Patent Publication Number: US-2023159127-A1

Title: Bicycle

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S) 
     This application claims priority to and the benefit of Korean Application Patent Serial No. 10-2020-0136027, filed Oct. 20, 2020, the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference. 
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present invention relates to a bicycle, and more particularly, to an improved bicycle that allows a user to ride while completely lying with a face of the user down, thereby reducing an air resistance in a driving process, lowering a center of gravity to ensure stability, and increasing a velocity through an acceleration device. 
     BACKGROUND 
     In general, a bicycle is configured such that wheels are mounted on front and rear sides of a frame formed of a metal or nonferrous metal material, a steering wheel is mounted on a front side, a seating saddle (seat) is installed at a center, and a power generation device for generating a power required for driving is installed between a lower side of the saddle and a rear axle. 
     The technical contents of configurations of the general bicycle described above will be given through patent documents as follows. 
     Patent Document 1, which is Patent No. 10-1912557-0000, discloses a configuration including: a crankshaft  120  rotatably coupled to a frame  110 ; a front sprocket  130  coupled to one side of the crankshaft  120  to rotate together with the crankshaft  120  when the crankshaft  120  rotates; a first crank arm  131  located outside the front sprocket  130 , and coupled to the one side of the crankshaft  120  to rotate together with the crankshaft  120  when the crankshaft  120  rotates; a first fixed sprocket  141  fixedly coupled to the frame  110  with an aim member  1411  interposed therebetween, located between the front sprocket  130  and the first crank aim  131 , and formed at a center thereof with a first hole  1412 , in which the crankshaft  120  passes through the first hole  1412 , and the first fixed sprocket  141  is fixed so as not to rotate even when the crankshaft  120  rotates; a first rotation sprocket  142  rotatably coupled to an end of the first crank aim  131 , and including protrusions formed in a ratio of 1:1 with respect to the first fixed sprocket  141 ; a first auxiliary crank aim  151  rotatably coupled to the end of the first crank aim  131 , and fixed to the first rotation sprocket  142  to rotate together with the first rotation sprocket  142 ; a first power transmission member  161  for connecting the first fixed sprocket  141  to the first rotation sprocket  142  so as to transmit a power; a second crank aim  132  coupled to an opposite end of the crankshaft  120  to rotate together with the crankshaft  120  when the crankshaft  120  rotates; a second fixed sprocket  143  fixedly coupled to the frame  110 , formed at a center thereof with a second hole  1432 , in which the crankshaft  120  passes through the second hole  1432 , and the second fixed sprocket  143  is fixed to the frame  110  so as not to rotate even when the crankshaft  120  rotates; a second rotation sprocket  144  rotatably coupled to an end of the second crank aim  132 , and including protrusions formed in a ratio of 1:1 with respect to the second fixed sprocket  143 ; a second auxiliary crank aim  152  rotatably coupled to the end of the second crank aim  132 , and fixed to the second rotation sprocket  144  to rotate together with the second rotation sprocket  144 ; and a second power transmission member  162  for connecting the second fixed sprocket  143  to the second rotation sprocket  144  to transmit the power. 
     Patent Document 2, which is Patent No. 10-1999438-0000, discloses a configuration including: a front frame; and a rear frame bonded to the front frame, wherein the front frame includes: head and seat tubes arranged in a longitudinal direction; and a center tube arranged in a lateral direction and bonded to the head and seat tubes to connect the head tube to the seat tube, the rear frame includes: a seat stay connected to an upper end of the seat tube and a rear wheel; and a chain stay connected to a lower end of the seat tube and the rear wheel, the seat tube includes an upper seat tube, a middle seat tube, and a lower seat tube, the head tube, the center tube, and the middle seat tube are formed of fiber-reinforced plastic, the upper seat tube, the lower seat tube, and the rear frame are formed of a metal, and the center tube includes: an outer shell having a width that is gradually widened from a middle point of the center tube toward the head tube and the seat tube, and having a parabolic sectional shape; and a rib formed on an inner upper portion of the outer shell in a vertical direction, and having a plurality of holes. 
     SUMMARY 
     Among the related art as described above, Patent Document 1 relates to a bicycle driving device with increased torque, in which a rotational trajectory of a pedal is moved forward to allow the pedal to be spaced apart from a crankshaft when the pedal is in a front position, so that a strong force may be transmitted to the crankshaft by using a principle of leverage, and Patent Document 2 relates to a configuration in which a part of a frame is reinforced with fiber-reinforced plastic so that a light weight and excellent mechanical strength may be obtained. 
     According to a bicycle to which the related art is applied, a frame may allow a hip of a user to make close contact with a saddle provided at a center so as to maintain a state in which an upper body of the user is inclined forward, steering may be performed by gripping a handle with both hands, and a power (thrust) may be generated through pedaling by using both feet so as to perform driving. 
     Because of such a sitting posture, a center of gravity may be raised to cause instability during a driving process, resulting in poor steering performance, and there may be a high risk of negligent accidents causing physical damage to the user due to frequent falls easily caused by a concavo-convex portion and the like. 
     Since there is a limitation even when the upper body is bent forward during the driving, there may be an influence of wind to cause a severe resistance, and it will be apparent that the resistance has a negative influence on shortening of a record especially in a case of a racing bicycle. 
     In addition, since generation of a power for driving the bicycle is performed by a combination of a chain gear and a chain, there may be a limitation even when acceleration is performed through transmission, so that there may be a limitation in enjoying a speedy game or a speed. 
     In particular, since a main chain gear fixed to a pedal shaft installed at a center of a frame and a driving chain gear mounted to a rear wheel shaft are connected to each other through a chain so as to transmit a power, a power loss that prevents a force of a user from being intactly transmitted may occur, which acts as a cause of sudden physical fatigue of users. 
     In a process of use, considerable stress may act to the chain to cause the train to break, and it may not be free from various problems caused by the breakage of the chain, such as occurrence of a negligent accident, and much time and money required for repair and maintenance. 
     Accordingly, to solve the problems described above, according to the present invention, a bicycle includes: a frame  110  on which a front wheel  101  and a rear wheel  102  are mounted to allow a user to ride; and 
     an acceleration device  130  mounted on the rear wheel to generate a power and perform acceleration according to pedaling, 
     so that the user may ride and drive the bicycle while lying with a face of the user down, thereby lowering a center of gravity to improve driving stability, reducing an air resistance in a driving process to increase a velocity, and easily transmitting a force of the user to pedals to increase generation of thrust. 
     According to the present invention, the frame may be configured such that the user rides while lying with the face of the user down, so that the center of gravity can be lowered to increase the stability, and the resistance can be reduced in the driving process to improve driving performance. 
     According to the present invention, various effects can be achieved: a velocity may be increased through an acceleration device that is directly connected to the pedal at a center of a rear axle so that a power loss can be minimized; a cap may be mounted on the frame so as to be driven so that an advanced bicycle can be provided; and the like. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG.  1    is a view illustrating a configuration of a bicycle to which the technology of the present invention is applied; 
         FIG.  2    is a perspective view showing an overall extracted configuration of a frame of the bicycle to which the technology of the present invention is applied; 
         FIG.  3    is a view showing an example of a state in which a user rides on the frame of the bicycle to which the technology of the present invention is applied; 
         FIG.  4    is a view showing an overall extracted configuration of an acceleration device of the bicycle to which the technology of the present invention is applied; 
         FIG.  5    is a cutaway perspective view showing an extracted configuration of the acceleration device of the bicycle to which the technology of the present invention is applied; 
         FIG.  6    is a sectional view showing an extracted configuration of the acceleration device of the bicycle to which the technology of the present invention is applied; 
         FIG.  7    is a view showing an example of a state in which a cap is mounted on the bicycle to which the technology of the present invention is applied; and 
         FIG.  8    is a view showing another example of a state in which a cap is mounted on the bicycle to which the technology of the present invention is applied. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     A bicycle  100  to which the technology of the present invention is applied may include: a frame  110  on which a front wheel  101  and a rear wheel  102  are mounted to allow a user to ride; and an acceleration device  130  mounted on the rear wheel to generate a power and perform acceleration according to pedaling. 
     According to the frame  110 , a top tube  113  may be connected to an upper rear side of a head tube  112  on which a stanchion tube  111  having a lower end on which the front wheel  101  is mounted is rotatably mounted, and a down tube  114  may be connected to a front lower end of the top tube  113  so as to be inclined rearward. 
     A center tube  115  may be connected to rear ends of the top tube  112  and the down tube  114  in a longitudinal direction, a rear tube  116  may be connected to an upper end of the center tube  115  so as to be inclined downward to a rear side of the center tube  115 , a bottom tube  117  may extend horizontally from a lower end of the center tube  115  to the rear side of the center tube  115  so as to be connected to the lower end of the center tube  115 , and rear ends of the rear and bottom tubes  116  and  117  may make contact with each other to allow the rear wheel  102  to be mounted. 
     The frame  110  may be preferably formed of a material such as reinforced aluminum or carbon for weight reduction, and a flat part  120  having a width of 14 to 40 cm may be formed on a top surface of the top tube  113  to stably support chest and stomach regions, which correspond to an upper body of the user, such that the chest and stomach regions may consecutively make contact with the flat part  120 . 
     A shoulder hook  121  may be integrally formed on a front side of the top tube  113  to receive and support both shoulders of the user who lies with the face of the user down, and a seat part  122  for supporting a hip portion of the user may integrally protrude upward from a rear end of the top tube  113  so as to be inclined rearward. 
     It will be natural to provide a buffer pad on surfaces of the flat part  120 , the shoulder hook  121 , and the seat part  122  to absorb a shock and vibration while increasing close contact sensation. 
     A handle  125  may be mounted on both sides of an upper end of the stanchion tube  111  so as not to interfere with the head tube  112  to enable steering, and since a shape and a form of the handle  125  may vary, the handle  125  may not be specified by any one shape and form. 
     The acceleration device  130  may be configured such that a pedal shaft  133  provided on a main bracket  131 , which is mounted on ends of the rear and bottom tubes  116  and  117 , with a one-way bearing  132  interposed therebetween to transmit a power in a forward direction and perform idling in a rearward direction may be maintained, and pedals  134  may be coupled to both sides of the pedal shaft  133 , respectively. 
     A driver gear  135  for generating the power through a rotation of the pedal shaft  133  may be mounted or integrally formed on one side of the pedal shaft  133 , the driver gear  135  may be engaged with a mediating gear  139  provided on one side of a switching shaft  138  provided on an auxiliary bracket  137 , which is maintained between main brackets  131  by a supporter  136 , with a bearing interposed therebetween, and an acceleration gear  140  may be mounted on a lateral side of the mediating gear  139 . 
     The acceleration gear  140  may be engaged with a driving gear  141  mounted on the pedal shaft  133 , which is provided on a lateral side of the driver gear  135 , with a bearing interposed therebetween to output an accelerated power, and a hub  142  of the rear wheel  102  may be fixed to the driving gear  141  to drive the rear wheel  102 . 
     The driver gear  135  may be larger than the mediating gear  139 , and the acceleration gear  140  may be larger than each of the driver gear  135  and the mediating gear  139 , so that the driving gear  141 , which is the smallest, may rotate rapidly, it will be natural that a gear ratio of the respective gears is calculated in consideration of a desired velocity, and a brake disc for performing braking may be mounted on an outer surface of the hub  142 . 
     MODE FOR INVENTION 
     In a case of riding a bicycle  100 , a user may take a posture of lying with a face of the user down to allow stomach and chest regions of the user to make close contact with a flat part  120  formed on a top surface of a top tube  113 , a shoulder may make close contact with a shoulder hook  121  formed on a front side of the top tube  113 , and a hip may make close contact with a seat part  122  formed on a rear side of the top tube  113 . 
     Naturally, both hands may grip a handle  125  formed on both sides of an upper end of a stanchion tube  111  to adjust a direction, and in a case of performing driving in this state, the user may kick a ground with both feet to move forward so as to perform the pedaling, or the user may perform pedaling with one foot while another foot is placed on the ground and perform the pedaling with both feet while the driving is performed. 
     When the driving starts, a driver gear  135  may rotate according to the pedaling, a power of the driver gear may be transmitted through a mediating gear  139  and an acceleration gear  140 , which are mounted on a switching shaft  138 , and finally, regardless of a rotation of a pedal shaft  133 , a velocity may be increased and output so as to be faster than a pedaling velocity of the user through a driving gear  141  mounted on the pedal shaft  133 . 
     Since a hub  142  is mounted on the driving gear  141 , a rear wheel  102  may finally rotate to perform the driving, and if necessary, a cap  150  may be mounted on an outside of the frame  110  to enable the driving even in rain and snow and enable racing for competing for a velocity. 
     In particular, according to the present invention, the user may maintain a state of lying with a face of the user down so that a comfortable posture may be maintained, and a lower body of the user may be used to intactly transmit a force without a loss of the force during the pedaling so that power transmission and power generation efficiency may be maximized. 
     INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY 
     The present invention described above has various advantages that a user may ride and drive a bicycle  100  while lying with a face of the user down, thereby lowering a center of gravity to improve driving stability, reducing an air resistance in a driving process to increase a velocity, and easily transmitting a force of the user to pedals  134  to increase generation of thrust.