This invention relates to a rain shield for a vehicle and is generally applicable to vehicles provided with a carriage for seating passengers, such as, for instance, those in which the sides are left open, partially or fully, with only a roof above, exposing the passengers and the driver to rain water spray from the sides, during rain.

An example of such a vehicle is the auto rickshaw accommodating a driver at the front of the vehicle and passengers at the back. This vehicle is usually provided with rain shields for protecting the driver as well as the passengers from rain water entering the passenger and driver cabins during movement of the vehicle in the rain. Presently, in such vehicles the rain shield consists of a waterproof fabric which is rolled manually up and down. After being rolled up, it is tied by a cord to a fixture near the roof of the vehicle. The driver or the passengers do this by leaning out of the vehicle, thus getting wet.

This invention therefore proposes a rain shield which

avoids the need to fumble with the clasps provided for the shield in the conventional arrangement;

avoids the need to manually unfold the shield while removing all its bulges and creases;

can be operated by the driver/passengers when seated within the vehicle without getting wet in the rain;

can be rolled down quickly and easily by the driver/passengers to shield them against rain water during rain;

is self-retracting and can be rolled up, effortlessly, quickly and easily by the driver/passengers whenever the shield is not required;

does not show ugly lumps and folds in the rolled up and rolled down conditions of the shield;

always displays a neat and aesthetic appearance both in the rolled down and rolled up conditions.

As would have already been clear the user has merely to pull down the rain shield and clamp it to the bottom of the cabin. To release this, the rain shield just needs to be released from the clamp, to enable it to self-retract and get into its normal position. This procedure will be seen to be time-saving. On the other hand, in the conventional arrangement the user has to manually roll the shield up and tie it up with a cord or fix it with a clasp to hold it in its position.

The new rain shield will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein

Fig. 1 illustrates a view of the three wheeler;

Fig. 2 illustrates rain shield assembled in the vehicle

Fig. 3 illustrates exploded view of the rain shield

Any known 3 wheeler, as illustrated in fig. 1, can be divided into three major portions, the front portion F, the middle portion M and the rear/tail portion R. The front portion F comprises the steering 1, front wheel with necessary brakes 2, front suspension and fender 3, wind shield 4, wiping system 5, dash board with control switches 6, Head lamp and side indicator 7. The middle portion M comprises the driver seat 8, footrest for the driver 9, Hand start link rod 10, "B" pillar 11, and "B" pillar partition wall 12. The rear/tail portion R comprises engine assembly 13, petrol tank 14, rear wheel with suspension 15, cabin assembly 16, passenger seat 17, "C" pillar 18, rear combination lamp assembly (LH & RH) 19, silencer assembly 20.

Fig. 2 shows the rain shield assembled onto the vehicle. The rain shield is supported between the two soft-top C-Pillar tubes using a support bracket. The individual components of the rain shield are shown in the exploded view in Fig.3

An embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to Fig. 1 to Fig.3, by way of example and not by way of limitation:

The present invention relates to an arrangement, which consists of an inner tube 21 made of aluminium, strong plastic or steel to which a flexible fabric, such as, rexin cloth, is stuck or inserted. There is an additional smaller inner rod 22 over which the spring 23 is attached and inserted into the tube. This inner tube is held at its ends by a smaller end bracket 24, which locks the rotation of the spring and the inner rod together. The whole assembly is then enclosed inside the outer tube 25, the material of which can be aluminium, strong plastic or steel. Thus when the rexin cloth is pulled down, mechanical energy is stored in the spring. The rexin cloth is then clamped onto the cabin and on release, the spring releases its mechanical energy thereby aiding in the self- retraction of the rain shield.

It will be appreciated that various other embodiments of this invention are possible without departing from its scope and ambit.

We Claim:

1. A rain shield for a vehicle comprising a flexible fabric for being drawn over an opening in the vehicle for shielding occupants against rain water tending to enter through such opening; one end of the fabric being fixed to a first rotatable member provided at or near the roof of the vehicle, on its interior, the other end of the fabric being free and provided with fastening means; a second rotatable member disposed within the first rotatable member and attached thereto, said second rotatable member being spring-loaded, such that the free end of the fabric, on being manually drawn downward over the opening, is fastenable in position by the said means, said free end, on being unfastened thereafter, self- retracting upward to its original position under spring-tension.

2. A rain shield as claimed in Claim 1 wherein the first rotatable member is a tube.

3. A rain shield as claimed in Claim 2 wherein the second rotatable member is a rod.

4. A rain shield as claimed in any one of the Claims 1 to 3 wherein a third member encloses the first and second rotatable members .

5. A rain shield for a vehicle substantially as herein described and illustrated with reference to Figs. 1 to 3 of the accompanying drawings.