Patent Description:
The present invention relates to wheels for automobiles and other wheeled vehicles. In particular, the present invention relates to a two (<NUM>) piece wheel.

As is well known, consumers often want multiple choices and options when purchasing an automobile to allow them options based on look, price or some other trait (such as fuel economy). With this in mind, the present disclosure provides a novel and unique two (<NUM>) piece molded wheel that offers many benefits including reduced weight, varied appearance, reduced cost and increased fuel economy. More specifically, the present disclosure provides a wheel that minimizes the weight thereof but retains the necessary strength.

The composite wheels in the prior art are often extremely expensive due to the costs of materials involved in the manufacture thereof and the time involved to manufacture each wheel. The present invention provides a strong, attractive and light weight two (<NUM>) piece wheel that is cheaper and easy to manufacture.

In one aspect, the present invention provides a two (<NUM>) piece molded wheel in accordance with the appended claims.

To further illustrate the advantages and features of the present invention, a more particular description of the invention will be rendered by reference to specific embodiments thereof which are illustrated in the attached drawings. It is appreciated that these drawings are not to be considered limiting in scope. The invention will be described and explained with additional specificity and detail through the use of the drawings in which:.

As shown in <FIG>, the present application provides an improved, two (<NUM>) piece wheel <NUM> which may be used on various automobiles, including but not limited to passenger cars and trucks. The wheel <NUM> disclosed herein offers many advantageous features not found in prior art wheels such as a lighter weight and stronger construction.

<FIG> shows a front view of the wheel <NUM> fully assembled. The wheel comprises a spoke section <NUM> (which is furthest away from the automobile on which the wheel <NUM> is installed) and a barrel section <NUM> (which is closer to the automobile on which the wheel is installed). <FIG> shows a rear view of the wheel fully assembled while <FIG> shows a top sectional view of the fully assembled wheel <NUM>.

The spoke section <NUM> includes one or more spokes <NUM> that both serve to add strength to the wheel <NUM> and also provide a pleasing decorative appearance. As such, one of ordinary skill in the art can appreciate that although one design is shown in the figures included herewith, many different spoke designs and arrangements are possible based on consumer preference and the scope of the present invention should not be limited by the design shown in the figures. Additionally, the shape, design, number and length of the spokes <NUM> can be varied to increase the strength of the wheel <NUM>. The spokes section <NUM> and spokes <NUM> may also include one or more fiber composite strips <NUM>. The fiber composite strips <NUM> can be either co-molded between fiber layers as the spoke section <NUM>/spokes <NUM> are molded or they may be bonded to the spoke section <NUM>/spokes <NUM> after those features are molded. The fiber composite strips <NUM>, as shown in <FIG>, may be placed along the exterior surface of one or more spokes <NUM> or alternatively, they may be located where the spokes <NUM> meet the hub or center of the spoke section, along the lip or outer edge of the spoke section or where the spokes <NUM> meet the barrel.

The spoke section <NUM> also includes a plurality of apertures near its center, including one or more wheel stud apertures <NUM> and a hub aperture <NUM>. The wheel stud apertures <NUM> are configured to receive the threaded wheel studs (or sometimes called wheel bolts) present on the hub of the vehicle on which the wheel <NUM> will be installed. Accordingly, as shown in the attached figures, there may be five (<NUM>) wheel stud apertures (which is the common number on most passenger cars) but there could be more or less wheel stud apertures if needed for installation on a particular vehicle or vehicle type. For example, there could be as few as four (<NUM>) wheel stud apertures or as many as twelve (<NUM>). As shown in the attached figures, there may be a recess on the exterior of the spoke section <NUM> in which the lug nuts fit during installation, though this is not required. Alternatively, there may only be a single aperture on the wheel wherein the hub passes through the aperture and a nut is threaded onto the hub to secure to the wheel.

Optionally, the spoke section <NUM> may include one or more inserts <NUM> that can be generally complimentary to the shape and size of the wheel stud apertures <NUM>. These inserts <NUM> may be molded integrally near the region of the spoke section <NUM> proximate to the wheel stud apertures <NUM>. These inserts <NUM> can be of various shapes and composition. For example, the insert <NUM> may complement the shape and size of the wheel stud aperture <NUM> and form a concentric circle therewith, as shown in <FIG> and be placed around one or more of the wheel stud apertures <NUM>. Alternatively, the insert <NUM> could be rectangular and placed proximate to the wheel stud aperture, but not of a circular shape. The insert <NUM> may be metal or other suitable materials to help distribute the forces imparted on the wheel <NUM> when the lug nuts are tightened onto the wheel studs. After the wheel studs are passed through the wheel stud apertures <NUM>, generally one or more lug nuts or other securement device will be screwed onto the threaded wheel studs to attach the wheel <NUM> securely to the vehicle. The hub aperture <NUM> is provided such that the hub of a vehicle may pass through the spoke section <NUM>. As one of ordinary skill in the art can appreciate, the dimensions of the hub aperture <NUM> will often vary due to the make and model of vehicle on which the wheel <NUM> is to be installed - i.e., a wheel designed to be installed on a Ford® may have a different dimensioned hub aperture <NUM> than a wheel designed to fit on a Subaru®.

The spoke section <NUM> also includes a valve stem aperture <NUM> which receives a valve stem which is used to add air (or other suitable gasses such as nitrogen) to the tire seated on the wheel <NUM>.

The spoke section <NUM> also includes a beadhump <NUM> on its interior facing surface that secures the bead of the tire to the wheel <NUM>.

The spoke section <NUM> also has a mating surface <NUM> which is in contact with the barrel surface's mating surface <NUM> when the wheel <NUM> is assembled (as discussed in more detail below).

The barrel section <NUM> is the portion of the wheel <NUM> closest to the automobile. The barrel section <NUM>, like the spoke section <NUM>, includes a beadhump <NUM> on its exterior facing surface that secures the bead of the tire to the wheel <NUM>. In one embodiment, as shown in <FIG> for example, the barrel section <NUM> reduces in diameter across its width, or put another way, the inner most portion of the barrel section <NUM> may have a larger diameter than the outermost portion.

Further, the barrel section <NUM> has a mating surface <NUM> that is complementary to the spoke section's mating surface <NUM>. As can be appreciated from the attached drawings, different areas of the wheel <NUM> have different diameters. For example, the area of the wheel with the bead hump <NUM> has a different diameter than the central area of the wheel <NUM>. In one embodiment the mating surface <NUM> is generally located at the drop center (also known as the tire well) of the wheel <NUM>, or the area of the wheel where it is the narrowest, and thus the opposing mating surface <NUM> of the spoke section <NUM> where the sections are joined is also located at the drop center, and the drop center of a wheel <NUM> makes mounting a tire easier in that it allows the tire's bead wires to retain their natural shape/length/diameter during the mounting process. The bead hump <NUM> may be molded or formed integrally with the spoke section <NUM> and barrel section <NUM>, as shown in <FIG> or it may be manufactured separately and affixed or attached to the spoke section <NUM> and barrel section <NUM> as shown in <FIG>.

The mating surface <NUM> of the barrel section <NUM> includes one or more spacers <NUM> which serve to provide a gap between the spoke sections <NUM> mating surface <NUM> and the barrel section's mating surface <NUM> after the wheel is assembled. This gap allows space for the adhesive used to join the spoke section <NUM> and the barrel section <NUM> to be applied evenly and to properly harden and attach the two sections thus creating a strong, reliable wheel <NUM>. In one embodiment, the adhesive can be selected from the group consisting of urethane and epoxy based adhesives. In one embodiment, the spacers <NUM> have a height of between <NUM> and <NUM> one-thousandth's of an inch. Alternatively, the mating surface <NUM> of the spoke section may comprise the one or more spacers rather than the barrel section <NUM>.

The mating surface <NUM> of the barrel section <NUM> has a lip or stop <NUM> that the leading edge of the spoke section's mating surface <NUM> rests against once the two sections are fitted properly during assembly. This lip or stop <NUM> serves to provide that adequate overlap is created by the two opposing mating surfaces <NUM>, <NUM> to provide for a secure assembly. The amount of overlap may vary depending upon the desired use of the wheel. In some embodiments, the amount of overlap is between <NUM> and <NUM> inches, <NUM> and <NUM> inches, <NUM> and <NUM> inches and <NUM> and <NUM> inches. In one preferred embodiment, the amount of overlap is between <NUM> and <NUM> inches.

In addition to the lap joint shown in the attached figures, the overlap region could feature a tongue-and-groove construction or threads to assist in securing the spoke section <NUM> to the barrel section <NUM>. Optionally, in addition to the adhesive used to secure the spoke section <NUM> to the barrel section <NUM>, mechanical securement devices such as rivets, bolts or a tape may be used.

<FIG> and <FIG> show perspective views of the spoke section <NUM> and the barrel section <NUM> respectively. <FIG> shows a side view/cut away view of the overlap of the opposing mating surfaces <NUM>, <NUM>.

The wheel <NUM> may be made of many different materials, including composite materials such as carbon fiber. The term "carbon fiber" as used herein includes all fibers which consist essentially of carbon, ranging from graphite fibers to amorphous carbon fibers. Graphite fibers are fibers which consist essentially of carbon and have a predominant X-ray diffraction pattern characteristic of graphite. Amorphous carbon fibers are fibers which consist essentially of carbon and have an essentially amorphous X-ray diffraction pattern. Additionally, the term also includes other high strength, low density materials such as boron, fiber glass or the like or any of the forgoing in a mixture, such as <NUM>-<NUM> % carbon fiber mixed with <NUM>-<NUM>% fiber glass. For example, the wheel <NUM> may comprise one or more of the following composite materials a carbon fiber/fiber mixture, carbon fiber or fiber glass. Additionally, additives such as nanoparticles may be added to the composite materials before molding. Additionally, the wheel <NUM> disclosed herein may not be manufactured from a composite material but rather a metallic material such as aluminum, steel or other alloy. In an embodiment where the wheel <NUM> is manufactured from a metallic material, the components of the wheel may be forged, cast or machined.

In addition to the composite materials and optionally the nanoparticles, a resin is used to bind the composite materials during molding. In one embodiment, the resin is selected from the group consisting of epoxies, polyurethane, rubber and polyester resins. In a further embodiment the resin is a vinyl ester/polyurethane resin or any other thermoset or thermoplastic polymeric resin or a metallic matrix. In other alternate embodiments, the resin may be selected from the group consisting of butadiene rubber, ethylene-propylene-diene rubber, melamine formaldehyde, natural rubber, phenol-formaldehyde, polyamide, polycarbonate, polypropylene and polytetrafluoroethylene.

The wheel <NUM> may be constructed using various methods of manufacture including compression molding. In one embodiment, the wheel <NUM> is constructed using a sheet molding compound (SMC) process or a bulk molding compound (BMC) process.

Claim 1:
A two (<NUM>) piece molded wheel comprising a spoke section (<NUM>) and a barrel section (<NUM>), wherein the spoke section and barrel sections are joined at the drop center of the wheel, and wherein the spoke section and barrel sections have complementary mating surfaces, wherein
both the spoke section and the barrel section include a respective beadhump (<NUM>);
the mating surface (<NUM>) of the barrel is configured to circumferentially surround at least a portion of the mating surface (<NUM>) of the spoke section, characterized in that:
the mating surface (<NUM>) of the barrel section (<NUM>) has a stop (<NUM>) configured to abut against a leading edge of the spoke section mating surface (<NUM>) when the spoke section (<NUM>) and barrel section (<NUM>) are joined.