Patent ID: 6302138
Filing Date: 2001-10-16
Classification: B60C,F16K,Y10T

Abstract:
A tire stem valve for automatically controlling the internal pressure of a tire comprising:a) a hollow cylindrical valve stem housing having a longitudinal axis, a tire-side end and an inflation-side end comprising at least one opening through which air both enters and exits the hollow cylindrical valve stem housing;b) a one-way valve for inflating the tire;c) a movable disk contained within the valve stem core housing and capable of moving along the longitudinal axis in response to an increase or decrease in the internal pressure of the tire, said disk effectuating a substantially air-tight seal when the tire pressure is at or below the desired value;d) a first pressure-sensitive structure located within the valve stem core housing and positioned between the movable disk and a first solid support structure, wherein said first solid support is immovably connected to the valve stem core housing at the inflation-side end and wherein said pressure-sensitive structure extends and contracts in response to the internal pressure of the tire acting on the movable disk; ande) one or more bleed apertures that allow air to exit said stem valve housing through the inflation-side end when air pressure inside the tire exceeds a desired value;wherein when the movable disk is not an O-ring, the valve stem further comprises a centrally-mounted tube running parallel to the longitudinal axis of the valve stem core housing from the inflation-side end of the valve stem core housing to a plenum chamber affixed to the movable disk.