Patent Application
20180022286
The present disclosure relates to vehicle-mounted bicycle carriers. More specifically, embodiments of the present disclosure relate to bicycle carriers having a locking assembly configured to secure a bicycle to the bicycle carrier.
Safely and conveniently transporting sports equipment is a concern for many sports enthusiasts. For example, canoes, kayaks, and bicycles can be carried on a vehicle by being attached to one or more carriers. Prevention of theft of the sports equipment is an additional concern for many sports enthusiasts. For example, the sports equipment, such as a bicycle, may be locked to the carrier.
In some embodiments, a bicycle carrier for mounting on a vehicle may include a tray configured to hold a bicycle, with the tray defining a conduit. In some embodiments, the bicycle carrier may include a cable partially disposed within the conduit. In some embodiments, the cable may be configured to extend from and retract into the conduit at a middle portion of a length of the tray. In some embodiments, the bicycle carrier may include a lock head disposed on an end of the cable. In some embodiments, the bicycle carrier may include a lock housing disposed on the cable and configured to slide along the cable. In some embodiments, the lock housing may have a through-hole surrounding the cable and a lock hole configured to receive the lock head. In some embodiments, the through-hole and the lock hole may be parallel to each other.
In some embodiments, the lock housing may include a key hole on an opposite end of the lock housing from the lock hole configured to receive the lock head. In some embodiments, the key hole and the lock hole are parallel to each other. In some embodiments, the key hole and the lock hole are coaxial. In some embodiments, the middle portion of the length of the tray is disposed closer to a wheel saddle than an end of the tray.
In some embodiments, the bicycle carrier may include a cable passageway housing disposed in the tray that forms an angled passageway leading into the conduit. In some embodiments, the cable passageway housing may include a rivet having a head that is configured to keep the cable passageway housing attached to the tray.
In some embodiments, the tray includes a raised portion and a lower portion. In some embodiments, the conduit may be disposed in the lower portion of the tray. In some embodiments, the raised portion and the lower portion may each be configured to support a bicycle wheel. In some embodiments, the middle portion may be disposed between the raised portion and the lower portion. In some embodiments, the middle portion may be angled.
In some embodiments, the bicycle carrier may include a lock housing anchor disposed in the tray. In some embodiments, the lock housing anchor may be configured to secure the lock housing to the tray. In some embodiments, the lock housing anchor may include a cantilevered arm configured to secure the lock housing within the lock housing anchor. In some embodiments, the cantilevered arm may include a rounded protrusion at a cantilevered end. In some embodiments, the lock housing may include an angled surface configured to push the cantilevered arm down as a user removes the lock housing from the lock housing anchor.
In some embodiments, a bicycle lock may include a lock housing that has a through-hole and a lock hole. In some embodiments, the lock hole may be disposed adjacent to the through-hole. In some embodiments, the bicycle lock may include a cable that has a first end and a second end. In some embodiments, the cable may be partially disposed within the through-hole. In some embodiments, the bicycle lock may include a lock head disposed on the first end of the cable. In some embodiments, the bicycle lock may include a cable passageway housing configured to attach to a bicycle carrier. In some embodiments, the cable passageway housing may have an angled projection that forms an angled passageway. In some embodiments, the cable may be configured to pass through the angled passageway into the bicycle carrier such that the second end of the cable is disposed in the bicycle carrier.
In some embodiments, the lock head is disposed on a side of the lock housing that defines the lock hole. In some embodiments, the through-hole and the lock hole may be parallel to each other. In some embodiments, the lock housing may include a key hole. In some embodiments, the lock housing may be movable relative to the cable.
The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein and form a part of the specification, illustrate the embodiments and, together with the description, further serve to explain the principles of the embodiments and to enable a person skilled in the relevant art(s) to make and use the embodiments.
The features and advantages of the embodiments will become more apparent from the detailed description set forth below when taken in conjunction with the drawings, in which like reference characters identify corresponding elements throughout. In the drawings, like reference numbers generally indicate identical, functionally similar, and/or structurally similar elements.
Embodiments of the present disclosure are described in detail with reference to embodiments thereof as illustrated in the accompanying drawings. References to “one embodiment,” “an embodiment,” “some embodiments,” etc., indicate that the embodiment(s) described may include a particular feature, structure, or characteristic, but every embodiment may not necessarily include the particular feature, structure, or characteristic. Moreover, such phrases are not necessarily referring to the same embodiment. Further, when a particular feature, structure, or characteristic is described in connection with an embodiment, it is submitted that it is within the knowledge of one skilled in the art to affect such feature, structure, or characteristic in connection with other embodiments whether or not explicitly described.
The following examples are illustrative, but not limiting, of the present embodiments. Other suitable modifications and adaptations of the variety of conditions and parameters normally encountered in the field, and which would be apparent to those skilled in the art, are within the spirit and scope of the disclosure.
Sports equipment, such as bicycles, may be carried on vehicles, for example, by sports equipment carriers (e.g., bicycle carriers). Carriers may include straps and other attachment mechanisms that secure the sports equipment to the carrier to contribute to safe transportation of the sports equipment. To prevent theft, sports enthusiasts may want to lock the sports equipment to the carrier, in addition to attaching it with straps and other attachment mechanisms. However, loose lock cables may flop about on the carrier, which may be noisy and/or cause damage to the carrier, the sports equipment, or the vehicle.
Embodiments of the bicycle carriers 100 disclosed herein may provide a convenient locking assembly that fixes components of the locking assembly to avoid loose lock cables and other components. In some embodiments, bicycle carrier 100 may include a locking cable 210. Cable 210 may be a cable, wire, metal rope, strap, cord, chain, or other similar elongate materials. Cable 210 may be made of metal, aramid fibers (e.g., KEVLAR® available from DuPont), or other strands of material. In some embodiments, cable 210 is stowed within bicycle carrier 100 with a portion extending out of bicycle carrier 100 through a cable passageway housing 220 and ending in a lock head 214. A lock housing 200 is disposed on cable 210 and may be mounted in a lock housing anchor 230 when the locking assembly is not in use. In the mounted position, there may be no loose components.
Furthermore, in some embodiments, when a user desires to utilize the locking assembly, lock housing 200 and lock head 214 are conveniently located in a middle portion of bicycle carrier 100, which is near a portion of the frame of a bicycle 10 that may be suitable for locking (e.g., a portion of the bicycle frame that forms a closed loop). In some embodiments, lock housing 200 may be removed from lock housing anchor 230 and lock head 214 may be pulled to extract a greater portion of cable 210 from bicycle carrier 100. Cable passageway housing 220 may be angled to facilitate easier removal of cable 210 from bicycle carrier 100. In some embodiments, cable 210 is also pulled through a through-hole 202 of lock housing 200. Lock head 214 may be pulled around the bicycle frame and inserted into a lock hole 204 of lock housing 200, thereby locking bicycle 10. Again, in this employed configuration, there may be no loose components. In addition, through-hole 202 and lock hole 204 may be parallel to one another. In this configuration, lock hole 204 is facing in the same direction as a lock head side of through-hole 202 (i.e., generally upwards), which may facilitate easier insertion of lock head 214 into lock hole 204. In some embodiments, a key hole 206 to unlock bicycle 10 is disposed on an opposite end from lock hole 204. This configuration may place key hole 206 conveniently facing downwards to allow a user to more easily unlock bicycle 10.
Embodiments of bicycle carrier 100 can include one or more of the features described herein. While some features may be described in relation to a particular figure, the features can be implemented with other embodiments. Although embodiments described herein focus on bicycle carriers, concepts of embodiments described herein may also be utilized for other sports equipment (e.g., canoes, kayaks, etc.). Moreover, although a particular type of bicycle carrier may be described herein, other types of bicycle carriers 100 may also utilize concepts of embodiments described herein.
A bicycle carrier 100, as shown, for example, in
In some embodiments, bicycle wheel tray 110 may include a front wheel securement mechanism 120 and a rear wheel securement mechanism 130. In some embodiments, front wheel securement mechanism 120 may include a securement strap 122. In some embodiments, securement strap 122 can be secured into a ratcheting mechanism, as shown, for example, in
In some embodiments, rear wheel securement mechanism 130 may include a securement strap 132. In some embodiments, securement strap 132 can be secured into a ratcheting mechanism. In some embodiments, rear wheel securement mechanism 130 includes a base 136. For example, a wheel, such as a rear wheel, may rest on base 136. In some embodiments, base 136 provides a wider structure for the wheel, thus providing additional stability to bicycle 10. In some embodiments, base 136 comprises a wheel saddle.
In some embodiments, bicycle carrier 100 includes a bicycle frame securement 150. In some embodiments, bicycle frame securement 150 may be an adjustable rotatable arm having a substantially U-shaped distal end and configured to secure the frame. In some embodiments, as shown, for example, in
In some embodiments, bicycle carrier 100 includes a locking assembly for locking bicycle 10 to bicycle carrier 100. In some embodiments, the locking assembly is incorporated into bicycle carrier 100. The locking assembly may include lock housing 200, cable 210, cable passageway housing 220, and lock housing anchor 230. In some embodiments, cable 210 extends from bicycle tray 110. Thus, cable 210 may have a first end that is disposed within bicycle carrier 100 and a second end that is disposed at lock housing 200 when lock housing 200 is mounted in lock housing anchor 230. The first end of cable 210 may be disposed in a conduit 118 of bicycle tray 110 (see
The second end of cable 210 may include a lock head 214. In some embodiments, cable 210 extends through a portion of lock housing 200. For example, lock housing 200 may include a through-hole 202. In some embodiments, cable 210 may extend through through-hole 202. In some embodiments, through-hole 202 may slide along cable 210, allowing lock housing 200 to move relative to lock head 214. In some embodiments, lock head 214 prevents lock housing 200 from being completely removed from cable 210.
In some embodiments, as shown in
In some embodiments, lock housing 200 is slidably coupled with cable 210. In some embodiments, cable 210 passes through through-hole 202 of lock housing 200. In some embodiments, lock housing 200 may be removed from lock housing anchor 230 and cable 210 may be extracted from the interior of bicycle tray 110. In addition, lock housing 200 may slide along cable 210, allowing cable 210 to be pulled through lock housing 200 and around a frame of bicycle 10, as shown, for example, in
In some embodiments, cable passageway housing 220 is disposed at a middle portion of bicycle tray 110, as shown, for example, in
In some embodiments, cable passageway housing 220 may be disposed on a beveled side 116 of bicycle tray 110. For example, as shown in
In some embodiments, as shown, for example, in
In some embodiments, lock housing anchor 230 is attached to bicycle tray 110 with one or more fasteners 238, as shown, for example, in
In some embodiments, lock housing 200 includes structure to interface with lock housing anchor 230. For example, lock housing 200 may include a downward projection 208 configured to extend into indent 231 of lock housing anchor 230, as shown, for example, in
In some embodiments, to secure lock housing 200 within lock housing anchor 230, lock housing 200 may be positioned as shown in
While lock housing anchor 230 keeps lock housing 200 in the mounted position absent applied force, lock housing anchor 230 may be configured to allow a user to remove lock housing 200 from lock housing anchor 230 to lock bicycle 10 to bicycle carrier 100. In some embodiments, a release face 207 is disposed on a front surface of projection 208 to facilitate removal of lock housing 200 from lock housing anchor 230. In some embodiments, release face 207 of projection 208 may be angled, as shown in
In some embodiments, after lock housing 200 has been removed from lock housing anchor 230, lock housing 200 may be raised and cable 210 extracted from conduit 118 to facilitate locking of bicycle 10, as shown, for example, in
As shown in more detail in
In some embodiments, through-hole 202 is disposed on a side of lock housing 200. In some embodiments, through-hole 202 is disposed on a top of lock housing 200. In some embodiments, through-hole 202 has a length that is less than a length of lock housing 200. For example, through-hole 202 may be three-fourths or half the length of lock housing 200. In some embodiments, through-hole 202 is defined by a side portion of lock housing 200, as shown, for example, in
In some embodiments, lock hole 204 is defined by the main body of lock housing 200. In some embodiments, lock hole 204 is disposed adjacent to through-hole 202. In some embodiments, lock hole 204 is parallel to through-hole 202. In some embodiments, lock hole 204 and the side of through-hole 202 from which lock head 214 extends on cable 210 (i.e., the lock head side) may face in the same direction. Because cable 210 extends through through-hole 202 to surround the frame of bicycle 10, lock hole 204 and the lock head side of through-hole 202 may both be facing upwards. Thus, lock hole 204 may be facing in an ideal direction for insertion of lock head 214 into lock hole 204. In some embodiments, lock head 214 is disposed on the same side of lock housing 200 that defines lock hole 204.
In some embodiments, lock hole 204 is configured to receive lock head 214. For example,
In some embodiments, key hole 206 is disposed in the main body of lock housing 200. In some embodiments, key hole 206 is configured to receive a key to unlock lock head 214 so that lock head 214 may be removed from lock hole 204. In some embodiments, key hole 206 is disposed on an opposite end of lock housing 200 than lock hole 204. In some embodiments, key hole 206 faces an opposite direction than lock hole 204 and the lock head side of through-hole 202. In some embodiments, key hole 206 and lock hole 204 are parallel to each other. In some embodiments, key hole 206 and lock hole 204 are co-axial. In some embodiments, while lock hole 204 and the lock head side of through-hole 202 are facing upward, key hole 206 may be facing downward. Thus, key hole 206 may be facing in an ideal direction for a user to insert a key into key hole 206 to unlock bicycle 10.
With through-hole 202, lock hole 204, and key hole 206 configured as described above, locking and unlocking of bicycle 10 is better facilitated. For example, when lock housing 200 is removed from lock housing anchor 230, lock head 214 is disposed on an upper side of lock housing 200, which may facilitate a user easily wrapping lock head 214 and cable 210 around bicycle 10, as shown in
Various components of bicycle carrier 100 and its locking assembly may vary in some embodiments. For example, in some embodiments, bicycle carrier 100 may include cable passageway housing 320 and lock housing anchor 330, as shown, for example, in
In some embodiments, cable passageway housing 320 includes a fastener 322 and a passageway 324. In some embodiments, fastener 322 is similar to fastener 222 described above. In some embodiments, passageway 324 is similar to passageway 224 described above. In some embodiments, cable passageway housing 320 may also include a switch 332 to help secure lock housing 200 in lock housing anchor 330. For example, switch 332 may be configured to slide between a closed position (see
In some embodiments, switch 332 includes a lip 334. In some embodiments, lip 334 is configured to interface with a portion of lock housing 200. In some embodiments, lip 334 restricts movement of lock housing 200 in a Z direction, thus securing lock housing 200 within lock housing anchor 330.
In some embodiments, lock housing anchor 330 is attached to bicycle tray 110 with one or more fasteners 338. Fasteners 338 may be similar to fasteners 238. In some embodiments, lock housing anchor 330 may be attached to bicycle tray 110 with other suitable attachment means, such as adhesive, welding, etc. In some embodiments, lock housing anchor 330 may define an indent 331 for receiving lock housing 200. In some embodiments, lock housing anchor 330 includes a lip 336 on one end of indent 331. In some embodiments, lip 336 is configured to interface with a portion of lock housing 200. In some embodiments, lip 336 restricts movement of lock housing 200 in a Z direction, thus securing lock housing 200 within lock housing anchor 330. In some embodiments, lip 334 of switch 332 is disposed on an opposite end of indent 331 from lip 336. The distance between lip 334 and lip 336 when lip 334 is in the closed position (
In some embodiments, lock housing 200 may comprise different structure to interface with lock housing anchor 330 than the structure to interface with lock housing anchor 230 described above. For example, in some embodiments, lock housing 200 may include a downward projection 252 to extend into indent 331 of lock housing anchor 330, as shown, for example, in
In some embodiments, lock housing 200 may be inserted into lock housing anchor 330 by inserting front projection 256 into indent 331 and underneath lip 336. In some embodiments, the rear portion of lock housing 200 may be pressed down into indent 331. In some embodiments, rear projection 254 may be angled. In some embodiments, lip 334 may be angled, as shown, for example, in
In some embodiments, once lock housing 200 is disposed within lock housing anchor 330, the application of direct force on lock housing 200 (e.g., pulling up on lock housing 200) may not remove lock housing 200 from lock housing anchor 330. In some embodiments, to remove lock housing 200 from lock housing anchor 330, a user may apply force to switch 332 to move switch 332 into the open position, as shown in
It is to be appreciated that the Detailed Description section, and not the Brief Summary and Abstract sections, is intended to be used to interpret the claims. The Summary and Abstract sections may set forth one or more but not all exemplary embodiments of watercraft carriers as contemplated by the inventors, and thus, are not intended to limit the present embodiments and the appended claims in any way.
The present disclosure has been described above with the aid of functional building blocks illustrating the implementation of specified functions and relationships thereof. The boundaries of these functional building blocks have been arbitrarily defined herein for the convenience of the description. Alternate boundaries can be defined so long as the specified functions and relationships thereof are appropriately performed.
The foregoing description of the specific embodiments will so fully reveal the general nature of the invention that others can, by applying knowledge within the skill of the art, readily modify and/or adapt for various applications such specific embodiments, without undue experimentation, without departing from the general concept of the present disclosure. Therefore, such adaptations and modifications are intended to be within the meaning and range of equivalents of the disclosed embodiments, based on the teaching and guidance presented herein. It is to be understood that the phraseology or terminology herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation, such that the terminology or phraseology of the present specification is to be interpreted by the skilled artisan in light of the teachings and guidance.
The breadth and scope of the present disclosure should not be limited by any of the above-described exemplary embodiments, but should be defined only in accordance with the following claims and their equivalents.
