BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

THIS INVENTION relates to a carrier for a tyre-wheel assembly and to a method of mounting a tyre-wheel assembly onto the carrier.

Tyre-wheel assemblies for heavy duty vehicles such as trucks are heavy and can thus be difficult to handle. In particular, existing carriers for spare tyre-wheel assemblies that are mountable on vehicles such as trucks which make use of chain-operated hoisting arrangements can be cumbersome, and even dangerous, to operate. This invention seeks to alleviate these problems, at least to some extent.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to an aspect of the invention there is provided a carrier for a tyre-wheel assembly, the tyre-wheel assembly including a wheel and a tyre mounted on the wheel, the wheel including a central portion which is surrounded by a rim portion on which the tyre is mounted, with the central portion defining an axial aperture, said carrier including: a body which includes a first wheel supporting member which provides a support surface for supporting the central portion of the wheel at a first position along a periphery of the aperture;

the body further including a second wheel supporting member which is spaced from the first wheel supporting member and which provides a support surface for supporting the central portion of the wheel at a second position along the periphery of the aperture, said second position being peripherally spaced from said first position; the second wheel supporting member being displaceable between a supporting position and a release position;

connecting or locking means to keep the tyre-wheel assembly in a supported position in which it is supported on the support surfaces of the first and second wheel supporting members; and

mounting means for mounting the body to a support.

Said first position and said second position may be diagonally opposed.

The support may for example be an upright panel mounted on a trailer or a wall of a motor vehicle, e.g. a truck.

The second wheel supporting member is preferably displaceable towards and away from a supporting position in which its support surface is orientated to support the wheel. More particularly, the second wheel supporting member may be pivotably displaceable towards and away from its supporting position, e.g. towards the first wheel supporting member. In this regard the second wheel supporting member may be connected to a shaft which is fast with the remainder of the body, with the second wheel supporting member being pivotably displaceable about the shaft.

The carrier may include a handle connected to the second wheel supporting member by means of which the second wheel supporting member is pivotably displaceable. The carrier preferably includes urging means to urge the second wheel supporting member towards its supporting position.

Thus, when, in use, the tyre-wheel assembly is to be dismounted from the carrier, the second wheel supporting member is displaced away from its supporting position, e.g. towards the first wheel supporting member, so that it no longer supports the wheel. The wheel can then be moved off the support surface of the first wheel supporting member so that the tyre-wheel assembly is free of the carrier.

The second wheel supporting member may define a follower surface to engage said periphery of the aperture of the central portion of a wheel when the wheel is being mounted to the carrier. The follower surface is typically configured to displace the second wheel supporting member, e.g. pivotally and radially inwardly relative to the aperture of the central portion of the wheel, when struck by a periphery of the aperture of the central portion of the wheel, said periphery of the aperture of the wheel acting as a cam surface for the follower surface of the second wheel supporting member.

In use, when a tyre-wheel assembly is to be mounted on the carrier, a first peripheral portion or side of the tyre-wheel assembly is raised and the central portion of said first position along the periphery of the aperture is positioned on the support surface of the first wheel supporting member, with the remainder of the tyre-wheel assembly inclining downwardly from the first peripheral portion of the tyre-wheel assembly. An extremity of the first peripheral portion or side of the tyre-wheel assembly is then pushed downwardly to raise an opposite peripheral portion or side of the tyre-wheel assembly, the support surface of the first wheel supporting member providing a fulcrum about which the tyre-wheel assembly is pivoted, the tyre-wheel assembly being raised until the central portion at said second position along the periphery of the aperture is at the level of the support surface of the second wheel supporting member. If necessary, the tyre-wheel assembly can be displaced in a radial direction so that the central portion at said first and second positions along the periphery of the aperture is supported by the support surfaces of the first and second wheel supporting members. Instead, or in addition, the peripheral portion of the aperture of the central portion of the wheel may be pushed against the follower surface of the second supporting member when the tyre-wheel assembly is pivoted, with the second wheel supporting member thus being pushed out of the way by the tyre-wheel assembly until the second position along the periphery of the tyre-wheel assembly is above the support surface of the second wheel supporting member, after which the second wheel supporting member moves back into its supporting position in which it supports the tyre-wheel assembly.

The carrier may be configured to support the tyre-wheel assembly in a horizontally disposed position.

Thus, in use, the support surfaces may extend generally horizontally, or may be at the same elevation.

Further, in use, the support surface of the second wheel supporting member may extend generally horizontally when the second wheel supporting member is in its supporting position.

The mounting means may include fasteners, e.g. bolts, which in use are threaded or inserted through holes defined by the body. The support may define holes which can be brought into register with the holes defined by the body so that in use the body can be bolted to the support.

Located about the aperture, wheels of the type described above typically include a series of circumferentially spaced mounting holes defined in the central portion for receiving shafts of fasteners for mounting the wheel to a part of a motor vehicle, e.g. a hub. The connecting or locking means may include connecting members for connecting the carrier to the central portion of the wheel, the connecting members including pins and being displaceable between an operative position in which the pins are positioned so as, in use, to project through circumferentially spaced mounting holes defined in the central portion of the wheel and an inoperative position in which the pins are positioned such that, in use, they do not project through the mounting holes of the wheel.

The connecting or locking means may further include retaining members, e.g. nuts and/or padlocks, to retain or lock the connecting members in their operative positions.

The connecting members may include urging means that urges the pins towards their operative positions.

The carrier means may include a support for supporting at least one of the connecting members in a raised position, the raised position being such that, in use, the pin of the connecting member does not project through a mounting hole of the central portion of a wheel supported on the carrier.

The carrier may include a safety element which is connected to the second supporting member and which is configured and positioned to displace the connecting member off the support when the second supporting member is displaced away from its supporting position. The safety element may be in the form of a shaft which is connected to the second supporting member.

In an embodiment of the invention, the connecting member includes a supporting portion, such as a projection which projects outwardly from the pin of the connecting member, the supporting portion being supported on the support when the pin is in a raised position. The connecting member may further include an engaging portion which is configured and located to be hit by the safety element when the second supporting member is displaced away from its supporting position so that the connecting member is displaced away from the support when the engaging portion is hit by the safety element, thereby to allow the pin of the connecting member to move downwardly towards its operative position in which it projects through a mounting hole of the central portion of a wheel supported on the carrier. According to another aspect of the invention there is provided a method of mounting a tyre-wheel assembly onto a carrier, the tyre-wheel assembly including a wheel and a tyre mounted on the wheel, the wheel including a central portion which is surrounded by a rim portion on which the tyre is mounted, with the central portion defining an axial aperture, which method includes:

raising a first peripheral portion or side of the tyre-wheel assembly and positioning the central portion of the wheel at a first position along a periphery of the aperture on a support surface provided by a first wheel supporting member;

pushing downwardly on an extremity of the first peripheral portion or side of the tyre-wheel assembly so as to raise an opposite peripheral portion or side of the tyre-wheel assembly, the support surface of the first wheel supporting member providing a fulcrum about which the tyre-wheel assembly is pivoted, until said opposite peripheral portion or side of the tyre-wheel assembly is at the level of a support surface provided by a second wheel supporting member; and

supporting the central portion of the wheel at a second position along the periphery of the aperture on the support surface provided by the second wheel supporting member.

The carrier may be as hereinbefore described.

Supporting the central portion of the wheel at a second position along the periphery of the aperture on the support surface provided by the second wheel supporting member may include laterally displacing the tyre-wheel assembly to a supported position in which the central portion is supported at said first and second positions along the periphery of the aperture by the support surfaces of the first and second wheel supporting members.

Instead, or in addition, supporting the central portion of the wheel at a second position along the periphery of the aperture on the support surface provided by the second wheel supporting member may include pushing the peripheral portion of the aperture of the central portion of the wheel against a follower surface of the second supporting member when the tyre-wheel assembly is pivoted, with the second wheel supporting member being pushed out of the way by the tyre-wheel assembly until the second position along the periphery of the tyre-wheel assembly is above the support surface of the second wheel supporting member, after which the second wheel supporting member is allowed to move back into its supporting position in which it supports the tyre-wheels assembly.

The method may include releasabiy fastening the central portion of the tyre-wheel assembly to the carrier.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will now be described by way of illustrative, non-limiting examples with reference to the accompanying schematic drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a three-dimensional view of a carrier for a tyre-wheel assembly in accordance with a first embodiment of the invention;

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the carrier of Figure 1 ;

Figure 3 is a top view of the carrier of Figure 1 ;

Figure 4 is a bottom view of the carrier of Figure 1 ;

Figure 5 is a face-on view of a tyre-wheel assembly;

Figure 6 is a three-dimensional view of a carrier for a tyre-wheel assembly in accordance with a second embodiment of the invention; Figure 7 is another three-dimensional view of the carrier of Figure 6, showing various components of the carrier in different positions to those shown in Figure

6;

Figure 8 shows the carrier of Figure 6, in use;

Figure 9 shows a tyre-wheel assembly being mounted to the carrier of Figure 6; and

Figure 10 shows the carrier of Figure 6 in association with an implement to assist handling of a tyre-wheel assembly.

DETAIL DESCRIPTION OF AN EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION

Referring to Figures 1 to 5, reference numeral 10 generally designates a carrier, in accordance with a first embodiment of the invention, for a tyre-wheel assembly 12 (shown in Figure 5).

As can best be seen in Figure 5, the tyre-wheel assembly 12 includes a wheel 14 and a tyre 16 mounted on the wheel 14. The wheel 14 is a conventional disc wheel and includes a dished central portion 18 which is connected to and surrounded by a rim portion 20 on which the tyre 16 is mounted. The central portion 18 defines an axial aperture 22. The central portion 18 comprises an annular, axially facing portion 21a which is connected to the rim portion 20 by a peripherally extending connecting portion 21b. The wheel 14 includes a series of circumferentially spaced mounting holes 24 defined in the axially facing portion 21a for receiving shafts of fasteners (not shown) for mounting the wheel 14 to a part (not shown) of a motor vehicle (not shown) such as a hub. The carrier 10 includes a body 26 which includes an operatively vertically extending portions 28 in the form of flanges on an operatively rear or mounting end 30 of the body and an operatively horizontally extending portion 32 extending from operatively lower ends of the portions 28. The carrier 10 includes mounting means for mounting the body 26 to a support. In particular, the portions 28 define a plurality of mounting holes 38 through which the shafts of bolts (not shown) are receivable for affixing the body 26 to a support (not shown) in combination with nuts (not shown). The support could for example be a chassis of a truck or other motor vehicle. The portion 32 extends from the rear or mounting end 30 to a front end 51 of the body 26.

The body 26 includes a first wheel supporting member 52 and, spaced therefrom, a second wheel supporting member 54.

The first wheel supporting member 52 includes a support surface 56 for supporting, on one side or at a first position along a periphery 58 of the aperture 22, the central portion 18 of the wheel 14. The second wheel supporting member 54 includes a support surface 62 for supporting the central portion 18 on an opposite side or at a second, peripheral position of the aperture 22. The first and second peripheral positions are diagonally opposed.

The second wheel supporting member 54 is displaceable towards and away from a supporting position (the supporting position best being seen in Figure 2) in which its support surface 62 is operably horizontally disposed to support the wheel 14. The second wheel supporting member 54 defines a follower surface 64 to engage the periphery 58 of the aperture 22 of the central portion 18 of the wheel 14 when the wheel 14 is being mounted to the carrier 10. The follower surface 64 is configured to displace the second wheel supporting member 54, i.e. towards the first wheel supporting member 52, when struck by the periphery 58 of the aperture 22, said periphery 58 acting as a cam surface for the follower surface 64. Thus, in use, when struck by the periphery 58, the second wheel supporting member 54 is radially inwardly displaced relative to the aperture 22. The carrier 10 further includes protrusions 57 which protrude downwardly from a lower side of the horizontal portion 32 on opposite sides of the body 26 to assist in the correct positioning of the aperture 22 relative to the body 26.

An elongate handle 68 is connected to the second wheel supporting member 54 via a shaft 69. The second wheel supporting member 54 is displaceable away from its supporting position by means of the handle 68, the handle 68 and the shaft 69 being manually displaceable in the direction of the arrow "A" in Figure 2. The second wheel supporting member 54 is connected to the remainder of the body 26 via a transversely extending shaft 70. The shaft 70 is fixedly mounted to the remainder of the body 26, with the second wheel supporting member 54 being displaceable relative to the shaft 70. The shaft 69 is received by a guide hole 59 of a guide member 60 which inclines upwardly from the horizontal portion 32 of the body 26, the displacement of the shaft 69 being guided through the guide hole 59. More particularly, when the handle 68 is displaced in the direction of the arrow "A" in Figure 2, a coil spring 72, which is coiled about the shaft 69, is compressed, the coil spring 72 being constrained between a flange 61 of the shaft 69 and a rear wall of a guide member 60. When the handle 68 is released, the spring 72 urges the shaft 69 to move in a direction opposite to that of the arrow "A", thereby causing the second supporting member to move towards its supporting position. The coil spring 72 thus provides urging means to urge the second wheel supporting member 54 towards its supporting position.

The carrier 10 further includes connecting or locking means to keep the tyre- wheel assembly 12 in a position in which it is supported on the support surfaces 56, 62, the locking means including a connecting member 74 on the front end 51 of the body 26 and a pair of connecting members 78 on the opposite sides of the body 26.

The connecting member 74 includes an operatively vertically displaceable pin 82, at the top of which is a transversely extending gripping portion or handle 83. The pin 82 is displaceable between a lowered, operative or locking position, shown in Figure 1 to 4, and a raised, inoperative position. Affixed to the pin 82 is a outwardly projecting ear 84 which defines a hole 85. The body 26 includes a sleeve member 87 which defines a passage in which the pin 82 is received and within which urging means in the form of a coil spring (not shown) is located, the coil spring being coiled about the pin 82 and being constrained between the top and bottom axially facing ends of the sleeve member 87. The coil spring (not shown) located in a passage of the sleeve member 87 urges the pin 82 towards its operative or locking position, i.e. operatively downwardly. The sleeve member 87 includes a laterally outwardly extending ear 88 which defines a hole (not shown) which is located directly behind and in register with the hole 85 when the connecting member 74 is in its operative or locking position shown in Figure 1. Thus, when the connecting member 74 is in its operative or locking position, a shackle of a retaining member such as a padlock (not shown) can be threaded through the hole 85 and the registering hole (not shown) of the ear 88, thereby to lock the pin 82, and thus the wheel 14, in position.

The pin 82 includes laterally outwardly extending protrusions 89 and 90. The protrusion 90 extends on the opposite side of the pin 82 to that of the ear 84 (i.e. the protrusion 90 extends outwardly at an angle of 180° to the ear 84). The protrusion 89 extends outwardly at right angles to the ear 84 and at right angles to the protrusion 90. As described below, the protrusion 89 provides an engaging portion which engages with the shaft 69 when the shaft is displaced in the direction of the arrow "A" shown in Figure 2, the protrusion 89 being hit by a free end of the shaft 69, The carrier 10 includes an upwardly extending support or retaining member 91 for supporting or retaining the connecting member 74 in a raised position, in which the protrusion 90 extends rearwardly and rests on a top 92 of the retaining member 91. The top 92 slopes downwardly from one side of the top 92 to the other, one side of the top 92 thus being higher than the other, the top 92 having an undulating profile which permits the protrusion 90 to rest thereon but from which the protrusion 90 can be relatively easily dislodged (as more fully described hereunder).

When the pin 82 is in its operative or locking position, an operatively lower end thereof extends through a hole 94 defined in the first wheel supporting member 52. The first wheel supporting member 52 includes an operatively vertical portion 96 and an operatively horizontal portion 97, the hole 94 being defined in a top of the portion 97, the top also providing the support surface 56. The portion 96 extends operatively downwardly from a lower side of the horizontal portion 32 of the body and the portion 97 extends operatively forwardly and is vertically spaced below the portion 32. The first wheel supporting member 52 is fast with the remainder of the body 26.

Each connecting member 78 includes an operatively vertically extending screw- threaded pin 98 which is connected to an operatively vertically extending shaft 100 via an operatively horizontally extending arm 102, the pin 98 and the shaft 100, in use, extending upwardly from opposite ends of the arm 102. In particular, the arms 102 are located below the horizontal portion 32. The shafts 100 extend through holes defined in the horizontal portion 32 and passages defined by sleeve formations 103 which project upwardly from an upper side of the horizontal portion 32. The operatively upper end of each shaft 100 includes a gripping portion or handle 104 which extends transversely to the shaft 100. Each shaft 100 includes urging means in the form of a coil spring 106 which is coiled about the shaft 100 and is captured between an upper end of the sleeve formation 103 and the gripping portion 104. The spring 106 urges the gripping portion 104 away from the horizontal portion 32, i.e. operatively upwardly. The body 26 includes a pair of protrusions or wings 108 which extend laterally outwardly and which each include an operatively horizontal floor 110 and a pair of side walls 112. The floors 110 define holes 114 through which the pins 98 are receivable. The carrier 10 includes a pair of nuts 116 with screw-threaded bores in which the pins 98 are receivable. When the nuts 116 are removed from the pins 98, displacement of the gripping portions 104 towards the horizontal portion 32 (i.e. downwardly and against the urging of the springs 106) causes the pins 98 to move out of the holes 114 and free of the protrusions or wings 108. When the pins 98 are free of the protrusions or wings 108, the shafts 100 are rotatable with respect to the horizontal portion 32, rotation of the shafts 100 causing the arms 102 and the pins 98 to pivot. Referring to Figures 6 to 9, reference numeral 200 generally designates a carrier in accordance with a second embodiment of the invention, for a tyre-wheel assembly 12. Like features to those of the carrier 10 are referred to by like reference numerals unless otherwise indicated. Figure 8 shows the carrier 200 in use, In particular. Figure 8 shows the carrier 200 mounted via bolts 40 and nuts (not shown) to a support 36 and supporting a tyre-wheel assembly 12. The support 36 in this case is in the form of a vertically extending panel 42 mounted on a load bed 44 of a trailer.

Similarly, to carrier 10, the carrier 200 includes a first wheel supporting member 52 and a second wheel supporting member 54. The second wheel supporting member 54 is displaceable towards and away from a supporting position that is shown in Figure 6 in which the support surface 62 extends horizontally. In particular, the supporting member 54 is pivotable about a shaft 70 which is affixed to the reminder of a body 26 of the carrier 200. The second wheel supporting member 54 is, in use, displaceable when struck by the periphery 58 of the aperture 22, said periphery 58 acting as a cam surface for the follower surface 64. Further, like the carrier 10, the second wheel supporting member 54 of the carrier 200 is also displaceable by means of a handle 68; however the handle 68 of the carrier 200 is pivotably displaceable in the direction of the arrow "B" of Figure 7 against the urging of the coil spring 70. The carriers 10 and 200 are usable in a similar manner as described below.

In use, when a tyre-wheel assembly 12 is to be mounted on the carrier 10, 200, a first peripheral portion or side 118 (Figure 9) of the tyre-wheel assembly 12 is raised and the central portion 18 at a first peripheral position along the periphery 58 of the aperture 22 is positioned on the support surface 56 of the first wheel supporting member 52, with the remainder of the tyre-wheel assembly 12 inclining downwardly from the side 118. An extremity of the side 118 is then pushed downwardly to raise the opposite peripheral portion or side 120 of the tyre-wheel assembly 12, the support surface 56 providing a fulcrum about which the tyre-wheel assembly 12 is pivoted. The tyre-wheel assembly 12 is raised until a peripheral portion of the aperture 22 at a second peripheral position along the periphery 58 of the aperture 22 is approximately at the level of the support surface 62 of the second wheel supporting member 54, with the protrusions 57 being located within the aperture 22. If necessary, the tyre-wheel assembly 12 can be displaced in a radial direction so that the central portion 18 at the first and second peripheral positions along the periphery 58 of the aperture 22 is supported by the support surfaces 56, 62. Instead of in addition, while the pin 82 is in a raised (inoperative) position (the lower end of the pin 82 abutting the portion 21a of the tyre-wheel assembly 12), the peripheral portion of the aperture 22 at the second peripheral position is pushed against the follower surface 64 of the second supporting member 54 when the tyre-wheel assembly 12 is pivoted, with the second wheel supporting member 54 thus being pushed out of the way by the tyre-wheel assembly 12 until the said peripheral portion is above the support surface 62. Thereafter, the second wheel supporting member 54, under the urging of the spring 72, moves back into its supporting position, and said peripheral portion is lowered so that it is supported by the support surface 62.

The tyre-wheel assembly 12 is positioned (if necessary by rotating the tyre-wheel assembly 12) so that one of the mounting holes 24 is directly beneath the pin 82, and the pin 82 is allowed to drop down through said hole 24 so that the lower end of the pin 82 is received by the hole 94.

The shafts 100 of the connecting members 78 are manually pressed downwardly against the urging of the springs 106 by means of the gripping portions 104 and are rotated to cause the arms 102 and the pins 98 to pivot laterally outwardly until the pins are in register with the holes defined in the floors of the wings 108, whereupon the shafts 100 are released and springs 106 cause the arms 102, and thus the pins 98, to more upwardly so that the pins 98 project upwardly through the holes 1 14 and mounting holes 24 in register with the holes 14. The nuts 116 are screwed onto the pins 98. The connecting member 74 can then be locked in position with a padlock, the pin 82 being in its operative, i.e. lowered, or locking position. To remove the tyre-wheel assembly 12 from the carrier 10, 200, the padlock is unlocked and removed. The nuts 16 are unscrewed and removed from the pins 98, and the pins 98 are displaced downwardly, so that they are withdrawn from the mounting holes 24 and the holes 114, and are pivoted laterally inwardly. The second wheel supporting member 54 is displaced, against the urging of the spring 72, away from its supporting position by displacing the free end of the handle 68 so that the support surface 62 moves away from its supporting position, thereby causing tyre-wheel assembly 12 to incline downwardly, with a peripheral portion or side 120 lowermost. The peripheral portion or side 118 of the tyre-wheel assembly 12 is then displaced away from the carrier 10, 200, and the tyre-wheel assembly 12 is removed from the carrier 10, 200.

With regard to carrier 200, if desired, for example if the carrier 200 is mounted to a support at a relatively high position, an elongate implement 122 shown in Figure 10 can be used to support the tyre-wheel assembly 12 while it is being removed from the carrier 200. The implement 122 includes a laterally projecting portion 124 on an end thereof which is passed or threaded through a groove 126 defined in a vertically extending member 127 which extends downwardly from the lower side of the horizontal portion 32 of the body 26, the remainder of the implement 122 extending downwardly from the projecting portion 124. The tyre- wheel assembly 12 is allowed to drop downwardly onto the implement 122, with an operatively upwardly extending projection 128 of the implement 122 being received within the aperture 22 of the wheel 14 to assist in retaining the tyre- wheel assembly 12 on the implement 122.

As regards carrier 10, the carrier 10 beneficially includes safety features as hereinafter described. As mentioned above, when the pin 82 is in its raised position such that the protrusion 90 extends rearwardly and rests on the top 92 of the retaining member 91 , the protrusion 90 can be relatively easily dislodged therefrom due to the undulating profile of the top 92. Thus, when the handle 68 is displaced in the direction of the arrow "A" in Figure 2 against the urging of the spring 72 during the dismounting of the tyre-wheel assembly, a free end of the shaft 69 hits the protrusion 89, which also causes the pin 82 to be angularly displaced to be displaced off the top 92 so that the pin 82 drops downwardly under gravity and the urging of the spring (not shown) located within the sleeve member 87, and the pin 82 dropping through a mounting hole 24 located therebeneath. Thus, the tyre-wheel assembly 12 is connected or locked to the carrier 10 via the pin 82 while the side 120 of the tyre-wheel assembly 12 drops downwards (so that the tyre-wheel assembly 12 inclines downwardly towards the side 120). Thereafter, to remove the tyre-wheel assembly 12 from the carrier 10, the connecting member 74 is raised so that the pin 82 is withdrawn from said mounting hole 24 of the tyre-wheel assembly 12, allowing the tyre-wheel assembly 12 to thereafter to be moved off the support surface 62 and thus off the carrier 10.

By means of the invention, as illustrated and described, a carrier for a tyre-wheel assembly is provided which allows for easy mounting and dismounting of a tyre- wheel assembly and which can be relatively safe to operate. Further, the carrier provides locking or connecting means to inhibit dislodgement and/or deter theft of the tyre-wheel assembly.