US973217A - Shock-absorber. - Google Patents

Description

LH. SAGER. SHOCK ABSORBBR.

APPLIOATION FILED MAY 3, 1910.

973,217. Patented ocn.18,191o.

1H: NoRms Psrsws cal. vusnmcrw. uv

JAMES H. SAGER, OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK.

SHOCK-ABSORBER.

Specication of Letters Patent.

Patented. @ctn i8, lg.

Application filed May 3, 1910. Serial No. 559,238.

fo all whom it may concern:

Be it known that JAMES H. SAGER, a citizen of the United States, and resident of Rochester, in the county of Monroe and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Shock-Absorbers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates particularly to shock-absorbers for bicycles, and the object of the invention is to produce a bicycleframe provided with a shock-absorbing device, this frame being of simple, compact and inexpensive construction.

Another object of the invention is to provide the frame with a novel and improved pivotal connection between the rear fork and the crank-hanger, to permit the yielding movements of the rear fork necessary in connection with the shock-absorber. To these ends the invention consists in the novel construction hereinafter described, as it is defined in the succeeding claims.

ln the drawings: Figure l is a side elevation of a portion of a bicycle-frame in which the present invention is embodied, the upper portion of the frame being shown in'section to illustrate the construction of the shockabsorber, and the crank-hanger and associated parts being shown in section on the line l-l in F ig. 3, looking from left to right in said ligure; Fig. Q is a vertical section, on an enlarged scale, on the line 2 2 in Fig. l, looking from righty to left in said ligure; Fig. is a rear elevation of the crank-hanger and associated parts; Fig. 4 is a section, on an enlarged scale, on the line 4 4 in F ig. l, looking from right to left in said ligure and Fig. is a side elevation, showing in detail the connection between the rear stays and the slide.

The invention is illustrated as embodied in a bicycle-frame of the usual diamondshape. The slide is in the form of a cylindrical member 5 which is inclosed and guided within the horizontal upper frametube 6. The rear stays 7 of the frame are connected with the slide by means of a pin 8, which passes lvosely through the slide and through the upper ends of the stays and is provided at its ends with lock-nuts 9 by which the parts are adjusted closely but loosely together so as to permit relative pivotal movements of the slide and the stays. The pin 8 passes through horizontal slots 10 in the tube 6 to permit the slide to move longitudinally in the tube, and washers 1l are interposed between thc stays and the slide to prevent contact between the stays and the tube 6.

The movements of the slide and the stays are controlled by a compression spring l2 which is inclosed within the tube 6. The forward end of the spring rests against a plug 13 fixed in the tube, while the rear end of the spring engages the slide. In order to produce a slide of slight weight but with a long bearing surface, the slide is recessed in front, as shown in Fig. l, and a portion of the spring is received in the recess. To cushion rebounding movement of the slide a second spring le is placed behind the slide, in the tube 6, and the saddle-post l5 serves as an abutment for the rear end of this spring.

The rear stays 7 are pivoted at 8 to the rear ends of the rear fork 9 in the usual manner, and the rear fork is also pivoted to the crank-hanger in a manner presently to be described. These pivotal connections, together with the movable slide, permit vertical yielding movements of the rear wheel when irregularities in the road surface are encountered, and in this respect the operation of the device is substantially similar to that of previous forms of cushion frames for bicycles. In the present construction, however, the arrangement, of the slide and the rear stays provides for a novel frictional action, while the employment of the horizontal frame-tube to inclose the slide and the springs results in a very simple and compact construction. This construction is particularly adapted for use in motorcycles, where it is desirable to make the frame as low as possible, since in the present construction the shock-absorbing elements are located entirely in front of the mast-tube 16 of the frame.

The pivotal connection between the rear fork and the crank-hanger is illustrated particularly in Figs. 2 and 3. The side members of the rear fork are rigidly connected, at their forward ends, with a sleeve 17 which contains the ball-bearings 1S upon which the crank-shaft 19 is journaled. The sleeve 17 is journaled within the crankhanger 2O of the frame, this crank-hanger being of the usual cylindrical form and being connected in the usual manner with the mast-tube 16 and the forward inclined tube 21 of the frame. To permit the intro duction of the sleeve 17 in the crank-hanger the latter is slotted.y at the rear, from its right-hand end, as shown in Fig. 3, so that the sleeve may be introduced through this end, the rear-fork members entering the slot as in Fig. 3. The slot is slightly enlarged above the positions normally occupied by the rear-fork members, to provide for Vertical movements of the latter when the device is in operation. To retain the sleeve in the crank-hanger and prevent end motion, the ends of the crank-hanger are threaded to receive threaded cap-rings 22 which overhang the ends of the sleeve, as shown in Fig. 2.

To facilitate assembling the shock-absorber an opening 23 is provided in the rear of the mast-tube 16, in line with the horizontal tube 6. The springs and the slide are introduced through the opening 23, the rear stays are then fastened to the slide by passing the pin S through the parts and Xing the nuts 9 in place, the sleeve 17 is then inserted, in the manner above described, in the crankhanger, and the rear stays are finally connected with the rear fork at the pivotal points 8.

I claim l. In a cushion-frame for bicycles, a pivotal connection between the rear fork and the forward portion of the frame comprising, in combination with the crank-shaft, the crank-hanger and the rear fork, a. sleeve in which the crank-shaft is journaled, said sleeve being journaled in the crank-hanger and rigidly connectedy with the rear forli, and the crank-hanger being slotted at the rear to permit the rear fork and the sleeve to be inserted through the end of the crankhanger, and means for preventing endwise movement of the sleeve in the crank-hanger.

2. In a cushion-frame for bicycles, the combination of an upper tube, a mast-tube having a rearward opening in line with the upper tube, a saddle-post removably secured in the mast-tube, a slide in the upper tube, rear stays connected at their upper ends with the slide, a spring in the upper tube for controlling forward movement of the slide, and a second spring in the upper tube between the slide and the saddle-post for controlling the rearward movement of the slide, the saddle-post serving normally as an abutment for the latter spring and being removable to permit the insertion of the spring and the slide through said rearward opening of the mast tube.

JAMES H. SAGER.

Witnesses:

C. S. DAVIS, D. GURNEE.

Images