DESC:TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present subject matter relates generally to a two-wheeled vehicle. More particularly but not exclusively, the present subject matter relates to a tail cover assembly for the two-wheeled vehicle.
BACKGROUND
[0002] Generally, a two-wheeled vehicle comprises of a single seat assembly for the purpose of the rider and the pillion rider. One or more tail covers are placed on either side of the seat assembly. The tail covers are disposed below the seat assembly and above a rear fender assembly encompassing a tail lamp unit at a rear end portion of the vehicle. The tail covers are fitted onto the vehicle frame through suitable brackets by suitable fastening methods. Further, the tail covers enclose other vehicular components and improve the aesthetics of the two-wheeled vehicle.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0003] The detailed description is described with reference to the accompanying figures. The same numbers are used throughout the drawings to reference like features and components.
[0004] Fig. 1 shows a side view of a two-wheeled vehicle in accordance with an embodiment.
[0005] Fig. 2 illustrates a top view of a tail cover assembly.
[0006] Fig. 3 illustrates a sectional view of the tail cover assembly taken along xx` axis as shown in the Fig.2.
[0007] Fig. 4 illustrates a perspective view of a tail cover assembly according to an embodiment.
[0008] Fig. 5 illustrates an exploded view of the tail cover assembly according to an embodiment.
[0009] Fig. 6 illustrates a bottom perspective view of the tail cover assembly.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[00010] In a two-wheeled vehicle comprising of a split seat assembly, a single driver seat is provided for the purpose of the driver and a separate single pillion rider seat is provided for the pillion rider. The pillion rider seat is at a greater height compared to the driver’s seat according to an embodiment. Hence, the tail cover assembly of a single long seat assembly as in the conventional two-wheeled vehicle is not suitable for the split seat assembly with differential seat height. Further, the tail cover assembly disposed below the split seat assembly should provide adequate support to the thighs of the pillion rider and support the bottom of the seat and a seat base uniformly. Furthermore, the tail cover assembly should be capable of accommodating a number of electrical components and other vehicular components. Furthermore, the tail cover assembly disposed below the split seat assembly should be capable of being assembled onto the vehicle with ease. The proposed invention overcomes the problems present in the conventional two-wheeled vehicle and provides advantages including easy assembly of the tail cover assembly onto the vehicle and provide adequate support to the pillion rider seated on the two-wheeled vehicle. The invention could be understood in greater detail by the following description.
[00011] According to an embodiment of the present invention, a tail cover assembly is supported by a pair of rear frames of the vehicle frame assembly at a rear end of the saddle type motorcycle. The tail cover assembly comprises a RH tail cover, a LH tail cover, a first central member, a second central member, and a bottom tail cover. The RH tail cover and the LH tail cover are configured to receive the first central member and the second central member. The RH tail cover and the LH tail cover are supported by the bottom tail cover.
[00012] The bottom tail cover includes one or more receiving portions capable of receiving one or more protrusions disposed on a lower peripheral surface of each of the RH tail cover and the LH tail cover. Furthermore, the bottom tail cover supporting the RH tail cover and the LH tail cover along with the first central member and the second central member are pre-assembled and then assembled onto the vehicle during assembly of the saddle type motorcycle. The pre-assembled tail cover assembly saves the assembly time of the motorcycle, and enables ease of assembly.
[00013] Furthermore, each of the RH tail cover and the LH tail cover include one or more mounting brackets capable of being attached to said pair of rear frames. The RH tail cover and the LH tail cover also includes one or more cutouts capable of receiving one or more grilled members from behind, such that the cutouts are configured to accommodate various electrical components and the grilled members direct air towards the electrical components accommodated in the cutout.
[00014] Furthermore, the tail cover assembly bulges out from the seat assembly. The lateral sides of the tail cover assembly extend beyond the width of the seat assembly in a vehicle width direction. Therefore, substantial support to the thighs of the pillion rider is provided by the tail cover assembly. Furthermore, said tail cover assembly includes a RH tail cover and a LH tail cover each extending laterally beyond said seat assembly along a vehicle width direction and, said RH tail cover and said LH tail cover each include a curvature comprising an upper edge, an inner edge and a soft curve adjoining said upper edge and said inner edge, said inner edge is capable of being accommodated inside a groove adjoining a seat base edge such that said seat base edge is sandwiched between the inner edge and an outer edge of the seat assembly. Therefore, better fit and finish in mounting of the seat assembly to the tail cover assembly is achieved and any see through at the seat assembly mounting portion is prevented. Therefore, aesthetics of the motorcycle is improved.
[00015] Fig. 1 illustrates a side view of a two-wheeled vehicle, for example, a motorcycle 1 according to an embodiment. The motorcycle 1 according to an embodiment includes a front wheel 101 steered by a handlebar 102 and a rear wheel 103 supported by a swing arm 104. Steering assembly parts including the handlebar 102 and the front wheel 101 are supported for pivotal steering operation on a head pipe 107 at the front end of the vehicle body frame (not shown). A driver seat 105 for a driver and a pillion rider seat 106 are placed rearward to a fuel tank 108. A tail cover assembly 116 according to an embodiment is disposed below the split seat assembly. An engine assembly 109 is disposed below the fuel tank 108. A front fender 110 is provided above the front wheel 101 to avoid the said vehicle and its occupants from being splashed with mud. Likewise, a rear fender 111 is placed above the rear wheel 103, and to the outer side in the radial direction of rear wheel 103. Rear fender 111 inhibits rainwater or the like from being thrown up by rear wheel 103.
[00016] The swing arm 104 along with a shock absorber 113 is supported at a front portion thereof for pivotal motion and upward and downward rocking motion on the rear side of a lower portion of the vehicle body frame (not shown). A suspension assembly including a pair of front forks 112 and the shock absorber 113 is provided in the two-wheeled vehicle 1 for providing better ride comfort to the rider. The vehicle body frame includes the head pipe 107, a pair of left and right main frames. The head pipe 107 is positioned at a front-end portion of the vehicle body frame. The main frame extends in a leftwardly and rightwardly branching state obliquely downwardly rearwardly from a lower portion of the head pipe 107. Further, to meet the safety regulations, a headlamp 114, a tail lamp 115 are provided in the vehicle 1.
[00017] Fig.2 illustrates a top view of a tail cover assembly 116 disposed below a seat assembly 303 for a saddle type motorcycle 100 in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. It can be inferred from the figure that the seat assembly 303 comprises of a single driver seat 105 for the purpose of the driver and a single pillion rider seat 106 for the purpose of the pillion rider. Further, in order to provide adequate support to a seat base 304 and to the pillion rider thighs by preventing from slipping, the tail cover assembly 116 is configured to have an inclined ejection direction with respect to a vehicle center plane. Furthermore, the tail cover assembly 116 is bulged out beyond the seat assembly 303 width with a need to accommodate certain vehicular parts or electrical units such as regulators etc.
[00018] Fig.3 illustrates a sectional view of the tail cover assembly taken along xx` axis as shown in the Fig.2. It can be observed from the figure that a RH tail cover 301 and a LH tail cover 302 are disposed on either side of a seat assembly 303. The tail cover assembly 116 includes a RH tail cover 301 and a LH tail cover 302 each extending laterally beyond said seat assembly 303 along a vehicle width direction and, said RH tail cover 301 and said LH tail cover 302 each include a curvature 305 comprising an upper edge 305a, an inner edge 305b and a soft curve 305c adjoining said upper edge 305a and said inner edge 305b, said inner edge 305b is capable of being accommodated inside a groove 304a adjoining a seat base edge 304b such that said seat base edge 304b is sandwiched between the inner edge 305b and an outer edge 303a of the seat assembly 303. The sandwiching enables to achieve good fit and finish while assembling the seat assembly 303 onto the tail cover assembly 116.
[00019] Fig.4 illustrates a perspective view of a tail cover assembly according to an embodiment. The tail cover assembly 116 as illustrated in the Fig. 4 is associated with difficulty in manufacturability, if the tail cover assembly is manufactured as a single piece because of the differential height between the rider seat 105 and the pillion rider seat 106. Further, the tail cover assembly manufactured as a single piece is difficult to assemble on the motorcycle 100 according to an embodiment. Therefore, the tail cover assembly 116 according to an embodiment is split into several parts to enable easy mounting of the tail cover assembly 116 onto the motorcycle 100. The several parts are pre-assembled to form a complete tail cover assembly 116 and then assembled on to the motorcycle 100. The tail cover assembly 116 according to an embodiment also includes one or more central members.
[00020] Fig.5 illustrates an exploded view of the tail cover assembly according to an embodiment. The tail cover assembly 116 comprises several split parts including the RH tail cover 301, the LH tail cover 302, a first central member 401, a second central member 402, one or more grilled members 501, and a bottom tail cover 502. The RH tail cover 301 and the LH tail cover 302 are attached to the rear frames of the two-wheeled vehicle 100 by one or more mounting brackets 503 according to an embodiment. The RH tail cover 301 and the LH tail cover 302 are configured to include plurality of cutouts 504 to accommodate one or more grilled members 501. The one or more grill members 501 allow the atmospheric air to flow into an under seat area of the saddle type motorcycle 100. The first central member 401 covers the area between the driver seat 105 and the pillion rider seat 106. The second central member 402 is disposed posterior to the pillion rider seat 106. The one or more grilled members 501 are detachably attachable to the inner surface 601 of each of the RH tail cover 301 and the LH tail cover 302.
[00021] Fig. 6 illustrates a bottom view of the tail cover assembly. According to an embodiment, the single bottom tail cover 502 supports all the split parts including the RH tail cover 301, the LH tail cover 302, the first central member 401, the second central member 402, and the one or more grill members 501. The tail cover assembly 116 is pre assembled and assembled on the saddle type motorcycle 100 to save assembly time. The one or more mounting brackets 503 are disposed on an inner surface 601 of the RH tail cover 301 and the LH tail cover 302 enabling mounting of the RH tail cover 301 and the LH tail cover 302 to the pair of rear frames 117a of the two-wheeled vehicle. Further, the bottom tail cover 502 shares the stress due to the pillion rider seated on the pillion rider seat 106. Furthermore, the bottom tail cover 502 protects the split seat assembly at a rear end preventing any foreign particle from entering the area surrounding the split seat assembly. Therefore, durability of the tail cover assembly 116 and the split seat assembly is increased according to an embodiment.
[00022] Furthermore, a lower peripheral surface 601a of each of the RH tail cover 301 and the LH tail cover 302 includes one or more protrusions 301a capable of being received by one or more receiving portions 502a disposed on the bottom tail cover 502.
[00023] Fig. 7 illustrates a perspective top view of the bottom tail cover. The bottom tail cover 502 is configured to receive the RH tail cover 301 and the LH tail cover 302. The bottom tail cover 502 includes one or more receiving portions 502a capable of receiving one or more protrusions provided on the RH tail cover 301 and the LH tail cover 302. Furthermore, the stress exerted by the pillion rider onto the RH tail cover 301 and the LH tail cover 302 is received by the bottom tail cover 502. Therefore, the RH tail cover 301 and the LH tail cover 302 are protected by any damage occurring over a period of time due to stress exerted by the pillion rider. Therefore, the bottom tail cover 502 acts as a supporting member.
[00024] According to yet another embodiment, the RH tail cover 301 and the LH tail cover 302 configured to include a number of cutouts to accommodate other vehicular components or electrical components such as mp3 player, mobile charger port, etc.
[00025] The present invention is thus briefly described. It will be obvious that the same may be varied in many ways. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the spirit and scope of the present invention, and all such modifications as would be obvious to one skilled in the art are intended to be included within the scope of the present invention.
,CLAIMS:I/We Claim:
1. A tail cover assembly (116) for a saddle type motorcycle (100), said tail cover assembly (116) comprising:
a RH tail cover (301) and a LH tail cover (302) supported by a pair of rear frames (117a) at a rear end of said motorcycle (100), said RH tail cover (301) and said LH tail cover (302) are disposed below a seat assembly (303),
wherein,
said RH tail cover (301) and said LH tail cover (302) each extend laterally beyond said seat assembly (303) along a vehicle width direction and, said RH tail cover (301) and said LH tail cover (302) each include a curvature (305) comprising an upper edge (305a), an inner edge (305b) and a soft curve (305c) adjoining said upper edge (305a) and said inner edge (305b), said inner edge (305b) is capable of being accommodated inside a groove (304a) adjoining a seat base edge (304b) such that said seat base edge (304b) is sandwiched between the inner edge (305b) and an outer edge (303a) of the seat assembly (303).
2. A saddle-type motorcycle (100) comprising:
a vehicle frame assembly (117) including a pair of rear frames (117a) extending towards a rear end of said motorcycle (100);
a tail cover assembly (116) supported by said pair of rear frames (117a) at the rear end of the motorcycle (100);
a seat assembly (303) including a seat base (304) disposed above said tail cover assembly (116),
wherein,
said tail cover assembly (116) includes a RH tail cover (301) and a LH tail cover (302) each extending laterally beyond said seat assembly (303) along a vehicle width direction and, said RH tail cover (301) and said LH tail cover (302) each include a curvature (305) comprising an upper edge (305a), an inner edge (305b) and a soft curve (305c) adjoining said upper edge (305a) and said inner edge (305b), said inner edge (305b) is capable of being accommodated inside a groove (304a) adjoining a seat base edge (304b) such that said seat base edge (304b) is sandwiched between the inner edge (305b) and an outer edge (303a) of the seat assembly (303).
3. The saddle type motorcycle (100) as claimed in claim 2, wherein said tail cover assembly (116) is capable of accommodating a driver seat (105) and a pillion rider seat (106) disposed behind said driver seat (105).
4. The saddle type motorcycle (100) as claimed in claim 2 or claim 3, wherein said RH tail cover (301) and said LH tail cover (302) are separated by a first central member (401) and a second central member (402), said first central member (401) is disposed in between said driver seat (105) and said pillion rider seat (106), and said second central member (402) is disposed at a posterior end to said pillion rider seat (106).
5. The saddle type motorcycle (100) as claimed in claim 2, wherein said RH tail cover (301) and said LH tail cover (302) are supported by a bottom tail cover (502) including one or more receiving portions (502a) capable of receiving one or more protrusions (301a) disposed on a lower peripheral surface (601a) of each of said RH tail cover (301) and said LH tail cover (302).
6. The saddle type motorcycle (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said RH tail cover (301) and said LH tail cover (302) each include one or more cutouts (504) capable of accommodating one or more grilled members (501).
7. The saddle type motorcycle (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said each of RH tail cover (301) and said LH tail cover (302) each include one or more mounting brackets (503) disposed on an inner surface (601), said one or more mounting brackets (503) enable mounting of the RH tail cover (301) and the LH tail cover (302) to the pair of rear frames (117a).
8. The saddle type motorcycle (100) as claimed in claim 2, wherein each of said RH tail cover (301) and said LH tail cover (32) are configured to receive said first central member (401) and said second central member (402).
9. The saddle type motorcycle (100) as claimed in claim 2, wherein said one or more grilled members (501) are detachably attachable to said inner surface (601) of each of said RH tail cover (301) and said LH tail cover (302).
10. The tail cover assembly (116) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said tail cover assembly (116) is detachable attachable to said pair of rear frames (116a).