Bike frame

Abstract

A bike frame includes including a seat tube (10) for receiving a seatpost (2), a front portion comprising a top tube (13) connecting the seat tube (10) to a head tube (16), the seat tube (10), the top tube (13). The head tube (16) extends in a plane of symmetry of the bike frame (1). A rear portion has two chain stays (11a, 11b) and two seat stays (12a, 12b) arranged symmetrically relative to the plane of symmetry of the bike frame (1). The two seat stays (12a, 12b) are independent of each other and the two seat stays (12a, 12b) have a preform that is curved along at least one arc in a plane passing through the two seat stays, so as to enable the two seat stays to move away from or closer to each other under the action of a vertical load.

Claims

1. A bike frame comprising: a seat tube configured to receive a seatpost, a front portion comprising a top tube connecting the seat tube to a head tube, said seat tube, said top tube and said head tube extending in a plane of symmetry of the bike frame, and a rear portion comprising two chain stays and two seat stays arranged symmetrically relative to the plane of symmetry of the bike frame, wherein each seat stay has a perpendicular cross-sectional profile that is elongated in a direction parallel to the plane of symmetry, in that the two seat stays are independent of each other and in that the two seat stays have a preform that is curved along at least one arc in a plane passing through the two seat stays, so as to enable the two seat stays to move away from or closer to each other under the action of a vertical load.

2. The bike frame according to claim 1, wherein the preform is curved towards the outside of the bike frame.

3. The bike frame according to claim 1, wherein the preform is curved towards the inside of the bike frame.

4. The bike frame according to claim 1, wherein the preform includes a series of arcs alternately curved towards the inside and then towards the outside of the bike frame.

5. The bike frame according to claim 1, wherein the two seat stays are each connected to a front lateral half of the seat tube.

6. The bike frame according to claim 1, wherein the two seat stays are each connected to the top end of the seat tube.

7. The bike frame according to claim 1, wherein said bike frame also includes a fastening lug for a rim brake that extends in the plane of symmetry of the frame, from the seat tube towards the rear portion.

8. The bike frame according to claim 1, wherein said bike frame also includes a fastening element rigidly connected to a bottom bracket of said bike frame to support a rim brake under the two chain stays.

9. The bike frame according to claim 1, wherein said bike frame also includes a supporting element provided at the end of each seat stay at the joints with the chain stays to support a rear disc brake.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) The invention and the advantages that it provides will be better understood on reading the following description of an embodiment, given with reference to the attached figures, in which:

(2) FIG. 1, described above, shows a partial rear three-quarter perspective view of a rear portion of an aerodynamic bike frame of the prior art;

(3) FIG. 2 shows a side view of an assembly made up of a seatpost and a bike frame according to one possible embodiment of the invention;

(4) FIG. 3 shows a rear three-quarter view of the assembly in FIG. 2;

(5) FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a top portion of the frame in FIG. 2, showing a section of the top portion of the seat tube and the seat stays;

(6) FIG. 5 is an enlargement of a zone R in FIG. 2, showing an example of variations in profile of the seat stays along the length thereof;

(7) FIG. 6 shows a rear view of the frame only of the assembly in FIG. 2, without the seatpost;

(8) FIGS. 7a and 7b show comparative deformation tests for a frame according to the prior art and a frame according to the invention;

(9) FIG. 8 shows a rear three-quarter view of a top part of the frame only of the assembly in FIG. 2, without the seatpost;

(10) FIG. 9 shows a partial bottom view showing a seat stay fastening zone.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(11) Hereinafter, unless otherwise specified, all elements common to the different figures have the same reference signs.

(12) Furthermore, terms relating to directions or positions, such as front or rear, are used relative to the position of a bicycle having a front wheel and a rear wheel in contact with a horizontal ground surface and in a vertical orientation.

(13) FIGS. 2 and 3 show a side view and a rear three-quarter view of an assembly made up of a bike frame according to one possible embodiment of the invention and a seatpost 2. The bike frame 1 conventionally includes, like the frame of the prior art shown in FIG. 1, a seat tube 10 configured to receive the seatpost 2, a rear portion including two chain stays 11a, 11b and two seat stays 12a, 12b, and a front portion conventionally including a top tube 13, a down tube 14, a bottom bracket 15 and a head tube 16.

(14) The top tube 13 is connected, at a first end, to the head tube 16 and, at a second end, to the seat tube 10. The down tube 14 is connected, at a first end, to the head tube 16 and, at a second end, to the bottom bracket 15. The seat tube 10 is connected at the bottom end thereof to the bottom bracket 15.

(15) The longitudinal axes of the seat tube 10, the top tube 13, the head tube 16 and the down tube 14 are all located in the same plane, known as the plane of symmetry of the frame. The chain stays 11a, 11b and the seat stays 12a, 12b are arranged symmetrically relative to the plane of symmetry of the frame. More specifically, the chain stay 11a is connected at a first end to the bottom bracket 15, and at a second end to the seat stay 12a, while the chain stay 11b is connected at a first end to the bottom bracket 15, and at a second end to the seat stay 12b. The joint areas between the chain stay 11a and the seat stay 12a, and the chain stay 11b and the seat stay 12b, include fastening lugs 19a, 19b capable of receiving a hub of a rear wheel (not shown) of the bike to couple the rear wheel rotatably to the frame.

(16) The different elements of the frame 1 are preferably made from a carbon fibre-based composite material or another composite material and moulded in a single unit or in several individual units that are then coupled together. The advantage of composite materials is that they can be formed into a variety of shapes and structures for bicycle frames. Other materials, for example aluminium, can nonetheless be envisaged for all or some of the elements of the frame.

(17) The principle on which the present invention is based is that of proposing a design for seat stays that will be able to deform in a lateral direction relative to the plane of symmetry of the frame, working particularly in buckling, under the action of a generally vertical load.

(18) This lateral deformation is made possible by combining several features that will now be described:

(19) According to a first feature of the invention, each seat stay 12a, 12b has a perpendicular cross-sectional profile that is elongated in a direction parallel to the plane of symmetry of the frame. “Perpendicular cross-sectional profile” is given to mean a profile in a plane perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the seat stay. This feature can be seen in particular in FIG. 4, in which a profile S of the seat stay 12b has a generally elliptical shape, with a dimension “e” perpendicular to the plane of symmetry of the frame that is smaller than the dimension “L” parallel to the plane of symmetry of the frame (or here, the direction of travel of a bike provided with the frame, shown in the figures by an arrow D).

(20) The perpendicular cross-sectional profile can be constant over the entire length of the seat stays 12a, 12b. As a variant, this profile can be variable. Thus, FIG. 5 shows a possible variation of profiles S.sub.A, S.sub.B, S.sub.C and S.sub.D of the seat stay 12a corresponding respectively to the cross sections along the lines A-A, B-B, C-C and D-D. Here, the profiles increase from the bottom end of the seat stay 12a to the top end thereof. As a result, the largest widthwise dimension of the profiles S.sub.A, S.sub.B, S.sub.C and S.sub.D of the seat stay 12a is still the dimension that extends parallel to the plane of symmetry of the frame. The seat stays 12a, 12b thus offer very little wind resistance when the bike is travelling, which give the bike good aerodynamics.

(21) According to a second feature of the invention, the two seat stays 12a, 12b are independent of each other. “Independent” is given to mean that there is no part mechanically connecting the two seat stays together, apart from the part to which the top end of the seat stays is connected. In particular, the frame according to the invention does not include a bridge 12c to support a rim brake.

(22) According to a third feature of the invention, when the frame 1 is at rest, the two seat stays 12a, 12b have a preform that is curved along at least one arc in a plane passing through these two seat stays. For example, in FIG. 6, which shows a rear view of the bike frame 1, the two seat stays 12a, 12b have a preform curved towards the outside of the bike frame, unlike the straight seat stays in FIG. 1, which would have followed the two straight dashed lines shown in FIG. 6. In this configuration, when the frame is subjected to a vertical load, such as the load shown by the arrow F in FIG. 6, the seat stays will be able to deform laterally, moving away from each other, as represented by the two arrows D.sub.a and D.sub.b in FIG. 6.

(23) In another embodiment, not shown, the preform of the seat stays is curved towards the inside of the bike frame. In this case, when the frame is subjected to a vertical load, the seat stays will still be able to deform laterally, this time by moving closer to each other.

(24) The preform of the seat stays viewed from the rear can have a constant radius of curvature. As a variant, the preform of the seat stays viewed from the rear can have variable radii of curvature over the length thereof.

(25) Provision can also be made for the preform of the seat stays to include a portion curved towards the outside followed by a portion curved towards the inside of the frame, or, more generally, a series of portions of arcs alternately curved towards the inside and then towards the outside of the bike frame.

(26) In any event, the seat stays can deform laterally under the action of a vertical load, and move closer to and/or away from each other.

(27) A comparison of the deformations of the seat stays obtained for the frame according to the invention shown in FIG. 2 et seq, and for the frame of the prior art shown in FIG. 1, is given in FIGS. 7a and 7b. For both frames, the test consisted of securing the rear portion of the frames, at the top tube and the bottom bracket, and laterally at the joints between the chain stays and seat stays, so as to simulate the presence of a rear wheel. A force F was then applied upwards at the joints between the chain stays and the seat stays. Section (a) of FIG. 7a shows the deformation obtained with the frame in FIG. 1, on which the seat stays are straight in the rest position and connected by a brake supporting bridge, while section (b) of FIG. 7a shows the deformation obtained with a frame according to the invention. The test was carried out with a force F equal to 1,000 Newtons, and then a force F equal to 2,000 Newtons. The vertical displacement d.sub.v values of the axis of the rear wheel were measured in each case, with the results shown in FIG. 7b. In this FIG. 7b, section (a) corresponds to the results obtained for the frame in FIG. 1, and section (b) corresponds to the results obtained for the frame according to the invention, for a force of 2,000 Newtons (hatched rectangle) and for a force of 1,000 Newtons (checked rectangle) respectively. The lateral deformations of the seat stays according to the invention are greater than the lateral deformations obtained in the same conditions with the straight seat stays in FIG. 1. This results in approximately 20% greater displacement for the frame according to the invention, which translates into improved comfort for the cyclist.

(28) Further tests highlighted firstly the effect of the profiles of the seat stays on the results obtained in terms of lateral displacement, and secondly the preponderance of the lateral deformation of the seat stays over any vertical deformation. The tests were simulated for aluminium frames with solid tubes.

(29) In Table 1 below, it can be seen in particular that the aerodynamic profile of the seat stays 12a, 12b of the frame according to the invention makes it possible to obtain three times more lateral displacement than is obtained on a cylindrical profile seat stay for the same vertical load of 100 Newtons:

(30) TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 1 Lateral displacement Forward displacement (parallel to the axis of (along the longitudinal rotation of the rear wheel) axis of the seat stay) [mm] [mm] Seat stays 12a, 10.13 1.47 12b Cylindrical seat 3.34 3.34 stay

(31) In Table 2 below, it can be seen that the seat stays 12a, 12b according to the invention, subjected during the test to a vertical load of 2,000 Newtons, deform mainly in the lateral direction:

(32) TABLE-US-00002 TABLE 2 Proportion of maximum displacement Direction parallel to the axis of the rear wheel 80% Direction perpendicular to the axis of the rear 20% wheel

(33) It will be easily understood that the results obtained in terms of lateral deformation of the preformed seat stays according to the invention also depend on the length of these seat stays. Tests have shown that the lateral deformation of a seat stay with a curved preform is proportional to the length of this seat stay. Thus, the longer the seat stays, the better the lateral deformation obtained under the action of a vertical load.

(34) The length of the seat stays can be optimized by judicious selection of the area in which the top end of the seat stays 12a, 12b will be connected. Of course, the decision also depends on the type of frame, according to whether its geometry is traditional or compact.

(35) In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2 et seq, given as a non-limitative example, the top end of the seat tube 10 is at approximately the same level as the joint area between the seat tube 10 and the top tube 13. As can be seen more particularly in FIGS. 8 and 9, in this case the decision is advantageously made to connect the top end of each seat stay 12a, 12b to an area of the seat tube 10 placed as far forward as possible on the seat tube 10, here for example to the lateral front half of the seat tube 10, beyond the longitudinal axis XX′ of the seat tube 10.

(36) In another possible embodiment, not shown, the top end of each seat stay could be coupled directly to the top tube of the frame, with the seat stays extending beyond the seat tube in this case.

(37) In other frame configurations in which the top tube is connected to an intermediate portion of the seat tube, preference will be given to fastening the top end of the seat stays at the top end of the seat tube, as high up as possible and as far forward as possible on the seat tube.

(38) As has been stated above, the frame according to the invention cannot include a rear brake supporting bridge connecting the two seat stays, as such a bridge would prevent the seat stays from moving closer to or away from each other under the action of a vertical load. When the use of the frame is envisaged in combination with a rear rim brake, the frame of the invention can include a fastening lug 3 for a rim brake that extends in the plane of symmetry of the frame, from the seat tube 10 towards the rear portion (see FIGS. 3, 4, 6, 7 and 8), without contact with the seat stays. This fastening lug 3 can be moulded with the seat tube 10 or affixed to the seat tube 10, for example by gluing. This fastening lug thus in no way hinders the lateral displacement of the seat stays. In addition, the fastening lug remains concealed behind the seat tube, which further contributes to the aerodynamics. As a variant, a rear rim brake can also be supported under the two chain stays 11a, 11b by a fastening element rigidly connected to the bottom bracket 15 of the bike frame 1. For a rear disc brake, a supporting element can be provided at the end of each seat stay at the joints with the chain stays.