WO2014141302A2 - Bicycle chain ring gear mounted resistance less dynamo powered road safety system (headlamp, front and rear turn indicators, tail lamp and horn) - Google Patents

Abstract

The unique bicycle road safety product developed by us has key features like a small gear wheel being engaged to the main Chain Wheel/ Chain Ring/Chain of the bicycle which gives a gear ratio advantage of minimum 1:4 (ratio is variable) which in turn runs an highly efficient dynamo thereby generating sufficient power. The generated power is regulated by a unique circuit to simultaneously charge a rechargeable battery and also power the whole safety system. Also, the circuit ensures reverse current protection (during reverse peddling), along with over charge and under discharge safety to the battery. The power generated is being utilized for Head Lamp (cluster of LEDs), Front and Rear Indicator Lights (LEDs), Tail Light (LED), Horn, Trickle charging of a rechargeable battery pack for powering up the whole safety system when the cyclist is not pedaling (i.e. at traffic signals, walking with cycle during dark hours, when going downslope, when cycle gets punctured etc.

Description

COMPLETE SPECIFICATION FOR PATENT

(We MVS Kumar. Akash Singh Baghel & Aditva Singh Baghel Hereby claim that the following product is our own original invention)

BICYCLE CHAIN RING GEAR MOUNTED RESISTANCE LESS DYNAMO POWERED ROAD SAFETY SYSTEM (HEADLAMP, FRONT AND REAR TURN INDICATORS, TAIL LAMP

AND HORN)

Introduction

A Shocking and sad news for our country is that, in the year 2011, 6824 cyclists perished in road accidents as per statistics released by Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. On many occasions our own cycling experience on road is quite dreadful trying to maneuver in the sea of unruly and disorganized traffic. Many a time often, when we ply on the roads in our own motor vehicles, we seldom get to see the cyclist even at a few meters distance during dark hours due to fact that cycles have no road safety systems fitted like in a motor vehicle. Though no statistics are available as to the time of maximum deaths/accidents in India, records in countries like USA/UK indicate that maximum bicycle related deaths and accidents occur between 6 to 10 pm of the day.

Product Requirement and Problems

Universally, the basic road safety systems considered essential for any vehicle plying on a road (other than braking systems) are Headlamp, Turn Indicators, Tail Light and Horn. These basic road safety systems are not being fitted on any bicycle, maybe due to the high cost of fitment. After an extensive market survey across the world, it has been found that these systems are quite expensive matching up to the cost of a cycle and sometimes even at double or triple the cost of a cycle! !

The above kind of rates is definitely unaffordable to any common man of this country who uses a cycle as the cheapest mode of transport. Also, the high cost of a basic safety system discourages even the other cyclists who use their cycles for the following purposes even though they are quite vulnerable to fatal accidents:-

(a) Eco friendly means of transport. (No air or noise pollution)

(b) Cheap means of transport. (Cuts down on the ever rising fuel costs)

(c) Avoids traffic jams and traffic chaos.

(d) Health benefits.

Page I 1 Our unique Product and its Development (Fig 1)

The unique bicycleroad safety product developed by us has overcome all the above disadvantages found in the past and present systems and has the following key features:-

(a) A small gear wheel is engaged to the main Chain Wheel/ Chain Ring / Chain of the bicycle which gives a gear ratio advantage. This has been tested and found working evenafter an exhaustive 300 plus kilometers. (The ratio is variable)

(b) A highly efficient dynamo is mounted on to this smaller gear wheel. As the cyclist starts to pedal, the main chain ring rotates the smaller gear wheel and thereby rotatesthe dynamo for power generation.

(c) The dynamo rotation is very smooth and with no appreciableresistance i.e. the resistance in turning the dynamo is negligible. This has overcome the problems of theold dynamo system which had high resistance and also,tire wear.

(d) The whole mounting is well engaged firmly by holding it in place with brackets connected to the cycle's main frame which avoids disengagement. (Tested for prolonged periods).

(e) The power thus generated is presently being utilized for the following:-

I. Head Lamp (cluster of LEDs)

II. Front and Rear Indicator Lights (LEDs)

III. Tail Light (LED)

IV. Horn

V. Trickle charging of a rechargeable battery pack for powering up the whole safety system when the cyclist is not pedaling (i.e. at traffic signals, walking with the cycle during dark hours, when going downslope, when cycle gets punctured etc.)

In spite of powering all the above, it has been found that the dynamo still produces enough power for which the following future upgrades are envisaged:- a. Charger for mobile/IPOD/ Portable music player b. Odometer and Speedometer c. Heart Rate and Calorie meter d. GPS Tracking and Navigation e. FM radio with headset

Another unique feature of this product is that provision has been made to avoid reverse current problems when cyclist pedals backward. The reverse pedaling too continues to powerthe system normally.

Page I 2 The whole circuitry of the system is encased in a waterproof casing and will be mounted under the rider's seat to still protect it from direct heat and rain. Other notable features are the mounting of a turn indicator switch and horn switch akin to any motorized two wheelers plying on the roads.

The product when in use will ensure easy identification of the cycle during dark hours and in fact will be understood as any other motorized two wheelers by other motorists due to the correct placement and displacement of the head lamp, front and rear turn indicators and also the tail lamp. (Photographs enclosed)

The uniqueness of the productis that,the Dynamo mounting is geared to the main Chain Ring of the bicycle giving it the greatest advantage of zero or no appreciable resistance during pedaling and also a very high efficient conversion of energy, to power a very important road safety system at a highly affordable cost which can go a very long way in savingthousands of precious lives plying on cycles. The detailed specifications are enunciated in the succeeding paragraphs and pages.

Technical specifications

This section describes in detail the working and design of the system, the system is divided into 2 main parts namely the mechanical and electrical systems.

The mechanical system

The mechanical system of the design is used for mounting the dynamo and the various electrical components of the product onto the cycle. The overall gear ratio of the mechanical system is designed to convert 1 rotation of the pedal to 100 RPM on the dynamo shaft.

This mechanical system has the following individual components:

1. Dynamo mounting clamp (variable designs feasible to adapt to varying bicycle frames)

The dynamo mounting clamp(Fig 2) is used to mount the dynamo onto the frame of the bicycle using a nut and bolt in such a manner that the chain wheel interface gear meshes with the main chain wheel. The drawings of the dynamo mounting clamp are provided below(Fig 4).

2. The dynamo ( 12v 1 ampere)(Fig 3)

This is a standard 12V 1 ampere dynamo which when spun at 100 RPM would give the rated power output. If the resultant RPM on the dynamo shaft is higher the dynamo produces proportionally more power.

3. Dynamo gearbox (variable gear ratio asper different products)

The dynamo gear box is a gear arrangement that converts the input rotation of XRPM to an output rotation of X*Y RPM where y is the amplification factor, the amplified side of the gearbox is connected to the dynamo; the unamplified side of the gearbox is connected to the chain wheel interface gear (Fig5)

4. Chain wheel interface gear (1/4 circumference of chain wheel gear)

This is an ordinary gear that is ¼ of the circumference of the main chain wheel gear which is connected to the pedals of the cycle.

Page I 3 The Electrical and Electronic system (Fig 7)

The electrical system has the following components: 1. Power regulation circuit

The power regulation circuit converts the forward voltage (from forward pedaling) and the reverse voltage (from reverse pedaling) to a varying DC voltage which ranges from 5v to 24 volts depending on pedaling speed. This resultant voltage is then filtered and fed to a LM7805 IC which maintains the voltage at steady nvarying 5V 1 Amp. The output of the power regulation circuit is then fed to the battery charging circuit as well as all the functional devices at the time. Complete circuit diagram present at end of section.

2. Battery charging and discharge circuit.

This circuit ensures that while the pedals are rotating, the battery is charges and when the pedals stop rotating it uses the battery to power the functioning devices.Complete circuit diagram present at end of section.

3. Indicator circuit ( left and right indicators with flashers in the front as well as the rear)

This consists of the front left, front right, back left and back right indicators. It is controlled using a SPDT switch that enables either the left front and rear, or the right front and rear indicators as desired. The blinking of the led in the indicators is achieved using a metastable multi-vibrator circuit whose blink rate can be altered using variable resistors in the circuit.Complete circuit diagram present at end of section.

4. Headlamps & Tail lamp

Simple LED based headlamp and a tail light. They are triggered using a simple on off switch.

5. Horn

A standard 5V horn triggered by a push button switch

6. Auxiliary power port

This is a 5V 500ma port that can be used to attach any other desired electrical devices.

Page I 4

Claims

Claims (App No: llOl/CHE/2013)

We claim:

Claim 1: A product to generate power using a dynamo and gearing system, mounted on the main chain wheel/chain ring/ chain of the bicycle offering negligible resistance during pedalling. The concept of mounting the dynamo interface to the main chain ringjf

(Inventor) (Inventor) (Inventor)