JP2581996B2 - Bicycle grip shifting device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a grip-type speed change operation device which is used by being attached to a handle pipe of a bicycle, and is particularly suitable for a flat handle or an up handle.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A bicycle is an unstable vehicle, and it is necessary to maintain a balance while operating a steering wheel while traveling. Therefore, in order to run stably, it is necessary to always securely support the handle with both hands. However, the mounting position of the operation lever for shifting varies depending on the shape of the steering wheel, but is located at the upper part of the lower pipe or the handle stem in a bicycle equipped with a drop handle, and in the bicycle equipped with a flat handle or an up handle. Often near the grip. In order to operate the operating lever away from these grips, the hand had to be released from the handle or the fingers had to be released from the grip to apply force. Such an unstable steering wheel condition hinders stable running of the bicycle and is even dangerous.

[0003] In particular, a mountain bike for off-road use, which has been widely used recently, is more difficult to operate the steering wheel because it runs on uneven roads and rough terrain. Therefore, it is necessary to hold the handle more securely. However, in the method using the operation lever separated from the grip, there is often no room for shifting, and the shifting timing is often lost. Therefore, there has been a strong demand for an operation method capable of shifting while securely holding the handle with both hands.

FIG. 5 shows a conventional example of a shift operation device proposed to meet such a demand. FIG. 5 is a partially cutaway side view of such a conventional example, in which an end portion of a handle pipe 1 is integrally provided with a gripping cylinder 2a and a winding reel 2b for locking one end of an operation wire 3. The formed operating cylinder 2 is rotatably supported, and a gripping cylinder 2a
A grip 4 made of a flexible material such as rubber or synthetic resin is fitted on the outer periphery of the handle, and the reel portion 2b of the operation tube 2 is rotatably supported by a holder 5, and the holder 5 is fixed to the handle pipe 1. The structure is. Then, the occupant grips the entire grip 4 and rotates about the axis of the handle pipe 1, and pulls or loosens the wire 3 wound on the reel 2b to perform a shift operation.

However, in such a conventional example, since the grip 4, which should be fixed, is movable in order to reliably support the handle pipe 1, the handle pipe 1
There was a sense of incongruity and anxiety due to the limitation of the direction in which the force was applied, which made it impossible to perform delicate operations, and the play that was unavoidable due to the structure. In addition, the cross-sectional shape of the grip needs to be circular because it involves rotation, and a finger type for improving and stabilizing the feel when gripping cannot be applied because it has directionality. Was. Furthermore, when the occupant carelessly puts his hand on the handle,
In some cases, the user shifted the gear by mistake, causing the bicycle to lose stability and fall or fall.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and a grip-type shift operation of a bicycle which can surely support a steering wheel and improves shift operability. It is intended to provide a device.

[0007]

According to the present invention, the grip portion of the grip-type speed change operation device is changed from an integral type as shown in FIG. The movable grip portion has a shape suitable for rotation, and the fixed grip portion has a shape suitable for gripping. That is, the present invention relates to a grip-type speed change operating device for a bicycle, in which an operating cylinder having a gripping cylinder 2a and a reel 2b for winding a wire is rotatably supported on a handle pipe 1. Is divided into a cylindrical body on the thumb side and a cylindrical body on the little finger side, the outer shape of the cylindrical body on the thumb side is substantially the same diameter as the outer shape of the cylindrical body on the little finger side, and the cylindrical body on the thumb side. The body has an axial length sufficient to be gripped by the thumb and the index finger, and the thumb-side cylinder and the reel are integrally formed and rotatably supported on the handle pipe. A bicycle grip-type speed change operation device characterized by being fixed to a handle pipe in parallel with a side cylinder.

[0008]

As described above, by dividing the gripping cylinder into a thumb-side cylinder and a little finger-side cylinder, both the movable gripper and the fixed gripper are present within the width of the grip. When the grip is firmly gripped for steering operation, the fixed state can be easily obtained by simultaneously grasping the movable grip part and the fixed grip part at the same time. The shift operation can be performed by moving the distribution of the grip force to the thumb and forefinger sides while keeping the position as it is, and rotating the ring finger and little finger sides slightly loosely.

Further, regarding the outer shape of the cylindrical body of the grip portion, the outer diameter of the cylindrical body on the thumb side is made larger than the outer diameter of the cylindrical body on the little finger side and substantially the same diameter. The length of the body in the axial direction is made long enough to be gripped by the thumb and forefinger.It is easy to apply force to the thumb and forefinger when shifting gears, and it is easy to loosen the ring finger and little finger to grip. It is intended to improve the operability of switching between movable and fixed.

Regarding the irregular shape of the cylinder of the grip,
The cross-sectional shape of the cylinder is involved, and in the movable grip part, the cross-sectional shape of the thumb-side cylinder is made polygonal, or a protrusion for rotation is formed on the outer periphery of the thumb-side cylinder, suitable for rotation. It may be shaped. Furthermore, a protrusion for rotation is formed on the outer circumference of the thumb side cylinder, so that the direction of the grip can be sensed with a sense of grip, so that the shift position can be known without looking at the number of steps at hand. Things are good. Also,
On the other hand, the fixed grip portion is preferably formed with a protrusion on the outer periphery of the cylindrical body on the little finger side so as to match the gripping hand, so as to increase the ease of gripping and the fixing stability, so as to have a shape suitable for fixed support. Of course, the gripping cylinder is generally covered on its outside with a flexible material such as rubber or synthetic resin, and the outer shape of the gripping cylinder includes the outer shape of the flexible material.

[0011]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a partially cut side view of an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a partially cut front view from the front. In the figure, a cylindrical body 2a of about 1/3 of the entire width of the grip portion and an operating cylinder 2 made of a synthetic resin forming a reel 2b are attached to the handle pipe 1 with about 2/3 of the entire width of the grip portion from the right end. And rotatably support it. The outer periphery of the cylindrical body 2a is covered with a movable grip portion 8 having a circular outer shape with a flange 8a formed on the thumb side using a flexible material such as rubber. The reel portion 2b is a grooved disk for winding up the operation wire 3 and is integrally formed on the outer periphery of the cylindrical body 2a on the thumb side, and the end of the operation wire 3 is partially formed on the circumference of the disk. A locking hole 2c for insertion is formed.
In the cylindrical body 2a such thumb side can than the outer diameter R ₀ of the little finger side cylindrical body 2 ₀ de thumb F ₁ and forefinger F ₂ of substantially the same diameter yet a larger diameter R gripping as shown Enough length L
have.

The holder 5 enclosing the reel portion 2b is composed of an upper holder 6 composed of an upper semicircle and a lower holder 7 composed of a lower semicircle. A gear position indicator 6a is provided outside the upper holder 6, and a hole 6b through which the mounting screw 9 penetrates is formed on both sides on the front side. Inside, a semicircular space 6c larger than the reel 2b for enclosing the reel portion 2b and rotatably supporting the same, and a semicircular fixing with the same inner diameter as the handle diameter for fixing to the handle pipe 1 A part 6d is formed.

A bracket 11 for holding the brake lever 10 is formed below and below the lower holder 7, and a screw hole 11a for fixing the brake lever 10 to a shaft is formed at the base of the bracket 11. An outer receiver 11b for the brake wire 12 is provided at the end of the bracket 11. The operation wire 3 is provided beside the bracket 11.
Is provided. Also, screw holes 7a for mounting screws 9 are provided on both sides of the upper surface. And inside,
Similarly to the upper holder 6, the reel portion 2b is wrapped around,
A semicircular space 7b larger than the reel 2b for rotatably supporting and a semicircular fixing portion 7c having the same radius as the handle diameter for fixing to the handle pipe 1 are formed.

The brake lever 10 has an L-shaped engagement hole 1 for fitting the end of the brake wire 12 into the base.
A shaft fixing hole 10b is formed at the end of the short arm 0a, and the short arm is fitted between the brackets 11 of the lower holder 7 and is fixed with the screw 13.

A fixed grip portion 14 made of a flexible material such as rubber is externally provided on the handle pipe 1 at a portion of the handle pipe 1 from the right side which is about 2/3 of the entire width of the grip portion, as described above. The outer shape is a cylindrical body slightly smaller in diameter than the movable grip portion 8, and a wavy finger mold 14a is formed below the cylindrical body.

The end of the inner wire 3a is fitted into the engaging portion of the reel 2b of the grip-type speed change operation device constructed as described above, is laid along the groove of the reel 2b, and is led out from the outer receiver 11c. 3b. The end of the inner wire 3a is engaged with an operation section of a transmission (not shown).

The present invention has such a structure, and the reel 2b
By rotating the gripping cylinder 2a, which is an integral part of the transmission, in the direction of arrow A, the inner wire 3a is pulled to operate the transmission. When rotated in the direction opposite to the arrow A, the inner wire 3a is loosened and returned by a spring built in the transmission.

FIG. 3 is a front view of another embodiment of the transmission according to the present invention, in which the cross-sectional shape of the movable grip portion 8 is substantially triangular and the fixed grip portion 14 is a cylindrical body. This allows the user to intuitively shift to a shift operation with the feel of a hand grip.

FIG. 4 is a front view of still another embodiment of the transmission according to the present invention, in which the movable grip portion 8 has an irregular cross-sectional profile while the fixed grip portion 14 has a cylindrical shape. It was done. This also allows the user to intuitively shift to the shifting operation with the feeling of a hand grip, as in the previous example.

[0020]

As described above, by dividing the gripping cylinder into a thumb-side cylinder and a little finger-side cylinder, both the movable gripping part and the fixed gripping part are present within the width of the gripping hand. As a result, there is no need to move the handle while holding the steering wheel and when shifting gears. Therefore, the gear shifting operation can be performed without releasing the hand from the steering wheel, and the steering wheel can always be reliably supported, so that stable running can be performed without being distracted by the gear shifting operation.

Further, regarding the outer shape of the grip portion, by changing the outer shape of the thumb side cylinder and the outer shape of the little finger side cylinder, the operability of switching between movable and fixed is improved, and the grip is grasped as if gripping. The driver can sense the direction of the shift, and can know the shift position without looking at the display of the number of gears at hand. On the other hand, the stability is improved by increasing the ease of gripping and the reliability of fixing.

As described above, according to the present invention, one grip has both the fixed support function and the speed change operation function, and can securely support the handle and improve the speed change operability. A bicycle grip-type speed change operation device can be provided.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view of an embodiment of a transmission according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view from the front of the transmission in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a front view of another embodiment of the transmission according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a front view of still another embodiment of the transmission according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a side view of a conventional transmission.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ‥‥ handle pipe 2 ‥‥ operating tube 2a ‥‥ grip accommodating cylinder 2b ‥‥ reel 2c ‥‥ locking hole 2 ₀ ‥‥ little finger side cylindrical body 3 ‥‥ operating wire 3a ‥‥ inner wire 3b ‥‥ outer cable 4 Handle part 5 Holder 6 Upper holder 6a Speed indicator 6b Screw through hole 6c Semicircular space 6d Semicircular fixing part 7 Lower holder 7a Screw Hole 7b {semicircular space portion 7c} semicircular fixed portion 8} movable grip portion 8a {flange 9} mounting screw 10} brake lever 10a {locking hole 10b} shaft stop hole 11} Bracket 11a ‥‥ Screw hole 11b ‥‥ Outer receiver (for brake wire) 11c 受 け Outer receiver (for operation wire) 12 ‥‥ Brake wire 13 ‥‥ Screw 14 ‥‥ Fixed grip part 14 a ‥‥ Finger type F ₁ ‥‥ Thumb ₂ ‥‥ diameter of the index finger L ‥‥ axial length of the grip accommodating cylinder R ‥‥ thumb side tube body diameter R ₀ ‥‥ little finger side tube body

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A bicycle grip type speed change operation device in which an operation cylinder having a gripping cylinder 2a and a reel 2b for winding a wire is rotatably supported on a handle pipe 1. Is divided into a cylindrical body on the thumb side and a cylindrical body on the little finger side, the outer shape of the cylindrical body on the thumb side is substantially the same diameter as the outer shape of the cylindrical body on the little finger side, and the cylindrical body on the thumb side. The body has an axial length sufficient to be gripped by the thumb and the index finger, and the thumb-side cylinder and the reel are integrally formed and rotatably supported on the handle pipe. A bicycle grip-type shift operation device fixed to a handle pipe in juxtaposition with a side cylinder.