Pneumatic tire pressure indicator
First Claim
1. An indicator adapted to be attached to a valve stem having a valve pin of a pneumatic tire for designating a low pressure condition therein, comprises:
- an imperforate tubular housing having front and rear end portions, said rear end portion being adapted to be attached to the valve stem;
a member defining at least one transparent imperforate window in said housing;
an attention-attracting member movably mounted within said housing and disposed normally out of proper orientation relative to said window to conceal said attention-attracting member from view;
an elongated positioning device extending within said tubular housing between a position near said front end portion and a position near said rear end portion for engaging operatively the valve pin, said device further including moving means for moving said attention-attracting member relative to said window to expose said attention-attracting member therethrough;
means connecting said elongated member and said attention-attracting member; and
biasing means for urging resiliently said positioning device rearwardly against the force of the pressure within the tire so that when the pressure within the pneumatic tire falls below a predetermined value, said positioning device moves axially rearwardly to cause said members to be oriented properly for indicating purposes.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A pneumatic tire pressure indicator adapted to be attached to a valve stem of a pneumatic tire for designating a low pressure condition therein includes a member defining at least one window in a housing, and an attention-attracting member mounted on the housing out of proper orientation relative to the window to conceal the attention-attracting member from view when normal air pressure exists within the tire. A mechanism rotates the members relative to one another to properly orient them to expose the attention-attracting member through the window for indicating purposes when the tire pressure falls below a predetermined value. A sensing mechanism activates the rotating mechanism when the pressure within the pneumatic tire falls below the predetermined value. In one embodiment of the invention, the member defining at least one window and the attention-attracting member each includes optically polarized material which are normally oriented in a cross polarized manner to conceal the attention-attracting member from view, the members being rotated relative to one another to cause the attention-attracting member to be visible through the other polarized material serving as a window.
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Citations
10 Claims
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1. An indicator adapted to be attached to a valve stem having a valve pin of a pneumatic tire for designating a low pressure condition therein, comprises:
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an imperforate tubular housing having front and rear end portions, said rear end portion being adapted to be attached to the valve stem; a member defining at least one transparent imperforate window in said housing; an attention-attracting member movably mounted within said housing and disposed normally out of proper orientation relative to said window to conceal said attention-attracting member from view; an elongated positioning device extending within said tubular housing between a position near said front end portion and a position near said rear end portion for engaging operatively the valve pin, said device further including moving means for moving said attention-attracting member relative to said window to expose said attention-attracting member therethrough; means connecting said elongated member and said attention-attracting member; and biasing means for urging resiliently said positioning device rearwardly against the force of the pressure within the tire so that when the pressure within the pneumatic tire falls below a predetermined value, said positioning device moves axially rearwardly to cause said members to be oriented properly for indicating purposes. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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Specification