Title of Invention

"VEHICLE HANDLE LOCKING DEVICE"

Abstract

A vehicle handle locking device, for a vehicle supporting a head tube section extending in a vertical direction formed at a front end of a vehicle body frame, and a steering boss formed on a front fork and rotatably engaged with the outside of the head tube section, characterized in that it has a lock unit provided with a lock pin moved in and out by a key operation which is fitted into the inside of the head section, and a lock hole for accommodating the lock pin when projecting is provided in the steering boss.

Full Text

(Detailed Description Of The Invention) [Technical Field) The present invention relates to improvement to a handle locking device, for a vehicle such as a bicycle or motor cycle etc, that has a front fork sleerably supported at the front section of a vehicle body frame, that is designed to prevent theft by making it Impossible to turn the front fork | Related Art | Vehicle handle locking devices are well known, as disclosed, for example, in Japanese Utility Model No. 61-44941. [Problems To Be Solved By The Invention] A conventional vehicle provided with a front fork generally has a steering stem extending to the front fork rotatably supported by a head pipe formed at a front end of the vehicle frame. To install a handle locking device in this type of vehicle a lock unit is fixed to a bracket attached to one of the head pipe or the front fork, and a lock plate allowing engagement with a lock pin of the lock unit is fixed to the other. In this way, with a handle locking unit of a conventional vehicle a bracket is needed for mounting the lock unit, which increases the number of components and hinders cost reduction. The present invention has been conceived in order to solve the above described problems, and has as its object to provide a vehicle handlebar locking device that does not require a special bracket for mounting a lock unit, thus reducing the number of components, is low priced, and has an improved external appearance. [Means Of Solving The Problems] In order to achieve the above object, a first aspect of present invention provides a vehicle handle locking device, for a vehicle supporting a head tube section extending in a vertical direction formed at a front end of a vehicle body frame, and a steering boss formed on a front fork and rotatably engaged with the outside of the head tube section, wherein a lock unit provided with a lock pin moved in and out by a key operation is fitted into the inside of the head tube section, and a lock hole for accommodating the lock pin when it is projecting is provided in the steering boss. According to the first aspect of the present invention, a lock unit is fitted into a hoHow section of the head tube section, which means that there is no need for a special bracket for attaching the lock unit, the number of components is reduced, and it is possible to reduce the cost. Also, the lock unit inside the head tube is not formed with a portion projecting from the outer surface of the head tube, so improved external appearance of the vehicle is also obtained. In addition to the above features, a second aspect of the present invention also has an ignition switch for opening and closing an engine ignition switch by a key operation housed in the lock unit, and leads extending to the ignition switch wired inside the head tube section According to the second aspect, leads connecting to the ignition switch can be housed inside the vehicle body frame, and the external appearance can be further improved. In addition to the features of the above described first and second aspects, a third Aspect of the present invention has the lock unit constructed in the shape of a cap for closing an opening end of the head tube Section. According to the third aspect, the lock unit can also function as the cap for closing off the opening end of the head tube Section, so there is no need for a dedicated cap, the number of components can be reduced, and the external appearance can be improved. Accordingly, the present invention relates to a vehicle handle locking device, for a vehicle supporting a head tube section extending in a vertical direction formed at a front end of a vehicle body frame, and a steering boss formed on a front fork and rotatably engaged with the outside of the head tube section, characterized in that it has a lock unit provided with a lock pin moved in and out by a key operation which is fitted into the inside of the head section, and a lock hole for accommodating the lock pin when projecting is provided in the steering boss. [Brief Description Of The Drawings] Fig. 1 is a side view of a moped type motorcycle having a handlebar lock of a first embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 2 is an enlarged cross sectional view of essential parts of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a view looking in the direction of arrow 3 in Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is a cross sectional view along line 4 - 4 in Fig. 1; Fig. 5 is an enlarged cross sectional view of section 5 in Fig. 1; Fig. 6 is a view looking in the direction of arrow 6 in Fig. 5; Fig. 7 is a side view of a motor cycle of a second embodiment of the present invention; and Fig. 8 is an enlarged cross sectional view of essential parts of Fig. 7. Embodiments Of The Invention] Embodiments of the present invention will now be described, with reference to the attached drawings. Fig. 1 is a side view of a moped type motorcycle having a handlebar lock of a first embodiment of the present invention, Fig. 2 is an enlarged cross sectional view of essential parts of Fig. 1, Fig. 3 is a view looking in the direction of arrow 3 in Fig. 2, Fig. 4 is a cross sectional view along line 4 - 4 in Fig. 1, Fig. 5 is an enlarged cross sectional view of section 5 in Fig. 1, Fig. 6 is a view looking in the direction of arrow 6 in Fig. 5, Fig. 7 is a side view of a motor cycle of a second embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 8 is an enlarged cross sectional view of essential parts of Fig. 7. A first embodiment of the present invention shown in Fig. 1 to Fig 6 will first be described. In Fig. 1, the vehicle body frame 2 of the moped type motorcycle comprises a head tube 2h arranged sloping forwards and downwards, a down tube section 2d extending diagonally downwards and backwards from the lower end of the head tube 2h, a bottom tube section 2b extending substantially horizontally from the lower end of the down tube section 2d towards the rear, and a rear tube section 2r extending diagonally upwards and backwards from the rear end of the bottom tube section 2b. The head tube 2h, the down tube section 2d and the bottom tube section .2b are integrally made from.a single steel pipe to constitute a front frame 2F. The rear tube section 2r is formed from a steel tube that is separate from the front frame 2F, to constitute a rear frame 2R. These front and rear frames 2F and 2R are connected together by a connecting member 30. This connecting structure will be described later. A front fork 4 supporting a front wheel 3f is attached to the head tube 2h, a step 5 is attached to the bottom tube section 2b, and a power unit 6 for supporting and driving a rear wheel 3r and a supporting frame 7 arranged above the power unit 6 are attached to a lower part of the rear tube section 2r. A rear fender 8 covering the top of the rear wheel 3r is integrally formed with the supporting frame 7. The supporting frame 7 also houses a fuel tank 9 and has a tail light 10 attached to its rear end. A support post 12a for a seat 12 is inserted into the top of the rear tube section 2r and clamped. As shown in Fig. 1 and Fig. 2, the front fork 4 is fixed to both sides of a steering boss 11, and is formed from a pair of left and right expandable fork legs 4a and 4b extending substantially parallel to the steering boss 11, with the front wheel 3f being axially supported at the lower ends of the two fork legs 4a and 4b. The steering boss 1 1 is rotatably engaged with the outside of the head tube 2h via a pair of upper and lower angular contact bearings 13a and 13b. Outer races of the angular contact bearings 13a and 13b are fitted onto respective bearing housings 18a and 18b formed inside the upper and lower end sections of the steering boss 1 1. An inner race of the lower angular contact bearing 13b is fitted onto an upwardly tapered ridge portion 14 formed at the join of the head tube 2h and the down tube section 2d, while an inner race of the upper angular contact bearing 13a is fixed to the outside of an upper end of the head tube 2h using a ring nut 15. Handlebars 16a and 16b for steering are attached to the rear surface of the steering boss 1 1. Specifically, a pair of upper and lower handlebar attachment lugs 17a and 17b are integrally formed on the rear surface of the steering boss 1 1, and lower ends of the pair of left and right handlebars 16a and 16b are respectively held between the lugs 17a and 17b and a pair of upper and lower handlebar caps 18a and 18b bolted to the lugs. The front fork 4 and the front wheel 3f can be turned left and right by steering the handlebars left and right. The upper end of the head tube 2h is open, and a cylindrical unit case 21 of a lock unit 20 is fitted into the inside of the open end by press fitting or the like. The open end of the head tube 2h is thus closed off. That is, the lock unit 20 also functions as a face cap for closing the open end of the head tube 2h. As shown in Fig. 3, the lock unit 20 is provided with a rotary element 22 having a key hole 23 in the center of the unit case 21, and this rotary element 22 is turned to an off position OFF, or a handle bar lock position L or an on position ON, by inserting a special key 24 into the keyhole 23. The lock position L and ON position are on either side of the OFF position. If the rotary element 22 is turned from the OFF position to the handlebar lock position L, a lock pin 25 projects through the side wall of the unit case 21, and if it is then returned to the OFF position the lock pin 26 is left inside the unit case 21. A through hole 26 for allowing passage of the lock pin 25 when the lock pin 25 is projecting is provided in the head tube 2h, and a flat bottomed lock hole 27 for accommodating the tip end of the lock pin 25 is formed on the inside of the steering boss 11 An ignition switch for opening and closing an ignition circuit of an engine 6a of the power unit 6 is housed in the lock unit 20. With the rotary element 22 at the OFF position the ignition circuit is off, and with the rotary element 22 in the On position the ignition circuit is on. Fitting the key 24 into the keyhole 23 makes it possible to turn the rotary element 22 to the OFF position or the handlebar lock position L A lead 28 linked to the ignition switch is connected to the lower end of the unit case 21. The lead 28 is arranged in the hollow part of the head tube 2h , the down tube section 2d and the bottom tube section 2b, and passes through an lead access hole 29 (refer to Fig. 5) opening into the rear end of the bottom tube section 2b to connect to the ignition circuit of the engine 6a. If the rotary element 22 is turned to the handlebar lock position L using the key 24 inserted into the keyhole 23 of the lock unit 20, the lock pin 25 projects outside the unit case 21 and engages in the lock hole 27 of the steering boss 11, thus preventing the front fork 4 linked to the steering boss 1 1 from turning, making steering impossible and preventing theft of the motorcycle. The hollow section of the head tube 2h is used to hold the lock unit 20 , so there is no need for a special bracket for attaching the lock unit 20, enabling a reduction in the number of components and the cost The lock unit 20 inside the head tube 2h is formed without a portion projecting outside the head tube 2h so the external appearance of the vehicle 1 can also be improved. The lead 28 for linking to the ignition switch housed inside the lock unit 20 is arranged in the hollow sections of the head tube 2h and the down tube section 2d, which means a special cover is not used to cover the leads and the external appearance of the vehicle 1 can be further improved. The lock unit 20 is constructed so as to also act as a face cap for closing off the open end of the head tube 2h, which means that is no need for a special cap, making it possible to reduce the number of components and improve the external appearance of the vehicle 1. As shown in Fig. 1 and Fig. 4, stopper bosses 25a and 25b are integrally formed on both rear surfaces of the left and right fork legs 4a and 4b of the front fork 4, and rubber or synthetic resin stopper members 26a and 26b are fixed to these stopper bosses. The stopper members 26a and 26b function to regulate the turning limit of the front fork 4, that is, the maximum angle through which the handlebars rotate, in a buffered manner by coming into contact with side surfaces of the down tube section 2d when the front fork 4 is turned by the handlebars 16aand 16b. There is therefore no abrupt impact when the front fork 4 reaches its turning limit, and the outer surface of the down tube section 2d is not damaged by the stopper members 26a and 26b. The stopper bossed 25a and 25 b can also be used for core positioning when the front fork 4 is being cast. In Fig. 5 and Fig. 6, the bottom tube section 2b and the rear tube section 2r are detachably connected by a connecting member 30. The connecting member 30 is die cast from aluminum alloy, and is constructed with a second connecting pipe 302 extending in a backwards and upwards direction being integrally connected to the rear end of a first connecting pipe 30, extending in a horizontal direction. A continuous slot 3 1 extending in a front to rear direction is provided on the bottom of the two connecting pipes 30, and 302 . A plurality of sets (in the example in the drawing there are three) of mutually opposite pairs of left and right fastening bosses 32, 32 are formed on inner side walls of the separation slot 31, arranged in a front to rear direction. The rear end of the down tube section 2d and the lower end of the rear tube section 2r are respectively engaged in the first connecting pipe 30, and the second connecting pipe 302, and by fastening each set of fastening bosses 32 with a bolt 33 the dividing split is closed up to join the down tube section 2d and the rear tube section 2r using the first connecting pipe 301 and the second connecting pipe 302 so that the two tubes 2d and 2r can be integrally joined together. If the bolts 33 are loosened, the down tube section 2d and the rear tube section 2r can be respectively taken out of the first connecting pipe 301 and the second connecting pipe 302 to separate them. Accordingly, the front frame 2F comprising the head tube 2h , the down tube section 2d and the bottom tube section 2b, and a rear frame 2R including the rear tube section 2r can be suitably exchanged for frames having different shapes, and a plurality of types of vehicle frame having different shapes can be easily formed. Semi-circular indents 29a and 29b are respectively formed in both inner side walls of the slot 31, at central sections of the first and second connecting pipes 30, and 302, and these indents constitute the lead feed hole 29. The lead 28 is fed out from the lead feed hole 29, and connected to the ignition circuit of the engine 6a. The lead feed hole 29 can be formed easily without reducing the strength of the vehicle frame 2, and wiring of the lead 28 can be carried out easily. Further, a pair of left and right power unit hanger bosses 34 for swingably supporting the power unit 6 are integrally formed in both inner side walls of an upper section of the slot 31. In this way, a connecting member 30 for connecting between the front frame 2F and the rear frame 2R also has the function of supporting the power unit 6, which enables simplification of the structure. Next, a second embodiment of the present invention shown in Fig. 7 and Fig. 8 will be described. This embodiment has the locking device of the present invention applied to a motor cycle having a backbone type vehicle frame 2. That is, a front end section of the tubular steel backbone type vehicle frame 2 comprises a downwardly curved head tube 2h, and a steering boss 1 1 is steerably supported on the head tube 2h via a pair of upper and lower angular contact bearings 13a and 13b. A lock unit 2 that does not include an ignition switch is fitted inside the opened lower end of the head tube 2h by press fitting etc. This lock unit 2 is also provided with a lock pin 25 that sticks out as a result of turning the rotary element with a key 24, and a through hole 26 allowing penetration of the lock pin 25 is provided in the lower side wall of the head tube 2h for when the lock pin projects, and a lock hole 27 for accommodating the lock pin 25 is provided inside the steering boss 1 1 at a lower part thereof. A power unit 6 including an engine 6a is attached to the lower side of the vehicle frame 2, with a fuel tank 9 and a seat 12 being attached to the upper side of the vehicle frame 2. In the drawings, parts that correspond to parts in the previous embodiment have the same reference numerals attached thereto, and detailed description of those parts has been omitted. The present invention is not limited to the above described embodiments, and various design modifications are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. For example, it is possible for the front wheel 3f to be cantilever supported by a single leg type front fork. The present invention can also be applied to a bicycle. [Effects of the Invention] According to the first aspect of the invention as described in the above, in a vehicle having a vertically extending head tube formed at the front end of a vehicle frame, and a steering boss formed on a front fork and swingably engaged and supported on the outside of the head tube, a lock unit having a lock that is made to stick out as a result of a key operation is fitted inside the head tube and a lock hole for accommodating the lock pin when it is projecting is provided in the steering boss. This means that the lock unit can be attached to the inside of the head tube without using a bracket so that it becomes possible to reduce the number of components and also the cost. Also, the lock unit inside the head tube does not form a projecting portion sticking out from the head tube, and so the external appearance of the vehicle can be improved. According to the second aspect of the present invention, an ignition switch for opening and closing an ignition circuit of the engine as a result of a key operation is built into the lock unit and a lead for connecting to the ignition switch is wired inside the head tube. This means that the lead connecting to the ignition switch can be contained with in the vehicle frame making it possible to further improve the external appearance of the vehicle. According to the third aspect of the present invention, the lock unit forms a cap structure for closing off the opened end of the head tube which means that the lock unit also serves the function of a face cap for closing of the head tube so there is no need for a special face cap, thus reducing the number of components and improving the external appearance. [Description Of The Numerals] 1 Vehicle (motor cycle) 2 vehicle body frame 2h head tube section 4 front fork 11 steering boss 20 lock unit 23 keyhole 24 key 27 lock hole 28 leads We claim; 1. A vehicle handle locking device, for a vehicle supporting a head tube section (2h) extending in a vertical direction formed at a front end of a vehicle body frame (2), and a steering boss (11) formed on a front fork (4) and rotatably engaged with the outside of the head tube section (2h), characterized in that it has a lock unit (20) provided with a lock pin (25) moved in and out by a key operation which is fitted into the inside of the head section (2h), and a lock hole (27) for accommodating the lock pin (25) when projecting is provided in the steering boss (11). 2. The vehicle handle locking device as claimed in claim 1, wherein an ignition switch for opening and closing an engine ignition switch by a key operation is housed in the lock unit (20), and a lead (28) extending to the ignition switch are wired inside the head tube section (2h). 3. The vehicle handle locking device as claimed in claims 1 or 2, wherein the lock unit (20) is in the form of a cap for closing an opening end of the head tube section (2h). 4. A vehicle handle locking device substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Documents:

565-del-1999-abstract.pdf

565-del-1999-claims.pdf

565-del-1999-correspondence-others.pdf

565-del-1999-correspondence-po.pdf

565-del-1999-description (complete).pdf

565-del-1999-drawings.pdf

565-del-1999-form-1.pdf

565-del-1999-form-19.pdf

565-del-1999-form-2.pdf

565-del-1999-form-3.pdf

565-del-1999-form-4.pdf

565-del-1999-form-6.pdf

565-del-1999-gpa.pdf