MODULAR MOTOR SCOOTER

Abstract

A motor scooter, for transportation of one person or multiple persons, includes a motoric drive. To provide a safe and comfortable motor scooter, which is environmentally-friendly, suitable for everyday-life and cost-effective, the motor scooter is connectable with various modules in a releasable manner. As such the motor scooter can include various and selectable module combinations.

Claims

1. A motor scooter for transporting one or more person(s), the motor scooter comprising: a motor scooter main body; different modules; and a motoric drive connected to the motor scooter main body, wherein the motor scooter main body is connectable to any of one or more of the different modules releasably, such that the motor scooter can comprise various and selectable module combinations.

2. The motor scooter according to claim 1, wherein a first module of the different modules is a backrest, which is connectable to the motor scooter releasably and which comprises a belt system, by means of which a driver or co-driver is fastenable to the backrest.

3. The motor scooter according to claim 2, wherein the backrest protrudes in the height direction and laterally beyond a person wearing a seat belt of the belt system, such that in case of a spill or accident, the person wearing the seat-belt does not hit the road surface or any other obstacle.

4. The motor scooter according to claim 3, wherein the backrest has a width of at least 0.6 m and/or a height of 0.8 m above the seating surface.

5. The motor scooter according to claim 2, wherein the backrests and/or the main body of the motor scooter consist of fiber composite materials.

6. The motor scooter according to claim 1, wherein the main body is a sandwich structure of carbon fibers with integrated fixing points for mounting one of the modules.

7. The motor scooter according to claim 2, wherein the backrest is fixed at the main body such that the backrest is rigid in the driving direction and opposite the driving direction and is adapted to receive high loads, wherein the backrest is flexible in the lateral direction to allow the driver to lean into a corner.

8. The motor scooter according to claim 2, wherein an inclination of the backrest is supported via elastic elements.

9. The motor scooter according to claim 2, further comprising at least one airbag arranged in the belt system and/or arranged in the backrest and/or arranged in an inner area on a front surface of an access region.

10. The motor scooter according to claim 2, wherein the backrest connectable to the motor scooter main body in at least two positions, spaced from one another, comprising a front position and a rear position, wherein the backrest is continuously fixable between the front and rear positions.

11. The motor scooter according to claim 2, wherein a second module of the different modules is a windshield, which, on one side thereof, is connected, by a front connection to the motor scooter main body and, on another side of the windshield, is connected to the backrest releasably, wherein the front connection is arranged in front of a handlebar and/or laterally next to an access region on the motor scooter main body.

12. The motor scooter according to claim 11, wherein the windshield is in part configured as a roof surface or is connectable to a separate roof surface, releasably.

13. The motor scooter according to claim 11, wherein the windshield and the backrest form an over-roll cage.

14. The motor scooter according to claim 11, wherein a third module of the different modules is a front fork, which is connectable to the motor scooter main body releasably.

15. The motor scooter according to claim 14, wherein the front fork is formed as a spring fork with one single front wheel.

16. The motor scooter according to claim 14, wherein the front fork comprises a parallelogram guiding mechanism and two front wheels arranged in parallel, which two front wheels are connected to one another through the parallelogram guiding mechanism such that the front wheels are tilted when taking a corner.

17. The motor scooter according to claim 16, wherein the front fork, with two front wheels arranged in parallel, comprises at least two spring elements comprising two telescopes which are each connected to one of the front wheels.

18. The motor scooter according to claim 17, wherein the telescopes comprise cylinder arms connected to one another hydraulically or pneumatically, such that paths and/or forces of the two wheels are equal in opposite directions in the tilted state of the motor scooter or when taking a corner.

19. The motor scooter according to claim 18, wherein in addition to the telescopic cylinders for lateral inclination, pistons are arranged coaxially or in parallel, which deflect and absorb independently from one another, in such a way that road irregularities can be compensated.

20. The motor scooter according to claim 18, wherein a hydraulic or pneumatic connection between the telescopes is diconnectable by means of a valve, so that a tilting capability of the motor scooter can be arrested.

21. The motor scooter according to claim 18, wherein the telescopic cylinders have valves, so that the damping of the telescopic cylinders can be arrested.

22. The motor scooter according to claim 17, wherein the telescopes are mounted to be rotatable around a longitudinal axis thereof, so that a longitudinal movement of the wheels can be performed through a rotation of the telescopes.

23. The motor scooter according to claim 1, wherein the motoric drive comprises an electro-motoric drive and a module of the different modules, has a battery, which has a flat configuration and which is arranged at least partially below an access surface of the motor scooter main body.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0030] In the drawings:

[0031] FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing a motor scooter having different modules;

[0032] FIG. 2 is another schematic perspective view showing the motor scooter having different modules;

[0033] FIG. 3 is another schematic perspective view showing the motor scooter having different modules;

[0034] FIG. 4 is another schematic perspective view showing the motor scooter having different modules;

[0035] FIG. 5 is another schematic perspective view showing the motor scooter having different modules;

[0036] FIG. 6 is another schematic perspective view showing the motor scooter having different modules;

[0037] FIG. 7 is a schematic perspective view showing a front fork with two front wheels arranged on it; and

[0038] FIG. 8 is a schematic view showing the front fork with two front wheels arranged on the fork.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0039] Referring to the drawings, FIG. 1 shows a motor scooter 1 of the type according to the invention, which can be connected to various modules. These modules particularly include a backrest as a first module, a windshield as a second module, a front fork as a third module, and a battery as the fourth module. Not all of the modules are illustrated in FIG. 1 and are in part explained in greater detail with reference to other Figures.

[0040] The motor scooter 1 has a main body 2 (chassis) and a seating surface 3, which configured for two persons maximum. Besides a rear wheel 4, the front side of the motor scooter 1 has a front fork 13 (third module) with two parallel front wheels 5, 5 arranged thereon, which are connected to one another by means of a parallelogram guiding mechanism 6. As an alternative, the front fork 13 with two parallel front wheels 5, 5 can be replaced with a front fork 13 with a single front wheel. In order to allow a more comfortable access, the motor scooter 1 comprises a step-through surface 7, under which a (not illustrated) battery (fourth module) is arranged in one embodiment of the motor scooter 1 as an electric scooter. Guide rails 8 are provided next to the main body 2, which serve for fastening a backrest (first module), which will be explained in greater detail with reference to FIG. 3.

[0041] FIG. 2 shows the motor scooter 1 of FIG. 1 with a person 9 seated there.

[0042] FIG. 3 illustrates the motor scooter 1 with a backrest 10 (first module), which is fixed on the guide rail 8 laterally next to the main body 2 in a manner to be displaceable in the direction of arrow A. The displaceability of the backrest 10 in the arrow direction A allows the use of the backrest 10 for the driver or for the co-driver. In the rear position illustrated in FIG. 3, the backrest 10 serves for a co-driver, which is shown in FIG. 4. Here, the motor scooter 1 is used by a driver 11 and a co-driver 11, who uses the back support 10 as a backrest and for strapping-in by means of a belt system (not shown).

[0043] FIG. 5 shows another module that can be connected to the motor scooter 1, where the motor scooter 1, in addition to a backrest 10, also comprises a windshield 12 which is connected to the motor scooter 1 in front of the handlebar on the front side, and connected to the backrest 10 at the rear side. The windshield 12 not only serves as a windshield and as protection against rain, but it forms a roll cage together with the backrest 10, which protects the driver and co-driver 11 in the case of an accident.

[0044] FIG. 6 finally shows an embodiment of the motor scooter 1 in which the motor scooter is used by a driver 11 and a co-driver 11, wherein the motor scooter 1 has both a windshield 12 and a backrest 10.

[0045] The already-described front fork 13, as the third module, with a parallelogram guiding mechanism 6 is illustrated in detail in FIG. 7. The front fork 13 essentially has two telescopes 14, 14 in each case connected to a front wheel 5, 5. In order to allow the motor scooter 1 to tilt when taking a corner, with both wheels 5, 5 in parallel contact with the road surface, the telescopes 14, 14 each comprise one hollow cylinder 15, 15, which can be displaced axially in the longitudinal direction inside an outer cylinder arm 16 16 (main cylinder) and which forms a first cylinder chamber 17, 17 inside the cylinder arm 16, 16. The first cylinder chambers 17, 17 of the telescopes 14, 14 are interconnected via a hydraulic bridge 18, which is why lowering of a wheel 5, 5 immediately causes a lifting of the wheel 5, 5 and vice versa. The hydraulic bridge (mechanism) 18 is closeable by means of a valve 19, so that the tilting mechanism can be arrested at a complete stop of the motor scooter 1 or at complete stop at a traffic light.

[0046] In order to compensate unilateral shocks, the wheels 5, 5 are supported inside the hollow cylinder 15 by means of another piston 20, containing a pneumatic suspension and/or spring suspension. The piston 20 and the hollow cylinder 15 together form the telescopic cylinder 21 moveably supported inside the cylinder arm 16 in the direction of arrow 22. If road surface irregularities occur, the individual wheels 5, 5 are therefore mounted in a spring-loaded manner independently of one another here.

[0047] The individual suspension of the wheels 5, 5 can also be arrested by means of valves on the telescopes 14, 14, respectively on the telescopic cylinders 21, 21.

[0048] FIG. 8 once more clarifies the structure of the front fork 13 with two wheels 5, 5 in a cross-sectional illustration. The front fork 13, on the left and right sides, has in each case one telescope 14, 14 which forms the wheel suspension. The telescopes 14, 14 first of all each comprise a cylinder arm 16, 16 having a telescopic cylinder 21, 21 movably mounted in the arrow direction 22, and which consists per se of a hollow cylinder 15, 15 and a piston 20, 20. To provide an operational tilting technology, the telescopic cylinders 21, 21 and the cylinder arms 16, 16 have cylinder chambers 17, 17 formed therebetween and interconnected hydraulically by means of a bridge mechanism 18, as the volume of the bridge 18 and of the cylinder chambers 17, 17 remains constant, the lift of the wheel 5 in arrow direction 26 will cause a lowering of the wheel 5 in arrow direction 27 and vice versa.

[0049] In case of a unilateral shock, suspension of the wheels 5, 5 is implemented by the telescopic cylinders 21, 21. The telescopic cylinders 21, 21 consist of the respective outer hollow cylinders 15, 15 and inner pistons 20, 20, which have a damping of an arbitrary type, e.g. pneumatic or by means of a spring, arranged therebetween. Both the tilting technique and the damping can be arrested by means of valves (not illustrated in FIG. 8).

[0050] In a steering operation of a motor scooter 1 having a front fork 13 according to FIG. 7, pivotability of the wheels 5, 5 is required despite the fact that the tilting mechanism is provided. To that end, cylinder arms 16, 16 are engaged around by sleeves 23, 23, which are connected with in each case one thrust rod 24 in an axially spaced manner, which are moveable axially with respect to the rod both when tilting and in a unilateral damping. Furthermore, each sleeve 23, 23 has a ball head 25 for the connection of the steering (not illustrated), so that pivoting of the sleeves 23, 23 in the arrow direction 26 causes a rotation/pivoting of the wheels 5, 5 and also a steering angle.

[0051] In the exemplary embodiment illustrated in FIG. 8, the telescopes 14, 14 are oriented in parallel and (in the case of the motor scooter not tilted) vertical to the support planes of wheels 5, 5. This results in a comparatively large steering/wheel radius 27, 27. In an alternative embodiment, with the geometry of front fork 13 unchanged, telescopes 14, 14 can be inclined relative to the support planes, so that a significantly smaller or even negative steering/wheel radius 27, 27 results, which has a positive effect on the steering behavior.

[0052] While specific embodiments of the invention have been shown and described in detail to illustrate the application of the principles of the invention, it will be understood that the invention may be embodied otherwise without departing from such principles.