Patent ID: 7244203

Claim:
A bicycle derailleur comprising: a shiftable portion configured and arranged to move between a top position and a low position; and a chain guide coupled to said shiftable portion to be laterally moved by said shiftable portion, said chain guide including an inner guide plate having an inner attachment end and an inner free end, an outer guide plate having an outer attachment end and an outer free end that are arranged to form a chain receiving slot between said inner and outer guide plates, a guide pulley rotatably coupled between said inner and outer attachment ends of said inner and outer guide plates, and a tension pulley rotatably coupled about a rotation axis between said inner and outer free ends of said inner and outer guide plates, said tension pulley having an annular recess disposed about said rotation axis of said tension pulley to form a projection disposed further from said rotation axis than said recess and a center plane perpendicular to said axis of rotation, said projection having a free edge located furthest from said center plane, the free edge lying in an offset plane parallel to the center plane, said inner guide plate having a guide section with a sloped guide surface that intersects the offset plane and a radially outermost edge located in said annular recess, said projection projecting in an axial direction further from said center plane of said tension pulley than said outermost edge of said guide section.