Folding Bicycle Hinge Shaft with Nested Hub Support
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional bicycles with integrated frames are inconvenient for storage and transportation due to their bulky folding structures, which hinder their compactness and stability in both folded and unfolded states.
Innovation Solution
A folding type bicycle design featuring a front frame, center frame, and rear frame pivotally connected via a hinge device with a hinge shaft, ring bracket, and rolling members, allowing for compact folding and stable maintenance in an unfolded state, incorporating a generator, battery, motor, and electronic control unit for enhanced functionality.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a bicycle employs an integrated frame, then the structure is simple and stable, but it is inconvenient for storage and transportation
Solution Approach 1:
The bicycle frame is divided into multiple segments (front frame, center frame, rear frame) that can pivot relative to each other. The hinge device with front hinge member, center hinge member, and rear hinge member allows the frame to be folded into a compact configuration for storage and transportation, while maintaining structural integrity when unfolded.
2Ease of operation
If a bicycle has a foldable frame, then it is convenient for storage and transportation, but the folding structure becomes bulky and inconvenient
Solution Approach 1:
The hinge members are designed with nested hubs where the front hub, center hub, and rear hub align along a common hinge shaft. This nesting arrangement allows the frame segments to fold compactly without requiring excessive space, creating a streamlined folding structure rather than a bulky one.
Solution Approach 2:
Multiple functional elements are merged into unified components. The hinge shaft serves as a common axis for all three hinge members, and the hubs are positioned to share the same rotational axis. This merging reduces the number of separate parts and simplifies the overall folding structure.
3Ease of operation
If a bicycle frame is made foldable, then storage and transportation become convenient, but stability in the unfolded state may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The hinge device includes preliminary positioning features that ensure the frame segments align correctly before final locking. The spaced-apart supporting positions on the hinge shaft provide pre-positioned support points that maintain frame stability in the unfolded state, preventing unwanted movement or misalignment.
4Stability of the object's composition
If the hinge shaft supports multiple positions, then the folding structure becomes more stable, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The hinge shaft serves multiple functions simultaneously: it acts as the rotational axis for all three hinge members, provides multiple supporting positions for frame stability, and aligns the hubs in a common plane. This multi-functionality reduces the need for additional separate components, thereby limiting the increase in device complexity despite the added stability features.
Data Source
AI summary
A folding type bicycle including a front frame provided with a front wheel and a handle, a center frame provided with pedals and a saddle, a rear frame provided with a rear wheel, a hinge device to enable the front frame, the center frame and the rear frame to pivot about one another, to be foldable with respect to one another, the hinge device comprising a front hinge member provided at the front frame, a center hinge member provided at the center frame, and a rear hinge member provided at the rear frame, and a hinge shaft configured to support a front hub, which is provided at a center of the front hinge member, a center hub, which is provided at a center of the center hinge member, and a rear hub, which is provided at a center of the rear hinge member, the hinge shaft passing through the front hub, the center hub and the rear hub, wherein the hinge shaft enables the supporting on at least two positions that are spaced apart from each other in a longitudinal direction of the hinge shaft.