Folding Ramp Device for Low-Floor Vehicle Access
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing boarding aids for vehicles with low-floor technology are often complex, prone to failure, expensive, and difficult to operate, especially when longer ramps are required to accommodate passengers with limited mobility, and they pose stowability challenges in narrow entry areas.
Innovation Solution
A device comprising a storage compartment with a folding ramp and floor cover that can be mechanically unfolded to create a lower entry height, allowing the storage compartment floor to serve as a ramp part, thereby reducing the incline and length of the ramp, and can be easily stowed and deployed without additional space or structural changes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If longer ramps are used to accommodate passengers with limited mobility, then barrier-free access is improved, but the ramp becomes impractical and difficult to store in the narrow vehicle entry area
Solution Approach 1:
The ramp is nested within a storage compartment located in the vehicle floor. The storage compartment has a depth that allows the ramp to be stored horizontally when not in use, eliminating space requirements in the narrow entry area while providing full ramp functionality when deployed.
Solution Approach 2:
The storage compartment is positioned in the vertical dimension (vehicle floor depth) rather than occupying horizontal space in the entry area. This allows the ramp to be stored without impeding passenger access while maintaining full ramp length for accessibility.
2Ease of operation
If the vehicle floor is designed horizontally throughout, then passenger comfort is improved, but the height difference between boarding edge and necessary floor level cannot be overcome
Solution Approach 1:
The floor is segmented into two distinct levels: a horizontal vehicle floor for passenger comfort and a lower storage compartment floor for ramp storage. This segmentation allows the boarding edge to be lowered to match platform level while maintaining a horizontal passenger floor.
Solution Approach 2:
The storage compartment floor acts as an intermediary element that bridges the height difference between the platform and the vehicle floor. By lowering the storage compartment floor, the ramp can provide gradual access while the passenger floor remains horizontal.
3Ease of operation
If barrier-free access is provided at every stop, then accessibility is improved, but the vehicle driver does not have unlimited time at individual stopping points
Solution Approach 1:
The ramp system is designed for self-service operation by the driver. The ramp can be quickly deployed and stowed using simple manual operations, allowing the driver to provide barrier-free access without requiring additional time or specialized assistance.
Solution Approach 2:
The ramp system transitions dynamically between stowed and deployed states. The storage compartment floor can be quickly lowered to deploy the ramp and raised to stow it, enabling rapid adaptation to different boarding requirements without delaying the vehicle schedule.
Data Source
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Figure 5a~5f
AI summary
The invention relates to a device for overcoming differences in height, particularly for public transport vehicles, which can be moved from a stowed state to a first unfolded state, to a second unfolded state and back again by means of a mechanical folding movement, comprising: - a storage compartment (2) having a storage compartment floor (11) with a front edge (10), - a folding ramp (3) and - a bottom cover (4), wherein: - the device (1) can be arranged in the entry area of the vehicle (18) adjacent to a vehicle floor (5) such that the front edge (10) of the storage compartment floor (11) is lower than the vehicle floor (5), - in the stowed state the bottom cover (4) is in a plane with the vehicle floor (5), and the folding ramp (3) is stowed below the bottom cover (4) in the storage compartment (2), - the bottom cover (4) is pivotable about a first axis of rotation A, which is transverse to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle.- the folding ramp (3) is pivotably attached to the front edge (10) of the storage compartment floor (11) about a second pivot axis B parallel to the vehicle's longitudinal axis C.