Patent Application
20170282774
This disclosure is directed to an accessibility system to help users ascend from a lower level to a higher level. More specifically, this disclosure is directed towards a vehicle accessibility system to help passengers aboard a vehicle.
Buses and other transit vehicles often include a ramp for wheelchair passengers to use when boarding the vehicle. Existing wheelchair ramps may include two panels: a first panel that is secured to the bus floor and a second panel that folds out through the doors of the vehicle and to the ground to form a ramp. To achieve an adequate, usable slope, the ramp may extend far from the bus and may, for example, extend over most of the width of a nearby sidewalk. Furthermore, users in wide chairs may have difficulty using the ramp because the ramp has to be narrow enough to fit between the vehicle doors. Some vehicles may further include a system for lowering the height of the vehicle, to make it easier for passengers to step up into the bus. Lowering and raising the entire weight of a vehicle requires a large amount of energy and may lower the efficiency of a vehicle.
Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to, among other things, a vehicle accessibility system. Each of the embodiments disclosed herein may include one or more of the features described in connection with any of the other disclosed embodiments.
In one example, a vehicle accessibility system may include an interior ramp panel movable between a first position and a second position; a first floor panel movable between a lowered position and a raised position; and a second floor panel movable between a horizontal position and a tilted position.
Additionally or alternatively, the vehicle accessibility system may include one or more of the following features: the system may further comprise an exterior ramp panel movable between a first position and a second position; in the first position, the exterior ramp panel may be at least partially underneath the vehicle, and in the second position, the exterior ramp panel may be at least partially protruding from a side of the vehicle; the exterior and interior ramp panels may be configured to align to form a ramp from a ground surface into the vehicle; at least one of the interior ramp panel or the first floor panel may be movable to a level higher than a level of a fixed floor portion of the vehicle; in the raised position, the first floor panel may be parallel to and at a same level as a level of a fixed floor portion of the vehicle; and in the horizontal position, the second floor panel may be parallel to a fixed floor portion of the vehicle, and in the tilted position, the second floor panel may extend from a level of the fixed floor portion to a level of the first floor panel.
In another example, a vehicle accessibility system may include an exterior ramp panel protruding from the vehicle and contacting a ground surface; an interior ramp panel extending from the exterior ramp panel to a first floor panel of the vehicle, wherein the exterior and interior ramp panels are aligned to form a ramp from the ground surface into the vehicle; a first floor panel having a first edge contacting the interior ramp panel; and a second floor panel contacting a second edge of the first floor panel, wherein the second floor panel forms a ramp from the first floor panel to a fixed floor portion of the vehicle.
Additionally or alternatively, the vehicle accessibility system may include one or more of the following features: the exterior ramp panel may be slidable relative to and coupled to the interior ramp panel; the exterior ramp panel may be slidable relative to and coupled to a chassis of the vehicle; the interior ramp panel may be movable from the position aligned with the exterior ramp panel to form the ramp from the ground surface into the vehicle to a horizontal position parallel to the fixed floor portion of the vehicle; the first floor panel may be movable between a lowered position and a raised position; in the raised position, the first floor panel may be parallel to and at a same level as a level of the fixed floor portion of the vehicle; and the second floor panel may be movable between the position forming the ramp from the first floor panel to the fixed floor portion of the vehicle to a position parallel to the fixed floor portion of the vehicle.
In yet another example, a method for using a vehicle accessibility system may include: sliding an exterior ramp panel relative to an interior ramp panel; tilting an interior ramp panel from a horizontal position to a tilted position; and at least one of raising or lowering a first floor panel.
Additionally or alternatively, the method may include one or more of the following features or steps: the method may further comprise moving a second floor panel; the exterior ramp panel may be coupled to a chassis of the vehicle; the at least one of raising or lowering the first floor panel may include lowering the first floor panel to a level below a level of a fixed floor portion of the vehicle; the sliding may occur until an edge of the exterior ramp panel contacts a ground surface outside of the vehicle; and after the sliding and tilting, the exterior and interior ramp panels may be aligned to form a ramp from a ground surface into the vehicle.
It is understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive of the invention, as claimed.
The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure and together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the disclosure.
The present disclosure is drawn to an accessibility system. Although illustrated and described as a vehicle accessibility system, the disclosed system may be used in other settings to aid a user in ascending from a lower level to a higher level. The system may include a plurality of panels, which each may move relative to each other in various ways (e.g., up, down, tilt, slide) to increase the accessibility and efficiency of the vehicle. The figures illustrate a variety of different configurations of the system showing the panels in different positions. Referring to
In
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The first floor panel 16 may be adjacent to the interior ramp panel 14 on an opposite side of the interior ramp panel 14 from the deployed exterior ramp panel 12. In one example, the first floor panel 16 may be raised and lowered. In
In
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The ability to lower the height of the first flooring panel 16 and to tilt the interior ramp panel 14 may allow the exterior ramp panel 12 to have a shorter length than the exterior portion of pre-existing ramp systems. Pre-existing systems in which the floor of the vehicle is all the same level (e.g., portions of the vehicle floor that would be where panels 14, 16, and 18 are located in system 10) would require a longer exterior ramp panel than system 10 to achieve a desired ramp angle because the exterior ramp panel would have to extend from the ground to the full height of the vehicle floor (e.g., to the level of fixed flooring 20). In contrast, system 10 provides a first floor panel 16 that can be lowered, as well as an interior ramp panel 14 that can be lowered and/or tilted towards the ground, reducing the vertical distance that must be covered by the exterior ramp panel 12. Similarly, the exterior ramp panel 12 of system 10, if compared to an exterior ramp of a similar length in a pre-existing system, may have a smaller ramp angle because the exterior ramp panel 12 has to travel a shorter vertical distance (e.g., from the ground to an outer edge of a tilted and/or lowered interior ramp panel 14).
The movements of each of the movable panels (e.g., exterior ramp panel 12, interior ramp panel 14, first floor panel 16, and second floor panel 18) of system 10 may be controlled by one or more actuators that can raise, lower, and/or tilt a corresponding panel. The actuators may operate using electric current, hydraulic pressure, pneumatic pressure, or any other source of energy or combination of sources. The actuators may be located underneath the panels or in any other suitable location. Movement of the panels may be controlled via tracks and edges that provide for non-gap connections between adjacent panels. Additionally or alternatively, one or more of the panels may be manually movable by an operator.
Each panel described herein may include a composite material, although any other suitable material may be used. Each panel may be generally square or rectangular in shape, although the panels may be irregularly shaped and/or customized to a particular vehicle. The top surface of any of the panels may include a replaceable flooring insert to ease maintenance.
Adjacent panels may be connected by a mechanism that allows the required movements while preventing gaps and/or pressure between the panels. For example, the first floor panel 16 and the second floor panel 18 may include interlacing grooves and protrusions that maintain a connection between the two panels when the first floor panel 16 raises and lowers. The protrusions from the second floor panel 18 may in effect allow the second floor panel 18 to “expand” when the first floor panel 16 is lowered, but could then be pushed into grooves in the first floor panel 16 when the first floor panel 16 is raised.
In one example, the exterior ramp panel 12 may be wider than a door opening of the vehicle. The exterior ramp panel 12 in this example may be mounted underneath the vehicle chassis (e.g., on tracks), which may allow the panel to be wider than the space between the vehicle doors since the panel 12 would not have to fit through the door opening to be deployed. This example may improve the accessibility of the vehicle to users having wider wheelchairs or scooters.
The various panels described herein may be moved together or separately in any combination of motions described herein. In one exemplary method to deploy the exterior ramp panel 12, the system 10 may begin in the configuration of
The first floor panel 16, either before, during, or after the tilting of the interior ramp panel 14 and the deployment of the exterior ramp panel 12, may lower from the raised position shown in
Another exemplary method to deploy the exterior ramp panel 12 may also begin in the configuration of
In yet another method of use, the panels may be moved to provide access to the bus from a platform that is raised above the level of the fixed flooring 20. In one example, the interior ramp panel 14 and/or the first floor panel 16 may be raised in horizontal positions to the level of the platform. A user may travel from the platform to the raised interior ramp panel 14, and after travelling across the interior ramp panel 14 to the first floor panel 16, the user may descend to the level of the fixed flooring 20 using a ramp formed by the second floor panel 18. Alternatively, the first floor panel 16 may be lowered, with the user, to the level of the fixed flooring 20. The exterior ramp panel 12 additionally or alternatively may be used in combination with the interior ramp panel 14 to provide access from a higher level. In one example, the exterior ramp panel 12 may at least partially rest on a platform, while the interior ramp panel 14 may be tilted to form a descending ramp from the exterior ramp panel 12 to the first floor panel 16. If the first floor panel 16 is in a position higher than the level the fixed flooring 12, the user may descend the ramp formed by the second floor panel 18. Alternatively, the first floor panel 16 may be level with, or lowered to the level of, the fixed flooring 20.
The various panels of the system 10 may allow for numerous different configurations to best suit the needs of the passenger trying to board a vehicle. The ability to adjust the ramp angle may accommodate users with different types of chairs or other physical characteristics that make entering a vehicle challenging. Similarly, the system 10 may allow the distance between the ground and the interior of the bus to be adjusted, which may eliminate the need to lower (“kneel”) and lift the entire weight of the vehicle to ease passenger access. Adjusting the panels of the ramp system 10 may be more efficient that adjusting the entire height of the vehicle. The system 10 may be used on buses, trucks, or any other type of vehicle that may benefit from easier access. In additional or alternative embodiments, the system 10 may be used to access stationary doorways that are raised above the ground, or to access a floor level that is higher than an adjacent floor level.
While principles of the present disclosure are described herein with reference to illustrative embodiments for particular applications, it should be understood that the disclosure is not limited thereto. Those having ordinary skill in the art and access to the teachings provided herein will recognize additional modifications, applications, embodiments, and substitution of equivalents all fall within the scope of the embodiments described herein. Accordingly, the invention is not to be considered as limited by the foregoing description.
