Vehicle

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9428235-B2
Application number	US-201414901379-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 30, 2014
Priority date	Jul 1, 2013
Publication date	Aug 30, 2016
Grant date	Aug 30, 2016

Abstract

A vehicle includes a front end of a front portion and at least a portion of a headlamp disposed on the left of a right end of a right front wheel and on the right of a left end of a left front wheel when the vehicle is in the upright state, above upper ends of the right front wheel and the left front wheel, and below an upper end of a lower cross portion in relation to an up-and-down direction of a body frame in a position located ahead of a front end of the lower cross portion when looking at the vehicle from a side thereof.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A vehicle comprising:
a body frame that leans to a right of the vehicle when the vehicle turns right and that leans to a left of the vehicle when the vehicle turns left;
a right front wheel and a left front wheel that are aligned in a left-and-right direction of the body frame;
a right suspension device that supports the right front wheel at a lower portion thereof and that absorbs an upward displacement of the right front wheel in an up-and-down direction of the body frame;
a left suspension device that supports the left front wheel at a lower portion thereof and that absorbs an upward displacement of the left front wheel in the up-and-down direction of the body frame;
a link mechanism which includes:
a right side portion that supports an upper portion of the right suspension device so as to allow the upper portion of the right suspension device to turn about a right steering axis that extends in the up-and-down direction of the body frame;
a left side portion that supports an upper portion of the left suspension device so as to allow the upper portion of the left suspension device to turn about a left steering axis that is parallel or substantially parallel to the right steering axis;
an upper cross portion that supports an upper portion of the right side portion at a right end portion thereof so as to allow the upper portion of the right side portion to turn about an upper right axis that extends in a front-and-rear direction of the body frame and supports an upper portion of the left side portion at a left end portion thereof so as to allow the upper portion of the left side portion to turn about an upper left axis that is parallel or substantially parallel to the upper right axis and that is supported on the body frame at a middle portion thereof so as to turn about an upper middle axis that is parallel or substantially parallel to the upper right axis and the upper left axis; and
a lower cross portion that supports a lower portion of the right side portion at a right end portion so as to allow the upper portion to turn about a lower right axis that is parallel or substantially parallel to the upper right axis and supports a lower portion of the left side portion at a left end portion thereof so as to allow the upper portion to turn about a lower left axis that is parallel or substantially parallel the upper left axis and that is supported on the body frame at a middle portion thereof so as to turn about a lower middle axis that is parallel or substantially parallel to the upper middle axis;

a headlamp including a light source that emits light to a front of the vehicle; and
a body cover that covers at least a portion of the headlamp, the upper cross portion, and a right side surface, a left side surface, and an upper surface of the lower cross portion; wherein
at least a portion of the headlamp is disposed on the left of a right end of the right front wheel and on the right of a left end of the left front wheel when the vehicle is in an upright state, above upper ends of the right front wheel and the left front wheel, below an upper end of the lower cross portion in relation to the up-and-down direction of the body frame in a position located ahead of a front end of the lower cross portion in a side view of the vehicle;
in a front end portion of the vehicle that includes the headlamp and the body cover:
a front edge of the front portion of the vehicle extends from a front end to above the upper cross portion and to behind the front end of the lower cross portion in the side view of the vehicle when the vehicle is in the upright state; and
the front end of the front portion of the vehicle is disposed on the left of the right end of the right front wheel and on the right of the left end of the left front wheel when the vehicle is in the upright state, above the upper ends of the right front wheel and the left front wheel, and below the upper end of the lower cross portion in relation to the up-and-down direction of the body frame in a position located ahead of the front end of the lower cross portion in the side view of the vehicle.

2. The vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein a right end and a left end of the front portion of the vehicle are disposed behind the front end of the lower cross portion in a top view of the vehicle when the vehicle is in the upright state.

3. The vehicle according to claim 2 , wherein the right end and the left end of the front portion of the vehicle are disposed behind a front end of the upper cross portion in the top view of the vehicle when the vehicle is in the upright state.

4. The vehicle according to claim 3 , wherein the right end and the left end of the front portion of the vehicle are disposed behind a rear end of the lower cross portion in the top view of the vehicle when the vehicle is in the upright state.

5. The vehicle according to claim 4 , wherein the right end and the left end of the front portion of the vehicle are disposed behind a rear end of the upper cross portion in the top view of the vehicle when the vehicle is in the upright state.

6. The vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein the front end of the front portion of the vehicle is disposed behind front ends of the right front wheel and the left front wheel in the side view of the vehicle when the vehicle is in the upright state.

7. The vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein at least a portion of the headlamp is disposed above a lower end of the lower cross portion in relation to the up-and-down direction of the body frame in the side view of the vehicle when the vehicle is in the upright state.

8. The vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein at least a portion of the headlamp is disposed ahead of rotating axes of the right front wheel and the left front wheel in the side view of the vehicle when the vehicle is in the upright state.

9. The vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein at least a portion of an outer cover that covers the light source of the headlamp defines a portion of the front edge of the front portion of the vehicle in the side view of the vehicle.

10. The vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein the front portion of the vehicle has a shape in which the front portion of the vehicle is tapered from the right end and the left end thereof towards the headlamp in the top view of the vehicle.

11. The vehicle according to claim 1 , further comprising a brake device that applies a braking force to at least one of the right front wheel and the left front wheel; and
a fluid unit including a plurality of brake fluid flow paths to control an operation of the brake device by switching the flow paths through which a brake fluid flows; wherein
at least a portion of the fluid unit is aligned with the headlamp along a vertical direction when the vehicle is in the upright state.

12. The vehicle according to claim 11 , wherein at least a portion of the fluid unit is disposed between the headlamp and the upper cross portion in a front view of the vehicle when the vehicle is in the upright state.

13. The vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein the front edge of the front portion of the vehicle is shaped so that an inclination angle of a portion that is disposed above the headlamp relative to a horizontal plane is smaller than an inclination angle of a portion that is disposed above the portion above the headlamp relative to the horizontal plane in the side view of the vehicle when the vehicle is in the upright state.

14. The vehicle according to claim 13 , wherein a vertical distance from the front end of the front portion of the vehicle to the upper end of the lower cross portion is smaller than a vertical

Assignees

• Yamaha Motor Co Ltd

Inventors

• Takano Kazuhisa
• Iizuka Toshio
• Noguchi Hirotoshi

Classifications

• B62J6/02

  Headlights · CPC title

• B62K5/08

  with steering devices acting on two or more wheels · CPC title

• B62K5/027

  Motorcycles with three wheels (specially adapted for disabled riders B62K5/023) · CPC title

• B62K5/10 Primary

  with means for inwardly inclining the vehicle body on bends · CPC title

• B62K2005/001

  Suspension details for cycles with three or more main road wheels · CPC title