Installation Tool for Wheel Balance Weights and Method of Using the Same Cross-Reference to Related Applications

[0001] The present patent application claims the benefits of priority of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/677, 193, entitled "Installation Tool for Wheel Balance Weights and Method of Using the Same", and filed at the United States Patent and Trademark Office on July 30, 2012, the content of which is incorporated herein by reference.

Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention generally relates to tools for installing wheel balance weights on the wheels of vehicles (e.g. cars, trucks, etc.).

Background of the Invention [0003] Wheel balance weights are commonly fixed to or mounted on the outer circumference of the rim of the tire wheel of a vehicle in order to correct the unbalanced rotation of the wheel.

[0004] Balance weights are typically composed of a weight portion and a clip portion and are fixed by clamping the outer circumference of the rim between the weight portion and the clip portion.

[0005] Though there have been attempts to automate the installation process of balance weights (e.g. U.S. Patent No. 5,206,984), the process is still mainly manual and generally implies that a person holds the weight with his fingers and manually strikes the clip portion of the weight with a hammer or a similar striking tool (e.g. U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 201 1/0314614), to deform the clip portion such that it wraps around the outer edge of the rim of the wheel. [0006] Understandably, if the person performing the installation misses the clip portion during the striking, it all too often results in injuries to the person and/or damages to the wheel. Manually striking the clip portion can also result in inconsistent installation as no two hammer strikes are identical. Moreover, manually striking the clip portions of balance weights can be slow and tedious.

[0007] There have been at least some attempts to mitigate some of the problems associated with the manual installation process. For instance, U.S. Patent No. 3, 152,391 to Bjorn et al. ("Bjorn") discloses a wheel weight installation tool having a shaft which is provided at one end, with a reciprocating driving handle, and at the other end, with a supporting head for supporting the weight. By repetitively reciprocating the driving handle, the Bjorn tool can secure the weight to the wheel. The Bjorn tool generally avoids the need for the person to hold the weight with his fingers but does not address the consistency and speed of the installation since repetitive reciprocating movements of the driving handle are necessary.

[0008] For its part, U.S. Patent No. 6,446,318 to Foose ("Foose") discloses a striking tool which holds the balance weight during the installation process, thereby avoiding the need for the person to hold the weight with his fingers. However, the Foose tool still needs to be manually struck by a hammer to mount the balance weight on the wheel. Hence, the Foose tool does not address the problem of consistent and quick installation of the balance weights.

[0009] There is thus a need for an installation tool for wheel balance weights which avoids the need for a hammer, or a similar manual striking tool, and which otherwise mitigates at least some of the shortcoming of prior art installation tools.

Summary of the Invention [0010] At least some of the shortcomings of prior balance weight installation tools are mitigated by an installation tool which uses a driver and a holding head to mount the balance weight to the wheel of the vehicle. [001 1] Hence, an installation tool in accordance with the principles of the present invention generally comprises a hand-held driver connectable to a power source, typically but not necessarily in the form of a hand-held pneumatic or electric gun, and a typically removable holding head for holding the balance weight during the installation process.

[0012] The driver comprises a striker which is typically driven by compressed air (e.g. by a piston) or by electromagnetism (e.g. by a solenoid), and which is configured to strike the clip portion of the balance weight held by the holding head. The striker is typically spring-loaded such as to be properly repositioned after each strike.

[0013] The holding head is typically configured to be removably mounted to the driver and generally comprises a central through opening for allowing the striker to travel through the holding head and to strike the clip portion of the balance weight.

[0014] The holding head also comprises a holding mechanism located at its front end for autonomously holding the balance weight to be installed.

[0015] In typical though non-limitative embodiments, the holding mechanism comprises at least one magnet for holding the balance weight when the weight portion and/or the clip portion of the balance weight are made from steel and/or other magnetic materials.

[0016] In typical though non-limitative embodiments, the holding head comprises a first portion fixedly yet removably mounted to the driver, and a second portion pivotally mounted to the first portion and comprising the holding mechanism. In such embodiments, the second portion can pivot with respect to the first portion and thus with respect to the driver. [0017] By using a hand-held driver and a holding head, the installation tool in accordance with the principles of the present invention generally avoids the need for the person performing the installation to manually hold the balance weight with his fingers, and generally improves the consistency and speed of the installation by avoiding the needs for manual and generally inconsistent hammer strikes. [0018] Other and further aspects and advantages of the present invention will be obvious upon an understanding of the illustrative embodiments about to be described or will be indicated in the appended claims, and various advantages not referred to herein will occur to one skilled in the art upon employment of the invention in practice.

Brief Description of the Drawings [0019] The above and other aspects, features and advantages of the invention will become more readily apparent from the following description, reference being made to the accompanying drawings in which:

[0020] Figure 1 is a side view of an embodiment of the installation tool in accordance with the principles of the present invention.

[0021] Figure 2 is a cross-section side view of the installation tool of Fig. 1.

[0022] Figure 3 is an exploded side view of the installation tool of Fig. 1.

[0023] Figures 4A to 4D are respectively perspective view, top view, side view and front view of an embodiment of a holding head assembly in accordance with the principles of the present invention.

[0024] Figures 5A to 5D are respectively perspective view, top view, side view and front view of another embodiment of a holding head assembly in accordance with the principles of the present invention.

[0025] Figures 6A to 6D are respectively perspective view, top view, side view and front view of still another embodiment of a holding head assembly in accordance with the principles of the present invention.

[0026] Figures 7A to 7C are respectively front view, rear view and cross-sectional view of an example of a prior art wheel balance weight.

Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiment

[0027] A novel installation tool for wheel balance weight and a method for using the same will be described hereinafter. Although the invention is described in terms of specific illustrative embodiments, it is to be understood that the embodiments described herein are by way of example only and that the scope of the invention is not intended to be limited thereby.

[0028] Referring first to Figs. 1 and 2, an embodiment of an installation tool 10 for installing wheel balance weight on wheels, in accordance with the principles of the present invention, is shown.

[0029] The installation tool 10 is generally configured to hold a typical balance weight 20 (see Figs. 7A to 7C) and then strike on the clip portion 22 of the balance weight such that the clip portion 22 wraps around the outer rim of the wheel (not shown).

[0030] Hence, in the present embodiment, the installation tool 10 generally comprises a hand-held driver 100 and a holding head assembly 200 mounted thereto. In the present embodiment, the holding head assembly 200 is removably mounted to the driver 100. However, in other embodiments, one or more portions of the holding head assembly 200 could be unitary with the driver 100.

[0031 ] As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, in the present embodiment, the driver 100 is a pneumatic driver 100 and is generally in the form of a hand-held pneumatic gun. The pneumatic driver 100 is thus connectable in known manner to a pneumatic source (e.g. a source of compressed air, a compressor, etc.), not shown, and is configured to pneumatically drive a spring-loaded striker 102 (see Fig. 2). [0032] Notably, in other embodiments, the driver 100 could be an electric driver, generally in the form of a hand-held electric gun. In such embodiments, the striker 102 would be driven electromagnetically, typically by a solenoid (not shown). Understandably, in such embodiments, the driver 100 would be connectable to an electric power source (e.g. batteries, the electrical grid via an electrical outlet, etc.).

[0033] The holding head assembly 200, which is removably secured to the driver 100, is configured to temporarily hold the balance weight 20 to be installed in such a way that the clip portion 22 is generally aligned with the striker 102 and such that the striker 102 can properly strike on the clip portion 22 to secure the clip portion 22 to the outer rim of the wheel.

[0034] The driver 100 will now be described in more details.

[0035] As mentioned above, in the present embodiment, the driver 100 is a pneumatic driver and is configured to be connected to a source of compressed air (not shown) in order to pneumatically drive the striker 102. [0036] The pneumatic driver 100 generally comprises a handle portion 104 such as to be grasped by an operator, a housing portion 106 which houses a barrel assembly 108 (which includes the striker 102), and a trigger assembly 1 10 configured to be actuated by the operator such as to selectively drive the striker 102. [0037] In the present embodiment, the trigger assembly 1 10 and the barrel assembly 108 are pneumatically in communication such that, upon actuation (e.g. depression) of the trigger assembly 1 10, compressed air will flow from the compressed air source to the barrel assembly 108 to drive the striker 102. [0038] As best shown in Fig. 2, in the present embodiment, the barrel assembly 108 generally comprises a piston 1 12 which is driven by the flow of compressed air, the striker 102 fixedly mounted to the piston 1 12, and a spring 1 14 for retracting the piston 1 12 and striker 102 after each strike. In other words, the spring 1 14 repositions the piston 1 12 and striker 102 after each strike such that the piston 1 12 and striker 102 are generally always in a ready-to-strike position.

[0039] The piston 1 12, striker 102 and spring 1 14 are located within an inner piston chamber 109 in which the piston 1 12 is slidingly mounted. [0040] In the present embodiment, the striker 102 is generally cylindrical in shape and is terminated, at its free end 122, with a typically flat striking surface 124.

[0041] As best shown in Fig. 2, when in resting position, the striker 102 extends partially inside the holding head assembly 200. [0042] The housing 106 also comprises a muzzle end 1 16 having a bore 1 18 through which extends the striker 102. In the present embodiment, the muzzle end 1 16 comprises a forward protrusion 120 which is configured to mate with and support the inner member 202 of the holding head assembly 200.

[0043] Referring now to Figs. 1 to 4, the holding head assembly 200 will be described in more details. [0044] The holding head assembly 200 is configured to support the balance weight 20 while the operator positions the installation tool 10 and then installs the balance weight 20.

[0045] As can be seen from Fig. 3, in the present embodiment, the holding head assembly 200 comprises an inner member 202 which is configured to be secured to the muzzle end 1 16 of the pneumatic driver 100, more particularly to the forward protrusion 120, and an outer member 204, pivotally mounted to the inner member 202, and configured to receive and hold the balance weight 20 during its installation. [0046] In the present embodiment, the outer member 204 is pivotally mounted to the inner member 202 such that the outer member 204 can pivot 360 degrees with respect to the inner member 202. In order words, the outer member 204 can swivel with respect to the inner member 202. The ability of the outer member 204 to pivot with respect to the inner member 202, and thus with respect to the driver 100, allows the operator to adjust and/or change the orientation of the driver 100 with respect to the outer member 204, thereby allowing the operator to have a proper grip on the driver 100 independently of the orientation of the outer member 204.

[0047] In other embodiments, the inner and/or outer members 202 and 204 could be provided with a mechanism such as, but not limited to, a ratchet mechanism or a ball detent mechanism, which would allow the rotation of the outer member 204 with respect to the inner member 202 while temporarily maintaining the angular position of the outer member 204 once adjusted by the operator. [0048] As mentioned above, the inner member 202 is configured to be secured to the forward protrusion 120 of the muzzle end 1 16 of the housing 106. In that sense, the rear or rearward end 236 of the inner member 202 is provided with two fastener bores 206 (see Fig. 4A) configured to each receive a fastener 208, and to each be in alignment with corresponding fastener bores 126 in the protrusion 120 (see Fig. 1).

[0049] Understandably, the attachment of the inner member 202 to the muzzle end 1 16/forward protrusion 120 could be done differently depending on the configuration of the muzzle end 1 16 and/or of the forward protrusion 120. For instance, in some embodiments, the forward protrusion 120 could fully surround the bore 1 18 and comprise external threads. In such embodiments, the inner member 202 would comprise matching threads such that it can be threaded to the forward protrusion 120. Other configurations are understandably possible. [0050] As it will be best understood below, in the present embodiment, the free or forward end 210 of the inner member 202 is substantially flat in order to allow the outer member 204 to pivot.

[0051] The inner member 202 also comprises a substantially central through bore 212 having a circular section. The bore 212 has a diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the striker 102 in order for the bore 212 to also accommodate the rearward tube portion 228 of the outer member 204.

[0052] For its part, the outer member 204 generally comprises a front or forward end 214 and a rear or rearward end 216.

[0053] The forward end 214 of the outer member 204 is particularly configured to receive and hold a balance weight 20. In that sense, the forward end 214 comprises a generally recessed receiving region 218. The receiving region 218 further comprises a clip receiving region 222 which generally overlaps, at least partially, the bore 220 (see Fig. 2) and which is configured to receive the clip portion 22 of the balance weight 20, and a weight receiving region 224 which is configured to receive the weight portion 24 of the balance weight 20. [0054] As best shown in Fig. 4A, in the present embodiment, the clip receiving region 222 is recessed with respect to the forward end 214. The recessed clip receiving region 222 generally prevents movements of the clip portion 22 of the balance weight 20 during installation.

[0055] Also, as best shown in Figs. 4A and 4C, in the present embodiment, the weight receiving region 224 is recessed at an angle with respect to the forward end 214 in order to properly accommodate the bulkier weight portion 24 of the balance weight 20. Notably, in the present embodiment, the weight receiving region 224 comprises at least one embedded magnet 226 for magnetically holding the weight portion 24 of the balance weight 20. Understandably, the weight portion 24 of the balance weight 20 must be made of magnetic material to be held by the magnet 226.

[0056] The rearward end 216 of the outer member 204 is configured such as to mate with the forward end 210 of the inner member 202. In that sense, in order to allow the outer member 204 to pivot, the rearward end 216 is also substantially flat.

[0057] As best shown in Figs. 2 and 3, the outer member 204 comprises the rearward tube portion 228, already introduced above, which extends rearwardly from the rearward end 216. The tube portion 228 provides the pivotal connection between the outer member 204 and the inner member 202. In that sense, the tube portion 228 is configured to extend into and through the bore 212 of the inner member 202 and is further configured to engage the inner member 202. Notably, the free or rearward end 230 of the tube portion 228 is provided with a circumferential groove 232 configured to receive a retaining ring (not shown) which engages a shoulder 234 (see Fig. 2) at the rearward end 236 of the inner member 202.

[0058] As best shown in Fig. 2, the through bore 220 of the outer member 204 extends through the tube portion 228. Furthermore, the inner diameter of the bore 220 is only slightly larger than the diameter of the striker 102 in order to allow the striker 102 to travel longitudinally through the bore 220 while preventing unwanted radial movements (e.g. wobbling movements) of the striker 102 during a strike. [0059] Referring now to Figs. 5A to 5D, another embodiment of a holding head assembly 1200 is shown. Holding head assembly 1200 is similar in construction to holding head assembly 200. The main difference is in the receiving region 1218. [0060] In holding head assembly 1200, the clip receiving region 1222 comprises a series of embedded magnets 1226 while the weight receiving region 1224 does not comprise embedded magnet(s). In holding head assembly 1200, the magnets 1226 are for magnetically holding the clip portion 22 of the balance weight 20. [0061] Holding head assembly 1200 could be used when the clip portion 22 of the balance weight 20 is made of magnetic material whereas the weight portion 24 of the balance weight 20 is made from non-magnetic material (e.g. zinc, lead, etc.).

[0062] Understandably, in some other embodiments, both the clip receiving region and the weight receiving region could comprise at least one embedded magnet.

[0063] Referring now to Figs. 6A to 6D, still another embodiment of a holding head assembly 2200 is shown. Holding head assembly 2200 is broadly similar in construction to holding head assembly 200, except for the fact that in holding head assembly 2200, there are no distinct inner and outer members; the holding head assembly 2200 is unitary.

[0064] To operate the installation tool 10, the operator will connect the driver 100 to a power source (e.g. a source of compressed air for a pneumatic driver, a source of electricity for an electric driver). Once properly powered, the installation tool 10 will be ready to be used.

[0065] To install a balance weight 20 using the installation tool 10, the operator will first mount a balance weight 20 in the receiving region 218 of the outer member 204 of the holding head assembly 200. In that sense, the operator will position the balance weight 20 such that the clip portion 22 is properly received into the clip receiving region 222 and is aligned with the bore 220 (from which the striker 102 will extend during a strike) and such that the weight portion 24 is substantially adjacent to the magnet 226. Once properly positioned, the balance weight 20 will be held autonomously by the magnet(s) of the holding head assembly 200 without any assistance from the operator.

[0066] Then, the operator, using the installation tool 10, will position the balance weight 20 near the location on the outer rim of the wheel of the vehicle where the balance weight 20 needs to be mounted.

[0067] Once the balance weight 20 is properly positioned, the operator will depress the trigger assembly 1 10 such as to cause the driving of the striker 102. As the striker 102 is forcefully driven, it will move toward the clip portion 22 of the balance weight 20 and ultimately strike it with enough force to cause the clip portion 22 to deform and then wrap around the outer rim of the wheel.

[0068] Then the spring 1 14 will reposition the striker 102 into its resting position and the installation tool 10 will be ready to install another balance weight 20.

[0069] Notably, by comprising a hand-held driver and a holding head assembly mounted thereto, an installation tool in accordance with the principles of the present invention generally avoids the need for the person performing the installation to manually hold the balance weight with his fingers, and generally improves the consistency and speed of the installation by avoiding the needs for manual and generally inconsistent hammer strikes. In addition, an installation tool in accordance with the principles of the present invention generally allows the operator to install a balance weight with single hand since the installation tool, which can be manipulated with a single hand, is configured to both hold and mount the balance weight.

[0070] While illustrative and presently preferred embodiments of the invention have been described in detail hereinabove, it is to be understood that the inventive concepts may be otherwise variously embodied and employed and that the appended claims are intended to be construed to include such variations except insofar as limited by the prior art.