Splashy-water removing apparatus for vehicle wheels

• US 5,961,148 A
• Filed: 06/05/1997
• Issued: 10/05/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 06/05/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Wen-Kuei Cheng
• Original Assignee: Wen-Kuei Cheng
• Inventors: Cheng, Wen-Kuei
• Primary Examiner(s): Swann, J. J.
• Assistant Examiner(s): CUFF, MICHAEL A
• Application Number:
  US08/870,017
• Time in Patent Office: 852 Days
• Field of Search: 280/851, 280/850, 280/849, 280/848
• US Class Current: 280/851
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 25/16 Mud-guards or wings; Wheel cover panels equipped with means for freeing wheels or tyres from foreign matter B60S

Abstract

A splashy-water removing apparatus for vehicle wheels including a plurality of water removing units mounted on a vehicle to be disposed around each vehicle wheel, each water removing unit having a plurality of energy-eliminating strips arcuately juxtapositionally secured in a casing arcuately disposing about each wheel for eliminating the dynamic energy of the water droplets as centrifugally thrusted by a rotating wheel and for collecting the droplets entering the water removing unit, and a water discharge system fluidically connecting all the water removing units, whereby upon running of a vehicle on a rainy road at high speed, the splashy water as thrusted from each wheel will be deactivated and collected in the water removing units and then drained rearwardly through the water discharge system for preventing the formation of water fog for preventing unclear vision for a rear vehicle.

Claims

1. A splashy-water removing apparatus for vehicle wheels comprising:

a plurality of water removing units respectively disposed around at least a front wheel and at least a rear wheel for eliminating energy of rainwater entering said water removing units as thrusted by the vehicle wheels rotating in a rainy road and for collecting rainwater in said water removing units; and

a water discharge system fluidically communicated with said plurality of water removing units for discharging rainwater collected in said water removing units towards a road surface after the rear wheel;

each said water removing unit including;

a rear section corresponding to a rear wheel portion of the vehicle wheel, a front section opposite to the rear section and corresponding to a front wheel portion of the vehicle wheel, and a middle section between the front section and the rear section and corresponding to a middle wheel portion of the vehicle wheel; and

each of said rear section and said front section of the water removing unit including;

a casing having an opening formed in a first portion of the casing adjacent to the wheel and operatively closed by a door, a first dampening chamber formed in the casing contiguous to the opening, a second dampening chamber contiguous to the first dampening chamber and formed in the casing, a bottom formed on a bottom portion of the casing, and a back channel arcuately formed in a second portion of the casing opposite to the opening;

a plurality of primary energy-eliminating means concentrically arcuately formed in the first dampening chamber within the casing about a wheel center of the wheel, each said primary energy-eliminating means having a plurality of blades juxtapositionally arcuately secured in the first dampening chamber, with at least a connecting bar transversely connecting the blades for stably fixing the blades in the casing; and

a secondary energy-eliminating means concentrically arcuately formed in the second dampening chamber in the casing about the wheel center, having at least a base plate arcuately formed in the casing between the second dampening chamber and the back channel, a plurality of water collectors juxtapositionally secured on the base plate to face the opening for catching and collecting rainwater droplets entering the casing through the primary energy-eliminating means when thrusted by the wheel on a rainy road, and a plurality of drainage plates each inclinedly formed on the base plate for gravitationally guiding the rainwater from the collector into the back channel through a plurality of drain openings formed in the base plate to be discharged from a drain outlet formed in a bottom portion of the back channel.

2. A splashy-water removing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein each said blade has a cross section of ratchet-tooth shape tapered towards the opening for easily directing the rainwater into the casing.

3. A splashy-water removing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said bottom of said casing has at least a drain hole formed in the first and second dampening chambers for draining sludge and dirts as settled in the dampening chambers when opening a sliding valve slidably mounted on the bottom of the casing.

4. A splashy-water removing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the base plate has a lowest drain opening formed in a lowest portion of the base plate, with a filter fixed on said lowest drain opening to prevent the entrance of sludge and dirts into the back channel.

5. A splashy-water removing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein each said water collector includes a plurality of bristles secured to the base plate and protruding towards the opening for catching the rainwater droplets thrusted into the casing to be drained into the back channel through the drainage plates each formed below each said collector.

6. A splashy-water removing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein each said section has an opening formed in the casing and a door normally closing the opening and operatively opened in a rainy day.

7. A splashy-water removing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said door is a flexible sliding door slidably engageable with a groove formed in the casing adjacent to the opening having a reel for rewinding the flexible sliding door into the reel when opening the door.

8. A splashy-water removing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said middle section of the water removing unit includes:

a casing having an opening formed in a lower edge portion of the casing adjacent to the wheel, a dampening chamber contiguous to the opening for encasing a top energy-eliminating means in the dampening chamber; and

the top energy-eliminating means arcuately postioned above the wheel and including;

a plurality of blades integrally and juxtapositionally formed on a holding base fixed in a back portion of the casing with each said blade tapered downwardly from the holding base having a trapping groove recessed in the holding base between every two neighboring blades, with the trapping groove arcuately formed in the base for trapping the rainwater in the grooves to be gravitationally drained through a drainage plate into a back channel of the front section and rear section of the water removing unit for discharging the rainwater outwardly.

9. A splashy-water removing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said rear section of said water removing unit includes an upper portion and a lower portion telescopically connected each other, with the lower portion normally retracted in a vehicle bottom and operatively lowered when actuating a wind-shield wiper in a rainy day and when the car speed exceeding a predetermined value.

10. A splashy-water removing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said water discharge system includes:

at least a front-wheel discharge pipe connected to a first and a second connecting pipe respectively communicated with a front section and a rear section of each said water removing unit disposed around each front wheel;

an accumulating tank secured in a rear portion of the vehicle connected with the front-wheel discharge pipe and connected through a drain pipe with each said rear section of the water removing unit disposed about each rear wheel for draining rainwater onto the road after the rear wheels through a drain hose connected with the drain outlet formed in a bottom portion of the casing; and

at least a rear-wheel discharge pipe communicated between a front section and a rear section of each said water removing unit disposed about each rear wheel for directing the rainwater in the front section towards the rear section for discharging the rainwater from the rear section after the rear wheel.

11. A splashy-water removing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein said water discharge system has an air drafting pipe connected to the front-wheel and rear-wheel discharge pipes to suck air inwardly to draft the rainwater in the water removing unit rearwardly to discharge the rainwater.