U.S. patent application number 09/798149 was filed with the patent office on 2002-09-05 for fluid actuator for hinged vehicle safety devices.
Invention is credited to Haigh, James A., Iminski, Richard J., Lamparter, Ronald C..
Application Number | 20020121188 09/798149 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 25172654 |
Filed Date | 2002-09-05 |
United States Patent
Application |
20020121188 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Lamparter, Ronald C. ; et
al. |
September 5, 2002 |
FLUID ACTUATOR FOR HINGED VEHICLE SAFETY DEVICES
Abstract
A fluid actuator attaches a hinged safety device to a vehicle
and pivots the hinged safety device between retracted and extended
positions. The housing of the actuator has a base and a removable
cover. A sub-assembly is attached to the base. The subassembly
includes a generally planar base member with integral right
cylinder, lever arm pivot support and stop posts. A piston slides
in the right cylinder and forms a fluid chamber between the piston
and a closed end of the right cylinder that is fed through a
passage through the closed end of the cylinder. A lever arm is
pivotally attached to the lever arm pivot support at one end for
pivotal movement between retracted and extended positions, the
lever arm extending over the cylinder and having a lip at an
opposite end that is spaced from the right cylinder. A pivot arm
engages the top of the piston at one end and the lever arm at an
opposite end to transfer motion from the piston to the lever arm.
The lever arm transfers motion to a rotor that is rotationally
mounted in the housing for movement between retracted and extended
positions. The rotor has a spool at each end and an eccentric arm
between the spools at the respective ends of the rotor that engages
the lip of the lever arm. A torsion spring encircles each spool
with one end engaging the rotor and an opposite end engaging a stop
post so that the eccentric arm is biased against the lip of the
lever arm and the rotor and the lever arm are biased to their
respective retracted positions.
Inventors: |
Lamparter, Ronald C.;
(Grosse Pointe, MI) ; Haigh, James A.; (Shelby
Township, MI) ; Iminski, Richard J.; (St. Clair
Shores, MI) |
Correspondence
Address: |
Francis J. Fodale
Reising, Ethington, Barnes, Kisselle,
Learman & McCulloch, P.C.
P.O. Box 4390
Troy
MI
48099-4390
US
|
Family ID: |
25172654 |
Appl. No.: |
09/798149 |
Filed: |
March 2, 2001 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
91/392 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F16J 1/10 20130101; B60Q
1/50 20130101; G09F 7/18 20130101; G09F 7/22 20130101; G09F 21/04
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
91/392 |
International
Class: |
F15B 015/20 |
Claims
I claim:
1. A fluid actuator for attaching a hinged safety device to a
vehicle and pivoting the hinged safety device between retracted and
extended positions comprising: a housing having a right cylinder
attached to the housing inside the housing, the right cylinder
having a closed end and an open end, a piston that slides in the
right cylinder and forms a fluid chamber between the piston and the
closed end of the right cylinder, a passage that extends into the
housing and opens into the fluid chamber, a lever arm pivot support
inside the housing that defines a pivot axis, a lever arm pivotally
attached to the lever arm pivot support at one end for pivotal
movement about the pivot axis between retracted and extended
positions, the lever arm extending over the cylinder and having a
lip at an opposite end that is spaced from the right cylinder, a
pivot arm that engages an upper surface of the piston at one end
and that engages the lever arm at an opposite end, a rotor that is
rotationally mounted in the housing for movement between retracted
and extended positions, the rotor having a spool at one end and an
eccentric arm engaging the lip of the lever arm, and a torsion
spring encircling the spool with one end engaging the rotor and an
opposite end engaging a stop in the housing so that the eccentric
arm is biased against the lip of the lever arm, and the rotor and
the lever arm are biased to their respective retracted
positions.
2. The fluid actuator as defined in claim 1 wherein the piston has
a cavity in an upper surface that includes a concentric ball
socket, and the pivot arm has a ball at the one end that engages
the ball socket.
3. The fluid actuator as defined in claim 2 wherein the lever arm
has a seat between the one end and the opposite end of the lever
arm, and the pivot arm has a nose at the opposite end that engages
the seat of the lever arm.
4. A fluid actuator for attaching a hinged safety device to a
vehicle and pivoting the hinged safety device between retracted and
extended positions comprising: a housing having a base and a cover,
a right cylinder attached to the base, the right cylinder having a
closed end and an open end that faces the cover, a piston that
slides in the right cylinder and forms a fluid chamber between the
piston and the closed end of the right cylinder, the piston having
a cavity in an upper surface that includes a concentric ball
socket, the base having a passage extending through it and opening
into the fluid chamber, a lever arm pivot support that is attached
to the base and that defines a pivot axis, a lever arm pivotally
attached to the lever arm pivot support at one end for pivotal
movement about the pivot axis between retracted and extended
positions, the lever arm extending over the cylinder and having a
lip at an opposite end that is spaced from the right cylinder, the
lever arm having a seat near a centerline of the cylinder, a pivot
arm that has a ball at one end that engages the ball socket of the
piston and a cylindrical nose at an opposite end that engages the
seat of the lever arm, a rotor that is rotationally mounted in the
housing for movement between retracted and extended positions, the
rotor having a spool at each end and an eccentric arm between the
spools at the respective ends of the rotor, the eccentric arm
engaging the lip of the lever arm, and a torsion spring encircling
each spool with one end engaging the rotor and an opposite end
engaging a stop that is attached to the base so that the eccentric
arm is biased against the lip of the lever arm and the rotor and
the lever arm are biased to their respective retracted
positions.
5. The fluid actuator as defined in claim 4 wherein the eccentric
arm of the rotor is spaced from the cover when the rotor is in the
extended position to permit over travel of the rotor.
6. A fluid actuator for attaching a hinged safety device to a
vehicle and pivoting the hinged safety device between retracted and
extended positions comprising: a housing having a base and a
removable cover, a generally planar base member disposed in the
housing, a right cylinder attached to the base member, the right
cylinder having a closed end at the base member and an open end
spaced from the base member, a piston that slides in the right
cylinder and forms a fluid chamber between the piston and the
closed end of the right cylinder, the piston having a cavity in an
upper surface that includes a concentric ball socket, the base
member having a passage extending through it and opening into the
fluid chamber, a lever arm pivot support that is attached to the
base member and that defines a pivot axis substantially parallel to
the generally planar base member, the lever arm pivot support
comprising laterally spaced supports and a retainer disposed
between the laterally spaced supports, a lever arm pivotally
attached to the lever arm pivot support at one end for pivotal
movement between retracted and extended positions, the lever arm
extending over the cylinder and having a lip at an opposite end
that is spaced from the right cylinder, the lever arm having a
semi-cylindrical seat near a centerline of the cylinder, a pivot
arm that has a ball at one end that engages the ball socket of the
piston and a cylindrical nose at an opposite end that engages the
seat of the lever arm, a rotor that is rotationally mounted in the
housing for movement between retracted and extended positions, the
rotor having a spool at each end and an eccentric arm between the
spools at the respective ends of the rotor, the eccentric arm
engaging the lip of the lever arm, and a torsion spring encircling
each spool with one end engaging the rotor and an opposite end
engaging a stop post of the base member so that the eccentric arm
is biased against the lip of the lever arm and the rotor and the
lever arm are biased to their respective retracted positions.
7. The fluid actuator as defined in claim 6 wherein the supports
have slots at the top, wherein the retainer has a hook at the top,
and lever arm has a laterally extending end pins and a central pin,
the laterally extending end pins being disposed in the slots of the
support and the central pin being disposed under the hook of the
retainer to pivotally attach the lever are to the lever arm pivot
support.
8. The fluid actuator as defined in claim 7 wherein the lever arm
and the lever arm pivot support are resilient enough to snap
assembly the lever arm to the lever arm pivot support.
9. The fluid actuator as defined in claim 8 wherein the cylinder,
the lever arm pivot support and the stop posts are an integral part
of the base member.
10. The fluid actuator as defined in claim 9 wherein the base
member, the lever arm pivot support, the stop posts, the pivot arm
and the lever arm form a sub-assembly.
11. The fluid actuator as defined in claim 6 wherein the rotor is
rotationally mounted in the housing by a hinged safety device that
has upper and lower hinge members, the upper and lower hinge
members having upper and lower legs respectively that protrude and
extend inwardly toward the housing of the actuator, the upper and
lower legs having upper and lower round portions respectively and
upper and lower end portions respectively that are not round, the
upper and lower round portions being rotationally disposed in upper
and lower holes respectively, the upper and lower holes being
formed by the base and the cover of the housing, the upper and
lower end portions projecting into the housing and disposed in
mating cavities in the ends of the respective spools of the rotor,
and the upper hinge member having a flared skirt that covers the
upper hole formed in the housing.
12. An actuator for attaching a hinged safety device to a vehicle
and pivoting the hinged safety device between retracted and
extended positions comprising: a housing having a base and a
removable cover, a rotor that is rotationally mounted in the
housing for movement between retracted and extended positions by a
hinged safety device that has upper and lower hinge members, the
rotor having a cavity at each end that is not round, the upper and
lower hinge members having upper and lower legs respectively that
protrude and extend inwardly toward the housing of the actuator,
the upper and lower legs having upper and lower round portions
respectively and upper and lower end portions respectively that are
not round, the upper and lower round portions being rotationally
disposed in upper and lower holes respectively that are formed by
the base and the cover of the housing, the upper and lower end
portions projecting into the housing and disposed in respective
cavities in the respective ends of the rotor, and the upper hinge
member having a flared skirt that covers the upper hole formed in
the housing.
Description
[0001] This invention relates hinged vehicle safety devices and
more particularly to actuators for hinged vehicle safety
devices.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] U.S. Pat. No. 5,357,239 granted to Ronald C. Lamparter Oct.
18, 1994 discloses an actuating device for operating a safety unit,
such as a crossing arm or a stop sign, that moves between a
retracted position adjacent the vehicle and an extended position
extending outwardly from the vehicle. A housing is mounted on the
vehicle and a bracket is pivotally mounted on the housing for
movement about a vertical pivot axis between a retracted position
and an extended position. The actuating device includes a drive
mechanism having a drive unit for pivoting the bracket about the
pivot axis and an electric motor for driving the drive unit.
[0003] U.S. Pat. No. 5,719,553 granted to Ronald C. Lamparter Feb.
17, 1998 discloses a sealed actuator assembly for hinged vehicle
safety devices, such as a crossing arm or a stop sign. The sealed
actuator assembly is attached to the vehicle and includes the
electrical and mechanical components that pivot the hinged safety
device from a stored position adjacent the bus to an operative
position extending outwardly of the bus. These components and
wiring harnesses are protected in an outer sealed housing that has
a removable cover to facilitate installation and repair.
Installation and repair is further enhanced by a removable inner
housing sub-assembly that carries a motor control circuit for the
electric motor and provides additional protection for the electric
motor.
[0004] The actuators described above are very satisfactory for
their intended purpose. However, both actuators use an electric
motor to pivot the vehicle safety device, which is fine because all
vehicles include an electric storage battery for a power source. On
the other hand, some vehicles and school busses in particular,
normally include a fluid power source such as an air pump for
operating other systems and accessories. The fluid power source may
be preferred over the electrical power source for one reason or
another. However, the fluid power source cannot operate the
actuators described above.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0005] This invention provides an actuator assembly for hinged
vehicle safety devices, such as a stop sign or a crossing arm, that
is fluid operated, preferably by pressurized air. The actuator
assembly has a housing with a cylinder attached inside the housing.
A piston slides in the cylinder and forms a fluid chamber between
the piston and a closed end of the cylinder. A passage extends into
the housing and opens into the fluid chamber. A lever arm is
pivotally supported at one end inside the housing for pivotal
movement between retracted and extended positions, the lever arm
extending over the cylinder and having a lip at an opposite end
that is spaced from the cylinder. A pivot arm engages an upper
surface of the piston at one end and the lever arm at an opposite
end to transfer motion from the piston to the lever arm. A rotor is
rotationally mounted in the housing for movement between retracted
and extended positions, the rotor having a spool at one end and an
eccentric arm next to the spool that engages the lip of the lever
arm. A torsion spring encircles the spool with one end engaging the
rotor and an opposite end engaging a stop in the housing so that
the eccentric arm is biased against the lip of the lever arm and
the rotor and the lever arm are biased to their respective
retracted positions. When pressurized air is admitted to the
chamber, the piston extends and pivots the lever arm toward the
extended position. The lever arm in turn rotates the rotor and the
safety device attached to it toward the extended position.
[0006] The rotor preferably has a spool and a torsion spring at
each end for balanced operation. In another preferred form, the
piston has a deep cavity in an upper surface that includes a
concentric ball socket, and the pivot arm has a ball at the one end
that engages the ball socket to minimize height requirements. The
housing preferably has a base and a removable cover while several
internal parts preferably form a sub-assembly to make assembly
easier. To this same end, the actuator preferably includes a lever
arm pivot attachment that is an integral part of the base member of
the subassembly and that is designed to permit snap assembly of the
lever arm to the lever arm pivot attachment.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
[0007] The above and objects, features and advantages of the
invention will become more apparent from the following description
taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein like
references refer to like parts and wherein:
[0008] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a school bus equipped with a
hinged stop sign and a hinged crossing arm and a fluid actuator of
the invention for pivoting the hinged stop sign and an identical
assembly for pivoting the hinged crossing arm;
[0009] FIG. 2 is a front view of the hinged stop sign and the fluid
actuator that is shown in FIG. 1;
[0010] FIG. 3 is an enlarged from view of the fluid actuator of
FIG. 2 with the cover removed to show internal detail;
[0011] FIG. 4 is a section taken substantially along the line 4-4
of FIG. 3 looking in the direction of the arrows:
[0012] FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of a sub-assembly of
the fluid actuator that is shown in FIG. 2; and
[0013] FIG. 6 is a sectional view of a portion of the hinged stop
sign that is shown in FIG. 2.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0014] Referring now to the drawing, FIG. 1 shows a school bus 10
equipped with a hinged stop sign 12 and a fluid actuator 14 of the
invention. Actuator 14 is attached to the body side panel 16 of the
bus and pivots stop sign 14 between a stored or retracted position
adjacent the body side panel 16 and an extended position where stop
sign 12 is substantially perpendicular to the body side panel
16.
[0015] Actuator 14 comprises a housing 18 that has a base 20 and a
removable cover 22. Housing 18 is preferably sealed to protect
internal components from the environment. The internal components
are preferably formed into a subassembly 24 that is illustrated
best in FIG. 5 and that is fastened to the bottom of base 20 by
screws 26 when cover 22 is removed as shown in FIG. 3.
[0016] Subassembly 24 comprises a generally planar base member 28
that has a right cylinder 30 attached to it so that right cylinder
30 has a closed end at the base member and an open end spaced from
the base member. Piston 32 slides in right cylinder 30 and forms a
fluid chamber 33 between the piston and the closed end of the right
cylinder that communicates with a fluid power source 98 via passage
34 that extends through the closed end of cylinder 30 and the
bottom of base 20. Cylinder 30 is preferably an integral part of
base member 28 for economy in which case passage 34 extends through
base member 28.
[0017] The outer end surface of piston 32 has a concentric ball
socket 35 with the ball socket 35 preferably located at the bottom
of a deep cavity 37 in the outer end surface of piston 32 that
converges to the ball socket 35. Cavity 37 cooperates in minimizing
height requirements for housing 28 as explained below.
[0018] Base member 20 also has a lever arm pivot support 36 that is
attached to it to define a pivot axis 38 that is spaced outwardly
of cylinder 30 and that is substantially parallel to the generally
planar base member 28. The lever arm pivot support 36 comprises
laterally spaced supports 40 and a retainer 42 disposed between the
laterally spaced supports 40. Supports 40 and retainer 42 are
preferably an integral part of base member 28 for economy. Retainer
42 is also preferably integrally attached to cylinder 30 by an
extension for increased strength.
[0019] A lever arm 44 is pivotally attached to the lever arm pivot
support 36 at one end so that the lever arm swings between a
retracted position shown in solid line in FIG. 4 and an extended
position shown in phantom line in FIG. 4. More specifically, lever
arm 44 has laterally extending end pins 46 that nest in
semi-cylindrical grooves in the tops of supports 40 and a
concentric center pin 48 that fits under a curved hook at the top
of retainer 42 to locate the three concentric pins on pivot axis
38. The end of lever arm 44 and pivot support 36 are resilient
enough so that end pins 46 and center pin 48 can be snapped into
place to facilitate assembly.
[0020] The pivotally attached lever arm 44 has a generally
concavo-convex body 50 that extends over cylinder 30 and terminates
in a lip 52 that is spaced from cylinder 30. The concave side of
body 50 faces the open end of cylinder 30 to minimize height
requirements for housing 18. The concave side of body 50 also has a
semi-cylindrical seat 54 that is parallel to pivot axis 38 and that
is located near the center of cylinder 30.
[0021] Subassembly 24 further includes a pivot arm 56 that has a
ball 58 at one end that engages ball socket 35 of piston 32 and a
cylindrical nose 60 at an opposite end that engages seat 54 of
lever arm 44.
[0022] Fluid actuator 14 has a rotor 62 that is rotationally
mounted in housing 20 by the hinged stop sign 12 for rotation about
an axis 64 that is parallel to axis 38 as explained below. Rotor 62
has a spool 66 at each end and an eccentric arm 68 between the
spools at the respective ends of the rotor. Eccentric arm 68
engages lip 52 of lever arm 44. Thus rotor 62 is rotated
substantially 90 degrees from a retracted position shown in solid
line to an extended position shown in phantom line in FIG. 4 when
lever arm 44 is moved between these respective positions by piston
32.
[0023] A torsion spring 70 encircles each spool 66 with one end 72
anchored in a hole in rotor 66 and an opposite end 74 engaging a
groove in the top of spring stop posts 76 that are attached to base
member 28. Torsion springs 70 bias rotor 62 to the retracted
position, that is, counterclockwise as shown in FIG. 4. This also
biases lever arm 44 counterclockwise to the retracted position
shown in solid line in FIG. 4 where lip 52 engages the bottom of
base 20. Posts 76 are preferably an integral part of base member 28
for economy.
[0024] Stop sign 2 mounts rotor 62 rotationally in housing 18 by
means of two hollow L-shaped arms 80 that are shown and described
in detail in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,687,500 and 5,796,331 granted to
Ronald C. Lamparter Nov. 18, 1997 and Aug. 18, 1998 respectively.
As shown in FIGS. 2, 3 and 6, the L-shaped arms 80 are mounted in
the hollow ends of vertically spaced hinge members 82 of stop sign
12 with a vertical leg 84 that protrudes through a hole of the
respective hinge member 82 and extends inwardly. Each vertical leg
84 has a flange 86, a round portion 88 outwardly of the flange, and
a reduced end portion that is not round, such as the hexagonal end
portion 90. Each round portion 88 rides in a flanged brass collar
92 while each hexagonal end portion 90 fits into a correspondingly
shaped, concentric recess in the end of a respective spool 66 of
rotor 62.
[0025] Base 20 and cover 22 each have two semicircular recesses
opposite each other in their respective side walls that form two
round holes for supporting the flanged brass collars 92 when the
cover 22 is attached to base 20. The brass collars 20 are cradled
and held in the recesses of the base 20 by the recesses of the
cover 22. The cover 22 thus acts in the manner of a bearing cap so
that the brass collars 92 can be seated in the cradles of base 20
when the cover 22 is removed for installation of sub-assembly 24.
Brass collars 92 are then held in place when cover 22 is attached
which completes the rotational mounting of rotor 62 in housing
18.
[0026] In order to protect the interior of sealed housing 18
against the intrusion of water, snow, ice and other deleterious
matter into the housing 18 via the upper round hole for the upper
brass collar 92 and L-shaped arm 80, the upper hinge member 82 of
stop sign 12 preferably has a flared annular skirt 96 that covers
the hole and the flanges of upper brass collar 92 and arm 80 like
an umbrella.
[0027] The fluid actuator 14 operates in the following manner. When
bus 10 stops to pick-up or discharge passengers fluid, preferably
air, under pressure from source 98 is admitted into chamber 33 via
a fluid control valve 100 and passage 34. Fluid power sources and
fluid control valves are well known and thus need not be shown or
described in detail. Thus fluid power source 98 and fluid control
valve 100 are merely shown schematically in FIG. 4. As pressurized
fluid is admitted into chamber 33, chamber 33 expands pushing
piston 32 outwardly. Piston 32 in turn pivots lever 44 clockwise
from the retracted position shown in solid line in FIG. 4 to the
extended position shown in phantom. Lever 44 in turn pivots rotor
92 clockwise substantially 90.degree. from the solid line retracted
position to the phantom line extended position. Stop sign 12 being
attached to rotor 92, swing substantially 90.degree. from a stored
position adjacent side wall 16 of bus 10 to an extended or
operative position substantially perpendicular to the side wall. It
should be noted that arm 68 is spaced from cover 22 when sign 12 is
in the extended position. This allows sign 12 to travel past the
extended perpendicular position without damaging actuator 14 in
case sign 12 pushed past the extended position. After the
passengers have been taken on or discharged, fluid control valve
100 is operated to exhaust chamber 33, and piston 32 is retracted
by torsion springs 74 which also retracts stop sign 12, rotor 92
and lever 44 to their respective retracted positions.
[0028] While the invention has been illustrated and described in
detail in connection with a hinged stop sign 12, the fluid actuator
14 can also be used for other hinged safety devices such as a
hinged crossing arm assembly 112 that is shown in FIG. 1. Such
crossing arm assemblies are well known and are pivoted
substantially 90.degree. from a retracted position against the
front bumper of the bus 10 to an extended position substantially
perpendicular to the bumper. Moreover, while the fluid actuator 14
is preferably operated by pressurized air which is clean cheap and
easy to handle, the fluid actuator 14 may be operated by any gas,
by vacuum or even by liquids such as hydraulic fluid or oil, with
the proper well known modifications.
[0029] In other words, many modifications and variations of the
present invention are possible in light of the above teachings. It
is therefore, to be understood that, within the scope of the
appended claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as
specifically described.
* * * * *