Front Passenger Safety Handle Bar/Grips
DESCRIPTION:
The Front Passenger Safety Handle Bar/Grips is an innovative and unique solution to the safety of a child/passenger riding in front of the driver on products in motion, such as ATVs, Jet Skis, Bicycles, and Motorcycles. The Front Passenger Safety Handle Bar/Grips can be, but not limited to a secondary handle bar/grip mounted below the existing handle bar of the vehicle. In the provided example, the secondary handle is connected directly to the steering mechanism of the vehicle, and responds/follows the maneuvering of the product in use. The Front Passenger Safety Handle Bar/Grips allows the child/passenger to grip the secondary handle and intuitively shift their weight with the turning and maneuvering of the vehicle. The secondary handle gives the child/passenger a firm grip to insure better safety while the product is shifting positions during operation.
In one of the provided examples, the All-Terrain Vehicle also known as the ATV has a long history and the first recorded development of the powered ATV occurred as far back as 1893. Built by Royal Enfield, the ATV had many components found on bicycles at that time. The ATV as we know it today began in the late 1960’s and is very popular with military organizations, hunters, farmers, ranchers, recreational and numerous other applications. The ATV as a recreational vehicle is very popular among families, and children love to ride along with their parents or other adults on ATVs. Young children on a single seat ATV, in particular, are usually regulated to ride with an adult with the safest place being to ride in the front of the driver astride the vehicle between the steering bars and the operator. The position between the driver and the handlebars can have its drawbacks. It affords the operator suitable control of the child since the child is in an area right in front of the driver. The driver can quickly access any situation and correct it with their hands. However, adjusting the child’s position on the ATV can mean that the driver will have to remove their hand from the steering mechanism and that can introduce problems with control and safety. The most dangerous element of the position of the child/passenger in front of the driver is there are no grips for them to hold/maintain their stability on the ATV. The position of the child/passenger in front of the driver means that the driver will have to sacrifice some control at times to keep the child/passenger steady in front of them. This example is true for other in motion products such as Jet Skis, Bicycles, and Motorcycles.
The Front Passenger Safety Handle Bar/Grips is easily installed, and different versions are available for various products and versions of products. Unique grips can be applied to the tank or other stable areas of any product mentioned. In the case of the ATV, passive handles installed can provide stability for both the passenger and the operator. In the examples provided, the passenger’s grips are attached to the active steering mechanism.
The Front Passenger Safety Handle Bar/Grips are an original innovation that enhances the riding experience by introducing safety and stability for the front passenger.
SPECIFIC, UNIQUE FUNCTIONS OF INVENTION:
- Simple installation and can come with a quick disconnect feature as one of the versions
- Gives front passenger a safe stable grip
- Can help to prevent accidents
- Allows driver full control with front passenger aboard
- Applies a secondary handle bar/grip for passenger
- Enhances riding experience
- Safety handle bar/grips can rotate with product steering mechanism, depending upon installation version
- Inexpensive upgrade for control and safety
- Allows small children to ride with adults with increased safety
- Other additional passive grips for fuel tank area or any other stable areas of product in use are available
PRODUCT COMPONENT CLARIFICATION:
The “Front Passenger Safety Handle Bar/Grips” is an innovative safety product that has been designed to provide a handlebar for the passenger riding in front of the driver. The handlebar moves in conjunction with the current handlebar but has no controls on it so the driver can operate the vehicle in an unimpeded fashion. The aluminum tube product is made of the same material as the current handlebar and has attachment plates welded onto the tube that interface with the current handlebar’s support. The handlebars are shorter in width than the existing handlebars so the driver’s hands are outside the ends of the safety bar and the front passenger can maintain a grip, significantly improving their safety during the ride. The “Front Passenger Safety Handle Bar/Grips” fit almost all watercraft, all terrain vehicles, snowmobiles, motorcycles, and other vehicles with handlebar controls.
Currently, when the rider of the vehicle takes along a passenger and they place them ahead of them on the saddle, the passenger finds it difficult to acquire a reasonably sound grip on the vehicle. As the vehicle is being maneuvered during the ride, the passenger is often forced into a precarious position with regards to their safety. When the center section of the handlebars is covered with control cables and wiring, these prevent the passenger from getting a decent grip on the handlebars at all. These riding conditions are unsafe and can lead to injury or even death if a fall occurs at speed.
The “Front Passenger Safety Handle Bar/Grips” resolves most of these problems by providing an additional handlebar, with no controls, just to the rear of the vehicle’s handlebar. This added handlebar is as strong as the current handlebar and has grips at either end. The ends of the narrower handlebar have non-slip grips so the, typically smaller/younger, passenger can easily maintain their grip, regardless of the weather conditions or the movement of the vehicle’s handlebars during the ride. The narrower width and lower grip position allows the driver of the vehicle to reach the control handlebars unimpeded so they can maintain normal control of the vehicle. The passenger is much safer because they are holding the handlebars just like the driver and can be in synch with the vehicle’s movements during the ride.
- As an option: The grip bars can be factory molded into the gas tank or engine cover, rather than being supplied as a handlebar. The extruded tubing grip mounts are positioned to slant backwards about the same angle as the vehicle’s handlebars while providing safe and comfortable hand position for the front passenger. The 7/8” diameter tubing can accept almost any commercial grip or can be supplied with factory grips. This tubing can also be anodized and dyed before assembly in the tank or engine cover.
- It would be advantageous to be able to install and/or remove the tank/cover mounted grips if the passenger ‘out grew’ them, or another passenger grew up to be able to safely ride with the driver.
The safety handlebar: This handlebar is fabricated from 7/8” diameter seamless aluminum tubing, which is extruded using 7050 alloy aluminum alloy. After extrusion, the product is cut to length and then is mandrel bent to make smooth curves with no reduction in diameter in the bends. After bending, the handlebar is placed in a welding jig with the mounting brackets and is robotically welded. After welding, the handlebar is shot peened all over to reduce stress cracking, and then the handlebar ends that will be under the grips are knurled. This creates a good bonding surface for the hand grips so they remain where they are placed even under rigorous use.
- The mounting brackets: The mounting brackets are cut to shape from 7050 alloy aluminum sheet that is 1/4” thick. The shape and the mounting holes are produced in this CNC water jet machining operation. After fabrication, the mounting brackets are robotically TIG welded to the handlebar tubing.
Color: The add-on safety handlebars can be supplied in almost any vibrant color, so a distinctive color may be chosen to enhance the product recognition factor, which can dramatically improve the market adoption of the product. Or a color may be chosen to match, complement, or contrast with the vehicle color. The color is created through anodizing the aluminum handlebar and then dyeing it to the desired color. Any of the following, but not limited to, colors may be provided.
| Supplied Colors | ||
|---|---|---|
| Black | Gray | Bronze |
| Gold | Blue | Purple |
| Green | Red | Teal |
| Orange | Pink | Turquoise |
| Desert Tan | Olive Drab | Silver |
As an option: The handlebars can be supplied with or without hand grips. The distributor specifies which they wish for their retailers to stock. The manufacturer can supply the commercially available grips upon request or even installed on the handlebars.
The Front Passenger Safety Handle Bar/Grips is designed to be aesthetic and effective in the application. The relative ease of manufacture and the moderately inexpensive components provide good marketability for the manufacturer. The user benefits from improved safety and comfort during use, which should provide considerable market interest in the product.
The invention is illustrated in the following drawings of the essential points as explained to us in the documentation.
Drawing 1, Block 1: Front Passenger Safety Handle Bar/Grips – Side And Top Views
(1) The extruded aluminum tube bar is shot peened to enhance strength and resist stress cracking during use.
(2) The seamless aluminum tubing is anodized and dyed to reduce corrosion and provide a decorative color for use on the vehicle.
(3) The knurled surface provides a very good surface to increase the bonding of the internal surface of the grip to the handlebar.
(4) The 7/8” diameter tubing accepts almost all of the grips on the market today or the handlebar can be supplied with the factory grips.
(5) The handlebar is supplied with drilled 1/4” thick welded plates that interface with the current handlebar mounts on the vehicle. In use, the vehicle’s handlebar mounting screws are removed, the mount and handlebars lifted up, the safety handlebar slid beneath, and the mounting screws re-installed. This places the additional bar just behind the standard bar and allows the front passenger an easy and secure place to ‘hang on’ during the ride.
(6) This configuration of the handlebar is straight in this view with the mounting brackets running off at a slight angle, (see section view to the right).
(7) In this view, the handlebar curve is obvious and is slightly curved back toward the user so that when it is mounted; there will be a reasonable distance between the handgrips of the vehicle’s handlebar and the safety handlebar.
(8) The handlebar is somewhat less wide than the vehicle’s handlebar to allow the driver to easily reach and manipulate the vehicle controls without interference from the forward seated passenger.
(9) The mounting brackets are cut from aluminum sheet using a water jet machining center.
(10) The shaped mounts are TIG welded to the handlebar tube using a jig to hold them at the proper position.
(11) The durable product allows the front riding passenger a place to grip and safely restrain themselves when riding on the vehicle. This “Front Passenger Safety Handle Bar/Grips” product can be adapted to many different vehicles, for example, an all terrain vehicle, a personal watercraft, a jet ski, a snowmobile, or even a motorcycle. The safety handlebar can be manufactured in a general shape to fit many machines or can be formed to exactly fit a specific vehicle.
Although a single embodiment of the invention has been illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described in the above detailed description, it will be understood that the invention is not limited to the embodiment developed herein, but is capable of numerous rearrangements, modifications, substitutions of parts and elements without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.
This document has been prepared for the manufacturer’s elucidation. The manufacturer’s decision makers should consider this product for licensing (providing intellectual property protection for their sales of the product in return for a royalty payment for a period of years) or an outright purchase of the patent for a negotiated fee. The inventor and his team are standing by to consider offers for licensing or outright purchase of the patent.
