GB2119324A

GB2119324A - Foldable cycles

Info

Publication number: GB2119324A
Application number: GB08208635A
Authority: GB
Inventors: John Arthur Sellars
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1982-03-24
Filing date: 1982-03-24
Publication date: 1983-11-16

Abstract

Attached to the cycle frame a front wheel, a rear wheel, a saddle, handle bars and a pedal and chain drive; the frame has a main frame portion (13) which forms part of a case when folded and a rear frame portion (17) bearing a part (18) also forming part of a case when folded. The main and rear frame portions are pivotally connected about an axis parallel to and in the embodiment coincident with the pedal crank axis so that folding of the cycle forms a case which can conveniently be carried. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Improvements in foldable cycles The invention relates to foldable cycles According to the invention there is provided a foldable cycle comprising a frame, and attached to the frame a front wheel, a rear wheel, seating means, means for steering the front wheel, and means for driving the bicycle, the bicycle further comprising a case for containing the bicycle when folded, at least a part of the case forming a structural part of the frame of the bicycle.

According to a further aspect of the invention there is provided a foldable cycle comprising a frame, and attached to the frame a front wheel, a rear wheel, means for steering the front wheel and means for driving the cycle, the cycle being foldable about an axis parallel to a pedal axis, about which pedal axis pedal means can be rotated to drive a wheel of the cycle in use, the axis of folding being located otherwise than between the pedal axis and the driven wheel.

The axis of folding is preferably coincident with the pedal axis.

The front wheel is preferably attached to the frame by a support, which support is foldable about an axis parallel to the pedal axis between a first, open position and a second, retracted position, there being means to lock the front wheel support in at least the first and preferably also the second position.

The case is preferably an integral part of the the arrangement being such that all parts of the case form part of the cycle in use.

Preferably a main frame portion, to which are attached the front wheel, the steering means, the seating means, the rear wheel and the drive means is provided by a central portion of the case.

A base portion of the case is preferably located above the rear wheel in use.

The cycle may be driven by chain means providing a drive connection between the pedals and the rear wheel. There may be a double gear train comprising an intermediate sprocket assembly mounted at least partly within the base portion of the case.

The wheels preferably lie in the same plane when folded, although to allow additional compactness when folded, a double rear wheel may be provided, the arrangement being such that the front wheel lies partly between the wheels of the double rear wheel when the cycle is folded.

The steering means preferably comprise handle bars mounted on a handle bar support attached to the frame. The handle bars are preferably foldable with respect to the support and the support is preferably foldable with respect to the frame to provide a part of the top of the case when folded.

Front lighting means are preferably provided on the handle bar support and the lighting means are preferably foldable to provide part of the top of the case when folded.

The seating means is preferably a saddle mounted on a saddle support. The saddle support is preferably foldably mounted on the frame to form a part of the top of the case when folded. Rear lighting means are preferably mounted on the saddle support, which rear lighting means are preferably foldable to form part of the top of the case when folded.

The drive means preferably comprise pedals mounted on cranks, the cranks being mounted on a shaft and each crank being foldable about an axis normal to the shaft axis and parallel to the crank between a first, working position, and a second position in which the crank is folded towards the central plane of the cycle. There are means for locking the cranks in the two positions.

The central portion of the case may comprise four similar support elements, one in the region of each corner of the central portion, having engagement recesses formed therein. The support elements may be extrusions of, for example, aluminium.

The handle bar support, the saddle support and the front wheel support may be mounted on hinge means each connected to an associated support element. The hinge means may in each case comprise a common body including latch means, the body being adapted to cooperate with the particular part it supports.

The drive means may be a shaft drive between a pedal drive and the rear wheel or wheels.

By way of example, one embodiment of a folding cycle according to the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side view of a bicycle in a riding position; Figure 2 is a side view of the bicycle of Figure 1 in a folded position; Figure 3a is an end view of a support element used in the frame of the bicycle; Figure 3b is a plan view of the support element of Figure 3a; Figure 4 shows a detail of construction of a frame portion of the bicycle; Figure 5shows a hinge used in the bicycle; Figure 6 shows a detail of a steering post hinge arrangement; Figure 7 is a diagrammatic view showing details of a rear wheel folding lock; Figure 8 is a plan view of a handle bar hinge assembly;; Figure 9 is a sectional view showing details of a main folding hinge of the bicycle together with a mounting for a pedal cross-head assembly; Figure 10 shows a rear wheel fork of the bicycle; Figure 11 is a diagrammatic illustration of a rear frame portion of the bicycle; Figure 12 shows a crank hinge arrangement; and Figures 13a and 13b show details of an alternative crank hinge arrangement.

Figure 1 and 2 show in general how a bicycle indicated at 10 can be transformed from a riding position shown in Figure 1 to a folded position shown in Figure 2 in which all parts of the bicycle are used to form a case having a carrying handle 11 a towing handle 12 and a case wheel 19.

A main structural part of the bicycle 10 is a main frame portion 13 which is hollow and, when in a folded state, forms a central part of the case shown in Figure 2. To the main frame portion 13 are attached the following: (i) afrontwheel support 14 (ii) a handle bar support 15 (iii) a saddle support 16 (iv) a rear frame portion generally indicated at 17 Thefrontwheel support 14, the handle bar support 15, the saddle support 16 and rear frame portion are all foldable with respect to the main frame portion 13 and the final folded position of the bicycle is shown in Figure 2.Details of the folding arrangements will be described later in this specification but in principle, the order of folding is to fold pedal cranks (details described later), fold down the saddle support 16 and associated saddle, fold down the handle bar support 15 and associated handle bars, fold up (anticlockwise in Figure 1) the front wheel support 14 and finally rotate (clockwise in Figure 1) the rear frame portion 17 untii base portion 18 of the case mates with the main frame portion 13.

Details of the construction of the bicycle will now be described.

Figures 3 and 4 show details of construction of the main frame portion 13 of the bicycle 10. Four corner pieces 20 which are extrusions of aluminium or other suitable material are located at corners of the main frame portion 13. The corner pieces 20 have three engagement recesses 21,22, and 23 and side channels 25,26. The engagement recesses 21,22, and 23 support in an assembled bicycle hinge assemblies for various foldable parts and the side channels 25, 26 are engaged by side stiffeners.

Figure 4 shows a detail of a corner assembly of the main frame portion 13. In the side channel is engaged part of a side stiffener 27, the side stiffener 27 being secured to the corner piece by a pair of bolts, one of which is illustrated at 28. An end piece 28 of the case is also secured to the corner piece 20 and four corner pieces, four side stiffeners and two case end pieces form a rigid box structure. Side panels 29 provide a cover for the main frame portion 13.

Hinges for the front wheel support 14, the handle bar support 15 and the saddle support 16 are mounted on associated corner pieces 20. Figure 5 shows a hinge assembly which can be used with various modifications for attaching the aforesaid parts to corner pieces. The hinge basically comprises a first portion 30 attached either directly to a corner piece orto a rigid shaft and a rotatable portion 31 connected to the first portion 30 by a hinge 32.

Portions 30 and 31 are held together by a latch 33 releasable by a lever 34. Except where the movable portion of the hinge is attached to the front forks of the bicycle, a safety locking wheel 35 is provided to prevent accidental release of the hinge parts.

Figure 6 shows in detail hinge assemblies for the front wheel and for the steering support.

The corner piece 20 shown in Figure 6 supports a bearing sleeve 41 in which is rotatable a shaft 42. To the shaft 42 is attached above the corner piece one part of a steering hinge generally indicated at 43 and below the corner piece 20 a part of a front wheel hinge generally indicated at 44. The shaft 42 if rotatable in the bearing sleeve 41 so that steering movement transmitted to the hinge 43 is transmitted via the shaft 42 to the front wheel hinge 44 and thence to the front wheel. The latching of the two hinge parts of the hinges 43 and 44 operate as describe in relation to Figure 5 and a locking wheel 45 is provided for locking the steering support in place.

Not shown in Figure 6 is a lower corner piece 20 which does not support any hinge assemblies but simply forms a structural part of the main frame portion 13. The lower corner piece at the front of the bicycle has a central portion removed to form a horse shoe shape when viewed in plan to accommodate the rear wheel when folded.

Afront lamp assembly 46 is hingedly mounted on the steering support and, when in a folded position, forms a corner portion of the case. In a similar way, a rear lamp assembly 49 is hingedly mounted on the saddle support 16.

Connected to latch 47 of the front wheel hinge 44 is a member 48 manually operable to release the latch 47.

The hinge assembly shown in Figure 5 is modified for attaching the saddle to the saddle support by providing a round pin on the end of the latch 33, which pin is engageable in a hole machined in the hinge part 30. This round pin stops hinge part 30 from rotating around the saddle support on the vertical axis when the cycle is unfolded.

Figure 7 shows a detail of a locking arrangement for the rear wheel assembly of the bicycle. The locking arrangement is activated by moving into position of the saddle support 16 which is supported on a hinge arrangement adapted from the hinge mechanism shown in Figure 5. Latch 50 of the hinge assembly operates a mechanism 51 biased by a spring 52 to engage an arm 53 with an element 54 of the rear wheel assembly. Engagement of the arm 53 and element 54 holds the rear wheel assembly in position, the rear wheel being supported on a frame 55 shown also diagrammatically in Figure 11. A suspension block 56, of, for example, rubber, is located when the bicycle is in a riding position between the rear frame 55 and a part 57 of the main frame portion 13 of the bicycle.

Figure 8 shows in plan view details of a hinge assembly for handle bars of the bicycle. The handle bar support 15 has a cover portion 60 which forms an upper portion of the case when the bicycle is folded. The cover 60 has a centra,l channel 61, sides of which have at their free edges engagement lips 62 and 63. The engagement lips 62 and 63 are engaged by a clamping element 64, which clamping element 64 is acted on by a screw threaded shaft 65 of a rotatable locking member having a knob 66. The shaft 65 passes through a handle bar mount 67 on which two handle bars 68, 69 are pivotally mounted by means of pivot elements 70. The handle bars 68, 69 each have an arm 71,72 respectively locked in position by rotation of the knob 66. The knob 66 is biased outwardly by a spring 73. It will be appreciated that release of the knob 66 by rotation thereof allows the handle bar assembly to slide along the channel 61 and allows the handle bars 68 and 69 to be folded into line with the cover 60.

Figure 9 shows a double bearing arrangement for a pedal shaft 80 and to allow rear forks 81,82 of the bicycle to be rotated relative to the main frame portion 13. The pedal shaft 80 rotates in ballbearings 83 in a bearing housing 84. The bearing housing 84 is further mounted in a support block 85 attached to the main frame portion 13, the rear forks 81,82 being rotatable relative to the support block 85. In this way, the rearforks of the bicycle are foldable with respect to the main frame 13 about a folding axis coincident with the pedal axis of the bicycle.

Figure 10 is a side view of one of the rear wheel forks 82,83. The rear wheel fork supports a vertical strut 90 and a main gear mount 91. As can be seen from Figure 1, a double gear train is provided to allow the main gear sprocket to be located within the base of the case.

Figure 12 and 13 show details of two pedal crank hinges. Figure 12 shows the right hand pedal crank hinge with the crank in two different positions. A first part 100 of the hinge is fixed for rotation with the pedal shaft 80 and pedal crank 101 is rotatable relative to the hinge part 100 about hinge axis 102. A latch 103 holds the crank 101 in position in use. As can be seen in Figure 12, the crank 101 rotates through 1800 between its retracted and in use position.

Figure 13a and 13b are two views of a left hand pedal crank hinge. To the pedal shaft 80 is attached a hinge shaft 111 mounted on a block 112 fixedly attached to the pedal shaft 80. A pair of plates 113 and 114 support a movable latch 115 biased by springs 116 into a position to engage the block 112 to lock the crank in the position shown in Figures 13a and 13b. Movement of the latch 115 against the bias of the springs of 116 releases the crank for rotation about the shaft 111 to allow the crank to be rotated through 90".

The bicycle of this embodiment is constructed mainly of metal, for example aluminum and steel, preferably stainless steel, together with parts of plastics material. It will be appreciated that a variety of suitable materials are available which could be used. It is envisaged that the main frame portion 13 could be formed as an aluminum extrusion.

The aforedescribed embodiment is a bicycle, but it is envisaged that a double rear wheel could be included. The wheels of the double rear wheel would not be widely spaced, but the spacing would be sufficient to allow the front wheel to nest between the wheels and thereby allow a reduction in the dimensions of the case.

A centralised power supply is included in the cycle, as a foldable rear view mirror (not shown).

It is envisaged that the chain drive of this embodiment as shown in Figures 1 and 2 may be replaced by a shaft drive which would be more compact than a chain drive.

A compartment for articles such as wet weather gear, a puncture repair outfit, batteries, tools etc may be provided. A suitable place would be in the base portion of the case, at the left hand portion thereof as viewed in Figure 2. Other locations for the compartment would be possible, and the compartment would preferably be accessible in either the open or closed configuration of the cycle.

The advantages of this embodiment of the invention are that the cycle folds into its own case, that all components of the cycle remain attached to the cycle during folding and unfolding, that the machine is light weight, that when folded the cycle behaves as an ordinary case and can be handled as such, that there are no protrusions from the case when the cycle is folded, that current British Rail Cycle regulations are avoided, that in the event of breakdown or bad weather the cycle can be retained by the owner, that the trolley wheel makes handling of the case easy, that the cycle when folded can be stored as a suitcase without detriment to the appearance of the room or office in which it is stored and without wasting space, the freightage in bulk is economical as the case is of regular shape, that as the cycle can be carried into the home or office the chances of theft are reduced, and that soiling of clothing is avoided since the bicycle is contained in a case.

CLAIMS (filed on 23/3/83) 1. A foldable cycle comprising a frame, and attached to the frame a front wheel, a rear wheel, seating means, means for steering the front wheel, and means for driving the cycle, the cycle further comprising a case for containing the cycle when folded, at least a part of the case forming a structural part of the frame of the cycle.

2. A foldable cycle comprising a frame, and attached to the frame a front wheel, a rear wheel, means for steering the front wheel and means for driving the cycle, the cycle being foldable about an axis parallel to a pedal axis, about which pedal axis pedal means can be rotated to drive a wheel of the cycle in use, the axis of folding being located otherwise than between the pedal axis and the driven wheel.

3. Afoldable cycle as claimed in Claim 2 wherein the axis of folding is coincident with the pedal axis.

4. Afoldable cycle as claimed in Claim 2 or Claim 3 wherein the front wheel is attached to the frame by a support, which support is foldable about an axis parallel to the pedal axis between a first, open position and a second, retracted position, there being means to lock the front wheel support in at least the first position.

5. A foldable cycle as claimed in Claim 4 comprising means to lock the front wheel support in the second position.

6. Afoldable cycle as claimed in any one of Claims 2 to 5 further comprising a case for containing the cycle when folded, at least a part of the case forming a structural part of the frame of the cycle.

7. A foldable cycle as claimed in Claim 1 or Claim 6 wherein the case is an integral part of the cycle, the arrangement being such that all parts of the case form part of the cycle in use.

8. Afoldable cycle as claimed in Claim 1 or Claim 6 or Claim 7 wherein a main frame portion to which are attached the front wheel, the steering means, the seating means, the rear wheel and the drive means is provided by a central portion of the case.

9. Afoldable cycle as claimed in Claim 1 or any

**WARNING** end of DESC field may overlap start of CLMS **.

Claims

**WARNING** start of CLMS field may overlap end of DESC **. Figure 9 shows a double bearing arrangement for a pedal shaft 80 and to allow rear forks 81,82 of the bicycle to be rotated relative to the main frame portion 13. The pedal shaft 80 rotates in ballbearings 83 in a bearing housing 84. The bearing housing 84 is further mounted in a support block 85 attached to the main frame portion 13, the rear forks 81,82 being rotatable relative to the support block 85. In this way, the rearforks of the bicycle are foldable with respect to the main frame 13 about a folding axis coincident with the pedal axis of the bicycle. Figure 10 is a side view of one of the rear wheel forks 82,83. The rear wheel fork supports a vertical strut 90 and a main gear mount 91. As can be seen from Figure 1, a double gear train is provided to allow the main gear sprocket to be located within the base of the case. Figure 12 and 13 show details of two pedal crank hinges. Figure 12 shows the right hand pedal crank hinge with the crank in two different positions. A first part 100 of the hinge is fixed for rotation with the pedal shaft 80 and pedal crank 101 is rotatable relative to the hinge part 100 about hinge axis 102. A latch 103 holds the crank 101 in position in use. As can be seen in Figure 12, the crank 101 rotates through 1800 between its retracted and in use position. Figure 13a and 13b are two views of a left hand pedal crank hinge. To the pedal shaft 80 is attached a hinge shaft 111 mounted on a block 112 fixedly attached to the pedal shaft 80. A pair of plates 113 and 114 support a movable latch 115 biased by springs 116 into a position to engage the block 112 to lock the crank in the position shown in Figures 13a and 13b. Movement of the latch 115 against the bias of the springs of 116 releases the crank for rotation about the shaft 111 to allow the crank to be rotated through 90". The bicycle of this embodiment is constructed mainly of metal, for example aluminum and steel, preferably stainless steel, together with parts of plastics material. It will be appreciated that a variety of suitable materials are available which could be used. It is envisaged that the main frame portion 13 could be formed as an aluminum extrusion. The aforedescribed embodiment is a bicycle, but it is envisaged that a double rear wheel could be included. The wheels of the double rear wheel would not be widely spaced, but the spacing would be sufficient to allow the front wheel to nest between the wheels and thereby allow a reduction in the dimensions of the case. A centralised power supply is included in the cycle, as a foldable rear view mirror (not shown). It is envisaged that the chain drive of this embodiment as shown in Figures 1 and 2 may be replaced by a shaft drive which would be more compact than a chain drive. A compartment for articles such as wet weather gear, a puncture repair outfit, batteries, tools etc may be provided. A suitable place would be in the base portion of the case, at the left hand portion thereof as viewed in Figure 2. Other locations for the compartment would be possible, and the compartment would preferably be accessible in either the open or closed configuration of the cycle. The advantages of this embodiment of the invention are that the cycle folds into its own case, that all components of the cycle remain attached to the cycle during folding and unfolding, that the machine is light weight, that when folded the cycle behaves as an ordinary case and can be handled as such, that there are no protrusions from the case when the cycle is folded, that current British Rail Cycle regulations are avoided, that in the event of breakdown or bad weather the cycle can be retained by the owner, that the trolley wheel makes handling of the case easy, that the cycle when folded can be stored as a suitcase without detriment to the appearance of the room or office in which it is stored and without wasting space, the freightage in bulk is economical as the case is of regular shape, that as the cycle can be carried into the home or office the chances of theft are reduced, and that soiling of clothing is avoided since the bicycle is contained in a case. CLAIMS (filed on 23/3/83)

1. A foldable cycle comprising a frame, and attached to the frame a front wheel, a rear wheel, seating means, means for steering the front wheel, and means for driving the cycle, the cycle further comprising a case for containing the cycle when folded, at least a part of the case forming a structural part of the frame of the cycle.

9. Afoldable cycle as claimed in Claim 1 or any

one of Claims 6 to 8 wherein a base portion of the case is located above the rear wheel in use.

10. A foldable cycle as claimed in Claim 1 or any one of Claims 6 to 9 wherein the cycle is driven by chain means providing a drive connection between the pedals and the rear wheel or wheels.

11. Afoldable cycle as claimed in Claim 10 comprising a double gear train comprising an intermediate sprocket assembly mounted at least partly within a base portion of the case.

12. Afoldable cycle as claimed in Claim 1 or any one of Claims 6 to 9 wherein the drive means comprise a shaft drive between a pedal drive and the rear wheel or wheels.

13. Afoldable cycle as claimed in Claim 1 orany one of Claims 6 to 12 wherein the wheels lie in the same plane when folded.

14. Afoldable cycle as claimed in Claim 1 or any one of Claims 6 to 12 comprising a double rear wheel, the arrangement being such that the front wheel lies partly between the wheels of the double rear wheel when the cycle is folded.

15. Afolding cycle as claimed in Claim 1 or any one of Claims 6 to 14 comprising handle bars mounted on a handle bar support attached to the frame.

16. Afolding cycle as claimed in Claim 15 wherein the handle bars are foldable with respect to the support and the support is foldable with respect to the frame to provide a part of the top of the case when folded.

17. Afoldable cycle as claimed in Claim 15 or Claim 16 comprising front lighting means provided on the handle bar support, the lighting means being foldable to provide part of the top of the case when folded.

18. Afoldable cycle as claimed in Claim 1 orany one of Claims 6 to 17 wherein the seating means is a saddle mounted on a saddle support.

19. Afoldable cycle as claimed in Claim 18 wherein the saddle support is foldably mounted on the frame to form part of the top of the case when folded.

20. Afolding cycle as claimed in Claim 18 or Claim 19 comprising rear lighting means mounted on the saddle support, which rear lighting means are foldable to form part of the top of the case when folded.

21. Afoldable cycle as claimed in Claim 1 or any one of Claims 6 to 20 wherein the drive means comprise pedals mounted on cranks, the cranks being mounted on a shaft and each crank being foldable about an axis normal to the shaft axis and parallel to the crank between a first, working position, and a second position in which the crank is folded towards the central plane of the cycle.

22. A folding cycle as claimed in Claim 21 comprising means for locking the cranks in the two positions.

23. Afolding cycle as claimed in Claim 1 or any one of Claims 6 to 22 wherein the central portion of the case comprises four similar support elements, one in the region of each corner of the central portion, each having engagement recesses formed therein.

24. Afolding cycle as claimed in Claim 23 wherein the support elements are extrusions.

25. Afolding cycle as claimed in Claim 23 or Claim 24 wherein the support elements serve to hingedly support the front wheel, steering means and seating means of the cycle.

26. A foldable cycle as claimed in Claim 25 wherein the front wheel, steering means and seating means are hingedly connected to associated support elements by hinge means, the hinge means comprising a common body including latch means, the body being adapted to cooperate with the particular part it supports.

27. A foldable cycle substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.