Patent Application
20110133428
The present invention generally relates to a bicycle, and more particularly to a steering safety mechanism for a bicycle.
With the fast raise of fuel price and the tendency of environmental conservation, as well as the prevailing of LOHAS, bicycle riding becomes more and more popular recently and is often considered an excellent way of release of living pressure. Bicycle riding not only provides the effect of exercising and entertainment, but is also good for activity between parents and children.
Referring to
Thus, it is desired to provide a steering safety mechanism for bicycles in order to alleviate the above problems and enhance bicycle riding safety. This is major challenge that the bicycle industry is currently facing.
In view of the above problem, an object of the present invention is to provide a bicycle steering safety mechanism that helps improving riding safety.
To achieve the above object, in accordance with the present invention, a steering safety mechanism is provided for a bicycle. The steering safety mechanism comprises a frame, a steering stem, at least one first fastener, at least one second fastener, and a damping element. The frame comprises a head tube portion. The steering stem is partially received through the head tube portion and the steering stem extends beyond an end of the head tube portion to connect to a front fork for coupling with a front wheel. The first fastener is attached to the frame, and the second fastener is attached to the steering stem. The damping element has a first end attached to the first fastener and a second end attached to the second fastener.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the damping element comprises a spring.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the steering safety mechanism further comprises a stop and a rotation limiting element. The stop is mounted to an outer circumference of the head tube portion of the frame, and the rotation limiting element is mounted to the steering stem to correspond to the stop, whereby when the steering stem is rotated to a predetermined angle, the stop interferes with the rotation limiting element.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the steering safety mechanism further comprises a stop and a rotation limiting element. The stop is mounted to the steering stem, and the rotation limiting element is mounted to an outer circumference of the head tube portion of the frame to correspond to the stop, whereby when the steering stem is rotated to a predetermined angle, the stop interferes with the rotation limiting element.
With the structure described above, the present invention features a damping element that is mounted to a bicycle to provide a resistance against a steering operation of the bicycle, and the greater the rotation angle of the steering operation gets, the greater the resistance provided by the damping element will be. This effectively prevents the bicycle head from over-steering that generates an excessive rotation angle due to insufficiency of the resistance, leading to lose of control of the bicycle and potential risk of hurting the rider. Further, a stop and a rotation limiting element are further included to limit the rotation angle of bicycle steering operation in order to further enhance bicycle riding safety.
The foregoing objectives and summary provide only a brief introduction to the present invention. To fully appreciate these and other objects of the present invention as well as the invention itself, all of which will become apparent to those skilled in the art, the following detailed description of the invention and the claims should be read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Throughout the specification and drawings identical reference numerals refer to identical or similar parts.
Many other advantages and features of the present invention will become manifest to those versed in the art upon making reference to the detailed description and the accompanying sheets of drawings in which a preferred structural embodiment incorporating the principles of the present invention is shown by way of illustrative example.
The following descriptions are exemplary embodiments only, and are not intended to limit the scope, applicability or configuration of the invention in any way. Rather, the following description provides a convenient illustration for implementing exemplary embodiments of the invention. Various changes to the described embodiments may be made in the function and arrangement of the elements described without departing from the scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.
With reference to
The frame 21 comprises a head tube portion 211, which is arranged between a handlebar 26 and a front fork 27. The steering stem 22 is partially received through the head tube portion 211 and is coupled to the handlebar 26 and the front fork 27.
In the instant embodiment, the first fastener 23 and the second fastener 24 are illustrated as a single element serving only as an example thereof. As shown in
The damping element 25 has a first end 251 and a second end 252. The first end 251 is connected to the first fastener 23, while the second end 252 is connected to the second fastener 24. In other wards, the first end 251 of the damping element 25 is fixed to the first fastener 23 and the second end 252 is fixed to the second fastener 24. In the instant embodiment, the damping element 25 is illustrated as a spring for an illustrative example. It is apparent that other elements or devices that exhibit similar damping effect can be used, such as a pneumatic device or a hydraulic device.
As shown in
Referring to
Further, in the instant embodiment, both sides of the frame 21 are each provided with a first fastener 23, a second fastener 24, and a damping element 25. In other words, the bicycle steering safety mechanism may comprise two sets of first fastener 23, second fastener 24, and damping element 25, which are respectively set at two opposite sides of the frame 21 to increase the effect of damping.
Referring to
Referring to
Referring to
To summarize, the present invention provides a bicycle steering safety mechanism that comprises a damping element to induce a resistance against a steering operation of a bicycle, whereby when the rotation angle gets greater, the resistance induced by the damping element becomes greater, in order to prevent excessive rotation angle of over-steering due to excessively small steering resistance that leads to losing control of bicycle and potential risk of hurting the bicycle rider. Further, a stop and a rotation limiting element are further included to limit the rotation angle of bicycle steering operation in order to further enhance bicycle riding safety
While certain novel features of this invention have been shown and described and are pointed out in the annexed claim, it is not intended to be limited to the details above, since it will be understood that various omissions, modifications, substitutions and changes in the forms and details of the device illustrated and in its operation can be made by those skilled in the art without departing in any way from the spirit of the present invention.
