Abstract:
A motorcycle includes at least a first auxiliary member mounted on a body of the motorcycle for contacting a road and providing assistance to the motorcycle body to support itself, when necessary, and a second auxiliary member mounted on the motorcycle body, wherein the second auxiliary member is inflatable, in order to contact the road to support the motorcycle body, in addition to the first auxiliary member.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
   The present invention relates to a motorcycle with auxiliary support members. More specifically, it relates to first and second auxiliary support members used on a motorcycle. 
   RELATED ART 
   Nowadays, even handicapped people ride a motorcycle. They ride a motorcycle not only to move but also to enjoy it as a sport. 
   When a motorcycle stops or is going to stop, it is difficult for the motorcycle to support itself with front and rear wheels alone. 
   Then, a normal person puts his/her foot on the road right before he/she stops the motorcycle or while he/she stops the motorcycle to enable the motorcycle body to support itself. However, a handicapped person who has lost the use of his/her legs cannot put his/her foot on the road. A motorcycle which can be driven even by a handicapped person who has lost the use of his/her legs alone has been developed (see JP-A No. 53683/1990 and JP-A No. 317882/1992). An auxiliary wheel separate from the front and rear wheels contacts the road to enable the motorcycle body to support itself. The motorcycle body is supported at three or more points from the road due to this auxiliary wheel, thereby making it possible for the motorcycle body to support itself. The above auxiliary wheel is driven by the engine or the power of a storage battery. 
   Therefore, in this type of motorcycle, a handicapped person feels uneasy when the engine stops all of the sudden or trouble occurs in the electric system. In addition, when he/she is getting off the motorcycle body (or simply: body) after he/she stops it, he/she needs a wheelchair mounted on the motorcycle, unlike a normal person. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   It is an object of the present invention which has been made in view of the above situation to provide a motorcycle which assists its body in supporting itself in an emergency where an auxiliary wheel does not project from the motorcycle to assist its body in supporting itself for some reason or other when a handicapped person who has lost the use of his/her legs drives it and enables him/her to take out a wheelchair mounted on the body. 
   To attain the above object, the present invention provides the following means. The invention as illustrated in  FIG. 1  is a motorcycle including first auxiliary members (for example, outriggers A and B in an embodiment) which contact the road (for example, road R in the embodiment) to assist its body (for example, motorcycle body  10  in the embodiment) in supporting itself when necessary, besides front and rear wheels (for example, wheels  14  and  16  in the embodiment), wherein the motorcycle further includes a second auxiliary member (for example, secondary member  30  or  40  (see  FIG. 3 ) in the embodiment) which inflates or expands itself to contact the road, in addition to the first auxiliary members. 
   In the motorcycle of this invention, even in the above-described emergency, the motorcycle body receives support force from the road to be assisted in supporting itself, besides the front and rear wheels. Therefore, the motorcycle body can support itself. That is, the auxiliary wheels can be supported with a simple structure. 
   According to another embodiment the invention, there is provided a motorcycle, wherein a wheelchair can be mounted on the body (for example, body  60  in the embodiment) and the second auxiliary member is arranged on the wheelchair mounted side of the body. 
   In the motorcycle of this invention, the second auxiliary member on the wheelchair mounted side is inflated to contact the road so as to receive support force from the road, whereby the body is assisted in supporting itself. That is, it is possible to prevent the body from falling toward the wheelchair side. Therefore, even in the above-described emergency, the rider can get off the motorcycle by taking out the wheelchair by himself/herself. 
   Further, there is provided a motorcycle as described above, wherein the second auxiliary member can be inflated or expanded by gas. 
   In the motorcycle of this invention, gas is not injected into the above second auxiliary member in a normal state which does not require inflation. Therefore, the above second auxiliary member becomes light in weight and not bulky but compact when it is stored, thereby reducing restrictions on mounting space. 
   Additionally, there is provided a motorcycle as described above wherein the second auxiliary member is sandwiched between plate-like members (for example, plate-like members  32  and  42  in the embodiment of  FIGS. 1 and 3 ) which can contact the road to be formed like bellows and combined together by belt-like members (for example, belt-like members  33  and  43  in the embodiment) which are put between the plate-like members. 
   In the motorcycle of this invention, as the second auxiliary member is formed like bellows, it is light in weight, can be easily folded when it is not inflated in a normal state and can be compact when it is stored. Further, as it is sandwiched between the plate-like members by the belt-like members, the support rigidity of the second auxiliary member itself is improved. Therefore, it does not impair the appearance of the motorcycle and can improve support force even when it contacts the road. 
   According to the invention described above, there is provided a motorcycle, wherein a plate-like member (for example, the lowermost plate  34  or  44  in the embodiment of  FIGS. 1 and 3 ) which contacts the road out of the plate-like members (for example, plate-like members  32   b  or  42   b  in the embodiment) is curved upward toward the forward direction of the body. 
   In the motorcycle of this invention, the above plate-like members function like a camber and do not collide with the road while running. Therefore, the second auxiliary member can slide smoothly over the road and can inflate the second auxiliary member even while running. 
   Further, according to the invention described above, there is provided a motorcycle, wherein the plate-like member which contacts the road is molded out of a resin. 
   In the motorcycle of this invention, the above second auxiliary member inflates and the lower plate portion is rubbed with the road, the friction of the resin is lower than that of a metal. Therefore, the above second auxiliary member can slide smoothly over the road and can be inflated even while running. As the second auxiliary member is made of a resin, it is easily processed. 
   The motorcycle according to the present invention can assist its body in supporting itself in an emergency where the body is not assisted in supporting itself when a handicapped person who has lost the use of his/her legs rides it and enables him/her to take out a wheelchair mounted on the body. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     A preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein: 
       FIG. 1  is a side view of a motorcycle according to the present invention; 
       FIG. 2  is a front view of the driving mechanism of the outriggers (first auxiliary members) along section  2 - 2  of  FIG. 1 ; 
       FIG. 3  is an exploded perspective view of second auxiliary members; 
       FIG. 4  is a perspective view of another embodiment provided with a second auxiliary member on a wheelchair mounted side (carrier side); and 
       FIGS. 5(   a ) and  5 ( b ) are front views of the motorcycle shown in  FIG. 4 . 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
   As shown in  FIG. 1 , the motorcycle  1  in this embodiment can be driven even by a handicapped person who has lost the use of his/her legs by injury or the like. Motorcycle  1  has an engine  12  within a frame  11 . A front wheel  14  is connected to the front portion of the frame  11  by a front fork  13 , and a rear wheel  16  is connected to the rear portion of the frame  11  by rear arms  15  like an ordinary motorcycle. Reference H denotes a rider. 
   The front fork  13  incorporates a telescopic suspension mechanism, not shown. The proximal ends of the rear arms  15  are movably journaled to the frame  11  and a cushion unit  17  is interposed between the frame  11  and the rear arms  15  to constitute a link type suspension mechanism. 
   Two auxiliary wheels  18  and  19  which contact the road when necessary are provided separately on both sides of the body (part considered as integrated with the frame  11 ) at the rear of the engine  12  below the frame  11 , besides the front and rear wheels  14  and  16 . As shown in  FIG. 2 , a bracket  21  is installed between the two parallel frames  11  in such a manner that it projects downward from the body  10 . 
   A wiping arm  22  for supporting the auxiliary wheel  18  is connected to one end of the bracket  21  in such a manner that it can move in the width direction of the body. A wiping arm  23  for supporting the auxiliary wheel  19  is connected to the other end of the bracket  21  in such a manner that it can move in the width direction of the body like the above wiping arm  22 . The arms  22  and  23  fitted with the auxiliary wheels  18  and  19  will be referred to as “outriggers A and B”, respectively. 
   The auxiliary wheel  18  is movably connected to one end  22   a  projecting in the left direction of the body of the wiping arm  22  and the other end  22   b  of the wiping arm  22  is movably journaled to the bracket  21 . A hydraulic cylinder  24  for moving the wiping arm  22  is linked to the intermediate portion  22   c  of the wiping arm  22 . The proximal end of the cylinder  24   a  of the hydraulic cylinder  24  is movably connected to one frame  11  and the distal end of the piston rod  24   b  is movably connected to the intermediate portion  22   c  of the wiping arm  22 . 
   The outrigger A provided on the left side of the body is stored in such a manner that it is folded upward by retracting the piston rod  24   b  of the hydraulic cylinder  24  into the cylinder  24   a , lowered by projecting the piston rod  24  from the cylinder  24   a  and contacts the road R according to the disposition of the body with respect to the road or the running speed. 
   The auxiliary wheel  19  is movably connected to one end  23   a  projecting in the right direction of the body of the wiping arm  23  and the other end  23   b  is movably supported on the bracket  21 . A hydraulic cylinder  25  for moving the wiping arm  23  is connected to the intermediate portion  23   c  of the wiping arm  23 . The proximal end of the cylinder  25   a  of the hydraulic cylinder  25  is movably connected to the other frame  11  and the end of the piston rod  25   b  is rotatably connected to the intermediate portion  23   c  of the wiping arm  23 . 
   The outrigger B provided on the right side of the body is stored in such a manner that it is folded upward by retracting the piston rod  25   b  of the hydraulic cylinder  25  into the cylinder  25   a , lowered by projecting the piston rod  25   b  from the cylinder  25   a  and contacts the road R according to the disposition of the body with respect to the road or the running speed (when the motorcycle stops, the outriggers A and B are both lowered). 
   The above outriggers A and B correspond to the auxiliary members (first auxiliary members) of the present invention and contact the road R to assist the motorcycle body  10  in supporting itself when necessary. The above outriggers A and B are activated by the forward and backward movements of the piston rods of the hydraulic cylinders  24  and  25 , respectively. The hydraulic cylinders  24  and  25  of the motorcycle of the present invention are driven under control of a controller, not shown. The controller is activated by electricity supplied from a storage battery. 
   The second auxiliary members of the motorcycle  1  of the present invention will be described with reference to  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 3 . The second auxiliary members in this embodiment are provided to assist the motorcycle in supporting itself in an emergency. The auxiliary members  30  and  40  are provided in a pair, one on each side of the body  10  near the feet of the rider. Since the above second auxiliary members  30  and  40  are the same in constitution, the second auxiliary member  30  will be described. The reason that the second auxiliary members  30  and  40  are provided in a pair is to assist the body  10  in supporting itself from right and left sides. 
   The second auxiliary members  30  and  40  (second auxiliary member  40  being on the right side when seen from the front of the body) include bellows members  31  and  41  which are inflated or enlarged by injecting gas, plate-like members  32  and  42  for sandwiching the above bellows members  31  and  41  and belt-like members  33  and  43  which are put between the above plate-like members  32  and  42  to combine the above bellows members  31  and  41  together, respectively (reference numerals for the second auxiliary member  40  will be omitted hereinafter). 
   The above bellows member  31  is composed of a known PVC coated polyester ground fabric and consists of an upper air bag  31   a , intermediate air bag  31   b  and lower air bag  31   c . An intake port  31   d  is formed in the upper air bag  31   a  to inject gas into the air bags. A hole is formed at the interface between them so that when gas is injected into the upper air bag  31   a , not only the upper air bag  31   a  but also the intermediate air bag  31   b  and the lower air bag  31   c  are inflated and expanded, thereby making it possible to communicate gas therebetween. Before the injection of gas, the above bellows member  31  is folded and stored. 
   The above plate-like members  32  consist of an upper plate  32   a  and a lower plate  32   b  for sandwiching the above bellows member  31  therebetween. The above upper plate  32   a  and the lower plate  32   b  are parallel to the road R and made of an aluminum alloy. A circular hole  32   g  is formed in the upper plate  32   a  so that the above intake port  31   d  projects from the top of the upper plate  32   a . The above upper plate  32   a  has side walls  32   c  and  32   d  formed by bending down its end portions in the longitudinal and transverse directions, and holes  32   e  for accepting the belt-like members  33  are formed in the projecting side wall  32   d  of the end portion in the transverse direction. Holes  32   f  for accepting the belt-like members  33  are also formed in the end portion in the transverse direction of the above lower plate  32   b . The belt-like members  33  are made of nylon and shaped like a belt and belt metal fittings  33   a  are detachably attached to opposing ends of the belt-like members  33 . The above belt-like members  33  are inserted into the holes  32   e  and  32   f  of the upper plate  32   a  and the lower plate  32   b  and put from the top plate  32   a  to the lower plate  32   b  to sandwich the bellows member  31  therebetween. The above second auxiliary member  30  is thus supported to have improved support rigidity and contacts the road R. 
   The second auxiliary members  30  and  40  of this embodiment have the lowermost plates  34  and  44  which are molded out of a resin below the lower plate  32   b , respectively. The lowermost plates  34  and  44  are molded out of a known resin and the ends in the front direction of the body  10  of the lowermost plates  34  and  44  have curved portions  34   a  and  44   a  which are curved upward, respectively. The above lowermost plates  34  and  44  are bonded to the lower plates  32   b  and  42   b , respectively. Although the above lowermost plates  34  and  44  of this embodiment are bonded to the above lower plates  32   b  and  42   b , respectively, the present invention is not limited to this. The lower plates  32   b  ad  42   b  may be molded out of a resin or coated. 
   A description is subsequently given of a gas feed member  50  for injecting gas into the second auxiliary members  30  and  40 . The above gas feed member  50  comprises an air cylinder  51  filled with compressed air (gas), air tube  52  which is an air feed line, and feed opener  55  for starting the feed of air. The air cylinder  51  of this embodiment is a small-sized air cylinder filled with compressed carbon dioxide. Not shown, it is secured to the frame  11  or the like of the body  10 . The air tube  52  is a pressure air tube having excellent pressure resistance and comprises a forked air tube joint  53  at an intermediate position to inject air into the right and left second auxiliary members  30  and  40 . The end  52   a  of the forked air tube  52  is connected to the intake port  31   d  of the above bellows member  31 , the end  52   b  is connected to the intake port  41   d  of the above bellows member  41 , and the end  52   c  is connected to the feed opener  55 . 
   The feed opener  55  of this embodiment is a spring type opener. Not shown, a valve and a spring are incorporated in the above feed opener  55  so that the valve is closed by the elastic force of the spring. While the valve of the feed opener  55  is closed, air is not supplied from the air cylinder  51  and while the valve is open, air is supplied. The above feed opener  55  is provided with an engagement member  56  so that when the engagement member  56  is disconnected from the above feed opener  55 , the closed valve is opened. The engagement member  56  is provided with a grip portion  57  so that when the rider H pulls the grip portion  57 , the feed opener  55  and the engagement member  56  are disconnected from each other. The grip portion  57  is installed within the reach of the rider H so that it can be pulled out easily by the rider H in an emergency. 
   Another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to  FIG. 4  and  FIGS. 5(   a ) and  5 ( b ).  FIG. 4  is a perspective view of a motorcycle when a second auxiliary member is inflated or expanded,  FIG. 5(   a ) is a front view of the motorcycle when the second auxiliary member is inflated or expanded, and  FIG. 5(   b ) is a front view of the motorcycle when the second auxiliary member is stored. 
   The motorcycle  2  shown in  FIG. 4  of this embodiment mounts a wheelchair on the body  60 . The above motorcycle  2  is constituted the same as a normal motorcycle like the motorcycle  1  of the above embodiment. The motorcycle  2  is provided with a carrier  70  for mounting a folded wheelchair on the right side of the rear wheel  65  at the rear of the body  60 . The above motorcycle  2  has the second auxiliary member  80  on the carrier  70  side on which the above wheelchair is mounted. The above second auxiliary member  80  is provided to assist the motorcycle  2  in supporting itself in an emergency like the above second auxiliary members  30  and  40  and inflates itself to contact the road, thereby assisting the body in supporting itself. 
   The above second auxiliary member  80  is composed of an air bag  81 . The above air bag  81  is made of a known PVC coated polyester ground fabric and inflated by injecting air in order to contact the road R like the above bellows members  31  and  41 . The air bag  81  is inflated like a vertical rice ball, measuring 500 mm in the lengthwise direction, 500 mm in the width direction and 600 mm in the height direction of the body as shown in  FIG. 4  and  FIG. 5(   b ) when seen from the front of the body. The air bag  81  is folded and stored as shown in  FIG. 5(   a ) in a normal state. 
   The above auxiliary member  80  is provided with a case member  85 . The above case member  85  is used to store the folded air bag  81  as shown in  FIG. 5(   a ) in a normal state and attached to the above motorcycle  2  by case fixing portions  86  and  87 . The case member  85  is unfolded together with the inflation of the air bag  81  as shown in  FIG. 5(   b ) in an emergency to hold the lower portion of the air bag  81 . Therefore, when the motorcycle  2  is falling toward the carrier side, the case member  85  contacts the road supported by the air bag  81  to assist the body  60  in supporting itself. Even in this embodiment, air (gas) is supplied by a feed member similar to that of the above embodiment. 
   The technical scope of the invention is not limited to the above embodiments and various modifications may be made in the invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. 
   For example, the inflated bellows member  31  and the dilated air bag  81  are not limited to the illustrated shapes and their sizes may be suitably changed. The used materials is not limited to those described above and may be suitably selected. 
   In this detailed description of the preferred embodiments, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which form a part hereof, and within which are shown by way of illustration specific embodiments by which the invention may be practiced. It is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural changes may be made without departing from the scope of the invention.