Patent Application
20060017316
The subject invention relates to a rim for a vehicle wheel that includes a plurality of openings formed within an outer circumferential surface of the rim to reduce weight.
A vehicle wheel includes a rim that is mounted for rotation with a rotating wheel component such as a wheel hub, for example. A tire is sealed against the rim. Traditionally, a rim is formed as a generally circular band with outwardly extending flanges formed around each edge of the circular band. The tire is sealed against the flanges and an outer surface of the circular band to form the vehicle wheel. Traditionally, the outer surface of the circular band is formed as a continuous unbroken surface to provide a good sealing interface for the tire.
The rim is typically made from a material such as steel, for example. This type of material is heavy, which increases the weight of the vehicle wheel. This increased weight adversely effects fuel economy.
It would be beneficial to provide a lighter rim for a vehicle wheel while still providing a good sealing interface for a tire, in addition to overcoming the other deficiencies in the prior art mentioned above.
A wheel rim includes a generally circular band having an outer circumferential surface. A plurality of discrete openings is formed within the outer circumferential surface to reduce the weight of the wheel rim. A sealing member is used to cover the discrete openings.
In one example, the sealing member includes a liner that is wrapped around the outer circumferential surface to seal the discrete openings. In another example, the circular band is formed from a first material and the sealing member is formed from a second material that is less dense than the first material. The second material is used to fill the discrete openings.
In one disclosed embodiment, the discrete openings are formed as a plurality of holes that extend from the outer circumferential surface, through a thickness of the circular band, to an inner circumferential surface. The plurality of discrete openings is further formed as a first set of openings and a second set of openings. Each hole in the first set of openings is defined by a first cross-sectional area and each hole in the second set of openings is defined by a second cross-sectional area that is different than the first cross-sectional area.
The subject invention utilizes a plurality of discrete openings formed in a circular band of a wheel rim in combination with a sealing member, which covers the discrete openings, to provide a lightweight wheel rim. These and other features of the present invention can be best understood from the following specification and drawings, the following of which is a brief description.
A vehicle wheel rim 10 is shown in
As shown in
A covering or sealing member 40 is used to cover the discrete openings 28 to provide a good sealing interface for a tire (indicated in phantom in
The vehicle wheel rim 10 is typically made from a material such as steel, for example, which is a heavy material. The discrete openings 28 are formed within the circular band 14 to reduce the overall weight of the vehicle wheel rim 10. The discrete openings 28 can be formed by stamping, casting, or any other known method in the art.
The discrete openings 28 are filled or covered with the sealing member 40, which is made from a material that is lighter or less dense than the vehicle wheel rim material. The sealing member 40 can be made from lightweight materials such as thermoplastic, Kevlar®, etc. The sealing member 40 can also include other materials such as carbon fibers, glass fibers, aluminum, and polymers. The discrete openings 28 can be filled or covered with this lightweight material in many different ways.
In the example of
The circular band 14 includes a first portion 42 defined by a first diameter, a second portion 44 defined by a second diameter that is less than the first diameter, and a third portion 46 defined by a varying diameter that transitions from the first portion 42 to the second portion 44. At least one discrete opening 28 is formed in each of the first 42 and second 44 portions. In the example shown, the third portion 46 has a continuous unbroken surface that separates the first 42 and second 44 portions. It should be understood that the third portion 46 could also include a desired number of discrete openings 28.
Examples of patterns of discrete openings 28 are shown in
The first set of openings 50 is formed in the first portion 42 of the circular band 14 and the second set of openings 52 is formed in the second portion 44 of the circular band 14. The first set of openings 50 is axially spaced apart from the second set of openings 52 in a direction parallel to the axis 12. As discussed above, the third portion 46 of the circular band 14 provides a continuous unbroken surface that separates the first set of openings 50 from the second set of openings 52.
In
In each configuration, the plurality of discrete openings 28 defines a circumferential open area within the circular band 14. Preferably, a surface area defined by the outer circumferential surface 30 of the circular band 14 is greater than the circumferential open area. This ensures that the vehicle wheel rim 10 retains sufficient structure to support wheel input loads. However, depending upon the vehicle application, the surface area defined by the outer circumferential surface 30 of the circular band 14 could be less than the circumferential open area.
It should be understood that the configurations shown in
Although a preferred embodiment of this invention has been disclosed, a worker of ordinary skill in this art would recognize that certain modifications would come within the scope of this invention. For that reason, the following claims should be studied to determine the true scope and content of this invention.
