JPH0314461Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] Technical Field The present invention relates to a unicycle, particularly a recreational unicycle.

BACKGROUND ART Conventionally, various types of unicycles mainly used for entertainment have been proposed and put into practical use.
For example, a passenger seat, a wheel that is rotatably supported by a support frame that supports the seat, and a pair of cranks that are integrally connected to the wheels are used. Unicycles and the like whose wheels are rotated by pedaling with the feet are well known. The left-right balance of such a unicycle can be maintained by the rider himself by moving his body left and right, and the front-to-back balance can be maintained by moving the wheels back and forth, but such acrobatic maneuvers require extensive practice. It is something that can be learned later, and it is difficult for beginners to learn to ride a unicycle immediately. vice versa,
Conventional unicycles, which can be ridden without long hours of practice, cannot provide a thrilling feeling to the rider and are uninteresting as recreational unicycles.

Purpose The purpose of the present invention is to provide a unicycle that can be ridden in a shorter period of time than conventional unicycles and can provide a sufficiently thrilling feeling to the rider.

Configuration In order to achieve the above object, the present invention includes a wheel that runs on a running surface, a ring-shaped frame that is arranged concentrically with the wheel, and a ring-shaped frame that is connected to the frame in the circumferential direction of the frame via a connecting bracket. a plurality of support rollers that are rotatably supported at intervals and roll into contact with the inner peripheral surface of the wheel; a step board that is fixed to the frame; and a step board that is movable in the same direction as the wheel. It consists of a pair of auxiliary wheels rotatably supported by an axle member, a center rod whose lower end is elastically connected to the axle member via a rubber bushing, and a compression coil spring wound around the center rod. , a return spring that biases the center rod so that the center rod assumes an upright position; a lower hinge member to which the upper end of the center rod is fixed; and a hinge pin that extends in the running direction of the wheel. an upper hinge member pivotally connected to the hinge member; an arm having a lower end fixed to the axle member and a tip rotatably fitted to a female member provided on the lower surface of the lower hinge member; a transmission spring consisting of a compression coil spring inserted between the lower hinge member and a support arm integrally connecting the upper hinge member and the frame, the center rod being located below the hinge pin, and The relative positions of the wheel and the auxiliary wheel are set such that in a natural state where the wheel and the auxiliary wheel are placed on a running surface, the wheel is inclined at a predetermined angle from a plane perpendicular to the running surface; A unicycle is proposed, which is disposed at a position between an upper hinge member and a lower hinge member on the opposite side of the inclined side of the wheel with reference to the hinge pin.

Embodiments Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

In FIGS. 1 and 2, reference numeral 1 indicates a wheel running on a running surface G, and this wheel 1 has a tubed tire 2 and a rim 3 for holding it, and has no spokes. Other than that, it's no different from a regular bicycle wheel.

A ring-shaped frame 4 made of pipes or the like is arranged concentrically with the wheel 1 on the side of the wheel. It is connected to the wheel 1 through the vehicle. As shown in FIG. 3, the support roller 5 is rotatably supported by a support plate 7 of a connecting bracket 6 fixed to the frame 4, and the peripheral surface of the roller 5 rolls into contact with the rim 3 of the wheel 1. There is. The other support rollers 5a, 5b, and 5c roll in contact with the rim 3 of the wheel 1 in exactly the same way, and are rotatably supported by the frame 4. The plurality of support rollers 5, which are rotatably supported by the frame 4 through the connection brackets 6 at intervals in the circumferential direction of the frame 4, are in rolling contact with the inner peripheral surface of the wheel 1. Such a configuration allows the frame 4 and the wheels 1 to rotate relative to each other about their common axis X.

A step board 8 on which the rider rests his or her feet and a grip 9 on which the rider rests his or her hands are fixed to the frame 4.

Further, an auxiliary device 11 is connected to the frame 4 via a support arm 10, and this auxiliary device 11 has a pair of auxiliary wheels 13 rotatably supported by an axle member 12, as clearly shown in FIG. . Training wheel 1
3 can run in the same direction as the wheel 1. The lower end of a center rod 15 is elastically connected to the axle member 12 via a rubber bushing 14, and this rod 15 projects upward, and its upper end is firmly fixed to a receiving member 16 of a lower hinge member 20, which will be described later. . Also, the arm 17 is attached to the axle member 12.
The lower end of is fixed, and its tip is the lower hinge member 2
It is rotatably fitted into a test member 18 provided on the lower surface of the receiving member 0. Around the center rod 15 is a return spring 1 consisting of a compression coil spring.
9 is wound around, and the upper end of this spring 19 is connected to the receiving member 1.
6, the lower side abuts against the rubber bush 14 or the axle member 12, and the return spring 19 biases the center rod 15 so that it assumes an upright position, as will be described later.

The configuration of the auxiliary device described above is the same as the steering mechanism employed in conventional skateboards, but the illustrated auxiliary device 11 has the following additional configuration. That is, the aforementioned receiving member 16
The lower hinge member 20 has a hinge pin 21
The upper hinge member 22 is pivotally connected via the upper hinge member 22, and a transmission spring 23 made of a compression coil spring is inserted between the two hinge members 20, 22. wheel 1
is on the left side of Figure 1 (direction of arrow A), in other words, the second
The hinge pin 21 extends in the traveling direction A, and the center rod 15 is located below the hinge pin 21, which runs toward the back of the plane of the drawing. The lower end of the support arm 10 described above is fixed to the upper surface of the upper hinge member 22, the upper end of the arm 10 is fixed to the frame 4, and the upper hinge member 22 and the frame 4 are integrally connected by the support arm 10. .

When the wheel 1 and the auxiliary wheel 13 of the unicycle configured as described above are placed on the running surface G as shown in FIGS. The relative positions of the wheels 1 and the auxiliary wheels 13 are set so that they are inclined to the right with respect to the running direction by a predetermined angle θ from a plane perpendicular to the running surface G, and at this time, the step board 8 is maintained in a substantially horizontal state. There is. Since the wheel 1 is tilted by the angle θ in this way, the stability of the unicycle can be improved when the rider rides the unicycle. Further, the aforementioned transmission spring 23 is arranged at a position between the upper hinge member 22 and the lower hinge member 20 on the opposite side of the inclined side of the wheel 1 with respect to the hinge pin 21.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the rider P grasps the grip 9 with his hand, places one foot on the step board 8, kicks the running surface G with the other foot, and utilizes the inertia, or steps with both feet. The unicycle is placed on a board 8 and run on a slope or the like. At that time, the wheel 1 rolls on the running surface G, and the support roller 5,
5a, 5b, and 5c rotate on the circumferential surface of the rim 3, so the rider can ride the unicycle while riding on the frame 4. During this running, not only the wheel 1 but also the auxiliary wheel 13 are transferred on the running surface G, so
The stability of the unicycle is increased, and even non-experts can easily operate it. This stability can be better understood with reference to FIG. i.e. arrow
As shown by F ₁ , the weight of the rider acts downward, and a reaction force commensurate with this weight F ₁ and the weight F ₂ of the unicycle itself acts on the unicycle from the running surface G, but this reaction force is
As shown by F ₃ and F ₄ , it acts on both the wheel 1 and the auxiliary wheel 13, so that the front and rear balance can be maintained in a stable state. Further, as shown in FIG. 6, by adjusting the position of the passenger P to the left and right with respect to the traveling direction A, the rider P can maintain the left and right balance.

The auxiliary device 11 also has a unicycle steering function, and the details of its operation will be explained below.

Going straight When the unicycle is in its natural state, the wheel 1 is tilted by an angle θ with respect to the vertical plane, but when a rider is riding on the unicycle while it is running, the rider adjusts his or her body position laterally. If the wheel 1 is raised by a small angle α, the actual inclination angle T of the wheel 1 is θ−α as shown in FIG. 7 (in FIG. 7, the unicycle runs toward the front of the page). In this way, the wheel 1 moves to the right (left in FIG. 7) with respect to the running direction.
If the unicycle is tilted by the same amount, the canvas thrust B based on this will act on the wheel 1, and its direction is to the right (left in Fig. 7) with respect to the traveling direction A, so the unicycle will try to turn to the right. do.

On the other hand, due to the angle α mentioned above, the auxiliary device 1
1 gives a force that tries to turn the unicycle to the left (to the right in Figure 7). That is, in the natural state, the upper hinge member 22 of the auxiliary device 11 is in the almost horizontal state shown in FIG. 4, but when the rider tilts the unicycle from the natural state to the left with respect to the running direction, The upper hinge member 22 rotates around the hinge pin 21 to the left with respect to the traveling direction A as shown by arrow C in FIG. (See Figure 8). This causes the center rod 15, together with the lower hinge member 20, to move slightly to the left with respect to the running direction A against the action of the return spring 19, as shown by arrow D in FIG. At this time, the center rod 15 attaches the rubber bush 1 to the axle member 12.
Since the arm 17 is rotatably fitted to the female member 18 of the lower hinge member 20, the center rod 15 and the rubber bush 14 can be elastically deformed and tilted in the direction of arrow D. In this way, the left side (the eighth
When the center rod 15 is tilted in the direction of arrow D due to a biased load acting on the right side in the figure, the auxiliary wheel 13 is
As shown by arrow E in the figure, the above-mentioned canvas thrust B
A steering force in the opposite direction (to the left with respect to the traveling direction A) is applied. This steering force E
acts as a force to turn the unicycle to the left. Therefore, if the angle α is adjusted so that the magnitude of the steering force E and the canvas thrust B are equal, the unicycle will move straight as shown by the arrow A in FIG.

Note that when the rotational force applied to the upper hinge member 22 is released, the hinge member 21 is returned to the horizontal state by the action of the transmission spring 23 and the center rod 1
5 returns to its upright position by the action of a return spring 19.

Turning to the left When the passenger adjusts his or her body position to raise the wheel 1 or frame 4 further than when driving straight, and makes the steering angle α larger than when driving straight, wheel 1
As shown in FIG. 9, the actual inclination angle T is smaller than when the vehicle is traveling straight (FIG. 7). At this time, as can be seen from the state shown in Fig. 10, the center rod 15 further tilts in the direction of arrow D (Fig. 4), and the steering force E
is larger than when driving straight. Moreover, as the inclination angle T of the wheel 1 becomes smaller, the canvas thrust B
is smaller than when driving straight. Therefore, the force E that tries to turn the unicycle to the left is greater than the force B that tries to turn the unicycle to the right (B<E), and the unicycle becomes
Turn to the left as shown by arrow A in FIG.

Turning to the right When the unicycle is tilted to the right (to the left in Figure 11) than when it is running straight as shown in Figure 11, and the actual tilt angle T of the wheel 1 is increased (T = θ + α),
Canvas thrust B, which causes the unicycle to turn to the right, is greater than when going straight. At this time, the upper hinge member 22 of the auxiliary device 11 rotates around the hinge pin 21 to the right (direction of arrow G in FIG. 4) with respect to the traveling direction, but since no transmission spring is provided on the right side, the upper hinge member 22 The biased load due to the rotation of the hinge member 22 is not substantially transmitted to the lower hinge member 20, so that the center rod 15 located below the hinge pin 21 remains upright, and the steering force is applied to the auxiliary wheels 13. has no effect (see Figure 12). Therefore, the unicycle turns rightward as shown by arrow A in FIG. 11 only by the action of canvas thrust B.

As mentioned above, when turning to the right, the upper hinge member 22
The rotational force, that is, the force biased to the right with respect to the running direction, is not transmitted to the auxiliary wheel 13, but the reason for doing this is as follows.

Even when turning to the right, the rotational force of the upper hinge member 22 is transmitted to the center rod 15, and this rod 15 tilts to the right (in the direction of arrow H in FIG. 4) with respect to the traveling direction, and a right-hand turning steering force is applied to the auxiliary wheels 13. If this is the case, then the canvas thrust B, which causes the unicycle to turn to the right, and the steering force, which causes it to turn in the same direction, both act on the unicycle, and since the direction of action of both is the same, the resultant force is It will be quite large. Therefore, in order to turn the unicycle to the right, if the wheel 1 is tilted slightly to the right compared to when it is running straight, a large right turning force is applied at once, causing the unicycle to suddenly start turning to the right. As a result, there is a risk of losing left and right balance and falling. However, in the illustrated auxiliary device 11, since no steering force is applied when the unicycle turns to the right, the above-mentioned drawbacks do not occur and the unicycle can be steered in a stable state.

As described above, the rider can enjoy an extremely thrilling ride, while also being able to easily and reliably steer the unicycle, ensuring safety. Therefore, the rider can ride the unicycle without extensive training.

Note that the inclination angle θ of the wheel 1 in a natural state is appropriately set depending on the weight of the unicycle, the position of its center of gravity, etc., but according to experiments, the outer diameter of the frame 4 is 27.2.
When a passenger with a height of 165 cm and a weight of 60 kg rides on a stainless steel pipe with a thickness of 2.0 mm and a thickness of θ
= 15° was appropriate. Under the same conditions, it is estimated that the appropriate angle α for the unicycle to move straight is about 2 to 3 degrees.

Effects According to the unicycle according to the present invention, the unicycle can be steered with simple operations and run in a stable state, and the rider can enjoy an extremely thrilling ride.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a side view showing an example of a unicycle according to the present invention, Fig. 2 is a rear view seen from the right side of Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 is a side view showing an example of a unicycle according to the present invention.
The figure is a cross-sectional view taken along the line - - in Figure 1, Figure 4 is a perspective view of the auxiliary device, Figures 5 and 6 are schematic explanatory diagrams showing the running state of the unicycle, and Figure 7 is the action when the unicycle moves straight. FIG. 8 is a front view showing the state of the upper hinge member in the state shown in FIG. 7, FIG. 9 is a front view similar to FIG. 7 when the unicycle is turned to the left, and FIG. 11 is a front view showing the state of the upper hinge member when turning to the left, FIG. 11 is a front view similar to FIG. 7 when turning to the right, and FIG. 12 shows the state of the upper hinge member when turning to the right. It is a front view. 1...Wheel, 4...Frame, 5, 5a, 5
b, 5c... Support roller, 6... Connection bracket, 8... Step board, 10... Support arm, 11... Auxiliary device, 12... Axle member, 13
... Training wheel, 14 ... Rubber bush, 15 ... Center rod, 17 ... Arm, 18 ... Female member, 19 ... Return spring, 20 ... Lower hinge member, 21 ... Hinge pin, 22 ... Upper hinge Member, 23... Transmission spring, A... Running direction, G...
Running surface, θ... angle.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] A wheel running on a running surface, a ring-shaped frame arranged concentrically with the wheel, and a ring-shaped frame rotatably supported by the frame at intervals in the circumferential direction of the frame via a connecting bracket, the wheel multiple support rollers that roll into contact with the inner peripheral surface of the
a step board fixed to the frame; a pair of auxiliary wheels movable in the same direction as the running direction of the wheels and rotatably supported by the axle member; and a lower end connected to the axle member via a rubber bushing. It consists of a resiliently connected center rod, a return spring wound around the center rod to bias the center rod into an upright position, and a return spring that biases the center rod into an upright position. a fixed lower hinge member, an upper hinge member pivotally connected to the lower hinge member via a hinge pin extending in the running direction of the wheel, and a lower end of which is fixed to the axle member and whose tip end is the lower hinge member. an arm rotatably fitted to a female member provided on the lower surface of the member; a transmission spring comprising a compression coil spring inserted between the upper hinge member and the lower hinge member; and the upper hinge member and the frame. The center rod is located below the hinge pin, and when the wheel and the auxiliary wheel are placed on a running surface in a natural state, the wheel is not perpendicular to the running surface. The relative positions of the wheel and the auxiliary wheel are set so that they are inclined at a predetermined angle, and the transmission spring is located between an upper hinge member and a lower hinge member on the opposite side of the inclined side of the wheel with the hinge pin as a reference. A unicycle placed in the.