FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates to a saddle-ride type vehicle and more
. particularly, but not exclusively to a front illumination device for the saddle ride-
type vehicle.
5 BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Generally, in a saddle type of two or three- wheeled vehicle, a head lamp assembly is located and mounted on a front side of the handle bar assembly and mounted to a rear cover attached to the handle bar assembly. Further, due to ever increasing needs and demands of the users, addition of features in such motor
10 vehicles is also increasing, in order to full fill the requirements, thus there is need to accommodate the head lamp assembly, one or more turn signal lamps, a position lamp and one or more day time running lamps within the available space in a saddle type of vehicle. Also, it is necessary to have a desired light intensity for better visibility in night and promiscuity of the vehicle for the oncoming
15 traffic to avoid potential accidents.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0003] The above and other features, aspects and advantages of the subject matter
will be better understood with regard to the following description, appended
claims and accompanying drawings where: 20 [0004] Figure 1 shows a left side perspective view of the scooter type vehicle.
[0005] Figure 2a illustrates a front view of the front panel of the scooter type
vehicle.
[0006] Figure 2b illustrates a perspective view of a portion of the front panel
[0007] Figure 3 illustrates a side view of the front panel of the scooter type 25 vehicle.
[0008] Figure 4 illustrates an exploded view of the at least one illuminating
device.
[0009] Figure 5 shows a left side perspective view of the scooter type vehicle.

[00010] Figure 6 illustrates a perspective view of the handlebar cover of the scooter type vehicle.
[00011] Figure 7 illustrates an exploded view of the front position lamp according to an embodiment of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [00012] Conventionally, in a saddle type two-wheeled and three wheeled vehicle, a headlamp assembly is mounted on the handlebar cover. In one of the. known arts, the turn signal lamps are mounted along with the headlamp assembly on the handle bar cover itself. Such an assembly of the turn signal lamps along with the headlamp assembly on the handlebar cover increases the load on the handlebar cover. Further, due to constrained availability of space on the handle bar, the size of the turn signal lamps and the headlamp assembly that has to be accommodated on the handlebar cover is also limited due to smaller size of the handlebar cover. The smaller size of the turn signal lamps affects the visibility during cornering of the vehicle and further, to overcome the same, the size of the headlamp assembly along with the turn signal lamps cannot be increased due to constrained space on the handlebar cover.
[00013] To overcome the above said problem, the turn signal lamps can be placed on the front panel and away from the headlamp assembly. However, the mounting of the right and left turn signal lamps mounted separately on the front panel increases the number of parts. Further, manufacturing difficulty like asymmetry during manufacturing of the turn signal lamps may occur, which again affects proper assembly on the front panel during assembling. This results in poor fit and finish. Further, according to the known construction, the size of the headlamp assembly is still restricted due to the limited space available on the handlebar cover. Furthermore, separate mounting of the tum signal lamps and the headlamp assembly calls for a need to carry out separate electrical cable routing. [00014] In another know art, the headlamp assembly is mounted on the front panel and the turn signal lamps are mounted on the handlebar cover. However, such a design still does not solve the above said problems and the complexity in electrical routing of the cables still prevails. Further, due to assembly of the

separate parts at different locations, the assembly time is increased. Further, even during servicing, the servicing time also increases.
[00015] Furthermore, as also known in the art, the headlamp assembly is disposed on the panel front and along the vehicle centre plane to achieve better aerodynamic properties. The headlamp assembly can be adjusted based on the rider's requirement. The adjustment includes orientation of the positioning of the headlamp assembly as per user requirement. In order to facilitate the same, the headlamp assembly has to be assembled in the front panel with a uniform clearance around the periphery of the front panel. Typically, the front panel is configured with a large curved surface to overcome aerodynamic drag offered during vehicle running conditions. However, the uniform clearance forms discontinuities in the surface of the front panel along the vehicle centre plane, and these discontinuities hamper the aerodynamics and offers aerodynamic drag that is undesirable.
[00016] Further, in a known art, a front position lamp or a day-time running lamp is disposed inside the headlamp assembly. However, any damage to the front position lamp or the day-time, running lamp may lead to complete replacement of the headlamp assembly. Further, due to heat generated by the headlamp assembly, the thermal management may become difficult and complicated that may affect the heat sensitive polymeric panels surrounding the headlamp assembly. [00017] However, to overcome the above mentioned problem, the front position lamp or the day-time running lamp placed separately from the head lamp assembly. Generally, the front position lamp or the day-time running lamp is placed on the handlebar cover. However, the handlebar covers are desirable to be sleeker to reduce aerodynamic drag and the handlebar covers mostly include narrow shape which may not be able to accommodate the front position lamp or the day-time running lamp including the shape and size as desired by the user. Further, the width of the vehicle is typically governed by the width of the handlebar assembly. Such a width of the vehicle is preferred to be as low as feasible. On the contrary, the handlebar assembly needs to be adequately dimensioned in the lateral direction to achieve comfortable ergonomics for the :FICE CHENNAI 14/12/2018 16=03

user to hold and manoeuvre the vehicle. Increasing the width of the handlebar assembly is undesirable, whereas, the reduced width makes it difficult to package the other vehicular parts like turn signal lamps, headlamp assembly, position lamps, instrument cluster etc. leading to compromised illumination, poor conspicuity of the vehicle on the road especially at night time as well as cluttered instrument cluster for the rider. There also exists a challenge of having smooth profile for the illumination device so as to enable easy flow of the atmospheric air during vehicle running condition, thereby minimizing aerodynamic drag resistance, which is detrimental to the mileage and stable performance of the vehicle. Often the illumination device and the indication devices like turn signal lamps and position lamps need to have distinct separation from each other to be able to operate with their respective functionality. Thus, these end up with narrow openings, crevices or cleavages like depressions and dents to enable differentiation which leads to undesirable air drag resistance. Also, such non-continuous or irregular profiles lead to collection of mud, water and other dirt particles deteriorating the aesthetic appearance making it difficult to clean. These can potentially lead to frequent stagnation of water and dirt marks on the lens leading to poor illumination, poor emanation of light and conspicuity with usage. Thus, vehicle maintenance and cleaning requirements go up leading to high cost of ownership for user of the vehicle.
[00018] Therefore, a compact and structurally efficient front position lamp or day-time running lamp is required which overcomes all of the above outlined problems.
[00019] Additionally, a headlamp assembly along with one or more turn signal lamps that is easy to assemble and provides better aerodynamics is required. [00020] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the saddle-type vehicle includes at least one front wheel disposed at a front portion of the vehicle. A front panel is disposed in the front portion and above at least one front wheel of the saddle-type vehicle. The front panel of the saddle-type vehicle is configured to. support at least one illuminating device. The at least one illuminating device includes at least one first light emitting device, for example, a headlamp assembly

and at least one second light emitting device, for example, at least one day-time running lamp (DRL), at least one position lamp and the like. [00021] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the at least one first light emitting device and the at least one second light emitting device includes plurality of light emitting elements, for example, light emitting diodes (LEDs).
[00022] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the at least one first light emitting device and the at least one second light emitting device are enclosed by a common housing. The number of parts used for the same purpose of enclosing the at least one first light emitting device and the at least one second light emitting device are reduced according to the present invention. [00023] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the front panel comprising the at least one illuminating device is configured to include a shape and profile in conformation with that of the at least one illuminating device. This enables a continuous surface along the front panel surface and the at least one illuminating device without having any dis-continuous surface there between. However, there may be a negligible amount of gap required to achieve fit and finish during assembling, but the negligible amount of gap does not hamper the aerodynamics of the vehicle. Furthermore, the at least one illuminating device is not subjected to damage due to external impacts.
[00024] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the first light emitting device is disposed in close proximity to the at least one second light emitting device. The at least one second light, emitting device is disposed in a second plane cutting through a first plane comprising the first light emitting device. The first light emitting device occupies most of a front portion of the front panel and the at least one second light emitting device is disposed in the side portions of the front panel. The second light emitting device disposed in the side portions of the front panel includes better visibility from side view. Furthermore, the at least one second light emitting device is disposed in a stepped manner for better side visibility and conspicuity during cornering of the vehicle.

[00025] The at least one illuminating device as described in the present subject matter includes the first light emitting device occupying most portion of the front panel. However, only the portion of the front panel at a close proximity to the front wheel is configured to support the at least one illuminating device. The portion of the front panel present closer to the front wheel, is the lower portion of the front panel and includes compact space as compared to other portions of the front panel. This compact space includes a sleeker and compact at least one illuminating device. However, since the at least one illuminating device occupies most of the front portion of the front panel, the size of the at least one illuminating device is maintained widthwise without compromising on the illumination functionality of the at least one illuminating device.
[00026] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the driver circuit used to control the first light emitting device and the at least one second light-emitting device are disposed away from the plurality of light sources, for example, LEDs present in the first light emitting device and the at least one second light emitting device. The isolation of the driver circuit from the plurality of LEDs aids in improving the thermal management of the at least one illuminating device. The better thermal management due to the above mentioned reasons eliminates the need to include one or more heat sinks for the at least one illuminating device. Therefore, the cost of the entire illuminating device is reduced and the proposed invention includes economic significance.
[00027] According to an embodiment of the present, invention, an adjustment member configured to achieve aiming adjustment of the headlamp reflector is disposed in one or more locations on a rear surface of a headlamp rear housing of the illuminating device. The adjustment member is easily accessible on the rear surface of the headlamp rear housing as compared to other locations including providing the adjustment member below the illuminating device as in conventional vehicles.
[00028] Further, according to another embodiment of the present invention, a front position lamp including a curved structure is provided on the handlebar cover.

[00029] These and other advantages of the present invention are described in the
detailed description of the figures provided below with two-wheeled vehicle as an
embodiment.
[00030] Figure 1 shows a left side perspective view of the scooter type vehicle.
5 The vehicle 100 has a body frame assembly made up of several tubes welded together which usually supports the body of said vehicle. The vehicle 100 has a steerable front wheel 101 and a driven rear wheel 102. The vehicle frame assembly of the vehicle 100 is an elongated structure, which typically extends from a forward end to a rearward end of the vehicle. It is generally convex in
0 shape, as viewed from a side elevation view. The frame assembly includes a head tube 104, a main frame 111 and also may have a sub-frame. The sub-frame is attached to the main frame 111 using appropriate joining mechanism. The frame assembly is covered by a plurality of vehicle body covers including a front panel 103, a rear cover (not shown), a left front bottom panel 105, and a pair of side
5 panels 106.
[00031] A handlebar assembly 109 and a seat assembly 302 are supported at opposing ends of the vehicle frame assembly and a generally open area is defined there between known as floorboard 108 which functions as a step through space. A seat assembly 302 for a driver and a pillion is placed forward to a fuel tank (not
0 shown) and rear side of floorboard 108. A front fender 107 is provided above the front wheel 101 to avoid the vehicle 100 and its occupants from being splashed with mud. Likewise, a rear fender 112 is placed between the fuel tank and the rear wheel 102, and to the outer side in the radial direction of the rear wheel 102. The rear fender 112 inhibits rain water or the like from being thrown up by the rear
5 wheel 102. A front cover assembly 115 is disposed rearwardly to the floorboard 108.
[00032] Suspensions are provided for comfortable steering of the vehicle 100 on the road. A front suspension assembly 116 is connected to a front fork (not shown). The rear suspension assembly 117 comprises of at least one rear
0 suspension preferably on the left side of the vehicle. However, a vehicle with two rear suspensions, namely on the left side and the right side is also possible. For the

safety of the user, a headlamp assembly 110 in the front portion of the vehicle and a taillight assembly 114 in the rear portion of the vehicle 100 is also provided. For the utility of the rider, a secondary storage assembly 113 is disposed in front of the front cover assembly 115.
[00033] Figure 2a illustrates a front view of the front panel of the scooter type vehicle. According to an embodiment of the present invention, the front panel 103 includes side portions 103b that extend side wards from the front portion 103a of the front panel 103. The side portions 103b extend inclinedly at an angle from the front portion 103a of the front panel 103. The front panel 103 is configured to support at least one illuminating device 110. The at least one illuminating device 110 is disposed at a close proximity to the front fender 107. The at least one illuminating device 110 includes a first light emitting device 110 and at least one first light emitting device 110a. The at least one second light emitting device 110b is disposed in the side portions 103b of the front panel 103. Therefore, the at least one first light emitting device 110a occupies most portion of the front panel 103. [00034] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the first light emitting device 110a extends from a peripheral surface 103p to another peripheral surface 103s of said front panel 103 when viewed from a vehicle front view. [00035] According to an embodiment of the present invention, as illustrated in Figure 2b, in the perspective view of a portion of the front panel, the first light emitting device 110a is disposed in close proximity to the at least one second light emitting device 110b. The at least one second light emitting device 110b is disposed in a second plane LL' cutting through a first plane MM' comprising the first light emitting device 110a. The first light emitting device 110a occupies most of a front portion 103f of the front panel 103 and the at least one second light emitting device 110b is disposed in the side portions 103b of the front panel 103. The second light emitting device 110b being disposed in the side portions 103b of the front panel 103 is configured to enable better visibility from side view, particularly during cornering of the scooter type vehicle. The first light emitting device 110a and the second light emitting device 110b is disposed in the vehicle such that the first plane MM' is passing through the first light emitting device

110a and the second plane LL/ is passing through the second light emitting device 110b. According to an embodiment of the present invention, the second plane LL' is cutting through the first plane MM' at a predetermined cutting angle e. The first plane MM' and the second plane LL' include the first light emitting device
i 110a and the second light emitting device 110b such that the light emitting out is spread out and scattered as desired in both Front-Rear and Left-right directions. [00036] Further, at least one second light emitting device 110b is disposed away and extending outwardly from said angular portion 103ba. [00037] Furthermore, the at least one illuminating device 110 including the first
i light emitting device 110a and the at least one second light emitting device 110b is enclosed by a common housing. An exclusive part required to enclose the light emitting devices separately is eliminated and the number of parts so used to enclose the at least one illuminating device 110 is reduced. [00038] Furthermore, the first light emitting device 110a occupying the most
. portion of the front panel 103 provides better illumination and results in improved conspicuity of the vehicle.
[00039] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the first illuminating device 110a includes plurality of light emitting diodes (LEDs) as light sources. Further, according to an embodiment, the plurality of LEDs are cost
I effective as compared to conventional bulbs and produce lesser heat as compared to conventional bulbs. Therefore, includes economic significance. [00040] Figure 3 illustrates a side isometric view of the front panel of the scooter type vehicle. According to an embodiment of the present invention, the at least one illuminating device 110 includes the first light emitting device 110a
i occupying most portion of the front panel 103. However, only the portion of the front panel 103 at a close proximity to the front fender 107 is configured to support the at least one illuminating device 110. The portion of the front panel 103 present closer to the front fender 107 is the lower portion as indicated below a demarcation line DM of the front panel 103 and includes compact space as
I compared to other portions of the front panel 103. This compact space is configured to accommodate and support a sleeker and compact at least one

illuminating device 110. However, since the at least one illuminating device occupies most of the front portion of the front panel, the size of the at least one illuminating device is restricted from becoming bulkier and the size of the at least one illuminating device 110 is maintained widthwise along the front panel 103
> surface without compromising on the illumination functionality of the at least one illuminating device 110.
[00041] Furthermore, according to an embodiment of the present invention, the front panel 103 comprising the at least one illuminating device 110 is configured to include a shape in conformation with that of the at least one illuminating device
] 110. This enables a continuous surface along the front panel 103 surface and the at least one illuminating device 110 without having any dis-continuous surface there between. Therefore, any aerodynamic drag is eliminated by allowing smooth flow of the atmospheric air across the front panel surface 103 and the surface of the at least one illuminating device 110, which here act as a single smooth surface
j for the purpose of letting the air to pass through. However, there may be a negligible amount of gap required to achieve fit and finish during assembling, but the negligible amount of gap does not hamper the aerodynamics of the vehicle. As per the present subject matter, the problems like fogging, mud, water, dirt stagnation, lens fogging with dirt, high drag resistance, poor aesthetic appearance
} as well as frequent cleaning and high maintenance cost for the user.
[00042] Furthermore, the at least one illuminating device 110 includes the shape to be in conformation with the shape of the front panel 103 when viewed from the side view, this shape of the at least one illuminating device 110 ensures that there are no protruding portions which can come in contact with the external objects,
i including other vehicles on the road, while traversing on the road. Therefore, the at least one illuminating device 110 is not subjected to damage due to external impacts.
[00043] Figure 4 illustrates a front view of the scooter type vehicle. According to an embodiment of the present invention, a front position lamp 302 is placed in a
D handlebar cover 301 and the headlamp assembly 110 is disposed on the front panel 110. The size and functionality of the headlamp assembly 110 is

considerably larger as compared to the conventional scooters according to the present invention. The same is achieved by disposing the front position lamp 302 away from the headlamp assembly 110, which may otherwise hinder the size and eventually the performance due to restricted size of the headlamp assembly 110. Furthermore, even the size and shape of the front position lamp 302 is achieved as per the functional requirements and user desire to achieve good aesthetic appearance. The front position lamp 302 is positioned according to the shape of . the handlebar cover 301. According to the present invention, the disposing of the front position lamp 302 and the headlamp assembly 110 as explained above has provided a front position lamp 302 and headlamp assembly 110 of adequate brightness and in addition, the aesthetic appeal of the vehicle is preserved. Furthermore, the front position lamp 302 and the headlamp assembly 110 are separately supported by two different covers, which eliminates the need for a complex support structures to hold them and in addition, the breakage and eventually replacement of the covers is reduced.
[00044] Figure 5 illustrates an exploded view of the at least one illuminating device. The at least one illuminating device 110 including the first light emitting device 110a and the at least one second light emitting device 110b are enclosed by a common housing 201. The at least one second light emitting device 110b includes a stepped profile Sp as illustrated in the figure. The stepped profile Sp is configured to extend rearwardly and sidewardly such that the at least one second light emitting device 110b is accommodated in the side portions of the front panel (not shown). The stepped profile Sp provides better visibility from the sideways, especially during cornering of the vehicle on road. The at least one illuminating device 110 includes a protective lens member 203 and further includes at leastone intermediate covers 202 provided to achieve better fit and finish during assembly of the at least one illuminating device 110.
[00045] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the driver circuit used to control the first light emitting device 110a and the at least one second light emitting device 110b are disposed away from the plurality of light sources 1 lOby, for example, plurality of LEDs present in the first light emitting device 110a and

the at least one second light emitting device 110b. The isolation of the driver circuit from the plurality of LEDs aids in improving the thermal management of the at least one illuminating device 110 and effective cooling and heat dissipation. The better thermal management due to the above mentioned reasons eliminates the need to include one or more heat sinks for the at least one illuminating device. Therefore, the cost of the entire illuminating device is reduced and the proposed invention includes economic significance.
[00046] Figure 6 illustrates a perspective view of the handlebar cover of the scooter type vehicle. The handlebar cover 301 is configured to support a front position lamp 302 configured with a curved shape. The handlebar cover 301 is compact and sleeker and is configured to accommodate the front position lamp 302 within such compact space. The front position lamp 302 is configured to be accommodated in a curved surface of the handlebar cover 301. The curved shape of the front position lamp 302 does not result in expansion of the handlebar cover 302. Therefore, a light weight, compact, low width handlebar cover is achieved. The curved shape of the front position lamp 302 improves visibility by its shape and increases the magnitude of illumination without compromising on the width of the vehicle. Furthermore, the front position lamp 302 includes at least one LEDs disposed at the ends, that results in high brightness at the center by overlap of light emitted by the plurality of light sources 1 lOby, for example, LEDs from both the sides of the front position lamps 302, which further results in improved safety. Furthermore, the driver circuit used to control the plurality of LEDs is positioned at the center of the front position lamp 302 and the PCB/ECU 1 lObx is positioned at corner away from the driver circuit, which results in reduction of the heat and avoids the necessity of including one or more heat sinks. [00047] Figure 7 illustrates an exploded view of the front position lamp according to an embodiment of the present invention. The front position lamp 302 includes a frontal protective lens 302a enclosing and protecting a light emitting device 302b. The light emitting device 302b is configured to be fitted on a substrate 302c. All of the frontal protective lens 302a, the light emitting device

302b and the substrate 302c are enclosed by a common housing 302d. A compact front position lamp 302 is obtained according to the present invention.
[00048] Although the subject matter has been described with reference to specific embodiments, this description is not meant to be construed in a limiting sense. Various modifications of the disclosed embodiments, as well as alternate embodiments of the subject matter, will.become apparent to persons skilled in the art upon reference to the description of the subject matter. It is therefore contemplated that such modifications can be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the present subject matter as defined.

1. A saddle-type vehicle (100) comprising:
at least one front wheel (101) disposed at a vehicle front (Vf);
a front panel (103) disposed above said at least one front wheel (101);
a handlebar assembly (109) disposed above said front panel (103); and
at least one illuminating device (110) disposed on said front panel (103), said at least one illuminating device (110) includes a first light emitting device (110a) and at least one second light emitting device (110b), said at least one second light emitting device (110b) is disposed at a close proximity to said first light emitting device (110a) and said first light emitting device (110a) and said at least one second light emitting device (110b) are enclosed by a common housing (201).
2. The saddle-type vehicle (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said at least one second light emitting device (110b) is disposed in a second plane (LL/) cutting through a first plane (MM') comprising said first light emitting device (110a) to enable emanating of light from said second light emitting device (110b) in both Front-Rear direction and Left-right directions.
3. The saddle-type vehicle (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said at least one second light emitting device (110b) includes an angular portion (I03ba), said second plane (LL') passes tangentially through said angular portion (103ba), wherein said second plane (LL') is cutting through the first plane (MM1) at a predetermined cutting angle (e).
4. The saddle-type vehicle (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said at least one illuminating device (110) is in conformation with the shape of the front panel (103) when viewed from' a vehicle side view.

5. The saddle-type vehicle (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said handlebar assembly (109) is covered by a handlebar cover (301) configured to support at least one front position lamp (302).
6. The saddle-type vehicle (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said at least one illuminating device (110) includes plurality of light emitting sources.
7. The saddle-type vehicle (100) as claimed in claim 2, wherein said cutting angle (e) varies in the range of 90 degrees to 150 degrees.
8. The saddle-type vehicle (100) as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein said at least one second light emitting device (110b) is disposed away and extending outwardly from said angular portion (103ba).
9. The saddle-type vehicle (100) as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein said first light emitting device (110a) extends from a peripheral surface (103p) to another peripheral surface (103s) of said front panel (103) when viewed from a vehicle front view.
10. The saddle-type vehicle (100) as claimed in claim 5, wherein said front position lamp (302) includes plurality of light emitting sources.