Safety restraint for break-away wheel assemblies
AssigneeTether Tech Safety, LLC
InventorWilliam Turner
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A semi-trailer wheel restraint system having at least one bearing or swivel, or a combination of bearing(s) and swivel(s), and one or more cable sections and one or more hub cab attachments for receipt into one or more wheel assemblies and through a hollow core of the trailer's axle. During a wheel bearing failure, the wheel restraint system keeps the loose wheel assembly near the end of the axle by anchoring it to the opposite-end's hub cap, thereby preventing a run-away wheel assembly and providing an operator of the truck an opportunity to safely stop the rig.
Claims17
A wheel restraint system comprising:
- a first end of a tether attached to a first hub cap at a first end of a hollow axle;
- a second end of a tether passable through the hollow axle to a second end of the hollow axle;
- and
- a second end of the tether being attachable to a second hub cap at the second end of the hollow axle;
- wherein at least one rotatable interconnect is provided between the first and second hub caps to allow the first end of the tether and the second end of the tether to rotate at different speeds and in different directions.
A method of providing a wheel restraint system comprising:
- attaching a first end of a tether to a first hub cap at a first end of a hollow axle;
- passing a second end of the tether through the hollow axle to a second end of the hollow axle;
- and
- attaching the second end of the tether to a second hub cap at the second end of the hollow axle;
- wherein at least one rotatable interconnect is provided between the first and second hub caps to allow the first end of the tether and the second end of the tether to rotate at different speeds and in different directions.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.