Cabin structure for medium truck and truck

A modular space frame of a cabin that can be used without distinction in a medium, heavy, and tractor truck, which may be assembled in the same assembly line of any of these three types of trucks and with the same kind of tools is described. The cabin is formed by six main sub-assemblies defined as follows: (1 and 2) two side sets that correspond to the door ring frame of the left and right doors; (3) a rear section which is used to support and reinforce the rear panel once the cabin is lined on the outside with the truck body (skin); (4) a floor space frame made up by a central rear panel, two side panels and a transmission's cover (the set of the floor starts at the base of the rear panel and runs flat up to where the transmission's cover ends, from this point it tilts upwards until it reaches the cabin's front); (5) a front section, formed by a cowl which, jointly with the door ring frames and the roof's header, forms the windshield's frame; and (6) a roof section, which delimits the interior alongside the upper part and provides support to the vehicle's roof. The pieces of the cabin may be manufactured with diverse materials, such as high-resistant steel or aluminum, and are joined amongst them by resistance spot welding.

TECHNICAL FIELD RELATED TO THE INVENTION
 The present invention is related to the assembly of parts for medium,
 heavy, and tractor trucks, and most particularly with the space frame of
 the convential truck cabin; the cabin forms the interior space which the
 truck operators occupy while driving the vehicle.
 BACKGROUND
 The space frame of the cabin for medium, heavy, and tractor truck subject
 matters of the present invention is designated as a modular type, since it
 is formed by sub-assembled pieces which, in the present case, are the same
 for medium, heavy, and tractor trucks. The cabin for medium, heavy, and
 tractor truck subject matters of the present invention may be assembled
 without distinction in the same assembly line for units class 6, 7, and 8,
 (the class corresponds to the SAE--Society of Automotive Engineering
 classification, which includes the vehicles mentioned herein), without the
 need to stop the assembly line and using the same tool set in both cases.
 As a person skilled in the art already knows, medium and heavy trucks are
 those which, due to their construction, design and utilization are not
 used for hauling trailers, and the load they transport does not exceed 19
 tons. Pursuant to the regulations of Mexico's Ministry of Communications
 and Transports and according to international standards, a medium truck is
 an automotive vehicle with a chassis built to transport goods, with a
 vehicular gross weight that ranges between 6,351 and 14,968 kilograms.
 In contrast, a tractor truck is one which, due to its construction, design
 and use, is adequate to haul all kinds of trailers, and is designed to
 transport large weights for great distances along the highways. Pursuant
 to the regulations of Mexico's Ministry of Communications and Transports
 and according to international standards, a tractor truck is an automotive
 vehicle with two or three axles used to transport goods, be it by means of
 hauling trailers, semi-trailers or with an integrated equipment, with a
 vehicular gross weight of 14,969 kilograms or more.
 Until now, the space frames of cabins for medium, heavy, and tractor trucks
 have been distinct and constructed separately, in different assembly
 lines, and using particular tools for each type of vehicle or in the same
 assembly line. This has meant that the production of the cabin for one
 kind of vehicle has had to be stopped in order to construct the cabin for
 another type of truck. Since the cabins do, however, have pieces in
 common, the system of constructing them in different assembly lines has
 generated down-time, as the construction of the cabin for one kind of
 vehicle is suspended to construct the cabin for another type of vehicle.
 Apart from using specific tools for each kind of vehicle and, of course,
 the personnel to construct and assemble the cabin required by each kind of
 vehicle. In sum, this means greater production expenses, more time used
 and fewer units produced, thus increasing the cost of cabin units. This is
 even more serious when there is only one assembly line and it is necessary
 to stop the manufacturing process of one cabin to construct the other.
 Purposes
 1. To provide the space frame of a cabin for medium, heavy, and tractor
 trucks.
 2. To provide the space frame of a single cabin that can be used for
 medium, heavy, and tractor trucks.
 3. To provide the space frame of a single cabin for medium, heavy, and
 tractor trucks that can be constructed in the same assembly line of each
 type of vehicle.
 4. To provide the space frame of a single cabin for medium, heavy, and
 tractor trucks that can be manufactured with the same type of tools.
 5. That the production of one type of cabin for one kind of vehicle does
 not stop in order to manufacture the cabin for another kind of vehicle.
 6. To reduce expenses in time, money, personnel, and tools in the
 manufacture of the cabins required for medium, heavy, and tractor trucks.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
 The present invention is related to application Ser. No. 09/3,778,223,
 titled "Cab-over type cabin space frame for medium, heavy, and tractor
 truck".
 The cabin for medium, heavy, and tractor truck subject matter of the
 present invention can be assembled without distinction in the same
 assembly line for different types of vehicles, without the need to stop
 the assembly line, and using the same tool set in both cases.
 As a person skilled in the art already knows, a medium and heavy truck is
 one which, due to its construction, design and utilization, is not used
 for hauling trailers, and the load it transports does not exceed 19 tons.
 Pursuant to the regulations of the Ministry of Communications and
 Transports and, according to international standards, a medium truck is an
 automotive vehicle with a chassis built to transport goods, with a
 vehicular gross weight that ranges between 6,351 and 14,968 kilograms.
 In contrast, a tractor truck is one which, due to its construction, design
 and use is adequate to haul all kinds of trailers and is designed to
 transport large weights through great distances along the highways.
 Pursuant to the regulations of Mexico's Ministry of Communications and
 Transports and according to international standards, a tractor truck is an
 automotive vehicle with two or three axles used to transport goods, be it
 by means of hauling trailers, semi-trailers or with an integrated
 equipment, with a vehicular gross weight of 14,969 kilograms or more.
 As a rule, the space frames of the cabin for medium, heavy, and tractor
 trucks have been constructed separately in different assembly lines and
 using particular tools for each type of vehicle, or in the same assembly
 line, but this meant to stop the production of the cabin for one kind of
 vehicle to construct the cabin for other kind of vehicle. However, since
 both cabins have pieces in common, the fact of constructing them in
 different assembly lines results in down time since the construction of a
 cabin for one kind of vehicle is suspended for the construction of the
 cabin for other vehicle, apart from using specific tools for each kind of
 vehicle and of course the personnel to construct and assemble the cabin
 that each kind of vehicle requires; this means greater production
 expenses, more time used and less number of units produced, thus
 increasing the cost of said units. This is even more serious when there is
 only one assembly line and it is necessary to stop the manufacturing
 process of one cabin to construct another.
 The space frame of the cabin for medium, heavy, and tractor truck subject
 matter of the present invention is designated as modular, since it is
 formed with sub-assembled pieces which, in the present case, are the same
 for medium, heavy, and tractor trucks. The space frame of the cabin for
 medium, heavy, and tractor truck is made from six sections; two side
 sections that make up the doors' ring frames, a rear or back section, a
 floor section, an upper section with respect to the top or roof and a
 front or forward section.
 FIG. 1 depicts a perspective view of the cabin's space frame (1) for
 medium, heavy, and tractor truck, showing most of the parts that make it
 up. The side sections are constituted by the left door ring frame (2) and
 the right door ring frame (3). The door ring frames are closed space
 frames, continuous, having the appearance of a frame, which delimit and
 shape the doors; and are where the doors engage when closed once they have
 been installed in the vehicle. Each door ring frame (2) and (3) is fixed
 to a door ring frame reinforcement (16), which in turn has a back
 reinforcement (17), and therefore, there are two door ring frame
 reinforcements (16), one at the left side and other at the right side and
 two back reinforcements (17), also one in the left side and the other at
 the right side. The door ring frames (2) and (3), as well as the doors,
 are symmetrical and opposed to each other.
 The rear section of the cabin is constructed of four quarter panel
 reinforcements, two located at the left, an upper one (19) and a lower one
 (18), and other two at the right, an upper one (35) and a lower one (41).
 The rear section includes two reinforcements for the rear panel, one at
 the back of the left side (20) and other at the back of the right side
 (36) and fixed to said quarter panel reinforcements. The quarter panel
 reinforcements (18), (19), (35) and (41) are curved metallic beams which
 shape and give support to the rear panels located in the back quarter
 panel reinforcements of the cabin.
 The rear panels are not depicted in the figures since the figures show the
 space frame of the cabin, and the rear panels form the "skin" of the truck
 body placed over the space frame. In technical terms, it is said that the
 skin "lines" the cabin, i.e., it covers the space frame of the cabin, both
 inside and outside, to give the cabin the finish of the trucks' cabins we
 see everyday in streets and highways. Pillar "B" (skin) covers from the
 door ring frame's reinforcement (16) up to the rear panel reinforcements
 (20) and (36). The rear panel is a set of pieces that keep joined the left
 and right side parts, the roof and the floor, and it is where the rear
 glass window is located.
 The floor section may be observed in FIG. 3. The section of the floor's set
 (6) is made up by a right floor (30), a left floor (33), a rear central
 floor (32) and the transmission's cover (31). This floor's section (6)
 extends from the base of the rear panel (4) and to the cabin's front (7),
 starting from the side floor platforms, both the right one (30) and the
 left one (33) and the central one (32), which join to the transmission's
 cover (31), same that is located at the front of the rear central platform
 (32) and between the side platforms (30) and (33). Once the transmission's
 cover (31) is passed, the floor changes its trajectory and tilts upwards
 enough to be joined with the full cowl to form the cabin's front (7).
 The front section (7) is formed by the full cowl reinforcement (29) which,
 in its upper part, is joined to the cowl (8), forming the firewall panel.
 By means of two posts, a right one (10) and a left one (9) assembled over
 the cowl (8), it is joined to the front upper part of the space frame of
 the roof or top (header) (22) of the cabin. The set formed by the cowl
 reinforcement (29), the posts (9) and (10) and the front upper part of the
 roof's space frame (22) form the frame of the truck's windshield. Once the
 cabin is lined on the outside, the part of the truck body located in both
 front corners is called pillar "A", the front side posts (9) and (10) are
 the framework of pillar "A".
 The upper section formed by the top's set is formed by a header (22), two
 side header beams, a right one (24) and a left one (23) and a rear beam
 (25); this set forms a frame that delimits horizontally and alongside the
 periphery of the upper part of the interior's contour (11) or the
 habitable space inside the cabin. On this frame are found three beams or
 cross members. Two are situated from the rear to the front which divides
 the roof in three equal parts, one at the right (27) and the other at the
 left (26), parallel between them and placed on the back beam (25) and the
 header (22); the third beam is placed transversally (28) and joins the
 right side beam (24) of the header with the left side beam (23) of the
 header.
 In the front section is found the cowl (8), and above it there is found the
 cowl's reinforcement (29) where four openings are located. In FIG. 3 these
 are identified from left to right, according to their location in the
 cabin's space frame (44), (45), (46) and (47) which are used for
 ventilation to defrost the windshield.
 FIG. 2 depicts a left side view of the cabin's space frame (1), where it
 can be observed the profile of the cabin's space frame (1), which will be
 lined when the outer roof (5) is integrated therein and an outer rear
 panel (4). The lower part of the space frame of the cabin presents a rear
 transversal platform (39) joined to a lower side platform (12) which
 supports the cabin's space frame. The lower side platform (12) is joined
 to an intermediate side platform (13), which supports the floor's set (6)
 from the point where it tilts upwards, and is also used to support the
 front section of the cabin in a vertical position and, supported on the
 intermediate side platform (13) there is found an upper side platform
 (14). These platforms are joined one to the other with resistance spot
 welding. Also, the space frame has two front bearings (15) used to fix the
 space frame's front to the chassis.
 FIG. 3 depicts a top view of the cabin's space frame, where the interior
 can be observed (11) which, apart from being the space occupied by the
 driver and his assistant, is also where accessories are found that make
 the truck useful for transportation. We consider as accessories the seats,
 steering wheel, dashboard with instruments, gearshift lever, floor mats
 and everything that is needed in the cabin to drive a truck and which do
 not belong directly to the space frame of the cabin, this is to say, the
 accessories to which we make reference herein are those attachments
 required to line the cabin on the inside.
 FIG. 4 depicts the space frame of the cabin for truck seen from the front,
 where can be noted in particular the parts that make up the front section
 of the cabin's space frame.
 FIG. 5 depicts the back part of the space frame of the cabin subject matter
 of the invention, where it can be observed two plates (48) and (49) of the
 panel's rear reinforcements (20) and (36), one at the left (48) and the
 other to the right (49); which are reinforcements that bear a trapezoidal
 shape; the left plate (48) reinforces the panel's rear reinforcement (20)
 and the cabin's base, and the right plate (49) reinforces the panel's rear
 reinforcement (36) and the cabin's base (39).
 The pieces that make up the space frame of the cabin may be manufactured
 from metals such as high-resistant steel or aluminum. The pieces are
 molded with dies or standard tools; they have grooves to engage them and
 are fixed with resistance spot welding.