OH, Teik, Kam (7 persiaran Rapat Baru 2, Taman Taufik Ipoh, Perak, 31350, MY)
NG, Wai Luen (48 Jalan Pasir Kuning, Taman Shatin Ipoh, Perak, 31650, MY)
LEE, Ka Let (18 Jalan SS 19/6C, Subang Jaya, Selangor, 47500, MY)
OH, Teik, Kam (7 persiaran Rapat Baru 2, Taman Taufik Ipoh, Perak, 31350, MY)
NG, Wai Luen (48 Jalan Pasir Kuning, Taman Shatin Ipoh, Perak, 31650, MY)
| CLAIMS 1. A land vehicle wheel assembly (200) with two tyres operating on a rim (202), characterized in that the rim (202) consists of a first operating portion (204) holding a primary inflatable tyre (208) and a second operating portion (206) holding a spare tyre (212), the spare tyre (212) remains passive with a roll radius that is smaller than that of the primary inflatable tyre (208) with which it is parallel, whereby the spare tyre (212) becomes operational when the primary inflatable tyre (208) is punctured. 2. A land vehicle wheel assembly (200) according to claim 1 , wherein the spare tyre (212) is not in contact with a road surface (210) when the primary tyre (208) is not punctured. 3. A land vehicle wheel assembly (200) according to claim 1 , wherein the spare tyre (212) is in contact with a road surface (210) when the primary tyre (208) is punctured. 4. A land vehicle wheel assembly (200) according to claim 1 , wherein the spare tyre (212) is installed on the inside or outside of the primary tyre (208) of the wheel assembly (200), without interfering normal running of the primary tyre (208). 5. A land vehicle wheel assembly (200) according to claim 1 , wherein the first operating portion (204) that holds the primary tyre (208) and the second operating portion (206) that holds the spare tyre (212) are operationally connected to a same axle shaft carrying the wheel assembly (200) of the vehicle. 6. A land vehicle wheel assembly (200) according to claim 1 , wherein the rim (202) is a metal, alloy and/or composite rim. 7. A land vehicle wheel assembly (200) according to claim 1, wherein the spare tyre (212) is made from solid rubber. 8. A land vehicle wheel assembly (200) according to claim 1 , wherein the spare tyre (212) is a pneumatic rubber tyre. |
The present invention relates to wheels for us in automotive vehicles. More particularly the present invention relates to a vehicle wheel assembly with two tyres integrated on the same rim.
BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION
Conventionally, automotive vehicles have at least one wheel/spare-tyre assembly for use when a tyre is punctured or any other damage to one of their tyres (hereinafter called merely spare tyres), or else problems related to the wheel proper (crush, fatigue failure or impact, great unbalancing, etc.).
In most cases, the exchange of the wheel/spare tyre assembly is an unpleasant operation, since one has to stop the vehicle, remove the spare tyre from the place where it is stored, unscrew the nuts/bolts of the vehicle wheel, lift it with a jack, replace the wheel/damaged-tyre assembly, lower the vehicle, tighten the screws/nuts firmly and, finally, put away the wheel/damaged-tyre assembly in the place intended for the spare tyre.
However unpleasant this operation may be, there is the possibility of a number of aggravating drawbacks that make this operation even more difficult, some of which are described herewith; in the case of heavy vehicles, such as buses and trucks, the wheel/tyre assemblies are excessively heavy to be handled by a single person, and so the driver cannot exchange tyres without the help of someone else, thus causing an exhaustive physical exercise; on some private cars, the spare tyre is placed on the bottom of the luggage space and, since it is the same size of the main wheel to be replaced on most vehicles, one has to remove the whole baggage in order to reach it; for the reason explained in the preceding item, a considerable portion of the usable volume of the luggage space is intended for storing it, thus reducing the space available for baggage, which is a problem mainly on small or sports vehicles (the dimensions of the spare tyre are considerable); for those who are not physically strong enough, such as women and old people, the force required for loosening and tightening wheel screws/nuts is excessive and, in addition, these people have to sit on the floor in order to position the spare tyre at the wheel hub correctly; it may happen that the wheel nuts/screws have been tightened to much, and the driver does not manage to unscrew them, in which case it will not be possible to exchange the wheel/tire assembly in order to use the spare tyre.
In order to eliminate some of these drawbacks, provisional spare tyres have been designed, the width of which is considerably smaller than that of the original wheel/tyres of the vehicle. In this way, the spare tyre takes little room space in the luggage space and may be easily handled. However, the main drawbacks have not been eliminated with this solution, because it is necessary to lift the vehicle in order to unscrew the wheel nuts/screws, remove the wheel/tyre assembly to be exchanged, place the spare tyre, lower the vehicle, tighten the nuts/screws and, finally, storing the wheel/tyre assembly in the luggage space.
Thus, the difficulties in replacing tyres that encountered by people endowed with little physical force have not been eliminated, just as the impossibility of unscrewing and wheel nuts/screws due to excessive tightening.
Another solution was the use of tyres that can run long distances at traveling speeds (about 80 km/h, at least), in order to prevent immediate replacement and enable the driver to drive the vehicle in safety and without damage as far as a tyre fixer.
However, this solution has some drawbacks, such as the high cost of the wheels/tyres used, economical unfeasibility of applying this system to vehicles that are already in use and, what is more important, inefficiency in the case of serious damages, such as break or excessive deformation of the wheel and punctured tire.
With a view to eliminating these drawbacks U.S. 6,217, 125 discloses a narrow spare wheel for use on vehicles without removing the original wheel, but this product has the great disadvantage of requiring removal of the wheel nut for replacing it with a nut that enables one to fix the spare wheel. All the drawbacks relating to unscrewing wheel bolts are not eliminated.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
The aim of the present invention is to improve a vehicle wheel with two tyres integrated and held on the same rim, which is achieved when the wheel is constructed with the characteristics included in the patent claims below. 4
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Referring to Fig. 1a, most land vehicle wheels 100 are made of pressed steel or alloy steel, with a rim 102 shaped to hold an inflatable or pneumatic tyre 104. The existing wheels 100 are affixed to an axle shaft (not shown) with assistance of a hub and nuts.
Fig. 1b shows a second wheel 200 according to the present invention. The wheel 200 comprises a metal, alloy or composite rim 202 that is divided into a first operating portion 204 and a second operating portion 206. The first operating portion 204 is fitted with a conventional or primary tyre 208 that is in contact with road surface 210, while the second operating portion 206 holds a spare tyre 212 that has an external diameter smaller than the external diameter of the primary tyre 208 by about 30 mm.
The primary tyre 208 is a conventional pneumatic tyre that is known to a person skilled in the art and is fitted into the first operating portion 204 of rim 202 using known methods in the art.
The spare tyre 212 is preferably a solid rubber tyre or a pneumatic rubber tyre. In a preferred embodiment, a solid rubber tyre is mounted to the second operating portion
206 of rim 202. In another preferred embodiment, a pneumatic tyre is fitted into the second operating portion 206 of rim 202 using known methods in the art. The use of pneumatic tyre requires regular maintenance. Therefore, materials other than pneumatic and solid rubber may be used and still covered within the scope of the invention.
As shown in Fig. 1b, both the spare tyre 212 that is held by the second operating portion 206 and the primary tyre 208 that is held by the first operating portion 204, are fitted and integrated in one common rim 202, which is suitably connected and attached to an axial shaft (not shown) carrying wheel assembly 200.
The rim 202 is specially configured to have the first operating portion 204 and the second operating portion 206 so as to fit the spare tyre 212 in the inside of the primary tyre 208. Both the primary tyre 208 and the spare tyre 212 are spaced apart and become one wheel unit 200 that is connected to an axle shaft (not shown) for movement. Therefore, during movement of a vehicle, both the primary tyre 208 and 3
The present invention is of a primary tyre and a spare tyre held on the same rim, so that the latter remains passive with a roll radius that is considerably smaller than that of the primary tyre with which it is parallel. The spare tyre becomes operational when the primary tyre is punctured. When the spare tyre is in operation, this tyre is in contact with the road surface, thus allowing the vehicle to be driven without damaging the primary tyre.
It is an advantage of the present invention to provide a spare tyre and a primary tyre integrated on the same rim, whereby the spare tyre becomes operational when the primary tyre is punctured.
It is another advantage of the present invention to allow a driver to continue driving the vehicle, without stopping, to an appropriate safe location before changing the flat primary tyre.
It is yet another advantage of the present invention to avoid having to carry a spare tyre in the trunk of the vehicle, therefore increasing its storage space.
BRIF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The present invention will now be described in detail with reference to drawings, in which:
Figs. 1a and 1b show a side lateral cross-section view of two front or rear wheels of a vehicle, in which Figure 1a is the first wheel that shows a conventional rim and Figure 1b is the second wheel with two tyres held on the same rim according to an embodiment of the present invention;
Fig. 2 is a side lateral cross-section view of an embodiment of the present invention when the primary tyre is an inflated tyre;
Fig. 3 is a side lateral cross-section view of the present invention when the primary tyre is a deflated tyre; and
Figs. 4a - 4d are side lateral cross-section views showing various embodiments of the spare tyre according to the present invention. the spare tyre 212 rotate along the same axis, except that rotation of the spare tyre 212 is passive (i.e. not in contact with road surface) in relation to rotation of the primary tyre 208.
During normal running of the wheel 200 according to the present invention, the spare tyre 212 would spin freely without contacting the road surface 210 (see Fig. 2). This is referred to as passive movement. When the primary tyre 208 is punctured and collapses under the weight of the vehicle (see Fig. 3), the spare tyre 212 contacts the road surface 210, which keeps the wheel 200 running. At this point of time, the spare tyre 212 of the wheel 200 becomes operational and it carries the weight of the vehicle. The vehicle can be driven continuously for about 60 km to a safe location.
The wheel 200 in accordance with the present invention is a single unit/wheel that can be factory manufactured with metal, alloy or composite rims. Rim manufacturers can therefore take advantage of this single wheel unit and design rims to cater for various passenger vehicles.
When four wheels 200 according to the present invention are fitted to a vehicle, the vehicle can theoretically be driven on one, two, three or four spare tyres 212, depending to the number of punctured primary tyres 208. For example, four spare tyres 212 will be in operation if four primary tyres 208 are punctured at the same time. The recommended speed when the spare tyre 212 is in operation is 60 km/hour. It is important to note that the size of the rim 202 can be designed and manufactured to suit each make of vehicle. Invariable, the spare tyre 212 of the wheel 200 is designed such that it is disposed on the inside of the primary tyre 208, without interfering the normal operation or running of the wheel unit 200. However, it must be noted that the spare tyre 212 can also be disposed on the outside of a primary tyre 208, without interfering the normal operation or running of the wheel unit 200.
Figs. 4a - 4d show four various alternatives of solid rubber spare tyre 212 according to the present invention. In a first exemplary embodiment (Fig. 4a) a solid rubber spare tyre 212 is directly mounted to a second operating portion 206 of rim 202. In a second exemplary embodiment (Fig. 4b), the solid rubber spare tyre 212 is mounted to a second operating portion 206 having a "T" shape protruding means 214. In a third exemplary embodiment (Fig. 4c), the solid rubber spare tyre 212 is mounted to a second operating portion 206 having a rounded or oval shape protruding means 216. In a fourth exemplary embodiment (Fig. 4d), the solid rubber spare tyre 212 is mounted to a second operating portion 206 having a "J" shape protruding means 218. All these protruding means further strengthen mounting of the rubber spare tyre 212 to the second operating portion 206 of rim 202.