Patent ID: 8197176

Claim:
A folding ramp for vehicle access, the ramp comprising: a first and a second rectangular frame, the two frames being affixed to each other by a first hinge and one of the two rectangular frames being affixed to a door frame of the vehicle by a second hinge, wherein the rectangular frames pivot between a folded position within the door frame and a deployed position, wherein each of the first and second rectangular frames include: a first fixed floor section disposed distal from the first hinge; and a moving floor section movable between an extracted position, in which the first fixed floor section and the moving floor section are adjacently disposed such that both form a ramp floor surface, and a withdrawn position overlying the first fixed floor section and distal from the first hinge, wherein the moving floor section shifts into the withdrawn position due to gravity when the rectangular frames are moved into the folded position; a cable brake affixed to the door frame; a suspension cable operatively extending from the cable brake to affix to each of the moving floor sections, wherein the suspension cable passes through first and second guides in the first and second rectangular frames, respectively, near the first hinge, and wherein the suspension cable is configured to draw the moving floor section of each rectangular frame into the extracted position when the rectangular frames are moved into the deployed position; a locking mechanism affixed to the door frame and configured to secure the rectangular frames in the folded position; and means for controlling deployment of the rectangular frames.