Patent Application
20070096546
The field of invention relates generally to attaching a device to a wheel of a vehicle. In particular, the invention relates to attaching a device to a wheel that is attached to a hub of an axle using a “knock off” nut.
In the automotive industry, typically a wheel is manufactured to be attached to a hub of a vehicle axle in one of two ways—by way of a number of lug nuts or by way of a single central “knock-off” nut.
A wheel is attached to a hub using a knock off nut as follows. First, if the hub does not already have an integral cylindrical male threaded center extension, an adapter is attached to the axle hub. This adapter consists of a flanged male threaded center extension. The flange has holes matching the lug pattern of the hub, thus allowing attachment to the hub via lug nuts. For example, lugs on the axle hub are mated with holes in the adapter, and lug nuts are fastened to the lugs to fix the adapter to the axle hub. Next, a wheel is slid onto the cylindrical male threaded center extension until fully seated. A hole in the center of the wheel accommodates the cylindrical male threaded center extension. A knockoff nut is then engaged to the threads of the cylindrical male threaded center extension and tightened to secure the wheel to the hub.
There are many forms of knockoff nuts in the prior art, however, they all include an open end with a circular female threaded portion to engage the male threads of the adapter, and a closed end that forms a cap for the hub to which the wheel is held by the knock off nut. What is needed is a knock off nut that provides for the ability to attach a device to a wheel in a manner than minimizes the axial extension of the wheel or the hub to which it is attached.
A knock off nut includes a cylinder. The cylinder may include a female-threaded inner surface to engage an adapter for mounting a wheel to a hub of an axle. At one end of the cylinder is a platform to which to couple an attachment to the knock off nut.
A better understanding of the present invention can be obtained from the following detailed description in conjunction with the following drawings, in which:
The invention contemplates an improved knockoff nut, also referred to herein as a tubular platform nut. The tubular platform nut differs from a standard knockoff nut in that it is open at both ends, as is seen in the top view illustrated in
The tubular platform nut, as its name implies, further provides a platform for securing or mounting attachments to the tubular platform nut, and hence, the wheel that also is secured by the tubular platform nut. The term platform refers to the capability of the nut to act as a platform to mount additional structures or attachments. There are a variety of ways such attachments can be fixed to the tubular platform nut. For example in
There are a number of advantages to the invention, including, for example, the use of the outer surface of the tubular platform nut to attach a variety of end caps to change the aesthetic look of the nut without the cost or time involved to purchase and install a separate knock off nut for each aesthetic look. This separation of the end cap from the tubular platform nut allows ready interchange of knockoff nut caps without disturbing the wheel attachment interface. To those knowledgeable in the use of knockoff wheels, it is well know that wheel attachment interface requires considerable care and should not be disturbed unnecessarily. For example, removing and subsequently reinstalling a knockoff nut of any variety requires the user to pay careful attention after installation for a period of several hours of use of a vehicle to which the wheel is attached. The user must retighten the nut with the appropriate torque to ensure the knockoff nut does not become loose. In addition, while removing a knockoff nut, a vehicle's weight must continue to be supported, in the event the wheel falls off during the time the nut is removed.
Further, the tubular geometry significantly decreases machining time for a knock off nut, and reduces material costs by allowing usage of tubular bar stock, as opposed to solid round bar stock, which otherwise requires hogging out at the open end of the solid round bar stock.
Yet another advantage of the invention is access to the inner cylindrical volume of the adapter's male threaded center extension between the end of the axle and the outside end of the extension. Any number of devices may be housed in this space, for example, devices that sense, for example, temperature, pressure, or vibration, or devices that transmit or receive light waves, sound waves, or electrical signals, and/or devices that perform computations based thereon.
For example, the axial displacement of the wheel/nut combination may be less than in the case where the end of the nut was closed, as in the prior art, wherein the unused space of the inner cylindrical volume of the adapter's male threaded center extension was not available to house the added functionality. In the prior art, a device attached to provide this added functionality would necessarily extend the axial dimensions to accommodate the device.
More specifically, and with reference to
Given that end cap 125, 225 is separate from WID 220, it may be easily exchanged with other end caps, e.g., 230 or 235 to change the aesthetic look of the wheel. In another embodiment, the end cap may be integrated with the WID, or openings provided in the WID may receive screws to be threaded through the threaded holes in the tubular platform nut to affix the WID to the adapter.
In alternative embodiments, an outside cylindrical surface of the WID may include a male threaded portion that engages the cylindrical female-threaded portion of the tubular platform nut. Other means, such as clamps, or hinges and clasps may be used to attach the WID to the tubular platform nut without departing from the invention.
In one embodiment of the invention, WID provides illumination of the wheel to which the tubular nut platform and WID is attached. The light may be provided by one or more sources of light, e.g., one or more light-emitting-diodes, housed in the WID. In one embodiment, the light sources provide the same color light, e.g., a white light. A transparent, colored, filter 115, 215, may be placed over the WID as shown in
