Motor vehicles – Special wheel base – Rider propulsion with additional source of power – e.g.,...
Patent
1996-04-11
1998-04-07
Hurley, Kevin
Motor vehicles
Special wheel base
Rider propulsion with additional source of power, e.g.,...
180221, 180220, 280212, B62M 710
Patent
active
057353638
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
The present invention relates to auxiliary drive devices for vehicles, such as bicycles and wheel-chairs as well as to vehicles fitted with such auxiliary drive devices.
A great variety of auxiliary drive devices are known. A particularly successful type of vehicle drive device is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,078,227, of the present applicant/assignee. Other relevant prior art patents appear in the references cited in that patent.
The present invention seeks to provide an improved auxiliary drive device which automatically adjusts its driving engagement orientation with regard to a driven member, e.g. a tire or wheel, as a function of the instantaneous load, and thus automatically increases and decreases the traction between the drive device and the driven member as required by considerations of driving efficiency and energy efficiency.
For the purposes of the specification and claims, other than where expressly indicated otherwise, the term "wheel" will be employed in a broader than usual sense to include also tires, rims and any Other driven rotating element and surfaces thereof.
There is thus provided in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention an auxiliary drive device including first and second wheel engagement elements arranged for driving engagement with a wheel having an axis of rotation, at least one of the wheel engagement elements being coupled to a motor, for being driven thereby, the first and second wheel engagement elements each being arranged for rotation about a respective one of first and second engagement element rotation axes, the first and second wheel engagement elements being mounted such that the effective traction of the engagement thereof with the wheel increases automatically with increased resistance to rotation of the wheel and decreases automatically with decreased resistance to rotation of the wheel.
Preferably the motor is an electrical motor. Alternatively, however, the motor may be any suitable motor, such as a small internal combustion engine, hydraulic engine or pneumatic engine.
In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the mounting of the first and second wheel engagement elements is such that the component of the separation between the first and second wheel engagement element rotation axes, which lies parallel to the axis of rotation of the wheel, is variable. Preferably, it decreases automatically with increased resistance to rotation of the wheel and increases automatically with decreased resistance to rotation of the wheel.
In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the location at which each of the first and second wheel engagement elements which is driven by a motor engages the wheel tends to move in a direction against the direction of movement of the wheel as resistance to rotation of the wheel increases, and vice versa.
In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the engagement element which is driven by a motor is pivotably mounted, together with the motor, about a pivot axis which is generally parallel to the first and second wheel engagement element rotation axes. The non-motor driven engagement element may also be arranged for rotation about the pivot axis.
The term "generally parallel" is used to denote a situation in which substantially parallel orientation is not necessarily required for pivoting to occur.
In accordance with one preferred embodiment of the invention, the motor is mounted on a support bracket, which is, in turn, mounted for pivotal rotation about a pivot axis which is located further from the wheel than the wheel engagement element rotation axis of the corresponding wheel engagement element.
In accordance with an alternative embodiment of the invention, the motor is mounted for pivotal rotation about a pivot axis which is located nearer to the wheel than the wheel engagement element rotation axis of the corresponding wheel engagement element. Preferably, in this case, the motor is provided with an eccentric mounting onto the pivot axis.
In
REFERENCES:
patent: 3339659 (1967-09-01), Wolf
patent: 3891044 (1975-06-01), Tiede
patent: 3915250 (1975-10-01), Laden et al.
patent: 3961678 (1976-06-01), Hirano et al.
patent: 4671524 (1987-06-01), Haubenwallner
patent: 5078227 (1992-01-01), Becker
Becker Arie
Horovitz Danny
Hurley Kevin
S.A.E.Afikim, U.S.A., Inc.
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