Method and device for treating a set of components for the wheel of a vehicle

• US 20060136782A1
• Filed: 10/14/2005
• Published: 06/22/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 04/16/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Compagnie générale des établissements Michelin
• Original Assignee: Michelin Recherche et Technique SA (Compagnie Generale DES Etablissements Michelin SCA)
• Inventors: Corniot, Philippe
• Granted Patent: US 7,648,062 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 714/26
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/0408 transmitting the signals by non-mechanical means from the wheel or tyre to a vehicle body mounted receiver
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 25/132 for removing and mounting tyres for only seating the beads B60C25/12; for only breaking the beads B60C25/125 ; for locating provisionally the beads of tubeless tyres against the sealing surfaces of the rims B60C25/145

Abstract

A method is presented for maintaining a set of at least two components from a group including a wheel rim, a tire and a safety support element, the method including the following steps: providing a set of components, wherein at least one of the components is provided with an information carrier that can be automatically read and is configured to supply at least one data element for use in carrying out the desired maintenance on the set; said set is brought to a maintenance machine that is configured to carry out the desired maintenance on the set under the control of a programmable data management unit; the information carrier of at least one of the components of the set brought to the machine is automatically read and the data is automatically transmitted to the programmable unit; the machine is regulated on the basis of the data transmitted; and the desired maintenance for the set is initiated and carried out by means of the machine.

Claims

1. A method for maintaining a set comprising at least two components from the group comprising a rim, a tire mountable on said rim and a safety support intended to at least partially support a tread of said tire under reduced or zero pressure conditions, said method comprising:

a) providing a set of components, at least one of said components of which is provided with an information medium that can be read automatically and supplies, when it is read, at least one data item for use in carrying out a desired maintenance on said set;

b) bringing said set to a maintenance machine configured to carry out said desired maintenance on said set under the control of a programmable data management unit;

c) automatically reading the information medium of at least one of the components of said set brought to said maintenance machine and automatically transmitting said at least one data item to said programmable data management unit;

d) adjusting said maintenance machine on the basis of said at least one transmitted data item;

e) executing said desired maintenance for said set by means of said maintenance machine.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein step b) comprises bringing said set in an assembled state to a tire mounting/removal machine and step e) comprises performing an operation of removing the tire by means of said tire mounting/removal machine

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein step b) comprises bringing the components of said set in a dismantled state to a tire mounting/removal machine, and step e) comprises performing a tire mounting operation by means of said tire mounting/removal machine

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein step c) comprises transmitting to said programmable data management unit a plurality of data relating to the type and dimensions of each of the components of said set, and step d) comprises adjusting the functional members of the tire mounting/removal machine on the basis of said plurality of data.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein each component of said set is provided with an automatically readable information medium configured to supply, when it is read, the data relating to the type and dimensions of the corresponding component of said set.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein step c) comprises transmitting to said programmable data management unit at least one item of identification data by way of said at least one data item, and step d) comprises obtaining a plurality of data relating to the type and dimensions of each of the components of said set from said at least one item of identification data transmitted and from a lookup table contained in a memory of said programmable data management unit, and adjusting functional members of the tire mounting/removal machine on the basis of said plurality of data.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein each component of said set is provided with an automatically readable information medium configured to supply, when it is read, identification data relating to the corresponding component of said set.

8. The method according to claim 5 or 7, further comprising:

checking compatibility with each other of the components brought to the tire mounting/removal machine on the basis of the data transmitted to the programmable data management unit;

discerning any situation in which at least one of the components is not compatible with one or more other said components;

generating a suitable signal in the case of incompatibility.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein step b) comprises bringing said set to a tire inflation machine and connecting said machine to an inflation valve carried by one of the components of said set, and step e) comprises performing an inflation operation.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein, in step c), a data item for defining a set value for the inflation pressure of the tire is automatically transmitted to said programmable data management unit.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein one of said components of said set comprises a pressure sensor in relationship, from the fluid point of view, with the cavity of the tire in said set in the assembled state and in step c) the actual value of the pressure measured by the pressure sensor is also transmitted to said programmable data management unit.

12. The method according to claim 1, wherein, in step c), the reading of the information medium and the transmission of said at least one data item are performed by virtue of radio communication.

13. The method according to claim 1, wherein, in step c), the reading of the information medium and the transmission of said at least one data item are performed by virtue of an optical reading.

14. A system for maintaining a set of components comprising at least two components in the group comprising a rim, a tire mountable on said rim and a safety support for at least partially supporting a tread on said tire under reduced or zero pressure conditions, said system comprising:

at least one automatically readable information medium, carried by one of said components of said set and configured to supply, when it is read, at least one data item for use in performing a required maintenance on said set;

a programmable data management unit; and

at least one reading and transmission means configured to automatically read said information medium and to automatically transmit said at least one data item to said programmable data management unit; and

wherein said programmable data management unit is configured to control a maintenance machine to perform said required maintenance.

15. The system according to claim 14, wherein said maintenance machine is a tire mounting/removal machine.

16. The system according to claim 15, wherein said tire mounting/removal machine comprises an inflation appliance.

17. The system according to claim 14, wherein said maintenance machine is an inflation machine.

18. The system according to claim 16, wherein one of said components of said set carries a pressure sensor in relationship, from the fluid point of view, with the cavity of the tire in said set in the assembled state.

19. The system according to any one of claims 14 to 18, wherein each component of said set is provided with an automatically readable information medium configured to supply, when it is read, data relating to the type and dimensions of the corresponding component of said set.

20. The system according to any one of claims 14 to 18, wherein each component of said set is provided with an automatically readable information medium configured to supply, when it is read, an item of identification data relating to the corresponding component of said set.

21. The system according to claim 20, wherein the programmable data management unit comprises a memory containing a lookup table comprising the identification data for all the components configured to be assembled in the same set and, for each identification data item, a plurality of data relating to the type and dimensions of the corresponding component.

22. The system according to claim 14, wherein said information medium comprises a label that can be read by one of a radio channel and an optical channel.

23. The system according to claim 22, wherein the reading and transmission means comprises a first radio emitter/receiver connected to the programmable data management unit and a second radio emitter/receiver included in said label.

24. The system according to claim 22, wherein the reading and transmission means comprises an optical reader configured to read a code carried by said label.

25. Machine for maintaining a set comprising at least two components in the group comprising a rim, a tire mountable on said rim and a safety support intended to at least partially support a tread on said tire under reduced or zero pressure conditions, at least one of said components carrying an automatically readable information medium and configured to supply, when it is read, at least one data item for use in performing a required maintenance on said set, said machine comprising:

a) at least one reading and transmission means configured to automatically read said information medium and to automatically transmit said at least one data item to a programmable data management unit;

b) said programmable data management unit;

c) functional members configured to perform said required maintenance on said set under the control of said programmable data management unit on the basis of said at least one transmitted data item.

26. The machine according to claim 25, wherein said functional members are configured to perform tire mounting/removal operations.

27. The machine according to claim 26, further comprising an inflation appliance.

28. The machine according to claim 25, wherein said functional members are configured to perform tire inflation operations.

29. The machine according to any one of claims 25 to 28, wherein the programmable data management unit comprises a memory containing a lookup table comprising identification data for all the components configured to be assembled in the same set and, for each identification data item, a plurality of data relating to the type and dimensions of the corresponding component.

30. The machine according to any one of claims 25 to 28, wherein said reading and transmission means comprises, on a machine side, a radio emitter/receiver connected to the programmable data management unit.

31. The machine according to any one of claims 25 to 28, wherein said reading and transmission means comprises, on a machine side, an optical reader configured to read a code carried by a label constituting said information medium.