Safety windscreen assembly
A safety windscreen assembly including a windscreen panel, a support arm to support the windscreen panel, the support arm having a first arm portion configured to be attached to a motor vehicle, and a second arm portion attached to the windscreen panel, the motor vehicle being a vehicle provided with a steering handlebar and with a seat astride which a driver may sit, where at least one sacrificial coupling element is provided, to couple the second arm portion with the first arm portion so that the second arm portion is adapted to pass in a breaking configuration with respect to the first arm portion when the windscreen panel is hit by a predetermined impact force higher than a threshold value.
1. A safety windscreen assembly comprising:
a windscreen panel;
a support arm to support the windscreen panel, the support arm comprising a first arm portion configured to be attached to a motor vehicle, and a second arm portion attached to the windscreen panel, said motor vehicle being a vehicle provided with a steering handlebar and with a seat astride which a driver may sit;
a sacrificial coupling element to couple the second arm portion with the first arm portion so that the second arm portion is adapted to pass in a breaking configuration with respect to said first arm portion when said windscreen panel is pushed forward by an impact force higher than a predetermined threshold value;
wherein the first arm portion and the second arm portion are pivotally connected to each other by means of a hinge, and wherein said sacrificial coupling element connects the first arm portion and the second arm portion together over said hinge.
2. A safety windscreen assembly according to claim 1 , wherein in said breaking configuration the second arm portion is detached, upon breaking, from the first arm portion.
3. A safety windscreen assembly according to claim 1 , wherein said sacrificial coupling element is made of a material with a determined breaking load, defining said threshold value.
4. A safety windscreen assembly according to claim 2 , wherein said breaking load is a shear stress breaking load.
5. A safety windscreen assembly according to claim 1 , wherein said breaking load is comprised between 100 Nm and 800 Nm, in particular, between 160 Nm and 750 Nm.
6. A safety windscreen assembly according to claim 1 , wherein in the breaking configuration the second arm portion is adapted to rotate about a rotation axis of said hinge from a first angular position to a second angular position according to a first direction, when said windscreen panel is pushed forward by said force and said breaking load is exceeded, determining the breaking of said sacrificial coupling element.
7. A safety windscreen assembly according to claim 1 , wherein, in the first angular position, said second arm portion lies on a transversal plane with respect to the forward direction of said motor vehicle, and, in the second angular position, said second arm portion lies on a longitudinal plane which is in the same direction of the forward direction of said motor vehicle.
8. A motor vehicle provided with a steering handlebar and with a seat astride which a vehicle driver may sit, said motor vehicle comprising a windscreen assembly as defined in claim 1 .