Electric vehicle with switchable guide

Abstract

The invention describes a four-wheeled electric traction vehicle comprising two or more control levers comprising: one or more fixed or movable seats to allow said vehicle to be driven on the left or right hand side; a driving activation apparatus capable of activating the driving controls for at least one pair of levers located at the sides of at least one seat and managing the transition from a driving mode to a maneuvering mode for said vehicle; an electronic apparatus for transmitting driving commands from said levers to said wheels.

Description

[0001] “Electric vehicle with switchable guide”

[0002] Description

[0003] Field of the invention

[0004] The invention relates to the field of locomotion. More specifically, the present invention is aimed at providing a vehicle for locomotion with double guide switchable between right and left and with the possibility of carrying out tight radius maneuvers of the Zero Turn and Pivot Turn type.

[0005] Prior art

[0006] Nowadays, vehicle industries are dealing with solving various problems related to various needs of using vehicles in everyday life. It is clear that motor vehicles constitute only a part of these industries which specialize in machines capable of ensuring the locomotion of passengers on various types of terrain, in different maneuvering spaces, with different types of engine systems, different types of transmission.

[0007] In various fields of application, great maneuverability is required today for vehicles that must therefore be able to perform Zero Turns and / or Pivot Turns, i.e.:

[0008] - Zero Turn: rotate 360° on its axis clockwise or counterclockwise by rotating both the front and rear wheels;

[0009] - Pivot Turn: create a steering path to rotate the vehicle around a specific point by a desired angle.

[0010] Examples of vehicles that have great maneuverability related to their function are lawnmowers.

[0011] An example is the subject of patent US2022151141A1 by B.L. NEBEL et al. describing a control system for an electric off-road work vehicle having a left drive wheel powered by a left traction motor, a right driving wheel powered by a right traction motor, at least one first implement powered by at least one first implement motor, and a battery which provides power to the left traction motor, the right traction motor, and the first implement motor when certain conditions are met. The control system includes a first implement controller including logic for controlling power supplied from the battery to the first implement motor; a left traction controller including logic for controlling power supplied from the battery to the left traction motor; and a right traction controller including logic for controlling power supplied from the battery to the right traction motor. The first implement control, the left and right traction control are independent of each other.

[0012] There are also numerous patents that have provided forms of control other than that of levers, as in the example just cited, for vehicles with a wide range of available maneuvers.

[0013] An example is the subject of patent US10150501B1 by A. BRWON and S.W. KELLER. The invention relates to a vehicle control system capable of zero-turning, including an electrical controller in communication with a pair of independent driving units. A joystick provides user input to the controller to control the rotation speed and direction of the driving units. The joystick includes a vertical lever that rotates between a plurality of positions, each position corresponding to a particular rotational speed and direction of each of the driving wheels. A selector switch may be used to select one of a plurality of driving modes stored in the electric controller, wherein each of the plurality of driving modes maps a different set of speeds and directions for each of the driving wheels onto the plurality of pivot positions. The joystick provides the ability to perform zero-turn / pivot-turn maneuvers.

[0014] The inventions reported so far, by way of non-exhaustive example, are representative of the inventive-technological framework available to date.

[0015] The object of the present invention is to provide an electric vehicle capable of performing the maneuvers described above that is able to solve problems related to the need to practice such maneuvers on the road together with a supervisor, the need to be able to use the same vehicle with right-hand drive or left-hand drive, the need to complete complex maneuvers using first right-hand drive and then left-hand drive and finally the need to transport external loads which may accommodate such maneuvers.

[0016] The advantages offered by the present invention will be clearer in light of the detailed descriptions which follow.

[0017] Description of the invention

[0018] According to the present invention, a two or more wheeled electric traction vehicle is provided comprising two or more control levers, at least one electric motor, at least one electric battery and at least one computerized unit and / or processing unit. To control the motion, two levers are used, one positioned on the left and one positioned on the right of the driving seat, operated by the driver with both hands. Pushing the lever forward causes the corresponding engine to move forward; pushing the lever backward causes the corresponding engine to move backward. It is thus possible to perform movements such as the rotation of the vehicle on itself (Zero Turn) by activating a lever forward and one backward; control the rotation angle (for example during a Pivot Turn) by acting on the two levers with different inclinations. Said vehicle includes:

[0019] - one or more seats fixed or movable from a first side to a second side of said vehicle to allow said vehicle to be driven with left-hand drive or right-hand drive;

[0020] - a guide activation apparatus, comprising said computerized unit; said activation apparatus is suitable for activating the driving controls for at least one pair of levers located on the sides of at least one seat; said activation apparatus capable of managing the transition from a driving mode to a maneuvering mode for said vehicle; in said maneuvering mode, said activation apparatus assigns to a lever located on a first side of said seat the control over the traction of one or more wheels located on a first side of said vehicle and assigns to a lever located on a second side of said seat the control over the traction of one or more wheels located on a second side of said vehicle; in said driving mode, said activation apparatus assigns to one or more levers the control over the traction of all the driving wheels of the vehicle;

[0021] - an electronic apparatus for transmitting driving commands from said levers to said wheels; said electronic apparatus is capable of transducing the movements of said lever into acceleration, deceleration, braking and / or steering commands for said wheels; in said maneuvering mode, said electronic device sets a limit to the maximum speed that the vehicle can reach; in said driving mode, said electronic apparatus is able to standardize the rotation speeds on all the driving wheels transmitted by two levers and / or to make the vehicle driveable via a single control lever by assigning to said lever the control of acceleration, deceleration and / or braking and steering, on all the driving wheels of the vehicle; said deceleration and / or braking being controlled through one or more movements of said lever and / or by pressing buttons and / or levers suitable for sending an input to said electric motor to reduce the speed.

[0022] The advantages offered by the present invention are clear in the light of the above description and will be even clearer from the accompanying figures and the related detailed description.

[0023] The invention will be described hereinafter in at least one preferred embodiment by way of non-limiting example with the aid of the accompanying figures, in which:

[0024] - FIGURE 1 shows a side view of a vehicle 100 according to the present invention;

[0025] - FIGURE 2 shows a plan view of a vehicle 100 with two seats 103 and four levers 102 according to the present invention;

[0026] - FIGURE 3 shows a side view of a vehicle 100 with a seat 103 in a first position according to the present invention;

[0027] - FIGURE 4 shows a side view of a vehicle 100 with a seat 103 in a second position according to the present invention;

[0028] - FIGURE 5 shows a plan view of a vehicle 100 with a seat 103 in a first position according to the present invention;

[0029] - FIGURE 6 shows a plan view of a vehicle 100 with a seat 103 in a second position according to the present invention.

[0030] Detailed description of the invention

[0031] The present invention will now be described purely by way of non-limiting or binding example with the aid of the figures, which illustrate some embodiments relative to the present inventive concept.

[0032] With reference to FIG. 1, a side view is shown of a vehicle 100 according to the present invention is shown. FIG. 1 as in the following description, the embodiment of the present invention currently considered the best is illustrated.

[0033] The two or more wheeled electric traction vehicle 101 of the present invention comprises two or more control levers 102, at least one electric motor, at least one electric battery and at least one computerized unit and / or processing unit. Said control levers 102, in different embodiments of the present invention, may be joysticks, mechanical levers, remote controls and / or other types of control means. The vehicle 100 further comprises:

[0034] - one or more seats 103 fixed or movable from a first side to a second side of said vehicle 100 to allow said vehicle 100 to be driven with left-hand drive or right-hand drive;

[0035] - a guide activation apparatus 110, comprising said computerized unit; said activation apparatus 110 is suitable for activating the driving controls for at least one pair of levers 102 located on the sides of at least one seat 103; said activation apparatus 110 capable of managing the transition from a driving mode to a maneuvering mode for said vehicle 100; in said maneuvering mode, said activation apparatus 110 assigns to a lever 102 located on a first side of said seat 103 the control over the traction of two wheels 101 located on a first side of said vehicle 100 and assigns to a lever 102 located on a second side of said seat 103 the control over the traction of two wheels 101 located on a second side of said vehicle 100; in said driving mode, said activation apparatus 110 assigns to one or more levers 102 the control over the traction of all the wheels 101 of the vehicle. The activation apparatus 110 therefore comprises said computerized and / or processing unit and the electrical connections and electronic components necessary to connect the levers 102 to the at least one electric motor, and to said computerized unit;

[0036] - an electronic apparatus for transmitting driving commands from said levers 102 to said wheels 101; said electronic apparatus does not employ steering columns or similar mechanical means, allowing the transmission of driving controls to the wheels with a steer by wire technology; said electronic apparatus is capable of transducing movements of said lever 102 into acceleration, deceleration, braking and / or steering commands for said wheels 101; in said maneuvering mode, said electronic apparatus places a limit on the maximum speed reachable by the vehicle 100. This limit is defined by the said computer unit and may be changed by connecting to the computer unit itself. Advantageously, said limit is defined in the computerized unit to avoid potential damage caused by excessive speed that is difficult to control during complex maneuvering operations. By way of non-limiting or binding example, said limit is equal to 5 km / h; in said driving mode, said electronic apparatus is able to standardize the rotation speeds on all the driving wheels 101 transmitted by two levers 102 and / or to make the vehicle 100 driveable via a single control lever 102 by assigning to said lever 102 the control of acceleration, deceleration and / or braking and steering, on all the driving wheels 101 of the vehicle 100; said deceleration and / or braking being controlled through one or more movements of said lever 102 and / or by pressing buttons and / or levers suitable for sending an input to said electric motor to reduce the speed. Deceleration and / or braking are therefore managed by a system that uses break-by-wire technology and therefore avoids the use of mechanical, hydraulic or pneumatic systems for the transmission of a braking command. By way of non-limiting or binding example, said braking is carried out, during said driving mode, by moving one or more levers 102 in the opposite direction to motion. Again by way of non-limiting or binding example, braking is performed by pressing a trigger on said lever 102.

[0037] In some embodiments of the present invention, vehicle 100 includes two front electric driving wheels 101 and two rear pivoting wheels 101.

[0038] In other embodiments of the present invention, vehicle 100 includes two rear electric driving wheels 101 and two front pivoting wheels 101.

[0039] In other embodiments of the present invention, the vehicle 100 includes four steering, driving wheels 101 with electric lifting (from a floor level).

[0040] In some embodiments of the present invention, two or more wheels 101 are tracked wheels

[0041] 101. In some embodiments they include 4 driving wheel and these may be provided with variable height suspension to achieve stabilization of the platform or to keep it horizontal as the terrain changes.

[0042] FIG. 2 shows in detail a plan view of the vehicle 100 of FIG. 1 in which there are two seats 103 side by side and four levers 102, two for each seat 103. Specifically, FIG. 2 also shows a schematic view of the commands that the activation apparatus 110 assigns on the wheels 101 to each lever 102. FIG. 2 shows that the levers 102 on the sides of the first seat 103 (shown above in FIG. 2) control the wheels 101 according to the relationships shown by the broken lines represented in “dash-dot”, while the levers 102 on the sides of the other seat 103 control the wheels 101 according to the relationships represented by the broken “dotted” lines. It is therefore observed that the activation apparatus 110 always assigns to the levers 102 on the left side of the first or second seat 103 the control over the wheels 101 on the left side of the vehicle 100 (shown above in FIG. 2) and vice versa, assign to the levers 102 on the right side of the first or second seat 103 the control on the wheels 101 on the right side of the vehicle 100 (shown below in FIG. 2).

[0043] In some embodiments of the present invention, the vehicle 100 includes one or more seats 103 and a station for securing a stretcher. Said station for securing a stretcher may (by way of nonlimiting or binding example) be placed next to the driver's seat while a co-pilot / assistant may be positioned in a seat opposite the driver's seat; alternatively this space may be occupied by medical supplies or operating equipment. In these embodiments, the vehicle 100 is used for the rescue of people and / or animals on the road and / or off-road, providing for the possibility of having one or more seats 103 available for personnel who may in the meantime assist the patient on the stretcher.

[0044] In other embodiments of the present invention such as that shown in FIG. 3, the vehicle 100 comprises a seat 103 which can be moved and locked from a first side to a second side of said vehicle 100 and lockable in an intermediate central position; said seat 103 may be moved via a sliding structure; said seat 103 comprises a first lever 102 placed on the left side of a user 1 sitting on said seat 103 and a second lever 102 placed on the right side of a user 1 sitting on said seat 103, said levers 102 designed to be fixed to a base of said seat 103 and to move together with said seat 103.

[0045] In other embodiments of the invention, such as that shown in FIGS. 3-5, said sliding structure comprises a track mounted on said vehicle 100 and a trolley mounted underneath the seat of said seat 103 capable of sliding on the track and of being locked by means of levers and / or other mechanical devices. In this way, as shown in FIG. 5 and represented by a grey arrow, a user 1 may adjust the seat 103 by moving it to the left, for example, for left-hand driving, to the right, for right-hand driving, or even to the center of the vehicle 100 which may be particularly advantageous in the case of smaller vehicles 100.

[0046] In some embodiments of the present invention, the vehicle 100, according to further comprise a mechanical rotation system adapted to allow the rotation of said seat 103 around a vertical axis passing through the geometric center of the seat between a first position (shown in FIGS. 3 and 5) facing the front part 10 of said vehicle 100 and a second position (shown in FIGS. 4 and 6) facing the rear part 20 of said vehicle 100 and rotated by 180° with respect to said first position; said activation apparatus 110 adapted to receive a signal when said seat 103 is rotated to said second position (FIGS. 4 and 6) with said mechanical rotation system; said signal is sent through electronic, electrical, mechanical and / or computerized means, so as to allow the activation apparatus 110 to know when the seat 103 is in said first or second position. By way of non-limiting or binding example, said electronic, electric, mechanical and / or computerized means comprise a mechanical switch which is pressed by the rotation system when the seat 103 reaches said second position; said mechanical switch opens an electric circuit in which the passage of current generates an input to said computerized or processing unit of the activation apparatus 110. Said activation apparatus 110 is capable of assigning, in said first and second positions, to said first lever 102, the control over the traction of two wheels 101 of the vehicle 100 which are located to the left of the user 1 and to said second lever 102 the control over the traction of two wheels 101 which are located to the right of the user 1. Specifically, FIG. 5 shows that, in said first position, the lever 102’ to the left of the seat 103 (“dash dot” line in FIG. 5) is assigned the control on the wheels 101 on the left side of the vehicle 100 and the lever 102” on the right side of the seat 103 (the “dotted” line in FIG. 5) is assigned the control on wheels 101 on the right side of vehicle 100. FIG. 6 shows that, in said second position, the lever 102’ to the left of the seat 103 (“dotted” line in FIG. 5) is assigned the control on the wheels 101 on the right side of the vehicle 100 (right side with respect to the front part 10 and the rear part 20 of the vehicle 100) and the lever 102” on the right side of the seat 103 (“dash dot” line in FIG. 5) is assigned the control on the wheels 101 on the left side of vehicle 100 (left side with respect to front part 10 and rear part 20 of the vehicle 100). In this way, during normal driving in which the vehicle 100 proceeds forward with the front part 10, when the seat 103 is in said first position, the left lever 102 controls the left wheels 101 of the vehicle 100 and the right lever 102 controls the wheels 101 on the right side of the vehicle (defining left and right on the basis of the direction of travel). When reversing, if the seat 103 is kept in said first position (FIGS. 3 and 5) the levers 102 will continue to maintain control of the assigned wheels 101, but, if the seat 103 is rotated to said second position (FIGS. 4 and 6), the activation apparatus 110 proceeds to switch the controls of the levers 102 so as to assign to the lever 102 to the left of the seat 103, the traction control on the two wheels 101 of the vehicle 100 which for a user 1 seated on a seat 103 in said first position are located on his right and for a user 1 seated on a seat 103 in said second position are located on his left, and vice versa for the lever 102 to the right of the seat 103. In this way what would be a reversing operation is handled as a normal forward motion operation (this time having as the direction of motion that of the rear part 20 of the vehicle 100, as shown in FIG. 6) simplifying the handling of the vehicle 100 in certain situations.

[0047] In some embodiments of the present invention in which the vehicle 100 comprises said mechanical system for rotating a seat 103, the vehicle further comprises a system for moving and / or extracting and inserting one or more rear-view mirrors; said system is suitable for moving one or more rear-view mirrors present on said vehicle 100 and / or for extracting and reinserting other rear-view mirrors present in seats of said vehicle 100, said system being suitable for moving and / or extracting from one or multiple seats called rear-view mirrors when said seat 103 is placed in said second position; said system being capable of re-moving and / or inserting said rear-view mirrors into said seats when said seat 103 is moved from said second position to said first position; said system being able to move one or more rear-view mirrors so that they allow a user 1 sitting on said seat 103 in said second position, to observe part of the front and side area of said vehicle 100. By way of non-limiting or binding example, the system moves the mirrors of the vehicle 100 through electric actuators and metal guides moving them from the normal position in which they allow the vision of a rear and side part of the vehicle to the described position in which they allow a user 1 on the seat 103 in said second position to see the front and side part of said vehicle 100. The system may also extract from said seats a second pair of mirrors for viewing said front and side part of the vehicle, leaving in its position a first pair of mirrors which cannot be extracted / inserted in any seat but are fixed and capable of showing a user 1 on a seat 103 in said first position the rear and side part of the vehicle 100.

[0048] The vehicle 100 of the present invention may, therefore, be made in various embodiments with a seat 103, and having, by way of non-limiting or binding example, additional space (not occupied by other seats 103) for the transport of loads.

[0049] Still in some embodiments of the present invention, a cabin kit may be mounted on the vehicle 100 which allows a cabin to be attached in “plug-in” mode, i.e. having special interlocking seats already prepared on the chassis of the vehicle 100 for the rapid connection of bodywork elements and / or other chassis elements which make up a cabin.

[0050] In other embodiments of the present invention such as that shown in FIG. 2, the vehicle 100 comprises two seats 103 each placed between two levers 102; said activation apparatus 110 suitable for activating the driving controls for a pair of levers 102 on the sides of a first seat 103 and / or for a pair of levers 102 on the sides of a second seat 103.

[0051] In some embodiments of the present invention in which the vehicle 100 comprises two seats 103, it further comprises three levers 102 in which a central lever 102 is located between a first and second seat 103. Said activation apparatus 110 is adapted to enable said central lever 102 to control the driving of two wheels 101 of the vehicle 100 located on the side opposite to the side where the user 1 driver sits with respect to said central lever 102. In this way, the central lever 102 may control the wheels on the right or left side of the vehicle 100. Specifically, in the case in which user 1 who is driving sits on a seat 103 located on the left side of vehicle 100, said central lever 102 controls the wheels on the right side of vehicle 100; vice versa, in the case in which user 1 who is driving sits on a seat 103 located on the right side of vehicle 100, said central lever 102 controls the wheels on the left side of vehicle 100. In this way, the vehicle which comprises two seats 103 placed side by side, one for the driver and one for the passenger, may be used for both left-hand and right-hand driving and the driving position may be immediately exchanged via said activation apparatus 110. Still in this way, it is possible for a first user 1 sitting as a passenger (without driving controls) next to a second user 1 sitting as the driver of the vehicle 100 (and therefore having levers 102 on his sides enabled for driving controls) to assist said second user 1 by enabling the levers 102 on his sides to drive via the activation apparatus 110. The invention therefore allows the same vehicle 100 to be used for driving practice both with right-hand drive and with left-hand drive by immediately providing (via the activation apparatus 110) the driving commands to a supervisor user 1 (trainer).

[0052] In some embodiments of the present invention in which the vehicle 100 comprises two seats 103, said activation apparatus 110 comprises one or more physical or virtual buttons to be pressed through manual pressure and / or on a screen to activate the driving controls for a pair of levers 102. Such physical buttons may be, by way of non-limiting or binding example, buttons located on the levers 102 or at the base of the levers 102. Again by way of non-limiting or binding example, said virtual buttons are displayed on a touchscreen which allows users to have control over said activation apparatus 110 and other functions of the vehicle 100.

[0053] In some embodiments of the present invention in which the vehicle 100 comprises two seats 103, said activation apparatus 110 comprises at least one microphone and at least one speech processing algorithm in said computerized unit for activating the driving controls for a pair of levers 102 through the use of voice commands. Spoken language algorithms (Natural Language Processing NLP) are considered to be known to a man skilled in the art, as well as their implementation in the distinction of vocal commands acquired from a microphone and will therefore not be described in detail below.

[0054] In some embodiments of the present invention in which the vehicle 100 comprises two seats 103, said activation apparatus 110 includes at least one presence sensor for detecting the presence of a user 1 on a seat 103; said activation apparatus 110 capable of being enabled for the automatic detection of the presence of said user 1 on said seat 103 and for the activation of the driving controls for a pair of levers 102 located on the sides of said seat 103. Herein, by “capable of being enabled” it is meant that said activation device 110 may be managed through said computerized unit by a user 1 who can therefore customize its functions. User 1 may therefore electronically / digitally enable activation apparatus 110 so that it automatically detects the presence of user 1 via said presence sensors and accordingly carries out said activation of driving levers 102. Alternatively, in the event that user 1 does not enable the activation device 110 for said automatic detection, it may be activated manually (by manually pressing buttons or pressing / clicking keys and / or virtual controls on a screen) at any time. By “presence sensor” it is meant, by way of non-limiting or binding example, an infrared sensor pointed at a seat 103, a video camera with image recognition algorithms, a weight sensor that detects a weight on the seat of said seat 103 and / or a presence sensor that is able to uniquely and unequivocally determine the presence of a user 1 on a specific seat 103. By way of nonlimiting or binding example, in cases where the presence sensor is an infrared sensor, it may be inserted inside the seat 103 or may be placed in front of it. A pre-regi strati on in said computerized unit allows it to know which seats 103 (with the respective levers 102) correspond to which presence sensors so as to have an immediate association sensor - seat 103 - levers 102. In this way, in the embodiments of the invention with two or more seats 103, the activation apparatus 110 automatically activates the levers 102 located on the seat on which the presence of a user 1 is detected while driving, without requiring said user to send any type of commands, but said activation being automatic and immediate. For safety purposes, said activation apparatus 110 may be set so as not to modify the levers 102 activated for driving until the next step of switching off the vehicle 100. In this way, it is simply necessary for the driver user 1 to sit on a seat 103 before other users 1 who are not drivers sit on other seats 103 so as to see the levers 102 on the sides of his / her seat activated and to prevent said other users 1 from interfering while driving even by accidentally hitting said levers 102 located on the sides of said other seats 103.

[0055] In some embodiments of the present invention, one or more seats 103 and said levers 102 are removable. The levers 102, in these embodiments, include wireless communication units for communicating with respective wireless communication units (for example, but not limited to, transmitters / receivers that operate via radio waves) of the electronic apparatus for transmitting commands and of the guide activation apparatus 110. In a non-limiting example, these wireless communication units exploit Bluetooth technology. In another non-limiting example, the wireless communication units use a SIM card to communicate via a 5G network. Communication with the wireless unit of the driving activation apparatus 110 allows, even during remote driving of the vehicle 100, to switch from a maneuvering mode to a driving mode in the ways already described.

[0056] In some embodiments of the present invention where the seats 103 and levers 102 are removable, the vehicle 100 includes mechanical apparatus (such as metal or plastic components), which may be positioned to form a plane on which it is possible to place a load and / or even attach a stretcher.

[0057] In some embodiments of the present invention where the seats 103 and levers 102 are removable, the vehicle 100 further includes an on-board video camera apparatus capable of communicating the acquired images wirelessly to a display device. The display device may be, by way of non-limiting or binding example, a smartphone, a tablet, a personal computer or other. The images are displayed on the device by being communicated to it through a specific algorithm or by having the GUI (Graphic User Interface) of a web portal and / or application that shows said images displayed through the device. This display device is used to display the images of one or more on-board video cameras, allowing, together with said removed levers 102, to remotely drive the vehicle 100. In these embodiments, remote guidance has no potential distance limitations and is uniquely dependent on the latency in sending commands. Well-known obstacle detection and automatic / semi-automatic driving algorithms may be used to reduce any risks due to this latency.

[0058] In some embodiments of the present invention, the vehicle 100 further includes systems included in said computerized unit for assisted driving and / or autonomous driving.

[0059] An autonomous driving system programmed and stored in said computerized unit is selectable by the operator with a command, leaving the possibility of performing over-ride (i.e. the inputs provided by the autonomous driving may always be “canceled” by the inputs provided by the personnel using the levers 102). Programmed autonomous driving refers to a set of timed directions and speeds that define the instant-by-instant trajectory to follow from the starting point to the arrival point. Said autonomous driving system includes technologies for selflearning the route. Such self-learning path may be used, when activated, to automatically return to a starting position by reversing the inputs provided. Said autonomous driving system also allows driving along waypoints via GPS with and without modifying the route to detect obstacles. Finally, this autonomous driving system allows automatic driving from starting point to arrival point by means of Al algorithms.

[0060] In various embodiments of the present invention (including assisted and / or autonomous driving systems), the vehicle 100 may be configured for the transport of one or more passengers, for the transport of one or more passengers with cargo, for the transport of cargo only (without an operator on board but providing for remote driving).

[0061] In various embodiments of the present invention, vehicle 100 is operated on-road and / or offroad.

[0062] In the embodiments that provide for the transport of the load only, the seats 103 are removed leaving free space for said load; in these versions, the levers 102 are also removed enabling remote driving.

[0063] In various embodiments of the invention, the vehicle 100 is remotely operated via a communications link which may be encrypted.

[0064] In various embodiments of the present invention, vehicle 100 is operated on-road and / or offroad.

[0065] In some embodiments of the present invention, the vehicle comprises two independent electric motors each with a power of 3 kW and a torque of 250 Nm.

[0066] In some embodiments of the present invention, the vehicle includes two 48 VDC 200 A / h battery packs with a life of 6000 charge cycles at 80% of the DoD (Depth of Discharge) for approximately 5 years. In some embodiments of the present invention, the vehicle 100 has a driving range of approximately 100 km, a maximum achievable speed of 50 km / h, a maximum climbable gradient of 20%, plan dimensions inscribable in a rectangle with sides of 2.2 mx 1.3 m, a weight of 450 kg, a maximum load.

[0067] In some embodiments of the present invention, the vehicle 100 preferably includes GPS localization systems and Intellilink® Audio & Video communication systems.

[0068] In some preferred embodiments of the invention, the vehicle 100 is provided with front lights, rear lights and space for the vehicle license plate, two rear wheels 101 with Hub Motor and two pivoting front wheels 101, plug-in type batteries removable from their housing for recharging in a separate location and / or replacement with pre-charged batteries, four-point seat belts mounted on said seats 103, two rear-view mirrors.

[0069] Finally, it is clear that modifications, additions or variations that are obvious to a person skilled in the art may be made to the invention described so far, without thereby departing from the scope of protection provided by the appended claims.

Claims

Claims1. Vehicle (100) with two or more electric traction wheels (101) comprising two or more control levers (102), at least one electric motor, at least one electric battery and at least one computerized unit and / or processing unit; said vehicle (100) is characterized in that it comprises:- one or more seats (103) fixed or movable from a first side to a second side of said vehicle (100) to allow said vehicle (100) to be driven with left-hand drive or righthand drive;- a guide activation apparatus (110), comprising said computerized unit; said activation apparatus (110) is suitable for activating the driving controls for at least one pair of levers (102) located on the sides of at least one seat (103); said activation apparatus (110) capable of managing the transition from a driving mode to a maneuvering mode for said vehicle (100); in said maneuvering mode, said activation apparatus (110) assigns to a lever (102) located on a first side of said seat (103) the control over the traction of one or more wheels (101) located on a first side of said vehicle (100) and assigns to a lever (102) located on a second side of said seat (103) the control over the traction of one or more wheels (101) located on a second side of said vehicle(100); in said driving mode, said activation apparatus (110) assigns to one or more levers (102) the control over the traction of all the driving wheels (101) of the vehicle;- an electronic apparatus for transmitting driving commands from said levers (102) to said wheels (101); said electronic apparatus is capable of transducing the movements of said lever (102) into acceleration, deceleration, braking and / or steering commands for said wheels (101); in said maneuvering mode, said electronic device sets a limit to the maximum speed that the vehicle can reach (100); in said driving mode, said electronic apparatus is able to standardize the rotation speeds on all the driving wheels(101) transmitted by two levers (102) and / or to make the vehicle (100) driveable via a single control lever (102). command by assigning to said lever (102) the control ofacceleration, deceleration and / or braking and steering, on all the driving wheels (101) of the vehicle (100); said deceleration and / or braking being controlled through one or more movements of said lever (102) and / or by pressing buttons and / or levers suitable for sending an input to said electric motor to reduce the speed.

2. Vehicle (100), according to the preceding claim 1, characterized in that it comprises a seat (103) which can be moved and locked from a first side to a second side of said vehicle (100) and lockable in an intermediate central position; said seat (103) capable of being moved via a sliding structure; said seat (103) comprising a first lever (102) placed on the left side of a user (1) sitting on said seat (103) and a second lever (102) placed on the right side of a user (1) sitting on said seat (103), said levers (102) designed to be fixed to a base of said seat (103) and to move together with said seat (103).

3. Vehicle (100), according to the preceding claim 2, characterized in that it further comprises a mechanical rotation system capable of allowing the rotation of said seat (103) around a vertical axis passing through the geometric center of the seat between a first position facing the front part of said vehicle (100) and a second position facing the rear part of said vehicle (100) and rotated by 180° with respect to said first position; said activation apparatus (110) adapted to receive a signal when said seat (103) is rotated to said second position with said mechanical rotation system; said activation apparatus (110) capable of assigning, in said first and second positions, to said first lever (102), the control over the traction of two wheels (101) of the vehicle (100) which are located to the left of the user (1) and said second lever (102) controls the traction of two wheels (101) which are located to the right of the user (1).

4. Vehicle (100), according to the preceding claim 3, characterized in that it further comprises a system for moving and / or extracting and inserting one or more rear-view mirrors; said system is suitable for moving one or more rear-view mirrors present on saidvehicle (100) and / or for extracting and reinserting other rear-view mirrors present in seats of said vehicle (100), said system being suitable for moving and / or extracting from one or multiple seats called rear-view mirrors when said seat (103) is placed in said second position; said system being capable of re-moving and / or inserting said rear-view mirrors into said seats when said seat (103) is moved from said second position to said first position; said system being able to move one or more rear-view mirrors so that they allow a user (1) sitting on said seat (103) in said second position, to observe part of the front and side area of said vehicle (100).

5. Vehicle (100), according to the preceding claim 1, characterized in that it comprises two seats (103) each placed between two levers (102); said activation apparatus (110) suitable for activating the driving controls for a pair of levers (102) on the sides of a first seat (103) and / or for a pair of levers (102) on the sides of a second seat (103).

6. Vehicle (100), according to the preceding claim 5, characterized in that it comprises three levers (102) in which a central lever (102) is placed between a first and a second seat (103); said activation apparatus (110) being capable of enabling said central lever(102) to drive the two wheels (101) of the vehicle (100) located on the side opposite to the side on which the user (1) driver sits with respect to said central lever (102).

7. Vehicle (100), according to any of the preceding claims 5-6, characterized in that said activation apparatus (110) includes at least one presence sensor for detecting the presence of a user (1) on a seat (103); said activation apparatus (110) capable of being enabled for the automatic detection of the presence of said user (1) on said seat (103) and for the activation of the driving controls for a pair of levers (102) located on the sides of said seat(103).

8. Vehicle (100), according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that one ormore seats (103) and said levers (102) are removable; said levers (102) comprising wireless communication units for communicating with respective wireless communication units of said electronic apparatus for transmitting commands and of said guide activation apparatus (110).

9. Vehicle (100), according to the preceding claim 8, characterized in that it comprises mechanical devices capable of forming a surface for the storage of goods and / or the attachment of one or more stretchers.

10. Vehicle (100), according to any of the preceding claims 8-9, characterized in that it further comprises an on-board video camera apparatus suitable for communicating the images acquired via wireless to a display device; said display device being used to display the images of one or more on-board video cameras allowing, together with said levers (102) removed, to pilot the vehicle (100) remotely.

11. Vehicle (100), according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that two or more wheels (101) are tracked wheels.

12. Vehicle (100), according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that it further comprises systems in said computerized unit for assisted driving and / or autonomous driving.

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