The present invention relates to a mobile carrier for supporting a golf bag, such as may be used during a game of golf. A mobile carrier of the kind contemplated by the invention is known by a range of names which vary depending on the country considered. For example, such a carrier is known in

Australia as a golf buggy, whereas it is alternatively known in the USA as a caddy cart. The same type of device is known by other names elsewhere.

Given the differences in nomenclature, it will be convenient to nominate the invention throughout this specification as a golf buggy, although it is to be appreciated that this expression is to be understood as describing all such mobile carriers, regardless of the differences in name throughout other regions.

Golf buggies are used widely by golfers as a convenient way to carry their golf bag around a golf course. A buggy is designed to fully support the weight of the golf bag so that all that is necessary to move the bag around a golf course, is to push or pull the buggy. The alternative is to manually carry the golf bag and golf bags generally include a shoulder strap for this purpose.

However, golf bags, when fully loaded with golf clubs and other golfing accessories, can weigh in excess of 20kg and thus for many golfers, manual carriage of a golf bag not only detracts from the enjoyment they seek from the game, but it is also frequently physically prohibitive to do so.

Professional golfers generally prefer to employ human caddies, who carry their golf bag for them, in preference to pulling their own buggy. Caddies employed for this purpose usually carry the golf bag by way of the shoulder strap provided and this enables them to stand the bag on the ground in an upright, substantially vertical orientation, when the golfer is selecting a golf club for his or her next stroke. The vertical orientation of the bag facilitates selection and removal of clubs from the bag and reinsertion of clubs when the stroke has been played, or a different club is desired.

The majority of amateur golfers and even some professional golfers do not elect to employ caddies, primarily due to the cost involved. These golfers instead typically use a golf buggy. The form of golf buggy available has not evolved much beyond a quite basic form. That form includes a saddle or spine

which supports the bag along its length, a toe which supports the end or base of the bag, and straps which secure either end of the bag to the buggy. The frame of the buggy includes two wheels arranged to be spaced wider apart than the width of the bag and includes a handle for pulling or pushing the buggy and for steering.

A buggy of this kind is generally self-standing in one position and can be moved from this position for pushing or pulling. In the self-standing position, the toe of the buggy rests on the ground and, along with the two wheels, the bag is independently supported in an inclined orientation. When being pushed or pulled, the buggy is inclined so as to raise the toe from the ground so that it does not inhibit movement. Inclination of the buggy results in further inclination of the bag relative to that in the self-standing position.

A disadvantage of this known type of buggy is the inclined manner in which the golf bag is always supported, regardless of whether the buggy is moving or is stationary in the self-standing position. The bag is never presented to the golfer in a vertical orientation and thus, there is always difficulty in selecting, removing and reinserting the golf clubs. The difficulty in selection results from bunching of the clubs around the lowest point of the bag in its inclined orientation, because it is difficult to see the numbers of the clubs which are placed on the back surface of the club heads. This can be alleviated by a segmented bag, ie. a bag that includes a grid at the mouth opening which enables different clubs to be inserted into the bag at different sections of the grid and ensures some spacing between the clubs, but that is only reasonably effective if the grid extends the full length of the bag, because a grid which extends only across the opening of the bag does not maintain separation of the other ends of the clubs which include rubber grips. The gripping nature of those rubber grips frequently results in one club being dragged along with the selected club if the grip ends are in contact during club removal and similarly can resist reinsertion of a club. A further disadvantage resides in the damage that can be caused to the clubs by the constant contact experienced in the inclined orientation. Such damage might only take the form of scratching or denting of wooden and metal

clubs, but nevertheless, the aesthetic appeal of such clubs is reduced. Additionally, the inclination of the bag in the self-standing position of the buggy means that a golfer can only easily remove a club when facing, or to the side of the mouth opening. Another disadvantage of this known form of buggy, is that it lends itself to being pulled more than pushed. Such buggies can be pushed, but the golfer must be careful to ensure that the buggy toe does not engage the ground, or else forward motion of the buggy will be resisted or prevented. Further, the golfer must permanently exert a downward force on the handle, overcoming the natural movement of the buggy into the self-standing position in which the toe does engage the ground. The preference is to pull the buggy, because the toe is lifted automatically, although if it does happen to engage the ground during forward movement, the toe is simply dragged therealong and does not overly hinder forward movement. The preference to pull the known type of buggy is difficult for many golfers, particularly those who have stiff or damaged shoulder joints, such as older golfers, because it requires the arm to be swung backwards to grip the handle and pull the buggy. For many golfers, this can be awkward and painful. For those golfers, the preference is to push the buggy where possible, even though that is not the preferred manner in which such known buggies are designed to be propelled.

It is an object of the present invention to overcome or at least alleviate one or more of the above disadvantages.

According to the present invention, there is provided a golf buggy, including a base having front and rear ends, a pair of spaced apart wheels provided at said rear end and one or more wheels provided at said front end, handle means depending from said rear end of said base and support means which are arranged to support a golf bag in an upright substantially vertical orientation. Further, the present invention provides a golf buggy including a platform carried by one or two leading wheels adjacent the front thereof and two wheels adjacent the rear thereof, the width of the front wheel or the track width

between the front wheels being no greater than fifty per cent of the track width between the rear wheels, the platform including a base substantially conforming in size to that of the bottom of an average golf bag, such base being adapted to support and locate the bottom of an upstanding golf bag and being positioned relative to the platform such that a bag upstanding upon the base will distribute its centre of gravity in front of the rear wheels of the platform but behind a point being midway along the longitudinal centre line of the buggy between the front wheel (or wheels) and the rear wheels; handle means adapted to facilitate a golfer pushing the buggy from the rear whilst walking and one or more pivot means adapted to facilitate folding of the handle means into a parallel relationship with the platform, support means extending from the buggy to releasably locate the upper portion of a golf bag such that the golf bag is maintained in a substantially upright vertical position on the buggy.

In one preferred form of the invention, the support means includes a well located in or on the base and suitable to receive and locate the bottom end of a golf bag. The well can be of any suitable depth to substantially prevent lateral movement of the bottom end of the golf bag. Lateral movement is prevented by engagement of the sides of the bottom end of the golf bag with the wall or walls of the well. It is not necessary that the well be sized to tightly receive the bottom end of the golf bag, as a snug fit or even a Ioose fit is quite acceptable, as long as lateral movement of the bottom end of the golf bag is substantially prevented. Preferably, the well is recessed into the upper surface of the base, although alternatively, the well could be constructed from a lip or ring extending upwardly from that upper surface. That lip or ring could be continuous, or alternatively could be intermittent such as formed by a series of posts forming a boundary defining the well. The well could for example, be defined by a series of three posts upstanding from the upper surface of the base.

The well may be of a sufficient depth that it not only provides resistance against lateral movement, but also maintains the golf bag in the upright, substantially vertical disposition without further support. However, it is preferred that the support means includes additional support to ensure the required substantially vertical disposition of the golf bag. For that purpose, the

support means preferably includes retaining means for retaining the golf bag at a position spaced from the bottom end thereof. Preferably, the retaining means acts on the golf bag towards the upper end thereof, most preferably adjacent the open end. The retaining means can take any suitable form, although in one form, it includes a bracing member which extends to an appropriate position along the length of the bag and includes releasable securing means for securing the bag at that position.

The releasable securing means may take any suitable form, but a preferred and simple form comprises a strap arrangement secured to the bracing member and arranged to extend around the outside of the golf bag and to be tightened thereabout. Either ends of the strap may be releasably fixed together by way of standard fixing means such as a bayonet clip, a hook and loop fastener, or a buckle.

The other end of the bracing member may extend from a suitable position on the buggy and most preferably extends from the handle means. In this preferred arrangement, the handle means includes a stem which extends from the rear end of the base, upwardly to a position at which it can be gripped for the purpose of pushing and steering of the buggy. Thus, the bracing member may extend from the stem at any suitable position therealong. By engagement of the bottom of the golf bag in the well and the top or upper portion of the bag by the retaining means, the bag is securely held. The locating and retaining effect of both the well and the retaining means also ensures that the bag can be held in a substantially vertical disposition. The substantially vertical disposition of the bag is maintained at all times in which the buggy is supported on a horizontal surface. Where the buggy is wheeled over a non-horizontal surface, the inclination of the bag will be altered, but generally only to a negligible extent.

It is preferable that the buggy of the present invention is arranged so that the weight of the golf bag, or the centre of gravity thereof, acts through a position more towards the rear end of the base than the front end, so that a greater portion of the total weight of the buggy is supported by the rear wheels. It is preferable that the centre of gravity of the golf bag acts through a point

which is rearward of the midpoint of a line extending between the front wheel or wheels and the rear wheels and most preferably, it should act at a point at least two-thirds towards the rear end of the buggy along the line extending between the front and rear wheels. Such an arrangement stabilises the buggy both when it is stationary or moving and increases the ease with which the loaded buggy may be pushed.

The golf buggy as described is easily pushed by virtue of the wheels provided at either end of the base and the stable nature of the weight distribution. It is highly preferable that the buggy is foldable and in one aspect of the present invention, the buggy includes foldable components which enable the bulk of the buggy to be reduced for storage or during transport.

In one preferred form of the invention, the handle means of the buggy is foldable between an operative position in which the handle means may be utilised to push and steer the buggy and an inoperative position in which the handle means is folded toward the base. The handle means preferably folds to a position in which it rests adjacent the base and in one arrangement, the handle means nests within a recess or recesses provided in the base. For this purpose, the stem of the handle means is pivotably attached to the base and is rotatable about the pivot between the operative and inoperative positions.

Releasable locking means are preferably provided to lock the stem in at least the operative position and preferably also the inoperative position. The locking means where provided, are preferably arranged so that they are automatically engaged when the stem assumes either the operational or inoperational positions and a releasing force is required when it is desired to release the locking means for the purposes of assembling or disassembling the buggy between the operative and inoperative positions. Thus, the locking means may be permanently biased into a locking condition by suitable biasing means such as a spring bias and whereby release of the locking means may be accomplished by applying a releasing force suitable to overcome the biasing force. In one arrangement, the locking means includes a locking plate which is pivotably attached to the base and is biased to rotate about its pivot. The end

region of the stem which is pivotably attached to the base includes first and second engagement means for engaging with the locking plate in the operational and inoperational positions of the handle means. The first engagement means may take the form of a spigot which is lockably engageable within an opening provided in the locking plate when the handle means assumes the inoperational position. The biasing means biases the locking plate towards engagement of the opening with the spigot, so that once engaged, the spigot is held within the opening until such time as a force opposite to that of the biasing force is applied to the locking plate to release the spigot from the opening and allow rotation of the stem towards the operational position.

The second engagement means may take the form of suitable abutment surfaces provided at the end region of the stem for abutment engagement with an abutment surface provided in or on the locking plate and further abutment surfaces as required. One abutment surface at the end region may be provided by a plate or plates extending outwardly from the end region and the abutment surface provided in the locking plate may be a recess or recesses in edge portions thereof adapted to respectively receive the plate or plates. Once received, the abutment engagement will prevent further rotational movement in at least one direction. A further abutment surface or surfaces may be provided at the end region of the stem, for abutment engagement with an abutment surface provided, for example on the base. In this arrangement, the locking plate is biased towards the plate or plates, such that when the handle means assumes the operational position, the plate or plates are received within the recess or recesses with the respective abutment surfaces engaging and preventing movement of the handle means away from the operational position until such time as a release force is applied to the locking plate, to overcome the biasing force and to release the plate or plates from the recess or recesses.

Ideally, the locking plate is positioned for easy release by a golfer, such as by the golfer's foot.

The handle means is preferably telescopic to facilitate adjustment of the handle length. Additionally, the telescopic nature of the handle means enables

further compacting of the buggy in the inoperational position. A simple mechanism for adjusting the telescopic extent of the handle means may be employed, such as a butterfly bolt, which can be screwed through the non- telescoping section of the handle means to engage and locate the telescoping section. The handle means therefore preferably includes two sections, the first section of which telescopically receives the second section. The extent of the first section is preferably dimensioned approximately equal to the longitudinal extent between the front and rear ends of the base, so that when the handle means is in the folded inoperative position in which it lies adjacent the base, it does not extend beyond, or much beyond the front end of the base. It is appropriate for the second section to extend beyond the front end of the base, even when in the fully retracted telescopic condition, as that can provide a handle for lifting or carrying of the buggy in the folded condition. The bracing member which extends between the handle means and the golf bag is preferably also pivotably mounted relative to the handle means. The bracing member is preferably of a similar or lesser longitudinal extent to the first section of the handle means and is preferably pivotable to a position substantially parallel and adjacent to the first section in the folded condition. That is, it preferably folds against the first section in the folded condition and does not extend beyond either end of the first section. Locking means can be provided to lock the bracing member in both the extended and/or folded conditions.

The rear wheels are also preferably pivotable in order to fold into a position at least partially within the periphery of the base. The folding action of the wheels is preferably such that they each fold underneath the base, although they could for example, fold above the base. Locking means can be employed to lock the wheels in both the folded and unfolded conditions. Alternatively, the axle assembly can be arranged to include an abutment surface which engages a complimentary abutment surface on the base, when the wheels are in the unfolded position. With that arrangement the weight of the buggy and bag ensure that the respective abutment surfaces remain engaged during use of the buggy, although it is still appropriate to employ locking means to ensure that if

the weight of the buggy is lifted from the wheels, they do not pivot from the operational position.

In order to assist in arriving at an understanding of the present invention, a preferred embodiment is illustrated in the attached drawings. However, it should be understood that the following description is illustrative only and should not be taken in any way as a restriction on the generality of the invention as described above.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a golf buggy according to the invention.

Figure 2 is an expanded perspective view of the component parts of a buggy according to the invention.

Figure 3 is an end view of the buggy in the partially folded condition.

Figure 4 is a side view of the buggy in the folded condition.

Figure 5 shows a detailed illustration of the locking arrangement shown in the region A of Figure 2. Figure 6 shows a further detailed illustration of the locking arrangement shown in the region A of Figure 2.

Figure 7 is a plan view illustration of the locking plate illustrated in Figures 5 and 6.

Referring to Figure 1 , there is shown a golf buggy according to the present invention. The golf buggy generally indicated by the reference numeral

10, has a base 11 attached to rear wheels 12 and 13 and front wheels 14.

Handle means 15 is provided depending from the rear end 16 of the buggy 10, opposite to the front end 17. Shown in outline only is a golf bag 18.

The base 11 includes a well 19 which is arranged to receive the bottom end of the golf bag 18. The well 19 is defined by a wall 20 and a floor 21. The well 19 is sized to receive the bottom end of the golf bag 18 in a manner which secures it against substantial lateral movement. Clearly, the fit of the bottom end within the well 19 need not be tight, as slight lateral movement is acceptable. Advantageously, the well 19 can therefore accommodate a range of bags of different sizes and still provide adequate resistance to lateral movement.

The handle means 15 is in the form of a stem having first and second sections 22 and 23. The first section 22 is pivotably attached to the base 11 and in the operative or unfolded position of Figure 1 , extends upwardly and outwardly from the rear end 16 of the base 11. The second section 23 is telescopically receivable within the first section 22 and is adjustably extendable by the provision of a butterfly bolt 24 which screws into the first section 22 into frictional engagement with the second section 23, to lock the second section 23 relative to the first section 22. The shaft 25 of the second section 23 may be indented intermittently along the length thereof to receive the engaging end of the butterfly bolt, or alternatively, apertures may be provided.

At the free end of the second section 23, there is provided a gripping handle 26 which facilitates gripping by the golfer. The handle 26 may for example be made from a rubber or plastic or sponge material.

Extending from the handle means 15, is a bracing member 27 which extends approximately perpendicular to the handle means. The bracing member 27 is pivotably attached to the upper end 28 of the first section 22 and can be maintained in that position by the resting engagement of the forked legs

29 against the lip 30. The bracing member 27 is provided at its other end with a retaining means in the form of a saddle 31 and a retaining strap 32. The golf bag 18 rests against the saddle 31 and is retained thereagainst by the strap 32.

Also in outline only, there is shown a seat 33, which may be provided as an optional accessory.

Referring now to Figure 2, the golf buggy 10 is shown in expanded form. For those features which are common to Figures 1 and 2, like numerals have been used.

Additional to that shown in Figure 1 , there is shown a cover 34 which covers the first section 22, a top insert 35 receivable within the first section 22 and apertured to receive the shaft 25 of the second section 23 and a frame assembly 36 for connecting the front and rear wheels 12, 12 and 14. The frame assembly 36 includes perpendicularly arranged legs 37 and

38. At the free end of the leg 37, there is provided an axle 39 which extends through a bracket 40 and supports the wheels 14. Also provided on the leg 37

is a seat support 41 which includes upstanding vertical tubes 42 suitable to accept the ends 43 of the seat 33. Openings 44 are provided in the base 11 for passage of either the tubes 42 or the ends 43.

The leg 38 includes housings 45 and 46, which at least partially house the rear wheel supports 47 and 48. The supports 47 and 48 are pivotably supported within the respective housings 45 and 46 as is more clearly shown in Figure 3. The supports 47 and 48 include axles 49 for rotatably supporting the rear wheels 12 and 13. Locking means are employed between the housing 45 and 46 and the supports 47 and 48, in the form of a spring biased roller 50 provided on the supports 47 and 48 and the roller engages in openings 51 and 52 provided in the housings 45 and 46. As is apparent from Figure 3, the wheel 13 is in the folded condition in which the roller 50 engages the opening 52, while the wheel 12 is shown in the operative condition in which the roller 50 engages the opening 51. The supports 47 and 48 pivot about pivot 53. The leg 38 also includes a rear bracket 54 which is formed in a U-shape and extends upwardly from the leg 38. The bracket 54 includes an axle 55 about which the handle means 15 is pivotable and also include a locking facility to lock the handle means in the operative position of Figure 1 or the inoperative position of Figure 4. The locking facility includes a locking plate 56 which is pivotable about an axle 57 and is acted upon by biasing means in the form of a spring bias 58. The arrangement of the locking facility is better illustrated in Figures 5 to 7.

In Figure 5, the first section 22 of the handle means 15 is shown in the folded or inoperative position of Figure 4. The rear bracket 54 is shown in phantom outline. The locking plate 56 is pivoted about the axle 57 and the spring bias 58 urges the locking plate 56 in an anticlockwise direction. The first section 22 includes a spigot 59 which engages within an opening 60 provided in an attachment 61 and upon which engagement locks the handle means 15 relative to the rear bracket 54 and thus the base 11. Attempts to rotate the handle means 15 in any direction relative to the base 11 will be resisted by jamming engagement of the spigot against the forward or rearward edges of the opening 60. The curved ramp of the front section 62 of the attachment 61

enables the spigot to ride up the front section and displace the locking plate against the biasing direction of the spring bias 58, as the handle means is rotated to the folded condition in an anti-clockwise direction.

The spigot 59 will only be released from the opening 60 upon application of a force F applied to overcome the spring bias 58 to lower the opening 60 away from the spigot 59. That force need only be minor, such as may be applied by the golfer by foot. Having applied that force, the handle means 15 may be rotated clockwise to the operative position of Figure 1 and that is illustrated in Figure 6. In that figure, the handle means 15 has been rotated and is now engaged in the operative position. In that position, the spigot no longer has a locking effect and the attachment 60 is not engaged and thus it is only shown in phantom outline. Instead, an abutment surface 63 of the first section 22 enters into engagement with an abutment member 64 provided on the inside surface of the rear bracket 54, which prevents further clockwise rotation. To prevent anti-clockwise rotation, a further abutment surface 65 engages in a recess 66 provided in the edge regions of the locking plate 56, as seen in Figure 7. Again, release of the handle means 15 from the locking plate 56 can be achieved by application of a force F to rotate the locking plate 56 and release the abutment surface 65 from engagement in the recess 66. Finally, in Figure 4, the buggy is shown in the folded condition. In that condition, the rear wheels 12 and 13 are folded beneath the base 11 , while the second section 23 is substantially fully received within the first section 22, with only the handle 26 extending outwardly thereof. The bracing member 27 has been rotated so that it rests parallel to the first section 22. In that respect, the bracing member is fully rotatable from the position shown in Figure 1 , clockwise to a position adjacent the rear side (as seen in Figure 1) of the first section 22. The forked legs 29 of the bracing member 27 enable it to pivot over the handle 28 when the second section 23 is fully retracted into the first section 22.

Other golfing accessories as applied to known buggies are equally applicable to the buggy of the invention. For example, facility for attaching a sand bucket may be made on the first section 22 as shown at 67.

The base 11 can include recesses to accommodate part of the handle means 15 and such a frontal recess 68 is shown in Figure 1. In the folded condition, the handle means 15 is nested in the base 11.

The base 11 can be moulded from plastic as can many other of the parts of the buggy. This facilitates cleaning of the buggy and minimises rust. Further, it facilitates ease of manufacture and reduced costs.

The golf buggy of the present invention is unique when compared to known golf buggies and is advantageous in enabling a golf bag supported by the buggy to be presented to the golfer in an upright substantially vertical orientation. The invention also provides a unique and advantageous method of folding to an extremely compact unit.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that there may be many variations and modifications of the configuration described herein which are within the scope of the present invention.