Underfloor extendible ramp for vehicles

Abstract

The disclosure comprises a tray mountable under the floor of a vehicle, which tray contains an extendible ramp mechanism. This mechanism comprises a ramp and a driving panel for the ramp. The ramp is fulcrummed intermediate its ends on the outer ends of parallel arms extending from the driving panel. Also in the tray, as part of the driving mechanism, are a pair of parallel toothed belts driven by a reversible rotating motor, which belts are attached to the driving panel for extending and retracting the ramp from the tray. Mounted under the driving panel is a reciprocating motor connected by a crank arm to a shaft having additional crank arms pivotally connected to the underside of the ramp adjacent the driving panel. When the ramp is fully extended, the reciprocating motor tilts the ramp so that its inner end is moved upwardly to be flush with the floor of the vehicle. Simultaneously, the outer end of the ramp contacts the ground. The ramp has parallel side barriers which spring into position when the ramp is fully extended. These barriers are automatically folded against the top surface of the ramp by an angularly-mounted roller which contacts a cammed surface at the inner ends of each barrier as the ramp is retracted into the tray.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.