Patent Abstract:
The present invention relates to a locking device design to act between a tire and its respective wheel rim for dynamically balancing a tired wheel. The locking device is arranged to be installed on a tired-wheel maintenance machine having a support frame and a rotatable support for a wheel rim of a deflated tired wheel and locking-unlocking means for locking-unlocking the wheel rim to and from the rotatable support. The locking device comprises holding belt anchorable to the support frame and an engaging group designed removably to engage the tire of the deflated tired wheel, while its respective wheel rim is controllably angularly shifted.

Full Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of Invention 
   The present invention relates to a locking device for a tire mounted on a wheel rim to optimize dynamic balancing of a tired wheel, particularly, but not exclusively, suitable for tire balancing machines, tire assembling-release machines and the like. 
   Balancing of a tired wheel is a delicate operation which in general has to be carried out with care by an operator as balancing could affect the road-holding of the vehicle and thus the safety of the passengers. As a matter of fact, a non-optimum balancing could result in vibrations and resonance phenomenons being caused owing to unbalanced forces or force resultants with respect during standard operation of the vehicle. 
   As it is known, the aforesaid forces are generated when a tired wheel is rotated about its axis of rotation owing to:
         uneven distribution of the wheel rim and tire mass of the tired wheel with respect to its axis of rotation;   uneven distribution of the wheel rim mass due to misalignment between the inertial axis of rotation of the wheel rim and the axis of rotation of the tired wheel; and   uneven distribution of the tire mass due to misalignment between the inertial axis of rotation of the tire and the axis of rotation of the tired wheel, e.g. owing to bad mounting of the tire.       

   2. Description of Related Art 
   Tired wheel balancing is usually carried out by means of a balancing machine comprising a rotatable support which can rotate about an horizontal or vertical axis of rotation and is provided, e.g. with jaws for engaging the tired wheel rim or with a grip headstock comprising a number of expansion arms and being rotatable about the same axis of rotation, or with a fixing flange having a pneumatic threaded-hub system. When the tired wheel is rotated, by the rotatable support, any mass imbalance with respect to the axis of rotation is detected by suitable sensor means, e.g. magnetic, optical or pressure sensor means, suitably connected to an electronic computer unit adapted to store and process data forwarded thereto. At this point, the standard procedure adopted to re-balance a tired wheel provides, as known, trying to eliminate such unbalances by adding sufficient additional masse-balance weights at suitably chosen positions. For correct positioning of such masses in most recent balancing machines use is made of optical pointers (lasers) controlled by the electronic computer that had previously reckoned the precise positioning of the mass-balance weights along the wheel rim edge. 
   When the weight of such additional masse-balance weights, however, exceeds a predetermined value, e.g. about 50 g, it is usually preferable to cause the tire to rotate about the axis of rotation of the tired wheel with respect to the wheel rim (or viceversa), so as to compensate, at least to a large extent, mass unbalances due to the wheel rim for those caused by the tire. 
   Such a tire rotation about the axis of rotation of the tired wheel is carried out as follows:
         the tired wheel is fixed on a rotatable support of a tire assembling-disassembling machine;   the wheel tire is deflated and its bead is released; and   the tire or the wheel rim is rotated, through an angle of about 180 degrees, with respect to the wheel rim or the tire, respectively.       

   To cause the tire to effect an angular rotation through about 180 degrees with respect to the wheel rim, no matter what tired-wheel maintenance machine is used, the operator usually acts on a suitable manually operated control, e.g. a pedal located on the base of the maintenance machine, thereby setting in rotation the rotatable support on which the wheel rim is secured. The wheel rim is thus set in rotation, and the tire is, in turn, caused to rotate owing to friction between the wheel rim edge and the tire bead. 
   The problem to be faced by the operator is to be able to lock or slow down any uncontrolled rotation of the tire that, due to friction, is dragged by the wheel rim secured to the rotatable support. Up to now, the operator has resorted to expedients, such as manually rotating the tire with respect to the wheel rim or manually slowing down the tire possibly by using a tool inserted between tire and wheel rim, while the maintenance machine causes the wheel rim to rotate. Such expedients are obviously troublesome and totally unsatisfactory. 
   This situation is even worse when a tire has a lowered bead or profile, as in this case the contact area between tire internal bead or edge and the wheel rim edge is much more extended than that provided in a standard tire, and thus the operator&#39;s task becomes much more difficult as higher strength is to be exerted in this operation in trying to stop or slow down tire rotation with respect to the wheel rim rotation. Moreover, with lowered profile tires use is made of alloy wheel rims that inevitably become damaged or at least scratched when tools are inserted between wheel rim and tire. 
   A further problem is faced when assembling and disassembling a special wheel tire. As a matter of fact, in order to mount a tire on a wheel rim the tire bead must get over and beyond the wheel rim edge, and thus the operator does force a portion of the tire bead by means of a suitable tool to exceed the wheel rim edge, after which care should be taken in gradually forcing the remaining tire bead to move beyond the wheel rim edge. Especially when dealing with wheels of large dimensions, e.g. truck or lorry wheels, the bead resistance to deformation is quite substantial, and thus it is quite difficult for the operator to accomplish the necessary steps to assembly or disassembly a tire. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   The main object of the present invention is to provide a locking device arranged to block or slow down the rotation of a deflated tire dragged in rotation by a wheel rim on which it is, or is to be, mounted, thereby obtaining a controlled relative rotation of a tire with respect to its wheel rim. 
   Another object of the present invention is to provide a locking device suitable for preventing the tire or the wheel rim to become damaged while being assembled or disassembled onto or from each other. 
   Another object of the present invention is to provide a locking device that can be adapted to any type of tired-wheel maintenance machine. 
   A further object of the present invention is to provide a locking device that can be produced and operated at low costs, thereby substantially not to affect the overall costs of a maintenance machine in which the locking device is to be installed. 
   Another object of the present invention is to provide a locking device enabling an operator to mount-dismount a tire onto or from a wheel rim with a very limited effort. 
   These and other objects that will better appear below are achieved by a locking device for a tire in a tired-wheel maintenance machine which has a support frame, at least one rotatable support for a wheel rim mounted for rotation on said support frame and provided with blocking/unblocking means for said wheel rim, and driving means for said at least one rotatable support, said locking device comprising holding means anchorable to said support frame and comprising at least one engagement means suitable for removably at least partly engaging said tire of said tired wheel thereby preventing it from rotating, when its respective wheel rim is controllably angularly displaced by said drive means. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Further features and advantages of the locking device according to the present invention will become better apparent from the following detailed description of a number of presently preferred embodiments thereof, given by way of non-limiting examples of carrying out the invention, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: 
       FIG. 1  shows a rear side perspective view of a tired-wheel maintenance machine (specifically a tire assembling-disassembling machine) with a wheel support plate which is mounted for rotation about a substantially vertical axis, tired-wheel maintenance machine being provided with a locking device according to the present invention. 
       FIG. 2  illustrates a top perspective view taken slightly from a side of the tired-wheel maintenance machine of  FIG. 1 ; 
       FIG. 3  shows a top view of the tired-wheel maintenance machine of  FIGS. 1 and 2 ; 
       FIG. 4  illustrates a rear side perspective view of a tired-wheel maintenance machine provided with a locking device according to another embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 5  shows a top perspective view taken slightly from a side of the tired-wheel maintenance machine of  FIG. 4 ; 
       FIG. 6  is a top view of the maintenance machine provided with a locking device of  FIGS. 4 and 5 ; 
       FIG. 7  is a partial view on an enlarged scale of a detail of the locking device of  FIG. 6 ; 
       FIG. 8  shows a rear side perspective view of a tired-wheel maintenance machine provided with a locking device according to another embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 9  is a top view of the tired-wheel maintenance machine and its locking device of  FIG. 8 ; 
       FIG. 10  illustrates a detail on an enlarged scale of the locking device of  FIG. 9 ; 
       FIG. 11  is a diagrammatic perspective view of an embodiment of a retaining device for a friction tape; 
       FIG. 12  is a cross-section view of the retaining device of  FIG. 1  with the addition of a controlled servo-motor; 
       FIG. 13  is a diagrammatic perspective view of another embodiment of a retaining device for a friction tape; 
       FIG. 14  shows a diagrammatic perspective view of another embodiment of a retaining device for a friction tape co-operating with a tape winding-unwinding reel; and 
       FIGS. 15 and 16  are diagrammatic perspective views of a sprocket according to the present invention provided with anchoring means to an upright. 
   

   DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
   In the accompanying drawings, the same or similar parts or components have been indicated with the same reference numerals. 
   With reference first to  FIGS. 1 to 3 , it will be noted that a tired-wheel maintenance machine  1  has a support frame comprising a base B from the rear side of which an upright M extends upwards, whereas a rotatable support R raises at the front side thereof. The rotatable support R is designed to support a wheel rim C of a tired wheel G and comprises, e.g. a rotatable plate mounted for rotation about a substantially vertical axis and provided with blocking-unblocking means for the wheel rim C, e.g. expansion jaws of any suitable type or another suitable holding means. Control pedals  2  are provided at the lower portion of base B: one pedal controlling blocking-unblocking movements of the expansion jaws and the other the rotation of the rotatable plate R. 
   A suitable winding-unwinding reel or sprocket  3  is preferably spring-loaded, secured to the upright M, e.g. by means of support stirrups  4 , and is part of a holding means  5 , e.g. a flexible belt  5   a  made of any suitable material having a relatively high friction coefficient, the belt having one end thereof anchored to the winding sprocket  3  and being arranged to be wound-unwound onto and from the sprocket. The other end of the belt  5   a  removably fixed to a connection means  6 , e.g. comprising a buckle-like member designed to engage, preferably by a snap-engagement, with an anchoring means  7 , generally a sheath member secured to the upright M, preferably at a side opposite to that of the winding sprocket  3 , and provided with a suitable release button, the whole like a coupling-uncoupling device for a vehicle safety belt. 
   After the wheel rim C is secured by the expansion jaws to the rotatable support of the maintenance machine  1 , the tired wheel G is deflated, if required, and the bead of tire P is released from the wheel rim edge by any suitable means. The belt  5   a  is then pulled out by being unwound from sprocket  3 , and wrapped once or twice around the tread of tire P, after which the buckle  6  is snap-engaged into the sheath  7 . Thus, tire P by being constrained to the belt  5   a  is prevented from rotating with the wheel rim. When the operator presses the suitable pedal  2 , the wheel rim C on the rotatable plate R is set in rotation and the friction generated between the wheel rim C and the tire P at its beads would drag in rotation also the tire P. However, such a friction is opposed and exceeded by friction generated between the belt  5   a  and tread of tire P. 
   As it will be noted in  FIG. 3 , the position of the winding sprocket  3  on the upright M and the anchoring sheath  7  is such that owing to angular displacement of tire P in the direction of arrow F, the belt  5   a  is tightened with respect to the anchoring sheath  7  thereby enhancing the pressure and consequently the friction force exerted onto the tread of tire P. With this arrangement the wheel rim can be easily rotated about the axis of rotation of the tired wheel G, through a predetermined angle while the tire is held in position. 
   In  FIGS. 4 to 7  another embodiment of a locking device according to the present invention is illustrated, in which holding means  5   b  is constituted by one or more ropes or cables having an end eyelet or ring  8  designed permanently or removably to engage with an anchoring member  9 , e.g. a pin-shaped member having a knob head and being mounted in, and overhangingly protruding from, the upright M of the maintenance machine  1 . 
   Preferably, the pin-shaped member  9  is slidably engaged through a guide slit  10   a  formed in the upright M for positioning the end eyelet or ring  8  of the rope  5   b  at different levels thereby making it possible to locate tires P arranged on the rotatable plate R of the maintenance machine  1  at different heights. Another guide slit  10   b  is formed in the upright on its opposite side to the guide  10   a , and designed to slidably engage with a pin member  11 , whose end protruding from the upright M has an eyelet  11   a  to be engaged by the other end of the rope  5   b . As it will be noted in  FIG. 7 , at eyelet  11   a  the pin member  11  supports an overhanging plate  11   b  which extends perpendicularly to the pin member  11  so that it can receive and support the rope or wire portion  5   b  passing through the eyelet  11   a . A shaped end  12   a  of a pawl  12 , which is preferably spring-loaded, is designed to act against and close to the plate  11   b , and thus the rope or wire portion  5   b  crossing the eyelet  11   a  becomes engaged by the end  12   a  of the pawl  12  and is prevented from moving. 
   From a practical operational point of view, after the rope  5   b  has been wound and manually tightened about the tread of tire P, its free end threaded is passed through the eyelet  11   a  and locked in position by pawl  12 . As it will be better noted in  FIG. 6 , when pedal  2  is actuated by the operator, the rotatable plate R to which the wheel rim C is secured is set in rotation about the axis of tired wheel G. The friction thus generated between wheel rim C and tire P will cause tire P to start rotating thereby tightening the rope  5   b  at the side of the eyelet  8  and thus increasing the pressure and consequently the friction between rope or wire  5   b  and tread of tire P, which results in a desired angular displacement of the tire with respect of the wheel rim on which it is mounted. 
     FIGS. 8 to 10  show another embodiment of a locking device according to the present invention having holding means comprising a block or shoe  5   c , preferably made or covered by a high-friction coefficient material, e.g. rubber  5   d . The block  5   c  is secured to one end of an arm  13  overhangingly extending from, and supported by, the upright M, e.g. welded or bolted to it, in such a manner that the block  5   c  is facing and close to the tread of tire P of a tired wheel G placed on the rotatable plate R. The block  5   c  is preferably articulated to arm  13 , e.g. by means of a pair of lugs  14  and pin  15 . 
   Advantageously, arm  13  extends in an offset or angularly shifted direction, e.g. through 15°-20°, from its radial attitude with respect to the tired wheel G. 
     FIGS. 11 and 12  show a retaining device RD for winding-unwinding a flexible engagement means, e.g. a belt  5   a , one or more ropes  5   b  and the like. The retaining device RD comprises a rotatable eccentric roller or cylinder  17 , whose axis of rotation  18  extends transversely to the engagement means, and an idle roller or cylinder  19 , free to rotate about an axis of rotation  20  parallel to the eccentric roller axis of rotation  18 . Eccentric roller  17  and idle roller  19  are located in a cage structure anchored to the upright M substantially at the same level as, and away from, the sprocket  3 . The cage structure comprises a top and a bottom plates  21  extending transversally to the axes of rotation  18  and  20  and connected together by studs  21   a . A slot  22  is formed in each plate  21 . The eccentric roller  17  has a pair of opposite pins: an upper pin  17   a  and a lower pin  17   b , both axially protruding from it and designed to pass through a respective receiving slot  22  and a respective arm of a U-shaped stirrup  23  which preferably extends over and beyond the two plates  21  parallel to the eccentric roller  17 . Thus the eccentric roller  17  is displaceable in the slots  22  between an unblocking position at a predetermined distance away from the idle roller  19 , and a blocking position, in which the pins  17   a ,  17   b  have been shifted along the slots  22  so that the eccentric roller  17  is close to the idle roller  19 . 
   The belt  5   a , unwound from sprocket  3 , can pass around the upright M, be deviated, e.g. by a small pole  16 , preferably extending parallel to the axes of rotation  18  and  20 , enter the gap GA ( FIG. 13 ) between the eccentric roller  17  and the idle roller  19 , and then brought by the operator around and into contact with the tire tread of a tired wheel. 
   When the eccentric roller  17  is in its unblocking position the belt  5   a  or rope  5   b  is free to slide through the gap GA, whereas when the eccentric roller is in its blocking position the belt  5   a  or rope  5   b  is locked between the eccentric roller  17  and the idle roller  19  and cannot be further unwound. 
   The U-shaped stirrup  23  is spring loaded by any suitable resilient means, e.g. one or more helical springs  24  ( FIG. 11 ), the spring  24  having a pre-determined module of elasticity so that it will yield only when a threshold load applied thereto, i.e. to the U-shaped stirrup  23 , and thus to the eccentric roller  17 , is reached, and reacting against a fixed support, e.g. a stirrup  25  anchored to the upright M in any suitable manner. 
   In another embodiment of the invention shown in  FIG. 12 , the eccentric roller  17  is arranged to be displaced towards and away from the idle roller  19  by a suitable actuator means, e.g. by a threaded output shaft  26   a  of a servo-motor  26  controlled by a suitable controller CO of any suitable type, the output shaft  26   a  being engaged in a fixed nut  26   b  supported by a stirrup  25 . 
   In an advantageous modification, spring or springs  24  are designed to act against the U-shaped stirrup  23  and to react against a disc plate  25   a  arranged to be controlled by the output shaft  26   a.    
     FIG. 13  shows a retaining device similar to that shown in  FIGS. 11 and 12  except that the eccentric roller  17  is replaced by a displaceable roller  27  which can rotates about an axis of rotation  28 . 
   According to another embodiment of the retaining device RD shown in  FIG. 14 , the sprocket  3  is provided with a clutch means  29  of any suitable type which is calibrated to yield when the engagement means (belt  5   a , rope  5   b ) is subjected to a limit pulling force, i.e. when the tire of a tired wheel G on the rotatable plate R is set in rotation owing to friction between the engagement means and the tire tread. 
   With reference to the embodiment shown in  FIGS. 15 and 16 , a sprocket or reel arrangement  3  secured to the upright M by anchoring means  30  is shown. The sprocket arrangement  3  is laterally fixed to two brackets  31  by means of fastening means, e.g. bolts not shown in the drawings. A stirrup  32  overhangingly supports the two bracket  31  and is secured, e.g. by one or more bolts  32   a , to a L-shaped strap  33 , which can be fixed to a C-shaped plate  34 , preferably with interposition of a hinge device  35 . The L-shaped strap  33  and the C-shaped plate  34  constitute a ring member RM delimiting an inner open space suitable to receive therein a length of the upright M, thereby making it possible for the ring member to be deformed at the hinge device  35  to directly surround to the upright M and to be secured thereto by tightening a screw  36  into threaded matching holes formed at one end of the L-shaped strap  33  and at one end of the C-shaped plate  34 , respectively, as is better shown in  FIGS. 11 ,  12  and  16 . 
   A retaining device, as described above with particular reference to the embodiments in  FIGS. 11 to 14 , makes it possible to easily complete mounting of a tire onto, or disassembling from, a wheel rim. Especially when dealing with tires of relatively large dimensions, after the wheel rim has been positioned on the rotatable support R, a tire P is located onto the wheel rim and usually no specific difficulty is faced in mounting the first bead of the tire even because the tire can be inclined with respect to the axis of rotation of the rotatable support R. For mounting the other tire bead, a relatively short bead portion thereof is first forced into the wheel rim by means of a suitable manually operated mounting-dismounting tool, and the rotatable support R is set in rotation by pressing pedal  2  while the mounting-dismounting tool is kept stationary. Either before or after forcing a bead portion into the wheel rim, an engagement means  5   a  or  5   b  is wound as explained above around the tire tread in order to engage, mostly by friction, the tire thereby substantially preventing it from rotating with the rotatable support R, thus causing progressive mounting of the entire tire bead. 
   In a first step, the rotatable support R starts rotating in a predetermined direction, thereby tightened the engagement means. The eccentric roller  17  or the displaceable roller  27  is then in its unblocked position and the spring  24  is not loaded ( FIG. 11 ). When the force applied on the eccentric roller  17  by the belt  5   a  or rope  5   b  is such as to overcome the spring resistance, the spring  24  is deformed and thus the eccentric roller  17  is displaced to its blocking position to avoid damaging the sprocket  3  owing to high unwinding speed of the belt  5   a  or rope  5   b.    
   In the embodiment shown in  FIG. 12 , when the rotatable support R reaches a speed of rotation such that a limit torque is transmitted to the engagement means, the controller CO controls the servo-motor  26  which actuates the disc plate  25   a , and thus possibly through spring  24  displaces the U-shaped stirrup  23 , i.e. the roller  17  along the slots  22  towards its blocked position, whereby preventing further unwinding of engagement means  5   a ,  5   b  to take place. 
   The locking device as described above is susceptible to numerous modifications and variations within the scope as defined by the claims. 
   Thus, for example, the anchoring means in the embodiments described referring to  FIG. 1 to 7  instead of comprising coupling members on both the side of the upright M could comprise only an anchoring means for both the end of the belt  5   a  or of the rope or wire  5   b.    
   Moreover, the maintenance machine could be provided with a control device for the driving means of the rotating plate R, which allows, every time the operator pushes the proper pedal  2 , the plate to rotate through a predetermined angle, e.g. 180 degrees, thus avoiding inaccuracy in the mutual angular movement between wheel rim and tire.

Technology Classification (CPC): 1