Information
-
Patent Grant
-
6758704
-
Patent Number
6,758,704
-
Date Filed
Wednesday, October 30, 200221 years ago
-
Date Issued
Tuesday, July 6, 200420 years ago
-
Inventors
-
Original Assignees
-
Examiners
Agents
- Birch, Stewart, Kolasch & Birch, LLP
-
CPC
-
US Classifications
Field of Search
-
International Classifications
-
Abstract
An electrical component mounting structure for a personal watercraft which simplifies a waterproof treatment of the electrical components. The structure includes an exhaust outlet of the exhaust pipe formed on one side of the body of the personal watercraft in a lateral direction. In this personal watercraft, a plurality of electrical components is disposed in the body so as to be offset on the one side from a central portion in the lateral direction. In other words, none of these electrical components is disposed in the vicinity of a wall surface on the other side of the body. The electrical components are preferably disposed in the body at an intermediate portion in the vertical direction, and at least one of a plurality of the electrical components is preferably mounted to a side wall constituting the one side of the body.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
The present application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119 to Japanese Patent Application No. 2001-334029, filed on Oct. 31, 2001, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electrical component mounting structure for a personal watercraft.
2. Description of Background Art
An electrical component mounting structure for a personal watercraft as shown in FIGS.
15
(
a
) and
15
(
b
) has been known in Japanese Patent Laid-open No. Hei 10-194195.
A body
1
of the personal watercraft shown in FIGS.
15
(
a
) and
15
(
b
) is composed of a hull la constituting a lower portion of the body
1
and a deck
1
b
for covering an upper portion of the hull
1
a
. As shown in FIG.
15
(
b
), an exhaust outlet
3
a
of an exhaust pipe
3
of an engine
2
disposed in the body
1
is formed on one side in the lateral direction of the body
1
.
Batteries
4
a
and
4
b
as main electrical components are symmetrically disposed on the left and right sides of the body
1
as shown in FIG.
15
(
b
).
The personal watercraft of this type may be used as a leisure boat, and is therefore often turned over. As a result, a slight amount of water often remains in the body of the watercraft.
According to the above-described related art electrical component mounting structure, since the electrical components
4
a
and
4
b
are symmetrically disposed on the left and right sides of the body
1
, when the body
1
in a turn-over state is returned to a normal posture, there may occur a problem that water remaining in the body is necessarily splashed to one of the electrical components
4
a
and
4
b
symmetrically disposed on the left and right sides of the body
1
.
For the personal watercraft of this type, the return direction of the body
1
in a turn-over state is generally instructed, by an instruction manual or the like, such that the body
1
should be turned by lifting up the exhaust outlet (opening)
3
a
side (for preventing water from permeating in the opening
3
a
). Accordingly, for the example shown in FIG.
15
(
b
), the electrical component
4
a
disposed on the side opposed to the opening
3
a
side (left side in the running direction in FIG.
15
(
b
)) is easier to be splashed with water. As a result, there a problem arises in that at least the electrical component
4
a
on the left side must be subjected to a strict waterproof treatment.
SUMMARY AND OBJECTS OF THE PRESENT INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to solve the above-described problem, and to provide an electrical component mounting structure for a personal watercraft, which is capable of preventing electrical components from being splashed with water, thereby simplifying a water-proof treatment thereof.
To achieve the above object, according to a first aspect of the present invention, an electrical mounting structure for a personal watercraft is provided, in which a body of the personal watercraft is composed of a hull constituting a lower portion of the body and a deck for covering an upper portion of the hull, and an exhaust outlet of an exhaust pipe of an engine disposed in the body is formed on one side of the body in the lateral direction, wherein the electrical components are disposed in the body in such a manner as to be offset on the one side from a central portion in the lateral direction. Further, none of the electrical components is disposed in the vicinity of a wall surface constituting the other side of the body.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, the electrical components are disposed in the body at an intermediate portion in the vertical direction.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, at least one of a plurality of the electrical components is mounted to a side wall constituting the one side of the body.
The functions and effects of the present invention are summarized below.
According to the first aspect of the present invention, the electrical components are disposed in the body in such a manner as to be offset on the one side from a central portion in the lateral direction, and none of the electrical components is disposed in the vicinity of a wall surface constituting the other side of the body. As a result, when the body in a turn-over state is turned with the exhaust outlet side lifted up for returning the body to a normal posture, the electrical components are less likely to be splashed with water. Thus, it is possible to simplify a waterproof treatment of the electrical components.
If the electrical components are disposed only at a central portion of the body, which generally is splashed less with water, the layout of the electrical components becomes very difficult because a space in the body of the watercraft is small. However, according to structure described in the first aspect of the invention, it is possible to prevent the electrical components from being splashed with water, without limiting the degree of freedom of the layout of the electrical components.
According to the second aspect of the invention, the electrical components are disposed in the body at an intermediate portion in the vertical direction. As a result, it is possible to further prevent the electrical components from being splashed with water, and hence to further simplify a waterproof treatment of the electrical components.
According to the third aspect of the invention, at least one of a plurality of the electrical components is mounted to a side wall constituting the one side of the body. As a result, it is possible to further suppress the electrical component mounted to the one side of the body from being splashed with water and hence to further simplify a waterproof treatment of the electrical component.
Further scope of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description given hereinafter. However, it should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating preferred embodiments of the invention, are given by way of illustration only, since various changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this detailed description.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The present invention will become more fully understood from the detailed description given hereinbelow and the accompanying drawings which are given by way of illustration only, and thus are not limitative of the present invention, and wherein:
FIG. 1
is a schematic side view showing one example of a personal watercraft to which one embodiment of an electrical component mounting structure for a personal watercraft according to the present invention is applied;
FIG. 2
is a plan view of
FIG. 1
;
FIG. 3
is an enlarged sectional view taken on line III—III of
FIG. 1
(with parts partially omitted);
FIG. 4
is an enlarged sectional view taken on line IV—IV of
FIG. 1
(with parts partially omitted), mainly showing an engine
20
;
FIG. 5
is a schematic perspective view in which the engine
20
is viewed obliquely from the rear side;
FIG. 6
is a perspective side view, with parts partially omitted, mainly showing an electrical component mounting structure;
FIG. 7
is a perspective plan view, with parts partially omitted, mainly showing an electrical component mounting structure;
FIG. 8
is a perspective view showing a mounting state of a mounting member
52
b
of an electrical component
52
;
FIG. 9
is a perspective view showing a mounting state of the electrical component
52
;
FIG. 10
is a perspective view showing, substantially from above, mounting states of mounting members of electrical components
53
to
56
;
FIG. 11
is a left side view of
FIG. 10
;
FIG. 12
is a plan view showing the mounting states of the electrical components
53
to
56
;
FIG. 13
is a perspective view showing the mounting states of the electrical components
53
to
56
;
FIG. 14
is a front view showing the mounting states of the electrical components
53
to
56
; and
FIGS.
15
(
a
) and
15
(
b
) are views illustrating a related art electrical component mounting structure for a personal watercraft.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
FIGS. 1 and 2
are a schematic side view and a plan view, respectively, showing one example of a personal watercraft to which one embodiment of an electrical component mounting structure for a personal watercraft according to the present invention is applied.
FIG. 3
is an enlarged sectional view taken on line III—III of
FIG. 1
(with parts partially omitted).
As shown in these figures (particularly, in FIG.
1
), a personal watercraft
10
is a saddle-type small watercraft, which is steerable by a steering handlebar
13
(provided with a throttle lever) gripped by a driver who sits astride a seat
12
on a body
11
.
The body
11
has a floating structure in which a deck
15
is joined to a hull
14
so as to form a space
16
therebetween. A water-cooled engine
20
is mounted on the bottom of the hull
14
at an approximately central portion (in both the longitudinal and lateral directions) in the space
16
. A jet pump Let propulsion pump)
30
as propelling means to be driven by the water-cooled engine
20
is provided at a rear portion of the hull
14
.
The jet pump
30
has a flow passage
33
extending from a water inlet
17
formed in a bottom of the body
11
to a jet port
31
formed in a rear end of the body
11
and to a deflector
32
, and also has an impeller
34
disposed in the flow passage
33
. A drive shaft
35
of the impeller
34
is coupled with an output shaft
21
of the engine
20
. When the engine
20
rotates the impeller
34
, water is sucked from the water inlet
17
and is jetted outwardly from the jet port
31
via the deflector
32
, to propel the body
11
. The rotational speed of the engine
20
, that is, a propelling force caused by the jet pump
30
is adjusted by a turning operation of a throttle lever
13
a
of the steering handlebar
13
(see FIG.
2
). The deflector
32
is connected to the steering handlebar
13
via an operational wire (not shown). The operation of the steering handlebar
13
turns the deflector
32
, to change the running course of the personal watercraft
10
.
Also shown in
FIGS. 1-3
, are a fuel tank
40
and a housing chamber
41
.
FIG. 4
is an enlarged sectional view taken on line IV—IV of
FIG. 1
(with parts partially omitted), mainly showing the water-cooled engine
20
, and
FIG. 5
is a schematic perspective view in which the engine
20
is viewed obliquely from the rear side.
The water-cooled engine
20
is a dry sump type DOHC four-cycle engine with serial four cylinders, and as shown in
FIG. 1
, a crankshaft
21
of the engine
20
extends in the longitudinal direction of the body
11
.
As shown in
FIGS. 4 and 5
, a surge tank (intake chamber)
22
communicating with intake ports
20
i
and an inter cooler
23
, which are connected to each other, are disposed on the left side of the engine
20
in the running direction of the body
11
, and an exhaust manifold
24
communicating with exhaust ports
20
o
is disposed on the right side of the engine
20
.
As shown in
FIGS. 1 and 5
, a turbo-charger
25
is disposed behind the engine
20
. An exhaust outlet
24
o
of the exhaust manifold
24
is connected to a turbine portion
25
T of the turbo-charger
25
, and an inter cooler
23
is connected to the compressor portion
25
C by means of a piping line
26
(see FIG.
5
).
FIG. 5
also shows, cooling water hoses
23
a
and
23
b
connected to the inter cooler
23
. Cooling water is supplied from a cooling water outlet
30
a
of the jet pump
30
to the inter cooler
23
via the cooling water hoses
23
a
and
23
b.
As shown in
FIGS. 1 and 2
, exhaust gas used for rotating a turbine at the turbine portion
25
T of the turbo-charger
25
flows through an exhaust pipe
27
a
, a anti-counterflow chamber
27
b
for preventing counterflow of water (permeation of water in the turbo-charger
25
and the like) at the time of turn-over the watercraft, a water muffler
27
c
, and an exhaust/drain pipe
27
d
. Finally, the exhaust gas is discharged outwardly from the body
11
from an exhaust outlet (serving as water outlet)
27
e.
As is apparent from
FIG. 2
, according to this embodiment, the exhaust outlet
27
e
is formed on the left side of the watercraft
10
(as viewed in the running direction).
FIGS. 6 and 7
mainly show an electrical component mounting structure, wherein
FIG. 6
is a perspective side view, with parts partially omitted, and
FIG. 7
is a perspective plan view, with parts partially omitted.
FIGS. 6 and 7
show electrical components
51
to
56
. These electrical components
51
to
56
are disposed in the body
11
in such a manner as to be offset on the left side from a central portion in the lateral direction (as viewed in the running direction), and none of the electrical components is disposed in the vicinity of a wall surface
18
(see
FIG. 4
) of the body
11
, which wall surface constitutes the other side (right side).
As is apparent from
FIG. 6
, the electrical components
51
to
56
are disposed in an intermediate portion in the body
11
in the vertical direction.
Various sensors, for example, a supercharging sensor
58
for detecting an air pressure (supercharging pressure) in the surge tank
22
shown in
FIG. 5
, are mounted to the engine
20
. Since the engine
20
is mounted to an approximately central portion in the body
11
, the various sensors are also disposed in the approximately central portion in the body
11
.
FIG. 4
shows a rectifier
59
connected to a generator of the engine
20
. A water tank (cooling water passage)
28
a
is provided adjacently to an oil tank
28
provided integrally with a front surface of the engine
20
, and the rectifier
59
is mounted to a front surface of the water tank
28
a
with bolts
44
. An oil cooler
29
is provided in the water tank
28
a.
In this embodiment, the electrical component
51
is a residual fuel amount sensor mounted to the fuel tank
40
, the electrical component
52
is an ECU (engine control unit), the electrical component
53
is a battery, the electrical component
54
is a magnet box, the electrical component
55
is a main relay, and the electrical component
56
is a fuse box. These electrical components are connected to each other by means of electrical cables
51
a
,
53
a
,
57
, and the like, and are also connected to a display panel
43
(see
FIG. 2
) of the watercraft
10
. The ECU
52
, battery
53
, and magnet box
54
are connected to electrical components of the engine
20
via electrical cables
52
a
,
53
b
, and
54
a.
The ECU
52
is mounted as described below. A mounting member
52
b
is, as shown in
FIG. 8
, fixed to a side wall
14
a
of the hull
14
with rivets
52
c
′. A stay
52
c
composed of a suspension rubber boot is, as shown in
FIG. 9
, mounted to the mounting member
52
b
. The ECU
52
is mounted to the stay
52
c.
The ECU
52
is thus mounted to the side wall
14
a
on the exhaust outlet
27
e
side of the body
11
(see FIG.
4
).
FIGS. 10
to
14
are views showing mounting states of the battery
53
, magnet box
54
, main relay
55
, and fuse box
56
. Specifically,
FIG. 10
is a perspective view showing, substantially from above, the mounting states of the electrical components
53
to
56
;
FIG. 11
is a left side view of
FIG. 10
; and
FIGS. 12
,
13
, and
14
are a plan view, a perspective view, and a front view, showing the mounting states of the electrical components
53
to
56
, respectively.
The battery
53
is mounted as described below. A battery tray
53
a
is, as shown in
FIG. 10
, is fixed on an upper surface of a rib
14
b
(see FIG.
4
), which is provided on a bottom surface of the hull
14
, with rivets
53
b
. A shown in
FIGS. 12
to
14
, the battery
53
is mounted on the battery tray
53
a
. The battery
53
is thus mounted on the left side of the body
11
. Reference numeral
53
c
denotes a rubber belt for fixing the battery
53
to the battery tray
53
a
. The rubber belt
53
c
is removably connected to hook portions
53
a
1
on both sides of the battery tray
53
a
with connection fixtures
53
d
provided on both ends of the rubber belt
53
c.
The magnet box
54
is mounted as described below. As shown in
FIGS. 10 and 11
, a base
54
a
is fixed to an upper surface of the housing portion
14
c
of the jet pump
30
, which is provided on the bottom surface of the hull
14
, with rivets
54
b
. As shown in
FIGS. 12
to
14
, the magnet box
54
is mounted to the base
54
a
. The magnet box
54
is thus mounted to a central portion of the body
11
.
The main relay
55
is mounted as described below. As shown in
FIG. 11
, a flange portion
55
a
of the main relay
55
is fastened, via a collar and-a rubber bush
55
b
, to a rear portion of the base
54
a
with a bolt
55
c
. The main relay
55
is thus mounted to a central portion of the body
11
.
The fuse box
56
is mounted as described below. As shown in
FIGS. 10 and 11
, bottom plate
56
b
of a stay
56
a
is inserted between the base
54
a
and the upper surface of the housing portion
14
c
of the jet pump
30
provided on the hull
14
, and the stay
56
a
is fixed, together with the base
54
a
, to the hull
14
with the rivets
54
b
. As shown in
FIGS. 12
to
14
, the fuse box
56
is mounted to an upright portion of the stay
56
a
by making use of a hook portion
56
c
of the stay
56
a
. The fuse box
56
is thus mounted to a central portion of the body
11
.
The electrical component mounting structure for a personal watercraft, which is configured as described above, has the following functions and effects:
(a) The body
11
of the personal watercraft is composed of the hull
14
constituting a lower portion of the body
11
and a deck
15
for covering an upper portion of the hull
14
, and the exhaust outlet
27
e
of the exhaust pipe
27
d
of the engine
20
disposed in the body
11
is formed on one side (left side in this embodiment) of the body
11
in the lateral direction. In this personal watercraft, the electrical components
51
to
56
are disposed in the body
11
in such a manner as to be offset on the one side (left side in this embodiment) from a central portion in the lateral direction, and none of the electrical components is disposed in the vicinity of the wall surface
18
constituting the other side (right side in this embodiment) of the body
11
.
As a result, when the body
11
, which is in a turn-over state, is turned with the exhaust outlet
27
e
side lifted up for returning the body
11
to a normal posture (when the body
11
in a state inverted from that shown in
FIG. 4
is turned in the direction shown by an arrow A), the electrical components
51
to
56
are less likely to be splashed with water. Thus, it is possible to simplify a water-proof treatment of the electrical components
51
to
56
.
If the electrical components
51
to
56
are disposed only at a central portion of the body
11
less splashed with water, the layout of the electrical components
51
to
56
becomes very difficult because a space
16
in the body
11
of the watercraft is small. However, according to the electrical component mounting structure for a personal watercraft of the present invention, it is possible to make the degree of freedom of the layout of the electrical components
51
to
56
large while suppressing the electrical components
51
to
56
from being splashed with water.
(b) Since the electrical components
51
to
56
are disposed in the body
11
at an intermediate portion in the vertical direction, it is possible to further prevent the electrical components
51
to
56
from being splashed with water. Hence, a water-proof treatment of the electrical components
51
to
56
is further simplified.
(c) Since at least one electrical component
52
of a plurality of the electrical components
51
to
56
is mounted to a side wall
14
a
constituting the one side of the body
11
, it is possible to further prevent the electrical component
52
mounted to the one side of the body
11
from being splashed with water, and hence, to further simplify a water-proof treatment of the electrical component
52
.
The invention being thus 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 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 following claims.
Claims
- 1. An electrical mounting structure for a personal watercraft, comprising:a body of said personal watercraft composed of a hull constituting a lower portion of said body and a deck for covering an upper portion of said hull; and a first side of said body in a lateral direction, said first side of said body having an exhaust outlet of an exhaust pipe of an engine, wherein a plurality of electrical components is disposed in said body in such a manner as to be offset on said first side from a central portion in the lateral direction, and none of said plurality of electrical components is disposed in the vicinity of a wall surface constituting a second side of said body, said second side being opposite to said first side, wherein at least one of said plurality of said electrical components is mounted to a side wall constituting said first side of said body.
- 2. The electrical component mounting structure for a personal watercraft according to claim 1, wherein said electrical components are disposed in said body at an intermediate portion in the vertical direction.
- 3. The electrical component mounting structure for a personal watercraft according to claim 1, wherein said first side of the body is the left side of the body as viewed in a running direction.
- 4. The electrical component mounting structure for a personal watercraft according to claim 1, wherein said at least one of said plurality of electrical components mounted on said side wall constituting said first side is an ECU, said ECU being mounted to a stay, the stay being mounted to a mounting member which is fixed to said side wall with rivets.
- 5. The electrical component mounting structure for a personal watercraft according to claim 4, wherein another one of said plurality of electrical components is a battery, said battery being fixed to an upper surface of a rib at a position to the rear of said ECU.
- 6. The electrical component mounting structure for a personal watercraft according to claim 4, wherein others of said plurality of electrical components are a main relay and a fuse box, said main relay and said fuse being mounted to a housing portion of a jet pump at a central portion of the body.
- 7. A personal watercraft, comprising:an engine for powering a jet pump of the watercraft; a body composed of a hull constituting a lower portion of said body and a deck for covering an upper portion of said hull; a first side of said body in a lateral direction, said first side of said body having an exhaust outlet of an exhaust pipe of said engine, wherein a plurality of electrical components is disposed in said body in such a manner as to be offset on said first side from a central portion in the lateral direction, and none of said plurality of electrical components is disposed in the vicinity of a wall surface constituting a second side of said body, said second side being opposite to said first side, wherein at least one of said plurality of said electrical components is mounted to a side wall constituting said first side of said body.
- 8. The personal watercraft according to claim 7, wherein said electrical components are disposed in said body at an intermediate portion in the vertical direction.
- 9. The personal watercraft according to claim 7, wherein said first side of the body is the left side of the body as viewed in a running direction.
- 10. The electrical component mounting structure for a personal watercraft according to claim 7, wherein said at least one of said plurality of electrical components mounted on said side wall constituting said first side is an ECU, said ECU being mounted to a stay, the stay being mounted to a mounting member which is fixed to said side wall with rivets.
- 11. The personal watercraft according to claim 10, wherein another one of said plurality of electrical components is a battery, said battery being fixed to an upper surface of a rib at a position to the rear of said ECU.
- 12. The personal watercraft according to claim 10, wherein others of said plurality of electrical components are a main relay and a fuse box, said main relay and said fuse being mounted to a housing portion of said jet pump at a central portion of the body.
- 13. An electrical mounting structure for a personal watercraft, comprising:a body of said personal watercraft composed of a hull constituting a lower portion of said body and a deck for covering an upper portion of said hull; and a first side of said body in a lateral direction, said first side of said body having an exhaust outlet of an exhaust pipe of an engine, an entirety of said exhaust outlet being located on said first side of said body, wherein a plurality of electrical components is disposed in said body in such a manner as to be offset on said first side from a central portion in the lateral direction, and none of said plurality of electrical components is disposed in the vicinity of a wall surface constituting a second side of said body, said second side being opposite to said first side.
Priority Claims (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
Kind |
2001-334029 |
Oct 2001 |
JP |
|
US Referenced Citations (2)
Number |
Name |
Date |
Kind |
5879211 |
Koyanagi |
Mar 1999 |
A |
6155896 |
Suzuki |
Dec 2000 |
A |
Foreign Referenced Citations (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
10194195 |
Jul 1998 |
JP |