High efficiency bicycle suspension

Claim 2

In a bicycle having a frame, handlebar-steering, seat front and rear ground engaging wheel assemblies attached to said frame of said bicycle, and a suspension unit, said suspension unit having a linkage, said linkage having at least one rotary shock absorber having an off-center cavity, working fluid filling said cavity and a rotary shaft and a vane element mounted on said rotary shaft, said off-center cavity having walls so that as said rotary shaft of said shock absorber is rotated, said vane element sweeps a path in said off-center cavity causing said working fluid to be displaced through at least one fluid control path selected from fluid metering gap, orifice or fluid logic device for resisting an applied rotary displacement and means mounting said suspension unit between said frame and at least one of said assemblies, said linkage having a plane normal to the axis of said rotary shaft and including said path of said vane, said linkage further comprising pivots and lever arms constructed so as to provide a high resistance to deflections out of a plane through the plane of said, and said linkage including one or more spring elements, said one or more springs having a spring rate which provides positive centering force to reposition the assembly to an equilibrium position from any other position.

Claim 3

The invention defined in claim 1 in which said one or more spring elements are selected from cantilever or leaf spring types, and in which the one or more springs are also acting as one or more of the lever arms of said linkage.

Claim 4

The invention defined in claim 2 in which said one or more spring elements constitute one or more of said pivots.

Claim 5

The invention defined in claim 2 in which said one or more springs are constructed of a high strength composite material having center and exterior layers and wherein said composite material is selected from the group comprising, fiberglass, high modulus fiber material, including boron or carbon fiber in the center layer of said one or more spring elements and a high strength lower modulus fiber material in the exterior layers.

Claim 6

The invention defined in claim 2 in which said one or more springs are constructed of a high strength composite material and wherein said composite material is selected from the group comprising, fiberglass, high modulus fiber material, including boron or carbon fiber in the center layer of said one or more spring elements and a high strength lower modulus fiber material in the exterior layers.

Claim 7

The invention defined in claim 1 wherein said fluid control path is a fluid metering gap positioned between said walls of said off-center cavity and the rotating vane element of said rotary shock absorber, said rotary shock absorber having a stroke, said metering gap changing cross-sectional area at different angles of rotation of said vane element in order to change the dynamic resistance of said shock absorber over said stroke.

Claim 8

The invention defined in claim 6 wherein said metering gap is reduced in the region of the said equilibrium position, increasing in dimension as the vane is rotated away from said equilibrium point.

Claim 9

The invention defined in claim 7 wherein said working fluid has significant compressibility and is silicone.

Claim 10

The invention defined in claim 6 wherein said seat having a maximum deflection, and said metering gap decreases in dimension towards the maximum downward deflection of said seat.

Claim 11

The invention defined in claim 1 wherein said vane element has a stroke and said shock absorber having a vane-type element sweeping an internal off-center cavity, including a pair of lateral extending shafts, two anti-friction bearings in which said shafts rotate, and a fluid metering gap between the vane element and the walls of said off-center cavity which fluid metering gap varies significantly in dimension over the stroke of said vane element and constitutes said fluid control path, said working fluid is hydraulic fluid, said vane element having a shaft protruding on both sides and rotary bearings supporting said shaft, said shaft being both a shaft supporting means for said vane element and operating said vane element in said shock absorber and being one of said pivots aiding in the control of the motion of said assembly and assisting in maintaining a predetermined orientation of one of said handlebar-steering, seat, front and rear ground engaging assemblies through its suspension travel and keeping said assembly from rocking, twisting or deflecting laterally or in any other way than in a fixed plane, and in which said one or more spring elements are selected from cantilever or leaf spring type springs, and in which the one or more springs act as one or more of the lever arms of said linkage controlling the displacement of one of said handlebar-steering, seat, front and rear ground engaging wheel assemblies, said one or more springs having exterior layers being constructed of a high strength composite material with a combination of high strength composite materials with a high modulus fiber material selected from boron and/or carbon fiber in the center layer of the spring and a high strength lower modulus fiber material in the exterior layers.

Claim 12

The invention defined in claim 1 wherein at least one of said one or more spring elements is an "X" spring.

Claim 13

The invention defined in claim 1 wherein said at least one of said one or more spring elements is a bifurcated flat leaf spring.

Claim 14

The invention defined in claim 1 wherein said working fluid is displaceable and said rotary shock absorber includes means for adjusting the rate of displacement of said working fluid as said rotary vane element sweeps in said off-center cavity.

Claim 15

The invention defined in claim 1 wherein said fluid logic device is a De Laval nozzle.

Claim 16

The invention defined in claim 1 wherein said spring element is a cantilever spring and said spring element and rotary shock absorber to provide suspension linkage and travel, energy absorption and return, and shock damping for said bicycle.

Claim 17

The invention defined in claim 15 wherein said cantilever spring constitutes one or more links in said linkage.

Claim 18

The invention defined in claim 15 wherein the shaft of said rotary shock absorber constitutes one or more of said linkage pivots.

Claim 19

The invention defined in claim 15 wherein said rotary shock absorber has a case and said cantilever spring is integrated with suspension and is attached to said case of said rotary shock absorber.

Claim 20

The invention defined in claim 15 wherein said cantilever spring acts as one leg or side of a parallelogram of trapezoidal linkage and said rotary shock absorber acts as another side allowing a basically pivoting suspension motion while maintaining essentially parallel or level orientation between a suspended member and an unsuspended member between one or more of said handlebar-steering, seat, front and rear ground engaging assemblies.

Claim 21

The invention defined in claim 15 wherein said cantilever spring constitutes one side of a parallelogram or trapezoidal linkage and actuating lever of said rotary shock absorber acts as the opposite side.

Claim 22

The invention defined in claim 15 wherein said cantilever spring has a loaded and an unloaded condition and is made of a composite with small reverse curve in the unloaded condition.