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US 5,476,019 AGranted
Rotatable handgrip actuating system
AssigneeSram, LLC
InventorsJohn D. Cheever, Sam Patterson, Michael W. Larson, Tymme A. Laun
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A twist grip cable system having a mandrel received over the handlebar of a bicycle and a pulling spool providing increased mechanical advantage which may be used for the full range of rotation or In the case of a variable mechanical advantage system, that is one with a variable radius spool, for only part of the range. To provide even greater mechanical advantage, with the spool complete dropped away, a groove or slot is provided in the mandrel into which the cable may fall.
Claims21
A rotatable handgrip actuating mechanism which is connected to a bicycle derailleur by a cable within a tube and is mountable on a bicycle handlebar comprising:
- a housing which secures the tube with respect to the handlebar,
- a rotatable member, rotatable about an axis of rotation with respect to said housing including,
- a hollow cylindrical portion having an inner cylindrical surface adapted to be received over the outer surface of the handlebar, and having an outer generally cylindrical gripping surface,
- a cable securing portion, a first end of the cable extending through said housing and into the tube and a second end secured to said cable securing portion of said rotatable member, such that as said rotatable member is rotated with respect to said housing, the cable is moved to and from said tube at an effective spooling radius with respect to said axis of rotation which is equal to the radius of said inner cylindrical surface of said
- hollow cylindrical portion for at least a portion of the rotation of said rotatable member.
2 more elements
A rotatable handgrip actuating mechanism which is connected to a bicycle derailleur by a cable within a tube and is mountable on a bicycle handlebar comprising:
- a first member including,
- a first hollow cylindrical portion having an inner cylindrical surface adapted to be received over a cylindrical bicycle handlebar, and an outer cylindrical surface,
- a housing including a securing portion which secures the tube with respect to the handlebar, said housing causing the cable to approach said outer cylindrical surface tangentially,
- a second member rotatable about an axis of rotation with respect to said first member including,
- a second hollow cylindrical portion having an inner cylindrical surface adapted to be received over said outer cylindrical surface of said first member, and having an outer generally cylindrical gripping surface,
- a cable securing portion, a first end of the cable extending through said housing and into the tube and a second end secured to said cable securing portion of said second member, such that as said second member is rotated with respect to said first member, the cable is moved to and from said tube at an effective spooling radius with respect to said axis of rotation which is equal to or less than the radius of said inner cylindrical surface of said second member for at least a portion of the rotation of said second member.
3 more elements
A rotatable handgrip actuating mechanism which is connected to a bicycle derailleur by a cable within a tube and is mountable on a bicycle handlebar comprising:
- a first member including,
- a first hollow cylindrical portion having an inner cylindrical surface adapted to be received over a cylindrical bicycle handlebar, and an outer cylindrical surface,
- a cable guide tube having inner and outer ends, said cable guide tube having an axis which at said inner end extends in a tangential direction with respect to said outer cylindrical surface, and at said outer end extends in a direction coaxial with the end of the derailleur cable to which it is attached,
- a second member, rotatable with respect to said first member including,
- a second hollow cylindrical portion having an inner cylindrical surface adapted to be received over said outer cylindrical surface of said first hollow cylindrical portion of said first member, and having an outer generally cylindrical gripping surface, the central axes of said first and second hollow cylindrical portions coinciding with each other,
- a cable securing and cable supporting portion,
- a cable, said cable passing through said cable guide tube, said cable having first and second ends, said first end of said cable secured to said cable securing portion, said second end of said cable extending from said outer end of said cable guide tube,
- said cable supporting portion extending circumferentially around said central axis of said first and second hollow cylindrical portions, at a variable radius from said central axis, such that as said second member is rotated at an essentially constant rate and with a generally constant applied torque with respect to said first member, the rate at which the cable is moved through said cable guide tube is variable, as is the force applied to it, during a portion of the rotation of the second member when the cable is supported at a relatively smaller radius the cable is moved at a slower rate but with a greater force, and during a portion of the rotation when the cable is supported at a relatively larger radius the cable is moved at a faster rate but with a lesser force.
5 more elements
A rotatable twist grip actuating system for moving a cable through a cable tube, and which is mountable on a support member comprising:
- a twist grip supported for rotation about the support member, having an outer grippable surface, a cable securing portion, and a cable supporting portion,
- a mandrel supported by and fixed relative to the support member, said mandrel having a portion to which is secured the cable tube,
- the spooling radius of said twist grip cable supporting portion, with respect to said twist grip axis of rotation, which supports the cable prior to its entering the cable tube decreases as the twist grip is rotated in one direction to allow the cable to move closer to the axis of rotation in some positions of said twist grip with respect to said mandrel, the radius of said supporting portion dropping off, such that at some further positions of said twist grip with respect to said mandrel, the cable is supported at a spooling radius substantially equal to the inside radius of the twist grip, whereby the mechanical advantage operating on the torque applied to the twist grip with respect to cable force is inversely proportional to the effective spooling radius, such that the cable is moved at a variable rate and with a variable force when the twist grip is rotated at a generally constant speed and with a generally constant applied torque.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.