In line derailleur

Abstract

The present invention is directed to a derailleur that can include a base plate disposed between a perimeter of a drive sprocket nest and a pedal sprocket; a chain guide attached to said base plate for moving a chain laterally causing said chain to move from sprocket to sprocket in a sprocket nest; a chain guide surface included in said chain guide for causing said chain to contact over a perimeter of said pedal sprocket decreasing the likelihood of the chain slipping off said sprocket; and, a tension member attached to said base plate for removing slack in a chain as the chain moves from a larger sprocket to a smaller sprocket.

Claims

1. A self-powered non-motorized vehicle having a frame, a steerable front wheel carried by the frame, and a rear wheel carried by the frame, comprising: a drive sprocket nest attached to the rear wheel so that when rotational force is applied to a drive sprocket of the drive sprocket nest, the rear wheel rotates causing locomotion; a pedal sprocket nest carried by the frame and linked to the drive sprocket nest so that when rotational force is applied to a pedal sprocket in the pedal sprocket nest, the pedal sprocket nest rotates causing the drive sprocket nest to rotate; a derailleur carried by the frame and positioned forward of the drive sprocket nest and rearward of the pedal sprocket nest; a chain guide attached to the derailleur so that when the derailleur is moved laterally to a long axis of the frame, the chain moves between drive sprockets on the drive sprocket nest and pedal sprockets on the pedal sprocket nest; a slot defined in the derailleur having generally a Z configuration; and, a pin attached to the frame and received in the slot for guiding the derailleur along a path.

2. The vehicle of claim 1 wherein the chain guide includes a chain guide surface which causes the chain to contact over a perimeter of a the drive sprocket when the chain is engaged with the drive sprocket.

3. The vehicle of claim 1 including a tension member carried by the frame causing the chain to contact over a perimeter of the pedal sprocket decreasing the likelihood of the chain slipping off the pedal sprocket.

4. The vehicle of claim 1 wherein the derailleur is disposed in a shifting area.

5. The vehicle of claim 4 wherein the shifting area is defined by a line vertically intersecting a forward most perimeter of a largest sprocket of the drive sprocket nest, a line connecting generally a top perimeter of a largest pedal sprocket of the pedal sprocket nest and the largest drive sprocket, a line vertically intersecting the largest pedal sprocket and a line connecting generally a bottom perimeter of the largest pedal sprocket and the largest drive sprocket.

6. The vehicle of claim 1 wherein the derailleur is disposed forward of a perimeter of a largest drive sprocket of the drive sprocket nest and rearward of the perimeter of a largest pedal sprocket of the pedal sprocket nest.

7. A derailleur used with a vehicle where the vehicle includes a frame, a front steerable wheel carried by the frame, a pedal sprocket carried by the frame, rear wheel carried by the frame, a drive sprocket nest carried by the frame and connected to the rear wheel, a link between the pedal sprocket and the drive sprocket nest, comprising: a slot defined in the derailleur for receiving a pin carried by the frame causing a portion of the derailleur to travel along a path corresponding to the slot; and, a chain guide attached to the derailleur for causing the link to move laterally in relation to the long axis of the frame when the derailleur travels along the path thereby causing the link to move from a first drive sprocket in the drive sprocket nest to a second drive sprocket in the drive sprocket nest.

8. The derailleur of claim 7 wherein the slot is generally a Z configuration and when the derailleur travels along the path corresponding to the slot, the derailleur moves laterally in relation to a long axis of the frame.

9. The derailleur of claim 7 including a chain guide surface included in the chain guide causing the link to contact over a perimeter of a drive sprocket of the drive sprocket nest when the chain is engaged with the drive sprocket.

10. The derailleur of claim 7 including a pedal sprocket nest carried by the frame wherein the chain guide causes the link to move from one pedal sprocket to another pedal sprocket within the pedal sprocket nest when the derailleur moves laterally in relation to the long axis of the frame.

11. The derailleur of claim 10 including a tension member carried by the frame causing the link to contact over a perimeter of the pedal sprocket decreasing the likelihood of the link slipping off the sprocket.

12. The derailleur of claim 7 wherein the derailleur is disposed between a perimeter of a largest drive sprocket of the drive sprocket nest and a perimeter of a largest pedal sprocket of a pedal sprocket nest.

13. The derailleur of claim 7 including a top plate carried by the derailleur having a top slot for receiving a top pin carried by the frame causing the top plate to travel along a top path that corresponds with the top slot.

14. A derailleur comprising: a base plate disposed between a perimeter of a drive sprocket and a pedal sprocket nest; a slot defined in the base plate so that when the base plate moves toward the pedal sprocket, a chain guide moves laterally; and, wherein the chain guide is attached to the base plate for moving a chain laterally when the base plate moves laterally causing the chain to move from a first pedal sprocket to a second pedal sprocket within the pedal sprocket nest.

15. The derailleur of claim 14 wherein the slot is generally a Z configuration so that when the base plate travels along a path corresponding to the slot, the base plate moves laterally in relation to a long axis of the frame.

16. The derailleur of claim 14 wherein a chain guide surface is included in the chain guide for causing the chain to contact over a perimeter of the first pedal sprocket decreasing the likelihood of the chain slipping off the first pedal sprocket.

17. The derailleur of claim 14 including a second slot defined in the base plate so that when the base plate moves away the drive sprocket nest and toward the pedal sprocket, the chain guide moves laterally.

18. The derailleur of claim 17 wherein the second slot is generally a Z configuration.

19. The derailleur of claim 17 wherein the first and the second slots are offset about 45 degrees allowing the base plate to move the chain within the pedal sprocket nest.

20. The derailleur of claim 14 including a tension member attached to the base plate for removing slack in the chain as the chain moves from a larger pedal sprocket to a smaller pedal sprocket within the pedal sprocket nest.

Description

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) The invention will be better understood with reference to the following drawings that are part of this specification:

(2) FIG. 1A is a side view of the invention placed on a pedal scooter;

(3) FIG. 1B is a side view of the invention placed on a pedal scooter;

(4) FIG. 2 is a top view of the frame showing the pedal sprocket nest, derailleur and drive sprocket nest;

(5) FIGS. 3A through 3D are bottom views of the invention in various orientations;

(6) FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the invention; and,

(7) FIG. 5 is a top perspective view of the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

(8) Referring to FIGS. 1A and 1B, frame 10 includes a drive axle 12 and a pedal axle 14. A pedal sprocket 16 is rotatably attached to the frame. A drive sprocket nest 18 is rotatably attached to the frame rearward of the pedal sprocket and includes a plurality of sprockets. A chain 20 engages the pedal sprocket and drive sprocket nest so that when rotational force is applied to the pedal sprocket, the rear drive sprocket nest is rotated. A rear wheel 22 is attached to the drive sprocket nest by a drive linkage so that when the pedal sprocket is rotated; the drive sprocket is rotated thereby rotating the rear wheel providing locomotion. The pedal sprocket nest is disposed generally at location A along the frame and the drive sprocket nest is disposed generally at location B along the frame.

(9) A derailleur 24 located in the shifting area 28 includes a chain guide 26 attached to the frame and at least partially receives the chain to cause the chain to be moved laterally in relation to the long axis of the frame. When the chain guide causes the chain to move laterally, the chain will move from one sprocket in the drive sprocket nest to the adjacent sprocket causing the drive system to change gears. The chain guide, in one embodiment, can include a idler or other surface to support the chain upwards.

(10) The shifting area is defined by: (a) a line intersecting generally the top of the pedal sprocket and the top of the largest sprocket in the drive sprocket nest, (b) a vertical line generally orthogonal to the axis of the frame intersecting the drive sprocket nest; (c) a line intersecting generally the bottom of the largest sprocket in the drive sprocket nest and generally the bottom perimeter of the pedal sprocket; and (d) a vertical line generally orthogonal to the axis of the frame intersecting the pedal sprocket. By having the derailleur disposed in the shifting area, the derailleur does not require the clearance of the typical derailleur.

(11) A tension member 30 is shown attached to the frame and includes an idler 32 and a spring 34 which biases the idler upwards placing tension on the chain. The tensioning member can be attached to the derailleur or the frame. A tension member guard 36 can be included to prevent the rider from being entangled in the chain and tension member idler. A drive sprocket guard 38 can be included to prevent the rider from being entangled in the drive sprocket nest and chain.

(12) The pedal sprocket 16 is shown. Idler is shown biasing the chain upwards and causing the chain to contact the pedal sprocket on more than of its perimeter. Because the chain contacts more than of the perimeter of the pedal sprocket when there is a pedal sprocket nest, the diameter between sprockets can be increased over traditional increments. In one embodiment, the differential between pedal diameters from one pedal sprocket to another is increased by thirty percent over traditional sprocket nests.

(13) Referring to FIG. 2, the chain guide 26 moves in a lateral direction 40 thereby causing the chain to move from sprocket to sprocket on the drive sprocket nest. In one embodiment, a pedal sprocket nest 42 is included in place of the single pedal sprocket allowing for more gears. In this configuration, the chain guide causes the chain to move among sprockets on both the drive sprocket nest and the pedal sprocket nest. In operation, the chain can be initially positioned around the drive sprocket 44a and pedal sprocket 46a. As the chain guide moves in a direction shown as 48, the chain moves from sprocket 44a to sprocket 44b. As the chain guide continue to move in direction 48, the chain from to drive sprocket 44c and then to drive sprocket 44d. Once the chain has traveled to the last sprocket in this series, the movement of the chain causes the chain to move from pedal sprocket 46a to sprocket 46b. When the chain guide moves in a direction opposition 48, the chain would then move from drive sprocket 44d, to 44c, to 44b and then to 44a. If the chain is on drive sprocket 44a and the chain guide moves in a direction opposition 48, the chain will move to pedal sprocket 46a from 46b. herefore, the chain is moved among the pedal sprocket nest and the drive sprocket nest with one chain guide and therefore one derailleur.

(14) Referring to FIG. 3A through 3D, the derailleur base plate 50 is attached to the chain guide 26. The chain guide can include guide arms 27 and 27b and side walls 26a and 26b for exerting force on the chain to move the chain laterally in relation to a long axis of the frame. A first slot 54b is defined in the forward portion of the base plate and a second slot 54 is defined in a rearward portion of the base plate. A first pin 56 is received in the first slot and a second pin 58 is received in the second slot. When the cable 60 is tensioned in a direction shown as 62, the base plate also move in a direction 62, however, pin 58 and slot 54 force the rear portion of the base plate to move in a direction shown as 64. Direction 64 includes two components to its movement, vector 64a and 64b. The vector 64b moves the chain guide in direction 64b and therefore causes the chain to move from one drive sprocket to another. When tension is released from the cable, springs such as forward spring 68a and rear spring 68b cause the base plate to move in a direction opposite 62 thereby causing the chain guide to move in a direction opposite 64 causing the chain guide to move the chain from one drive sprocket to another.

(15) In another embodiment shows the use of one derailleur to move a chain about a pedal sprocket nest and drive sprocket nest. A forward chain guide 70 is attached to the base plate for causing the chain to move from one pedal sprocket to another pedal sprocket.The forward chain guide can include an inside plate 70a and an outside plate 70b. The plates of the chain guide can include forward ramps 71 a and 71b to prevent the chin from catching the chain guide In one embodiment, the plates are curved. The first slot 54a resembles a Z shape with the ends angled relative to the long axis of the frame. The second slot 54b also resembles a z shape with the ends generally parallel to the long axis of the frame. The first slot can cause a portion of the base plate to travel along a first path and the second slot can cause a portion of the base plate to travel along a second path. When the base plate is in the inner most position as shown in FIG. 4A, the pin is at the front of the first slot and the front of the second slot. Referring to FIG. 4B, when the base plate is moved in a direction shown as 62, the front portion of the base plate moves in a direction shown as 64b, a first path in one embodiment. This causes the chain to also move in the pedal sprocket nest in direction 64b which causes the chain to move to another sprocket in the pedal sprocket nest. The rear pin simply travels in a path parallel to the long axis of the frame and does not cause the chain to move to another sprocket in the drive sprocket nest, a second path in one embodiment.

(16) Referring to FIG. 3C, the base plate is further moved in direction 62. This causes the rear portion of the base plate to move in a direction 64b causing the chain to move to another sprocket in the drive sprocket nest. As the front of the base plate simply travels in a path parallel to the long axis of the frame, the chain does not move to a different sprocket in the pedal sprocket nest.

(17) Referring to FIG. 3D when the base plate is moved in a direction shown as 62, the front portion of the base plate moves in a direction shown as 64b. This causes the chain to also move in the pedal sprocket nest in direction 64b causing the chain to move to another sprocket in the pedal sprocket nest. The rear pin simply travels in a path parallel to the long axis of the frame and does not cause the chain to move to another sprocket in the drive sprocket nest. Therefore, the chain can be moved from sprocket to sprocket in the pedal nest and the drive nest with a single derailleur.

(18) Referring to FIG. 5, the chain guide includes a contact surface 70 that forces the chain upwards causing the chain to contact over the perimeter of the drive sprocket. Because the chain contacts more than of the perimeter of the pedal sprocket when there is a pedal sprocket nest, the diameter between sprockets can be increased over traditional increments. In one embodiment, the differential between pedal diameters from one pedal sprocket to another is increased by thirty percent over traditional sprocket nests.

(19) The derailleur can be disposed between the perimeter of the largest sprocket of the drive sprocket and the perimeter of the pedal sprocket. In one embodiment, a pedal sprocket nest is carried by the frame and the derailleur is disposed between the largest sprocket of the drive sprocket nest and the largest sprocket of the pedal sprocket nest.

(20) The top plate 80 is attached to the derailleur and carried by the base plate. A top slot 82 is defined in the derailleur and receives pin 84 which is carried by the frame. When the derailleur is moved in a direction shown as 92, the pin and top slot cooperate to move the chain guide laterally in a direction shown as 86 causing the chain to move from one sprocket to another in the drive sprocket nest.

(21) One embodiment of the invention as described herein, is directed to a scooter; as used herein, a scooter is a vehicle having typically two wheels, but could have three, but is so designed to have the rider standing on the pedals. The use of pneumatic tires, solid rubber or urethane tires, does not change the device from a scooter to a bicycle. It is understood, however, the present invention with the addition of a seat for the rider, would take on the appearance of a pedal drive bicycle, as such the use of the present invention with a seat would also be considered within the scope of the present invention, but it must be appreciated that the maximum driving speed of the rear wheel is most easily performed standing. The vehicle can be motorized or non-motorized

(22) Variations in the present invention are possible in light of the description provided herein. While certain representative embodiments and details have been shown for the purpose of illustrating the subject invention, it will be apparent to those skilled in this art that various changes and modifications can be made therein without departing from the scope of the subject invention. It is, therefore, to be understood that changes can be made in the particular embodiments described which will be within the fully intended scope of the invention as defined by the following appended claims.