CN111071380A

CN111071380A - Manually-driven watercraft or land vehicle

Info

Publication number: CN111071380A
Application number: CN201910195895.1A
Authority: CN
Inventors: J·陈
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2018-10-18
Filing date: 2019-03-15
Publication date: 2020-04-28

Abstract

A human powered watercraft or land vehicle is described herein. A boat or land vehicle may have two pedals that reciprocate, either in a linear or slightly curved trajectory, but not in a circular motion. When the two pedals are reciprocated, the output shaft is rotated in a clockwise or counterclockwise direction when the left pedal is pushed forward or the right pedal is pushed forward. The output shaft may be connected to a propeller of a watercraft or land vehicle in order to propel the watercraft or land vehicle forward. The output shaft may receive rotational input through two gears mounted to the output shaft via one-way bearings that enable the output shaft to rotate in the same direction regardless of whether the left or right pedal is pushed forward.

Description

Manually-driven watercraft or land vehicle

And (3) re-declaring: not applicable to federally sponsored research/development.

Background

One aspect of the various embodiments described herein relates to an apparatus for powering a small, human-powered watercraft or land vehicle with reciprocating pedaling motion.

Small, manually driven watercraft are powered by a user stepping on with his or her feet, much like a person stepping on a bicycle pedal. The user may sit down with his or her feet oriented generally horizontally to the upper surface of the water. When the user steps on the pedal, the user's foot must be lifted to complete the circular stepping motion. Unfortunately, the user will have to lift his feet and become bored. Other drawbacks exist in the prior art.

Accordingly, there is a need in the art for an improved apparatus for propelling a small human-powered watercraft or land vehicle.

Disclosure of Invention

The various aspects and embodiments described herein address the above-described, below-discussed, and deficiencies known in the art.

The device may be mounted on a small human powered boat or land vehicle. The device may be used to rotate the output shaft when the user reciprocally steps the left and right foot pedals in a linear manner or through a partial circular motion rather than a 360 ° circular motion. When the left pedal is pushed forward, the output shaft rotates in a first direction. In addition, when the right pedal is pushed forward, the output shaft also rotates in the first direction. Two one-way bearings in the device allow the user to transmit rotational motion to the output shaft in the same direction during the forward stroke of the left pedal and the forward stroke of the right pedal. The device may also be mounted to a small human powered land vehicle in order to rotate the wheels of the land vehicle to move the land vehicle forward.

More specifically, a human powered vehicle is disclosed that is operable to rotate a propeller or rotate a wheel by reciprocating left and right pedals. The vehicle may include the following components: a frame; a left pedal operable to reciprocate linearly or through a partially curved trajectory; a right pedal operable to reciprocate linearly or through a partially curved trajectory; a left rack attached to the left pedal such that the reciprocating left pedal reciprocates the left rack; a right rack attached to the right pedal such that the reciprocating right pedal reciprocates the right rack; a left shaft; a right shaft; a left pinion engaged with the left rack such that the left pinion reciprocates through the left rack, the left pinion being attached to the left shaft; a right pinion engaged with the right rack such that the right pinion reciprocates through the right rack, the right pinion being attached to the right shaft; a left bevel gear attached to the left shaft; a right bevel gear attached to the right shaft; a main shaft; an upper one-way bearing; an upper bevel gear attached to the main shaft by an upper one-way bearing; a lower one-way bearing; a lower bevel gear attached to the main shaft by a lower unidirectional bearing; a gear box attached to the frame, the gear box having an input shaft operable to rotate the output shaft and an output shaft, the main shaft coupled to the input shaft; and a propeller or wheel is attached to the output shaft.

The upper and lower one-way bearings may be attached to the main shaft, engage the shaft in the same rotational direction and freely rotate in opposite rotational directions.

A propeller may be attached to the output shaft instead of the wheels. Alternatively, wheels instead of propellers may be attached to the output shaft.

The linear reciprocating motion of the left and right pedals may be straight or curved and not be 360 ° of a circle.

The left and right racks may be straight.

The left and right racks may be rotatably attached to the frame.

In another aspect, a human powered vehicle is disclosed that is operable to turn a propeller or rotate a wheel by linearly reciprocating left and right pedals. The vehicle may include the following components: a frame of a human powered vehicle; a main shaft; a left pedal operable to reciprocate linearly or through a partially curved trajectory and transmit rotation to the main shaft; a right pedal operable to reciprocate linearly or through a partially curved trajectory and transmit rotation to the spindle; an upper one-way bearing; an upper transmission attached to the main shaft by an upper one-way bearing; a lower one-way bearing; a lower transmission attached to the main shaft by a lower one-way bearing; a gear box attached to the frame, the gear box having an input shaft operable to rotate the output shaft and an output shaft, the main shaft coupled to the input shaft; and a propeller or wheel is attached to the output shaft of the gearbox.

The frame of the vehicle may be a land vehicle frame. Alternatively, the frame of the vehicle may be a human powered watercraft frame.

In another aspect, a method for propelling a small human-powered vehicle is disclosed. The method may comprise the steps of: pushing the left pedal forward, rather than in a circular motion, to rotate a first bearing or pulley attached to the output shaft in a first rotational direction; positively engaging the output shaft with a first one-way bearing for mounting the first bearing or sheave to the output shaft, the first one-way bearing allowing free rotation in a second opposite rotational direction but not in the first rotational direction; rotating the output shaft through the first bearing and the first one-way bearing during the step of pushing the left pedal; pushing the right pedal forward, rather than in a circular motion, to rotate a second bearing or pulley attached to the output shaft in a first rotational direction; positively engaging the output shaft with a second one-way bearing for mounting a second bearing or pulley to the output shaft, the second one-way bearing allowing free rotation in a second opposite rotational direction rather than in the first rotational direction; rotating the output shaft through the second bearing and the second one-way bearing during the step of pushing the right pedal; when the left pedal is pushed forward and when the right pedal is pushed forward, rotational energy is transmitted to the propeller or the wheels.

The human-powered vehicle may be a boat and may rotate the propeller while pushing the left and right pedals forward. Alternatively, the human-powered vehicle may be a land vehicle, and the wheels may be rotated while the left and right pedals are pushed forward.

Drawings

These and other features and advantages of the various embodiments of the present disclosure will be better understood with reference to the following description and drawings, in which like numbers refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

FIG. 1 is a partial cross-sectional elevation view of an apparatus for propelling a small human-powered watercraft or land vehicle;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional top view of the device shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional right side view of the device shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional right side view of the device shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of the device;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional right side view of the device shown in FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the apparatus shown in FIG. 6 with the housing and propeller removed therefrom;

FIG. 8 is a top view of the device shown in FIG. 6;

FIG. 9 is a top plan view of the apparatus shown in FIG. 6, showing only the first of the two drive belts for driving the propeller shaft hidden from view;

FIG. 10 is a top plan view of the apparatus shown in FIG. 6, showing only the second of the two belts driving the propeller shaft hidden from view;

FIG. 11 is an enlarged top view of two drive belts driving the propeller shaft;

FIG. 12 is an enlarged perspective view of two drive belts for driving the propeller shaft;

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of a third embodiment of the device;

FIG. 14 is a perspective view of the device shown in FIG. 13 with a portion of the housing removed therefrom;

FIG. 15 is a right side view of the device shown in FIG. 13 with the housing removed therefrom;

FIG. 16 is a top view of the device shown in FIG. 15;

FIG. 17 is a perspective view of the device shown in FIG. 15;

FIG. 18 is a top plan view of the arrangement shown in FIG. 15, showing a first drive belt and a first driven belt rotating the propeller shaft;

FIG. 19 is a top plan view of the device shown in FIG. 13, showing the belt under tension;

FIG. 20 is a top plan view of the arrangement shown in FIG. 13, showing a second drive belt and a second driven belt rotating the propeller shaft; and

fig. 21 shows a perspective view of the first and second driven belts rotating the propeller shaft.

Detailed Description

Referring now to the drawings, there is shown an apparatus 10 for rotating an output shaft 12 to power a propeller 14 of a small human driven watercraft or the wheels of a small human driven land vehicle. Device 10 allows a person to reciprocally push left foot pedal 16 and right foot pedal 18. The pushing strokes of left and

right foot pedals

16 and 18 rotate output shaft 12 in the same direction so that propeller 14 can push a small human-driven watercraft forward or rotate the wheels of a small human-driven land vehicle and push the vehicle forward. Pushing the left pedal 16 does not cause the output shaft 12 to rotate in the opposite direction compared to pushing the right pedal 18. This is achieved by a first one-way bearing 20 and a second one-way bearing 22, the first one-way bearing 20 and the second one-way bearing 22 being positively engaged to the output shaft 12 to provide rotation to the output shaft 12 in the same direction. The first one-way bearing 20 is actively engaged to provide rotation to the output shaft 12 when the left pedal 16 is pushed forward and the second one-way bearing 22 is actively engaged to provide rotation to the output shaft 12 when the right pedal 18 is pushed forward, or alternatively, the first one-way bearing 20 is actively engaged to provide rotation to the output shaft 12 when the right pedal 18 is pushed forward and the second one-way bearing 22 is actively engaged to provide rotation when the left pedal 16 is pushed forward. The output shaft 12 may be connected to a transmission case 24, the transmission case 24 converting the rotational motion of the output shaft 12 into usable energy. For example, as shown in fig. 1, the propeller 14 may be attached to the transmission case 24 and receive the rotational energy of the output shaft 12, such that the propeller 14 rotates and the small human-driven watercraft moves forward or in the direction of the propeller 14. Alternatively, the wheels of the small human-powered land vehicle may be attached to a gearbox that is attached to the output shaft 12 to receive the rotational energy of the output shaft 12 such that the wheels rotate and the small human-powered land vehicle moves forward or in the rotational direction of the wheels. For example, the device 10a may be mounted to the frame of a bicycle or the frame of one or more wheeled human powered land vehicles. The pedals of the device may be aligned so that the user may use his/her foot to reciprocate the pedals up and down. The pedals 16a, 18a may rotate an output shaft in the device 10a as the pedals 16a, 18a are advanced up and down. The output shaft of the device 10a is connected to a transmission housing 24 a. The output shaft of the transmission box 24a may be connected to the wheels of a wheeled human powered land vehicle to rotate the wheels and propel the land vehicle forward.

The small manually driven watercraft may be a canoe, a single or double pedal boat, or a pedal kayak, etc. The small human-powered vehicle may be a bicycle, an elliptical bicycle, or the like.

Referring now to fig. 1, there is shown a cross-sectional elevation view of the apparatus 10 and gearbox 24 that may be used on a small, human-powered watercraft. The device 10 may have a left pedal 16 and a right pedal 18. The left and

right pedals

16 and 18 may be spaced apart by a distance 25 approximately equal to or slightly greater than the shoulder width. For example, the distance 26 may be between 10 inches and 30 inches, and preferably between 17 inches and 25 inches. As shown in fig. 2 and 3, left pedal 16 and right pedal 18 may be pushed in direction 26. When the left pedal 16 is pushed forward in direction 26, the right pedal 18 travels backward in direction 28 through a series of gears in the device 10. When the right pedal 18 is fully advanced rearward, the right pedal 18 may now be pushed forward in the direction 26. When the right pedal 18 is pushed in the direction 26, the left pedal 16 is pushed fully rearward in the direction 28 by a series of gears in the device 10. Each time the user pushes on either the left pedal 16 or the right pedal 18, the output shaft 12 of the device 10 rotates in the same rotational direction, and thus the propeller 14 or the wheels, via the gear box 24, also rotate in the same direction. Although the description describes the

pedals

16, 18 as being fully depressed forward or fully advanced rearward before one of the

pedals

16, 18 is depressed forward, the device 10 operates to rotate the output shaft 12 in the same direction even if the stroke of the

pedals

16, 18 is shortened.

Left pedal 16 and right pedal 18 may be attached to left rack 30 and right rack 32. The left and right racks may have teeth that receive the

first gears

34, 36. As

racks

30, 32 reciprocate in

directions

26, 28, gears 34, 36 rotationally reciprocate in clockwise and counterclockwise directions about rotational axis 38. When the left pedal 16 is pushed forward in the direction 26, the gear 34 rotates in a counterclockwise direction from the view shown in FIG. 3. Right foot pedal 18 is advanced rearward in direction 28 by a series of gears in device 10. Gear 36 rotates in a clockwise direction from the view shown in fig. 3 to push right rack 32 and foot pedal 18 in rearward direction 28. Conversely, when the right pedal 18 is pushed forward in the direction 26, the gear 36 rotates in a counterclockwise direction from the view shown in FIG. 3. Left foot pedal 16 travels rearward in direction 28 through a series of gears in device 10. The gear 34 rotates in a clockwise direction, as viewed in fig. 3, to urge the left rack 30 and the foot board 16 in the rearward direction 28.

Gear 34 and gear 38 may be fixed to each other such that rotation of gear 38 rotates gear 34 and vice versa. To this end, gear 34 and gear 38 may be pinned or rotationally fixed to shaft 42. The shaft 42 may rotate within a bearing 46, and the bearing 46 may be mounted in a housing 50. Similarly, gear 36 and gear 40 may be fixed to each other such that rotation of gear 36 rotates gear 40 and vice versa. To this end, gear 36 and gear 40 may be pinned or rotationally fixed to shaft 44. Shaft 44 may rotate within bearings 48, and bearings 48 may be mounted in housing 50. The

shafts

42, 44 may each define an axis of rotation and the axes of rotation of the

shafts

42, 44 may be coaxially aligned with one another.

Gear 52 and bevel gear 54 may be mounted to shaft 56. Also, the gear 52 and the bevel gear 54 may be rotationally fixed to each other such that rotation of either of the gear 52, 54 rotates the other of the gear 54, 52. Additionally, gear 58 and bevel gear 60 may be mounted to shaft 62. Also, the gear 58 and the bevel gear 60 may be rotationally fixed to each other such that rotation of either of the gear 58, 60 rotates the other of the gear 60, 58. Shaft 56 and shaft 62 may be mounted to housing 50 by

bearings

64, 66.

The output shaft 12 may be disposed between the bevel gears 54, 60. Further, each of the bevel gears 54, 60 may engage a first bevel gear 68 and a second bevel gear 70, the first bevel gear 68 and the second bevel gear 70 being mounted to the output shaft 12 by a first one-way bearing 20 and a second one-way bearing 22. By way of example and not limitation, the one-way bearings 20, 22 may be mounted to the output shaft 12 such that when the one-way bearings 20, 22 rotate in a counterclockwise direction, the one-way bearings 20, 22 are free to rotate, but when the one-way bearings 20, 22 rotate in a clockwise direction from the view shown in fig. 2, the one-way bearings 20, 22 are engaged. In this way, when each of left and

right foot pedals

16 and 18 is reciprocally pushed at different times in the direction of arrow 26, output shaft 12 rotates only in the clockwise direction (see fig. 2), regardless of which of pedal 16 and pedal 18 is pushed forward 26. Conversely, the one-way bearings 20, 22 may be mounted to the output shaft 12 such that when the one-way bearings 20, 22 rotate in a clockwise direction, the one-way bearings 20, 22 are free to rotate, but when the one-way bearings 20, 22 rotate in a clockwise direction from the view shown in fig. 2, the one-way bearings 20, 22 are engaged. In this way, when each of left and

right foot pedals

16 and 18 is reciprocally pushed at different times in the direction of arrow 26, the output shaft is rotated only in the counterclockwise direction (see fig. 2) regardless of which of pedal 16 and pedal 18 is pushed forward. For purposes of discussion, the one-way bearings 20, 22 are discussed as if they were mounted to the output shaft 12 such that the one-way bearings 20, 22 are engaged when the one-way bearings 20, 22 are rotating in a clockwise direction, but the one-way bearings 20, 22 may be mounted such that engagement occurs during counterclockwise rotation.

When a user desires to propel a small human-powered watercraft or small human-powered vehicle forward, the user begins to reciprocate left foot pedal 16 and right foot pedal 18 back and forth in

directions

26, 28. The user may push pedal 16 in direction 26 causing gear 34 to rotate in a counterclockwise direction.

Gears

38, 34 are mounted to a common shaft 42 such that counterclockwise rotation of gear 34 also causes counterclockwise rotation of gear 38. Gear 38 rotates gear 52 in a clockwise direction. Gear 52 and gear 54 are rotationally fixed to shaft 56 such that clockwise rotation of gear 52 also rotates bevel gear 54 in a clockwise direction. A first bevel gear 68 and a second bevel gear 70 are engaged with the bevel gear 54. Rotation of bevel gear 54 in the clockwise direction causes first bevel gear 68 to rotate in clockwise direction 72, as shown in FIG. 2. The second bevel gear 70 rotates in a counterclockwise direction 74. The first bevel gear 68 is mounted to the first one-way bearing 20. Since the first bevel gear 68 is rotating in a clockwise direction, so is the first one-way bearing 20. The first one-way bearing is positively engaged to the output shaft 12. The first bevel gear 68 rotates the output shaft 12 in a clockwise direction via the first one-way bearing 20. The first bevel gear 68 forces the output shaft 12 to rotate. The second bevel gear 70 rotates in the counterclockwise direction, so does the second one-way bearing 22. The second bevel gear 70 is free to rotate due to the second one-way bearing.

First gear 68 and second gear 70 are also engaged with bevel gear 60. Clockwise rotation of the first bevel gear 68 and counterclockwise rotation of the second bevel gear 70 causes the bevel gear 60 to rotate in a counterclockwise direction from the view shown in FIG. 3. Bevel gear 60 and gear 58 are rotationally fixed to each other on shaft 62 such that gear 58 also rotates in a counterclockwise direction. The counterclockwise rotation of gear 58 rotates gear 40 in a clockwise direction. Gear 36 is pinned to shaft 44 as is gear 40 so that rack 32 travels in rearward direction 28. The foot pedal 18 is pushed rearward. When left foot pedal 16 is pushed fully forward, right foot pedal 18 is pushed fully rearward.

The user may now reciprocate left foot pedal 16 and right foot pedal 18. The user may push right foot pedal 18 in direction 26 which rotates gear 36 in a counterclockwise direction. Gear 40 is mounted to common shaft 44 as is gear 36 such that counterclockwise rotation of gear 36 also causes gear 42 to rotate in a counterclockwise direction. Gear 40 rotates gear 58 in a clockwise direction. Gear 60 and gear 58 are rotationally fixed to shaft 62 such that clockwise rotation of gear 58 also rotates gear 60 in a clockwise direction. A first bevel gear 68 and a second bevel gear 70 are engaged with the bevel gear 60. Rotation of bevel gear 54 in a clockwise direction rotates first bevel gear 68 in a counterclockwise direction 74 from the view shown in fig. 2. The second bevel gear 70 rotates in a clockwise direction 72. As described above, the first bevel gear 68 is mounted to the first one-way bearing 20. This is true of the first one-way bearing since the first bevel gear 68 is being rotated in the counterclockwise direction. The first bevel gear is free to rotate in a counterclockwise direction about the output shaft 12 by means of the first one-way bearing 20. The second bevel gear 70 rotates in a clockwise direction, and so does the second one-way bearing 22. In this regard, the second bevel gear forces the output shaft 12 to rotate in a clockwise direction through the second one-way bearing 22. In this regard, whenever a user pushes either of first or

second foot pedals

16, 18 in direction 26, output shaft 12 rotates in a clockwise direction.

Because the first gear 68 and the second gear 70 are also engaged with the bevel gear 54, counterclockwise rotation of the first bevel gear 68 and clockwise rotation of the second bevel gear 70 cause the bevel gear 54 to rotate in a counterclockwise direction from the view shown in FIG. 3. Bevel gear 54 and gear 52 are rotationally fixed to each other on shaft 56 such that gear 52 also rotates in a counterclockwise direction. The counterclockwise rotation of gear 52 rotates gear 38 in a clockwise direction. Gear 34 is pinned to shaft 42 as is gear 38 so that rack 32 moves in the direction of arrow 28. The foot pedal 16 is pushed rearward. When right foot pedal 18 is pushed fully forward, left foot pedal 16 is pushed fully rearward.

When the user pushes the

foot pedals

16, 18 forward in a reciprocating motion, the output shaft 12 receives rotational power to rotate in a clockwise direction to drive a propeller for a small human-driven watercraft or a small human-driven land vehicle on both forward strokes of the left and

right foot pedals

16, 18.

Referring now to fig. 4, the apparatus 10 may be mounted to the hull 80 of a small, human-powered watercraft. The output shaft 12 may be connected to an input shaft 82 of the transmission 24. The output shaft 12 and the input shaft 82 may be connected to each other by a flexible coupling 84 so that any misalignment between the input shaft 82 and the output shaft 12 does not impair the transmission of rotational power from the output shaft 12 to the input shaft 82. Rotation of input shaft 82 also rotates bevel gears 86 and 88. The output shaft 90 is rotated by the rotation of the bevel gear 88. The propeller 14 may be mounted to the output shaft 90.

The gear box 24 may be mounted to a rotatable cylinder 87 that may protrude through the hull 80 of a small, human-powered watercraft. The gear box 24 may be secured to the rotatable cylinder 87 such that rotation of the rotatable cylinder 87 also rotates the gear box 24 and the propeller. The rotatable cylinder 87 may be rotated about a vertical axis, which may be coaxially aligned with the axis of rotation of the output shaft 12. The user may rotate the direction of the propeller 14 using the handle 92. The handle 92 rotates the rod 94. The rod 94 rotates the gear 96, which in turn rotates the gear 98 and the gear 100. The rotatable cylinder 87 may be physically secured to the gear 100 such that the rotatable cylinder 87 rotates in the same direction as the gear 100. If the user wants to propel the small, manually-driven watercraft in the opposite direction, the user can rotate the handle 92 until the propeller is on the opposite side. The user can rotate the handle 92 to direct the small, manually-driven watercraft to the left and right by reorienting the propeller in the appropriate direction.

The output shaft 12 may be oriented in a generally vertical direction. Further, as described above, the rotatable cylinder 87 may be coaxially aligned with the output shaft 12. The output shaft 12 and rotatable cylinder 87 may also be oriented in a substantially perpendicular direction relative to the surface of the water. In this regard, the propeller 14 may also provide propulsion in a 360 ° direction of the propeller 14 about the output shaft 12 as the rotatable cylinder 87 rotates. In this regard, the propeller may be rotated 180 ° so that a small human-driven watercraft may be propelled backwards. Furthermore, it is contemplated that stops may be provided in the system such that the propeller 14 and the gearbox 24 may rotate through a limited range of angles (such as 90 °, 70 °, 60 °, 50 °, 45 ° from center). The center is the position of the propeller 14 that causes the small, human-driven watercraft to be propelled directly forward.

The apparatus 10, the gearbox 24 and the system for rotating the gearbox 24 to direct the propeller in a certain direction to propel a small watercraft in a certain direction have been described in terms of utilizing gears. However, it is also contemplated that power transmission may be accomplished using fixed and continuously variable belts and pulleys (e.g., continuously variable transmissions). By way of example and not limitation, the transmission of rotational motion between the gears 96, 98 may also be achieved by replacing the gears 96, 98 with pulleys 96a, 98a and attaching a transmission belt between the pulleys 96a, 98 a. The

gears

40, 48 and 38, 52 can be replaced by pulleys and belts attached between the pulleys 40a, 58a, 38a, 52a to transmit the rotary motion. All or only some of the gears may be replaced with pulleys and belts mounted to the pulleys to transmit the rotational motion.

Referring now to fig. 3, racks 30, 32 are shown as linear spur racks 30, 32. The

racks

30, 32 engage the

gears

34, 36. However, it is also contemplated that the

racks

30, 32 may be curved and engage the

gears

34, 32. Although the

racks

30, 32 may be curved, the

pedals

16, 18 do not travel through a 360 ° circular motion but only a portion of 360 °. In this manner, the rotational movement of the

pedals

16, 18 may have a radius greater than would be accommodated if the

pedals

16, 18 traveled through a 360 ° circular movement. By allowing the flexion reciprocating movement of the

pedals

16, 18, a more ergonomic movement may be designed to accommodate the biomechanical aspects of the user. For example, when a user moves his or her feet forward and back, the knees rotate around the hips and there is both forward and vertical motion at the knees of the user. The curved racks 30a, 32a may have a radius to account for natural vertical motion due to the biomechanics of the human body.

Referring now to fig. 5-21, there is shown a second and third embodiment of the device, which is a belt drive, as compared to the gear drive shown in fig. 1-4. However, it is also contemplated that the device may be driven by a combination of gear(s) and belt(s).

Referring now to fig. 5-12, a second embodiment of the device 10 is shown. The apparatus 100 is described with respect to fig. 5-12. Instead of the bevel gears shown in the embodiments shown in fig. 1-4, the apparatus 100 may use one or more double-sided timing belts. The system of drive belts may include a main drive belt 102 (see fig. 8), the main drive belt 102 rotating a propeller shaft 104 (see fig. 7 and 8) in a direction 108, which in turn rotates a propeller 106 (see fig. 6) in a direction 110 as shown in fig. 6 and 7. The primary drive belt 102 may be wrapped around a series of

pulleys

112, 114, 116, 123, 118, 120, 122. Whenever one of the left and right foot pedals is pushed forward, the drive belt 102 rotates the

pulleys

120, 118 in opposite directions, which in turn drives the driven

belts

124, 126, which in turn alternately rotates the propeller shaft 104 in the clockwise direction 108.

More specifically, the device 100 may have a housing 128, as shown in FIG. 5. The housing 128 may have an upper half and a lower half. Only the lower half is shown in fig. 5, and the upper half is removed to enable viewing of the drive belt system of the device 100. The upper and lower halves of the housing 128 may have positioning holes 130 (fig. 5), the positioning holes 130 receiving the shafts 132 to position the

pulleys

112, 122, 123 in their respective orientations within the housing 128. The

pulleys

112, 122, 123 may rotate about an axis 132. The

pulleys

112, 122, 123 may be vertically fixed on the shaft 132 (see fig. 6 and 7), but as described above, the

pulleys

112, 122, 123 may rotate around the shaft 132. FIG. 6 shows the vertical position of the

pulleys

112, 122 within the housing 128.

Referring now to fig. 8, left and

right pedals

16 and 18 may be attached to left and

right brackets

134 and 136. With the user's left and right feet on the left and

right pedals

16, 16 and ready to push the left and

right pedals

16, 18 in the direction of

arrows

138, 152, the user is ready to propel a vehicle (e.g., watercraft, kayaks, and land vehicles) forward. As the user pushes on the right pedal 18, the right bracket 136 traverses (traversed) along the rails 140, 142 (FIG. 7). In addition, the primary drive belt 102 is fixed to the right bracket 136 at position 144 (see fig. 8). As right bracket 136 traverses in the direction of arrow 138, belt 102 rotates in a counterclockwise direction. Simultaneously, pulleys 112, 114, 116, 118, 122 rotate about their respective shafts 132 in a counterclockwise direction, while

pulleys

123, 120 rotate in a clockwise direction.

In the arrangement of

pulleys

112 and 122, 123, the

pulleys

118, 120 always rotate in opposite directions. When pulley 120 rotates in a clockwise direction, pulley 118 will rotate in a counterclockwise direction. Conversely, when the pulley 118 rotates in a clockwise direction, the pulley 120 will rotate in a counterclockwise direction. Only when the

pulleys

120, 118 rotate in the clockwise direction, the

follower belts

124, 126 attached to the clockwise

rotating pulleys

120, 118 rotate the

pulleys

115, 117 and the propeller shaft 104 in the clockwise direction. Referring now to fig. 9, 11 and 12, as the pulley 120 rotates in the clockwise direction 144, the pulley 117 is driven or rotated in the clockwise direction via transmission of rotational power through the drive belt 124. The pulley 117 is mounted to the propeller shaft 104 by a one-way bearing that is engaged only during clockwise rotation. Thus, the propeller shaft 104 rotates in the clockwise direction. However, as described above, when the pulley 120 rotates in the clockwise direction 144 (see fig. 12), the pulley 118 rotates in the counterclockwise direction 146 (see fig. 12). This is allowed because the pulley 115 is fitted with a one-way bearing and mounted to the propeller shaft 104. This means that the one-way bearing 148 idles or disengages the pulley 115 from the propeller shaft 104 as the pulley 115 rotates in the counterclockwise direction 146. Conversely, when the pulley 115 rotates in the clockwise direction 144, the one-way bearing 148 engages such that clockwise rotation of the pulley 115 rotates the propeller shaft 104 in a clockwise direction.

As the right pedal 18 and the right bracket 136 are pushed all the way along the

rails

140, 142, the left pedal 16 and the left bracket 134 traverse in the opposite direction 150.

With the left pedal 16 in the retracted position, the user may now push the left pedal in the direction of arrow 152 (see FIG. 8). In doing so, the belt 102 attached to the left bracket 134 at position 154 traverses the belt 102 in a clockwise direction. This in turn causes the

pulleys

112, 114, 116, 118, 122 to rotate in a clockwise direction while the

pulleys

120, 123 rotate in a counterclockwise direction.

Referring now to fig. 10, 11 and 12, as the pulley 118 rotates in a clockwise direction, the driven belt 126 also rotates in a clockwise direction. This in turn also rotates the pulley 115. The pulley 115 may be mounted to the propeller shaft 104 by a one-way bearing that is engaged only when the pulley 115 is rotated in a clockwise direction. Thus, the propeller shaft rotates in the clockwise direction. As described above, the

pulleys

118, 120 rotate in opposite directions. When the pulley 118 rotates in a clockwise direction, the pulley 120 rotates in a counterclockwise direction. In the counterclockwise direction, the bearing 156 (see fig. 12) that mounts the pulley 117 to the propeller shaft 104 is not engaged so that the pulley 117 can rotate in the counterclockwise direction.

The following discussion relates to variations of the second embodiment shown in fig. 5-12. Instead of the one-way bearings 148, 156 (see fig. 12) for mounting the

pulleys

115, 117 to the propeller shaft 104, alternative variations of the second embodiment may include the case where one-way bearings are positioned or used to mount the

pulleys

118, 120. In this regard, the

pulleys

115, 117 may be fixed to the propeller shaft 104 such that the

pulleys

115, 117 rotate only in the clockwise direction, which in turn rotates the propeller shaft 104 in the clockwise direction 108. Since the

pulleys

115, 117 are now fixed to the propeller shaft 104, the one-way bearings may be incorporated into the

pulleys

118, 120, more specifically, the upper pulley 168 and the lower pulley 162, as shown in fig. 12. In this regard. When the right pedal 18 is pushed in the direction of arrow 138, the main drive belt 102 rotates in a counterclockwise direction. When the primary drive belt 102 rotates in a counterclockwise direction, the pulley 118 rotates in a counterclockwise direction and the pulley 120 rotates in a clockwise direction. A one-way bearing 158 (see fig. 12) may mount the lower pulley 162 of the pulley 118 to its shaft 132. This allows disengagement between the upper pulley 160 of the pulley 118 and the lower pulley 162 of the pulley 118 to allow the primary drive belt 102 to continue rotating the lower pulley 162 of the pulley 118 in the counterclockwise direction. However, because the propeller shaft 104 can only rotate in a clockwise direction to move the vehicle forward, the one-way bearing 158 disengages the upper pulley 160 of the pulley 118 from its shaft 132 and the lower pulley 162 of the pulley 118. In other words, the lower pulley 162 of the pulley 118 is separated from the upper pulley 160 of the pulley 118. The upper pulley 168 may be fixed to the shaft 132 to which it is mounted, while the lower pulley 162 of the pulley 118 contains a one-way bearing such that when the lower pulley 162 rotates in a clockwise direction, it rotates the shaft 132 and the upper pulley 160. When the lower pulley rotates in the counterclockwise direction, the lower pulley is disengaged from the shaft. The shaft 132 does not rotate and does not rotate the upper pulley 160 of the pulley 118 and therefore does not rotate the drive belt 126. Instead, the follower belt 124 rotates the propeller shaft 104 in a clockwise direction, which translates this rotational motion to the pulley 115 and drive belt 126, and the upper pulley 160 of the pulley 118 rotates in a clockwise direction while the lower pulley rotates in a counterclockwise direction.

Referring now to the pulley 120, the pulley 120 also has an upper pulley 168 and a lower pulley 170. These upper pulley 168 and lower pulley 170 may be separated from each other so that they may rotate in opposite directions when desired, just like the upper pulley 160 and lower pulley 162 of pulley 118. More specifically, the lower pulley 170 may be fixed to the shaft 132 to which it is mounted. Instead, the upper pulley 168 may be mounted to the shaft 132, with the upper pulley 168 being mounted to the shaft 132 by a one-way bearing. As described above, as right foot pedal 18 traverses in the direction of arrow 138, pulley 120 rotates in a clockwise direction. This means that the upper pulley 168 of the pulley 120 rotates in the clockwise direction. The one-way bearing of the upper sheave 168 of the sheave 120 engages the shaft 132 and rotates the shaft 132 and also rotates the lower sheave 170 of the sheave 120.

Conversely, when the left foot pedal is in the retracted position and pushed in the direction of arrow 152 (see FIG. 8), the primary drive belt 102 rotates in a counterclockwise direction. However, pulley 120 rotates in a counterclockwise direction, while pulley 118 rotates in a clockwise direction. In this regard, referring now to fig. 12, the primary drive belt 102 rotates the upper pulley 168 of the pulley 120 in a counterclockwise direction. However, since the one-way bearing of the lower pulley 170 mounted to the pulley 120 is disengaged, it does not rotate the lower half 170 of the pulley 120 in the counterclockwise direction. In effect, the lower pulley 170 of the pulley 120 rotates in a clockwise direction by translating rotation from the pulley 118 to the follower belt 26, to the pulley 115, to the propeller shaft 104, to the pulley 117, and then to the follower belt 124. As described above, when the main drive belt 102 rotates in the clockwise direction, the pulley 118 also rotates in the clockwise direction. In this regard, the pulley 152 rotates in a clockwise direction and is fixed to the shaft 132, with the shaft 132 rotating in a clockwise direction. Because the one-way bearing 158 mounts the upper half 160 of the pulley to the shaft 132, the upper pulley 168 of the pulley 118 rotates in a clockwise direction. This clockwise rotation of the upper pulley 168 of the pulley 118 rotates the driven belt 126 in a clockwise direction and rotates the pulley 115 and the propeller shaft 104.

The belt system shown in the embodiment shown in fig. 5-12 utilizes a double-sided synchronous belt for the primary drive belt 102. However, it is also contemplated that if the pulleys have sufficient friction with the belt such that there is minimal slip between the belt and the respective pulleys, then a synchronous belt would not be required, and other types of belts may be used, including but not limited to flat belts, V-groove belts, and the like. Further, while a double-sided timing belt is shown for the driven

belts

124, 126, it is also contemplated that such driven

belts

124, 126 may use a single-sided timing belt, or alternatively, a friction belt such as a flat belt or a V-groove belt. Additionally, it is contemplated that the

sheaves

115, 117, 118, 120 can be continuously variable sheaves instead of their fixed diameter sheaves, as shown in the figures. This allows the user to adjust the speed of the propeller for each stroke of the

pedals

16, 18.

Referring now to fig. 13-21, a third embodiment of the apparatus 200 is shown in which a single timing belt may be used. In FIG. 16, when the right pedal 18 and the right bracket 136 are in the position shown in FIG. 16, the user may traverse the right pedal 18 and the right bracket 136 in the direction of arrow 138. In this case, the first drive belt 202 (fig. 18) rotates around the pulley 204 (see fig. 18 and 21). The pulley 204 is also connected to a pulley 206 by a driven belt 208. The pulley 206 is attached to the propeller shaft 104 by a one-way bearing 210. When the pulley 206 rotates in the clockwise direction, the one-way bearing 210 is engaged such that rotation of the pulley 206 in the clockwise direction also rotates the propeller shaft 104 in the clockwise direction. Still referring to fig. 21, a pulley 210 is also mounted to the propeller shaft 104 by a one-way bearing 212. However, when the pulley 210 rotates in the counterclockwise direction, the one-way bearing 212 is disengaged. As the right bracket 136 traverses in the direction of arrow 138, the pulley 210 rotates in a counterclockwise direction because the first drive belt 202 is also coupled to the left bracket 134. As the right bracket 136 traverses in the direction 138, the left bracket 134 traverses in the direction of arrow 150 to the retracted position (see FIG. 16). The left bracket 134 drives a second drive belt 214 (see fig. 20), and the second drive belt 214 wraps around a pulley 216 (see fig. 21), rotating the pulley 216 in a counterclockwise direction, which rotates the pulley 210 in the counterclockwise direction. However, this counterclockwise direction is allowed because the one-way bearing 212 that mounts the pulley 210 to the propeller shaft 104 is disengaged. Allowing the

pulleys

204, 216 to freely rotate in a counterclockwise direction about the shaft 132.

Conversely, when the left bracket 134 is in the retracted position and the left pedal 16 is pushed in the direction of arrow 152, referring now to FIG. 20, the pulley 216 rotates in a clockwise direction, and thus the pulley 210 rotates in a clockwise direction via the driven belt 218 (see FIG. 21). Since the pulley 210, which is mounted to the propeller shaft 104 by a one-way bearing, rotates in the clockwise direction, its one-way bearing engages the propeller shaft 104 and causes the propeller shaft 104 to also rotate in the clockwise direction. This also retracts the right foot pedal and the right bracket 134 to the retracted position as the left bracket 136 is traversed in the direction of arrow 152. Drive belt 202 for right foot pedal 18 and right bracket 134 rotates pulley 204 in a counterclockwise direction. This in turn rotates the pulley 206 in a counterclockwise direction via the driven belt 208. However, since the pulley 206 is mounted to the propeller shaft by a one-way bearing and is not engaged when rotating in the counterclockwise direction, this opposite rotation of the pulleys/

belts

204, 206, 208 and 216, 210, 212 is permitted.

The following discussion relates to a variation of the third embodiment in which a single drive belt is used and unidirectional bearings are used to mount the

pulleys

220, 222. Referring now to fig. 21, it is also contemplated that a one-way bearing may be used instead for mounting the

pulleys

206, 210 to the propeller shaft 104, for mounting the

upper pulleys

220, 222 to their respective shafts 132. In this regard, the

upper pulleys

220, 222 may be separated from the

lower pulleys

224, 226 such that 220, 224 and 222, 226 may rotate in opposite directions from one another. More specifically, the

upper pulleys

220, 222 may rotate in an opposite direction as the

lower pulleys

224, 226. The

pulleys

206, 210 may be fixed to the propeller shaft 104 such that rotation of the

pulleys

206, 210 rotates the propeller shaft 104. Also, the

lower pulleys

224, 226 may also be fixed to the shaft 132. The

upper pulleys

220, 222 of the

pulleys

216, 204 may be coupled to the shaft 132 by one-way bearings 228, 230 (see fig. 21).

As the right bracket 136 traverses in the direction of 138, the upper pulley 220 of the pulley 204 rotates in a clockwise direction. The one-way bearing 228 is engaged and rotates the shaft 132, which in turn rotates the lower pulley 224 of the pulley 204 in a clockwise direction. The driven belt 208 rotates the pulley 206 in a clockwise direction, and since the pulley 206 is fixed to the propeller shaft 104, the propeller shaft rotates in a clockwise direction. However, as described above, when the right bracket 136 is traversed in the direction 138, this in turn rotates the upper pulley 222 of the pulley 216 in the counterclockwise direction. However, since the upper pulley 222 of the pulley 216 is mounted to each shaft 132 through a one-way bearing, and the one-way bearing is disengaged, the upper pulley 222 of the pulley 216 may rotate in the clockwise direction. The upper pulley 222 of pulley 216 does not rotate the lower pulley 226 of pulley 216. In practice, when the propeller shaft 104 rotates in a clockwise direction, this causes the pulley 210 and the lower pulley 226 of the pulley 216 to rotate in a clockwise direction. Now, the upper pulley 222 and the lower pulley 226 of the pulley 216 rotate in opposite directions.

Conversely, when the left bracket 136 is in the retracted position and then traverses in the direction of arrow 152 (see FIG. 20), the drive belt 214 (see FIG. 20) rotates the upper pulley 222 of the pulley 216 in a clockwise direction. Because the upper pulley 222 of pulley 216 is rotating in a clockwise direction and the one-way bearing on the upper pulley 222 is now engaged, this rotation also rotates the shaft 132, which transfers this rotation to the lower pulley 226 of pulley 216. Such a rotational force is applied to the pulley 210 by the driven belt 218, and the pulley 210 is fixed to the propeller shaft 104 to rotate the propeller shaft in the clockwise direction. As described above, as the left bracket traverses in the direction of arrow 152, this also rotates the upper pulley 220 of pulley 204 in a counterclockwise direction by the drive belt 202 attached to the right bracket 136. The one-way bearing 228 of the upper pulley 220 of the pulley 204 disengages and does not translate this rotational movement to the lower half 224 of the pulley 204. At this time, the upper pulley 220 and the lower pulley 224 of the pulley 204 rotate in opposite directions.

Referring now to FIG. 19, a tensioned drive belt 234 is shown. The tensioned belt 234 moves the left and

right brackets

134, 136 in synchronization with each other such that as the right bracket 134 traverses forward, the left bracket 136 traverses rearward, and vice versa. For example, in the position shown in FIG. 19, if the user were to pull the left bracket 136 such that the left bracket is laterally moved toward the retracted position, this would cause the right bracket 134 to move forward. When the right bracket 134 is straight forward and the user now pulls the right pedal 18, the tensioned belt 134 will traverse the left bracket 136 forward.

The above discussion of the various devices describes the propeller shaft 104 as rotating in a particular direction (clockwise or counterclockwise). For example, in the embodiment shown in fig. 5-21, the propeller shaft 104 is depicted as rotating in a clockwise direction. However, the entire system can be rotated in the opposite direction by flipping the direction of the one-way bearing and propeller blades so that a counterclockwise rotation of the propeller shaft will cause the propeller to move or propel the marine vehicle forward.

Further, as shown in fig. 5 and 13, the

apparatus

100, 200 may be installed into a hole at the hull of a watercraft, including but not limited to a boat, kayak, or boat. Device 300 represents the hull of a watercraft, where 302 is the top hull and 304 is the bottom hull. Between 302 and 304 may be a sealed compartment for ensuring flotation of the watercraft on water. A tapered hole may be configured between 302 and 304 so that the propeller may be inserted into the water. The device 300 is tightly mounted to the watercraft by a locking mechanism attached to either the top hull 302 or the bottom hull 304. The

devices

10, 100, 200 are foot-driven propellers. In this regard, the watercraft may have a seat 306 behind the

device

100, 200. The user may sit on the seat 306 allowing his or her feet to push the left and right foot pedals in opposition to rotate the propeller to drive the watercraft in a forward direction.

The second and third embodiments and their modifications can realize the rotatable cylinder 87 similarly to the first embodiment. The rotatable cylinder 87 can be rotated to steer the watercraft. The propeller may provide propulsion around the output shaft in a 360 ° direction of the propeller. The propeller may be rotated 180 so that the waterborne traffic tool or boat may be propelled backwards. Furthermore, it is envisaged that stops may be provided in the system so that the propeller and gearbox may be rotated through a limited range of angles, for example 90 °, 70 °, 60 °, 50 °, 45 ° from centre. The centre is the position of the propeller such that the watercraft is propelled straight.

It is also contemplated that the

apparatus

100, 200 may be mounted to a land vehicle. The propeller shaft may be considered to be an output shaft connected to the output shaft, an output shaft connected to a gear box connected to a drive shaft of the land vehicle, or an output shaft directly connected to a drive shaft of the land vehicle.

The above description is given by way of example and not limitation. Those skilled in the art, in view of the above disclosure, may devise variations that are within the scope and spirit of the invention disclosed herein, including various ways of transferring the rotation of motion from one shaft to another. Furthermore, the various features of the embodiments disclosed herein can be used alone, or in different combinations with one another, and are not intended to be limited to the specific combinations described herein. Accordingly, the scope of the claims is not limited by the illustrated embodiments.

Claims

1. A human-powered vehicle operable to rotate a propeller or rotate a wheel by reciprocating left and right pedals, the vehicle comprising:

a frame;

a left pedal operable to reciprocate linearly or through a partially curved trajectory;

a right pedal operable to reciprocate linearly or through a partially curved trajectory;

a left rack attached to the left pedal such that the reciprocating left pedal reciprocates the left rack;

a right rack attached to the right pedal such that the reciprocating right pedal reciprocates the right rack;

a left shaft;

a right shaft;

a left pinion engaging the left rack such that the left pinion reciprocates with the left rack, the left pinion being attached to the left shaft;

a right pinion engaging the right rack such that the right pinion reciprocates with the right rack, the right pinion being attached to the right shaft;

a left bevel gear attached to the left shaft;

a right bevel gear attached to the right shaft;

a main shaft;

an upper one-way bearing;

an upper bevel gear attached to the main shaft by the upper one-way bearing;

a lower one-way bearing;

a lower bevel gear attached to the main shaft by the lower unidirectional bearing;

a gear box attached to the frame, the gear box having an input shaft operable to rotate the output shaft and an output shaft, the main shaft coupled to the input shaft; and

the propeller or the wheel attached to the output shaft.

2. The human-powered vehicle as defined in claim 1, wherein the upper and lower one-way bearings are attached to the main shaft, engage the shaft in the same rotational direction and are free to rotate in opposite rotational directions.

3. The human powered vehicle as claimed in claim 1 wherein the propeller is attached to the output shaft instead of the wheel.

4. The human powered vehicle as claimed in claim 1 wherein the wheels are attached to the output shaft instead of the propeller.

5. The human-powered vehicle as claimed in claim 1 wherein the linear reciprocating motion of the left and right pedals may be straight or curved rather than 360 ° of a circle.

6. The human-powered vehicle as defined in claim 1, wherein the left and right racks are straight.

7. The human-powered vehicle of claim 1, wherein the left and right racks are rotatably attached to the frame.

8. A human-powered vehicle operable to turn a propeller or rotate a wheel by linearly reciprocating left and right pedals, the vehicle comprising:

a frame of the human powered vehicle;

a main shaft;

a left pedal operable to reciprocate linearly or through a partially curved trajectory and impart rotation to the spindle;

a right pedal operable to reciprocate linearly or through a partially curved trajectory and impart rotation to the spindle;

an upper one-way bearing;

an upper transmission attached to the main shaft by the upper one-way bearing;

a lower one-way bearing;

a lower transmission attached to the main shaft by the lower uni-directional bearing;

a gear box attached to the frame, the gear box having an input shaft operable to rotate the output shaft and an output shaft, the main shaft coupled to the input shaft;

the propeller or the wheel attached to the output shaft of the transmission case.

9. The vehicle of claim 9, wherein the frame is a land vehicle frame.

10. The vehicle of claim 9, wherein the frame is a human powered watercraft frame.

11. A method for propelling a small human-powered vehicle, the method comprising the steps of:

pushing the left pedal forward, but not in a circular motion, to rotate a first bearing or pulley attached to the output shaft in a first rotational direction;

positively engaging the output shaft with a first one-way bearing for mounting the first bearing or sheave to the output shaft, the first one-way bearing allowing free rotation in a second opposite rotational direction but not in the first rotational direction;

rotating the output shaft through the first bearing and the first one-way bearing during the step of pushing the left pedal;

pushing the right pedal forward, but not in a circular motion, to rotate a second bearing or pulley attached to the output shaft in the first rotational direction;

actively engaging the output shaft with a second one-way bearing for mounting the second bearing or sheave to the output shaft, the second one-way bearing allowing free rotation in the second opposite rotational direction but not in the first rotational direction;

rotating the output shaft through the second bearing and the second one-way bearing during the step of pushing the right pedal;

when the left pedal is pushed forward and when the right pedal is pushed forward, rotational energy is transferred to the propeller or the wheels.

12. The method of claim 12, wherein the human powered vehicle is a watercraft and the propeller is rotated while the left and right pedals are pushed forward.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the human powered vehicle is a land vehicle and the wheels are rotated while the left and right pedals are pushed forward.