GB2059498A - Elevating roof mechanism - Google Patents
Elevating roof mechanism Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- GB2059498A GB2059498A GB7928368A GB7928368A GB2059498A GB 2059498 A GB2059498 A GB 2059498A GB 7928368 A GB7928368 A GB 7928368A GB 7928368 A GB7928368 A GB 7928368A GB 2059498 A GB2059498 A GB 2059498A
- Authority
- GB
- United Kingdom
- Prior art keywords
- roof
- elevating
- rail
- lever arm
- strut
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Granted
Links
Classifications
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
- B60J—WINDOWS, WINDSCREENS, NON-FIXED ROOFS, DOORS, OR SIMILAR DEVICES FOR VEHICLES; REMOVABLE EXTERNAL PROTECTIVE COVERINGS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR VEHICLES
- B60J7/00—Non-fixed roofs; Roofs with movable panels, e.g. rotary sunroofs
- B60J7/08—Non-fixed roofs; Roofs with movable panels, e.g. rotary sunroofs of non-sliding type, i.e. movable or removable roofs or panels, e.g. let-down tops or roofs capable of being easily detached or of assuming a collapsed or inoperative position
- B60J7/16—Non-fixed roofs; Roofs with movable panels, e.g. rotary sunroofs of non-sliding type, i.e. movable or removable roofs or panels, e.g. let-down tops or roofs capable of being easily detached or of assuming a collapsed or inoperative position non-foldable and rigid, e.g. a one-piece hard-top or a single rigid roof panel
- B60J7/1628—Non-fixed roofs; Roofs with movable panels, e.g. rotary sunroofs of non-sliding type, i.e. movable or removable roofs or panels, e.g. let-down tops or roofs capable of being easily detached or of assuming a collapsed or inoperative position non-foldable and rigid, e.g. a one-piece hard-top or a single rigid roof panel for covering the passenger compartment
- B60J7/1635—Non-fixed roofs; Roofs with movable panels, e.g. rotary sunroofs of non-sliding type, i.e. movable or removable roofs or panels, e.g. let-down tops or roofs capable of being easily detached or of assuming a collapsed or inoperative position non-foldable and rigid, e.g. a one-piece hard-top or a single rigid roof panel for covering the passenger compartment of non-convertible vehicles
- B60J7/1657—Non-fixed roofs; Roofs with movable panels, e.g. rotary sunroofs of non-sliding type, i.e. movable or removable roofs or panels, e.g. let-down tops or roofs capable of being easily detached or of assuming a collapsed or inoperative position non-foldable and rigid, e.g. a one-piece hard-top or a single rigid roof panel for covering the passenger compartment of non-convertible vehicles at least a major part of the roof pivoting about a stationary axis
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
- B60P—VEHICLES ADAPTED FOR LOAD TRANSPORTATION OR TO TRANSPORT, TO CARRY, OR TO COMPRISE SPECIAL LOADS OR OBJECTS
- B60P3/00—Vehicles adapted to transport, to carry or to comprise special loads or objects
- B60P3/32—Vehicles adapted to transport, to carry or to comprise special loads or objects comprising living accommodation for people, e.g. caravans, camping, or like vehicles
- B60P3/34—Vehicles adapted to transport, to carry or to comprise special loads or objects comprising living accommodation for people, e.g. caravans, camping, or like vehicles the living accommodation being expansible, collapsible or capable of rearrangement
Landscapes
- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
- Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
- Public Health (AREA)
- Transportation (AREA)
- Conveying And Assembling Of Building Elements In Situ (AREA)
- Power-Operated Mechanisms For Wings (AREA)
Abstract
A motor caravan has a side- hinged elevating roof (10) with front and rear elevating mechanisms. Each elevating mechanism (12) comprises a base rail (14), a lever arm (15) pivotally mounted at its proximal end at one end part of the rail; a strut (17) slidably mounted at its one end on the rail and pivotally connected at its other end to an intermediate part of the lever arm; actuating means such as a Bowden cable system (27) for moving said one end of the strut (17) towards said one end part of the rail to raise the distal end of the lever arm which is connected to the roof to be elevated, and towards the other end part of the rail to lower the distal end of the lever arm; and springs (20, 29) to urge said one end of the strut towards said one end part of the rail to counterbalance the roof. <IMAGE>
Description
SPECIFICATION
Elevating mechanism
This invention relates to elevating mechanisms, particularly for use with elevating roofs of motor caravans.
Motor caravans are known to be fitted with elevating roofs to provide increased headroom, and such roofs are usually of the side-hinged or total-lift type. It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved elevating mechanism which is particularly applicable to side-hinged roofs of this type.
In accordance with the present invention there is provided an elevating mechanism comprising: a base rail; a lever arm pivotally mounted at its proximal end at or near one end part of the rail; a strut slidably mounted at its one end on said rail and pivotally connected at its other end to an intermediate part of said lever arm; actuating means for use in moving said one end of the strut towards said one end part of the rail to raise the distal end of the lever arm which is arranged to be connected to a load to be elevated, and towards the other end part of the base rail to lower the distal end of the lever; and spring means to urge said one end of the strut towards said one end part of the rail and so act to counterbalance said
load.
Preferably, said lever arm is slightly angled at said intermediate part so that a distal length of the arm will lie close to said link and said rail in the
lowered position of the arm.
Preferably also, said operating means comprises a Bowden cable system.
Preferably also, said spring means comprises at
least one tension spring extending from a point on
said lever between its proximal end and its said
intermediate part, to a point on said strut between
its said one end and its said other end.
The present invention also provides a side
hinged elevating roof for a caravan wherein an
elevating mechanism as defined above is provided
at each end of the roof, each of said base rails
being arranged to be mounted transversely of the
body of the caravan and the distal end of each
hinged arm being coupled to the elevating roof.
Preferably, an internal abutment is provided at
each end of the elevating side of the elevating
roof, and a locking finger is carried at the sliding
end of each strut to engage said abutments in the
lowered position of the roof and lock the roof in
that position.
The present invention further provides a
caravan incorporating a side-hinged elevating roof
as defined above.
An embodiment of the invention will now be
described, by way of example, with reference to
the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is side elevation showing a motor
caravan having a side-hinged elevating roof
incorporating elevating mechanisms according to
the present invention;
Figure 2 is a plan view corresponding to Figure;
Figure 3 is a detail section on the line Ill-Ill of
Figure 1, showing the roof in its lowered position;
Figure 4 is a detail section similar to Figure 3, but showing the roof in its raised position;
Figure 5 is a detail section along a base rail of the lifting mechanism; and
Figure 6 is a section on the line VI--VI of
Figure 5.
Referring to the drawings, the motor caravan illustrated is provided with a side-hinged elevating roof 10, the hinged side being indicated by the reference 11. The roof is formed as a G.R.P.
moulding, and is provided with front and rear lifting mechanisms 12, 1 3 according to the present invention.
Referring to Figures 3 to ô, which illustrate the front elevating mechanism 12, the mechanism comprises a base rail 14, a lever arm 1 5 having a pivotal mounting 1 6 at its proximal end on one end of the rail 14, and a strut 1 7 pivotally mounted at its lower end on a slider 18 which is positioned to slide along the other end part of the rail 14. Ths strut 1 7 has a pivotal connection 19 at its upper end to an intermediate part of the lever arm 15. A tension spring 20 inter-connects the lever arm 1 5 and the strut 17, as shown in
Figure 4.
Each base rail 14 is bolted or riveted to metal roof 21 of the motor caravan near each end of the caravan, and the elevating roof 10 is mounted on the metal roof by means of swing hinges 22; alternatively the roof 10 may be hinged to the ends of the base rails 14. The remote side of the elevating roof 10 has pin and slot connection 23 to the distal ends of the lever arms 1 5.
A canvas or like sheet 24 extends between the remote side of the elevating roof 10 and the metal roof 21. The sheet 24 is stretched in the open position of the roof 10 shown in Figure 4, but folds as shown in Figure 3 to compact form to be accommodated within the roof when lowered. A small canvas or like strip may also be incorporated at the hinged side of the roof 10 to ensure a water-tight seal.
It is to be noted that the motor caravan illustrated is converted to the elevating-roof type by cutting a rectangular opening 25 in the original metal roof 21 and then mounting the elevating mechanisms as herein described.
The elevating-roof mechanisms are actuated by a Bowden cable system incorporating an operating handle 26 which drives cables 27 through appropriate gearing. In the embodiment illustrated, an intermediate gearbox of conventional form may be provided and, in an alternative embodiment, a toothed pinion is arranged to move the cables in opposite directions.
In operation of the elevating roof, the user rotates the gear handle 26 to draw the two sliders 18 towards the pivot 1 6 at the end of each guiderail. This action causes the struts 1 7 to turn clockwise (as shown in the drawings), and swing the lever arm 1 5 anticlockwise to raise the distal ends of the arms and thus the roof 1 0. This operation is assisted by the tension springs 20 which act to counter-balance the weight of the elevating roof 10, and it will be appreciated that the spring action reduces as the moving roof reaches its uppermost position.In the fully raised position, the cables 27, which carry overwound helix wires 28, are locked due to a drive ratio greater than 2:1 being employed; however, locking links are preferred to be hinged between the lever arms 1 5 and the struts 17, as indicated at 29 in Figure 4.
To lower the roof, the operator detaches the locking links 29 and turns the gear handle 26 to actuate the Bowden cables and so move the sliders 1 8 away from pivots 1 6 along the rails; during this movement, the weight of the descending roof 10 is progressively resisted by the action of the springs 20. On reaching the lowermost position of the roof 10, illustrated in
Figure 3, angled faces 30 on finger-like extensions 31 of the sliders 18 engage abutments 32 which are integral with the elevating roof 10, and the extensions then move a short distance further to lock over the abutments to hold the roof in a tightly closed position.This arrangement also provides a thief-resistant closure but, in the unlikely event of cable breakage, the slider 18 can be displaced by drilling an adjacent hole through the roof 10 to allow passage of a push rod to engage the extension 31.
As will be noted in Figure 3, the lever arm 15 is slightly angled at its intermediate part so that, in its lowered position, its distal length lies close alongside the strut 1 7 and the base rail 14 which is of slotted box-section.
The elevating mechanism described above can be fitted, with a minimum of effort and expense, to the cut metal roof (21) of a motor caravan simply by jig-drilling two or three holes at each end of the roof, and a standard mechanism can be adapted for use with a range of roof sizes and weights merely by varying the strength of the tension spring (20). A further advantage of the elevating mechanism described is that each can be accommodated in a minimum of space at the ends of the existing roof 21, and a bed can be moved from an in-use position 33A indicated in chain-dot lines in Figures 1 and 2, to a stowed position 33B indicated in broken lines in these Figures, within the opening 25, to provide a soft head-lining for the motor caravan when the roof 20 is in the lowered (driving) position.
As can be seen from Figures 4 and 5, the base rail 14 is slightly curved in the vertical plane, to follow the roof 21, and anchor block 34 of the cable system has a flared mouth 35 to accommodate angling of the core of cable 26.
Bearing roller 36 (Figures 4 and 5) on the slider 18 may be of nylon, and the bottom of the base rail 14 may have a lining of p.t.f.e. as indicated at 37.
The lifting mechanism described above may, alternatively, be motor driven, and may have other applications, for example, to motor caravans having total-lift roofs or to other applications outside the field of caravans.
Claims (11)
1. An elevating mechanism comprising: a base rail; a lever arm pivotally mounted at its proximal end at or near one end part of the rail; a strut slidably mounted at its one end on said rail and pivotally connected at its other end to an intermediate part of said lever arm; actuating means for use in moving said one end of the strut towards said one end part of the rail to raise the distal end of the lever arm which is arranged to be connected to a load to be elevated, and towards the other end part of the base rail to lower the distal end of the lever arm; and spring means to urge said one end of the strut towards said one end part of the rail and so act to counterbalance said load.
2. A mechanism as claimed in Claim 1, in which said lever arm is slightly angled at said intermediate part so that a distal length of the arm will lie close to said link and said rail in the lowered position of the arm.
3. A mechanism as claimed in Claim 1 or Claim 2, in which said operating means comprises a
Bowden cable system.
4. A mechanism as claimed in any preceding
Claim, in which said spring means comprises at least one tension spring extending from a point on said lever arm between its proximal end and its said intermediate part, to a point on said strut between its said one end and its said other end.
5. An elevating mechanism substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
6. A side-hinged elevating roof for a caravan wherein an elevating mechanism as claimed ;n any preceding Claim is provided at each end of the roof, each of said base rails being arranged to be mounted transversely of the body of the caravan and the distal end of each hinged arm being coupled to the elevating roof.
7. An elevating roof as claimed in Claim 6, in which an internal abutment is provided at each end of the elevating side of the elevating roof, and a locking finger is carried at the sliding end of each strut to engage said abutments in the lowered position of the roof and lock the roof in that position.
8. An elevating roof as claimed in Claim 6 or
Claim 7, and further comprising motor drive means for the elevating mechanisms.
9. An elevating roof substantially as hereinbefore described with refernce to the accompanying drawings.
10. A caravan incorporating a side-hinged elevating roof as claimed in any of claims 7 to 9.
11. A motor caravan substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
1 2. The features herein described, or their equivalents, in any novei selection.
Priority Applications (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| GB7928368A GB2059498B (en) | 1979-08-15 | 1979-08-15 | Elevating roof mechanism |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| GB7928368A GB2059498B (en) | 1979-08-15 | 1979-08-15 | Elevating roof mechanism |
Publications (2)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| GB2059498A true GB2059498A (en) | 1981-04-23 |
| GB2059498B GB2059498B (en) | 1982-12-22 |
Family
ID=10507204
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| GB7928368A Expired GB2059498B (en) | 1979-08-15 | 1979-08-15 | Elevating roof mechanism |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| GB (1) | GB2059498B (en) |
Cited By (5)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EP0359910A2 (en) * | 1988-08-19 | 1990-03-28 | Tobias Vater | Body arrangement for a motor vehicle or a trailer |
| EP1270318A2 (en) | 2001-06-23 | 2003-01-02 | John Anthony Edwards | Improvements on a passenger cabin extension member |
| EP2583849A1 (en) * | 2011-10-20 | 2013-04-24 | Mobil Invest GmbH | Pop-up roof |
| EP3381727A1 (en) * | 2017-03-29 | 2018-10-03 | REIMO Reisemobil-Center GmbH | Liftable vehicle roof |
| EP4261377A1 (en) * | 2022-04-14 | 2023-10-18 | Polyplastic B.V. | Panel device |
-
1979
- 1979-08-15 GB GB7928368A patent/GB2059498B/en not_active Expired
Cited By (8)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EP0359910A2 (en) * | 1988-08-19 | 1990-03-28 | Tobias Vater | Body arrangement for a motor vehicle or a trailer |
| EP0359910A3 (en) * | 1988-08-19 | 1990-12-12 | Tobias Vater | Body arrangement for a motor vehicle or a trailer |
| EP1270318A2 (en) | 2001-06-23 | 2003-01-02 | John Anthony Edwards | Improvements on a passenger cabin extension member |
| US7198314B1 (en) | 2001-06-23 | 2007-04-03 | Edwards John A | Passenger cabin extension member |
| EP2583849A1 (en) * | 2011-10-20 | 2013-04-24 | Mobil Invest GmbH | Pop-up roof |
| EP3381727A1 (en) * | 2017-03-29 | 2018-10-03 | REIMO Reisemobil-Center GmbH | Liftable vehicle roof |
| EP4261377A1 (en) * | 2022-04-14 | 2023-10-18 | Polyplastic B.V. | Panel device |
| NL2031588B1 (en) * | 2022-04-14 | 2023-11-06 | Polyplastic Bv | Panel design |
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| GB2059498B (en) | 1982-12-22 |
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCNP | Patent ceased through non-payment of renewal fee |