Tire pressure gauge

• US 7,225,667 B2
• Filed: 09/27/2005
• Issued: 06/05/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 09/27/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Kuo-Liang Chen
• Original Assignee: Kuo-Liang Chen
• Inventors: Chen, Kuo-Liang
• Primary Examiner(s): Allen; Andre J.
• Application Number:
  US11/235,121
• Publication Number:
  US 20070068239A1
• Time in Patent Office: 616 Days
• Field of Search: 731/46, 731/462, 731/463, 731/465, 731/468, 340/442
• US Class Current: 73/146
• CPC Class Codes: G01L 17/00 Devices or apparatus for measuring tyre pressure or the pressure in other inflated bodies

Abstract

The tire pressure gauge has a body, a controller and a cap. The body has a valve stem connector that attaches to a valve stem of a tire to sample internal air pressure of the tire. The controller is mounted inside the body and includes a microprocessor, a pressure sensor, an alarm unit and a pressure indicator. The microprocessor stores a preset pressure value. The pressure sensor senses the tire'"'"'s internal air pressure sampled by the valve stem connector, generates an electronic signal indicating the sensed pressure and sends the electronic signal to the microprocessor. The microprocessor compares the electronic signal to the preset pressure value. If the electronic signal is lower than the preset pressure value, the microprocessor activates the alarm unit that produces an audible warning.

Claims

1. A tire pressure gauge comprising:

a body having

a front end having an opening;

a rear end having an opening;

a sidewall;

a battery compartment formed at the rear end and communicating with the opening in the rear end; and

a valve stem connector mounted in the opening at the front end of the body and adapted to be pressed onto a valve stem of a tire to sample internal air pressure;

a controller mounted inside the body and comprising

a microprocessor having multiple input ports, multiple output ports and a preset pressure value stored in the microprocessor;

a pressure sensor connected to the valve stem connector and one of the input ports of the microprocessor to sense air pressure inside a tire sampled by the valve stem connector, to generate an electronic signal indicating the sensed pressure and to output the electronic signal to the microprocessor for comparison to the preset pressure value;

a pressure indicator mounted on the body, connected to one of the output ports of the microprocessor and driven by the microprocessor to indicate a tire'"'"'s air pressure;

an alarm unit connected to one of the output ports of the microprocessor and driven by the microprocessor to emit an audible warning when the air pressure in a tire sensed by the pressure sensor is below the preset pressure value in the microprocessor;

a mode switch mounted on and protrudes through the body, connected to one of the input ports of the microprocessor and turning the tire pressure gauge on and off and changing the units of pressure displayed in the pressure indicator; and

a power unit being at least one battery, mounted in the battery compartment and being connected to and supplying power to the microprocessor, the pressure sensor, the pressure indicator and the alarm unit; and

a cap mounted detachably on the rear end of the body, closing the battery compartment and comprising

a hollow housing having

a closed outer end covering the opening in the rear end of the body and holding at least one battery in the battery compartment; and

a sidewall;

a pocket clip attached to the sidewall of the hollow housing; and

a sidewall.

2. The tire pressure gauge as claimed in claim 1, wherein the alarm unit is a buzzer.

3. The tire pressure gauge as claimed in claim 1, wherein the pressure indicator is a display.

4. The tire pressure gauge as claimed in claim 3, wherein the display is an LCD (liquid crystal display).

5. The tire pressure gauge as claimed in claim 3, wherein the controller further comprises

at least one LED providing illumination and connected to one of the output ports of the microprocessor;

and

a light switch connected to one of the output ports of the microprocessor to turn the LED on and off.

6. The tire pressure gauge as claimed in claim 1 wherein

the body further comprises a resilient latch formed longitudinally in the sidewall of the body and having

a proximal end;

a distal end; and

a lip formed at and protruding out from the distal end of the resilient latch; and

the hollow housing of the cap further has

a through hole formed longitudinally in the sidewall of the hollow housing, corresponding to the resilient latch and engaging the lip when the cap is pressed onto the body to hold the cap securely on the body; and

a resilient tab formed in the sidewall of the cap, aligning with the resilient latch and releasing the cap from the lip on the resilient latch when the resilient tab is pressed in so the cap can be removed from the body.