Patent ID: 7066311

Claim:
A retractable wheel assembly for a carrier comprising: a retractable handle that is movable between an extended position and a retracted position: a housing attached to the retractable handle, the housing defining a wheel well; a cowl having a pivot axis and disposed in the wheel well such that the cowl is pivotable between a first position and an second position; a wheel rotatably mounted in the cowl, the wheel adapted to rotate about an axis that is offset from the cowl pivot axis, wherein the wheel is disposed substantially entirely within the wheel well when the cowl is in the first position, and the wheel extends out from the wheel well when the cowl is in the second position; a cowl axle attached to the cowl and oriented along the cowl pivot axis; and a spring having a first end connected to the cowl axle and a second end connected to the retractable handle; wherein the cowl is biased by the spring towards the first position when the retractable handle is retracted, and the cowl is biased towards the second position when the retractable handle is extended.