Bicycle storage device

Claim 2

In a storage device for bicycles and the like, a pair of tracks supported to extend vertically from the floor along the wall of a building and comprising parallel spaced facing channels having entering ends curving downwardly to floor level, a bicycle rack guided in said tracks and adapted to rest on the floor to accommodate the placing of a bicycle thereon and to move upwardly along said tracks for storing the bicycle off the floor and comprising a generally open frame including a plurality of parallel spaced upwardly opening channels each of which is adapted to receive the wheels of a bicycle, cross frame members connecting said channels together and having rollers freely mounted on the outer ends thereof and ridable in said track, means detachably securing at least one bicycle to said rack, and stop means accommodating the rack to move upwardly along said track past said stop means and to maintain the advance rollers of said rack in said track at the end of downward travel of said rack.

Claim 3

The storing device of claim 1, wherein the rack has channel-like uprights extending upwardly of the advance ends of said channels and registering with said channels, for receiving individual wheels of a bicycle, and wherein the means detachably securing the wheels of the bicycle to said rack comprise strap means securing the wheels to an associated channel, and other strap means for detachably securing one wheel of each bicycle to an associated of said uprights.

Claim 4

The bicycle storing device of claim 2, wherein the stop means comprises a bell crank pivoted intermediate its ends and having a stop arm extending upwardly between said track adjacent the curved lower end thereof and an actuating arm extending generally along the floor, whereby said actuating arm is moved by the trailing cross frame member of said rack as the trailing cross frame member engages said stop arm and passes thereby, and Pivots said actuating arm into an upright position, and whereby on lowering movement of the rack, the trailing cross frame member leading the advance rollers, comes into engagement with said actuating arm and pivots the bell crank to raise said stop arm to engage the advance cross frame member of the track and limit outward movement of said rack along said track.

Claim 5

The storing device of claim 2, wherein means are provided for raising said rack upwardly along said track comprising a flexible cable connected to said rack at the trailing end thereof and extending along said rack upwardly toward the upper end thereof, and wherein a winding drum is provided for winding in on said cable to exert an upward pulling force on said rack along said track, and to retard lowering movement of said rack along said track.

Claim 6

The storing device of claim 4, wherein the track curves at its upper end to extend in a horizontal plane along the ceiling, and means are provided for suspending the horizontal portion of said track to extend along the ceiling, to support said rack to suspend at least one bicycle secured to said rack from the ceiling.

Claim 7

The storing device of claim 5, wherein the means raising the rack along the track to be supported to suspend at least one bicycle from the ceiling, comprises at least one winch, a direction changing sheave adjacent the top of said track, training the cable to extend downwardly along said track, and wherein means are provided to rotatably drive said winch to assist in raising said rack along said track, and to retard rotation of said winch, to retard lowering movement of said rack along said track.

Claim 8

The storage device of claim 6, wherein the winch is manually operable and controllable.

Claim 9

The storage device of claim 5, wherein spring means placed under tension by lowering of said rack along said track are provided to retard lowering of said rack along said track, to move therealong at a controlled rate of speed, and to assist in raising said rack along said track.

Claim 10

The storage device of claim 8, wherein the spring means comprise torsion spring means and winding drums taking up tension on said spring means by lowering movement of said rack along said track, and rotatably driven by said spring means to assist in raising said rack along said track.

Claim 11

The bicycle rack of claim 9, wherein the cross frame members are adapted to carry more than two channels equally spaced therealong to accommodate the rack to store more than two bicycles.

Claim 12

The bicycle rack of claim 9, wherein the cross frame members are provided with a plurality of through bolt holes at equal spacings therealong, and wherein the bolt holes extending through said cross frame members are adapted for the connection of a plurality of channels thereto, to adapt the rack for carrying more than two bicycles.

Claim 13

The bicycle storage device of claim 9, wherein the stop means for maintaining the advance rollers in the track comprise a bell crank pivoted intermediate its ends for movement about a stationary transverse axis and having a stop arm extending upwardly from the axis thereof and an actuating arm spaced from said stop arm and engaged by said rack to move said stop arm into position to extend upwardly of the discharge end of said track and engage a cross frame member carrying the leading rollers, upon lowering movement of said rack along the track.

Claim 14

The bicycle storage device of claim 12, wherein the winding drums are disposed along the ceiling, and wherein flexible cables are connected from said winding drums to said rack at the trailing end thereof

Claim 15

In a storing device for bicycles and the like, a pair of tracks supported to extend vertically from the floor along the wall and ceiling of a building and comprising parallel spaced facing channels having entering ends curving downwardly to floor level and curving at the upper ends thereof to extend in a horizontal plane aloNg the ceiling, a roller supported bicycle rack having a leading end and a trailing end guided in said tracks, in which the trailing end is adapted to rest on the floor, said rack having at least one upwardly opening channel member extending therealong to accommodate the placing of a bicycle on said channel and to move upwardly with said rack along said tracks for storing the bicycle to depend from the ceiling, means detachably securing the front and rear wheels of the bicycle to said rack, other means for moving the rack upwardly along said track and along the portion thereof extending along the ceiling of a building, and movable stop means for accommodating the rack to move upwardly along said tracks past said stop means and to maintain the advance rollers of said rack in said track at the end of downward travel of said rack.

Claim 16

In a storing device for bicycles and the like, a pair of tracks supported to extend vertically from the floor along the wall and ceiling of a building and comprising parallel spaced facing channels having entering ends curving downwardly to floor level and curving at the upper ends thereof to extend in a horizontal plane aloNg the ceiling, a roller supported bicycle rack having a leading end and a trailing end guided in said tracks, in which the trailing end is adapted to rest on the floor, said rack having at least one upwardly opening channel member extending therealong to accommodate the placing of a bicycle on said channel and to move upwardly with said rack along said tracks for storing the bicycle to depend from the ceiling, means detachably securing the front and rear wheels of the bicycle to said rack, other means for moving the rack upwardly along said track and along the portion thereof extending along the ceiling of a building, and movable stop means for accommodating the rack to move upwardly along said tracks past said stop means and to maintain the advance rollers of said rack in said track at the end of downward travel of said rack.

Claim 17

The bicycle storing device of claim 14, wherein the stop means is free from said channel and comprises a bell crank pivoted intermediate its ends and having a stop arm extending upwardly at one side of said channel adjacent the curved lower end thereof, and an actuating arm extending generally along the floor, whereby said actuating arm is moved by said rack as the trailing end of said rack engages said stop arm and passes thereby and pivots said actuating arm into an upright position, and whereby on lowering movement of said rack, the trailing end of said rack leading the leading end comes into engagement with said actuating arm and pivots the bell crank to raise said stop arm to engage the leading end of the rack and limit outward movement of said rack along the floor.

Claim 18

The storage device of claim 14, including spring means placed under tension by lowering of said rack along said track to retard lowering of said rack and cause said rack to move along said track at a controlled rate of speed, and to assist in raising said rack along said track.

Claim 19

The bicycle rack of claim 16, wherein the rack is adapted to carry more than two channels equally spaced therealong to accommodate the rack to store more than two bicycles.