Patent Description:
Nowadays, several types of human-powered vehicles have pedals provided in front of the user's seat. Examples of this design are recumbent bicycles or velomobiles. In these vehicles, there is often a need to adjust the distance between the pedals and the seat, so that a range of body sizes may be comfortably accommodated.

One approach for solving the pedal-seat distance problem is to provide a fixed seat and then adjust the position of the pedals relative to the fixed seat. This is particularly useful for human-powered vehicles such as recumbent bicycles or velomobiles. However, it can be challenging for such a solution to handle forces from heavy pedalling and to avoid adding too much weight to the vehicle.

A known solution for adjusting the pedal-seat distance is observed in motorized vehicles with strict requirements for mechanical strength, such as racing or off-road cars. In these cases, the seat is typically fixed, and the pedals are movable. However, in practice it is observed that these solutions only allow a limited range adjustment. Also, the main focus in these solutions has been on strength and robustness during high energy impacts and not on flexibility to account for a wide range of human sizes. In human-powered vehicles such as recumbent bicycles and velomobiles, this low level of configurability is undesirable.

A further approach for the adjustment of the pedal-seat distance is observed in most everyday cars. Typically, the pedals are provided at a fixed position in the car and it is the seat which may be moved. This is achieved by sliding the seat over two parallel guide rails fixed to the vehicle and providing a plurality of lockable positions for the seat along the guide rail. However, this solution is also seen to have several problems. Even though the guide rails used in cars are made of rolled steel profiles, which achieve a good strength for the rails and provide a good surface for sliding the seat, these solutions typically weight several kilograms per seat. This is not suitable for human-powered vehicles such as recumbent bicycles and velomobiles. An example of this known approach is shown in <CIT>, in particular <FIG> and the corresponding description together with claims <NUM> to <NUM>. Even in a single occupancy human-powered vehicle with electric assistance, a weight much above <NUM> is difficult to use on the existing bike infrastructure. A much more lightweight solution is needed to keep total vehicle mass at an acceptable level.

The present invention will now be disclosed.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a device for adjusting the distance between a pedal module and a seat of a human-powered vehicle, the device comprising: a guide rail adaptable to be fixed relative to the seat; and a sliding piece for supporting the pedal module. The sliding piece is adapted to slide on the guide rail, and the sliding piece is lockable to the guide rail on at least one position of the guide rail.

The guide rail may include a channel having an elongated surface for the sliding piece to slide on. Also, the channel may include two lateral surfaces sloped inwardly with an angle between <NUM> and <NUM> degrees such that the channel embraces the sliding piece.

The guide rail comprises a perforation, and the sliding piece comprises an outward facing protrusion for fastening the sliding piece to the perforation's position on the guide rail. Also, the outward facing protrusion is positioned on the sliding piece so as to be inserted into the perforation due to an increase in distance between the sliding piece and a slidable surface of the guide rail. Moreover, the perforation may have a wider edge facing the outward facing protrusion.

The device may include a threaded fastener for engaging corresponding threads on the sliding piece and actuate on a slidable surface of the guide rail, so that the distance between the sliding piece and the slidable surface is adjustable by the threaded fastener. Also, the threaded fastener may include a circular base with a surface for both sliding and rotating on the guide rail, and the circular base may include a conical surface for sliding against a lateral surface of the guide rail.

The sliding piece may include a fixed axis for pivoting a bracket adaptable to support the pedal module. Also, the sliding piece may have two inward facing protrusions, each protrusion being adapted to couple a corresponding hollow space in the bracket so as to provide the fixed axis for pivoting. Moreover, for each inward facing protrusion, the sliding piece may include an outward facing protrusion as described above, each pair of inward and outward facing protrusions being coupled by a shared core.

The circular base may include a helical cut-out for providing a resting surface for the bracket so that the rotation of the threaded fastener also adjusts a distance between the bracket and the guide rail. Also, the thread fastener may include threads having the same screwing pitch as the screwing pitch of the helical cut-out.

The guide rail may be adaptable to be fixed to the vehicle so that it is fixed relative to the seat.

The pedal module may include two pedals for cycling, and it may also include an electrical generator for converting a cycling motion from the two pedals to electricity.

According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a human-powered vehicle comprising a device as described above. Also, according to a third aspect of the invention, there is provided a velomobile or a recumbent bicycle comprising a device as described above.

<FIG> show a device embodiment from several views. This device can be installed in a human-powered vehicle such as a recumbent bicycle or a velomobile, and the device allows adjusting the distance between the pedal module <NUM> and a seat (not shown) fixed to the human-powered vehicle. For example, the device can be fixed to the vehicle so that this results in the device being fixed relative to the fixed seat.

The device includes a guide rail <NUM> and a sliding piece <NUM> (not directly visible in <FIG>) for sliding along the guide rail <NUM> and changing the position of the pedal module <NUM>.

The device is operated to change the position of the pedal module <NUM> by actuating on the mechanical linkage that supports the pedal module <NUM>. The bracket <NUM> connects the sliding piece <NUM> with the pedal module <NUM>. As the sliding piece <NUM> is moved along the guide rail <NUM>, the pedal module <NUM> changes position and thus the distance between the pedal module <NUM> and the fixed seat in the vehicle is adjusted.

The sliding piece <NUM> has two modes of operation: an unlocked mode, in which it is free to be moved along the guide rail <NUM>; and a locked mode, in which the movements along the guide rail <NUM> are restricted from happening.

The guide rail <NUM> includes the channel <NUM> with an elongated surface for the sliding piece <NUM> to slide on. This surface is also referred to as slidable surface. On the lefthand side of <FIG> it is possible to observe the cross-sectional profile of the channel <NUM>, which shows two lateral surfaces sloped inwardly. The sliding piece <NUM> is thus embraced laterally by the channel <NUM> and constricted by the channel's <NUM> structure to perform longitudinal movements along the channel <NUM>.

In the embodiments shown in the figures, the pedal module <NUM> has two pedals for cycling and an electrical generator for converting a cycling motion from the two pedals to electricity. However, other pedal modules could also be used with the device.

Once the distance between the pedal module <NUM> and the seat has been adjusted, the device must be locked in place so that the user may use the pedal module according to its purpose. In a situation such as the one show in the Figures, the pedal module <NUM> may be a target of forces from heavy pedalling. It is therefore necessary to provide that the sliding piece <NUM> is lockable to the guide rail <NUM> on at least one position of the guide rail <NUM>. This aspect of the invention will be explained in more detail throughout the following description.

<FIG> and <FIG> show the guide rail <NUM> in more detail. The guide rail <NUM> includes the longitudinal channel <NUM> with an elongated surface <NUM> for the sliding piece <NUM> to slide on. The channel also includes two lateral surfaces <NUM> sloped inwardly such that the channel <NUM> embraces the sliding piece <NUM> when the latter is positioned to slide on the slidable surface <NUM>. In one embodiment, the lateral surfaces <NUM> are sloped at an angle between <NUM> and <NUM> degrees.

The lateral surfaces <NUM> of the channel <NUM> also include a few perforations <NUM>. These are used for locking the sliding piece <NUM> on the corresponding positions along the guide rail <NUM>. The locking interaction will be explained in further detail while describing the remaining figures.

Also, the inclination of lateral surfaces <NUM> shown in <FIG> may vary. In one embodiment, the lateral surfaces <NUM> have symmetrical inclinations. In another embodiment, one lateral surface <NUM> has a fixed angle and the other has a flexible angle that may be adjusted for providing different locking performances. In a further embodiment, the distance between the lateral surfaces <NUM> at their base is fixed but the distance at top can be adjusted.

<FIG> are similar to <FIG> and <FIG>, except that the guide rail <NUM> has been hidden. The sliding piece <NUM> is therefore exposed. In the embodiment shown, the sliding piece <NUM> includes an outward facing protrusion <NUM> implemented as a pin. This protrusion <NUM> is used for locking the sliding piece <NUM> to the guide rail <NUM> by insertion into the perforation <NUM> mentioned above while referring to <FIG>.

<FIG> shows a cross-sectional view of the guide rail <NUM> combined with a crosscut of the sliding piece <NUM> at the position of the outward facing protrusions <NUM>.

The sliding piece <NUM> is at a position of the guide rail <NUM> where the outward facing protrusions <NUM> of the sliding piece <NUM> are in alignment with corresponding perforations <NUM> on the lateral surfaces <NUM> of the guide rail. Also, the sliding piece <NUM> is shown in the unlocked mode; that is, the sliding piece <NUM> can either be moved along the channel <NUM> or changed to the locked mode, in which the outward facing protrusions <NUM> are inserted into the corresponding perforations <NUM>. This results in that the sliding piece <NUM> locks to the shown position on the guide rail <NUM>.

In the embodiment shown in <FIG>, the sliding piece <NUM> includes a fixed axis <NUM> for pivoting the bracket <NUM> connected to the pedal module <NUM>. The bracket <NUM> includes a tubular hollow space <NUM> that is inserted in its two ends by two inward facing protrusions <NUM> from the sliding piece <NUM>. This embodiment results in that the bracket <NUM> can pivot on the support provided by the two inward facing protrusions <NUM>. Also, for each inward facing protrusion <NUM>, the sliding piece <NUM> includes an outward facing protrusion <NUM>, and each pair of inward and outward facing protrusions <NUM>, <NUM> is coupled by a shared core. This allows achieving an easier manufacturing process.

<FIG> and <FIG> show a threaded fastener <NUM> for controlling the distance between the sliding piece <NUM> and the slidable surface <NUM> of the channel <NUM> in the guide rail <NUM>. In <FIG>, the sliding piece <NUM> is hidden.

The threaded fastener <NUM> is operated in a rotational manner and this actuation adjusts the distance between the sliding piece <NUM> and the slidable surface <NUM> of the channel <NUM>. The threaded fastener <NUM> includes a circular base <NUM> for both sliding and rotating on the slidable surface <NUM>. It also includes outer threads <NUM> adapted to face corresponding threads on the sliding piece <NUM>. The outer threads <NUM> are shown in <FIG> and the arrangement of the sliding piece <NUM> around these threads <NUM> is shown in <FIG>. This arrangement therefore allows the user to rotate the threaded fastener <NUM> on one side of the sliding piece <NUM>, while, on the other side of the sliding piece <NUM>, the threaded fastener <NUM> changes the distance to the slidable surface <NUM>.

While taking <FIG> and <FIG> into consideration, it is possible to visualise how the sliding piece <NUM> shown in <FIG> can be changed to the locked mode: the threaded fastener <NUM> can be rotated in a clockwise movement so that the sliding piece <NUM> gets distanced from the slidable surface; during this distancing motion, the outer facing protrusion <NUM> will, at some moment, enter into the corresponding perforations <NUM> in the guide rail <NUM>; the threaded fastener can then be tightened further so that the sliding piece <NUM> gets securely locked in place.

The circular base <NUM> of the threaded fastener <NUM> allows rotating the latter on the slidable surface <NUM> of the channel <NUM>. This degree of freedom exists because the circular design of the base <NUM> is not blocked from rotating by the lateral surfaces <NUM>. Also, the circular base <NUM> includes a conical surface <NUM> suitable for sliding against a lateral surface <NUM> of the channel <NUM>.

Both the diameter of the circular base <NUM> as well as the inclination of the conical surface <NUM> can be configured so that the sliding piece <NUM> remains centered in the channel <NUM>. In unlocked mode, this effect is advantageous because the sliding piece <NUM> and threaded fastener <NUM> can be moved longitudinally along the guide rail <NUM> with a good sliding quality, in which the outward facing protrusions <NUM> are kept from contacting the lateral surfaces <NUM>. Also, during the rotation of the threaded fastener <NUM>, the movements caused on the sliding piece <NUM> have a good insertion quality, in which symmetric outward facing protrusions <NUM> interact synchronously with the perforations <NUM> in the channel <NUM>.

The circular base <NUM> of the threaded fastener <NUM> includes a helical cut-out <NUM> for providing a resting surface for the bracket <NUM>. Thus, the rotation of the threaded fastener <NUM> also adjusts a distance between the bracket <NUM> and the slidable surface <NUM> in the channel <NUM>. Also, the threads <NUM> of the threaded fastener <NUM> may be provided with the same screwing pitch as the screwing pitch of the helical cut-out <NUM>. This causes the supporting effect on the bracket <NUM> to be synchronised with the distancing actuation on the sliding piece <NUM>.

The guide rail <NUM> may be produced with polymer parts having suitable frictional properties that allow sliding the sliding piece on the guide rail <NUM>. Some components and surfaces may be provided with the same or additional strength, such as the outward facing protrusions <NUM>.

The device described above allows achieving a scalable manufacturing process. Using parts made mostly of polymers, it is possible to achieve a minimum weight for device. 3D printed parts can be used for the initial series production in order to keep tooling costs to a minimum. Once the production volume increases, the elements of the device can be fabricated with injection moulding instead.

Claim 1:
A device (<NUM>) for adjusting the distance between a pedal module (<NUM>) and a seat of a human-powered vehicle, the device (<NUM>) comprising:
- a guide rail (<NUM>) adaptable to be fixed relative to the seat; and
- a sliding piece (<NUM>) for supporting the pedal module (<NUM>), the sliding piece (<NUM>) being adapted to slide on the guide rail (<NUM>), and
wherein the sliding piece (<NUM>) is lockable to the guide rail (<NUM>) on at least one position of the guide rail (<NUM>),
wherein the guide rail (<NUM>) comprises a perforation (<NUM>) and the sliding piece (<NUM>) comprises an outward facing protrusion (<NUM>) for fastening the sliding piece (<NUM>) to the perforation's position on the guide rail (<NUM>), and
characterised in that the outward facing protrusion (<NUM>) is positioned on the sliding piece (<NUM>) so as to be inserted into the perforation (<NUM>) due to an increase in distance between the sliding piece (<NUM>) and a slidable surface (<NUM>) of the guide rail (<NUM>).