Reversible wheel weight for counterbalancing industrial and agricultural vehicles

• US 6,283,556 B1
• Filed: 11/16/1999
• Issued: 09/04/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 11/16/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: OTR Wheel Engineering, Toyoda Gosei Company Limited (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: F & F Enterprises Incorporated
• Inventors: Taylor, Fredrick B.
• Primary Examiner(s): Morano, S. Joseph
• Assistant Examiner(s): NGUYEN, LONG B
• Application Number:
  US09/441,406
• Time in Patent Office: 658 Days
• Field of Search: 301/53.5, 280/759, 280/217
• US Class Current: 301/53.5
• CPC Class Codes: B60B 15/28 Wheel-ballasting weights; Their attachment

Abstract

A reversible wheel weight (25) is used for counterbalancing an industrial vehicle, by attaching the weights directly to the wheel (10) of the vehicle. The wheels of industrial vehicles typically are dish-shaped so that they can be reversed on their mounting hubs so as to spread the wheels farther apart or closer together, as may be required for the working conditions. The reversible wheel weights of this invention are similarly shaped, having a dish-shaped annular weight body (28) defining an inner annular peripheral surface (32) and an outer annular peripheral surface (30) and openings (46, 64 and 76) for access to the lugs of the wheel, but having concave and convex opposed surfaces (34 and 36) for mounting to the convex or concave surfaces (16, 18) of the wheel of the vehicle. In addition, the concave/convex surfaces of the wheel weight correspond in shape so as to be nestable with one another, whereby multiple ones of the wheel weights can be mounted together and attached to the wheel of the vehicle.

Claims

1. A wheel weight for an industrial vehicle, the industrial vehicle having opposed first and second ends and wheels at each end, said wheel weight adapted for mounting to a wheel at the first end of the industrial vehicle and counter balancing the second end of the industrial vehicle, comprising:

a wheel weight body formed in the shape of an annulus, defining a central axis, an annular inner rim, an annular peripheral surface, and opposed first and second lateral surfaces, said first lateral surface being convex and said second lateral surface being concave, said first and second lateral surfaces being shaped for nesting with duplicate ones of said wheel weight body;

a first series of slots intersecting said annular peripheral surface of said wheel weight body and formed in both said first and second opposed surfaces of said body and positioned at 90 degree intervals about said body and at equal radial distances from said axis, each of said slots in said first surface in alignment with one of said slots in said second surface and intermediate partitions formed between said slots of said first and second surfaces, with connector openings formed in said intermediate partitions of said slots;

a second series of slots positioned about said body as said first series of slots, said second series of slots being circumferentially offset by 30 degrees from said first series of slots, intermediate partitions formed between aligned ones of said slots of said second series of slots, and connector openings formed in said partitions of said second series of slots; and

a series of bores formed in both said first and second opposed surfaces of said body and positioned at 120 degree intervals about said body and at equal radial distances from said axis and positioned radially inwardly of said slots, each of said bores in said first surface in alignment with one of said bores of said second surface and intermediate partitions formed between aligned ones of said bores of said first surface and said bores of said second surface, with connector openings formed in said intermediate partitions of said bores, all of said bores being circumferentially offset from all of said slots;

whereby duplicate ones of said wheel weight body can be nested with a convex lateral surface of one wheel weight body facing the concave lateral surface of an adjacent duplicate wheel weight body and connectors extending between the nested duplicate wheel weight bodies to hold the duplicate wheel weight bodies nested, and connectors extending from one of said wheel weight body for extending to the disk of a wheel of the industrial vehicle for mounting the nested wheel weight bodies to a wheel of the industrial vehicle.

2. A wheel weight for an industrial vehicle, the industrial vehicle having opposed first and second ends and wheels at each end, said wheel weight adapted for mounting to a wheel at the first end of the industrial vehicle and counter balancing the second end of the industrial vehicle, with the wheel of the industrial vehicle having either a convex or concave laterally extending wheel disk, comprising:

a weight body formed in the shape of an annulus, defining a central axis, an annular inner rim, an annular peripheral surface, and opposed first and second lateral surfaces, said first lateral surface being convex and said second lateral surface being concave, said first and second lateral surfaces being shaped for nesting with duplicate ones of said weight body and with either of the convex or concave laterally extending wheel disk of a wheel;

connector openings formed in said weight body for connecting said weight body to a wheel disk of a wheel, said connector openings arranged to correspond to the lug positions of a wheel; and

said weight body defining slots on both the first and second lateral surfaces about said connector openings for receiving bolts recessed in said weight body and holding duplicate ones of said weight body in a nested relationship.