Tank Device for a Motorcycle, and Luggage System for a Motorcycle

Abstract

A tank device for a motorcycle includes a fuel tank, a tank cap which can expose and close a tank filling opening of the fuel tank, and a fastening device. The fastening device has at least two fastening elements which are mounted in a positionally fixed manner on the fuel tank and by which a tank bag can be fastened to the tank device exclusively via the fuel tank.

Claims

1.-10. (canceled)

11. A tank device for a motorcycle, comprising: a fuel tank; a tank cap which is configured to open up and close a tank filling opening of the fuel tank; and a fastening device which comprises at least two fastening elements which are arranged in a positionally fixed manner on the fuel tank and via which a tank bag is fastenable to the tank device exclusively via the fuel tank.

12. The tank device according to claim 11, wherein the fastening device comprises at least one holding plate which is fastened to the fuel tank in an integrally bonded manner and via which at least one of the two fastening elements is held on the fuel tank.

13. The tank device according to claim 11, wherein the fastening device is configured to fail under a lower action of force than the fuel tank.

14. A luggage system for a motorcycle, comprising: a tank device according to claim 11; and the tank bag, wherein the tank bag has at least two holding elements corresponding to the at least two fastening elements, wherein the at least two fastening elements and the at least two holding elements are designed to be brought into engagement with each other in order to fasten the tank bag to the tank device, whereby the tank bag is held on the tank device exclusively via the fuel tank.

15. The luggage system according to claim 14, wherein at least one of the fastening or holding elements is in the form of a hook which is designed to engage around a clip of a corresponding element.

16. The luggage system according to claim 15, wherein the hook is designed to be pivoted relative to the fastening device when the tank bag is held on the tank device, and the at least one element having the hook additionally comprises a spring device which is designed to hold the hook in a predetermined closed position for interlocking with the clip.

17. The luggage system according to claim 15, wherein the clip defines a pivot axis for the tank bag, about which the tank bag held on the tank device is pivotable, whereby the tank filling opening is openable.

18. The luggage system according to claim 14, wherein at least one of the fastening or holding elements has a compartment into which an insertion region of the corresponding element is inserted for bringing the elements into engagement.

19. The luggage system according to claim 14, wherein the tank bag has at least one buffer element via which the tank bag is supportable on the fuel tank.

20. The luggage system according to claim 14, wherein the tank bag has a stiff carrier plate on which the at least two holding elements are arranged.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0019] FIG. 1 is a schematic side view of a luggage system for a motorcycle in a first embodiment, with a tank device on which a tank bag is held, wherein the tank bag is only partially illustrated for reasons of clarity; and

[0020] FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of the luggage system in a second embodiment, in which the tank device comprises a fastening device which has three fastening elements which are each in the form of clips.

[0021] In the figures, identical and functionally identical elements are provided with the same reference signs.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0022] FIGS. 1 and 2 each illustrate different embodiments of a luggage system 10 for a motorcycle. The respective features of the luggage system 10 shown in FIG. 1 and of the luggage system 10 shown in FIG. 2 can be freely combined with one another here. In each embodiment, the luggage system 10 comprises a tank device 12 and a tank bag 14, which is only partially illustrated here for reasons of clarity. The luggage system 10 makes it possible for an item of luggage to be able to be transported on the motorcycle by means of the tank bag 14 when the tank bag 14 is fastened to the tank device 12.

[0023] The tank device 12 comprises a fuel tank 16 which surrounds a tank volume in which a fuel can be accommodated. Furthermore, the tank device 12 comprises a tank cap 18 which can open up and close a tank filling opening 20 of the fuel tank 16. The tank cap 18 comprises a fastening flange 22, via which the tank cap 18 is held on the fuel tank 16, and a cap element which is not illustrated in the figures and can be adjusted relative to the fastening flange 22 between an open position and a closed position. In the open position of the cap element, the tank filling opening 20 of the fuel tank 16 is opened up so that fuel can be filled into the fuel tank 16 via the tank filling opening 20. In the closed position of the cap element, the tank filling opening 20 is closed.

[0024] The tank device 12 furthermore comprises a fastening device 24, by means of which the tank bag 14 can be fastened to the tank device 12 exclusively via the fuel tank 16. In each of the illustrated embodiments, the fastening device 24 here comprises three fastening elements 26 which are arranged in a positionally fixed manner on the fuel tank 16. In each of the illustrated embodiments, two of the fastening elements 26 are arranged upstream of the tank cap 18 in the longitudinal direction x of the motorcycle and the third fastening element 26 is arranged downstream of the tank cap 18 of the tank device 12 in the longitudinal direction x of the vehicle. The respective fastening elements 26 are designed to be brought into engagement with corresponding holding elements 28 of the tank bag 14, as a result of which the tank bag 14 can be fastened to the fuel tank 16 via the fastening elements 26. In the present case, the tank bag 14 has a corresponding holding element 28 for each fastening element 26.

[0025] For particularly secure holding of the fastening elements 26 on the fuel tank 16, the tank device 12 here comprises two holding plates 30 which are both connected, in the present case are welded, to the fuel tank 16 in an integrally bonded manner. The two fastening elements 26 which are arranged upstream of the tank cap 18 in the longitudinal direction x of the vehicle are fastened here to the fuel tank 16 via a common holding plate 30. The third fastening element 26 is held on the fuel tank 16 via the further holding plate 30.

[0026] In the first embodiment of the tank device 12 that is shown in FIG. 1, the two fastening elements 26 which are arranged upstream of the tank cap 18 in the longitudinal direction x of the vehicle are in the form of compartments into which respective assigned insertion regions of the corresponding holding elements 28 can be inserted in an insertion direction 32. The fastening element 26 arranged downstream of the tank cap 18 in the longitudinal direction x of the vehicle has a clip 34, which is merely indicated in FIG. 1 and which can be engaged around by the assigned holding element 28. The holding element 28 of the tank bag 14, which holding element is designed to engage around the clip 34, is in the form of a snap-action hook here. The snap-action hook comprises a hook 36 which is designed to be pivoted relative to the fastening device 24 while the tank bag 14 is held on the tank device 12. The hook 36 is designed here to be pivoted relative to a carrier plate 38 of the tank bag 14 in order to engage around the clip 34. The snap-action hook here comprises, in addition to the hook 36, a spring device 40 which is designed to hold the hook 36 in a predetermined closed position in which the hook 36 engages around the clip 34. The hook 36 can therefore be released from the clip 34 only by a spring force of the spring device 40 being overcome. For fastening the tank bag 14 to the tank device 12, it is therefore provided in the first embodiment that the insertion regions of the front holding elements 28 in the longitudinal direction x of the vehicle are inserted into the compartments provided by the front fastening elements 26 in the longitudinal direction x of the vehicle and then the hook 36 is brought into engagement with the clip 34.

[0027] In order to permit precise positioning of the hook 36 relative to the clip 34 in the transverse direction y of the vehicle, a guide device 42 can additionally be provided on the tank bag 14. In the present case, the guide device 42 comprises two fork elements which are each fork-shaped with two prongs. The fork elements can each be pushed on the clip 34 in such a manner that the clip 34 strikes against the respective fork element in a connecting region of the two prongs. The respective fork elements can outwardly overlap the hook 36 on mutually opposite sides at least in regions in the transverse direction y of the vehicle, as a result of which the hook 36 can be centered on the clip 34 in the transverse direction y of the vehicle.

[0028] The front fastening elements 26 are formed integrally here with a storage compartment 54 which is held on the assigned holding plate 30 via a screw connection. After the storage compartment 54 is fastened to the fuel tank 16 via the holding plate 30, a tank cover 44 can be pulled over the fuel tank 16 and fastened to the fuel tank 16. The clip 34 can be held on the assigned holding plate 30 via a screw connection. For fastening the tank bag 14 to the tank device 12, the holding elements 28 engage with the insertion regions in the compartments at the front, which are formed integrally with the storage compartment 54. At the rear, the tank bag 14 is locked to the tank device 12 via the snap-action hook. The snap-action hook can be unlocked via a supporting strap which can be fastened to the hook 36 of the snap-action hook. By way of a pulling action on the supporting strap, the spring force of the spring device 40 can be overcome and the hook 36 released from the clip 34.

[0029] The tank bag 14 comprises the stiff carrier plate 38 to which the holding elements 28 are fastened. Additionally, four buffer elements 46 are arranged here on the carrier plate 38 and can be used to support the carrier plate 38 on the tank device 12. The tank bag 14 can be supported via the buffer elements 46 on the tank cover 44 and indirectly via the tank cover 44 on the fuel tank 16. In the present case, the buffer elements 46 are in the form of rubber buffers and make it possible for the carrier plate 38 to be supported on the fuel tank 16.

[0030] The second embodiment of the luggage system 10 shown in FIG. 2 comprises the tank device 12 and the tank bag 14. In this case, no buffer elements 46 of the tank bag 14 are illustrated, but in this embodiment too the tank bag 14 may have at least one buffer element 46. The fastening element 26 arranged downstream of the tank cap 18 in the longitudinal direction x of the vehicle in the present case has the clip 34 which can be engaged around by a fastening hook 48 of the tank bag 14. The fastening hook 48 here is the holding element 28 which corresponds to the fastening element 26. The fastening hook 48 can be arranged in particular fixedly and therefore non-pivotably relative to the carrier plate 38. The engagement around the clip 34 by means of the fastening hook 48 permits pivoting of the carrier plate 38 about a pivot axis 50 defined by the clip 34. By this means, the tank bag 14 can be pivoted about the pivot axis 50, as indicated in FIG. 2, away from the tank filling opening 20 and therefore rearward in the longitudinal direction x of the vehicle, and forward toward the tank filling opening 20, as a result of which the tank bag 14 can be arranged outwardly overlapping the tank filling opening 20. Consequently, depending on the pivot position about the pivot axis 50, the tank bag 14 can open up or outwardly overlap the tank filling opening 20.

[0031] In the second embodiment here, the front fastening elements 26 which are arranged upstream of the tank cap 18 in the longitudinal direction x of the motorcycle are each in the form of clips 34. The holding elements 28 of the tank bag 14 that correspond with the fastening elements 26 are each in the form of snap-action hooks here. Furthermore, for particularly precise positioning relative to one another, the front fastening elements 26 are connected to one another via a connecting clip 52 connecting the fastening elements 26.

[0032] In order to provide the second embodiment of the luggage system 10, the storage compartment 54 can be fastened to the fuel tank 16 via the assigned holding plate 30 analogously to the first embodiment. The tank cover 44 can subsequently be pulled over the fuel tank 16. The connecting clip 52 can then be fastened by the fastening elements 26 to the assigned holding plate 30 indirectly via the storage compartment 54 or directly to the assigned holding plate 30. In order to fasten the tank bag 14 to the tank device 12, the fastening hook 48 can be hooked in place around the clip 34 of the corresponding fastening element 26. For this purpose, the carrier plate 38 of the tank bag 14 can be arranged in the rearwardly pivoted position and therefore in the pivoted-away position relative to the fuel tank 16 in order to permit particularly simple hooking in of the fastening hook 48 at the assigned clip 34. After the fastening hook 48 has been hooked in at the assigned clip 34, the carrier plate 38 can be folded forward about the pivot axis 50 in the longitudinal direction x of the vehicle and the tank bag 14 can be locked to the fastening elements 26 via the snap-action hooks of the front holding elements 28. A respective connection of the front holding elements 28 to the assigned fastening elements 26 can be unlocked via supporting straps held on the respective snap-action hooks, with the snap-action hooks being able to be released from the assigned clips 34 by a pulling action on the respective supporting straps.

[0033] The luggage system 10 permits rapid fastening of the tank bag 14 to the tank device 12 without tensioning straps. Conventional solutions in which the tank bag 14 is fastened to the tank cap 18 entail the risk of the tank cap 18 becoming leaky over the service life of the motorcycle. Furthermore, it is not possible to ensure that the tank device 12 remains leakproof in the event of an accident.

[0034] The tank device 12 described in conjunction with the figures permits the tank bag 14 to be attached to the tank device 12, with safety-relevant requirements for the tank device 12 being able to be observed.

[0035] Vehicle-side fastening points provided by the fastening elements 26 for the tank bag 14 are fastened here to the fuel tank 16 separately from the tank cap 18. The fastening elements 26 are configured in such a manner that possible damage occurs at the fastening elements 26 and not at the fuel tank 16 or the tank cap 18. This means that the fastening device 24 is configured in such a manner that it fails under a lower action of force than the fuel tank 16. In the first embodiment of the luggage system 10, the tank bag 14 is fastened to the tank device 12 by the tank bag 14 being inserted on one side, here at the front in the longitudinal direction x of the vehicle, into the tank device 12 and being locked on the other side, here at the rear in the longitudinal direction x of the vehicle, to the tank device 12.

[0036] The tank cover 44 can be positioned with respect to the tank cap 18 via an adapter ring. The storage compartment 54 located upstream of the tank cap 18 in the longitudinal direction x of the vehicle is screwed to the assigned holding plate 30 which is welded to the fuel tank 16. Respective screw points can protrude through the tank cover 44, with a transmission of forces from the screw points via the tank cover 44 to the tank cap 18 being at least substantially avoided. It is therefore possible to avoid forces being introduced to the tank cap 18 via the storage compartment 54. The fastening elements 26 for a front attachment of the tank bag 14 in the longitudinal direction x of the vehicle can be screwed onto these screw points. The second holding plate 30 is welded to the fuel tank 16 downstream of the tank cap 18 in the longitudinal direction x of the vehicle. The clip 34 is screwed to this second holding plate 30. This clip 34 is configured in such a manner that it serves as a sacrificial part in the event of damage.

[0037] The tank bag 14 can be received at the front fastening elements 26 and locked at the rear fastening element 26 via the snap-action hook. Alternatively, the tank bag 14 can be received at the rear fastening element 26 and locked at the front fastening elements 26 via respective snap-action hooks. When the tank bag 14 is received via the rear fastening element 26, the tank bag 14 can be pivoted about the pivot axis 50, and therefore the tank bag 14 does not have to be removed from the tank device 12 for refueling of the fuel tank 16. In each of the explained embodiments, the locking takes place via a respective snap-action hook which is connected to a supporting strap or a supporting handle via which the lock can be opened. An alternative locking of respective connections of the tank bag 14 to the tank device 12 is also conceivable.

[0038] Overall, the invention shows how a quick-action closure for attaching the tank bag 14 to the tank device 12 can be provided.

LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS

[0039] 10 luggage system [0040] 12 tank device [0041] 14 tank bag [0042] 16 fuel tank [0043] 18 tank cap [0044] 20 tank filling opening [0045] 22 fastening flange [0046] 24 fastening device [0047] 26 fastening element [0048] 28 holding element [0049] 30 holding plate [0050] 32 insertion direction [0051] 34 clip [0052] 36 hook [0053] 38 carrier plate [0054] 40 spring device [0055] 42 guide device [0056] 44 tank cover [0057] 46 buffer element [0058] 48 fastening hook [0059] 50 pivot axis [0060] 52 connecting clip [0061] 54 storage compartment