Two-wheel vehicle stand

Abstract

A two-wheel vehicle stand for quickly, easily and safely securing two-wheel vehicles in an upright position, by clamping the front or rear wheel. The stand includes a clamping mechanism connected to a switching mechanism. The clamping mechanism includes two opposing supports that clamp the front or rear wheel of the two-wheel vehicle to secure the vehicle in an upright position. The switching mechanism is used to actuate the clamping mechanism and is actuatable by a user while the user is on the two-wheel vehicle.

Description

FIELD

This invention relates generally to the field of two-wheel vehicles. More particularly, the disclosed invention relates to a stand for quickly, easily and safely securing two-wheel vehicles in an upright position, by clamping the front or rear tire.

BACKGROUND

Presently, a variety of stands exist to secure two-wheel vehicles. Often times these stands are designed to accomplish distinct functions such as providing for a quick and easy park of the vehicle or for securing the vehicle for maintenance, repair and transport. As a result two-wheel vehicle users often require different stands to perform different functions. Generally, two categories of two-wheel vehicle stands exist: parking stands that provide a quick and easy park of the vehicle; and securing stands that provide stability for maintenance, repair, and/or transport.

One example of a typical parking stand is a single side kickstand. These stands are designed to park the two-wheel vehicle in a leaning position quickly by allowing the user, with minimal effort, to extend and retract the stand while sitting on the vehicle. The problem with single side kickstands is that they provide little stability in preventing the two-wheel vehicle from falling on its side. Single side kickstands also make routine maintenance and repair procedures difficult because essential areas of the vehicle are difficult to access unless the vehicle is upright.

Another example of a typical parking stand is a center stand that supports the vehicle on both sides. Center stands increase the stability of the vehicle by keeping it in an upright position. Center stands also make simple maintenance procedures easier by keeping the vehicle in an upright position, thereby allowing free access to the engine and fluid openings. One problem with centers stands is that to secure the vehicle, the vehicle must be vertically lifted and placed upon the stand, which may be difficult for heavier vehicles such as motorcycles. Also, center stands are only slightly more stable than single side kickstands and generally cannot secure the vehicle for major repairs and maintenance or transport.

One example of a securing stand is a rear wheel stand that connects to the swingarm spools of the vehicle. These stands provide great stability by lifting the rear wheel and supporting the vehicle on both sides. The problem with rear wheel stands is that they require time and effort from the user to attach the stand to the swingarm spools of the vehicle in order to securely hold the vehicle for any maintenance or repair work. Further, many rear wheel stands require a special swingarm with spools for the stand to attach properly.

For the reasons stated above, and for other reasons stated below that will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading and understanding the present specification, there is a need in the art for a stand that can quickly and easily secure any two-wheel vehicle in an upright position for functions such as parking, maintenance, repairs and transport.

SUMMARY

This disclosure relates to a two-wheel vehicle stand for quickly, easily and safely securing two-wheel vehicles in an upright position by clamping the front or rear tire of the vehicle. The stand can be used to secure a variety of two-wheel vehicles in an upright position, including motorcycles. The stand is particularly useful for securing a motorcycle while transporting the motorcycle, where the stand can be suitably disposed on a trailer or in the bed of a pick-up truck. However, the stand can also be used for securing any type of two-wheel vehicle in an upright position for functions such as parking, maintenance, and repair.

The stand includes a switching mechanism coupled to a clamping mechanism. The clamping mechanism comprises two opposing supports that are configured to clamp the front or rear wheel of the two-wheel vehicle therebetween to secure the vehicle in an upright position.

The switching mechanism is configured to actuate the clamping function of the opposing supports. The switching mechanism is designed to be actuatable while a user is on the vehicle, for example while the user is sitting on or straddling the vehicle. This allows the user to bring the vehicle into engagement with the stand, and then actuate the clamping mechanism without having to dismount the vehicle.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a two-wheel vehicle stand in a clamped position clamping a front wheel of a motorcycle to secure the motorcycle in an upright position.

FIG. 2 is a front view of the two-wheel vehicle stand in an unclamped position.

FIG. 3 is view similar to FIG. 2 but provided with arrows to show the movement directions of the various components of the stand during actuation.

FIG. 4 is a side view of the stand.

FIG. 5 is a view of the stand in the clamped position showing the over-center action.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The invention relates to a stand for use in securing two-wheel vehicles in an upright position by clamping the front or rear tire. The stand can be used to secure a variety of two-wheel vehicles in an upright position. The description will describe the use of the stand with a motorcycle. However, it is to be realized that the inventive concepts described herein could be used on other two-wheel vehicles, including bicycles.

Advantageously, the stand includes a switching mechanism that allows the user to quickly and easily secure the motorcycle while the user is still on the motorcycle. The stand is also adjustable to secure different size tires, and the stand includes safety features to protect the vehicle and the user.

With reference to FIG. 1, a two-wheel vehicle stand 100 that secures a motorcycle 50 in an upright position is illustrated. The stand 100 is configured to clamp either a front wheel 52 or a rear wheel 54 of the motorcycle. The language “clamping a wheel” or the like as used throughout this specification, including the claims, is intended to encompass clamping the tire, clamping the rim on which the tire is supported, or clamping portions of the tire and the rim.

In FIG. 1, the stand 100 is in a clamped position and is illustrated as clamping the front wheel 52. FIG. 2 illustrates the stand 100 in an unclamped position. The stand 100 is configured so that when the motorcycle 50 is clamped in the stand 100, the motorcycle 50 remains locked in an upright position. Although the stand 100 is illustrated as clamping the front wheel 52, the stand 100 could instead clamp the rear wheel 54.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the stand 100 includes a two-wheel vehicle stand base 102, and a clamping mechanism 104 coupled to a switching mechanism 130. The base 102, clamping mechanism 104 and the switching mechanism 130 are made primarily of metal components, for example steel. The clamping mechanism 104 comprises first and second opposing supports 106, 108, respectively, configured to clamp the front wheel 52 of the motorcycle 50 between them. The first support 106 is generally parallel to the second support 108. To add rigidity to the base 102, a brace 125 is secured to the base 102, for example by welding.

The first support 106 comprises an angled support arm 110 and a horizontal support arm 112 that is secured to the base 102. The support arm 110 is secured to the horizontal support arm 112 and is angled forwardly therefrom to create an obtuse angle with the support arm 112. Likewise, the second opposing support 108 comprises an angled clamping arm 118 and a horizontal clamping arm 120. The angled clamping arm 118 is secured to the horizontal clamping arm 120 and is angled forwardly therefrom at the same obtuse angle as the support arm 110 and the horizontal support arm 112. This configuration of the supports 106, 108 results in the wheel 52 being clamped at three locations: 1) an upper portion of the wheel by the upper portions of the arms 108, 110; 2) a lower portion of the wheel by the lower portions of the arms 108, 100; and 3) the base of the wheel by the arms 112, 120.

As shown in FIG. 2, the first support 106 also comprises an anchor support arm 114 connected at one end to the support arm 110 and connected at the other end to the base 102. The support arm 114 provides support and stability to the support 106. In addition, clamping tubes 116 are secured proximate the top and bottom of the support arm 110 and project toward the support arm 118 for a purpose to be later described.

With continued reference to FIG. 2 and with reference to FIG. 4, the clamping arm 120 is supported on the base 102 by wheels 122 secured to the bottom of the clamping arm 120. The wheels 122 are positioned such that the second support 108 is movable toward and away from the first support 106 by rolling on the base 102 while remaining parallel to first opposing support 106. Forward and backward movements of the clamping arm 120 are prevented by clamping bars discussed below which are inside of the clamping tubes 116 secured to the support arm 110.

The second support 108 also comprises a pair of clamping bars 124 that are secured proximate the top and bottom of the clamping arm 118 in registry with the clamping tubes 116, such that the clamping bars 124 can slide in and out of the clamping tubes 116. In the unclamped position shown in FIG. 2, the ends of the clamping bars 124 remain inside the clamping tubes 116. When the support 108 moves toward the support 106, the clamping bars 124 slide inside the tubes 116, with the tubes 116 and bars 124 helping to maintain the alignment of the supports 106, 108. In an alternative embodiment, the clamping bars 124 may be secured to the support arm 110 and the clamping tubes 116 may be secured to the clamping arm 118.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a clamping brace 126 is secured near the center of the clamping arm 118. The stand 100 includes a switching mechanism 130 that is connected to the brace 126 for actuating the clamping mechanism 104. In particular, the switching mechanism 130 is configured to actuate the support 108 toward the support 106 to clamp the wheel 52 therebetween.

The switching mechanism 130 comprises a handle support leg 132, a force transfer leg 134 and a handle 156. The handle support leg 132 is secured to and extends upwardly from the base 102, and includes a vertical handle arm 136, an anchor arm 138 and an L-shaped arm 140. The anchor arm 138 and the arm 140 provide support and stability to the vertical arm 136. The top of the arm 136 includes two opposing flanges 142-1 and 142-2 that form a part of a safety mechanism when the stand 100 is clamping the motorcycle. In particular, when the clamping mechanism 104 is in the clamped position, the handle 156 is disposed between the two flanges 142-1 and 142-2. The flanges 142-1 and 142-2 include opposing apertures 144 that receive a safety pin 56 (shown in FIG. 1) that can be inserted into the opposing apertures 144. The pin 56 prevents the clamping mechanism 104 from becoming unclamped by restricting upward movement of the handle 156. The flange 142-2 also contains small apertures 146 located one above the other that allow springs 148 (discussed below) to fasten onto the handle support leg 132.

The force transfer leg 134 includes an upper portion 150 and a lower portion 152. In the illustrated embodiment, the upper portion 150 is integrally connected to the lower portion 152. The bottom end of the lower portion 152 is secured to the base 102 by a hinge 154 that allows the leg 134 to pivot about the hinge 154 toward and away from the support 108. A link 162 is fixed at one end thereof proximate the center of the force transfer leg 134 and fixed at its opposite end to a handle brace 158.

A link rod 153 is fixed at one end to the clamping brace 126 and at its opposite end proximate the center of the force transfer leg 134 just below the connection point of the link 162 to the leg 134. The upper portion 150 of the leg 134 contains two apertures 146 to enable the other ends of the springs 148 to be secured to the leg 134. The springs 148 bias the leg 134 away from the clamping mechanism 104, so that when the clamping mechanism 104 is at the clamped position shown in FIG. 1, the springs 148 return the clamping mechanism 104 and the switch mechanism 130 back to the position shown in FIG. 2 upon release of the switch mechanism 130.

At one end, the handle brace 158 is hinged to one end of an adjustment bolt 160. The other end of the adjustment bolt 160 extends into and beyond the vertical handle arm 136. The adjustment bolt 160 is fastened on either side of the vertical handle arm 136 by adjustment nuts 161. The adjustment nuts 161 are used to adjust the travel distance of the second support 108 toward the support 106 by altering the range of travel of the handle brace 158 and the force transfer leg 134. This allows the stand 100 to be adjusted to fit motorcycles with different wheel thicknesses. The other end of the handle brace 158 is hinged to both the handle 156 and the link 162 at connection point 163, so that the handle 156 and the link 162 are secured to one another through the hinge at the handle brace 158.

As shown in FIG. 1, the handle 156 is configured so that it extends rearwardly along a portion of the length of the motorcycle. Preferably, the handle 156 extends rearwardly a sufficient distance to allow a rider of the motorcycle to actuate the handle 156, and thus the clamping mechanism 104, using either the rider's foot or hand, while the rider is on the motorcycle 50, either sitting on the motorcycle seat or straddling the motorcycle seat. This eliminates the need for the user to get off of the motorcycle in order to actuate the stand 100.

FIG. 3 illustrates the stand 100 and the general direction of movement of the various components to actuate the clamping mechanism 104. When a downward force 60 is applied to the handle 156 of the switching mechanism 130 by the rider using his foot or hand, the handle brace 158 pivots downward in the direction of the arrow 60 and the link 162 is forced downward and to the right. As a result, the link 162 applies a generally horizontal force 62 to the force transfer arm 134 which in turn exerts a generally horizontal force 62 on the second support 108. The transfer arm 134 transfers substantially all of the downward force from the handle 156 to a horizontal force thereby keeping the support 108 “free-floating” and reducing bind. When the horizontal force is exerted on the second support 108, the support 108 is forced towards the first support 106 to clamp the wheel 52. As the second support 108 moves toward the first support 106, the clamping bars 124 slide within the clamping tubes 116 thereby keeping the second support 108 aligned with the first support 106.

With reference to FIG. 5, the brace 158 and the link 162 provide a slight over-center action when the clamping mechanism 104 is at the clamped position. During actuation by the handle 156, the brace 158 and link 162 pivot downward eventually becoming parallel to each other (not shown). At that position of the brace 158 and link 162, the second support 108 is at its closest position to the first support 106 and the maximum clamping force is being applied to the wheel. However, rather than staying parallel, the brace 158 and link 162 continue pivoting downward to the position shown in FIG. 5, so that the connection point 163 between the handle 156, the brace 158 and the link 162 travels down closer toward the L-shaped arm 140. At this position, the brace 158 and the link 162 are slightly non-parallel to each other, with the connection point 163 between the handle 156, the brace 158 and the link 162 positioned slightly below the points of connection between the bolt 160 and the brace 158 and between the link 162 and the transfer arm 134. At the same time, the second support 108 is moved slightly away from the first support 106, thereby slightly decreasing the clamping force from the maximum clamping force. Because of the over-center action, any return force acting on the link 162 caused by the wheel would tend to force the connection point 163 downward toward the L-shaped arm 140, thereby tending to maintain the clamping effect of the stand 100. The L-shaped arm 140 is positioned directly underneath the connection point 163 so that the arm 140 acts as a downward stop to limit the downward travel of the connection point 163, yet still permit the over-center action.

The clamping mechanism 104 remains in position until the user lifts upwardly on the handle 156. To prevent inadvertent unclamping, the safety pin 56 is inserted into the apertures 144 in the flanges 142-1 and 142-2 between which the handle 156 is disposed. The pin 56 prevents the handle 156 from being lifted upward, thereby keeping the stand 100 securely clamped.

The stand 100 and clamping mechanism 104 are capable of exerting a large force on the wheel 52. In one implementation of the stand, the parts of the stand 100 are configured so that the handle 156 travels a distance of about 12.0 inches during actuation in order to move the support 108 toward the support 106 a distance of about 2.0 inches. This multiplies the clamping forces by a factor of about 6. As a result, if a user applies about 100 pounds of force on the handle 156, a clamping force of about 600 pounds is applied to the wheel 52. This is more than enough clamping force to securely clamp the wheel 52 and hold the motorcycle in an upright position.

With reference to FIG. 2, tie-down rings 200 can be secured to the base 102. The rings 200 provide connection points for straps to allow a user to strap the motorcycle down during transportation.

Claims

1. A stand for securing a two-wheel vehicle having a front wheel and a rear wheel, the stand comprising:

a base;

a clamping mechanism secured to the base and having first and second opposing supports, wherein the opposing supports are configured to be actuated so as to clamp the front or rear wheel of the two-wheel vehicle therebetween to retain the vehicle in an upright position; and

a switching mechanism connected to the clamping mechanism, wherein the switching mechanism actuates the clamping mechanism, and the switching mechanism includes an actuating handle that extends along a portion of the vehicle a sufficient extent to allow the actuating handle to be actuated while a user is on the vehicle.

2. The stand of claim 1, wherein the first opposing support is fixed to the base and the second opposing support is mounted so as to be moveable toward and away from the first opposing support between an unclamped position and a clamped position.

3. The stand of claim 2, further comprising wheels attached to the second opposing support, the wheels being in rolling engagement with the base.

4. The stand of claim 2, wherein the switching mechanism includes a mechanism for adjusting the distance that the second opposing support can move toward and away from the first opposing support.

5. The stand of claim 2, wherein the actuating handle is moveable between a first, unclamped position and a second, clamped position, at the unclamped position of the handle the second opposing support is at the unclamped position and at the clamped position of the handle the second opposing support is at the clamped position.

6. The stand of claim 5, further comprising means for retaining the handle and the second opposing support at their respective clamped positions.

7. The stand of claim 2, further comprising means for biasing the second opposing support toward the unclamped position.

8. The stand of claim 1, further comprising tie down rings secured to the base.

9. A stand for securing a motorcycle in an upright position, the motorcycle having a front wheel and a rear wheel, the stand comprising:

a base;

a clamping mechanism secured to the base and having first and second supports, wherein the first support is fixed to the base and the second support is supported on the base so as to be moveable toward and away from the first support between an unclamped position where the front or rear wheel of the motorcycle is not clamped between the first and second supports and a clamped position where the front or rear wheel of the motorcycle is clamped between the first and second supports to retain the vehicle in an upright position; and

a switching mechanism mounted to the base and connected to the clamping mechanism so as to actuate the second support, and the switching mechanism includes an actuating handle that extends along a portion of the length of the motorcycle a sufficient extent to allow the actuating handle to be actuated while a user is on the motorcycle.

10. The stand of claim 9, further comprising wheels attached to the second support, the wheels being in rolling engagement with the base.

11. The stand of claim 9, wherein the switching mechanism includes a mechanism for adjusting the distance that the second support can move toward and away from the first support.

12. The stand of claim 9, wherein the actuating handle is moveable between a first, unclamped position and a second, clamped position, at the unclamped position of the handle the second support is at the unclamped position and at the clamped position of the handle the second support is at the clamped position.

13. The stand of claim 12, further comprising means for retaining the handle and the second support at their respective clamped positions.

14. The stand of claim 9, further comprising means for biasing the second support toward the unclamped position.

15. The stand of claim 9, further comprising tie down rings secured to the base.

16. The stand of claim 9, wherein the motorcycle includes a seat, and the handle extends along the length of the motorcycle a sufficient distance to enable a user to actuate the handle while the user is seated on the seat or straddling the seat.

17. A method of securing a motorcycle in an upright position, the motorcycle having a front wheel and a rear wheel, the method comprising:

moving the front or rear wheel of the motorcycle between two opposing supports of a clamping mechanism; and

manually actuating a switching mechanism connected to the clamping mechanism to force the two opposing supports closer together in order to clamp the front or rear wheel of the motorcycle between the supports to retain the motorcycle in an upright position, where the switching mechanism is manually actuated while a user is on the motorcycle.