US20070138111A1

US20070138111A1 - Bicycle holder and/or bicycle stand

Info

Publication number: US20070138111A1
Application number: US11/311,777
Authority: US
Inventors: Rainer Schairer; Wolfgang Mueller-Beiter
Original assignee: RAWOTEC GmbH
Current assignee: RAWOTEC GmbH
Priority date: 2005-12-19
Filing date: 2005-12-19
Publication date: 2007-06-21

Abstract

A bicycle holder and/or bicycle stand has a supporting foot and a holding mechanism situated thereon for two tubes of a bicycle frame, wherein the supporting foot has a base part and a shaft, the base part is embodied so that it is possible for the supporting foot to be placed onto it or mounted to a wall or ceiling by means of the base part; and the shaft is embodied so that when the supporting foot is wall-mounted, the shaft is able to support a frame component of at least one bicycle in a nonslip fashion.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a bicycle holder and/or bicycle stand for bicycle storage and/or for installation/maintenance of bicycle parts.
Bicycle holders and/or bicycle stands of this kind are generally known. In particular, it is known to support the bicycle with its rear fork on a bicycle holder and/or bicycle stand.
For safety and/or weight-related reasons, many bicycles—especially those intended for sport uses—are not provided with holders and/or stands.
In all currently available systems, it is disadvantageous that none of them offers a combination of simple, variable operation, secure support of the bicycle, and the possibility of performing simple maintenance work (e.g. oiling the chain, removing the rear wheel). In particular, the known systems do not take into account the space that the customer has available for storing bicycles.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The object of the invention is to create a bicycle holder and/or bicycle stand that is simple to operate, and makes it possible to securely park or store the bicycle under various space conditions.
This object is attained by a bicycle holder and/or bicycle stand equipped with a supporting foot and a holding mechanism situated thereon for two tubes of a bicycle frame, which is characterized according to the invention in that the supporting foot has a base part and a shaft, the base part being designed so that the supporting foot can be set down on it or can be attached to a wall or ceiling by means of it, and the shaft being designed so that when the supporting foot is wall-mounted, a frame component of at least one bicycle can be placed onto it in a nonslip fashion.
Depending on the space conditions, the bicycle holder or bicycle stand according to the present invention can be used to store the bicycle in a standing or hanging fashion. In a wall-mounted setup, two of the bicycle holders according to the invention hold at least one bicycle in a secure, stable fashion on the wall. It is easy to perform maintenance and repair work on the bicycle in both the hanging and the standing position.
The holding mechanism for the two tubes of a bicycle can also be connected to the supporting foot in a detachable fashion. Since this holding mechanism is required only when the bicycle is stored in a standing position, the holding mechanism can be removed when the bicycle holder is wall-mounted. However, the holding mechanism can also remain attached to the supporting foot when wall-mounted and be used, for example, to hang a bicycle helmet or the like.
The holding mechanism can be comprised of two tube holders with a U-shaped cross section. It is particularly advantageous in this instance if the tube holders are attached to the supporting foot in a pivoting fashion. The tube holders then adapt to various angular positions of the tubes of a bicycle frame. The bicycle holder and/or bicycle stand according to the invention can consequently be used for various bicycles. Its flexibility of use can be further increased if the tube holders can be mounted various distances apart from each other on the supporting foot. In such an embodiment, the bicycle holder and/or bicycle stand can be used to park practically any bicycle.
If various bicycles are to be held by the same stand, then it is also advantageous if the tube holders can be attached to the supporting foot without tools by means of a plug connection. It is then possible to quickly and easily replug them in a different position and thus adapt them to each respective bicycle frame.
The tube holders can also be flat elements that have been bent into a U-shape. As opposed to simple hooks, they then offer not only linear supports for the tubes, but also planar supports, which achieves a much more stable stance.
The base part can be embodied in a wide variety of ways. In one preferred embodiment form, it has a base plate. The base plate can be provided with openings for suspending it on wall hooks or screws. It is also possible to attach a supporting bracket to the base part in order to increase the stance reliability or stability of the bicycle stand or bicycle holder. A supporting bracket of this kind permits a bicycle to also be parked on uneven ground, for example out in the open. Even when wall-mounted, such a bracket is advantageous since it increases the stability of the holder.
In a second preferred embodiment of the bicycle holder and/or bicycle stand, the holding mechanism has an arm that is connected to the supporting foot in a pivoting fashion and has a respective tube holder for a tube of the bicycle. The supporting foot and arm can be rotated or adjusted in terms of the angle they define in relation to each other. This adjustment makes it possible to take frame geometry into account. The bicycle holder and/or bicycle stand is not attached to the bicycle and is placed as needed onto the two rear fork tubes of the bicycle on at least one side of the bicycle. By simply lifting the rear wheel, the supporting foot of the bicycle holder and/or bicycle stand according to the invention can automatically fall into its end position and be set up. In this embodiment, too, the bicycle stand can also be used as a wall-mounted or ceiling-mounted holder by attaching the supporting foot to the wall or the ceiling.
It is preferable for the supporting foot and the arm to be detachably connected. The bicycle holder and/or bicycle stand can be easily disassembled and transported. Particularly when the components of the bicycle holder and/or bicycle stand are comprised of flat parts, the disassembled bicycle holder and/or bicycle frame takes up only a small amount of storage space. It can be manufactured of plastics or lightweight metals such as aluminum.
The articulating connection between the supporting foot and arm can be easily implemented in the best way by means of a pin to be inserted into a hole or through bore in the supporting foot.
If at least one tube holder is connected to the arm in a detachable manner and can be positioned or adjusted in relation to the other tube holder, then the distance between the tube holders can be adapted to the frame geometry. This assures the bicycle stand according to the invention of being able to support racing cycles, mountain bikes, etc. of varying sizes and frame geometries.
This adaptability can be implemented, for example, by virtue of the fact that the one tube holder has plug elements for insertion into holes in the arm.
The tube holder in one embodiment form can be J-shaped. The J-shape makes it particularly easy to hook under and behind a tube.
In another embodiment form, the supporting foot can be plate-shaped or also approximately triangular. Then the supporting foot takes up only a small amount of space. The supporting foot tapers in the direction toward the rear fork of the bicycle so that the latter remains freely accessible. The larger side of the supporting foot assures a stable stance. In lieu of this embodiment, there are also any number of other conceivable designs such as conical supporting feet or trapezoidal designs.
The bicycle holder and/or bicycle stand according to the invention has the additional advantages of a secure holding or standing and free rotation of the rear wheel, thus permitting the chain to be oiled or the rear wheel to be removed.
The bicycle holder and/or bicycle stand can be made at least partially of a soft material that is gentle to the paint or can have a coating made of such a material. With a production of the stand or at least of the tube holder, it is possible to easily store bicycles without damaging them.
The novel features which are considered as characteristic for the present invention are set forth in particular in the appended claims. the invention itself, however, both as to its construction and its method of operation, together with additional objects and advantages thereof, will be best understood from the following description of specific embodiments when read in connection with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a first exemplary embodiment of a bicycle stand according to the invention;
FIG. 2 is a perspective detailed view of the bicycle stand from FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is a second detailed view of the bicycle stand from FIG. 1;
FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a racing bike parked on two bicycle stands according to the invention, in another embodiment form;
FIG. 5 is a perspective detailed view of the attachment of a bicycle stand from
FIG. 4 to a rear tube of the racing bike;
FIG. 6 is another perspective detailed view of the attachment of a bicycle stand from FIG. 4 to a rear tube of the racing bike;
FIG. 7 shows perspective views of parts of the bicycle stand according to FIGS. 4 through 6.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 shows a bicycle stand 100 with a supporting foot 110 and a holding mechanism situated thereon for tubes of a frame of a bicycle not shown here; the holding mechanism here is comprised of two tube holders 111 and 112. The tube holders 111 and 112 are U-shaped parts that are attached in pivoting fashion to a shaft 119 of the supporting foot 110. This allows them to automatically adapt to the different angular positions between the tubes of different bicycle frames. It is also possible to adjust the distance of the tube holders 111 and 112 from each other. To this end, the supporting foot 110, which has a rib structure, is provided with a pattern of holes 113.
The interchangeable, rotatable holding mechanism is also shown in particular in FIG. 2, which depicts the upper end of the supporting foot 110 with the pattern of holes 113 and the upper tube holder 111. At the lower end of the supporting foot 110, there is a widening base part 114 with a base plate 115. The stand 100 can be placed on the floor with the aid of a base plate 115, as shown in FIG. 1. The base plate 115 can, however, also be mounted onto a wall or the ceiling. When wall-mounted, the side 116 of the supporting foot shaft 119 points upward. Then at least one bicycle can be placed with its frame against this side 116. To prevent the bike from slipping, lugs 117 are provided on the side 116.
To increase the stand stability, a supporting bracket 118 is also fastened to the base part 114. If the supporting foot 110 is to be wall-mounted, this supporting bracket 118, which is shown in a detailed depiction in FIG. 3, can be removed at any time, as can the tube holders 111 and 112. However, is also possible for all of the parts 118, 111, and 112 to remain attached to the supporting foot when it is wall-mounted. The supporting bracket 118 then increases the stability of the entire bicycle holder 100.
FIGS. 4 through 7 show various depictions of another embodiment form of a bicycle stand according to the invention.
It is clear from FIG. 4 that two bicycle stands 1 and 1′ of the second embodiment form each engage a respective rear tube 2, 3 and 2′, 3′ of a racing bike 4 in order to raise up the rear fork of the racing bike 4. This allows the rear wheel to be removed. The racing bike 4 rests on the front wheel 5 and is supported in the region of the rear fork by the two bicycle stands 1 and 1′, which are identical except for having been adapted to the right or left side of the rear fork. For the sake of clarity and because the invention does not involve these components of the racing bike, parts required for the controlling the racing bike such as the brakes, gearshifts, chain, etc. are not shown in FIG. 4.
According to FIG. 5, the bicycle stand 1 has an arm 6, which engages two tubes 2, 3 or 2′, 3′, and a supporting foot 7, to which the arm 6 is attached in pivoting fashion by means of a plug connection (pivot axis 8, pivoting direction parallel to the tubes 2, 3 or 2′, 3′ according to the double arrow 9; also see FIG. 4). At its end associated with the tubes 2, 3, the supporting foot 7 has a bore in which a pin 10 of the arm 6 is supported in rotating fashion. In addition, the supporting foot 7 is provided with holes 11 to reduce the weight of the supporting foot 7 without negatively affecting its stability.
In order to increase stability and stance reliability, the supporting foot 7 can also have supporting elements, not shown, situated at its end associated with the surface on which it is supported, oriented transversely in relation to the plane of the supporting foot. The supporting elements can, for example, be detachably connected to the supporting foot 7 and embodied in the form of plates that rest on the support surface. The supporting foot 7 has a triangular shape that tapers toward the pin 10 so that on the one hand, a favorable support is achieved and on the other hand, in the region of the tubes 2, 3, the rear fork is easily accessible for installation purposes.
It is also conceivable to attach the supporting foot region 12 to a ceiling or wall in order to store the racing bike in a suspended fashion.
Two support points 13 and 14 for the tubes 2 and 3 are provided on the arm 6. When the bicycle stand 1 is attached, the following steps are executed according to FIG. 6: the user grasps the supporting foot 7 with the arm 6 pointing downward in the direction of the support surface. In a first step, a J-shaped first tube holder 15 attached to the arm 6 reaches under and behind the tube 3. The tube 3 can be hung in the first tube holder 15 by being inserted through the holder opening 16. Subsequently, in a second step, a second tube holder 17 then receives the tube 4 in a manner similar to that in which the first tube holder 15 received the tube 3. The tube 4 can be accommodated in a trough 18 of the second tube holder 17 (see FIGS. 4 and 5).
After the two tubes 3 and 4 have been hung in place, the supporting foot 7 can be folded down in the direction 19 toward the support surface. In this connection, the weight of the supporting foot 7 can be used, allowing the supporting foot 7 to simply drop downward after it is released. In terms of its length, the supporting foot 7 is dimensioned so that the rear wheel is lifted up from the support surface when the supporting foot 7 is set up. A single bicycle stand 1 with additional supporting elements is sufficient to park the racing bike 4 in a standing position. For installation purposes, however, it is advisable to use a second bicycle stand 1′ (see FIG. 4) so that the racing bike is held securely. This applies analogously for a wall-mounted or ceiling-mounted setup.
FIG. 7 shows that the first tube holder 15 can be plugged into the arm 6. To this end, the J-shaped tube holder 15 has plug elements 21 on its backside 20, which can be plugged into holes 22 in the arm 6. The crescent-shaped arm 6 has a number of holes 22 situated one above the other in the longitudinal direction of the arm 6 in order to adapt the distance between the detachably connected first tube holder 16 and the fixed second tube holder 17, which is also J-shaped, to the frame geometry of the bicycle. The arm 6 is crescent-shaped and has an appropriate curvature to support the two tubes optimally in the first trough 23 and the second trough 18. The first tube holder 16 and the second tube holder 17 have openings accessible from opposite sides for the insertion of the tubes. The accessibility from the different sides prevents the tubes from inadvertently falling out. The tubes can only be inserted or removed one after another, not simultaneously. Only after tilting the arm 6 is it possible to completely lift both tubes out of their hanging position.
The troughs 18 and 23 can be equipped with an insert or coating that prevents slippage or protects the frame paint. The troughs 18 and 23 can also have recesses adapted to the tube diameter. The recesses can accommodate cables or other bicycle components situated in the vicinity of the tubes, without damaging them. The tube holders 111, 112 of the bicycle stand 100 from FIGS. 1 through 3 can also be embodied in this way.
The tube holder 15 on the chain side has a shoulder 24 for supporting the chain, particularly when the rear wheel is removed. The chain can be guided by this shoulder 24 without the chain sagging.
It will be understood that each of the elements described above, or two or more together, may also find a useful application in other types of constructions differing from the types described above.
While the invention has been illustrated and described as embodied in a bicycle holder and/or bicycle stand, it is not intended to be limited to the details shown, since various modifications and structural changes may be made without departing in any way from the spirit of the present invention.
Without further analysis, the foregoing will fully reveal the gist of the present invention that others can, by applying current knowledge, readily adapt it for various applications without omitting features that, from the standpoint of prior art, fairly constitute essential characteristics of the generic or specific aspects of the invention.

Claims

1. A device for supporting a bicycle formed as an element selected from the group consisting of a holder, a stand, and both, the device comprising a supporting foot; a holding mechanism provided on said supporting foot and configured for two tubes of a bicycle frame, said supporting foot having a base part and a shaft, said base part being configured so that said supporting foot is placeable on a floor or mountable to a wall or ceiling by said base part, said shaft being configured so that when said supporting foot is wall-mounted, said shaft supporting a frame component of at least one bicycle in a non slip fashion.

2. A device as defined in claim 1, wherein said holding mechanism for the two tubes of a bicycle is detachably connected to said supporting foot.

3. A device as defined in claim 1, wherein said holding mechanism is composed of two flat holding members which have a cross-section selected from the group consisting of a U-shaped cross-section and a V-shaped cross section.

4. A device as defined in claim 3, wherein said tube holding members are attached to said supporting foot in a pivoting fashion.

5. A device as defined in claim 1, wherein said holding mechanism is configured so that at least two of said holding mechanisms are situatable variably in terms of their distance from each other.

6. A device as defined in claim 1, wherein said holding mechanism is configured so that it is attachable to said supporting foot without tools by a plug connection.

7. A device as defined in claim 1, wherein said base part has a foot plate.

8. A device as defined in claim 7, wherein said foot plate is provided with openings that permit said foot plate to be hung on wall hooks and screws.

9. A device as defined in claim 1; and further comprising a supporting bracket fastenable to said base part to increase a stability of the device.

10. A device as defined in claim 1, wherein on a supporting side for the bicycle in a wall-mounted setup, said shaft is provided with holding lugs which prevent the bicycle from slipping off.

11. A device as defined in claim 1, wherein said holding mechanism has an arm that is attached to said supporting foot in a pivoting fashion and has tube holders for respective tubes of the bicycle.

12. A device as defined in claim 1, wherein said supporting foot is substantially triangular.

13. A device as defined in claim 12, wherein said triangular supporting foot has a rib structure.

14. A device as defined in claim 1, wherein components of the device are composed of a soft material which is gentle on a paint.

15. A device as defined in claim 1, wherein components of the device have a coating composed of a soft material which is gentle on a paint.