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US 5,975,645 AGranted
Carbon bodied bicycle rim
AssigneeCompositech, Inc.
InventorLeigh R. Sargent
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A bicycle wheel has good impact properties and increased durability. In one embodiment the rim comprises a two piece rim having a carbon fiber based body portion having bulbous sidewalls for capable of flexing in response to radially directed forces, and a tire engaging, hoop-like rim made from aluminum. The rim includes a pair of parallel braking surfaces. In the preferred embodiment, the convex curved sides of the wheel, in transverse cross section are wider than the braking surfaces and intersect the braking surfaces at an angle of less than about 175.degree..
Claims20
A bicycle wheel comprising
- (a) a body portion having a first sidewall and a second sidewall, each of the first and second sidewalls being bowed outwardly for permitting the body portion to flex in response to radially directed forces, and
- (b) a tire engaging rim portion having a first generally planar braking surface disposed adjacent the first sidewall of the body portion, and a second generally planar braking surface disposed adjacent the second sidewall of the body portion,
- wherein the first sidewall bows outwardly from the first braking surface to a first maximum width point of the body portion, and the second sidewall bows outwardly from the second braking surface to a second maximum width point of the body portion, the width of the body portion between the first and second maximum width points being greater than the width of the rim between the first and second braking surfaces.
A bicycle wheel comprising
- (a) a hollow carbon-based body portion having a first sidewall and a second sidewall, each of the first and second sidewalls having a radially innermost point, a radially outer-most point and a point of maximum axial width disposed between the radially inner-most point and the radially outer-most point, the radially inner-most point, point of maximum axial width, and radially outer-most point defining a radius of curvature over the hollow body portion sufficient for permitting the first and second side walls to flex in response to radially directed forces, and
- (b) a metal tire engaging rim member having a first generally planar-ring braking surface disposed adjacent the first sidewall of the hollow [carbon] body portion, and a second generally planar-ring braking surface disposed adjacent the second sidewall of the hollow body portion.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.