Electronic transmission control system for a bicycle
First Claim
1. A bicycle transmission control system, comprising:
- generating means responsive to a rider for generating torque;
transmitting means for transmitting torque from the generating means to at least one wheel of the bicycle;
determining means for determining a cadence of the generating means in response to a calculated gear ratio and sensed bicycle speed;
means for indicating if the cadence determined by the determining means is outside a predetermined range for the calculated gear ratio and sensed bicycle speed;
and means for adjusting the transmitting means if the cadence determined by the determining means is outside the predetermined range for the calculated gear ratio and sensed bicycle speed
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
An electro-mechanical system for shifting gears on a multi-gear bicycle or other human-powered vehicle includes a closed loop derailleur position control system using a circuitry for measuring derailleur position. Shifting gears is accomplished automatically based on rider cadence or manually using signals supplied by hand operated switches. The system calculates gear ratios based on bicycle speed and cadence and then sorts the gear ratio in order from lowest to highest. During automatic operation, the system calculates a cadence from bicycle speed and gear ratio, determines if the calculated cadence is within predetermined limits set by the rider, and it changes the gear ratio if the calculated cadence is not within the predetermined limits. The system has additional modes of operation which include calibration modes for calibrating the positions of the front and rear derailleurs for each gear, as well as a semi-automatic mode in which the system calculates the cadence from the bicycle speed and gear ratio, and signals the rider to upshift or downshift if the cadence is outside of the predetermined limits selected by the rider. The electronic bicycle transmission control system of the present invention is retrofittable to a wide range of conventional multi-gear bicycles.
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Citations
40 Claims
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1. A bicycle transmission control system, comprising:
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generating means responsive to a rider for generating torque; transmitting means for transmitting torque from the generating means to at least one wheel of the bicycle; determining means for determining a cadence of the generating means in response to a calculated gear ratio and sensed bicycle speed; means for indicating if the cadence determined by the determining means is outside a predetermined range for the calculated gear ratio and sensed bicycle speed; and means for adjusting the transmitting means if the cadence determined by the determining means is outside the predetermined range for the calculated gear ratio and sensed bicycle speed - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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- 13. A bicycle including a frame, a set of gears, a derailleur controlled by a shift cable for selecting one of the gears, and having a retrofittable derailleur control system installed on the bicycle comprising an electro-mechanical actuation means including a rotating tubular portion having an inner threaded periphery attached to the frame, a shift arm means pivotally attached to the frame and coupled to the actuation means so that the shift arm means, in response to movement of the actuation means, acts on the shift cable to control the derailleur to select one of the gears.
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18. A method for controlling gear changing in a bicycle transmission comprising the steps of:
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calibrating the bicycle transmission by calculating a gear ratio from sensed bicycle speed and sensed cadence for each position of a derailleur in the bicycle transmission during a calibration mode; sorting the calculated gear ratios during the calibration mode; calculating a theoretical cadence from sensed bicycle speed and calculated gear ratio during an operational mode; determining if the calculated theoretical cadence is within predetermined limits; and providing a signal if the calculated theoretical cadence is outside the predetermined limits. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24)
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25. A transmission control system for a human-powered vehicle, comprising:
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a gear means; a crank means coupled to the gear means; cadence determining means for determining a cadence of the crank means; adjusting means including at least one actuator comprising motor means and at least one bellcrank pivotally coupled to and controlled by the at least one actuator; and computer control means responsive to the cadence determining means, for controlling the adjusting means, the computer control means comprising means for comparing the cadence with predetermined limits, means responsive to the comparison means for controlling the adjusting means, and at least one gear position sensor. - View Dependent Claims (26, 27, 28, 29)
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30. A bicycle transmission control system, comprising:
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a derailleur means for moving a chain between gears; means for sensing a position of the derailleur means; means for sensing bicycle speed; means for sensing a cadence; and control means, responsive to the means for sensing a position of the derailleur means, the control means comprising calculation means for calculating a gear ratio in response to sensed bicycle speed and sensed cadence for each position of the derailleur means, for controlling the position of the derailleur means. - View Dependent Claims (31, 32, 33)
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34. In a bicycle having at least one set of sprockets coupled to at least one wheel and a chain which is selectably moved between individual sprockets int he set of sprockets by an adjusting means, a programmable, retrofittable control system, comprising:
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switch means for entering data relating to at least a physical configuration of the at least one set of sprockets; reprogrammable memory means for storing the data relating to at least the physical configuration of the at least one set of sprockets and data relating to a state of the adjusting means for any selected individual sprocket in the set of sprockets; accessing means for retrieving the data stored in the memory means; means for receiving commands from a rider, the commands indicating a desired position of the adjusting means; and control means, responsive to the means for receiving command and the data retrieved by the accessing means, for controlling the adjusting means to move the chain to any selected individual sprocket in the set of sprockets. - View Dependent Claims (35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40)
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Specification