Indian Patents. 251306:A MOTORCYCLE WITH RIGID FRONT COWLING

Title of Invention	A MOTORCYCLE WITH RIGID FRONT COWLING
Abstract	There is made a motorcycle having possessed a headlight having been attached to a vehicle body, and a front cowling which has plural cowling pieces having been molded as separate bodies, and has been fixed to the vehicle body by being attached to the headlight.

Full Text	MOTORCYCLE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a motorcycle and, especially, relates to its front cowling. 2. Description of the Related Art In the front cowling possessed in a vehicle body front part of the motorcycle and formed by a resin and the like, there is one to which a headlight is attached. For example, in the front cowing described in JP-UM-A-62-70076, the headlight is attached to one pair of left/right divided cowlings which have been separately molded. Hitherto, a fixation of the front cowling like this to a vehicle body has been performed by fixing a stay having been attached to the front cowling to the vehicle body. However, in the above prior art, since it follows that the resin-made front cowling supports the heavy headlight, a large load has been applied to the front cowing whose rigidity is low. Further, as described in the above JP-UM-A-62-7 007 6, in the case where the front cowling is constituted by the one pair of left/right divided cowlings, since the rigidity of the front cowling becomes comparatively low one, a flexure has been liable to occur by a load of the headlight. Accordingly, in 1 this case, it has been difficult to firmly fix the headlight to the vehicle body through the front cowling for instance. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is one having been made in view of the above problems, and one of its objects is to provide a motorcycle in which the load to the front cowling can be reduced. A motorcycle for solving the above problems, which is concerned with one embodiment of the present invention, is characterized by having possessed a headlight having been attached to a vehicle body, and a front cowling which has plural cowling pieces having been molded as separate bodies, and has been fixed to the vehicle body by being attached to the headlight. According to the present invention, it is possible to provide the motorcycle in which the load to the front cowling can be reduced. Therefore, it is possible to effectively prevent the flexure of the front cowling constituted by including the plural cowling pieces. Further, in one mode of the present invention, there may be made such that it has possessed a light stay for attaching the headlight to the vehicle body, whose one part is attached to a portion different from an attachment portion of the headlight to the front cowling, and whose the other one end 2 part is attached to the vehicle body. If made like this, since an attachment of the headlight to the vehicle body is performed separately, independently from an attachment to the front cowling, it is possible to more reduce the load to the front cowling. Further, in one mode of the present invention, there may be made such that the headlight has a body part which bulges to a vehicle rear side, and in whose vehicle front side face there has been provided a reflector, and there has been possessed a light stay for attaching the headlight to the vehicle body, whose one part is attached to the vehicle rear side face of the body part, and whose the other one end part is attached to the vehicle body. If made like this, since the attachment of the headlight to the vehicle body is performed through the stay having been attached, within the headlight, to the body part whose rigidity is high, it is possible to firmly fix the headlight to the vehicle body. Accordingly, it is possible to more reduce the load to the front cowling. Further, in one mode of the present invention, there may be made such that the headlight is attached, within a front part of the vehicle body, to a portion capable of being steered by a handle. If made like this, it is possible to reduce the load to the front cowling in the motorcycle in which the headlight moves monolithically with the vehicle body front part following upon a handle operation. 3 Further, in one mode of the present invention, there may be made such that the front cowling has a shaft support part, and is shaft-supported to the vehicle body so as to be rotatable about an axis which passes through the shaft support part and extends in a vehicle width direction. If made like this, since an assembly including the headlight and the front cowling can be shaft-supported in a position remote from the headlight irrespective of a size and a weight of the headlight, it is possible to easily perform a fine adjustment of an optical axis of the headlight. Further, since the load to the front cowling can be reduced, it is possible to certainly perform an optical axis adjustment of the headlight by the fact that the front cowling is rotated. Further, in a case where an impact has been exerted on the front cowling, it is possible to effectively prevent an injury of the front cowling by the fact that the front cowling suitably rotates about the shaft support part. Further, in this case, there may be made such that it has possessed additionally a light stay for attaching the headlight to the vehicle body, which supports the headlight in a vehicle downwardness than the shaft support part so as to be capable of altering a distance between the headlight and the vehicle body following upon a rotation of the front cowling. If made like this, since the distance between the headlight and the vehicle body can be altered following upon the rotation of the front cowling, it is possible to simply and certainly 4 perform positioning of the headlight when adjusting the optical axis of the headlight. Further, there may be made such that the front cowling has a face having at least two ridgelines in its circumference, and the shaft support part is provided such that its at least one part is connected to the face. If made like this, since it follows that the shaft support part is provided, within the front cowling, in a portion which has been formed three-dimensionally and whose rigidity is high, it is possible to more certainly perform the optical axis adjustment of the headlight. Further, there may be made such that the front cowling has a front face part extending to a vehicle body rear toward a vehicle width direction outside, and a folded face part extending toward a vehicle width direction inside in a vehicle rear of the front face part, and the face having at least two ridgelines in its circumference is the folded face part. If made like this, it is possible to effectively protect the shaft support part from an adhesion of contamination, the impact and the like following upon a running of the vehicle, and it is also possible to improve a design ability of the front cowling. Further, there may be made such that the front cowling has other face connected to the face through one between the at least two ridgelines, and the shaft support part is provided while striding the face having at least two ridgelines in its 5 circumference and the other face. If made like this, since it follows that the shaft support part is provided, within the front cowling, in the portion which has been formed three-dimensionally and whose rigidity is high, it is possible to more certainly perform the optical axis adjustment of the headlight. Further, there may be made such that it has possessed a plate stay for supporting a number plate, which can rotate monolithically with the front cowling. If made like this, since the plate stay moves following a rotation of the front cowling, it is also possible to avoid an interference between the number plate having been attached to the plate stay and the front cowling on an occasion of the optical axis adjustment of the headlight. Further, in this case, there may be made such that it possesses additionally a light stay for attaching the headlight to the vehicle body, which supports the headlight in a vehicle downwardness than the shaft support part so as to be capable of altering a distance between the headlight and the vehicle body following upon a rotation of the front cowling, and the plate stay is attached to the light stay. If made like this, since the plate stay moves monolithically with the light stay, it is possible to effectively avoid the interference between the number plate and the front cowling on the occasion of the optical axis adjustment of the headlight. Further, in one mode of the present invention, there may 6 be made such that the plural cowling pieces that the front cowling has are one pair of left cowing and right cowling, and the left cowling and the right cowling are respectively molded by a metal mold whose draw direction is a vehicle width direction. If made like this, since the left cowling and the right cowling, which have irregularities in the vehicle width direction, can be easily molded, it is possible to increase rigidities of the left cowling and the right cowling, and increase also a degree of freedom in their designs. Further, in one mode of the present invention, there may be made such that the plural cowling pieces that the front cowling has are one pair of left cowing and right cowling, and there has been possessed, in the front cowling, a buffer member comprising an elastic material between one part of the left cowling and one part of the right cowling, which are mutually opposed. If made like this, it is also possible to effectively absorb the impact to the left cowling and the right cowling. Further, it is also possible to effectively prevent a creak sound between.the left cowling and the right cowling. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS A side view of a motorcycle; concerned with one embodiment of the present invention; A perspective view in which each member included in a front cowling concerned with one embodiment of the present 7 invention has been seen from a vehicle left front direction; A side view of a left cowling concerned with one embodiment of the present invention; A sectional view of the left cowling having been cut in a IV - IV line shown in Fig. 3; A perspective view in which the front cowling and a headlight, which are concerned with one embodiment of the present invention, have been seen from the vehicle left front direction; A perspective view in which the front cowling and the headlight, which are concerned with one embodiment of the present invention, have been seen from a vehicle right rear direction; A front view of a front cowling assembly concerned with one embodiment of the present invention; A sectional view of the front cowling assembly having been cut in a VIII - VIII line shown in Fig. 7; A left side view of an interposition member concerned with one embodiment of the present invention; A rear view of the interposition member concerned with one embodiment of the present invention; A sectional view of the interposition member having been cut in a XXI - XXI line shown in Fig. 9; A perspective view in which the front cowling assembly and a light stay, which are concerned with one embodiment of 8 the present invention, have been seen from the vehicle left front direction; A perspective view in which the front cowling assembly and the light stay, which are concerned with one embodiment of the present invention, have been seen from the vehicle right rear direction; A front view of the front cowling assembly to which the light stay concerned with one embodiment of the present invention has been attached; A left side view of the front cowling assembly to which the light stay concerned with one embodiment of the present invention has been attached; A sectional view of the front cowling assembly having been cut in a XVI - XVI line shown in Fig. 14; A perspective view in which the front cowling assembly and a vehicle body front part of the motorcycle, which are concerned with one embodiment of the present invention, have been seen form the vehicle left front direction; A perspective view in which the front cowling assembly having been attached to the vehicle body front part of the motorcycle concerned with one embodiment of the present invention has been seen from the vehicle left front direction; A front view of a front bracket concerned with one embodiment of the present invention; A left side view of the front bracket concerned with one 9 embodiment of the present invention; A sectional view of the front bracket having been cut in a XXI - XXI line shown in Fig. 19; A side view of the front cowling assembly having been attached to the vehicle body front part of the motorcycle concerned with one embodiment of the present invention; A sectional view of the front cowling assembly having been cut in a XXIII - XXIII line shown in Fig. 22; A side view of a left cowling concerned with other example of one embodiment of the present invention; and A sectional view of the left cowling having been cut in a XXV - XXV line shown in Fig. 24. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereunder, about a motorcycle concerned with one embodiment of the present invention, there is explained while referring to the drawings . Fig. lisa side view of a motorcycle 1 concerned with the present embodiment. Incidentally, in the below, a vehicle front (direction that an arrow F shown in Fig. 1 indicates) , a vehicle rear, a vehicle upwardness and a vehicle downwardness are called merely "front", "rear", "upwardness" and "downwardness", respectively. As shown in Fig. 1, the motorcycle 1 possesses a body frame 2 forming a framework of a vehicle body, a front wheel 3 and a rear wheel 4, which have been rotatably shaft-supported 10 to the vehicle body, a seat 5 on- which a rider-, sits, 'a fuel tank 6 accommodating a fuel, and an enaine 7 generatincr-. a power for driving the rear wheel 4. The body frame 2 has a head pipe 2a extending downward while slanting to the front. Through this head pipe 2a, there is rotatably inserted a steering shaft 11 whose long axis direction coincides with a long axis direction of the head pipe 2a. To an upward end and a downward end of this steering shaft 11, there are attached respectively a handle crown 12 and an under bracket 13. To the handle crown 12, there are attached one pair of left/right handles 14. Further, in the front of the steering shaft 11, upward portions of one pair of left/right front forks 15 are attached to the handle crown 12 and the under bracket 13. Accordingly, the handles 14, the steering shaft 11, the handle crown 12, the under bracket 13, the front forks 15 and the front wheel 3 shaft-supported to downward ends of the front forks 15 become, among front portions of the vehicle body, portions capable of being monolithically steered by the handles 14. Further, in the upwardness of the front wheel 3, the motorcycle 1 possesses a front cowling assembly 20 (hereafter, called merely "assembly 2 0") having been provided so as to cover the fronts of the handles 14 and the head pipe 2a. This assembly 20 has a headlight 22 lightening the front, and a front cowling 21 (hereafter, called merely "cowling 21") having been attached to the headlight 22. The cowling 21 is provided so as to cover 11 an equipment and the like such as a meter 17, which have been attached to a front portion of the handle crown 12, from the front to a vehicle width direction outside. To the headlight 22, there is attached a light stay 30 for attaching the headlight 22 to the vehicle body. On the other hand, in a front portion of the vehicle body, a front bracket 4 0 is attached to the handle crown 12 and the under bracket 13. And, by the fact that the light stay 30 and the front bracket 40 are connected, the headlight 22 is attached to the steering shaft 11 through the light stay 30 and the front bracket 40. Accordingly, it follows that the cowling 21 is attached to the steering shaft 11 through this headlight 22. Therefore, the assembly 20 having monolithically the cowling 21 and the headlight 22 is made capable of being steered by the handles 14. That is, following upon an operation of the handles 14, this assembly 20 can swing monolithically with the steering shaft 11 about a long axis of the steering shaft 11 so as to shake a neck left and right. Further, a number plate 16 is attached, within the light stay 30, to a portion extending to the front. That is, this number plate 16 is monolithically attached to the assembly 20. The engine 7 is a single cylinder four-stroke engine, and has a crank case 7a in which there is accommodated a crank shaft (not shown in the drawing) of a piston, and a cylinder head 7b which extends upward while slanting to the front from 12 the crank case 7a and accommodates the piston. To this cylinder head 7b, there are connected an injector (not shown in the drawing) for supplying the fuel in the fuel tank 6 into the cylinder head 7b, and a throttle valve (not shown in the drawing) for supplying the air having been inhaled from an air cleaner (not shown in the drawing) into the cylinder head 7b. This engine 7 generates the power by combusting a gaseous mixture of the fuel and the air, which have been supplied from the injector and the throttle valve, in a combustion chamber within the cylinder head 7b. Further, one end of an exhaust pipe (not shown in the drawing) is connected to the cylinder head 7b, and a muffler (not shown in the drawing) extending in the vehicle rear is connected to the other end of the exhaust pipe. An exhaust gas in the cylinder head 7b is discharged into the outside air while passing through the exhaust pipe and the muffler. Further, in the downwardness of the fuel tank 6, this engine 7 is attached to a down tube 2b which is one part of the body frame 2 and extends from a downward end of the head pipe 2a toward the rear while slanting downward. Further, in the rear of the crank case 7b of the engine 7, a front end of a rear arm 8 extending in a front/rear direction is rotatably shaft-supported to a pivot shaft 9 having been fixed to one part of the body frame 2. The rear wheel 4 is shaft-supported to a rear end of this rear arm 8, and connected to a lower end of a rear cushion 10 extending in an up/down 13 direction. Accordingly, the rear wheel 4 is made capable of being swung in the up/down direction about the pivot shaft 9. Fig. 2 is a perspective view in which each member included in the cowling 21 has been seen from a left front direction. Fig. 3 is a side view of a left cowling 50a included in the cowling 21. Fig. 4 is a sectional view of the left cowling 50a having been cut in a IV - IV line shown in Fig. 3. Fig. 5 and Fig. 6 are perspective views in which the cowling 21 and the headlight 22 attached to the cowling 21 have been seen respectively from a left front direction and a right rear direction. Fig. 7 is a front view of the assembly 20. Fig. 8 is a sectional view of the assembly 20 having been cut in an VIII - VIII line shown in Fig. 7. Fig. 9 and Fig. 10 are respectively a left side view and a rear view of an interposition member 90. Fig. 11 is a sectional view of the interposition member having been cut in a XXI - XXI line shown in Fig. 9. As shown in Fig. 2, the cowling 21 has one pair of left cowling 50a and right cowling 50b, which have been molded as mutually separate bodies, a screen 58 accomplishing a'role of a windbreak or the like for the rider seated on the seat 5 (refer to Fig. 1), and the interposition member 90 provided between the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b. First, between the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b, there is explained about the left cowling 50a. As shown 14 in Fig. 2 and Fig. 3, the left cowling 50a has a front face part 60a which extends while curving rearward from the front toward the vehicle width direction outside, and is viewable from the front. Further, an opening part 51a is formed in one part of the front face part 60a in a vehicle width direction inside. It follows that, in this opening part 51a, a left half of the headlight 22 (refer to Fig. 1) is provided so as to be exposed from a rear side of the left cowling 50a toward the front. Further, in this front face part 60a, a first ridgeline Rla extending rearward while slanting toward the upwardness is formed in the rear of the opening part 51a. And, the front face part 60a has an upper front face part 62a which is an upward portion than the first ridgeline Rla and extends upward from the first ridgeline Rla while slanting to the vehicle width direction inside, and a lower front face part 63a which is a downward portion than the first ridgeline Rla and extends downward from the first ridgeline Rla while slanting to the vehicle width direction inside. Further, in the rear of the front face part 60a, the left cowling 50a has a folded face part 61a which extends toward the vehicle width direction inside and is not visible from the front. This folded face part 61a has a first folded face part 64a formed while being folded from a rear end of the upper front face part 62a to the vehicle width direction inside, and a 15 second folded face part 65a formed while being folded from a vehicle rear end of the lower front face part 63a to the vehicle width direction inside. In a boundary portion between the first folded face part 64a and the upper front face part 62a, there is formed a second ridgeline R2a additionally extending rearward while slanting upward from a rear end of the first ridgeline Rla. Further, in a boundary portion between the first folded face part 64a and the second folded face part 65a, there is formed a third ridgeline R3a additionally extending rearward while slanting slightly downward from the rear end of the first ridgeline Rla below the second ridgeline R2a. And, an apex portion Ta in which the rear end of the first ridgeline Rla, a front end of the second ridgeline R2a and a front end of the third ridgeline R3a mutually intersect within the front face part 60a is made a portion having most bulged in a vehicle direction within the cowling 50a. Further, the first folded face part 64a has an upper first folded face part 66a which is its upward portion and extends downward while being curved from the second ridgeline R2a to the vehicle width direction inside. Further, this first folded face part 64a has a lower first folded face part 67a which is its downward portion and extends upward while being curved from the third ridgeline R3a to the vehicle width direction inside. A lower end of this upper first folded face 16 part 66a and an upper end of the lower first folded face part 67a are connected. That is, the lower first folded face part 67a extends downward from a downward end of the upper first folded face part 66a till the third ridgeline R3a while slanting to the vehicle width direction outside. Therefore, the first folded face part 64a has the second ridgeline R2a and the third ridgeline R3a, which respectively extend rearward from the rear end of the first ridgeline Rla while branching upward and downward. And, this first folded face part 64a is made a three-dimensional portion in the vehicle width direction, which has been concaved to the vehicle width direction inside from, within the front face part 60a, the second ridgeline R2a and the third ridgeline R3a toward a boundary portion between the upper first folded face part 66a and the lower first folded face part 67a. Further, within the front face part 60a, a boundary portion between a downward end of the first folded face part 64a and an upward end of the second folded face part 65a, i.e., a portion in which the third ridgeline R3a is formed, is made a three-dimensional portion in the vehicle direction, which has bulged to the vehicle width direction outside. Further, as shown in Fig. 3 and Fig. 4, the left cowling 50a has, in a downward end portion of the lower first folded face part 67a, a shaft support part 70a extending in the vehicle width direction. This shaft support part 70a extends toward 17 the vehicle width direction inside from a boundary portion between the lower first folded face part 67a and the second folded face part 65a so as to stride from the lower first folded face part 67a to the second folded face part 65a connected to the downwardness of the lower first folded face part 67a through the third ridgeline R3a. This shaft support part 70a is a bottomed cylindrical shape and, in its bottom part 71a that is an end face of the vehicle width direction inside, there is formed a shaft hole 72a penetrating through the bottom part 71a in the vehicle width direction. Further, in a downward portion of the lower front face part 63a, there is formed a hole P3a for attaching a side lamp 59a (refer to Fig. 17) extending to the vehicle width direction outside. Incidentally, here, although there has been explained about the left cowling 50a, since the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b have left/right symmetrically the front face parts 60a, 60b, the folded face parts 61a, 61b, the shaft support parts 70a, 70b, and the like by one pair, there is omitted a detailed explanation about each part concerned of the right cowling 50b. Further, the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b are made of a resin, and molded respectively by using a metal mold whose draw direction is the vehicle width direction. Therefore, in the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b, there can be easily provided the three-dimensional portion in 18 the vehicle width direction, which includes in their circumferences the faces having the plural ridgelines. As a result, it is also possible to increase a degree of freedom in a design ability of the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b. Incidentally, in a front portion of the vehicle body of the motorcycle 1, although there are provided a wiring and the like (not shown in the drawing) whose fronts and vehicle width direction outsides are covered by the front face parts 60a, 60b of the cowling 21, the folded face parts 61a, 61b extend in the vehicle width direction so as to cover also the rears of the wiring and the like. Therefore, the folded face parts 61a, 61b can conceal the wiring and the like so as not to be seen from the rider seated on the seat 5. Next, there is explained about an assemblage of the cowling 21. As shown in Fig. 2, the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b have respectively a left connection part 52a and a right connection part 52b,, which are parts of the front face parts 60a, 60b and extend to the vehicle width direction inside so as to be mutually opposed. The left connection part 52a and the right connection part 52b are parts of window frame portions surrounding the opening parts 51a, 51b between the front face parts 60a, 60b, and extend upward from the opening parts 51a, 51b. Further, the left connection part 52a and the right connection part 52b have a left extendedly-provided part 53a 19 and a right extendedly-provided part 53b, which are parts of respective vehicle width direction inside ends, and have protruded to the vehicle width direction inside so as to mutually overlap. Further, the left connection part 52a and the right connection part 52b have a left base part 54a and a right base part 54b (refer to Fig. 6) , which extend rearward while curving from respective upward ends. And, the left extendedly-provided part 53a and the right extendedly-provided part 53b are position-aligned so as to be mutually overlapped, and the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b are directly connected by the fact that the left extendedly-provided part 53a and the right extendedly-provided part 53b are fastened together by a bolt member Bl penetrating through a hole Pla having been formed in the left extendedly-provided part 53a and a hole Plb having been formed in the right extendedly-provided part 53b. Additionally, the screen 58 is attached while striding the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b so as to cover a front side of an upward portion (including the connection parts 52a, 52b) than the opening parts 51a, 51b between the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b, which have been mutually connected. At this time, the screen 58 and the front face parts 60a, 60b are fastened together by plural bolt members B2 and well nuts B3, which penetrate through plural holes P3a, P3b having been formed respectively in a left end and a right 20 end of the screen 58, and plural holes P2a, P2b having been formed respectively in the front face part 60a of the left cowling 50a and the front face part 60b of the right cowling 50b. Next, there is explained about an assemblage of the assembly 20 by an attachment of the cowling 21 and the headlight 22. As shown in Fig. 5 and Fig. 6, the headlight 22 has a lens part 80 covering its front, a body part 81 having bulged additionally to a rear side in the rear of the lens part 80, a frame part 82 surrounding a circumference of the lens part 80, and a socket part 83 extending additionally rearward from a face of the rear side of the body part 81. The face of the rear side of the body part 81 is made a dome shape having curved so as to become convex to the rear side. Further, a face (not shown in the drawing) of a front side of the body part 81 is made a concave shape having been concaved to the rear. In this face of the front side of the body part 81, there is provided a reflector (not shown in the drawing). The socket part 83 is provided in a portion having bulged most to the rear within the body part 81. This socket part 83 is a cylindrical shape extending to the rear from a rear end of the body part 81 and, from an inside of its cylinder, there extend the wiring and the like (not shown in the drawing) for supplying an electric power to the headlight 22 from a 21 generator (not shown in the drawing) having been possessed in the motorcycle 1. Further, the headlight 22 has one pair of left/right upper cowling attachment parts 84a, 84b extending upward respectively from a left upper end and a right upper end of the frame part 82, and one pair of left/right lower cowling attachment parts 85a, 85b extending additionally downward from a downward end of the face of the rear side of the body part 81. In the one pair of upper cowling attachment parts 84a, 84b, there are respectively formed holes P6a, P6b. Further, in downward end faces of the one pair of lower cowling attachment parts 85a, 85b, there are respectively formed holes P7a, P7b. In relation to this, the cowling 21 has one pair of left/right upper light attachment parts 57a, 57b which are above the opening parts 51a, 51b within faces of rear sides of the front face parts 60a, 60b, provided respectively in a left lower end of the left base part 54a and a right lower end of the right base part 54b, and extend to the rear. Further, this cowling 21 has one pair of left/right lower light attachment parts 56a, 56b having been provided while slightly protruding upward in bottom fcice parts 55a, 55b extending rearward below the opening parts 51a, 51b. In rear end faces of the one pair of upper light attachment parts 57a, 57b, there are respectively formed holes P5a, P5b and, in upward end faces 22 of the one pair of lower light attachment part 56a, 56b, there are respectively formed holes P4a, P4b. And, the upper cowling attachment parts 84a, 84b of the headlight 22 and the upper light attachment parts 57a, 57b of the cowling 21 are position-aligned, and the upper cowling attachment parts 84a, 84b and the rear end faces of the upper light attachment parts 57a, 57b are fastened together by a bolt member B4 extending in a front/rear direction so as to penetrate through respectively the one pair of holes P6a, P6b of the upper cowling attachment part 84a, 84b having been mutually overlapped and the one pair of holes P5a, P5b of the upper light attachment parts 57a, 57b. Further, the lower cowling attachment parts 85a, 85b of the headlight 22 and the lower light attachment parts 56a, 56b of the cowling 21 are position-aligned, and downward end faces of the lower cowling attachment parts 8 5a, 85b and upward end faces of the lower light attachment parts 56a, 56b are fastened together by a bolt member B5 extending in a vertical direction so as to penetrate through respectively the one pair of holes P7a, P7b of the lower cowling attachment parts 85a, 85b and the one pair of holes P4a, P4b of the lower light attachment parts 56a, 56b (refer to Fig. 16) . Like this, a connection of the left, cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b is performed also through the headlight 22. Further, in the assembly 20 having been assembled, 23 between one part of the left cowling 50a and one part of the right cowling 50b, which are mutually opposed, there is formed a slight interstice, and one part of the interposition member 90 made of rubber is provided in the interstice. As shown in Fig. 9 to Fig. 11, this interposition member 90 has a front band part 91 extending in the vertical direction, and a rear band part 92 extending rearward from an upward end of the front band part 91. In a rear face of the front band part 91, there are provided two first buffer parts 93, 94 protruding rearward while being mutually separated in the vertical direction. The two first buffer parts 93, 94 are inserted between a vehicle width direction inside end of the left connection part 52a and a vehicle width direction inside end of the right connection part 52b, which are mutually opposed. Further, in a rear portion of a downward face of the rear band part 92, there is provided one second buffer part 95 protruding downward. This second buffer part 95 is inserted between a vehicle width direction inside end of the left base part 54a and a vehicle width direction inside end of the right base part 54b, which are mutually opposed. And, the left connection part 52a and the right connection part 52b are made possible to butt against the first buffer parts 93, 94, and the left base part 54a and the right base part 54b are made possible to butt against the second buffer part 95. Therefore, for example, in a case where such 24 an impact as to press the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b to the vehicle width direction inside has been exerted on the assembly 20, it is possible to absorb the impact by the fact that the first buffer parts 93, 94 and the second buffer part 95 elastically deform by being pressed between the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b. Further, for example, by the first buffer parts 93, 94 and the second buffer part 95, it is also possible to effectively prevent a generation of the creak sound due to the fact that the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b directly contact. Further, as shown in Fig. 8, since the front band part 91 of the interposition member 90 is disposed along a boundary between the left connection part 52a and the right connection part 52b so as to cover a front side of a head part of the bolt member Bl fastening together the left extendedly-provided part 53a and the right extendedly-provided part 53b, which have been mutually overlapped, it is also possible to improve the design ability of the cowling 20. Further, as shown in Fig. 11, the second buffer part 95 has a protrusion part 95a protruding to vehicle width direction both outsides. And, a vehicle width direction right end of the left base part 54a and a vehicle width direction left end of the right base part 54b are fitted between the protrusion part 95a and the rear band part 92. And, the rear band part 25 92 is disposed so as to extend rearward along a boundary between the left base part 54a and the right base part 54b. Next, there is explained about an assemblage of the assembly 20, and the light stay 30 for attaching the headlight 22 of the assembly 20 to the vehicle body. Fig. 12 and Fig. 13 are perspective views in which the assembly 20 and the light stay 30 have been seen respectively from a vehicle left front direction and a vehicle right rear direction. Fig. 14 and Fig. 15 are respectively a front view and a left side view of the assembly 20 to which the light stay 30 has been attached. Fig. 16 is a sectional view of the assembly 20 having been cut in a XVI - XVI line shown in Fig. 14. As shown in Fig. 13, the headlight 22 has individually, independently one pair of left/right light stay attachment parts 86a, 86b in portions different from upper cowling attachment parts 84a, 84b and lower cowling attachment parts 85a, 85b, which are attachment portions of the headlight to the cowling 21. That is, the one pair of light stay attachment parts 86a, 86b extend additionally rearward from, within a rear face of a body part 81 of the headlight 22, a portion which is below a portion having bulged most to the rear and has adjoined the upwardness of each of the one pair of lower cowling attachment parts 85a, 85b. In rear end faces of the one pair of light stay attachment parts 86a, 86b, there are formed holes P8a, P8b. Incidentally, 2 6 a distance between the one pair of holes P8a, P8b having been provided in the one pair of light stay attachment part 8 6a, 86b is smaller than a distance between the holes P6a, P6b of the upper cowling attachment parts 84a, 84b, and made approximately equal to a distance between the one pair of holes P7a, P7b of the lower cowling attachment parts 85a, 85b. In relation to this, the light stay 30 has one pair of left/right light attachment face parts 31a, 31b which are a left upper end and a right upper end of the light stay and respectively extend upward, a first base part 32 which links downward ends of the light attachment face parts 31a, 31b and extends additionally downward while slanting rearward from the downward ends, a second base part 33 which extends additionally downward approximately parallel to the light attachment face parts 31a, 31b from a downward end of the first base part 32, a plate stay part 34 which extends forward from a downward end of the second base part 33 and whose forward end is curved downward, and a tongue part 35 which extends rearward from a downward end of the second base part. In the one pair of light attachment face parts 31a, 31b, there are formed respectively one pair of holes P9a, P9b. In forward ends of the plate stay part 34, which extend downward, there are formed one pair of holes PlOa, PlOb. To the forward end of the plate stay part 34, there is attached the number plate 16 (refer to Fig. 1). Further, in the tongue part 35, 27 there is formed an elliptic long hole Pll whose major axis direction is a front/rear direction. And, the light attachment face parts 31a, 31b of the light stay 30 and rear end faces of the light stay attachment parts 86a, 86b of the headlight 22 are position-aligned, and the light attachment face parts 31a, 31b and the rear end faces of the light stay attachment parts 8 6a, 8 6b are fastened together by one pair of bolt members B6 extending in the front/rear direction so as to penetrate through respectively the one pair of holes P8a, P8b of the light attachment face parts 31a, 31b and the one pair of holes P9a, P9b of the light stay attachment parts 86a, 86b, which have been mutually overlapped (refer to Fig. 16) . Next, there is explained about an attachment of the assembly 20 to the vehicle body. Fig. 17 is a perspective view in which the assembly 2 0 and a vehicle body front part of the motorcycle 1 to which the assembly 20 is attached have been seen from a left front direction. Incidentally, to the assembly 20, there are attached one pair of left/right side lamps 59a, 59b by the fact that they are inserted respectively into one pair of left/right holes P3a, P3b (refer to Fig. 6) of the cowling 21. Fig. 18 is a perspective view in which the assembly 2 0 having been attached to the vehicle body front part of the motorcycle 1 has been seen from the left front direction. Fig. 19 and Fig. 20 are respectively a front view and a side 28 view of the front bracket 40. Fig. 21 is a sectional view of the front bracket 40 having been cut in a XXI - XXI line shown in Fig. 19. Fig. 22 is a side view of the assembly 20 having been attached to the vehicle body front part of the motorcycle 1. Fig. 23 is a sectional view of the assembly 20 having been cut in a XXIII - XXIII line shown in Fig. 22. As shown in Fig. 19 and Fig. 20, the front bracket 4 0 has a U-letter part 41 including one pair of left/right pillar parts 41a, 41b extending in the vertical direction, a bridge part 42 bridged between midway portions of the one pair of pillar parts 41a, 41b, one pair of left/right arm parts 43a, 43b extending respectively to the vehicle width direction outside from the one pair of pillar parts 41a, 41b, one pair of left/right hand parts 44a, 44b respectively extending upward while slanting rearward slightly from vehicle width direction outside ends of the one pair of arm parts 43a, 43b, a support part 47 extending forward from a downward end of the U-letter part 41, and a base part 48 extending additionally downward from a downward end of the U-letter part. As to the one pair of hand part 44a, 44b, their upward portions extend additionally upward while curving to the vehicle width direction outside and, in their tip parts 45a, 45b, there are provided bearing parts 46a, 46b penetrating through the tip parts 45a, 45b in the vehicle width direction. The bearing parts 4 6a, 4 6b are a cylindrical shape extending 29 in the vehicle width direction, in which there have been formed holes P12a, P12b penetrating through the bearing parts 46a, 46b in the vehicle width direction (refer to Fig. 21). Further, the support part 47 has a flat plate-like ceiling part 4 7a which is a front portion of the support part and extends to the front while slightly slanting downward, and one pair of left/right side wall parts 47b, 47c extending downward from vehicle width direction both ends of the ceiling part 47a. In the ceiling part 47a of this support part 47, a bolt member B7 for attaching the light stay 3 0 to the support part 47 is provided so as to penetrate through the ceiling part 47a in the vertical direction. Incidentally, vertical direction lengths of the one pair of side wall parts 47b, 47c mutually differ, and rather the left-side side wall part 47b is made shorter than the right-side side wall part 47c. This front bracket 40 is attached to the vehicle body front part by the fact that upward ends of the one pair of pillar parts 41a, 41b of the U-letter part 41 are respectively fixed to the handle crown 12 and its base part 4 8 is fixed to a front face of the under bracket 13. And, the tongue part 35 of the light stay 30 is inserted between the one pair of side wall parts 47b, 47c of the support part 47 of this front bracket 40 from the front, and the tongue part 35 is butted against a downward face of the ceiling part 47a so as to exist along the ceiling part 47a. The light stay 30 30 is attached to the front bracket 40 by the fact that the support part 47 and the tongue part 35 are fastened together by the bolt member B7 penetrating in the vertical direction through the long hole Pll of the tongue part 35 of the light stay 30 from the ceiling part 47a of the front bracket 40 having been mutually overlapped. By doing like this, the assembly 20 is fixed to the vehicle body through the light stay 30 having been attached to its headlight 22. Like this, the light stay 30 is a support member having been provided exclusively for attaching the headlight 22 to the vehicle body, and a member supporting the whole assembly 20 including not only the headlight 22 but also the cowling 21 having been attached to the headlight 22. However, within the assembly 20, one attached to this light stay 30 is only the body part 81 of the headlight 22. Further, the cowling 21 of the assembly 2 0 is shaft-supported to the vehicle body so as to be rotatable about a an axis extending in the vehicle width direction such that centers of the bottom parts 71a, 71b of the one pair of left/right shaft support parts 70a,r 70b are mutually connected. That is, as shown in Fig. 23, the one pair of left/right bearing parts 46a, 46b of the front bracket 40 are respectively fitted to the one pair of left/right shaft holes 72a, 72b (refer to Fig. 4) having been formed in the bottom parts 71a, 71b of the shaft support parts 70a, 70b of the cowling 21. Additionally, 31 in the fitted portions, one pair of left/right shaft members 49a, 49b extending in the vehicle width direction are provided so as to penetrate respectively through the one pair of holes P12a, P12b of the bearing parts 46a, 46b and the one pair of shaft holes 72a, 72b of the shaft support parts 70a, 70b. And, the cowling 21 is made possible to rotate about an axis extending in the vehicle width direction such that centers of the one pair of left/right shaft members 49a, 49b are mutually connected. A rotation mechanism of the cowling 21 like this can be utilized when adjusting an optical axis of the headlight 22 having been attached monolithically to the cowling 21. That is, under a state in which a fixation between the light stay 30 and the front bracket 40 by the bolt member B7 has been released, it is possible to adjust the optical axis of the headlight 22 of the assembly 20 by rotating the whole assembly 20 about an axis connecting the one pair of left/right shaft support parts 70a, 70b of the cowling 21. At this time, following upon a rotation of the cowling 21, it is possible to alter a distance between the headlight 22 and the vehicle body. That is, in the tongue part 35 of the light stay 30, there is formed the long hole Pll (refer to Fig. 13) extending in a direction intersecting perpendicularly to a rotation axis of the cowling 21, and the light stay 30 and the front bracket 40 can be fixed by the bolt 32 member B7 within a range from a front end to a rear end of the long hole Pll. Therefore, following upon the rotation of the cowling 21, the distance between the headlight 22 and the vehicle body in the front/rear direction can be arbitrarily adjusted in the range of the long hole Pll of the light stay 30. And, if the optical axis of the headlight 22 has been suitably adjusted by the rotation of the cowling 21, the light stay 30 and the front bracket 40 are fastened and fixed by the bolt member B7 such that the headlight 22 is fixed to the vehicle body in a position after the rotation. By doing like this, the cowling 21 is fixed to the vehicle body again through the headlight 22. Further, as shown in Fig. 22, as to the light stay 30, the light attachment face parts 31a, 31b which are end parts of the front and the upwardness of the light stay are attached to the headlight 22, and the tongue part 35 which is an end part of the rear and the downwardness of the light stay is attached to the front bracket 40. That is, an attachment position of the light stay 30 to the vehicle body is made a position having extended from an attachment position to the head light 22 to a direction separating from the optical axis of the headlight 22 . On the other hand, the shaft support parts 70a, 70b of the cowling 21 are provided in the upwardness and the rear, which have nipped the headlight 22 from the attachment 33 position of the light stay 30 to the vehicle body. That is, in the vertical direction, the shaft support parts 70a, 70b are provided in relation to the headlight 22 in a side reverse to an attachment position between the headlight and the light stay 30 and the attachment position of the light stay 30 to the vehicle body. Like this, since the shaft support parts 70a, 70b of the cowling 21 are provided comparatively, remotely from the headlight 22 in the upwardness and the rear of the headlight 22, it is possible to easily perform a fine adjustment of the optical axis of the headlight 22. Further, as shown in Fig. 22, to a front end of the plate stay part 34 of the light stay 30, there is attached the number plate 16 extending downward while slanting to the front. That is, the number plate 16 is attached to the assembly 20 through the light stay 30. Therefore, in a case where the optical axis of the headlight 22 is adjusted, it follows that this number plate 16 rotates monolithically with the headlight 22 and the cowling 21. Accordingly, such a disadvantage does not occur that, when adjusting the optical axis, the cowling 21 or the headlight 22 and the number plate 16 impinge. Incidentally, the motorcycle concerned with the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned example. For example, the face in which the shaft support part of the front cowling is formed is not limited to the above-mentioned example. That is, for example, there may be made such that the shaft support parts are provided in upward end portions of the second folded face parts 65a, 65b. Fig. 24 is a side view of the left cowling in this case. Further, Fig. 25 is a sectional view of the left cowling having been cut in a XXV - XXV line shown 5 in Fig. 24. As shown in Fig. 24 and Fig. 25, this shaft support part 75a extends toward the vehicle width direction inside from a boundary portion between the second folded face part 65a and the lower first folded face part 67a so as to stride the lower first folded face part 67a connected to the upwardness of the 10 shaft support part from the second folded face part 65a through the second ridgeline R2a. This shaft support part 75a is the bottomed cylindrical shape and, in a bottom part 7 6a that is its end face in the vehicle width direction inside, there is formed a shaft hole 77a penetrating through the bottom part 15 7 6a in the vehicle width direction. Further, the shaft support part may be provided in, within the front cowling for instance, a face having three or more ridgelines in its circumference. That is, for example, in a case where in one part of the front cowling there is provided 20 a portion three-dimensional in the vehicle width direction, which has been bulged to the vehicle width direction outside or concaved to the vehicle width direction inside, the shaft support part can be provided in a face which is a face included in the three-dimensional portion and has in its circumference 25 three or more ridgelines. Further, in a case where in one part of the front cowling there is formed an apex portion in which respective one ends of two or three or more ridgelines mutually gather, the shaft support part can be provided in a face having in its circumference at least two ridgelines among the plural ridgelines extending in mutually different directions from the apex portion. Further, the vehicle body front part to which the headlight is attached is not limited to the above-mentioned example, and there suffices if the headlight is attached so as to become possible to be steered monolithically with the vehicle body front part by the handle. Further, the front cowling may be one including three or more cowling pieces for instance. 3 6 WHAT IS CLAIMED IS: 1. A motorcycle characterized by having possessed: a headlight having been attached to a vehicle body, and a front cowling which has plural cowling pieces having been molded as separate bodies, and has been fixed to the vehicle body by being attached to the headlight. 2. The motorcycle as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that it has possessed a light stay for attaching the headlight to the vehicle body, whose one part is attached to a portion different from an attachment portion of the headlight to the front cowling, and whose the other one end part is attached to the vehicle body. 3. The motorcycle as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that: the headlight has a body part which bulges to a vehicle rear side, and in whose vehicle front side face there has been provided a reflector, and there has been possessed a light stay for attaching the headlight to the vehicle body, whose one part is attached to the vehicle rear side face of the body part, and whose the other one end part is attached to the vehicle body. 4. The motorcycle as claimed in claim 1, 37 characterized in that the headlight is attached, within a front part of the vehicle body, to a portion capable of being steered by a handle. 5. The motorcycle as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the front cowling has a shaft support part, and is shaft-supported to the vehicle body so as to be rotatable about an axis which passes through the shaft support part and extends in a vehicle width direction. 6. The motorcycle as claimed in claim 5, characterized in that it has possessed a light stay for attaching the headlight to the vehicle body, which supports the headlight in a vehicle downwardness than the shaft support part so as to be capable of altering a distance between the headlight and the vehicle body following upon a rotation of the front cowling. 7. The motorcycle as claimed in claim 5, characterized in that: the front cowling has a face having at least two ridgelines in its circumference, and the shaft support part is provided such that its at least one part is connected to the face. 38 8. The motorcycle as claimed in claim 7, characterized in that: the front cowling has a front face part extending to a vehicle body rear toward a vehicle width direction outside, and a folded face part extending toward a vehicle width direction inside in a vehicle rear of the front face part, and the face having at least two ridgelines in its circumference is the folded face part. 9. The motorcycle as claimed in claim 7, characterized in that: the front cowling has other face connected to the face through one between the at least two ridgelines, and the shaft support part is provided while striding the face having at least two ridgelines in its circumference and the other face. 10. The motorcycle as claimed in claim 5, characterized in that it has possessed a plate stay for supporting a number plate, which can rotate monolithically with the front cowling. 11. The motorcycle as claimed in claim 10, characterized in that: it possesses a light stay for attaching the headlight 39 to the vehicle body, which supports the headlight in a vehicle downwardness than the shaft support part so as to be capable of altering a distance between the headlight and the vehicle body following upon a rotation of the front cowling, and the plate stay is attached to the light stay. 12. The motorcycle as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that: the plural cowling pieces that the front cowling has are one pair of left cowing and right cowling, and the left cowling and the right cowling are respectively molded by a metal mold whose draw direction is a vehicle width direction. 13. The motorcycle as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that: the plural cowling pieces that the front cowling has are one pair of left cowing and right cowling, and there has been possessed, in the front cowling, a buffer member comprising an elastic material between one part of the left cowling and one part of the right cowling, which are mutually opposed. There is made a motorcycle having possessed a headlight having been attached to a vehicle body, and a front cowling which has plural cowling pieces having been molded as separate bodies, and has been fixed to the vehicle body by being attached to the headlight.

Full Text

MOTORCYCLE
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a motorcycle and, especially, relates to its front cowling.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the front cowling possessed in a vehicle body front part of the motorcycle and formed by a resin and the like, there is one to which a headlight is attached. For example, in the front cowing described in JP-UM-A-62-70076, the headlight is attached to one pair of left/right divided cowlings which have been separately molded.
Hitherto, a fixation of the front cowling like this to a vehicle body has been performed by fixing a stay having been attached to the front cowling to the vehicle body.
However, in the above prior art, since it follows that the resin-made front cowling supports the heavy headlight, a large load has been applied to the front cowing whose rigidity is low.
Further, as described in the above JP-UM-A-62-7 007 6, in the case where the front cowling is constituted by the one pair of left/right divided cowlings, since the rigidity of the front cowling becomes comparatively low one, a flexure has been liable to occur by a load of the headlight. Accordingly, in
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this case, it has been difficult to firmly fix the headlight to the vehicle body through the front cowling for instance.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is one having been made in view of the above problems, and one of its objects is to provide a motorcycle in which the load to the front cowling can be reduced.
A motorcycle for solving the above problems, which is concerned with one embodiment of the present invention, is characterized by having possessed a headlight having been attached to a vehicle body, and a front cowling which has plural cowling pieces having been molded as separate bodies, and has been fixed to the vehicle body by being attached to the headlight.
According to the present invention, it is possible to provide the motorcycle in which the load to the front cowling can be reduced. Therefore, it is possible to effectively prevent the flexure of the front cowling constituted by including the plural cowling pieces.
Further, in one mode of the present invention, there may be made such that it has possessed a light stay for attaching the headlight to the vehicle body, whose one part is attached to a portion different from an attachment portion of the headlight to the front cowling, and whose the other one end
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part is attached to the vehicle body. If made like this, since an attachment of the headlight to the vehicle body is performed separately, independently from an attachment to the front cowling, it is possible to more reduce the load to the front cowling.
Further, in one mode of the present invention, there may be made such that the headlight has a body part which bulges to a vehicle rear side, and in whose vehicle front side face there has been provided a reflector, and there has been possessed a light stay for attaching the headlight to the vehicle body, whose one part is attached to the vehicle rear side face of the body part, and whose the other one end part is attached to the vehicle body. If made like this, since the attachment of the headlight to the vehicle body is performed through the stay having been attached, within the headlight, to the body part whose rigidity is high, it is possible to firmly fix the headlight to the vehicle body. Accordingly, it is possible to more reduce the load to the front cowling.
Further, in one mode of the present invention, there may be made such that the headlight is attached, within a front part of the vehicle body, to a portion capable of being steered by a handle. If made like this, it is possible to reduce the load to the front cowling in the motorcycle in which the headlight moves monolithically with the vehicle body front part following upon a handle operation.
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Further, in one mode of the present invention, there may be made such that the front cowling has a shaft support part, and is shaft-supported to the vehicle body so as to be rotatable about an axis which passes through the shaft support part and extends in a vehicle width direction. If made like this, since an assembly including the headlight and the front cowling can be shaft-supported in a position remote from the headlight irrespective of a size and a weight of the headlight, it is possible to easily perform a fine adjustment of an optical axis of the headlight. Further, since the load to the front cowling can be reduced, it is possible to certainly perform an optical axis adjustment of the headlight by the fact that the front cowling is rotated. Further, in a case where an impact has been exerted on the front cowling, it is possible to effectively prevent an injury of the front cowling by the fact that the front cowling suitably rotates about the shaft support part.
Further, in this case, there may be made such that it has possessed additionally a light stay for attaching the headlight to the vehicle body, which supports the headlight in a vehicle downwardness than the shaft support part so as to be capable of altering a distance between the headlight and the vehicle body following upon a rotation of the front cowling. If made like this, since the distance between the headlight and the vehicle body can be altered following upon the rotation of the front cowling, it is possible to simply and certainly
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perform positioning of the headlight when adjusting the optical axis of the headlight.
Further, there may be made such that the front cowling has a face having at least two ridgelines in its circumference, and the shaft support part is provided such that its at least one part is connected to the face. If made like this, since it follows that the shaft support part is provided, within the front cowling, in a portion which has been formed three-dimensionally and whose rigidity is high, it is possible to more certainly perform the optical axis adjustment of the headlight.
Further, there may be made such that the front cowling has a front face part extending to a vehicle body rear toward a vehicle width direction outside, and a folded face part extending toward a vehicle width direction inside in a vehicle rear of the front face part, and the face having at least two ridgelines in its circumference is the folded face part. If made like this, it is possible to effectively protect the shaft support part from an adhesion of contamination, the impact and the like following upon a running of the vehicle, and it is also possible to improve a design ability of the front cowling.
Further, there may be made such that the front cowling has other face connected to the face through one between the at least two ridgelines, and the shaft support part is provided while striding the face having at least two ridgelines in its
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circumference and the other face. If made like this, since it follows that the shaft support part is provided, within the front cowling, in the portion which has been formed three-dimensionally and whose rigidity is high, it is possible to more certainly perform the optical axis adjustment of the headlight.
Further, there may be made such that it has possessed a plate stay for supporting a number plate, which can rotate monolithically with the front cowling. If made like this, since the plate stay moves following a rotation of the front cowling, it is also possible to avoid an interference between the number plate having been attached to the plate stay and the front cowling on an occasion of the optical axis adjustment of the headlight. Further, in this case, there may be made such that it possesses additionally a light stay for attaching the headlight to the vehicle body, which supports the headlight in a vehicle downwardness than the shaft support part so as to be capable of altering a distance between the headlight and the vehicle body following upon a rotation of the front cowling, and the plate stay is attached to the light stay. If made like this, since the plate stay moves monolithically with the light stay, it is possible to effectively avoid the interference between the number plate and the front cowling on the occasion of the optical axis adjustment of the headlight.
Further, in one mode of the present invention, there may
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be made such that the plural cowling pieces that the front cowling has are one pair of left cowing and right cowling, and the left cowling and the right cowling are respectively molded by a metal mold whose draw direction is a vehicle width direction. If made like this, since the left cowling and the right cowling, which have irregularities in the vehicle width direction, can be easily molded, it is possible to increase rigidities of the left cowling and the right cowling, and increase also a degree of freedom in their designs.
Further, in one mode of the present invention, there may be made such that the plural cowling pieces that the front cowling has are one pair of left cowing and right cowling, and there has been possessed, in the front cowling, a buffer member comprising an elastic material between one part of the left cowling and one part of the right cowling, which are mutually opposed. If made like this, it is also possible to effectively absorb the impact to the left cowling and the right cowling. Further, it is also possible to effectively prevent a creak sound between.the left cowling and the right cowling.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS A side view of a motorcycle; concerned with one embodiment
of the present invention;
A perspective view in which each member included in a
front cowling concerned with one embodiment of the present
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invention has been seen from a vehicle left front direction;
A side view of a left cowling concerned with one embodiment of the present invention;
A sectional view of the left cowling having been cut in a IV - IV line shown in Fig. 3;
A perspective view in which the front cowling and a headlight, which are concerned with one embodiment of the present invention, have been seen from the vehicle left front direction;
A perspective view in which the front cowling and the headlight, which are concerned with one embodiment of the present invention, have been seen from a vehicle right rear direction;
A front view of a front cowling assembly concerned with one embodiment of the present invention;
A sectional view of the front cowling assembly having been cut in a VIII - VIII line shown in Fig. 7;
A left side view of an interposition member concerned with one embodiment of the present invention;
A rear view of the interposition member concerned with one embodiment of the present invention;
A sectional view of the interposition member having been cut in a XXI - XXI line shown in Fig. 9;
A perspective view in which the front cowling assembly and a light stay, which are concerned with one embodiment of
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the present invention, have been seen from the vehicle left front direction;
A perspective view in which the front cowling assembly and the light stay, which are concerned with one embodiment of the present invention, have been seen from the vehicle right rear direction;
A front view of the front cowling assembly to which the light stay concerned with one embodiment of the present invention has been attached;
A left side view of the front cowling assembly to which the light stay concerned with one embodiment of the present invention has been attached;
A sectional view of the front cowling assembly having been cut in a XVI - XVI line shown in Fig. 14;
A perspective view in which the front cowling assembly and a vehicle body front part of the motorcycle, which are concerned with one embodiment of the present invention, have been seen form the vehicle left front direction;
A perspective view in which the front cowling assembly having been attached to the vehicle body front part of the motorcycle concerned with one embodiment of the present invention has been seen from the vehicle left front direction;
A front view of a front bracket concerned with one embodiment of the present invention;
A left side view of the front bracket concerned with one
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embodiment of the present invention;
A sectional view of the front bracket having been cut in a XXI - XXI line shown in Fig. 19;
A side view of the front cowling assembly having been attached to the vehicle body front part of the motorcycle concerned with one embodiment of the present invention;
A sectional view of the front cowling assembly having been cut in a XXIII - XXIII line shown in Fig. 22;
A side view of a left cowling concerned with other example of one embodiment of the present invention; and
A sectional view of the left cowling having been cut in a XXV - XXV line shown in Fig. 24.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Hereunder, about a motorcycle concerned with one embodiment of the present invention, there is explained while referring to the drawings . Fig. lisa side view of a motorcycle 1 concerned with the present embodiment. Incidentally, in the below, a vehicle front (direction that an arrow F shown in Fig. 1 indicates) , a vehicle rear, a vehicle upwardness and a vehicle downwardness are called merely "front", "rear", "upwardness" and "downwardness", respectively.
As shown in Fig. 1, the motorcycle 1 possesses a body frame 2 forming a framework of a vehicle body, a front wheel 3 and a rear wheel 4, which have been rotatably shaft-supported
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to the vehicle body, a seat 5 on- which a rider-, sits, 'a fuel tank 6 accommodating a fuel, and an enaine 7 generatincr-. a power for driving the rear wheel 4. The body frame 2 has a head pipe 2a extending downward while slanting to the front. Through this head pipe 2a, there is rotatably inserted a steering shaft 11 whose long axis direction coincides with a long axis direction of the head pipe 2a. To an upward end and a downward end of this steering shaft 11, there are attached respectively a handle crown 12 and an under bracket 13. To the handle crown 12, there are attached one pair of left/right handles 14.
Further, in the front of the steering shaft 11, upward portions of one pair of left/right front forks 15 are attached to the handle crown 12 and the under bracket 13. Accordingly, the handles 14, the steering shaft 11, the handle crown 12, the under bracket 13, the front forks 15 and the front wheel 3 shaft-supported to downward ends of the front forks 15 become, among front portions of the vehicle body, portions capable of being monolithically steered by the handles 14.
Further, in the upwardness of the front wheel 3, the motorcycle 1 possesses a front cowling assembly 20 (hereafter, called merely "assembly 2 0") having been provided so as to cover the fronts of the handles 14 and the head pipe 2a. This assembly
20 has a headlight 22 lightening the front, and a front cowling
21 (hereafter, called merely "cowling 21") having been attached
to the headlight 22. The cowling 21 is provided so as to cover
11

an equipment and the like such as a meter 17, which have been attached to a front portion of the handle crown 12, from the front to a vehicle width direction outside.
To the headlight 22, there is attached a light stay 30 for attaching the headlight 22 to the vehicle body. On the other hand, in a front portion of the vehicle body, a front bracket 4 0 is attached to the handle crown 12 and the under bracket 13. And, by the fact that the light stay 30 and the front bracket 40 are connected, the headlight 22 is attached to the steering shaft 11 through the light stay 30 and the front bracket 40. Accordingly, it follows that the cowling 21 is attached to the steering shaft 11 through this headlight 22. Therefore, the assembly 20 having monolithically the cowling 21 and the headlight 22 is made capable of being steered by the handles 14. That is, following upon an operation of the handles 14, this assembly 20 can swing monolithically with the steering shaft 11 about a long axis of the steering shaft 11 so as to shake a neck left and right. Further, a number plate 16 is attached, within the light stay 30, to a portion extending to the front. That is, this number plate 16 is monolithically attached to the assembly 20.
The engine 7 is a single cylinder four-stroke engine, and has a crank case 7a in which there is accommodated a crank shaft (not shown in the drawing) of a piston, and a cylinder head 7b which extends upward while slanting to the front from
12

the crank case 7a and accommodates the piston. To this cylinder head 7b, there are connected an injector (not shown in the drawing) for supplying the fuel in the fuel tank 6 into the cylinder head 7b, and a throttle valve (not shown in the drawing) for supplying the air having been inhaled from an air cleaner (not shown in the drawing) into the cylinder head 7b. This engine 7 generates the power by combusting a gaseous mixture of the fuel and the air, which have been supplied from the injector and the throttle valve, in a combustion chamber within the cylinder head 7b. Further, one end of an exhaust pipe (not shown in the drawing) is connected to the cylinder head 7b, and a muffler (not shown in the drawing) extending in the vehicle rear is connected to the other end of the exhaust pipe. An exhaust gas in the cylinder head 7b is discharged into the outside air while passing through the exhaust pipe and the muffler. Further, in the downwardness of the fuel tank
6, this engine 7 is attached to a down tube 2b which is one
part of the body frame 2 and extends from a downward end of
the head pipe 2a toward the rear while slanting downward.
Further, in the rear of the crank case 7b of the engine
7, a front end of a rear arm 8 extending in a front/rear direction
is rotatably shaft-supported to a pivot shaft 9 having been
fixed to one part of the body frame 2. The rear wheel 4 is
shaft-supported to a rear end of this rear arm 8, and connected
to a lower end of a rear cushion 10 extending in an up/down
13

direction. Accordingly, the rear wheel 4 is made capable of being swung in the up/down direction about the pivot shaft 9.
Fig. 2 is a perspective view in which each member included in the cowling 21 has been seen from a left front direction. Fig. 3 is a side view of a left cowling 50a included in the cowling 21. Fig. 4 is a sectional view of the left cowling 50a having been cut in a IV - IV line shown in Fig. 3. Fig. 5 and Fig. 6 are perspective views in which the cowling 21 and the headlight 22 attached to the cowling 21 have been seen respectively from a left front direction and a right rear direction. Fig. 7 is a front view of the assembly 20. Fig. 8 is a sectional view of the assembly 20 having been cut in an VIII - VIII line shown in Fig. 7. Fig. 9 and Fig. 10 are respectively a left side view and a rear view of an interposition member 90. Fig. 11 is a sectional view of the interposition member having been cut in a XXI - XXI line shown in Fig. 9.
As shown in Fig. 2, the cowling 21 has one pair of left cowling 50a and right cowling 50b, which have been molded as mutually separate bodies, a screen 58 accomplishing a'role of a windbreak or the like for the rider seated on the seat 5 (refer to Fig. 1), and the interposition member 90 provided between the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b.
First, between the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b, there is explained about the left cowling 50a. As shown
14

in Fig. 2 and Fig. 3, the left cowling 50a has a front face part 60a which extends while curving rearward from the front toward the vehicle width direction outside, and is viewable from the front. Further, an opening part 51a is formed in one part of the front face part 60a in a vehicle width direction inside. It follows that, in this opening part 51a, a left half of the headlight 22 (refer to Fig. 1) is provided so as to be exposed from a rear side of the left cowling 50a toward the front.
Further, in this front face part 60a, a first ridgeline Rla extending rearward while slanting toward the upwardness is formed in the rear of the opening part 51a. And, the front face part 60a has an upper front face part 62a which is an upward portion than the first ridgeline Rla and extends upward from the first ridgeline Rla while slanting to the vehicle width direction inside, and a lower front face part 63a which is a downward portion than the first ridgeline Rla and extends downward from the first ridgeline Rla while slanting to the vehicle width direction inside.
Further, in the rear of the front face part 60a, the left cowling 50a has a folded face part 61a which extends toward the vehicle width direction inside and is not visible from the front. This folded face part 61a has a first folded face part 64a formed while being folded from a rear end of the upper front face part 62a to the vehicle width direction inside, and a
15

second folded face part 65a formed while being folded from a vehicle rear end of the lower front face part 63a to the vehicle width direction inside.
In a boundary portion between the first folded face part 64a and the upper front face part 62a, there is formed a second ridgeline R2a additionally extending rearward while slanting upward from a rear end of the first ridgeline Rla. Further, in a boundary portion between the first folded face part 64a and the second folded face part 65a, there is formed a third ridgeline R3a additionally extending rearward while slanting slightly downward from the rear end of the first ridgeline Rla below the second ridgeline R2a. And, an apex portion Ta in which the rear end of the first ridgeline Rla, a front end of the second ridgeline R2a and a front end of the third ridgeline R3a mutually intersect within the front face part 60a is made a portion having most bulged in a vehicle direction within the cowling 50a.
Further, the first folded face part 64a has an upper first folded face part 66a which is its upward portion and extends downward while being curved from the second ridgeline R2a to the vehicle width direction inside. Further, this first folded face part 64a has a lower first folded face part 67a which is its downward portion and extends upward while being curved from the third ridgeline R3a to the vehicle width direction inside. A lower end of this upper first folded face
16

part 66a and an upper end of the lower first folded face part 67a are connected. That is, the lower first folded face part 67a extends downward from a downward end of the upper first folded face part 66a till the third ridgeline R3a while slanting to the vehicle width direction outside.
Therefore, the first folded face part 64a has the second ridgeline R2a and the third ridgeline R3a, which respectively extend rearward from the rear end of the first ridgeline Rla while branching upward and downward. And, this first folded face part 64a is made a three-dimensional portion in the vehicle width direction, which has been concaved to the vehicle width direction inside from, within the front face part 60a, the second ridgeline R2a and the third ridgeline R3a toward a boundary portion between the upper first folded face part 66a and the lower first folded face part 67a.
Further, within the front face part 60a, a boundary portion between a downward end of the first folded face part 64a and an upward end of the second folded face part 65a, i.e., a portion in which the third ridgeline R3a is formed, is made a three-dimensional portion in the vehicle direction, which has bulged to the vehicle width direction outside.
Further, as shown in Fig. 3 and Fig. 4, the left cowling 50a has, in a downward end portion of the lower first folded face part 67a, a shaft support part 70a extending in the vehicle width direction. This shaft support part 70a extends toward
17

the vehicle width direction inside from a boundary portion between the lower first folded face part 67a and the second folded face part 65a so as to stride from the lower first folded face part 67a to the second folded face part 65a connected to the downwardness of the lower first folded face part 67a through the third ridgeline R3a. This shaft support part 70a is a bottomed cylindrical shape and, in its bottom part 71a that is an end face of the vehicle width direction inside, there is formed a shaft hole 72a penetrating through the bottom part 71a in the vehicle width direction. Further, in a downward portion of the lower front face part 63a, there is formed a hole P3a for attaching a side lamp 59a (refer to Fig. 17) extending to the vehicle width direction outside.
Incidentally, here, although there has been explained about the left cowling 50a, since the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b have left/right symmetrically the front face parts 60a, 60b, the folded face parts 61a, 61b, the shaft support parts 70a, 70b, and the like by one pair, there is omitted a detailed explanation about each part concerned of the right cowling 50b.
Further, the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b are made of a resin, and molded respectively by using a metal mold whose draw direction is the vehicle width direction. Therefore, in the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b, there can be easily provided the three-dimensional portion in
18

the vehicle width direction, which includes in their circumferences the faces having the plural ridgelines. As a result, it is also possible to increase a degree of freedom in a design ability of the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b. Incidentally, in a front portion of the vehicle body of the motorcycle 1, although there are provided a wiring and the like (not shown in the drawing) whose fronts and vehicle width direction outsides are covered by the front face parts 60a, 60b of the cowling 21, the folded face parts 61a, 61b extend in the vehicle width direction so as to cover also the rears of the wiring and the like. Therefore, the folded face parts 61a, 61b can conceal the wiring and the like so as not to be seen from the rider seated on the seat 5.
Next, there is explained about an assemblage of the cowling 21. As shown in Fig. 2, the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b have respectively a left connection part 52a and a right connection part 52b,, which are parts of the front face parts 60a, 60b and extend to the vehicle width direction inside so as to be mutually opposed. The left connection part 52a and the right connection part 52b are parts of window frame portions surrounding the opening parts 51a, 51b between the front face parts 60a, 60b, and extend upward from the opening parts 51a, 51b.
Further, the left connection part 52a and the right connection part 52b have a left extendedly-provided part 53a
19

and a right extendedly-provided part 53b, which are parts of respective vehicle width direction inside ends, and have protruded to the vehicle width direction inside so as to mutually overlap. Further, the left connection part 52a and the right connection part 52b have a left base part 54a and a right base part 54b (refer to Fig. 6) , which extend rearward while curving from respective upward ends.
And, the left extendedly-provided part 53a and the right extendedly-provided part 53b are position-aligned so as to be mutually overlapped, and the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b are directly connected by the fact that the left extendedly-provided part 53a and the right extendedly-provided part 53b are fastened together by a bolt member Bl penetrating through a hole Pla having been formed in the left extendedly-provided part 53a and a hole Plb having been formed in the right extendedly-provided part 53b.
Additionally, the screen 58 is attached while striding the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b so as to cover a front side of an upward portion (including the connection parts 52a, 52b) than the opening parts 51a, 51b between the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b, which have been mutually connected. At this time, the screen 58 and the front face parts 60a, 60b are fastened together by plural bolt members B2 and well nuts B3, which penetrate through plural holes P3a, P3b having been formed respectively in a left end and a right
20

end of the screen 58, and plural holes P2a, P2b having been formed respectively in the front face part 60a of the left cowling 50a and the front face part 60b of the right cowling 50b.
Next, there is explained about an assemblage of the assembly 20 by an attachment of the cowling 21 and the headlight 22. As shown in Fig. 5 and Fig. 6, the headlight 22 has a lens part 80 covering its front, a body part 81 having bulged additionally to a rear side in the rear of the lens part 80, a frame part 82 surrounding a circumference of the lens part 80, and a socket part 83 extending additionally rearward from a face of the rear side of the body part 81.
The face of the rear side of the body part 81 is made a dome shape having curved so as to become convex to the rear side. Further, a face (not shown in the drawing) of a front side of the body part 81 is made a concave shape having been concaved to the rear. In this face of the front side of the body part 81, there is provided a reflector (not shown in the drawing).
The socket part 83 is provided in a portion having bulged most to the rear within the body part 81. This socket part 83 is a cylindrical shape extending to the rear from a rear end of the body part 81 and, from an inside of its cylinder, there extend the wiring and the like (not shown in the drawing) for supplying an electric power to the headlight 22 from a
21

generator (not shown in the drawing) having been possessed in the motorcycle 1.
Further, the headlight 22 has one pair of left/right upper cowling attachment parts 84a, 84b extending upward respectively from a left upper end and a right upper end of the frame part 82, and one pair of left/right lower cowling attachment parts 85a, 85b extending additionally downward from a downward end of the face of the rear side of the body part 81. In the one pair of upper cowling attachment parts 84a, 84b, there are respectively formed holes P6a, P6b. Further, in downward end faces of the one pair of lower cowling attachment parts 85a, 85b, there are respectively formed holes P7a, P7b.
In relation to this, the cowling 21 has one pair of left/right upper light attachment parts 57a, 57b which are above the opening parts 51a, 51b within faces of rear sides of the front face parts 60a, 60b, provided respectively in a left lower end of the left base part 54a and a right lower end of the right base part 54b, and extend to the rear. Further, this cowling 21 has one pair of left/right lower light attachment parts 56a, 56b having been provided while slightly protruding upward in bottom fcice parts 55a, 55b extending rearward below the opening parts 51a, 51b. In rear end faces of the one pair of upper light attachment parts 57a, 57b, there are respectively formed holes P5a, P5b and, in upward end faces
22

of the one pair of lower light attachment part 56a, 56b, there are respectively formed holes P4a, P4b.
And, the upper cowling attachment parts 84a, 84b of the headlight 22 and the upper light attachment parts 57a, 57b of the cowling 21 are position-aligned, and the upper cowling attachment parts 84a, 84b and the rear end faces of the upper light attachment parts 57a, 57b are fastened together by a bolt member B4 extending in a front/rear direction so as to penetrate through respectively the one pair of holes P6a, P6b of the upper cowling attachment part 84a, 84b having been mutually overlapped and the one pair of holes P5a, P5b of the upper light attachment parts 57a, 57b. Further, the lower cowling attachment parts 85a, 85b of the headlight 22 and the lower light attachment parts 56a, 56b of the cowling 21 are position-aligned, and downward end faces of the lower cowling attachment parts 8 5a, 85b and upward end faces of the lower light attachment parts 56a, 56b are fastened together by a bolt member B5 extending in a vertical direction so as to penetrate through respectively the one pair of holes P7a, P7b of the lower cowling attachment parts 85a, 85b and the one pair of holes P4a, P4b of the lower light attachment parts 56a, 56b (refer to Fig. 16) . Like this, a connection of the left, cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b is performed also through the headlight 22.
Further, in the assembly 20 having been assembled,
23

between one part of the left cowling 50a and one part of the right cowling 50b, which are mutually opposed, there is formed a slight interstice, and one part of the interposition member 90 made of rubber is provided in the interstice. As shown in Fig. 9 to Fig. 11, this interposition member 90 has a front band part 91 extending in the vertical direction, and a rear band part 92 extending rearward from an upward end of the front band part 91. In a rear face of the front band part 91, there are provided two first buffer parts 93, 94 protruding rearward while being mutually separated in the vertical direction. The two first buffer parts 93, 94 are inserted between a vehicle width direction inside end of the left connection part 52a and a vehicle width direction inside end of the right connection part 52b, which are mutually opposed. Further, in a rear portion of a downward face of the rear band part 92, there is provided one second buffer part 95 protruding downward. This second buffer part 95 is inserted between a vehicle width direction inside end of the left base part 54a and a vehicle width direction inside end of the right base part 54b, which are mutually opposed.
And, the left connection part 52a and the right connection part 52b are made possible to butt against the first buffer parts 93, 94, and the left base part 54a and the right base part 54b are made possible to butt against the second buffer part 95. Therefore, for example, in a case where such
24

an impact as to press the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b to the vehicle width direction inside has been exerted on the assembly 20, it is possible to absorb the impact by the fact that the first buffer parts 93, 94 and the second buffer part 95 elastically deform by being pressed between the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b.
Further, for example, by the first buffer parts 93, 94 and the second buffer part 95, it is also possible to effectively prevent a generation of the creak sound due to the fact that the left cowling 50a and the right cowling 50b directly contact. Further, as shown in Fig. 8, since the front band part 91 of the interposition member 90 is disposed along a boundary between the left connection part 52a and the right connection part 52b so as to cover a front side of a head part of the bolt member Bl fastening together the left extendedly-provided part 53a and the right extendedly-provided part 53b, which have been mutually overlapped, it is also possible to improve the design ability of the cowling 20.
Further, as shown in Fig. 11, the second buffer part 95 has a protrusion part 95a protruding to vehicle width direction both outsides. And, a vehicle width direction right end of the left base part 54a and a vehicle width direction left end of the right base part 54b are fitted between the protrusion part 95a and the rear band part 92. And, the rear band part
25

92 is disposed so as to extend rearward along a boundary between the left base part 54a and the right base part 54b.
Next, there is explained about an assemblage of the assembly 20, and the light stay 30 for attaching the headlight 22 of the assembly 20 to the vehicle body. Fig. 12 and Fig. 13 are perspective views in which the assembly 20 and the light stay 30 have been seen respectively from a vehicle left front direction and a vehicle right rear direction. Fig. 14 and Fig.
15 are respectively a front view and a left side view of the
assembly 20 to which the light stay 30 has been attached. Fig.
16 is a sectional view of the assembly 20 having been cut in
a XVI - XVI line shown in Fig. 14.
As shown in Fig. 13, the headlight 22 has individually, independently one pair of left/right light stay attachment parts 86a, 86b in portions different from upper cowling attachment parts 84a, 84b and lower cowling attachment parts 85a, 85b, which are attachment portions of the headlight to the cowling 21. That is, the one pair of light stay attachment parts 86a, 86b extend additionally rearward from, within a rear face of a body part 81 of the headlight 22, a portion which is below a portion having bulged most to the rear and has adjoined the upwardness of each of the one pair of lower cowling attachment parts 85a, 85b.
In rear end faces of the one pair of light stay attachment parts 86a, 86b, there are formed holes P8a, P8b. Incidentally,
2 6

a distance between the one pair of holes P8a, P8b having been provided in the one pair of light stay attachment part 8 6a, 86b is smaller than a distance between the holes P6a, P6b of the upper cowling attachment parts 84a, 84b, and made approximately equal to a distance between the one pair of holes P7a, P7b of the lower cowling attachment parts 85a, 85b.
In relation to this, the light stay 30 has one pair of left/right light attachment face parts 31a, 31b which are a left upper end and a right upper end of the light stay and respectively extend upward, a first base part 32 which links downward ends of the light attachment face parts 31a, 31b and extends additionally downward while slanting rearward from the downward ends, a second base part 33 which extends additionally downward approximately parallel to the light attachment face parts 31a, 31b from a downward end of the first base part 32, a plate stay part 34 which extends forward from a downward end of the second base part 33 and whose forward end is curved downward, and a tongue part 35 which extends rearward from a downward end of the second base part.
In the one pair of light attachment face parts 31a, 31b, there are formed respectively one pair of holes P9a, P9b. In forward ends of the plate stay part 34, which extend downward, there are formed one pair of holes PlOa, PlOb. To the forward end of the plate stay part 34, there is attached the number plate 16 (refer to Fig. 1). Further, in the tongue part 35,
27

there is formed an elliptic long hole Pll whose major axis direction is a front/rear direction.
And, the light attachment face parts 31a, 31b of the light stay 30 and rear end faces of the light stay attachment parts 86a, 86b of the headlight 22 are position-aligned, and the light attachment face parts 31a, 31b and the rear end faces of the light stay attachment parts 8 6a, 8 6b are fastened together by one pair of bolt members B6 extending in the front/rear direction so as to penetrate through respectively the one pair of holes P8a, P8b of the light attachment face parts 31a, 31b and the one pair of holes P9a, P9b of the light stay attachment parts 86a, 86b, which have been mutually overlapped (refer to Fig. 16) .
Next, there is explained about an attachment of the assembly 20 to the vehicle body. Fig. 17 is a perspective view in which the assembly 2 0 and a vehicle body front part of the motorcycle 1 to which the assembly 20 is attached have been seen from a left front direction. Incidentally, to the assembly 20, there are attached one pair of left/right side lamps 59a, 59b by the fact that they are inserted respectively into one pair of left/right holes P3a, P3b (refer to Fig. 6) of the cowling 21. Fig. 18 is a perspective view in which the assembly 2 0 having been attached to the vehicle body front part of the motorcycle 1 has been seen from the left front direction. Fig. 19 and Fig. 20 are respectively a front view and a side
28

view of the front bracket 40. Fig. 21 is a sectional view of the front bracket 40 having been cut in a XXI - XXI line shown in Fig. 19. Fig. 22 is a side view of the assembly 20 having been attached to the vehicle body front part of the motorcycle 1. Fig. 23 is a sectional view of the assembly 20 having been cut in a XXIII - XXIII line shown in Fig. 22.
As shown in Fig. 19 and Fig. 20, the front bracket 4 0 has a U-letter part 41 including one pair of left/right pillar parts 41a, 41b extending in the vertical direction, a bridge part 42 bridged between midway portions of the one pair of pillar parts 41a, 41b, one pair of left/right arm parts 43a, 43b extending respectively to the vehicle width direction outside from the one pair of pillar parts 41a, 41b, one pair of left/right hand parts 44a, 44b respectively extending upward while slanting rearward slightly from vehicle width direction outside ends of the one pair of arm parts 43a, 43b, a support part 47 extending forward from a downward end of the U-letter part 41, and a base part 48 extending additionally downward from a downward end of the U-letter part.
As to the one pair of hand part 44a, 44b, their upward portions extend additionally upward while curving to the vehicle width direction outside and, in their tip parts 45a, 45b, there are provided bearing parts 46a, 46b penetrating through the tip parts 45a, 45b in the vehicle width direction. The bearing parts 4 6a, 4 6b are a cylindrical shape extending
29

in the vehicle width direction, in which there have been formed holes P12a, P12b penetrating through the bearing parts 46a, 46b in the vehicle width direction (refer to Fig. 21).
Further, the support part 47 has a flat plate-like ceiling part 4 7a which is a front portion of the support part and extends to the front while slightly slanting downward, and one pair of left/right side wall parts 47b, 47c extending downward from vehicle width direction both ends of the ceiling part 47a. In the ceiling part 47a of this support part 47, a bolt member B7 for attaching the light stay 3 0 to the support part 47 is provided so as to penetrate through the ceiling part 47a in the vertical direction. Incidentally, vertical direction lengths of the one pair of side wall parts 47b, 47c mutually differ, and rather the left-side side wall part 47b is made shorter than the right-side side wall part 47c.
This front bracket 40 is attached to the vehicle body front part by the fact that upward ends of the one pair of pillar parts 41a, 41b of the U-letter part 41 are respectively fixed to the handle crown 12 and its base part 4 8 is fixed to a front face of the under bracket 13.
And, the tongue part 35 of the light stay 30 is inserted between the one pair of side wall parts 47b, 47c of the support part 47 of this front bracket 40 from the front, and the tongue part 35 is butted against a downward face of the ceiling part 47a so as to exist along the ceiling part 47a. The light stay
30

30 is attached to the front bracket 40 by the fact that the support part 47 and the tongue part 35 are fastened together by the bolt member B7 penetrating in the vertical direction through the long hole Pll of the tongue part 35 of the light stay 30 from the ceiling part 47a of the front bracket 40 having been mutually overlapped.
By doing like this, the assembly 20 is fixed to the vehicle body through the light stay 30 having been attached to its headlight 22. Like this, the light stay 30 is a support member having been provided exclusively for attaching the headlight 22 to the vehicle body, and a member supporting the whole assembly 20 including not only the headlight 22 but also the cowling 21 having been attached to the headlight 22. However, within the assembly 20, one attached to this light stay 30 is only the body part 81 of the headlight 22.
Further, the cowling 21 of the assembly 2 0 is shaft-supported to the vehicle body so as to be rotatable about a an axis extending in the vehicle width direction such that centers of the bottom parts 71a, 71b of the one pair of left/right shaft support parts 70a,r 70b are mutually connected. That is, as shown in Fig. 23, the one pair of left/right bearing parts 46a, 46b of the front bracket 40 are respectively fitted to the one pair of left/right shaft holes 72a, 72b (refer to Fig. 4) having been formed in the bottom parts 71a, 71b of the shaft support parts 70a, 70b of the cowling 21. Additionally,
31

in the fitted portions, one pair of left/right shaft members 49a, 49b extending in the vehicle width direction are provided so as to penetrate respectively through the one pair of holes P12a, P12b of the bearing parts 46a, 46b and the one pair of shaft holes 72a, 72b of the shaft support parts 70a, 70b. And, the cowling 21 is made possible to rotate about an axis extending in the vehicle width direction such that centers of the one pair of left/right shaft members 49a, 49b are mutually connected.
A rotation mechanism of the cowling 21 like this can be utilized when adjusting an optical axis of the headlight 22 having been attached monolithically to the cowling 21. That is, under a state in which a fixation between the light stay 30 and the front bracket 40 by the bolt member B7 has been released, it is possible to adjust the optical axis of the headlight 22 of the assembly 20 by rotating the whole assembly 20 about an axis connecting the one pair of left/right shaft support parts 70a, 70b of the cowling 21.
At this time, following upon a rotation of the cowling 21, it is possible to alter a distance between the headlight 22 and the vehicle body. That is, in the tongue part 35 of the light stay 30, there is formed the long hole Pll (refer to Fig. 13) extending in a direction intersecting perpendicularly to a rotation axis of the cowling 21, and the light stay 30 and the front bracket 40 can be fixed by the bolt
32

member B7 within a range from a front end to a rear end of the long hole Pll. Therefore, following upon the rotation of the cowling 21, the distance between the headlight 22 and the vehicle body in the front/rear direction can be arbitrarily adjusted in the range of the long hole Pll of the light stay 30.
And, if the optical axis of the headlight 22 has been suitably adjusted by the rotation of the cowling 21, the light stay 30 and the front bracket 40 are fastened and fixed by the bolt member B7 such that the headlight 22 is fixed to the vehicle body in a position after the rotation. By doing like this, the cowling 21 is fixed to the vehicle body again through the headlight 22.
Further, as shown in Fig. 22, as to the light stay 30, the light attachment face parts 31a, 31b which are end parts of the front and the upwardness of the light stay are attached to the headlight 22, and the tongue part 35 which is an end part of the rear and the downwardness of the light stay is attached to the front bracket 40. That is, an attachment position of the light stay 30 to the vehicle body is made a position having extended from an attachment position to the head light 22 to a direction separating from the optical axis of the headlight 22 . On the other hand, the shaft support parts 70a, 70b of the cowling 21 are provided in the upwardness and the rear, which have nipped the headlight 22 from the attachment
33

position of the light stay 30 to the vehicle body. That is, in the vertical direction, the shaft support parts 70a, 70b are provided in relation to the headlight 22 in a side reverse to an attachment position between the headlight and the light stay 30 and the attachment position of the light stay 30 to the vehicle body. Like this, since the shaft support parts 70a, 70b of the cowling 21 are provided comparatively, remotely from the headlight 22 in the upwardness and the rear of the headlight 22, it is possible to easily perform a fine adjustment of the optical axis of the headlight 22.
Further, as shown in Fig. 22, to a front end of the plate stay part 34 of the light stay 30, there is attached the number plate 16 extending downward while slanting to the front. That is, the number plate 16 is attached to the assembly 20 through the light stay 30. Therefore, in a case where the optical axis of the headlight 22 is adjusted, it follows that this number plate 16 rotates monolithically with the headlight 22 and the cowling 21. Accordingly, such a disadvantage does not occur that, when adjusting the optical axis, the cowling 21 or the headlight 22 and the number plate 16 impinge.
Incidentally, the motorcycle concerned with the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned example. For example, the face in which the shaft support part of the front cowling is formed is not limited to the above-mentioned example. That is, for example, there may be made such that the shaft

support parts are provided in upward end portions of the second folded face parts 65a, 65b. Fig. 24 is a side view of the left cowling in this case. Further, Fig. 25 is a sectional view of the left cowling having been cut in a XXV - XXV line shown 5 in Fig. 24. As shown in Fig. 24 and Fig. 25, this shaft support part 75a extends toward the vehicle width direction inside from a boundary portion between the second folded face part 65a and the lower first folded face part 67a so as to stride the lower first folded face part 67a connected to the upwardness of the
10 shaft support part from the second folded face part 65a through the second ridgeline R2a. This shaft support part 75a is the bottomed cylindrical shape and, in a bottom part 7 6a that is its end face in the vehicle width direction inside, there is formed a shaft hole 77a penetrating through the bottom part
15 7 6a in the vehicle width direction.
Further, the shaft support part may be provided in, within the front cowling for instance, a face having three or more ridgelines in its circumference. That is, for example, in a case where in one part of the front cowling there is provided
20 a portion three-dimensional in the vehicle width direction, which has been bulged to the vehicle width direction outside or concaved to the vehicle width direction inside, the shaft support part can be provided in a face which is a face included in the three-dimensional portion and has in its circumference
25 three or more ridgelines. Further, in a case where in one part

of the front cowling there is formed an apex portion in which respective one ends of two or three or more ridgelines mutually gather, the shaft support part can be provided in a face having in its circumference at least two ridgelines among the plural ridgelines extending in mutually different directions from the apex portion.
Further, the vehicle body front part to which the headlight is attached is not limited to the above-mentioned example, and there suffices if the headlight is attached so as to become possible to be steered monolithically with the vehicle body front part by the handle. Further, the front cowling may be one including three or more cowling pieces for instance.
3 6

WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:
1. A motorcycle characterized by having possessed:
a headlight having been attached to a vehicle body, and
a front cowling which has plural cowling pieces having
been molded as separate bodies, and has been fixed to the vehicle body by being attached to the headlight.
2. The motorcycle as claimed in claim 1,
characterized in that it has possessed a light stay for
attaching the headlight to the vehicle body, whose one part
is attached to a portion different from an attachment portion
of the headlight to the front cowling, and whose the other one
end part is attached to the vehicle body.
3. The motorcycle as claimed in claim 1,
characterized in that:
the headlight has a body part which bulges to a vehicle rear side, and in whose vehicle front side face there has been provided a reflector, and
there has been possessed a light stay for attaching the headlight to the vehicle body, whose one part is attached to the vehicle rear side face of the body part, and whose the other one end part is attached to the vehicle body.
4. The motorcycle as claimed in claim 1,
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characterized in that the headlight is attached, within a front part of the vehicle body, to a portion capable of being steered by a handle.
5. The motorcycle as claimed in claim 1,
characterized in that the front cowling has a shaft support
part, and is shaft-supported to the vehicle body so as to be
rotatable about an axis which passes through the shaft support
part and extends in a vehicle width direction.
6. The motorcycle as claimed in claim 5,
characterized in that it has possessed a light stay for
attaching the headlight to the vehicle body, which supports
the headlight in a vehicle downwardness than the shaft support
part so as to be capable of altering a distance between the
headlight and the vehicle body following upon a rotation of
the front cowling.
7. The motorcycle as claimed in claim 5,
characterized in that:
the front cowling has a face having at least two ridgelines in its circumference, and
the shaft support part is provided such that its at least one part is connected to the face.
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8. The motorcycle as claimed in claim 7,
characterized in that:
the front cowling has a front face part extending to a vehicle body rear toward a vehicle width direction outside, and a folded face part extending toward a vehicle width direction inside in a vehicle rear of the front face part, and
the face having at least two ridgelines in its circumference is the folded face part.
9. The motorcycle as claimed in claim 7,
characterized in that:
the front cowling has other face connected to the face through one between the at least two ridgelines, and
the shaft support part is provided while striding the face having at least two ridgelines in its circumference and the other face.
10. The motorcycle as claimed in claim 5,
characterized in that it has possessed a plate stay for
supporting a number plate, which can rotate monolithically with
the front cowling.
11. The motorcycle as claimed in claim 10,
characterized in that:
it possesses a light stay for attaching the headlight
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to the vehicle body, which supports the headlight in a vehicle downwardness than the shaft support part so as to be capable of altering a distance between the headlight and the vehicle body following upon a rotation of the front cowling, and the plate stay is attached to the light stay.
12. The motorcycle as claimed in claim 1,
characterized in that:
the plural cowling pieces that the front cowling has are one pair of left cowing and right cowling, and
the left cowling and the right cowling are respectively molded by a metal mold whose draw direction is a vehicle width direction.
13. The motorcycle as claimed in claim 1,
characterized in that:
the plural cowling pieces that the front cowling has are one pair of left cowing and right cowling, and
there has been possessed, in the front cowling, a buffer member comprising an elastic material between one part of the left cowling and one part of the right cowling, which are mutually opposed.

There is made a motorcycle having possessed a headlight having been attached to a vehicle body, and a front cowling which has plural cowling pieces having been molded as separate bodies, and has been fixed to the vehicle body by being attached to the headlight.

A MOTORCYCLE WITH RIGID FRONT COWLING

Documents:

Inventors:

PCT Conventions: