Importance

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Abstract

A motorized scooter is disclosed that comprises a steering shaft mounted for rotation about its axis. A tiller is connected to said steering shaft to rotate said steering shaft, and pivotable relative to said steering shaft. A pivot block is mounted on the free end of said steering shaft, a pair of forks on said tiller straddle the pivot block, and a pivot pin passes through the forks and the pivot block. The pivot block has a pair of lubricating plates of low-friction material on either side of it, so that the forks rest on said lubricating plates to tacilitate pivoting of said steering column. A strut of variable length is connected to the tiller and to said steering shaft so that pivoting of the tiller requires a change in the length of said strut. The strut comprises an inner shaft and an outer sleeve movable along said shaft to vary the length of said strut. Two helical coil springs that in a relaxed condition have an inside diameter smaller than the shalt grip the shaft frictionally to resist movement along the shaft. The coil springs are wound in opposite senses, and are positioned end to end, with their outer ends engaging the sleeve to prevent movement of the sleeve along the shaft and their abutting inner ends projecting radially. An actuating sleeve encircles the coil springs, free to rotate, and has one circumferential end engaging the projecting ends of the coil springs. A Bowden cable has its sleeve and its core respectively attached to the outer sleeve of the strut and to the actuating sleeve. Attached to the other end of the Bowden cable is a lever arranged to apply a tension to the core of the Bowden cable, and thereby to apply to the actuating sleeve and thence to the inner ends of said coil springs a force in a direction tending to increase the diameter of said coil springs.

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First Claim