MECHANICAL BRAKE CONTROL DEVICE

COMMANDE DE FREIN MECANIQUE

English Abstract

MECHANICAL BRAKE CONTROL DEVICE
ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
A vehicle with a brake pedal (10) and a clutch pedal (12)
includes a mechanical control device (20) with a connecting member
(26) coupled to the brake pedal (10) and a control member (36)
coupled to the clutch pedal (12). A ball (50) cooperates with the
connecting member (26) solely in response to vehicle angular ele-
vation to tightly engage the connecting member (26) when the vehicle
is facing an incline to retain the brake pedal in its applied position.

Claims

THE EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION IN WHICH AN EXCLUSIVE
PROPERTY OR PRIVILEGE IS CLAIMED ARE DEFINED AS FOLLOWS:
1. A mechanical brake control device for a vehicle
including a brake pedal and a clutch pedal wherein the
brake is movable to a brake applied mode during braking,
the device comprising a housing adapted for attachment to
the vehicle, a connecting member extending from the housing
to the brake pedal for movement with the latter, locking
means cooperating with the housing and the connecting
member to selectively fix the connecting member and the
brake pedal relative to the housing, and control means
extending from the clutch pedal to the housing, the control
means being operable in response to movement of the clutch
pedal to render the locking means in an operative mode or an inoperative
mode, characterized in that said housing compactly encloses
said locking means and defines a guide upon which said
locking means is disposed, said guide being normally disposed
in a substantially horizontal plane when the vehicle is
also disposed on a substantially horizontal surface, said
locking means being movable independently into direct
engagement with said connecting member solely in response
to the vehicle and said guide being repositioned angularly
relative to the horizontal plane, provided said control
means maintains said locking means in an operative mode,
and said locking means comprises a ball which frictionally
engages said connecting member to fix the latter and said
brake pedal in one direction relative to said housing in
a brake applied mode.
2. The mechanical brake control device of claim 1,
in which said guide cooperates with said connecting member
to define a cavity therebetween for movably receiving said
locking means and a pair of walls of said cavity form a
wedge.
3. The mechanical brake control device of claim 1,
in which said housing includes a plate with an opening
receiving said connecting member and said plate opposes
said locking means.

4. The mechanical brake control device of claim 3,
in which said plate defines a cushion facing said locking
means, said cushion being engageable with said locking
means to reduce bouncing thereof away from said plate
when said locking means is impacted against said plate.
5. The mechanical control device of claim 1, in
which said connecting member and said guide form arcuate
surfaces facing each other to substantially form a circular
profile therebetween in order to receive said ball there-
between.
6. The mechanical control device of claim 1, in
which said connecting member is attached to said brake
pedal via releasable means which permits separation between
said connecting member and said brake pedal in one direction
in the event said connecting member fails to move in the one
direction.
7. The mechanical control device of claim 6, in
which said releasable means comprises a wire clip biasing
said connecting member in the one direction into abutment
with said brake pedal.
8. A mechanical brake control device for a vehicle
with a brake pedal and a clutch pedal, the brake pedal
being movable from a rest position to an applied position
during braking, the clutch pedal being movable from a rest
position to an applied position when an associated clutch
assembly is disengaged, the mechanical brake control
device having a connection with the brake pedal and the
clutch pedal for actuation thereby and including means
responsive to an angular orientation of the vehicle to
oppose movement of the brake pedal away from the applied
position when the angular orientation is different from a
substantially horizontal plane and the clutch pedal is in
its applied position, characterized by said connection
between said device and said brake pedal defining a first
abutment maintaining said brake pedal in the applied
position when said device is actuated and a second abutment

normally actuating said device when said brake pedal is
moved to the applied position and capable of severing said
brake pedal from said device in the event said device
fails to actuate properly in response to movement of said
brake pedal to the applied position.
9. The mechanical brake control device of claim 8,
in which said connection comprises a stop fixed to said
brake pedal or said device and a resilient member extending
between said stop and said device or said brake pedal,
respectively.
10. A mechanical brake control device for a vehicle
which includes a brake pedal and a clutch pedal, the device
being compactly disposed substantially between said pedals
and comprising, in combination, a housing with a bore
therethrough, a connecting member movably disposed within
said bore and operatively coupled to said brake pedal for
movement therewith, a ball cooperating with said housing
and said connecting member to selectively lock said con-
necting member to said housing, and a control assembly
extending between said housing and said clutch pedal, said
control assembly cooperating with said ball to maintain
the latter in an inoperative position when said clutch
pedal is in its rest position, said control assembly
permitting said ball to move to an operative position when
said clutch pedal is moved away from its rest position,
and said ball being independently to an operative position
solely in response to an angular elevation of the vehicle
away from a horizontal. setting, said ball directly engaging
said connecting member and said housing in a wedging
relation in the operative position to fix said connecting
member in one direction relative to said housing when said
brake pedal and said clutch pedal are moved away from
their rest positions so that said brake pedal is retained
in its applied position until said clutch pedal is returned
to its rest position, thereby enabling a vehicle to remain
stationary in the angular elevation without requiring the

vehicle operator to hold said brake pedal in its applied
position.
11. The mechanical brake control device of claim 10,
in which said housing includes a plate with an opening
for movably receiving said connecting member and said plate
opposes said ball to retain the latter within said housing.
12. The mechanical brake control device of claim 10,
in which said housing includes a cushioned surface and said
cushioned surface opposes said ball to gradually reduce the
rebound of said ball away from said cushioned surface when
said ball is impacted thereagainst.
13. The mechanical brake control device of claim 12,
in which said housing cushioned surface is provided on a
plate for said housing and said plate retains said ball
within said housing.
14. The mechanical brake control device of claim 10,
in which said connecting member defines an arcuate surface
and said housing defines an arcuate surface, both of said
arcuate surfaces including a contour matching an outer
surface for said ball and both of said arcuate surfaces
approaching each other as they approach said control
assembly.
15. A mechanical brake control device for a vehicle
which includes a brake pedal and a clutch pedal, the device
cooperating with the brake pedal and the clutch pedal in
order to retain the brake pedal in an applied position when
the vehicle is in an angular elevation and the clutch pedal is
in an applied position so that the vehicle will remain
stationary in the angular elevation in the absence of an
application force applied to the brake pedal, said device
comprising a housing with a bore therethrough, a connecting
member extending from the brake pedal and through the bore,
said housing including a cavity in common with said bore
for movably receiving a ball therein, a control assembly
extending from the clutch pedal into the cavity at one end
thereof, said connecting member and the wall of said cavity

defining surfaces which approach each other in the direction
of said control member cavity, said ball being movable
toward the one end in response to the angular elevation to
tightly engage said connecting member and said housing at
the one end and prevent movement of said connecting member
in one direction, said control assembly being operable in
response to operation of the clutch pedal to move said
ball toward the other end of said cavity thereby freeing
said connecting member for movement relative to said housing.
16. The mechanical brake control device of claim 15,
in which said housing bore and said cavity lead to an opening
in common therewith, said housing including a plate attached
thereto closing the opening and said plate defining an
opening for receiving said connecting member.
17. The mechanical brake control device of claim 15,
in which the wall of said bore defines a rectangle in a
cross-sectional plane normal to said connecting member and
the wall of said cavity is substantially U-shaped in the cross-
sectional plane normal to said connecting member.
18. The mechanical brake control device of claim 15,
in which said connecting member defines an arcuate concave
surface for receiving a portion of said ball.
19. The mechanical brake control device of claim 18,
in which said housing defines an arcuate concave surface
for receiving said ball and said surfaces cooperate with
each other to uniformly spread forces generated between
said connecting member and said housing, when said ball is
tightly engaging said connecting member and said housing.
20. A mechanical brake control device for a vehicle
having a brake pedal and a clutch pedal, said device
including a housing fixedly secured to said vehicle for
compact disposition between said brake pedal and said
clutch pedal, a connecting member extending outwardly from
said housing to connect with said brake pedal for movement
therewith, a ball or the like compactly enclosed within
said housing, said ball being movable within said housing
between a first position permitting free movement of said

connecting member within said housing and a second position
frictionally engaging said housing and said connecting
member to fixedly secure said connecting member to said
housing to prevent movement of said connecting member and
said brake pedal in one direction, said ball being movable
to said second position solely in response to said vehicle
being disposed on an incline facing upwardly, and a
control assembly extending from within said housing to
said clutch pedal to cooperate with said ball inside said
housing, said control assembly normally maintaining said
ball in said first position even when said vehicle is
disposes on said incline facing upwardly and said clutch
pedal is in its rest position, said control assembly being
responsive to said clutch pedal being moved away from its
rest position to permit said ball to move to said second
position and said clutch pedal returning to its rest
position to actuate said control assembly to, in turn,
return said ball to its first position.
21. The mechanical brake control device of claim 20,
in which said housing defines a cavity with tapered walls
and said ball cooperates with said tapered walls and said
connecting member to form a wedge.
22. The mechanical brake control device of claim 20,
in which said ball is the only part sensitive to the
position of said vehicle on said incline facing upwardly
and said ball is also the only part fricitonally engaging
said connecting member and said housing to prevent movement
therebetween.
23. The mechanical brake control device of claim 1,
wherein the control means includes a shaft having an abut-
ment for engaging said ball.
24. The mechanical brake control device of claim 8,
wherein the control device includes a shaft for engaging
the responsive means.
25. The mechanical brake control device of claim 8,
in which said brake control device includes a cushioned
surface and said cushioned surface opposes the responsive means
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to gradually reduce movement of the responsive means away
from said cushioned surface when the responsive means is
impacted thereagainst.
26. The mechanical brake control device of claim 10,
wherein the control assembly comprises a shaft for main-
taining said ball in the inoperative position.
27. The mechanical brake control device of claim 26,
wherein the shaft includes an abutment for engaging said
ball.
28. The mechanical brake control device of claim 15,
wherein the control assembly comprises a shaft for moving
said ball.
29. The mechanical brake control device of claim 28,
wherein the shaft includes an abutment for displacing
said ball.
30. The mechanical brake control device of claim 15,
in which said housing includes a cushioned surface and said
cushioned surface opposes said ball to gradually reduce the
rebound of said ball away from said cushioned surface when
said ball is impacted thereagainst.
31. The mechanical brake control device of claim 20,
in which the control assembly comprises a shaft for main-
taining said ball in the first position.
32. The mechanical brake control device of claim 31,
wherein the shaft includes an abutment for engaging said
ball.
33. The mechanical brake control device of claim 20,
in which said housing includes a cushioned surface and
said cushioned surface opposes said ball to gradually
reduce the rebound of said ball away from said cushioned
surface when said ball is impacted thereagainst.
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Description

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The present invention relates ~o a mechanical brake
control device wherein a vehicle with a clutch pedal and a
brake pedal can be held stationary on an incline without the
vehicle operator retaining his foot on the brake pedal and
while the clutch pedal is actuated to disengage a transmission.
One aspect of the invention resides in a mechanical
brake control device for a vehicle including a brake pedal and
a clutch pedal wherein the brake pedal is movable to a brake
applied mode during braking, the device comprising a housing
adapted for attachment to the vehicle, a connecting member
extending from the housing to the brake pedal for movement with
the latter, locking means cooperating with the housing and the
connecting member to selectively fix the connecting member and
the brake pedal relative to the housing, and control means
extending from the clutch pedal to the housing, the control
means being operable in response to movement of the clutch
pedal to render the locking means in an operative mode or an
inoperative mode.
According to another aspect of the invention there
is provided a mechanical brake control device for a vehicle
with a brake pedal and a clutch pedal, the brake pedal being
movable from a rest position to an applied position during
braking, and the clutch pedal being movable to a rest posi-
tion to an applied position when an associated clutch assembly
is disengaged. The mechanical brake control device has a
connection with a brake pedal for actua~ion thereby and
includes means responsive to an angular orientation of the
vehicle to oppose movement of the brake pedal away from the
applied position when ~he angular orientation is different
from a substantially horizontal plane and the clutch pedal
is in the applied position. The connection between the device
and the brake pedal defines a first abutment maintaining the
brake pedal in the applied position when the device is
actuated and a second abutment normally actuating the device
when the brake pedal is moved to the applied position and
capable of severing the brake pedal from the device in the
event the device fails to actuateproperly in response to
movement of the brake pedal to the applied position.
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It is known that a valve can be disposed in a brake fluid
line for a vehicle to generate a hill-holding effect so that the
vehicle will remain stationary on an inclined surface upon termination
of braking, thereby permitting a vehicle operator to use one foot to
control a clutch pedal while the other foot is controlling an ac-
celerator pedal. This type of hydraulic hill-holder requires
alterations for the brake fluid lines and introduces addition potential
leak points in the fluid lines. In view of the crltical operation of
vehicle brakes, these added leak possibilities are not widely accepted
1~ by vehicle manufactures.
It is also known that a mechanical brake control, such as
illustrated in United States Patent 1,909,859 can be provided which
provides a r~chanical lock for a brake pedal in response tc operation
of a vehicle clu~ch pedal witIl a posi~ive connectior, being required be-
tween a locking roller and the clutch pedal. The clutch pedal moves
the roller into an operative positlon and also withdraws the roller there-
from, Consequently, the locking roller Is engageable with the brake
pedal extension every time the clutch pedal is ~epressed. In ad-
dition, the brake control requires a large support for receiving a
2~ brake pedal extension and a separate bearing assembly Is required to
carry the locktng roller within the large support.
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The present invention is characterized in that said housing
defining a guide upon which said locking means is disposed, said
guide being normally disposed in a su~stantially horizontal plane when
the vehicle is also disposed on a substantially horizontal surface,
said locking means being movable into direct engagement with said con-
necting member solely in response to the vehicle and said guide being
repositioned angularly relative to the horizontal plane, provided
said control means maintains said locking means in an operative mode,
whereby said locking means frictionally engages said connccting member
to fix the latter and said brake pedal relative to said housing in a
brake applied mode.
It is an advantage of the present invention that a compact
control device is provided for disposition between the brake pedal and
the clutch pedal. In addition, the control device herein is provided
with a locking ~ember or ball that is solely responsive to vehicle
angular elevation to hold the vehicle on an inclined surface and prevent
roll back.
The invention wtll now be describcd with reference to the ac-
companying drawTngs wherein:
Figure 1 is a perspective view of a vehicle brake pedal and
clutch pedal with the control device in operation therewith;
Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view of ~he control device
apart from the brake pedal and the clutch pedal;
Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 3-3 of
Figure 2;
Figure 4 is a side vTew of the control device in the absence
of the brake pedal and the clutch pedal; and
FTgure S is a bottom view of Figure 5.
A brake pedal 10 is dis~osed In a vehicle so that a vehicle
operator can depress the brake pedal to brake the vehicle. A clutch
pedal 12 is disposed in the vehtcle adjacent the brake pedal 10 so that
the operator can disengage a transmission (not shown~ by depressing the
clutch pedal thereby permittTng the transmission to be shifted to dif-
ferent gears. The vehicle also includes an accelerator pedal 14 to
control engine operation.
In accordance with the invention, a mechanical brake control
device 20 is d1sposed substan~ially between the brake pedal 10 and
the clutch pedal 12~ A mounting bracket Z2 is secured to the vehicle

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and a housing 24 is carried by the bracket adjacent the pedals
10 and 12. A connecting member 26 extends from the brake
pedal 10 to the housing 24 and a control assembl~ 28 extends from
the clu~_, pedal 12 to the housing 24. The connecting member 26
includes a pin 30 with a wire clip 32 biasing the pin 30 into abut-
ment with the brake pedal 10. Such an arrangement permits the brake
pedal 10 to overcome the wire clip 32 in the event the cor,necting
member 26 fails to move with the brake pedal during braking. Howeve ,
the brake pedal can not return to its rest position without also re-
turning the connecting member 26 ~o its rest position. The controlassembly 28 includes a link 34 coupled to a cam shaft 36 and the link
is slotted at 38 to movably receive a pin 40 secured to the clutch
pedal 12.
Turning to FTgure 2, the housing 24 deftnes a bore 42
15 rnovably receiving the connecting member 26. A cavity 44 opens to the
bore 42 and a plate 46 is secured to the housing to close the cavity
and define an opening 48 movably receiving the connecting member 26.
A ball or locking member 50 is movably disposed wtthin the cavity 44.
The cam shaft 36 is rotatably disposed within a cross bore 52 leading
20 to the cavity 44 at one end thereof opposite from the plate 46. As
shown in Figure 3, the connecting member 26 forms an arcuate concave
surface 54 substantially identical to the contour of the peripheral
surface of ball 50. Similarly, the wall of cavity 44 forms an arcuate
concave surface 56 opposTng surface 54 and substantially identical to
25 thc contour of thc poripheral surface of ball 50. In the cross-
sectional view of Figure 3, it is seen that the wall of the bors 42
is rectangular and the wall of cavity 44 Ts substantially U-shaped.
In the installed positlon, the housing 24 is orientated such
that the bottom edge of cavity 44 defines a hortzontal axis or plane AA
30 which corresponds to a horizontal setting for the vehicle. Consequently,
the ball 50 is free to move within the cavity. Figure 2 shows the cam
shaft 36 in its applied position corresponding to the clutch pedal 12
being depressed. With the cam shaft 36 applied, the ball 50 is free
to move between the plate 46 and a fixed position, tightly engaging
35 ~he connecting member 26 and the wall of cavity ~4 adjacent the cam
shaft 3~. The connecting member 26 is angularly disposed to the
horizontal axis M so that it approaches the horizontal axis from
the plate 46 to the cam shaft 36. There~ore, when the vehicle

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and axis M are inclined upwardly, the ball 50 w;ll roll into en-
gagement with both the connecting member 26 via surface 54 and the
wall of cavity 44 via surface 56. If the brake pedal 10 is depressed
at this time, the connecting member 26 is able to movo leftwardly
in Figure 2, as the bail acts as a one way lock permitting ~ve~3nt
leftwardly. When the brake pedal 10 is released and the ball 50 is
engaged with the connecting member 26 and the cavity wall, the ball 50
will be moved slightly into tight engagement witr the surfaces 54 and
56 to wedge the connecting member to the housing, thereby preventing
the connecting member and brake pedal from returning to their rest
positions and maintaining the brake pedal in its applied or depressed
position. The vehicle will remain stationary on the incline to per-
mit the vehicle operator to position one foot on the accelerator
pedal 14 while the other foot i5 maintaining the clutch pedal 12 in
its applied or depressed position.
In order to star~ the vehicle moving up the Tncline, the
operator releases the clutch at the same time the accelerator pedal
is depressed. Movement of the clutch pedal 12 away from the depressed
position pivots the cam shaft 36 via llnk 34 so that an abutment 60
on the cam shaft 36 will engage the ball 50 to rnove the latter left-
wardly, viewing Figure 2, out of engagement with the connecting
member 26. The connecting member 26 and the brake pedal 10 will move
in order to return the brake pedal 10 to its rest position in response
to the force of a return spring (not shown). As a result the
vehicle brakes will be released substantially simultaneously with
the reengagement of ~he clutch assembly and the transmission to
start the vehicle moving up the incline.
So long as the clutch pedal 12 remains in its rest position,
the cam shaft 36 will prevent the ball 50 from tightly engaging both
surfaces 54 and 56 so that the connectlng member 26 and brake pedal 10
will be free to return to their rest position after each brake ap-
plication. Also, if the vehicle Is disposed on a horizontal surface
or facing downhlll, the ball 50, whlch is sensltive to angular ele-
vatlon, wlll not roll rlghtwardly in Flgure 2 to engage the connecting
member 26. Thereftre, in the absence of an incline, the vehicle
brakes will automatically be released upon termination of braking.
A further feature of the present invention provides a

12~9443
cushioned surface 62 on the plate 46 to substantially prevent
the ball 50 from bouncing relative to the plate 46 should the
ball be impacted thereagainst during a panic stop. Also,
plate 46 may be made of a suitable material such as plastic
in order to provide a cushioned surface 62 (see Figure 2).
In addition, it is contemplated that a fluid medium can be
carried within the cavity 44 to dampen any oscillation movement
of the ball 50 apart from being movable solely in response to
9 an angular elevation for the vehicle.
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