Inflation valve for tubeless tires
AssigneeSanta Cruz Bicycles, Inc.
InventorsBrett Robert Courtney, James Mathew Amaral, Nick Anderson, Jon Wood
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A tire inflation valve having anti-rotation features has an external valve seat, and includes a valve body, a valve stem extending through the length of the valve body, and anti-rotation features disposed interior to the valve body. The valve stem is configured to move relative to the valve body, such that a resilient seating surface disposed at a proximal end of the valve stem is displaced relative to a valve seat formed by an exterior surface of a proximal end of the valve body. The anti-rotation features may include a complementary slot and protrusion, a keyway and complementary protruding ridge, and/or complementary channels and lateral protrusions.
Claims18
An inflation valve for a tubeless tire, the valve comprising:
- a valve body having a proximal end, an open distal end, and at least one notch disposed adjacent to the proximal end of the valve body, wherein the valve body defines an internal cavity;
- a cap defining an aperture, wherein the cap is reversibly coupled to the proximal end of the valve body, such that the cap and the at least one notch collectively define at least one slot;
- and
- a valve stem extending continuously through the internal cavity, such that a threaded end of the valve stem protrudes beyond the open distal end of the valve body;
- wherein the proximal end of the valve body comprises a valve seat having an outer diameter larger than an inner diameter of the valve body, and a corresponding proximal end of the valve stem includes a resilient seating surface and at least one radial protrusion, wherein the at least one radial protrusion is received by the at least one slot;
- wherein the valve is configured to transition between:
- (a) a closed position, in which the resilient seating surface mates with the valve seat and seals the proximal end of the valve body, and the threaded end of the valve stem extends beyond the distal end of the valve body by a first distance, and
- (b) an open position, in which the resilient seating surface is spaced from the valve seat, and the threaded end of the valve stem extends beyond the distal end of the valve body by a second distance less than the first distance;
- and
- wherein the at least one slot and the at least one radial protrusion are configured to collectively restrict rotation of the valve stem while the inflation valve is in use.
An inflation valve for a tubeless tire, the valve comprising:
- a valve body having a proximal end, an open distal end, and a pair of notches disposed adjacent to the proximal end of the valve body, wherein the valve body defines an internal cavity;
- a cap defining an aperture and reversibly coupled to the proximal end of the valve body, such that the cap and the pair of notches collectively define a pair of slots;
- and
- a valve stem extending continuously through the internal cavity, such that a threaded end of the valve stem protrudes beyond the open distal end of the valve body;
- wherein the proximal end of the valve body comprises a valve seat having an outer diameter larger than an inner diameter of the valve body, and a corresponding proximal end of the valve stem includes a resilient seating surface and a pair of radial protrusions, each received by a respective slot;
- wherein the valve is configured to transition between:
- (a) a closed position, in which the resilient seating surface mates with the valve seat and seals the proximal end of the valve body, and the threaded end of the valve stem extends beyond the distal end of the valve body by a first distance, and
- (b) an open position, in which the resilient seating surface is spaced from the valve seat, and the threaded end of the valve stem extends beyond the distal end of the valve body by a second distance less than the first distance;
- and
- wherein the slots and the radial protrusions are configured to collectively restrict rotation of the valve stem while the inflation valve is in use.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.