Not Applicable.
The present invention is related generally to vehicle wheel bearing assemblies, and in particular, to an endcap configured to seal an inboard face of a vehicle wheel bearing assembly from the environment.
On vehicle wheel bearing applications, endcaps are utilized to seal the inboard side or face of the wheel bearing from exposure to the external environment. The use of endcaps to replace traditional seals reduces cost and improves sealing performance, retaining lubricant within the bearing assembly and preventing contaminate ingress. Endcaps are commonly retained on the wheel bearing by a press fit of an annular pilot portion of the outer peripheral edge of the endcap into an inner diameter of the wheel bearing, with the endcap annular pilot and wheel bearing inner diameter interface providing both endcap retention and sealing functionality.
Accordingly, it would be advantageous to provide an endcap with features for improved retention and/or sealing functionality over that achieved with a traditional endcap pilot/bearing inner diameter interface.
Briefly stated, the present disclosure provides a vehicle wheel bearing assembly endcap configured with an annular pilot defined by an annular fold disposed between a central face of the endcap and a radially extending outer peripheral flange. The annular fold projects axially outward along the axis of the vehicle wheel bearing assembly, having a radially-inside annular portion and a radially-outside annular portion which cooperatively define a resilient annular spring element. The resilient annular spring element is adapted to facilitate retention of the endcap pilot within an inner diameter of the wheel bearing assembly by biasing the radially-outside annular portion against an inner diameter surface of the wheel bearing assembly. The outer peripheral flange, which is contiguous with the radially-outside annular portion of the endcap pilot, seats against an outboard end face of the vehicle wheel bearing assembly to provide a positive axial stop, and functions as a seal to reduce contaminate ingress between the radially-outside annular portion of the endcap pilot and the inner diameter surface of the wheel bearing assembly.
In one embodiment, the endcap of the present disclosure is further adapted to enable an external sensor to obtain signals through the endcap structure, from an encoder disposed axially behind the endcap central face, between the endcap pilot radially-inside annular portion and an inner race of a bearing assembly contained within the wheel bearing assembly. Spacing between the endcap pilot radially-inside annular portion and radially-outside annular portions is selected to accommodate the encoder as required.
In an alternate embodiment, the outer peripheral flange of the endcap of the present disclosure is configured to extend past, and wrap around, an outer diameter surface of the wheel bearing assembly, further facilitating the sealing of the wheel bearing assembly from external contaminates. The peripheral edge of the outer peripheral flange may be flared and/or fitted to the outer diameter surface of the wheel bearing to facilitate placement and retention there of.
In an alternate embodiment of the endcap of the present disclosure, the radially-outside annular portion of the annular fold forming the endcap pilot includes a feature adapted to positively engage the inner diameter surface of the wheel bearing assembly. The feature may include a radially enlarged transition between the radially-inside annular portion and the radially-outside annular portion, or an incline of the radially-outside annular portion relative to the wheel bearing assembly rotational axis, such that the endcap pilot has a tapered outer surface for deflecting engagement with the inner peripheral surface of the wheel bearing.
In further alternate embodiments of the endcap of the present disclosure, one or more seals, gaskets, or sealing materials are disposed between the endcap surfaces and the wheel bearing assembly components to facilitate sealing.
The foregoing features, and advantages set forth in the present disclosure as well as presently preferred embodiments will become more apparent from the reading of the following description in connection with the accompanying drawings.
In the accompanying drawings which form part of the specification:
Corresponding reference numerals indicate corresponding parts throughout the several figures of the drawings. It is to be understood that the drawings are for illustrating the concepts set forth in the present disclosure and are not to scale.
Before any embodiments of the invention are explained in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings.
The following detailed description illustrates the invention by way of example and not by way of limitation. The description enables one skilled in the art to make and use the present disclosure, and describes several embodiments, adaptations, variations, alternatives, and uses of the present disclosure, including what is presently believed to be the best mode of carrying out the present disclosure.
Turning to the figures, and to
The endcap 200 is retained on the outer member 106 of the wheel bearing assembly 100 with a pilot structure 202, best seen in
The outer peripheral flange 206, which is contiguous with the radially-outside annular portion 202b of the endcap pilot 202, extends in a radially outward direction, and seats against an inboard end face 114 of the wheel bearing assembly 100 outer axial member 106 to provide a positive stop for the endcap 200 in the axially outboard direction. In addition to providing the endcap 200 with a positive stop, the outer peripheral flange 206 functions as a sealing member to both retain lubricant within the wheel bearing assembly 100, and to reduce contaminate ingress between the radially-outside annular portion 202b of the endcap pilot 202 and the inner diameter surface 112 of the wheel bearing assembly 100 outer axial member 106.
It will be recognized by those of ordinary skill in the art that the base design of the endcap 200 as set forth and described herein in connection with
In order to increase the sealing functionality of the endcap 200 of the present disclosure, the outer peripheral flange 206 may be configured to extend radially outward beyond the outer diameter of the outer axial member 106, with an extended outer annular flange 206a fitted against an outer peripheral surface 116 of the outer axial member 106, as best seen in
Retention of the endcap 200 with the outer axial member 106 may be further facilitated by modifications to the annular pilot structure 202. For example, as shown in
Additional sealing functionality, so as to prevent the ingress of contaminates into the bearing assembly 104, or the loss of lubricant there from, may be achieved by incorporating sealing elements, such as elastic seals 300, O-rings 400, gaskets, or other applied sealing materials between the abutting surfaces of the endcap 200 and the outer axial member 106. The additional sealing elements may be incorporated into any of the aforementioned variations of the endcap 200 of the present disclosure. For example, as seen in
For embodiments wherein the endcap 200 is composed of a lightweight plastic material, an additional annular stamping 500 may be utilized to facilitate retention of the pilot structure 202 within the inner surface 112 of the outer axial member 106. As seen in
As various changes could be made in the above constructions without departing from the scope of the disclosure, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.
The present application is related to, and claims priority from, U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/109,555 filed on Oct. 30, 2008, which is herein incorporated by reference.
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
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PCT/US09/62472 | 10/29/2009 | WO | 00 | 4/20/2011 |
Number | Date | Country | |
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61109555 | Oct 2008 | US |