WO2003055696A1

WO2003055696A1 - Tread widener, in particular for a golf trolley wheel

Info

Publication number: WO2003055696A1
Application number: PCT/NL2003/000001
Authority: WO
Inventors: Marinus Teunis Van Leeuwen
Original assignee: Marinus Teunis Van Leeuwen
Priority date: 2002-01-04
Filing date: 2003-01-03
Publication date: 2003-07-10
Also published as: AU2003203296A1; NL1019699C2

Abstract

Tread widener for a golf trolley wheel (7) with a substantially cylindrical tyre (7c), comprising a tube piece (8, 10), an inner circumferential wall of the tube piece (8, 10) being intended to accommodate the tyre (7c), the tube piece (8, 10) being wider in the axial direction than the tyre (7c), and the tube piece (8, 10) being provided with stop means (8b, 13) which extend at least partially radially inwards with respect to the set inner circumferential wall. Furthermore, the tread widener is provided with a retaining element (8c, 11), which retaining element can be releasably coupled to the tube piece (8, 10) and, in the coupled state, extends at least partially radially inwards with respect to the said circumferential wall, in order to retain the golf trolley wheel (7) between the stop means (8b, 13) and the retaining element (8c, 11).

Description

Tread widener, in particular for a golf trolley wheel

The invention relates to the field of moving means of transport which are used to move golf clubs over a golf course when playing golf. More particularly, it deals with a golf trolley which is designed to carry a bag-like holder or some other type of holder in which there is a complete set of golf clubs. A golf trolley which has been loaded with golf clubs in this way can be pulled over the golf course by the golfer with little effort. To ensure that under normal conditions no tracks are left on the golf course, and in particular on the greens, the (two) wheels of a golf trolley have a smooth and at least virtually cylindrical tyre. With a width of approximately 80 mm, so that the imprint made by the wheel on the course is limited. However, during spells of wet weather, the state of many golf courses is often such that the golf trolley can easily sink into the ground under the relatively considerable weight of a complete set of golf clubs. Under such conditions, therefore, normal use of golf trolleys is not permitted, and the golfer has to carry his set of golf clubs with him over the course. Now, it should be noted that with a view to being transported to and from the golf course, golf trolleys are generally designed in such a way that they can be folded up to a size which only slightly exceeds that of the holder together with the golf clubs.

In practice, when golf is being played in periods of wet weather, the golf trolley with golf clubs is not unfolded, but rather is carried along in the folded state by hand by means of a carry handle or over the shoulder by means of a carry strap. However, this means that a relatively heavy load has be lugged along over the considerable distances, and moreover this load has to be repeatedly put down and picked up again, namely each time a shot is played. Therefore, to lighten this load, the golfer often only takes some of his set of clubs with him, and consequently the situation may rise that in certain circumstances when playing golf the optimum club for these circumstances is missing. Tread wideners for golf trolley wheels are known from the prior art.

A tread widener according to the preamble of claim 1, is known, for example, from British Patent Applications GB-A- 2.143.482. This documents describes a tread widener in which a tube piece is secured around an existing golf trolley wheel in order in this way to temporarily widen the tread of the golf trolley wheel. The object of this widening is to produce a lower wheel on the golf course when this course is wet, in order in this way to prevent the golf trolley wheels from sinking into or damaging the ground. The tube piece has to inwardly projecting stop rims for retaining a tyre of a golf trolley wheel between them in the fitted state. To enable the tread widener to be fitted around the wheel, one of the raised rims has to be placed over the wheel, while the nature of the function of this rim means that the internal diameter of the corresponding raised rim is smaller than the external diameter of the golf trolley wheel, one the raised rims has to be placed over the wheel, while the nature of the function of this rim means that the internal diameter of the corresponding raised rim is smaller than the external diameter of the golf trolley wheel. This is possible, for example, by making the entire tube piece from a flexible material. In principal, with pneumatic tyres it is also possible to let down the tyres and then pump them up again after the tube piece has been fitted. In practice, however, this is generally undesirable.

A drawback of the known tread widener is that the user has to deform the tube piece by hand in order to be able to place it around the golf trolley wheel. This may be an unpleasant, laborious and/or dirty job. Furthermore, the tube piece made from flexible material is more expensive to produce and more susceptible to wear. The object of the present invention is to provide a tread widener in which these drawbacks are at least partially overcome and/or to create a usable alternative. In particular it is an object of the invention to provide an inexpensive, user-friendly tread widener for a golf trolley wheel which can be fitted in a simple and stable manner.

According to the invention,, this object is achieved by a tread widener according to claim 1. The tread widener according to the invention comprises a tube piece and a retaining element. The tube piece has an outer circumferential wall and an inner circumferential wall, and is provided with stop means. The outer circumferential wall is intended to serve as a tread. The inner circumferential wall is intended to accommodate the tyre. The tube piece is wider in the axial direction than the axial width of the tyre. The stop means extends substantially radially inwards from the wall of the tube piece. The retaining element can be removably secured to the tube piece. The tread widener can now be attached around a golf trolley wheel in a simple way by pushing the tube piece over the wheel until it rests against the stop means. Then, the retaining element is fitted from the other side of the tube piece until it is positioned against the other side of the wheel. In this position, the retaining element is or has been connected to the tube piece, with the result that the tyre is stably held between the stop means and the retaining element.

The (internal) diameter of the tube piece is preferably matched to the external diameter of the golf trolley wheel. In practice, there are only a small number of different wheel dimensions, in particular 7.5, 9.5 and 11.5 inches, and consequently the tread widener according to the invention can be produced economically with three different tube piece diameters. In a preferred embodiment, the retaining piece and at least part of the inner circumferential wall of the tube piece are provided with complementary screw thread means. Screw thread means of this type may, for example, comprise projections with extended radially outwards for the retaining element and can be held on the inner circumferential wall of the tube piece by means of a screw thread. It is also possible for a external screw thread to be fitted to an outer circumferential wall part of the retaining piece. The screw thread means allows simple adjustment to different wheel widths and shapes by tightening the connection to a greater or lesser extend.

Further preferred embodiments of the inventions are given in the subclaims .

Furthermore, the invention relates to an assembly of a golf trolley with tread wideners arranged around its wheels according to claim 8.

The invention is explained in more detail below with reference to the drawing and by means of two examplary embodiments. In the drawing:

Fig. 1 shows a diagrammatic perspective view of a golf trolley of a type which is known per se;

Fig. 2 shows an axial cross section on a larger scale through a golf trolley wheel and a first embodiment of tread widener according to the invention which has been placed thereon; Fig. 3 shows a perspective view of a second embodiment of the invention with unassembled parts and the golf trolley wheel shown between them;

Fig. 4 shows a view corresponding to that shown in fig. 3, with the parts assembled; Fig. 5 shows a cross section through fig. 4.

The golf trolley shown in fig. 1 has a frame in the form of a central bar 1 which is or can be lengthened at the top by means of a handle bar 2. On the frame bar 1 there are means 3 and 4 for supporting and holding in place a holder 5, which is indicated by dot-dashed lines, with golf clubs (not shown) . 6 denotes two wheels supports (of which the one in the foreground of Fig. 1 can be seen best) , which wheel supports in Fig. 1 are shown in the folded-out active position sloping obliquely outwards from the central frame bar 1. Wheels 7 are mounted removably in the usual way (not shown) on wheel journal projecting from the free ends of the wheel supports 6.

The wheel 7 which is shown in cross section in Fig. 2 and is formed, for example, from plastic, has a wheel hub 7a, which is seated rotatably on a journal projecting from a wheel support 6, a wheel disc 7b and a tyre 7c, the ribs indicated by 7d being used to provide the necessary strength. 7e denotes the holes which are customarily present in the wheel disc 7b and are located between the strengthening ribs 7d, as seen in the circumferential direction.

The tread widener 8 (Fig. 2) which has been positioned on the wheel 7 comprises a cylindrical tube piece 8a, which may likewise be formed from plastic. In this tube piece, a wall 8b, which lies in a plane perpendicular to the axis of the tube piece, is located at a distance from the left-hand end edge of the tube piece. The tread widener also included a separate retaining disc 8c which is provided with holes 8d which correspond to the holes 7e in the wheel disc 7b and furthermore has a central opening 8e, the diameter of which is slightly greater than that of the hub tube 7a.

8f denotes two threaded studs which project axially from the wall 8b and the free ends of which interact with nuts 8g, which are preferably designed as wing nuts. When the tread widener 8 is being fitted to the wheel 7, which has been removed from the golf trolley, the tube piece 8a is pushed over the wheel from the left-hand side in Fig. 2, specifically in a angular position which is such that the threaded studs 8f pass through the holes 7e in the wheel disc 7b. The wall 8b serves as a stop for the left-hand end edge of the tyre 7c. Then, the retaining disc 8c is fitted from the right-hand side, specifically in an angular position which is such that the projecting ends of the threaded studs 8f project through the openings 8d. In the example shown, the retaining disc inside the tyre 7c comes to bear against the vertical edges, located on the right-hand side, of the reinforcing ribs 7d, and the hub tube 7a projects a certain distance outwards through the central opening 8e in the in the retaining disc 8c. Finally, to fix the tread widener 8 to the wheel 7, the wing nuts 8g are fitted and tightened. It will be clear that in this way the tread widener 8 is positioned centred in a stable way around the wheel 7.

In Fig. 3-5, the golf trolley wheel is denoted by the same reference numerals. The tread widener now comprises a tube piece

10 and a substantially annular retaining element 11. The tube piece 10 is provided with an internal screw thread 12 as a part of its internal circumferential wall and comprises a bent-over end edge 13. The retaining element 11 is provided with an external screw thread 15, and is furthermore provided with a handle 16 allowing the tube piece 10 and the retaining element

11 to be screwed together and apart in a user-friendly way. The bent-over end edge 13 in the case forms stop means for delimiting the golf trolley wheel 7 on one side. As can be seen clearly in Fig. 5, in the mounted state of the other side of the golf trolley wheel 7 is delimited by a cylindrical wall part 17 of the retaining element 11 which lies further inwards. In addition to the embodiment shown, numerous variants are possible. For example, it is also possible for other removable securing means, for example click-it connections, to be used instead of screw thread means. The components may be made from various materials, for example hard plastic or aluminium. Therefore, the invention provides a thread widener with a tube piece which can be placed quickly and evenly around a golf trolley wheel, and removed from it again, by means of a sliding motion. In this case, the retaining element ensures reliable and user-friendly locking.

Claims

1. Tread widener for a golf trolley wheel (7)with a substantially cylindrical tyre (7c), comprising a tube piece (8,

10), an inner circumferential wall of the tube piece (8, 10) being intended to accommodate the tyre (7c) , the tube piece (8, 10) being wider in the axial direction than the tyre (7c) , and the tube piece (8, 10) being provided with stop means (8b, 13) which extend at least partially radially inwards with respect to the said inner circumferential wall, characterized in that retaining element (8c, 11) is provided, which retaining element can be releasably coupled to the tube piece (8, 10) and, in the coupled state, extends at least partially radially inwards with respect to the set inner circumferential wall, in order to retain the golf trolley wheel (7) between the stop means (8d, 13) and the retaining element (8c, 11)

2. Tread widener according to claim 1, in which the retaining element (11) and at least a part of the set inner circumferential wall of the tube piece (10) are provided with complementary screw-thread means (12, 15) .

3. Tread widener according to claim 1, in which the retaining element (8c) can be connected to the stop means (8b) by means of a number of bolts or threaded studs (8f) , which extend between the stop means (8b) and the retaining element (8c) , with matching nuts (8g) .

4. Tread widener according to one of the preceding claims, in which the stop means (8b, 13) are formed by at least a part of a stop disc or ring (8, 13) which is secured to or formed integrally on the inner circumferential wall of the tube piece (8, 10) and the centre axis of which coincides with that of the tube piece (8, 10) .

5. Tread widener according to one of the preceding claims, in which the retaining element (8c, 11) is formed by a retaining disc or ring (8c, 11) .

6. Tread widener according to one of the preceding claims, in which the tube piece (8, 10) is designed to be slided onto the tyre (7c) .

7. Tread widener according to one of the preceding claims, in which the tube piece (8, 10) is made from rigid material.

8. Assembly of a golf trolley with tread wideners according to one of the preceding claims arranged around its wheels (7) .