GB2263133A

GB2263133A - A bicycle accessory mounting bracket

Info

Publication number: GB2263133A
Application number: GB9200250A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Robert Charles Badger
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1992-01-07
Filing date: 1992-01-07
Publication date: 1993-07-14
Anticipated expiration: 2012-01-07
Also published as: GB9200250D0; GB2263133B

Abstract

A bicycle accessory mounting arrangement comprises a bracket 1 defining apertures 7 by way of which a bicycle accessory may be secured thereto and means which may comprise U-bolts 2 for mounting the bracket on part of a bicycle or bicycle accessory. The bracket 1 defines a plurality of different sized mounting positions corresponding to different sizes of parts upon which the bracket 1 can be mounted, thereby enabling the bracket 1 to be used to mount a wide range of accessories on almost any part of a bicycle. <IMAGE>

Description

DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION A Bicycle Accessory Mounting Bracket.

THE PRESENT INVENTION relates to a bicycle accessory mounting bracket and more particularly to a bracket for mounting an accessory such as a light on part of a bicycle or on another accessory mounted on the bicycle such as a luggage rack. Whilst the invention will be described with particular reference to being used for mounting lights on bicycles it is to be appreciated that the bracket may also be used to mount other accessories such as reflectors, dynamos, map holders, water bottles or the like on a bicycle.

For many years it has been conventional to mount bicycle lights on the front and rear forks of a bicycle frame. Until fairly recently bicycle lights were provided with a clamping arrangement designed specifically for mounting on the forks or on a bracket provided on the forks.

In recent years the use of panniers on bicycles has become increasingly popular. The pannier bags are supported on a luggage rack mounted over the wheel of a bicycle and when in place the bags hang down on either side of the wheel. Pannier bags mounted adjacent the rear wheel of the bicycle can obscure a rear light mounted on the rear forks in a conventional manner and it has therefore become necessary to mount the rear light in an alternative position when using pannier bags. This necessitates a different mounting arrangement for the rear light. Ideally the rear light should be mounted at the back of the rack which supports the panniers. However, these racks tend to be formed with supporting legs or other components which are of relatively small cross-section and upon which it is very difficult, if not impossible, to securely mount a light.The same sort of problem arises when using panniers mounted at the front of a bicycle.

Furthermore, some cyclists like to mount their lights at positions other than on the front forks of a bicycle, such as, for example, on the handle bars or, for the rear light, immediately below the saddle on a saddle stay.

There are now many varying bicycle designs with very few standard size components. Thus, different light mountings are required for different types of bicycles. In some cases it is very difficult to obtain a mounting bracket for a particular location on a certain bike and it is sometimes necessary for light mountings to be custom designed by a cycle trader, particularly if a customer wishes to have their bicycle fitted with a luggage rack and pannier bags.

Whilst there are some light mountings available which are designed to permit mounting of a light on tubular components of differing sizes, the range of sizes upon which the mounting can be received is rather limited and in most cases the mounting comprises a clamping arrangement which only engages the tubular element at a number of points around its surface rather than over a substantial area of the surface. This only provides for limited grip and such arrangements have been found to be unreliable.

Lights and other accessories which are not securely fixed on a bicycle can of course be dangerous and the present invention therefore seeks to provide a mounting bracket for a bicycle accessory which provides a secure fixing of the accessory and which can be used to mount the accessory on parts of a bicycle frame (and on other bicycle accessories) of widely differing sizes.

According to the present invention there is provided a bicycle accessory mounting bracket comprising a member defining means for securing a bicycle accessory thereto and means for mounting the member on part of a bicycle or part of an accessory on the bicycle, the member defining a plurality of discrete mounting positions by way of which the member can be mounted on said part, the mounting positions corresponding to different sizes of said part.

Preferably each mounting position is defined by an arcuate recess in the member, each recesses being designed to receive a part upon which the member is to be mounted.

Conveniently arcuate recesses of three different sizes are defined by the member. A plurality of arcuate recesses of the same size may be defined by the member.

The mounting means may comprise a clamping element for clamping the member to the part upon which it is to be mounted.

Advantageously the clamping element comprises a U-bolt, the ends of the which pass through apertures in the member and are held in place by securing nuts.

Preferably the U-bolt is provided with a protective coating or sleeve to protect the part against which it clamps.

Conveniently the bracket is provided with a plurality of U-bolts of differing sizes and corresponding nuts for securing the U-bolts.

Advantageously the securing means comprise one or more apertures extending through the member.

Conveniently the securing means comprise a plurality of apertures extending through the member.

The apertures constituting the securing means may also constitute the apertures to receive the ends of the U-bolt.

Preferably the member is an elongate channelsectioned member having a base and opposed upstanding sides, with the upper edges of the sides of the channel-sectioned member defining the plurality of discrete mounting positions and the base of the member defining the means for securing a bicycle accessory thereto.

In order that the present invention may be more readily understood and so that further features thereof may be appreciated the invention will now be described by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: FIGURE 1 is an exploded perspective view of a mounting bracket in accordance with this invention; and FIGURE 2 is an underneath view of the main component of the mounting bracket of Figure 1.

The mounting bracket shown in the accompanying drawings comprises an elongate channel sectioned member 1 and a set of mounting clips comprising three U-bolts 2 Of differing sizes and appropriately dimensioned securing nuts 3.

The channel sectioned member 1 is an aluminum extrusion having a base 4 and opposed upstanding sides 5 which are of equal height. The channel may be of equal width and height and it is envisaged that the member 1 may be approximately 12.5 mm in width and height and of a material thickness of approximately 6 mm. The member may be approximately 150 mm in length.

The base of the channel defines a plurality of circular holes 6 spaced equally at a pitch of approximately 12.5 mm, with each holes being approximately 8.3 mm in diameter. The holes 6 constitute means by way of which a bicycle light or other accessory can be secured to the channel member 1. Clearly the size, number and pitch of the holes 6 will vary according to the overall size of the member 1. The distance from the edge of each end hole 6 to the adjacent end of the member 1 is equal to half the distance between the edges of adjacent holes 6 in order to facilitate production.

The upper edge of each side 5 of the channel member defines a plurality of arcuate recesses 7 of differing sizes. The recesses in the two sides are aligned axially of the member 1 so that, in effect, a plurality of "channels" are defined which extend transversely of the member.

In the specific embodiment illustrated the upper edge of each side 5 of the channel member 1 defines seven equally spaced, equally sized recesses which are approximately semi-circular and have a radius of curvature of approximately 3 mm. At one end of the upper edge of each side there is also an arcuate recess with a radius of curvature of approximately 12.7 mm and between this end recess and the remaining recesses there is a recess with a radius of curvature of approximately 6.3 mm. The medium sized recess is of approximately semi-circular form whilst the endmost recess is more shallow and is of less than semi-circular form.

The recesses 7 are designed to receive any circular-sectioned, tubular, oval or similarly formed elongate member constituting part of a bicycle or a bicycle accessory. The recesses are designed to accommodate virtually any element having a "diameter" or transverse dimension equivalent to a diameter within the range 4.75 mm to 31.75 mm. This range of dimensions will cover virtually every part of a bicycle or bicycle accessory where one might wish to mount a light or other accessory.

The three U-bolts 2 are of 12.5 mm, 25 mm and 37.5 mm diameter and are designed for use with the three sizes of recess 7 in order to secure the channel member on part of a bicycle or bicycle accessory. The nuts 3 which are used in order to secure the U-bolts may comprise conventional nuts, domed or cap nuts, nuts formed with an allen key-receiving recess or any other appropriate type of nuts. It will be appreciated that the recesses 7 in the channel member serve, in combination with the U-bolts 2 and the nuts 3 as means for mounting the channel member 1 on almost any part of a bicycle or bicycle accessory.

In use the mounting bracket is secured upon part of a bicycle or bicycle accessory by positioning the appropriately dimensioned recess 7 around or adjacent the relevant part and securing it in place using the appropriately sized U-bolt and nuts. In order to protect paint work on the bicycle it is envisaged that the U-bolts will be provided either with a protective plastics coating (which may be applied by dipping the U-bolts) or with a protective sleeve. The coating or sleeve may also improve the 'grip' of the U-bolt on the bicycle part. A cycle light or other accessory can then be mounted on the projecting part of the channel member 1 by way of the holes 6 in the base or if the light or other accessory is provided with clamping means it can be clamped directly onto the channel member 1.If necessary the channel member may be shortened by cutting off an appropriate length either before or after mounting the bracket on a bicycle.

If it is desired to use the mounting bracket when mounting a light provided with a clamping arrangement designed to be clamped around a tubular element then the bracket may be provided with an attachment comprising a pair of short tubular elements closed at one end and defining a central bore through each closed end. The tubular elements are mountable upon the channel member 1 by passing a bolt through one of the tubular elements, through one of the holes 6 in the base of the channel and through the other tubular element and then securing the tubular elements in place upon the channel member 1 by means of a nut on the end of the bolt. The light can then be connected to the tubular elements using the clamping arrangement provided with the light.The attachment may, of course, be of any desired cross-section and thus a circular, square or hexagonal tubular attachment could be provided, with the cross-section being designed to correspond with the particular section upon which the clamping arrangement is designed to be mounted.

Whilst one specific embodiment of the mounting bracket has been described and illustrated, it will be appreciated that various modifications may be made whilst still providing a mounting bracket which permits the secure mounting of accessories on a wide range of cycle parts or cycle accessories. Thus, for example, the U-bolts 2 could be replaced by a further elongate member defining appropriately sized arcuate recesses so that it can be positioned within the channel defined by the channel sectioned member 1 with bolts passing through this additional elongate member and through the holes in the base of the channel sectioned member 1 in order to permit clamping around part of a bicycle frame or part of a bicycle accessory. It would also be possible for this additional elongate member to be designed so that it does not pass into the channel defined by the channel section member 1 but is received upon the upper edges of the sides 5 of the channel sectioned member with the recesses 7 and the recesses defined by the additional elongate member being so dimensioned as to permit secure clamping of the bracket around a part of a bicycle.

Claims

1. A bicycle accessory mounting bracket comprising a member defining means for securing a bicycle accessory thereto and means for mounting the member on part of a bicycle or part of an accessory on the bicycle, the member defining a plurality of discrete mounting positions by way of which the member can be mounted on said part, the mounting positions corresponding to different sizes of said part.

2. A bicycle accessory mounting bracket according to Claim 1 wherein each mounting position is defined by an arcuate recess in the member, each recesses being designed to receive a part upon which the member is to be mounted.

3. A bicycle accessory mounting bracket according to Claim 2 wherein arcuate recesses of three different sizes are defined by the member.

4. A bicycle accessory mounting bracket according to Claim 2 or Claim 3 wherein a plurality of arcuate recesses of the same size are defined by the member.

5. A bicycle accessory mounting bracket according to any one of Claims 1 to 4 wherein the mounting means comprise a clamping element for clamping the member to the part upon which it is to be mounted.

6. A bicycle accessory mounting bracket according to Claim 5 wherein the clamping element comprises a U-bolt, the ends of the which pass through apertures in the member and are held in place by securing nuts.

7. A bicycle accessory mounting bracket according to Claim 6 wherein the U-bolt is provided with a protective coating or sleeve to protect the part against which it clamps.

8. A bicycle accessory mounting bracket according to Claim 6 or Claim 7 wherein the bracket is provided with a plurality of U-bolts of differing sizes and corresponding nuts for securing the U-bolts.

9. A bicycle accessory mounting bracket according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the securing means comprise one or more apertures extending through the member.

10. A bicycle accessory mounting bracket according to Claim 9 wherein the securing means comprise a plurality of apertures extending through the member.

11. A bicycle accessory mounting bracket according to Claim 10, as dependant upon Claim 6 wherein the apertures constituting the securing means also constitute the apertures to receive the ends of the U-bolt.

12. A bicycle accessory mounting bracket according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the member is an elongate channel-sectioned member having a base and opposed upstanding sides.

13. A bicycle accessory mounting bracket according to Claim 12 wherein the upper edges of the sides of the channel-sectioned member define the plurality of discrete mounting positions and the base of the member defines the means for securing a bicycle accessory thereto.

14. A bicycle accessory mounting bracket substantially as herein described with reference to and as shown in the accompanying drawings.

15. Any novel feature or combination of features disclosed herein.