The present invention relates to bicycles. More particularly, the present invention pertains to a bicycle that can be collapsed or folded for ease of transportation.
Bicycles are one of the oldest and most economical means of transportation. Although traditional bicycles are rather light weight, they cannot be easily stored or transported due to their bulkiness and size. When they are carried, shipped, or transported for a long distance, freight charges often represent a very high percentage of the relocation costs. The present invention overcomes some of these disadvantages. The invention contemplates a collapsible/folding bicycle that minimizes storage space, and enables transportation and handling to be easier and simpler.
According to an aspect of the disclosure a bicycle frame is disclosed which comprises a front frame having a top tube, a down tube, and a head tube, the top tube being attached to the head tube, and the down tube being positioned below the top tube and further being attached to the head tube;
a rear frame having a pair of spaced-apart seat stays, a pair of spaced-apart chain stays, and a bottom bracket shell, each of the seat stays and the chain stays having a rear end and a front end, the rear ends of the seat stays and the rear ends of the chain stays being connected to a rear drop out, the front end of each chain stay being connected to the bottom bracket shell, and the down tube being releasably connected to the bottom bracket shell;
a seat tube arranged between the front frame and the rear frame and coupled to the front frame and the rear frame, the seat tube having an upper tube and a lower tube, the upper tube and the lower tube being selectively rotatable with respect to one another, the upper tube being connected to the top tube, the lower tube being connected to the front end of the seat stays, and the bottom bracket shell being connected to the lower tube;
wherein the bicycle frame is adapted to be configured in a first position or a second position, in the first position the front frame is positioned forwardly of the seat tube, and in the second position the front frame is rotated rearwardly of the seat tube, wherein the bicycle frame is moved from the first position to the second position by disconnecting the down tube from the bottom bracket shell and rotating the upper tube of the seat tube with respect to the lower tube of the seat tube.
The bicycle frame can optionally include a locking clip for selectively securing the upper tube of the seat tube to the lower tube of the seat tube to thereby restrict rotation therebetween, the locking clip includes a crank lock that is adapted to move between a lock position and an unlock position.
The bicycle frame can further optionally include wherein the down tube includes a frame engagement section including a transverse hole, and the bottom bracket shell includes a stem having a pair of spaced-apart flanges, each of the flanges have a though hole which is aligned with one another and oriented axially with the transverse hold of the frame engagement section, wherein the down tube and the bottom bracket shell are connected to one another by inserting the frame engagement section between the flanges so that the transverse hole aligns with both of the through holes, and then inserting a locking pin through the through holes and the transverse hole.
Optionally, the locking pin is a clevis pin.
The bicycle frame can alternatively and optionally include a locking coupler for selectively securing the upper tube of the seat tube to the lower tube of the seat tube to thereby restrict rotation therebetween, the locking coupler having a male coupler and a female coupler, the male coupler including a plurality of tongue members, and the female coupler including a plurality of grooves, the tongue members and the grooves being dimensioned so that the tongue members are arranged inside the grooves to prevent rotation between the upper tube and the lower tube.
According to another embodiment, there is disclosed a bicycle frame comprising a front frame having a top tube, a down tube, and a head tube, the top tube being attached to the head tube, and the down tube being positioned below the top tube and further being attached to the head tube;
a rear frame having a pair of spaced-apart seat stays, a pair of spaced-apart chain stays, a seat tube, and a bottom bracket shell, each of the seat stays and the chain stays having a rear end and a front end, the rear ends of the seat stays and the rear ends of the chain stays being connected to a rear drop out, the front end of each chain stay being connected to the bottom bracket shell, the front end of each seat stay being connected to the seat tube;
the down tube being releasably connected to the bottom bracket shell, and the top tube being rotatably connected to the seat tube;
wherein the bicycle frame is adapted to be configured in a first position or a second position, in the first position the front frame is positioned forwardly of the seat tube, and in the second position the front frame is rotated rearwardly of the seat tube, wherein the bicycle frame is moved from the first position to the second position by disconnecting the down tube from the bottom bracket shell and rotating the top tube about the seat tube.
The bicycle frame can optionally include a rotation bracket having a first half portion and a second half portion, the first half portion being fixedly engaged with a rear end of the top tube, and the second half portion partially surrounding the seat tube and engaged with the first half portion and the seat tube, the first half portion and the second half portion define an elongated channel through which the seat tube extends, the first half portion and the second half portion are fixedly attached together at a first lateral end, and the first half portion and the second half portion are secured together at a second lateral end.
Optionally, the first half portion and the second half portion are secured together using a locking fastener having a crank lever that is adapted to move between a lock position and an unlock position in which the crank lever tightens the locking fastener such that the first half portion and the second half portion are tightly engaged with each other around the seat tube to prevent the top tube from sliding or rotating relative to the seat tube.
For a more complete understanding of the present invention, reference is made to the following detailed description and accompanying drawings. In the drawings, like reference characters refer to like parts throughout the views in which:
Referring to
The front frame 104 is adapted to be displaced between a first position and a second position relative to the rear frame 106. In the first position, the front frame 104 is arranged forwardly of the seat tube 108 and allows the bicycle 100 to be ridden by a user. And while in the second position, the front frame 104 is arranged rearwardly of the seat tube 108 such that the front frame 104 and the rear frame 106 are folded toward one another to allow easy storage and transportation of the bicycle 100.
The front frame 104 includes a top tube 110, a down tube 112, and a head tube 114, while the rear frame 106 include seat stays 116 and chain stays 118. The rear frame 106, also includes a bottom bracket shell 120 arranged downwardly, or at a lower end, of the seat tube 108 and connected to the seat tube 108. As shown, the rear frame 106 includes two chain stays 118 and two seat stays 116, on opposite sides of a rear wheel 126, with the rear ends of the seat stays 118 and the chain stays 118 being connected to a rear drop out 128 that engages an axle on the rear wheel 126. The frame 102 may be formed from any suitable type of material which is well known in the art, such as aluminum, steel, carbon fiber material, or other conventional materials. A seat 130 is mounted on a seat post 132 that is mounted to the upper end of the seat tube 108, with the seat post 132 fitting downwardly inside a hollow upper seat tube of the seat tube 108.
Furthermore, the bicycle 100 includes a handlebar assembly 140 having a handlebar 142 and a handlebar mount 144 mounted on an upper end of the head tube 114, with the handlebar mount 144 being rotatably mounted on bearings in an open upper end of the head tube 114. A fork assembly 146 is provided which has a pair of spaced-apart forks 148 arranged on each side of a front wheel 150 and connected to the front wheel 150 and a fork steerer tube (not shown) extending upwardly into the interior of head tube 114, where it operably engages with the handlebar mount 144.
In an embodiment, the bicycle 100 is powered by a conventional pedal mechanism attached to the bottom bracket shell 120 at the lower end of the seat tube 108. Alternatively, the bicycle 100 may be powered by an electric motor and an electric battery (not shown) connected to the pedal mechanism. The electric motor and the electric battery may be arranged inside a housing connected to and supported by the seat tube 108. Alternatively, the electric motor may be secured directly to the bottom bracket shell 120, and the electric battery may be secured to (either directly or via a bracket) the down tube 112. Due to the arcuate structure of the down tube 112, at least a portion of the electric battery may be positioned below the axles of the front wheel 150 and the rear wheel 126, thereby lowering the center of gravity of the bicycle 100.
Referring back to
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Further, the tube engagement section 162 has a cross shape, the cross shape having a large vertical rectangular prism portion 176 with “T”-shaped arms 178 extending from both sides of the middle of the prism portion 176. Arms 178 comprise outwardly extending legs 179 and vertical flanges 180. The tube engagement section 162 also includes two screw holes 182 for facilitating a coupling of the tube engagement section 162 with the down tube via fasteners.
As shown in
To engage the down tube 112 with the stem 156, the tube engagement section 162 of the connector 152 is inserted inside the down tube 112 and is attached with the down tube 112 by inserting the screws into the screw holes 182 of the tube engagement section 162 of the connector 152 through aligned holes (not shown) of the down tube 112. The tube engagement section 162 is engaged with the down tube 112 such that such that indentation 166 in the frame engagement section 160 is oriented downwardly. Thereafter, the frame engagement section 160 is positioned inside the gap 186 such that the pin 188 is inserted inside the indentation 166 and the transverse hole 170 of the frame engagement section 160 is aligned with the through holes 190 of the two flanges 184. Subsequently, the locking pin 174 is inserted through the through holes 190 and the transverse hole 170 to engage or couple the frame engagement section 160 with the stem 156. In this manner, the down tube 112 is removably connected to the head tube 114.
A connector 152 can optionally be secured to the rear end 157 of the down tube 112, and the seat tube 108 or the bottom bracket shell 120 can optionally include a stem 156 having two flanges 184 extending upwardly and forwardly therefrom. The connector 152, the stem 156 and all of the related structure discussed above to secure the down tube 112 to the head tube 114 can also be used to secure the rear end 157 of the down tube 112 to the seat tube 108 or the bottom bracket shell 120.
Referring to
Referring to
Although the tongue members 306 and the grooves 308 are shown in the drawings with dimensions such that the tongue members 306 and the grooves 308 are relatively narrow, the tongue members 306 and the grooves 308 may alternatively be dimensioned such that the width of each tongue member 306 may be approximately equal to the distance on the female coupling 304 between the grooves 308. As such, the tongue members 306 and the grooves 308 may accordingly having a sinusoidal geometry whereby the male coupling 302 and the female coupling 304 have the same or similar shapes which are complementary and mate with one another, such as the areas above and below a sine wave.
Shown in
A method of folding of the bicycle 100 is now explained. The method includes disconnecting the down tube 112 from the to the seat tube 108 or the bottom bracket shell 120. A rider disengages the frame engagement section 160 from the stem 156 by removing the locking pin 174 from the transverse hole 170 and through holes 190. Afterwards, or otherwise, the rider may loosen the locking clip 204 by moving the crank lock 206 to the unlock position or may disengage the male coupling 302 from the female coupling 304 to enable a rotation of the upper tube 200 relative to the lower tube 202. Thereafter, the front frame 104 is moved to the second position by rotating the upper tube 200 relative to lower tube 202, thereby folding the bicycle 100.
Referring to
itube rather than two tubes as in the bicycle frame 102. Also, a top tube 110′ of the bicycle frame 102′ is pivotally or rotatably connected to the seat tube 108′ at a position below the connection between the seat tube 108′ and the seat stays 116. To enable a rotational engagement of the top tube 110′ with the seat tube 108′, the frame 102′ includes a rotation bracket 400 having a first half portion 402 fixedly engaged with a rear end of the top tube 110′, and a second half portion 404 partially surrounding the seat tube 108′ and engaged with the first half portion 402 and the seat tube 108′. The first half portion 402 and the second half portion 404 together define an elongated channel 406 through which the seat tube 108′ extends. In an embodiment, first lateral ends 408, 410 of the two half portions 402, 404, respectively, are fixedly attached to each other, while second lateral ends 412, 414 of the two half portions 402, 404, respectively, are secured together using a locking fastener 420 having a crank lever 422 that is cammed and adapted to move between a lock position and an unlock position.
In the lock position, the crank lever 422 tightens the locking fastener 420 such that the two half portions 402, 404 are tightly engaged with each other around the seat tube 108′ to prevent the rotation and sliding of the top tube 110′ relative to the seat tube 108′. While in the unlock position of the crank lever 422, the locking fastener 420 is loosened to allow the rotational motion of the top tube 110′ relative to the seat tube 108′ while keeping the top tube 110′ engaged with the seat tube 108′. To move a front frame 104′ of the frame 102′ to the second position relative to the second frame 106′, the down tube is disengaged from the seat tube 108 by disengaging the frame engagement section 160 from the stem 156. Thereafter, the locking fastener 420 is loosened by moving the crank lever 422 to the unlock position.
Subsequently, the front frame 104′ is moved to the second position by rotating the top tube 110′ relative to the seat tube 108′. Furthermore, the rotation bracket 400 defines a cut-out 424 adapted to receive an alignment structure 426 to facilitate a correct position of the top tube 110′ on the seat tube 108′ in the first position of the front frame 104′. In an embodiment, the alignment structure 426 is a protrusion extending radially outwardly from the seat tube 108′. In the first position of the front frame 104′, the alignment structure 426 is arranged, partially, inside the cut-out 424.
It should be appreciated that the collapsible frames 102 and 102′ of the bicycle 100 have substantial benefits for shipping the bicycle 100 in bulk from a manufacturing location to a distribution center and/or retail location. This additionally has benefits directly to a user who can minimize the amount of space required to store their bicycle 100 when not in use. Furthermore, this makes it much easier for a user to transport their own bicycle 100, such as in the trunk of their vehicle. It is well known that bicycles are often transported by automobiles on a bicycle stand or rack, which is located on the exterior of the vehicle, typically on a roof rack, secured to the rear of the vehicle, or secured to a hitch-mounted stand. The collapsible frame 102 disclosed herein makes it much easier for the bicycle 100 to fit into the trunk or rear storage area of many automobiles. Not only is this easier, but it also allows the user to not have to additionally purchase a bicycle stand or rack. Furthermore, stowing the bicycle 100 inside the vehicle also protects the bicycle 100 from the elements and potential damage while traveling outside the vehicle. Lastly, this also provides greater security to the safekeeping of the bicycle 100 while the vehicle and the exteriorly stored bicycle 100 are left unattended.
It should be understood that the foregoing description is only illustrative of the aspects of the disclosed embodiments. Various alternatives and modifications can be devised by those skilled in the art without departing from the aspects of the disclosed embodiments. Accordingly, the aspects of the disclosed embodiments are intended to embrace all such alternatives, modifications, and variances that fall within the scope of the appended specification.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Nos. 63/158,212, which was filed on Mar. 8, 2021, and 63/190,935, which was filed May 20, 2021, the disclosures of which is hereby incorporated by reference.
Number | Date | Country | |
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63190935 | May 2021 | US | |
63158212 | Mar 2021 | US |