entire driver side surface. The size of the lower compartment 63 shown in FIG. 5 and the size of the opening 64 of the lower housing are the same as the size of the compartment recess 73 and the opening 74. The feature of the compartment 48 is that a depth LI of the lid 80 is substantially the same as a depth L2 of the compartment recess 73. The opening is therefore larger and storing items is made substantially easier. The compartment recess 73 is formed with a packing attachment channel 76 at the edge of the opening 74 and packing 77 is attached to the packing channel 76. The packing 77 then seals between the opening 74 and the lid 80. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 7-7 of FIG. 3 showing where the opening 48 is made larger by making the depth of the lid 80 larger. The front end of the lower compartment 63 fits with the rear end of the compartment recess 73 and members 63 and 73 are then fastened together using a screw. Sealant is applied between the front end of the lower compartment 63 and the rear end of the compartment recess 73 so as to seal therebetween. FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the essential parts of the surroundings of the opening of the compartment of the present invention showing packing 77 attached to the entire periphery of the entire periphery of the surface of the opening 74 of the compartment recess 73 coming into contact with the lid 80 (refer to FIG. 7). FIG. 9 is an exploded perspective view showing the external appearance of a structure for the leg shield and its attachment structure for the present invention. The lower half 60 of the leg shield 42 is integrally formed with a head cover 65 that extends from an upper part thereof and is C-shaped when viewed from above so that the rear part of the head pipe 12 is covered by this head cover 65. The lower half 60 can be reliably and firmly attached by (1) attaching the side walls of the head cover 65 to a gusset 34 of the head pipe 12 using bolts 91 and 91, (2) attaching side walls at the lower part of the rear of the frame cover 61 to a bracket 35 of the main pipe 31 using bolts 92 and 92, and (3) attaching side walls at a central lower part of the frame cover 61. to the cylinder block 28 of the engine 21 using bolts 93 and 93. Returning to FIG. 5, in order to attach the upper half 70 to the lower half 60, (1) the partitioning walls 72 and 72 fits with the side surfaces of the head cover 65 and are attached with screws 94 and 94, (2) the rear end of the compartment recess 73 fits with the front end of the lower compartment 63 and the upper leg shields 71 and 71 are attached to the lower leg shields 62 and 62 using screws 95 and 95 (just the left one of which is shown in FIG. 5). In order to attach the front cover 41 to the upper half 70, (1) the front cover 41 is made to cover the front part of the upper half 70, (2) the front cover 41 is fastened to both of the upper leg shields 71 and 71 using the screws 95 and 95, (3) the front cover 41 is attached to the upper part of the upper leg shields 71 and 71 using screws 96 and 96 (just the left of which is shown in FIG. 5). As a result of this fastening with screws the upper half 70 is attached to the lower half 60, the leg shield 42 is assembled and the front cover 41 is attached to the leg shield 42. Numeral 66 is an inspection lid and numerals 78 and 78 are bolt release channels. The following is a description of the operation of the compartment structure of the aforementioned configuration. (1) As shown in FIG. 1, because the compartment 48 is provided at the upper part of the leg shield 42, it is easier for a rider to mount and dismount compared to when the compartment 48 is provided at the lower part of the leg shield 42. (2) As shown in FIG. 2, the weight of accessories is borne directly by the lower compartment 63 of the leg shield 42 attached to the vehicle frame 11 and comparatively heavy accessories can therefore be stored. (3) As shown in FIG. 4, a compartment recess 73 in which items can be stored is formed across roughly the entire width of the leg shield 42 and an opening 74, the entire surface of which opens out to the rider side, is formed at this compartment recess 73. The compartment 48 therefore has a large capacity and substantial open surface area and can therefore easily be used for storing large accessories such as a bag B, etc. (4) As shown in FIG. 5, the lower half 60 of the leg shield 42 also serves as the lower compartment 63, the upper half 70 of the leg shield 42 also serves as the compartment recess 73 and the compartment 48 (refer to FIG. 4) is formed from the lower compartment 63, the compartment recess 73 and the lid 80. It is therefore not necessary to form the compartment from other members and the number of parts required to form the compartment 48 can be reduced. (5) Further, the leg shield 42 is divided into the lower half 60 serving as the lower compartment 63 and the upper half 70 serving as the compartment recess 73, with the upper half 70 then being attached to the upper end of the lower half 60. The original overall shape of the leg shield 42 covering the legs of the rider can therefore be maintained and a compartment of a simple structure can be provided at the rear part of the upper part of the leg shield 42. (6) When the separate lower compartment 63 and compartment recess 73 are molded, the orientation of the opening 64 and the orientation of the opening 74 can be lined up and the mold withdrawal directions can be set separately. Mold withdrawal when molding the compartment 48 (refer to FIG. 4) is therefore straightforward and the molds are simple. The load on the molds used for forming the leg shield 42 and the compartment 48 is therefore alleviated and manufacturing is straightforward. In the aforementioned embodiment of the present invention, (1) the motorcycle 10 includes scooter type motorcycles. In addition to being provided at the leg shield 42 of the motorcycle 10, the compartment 48 can also be provided at the leg shield of a three-wheeled motorized vehicle. (2) The shape and dimensions of the front cover 41 are arbitrary, and the presence or absence of the front cover 41 is optional. (3) The leg shield 42 also includes inner covers attached to the reverse side of the front cover 41, as in the case of scooter-type motorcycles. For example, the lower half 60 can be taken as the leg shield, the upper half 70 as the inner cover, the lower compartment 63 can be molded at the lower half 60 and the compartment recess 73 can be molded at the upper half 70. (4) The presence or absence of the hinge 81 is optional, providing that the lid 80 covers the opening 64 of the lower compartment 63 and the opening 74 of the compartment recess 73. [Effects of the Invention] The present invention brings about the following results with the above configuration. The lower half of the leg shield serves as the lower compartment, the upper half of the leg shield serves as the compartment recess, and the compartment is comprised of the lower compartment, the compartment recess and the lid. A compartment comprised of other members is therefore not necessary and the number of parts required to form the compartment can be reduced. Further, the leg shield is divided into a lower half serving as the lower compartment and an upper half serving as the compartment recess, with the upper half being attached to the upper end of the lower half. A compartment simple in structure can therefore be provided at the rear part of the upper part of the leg shield while maintaining the original overall shape of the leg shield covering the riders' legs. The orientations of the respective openings can be aligned and different directions of mold withdrawal can therefore be set when molding the separate lower compartment and compartment recess. Mold withdrawal when molding the compartment is therefore easy and the molds are simple. The load placed on the molds for molding the leg shield and the compartment is therefore alleviated and manufacture is easy. A compartment recess in which items can be stored is formed across roughly the entire width of the leg shield and an opening, the entire surface of which opens out to the rider side, is formed at this compartment recess. The compartment therefore has a large capacity and substantial open surface area and can therefore easily be used for storing large accessories such as bags, etc. shield attached to tne vehicle frame so that relatively heavy accessories can be stored. Because the compartment is provided at the upper part of the leg shield, it is easier for the rider to mount and dismount than compared to when the compartment is provided at the lower part of the leg shield. The lid is a member projecting along an edge of the compartment recess opening and an edge of the lower compartment opening on the rider side, and the depth of this projecting member is substantially the same as the depth of the compartment recess. The opening is therefore large and storage is made substantially easier. [Key to the Reference Numerals] 1 motorcycle 41 front cover 42 leg shield 48 compartment 60 lower half 63 lower compartment 64 lower compartment opening 70 upper half 73 compartment recess 74 compartment recess opening 80 lid L2 lid depth L2 compartment recess depth WE CLAIM: 1. A front compartment structure for motorcycles and three wheeled motorized vehicles provided with a compartment having a rider-side opening at a rear part of an upper part of a leg shield for covering the riders legs, wherein the leg shield comprises a lower half and an upper half attached to the upper end of this lower half, a lower compartment having an opening that opens out upwards towards the rider-side is formed at the upper end of the lower half, a compartment recess for storing items is formed across the entire width of the leg shield at the upper half on rider side , and an opening that opens out over the entire surface on the rider-side and opening at the lower compartment side is formed at the compartment recess, with the compartment being constructed of the lower compartment, the compartment recess and a lid, as a result of the lower compartment opening and the compartment recess opening being covered by the lid. 2. The front compartment structure for motorcycles and three-wheeled motorized vehicles as claimed in claim 1, wherein the lid is a member projecting along an edge of the compartment recess opening and an edge of the lower compartment opening on the rider-side , and the depth of this projecting member is the same as the depth of the compartment recess. 3. A front compartment structure for motorcycles substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Dated this 21st day of January, 2000. (JAYANTA PAL) OF REMFRY & SAGAR ATTORNEY FOR THE APPLICANT

Documents:

70-mum-2000-abstract(granted)-(15-06-2005).doc

70-mum-2000-abstract(granted)-(15-06-2005).pdf

70-mum-2000-cancelled page(15-06-2005).pdf

70-mum-2000-claim(granted)-(15-06-2005).doc

70-mum-2000-claim(granted)-(15-06-2005).pdf

70-mum-2000-clorrespondence(ipo)-(16-06-2004).pdf

70-mum-2000-correspondence(23-01-2007).pdf

70-mum-2000-drawing(02-05-2000).pdf

70-mum-2000-form 1(21-01-2000).pdf

70-mum-2000-form 19(15-04-2004).pdf

70-mum-2000-form 2 (granted)-(15-06-2005).doc

70-mum-2000-form 2(granted)-(15-06-2005).pdf

70-mum-2000-form 3(15-06-2005).pdf

70-mum-2000-form 3(20-02-2001).pdf

70-mum-2000-form 3(21-01-2000).pdf

70-mum-2000-form 5(21-01-2000).pdf

70-mum-2000-petition under rule 138(15-06-2005).pdf

70-mum-2000-power of attorney(11-04-2000).pdf

70-mum-2000-power of attorney(15-06-2005).pdf

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