Snow bike and a front suspension for a snow bike

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10960914-B2
Application number	US-202016733883-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 3, 2020
Priority date	Feb 24, 2017
Publication date	Mar 30, 2021
Grant date	Mar 30, 2021

Abstract

A front fork assembly of a snow bike is disclosed having left and right legs, each having an upper leg portion and a lower leg portion. The left leg upper and lower leg portions are linearly movable relative to each other. A right leg has an upper leg portion and a lower leg portion, the right leg upper and lower leg portions are linearly movable relative to each other. A ski mount has a lower end for coupling to a ski and an upper end for coupling to the left and right leg. A linear force element is coupled to the left and right legs with a first end adjacent the first ends of the forks and seconds ends coupled to the ski, the linear force element has a different linear force characteristic than the left and right legs.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A front fork assembly of a snow bike, comprising:
a left leg having an upper leg portion and a lower leg portion;
a right leg having an upper leg portion and a lower leg portion;
a ski mount having a lower end for coupling to a ski and an upper end for coupling to the left and right leg; and
a linear force element having a first end positioned adjacent and coupled to the left and right legs and a second end coupled to the lower end of the ski mount.

2. A front suspension assembly for a snow bike, comprising:
a first arm configured to couple with a frame member of the snow bike;
a second arm generally opposite the first arm;
a ski mount configured to couple with a front ski and configured with a first mounting location for the first arm, a second mounting location for the second arm, a third mounting location for the front ski, and a fourth mounting location; and
a linear force element having an upper end and a lower end, and the lower end is coupled to the ski mount at the fourth mounting location, and a portion of the linear force element is laterally aligned with a portion of the first arm and a portion of the second arm.

3. The front suspension assembly of claim 2 , wherein the third mounting location is longitudinally intermediate the first mounting location and the fourth mounting location.

4. The front suspension assembly of claim 2 , wherein the fourth mounting location is at a vertical height below the first and second mounting locations.

5. The front suspension assembly of claim 2 , wherein and the fourth mounting location is positioned longitudinally rearward of the first, second, and third mounting locations, and the third mounting location being longitudinally offset from the first and second mounting locations.

6. The front suspension assembly of claim 2 , wherein the first and second arms are coupled to an upper portion of the ski mount.

7. The front suspension assembly of claim 6 , wherein the linear force element is coupled to a lower portion of the ski mount.

8. The front suspension assembly of claim 7 , wherein the linear force element is coupled to a lower extent of the ski mount.

9. A snow bike, comprising:
a frame assembly;
a propulsion assembly supported by the frame assembly;
a steering assembly supported by the frame assembly and including an upstanding first member and an upstanding second member;
a ski mount operably coupled to the first and second members at a first position and including a bracket;
a ski operably coupled to the bracket of the ski mount; and
a linear force element having a first end and a second end, the second end operably coupled to the bracket of the ski mount, and the first end positioned above the second end and above the first position wherein at least a portion of the linear force element extends above a lower end of each of the upstanding first member and the upstanding second member.

10. The snow bike of claim 9 , wherein the bracket includes a first mounting location configured to couple with the ski and a second mounting location configured to couple with the linear force element.

11. The snow bike of claim 10 , wherein the first mounting location is longitudinally offset from the second mounting location.

12. The snow bike of claim 11 , wherein the first mounting location is longitudinally forward of the second mounting location.

13. The snow bike of claim 9 , wherein in the bracket includes a first mounting location configured to couple with the ski and a second mounting location configured to couple with the linear force element and the ski mount.

14. The snow bike of claim 13 , wherein the second mounting location is vertically offset from the first mounting location.

15. The snow bike of claim 14 , wherein the second mounting location is vertically above the first mounting location.

16. The snow bike of claim 9 , wherein upper ends of the first and second members are vertically aligned with a rearward end of the ski.

17. The snow bike of claim 9 , wherein the bracket is positioned within a vertical envelope of the ski.

18. A front suspension assembly for a snow bike, comprising:
a first arm having an upper end and a lower end, and the upper end is configured to couple with a portion of the snow bike;
a second arm having an upper end and a lower end, and the upper end is configured to couple with the portion of the snow bike;
a ski mount having a first mounting location for coupling with the first arm and a second mounting location for coupling with the second arm; and
a linear force element having an upper end and a lower end, the lower end being forward of the upper end and the lower end is configured to couple with the ski mount at a third mounting location having a vertical position lower than the first and second mounting locations and a lateral position between the first and second mounting locations.

19. The front suspension assembly of claim 18 , wherein the ski mount includes a fourth mounting location for coupling with a front ski of the snow bike, and the lower ends of the first and second arms are configured to be coupled to the ski mount at the respective first and second mounting locations, and the third mounting location is longitudinally rearward of the first and second mounting locations.

20. The front suspension assembly of claim 19 , wherein the third mounting location is directly adjacent the fourth mounting location.

21. The front suspension assembly of claim 18 , wherein the upper end of the linear force element is at a height vertically intermediate a height of the upper end of the first arm and a height of the lower end of the first arm.

22. The front suspension assembly of claim 18 , wherein a vertical length of the linear force element is greater than a vertical length of the first arm.

23. The front suspension assembly of claim 18 , wherein the ski mount is generally comprised of an upper portion defining approximately a first half of a vertical length of the ski mount and a lower portion defining approximately a second half of the vertical length of the ski mount, a horizontal centerline of the ski mount is defined between the upper portion and the lower portion, and the lower end of the linear force element is positioned lower than the horizontal centerline of the ski mount.

24. The front suspension assembly of claim 18 , wherein a vertical length of the first arm is defined as the distance between the upper and lower ends of the first arm, and a vertical length of the ski mount is defined as the distance between an upper end of the ski mount and a lower end of the ski mount, and the vertical length of the ski mount is greater than half of the vertical length of the first arm.

25. The front suspension assembly of claim 24 , wherein a vertical length of the linear force element is defined as the distance between the upper and lower ends of the linear force element, and the vertical length of the ski mount is approximately equal to half of the vertical length of the linear force element.

26. The front suspension assembly of claim 18 , wherein the lateral position of the third mounting location is between innermost points of the first and second mounting locations.

Assignees

• Polaris Inc

Inventors

• Mangum Allen M
• Telford Cody L

Classifications

• B62B17/04 Primary

  resiliently suspended · CPC title