Tire holding fixture for tire processing machine

A tire holding fixture for holding a tire for processing by a tire processing machine comprises first and second wheel half support assemblies. One of the assemblies is shiftable between an open position for permitting insertion of a tire between the assemblies, and a closed position for holding said tire between the assemblies. The first assembly includes a hollow substantially cylindrical portion having an inner surface, and the second assembly includes a spindle, having an outer surface, insertable into said hollow cylindrical portion. A plurality of detents is disposed on the inner surface of the hollow cylindrical position. A plurality of projections shiftable between a detent engaging position and a detent releasing position is disposed on the outer surface of the spindle. The projections are engagable with the detents when the outer surface of the spindle is disposed concentrically with respect to the inner surface for releasably locking the assemblies together for holding a tire for processing therebetween.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates generally to a tire processing machine for 
balancing, grinding and/or grading production tires for automobiles, 
wherein the machine has a novel tire holding fixture. More specifically, 
the invention relates to a novel automatic quick release locking means for 
a tire holding fixture. 
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
During the manufacture of production tires for automobiles, or for any 
other vehicle for that matter, each freshly molded tire must be processed, 
that is, balanced, ground and graded, to put that tire in a final, 
marketable condition. To do this processing, each tire is mounted on a 
tire holding fixture operatively associated with a particular tire 
processing machine. 
The general construction of tire holding fixtures and of tire processing 
machines is well known in the relevant art, as is evident from the 
co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 07/645,743, filed on Jan. 5, 
1991, and the references cited therein. The co-pending patent application 
is assigned to the assignee of the present invention, and the disclosure 
thereof is incorporated herein by reference. It is to be noted, however, 
that while the co-pending application discloses a tire holding fixture 
having particular utility with heavy weight truck tires, the present 
invention is intended to be utilized with automobile tires. 
Given the continuing American "love affair" with the automobile, it is 
desirable to supply the relevant markets with ample quantities of spare or 
replacement parts for the autos. One of the automobile parts that is 
replaced relatively often is the tires. Accordingly, it is desirable for 
certain retailers to have an adequate supply of tires on hand at all 
times. Tire manufacturers have to meet this retailer demand in order to 
preserve their market share. Therefore, tire manufacturers need to produce 
a large amount of tires in a small amount of time. 
As discussed above, before the freshly molded tires are ready for retail 
customers, the tires must be appropriately processed. Processing of the 
tires takes time. Specifically, each tire must, in turn, be mounted on a 
tire fixture which holds the tire during processing. The fixtures 
generally comprise two shiftable, simulated wheel halves which mimic the 
holding properties of an actual wheel when shifted into a closed position. 
These fixtures must hold the tire quite firmly because the tires are often 
inflated to a desired pressure and rotated at high speeds during 
processing. After processing, the wheel halves are then shifted into an 
open position so as to facilitate tire removal therefrom. 
In order to firmly hold the tires on the fixtures of the prior art, 
somewhat elaborate and complicated locking means is provided to hold the 
simulated wheel halves together in the closed position. While these 
locking means are often effective, they often require significant time to 
lock and unlock. This significant set-up time period results in lost 
revenues to the tire manufacturer because the time spent in set-up could 
be more profitably spent processing tires for retail sale. In addition, 
the locking means should be able to maintain the simulated wheel halves in 
alignment to provide for proper processing of the tires. Accordingly, 
additional time may have to be spent to insure that the prior art locking 
means is maintaining that alignment. 
The present invention is intended to solve some, if not all, of the 
problems presented by tire holding fixtures, and the associated locking 
means, of the prior art. The invention provides an automatic quick release 
locking means for automatically holding the simulated wheel halves 
together which can maintain the halves in alignment within 0.003 inches, 
thereby reducing or eliminating set-up time and alignment checking time. 
This can result in greater revenues to a tire manufacturer. 
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION 
A general object of the present invention is to provide a novel tire 
processing machine having particular utility with balancing, grinding, and 
grading production tires for automobiles. 
A more specific object of the invention is to provide a novel tire holding 
fixture for use with a tire processing machine. 
Another object of the present invention is to provide a tire holding 
fixture having novelly constructed, variable locking means for firmly 
holding simulated wheel halves of the fixture together a variable distance 
apart for accommodating production tires of varying widths. 
An additional object of the invention is to provide a tire holding fixture 
having novelly constructed locking means for holding simulated wheel 
halves in alignment within 0.003 inches or better. 
A further object of the present invention is to provide novel locking means 
for a tire holding fixture whose accuracy can assist in reducing machine 
set-up time. 
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a tire processing machine 
having a tire holding fixture including novel quick release locking means. 
An additional object of the present invention is to provide a novelly 
constructed quick release locking means for a tire processing machine 
which allows the machine to be operated automatically. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
A tire processing machine for balancing, grading and grinding production 
tires having a tire holding fixture, constructed according to the 
teachings of the present invention, comprises first and second wheel half 
support assemblies. One of the assemblies is shiftable between an open 
position for permitting insertion of a tire, and a closed position for 
holding said tire. The first assembly includes a hollow substantially 
cylindrical member having an inner surface of a predetermined diameter, 
and the second assembly includes a spindle having an outer surface 
insertable into said inner surface. A plurality of detents is disposed on 
the inner surface. A plurality of projections shiftable between a detent 
engaging position and a detent releasing position is disposed on the outer 
surface. The projections are engagable with the detents when the spindle 
is inserted into the cylindrical member for releasably locking the 
assemblies together for holding a tire for processing.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
While the invention may be susceptible to embodiment in different forms, 
there is shown in the drawings, and herein will be described in detail, a 
specific embodiment with the understanding that the present disclosure is 
to be considered an exemplification of the principles of the invention, 
and is not intended to limit the invention to that as illustrated and 
described herein. 
Referring generally to FIG. 1, a tire holding fixture 10 including quick 
release locking means 11, constructed according to the teachings of the 
present invention, is disclosed. The tire holding fixture 10 is just one 
element of a larger, more complex tire processing machine 12, partially 
shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The tire processing machine 12 can perform many, 
various processes upon a production tire 14, such as balancing, grading, 
and grinding. The construction and function of the tire processing machine 
12 are well known in the art. The general structure and functionality of 
tire holding fixtures are disclosed in detail in the above-referenced 
co-pending patent application. Accordingly, the fixture 10 will be 
discussed in detail only as is necessary to provide an understanding of 
the locking means 11. 
Drawing attention to FIGS. 3 and 4, the construction of the fixture 10 and 
the locking means 11 is illustrated in detail. The fixture 10 generally 
comprises a first wheel half support assembly 16 and a second wheel half 
support assembly 18 which mimic the structure and holding properties of an 
actual wheel when properly joined. The assemblies 16 and 18 each include 
components of the locking means 11 for facilitating locking and alignment 
of the assemblies 16 and 18 to form a simulated wheel. 
The first wheel assembly 16 is attached to a piston 20 for shifting the 
assembly 16 between an open position, shown in FIG. 1, for allowing 
placement and removal of a tire 14 from the fixture 10, and a closed 
position, shown in FIG. 2, for holding a tire 14 for processing. The 
piston 20 is capable of variably shifting the assembly 16 with respect to 
the assembly 18 to allow the fixture 10 to hold tires 14 of varying 
widths, as will be discussed further hereinafter. The piston 20 also 
allows the assembly 16 to rotate conjointly with the assembly 18, as will 
be discussed in greater detail hereinbelow, for processing the tire 14. 
The assembly 16, as illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4, comprises a base portion 
or adapter 22 connected to the piston 20, a flange 24 for connectively 
supporting a first simulated annular wheel half 26, and a hollow 
cylindrical member 28 connected to and projecting substantially axially 
from the base 22. The wheel half 26 is releasably connected to the flange 
24 by a quick-connect mechanism 27, disclosed in the above-referenced 
co-pending application, which reduces simulated wheel change time and also 
locates the half 26 on center within 0.0005 inches. The cylindrical member 
28 is of dimensions sufficient for slidably accepting a spindle or stub 
shaft 30 which comprises an element of the second wheel assembly 18. 
As stated above, the member 28 is hollow having an inner surface 32 of a 
first diameter and an outer surface 34 of a second, larger diameter. The 
outer diameter of the spindle 30 is such that the spindle 30 can be 
inserted into the member 28 when the assembly 16 is shifted into the 
closed position, as shown in FIGS. 2 through 4. The assembly 16 is 
shiftable with respect to the assembly 18. It is therefore desirable to 
keep the spindle 30 clean so that contaminants will not be able to harm 
the functionality of the fixture 10 and the machine 14. Accordingly, an 
annular elastomeric ring 31 is disposed on an open end 33 of the member 
28. When the spindle 30 is inserted into the member 28, the ring 31 sweeps 
contaminants away from the surface of the spindle 30. 
In addition, a portion of the locking means 11 is disposed on the surface 
32 for facilitating locking and alignment of the assemblies 16 and 18 for 
processing a tire 14. The portion of the locking means 11 located on the 
inner surface 32 is in the form of a plurality of annular recesses or 
detents 36 relieved into the inner surface 32 towards the outer surface 
34. Each of the annular detents 36 is radiused for accepting a portion of 
the locking means 11 disposed on the assembly 18, as will be discussed 
further hereinbelow. The annular detents 36 are located along a length of 
the member 28 from a point proximate the open end 33 thereof to a point, 
indicated at 35, between the base portion 22 and the flange 24. 
Accordingly, the detents 36 extend axially along the inner surface 32 of 
member 28 a distance sufficient for allowing the tire fixture 10 to 
releasably hold tires 14 of varying widths. Specifically, the assembly 16 
can shift within a range, indicated by "X" in FIG. 3, to accept tires 14 
of different widths, while still being interlockable with the assembly 18 
by the means 11. In the preferred embodiment illustrated in the FIGS., the 
fixture 10 can accommodate tires 14 having a five inch width variation. 
The assembly 18 comprises a base assembly 38 attachable to a rotatable 
spindle 41 of a machine 40, as shown in FIGS. 1 through 4, by suitable 
bolts 120, two of which are shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, for rotating the 
fixture 10 and a tire 14 held thereby for processing. The spindle 41 is of 
suitable construction for joining the assembly 18 to the machine 40, and 
also forms a rotatable air coupling therebetween for providing the 
pneumatic elements of the fixture 10 with an appropriate fluid. A second 
simulated annular wheel half 42, similar to the half 26, is releasably 
attached to the base assembly 38 by another quick-connect mechanism 27. 
Accordingly, when the assembly 16 is shifted into the closed position, as 
shown in FIGS. 2 through 4, the halves 26 and 42 mimic an actual wheel for 
retaining the tire 14, illustrated in section in FIG. 2, during 
processing. 
To facilitate proper processing of the tire 14, the tire 14 is inflated to 
a suitable pressure. To facilitate this inflation, inflation means 
comprising an air chamber 106, shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, is provided 
centrally in the base assembly 38 for accepting compressed air supplied 
through the spindle 41. A plurality of radial bores 108, preferably six in 
number as shown in FIG. 5, are connected to and extend outwardly from the 
chamber 106 within the assembly 38, thereby permitting distribution of the 
compressed air contained in the chamber 106. Ends of the radial bores 108 
opposite to the ends thereof connected to the chamber 106 are connected to 
axial bores 110 which extend upwardly from the bores 108 through the 
assembly 38 and the simulated wheel half 42 as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. The 
bores 110 include openings 112, two of which are shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 
for clarity, in the simulated wheel half 42 so that compressed air can 
pass from the bores 108 and 110 into the interior of the tire 14. 
Accordingly, the bores 108 and 110 form a compressed air transport system 
for directing compressed air from the chamber 106 into the tire 14, 
thereby inflating it for processing. 
The base assembly 38 includes a pneumatic cylinder 39 comprising an 
enlarged head or cylindrical section 48 providing an air chamber 49 having 
its lower end closed by an end plate 50. A piston disc or plate 51 is 
axially shiftable within the chamber 49. The significance of the pneumatic 
cylinder 39 will become more clear hereinafter. The base assembly 38 also 
includes a conduit 43 for delivering compressed air, or other suitable 
fluid, to the air chamber or cylinder 39 from an appropriate source 45, 
illustrated diagrammatically in FIGS. 1 and 2. The cylinder section 48 
terminates in a projecting member or flange 44 attached to the base plate 
50 by suitable bolts 46 for insuring conjoint rotation of the base plate 
50 and the spindle 30. 
The cylindrical portion 48 has an outer diameter somewhat larger than a 
corresponding outer diameter of the spindle 30 and the cylindrical member 
28. The piston or plate 51 is shiftable between a locking position, shown 
in FIG. 4, and an unlocking position, shown in FIG. 3, and a top surface 
of the chamber 49 defines a positive stop member 52, the significance of 
which will become more clear later. The piston 51 moves or shifts in 
response to air pressure built up in the central recess or air chamber 49. 
To seal the air chamber 49, the piston 51 includes an annular gasket or 
0-ring 53 for sealing engagement between the piston 51 and a wall of the 
chamber 49. It is to be noted that a plurality of 0-rings, designated by 
character 122, are provided in the assembly 38 for insuring proper 
pneumatic operation of the fixture 10. To facilitate shifting of the 
piston 51, a bore 124 is provided connected to the chamber 49 proximate to 
the stop member 52 for appropriately venting the chamber 49. The bore 124 
is connected to a vent 126, shown in FIGS. 3 through 5, located at the 
bottom of the assembly 38 for allowing air to exit the assembly 38. 
Preferably, three such vents 126 are provided, as indicated in FIG. 5. 
The spindle 30 has an axial bore 54 therethrough of dimensions sufficient 
for accepting a piston rod 56 connected to the piston 51. The bore 54 
allows for axial shifting of the rod 56 in response to shifting of the 
piston 51. As will be discussed further hereinafter, the shifting of the 
piston 51 and the rod 56 actuates the means 11. 
The piston 51 is connected by a suitable bolt 114 to an annular ring 116, 
illustrated in FIGS. 3 through 5. In a preferred embodiment of the 
invention, three such bolts 114 are provided. The annular ring 116 slides 
along an outer surface of the spindle 41 between an unlocking position, 
shown in FIG. 3, and a locking position, shown in FIG. 4, in response to 
corresponding shifting of the piston 51. A proximity detector 118, shown 
in FIGS. 3 and 4, for detecting the presence of the ring 116 is provided 
below the assembly 18 adjacent a path of travel of the ring 116. The 
detector 118 is electrically connected to a control circuit 104 such that 
the circuit 104 prohibits activation of the machine 40 when the piston 51, 
and thus the ring 116, are in the unlocking position. 
The spindle 30 also has another substantially cylindrical bore 58 therein 
having an axis of elongation located parallel to and offset from the axis 
of elongation of the axial bore 54. A spring 60 is located in the bore 58 
and is compressible between the piston 51 and a closed end 59 of the bore 
58. In a preferred construction, the bore 58 extends from the stop member 
52 to a point in the spindle 30 proximate to the juncture between the 
spindle 30 and the head portion 48. Also, the piston 51 is provided with a 
retention area or seat 62 for retaining an end of the spring 60. In this 
manner, the piston 51 is biased by the spring 60 into a locking position 
whereat the piston 51 is offset below the stop member 52. It is to be 
noted that, in the preferred construction, six bores 58, springs 60, and 
seats 62 are provided for spring biasing the piston 51 downwardly. 
An end of the spindle 30 opposite to the end thereof connected to the head 
portion 48 has a stepped configuration comprising a first reduced diameter 
portion or step 64 and a second step 66. The first step 64 defines a 
terminal end of the spindle 30, and the second step 66 is connected to an 
end of the first step 64 opposite the terminal end of the spindle 30. It 
is to be noted, however, that the steps 64 and 66 do not extend the entire 
length of the spindle 30. The first step 64 defines an outer diameter 
substantially smaller than the outer diameter of the spindle 30. The 
second step 66 also defines a diameter smaller than the outer diameter of 
the spindle 30, but the diameter defined by the second step 66 is larger 
than the diameter defined by the first step 64. 
The reduced diameter defined by the step 64 allows the first step 64 to 
shiftably accept a substantially cylindrical body or cam member 68 shown 
in FIGS. 3 and 4. The body 68 has an inner diameter slightly larger than 
the diameter defined by the first step 64 so that the body 68 may shift 
along the step 64. A boundary or shoulder between the first and second 
steps, 64 and 66, respectively, serves as a positive stop member 70 for 
limiting shifting of the body 68 by contact therewith. The cam body 68 has 
an outer diameter slightly smaller than the diameter defined by the second 
step 66, the significance of which will become clear later. Additionally, 
the body 68 has a sloped or tapered surface 72 on an end thereof adjacent 
the stop member 70. The tapered surface 72 defines an outer diameter of a 
portion of the body 68 which gradually decreases in size as it approaches 
the stop member 70. The significance of the tapered surface 72 will be 
discussed later. 
The body 68 is intended to shift conjointly with the piston rod 56. To 
facilitate this conjoint shifting, the rod 56 has an enlarged integral end 
portion 74 on an end thereof opposite to the end connected to the piston 
51. The end portion 74 has a non-threaded bore 76 therethrough for 
accepting a shoulder bolt 78 for attaching the body 68 to the end portion 
74 on a side of the body 68 opposite to the side occupied by the tapered 
surface 72. The end portion 74 has an outer diameter 80 substantially 
equal to the outer diameter of the body 68. In addition, the end portion 
74 has a tapered cam surface 82 which gradually decreases in size 
substantially similarly to the manner in which the diameter defined by the 
tapered surface 72 does. 
It is important that the distance between the two tapered surfaces 72 and 
82 along the rod 56 be maintained as constant as possible in order to 
insure proper functioning of the locking means 11. Accordingly, it is 
desirable to include some sort of corrective means which can allow for 
adjustments of the parts for insuring proper functionality of the means 
11. To do this, the shoulder bolt 78 allows the body 68 to move or be 
adjusted limitedly with respect to the end portion 74 axially along the 
rod 56. The body 68 also has a bore 84 therein of dimensions sufficient to 
accept a spring 86 compressible between a closed end of the bore 84 and an 
opposing surface of the end portion 74. In this manner, the bolt 78 and 
the spring 86 can provide for adjustment for variances in the structure of 
the operative locking elements of the fixture 10, thereby insuring proper 
functioning thereof. This aspect of the invention will be discussed in 
further detail hereinbelow. 
As stated above, the second step 66 has an outer diameter somewhat smaller 
than the outer diameter of the spindle 30. This allows the step 66 to 
attachably support a ball cage 88 illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4. The cage 
88 is attached to the second step 66 by means of appropriate fasteners 92, 
one of which being shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, extending through the cage 88 
and into the step 66. In the illustrated preferred embodiment, an annular 
thread section 94 is located on a portion of the second step 66 matable 
with a complementary thread section 96 disposed on the interior of the 
ball cage 88. Thus, the cage 88 itself may be threadibly secured to the 
second step 66. 
The ball cage 88 is substantially cylindrical in configuration having one 
closed end 90 and defining an outer diameter substantially equal to the 
outer diameter defined by the spindle 30. The cage 88 has a height and an 
inner diameter sufficient to accept the steps 64 and 66, as well as the 
body 68 and the end portion 74. When the cage 88 is properly attached to 
the second step 66, a space 98 remains between the interior of the closed 
end 90 and the terminal surface of the end portion 74. The space 98 is of 
dimensions corresponding to the dimensions of a portion of the chamber 49 
between the piston 51 and the stop member 52. Accordingly, the space 98 
allows the end portion 74, the rod 56, and the piston 51 to shift, with 
the shifting thereof being limited only by the stop member 52. This 
shifting actuates the locking means 11. 
The cage 88 preferably carries a pair of annular sets 100A and 100B of 
projections or detent balls 102 variably disposed in annular sets of 
apertures 101A and 101B, shown in FIGS. 3, 4 and 6, in the cage 88 so that 
the balls 102 can move radially a limited distance in the cage 88. Two 
annular sets 100A and 100B are provided so as to minimize relative rocking 
of the assemblies 16 and 18. The balls 102 are disposed in the cage 88 so 
that they are gravity biased radially inwardly towards a central axis of 
the cage 88. Also, an annular stop member 128 defining openings having a 
radius less than the radius of the balls 102 is provided, only the member 
128 associated with the set 100A being shown in FIG. 6, for positively 
retaining the balls 102 within the apertures 101A and 101B. The balls 
102..are preferably located within the sets 100A and 100B every forty-five 
degrees along the circumference of the cage 88. The balls 102 have a 
radius substantially equal to a radius defined by the plurality of the 
annular detents 36 disposed on the interior of the cylindrical member 28 
so that the balls 102 can be inserted into and engaged with the detents 
36. 
In the illustrated embodiment, there and two annular sets 100A and 100B 
offset from each other along an axis of elongation of the cage 88. The 
sets 100A and 100B are strategically located axially along the cage 88 at 
positions operatively corresponding to the locations of the tapered 
surfaces 72 and 82 when the cage 88 is properly joined to the second step 
66. The axial distance of separation of the annular sets 100A and 100B is 
substantially equal to the separation distance between the surfaces 72 and 
82 along the rod 56. 
When the assemblies 16 and 18 are moved into the closed position, the balls 
102 will be actuated by the cam surfaces 72 and 82, thereby forcing the 
balls 102 into the detents 36, and thereby locking the assemblies 16 and 
1B together. Also, when it is desired to unlock the assemblies 16 and 18, 
the piston rod 56 is shifted into an extended, unlocking position, thereby 
shifting the body 68 and the end portion 74 with respect to the ball cage 
88. This shifting causes the tapered or cam surfaces 72 and 82 to permit 
the balls 102 to disengage from the annular detents 36. Thus, the 
assemblies 16 and 18 are unlocked. 
It is to be noted that the bolt 78 and the spring 86 compensate for 
manufacturing variances in the body 68 and the end portion 74 for insuring 
that the tapered surfaces 72 and 82 can be appropriately located for 
allowing shifting of the balls 102 radially into the cage 88 to unlock the 
assemblies 16 and 18. The detents 36 and the balls 102 are thusly capable 
of lockingly holding the assemblies 16 and 18 together in alignment within 
0.003 inches or better. 
With the novel structure of the fixture 10 being thusly disclosed, the 
function thereof will now be discussed in detail. It is to be noted that 
further structural limitations and details regarding the above-discussed 
structures may become evident or more clear with reference to the 
following paragraphs. 
To process a tire 14 with the machine 12, the assemblies 16 and 18 must be 
shifted into an open position, illustrated in FIG. 1. With the assemblies 
16 and 18 offset in this manner, a tire 14 of predetermined width can be 
inserted therebetween, as shown in phantom in FIG. 1. The tire 14 is 
inserted in alignment with the simulated wheel halves 26 and 42 so that 
the halves 26 and 42 can mimic an actual wheel when the assemblies 16 and 
18 are shifted into the closed position illustrated in FIGS. 2 through 4. 
It is to be noted that at this point, when the assemblies 16 and 18 are 
offset from one another, the piston 51, and thereby the rod 56, is shifted 
into- the extended or unlocking position where the balls 102 do not 
encounter the tapered cam surfaces 72 and 82. The balls 102 move radially 
inward of the cage 88 under the influence of gravity so that a surface 
defined by the spindle 30 and the cage 88 is substantially smooth, that is 
having no projections thereon which might inhibit insertion of the spindle 
30 into the member 28. 
The piston 51, the rod 56, the body 68 and the portion 74 are shifted from 
a locking position into the unlocking position in the following manner. 
Compressed air, or other suitable fluid, is delivered from the source 45 
to the central recess or air chamber 49 through the conduit 43. 
Accordingly, air pressure is built up in the air chamber 50 until the 
piston 51 contacts and engages the stop member 52, which limits the 
shifting motion of the piston 51. At this point, the piston 51, as well as 
the associated structures, are shifted into the unlocking position 
described in detail hereinabove, and as shown in FIG. 3. 
Once the tire 14 is properly located with respect to the halves 26 and 42, 
the piston 20 is activated, thereby shifting the assembly 16 downwardly on 
top of the assembly 18. As the assembly 16 moves down, the spindle 30 is 
inserted into the cylindrical member 28. As the spindle 30 enters the open 
end 33 of the member 28, the outer surface of the spindle 30 and the ball 
cage 88 are engaged by the ring 31 attached to the open end 33 of the 
member 28. The sliding contact between the outer surface of the spindle 
30, the ball cage 88, and the ring 31 sweeps dirt, or other contaminants 
away from the spindle 30 and the ball cage 88. This cleans the spindle 30 
and the ball cage 88, and also prevents contaminants from entering the 
interior of the member 28 and from interfering with shifting of the balls 
102 within the cage 88. 
The cleaned spindle 30 and ball cage 88 are inserted into the interior of 
the cylindrical member 28 a predetermined distance, as monitored by a 
control circuit 104, shown diagrammatically in FIGS. 1 and 2, proportional 
to the predetermined width of the tire 14. Specifically, the spindle 30 
and the ball cage 88 are inserted into the member 28 a distance sufficient 
to allow the wheel halves 26 and 42 to accurately simulate an actual 
wheel, as shown in FIGS. 2 through 4. 
Once the assembly 16 is appropriately shifted with respect to the assembly 
18, as described above, the assemblies 16 and 18 are ready to be lockingly 
joined for processing of the tire 14. To do this, the compressed air 
present in the air chamber 49 is vented to atmosphere. This reduces the 
pressure holding the piston 51 in the unlocking position. Once this 
pressure has been sufficiently reduced, the spring 60 expands and forces 
the piston 51 downwardly away from the stop member 52. The tapered cam 
surfaces 72 and 82 axially move so that the larger diameter portions 
thereof engage the balls 102, as shown in FIG. 4. When the balls 102 are 
engaged by the increased diameter portions of the cam surfaces 72 and 82, 
the balls 102 are forced radially outward of the ball cage 88, as shown in 
FIG. 6. Thus, the balls 102 are shifted into engagement with the annular 
detents 36 disposed along the inner diameter 32 of the member 28. 
Now the tire 14 can be inflated. Compressed air is introduced through the 
spindle 41 and into the chamber 106. The compressed air is distributed 
into the six radial bores 108. The air travels through the bores 108 and 
110 and the openings 112 in the wheel assembly 18. The air enters the 
interior of the tire 14, thereby inflating it. This inflation process is 
continued until the tire 14 is inflated to the desired pressure. 
When the tire 14 is inflated to a predetermined pressure, the tire 14 
presses against the wheel halves 26 and 42 under the influence of that 
pressure. Because the piston 51 and the ring 116 are now in the locked 
position, the detector 110 senses the presence of the ring 116, and 
signals the circuit 104 indicating that the fixture 10 is ready for 
processing. The rotating machine 40 is now activated by the circuit 104, 
and the drive shaft 41 begins to rotate. The drive shaft 41 causes the 
assembly 18 to rotate, and because of the pressure-induced contact between 
the assemblies 16 and 18 through the tire 14, the assemblies 16 and 18 
rotate conjointly. Because the recesses 36 are annular, and because the 
detent balls 102 are located preferably every forty-five degrees along the 
circumference of the ball cage 88, the assemblies 16 and 18 need not be 
circumferentially aligned in a particular manner in order to obtain the 
locking engagement between the assemblies 16 and 18 provided by the means 
11. The tire 14 is now processed as desired. 
Once the tire 14 has been properly processed, the rotating machine 40 
stops, and the rotation of the tire 14 and the assemblies 16 and 18 
ceases. The tire 14 is deflated by appropriate reversal of air travel 
through the bores 108 and 110. At this point, compressed air is again fed 
from the source 45 through the conduit 43 and into the air chamber 49. The 
locking means 11 shifts into the unlocking position, as described above 
and as shown in FIG. 3. The piston 20 shifts the assembly 16 upwardly with 
respect to the assembly 16, as shown in FIG. 1, and the tire 14 can now be 
removed. The fixture 10 and the machine 12 are ready to accept and to 
process another tire 14. 
While a preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown and 
described, it is envisioned that those skilled in the art may devise 
various modifications of the present invention without departing from the 
spirit and scope of the appended claims. The invention is not intended to 
be limited by the foregoing disclosure, but only by the following appended 
claims.