Abstract: Disclosed herein is a safety apparatus for use with a motorcycle to aid the rider in avoiding serious injuries due to collisions. An inflatable upwardly extending cocoon envelops the rider either upon impact, or upon his actuation thereof, and dissociates from the motorcycle to travel with the rider should he be thrown off. A housing is provided which unobtrusively rides on the motorcycle and nests the inflatable shroud so that a rider can be protected without having to don any supplemental gear.

Abstract: An improvement in an attachment for release ski bindings, enabling the skier to selectively decide the mode of skiing, namely, downhill skiing or cross-country skiing. The attachment includes a sole plate which holds the ski boot onto the ski. The sole plate has a connecting piece which is pivotally secured to the front end thereof and is adapted to cooperate with a base plate for holding the toe binding. The connecting piece is pivotal between a position wherein it is adapted to be operatively connected to the base plate for the toe binding and a position overlying the front end of the sole plate. Structure is provided for maintaining the connecting piece in the overlying position on the sole plate during downhill skiing. The sole plate is a two-part construction, each part being pivotally attached to the other about a pivot axis separate from the pivot axis connecting the front end of the sole plate to the connecting piece.

Abstract: A loader, especially a bucket loader for underground use in mining operations, comprising a rear car carrying the propulsion unit including the hydraulic pump and the driver's station, and a front car coupled to the rear car by a hinge joint and carrying the bucket and the hydraulic system for operating same. The rear car is formed by a chassis stiffly joined to the rear axle, which chassis has a stiff bulkhead serving for the mounting of the motor and transmission assembly. The motor and transmission assembly is disposed on a secondary frame which has also a bulkhead that can be fastened to the bulkhead of the chassis, from which on both sides of the motor and transmission assembly longitudinal girders project, between which the motor and transmission group is mounted.

Abstract: In a cross-country or langlauf-ski binding having a sole plate, locking pins engageable with the sole of a ski boot and a clip locating the sole on the locking pins, there is provided a mechanism, enabling an easy and comfortable manipulation of the binding. For this purpose the sole plate comprises lateral mounting flanges with coaxial bearing holes and holding elements. These parts are cooperating in such a manner that they come into engagement during the insertion of the ski boot of a skier being automatically locked in this operative position. For releasing the binding the skier has only to press down a suitable release mechanism.

Abstract: A mercury switch sensitive to rotations in either of two selected directions is provided for interrupting the ignition circuit of a motorcycle if the motorcycle should topple over. The switch has a Y-shaped housing with two hollow copper members joined to a hollow stem. An electrical contact is mounted by means of an insulating stopper in the hollow stem. A pool of mercury provides a contact between the electrical contact and the metal Y-shaped housing. A wire is affixed to the electrical contact and a second wire is affixed to the metal housing. A pool of mercury completes the switch between the insulated electrical contact and the metal housing. As the switch is rotated in either a first or a second selected direction, at a predetermined point, the pool of mercury will separate from the insulated electrical contact thereby causing the switch to display an open circuit condition.

Abstract: A tread for a pneumatic tire having a plurality of circumferentially spaced independent projections, each projection has an outer configuration which is basically triangular as viewed in a plane perpendicular to the tread. The projections in the central portion of the tread are oriented such that the leading edges form an angle from about 30.degree. to 60.degree. with respect to the mid-circumferential plane of the tire, and the projections in the shoulder portions are oriented such that the leading edges form an angle from about 30.degree. to 70.degree. with respect to the mid-circumferential plane of the tire.

Abstract: A utility cart comprising an upwardly extending frame, a pair of wheels journaled on the lower end of the frame at opposite sides of the frame, and a bed pivoted adjacent one of its ends on the frame at the lower end of the frame for swinging about an axis extending from side-to-side of the frame between an extended position in which the bed extends forwardly from the frame in a generally horizontal direction and an upright position in which the bed extends upwardly alongside the frame at the front of the frame. The bed has a support at one end extending forwardly from the bed when the bed is in its upright position for supporting an object to be carried on the cart. Legs at the other end of the bed support the bed in its extended position. The bed can be selectively locked to the frame in its extended and upright positions.

Abstract: A motor vehicle folding seat and seat occupant restraint arrangement comprising a folding seat having a seat back hinged to a seat bottom which in turn is hinged to the vehicle floor whereby the seat is foldable in an upright position to provide increased storage area and wherein the seat occupant restraint includes a load-carrying member of relatively short length which is secured to the underneath side of the seat bottom and is releasably securable to the vehicle floor to both maintain the seat in its normal position and also transmit loads for seat belt restraint systems which are either anchored at both ends to the load-carrying member or are anchored at one end to the load-carrying member and at the other end directly to the vehicle floor whereby the seat bottom frame is not subjected to any force resulting from loads applied by an occupant to any of the restraint systems and whereby the floor is left unobstructed when the seat is folded in its stored position.

Abstract: A molded heavy duty wheel and method for making it, comprising a metallic core with a central opening and a circumferential flange, a moldable plastic or rubber material on the interior circumferential portion of the flange, and a tread of moldable plastic or rubber material on the exterior circumferential portion of the flange. The tread portion is bonded to the core to prevent slippage.

Abstract: A heavy duty pneumatic tire is provided with bead cores having polygonal cross-sectional configurations. The bead cores are composed of a multiplicity of wires arranged in densely superpositioned parallel layers which are situated on conical generating lines whose common axis coincide with the horizontal axis of the pneumatic tire and whose angles of opening are approximately 10.degree.. The axially innermost and axially outermost wires in specified radially inner and radially outer layers lie on centerlines forming angles within selected ranges with the conical lines.

Abstract: A safety pneumatic tire which can run under its punctured condition.The tire is provided between a sidewall reinforcing layer and a tread wall reinforcing layer with a reduced thickness portion which can easily susceptible to bending deformation so as to notify a driver by his bodily sensation that the tire is punctured.

Abstract: A versatile attaching structure for connecting a tool such as a soil-displacing trough to a boom having an intermediate piece connectable to a boom and an operating cylinder and with interfitting connectors between the trough and the intermediate piece movable relative to each other by rotation of the intermediate piece and which are drawn into tightly locked relation for use by fastening members.

Abstract: The walker includes a frame structure mounted on rear wheels and forward casters in turn supporting a parallelogram structure lying essentially in a vertical plane. The rear ends of the upper and lower horizontal members making up the parallelogram structure are pivoted to a column extending upwardly from the frame structure and the front ends of these members are pivoted to a generally vertical front member supporting a harness. The arrangement is such that when the active lengths of the upper and lower horizontal members are equal, the front member will move up and down in essentially a vertical direction always remaining parallel to the upwardly extending column. A patient is supported in the harness structure to the front member and a force such as by springs is provided on the parallelogram structure to bias the front member upwardly and thereby relieve at least a part of the weight of a patient in the harness.

Abstract: A wheel has a plurality of variable length spokes extending radially from the hub to the rim and supporting the rim coaxially around the hub. Spoke length varying devices vary the lengths of the spokes.

Abstract: A load carrying pallet of the type comprising a base provided adjacent each end of each side with a support surface level with the deck of the base and terminating in an upstanding lug, and with an upwardly facing channel subjacent each support surface, for use with detachable walls, each having at the lower end an upper transverse frame member to rest on the support surfaces and having depending leg members with lower transverse members for locating in the channels, is improved--as to ease of application and removal of the walls and as to interchangeability with known pallets--by providing between each support surface and the subjacent channel a catch on an axis parallel to the support surface, the catch having upper and lower outward projections and spring latching means, whereby, in one position of the catch the lower projection extends from the slot and over the channel, in another position of the catch the lower projection is withdrawn into the slot, and in both positions the upper projection extends fro

Abstract: A traction device that can be removably mounted on a vehicle tire includes a plurality of non-deformable straps of a length greater than width arranged at evenly spaced intervals around the tread of the tire. Each strap has a series of transversely running ridges on it with a pair of flexible resilient loops of nylon cord that pass through apertures in the ends of each strap along opposite side walls of the tire holding the traction assembly adjacent the tire tread thereby increasing traction in mud and snow.

Abstract: The assembly of a large size pneumatic tire for a heavy off the road vehicle and an annular bead seat for a bead of the tire is characterized by the fact that said annular bead seat has a lateral face terminating in a flange and an inner face with a heel portion adjacent said lateral face and a toe portion meeting at a vertex and forming in radial cross section the shape of a very open V open toward said bead, and said bead has a reinforcing bead wire so arranged that the median plane of the bead wire intersects the toe portion of the inner face at a distance from the vertex at least equal to one-tenth of the diameter of the cross-section of the bead wire, the outer surface of the bead being thus in permanent contact with the lateral face and the inner face of the annular bead seat and the assembly being slidably mountable on a wheel of the vehicle.

Abstract: A tire having a tread, sidewalls and an inner wall, said inner wall having, at least over the portion corresponding to the width of the tread, a layer of a self-sealing agent, a layer of elastomer arranged radially inward of the layer of self-sealing agent and partitions defining volumes of self-sealing agent arranged between said layer of elastomer and the inner wall of the tire is improved due to the fact that the transverse distances measured along the inner wall of the tire between successive partitions decrease from the tread in the direction towards the sidewalls of the tire.

Abstract: A fixed length of belt has an outboard end attached to the door and an inboard end attached to the vehicle body forwardly of the seat. A track extends longitudinally inboard the seat and mounts a belt carriage which slidably receives the belt intermediate the inboard and outboard ends. Opening movement of the door causes the outboard end of the belt to be moved outwardly and forwardly so that sliding movement of the belt through the belt carriage causes forward movement of the belt carriage to stow the belt forwardly of the seat. A spring retracts the carriage toward the seat to establish the belt in a rearward restraining position when the door is closed. In the preferred embodiment, the belt having its inboard end mounted on the vehicle body forwardly of the seat has its outboard end attached high on the vehicle door to provide a diagonal shoulder belt. A lap belt has an outboard end attached low on the vehicle door and an inboard end mounted inboard the seat.

Abstract: A transport cart is disclosed having a load receiving and supporting platform of sandwich-type construction formed from a pair of spaced panels each having offset portions which contact the other panel. The panels, where they contact each other, are rigidly secured together to form a rigid, load supporting sandwich. The platform is mounted on swivel casters interconnected by a linkage system which responds to the pivotal movement of the tow bar and which effects opposite pivotal movement of the front and rear casters to cause the cart to track the towing vehicle.