Positionable Shifter Assembly for Front Compartment Accessibility
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Solution Overview
Problem
Mass-produced passenger vehicles do not accommodate physically limited individuals effectively, particularly in terms of sightlines and seating arrangements, when modified for wheelchair accessibility, as existing modifications often place wheelchair-bound passengers in rear compartments where they cannot see the road and surrounding scenery.
Innovation Solution
A positionable shifter assembly that can be moved within the front passenger compartment of a vehicle, allowing for increased usable floor area on either the driver or passenger side, enabling a wheelchair-bound passenger to be seated in the front compartment with improved sightlines, and includes a securing mechanism to stabilize the shifter at desired positions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Area of moving object
If the shifter is fixed in the center console location, then the vehicle maintains standard manufacturing configuration, but the passenger usable floor area and driver usable floor area are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The shifter assembly is made movable along the inclined axis between the center console and passenger side locations, allowing dynamic repositioning to optimize floor area distribution between driver and passenger while maintaining functional capability
Solution Approach 2:
The shifter assembly is separated from the fixed center console structure and mounted on an independent movable platform with bracket assembly, enabling independent movement and repositioning without affecting the vehicle's primary structure
2Adaptability or versatility
If the carriage assembly is made movable along the second axis, then the shifter can be repositioned to optimize floor area, but side to side movement control becomes necessary
Solution Approach 1:
The carriage assembly is designed to be movable along the inclined second axis, providing dynamic repositioning capability that adapts to different seating configurations and floor area requirements
Solution Approach 2:
The bracket assembly serves as an intermediary structure that guides and constrains the carriage assembly's movement along the predetermined inclined axis, ensuring controlled and stable repositioning while maintaining shifter functionality
Data Source
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AI summary
A positionable shifter assembly for use in a vehicle adapted to transport a physically limited person, wherein a front passenger compartment includes a dashboard, a driver side compartment, a passenger side compartment, and a vehicle shifter disposed between the driver side compartment and the passenger side compartment. The positionable shifter assembly includes a platform configured to support the vehicle shifter, wherein the platform is configured be positioned at a plurality of locations within the front passenger compartment. A securing mechanism is the configured to secure the positionable shifter assembly at one of the plurality of locations within the vehicle.