Tricycle with dual steering handlebars

Abstract

A tricycle that allows riding in adequate conditions over any type of terrain is disclosed, the tricycle having a structural frame onto which a seat and several pedals are incorporated, equipped with a rolling assembly made up of one rear wheel and two parallel front wheels, with the front wheels incorporated into two mounting forks equipped with several respective stems projecting upwards.

Claims

1. A tricycle with dual steering handlebars, comprising a structural frame onto which a rolling assembly is incorporated made up of one rear wheel associated with a propulsion system by means of pedals and two parallel front wheels that are incorporated into two mounting forks associated with a steering system and a tilting height system, wherein the forks into which the front wheels are inserted have several respective stems projecting upwards, which have several handles incorporated onto them at the top to function as lateral handlebars, with said stems connected by means of several rods that form ball joints with a lower stem of a central handlebar, while between the rods several crossbars extend, which are joined at their ends to several tubes arranged with the possibility of rotating on said stems and centrally to a substructure of the structural frame, by means of pivoting joints.

2. The tricycle with dual steering handlebars, according to claim 1, wherein the ball joints of the rods are set on cantilevers that protrude from the stems of the forks on which the front wheels are incorporated and from the lower stem of the central handlebar.

3. The tricycle with dual steering handlebars, according to claim 1, wherein the tilting height system of the front wheels is made up of two lower crossbars that are arranged in a jointed quadrilateral connected to the tubes of the stems of the forks onto which the front wheels are incorporated and to the substructure of the structural frame and an upper crossbar that is connected to the tubes of the stems of the forks into which the front wheels are incorporated and to the substructure of the structural frame, positioned in front of or behind the lower stem of the central handlebar.

4. The tricycle with dual steering handlebars, according to claim 1, wherein the structural frame is made up of two parts that can be separated.

5. The tricycle with dual steering handlebars, wherein the propulsion system by means of pedals is complemented by a motor to collaborate with motorised propulsion that allows the cyclist user of the tricycle to reduce their effort.

Description

DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

(1) FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of an embodiment of a tricycle according to the object of the invention.

(2) FIG. 2 is a side view of the tricycle of the previous figure.

(3) FIG. 3 is a detail view of the front part of the tricycle viewed from behind.

(4) FIG. 4 is a front view of the tricycle travelling over laterally sloping terrain.

(5) FIG. 5 is a front view of the tricycle in an inclined position while turning at high speed.

(6) FIG. 6 is a side view of the tricycle in a situation of travel uphill on a slope with irregularities.

(7) FIG. 7 is an overhead plan view of the tricycle with the front wheels oriented in a position of turning while riding.

(8) FIG. 8 is a side view of the tricycle in a position of travel uphill on a slope, showing the control of the steering by the user by means of the handles on the lateral handlebars.

(9) FIG. 9 is a side view of the tricycle in a position of travel downhill on a slope, showing the control of the steering by the user by means of the central handlebar.

(10) FIG. 10 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the tricycle with the structural frame divided into two separable parts.

(11) FIG. 11 is a partial expanded detail view of the assembly in FIG. 3.

(12) FIG. 12 is a cross-section side view of the detail of the previous figure.

(13) FIG. 13 is a simplified front view of the tricycle, showing the details of the tilting height system of the front wheels.

(14) FIG. 14 is an expanded detail view of the top view of the front part of the tricycle.

(15) FIG. 15 is a partial perspective of a different exemplary embodiment of the tricycle that is the object of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

(16) The object of the invention relates to a tricycle that allows riding in adequate conditions over any type of terrain, comprising a structural frame (1) onto which a seat (2) and several pedals (3) are incorporated, being equipped with a rolling assembly made up of one rear wheel (4) and two parallel front wheels (5), with the front wheels (5) incorporated into two mounting forks (6) equipped with several respective stems (7) projecting upwards.

(17) Said stems (7) of the forks (6) of the front wheels (5) incorporate several handles (8) at the upper end that serve as lateral handlebars to control the positioning of the aforementioned front wheels (5), while these stems (7) of the forks (6) of the front wheels (5) are connected to a lower stem (9) of a central handlebar (10), by means of a set of rods (11), which establish a connection with the aforementioned stems (7) of the forks (6) of the front wheels (5) and with the aforementioned lower stem (9) of the central handlebar (10), by means of ball joints (12).

(18) In addition, several crossbars (13) extend between both stems (7) of the forks (6) of the front wheels (5), connected at their ends to several tubes (7.1) that are positioned with the possibility of rotating on said stems (7) of the forks (6) of the front wheels (5) and centrally on a substructure (1.1) of the structural frame (1), by means of pivoting joints (14).

(19) With this arrangement, the tricycle is suitable for travelling, for example, over terrain (15) that is laterally sloping, as shown in FIG. 4, because in these circumstances, the front wheels (5) of the tricycle adjust their height based on the position that each one of them requires to be supported on the ground, even if the ground presents irregularities, enabling the user to adequately control the ride by means of the use of lateral handles (8), which can be used to control the steering of the front wheels (5) and at the same time, exercise an action to keep said front wheels (5) supported on the ground, with the weight duly distributed between the two wheels and making it possible to maintain balance.

(20) Using the central handlebar (10), the ride can also be adequately controlled during turns at high speed, on any type of terrain (15), because in these circumstances the tilt of the tricycle for moving in the turns causes the front wheels (5) to tilt, with each one adopting the position that corresponds to them in the position on the tricycle, to maintain the support contact of each one on the ground, as shown in FIG. 5.

(21) When ascending through irregular sloping terrain (15), as shown in FIG. 6, stability can also be effectively maintained when travelling at low speed, because in these circumstances the user can use the lateral handles (8) for riding, which can adequately steer the front wheels (5) and at the same time exert an action to adapt the position in terms of the height of each one of said front wheels (5) and distribute the weight between said front wheels (5), even allowing the centre of gravity (17) to shift laterally and thus maintain balance event without having effective steering to maintain balance at low speeds.

(22) When ascending over upward sloping terrain (15), the cyclist (16) user of the tricycle can also maintain balance safely because the vertical projection of the centre of gravity (17) can be kept within the triangle defined between the rear wheel (4) and the front wheels (5) of the tricycle, as shown in FIG. 8, with the cyclist (16) able to move their body forward if necessary, and also vary the vertical force on the lateral handles (8), which makes it possible to reduce the upward speed depending on their fitness, without losing stability.

(23) In normal riding conditions, with the central handlebar (10), the front wheels (5) of the tricycle can be steered, such that in turns, said central handlebar (10) turns at an angle different from the aforementioned front wheels (5), which rotate in turn at different angles with respect to each other, depending on the direction of rotation, as shown in FIG. 7.

(24) When riding over downward sloping terrain (15), the cyclist (16) can support a large part of their weight on the central handlebar (10), shifting the centre of gravity (17) further back, so that its vertical projection falls within the triangle defined between the rear wheel (4) and the front wheels (5), as shown in FIG. 9, making it possible to travel safely at high speed over obstacles.

(25) According to one embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 11 to 14, the steering system of the front wheels (5) of the tricycle by means of the central handlebar (10) comprises several rods (11) that are connected, by means of ball joints (12), to several cantilevers (18) that protrude from the lower stem (9) of the central handlebar (10) and from the stems (7) of the forks (6) on which the aforementioned front wheels (5) are mounted.

(26) Likewise, the system for tilting the height of the aforementioned front wheels (5) of the tricycle is made up of a lower pair of crossbars (13) that form a jointed quadrilateral connected by means of pivoting joints (14) to the substructure (1.1) of the structural frame (1) and on the tubes (7.1) arranged on the stems (7) of the forks (6) on which the front wheels (5) are mounted and another upper crossbar (13), in turn, connected by means of pivoting joints (14) to the tubes (7.1) arranged on the stems (7) of the forks (6) on which the front wheels (5) are mounted and to the substructure (1.1) of the structural frame (1).

(27) Nevertheless, there may be other embodiments that likewise comply with the objective of the invention, for example, as shown in FIG. 15, with the upper crossbar (13) of the system for the tilting of the height of the front wheels (5) positioned behind the lower stem (9) of the central handlebar (10).

(28) Another embodiment is considered, as shown in FIG. 10, with the structural frame (1) of the tricycle formed by two separable parts, to allow the tricycle to be disassembled in such a way as to facilitate storage and transport.

(29) In the functional order of the drive for the propulsion of the tricycle, complementing the system of propulsion by means of pedals (3), it may also incorporate a motor (19) to collaborate with motorised propulsion that allows the cyclist (16) user of the tricycle to reduce their effort.