Motorcycle with swing-out brake calipers
A motorcycle or bicycle having a fork with swappable trail adjustment blocks which hold the front axle to the fork. Trail can be adjusted without removing the forks or even loosening them in the triple clamps, and without altering ride height or rake angle. Brake caliper mounts are swapped when the trail adjustment blocks are swapped, moving the brake calipers the same distance and direction as the axle, to maintain a constant radial distance from the axle to the brake pads. The brake caliper mounts pivot on the forks, enabling the brake calipers to be swung outward so the wheel can be changed without removing the brake calipers from the forks.
This application is a divisional of application Ser. No. 10/633,380 “Front End Trail Adjustment for Motorcycle” filed Jul. 31, 2003 by this inventor.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION1. Technical Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to front end suspension components for two-wheeled vehicles, and more specifically to a trail adjustment mechanism such as for a motorcycle.
2. Background Art
Trail is the distance, on the ground, from a point projected through the front axle on a line parallel with the steering axis, to a point directly below the front axle, or in other words, to the center of the contact patch. Trail directly impacts the steering stability of the motorcycle and its “return-to-center” force. Trail is affected by rake, which is the angle between vertical and the steering axis; steeper rake reduces trail. Trail is also affected by longitudinal fork offset, or the distance which the fork tubes are set in front of the steering tube; more offset increases trail. Trail is also affected by axle offset; if the axle is coupled to the forks in front of their center, it increases trail.
The rider may wish to increase or decrease trail to, for example, change the steering feel or feedback, to improve steering quickness, or to eliminate a high-speed wobble, or to reduce a front end “push”. Often, riders will talk as though they are fixing these things by adjusting the ride height, which is generally discussed in terms of how far the forks extend up through the top triple clamp. However, decreasing front ride height by raising the forks farther through the triple clamps in reality steepens the rake, which, in turn, decreases trail. It is ultimately the change in trail which causes the effects which the rider attributes to his ride height adjustment.
Although adjusting trail can have very beneficial results, the other changes which go along with it in a conventional motorcycle may often—or even usually—outweigh or significantly counteract the benefits of the trail adjustment. For example, lowering ride height obviously puts the frame, engine cases, fairings, and other parts into closer proximity to the racetrack, often to an extent that cornering ability is actually reduced because hard parts of the motorcycle ground out on curbings or even the asphalt itself.
What is needed, then, is a mechanism which facilitates trail adjustments without adversely affecting other geometry characteristics of the motorcycle such as ride height and rake angle.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGSThe invention will be understood more fully from the detailed description given below and from the accompanying drawings of embodiments of the invention which, however, should not be taken to limit the invention to the specific embodiments described, but are for explanation and understanding only.
It should again be noted that, in one embodiment, the trail adjustment blocks and their mating surface of the fork lower are configured such that the front axle is moved, by the various trail adjustment blocks, in a direction parallel to the ground, such that the front ride height is not changed by swapping out the different trail adjustment blocks. In one embodiment, this is accomplished by providing the trail adjustment block with a top surface and a bottom surface which are parallel, and by positioning the front axle hole at various positions, for the various trail adjustment blocks, which are a same distance from the bottom surface, for example. In other embodiments, other geometries may accomplish the same result.
The trail adjustment block may be tightened onto the axle, and the fork lower may be tightened onto the trail adjustment block, by one or more pinch bolts (not shown) which may advantageously be inserted upward through the bottom end of the fork lower through coaxial holes (not shown) through the portion of the fork lower which is below the trail adjustment block, the portion of the trail adjustment block which is below the pinch split, the portion of the trail adjustment block which is above the pinch split, and the portion of the fork lower which is above the trail adjustment block. In this instance, only the topmost or two topmost of these need to be threaded.
In one embodiment, the brake caliper is mounted not only “radially”, but also with its radius parallel to the plane in which the various trail adjustment blocks move the front axle, to maintain a constant positioning of the brake pads and the brake rotor across the various trail settings. In one embodiment, the radius of the brake caliper mount is parallel to the ground.
The skilled reader will readily appreciate that the various components of the caliper mount are not necessarily shown to any particular scale, and that they may be resized and adapted according to the needs of the application at hand. For example, the two posts need not necessarily be of the same diameter, or the post 70 could be made longer than shown, and so forth.
While the invention has been described with reference to its use in a motorcycle, the invention is not limited to motorcycles, but can be used in bicycles, automobiles, and other vehicles. And while the invention has been shown as using an “upside-down” fork, it may alternatively be used with a “right-side-up” fork. Some components have been illustrated as being of monolithic construction, while other components have been illustrated as being separate components coupled together. The skilled reader will readily appreciate that the designer may elect, within the scope of this invention, to split some components into separate sub-components, or to combine various components into a monolithic whole. The skilled reader will further appreciate that the invention may be practiced in a “single-sided” front end, such as that found on some bicycles which have only a single fork. The term “triple clamp” should not necessarily be interpreted to mean that two forks are required with the steering tube. The presence of one or more suspension components coaxial with the steering axis does not necessarily prohibit the additional presence of one or more suspension components elsewhere, such as within the forks.
The fork and the trail adjustment block have been illustrated in a configuration in which the trail adjustment block slips into the front of the fork. In other embodiments, a different mating system could be employed. For example, instead of a void or indentation formed into the front of the fork, the fork could have a hole extending laterally through it, or, in other words, there could be fork material in front of the void, and the trail adjustment block would be inserted laterally rather than longitudinally.
When one component is said to be “adjacent” another component, it should not be interpreted to mean that there is absolutely nothing between the two components, only that they are in the order indicated. The various features illustrated in the figures may be combined in many ways, and should not be interpreted as though limited to the specific embodiments in which they were explained and shown. Those skilled in the art having the benefit of this disclosure will appreciate that many other variations from the foregoing description and drawings may be made within the scope of the present invention. Indeed, the invention is not limited to the details described above. Rather, it is the following claims including any amendments thereto that define the scope of the invention.
Claims
1. A vehicle comprising:
- a frame including a steering tube;
- a front suspension coupled to the steering tube;
- a front axle coupled to the front suspension;
- a wheel coupled to the front axle;
- at least one brake rotor coupled to the front wheel;
- at least one brake caliper; and
- means for rotatably coupling the brake caliper to the front suspension;
- whereby the brake caliper can be pivoted aside when not engaged with its corresponding brake rotor.
2. The vehicle of claim 1 wherein:
- the means for rotatably coupling comprises at least one caliper mount each including, a body, a cylindrical first post extending from the body, a cylindrical second post extending from the body at a substantially 90 degree angle with respect to the cylindrical first post; and
- the front suspension includes at least one hole adapted to rotatably mate with the cylindrical first post of a corresponding caliper mount.
3. The vehicle of claim 2 wherein:
- the means for rotatably coupling comprises two caliper mounts; and
- the front suspension includes two coaxial holes adapted to rotatably mate with the cylindrical first posts of the two caliper mounts.
4. The vehicle of claim 1 wherein the vehicle comprises a motorcycle.
5. The vehicle of claim 1 wherein the vehicle comprises a bicycle.
6. A motorcycle comprising:
- a frame including a steering head;
- a front axle;
- a pair of forks each including, an upper end coupled to the steering head, and a lower end coupled to the front axle;
- a front wheel coupled to the axle;
- a first brake rotor coupled to the front wheel;
- a first brake caliper disposed about the first brake rotor; and
- first brake caliper mounts pivotably coupling the first brake caliper to the lower end of one of the forks, whereby the first brake caliper can be swung aside to permit installation of the front wheel without removing the first brake caliper from the one fork.
7. The motorcycle of claim 6 further comprising:
- a second brake rotor coupled to the front wheel;
- a second brake caliper disposed about the second brake rotor; and
- second brake caliper mounts pivotably coupling the second brake caliper to the lower end of the other fork, whereby the second brake caliper, too, can be swung aside to permit installation of the front wheel without removing the second brake caliper from the other fork.
8. The motorcycle of claim 7 further comprising:
- a first pair of trail adjustment blocks each coupling the axle to the lower end of a respective one of the forks;
- wherein the brake caliper mounts are sized to appropriately position the brake calipers with respect to the brake rotors.
9. The motorcycle of claim 8 further comprising:
- a second pair of trail adjustment blocks which can be substituted in place of the first pair of trail adjustment blocks to change a trail geometry of the motorcycle by moving the front axle; and
- third and fourth brake caliper mounts which can be substituted in place of the first and second brake caliper mounts, respectively, to move the brake calipers in substantially a same vector as the second pair of trail adjustment blocks move the front axle.
10. The motorcycle of claim 9 wherein:
- the brake calipers are radially mounted.
11. The motorcycle of claim 10 wherein:
- the trail adjustment blocks mate with the forks in a manner substantially parallel with the ground, whereby changing between trail adjustment blocks does not substantially alter a ride height geometry of the motorcycle.
12. The motorcycle of claim 7 wherein:
- the brake caliper mounts include are coupled to the forks by pins of the brake caliper mounts being inserted into holes in the forks, whereby the pins can pivot within the holes.
Type: Application
Filed: Jul 5, 2005
Publication Date: Nov 3, 2005
Inventor: Michael Czysz (Portland, OR)
Application Number: 11/175,550