Patent ID: 7426788

Claim:
A tilt angle sensor layout structure for a vehicle, the vehicle comprising a vehicle body, a steering mechanism provided at a front portion of the vehicle body and including a handlebar and a steering shaft, a vehicle body frame comprising a plurality of frame members which support said steering mechanism, at least three wheels operatively attached to the vehicle body frame, a power unit having an engine supported on said vehicle body frame, a fuel tank supported on said vehicle body frame, a fuel injection system for supplying fuel from the fuel tank to said engine, and a tilt angle sensor operatively attached to a portion of said vehicle body frame, wherein: the tilt angle sensor is operable to detect a tilt angle in a left-right direction of said vehicle body, the plurality of frame members cooperate to define a substantially triangular closed frame loop, the plurality of frame members comprise an upper frame member which extends from an area proximate a front one of said wheels rearwardly to an area proximate a rear one of said wheels, said upper frame member having an uppermost portion, said tilt angle sensor is disposed on said substantially triangular closed frame loop at a position below the uppermost portion of said upper frame member and spaced away from said fuel tank; and wherein the plurality of frame members of the vehicle body frame comprises: a left-right pair of lower frames supporting a lower portion of the power unit; a left-right pair of upper frames attached to upper portions of the lower frames so as to surround the power unit in side view, a left-right pair of front frames providing connection between front upper portions of the upper frames and front end portions of the lower frames, a left-right pair of front connection frames providing connection between the front frames and the upper frames.