Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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TITLE: WINDSHIELD APPARATUS FOR MOTORCYCLES
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an improvement
of a windshield apparatus for a motorcycle in which a
front handle cover is attached to a rod-shaped steering
handle so as to cover the front surface thereof, an air
vent hole opening toward the front is formed on the front
handle cover to allow wind blowing onto the motorcycle
during travel to be supplied inside of the windscreen
projecting upward from the front handle cover
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Such windshield apparatus for a motorcycle
described above is already known as disclosed, for
example, in Patent Document 1 JP-A-10-203453.
In a windshield apparatus for a motorcycle in the related
art, an air vent hole is formed on the portion of a front
handle cover where the front surface is inclined upward.
Therefore, since the air vent hole is highly visible, the
appearance of the front surface of the vehicle is
impaired, and it is necessary to consider to prevent
rainwater incoming through the air vent hole during
travel in the rain from flushing upward inside a
windscreen.
In view of such circumstances, an object of the
present invention is to provide a windshield apparatus
for a motorcycle in which the good appearance on the
front surface of the vehicle is maintained by preventing
the air vent hole from being highly visible, and
rainwater is prevented from coming into the air vent
hole.
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SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In order to achieve the object described above,
in a windshield apparatus for a motorcycle including: a
front handle cover attached to a rod-shaped steering
handle so as to cover the front surface thereof; and an
air vent hole opening toward the front is formed on the
front handle cover to allow wind blowing onto the
motorcycle during travel to be supplied inside of a
windscreen projecting upward from the front handle cover,
a first aspect of the invention is characterized in that
the front handle cover includes an upper half that is
inclined so that the front surface faces upward and a
lower half that is inclined so that the front surface
faces downward connected with respect to each other so
that a lateral ridgeline is formed therebetween, and the
air vent hole is formed on the lower half.
According to the first aspect, since the air
vent hole on the front handle cover is provided on the
lower half, which faces downward, below the ridgeline,
the lines of sight of general adults from the front are
obstructed by the ridgeline, and thus the air vent hole
can hardly be viewed. Therefore, the appearance of the
motorcycle is prevented from being affected by the air
vent hole. In addition, since the front surface of the
front handle cover having the air vent hole faces
downward, entering of rainwater into the air vent hole
during travel in the rain may be prevented.
In addition to the first aspect, a second
aspect of the invention is that an upper handle cover for
covering the upper surface of the steering handle with
the front edge abutted against, or placed in the vicinity
of, the inner surface of the windscreen is attached to
the steering handle, a number of air injection holes
opening along the inner surface of the windscreen are
formed on the front portion of the upper handle cover,
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and an air guide plate for guiding wind blowing onto the
motorcycle during travel and taken through the air vent
hole into the air injection holes is disposed between the
front handle cover and the upper handle cover.
According to the second aspect, wind entering
into the air vent hole of the front handle cover during
travel is guided to the air injection holes on the upper
handle cover by the air guide plate, and injected from
the number of air injection holes. Therefore, generation
of negative pressure inside the windscreen is prevented,
and thus windshield effect may be improved. In addition,
a large gap between the windscreen and the upper handle
cover may be eliminated, and thus a good appearance is
achieved.
In addition to the second aspect, a third
aspect of the invention is that a meter unit is mounted
to the upper handle cover, and a meter visor standing
from between the meter unit and a group of air injection
holes for preventing dizzy light beam from incoming onto
the display surface of the meter unit is integrally
formed with the upper handle cover.
According to the third aspect, the meter visor
standing from behind the group of air injection holes
faces the inner surface of the windscreen within a
relatively short distance, and serves to define a passage
for allowing air injected from the air injection holes to
rise with respect to the windscreen, so that dispersion
of injected air is prevented to effectively restrain
generation of negative pressure inside the windscreen.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Preferred embodiments of the invention are
shown in the drawings, wherein:
Fig. 1 is a side view of a motorcycle provided
with a windshield apparatus according to the invention.
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Fig. 2 is an enlarged drawing of Fig. 1 viewed
t in the direction indicated by an arrow.l.
Fig. 3 is an enlarged drawing of Fig. 1 viewed
in the direction indicated by an arrow 2.
Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along
the line 4-4 in Fig. 2.
Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along
the line 5-5 in Fig. 4.
Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along
the line 6-6 in Fig. 4.
Fig. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along
the line 7-7 in Fig. 2.
Fig. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along
the line 8-8in Fig. 3.
Fig. 9 is a cross-sectional view taken along
the line 9-9 in Fig. 3.
Fig. 10 is a cross-sectional view taken along
the line 10-10 in Fig. 3.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
An embodiment of the invention will be
described based on an example of the invention shown in
attached drawings.
Fig. 1 is a side view of a motorcycle provided
with a windshield apparatus according to the invention;
Fig. 2 is an enlarged drawing of Fig. 1 viewed in the
direction indicated by an arrow 2; Fig. 3 is an enlarged
drawing of Fig. 1 viewed in the direction indicated by an
arrow 3; Fig. 4 is a cross-sectianal view taken along the
line 4-4 in Fig. 2; Fig. 5 is a cross- sectional view
taken along the line 5-5 in Fig. 4; Fig. 6 is a cross-
sectional view taken along the line 6-6 in Fig. 4; Fig. 7
is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 7-7 in
Fig. 2; Fig. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along the
line 8-8in Fig. 3; Fig. 9 is a cross-sectional view taken
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along the line 9-9 in Fig. 3; and Fig. 10 is a cross-
sectional view taken along the line 10-10 in Fig. 3.
In the description given below, terms "front",
"rear", "left" and "right" are based on a motorcycle S.
In Fig. 1 to Fig. 3, a head pipe lh formed at
the front end of a vehicle body frame 1 of the scooter-
type motorcycle S rotatably journals a steering stem 3a
of a front fork 3, which supports a front wheel 2. The
steering stem 3a passes through the head pipe lh from
below and extends upward, and a steering handle 4 is
integrally connected to the upper end thereof. The
steering handle 4 has a rod-shape, and includes a U-
shaped portion 4a connected at the lowermost portion to
the steering stem 3, and a pair of strait portions 4b, 4b
extending outwardly toward the left and the right,
respectively, from the left and right ends of the U-
shaped portion 4a. Grip rubbers 5, 5 are fitted on the
outer ends of the straight portions 4b, 4b.
A cross member 6 is welded between the both end
portions of the U-shaped portion 4a, a pair of left and
right first stays 7, 7 are welded to both ends of the
cross member 6, a pair of left and right second stays 8,
8 are welded to both ends of the U-shape portion 4a, a
third stay 9 is welded to the back surface of the upper
end portion of the steering stem 3a, and a fourth stay 10
is welded to the center portion of the cross member 6.
As shown in Fig. 2 and Fig. 7, the lower end of
a transparent windscreen 12 formed of synthetic resin is
fixed to the left and the right first stays 7, 7 with
bolts 17, 17.
As shown in Fig. 4, an upper handle cover 13
formed of synthetic resin for covering the upper surface
of the steering handle 4 is secured to the left and right
second stays 8, 8 with bolts 18, 18, and a lower handle
cover 14 formed of synthetic resin for covering the lower
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surface of the steering handle 4 is secured to the third
stay 9 with a bolt 19.
A front handle cover 15 for covering the front
surface of the steering handle 4 also covers the lower
end portion of the windscreen 12 and projects leftward
and rightward therefrom. The front handle cover 15, the
upper handle cover 13, and the lower handle cover 14 are
connected with respect to each other so as to sandwich
the steering handle 4 between the insides of the left and
the right grip rubbers 5, 5. In other words, inner
surfaces of the left and right end portions of the front
handle cover 15 projecting outward from the windscreen 12
are, as shown in Fig. 3 and Fig. 8 to Fig. 10, are
integrally formed with first connecting bosses 21, 21,
second connecting bosses 22, 22, and the third connecting
bosses 23, 23 sequentially from above so as to project
therefrom. The left and the right first connecting
bosses 21, 21 are connected to the left and the right end
portions of the upper handle cover 13 with bolts 20, 20,
the left and the right second connecting bosses 22, 22
are connected to the both end portions of the overlapped
upper handle cover 13 and the lower handle cover 14 with
bolts 25, 25, and the left and the right third connecting
bosses 23, 23 are secured to the lower handle cover 14
with bolts 26, 26.
As shown in Fig. 10, the upper handle cover 13
and the lower handle cover 14 are resiliently engaged
with each other by a locking hole 36 and a locking claw
37 formed on opposed suitable locations. In this manner,
the front handle cover 15 is supported by the upper
handle cover 13 and the lower handle cover 14, which are
both supported by the steering handle 4.
As shown in Fig. 2 and Fig. 4, The front handle
cover 15 is also formed of synthetic resin, and includes
an upper half 15a inclined so that the front surface
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faces upward, and a lower half 15b inclined so that the
front surface faces downward, connected with each other
so that a lateral ridgeline 15c is formed therebetween.
The upper edge of the upper half 15a is provided with a
sealing member 28 that comes into intimate contact with
the front surface of the windscreen 12. The lower half
15b is formed with a pair of left and right air vent
holes 30, 30 immediately below the windscreen 12.
As shown in Fig. 4 or Fig. 5, the upper handle
cover 13 is formed in such a manner that the front edge
thereof abuts against, or is placed in the vicinity of,
the inner surface of the windscreen 12, and is provided
at the front end thereof with a number of air injection
holes 31, 31... opening upward along the inner surface of
the wind screen 12 and extending in the fore-and-aft
direction into a slit shape. The air guide plate 16 for
guiding wind taken through the air vent hole 30 during
travel into the air injection holes 31, 31 is secured at
its center to the fourth stay 10 with bolt 27, and the
upper portion of the air guide plate 16 is secured to the
inner wall of the upper handle cover 13 with a pair of
left and right bolts 38, 38 (See Fig. 4 and Fig. 6).
In Fig. 4, a meter unit 33 is mounted to a
meter mounting hole 32 opening at the center of the upper
handle cover 13, and a meter visor 34 standing in front
of the meter mounting hole 32 and preventing dizzy light
beam from incoming onto the display surface of the meter
unit 33 is formed integrally with the upper handle cover
13. The meter visor 34 is a dual-wall structure
including a front wall 34a standing upright from behind
the group of air injection holes 31, 31 ... an-d a rear
wall 34b standing upright from the front edge of the
meter mounting hole 32 and being integrally connected at
the upper end thereof to the front wall 34a.
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Reference numeral 35 in the figure is a back
mirror mounted to the steering handle 4.
The operation of this embodiment will be
described below.
When wind blowing onto the motorcycle S during
travel enters into the left and the right air vent holes
30 on the front handle cover 15, it is guided upward by
the air guide plate 16, and is injected from a number of
air injection holes 31, 31... formed on the upper handle
cover 13. Since the air injection holes 31, 31... are
opened upward along the inner surface of the windscreen
12, air injected from the air injection holes 31, 31...
rises along the inner surface of the windscreen 12,
whereby generation of negative pressure inside the
windscreen 12 can be restrained. Consequently, air
current of wind rising along the front surface of the
windscreen 12 is prevented from turning into the inside
of the windscreen 12, so that windshield effect of the
windscreen 12 may be improved.
The meter visor 34 standing upright from behind
the group of air injection holes 31, 31... faces the
inner surface of the windscreen 12 within a relatively
short distance, and thus serves to define a passage for
allowing air injected from the air injection holes 31,
31... to rise with respect to the windscreen, so that
dispersion of injected air is prevented to effectively
restrain generation of negative pressure inside the
windscreen 12.
Since the air vent holes 30, 30 of the front
handle cover 15 are formed on the lower half 15b, which
faces downward, of the front handle cover 15 below the
ridgeline 15c, when general adults viewed the motorcycle
S from the front, the lines of sight are obstructed by
the ridgeline 15c, and thus the air vent holes 30, 30 can
hardly be viewed. Therefore, the appearance of the
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motorcycle S is prevented from being affected by the air
vent holes 30, 30. In addition, since the front surface
of the front handle cover 15, on which the air vent holes
30, 30 are opened, faces downward, entering of rainwater
into the air vent hole 30, 30 may be prevented.
On the other hand, on the inside of the
windscreen 12, provision of a number of air injection
holes 31, 31... at the front end portion of the upper
handle cover 13 enables to eliminate generation of a
large gap between the windscreen 12 and the upper handle
cover 13 while securing an airflow for controlling
negative pressure, so that a good appearance is achieved.
The present invention is not limited to the
embodiment described above, and may be modified without
departing from the scope of the invention.
As described thus far, in a windshield
apparatus for a motorcycle including: the front handle
cover attached to the rod-shaped steering handle so as to
cover the front surface thereof; and the air vent hole
opening toward the front is formed on the front handle
cover to allow wind blowing onto the motorcycle during
travel to be supplied inside of the windscreen projecting
upward from the front handle cover, a first embodiment of
the invention is characterized in that the front handle
cover includes the upper half that is inclined so that
the front surface faces upward and the lower half that is
inclined so that the front surface faces downward
connected with respect to each other so that the lateral
ridgeline is formed therebetween, and the air vent hole
is formed on the lower half. Therefore, since the air
vent hole on the front handle cover is provided on the
lower half, which faces downward, below the ridgeline,
the lines of sight of general adults from the front are
obstructed by the ridgeline, and thus the air vent hole
can hardly be viewed. Therefore, the appearance of the
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motorcycle is prevented from being affected by the air
vent hole. In addition, since the front surface of the
front handle cover having the air vent hole faces
downward, entering of rainwater into the air vent hole
during travel in the rain may be prevented.
In addition to the first embodiment, a second
embodiment of the invention is that the upper handle
cover for covering the upper surface of the steering
handle with the front edge abutted against, or placed in
the vicinity of, the inner surface of the windscreen is
attached to the steering handle, the number of air
injection holes opening along the inner surface of the
windscreen are formed on the front portion of the upper
handle cover, and the air guide plate for guiding wind
blowing onto the motorcycle during travel and taken
through the air vent hole into the air injection holes is
disposed between the front handle cover and the upper
handle cover. Therefore, wind blowing onto the
motorcycle during travel and taken through the air vent
hole is guided into the air injection holes on the upper
handle cover by the air guide plate and injected from a
number of air injection holes, whereby generation of
negative pressure inside the windscreen is prevented, and
windshield effect may be improved. In addition, the
large gap between the windscreen and the upper handle
cover may be eliminated, and thus a good appearance is
achieved.
In addition to the second embodiment, a third
embodiment of the invention is that the meter unit is
mounted to the upper handle cover, and the meter visor
standing from between the meter unit and the group of air
injection holes for preventing dizzy light beam from
incoming onto the display surface of the meter unit is
integrally formed with the upper handle cover.
Therefore, the meter visor standing from behind the group
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of air injection holes faces the inner surface of the
windscreen within a relatively short distance, and serves
to define the passage for allowing air injected from the
air injection holes to rise with respect to the
windscreen, so that dispersion of injected air is
prevented to effectively restrain generation of negative
pressure inside the windscreen.
Although various preferred embodiments of the
present invention have been described herein in detail,
it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, that
variations may be made thereto without departing from the
spirit of the invention or the scope of the appended
claims.
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