WO2003013946A1

WO2003013946A1 - Article carrier for a bicycle

Info

Publication number: WO2003013946A1
Application number: PCT/NZ2002/000147
Authority: WO
Inventors: John Mervyn Russell; Paul Andrew Russell
Original assignee: International Product Developments Limited
Priority date: 2001-08-04
Filing date: 2002-08-02
Publication date: 2003-02-20

Abstract

The invention relates to an article carrier (100) including an article housing (1) having a carry handle (5). The article carrier (100) includes housing engagement means (4) shaped, dimensioned and operable to engage and disengage the article housing (1) to and from a seat post (200) of a bicycle. The housing engagement means (4) is operable to engage and disengage the article housing (1) through movement of the carry handle (5).

Description

ARTICLE CARRIER FOR A BICYCLE

Technical Field The present invention relates to an article carrier suitable for use with a bicycle and more particularly, but not exclusively to an article carrier suitable for attachment to the seat post of a bicycle.

Background Bicycles are a convenient and enjoyable method of transportation and offer advantages of being environmentally friendly and versatile. However, a long existing problem of bicycles is their limited capacity to accommodate the transportation of articles.

Various solutions have been developed to allow articles to be carried on a bicycle. These include pannier bags, which are typically located over the rear wheel and secured to the bicycle using various techniques. Two examples of pannier bags are described in the specifications of United States Patent Nos. 3,937,374 and 4,050,61 5. These bags must either be mounted on a carrier or supported by one or more support members bolted to the frame and take some time to remove from the bicycle. The bags also have limited aesthetic appeal.

The specification published as United States Patent No. 4,643,343 describes a cantilevered article carrier. The carrier is attached to a bicycle over the rear wheel via a rigid arm to a slot provided at the lower rear part of the seat and by a Velcro strap to the seat post. The rigid arm required to mount this carrier may be disadvantageous if the carrier is to be transported by hand away from the bicycle.

Alternative article carriers include carriers of various shapes and sizes that are secured to the handlebars, for example see the specification of United States Patent

No. 4,598,846, or horizontal cross bar, for example see the specification of United States Patent No. 5,031 ,087. Carriers attached to the handlebars may interfere with the steering of the bicycle due to increasing the inertia around the front axis. Carriers attached to the crossbar are necessarily narrow to avoid interfering with the legs of the rider.

Once a rider has. reached their destination, they often required to transport the articles in the article carrier to a separate location from the bicycle by foot. Many article carriers require significant time and effort to remove from the bicycle and are not convenient to carry. Therefore, a rider may have to carry a backpack or similar alternative carrier with them to enable carting of articles from the bicycle.

It is an object of one embodiment of the present invention to provide an article carrier that will overcome or alleviate problems in article carriers, in particular article carriers for bicycles at present.

Another or alternative object is to provide an article carrier that can be easily removed and/or is convenient to transport.

Another or alternative object is to provide an article carrier that is both aesthetically appealing and functional.

A further or alternative object of the present invention is to at least provide the public with a useful alternative.

Further objects of the present invention may become apparent from the following description, which is given by way of example only.

Throughout this specification, any reference to the prior art in no way constitutes an admission that such prior art forms part of the common general knowledge.

Summary of the Invention

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided an article carrier including an article housing having a carry handle and housing engagement means shaped, dimensioned and operable to engage and disengage said article housing to and from a seat post of a bicycle, wherein said housing engagement means is operable to engage and disengage said housing through movement of said carry handle.

Preferably, said housing engagement means is rigid and in use engages with the seat post at a single point.

Preferably, said housing engagement means and said article housing are dimensioned so that the carry handle is located substantially vertically below a seat mounted on said seat post.

Preferably, said carry handle is moved upwards towards said seat to allow disengagement of the article housing from the seat post.

Preferably, said housing engagement means includes a coupling engageable with the seat post and removably engageable with said article carrier through said movement of said carry handle.

Preferably, said coupling and said article carrier engage through relative lateral movement of the coupling and article carrier.

Preferably, said carry handle is locatable in at least a first and a second position, wherein in said first position, said carry handle is operable to engage said article housing to said seat post, and in said second position said carry handle is located to facilitate carriage of the article housing by hand.

Preferably, said coupling slidably engages with said article carrier and said carry handle is operable to interlock said coupling and said article carrier after they have been slidably engaged when in said second position.

Preferably, the article carrier includes a neck portion that in use is located between the seat post and the article housing so as to space the article housing away from the seat post.

Preferably, said article housing is constructed from a rigid material. Further aspects of the present invention may become apparent from the following description, which is given by way of example only and in reference to the accompanying drawings.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Figure 1 : Shows a side view of an article carrier secured to a seat post according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 2: Shows a perspective view of the article carrier of Figure 1 detached from the seat post.

Figures 3A and 3B: Show two perspective views of the article carrier of Figure 1 in a carry position.

Figures 4A and 4B: Show exploded front and rear perspective views respectively of the attachment assembly for attaching a carrier to a seat post and partial perspective view of a housing of the article carrier shown in Figure 1 .

Brief Description of Preferred Embodiments

The present invention is an article carrier with a carry handle, article housing and means to engage and disengage the housing to and from a fixture, in particular a seat post. To allow simple and convenient engagement and disengagement of the housing from the fixture, a carry handle is provided which is operable to engage and disengage the housing from the fixture through movement of the carry handle. The carry handle also provides a convenient means of transport of the housing when detached from the fixture.

Particular application of the article carrier of the present invention is envisaged in the area of article carriers for bicycles, in particular a carrier attached to a seat post. The description following herein is given by way of example in reference to the preferred embodiment of the invention as carrier. However, persons skilled in the art will appreciate that the present invention may find other applications. In particular the present invention may have application where convenient attachment and detachment of an article housing is required and where the housing needs to be transported by hand.

Referring to Figure 1 of the accompanying drawings, a side view of a carrier for use with a bicycle is generally referenced by arrow 100. The carrier 100 is shown attached to a seat post 200 and is oriented to extend rearwards of the bicycle seat 300.

The carrier 100 includes an article housing 1 to house and carry articles. Such articles may include nourishment, repair and/or first aid kits, maps or other navigation aids. The shape of the article housing 1 may be varied to better accommodate certain articles or for aesthetic purposes if required. The carrier 100 may have a narrower portion or neck 1 A adjacent to the seat post 200 in order not to interfere with the riding action of a person on the bicycle seat 300. The article housing 1 includes a lid 2 to allow access to the interior of the article housing 1 . The lid 2 is pivotally attached to the remainder of the article housing 1 by a hinge 1 6, and a clip 3 or other suitable latching means is provided to hold the lid 2 in the closed position. The carrier 100 is secured to the seat post 200 through coupling 4. A carry handle 5 is provided, which is operable to attach and detach the article housing 1 from the coupling 4. The article housing 1 is detached by lifting the carry handle 5, in the direction of the seat 300, after which the article housing 1 may be disengaged from the coupling 4 by sliding the housing off a shaft 6, as shown in Figure 2.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the relevant arts that a number of different engagement mechanisms may be used to removably secure the article housing 1 to the seat post 200. The engagement mechanism may be an integral part of the article housing 1 rather than a separate assembly that engages with the article housing 1 . The engagement mechanism may attach to the seat post in a number of ways, and in the case where the engagement mechanism is integral with the article housing 1 , may directly engage and disengage with the seat post 200 upon movement of the carry handle 5. For example, the engagement mechanism may be a clasp that opens and closes about the seat post 4 on movement of the carry handle

5.

Figures 1 and 2 show a preferred embodiment of the invention, wherein the coupling 4 is semi-permanently engaged with the seat post 200 though the use of a clamping arrangement. Also, the article housing 1 slidably engages with the coupling

4 through lateral movement of the article housing 1 relative to the coupling 4 and is secured thereto by an interlocking action of the carry handle 5. This embodiment may have an advantage of being more robust than other embodiments involving more moving parts, such as a clasp arrangement. Also, the lateral sliding movement is particularly suited to engagement of the article housing 1 to the seat post 200, between the seat 300 and wheel, mudguard or rack (not shown) of the bicycle.

Furthermore, as will be appreciated from Figure 1 , the carry handle 5 is located between below the seat 300 and above the article housing 1 and coupling 4. Thus, the carry handle 5 is protected against being knocked, which may prevent accidental movement of the carry handle 5 and unwanted detachment of the article housing 1 from the seat post 200.

Figures 3A and 3B show two perspective views of the article housing 1 detached from the coupling 4 and seat post 200. The carry handle 5 can be rotated through substantially 1 80 degrees and includes an aperture 7, through which a person may place their hand to facilitate carrying of the carrier. The carry handle 5 may be shaped to allow more comfortable carriage by hand, for example by having a curved profile. The carry handle 5 may alternatively be shaped, located and oriented to allow carriage of the housing by means other than by hand, although the preferred embodiment includes a carry handle for hand carriage.

The coupling 4 is shown in two perspective exploded views in Figures 4A and 4B, together with the neck 1 A of the article housing 1 . The coupling 4 includes first and second clamp members 8, 9 which are engageable together about the seat post 200 using four screws 10. Thus, the engagement assembly is semi-permanently engageable to the seat post 200 in that it is not as easily detached as the article housing 1 .

Clamp members 8, 9 may be constructed from a plastics material, a metal or metal alloy or other sufficiently robust and preferably rigid material. The material selected may not have a sufficiently large friction coefficient and therefore, additional gripping members 1 1 , 1 2 may be provided to decrease or eliminate movement of the coupling 4 about the seat post 200. The gripping members 1 1 , 1 2 are positioned between the clamp members 8, 9 and the seat post 200 and may, for example be rubber.

The coupling 4 includes a rigid protrusion 6 complementary to a receptacle 13 in the article housing 1 . Thus, in use, the article housing 1 may engage with the seat post 200 by sliding over the protrusion 6. The carry handle 5 is pivotally engaged with the article housing 1 by studs 1 7, which engage with apertures 1 8 located at an upper corner of the receptacle 1 3. The protrusion 6 and receptacle 1 3 each include two apertures 14A and 14B respectively, which align when the article housing 1 has been slid over the protrusion 6. Two protrusions 1 5, which are complementary to the apertures 14 are provided on the carry handle 5 and located so that when the carry handle 5 is in the position shown in Figure 1 the protrusions 1 5 extend into the apertures 1 4, preventing relative movement of the protrusion 6 and receptacle 1 3 and thus preventing detachment of the article housing 1 from the coupling 4 and seat post 200. When the carry handle 5 is lifted, the protrusions 15 are removed from the apertures 14A and 14B allowing detachment of the article housing 1 .

The interlocking relationship between the coupling 4 and article housing 1 may be varied. For example, the article housing 1 may include one or more protrusions that slidably engage with corresponding receptacle(s) of the coupling 4.

As described herein above, the carry handle 5 may operate to secure the article housing 1 to the coupling 4, or alternatively the carry handle may cause a direct engagement with the seat post 200, by for example, causing the operation of a clamping action about the seat post 200. This may be achieved by linking the studs 17 to the clamp through a suitable linkage. However, such an arrangement is anticipated to add complexity and cost to the carrier 100.

The actuating means to cause the engagement and disengagement of the carrier may be operated through the pivot point of the handle 5 or the handle may be moved linearly rather than pivoted to cause the engagement and disengagement. For example, apertures 18 may be replaced by slots, allowing the handle to move away from the seat post 200 to disengage the carrier. The handle may still pivot within the slot to move to the carry position. The requirement for the handle is that it is movable to a position where it can be used as a carry handle. However, combination of a pivoting handle and interlocking protrusions provided on the housing and engagement apparatus that engage and disengage upon pivotal movement of the handle is believed to be particularly advantageous.

The article housing 1 is preferably constructed from a robust, rigid material, such as a suitable plastics material so that the article carrier 1 retains its shape and position behind the seat post 200 below the seat 300. The exterior surface may have smooth texture in order to enable cleaning of the carrier 100, which may become dirty, particularly having regard to the positioning of the carrier 100 above the rear wheel of a bicycle.

Where in the foregoing description reference has been made to specific components or integers having known equivalents, then such equivalents are herein incorporated as if individually set forth.

Although this invention has been described by way of example and with reference to possible embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that modifications or improvements may be made thereto without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Claims

Claims:

1 . An article carrier including an article housing having a carry handle and housing engagement means shaped, dimensioned and operable to engage and disengage said article housing to and from a seat post of a bicycle, wherein said housing engagement means is operable to engage and disengage said housing through movement of said carry handle.

2. The article carrier of claim 1 wherein said housing engagement means is rigid and in use engages with the seat post at a single point.

3. The article carrier of claim 1 or claim 2 wherein said housing engagement means and said article housing are dimensioned so that the carry handle is located substantially vertically below a seat mounted on said seat post.

4. The article carrier of claim 3 wherein said carry handle is moved upwards towards said seat to allow disengagement of the article housing from the seat post.

5. The article carrier of any one of claims 1 to 4 wherein said housing engagement means includes a coupling engageable with the seat post and removably engageable with said article carrier through said movement of said carry handle.

6. The article carrier of claim 5 wherein said coupling and said article carrier engage through relative lateral movement of the coupling and article carrier.

7. The article carrier of any one of claims 1 to 6 wherein said carry handle is locatable in at least a first and a second position, wherein in said first position, said carry handle is operable to engage said article housing to said seat post, and in said second position said carry handle is located to facilitate carriage of the article housing by hand.

8. The article carrier of claim 7 wherein said coupling slidably engages with said article carrier and said carry handle is operable to interlock said coupling and said article carrier after they have been slidably engaged when in said second position.

9. The article carrier of any one of claims 1 to 8 wherein the article carrier includes a neck portion that in use is located between the seat post and the article housing so as to space the article housing away from the seat post.

10. The article carrier of claim 9 wherein said article housing is constructed from a rigid material.

1 1 . An article carrier substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.