Abstract:
A three wheeled vehicle is disclosed having a vehicle frame with a frame sidewall providing a substantially flat surface, with recesses in the flat surface. Alignment arms have inner ends and outer ends, where the inner ends are mounted to the frame sidewall, and the outer ends mount a wheel hub. The inner ends have couplings with pivotal portions and fixed portions, the pivotal portions being at least partially positioned within the recesses, and the fixed portions being attached to the substantially flat surface.
Abstract:
A damper for a bicycle, having a primary unit including a damper tube, a piston rod that supports a main piston, a reservoir tube that is outside of the compression chamber of the primary tube, and an inertial valve within the reservoir tube. The damper also includes a flow path connecting the reservoir fluid chamber and the compression chamber of the primary tube. The damper also may have a damping valve in the reservoir tube. When the inertia valve is open, the damping valve opens before flow through the inertia valve is maximized. The main piston and the damper tube at least partially define a compression chamber and a rebound chamber. The main piston is movable within the damper chamber of the primary unit. The reservoir tube includes a reservoir fluid chamber. The inertial valve is responsive to terrain-induced forces and not responsive to rider-induced forces when the shock absorber is assembled to the bicycle.
Abstract:
A bicycle assembly can include a front or rear suspension system with a shock absorber. A front suspension system can be a suspension fork. A rear suspension system can include a rear shock absorber. The shock can have a shock body and a pressurized main air chamber within the shock body to act as an air spring. The shock can also have a valve configured to receive a pump for adding air to the main air chamber. A secondary air chamber and a control member can be used to reduce the pressure within the main air chamber by venting the secondary air chamber to the atmosphere.
Abstract:
A vehicle height adjustment apparatus includes a rear wheel suspension spring that is disposed between a vehicle body and a tire wheel of a vehicle; a rear wheel damper that undergoes an extensional and contractional operation so as to move working oil to dampen vibration of the spring; a support member that supports one end portion of the spring, and moves relative to the damper to change the length of the spring; a jack chamber into which the working oil causing the support member to move relative to the damper flows by the extensional and contractional operation of the damper; a rear wheel electromagnetic valve that adjusts the amount of the working oil flowing into the jack chamber by the degree of opening of the electromagnetic valve; and control device that controls the degree of opening of the electromagnetic valve based on a weight exerted on the vehicle.
Abstract:
A vehicle height adjustment apparatus includes: a front wheel-side change unit that can change a front wheel relative position, which is a relative position between a body of a vehicle and a front wheel of the vehicle; a rear wheel-side change unit that can change a rear wheel relative position, which is a relative position between the body and a rear wheel of the vehicle; and a control unit that controls the front wheel-side change unit and the rear wheel-side change unit so as to change the front wheel and the rear wheel relative positions to adjust a vehicle height, which is a height of the body of the vehicle, and the control unit increases the vehicle height while maintaining a ratio of a displacement of the front wheel relative position to a displacement of the rear wheel relative position within a predetermined range.
Abstract:
A bicycle assembly can include a front or rear suspension system with a shock absorber. A front suspension system can be a suspension fork. A rear suspension system can include a rear shock absorber. The shock can have a shock body and a pressurized main air chamber within the shock body to act as an air spring. The shock can also have a valve configured to receive a pump for adding air to the main air chamber. A secondary air chamber and a control member can be used to reduce the pressure within the main air chamber by venting the secondary air chamber to the atmosphere.
Abstract:
An integrated and self-contained suspension assembly having a gas spring integrated with a shock absorber (damper) is described. The rigid gas cylinder of the air spring is divided into a first gas chamber and a second gas chamber. A flow port connects the first and second gas chambers, and can be manually opened or dosed by valve and a simple one-quarter turn rotation of an external knob to instantly switch the gas spring between two different spring rates. The different spring rates are functions of the separate or combined volumes of the two. gas chambers. The integrated suspension assembly is compactly packaged and self-contained, i.e., does not require any externalities, such as gas sources or electricity, to operate.
Abstract:
A method and apparatus for a seat post assembly that is adjustable to an upper, intermediate, and lower seat post position using a locking member and a sleeve member coupled to an actuator for securing and releasing an inner tube with respect to an outer tube. The actuator may move the sleeve member to release the locking member from engagement with the outer tube to adjust the inner tube and thus the seat post assembly to the upper, intermediate, or lower seat post positions. The actuator and the sleeve may be biased into an initial position that urges the locking member into engagement with outer tube to lock the inner tube to the outer tube.
Abstract:
Adjustable seat post assembly for bicycles and the like, comprising a bushing (3), a quill (6) slidingly inserted in said bushing (3) and supporting the seat, jam means (8), inserted along said quill (6) and having a portion (9) which is pivotally coupled to said bushing (3). The jam means (8) are pivotable from an unlocked position, in which said quill (6) can freely slide inside said jam means (8) and relative to said bushing (3), to at least a locked position in which said jam means (8) blocks said quill (6) relative to said bushing (8) in at least one direction of displacement.
Abstract:
A bicycle suspension assembly may be in the form of a bicycle front suspension fork. The suspension fork may include a pair of telescoping fork legs. In one arrangement, a suspension spring and a damper are provided in only one of the pair of fork legs. The suspension spring assembly may include a negative spring. In one arrangement, the negative spring is a dual stage negative gas spring in which a negative spring gas chamber includes a first chamber section and a second chamber section. The first chamber section and the second chamber section are uncoupled in a first position of the suspension spring and the first chamber section and the second chamber section are coupled in a second position of the suspension spring.