Patent ID: 7540570

Claim:
A wheel shock absorbing apparatus having a hub, a wheel installed on the hub, one or more bearings seated within the hub, and an axle running therethrough as is known in the art to together generally form a wheel assembly useful for achieving locomotion of a vehicle, wherein the improvement comprises: at least two outer end caps having an inner surface and an outer surface, each outer end cap comprising an axle mounting hole and an axially inwardly-opening cavity radially offset from each axle mounting hole; at least one springing element positioned within each cavity; an inner body unit positioned substantially between the outer end caps and comprising at least one actuation stud oriented so as to project into each cavity and selectively contact the at least one springing element; a means for pivoting the outer end caps relative to the inner body unit; and a means for fastening the outer end caps together such that the respective inner surfaces are opposite one another about the inner body unit and the at least one springing element is trapped within each respective cavity; and wherein: the axle about which the hub and wheel rotate is installed in each axle mounting hole; and the pivoting means extends between the respective outer end caps and the inner body unit, whereby the outer end caps and the inner body unit pivot with respect to one another to cause the at least one actuation stud to contact the at least one springing element so as to absorb shocks as the wheel travels over a surface during locomotion of the vehicle.