Wheel balancer

• US 3,164,413 A
• Filed: 08/12/1963
• Issued: 01/05/1965
• Est. Priority Date: 08/12/1963
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Virgil H. Salathiel
• Original Assignee: Virgil H. Salathiel
• Inventors: Salathiel, Virgil H.
• Application Number:
  US04/301,376
• Time in Patent Office: 512 Days
• US Class Current: 301/5.22
• CPC Class Codes: F16F 15/363 using rolling bodies, e.g. balls free to move in a circumferential direction

Claims

1. IN A DYNAMIC WHEEL BALANCING ATTACHMENT THE COMBINATION WITH A VEHICLE WHEEL HAVING A RIM AND A TIRE MOUNTED THEREON, SAID RIM HAVING A PERIPHERAL FLANGE TURNED ARCUATELY OUTWARD AND FORMING AN ANNULAR RECESS ON THE OUTER SURFACE OF SAID RIM, OF:

AN ENDLESS RING FORMED OF CELLULOSE ACETATE BUTYRATE AND HAVING A CIRCULAR CROSS SECTION THROUGHOUT ITS ENTIRE PERIPHERY WITH THE RADIUS OF THE CROSS SECTION SUBSTANTIALLY SMALLER THAN THE CROSS SECTION RADIUS OF THE OUT-TURNED FLANGE FORMING THE ANNULAR RECESS, THE OVERALL DIAMETER OF SAID RING BEING SLIGHTLY GREATER THAN THE INSIDE DIAMETER OF THE ANNULAR RECESS FORMED BY SAID FLANGE, WHEREBY THE AXIS OF THE TORIC DIAMETER OF SAID RING IS OFFSET, INARDLY OF THE WHEEL, WITH RESPECT TO THE AXIS OF THE DIAMETER FORMED BY THE POINT OF RADIUS OF THE ANNULAR RECESS, THE CAVITY IN THE INTERIOR OF THE RING BEING OF UNIFORM SIZE AND OF CIRCULAR FORMATION THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE LENGTH O F THE RING;

CLIP MEANS INTERPOSED BETWEEN AND GRIPPING SAID RING AND SAID OUTTURNED FLANGE FOR HOLDING SAID RING WITHIN THE ANNULAR RECESS FORMED BY SAID OUT-TURNED FLANGE;

A QUANTITY OF STEEL BALLS OF RELATIVELY LARGE MASS DISPOSED AND FREELY MOVABLE WITH THE ANNULUS OF SAID RING, THE DIAMETER OF SAID STEEL BALLS BEING GREATER THAN ONE-HALF THE CROSS SECTION DIAMETER OF THE ANNULUS OF SAID RING, SAID BALLS, WHEN POSITIONED IN POINT CONTACT WITH EACH OTHER, EXTENDING THROUGH AND OCCUPLING SUBSTANTIALY ONE-THIRD OF THE CIRCUMFERENTIAL DISTANCE OF THE ANNULUS OF SAID RING;

AND A FLUID OF RELATIVELY LOW VISCOSITY, IN COMBINATION WITH THE BALLS, FILLING SUBSTANTIALLY THREE-QUATERS OF THE ANNULUS OF SAID RING, THE VISCOSITY OF SAID FLUID AND ITS INCOMPLETE FILLING OF THE ANNULUS OF SAID RING FORMING AN EVENLY DISTRIBUTED AIR SPACE ALONG THE PERIPHERY OF SAID RING AND PERMITTING MOVEMENT OF SAID BALLS AND AN EVEN DISTRIBUTION OF THE FLUID AROUND THE BALLS ALONG THE INNER PERIPHERY OF THE RING PROVIDING A DAMPENING EFFECT AGAINST QUICK MOVEMENT OF SAID BALLS, WHEREBY CENTRIFUGAL FORCE DISPERSES SAID LOW VISCOSITY FLUID AND SAID STEEL BALLS AROUND SAID RING IN WHEEL AND TIRE BALANCING POSITION, SAID STEEL BALLS HAVING A HIGHER DENSITY THAN THE FLUID.