Ronald W Campbell

US Patent:

54823226, Jan 9, 1996

Filed:

Aug 18, 1994

Appl. No.:

8/293345

Inventors:

Donald G. Wheatley - Ann Arbor MI
Ronald M. Campbell - Northville MI

Assignee:

Ford Motor Company - Dearborn MI

International Classification:

B62D 2100

US Classification:

280784

Abstract:

A vehicle including a vehicle frame having a pair of longitudinally extending support rails disposed in spaced relationship with respect to one another and terminating at one end proximal to a front of the vehicle, at least one pair of wheels and a steering mechanism operatively connected to the wheels for controlling the direction of the vehicle in response to driver input through the steering mechanism, the steering mechanism including a pair of tie rods operatively connected to the wheels to control the rotation of the wheels about a vertical axis, and a pair of tie rod impact members fixedly mounted to the support rails and movable in a direction substantially longitudinally along the support rails in response to a predetermined force acting on the vehicle such that the tie rod impact members engage the tie rods to cause the wheels to rotate about a vertical axis independent of driver input through the steering mechanism.