Abstract: A motor vehicle has two upper struts, which project forward from a passenger compartment and are arranged above two lower struts, which extend along respective substantially rectilinear axes inclined from the bottom upwards, going forward; the lower struts have respective intermediate portions with such a variation in cross section to define a preferential bending zone; the rear ends of the lower struts are fixed to a cross member connected to the upper struts by means of two connection members, which are substantially vertical and have respective breakable zones designed so as to break when a given load threshold is exceeded; the motor vehicle also has a powertrain connected to the cross member and to the upper struts by means of supports which are distinct from the connection members and are breakable in the event of a front crash.

Abstract: An assembly line for motor vehicles in which a overhead guide supports a plurality of conveying units, each of which has a longitudinal axis, is provided with a supporting element for a respective body to be assembled, and is mobile in a given direction of advance through one or more rotation stations, in each of which an drive assembly, carried by the rotation station, is designed to engage a driven transmission assembly, carried by the conveying unit, for rotating the supporting element about the longitudinal axis.

Abstract: A vehicle dashboard has a fixed structure and a casing defining a pocket having a substantially rectangular perimeter, which is defined by an upper edge, a lower edge and two side edges so as to house a portable electronic device having a screen which remains visible through a window defined by a front frame of the casing; at one of the aforesaid edges, the casing has an opening which is used to insert/remove the portable electronic device along a sliding direction and is closed by a closing element.

Abstract: An electrical power-steering system for motor-vehicles includes a first pinion and a second pinion meshing with two portions of a rack member which controls the steering angle of the wheels. The two pinions are driven by respective electric motors which are in turn controlled by an electronic control unit. The two portions of the rack member are constituted by two separate elements connected to each other by a connection member interposed therebetween, such that the first and second portions of the rack member behave like a single rigid element when they are driven with identical displacements in a steering maneuver, whereas the connection member allows for a relative movement in the longitudinal direction of the first and second portions of the rack member, with a resulting lengthening or shortening of the rack member, when the first and second portions of the rack member are driven with differentiated displacements in an operative mode for adjustment of the convergence angle of the wheels.

Abstract: A motor-vehicle multi-link suspension system includes, for each wheel, two lower transverse arms and a substantially longitudinal or inclined lower arm, each having one end pivotally connected to a respective wheel support and the opposite end pivotally connected to the motor-vehicle structure. A leaf spring is arranged transversally with respect to the longitudinal direction of the motor-vehicle. The leaf spring is supported by elastic supports arranged symmetrically at intermediate positions between the center of the leaf spring and the ends thereof. Ends of the leaf spring are pivotally connected to upper parts of the two wheel supports. Two jack-type shock absorbers have opposite ends swingably connected to the respective wheel support and the motor-vehicle structure. The end portions of the leaf spring also fulfill the function of triangular upper transverse arms of the multi-link suspension. Preferably the leaf spring is made of a composite material.

Abstract: A hanging and conveying device comprising a slide slidingly coupled to a guide to move along the guide in a given advancement direction; and a gondola hanging from the slide and comprising an arched member having a first axis parallel to the advancement direction and adjustable in position about the first axis, and coupling means carried by the arched member to engage, during operation, a floor of a vehicle body arranged through the arched member; the coupling means comprising two coplanar longitudinal members provided with pins to couple with and support the vehicle body, and positioning means to cause the pins to be arrangeable on the longitudinal members in a number of selectively engageable alternative positions, to result in different types of vehicle bodies being selective mountable on the arched member.

Abstract: An assembly line, wherein at least one operating branch of fixed length accommodates a number of platforms aligned with one another and with a given travelling direction; each platform being designed to receive a respective vehicle body, feed it in the travelling direction, and subject it to a succession of n assembly operations along the operating branch; each platform being designed for connection to at least one longitudinal extension to assume a total length, which depends on the length of the body carried, and ranges between a minimum length equal to the length of the platform with no extension, and a maximum length; and the length of the operating branch being equal to n times the maximum length.

Abstract: A striker device for a motor vehicle door lock having a striker and an element made of a plastic material and equipped with a plate, which is suitable for being placed against a wall of the motor vehicle and is coupled to the striker in fixed relative position; the element has a plurality of tongues, which protrude from the plate in the opposite direction to the striker and are arranged in positions so as to engage, in use, the edges of two apertures in the wall of the motor vehicle, to keep the plate in a fixed reference position during a first fitting step; the tongues are breakable to enable changing the position of the striker device with respect to the wall of the motor vehicle in a possible second fitting step.

Abstract: An automotive electrical system for a motor vehicle comprising an internal combustion engine, the automotive electrical system comprising a main electrical power source, a secondary electrical power source, safety critical electrical loads and non-safety critical electrical loads, and an electrical switching device arranged between the main and secondary electrical power sources and at least the safety critical electrical loads and configured to selectively connect at least the safety critical electrical loads to at least one of the main and secondary electrical power sources. The electrical switching device is configured to connect at least the safety critical electrical loads to the auxiliary electrical power source during the cranking of the internal combustion engine and/or when the motor vehicle is coasting with the internal combustion engine off and the main electrical power source is faulty.

Abstract: A seat belt for a motor vehicle front seat is provided with a belt having a lower branch that has one end designed to be connected to an anchor point in the motor vehicle and is thickened via an additional element; the additional element is arranged on just one of the faces of the belt, along a rear edge of the lower branch, and comprises a bar, which is substantially parallel to said rear edge and is fixed to the belt.

Abstract: A motor vehicle luggage compartment covering device has a parcel shelf defined by a panel hinged to two sides of the luggage compartment about a horizontal axis and having two rear holes; the device also has two ties provided with respective ropes which extend through said holes; the lower ends of the ropes are fixed to two weights; the upper ends, however, are attached to two hooking elements that are hung in a releasable manner to a tailgate of the luggage compartment; for each rope, the upper ends are provided with respective protrusions, which are integral with the ropes and engage respective retaining seats obtained in the hooking elements; the holes of the parcel shelf have a diameter which is higher than that of the protrusions and is lower than the size of the hooking elements.

Abstract: A jack, defining a portable accessory for replacing a motor vehicle wheel, is adapted to be placed on the ground and has a scissors-like pantograph provided with a first and a second arm hinged to each other; the first and second arms have respective lower end portions, which can be moved close or away by actuating a screw/nut-screw device; the second arm is shorter than said first arm and is provided with an upper end portion hinged to an intermediate portion of the first arm; the jack further has a supporting member, which is supported only by an upper end of the first arm and can rotate about an axis.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a gear shift system for a motor vehicle with a steering wheel. Said gear shift system comprises gear shift devices rotationally integral with the steering wheel, each of which is operable by a driver of the motor vehicle to carry out at least one respective gear shift function associated with said gear shift device. Furthermore, said gear shift system further comprises an electronic control unit configured to: receive a magnitude indicative of a current steering wheel angle; determine, on the basis of the received magnitude, whether the current steering wheel angle satisfies predefined conditions; and, if it determines that the current steering wheel angle satisfies the predefined conditions, reconfigure the gear shift functions associated with the gear shift devices.

Abstract: A loading shelf for a luggage compartment of a vehicle has one rear panel and at least one front panel coupled by means of a guide-and-slide device, which has two longitudinal channels, fixed relative to the rear panel, and two front slides and two rear slides, which are carried by the front panel and engage the channels; the rear slides are coaxial along an axis orthogonal to the longitudinal direction in which the front panel may slide; channels have respective openings having position, shape and size so as to let the front slides coming out of the channels; when the front slides are outside of the channels, the front panel is rotatable about the axis of the rear slides.

Abstract: A supporting and braking assembly for a motor vehicle wheel has a supporting member, defined by a single piece adapted to be coupled to a suspension of the motor vehicle and provided with a central portion coupled to a rotating hub by means of a bearing. The supporting member is also provided with two arms which extend in cantilevered manner from the central portion in essentially radial directions and support respective studs, to which a floating caliper is slidingly coupled. The caliper is arranged straddling a brake disc, fixed and coaxial with respect to the hub, and supports two brake pads arranged on opposite sides of the brake disc. At least one of the studs is sized so as to transfer the tangential loads caused by braking from the caliper directly onto the corresponding arm.

Abstract: A motor vehicle has two upper struts, which project forward from a passenger compartment and are arranged above two lower struts, which extend along respective substantially rectilinear axes inclined from the bottom upwards, going forward; the lower struts have respective intermediate portions with such a variation in cross section to define a preferential bending zone; the rear ends of the lower struts are fixed to a cross member connected to the upper struts by means of two connection members, which are substantially vertical and have respective breakable zones designed so as to break when a given load threshold is exceeded; the motor vehicle also has a powertrain connected to the cross member and to the upper struts by means of supports which are distinct from the connection members and are breakable in the event of a front crash.

Abstract: A vehicle dashboard has a fixed structure and a casing defining a pocket having a substantially rectangular perimeter, which is defined by an upper edge, a lower edge and two side edges so as to house a portable electronic device having a screen which remains visible through a window defined by a front frame of the casing; at one of the aforesaid edges, the casing has an opening which is used to insert/remove the portable electronic device along a sliding direction and is closed by a closing element.

Abstract: A support and retention assembly for a portable electronic device has a support member with a front surface which defines a rest surface. The support member is connected to a structure of a dashboard so as to able to be moved between a retracted position and an extended position, in which it is locked by means of releasable locking devices. The assembly is provided with a rest element which projects from the front surface at a lower end of the support member and a clamp which is arranged over the rest element and may rotate upwards about a horizontal axis starting from a stowed position, in which at least part of the clamp is housed in a seat made in the front surface.

Abstract: A motor-vehicle multi-link suspension system includes, for each wheel, two lower transverse arms and a substantially longitudinal or inclined lower arm, each having one end pivotally connected to a respective wheel support and the opposite end pivotally connected to the motor-vehicle structure. A leaf spring is arranged transversally with respect to the longitudinal direction of the motor-vehicle. The leaf spring is supported by elastic supports arranged symmetrically at intermediate positions between the center of the leaf spring and the ends thereof. Ends of the leaf spring are pivotally connected to upper parts of the two wheel supports. Two jack-type shock absorbers have opposite ends swingably connected to the respective wheel support and the motor-vehicle structure. The end portions of the leaf spring also fulfill the function of triangular upper transverse arms of the multi-link suspension. Preferably the leaf spring is made of a composite material.

Abstract: A ground power supply line for electric traction vehicles is provided with two conductors carried by a series of tiles aligned to one another; each tile has a conductive plate and a lower supporting structure, which is made of insulating material and accommodates electric connectors, normally open switches, and a control and command unit, which switches the switches for selectively electrically connecting the conductive plate to the conductors in response to a signal deriving from an electric traction vehicle passing over said external conductive plate; the upper surface of the conductive plates is flushed with the remaining part of a road surface.