Field of the Invention

The present invention finds application in the field of sport and leisure accessories, and particularly relates to a quick- connect structure for bicycle saddles.

The invention further relates to the components of the quick- connect lock according to the invention.

Prior art

One of the drawbacks associated with two-wheeled vehicles, particularly bicycles and motorcycles, is known to be the limited luggage-carrying capacity of such means of transport.

Especially in bicycles, a problem may also arise from the need of carrying emergency equipment and accessories to be used in case of mechanical breakdowns, including screw drivers or wrenches. Special containers or tool kits have been designed to this purpose.

A number of technical arrangements have been developed to solve the problem of carrying such containers.

Document EP-A-1413504 discloses and claims a bicycle saddle having a hollow compartment at its front end, for storage of equipment. This arrangement is rather uncomfortable and bulky and requires a rather large saddle.

From WO03-013946, an apparatus is known that allows to attach a tool kit to a bicycle seat post. This arrangement is also bulky and impractical, and has the advantage of at least partly preventing seat post adjustment, thereby limiting the function of this component.

US-A-5593126 discloses a system for attaching accessories to the saddle, using a clip to be connected to the saddle rail. This arrangement also has drawbacks in that, in addition to limiting rail adjustment, it uses a connector member between the saddle and the accessory to be connected, which may loosen or fail with time.

Other arrangements more or less associated to the above, are disclosed in US-A-5655694, WO03-024770, US2004-149792, US-A- 5893501 and US-A-4566617.

From WO02-038436 a connector system located behind a bicycle saddle is known, which comprises a support designed to house a tool kit, and is directly connected to the saddle. In addition to the same problem of bulkiness as the above models, such arrangement has the disadvantage of causing undesired noisy vibrations of the objects being carried, especially when they are made of metal. Also, the connector device alone is attached to the rear of the saddle by appropriate attachment means, which may loosen and cause an accidental loss of accessories.

Summary of the invention

The object of this invention is to overcome the above drawbacks, by providing a quick-connect structure for a bicycle saddle which achieves high efficiency and has a relatively simple construction.

A particular object is to provide a structure that allows an easy and safe connection of accessories to the bicycle saddle.

Another object of the invention is to provide a structure that does not limit the adjustment of saddle's sliding parts, such as the seat post or the rails.

A further object is to provide a structure having minimum space requirements.

These objects, as well as other objects that will be apparent hereafter, are achieved by providing a quick-connect structure for a bicycle saddle, according to claim 1, wherein the saddle has at least one load-bearing body, to be attached to a bicycle frame, which structure comprises at least one male member, that may be snap-fitted in a corresponding female member, said male and female members being associated to one of said saddle or said object, characterized in that at least one of said male and female members is integrally and monolithically formed in the body of said saddle.

Thanks to this particular arrangement, the structure of the invention allows an easy and safe connection of accessories to the bicycle saddle.

According to a further aspect of the invention, there are provided, according to the independent claim 15, a male member of a quick-connect structure for a bicycle saddle, which is designed to be rigidly attached to an object, such as a tool kit or the like and, according to claim 16, a female member of a quick-connect structure for a bicycle saddle, which is an integral part of the saddle body.

Brief description of the drawings

Further characteristics and advantages of the invention will be more apparent from the detailed description of a few preferred, non-exclusive embodiments of a quick-connect structure according to the invention, which is described as a non-limiting example with the help of the annexed drawings, in which: FIG. 1 is a partly sectional side view of a bicycle saddle comprising the structure according to the invention; FIG. 2 is a rear perspective view of a bicycle saddle comprising the structure according to the invention; FIG. 3 is a side view of a particular embodiment of a detail of FIG. 1; FIG. 4 is a side view of a particular embodiment of a detail of FIG. 1; FIG. 5 is a top view of a particular embodiment of a detail of FIG. 1; FIG. 6 is an axonometric view of a particular embodiment of a detail of FIG. 1; FIG. 7 is a plan view of a detail of FIG. 1; FIG. 8 is a partly sectional side view, taken on a plane VII-VII, of a detail of Fig. 1.

Detailed description of a preferred embodiment

Referring to the above figures, a quick-connect structure according to the invention, generally designated by reference numeral 1, is particularly suitable for removably coupling an accessory A, such as a tool kit, a mudguard, a reflector, a water bottle cage or the like, to a saddle S.

The saddle S has at least one load-bearing body 2 to be attached to a bicycle frame T, which is made, for instance, by plastics injection molding.

The structure 1 further comprises at least one male member 3, which may be snap-fitted in a corresponding female member 4. The male 3 and female 4 members are associated either to the saddle S or to the accessory A.

According to the invention, at least one of the male 3 and female 4 members is integrally and monolithically formed in the body 2 of the saddle S.

Advantageously, the other member may be rigidly attached to the accessory A.

Thus, accessories of any type may be easily and safely connected to the bicycle saddle, with no connection members therebetween which may be easily broken or damaged.

In the embodiment that is shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 by way of indication and without limitation, the female member 4 may integrally and monolithically formed in the body 2 in the proximity of its rear edge 5.

By this arrangement, the presence of the structure does not limit the adjustment of the saddle's sliding parts, such as the seat post or the saddle rail, as the latter do not interact with any part of the structure.

Suitably, the male member 3 may include a first elongated portion 6, for rigid connection to the accessory A and a second portion 7, for removable connection to the female member 4.

According to a first preferred embodiment, the first portion 6 and the second portion 7 may be joined together to form a predetermined angle a, as shown in FIG. 3.

In another preferred embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, the portions 6 and 7 may be rotatably coupled for mutual relative rotation about a predetermined axis X.

Thus, the accessory A may be even more conveniently mounted. The possibility of mutual articulation of the portions 6 and 7 allows to place the accessory A in the most convenient position and to facilitate the connection/release thereof to and from the saddle S, regardless of its shape and relative adjustments.

In both embodiments, the second portion 7 may have an elongated extension 8 having a substantially prismatic shape, tapering toward the free end 9, for insertion in a complementary receptacle 10 that defines the female member 4.

Suitably, the extension 8 may have a substantially trapezoidal plan shape, with a decreasing thickness s and a shorter base b with rounded edges.

This facilitates the introduction of the extension 8 in the receptacle 10.

The shape of the receptacle 10 may in turn be complementary to that of the extension 8, with an upper wall 11 and a lower wall 12 joined together by a pair of side walls 13 and 13' .

Advantageously, the walls 11 and 12 may have curved edges 14, to act as guide surfaces to introduce the extension 8 in the receptacle 10.

Suitably, the height h of the latter will be not less than the thickness s' of the extension 8 at its longer base B. Thus, the introduction of the extension 8 in the receptacle 10 is fast and effective, even when the user is in a rotated position, as is frequently the case.

The extension 8 may be prevented from accidentally disengaging from the receptacle 10 by a pulling action, by providing it with suitably snap lock means 15.

Preferably, these lock means 15 are a projection or a tooth 16, which is engageable in a corresponding slot 17 in the receptacle 10, e.g. formed in the lower wall 12 thereof. This will assure a firm and safe lock between the male 3 and female 4 members.

Suitably, the first portion 6 may have holes 18 for receiving screws or rivets 19 to be fastened to the accessory A, to assure a stable and effective coupling thereof.

From the above disclosure, the structure of the invention proves to fulfill the proposed objects and particularly meets the requirement of allowing an easy and safe connection of accessories to the bicycle saddle.

Thanks to the monolithic integration of the female member 4 in the body 2 of the saddle S, and thanks to the particular configuration of the male member 3, accessories A may be firmly connected to a saddle S while minimizing the risks of accidental losses or failures.

The structure of the invention is susceptible of a number of changes and variants, within the inventive concept disclosed in the appended claims. All the details thereof may be replaced by other technically equivalent parts, and the materials may vary depending on different needs, without departure from the scope of the invention.

While the structure has been described with particular reference to the accompanying figures, the numerals referred to in the disclosure and claims are only used for the sake of a better intelligibility of the invention and shall not be intended to limit the claimed scope in any manner.