Method and apparatus for measuring the wear of a tire mounted on a vehicle
First Claim
1. A method for measuring the wear of at least one tire mounted on a wheel on a vehicle, the tire having a tread which has pattern elements interconnected by grooves, the vehicle having a chassis and a suspension system that provides a flexible link between the chassis and the wheel, comprising the steps of:
- obtaining, at a given moment, a measurement value representative of a distance between at least one reference point fixed on one of the suspension system and the chassis and a top of at least one of the tread pattern elements opposite the reference point, obtaining, at the given moment, a reference value representative of a distance measured between the reference point and a selected point on the tire tread pattern, and comparing the measurement value with the reference value and deducing therefrom a wear datum for the tread pattern element.
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Accused Products
Abstract
The present invention concerns a method for measuring the wear of a tire (2) having tread pattern elements interconnected by grooves, which is mounted on a wheel fitted on an automobile having a chassis and a suspension system (1), the method comprising, when the vehicle (13) rolling or at rest, the following steps:
i) at a given moment a reference value is measured, which is representative of the distance between, on the one hand, a first point fixed on the suspension system (1) or a second point fixed on the chassis facing the tire (2), and on the other hand the top of at least one of the tread pattern elements opposite,
ii) in a first case, at the given moment a reference value is measured which represents a distance measured between the first or second point and the bottom of one of the grooves opposite, or, alternatively, in a second case, another reference value is measured subsequently, which represents a distance measured between the first point and one of the tops, and
iii)the value measured in i) is compared with the reference value measured in ii) to deduce therefrom, in the first case, a wear datum representing the height of the pattern element by differential measurement at the moment, and in the second case, a wear datum representing the change of wear at the top of the element.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A method for measuring the wear of at least one tire mounted on a wheel on a vehicle, the tire having a tread which has pattern elements interconnected by grooves, the vehicle having a chassis and a suspension system that provides a flexible link between the chassis and the wheel, comprising the steps of:
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obtaining, at a given moment, a measurement value representative of a distance between at least one reference point fixed on one of the suspension system and the chassis and a top of at least one of the tread pattern elements opposite the reference point, obtaining, at the given moment, a reference value representative of a distance measured between the reference point and a selected point on the tire tread pattern, and comparing the measurement value with the reference value and deducing therefrom a wear datum for the tread pattern element. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. An apparatus for measuring wear in a tire on a vehicle having a chassis, a suspension system, and wheels each provided with a tire, the tires each having a tread comprising tread pattern elements and grooves, the suspension system comprising a suspension arm designed to provide a flexible link between the chassis and the wheels, the apparatus comprising:
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a wear measurement unit comprising a wear gauge mounted on a fixed abutment of the suspension arm against which rests a damper spring, the gauge being disposed to make contact with at least one of a top and a bottom of the groove associated with at least one of the tread pattern elements, control means mounted on the suspension system for controlling the wear gauge, and, means for measuring the displacement of the gauge and for comparing that displacement with a reference displacement, to deduce therefrom a wear datum relating to the tread pattern element.
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18. An apparatus for measuring wear in a tire on a vehicle having a chassis, a suspension system, and wheels each provided with a tire, the tires each having a tread comprising tread pattern elements interconnected by grooves, the suspension system comprising a suspension arm designed to provide a flexible link between the chassis and the wheels, comprising:
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a wear measurement unit comprising a pick-up for acoustic or electromagnetic waves, the pick-up being mounted on a fixed abutment of the suspension arm against which rests a damper spring, the pick-up being configured to emit an incident beam of waves towards at least one of the grooves opposite it and towards at least one tread element tops adjacent thereto, means for receiving in the form of first and second signals, respectively, a first beam of waves reflected by the tread top and originating from the incident beam and a second beam of waves reflected by the groove bottom and originating from the incident beam, means for deducing from a shift between the first and second signals a delay time of the second signal relative to the first signal, and means for deducing from the delay time a distance between the tread top and the groove bottom representative of the height of the tread pattern elements.
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19. An automobile vehicle comprising a chassis, wheels and a suspension system that provides a flexible link between the chassis and the wheels, at least one tire whose tread comprises pattern elements interconnected by grooves mounted on each wheel, the vehicle further comprising:
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a wear measurement unit comprising a wear gauge mounted on a fixed abutment of the suspension arm against which rests a damper spring, the gauge being disposed to make contact with at least one of a top and a bottom of the groove associated with at least one of the tread pattern elements, control means mounted on the suspension system for controlling the wear gauge, and, means for measuring the displacement of the gauge and for comparing that displacement with a reference displacement, to deduce therefrom wear data relating to the tread pattern element, and, a central unit to receive the wear data and transmit the wear data to a vehicle operator.
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20. An automobile vehicle comprising a chassis, wheels and a suspension system that provides a flexible link between the chassis and the wheels, at least one tire whose tread comprises pattern elements interconnected by grooves mounted on each wheel, the vehicle further comprising:
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a wear measurement unit comprising a pick-up for acoustic or electromagnetic waves, the pick-up being mounted on a fixed abutment of the suspension arm against which rests a damper spring, the pick-up being configured to emit an incident beam of waves towards at least one of the grooves opposite it and towards at least one tread element tops adjacent thereto, means for receiving in the form of first and second signals, respectively, a first beam of waves reflected by the tread top and originating from the incident beam and a second beam of waves reflected by the groove bottom and originating from the incident beam, means for deducing from a shift between the first and second signals a delay time of the second signal relative to the first signal, means for deducing from the delay time a distance between the tread top and the groove bottom representative of the height of the tread pattern elements, and a central unit to receive data representing the height of the tread pattern elements of at least one tire from the measurement unit to transmit the data to the operator of the vehicle.
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Specification