SEAT SUSPENSION ASSEMBLY FOR A TWO-WHEELER

Abstract: A seat suspension assembly for e.g. a bicyle has a movable and cushioning intermediate section between a lower seat post part and an upper seat attachment part. The intermediate section comprises parallel bars journalled to a head on top of the seat post and to the seat attachment part. A springing mechanism is equipped with a system for adjusting the effective spring rate of the springing mechanism.

Description: "SEAT SUSPENSION ASSEMBLY FOR A TWO-WHEELER" BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the invention. The present invention relates to a suspension system in connection with a saddle means on a two-wheeled vehicle, preferably a bicycle. More precisely the invention concerns a seat suspension assembly intended for mounting e.g. on a standard bicycle, in the place in the bicycle frame where the normal seat post is usually inserted down into the seat tube. The intention is that a standard type saddle shall then be mounted on top of the seat suspension assembly of the invention. 2. Description of the related art. There are several types of previously known suspension solutions in connection with bicycle and motorcycle saddles. Among the more recent types of suspension for bicycle seats, one solution can be mentioned, in which the seat has a spring action in a direction along the seat tube in a telescopic assembly, which in most bicycles is in a slanted angle down toward the crank bearing. This type of suspension has a clear limitation in the fact that the travel of the system along the seat tube during spring motion, is in a wrong direction, actually an error that can be as large as 45 ° . This is because the upward movement a saddle makes during a blow that pushes the rear wheel upward, actually makes the saddle move obliquely forward/upward. Therefore, a springing movement obliquely downward/forward is in principle incorrect. The above mentioned solution cannot be made with the feature of long travel either, because the movement component in a wrong direction will increase the longer the travel is made along the seat tube, and the error will be quite perceptible when the bumps are larger than a certain size, typically 10-15 mm. A springy seat device for a two-wheeler, in particular a bicycle or a mountain bike, is previously known from Norwegian patent no. 300.168. The seat suspension assembly disclosed in NO 300.168 is based on a parallelogram solution that provides the correct type of travel during suspension movement, but the built-in spring is mounted between two diagonally situated bearings in the parallelogram construction, and therefore has the important limitation that in order to adapt the suspension to the weight of the bicyclist, the spring must be replaced by another spring that is more or less compliant. In order to do this, the complete assembly must be disassembled, a new spring must be inserted, and thereafter the assembly must be reassembled. It is important to provide an easy option for adapting the suspension to variable conditions such as actual weight on the saddle. During slow bicycling, where the bicyclist will often sit in a rather erect position, more weight will be transferred to the saddle, than what is the case when the bicycling is rapid and the bicyclist in such a situation leans more forward over the handlebars. In this last case, a larger portion of the weight is shifted forward and away from the seat, and in these two situations, more or less compliant springs in the assembly will be of use. A bicyclist may be interested in a more or less compliant suspension, e.g. in relation to the track he/she is about to bicycle through. If the track is complicated, with low speed to match, another seat compliance will be desirable than if e.g. the track on average allows higher speeds. Such matters can be compensated somewhat through an adjusted spring bias, but such a bias does not make the spring stiffer, i.e. the spring characteristic is not changed. The suspension will e.g. easily become too stiff using a strong spring, irrespective of how low bias is chosen, and hence work poorly for small bumps. Experience has also shown that it is difficult to find the correct spring compliance immediately, the spring characteristic is as dependent on weight as on riding style. Changing the spring characteristic may become necessary during a development period as a bicyclist, during a weight reduction period or similar. Consequently, it is impossible to state what is correct for the individual at any particular time. It is therefore desirable to be able to experiment on the spring rate of the seat suspension assembly. BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a seat suspension assembly with an option for adjusting the compliance of the spring system. Further, it is a goal of the invention to provide a light and sturdy construction that is easily mounted and disassembled, and which gives low bearing wear, thereby preventing creation of play in the assembly after a short time. Therefore, in accordance with the invention, in a first aspect thereof there is provided a seat spring suspension assembly for a two-wheeled vehicle, preferably a bicycle, adapted to be mounted in a standard frame seat tube and to receive and retain a standard seat, said assembly comprising - on top a seat attachment part to which a seat can be attached, - lowermost a seat post part for conventional tightening inside the seat tube, - therebetween a movable intermediate section comprising two, three or four substantially parallel bars pointing obliquely upwards and backwards, and each being journalled in a forward end to respective bearings on a post head arranged on top of the seat post part, and journalled in the rear end to respective bearings on the seat attachment part, and a springing mechanism arranged substantially in the movable intermediate section to provide an upward directed springing force against the seat attachment part, the springing mechanism being equipped with a system for adjusting the effective spring rate of the springing mechanism. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the springing mechanism comprises a linearly acting spring where at least one end of the spring has an abutment that can be shifted transversely in relation to the linear direction of the spring. In this preferred embodiment, the transversely shiftable abutment of the linearly acting spring is preferably arranged in a cartridge unit placed against the seat attachment part between the bars, the other end of the spring being attached on a lower part of the post head, possibly in a lower one of the bearings on the post head. The above mentioned cartridge unit may preferably be attached in a lower one of the bearings on the seat attachment part. In the preferred embodiment, a bias screw is preferably arranged for pre-tensioning of the spring, and a stopper part may then be provided to limit the upward deflection of the assembly caused by the biasing. In an alternative embodiment of the invention, the springing mechanism comprises at least one torsion spring surrounding at least one of the bearings, the torsion spring having arms of which one engages the seat attachment part or the post head, and the other engages a shiftable projection on one of the bars. In this second embodiment, the torsion spring having an adjustable effective spring rate may be arranged around the lower bearing on the seat attachment part, and the shiftable projection may be placed on the inside/underside of the top bar. In any of the above mentioned embodiments, the springing mechanism may comprise at least one further torsion spring arranged around one of the bearings, to provide an enhanced total spring rate. In a second aspect of the invention a seat spring suspension assembly for a two- wheeled vehicle, preferably a bicycle, is provided, adapted to be mounted in a standard frame seat tube and to receive and retain a standard seat, the assembly comprising - uppermost a seat attachment part to which the seat can be attached, - lowermost a seat post part for conventional tightening inside the seat tube, - therebetween a movable intermediate section comprising two, three or four substantially parallel bars pointing obliquely upward and backward, and each being journalled in its forward end to respective bearings on a post head arranged on top of the seat post part, and in its rear end to respective bearings on the seat attachment part, and - a springing mechanism arranged substantially in the movable intermediate section to provide an upward directed spring force against the seat attachment part, the seat attachment part and the post head having, in relation to a center plane spanned by the normal seat pointing direction and the seat post center line, an asymmetrical and substantially cupulate shape with necks for the bars pointing substantially horizontally outward from the insides of the seat attachment part and the post head respectively. In a favorable embodiment of the second aspect of the invention, the necks are attached to the post head and the seat attachment part respectively, by screwing a threaded end part into threaded holes on the post head and the seat attachment part respectively, and the necks have in their opposite end increased diameter, a flange or a stopper disk in order to hold the bars in place. In a third and unifying aspect of the invention, there is provided a seat spring suspension assembly for a two-wheeled vehicle, preferably a bicycle, adapted to be mounted in a standard frame seat tube and to receive and retain a standard seat, the assembly comprising - uppermost a seat attachment part to which the seat can be attached, - lowermost a seat post part for conventional tightening inside the seat tube, - therebetween a movable intermediate section comprising two, three or four substantially parallel bars pointing obliquely upward and backward, and each being journalled in its forward end to respective bearings on a post heat arranged on top of the seat post part, and in its rear end to respective bearings on the seat attachment part, and - a springing mechanism arranged substantially in the movable intermediate section to provide an upward directed spring force against the seat attachment part, the springing mechanism being equipped with a system for adjusting the effective spring rate of the springing mechanism, and the seat attachment part and the post head having, in relation to a center plane spanned by the normal seat pointing direction and the seat post center line, an asymmetrical and substantially cupulate shape with necks for the bars pointing substantially horizontally outward from the insides of the seat attachment part and the post head respectively. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The invention shall now be illuminated further by means of a detailed description of examples of the embodiments of the invention, and in this connection it is referred to the appended drawings, where fig. 1 shows a preferred embodiment of the invention in a sectional drawing of a complete seat suspension assembly, fig. 2 shows a lower seat post part in a sectional view from the rear, fig. 3 shows a seat attachment part in a sectional view from the front, fig. 4 shows an alternative embodiment of a seat suspension assembly in accordance with the invention, fig. 5 shows an embodiment of a seat suspension assembly in accordance with the invention, with an extra torsion spring, and fig. 6 shows in a simplified drawing a location of a separate stopper part for limiting upward deflection. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION The seat spring suspension assembly in accordance with the invention will comprise three main sections, viz. a lower seat post part to provide attachment to the seat tube of the vehicle, the seat post part having a seat post head on top, further a movable intermediate section, and on top a seat attachment part to which a standard seat can be attached. A preferred embodiment of the invention is shown in fig. 1. The seat post part 24 is adapted to be inserted and tightened in a standard seat tube as a replacement for another seat post, and the seat pin head on top has reference numeral 10. The seat attachment part 2 is provided on top with attachment details 22 according to per se previously known principles, for attaching a standard bicycle seat. Between the post head 10 and the seat attachment part 2 there is a movable intermediate section constituted by substantially parallel bars and a springing mechanism that possibly may include a damper device. The upper one of the parallel bars 16 is attached in respective ends thereof to upper bearing necks 15, 21 on the post head 10 and the seat attachment part 2 respectively. The lower one of the bars 6 is attached in each end thereof to lower bearing necks 11, 5 on the post head 10 and the seat attachment part 2 respectively. Thus, the substantially parallel bars 6, 16 can pivot around all bearing necks 11, 15, 5, 21, and if the center distances between bearing necks along each one of the bars 6, 16 are equal, and additionally the distances between the center points of the bearing necks are equal on the post head 10 and the seat attachment part 2, movement of the movable intermediate section will be a "parallelogram movement", i.e. the seat 1 will stay in a horizontal position during the cushioning movement, if the seat was in a horizontal position from the start. It is also possible to make one of the distance pairs include two distances that are somewhat different. This may then e.g. cause the tip of the seat to tilt a little up or down during the cushioning movement, depending on what is desirable. Moreover, in the preferred embodiment two bars 6, 16 are shown, i.e. one bar on top and one bar thereunder, but it is possible to design this construction in such a manner that uppermost, lowermost or both places there will appear a splitting in two bars next to each other. Such an embodiment will possibly provide more space for moving possible details out and in between the separate bars, but it may at the same time constitute a somewhat weaker construction. In an important aspect of the invention, the bars 6, 16 are mounted into a seat post head 10 and a seat attachment part 2 which are asymmetrically and cupulately shaped, such as appears from figs. 2 and 3, which figures show respectively such a preferred embodiment of a post head 10 and a seat attachment part 2. The asymmetry in question is an asymmetry about an imagined vertical principal plane of the bicycle frame itself, i.e. a plane to be envisaged spanned by the normal pointing direction of the seat and the center line of the seat post. The post head 10, seen directly in a rear view in fig. 2, is then a semi- cupulate construction where the cup bottom stands vertically and constitutes an attachment part for the two bearing necks 15 and 11 that are screwed into threaded holes in the vertical cup bottom. At the same time the two bars 6 and 16 are then attached to the post head 10. The edges of the cup are shown by reference numeral 12. Correspondingly the seat attachment part 2 has a semi-cupulate shape, with the cup bottom lying beside the above mentioned center plane in the same manner as the cup bottom of the post head. As appears from fig. 3, which figure shows the seat attachment part 2 in a direct front view, the cup bottom stands vertically also here, while the cup edges 13 are bent out on top and behind the bearing necks 5 and 21 that are screwed into threaded holes into the vertical cup bottom. When the necks 5 and 21 are affixed by screwing, the bars 6 and 16 are attached to the seat attachment part 2 at the same time. In addition, it appears from figs. 2 and 3 that the bearing necks preferably have an enlargement, a flange or a disk at its outermost end to hold the bars 6, 16 in place. When using the preferred asymmetrical embodiment of the invention, the mounting operation may take place in a simple manner, since several parts then in quite a simple manner can be slid onto the bearing necks which are then fastened by screwing. Due to the cupulate and asymmetric shape, there is also achieved a gain of space with the effect that the bearing necks can be designed with a large diameter. Consequently, large bearing surfaces are obtained, which feature makes the bearings resistant to the development of play. Referring once again to fig. 1 , in the following the most important aspect of the present invention will be discussed, namely a springing mechanism which comprises a system for adjusting the effective spring rate of the springing mechanism. This is something quite different from a biasing means, that only makes a spring work in a range outside the relaxed spring position. In fig. 1 a spring 9 is mounted so as to engage an engagement part 14 which, in the shown example, is mounted on bearing neck 11. This lower engagement for spring 9 might equally well be placed on a separate stud e.g. a little further down and in on the post head 10, i.e. separated from the bearing neck 11. Considering for a moment the solution stated in Norwegian patent no. 300.168, one finds that the spring in that publication engages in its upper end the top rear bearing neck (like bearing neck 21 in this specification). The actual cushioning is then achieved by compressing the spring mechanism so that the spring provides a counter-force as the intermediate section moves when a bump hits the rear wheel and rotates the bicycle frame upward and forward about the front wheel axis, however without transferring this energy and movement to the seat, which energy and movement are instead absorbed by the spring and neutralized due to the general geometry of the assembly. In the embodiment of the present invention that is shown in fig. 1 , spring 9 extends substantially diagonally up in a direction toward bearing neck 21 on the seat attachment part, however does not land thereon, but on the contrary lands on an upper abutment part 23 which in its turn is attached to a laterally movable bolt 9 held in a cartridge unit 4 which is supported at a lower end on bearing neck 5, and which leans against the rear "cup edge" 13 of the seat attachment part 2 via a bias screw 3. If the bias screw 3 is in a fully retracted position, the cartridge unit 4 will contact the "cup edge" 13, pivoted around bearing neck 5. Turning the adjustment screw 20 will make bolt 19 travel on the threaded part 18 of the screw while the screw 20 rotates without translatory movement, and thereby the end of the spring will move, i.e. spring 9 will then rotate about its lower engagement point, in this case bearing neck 11. When the spring 9 has been rotated such as mentioned above, one has in reality adjusted the effective spring rate of the springing means. This is realized through the following consideration: If the slot in the cartridge unit 4 were so long that the upper spring abutment (or bolt 19) were moved (theoretically) all the way down to bearing neck 5, then a downward movement for the complete assembly would not have implied any length change of spring 9, i.e. the spring would not have been part of any cushioning action at all. On the other hand, in the position of spring 9 shown in fig. 1, a downward deflection of the assembly will result in a certain compression of the spring, say a compression amounting to A mm. This adjustable compression of the spring for one and the same downward assembly deflection, e.g. for a full assembly deflection adjustable from A mm to (theoretically) 0 mm spring compression at a (theoretical) displacement from a diagonally directed position to a position along the lower bar, means that the spring rate is adjusted from a certain, e.g. somewhat high adjusted value, and down to 0 (in the theoretical case). In the real case, the slot 17 and the screw 20 are designed with lengths to provide a spring rate variation rate that is adapted to normal bicyclist body weight ranges. This may e.g. concern body weight ranges like 30-60 kg, 50-85 kg or 70-120 kg. Then, when a bicyclist has the opportunity to adjust the effective spring rate in a simple manner like turning screw 20, according to body weight, there will of course also exist an opportunity to adjust further according to individual desire and according to type of terrain, riding style and skills, not only according to weight. It is also possible to provide a bias by means of the above mentioned bias screw 3 which can be screwed in through a threaded hole in the "cup edge" 13 to force the cartridge unit to pivoting movement about bearing neck 5 and to compress spring 9. As previously mentioned, it is also possible to place the forward lower support point for spring 9 outside bearing neck 1 1 , since the invention does not depend on such a location. Then one may e.g. provide an extra flange on post head 10 to provide the opportunity for attaching a separate through bolt to provide engagement for spring 9. Thereby a longer spring 9 is also made possible, with correspondingly longer travel path for the spring and improved adjustment opportunities. Other variants should also be mentioned: One may include in the springing mechanism a damper device, however this is not essential for the invention. In fig. 1 is shown a telescopic damper 7, 8 mounted coaxially inside the linear helical spring 9. A damper such as shown here, will also act as a stopper to prevent an excessive upward movement, i.e. part 8 will contact a rear abutment edge in part 7 and stop the assembly from swinging further upwards. It is further possible to use an "opposite" springing arrangement, i.e. using a spring intended for tensile load, mounted substantially along the other possible diagonal in the intermediate section, i.e. from a position near bearing neck 15 and in a direction toward bearing neck 5. The spring 9 may be of a type that has a progressive action. In fig. 4 is shown an alternative embodiment of the most important aspect of the invention, in the form of a suspension assembly having the same general geometry and spring characteristics as previously mentioned, but with another type of springing mechanism which also comprises a system for adjusting the effective spring rate of the springing mechanism, in similarity with the embodiment appearing from fig. 1. The same reference numeral refers in fig. 4 generally to the same detail as in the other figures. The embodiment in fig. 4 is based on the use of torsion springs, i.e. only one torsion spring 25 is comprised in the shown example. Spring 25 is positioned around the lower rear bearing neck 5, and has a rear arm 26 engaging the "cup edge" 13 on seat attachment part 2, and a forward arm 27 which in the left part-figure, showing the assembly in a relaxed or an upper, non-cushioned state, engages a bolt 28 arranged in a projection 29 on the top bar 16. The torsion spring 25 provides a force to drive the seat attachment part 2 upwards. It appears from the right part figure in fig. 4 that in a downward compressed state, the arms 26 and 27 of the torsion spring will be pinched toward each other, and they will then yield a force to straighten out, so that the spring will provide a spring force in an upward direction. As a starting point, the situation is considered in the right part figure where the bolt 28 lies in the same position in the projection 29 as in the left part figure. The forward spring arm 27 then points such as shown without hatching, the spring is then maximally pinched together. (NB: The forward spring arm 27 is shown in left part figure having a shortened arm length - this length must be sufficiently long not to lose contact with bolt 28 in any position. Besides, the drawing shows only a schematic example, and is not necessarily perfect in its geometric proportions.) By driving the adjustment screw 30 that supports the transverse bolt 28, the bolt can be displaced in the projection 29, in the shown example in a direction that is perpendicular to the bar direction. When looking at the right part-figure, one realizes that downward adjustment of bolt 28 changes the contact point for the forward spring arm 27 in such a manner that at maximum downward assembly deflection, there is obtained a clearly less degree of pinching of spring arms 26 and 27, than before downward adjustment of bolt 28. On the other hand the adjustment of the bolt position does not make any difference in the situation prior to cushioning, i.e. in the situation shown in left part-figure. In this part- figure, bolt 28 will only slide along the forward spring arm 27 when the adjustment is made, without any influence on spring arm 27. This means that the effective spring stiffness can be adjusted by using screw 30, and the same possibilities are achieved as in the first embodiment which comprises a linearly active spring. It seems clear that an option for biasing can also be provided, e.g. by making it possible to displace projection 29 along bar 16. Optionally a similar biasing as in the first embodiment can be provided, by forcing the rear arm 26 inward in the assembly by means of a screw corresponding to the adjustment screw 23 in fig. 1. Then the spring arm 26 must of course engage an adapted support part on the end of such a screw. It seems clear that the torsion spring can be placed in an appropriate manner around one of the other bearing necks, and similarly, several torsion springs can be used together to provide a larger total springing force. Alternatively the springing mechanism may comprise a torsion spring arranged around one of the bearings so that the torsion spring has arms of which one engages one of the bares, and the other engages a shiftable projection on the seat attachment part for the post head. In other respects, a stopper part such as ref. 34 in fig. 6 may be provided to limit the swing of the assembly upwards, caused by the biasing. Other types of engagement for the "adjustable arm" in the torsion spring are possible, the point will simply be that in the start state (i.e. prior to cushioning action) the adjustment detail for the contact point of the spring arm shall not influence the spring arm during adjustment, while the adjustment gives an effect for the spring deflection when the assembly is swung downwards. One sees also that the embodiment including a torsion spring or torsion springs is suitable in combination with the asymmetric, "cupulate" embodiment of the post head 10 and seat attachment part 2, since the "cup edges" 12 and 13 provide an excellent basis for engagement for an arm of a torsion spring arranged about a bearing neck. One also visualizes an option for supplementing a linear helical spring like in fig. 1 , by an additional torsion spring appropriately placed, e.g. around bearing neck 15, in order to provide increased cushioning force. Such an embodiment appears from fig. 5, where the extra torsion spring 31 arranged about bearing neck 15 has arms 32 and 33 contacting respectively the inside/underside of the upper bar 16 (that may quite well have the shape of a downward pointing U profile) and the inside of the "cup edge" 12, and gives a pressure in the outward opening direction. It will then probably be sufficient with adjustability for only the linear spring, but it is of course possible to have both springs adjustable in accordance with the important aspect of the present invention. Fig. 6 shows, as previously mentioned, a simplified sketch where the important element is a stopper part 34 located in such a manner that the movement of the assembly in the upward direction is stopped in a position such as shown in the figure. Such a stopper part 34, which is hidden on the inside of the cartridge unit 4 (see fig. 1), preferably has an outer part of strong plastics to provide a soft end shock and to avoid metallic sound.

Claims: C L A I M S 1. A seat suspension assembly for a two-wheeled vehicle, preferably a bicycle, said assembly being adapted for mounting in a standard frame seat tube and to receive and retain a standard seat, said assembly comprising - uppermost a seat attachment part to which said seat can be attached, - lowermost a seat post part for conventional tightening into said seat tube, - therebetween a movable intermediate section comprising two, three or four substantially parallel bars pointing obliquely upwards and backwards, and each being journalled in its forward end to respective bearings on a post head arranged on top of said seat post part, and in its rear end to respective bearings on said seat attachment part, and - a springing mechanism arranged substantially in said movable intermediate section to provide an upward directed springing force against said seat attachment part, wherein said springing mechanism is provided with a system for adjusting the effective spring rate of the springing mechanism. 2. The seat suspension assembly of claim 1, wherein said springing mechanism comprises a linearly acting spring, at least one end of said spring having an abutment that can be shifted in a transverse direction relative to the linear direction of said spring. 3. The seat suspension assembly of claim 2, wherein said transversely shiftable abutment of said linearly acting spring is arranged in a cartridge unit placed in contact with the seat attachment part between said bars, the other end of the spring being attached on a lower part of said post head, possibly to a lower one of the post head bearings. 4. The seat suspension assembly of claim 3, wherein said cartridge unit is attached to a lower one of said seat attachment part bearings. 5. The seat suspension assembly of claim 2, 3 or 4, wherein a biasing screw is arranged for pre-stressing said spring, and a stopper part is arranged to limit the swing of the assembly in an upward direction, caused by the biasing. 6. The seat suspension assembly of claim 1 , wherein said springing mechanism comprises at least one torsion spring placed around at least one of said bearings, said torsion spring having arms of which one engages said seat attachment part or said post head, and the other one engages a movable projection on one of said bars. 7. The seat suspension assembly of claim 6, wherein said torsion spring having an adjustable effective spring rate is placed around the lower bearing on said seat attachment part, the movable projection being placed on the inside/underside of the upper bar. 8. The seat suspension assembly of one of the previous claims, wherein said springing mechanism comprises at least one further torsion spring arranged around one of the bearings, to provide an increased total spring rate. 9. A seat suspension assembly for a two-wheeled vehicle, preferably a bicycle, said assembly being adapted for mounting in a standard frame seat tube and to receive and retain a standard seat, said assembly comprising - uppermost a seat attachment part to which said seat can be attached, - lowermost a seat post part for conventional tightening into said seat tube, - therebetween a movable intermediate section comprising two, three or four substantially parallel bars pointing obliquely upwards and backwards, and each being journalled in its forward end to respective bearings on a post head arranged on top of said seat post part, and in its rear end to respective bearings on said seat attachment part, and - a springing mechanism arranged substantially in said movable intermediate section to provide an upward directed springing force against said seat attachment part, wherein said seat attachment part and said post head have, relative to a center plane spanned by the normal pointing direction of the seat and the seat post center line, an asymmetric and substantially cupulate shape, with bearing necks for said bars pointing substantially horizontally from the insides of the seat attachment part and said post head respectively. 10. The seat suspension assembly of claim 9, wherein said bearing necks are attached to said post head and said seat attachment part respectively, by screwing a threaded end into threaded holes in said post head and said seat attachment part respectively, and have an increased diameter, a flange or a stopper disk in the opposite end thereof to hold the bars in place. 11. A seat suspension assembly for a two-wheeled vehicle, preferably a bicycle, said assembly being adapted for mounting in a standard frame seat tube and to receive and retain a standard seat, said assembly comprising - uppermost a seat attachment part to which said seat can be attached, - lowermost a seat post part for conventional tightening into said seat tube, - therebetween a movable intermediate section comprising two, three or four substantially parallel bars pointing obliquely upwards and backwards, and each being journalled in its forward end to respective bearings on a post head arranged on top of said seat post part, and in its rear end to respective bearings on said seat attachment part, and - a springing mechanism arranged substantially in said movable intermediate section to provide an upward directed springing force against said seat attachment part, wherein said springing mechanism is provided with a system for adjusting the effective spring rate of the springing mechanism, and said seat attachment part and said post head have, relative to a center plane spanned by the normal pointing direction of seat and the seat post center line, an asymmetric and substantially cupulate shape, with bearing necks for said bars pointing substantially horizontally from the insides of the seat attachment part and said post head respectively.

Inventors: HALS CATO, HALS, CATO
Applicants: HALS CATO, HALS, CATO
Application year: 1999
Main classification: B62J1
IPC codes: B62J1