Abstract:
A bicycle trailer has a bed portion supported by a frame assembly and a pair of wheels for transporting the bed portion over ground. The tongue member extends forward from the frame assembly. A hitch assembly is located on a distal end of the tongue member for coupling the trailer to a bike. The hitch assembly may include a ratchet device that permits tightening of a clamp to the bike preventing untightening of the clamp. Front and back hub members allow the trailer to be vertically collapsed to substantially reduce the side-to-side dimension of the trailer for storage or transport.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)  
       [0001]    This application claims priority to Provisional Applications Ser. No. 60/205,506 filed May 19, 2000 entitled “Bicycle Child Carrier Trailer” and Ser. No. 60/262,174 filed Jan. 16, 2001 titled “Quick-Release Locking Frame Hub”, both of which are hereby incorporated by reference. 
     
    
     
       FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    The present invention relates to trailers for bicycles and more particularly to a bicycle trailer adapted to carry children or other cargo.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0003]    Bicycle riding is a popular recreational activity for families. However, bicycle riding requires a certain amount of coordination, which children do not develop until they are approximately 4-7 years old. Even in the cases where small children are capable of riding a bicycle, they often do not have the strength and stamina to keep up with adults on long rides. Also, young riders do not have the judgment necessary to avoid dangerous traffic situations when riding on roads. Therefore, some type of accommodation must be made for small children to allow the family to ride together.  
           [0004]    One way to transport small children on bicycle rides is to provide an auxiliary seat mounted to the adult&#39;s bicycle. This is generally acceptable for one child, but not practical for two children or for larger children. Child seats on bicycles often require semi-permanent installation of hardware to secure the seat to the bicycle, and may make a bicycle difficult for some people to balance.  
           [0005]    Another way to transport small children is to utilize a trailer attached to the bicycle. One advantage of a trailer is that it can be sized to accommodate more than one child. Unfortunately, child carrier trailers are rather bulky and difficult to transport to the site where the ride it to take place. For instance, many bicycle trailers are formed from a large plastic shell that cannot be folded for storage or transport. Although some trailers can be folded, existing designs suffer a number of disadvantages. For instance, some trailers do not fold small enough to be easily loaded in most cars. Other trailers are relatively difficult to fold and unfold. In some cases the seats must be removed and in other cases the tires must be taken off. As a result, these carriers are inconvenient to transport.  
           [0006]    Another limitation of bicycle trailers is that the mechanisms for attaching the trailer to the bicycle suffer from a number of drawbacks. In particular, some coupling mechanisms are unnecessarily complex. Other mechanisms are too difficult to attach and remove from the bicycle and/or don&#39;t provide reliable securement of the trailer to the bicycle. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES  
       [0007]    [0007]FIG. 1 is an isometric view of a bicycle trailer constructed according to the present invention.  
         [0008]    [0008]FIG. 2 is a front elevation view of a bracket forming part of the trailer of FIG. 1.  
         [0009]    [0009]FIG. 3 is a side elevation view of the bracket of FIG. 2.  
         [0010]    [0010]FIG. 4 is an isometric view of the bicycle trailer of FIG. 1 in a folded configuration.  
         [0011]    [0011]FIG. 5 is a front elevation view of a portion of a frame assembly adjacent the bracket of FIGS. 2 and 3.  
         [0012]    [0012]FIG. 6 is a front elevation illustrating folding of the portion of the frame assembly of FIG. 5.  
         [0013]    [0013]FIG. 7 shows the inner surface of lock out members shown in FIG. 5 and  6 .  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 8 is a top elevation view of a connector of the frame assembly.  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 9 is a side elevation view of the connector of FIG. 8.  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 10 is a front elevation view of the connector of FIG. 8.  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 11 is a front elevation view showing folding of a cross bar of the frame assembly.  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 12 is a side elevation view of a wheel bracket.  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 13 is a front elevation view of the wheel bracket of FIG. 12.  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 14 is a side elevation view of the wheel bracket of FIG. 12 showing passage around an arcuate section of an elongate member.  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 15 is a rear elevation view of a fender.  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 16 is a top elevation view of the fender of FIG. 15.  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 17 is an exploded view of a hitch assembly.  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 18 is a cross-sectional view through the hitch assembly of FIG. 17.  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 19 is an isometric view of a seat mounted in the frame assembly.  
         [0026]    [0026]FIG. 20 is an isometric view of the a cover for the trailer of FIG. 1.  
         [0027]    [0027]FIG. 21 is a section view through the covered trailer.  
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 22 is a partial front view of a bracket assembly, according to an alternate embodiment invention.  
         [0029]    [0029]FIG. 23 is a front cut away view of the bracket assembly shown in FIG. 22.  
         [0030]    [0030]FIG. 24 is a front view of the bracket shown in FIG. 23, in a collapsed position.  
         [0031]    [0031]FIGS. 25 and 26 show cross-sectional views through the bracket assembly of FIG. 24, in locked and unlocked positions, respectively.  
         [0032]    [0032]FIG. 27 is an exploded view of the bracket assembly shown in FIGS.  22 - 26 .  
         [0033]    [0033]FIG. 28 is a front cut away view of a bracket assembly for another embodiment of the invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0034]    A bicycle trailer constructed according to the present invention is shown generally at  10  in FIG. 1. Although the trailer would normally incorporate a cover and seat, these elements are omitted in FIG. 1 to more clearly illustrate the basic framework of the trailer. The cover and seat are depicted in subsequent figures and described below.  
         [0035]    Trailer  10  includes a hitch assembly  12  adapted to secure the trailer to a bicycle. The hitch assembly is connected to a frame assembly  14  forming the body portion of the trailer by a tongue  16 . Frame assembly  14  includes left upper and lower U-tubes  18 ,  20  and right upper and lower U-tubes  22 ,  24 . Frame assembly  14  also includes left and right vertical U-tubes  26 ,  28 . Vertical U-tubes  26 ,  28  are connected at the top by a crossbar  30 . Tubes are preferably formed of 0.065-inch thick one-inch diameter aluminum tubing and bent to shape from single pieces, although multiple pieces could also be joined to form the various shapes.  
         [0036]    The left and right upper and lower U-tubes are connected at their ends by brackets  40 ,  42 . See FIGS.  2 - 3 . The brackets are substantially identical and each is preferably molded of 14% glass-filled nylon in two symmetric halves, as shown in FIG. 3. It should be noted that where specific materials are mentioned herein, they are simply indications of suitable materials, and other materials having similar structural characteristics could be readily substituted. The bracket halves are held together by four bolts  44 , which also pass through holes  46  (not shown) formed in the end of the tubes to provide a pivotal connection between the tubes and brackets. The upper and lower tubes are also connected to the vertical tubes by bolts that pass through holes  50 ,  52  in the upper/lower and vertical tubes, respectively. This arrangement of pivot joints forms a parallelogram that allows the trailer to be folded by raising the brackets upwardly. See FIG. 4. The portions of the frame on each side of the brackets can be viewed as left and right frame portions. Each frame portion collapses essentially as a unit toward the center.  
         [0037]    As illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 6, a pair of lock out members  60  are operable, when engaged, to prevent the trailer from folding. Lock out members  60  each include a band  62  slideably engaged over the corresponding upper tube. An arm  64  extends down from the band and toward the adjacent bracket, terminating in a finger  66 . Finger  66  fits into a corresponding pocket  67  formed in the brackets to prevent the U-tube from pivoting downwardly. An outwardly biased spring button  68  mounted in each upper U-tubes prevents the lock out members from unintentionally disengaging from the brackets. The frictional contact between the button and the contoured inner surface  69  of the band also tends to hold the lock out members in a stable position when disengaged from the bracket. The contoured inner surface  69  of lock out members  60  is shown in FIG. 7.  
         [0038]    Crossbar  30  is coupled to the vertical tubes by connectors  80  located at each end of the crossbar. See FIGS.  8 - 10 . The connectors are preferably formed of 14% glass-filled nylon and are bolted to the vertical tubes and include a recess  82  adapted to receive an end of the crossbar. One end of the crossbar is pivotally connected to the associated connector vertical tube by a bolt  84 , while the other end is selectively connected to the associated connector by a safety pin  86 . To fold the trailer, the safety pin is removed, allowing the crossbar to swing down and out of the way, as shown in FIG. 4 and  11 . Crossbar  30  is preferably formed as a unitary member, i.e. without foldable joints, to provide maximum strength and stability when connected between the vertical tubes.  
         [0039]    As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, frame assembly  14  is supported by two wheels  90 . Each wheel includes an axle  92  with a groove  94  formed at the end. The axle fits through a hole  96  formed in a wheel carrying structure or wheel bracket  98 . The wheel bracket is preferably molded from 33% glass-filled nylon and is illustrated in additional detail in FIGS.  12 - 14 . A wheel pin  100  fits through a locking hole  102  that partially intersects the axle hole  96  and engages groove  94 . This arrangement allows the wheels to be quickly and easily removed when necessary, but otherwise retains them securely mounted to the bracket.  
         [0040]    Bracket  98  includes an upper aperture  110  adapted to receive upper tube  18  or  22 . A neck region  112  connects the upper aperture to a lower aperture  114  that is adapted to receive lower tube  20  or  24 . Lower aperture  114  includes a lateral opening  116  that allows the bracket to be installed over a previously bent tube. The opening allows the radius of the bend to project out of the generally cylindrical internal shape of the lower aperture. The upper edges of the lower aperture are also slightly curved in at  118  to further facilitate sliding the bracket around the arcuate portion of the tube. Similarly, the upper aperture has an internal surface  121  that may be deformed from cylindrical sufficiently to allow the bracket to slide around the bend in upper tube  18  or  22 , if necessary. Because the upper aperture is significantly shorter, the deformation from cylindrical is substantially less than is required on the lower aperture. Once the bracket is installed on the tubes, it is held in place by a stopper plate  117  that is riveted to the lower tube inside of opening  116 . It should be noted that the bracket is free to rotate around the tubes to a limited extent to permit folding.  
         [0041]    Frame assembly  14  includes a pair of fin-like fenders  120 ,  122  mounted to upper tubes  18  and  22 , respectively. See FIGS. 15 and 16. Each fender is preferably molded from 14% glass-filled nylon and includes a passage  124  that fits over the corresponding tube. As with the wheel brackets, the passage is shaped to permit passage around the corner of the bent tube. In particular, each end of the passage is open on one side to provide the needed clearance. The fenders act to deflect the trailer away from posts or other vertical obstacles that might otherwise catch between the wheels and the frame. However, because the fenders do not wrap around the wheels, they do not interfere with the lateral removal of the wheels.  
         [0042]    Fender  120  also serves as a mounting point for tongue  16 . In particular, fender  120  includes bore  126  sized to receive the end of the tongue. A locking pin  128  passes through a transverse locking bore  130  in the fender and a corresponding bore  132  in the end of the tongue to secure the tongue in place. When the trailer is to be transported, the locking pin can be removed to allow the tongue to be detached.  
         [0043]    Hitch assembly  12  is coupled to the free end of the tongue by a flexible member  140 . See FIG. 17. The flexible member essentially acts as a universal joint to allow the trailer to roll, pitch and yaw relative to the bicycle during use. Any suitable flexible material may be used for the flexible member, and a preferred material is urethane. Of to course mechanical U-joints could also be used. The hitch assembly includes a hitch body  142  with a receptacle  144  adapted to receive the flexible member. The hitch body is preferably molded from 14% glass-filled nylon. A pair of transverse holes  146 ,  148  in the hitch body and flexible member, respectively, receive a bolt  150  to secure the two pieces together. A similar pair of transverse holes  152 ,  154  in the flexible member and leading end of the tongue also receive a bolt to couple these pieces together.  
         [0044]    An elongate groove  160  formed along the lower edge of the hitch body fits over chainstay  162  on the bicycle. An elastomeric pad  163  protects the chainstay. A clamp plate  164  fits over the groove to securely capture the chainstay in the groove. The clamp plate is biased against the chainstay by a bolt  166  that extends through the plate and through the hitch body. The bolt is tightened by a knob assembly  172 .  
         [0045]    As shown in FIGS. 17 and 18, knob assembly  172  includes a nut  174 , a nut ratchet  176 , a spring  178  and a knob or tightening member  180 . The nut fits into a hexagonally shaped recess  182  in a shaft portion  184  of knob  180 . The outer surface of the shaft portion includes ribs  186 . Nut ratchet  176  fits telescopically over shaft portion  184  and includes tracks  188  shaped to receive ribs  186  forming a securement mechanism to prevent the knob from rotating relative to the ratchet. The spring fits over the shaft portion and presses against the top of the knob and against a shelf  190  formed in the nut ratchet. See FIG. 18. This arrangement rotationally connects the knob and ratchet so that they must turn together, but allows the ratchet to telescope along the knob.  
         [0046]    The knob assembly threads on over bolt  166  and is received in a ratchet socket  194 . The ratchet socket includes a ring of serrations  196 . The serrations interact with corresponding serrations  198  formed on the end of nut ratchet  176  to prevent counterclockwise rotation which would tend to loosen the nut and therefore unhitch the hitch assembly. The slope of the serrations allows the knob assembly to be tightened without any special consideration other than rotating the knob. However, to loosen the knob assembly, the nut ratchet must be grasped and drawn back toward the top of the knob, to thereby disengage the serrations and permit counter-clockwise rotation. This mechanism can be described as a locking or a ratchet closure, anti-backspin mechanism or safety closure adapted to prevent accidental loosening. The knob and nut ratchet are preferably molded from 14% glass-filled nylon.  
         [0047]    The hitch body also includes an upper fork  200  adapted to fit around the seatstay  202 . A safety pin  204  passes through a pair of openings  206  in the end of the fork to prevent the fork from inadvertently coming off of the seatstay during use. This connection provides an added margin of safety in the event the chainstay gripping mechanism should loosen or fail in some way.  
         [0048]    A fabric seat  210  is mounted to frame assembly  14  to support children riding in the trailer. See FIG. 19. Seat  210  includes left and right lateral support bands  212 ,  214  that fit over the left and right lower and upper tubes. The bands support and position a bench portion  216  that extends between the bands. A backrest portion  218  extends up from the back of the bench to a top sleeve  220  that fits over crossbar  30 . An upper portion  221  of the backrest is formed of a stretchy or elastic material, such as LYCRA. This is to more comfortably accommodate the helmets of passengers in the trailer. Thus, the material should be sufficiently stretchy to accommodate a passengers helmet without pushing forward uncomfortably on the passengers head. The lower portion of the backrest is preferably made of a relatively inelastic material such as nylon fabric so that it can be sufficiently tensioned to provide adequate support.  
         [0049]    A system of straps serves to tension and secure the seat. In particular, a forward strap  222  extends from the front center of the seat to the forward bracket  40  and back. The strap includes a buckle  224  to allow the tension to be adjusted and a pouch  226  (not shown) to hold the free end of the strap after adjustment. The pouch includes a small patch of hook and loop-type fastener allowing it to be secured in place against the bottom of the bench. A bottom strap  230  extends between bolts  232  on the lower tubes along the intersection between the bench and backrest. Each end of the bottom strap includes a buckle  236  to allow the tension to be adjusted to center the seat. A shoulder strap  238  extends across the backrest about midway to the top sleeve. Each end of the shoulder strap is connected to a corresponding vertical tube through a buckle  240  to allow the centering and tension to be adjusted. The ends of the shoulder strap include hoops  242  that fit around the vertical tubes and are free to move therealong.  
         [0050]    A safety belt system includes a lap belt  250  with a quick disconnect buckle  252  that allows the sections to be separated and rejoined easily. Buckle  252  also allows adjustment of the length of the lap belt to achieve proper restraint. The ends of the lap belt are secured to the frame assembly by bolts  232  together with the bottom strap. A shoulder harness  256  is provided for each child and includes two upper straps  258  that join at a chest pad  260 . A quick disconnect buckle  262  is provided at the connection to the chest pad to allow the harness to be opened when seating the child. Buckle  262  also allows the length of the upper straps to be adjusted for proper fit. The chest pad is connected by a lower strap  264  to the front of the bench portion.  
         [0051]    Frame assembly  14  is enveloped in a fabric cover  280 . See FIG. 20. The cover is somewhat tube-shaped with front and rear openings  282 ,  284  and a continuous central band  286 , and is preferably formed of nylon fabric. A bottom section  288  fits around and forms a bottom to the perimeter formed by the left and right lower tubes. The sides of the cover at the forward upper portion are preferably formed of a mesh fabric to provide a window-like area. The section adjacent the front opening folds partially over the vertical tubes to secure the cover in place on the frame assembly as the frame is unfolded. The folded-over portion creates the tension necessary to support the floor of the trailer formed by the bottom section. The cover includes lateral openings  290  adapted to pass the fenders. The presence of the fender in the openings helps to further secure the cover in a fixed position on the frame assembly.  
         [0052]    Cover  280  includes a front debris screen  292  and a front windscreen  294 . See FIG. 21. The hatches or screens are attached to the cover adjacent a band  296  of material forming the top of the cover between the vertical tubes. The debris screen is preferably formed of a mesh-like material to allow riders to see out but be protected from rocks or other objects kicked up by the towing bicycle. The windscreen is preferably formed of a clear flexible sheet such as vinyl to block wind or rain as necessary. Each of the screens includes a hook and loop-type band  298  at the free end that can be selectively secured to a corresponding band of material  300  formed on the cover and on the outer surface of the covers.  
         [0053]    A rear screen or hatch  310  is provided to selectively seal the rear opening. The rear hatch is preferably formed of a fabric material similar to the remainder of the cover and is attached adjacent band  296 . The free end of the rear hatch is secured to the cover by a band of hook-and-loop type material similar to that used on the front screens. A pair of pockets  312 ,  314  are formed in the band of material to receive the screens and rear hatch when they are folded up. This provides a clean appearance and secure storage. Alternatively, strips of hook and loop material can be used to secure the screens and hatch in a rolled up configuration.  
         [0054]    To fold trailer  10 , the user simply retracts lock out members  60  and safety pin  86  in the crossbar and lifts the brackets to draw the sides of the trailer together. It is not necessary to remove the seat or disconnect any of the various straps and gravity essentially folds the trailer when the bracket is lifted. If necessary the tongue can be removed to further reduce the size of the folded trailer. Similarly, the wheels can be removed to minimize the folded dimensions, however, the folded trailer will fit in most vehicles with the wheels still attached.  
         [0055]    [0055]FIG. 22 shows an alternate bracket assembly  400  which may be replaced for each of brackets  40 ,  42  in trailer  10 , as shown in FIG. 1. Bracket assemblies may also be referred to as a “hub member” or “locking hub member”. Bracket assembly  400  has a housing  401  that receives ends of tubes  402   a - d . Bracket assembly  400  may lock orientation of tubes  402   a - d  or may be manipulated to an unlocked position thereby permitting pivotal rotation of tubes  402   a - d  around pivot axes  404   a - d , respectively. Handle  408  is provided to control the inner locking mechanism which is illustrated in the cut-away view in FIG. 23.  
         [0056]    As shown in FIG. 23, tubes  402   a  and  402   b  each have a serrated or sprocket-like end that engages a concave serrated surface of locking member  416 . When serrated end portions  412   a  and  412   b  engage locking member  416 , then tubes  402   a  and  402   b  are prevented from rotating around axes  404   a  and  404   b , respectively. In the embodiment shown in FIGS.  22 - 26 , tubes  402   c  and  402   d  are not locked. However, housing  401  prevents tubes  402   c  and  402   d  from pivoting upward signficantly above their orientations shown in FIG. 23. In use, gravity and loading of the trailer counter any tendency for tubes  402   c  and  402   d  to rotate downward.  
         [0057]    [0057]FIG. 24 shows bracket assembly  400  with tubes  402   a - d  collapsed. Locking member  416  locks tubes  402   a  and  402   b  in their collapsed position. FIGS. 25 and 26 show sectional views through assembly  400 , illustrating the mechanism that allows locking and unlocking of assembly  400 . In FIG. 25, locking member  416  is engaging serrated end portion  412   a  of rigid tube  402   a . A spring  420  exerts a force between a wall of housing  401  and locking member  416  to keep assembly  400  in a locked position. Handle  408  is connected to locking member  416  by supports  422 . As shown in FIG. 26, handle  408  can be pulled upward causing upward movement of locking member  416  out of engagement with serrated end portion  412   a , thereby allowing pivotal rotation of tube  402   a  around pivotal axis  404   a . FIG. 27 shows an exploded view of bracket assembly  400 .  
         [0058]    [0058]FIG. 28 shows an alternate embodiment of the invention. Bracket assembly  430  has a housing  431  that receives tubes  432   a - d . Each of tubes  432   a - d  has a serrated, sprocket-like end portion  436   a - d , respectively. Locking member  438  has internal concave serrated surfaces that complement each of serrated end portions  436   a - d , so that locking member  438  locks effective pivotal movement of all four tubes in contrast to bracket assembly  400  which locks only the upper tubes. Handle  440 , shown in dashed lines is connected to locking member  438 , and functions in the same manner as previously described for assembly  400 .  
         [0059]    While the invention has been disclosed in certain preferred forms, the specific embodiments thereof as disclosed and illustrated herein are not to be considered in a limiting sense as numerous variations are possible. The subject matter of the inventions includes all novel and non-obvious combinations and subcombinations of the various elements, features, functions and/or properties disclosed herein.