# US 10,766,562 B2 · Forecarriage of a rolling motor vehicle

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- Number: US 10,766,562 B2
- Document ID: US10766562B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 16/065,247
- Filed: 2016-12-28
- Published: 2019-12-05
- Granted: 2020-09-08
- Earliest claimed: 2015-12-28
- Assignees: Piaggio & C. S.P.A.
- Applicants: Piaggio & C. S.P.A.
- Inventors: Luciano Socci; Andrea Raffaelli
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10766562B2

## CPC

- B62K 25/08: for front wheel
- B60G 17/005: Suspension locking arrangements {(for retractable wheels B62D61/12)}
- B62D 9/02: combined with means for inwardly inclining vehicle body on bends
- B62K 5/01: Motorcycles with four or more wheels (specially adapted for disabled riders B62K5/003)
- B62K 5/027: Motorcycles with three wheels (specially adapted for disabled riders B62K5/023)
- B62K 5/08: with steering devices acting on two or more wheels
- B62K 5/10: with means for inwardly inclining the vehicle body on bends
- B62L 3/02: for control by a hand lever (hand levers for control of cycles in general B62K23/06)
- B60G 2204/46: Means for locking the suspension
- B60G 2300/122: Trikes
- B60G 2300/45: Rolling frame vehicles
- B62K 2005/001: {Suspension details for cycles with three or more main road wheels}
- B62K: CYCLES; CYCLE FRAMES; CYCLE STEERING DEVICES; RIDER-OPERATED TERMINAL CONTROLS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR CYCLES; CYCLE AXLE SUSPENSIONS; CYCLE SIDECARS, FORECARS, OR THE LIKE
- B60G: VEHICLE SUSPENSION ARRANGEMENTS (air-cushion vehicles B60V; {cycle suspensions B62K25/00})
- B62D: MOTOR VEHICLES; TRAILERS (steering, or guiding on a desired track, of agricultural machines or implements A01B69/00; wheels, castors, axles, increasing wheel adhesion B60B; vehicle tyres, tyre inflation or tyre changing B60C; connections between vehicles of a train or the like B60D; vehicles for use on rail and road, amphibious or convertible vehicles B60F; suspension arrangements B60G; heating, cooling, ventilating or other air treating devices B60H; windows, windscreens, non-fixed roofs, doors or similar devices, protective coverings for vehicles not in use B60J; propulsion plant arrangements, auxiliary drives, transmissions, controls, instrumentation or dashboards B60K; electric equipment or propulsion of electrically-propelled vehicles B60L; power supply for electrically-propelled vehicles B60M; passenger accommodation not otherwise provided for B60N; adaptations for load transportation or to carry special loads or objects B60P; arrangement of signalling or lighting devices, the mounting or supporting thereof or circuits therefor, for vehicles in general B60Q; vehicles, vehicle fittings or vehicle parts not otherwise provided for B60R; servicing, cleaning, repairing, supporting, lifting, or manoeuvring, not otherwise provided for, B60S; brake arrangements, brake control systems or parts thereof B60T; air-cushion vehicles B60V; motor-cycles, accessories therefor B62J, B62K; testing of vehicles G01M)
- B62L: BRAKES SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR CYCLES {(arrangements in cycles for adjusting wheel-braking force to meet varying vehicular or ground-surface conditions B60T8/00)}

## Abstract

A forecarriage (8) of a rolling motor vehicle (4), comprising a forecarriage frame (16), at least a pair of front wheels (10″), each wheel (10″) being connected to a rolling kinematic mechanism (20), which enables the front wheels (10″) to roll in a synchronous and specular manner, by means of a respective axle journal (60), and a roll block system (100) comprising a rod extensible in length (110) which directly connects one of the two front wheels (10″) at the respective axle journal (60) to said forecarriage frame (16) by means of hinging means (71, 72, 73) at both its ends, and means (120) to reversibly block the lying position of said rod extensible in length (110) on a rolling plane with respect to said axle journal (60) and to said forecarriage frame (16), so as to block the rolling movements allowed by said rolling kinematic mechanism (20).

## Claims

### Claim 1

A forecarriage of a rolling motor vehicle with three or four wheels, comprising:
a forecarriage frame,
at least one pair of front wheels kinematically connected one to each other and to the forecarriage frame by means of a kinematic rolling mechanism which enables the front wheels to roll in a synchronous and specular manner, each wheel being connected to said kinematic rolling mechanism by means of a respective axle journal, said axle journal being mechanically connected to a rotation pin of a respective wheel in order to rotatably support said respective wheel around an rotation axis,
a roll block system,
suspension means which provide each axle journal at least one spring suspension movement with respect to said kinematic rolling mechanism,
a steering device suitable to command the rotation of the axle journals about respective steering axes of each front wheel,
wherein said roll block system comprises a length extensible rod which directly connects one of said two front wheels in correspondence of the respective axle journal to said forecarriage frame by means of hinging means at both ends of said length extensible rod, said forecarriage frame being suitable to follow the axle journal in rolling movements which are allowed by said kinematic rolling mechanism, said length extensible rod being suitable to passively follow the movements of said axle journal and of said forecarriage frame by varying its orientation in space with respect to them, and
wherein said roll block system comprises reversible blocking means which is suitable to reversibly block the lying position of said extensible rod on a rolling plane, with respect to said axle journal and/or with respect to said forecarriage frame, so as to be suitable to block the rolling movements allowed by said kinematic rolling mechanism, said lying position being defined by the angle formed by the projection of the rod on a vertical projection plane with a reference plane orthogonal to the rotation axis of the wheel associated to said axle journal, wherein said vertical projection plane is transverse to a centreline plane.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The forecarriage according to claim 1, wherein the hinging means are constituted by ball joints or devices kinematically equivalent to ball joints.

### Claim 3 (depends on 2)

The forecarriage according to claim 2, wherein said devices kinematically equivalent to ball joints are constituted by a pair of cylindrical hinges with axes orthogonal to each other.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The forecarriage according to claim 1, wherein said rod extensible in length is formed by at least two portions telescopically associated with one another according to a direction of prevailing longitudinal extension.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The forecarriage according to claim 1, wherein said reversible blocking means are suitable to block the rotation of the extensible rod with respect to said axle journal or to said forecarriage frame, leaving the rod free to extend in length.

### Claim 6 (depends on 5)

The forecarriage according to claim 5, wherein said reversible blocking means are suitable to block the rotation of the rod in correspondence of at least one of the ends with which said extensible rod is connected to said axle journal or to said forecarriage frame, acting directly or indirectly on the hinging means.

### Claim 7 (depends on 6)

The forecarriage according to claim 6, wherein said reversible blocking means are configured to act directly on the hinging means blocking their rotation, at least partly, and wherein the hinging means on which the reversible blocking means act are constituted by a pair of cylindrical hinges having axes orthogonal to each other, one first hinge of the two hinges of said pair having its hinge axis orthogonal to the rolling plane of the two front wheels, in such a way that the extensible rod can move parallel to said rolling plane when said means are not activated, said reversible blocking means being suitable to block the rotation of said rod around said first hinge so as to prevent the rod from rotating with respect to said axle journal or forecarriage frame on said rolling plane.

### Claim 8 (depends on 7)

The forecarriage according to claim 7, wherein said reversible blocking means comprise a band brake or a drum brake associated to the first cylindrical hinge of said pair of hinges with orthogonal axes to reversibly block the rotation of the rod with respect to said at least one end.

### Claim 9 (depends on 6)

The forecarriage according to claim 6, wherein said reversible blocking means are configured to act indirectly on the hinging means blocking their rotation, at least partly, and wherein said reversible blocking means comprise a strut extensible in length, which is provided with means of blocking its length and diagonally connects said extensible rod to the axle journal or to the forecarriage frame, said strut connecting both to the rod and to the axle journal or to the forecarriage frame by means of hinging means such that, when the strut is left free to extend in length, said extensible strut is configured not to hinder the movement of the extensible rod with respect to the axle journal and to the forecarriage frame, while when it is blocked in length said extensible strut is configured to prevent the rotation of the rod with respect to the axle journal or to the frame in the common lying plane between rod and axle journal or between rod and frame, said extensible strut being placed in such a way that, even when blocked, it is suitable to leave said rod free to extend in length.

### Claim 10 (depends on 1)

The forecarriage according to claim 1, wherein said reversible blocking means are suitable to block said lying position by blocking the distance between the two points of said axle journal and of said forecarriage frame connected from said extensible rod preventing said rod from extending in length.

### Claim 11 (depends on 10)

The forecarriage according to claim 10, wherein the connection point of the rod on the axle journal is located on the steering axis of the respective axle journal.

### Claim 12 (depends on 10)

The forecarriage according to claim 10, wherein said kinematic rolling mechanism is a system with two suspended arms.

### Claim 13 (depends on 12)

The forecarriage according to claim 12, wherein the extensible rod is connected on the axle journal on any portion of the axle journal, which is located on the steering axis of the respective axle journal and is connected to the forecarriage frame on any portion of the latter.

### Claim 14 (depends on 10)

The forecarriage according to claim 10, in which said kinematic rolling mechanism is an articulated quadrilateral system, which comprises a pair of cross members, hinged to said forecarriage frame in correspondence of middle hinges, said cross members being connected one to each other, in correspondence of opposite transverse ends, by means of uprights pivoted to said transverse ends in correspondence of side hinges, the cross members and the uprights defining said articulated quadrilateral system, each of the uprights guiding and supporting an axle journal of one of said front wheels.

### Claim 15 (depends on 14)

The forecarriage according to claim 14, wherein the connection point of the rod on the axle journal lies on the ideal lying plane of the upright to which is associated the axle journal, said ideal lying plane passing through the axes of the two side hinges, while the connection point of the rod on the forecarriage frame lies on the lying plane passing through the two middle hinges, the two connection points of the rod being mutually aligned according to a direction not parallel to the two cross members of the articulated quadrilateral system.

### Claim 16 (depends on 14)

The forecarriage according to claim 14, wherein the connection point of the rod on the axle journal does not lie on the ideal lying plane of the upright to which is associated the axle journal, said ideal lying plane passing through the axes of the two side hinges, or the connection point of the rod on the forecarriage frame does not lie on the lying plane passing through the two middle hinges, the two connection points of the rod being mutually aligned according to any direction with respect to the two cross members of the articulated quadrilateral.

### Claim 17 (depends on 10)

The forecarriage according to claim 10, wherein said rod extensible in length is formed by at least two portions telescopically associated with one another according to a direction of prevailing longitudinal extension; and wherein said reversible blocking means are suitable to block the mutual telescopic sliding of the two portions of the extensible rod and thus the length of the rod.

### Claim 18 (depends on 17)

The forecarriage according to claim 17, wherein said reversible blocking means are constituted by a caliper-brake system acting on the two telescopic portions of the rod.

### Claim 19 (depends on 17)

The forecarriage according to claim 17, wherein said reversible blocking means are constituted by a ratchet gear system acting on the two telescopic portions of the rod.

### Claim 20 (depends on 1)

A motor vehicle having a drive wheel at the rear and a forecarriage according to claim 1.

### Claim 21 (depends on 3)

The forecarriage according to claim 3, wherein said pair of cylindrical hinges comprises one first hinge of the two hinges of each pair having a hinge axis orthogonal to the rolling plane of the two front wheels.

### Claim 22 (depends on 4)

The forecarriage according to claim 4, wherein said two rod portions are associated to each other with a cylindrical coupling to allow free relative rotation around said direction of prevailing longitudinal extension.

### Claim 23 (depends on 16)

The forecarriage according to claim 16, wherein said two connection points are mutually aligned according to a direction parallel to the two cross members of the articulated quadrilateral system.

### Claim 24 (depends on 17)

The forecarriage according to claim 17, wherein said two rod portions are associated to each other with a cylindrical coupling to allow free relative rotation around said direction of prevailing longitudinal extension.