Low-floor drop frame for passenger transport vehicle
AssigneeChampion Bus, Inc.
InventorsRobert Portney, James Scott, John Resnik
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A vehicle for transporting passengers. The vehicle comprises a chassis including a front axle, a rear axle, and a frame that includes a front section that supports the front axle and a rear section that supports the rear axle. The vehicle further comprises a drop frame insert located between the front section of the frame and the rear section of the frame. A top surface of the drop frame insert is positioned lower than a top surface of the frame, and at least a portion of a bottom surface of the drop frame insert is generally coplanar with a bottom surface of the frame.
Claims22
A vehicle for transporting passengers comprising:
- a chassis that includes a front axle, a rear axle, and a frame comprising a front section that supports said front axle and a rear section that supports said rear axle;
- and
- a drop frame insert located between said front section of said frame and said rear section of said frame,
- wherein a top surface of said drop frame insert is positioned lower than a top surface of said frame, and wherein at least a portion of a bottom surface of said drop frame insert is generally coplanar with a bottom surface of said frame.
A frame insert for a passenger transport vehicle, wherein the passenger transport vehicle includes a chassis comprising a front axle, a rear axle, and a frame that supports the front axle and the rear axle, said frame insert comprising:
- a longitudinally-extending left rail and a longitudinally-extending right rail, wherein said left rail and said right rail are spaced apart and extend in generally parallel relationship;
- one or more lateral cross members extending between said left rail and said right rail;
- a reinforcement assembly positioned at a rear end of each of said left rail and said right rail, wherein said reinforcement assemblies are configured to be at least partially received in channels presented by the chassis frame;
- and
- an extended drop section extending forward from said right rail, wherein said extended drop section is positioned lower than said right rail.
A method for modifying an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) vehicle from a high-profile configuration to a low-profile configuration, wherein said OEM vehicle comprises an OEM chassis that includes a front axle, a rear axle, and an OEM frame that supports the front axle and the rear axle, wherein the OEM frame includes an OEM left rail and an OEM right rail, said method comprising the steps of:
- (a) cutting the OEM right rail (i) rearward of the front axle of the vehicle chassis and (ii) forward of the rear axle of the vehicle chassis, wherein said cuts are formed such that a central section of the OEM right rail is removable from remaining portions of the OEM frame;
- (b) cutting the OEM left rail (i) rearward of the front axle of the vehicle chassis and (ii) forward of the rear axle of the vehicle chassis, wherein said cuts are formed such that a central section of the OEM left rail is removable from remaining portions of the OEM frame;
- (c) engaging a drop frame insert with remaining portions of the OEM frame, wherein the drop frame insert extends between the front axle and the rear axle of the vehicle;
- (d) rigidly securing the drop frame insert in place with respect to the remaining portions of the OEM frame,
- wherein upon said rigidly securing of step (d), a top surface of the drop frame insert is positioned lower than a top surface of the OEM frame, and wherein at least a portion of a bottom surface of the drop frame insert is generally coplanar with a bottom surface of the OEM frame
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.