Patent ID: 7222763

Claim:
A support arrangement for maintaining a bicycle in an upright position, wherein the bicycle has a pair of wheels, comprising: a support structure; and a pair of spaced apart wheel engagement members secured to the support structure, wherein each wheel engagement member has a mounting area and an arcuate trough member that defines an upwardly facing wheel engagement area, said wheel engagement area defining an arcuate surface extending in a circumferential direction of a bicycle wheel to be engaged therewith, wherein the mounting area of each wheel engagement member is pivotably interconnected with the support structure for providing pivoting movement of each wheel support member about a pivot axis; wherein, when one of the bicycle wheels is positioned between and moved downwardly toward the wheel engagement areas of the arcuate trough members, the arcuate trough members are located on opposite sides of the center of the bicycle wheel and engagement of the bicycle wheel with the wheel engagement areas causes the wheel engagement members to pivot about the pivot axes to grip the bicycle wheel between the wheel engagement areas of the arcuate trough members; wherein the arcuate trough members include spaced apart side surfaces that engage side surfaces of the bicycle wheel when the bicycle wheel is moved into engagement with the wheel engagement areas of the arcuate trough members, and wherein the side surfaces and the wheel engagement areas of the wheel engagement members support the bicycle wheel in an upright position when the bicycle wheel is moved into engagement with the wheel engagement members without support from above the wheel engagement members.