US 2006/0136288 A1Published application

Multi-size tire filling apparatus and method

AssigneeSchenck RoTec GmbH

InventorsAndreas Peinelt, Martin Rogalla, Werner Lehr, Roland Lehmann

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Abstract

A tire filling apparatus preferably includes a support and seal arrangement on which a wheel-tire combination is supported in a horizontally lying orientation, a tire filling plate, and a plurality of differently-sized tire filling rings. Based on the diameter of the wheel-tire combination to be filled with air, a properly sized one of the filling rings is selected and positioned coaxially along the wheel axis between the tire and the filling plate. The filling plate moves toward the tire, sealingly contacts the filling ring, and presses the filling ring against the upwardly facing tire sidewall, until an open air filling gap is formed between the tire sidewall bead and the wheel rim. Pressurized air is introduced through the filling plate, the filling ring, and the open air filling gap into the tire interior, until the gap is closed by the increasing air pressure in the tire.

Claims40

Dependent claims

A tire filling apparatus adapted to fill air into a wheel-tire combination including a tire mounted on a wheel rim, said tire filling apparatus comprising:

a support arrangement adapted to support a first side surface of the wheel-tire combination thereon, and
a tire filling bell arranged opposite said support arrangement so as to receive the wheel-tire combination between said tire filling bell and said support arrangement;
wherein:
said tire filling bell comprises a tire filling plate and a first tire filling ring separate from said tire filling plate,
said tire filling plate is arranged spaced apart from said support arrangement and movable along a reference axis that extends through said support arrangement and said tire filling plate,
said first tire filling ring is movable into an operating position coaxially centered on said reference axis between said support arrangement and said tire filling plate, and
said tire filling plate and said first tire filling ring in said operating position are arranged so that said tire filling plate is adapted to move toward said support arrangement along said reference axis so as to contact a first end of said first tire filling ring, and then said tire filling plate and said first tire filling ring together are adapted to move toward said support arrangement along said reference axis so that a second end of said first tire filling ring opposite said first end is adapted to contact a second side surface of the wheel-tire combination opposite the first side surface of the wheel-tire combination.

4 more elements

A tire filling apparatus adapted to fill air into a wheel-tire combination including a tire mounted on a wheel rim, said tire filling apparatus comprising:

a support arrangement adapted to support a first side surface of the wheel-tire combination thereon,
a tire filling plate arranged spaced apart from said support arrangement and movable along a reference axis that extends through said support arrangement and said tire filling plate, and
a plurality of tire filling rings that respectively have different diameters and that are movable so that each respective selected filling ring among said tire filling rings can be selectively individually moved into and out of an operating position coaxially centered on said reference axis between said support arrangement and said tire filling plate, wherein said respective filling ring is adapted and positioned to have a first end thereof with a first opening temporarily pressed and sealed against said tire filling plate and a second end thereof with a second opening temporarily pressed and sealed against a second side surface of the wheel-tire combination opposite the first side surface of the wheel-tire combination in said operating position.

A tire filling apparatus adapted to fill air into a wheel-tire combination including a tire mounted on a wheel rim, said apparatus comprising:

a support arrangement adapted to sealingly contact and support a first side surface of the wheel-tire combination thereon;
an air feed and pressing member that is arranged spaced apart from said support arrangement and is movable along a reference axis that extends through said support arrangement and said air feed and pressing member;
an active powered drive device that is connected to said air feed and pressing member and is adapted to drive said air feed and pressing member linearly along said reference axis toward said support arrangement;
a pressurized air supply line that is connected to and communicates through said air feed and pressing member;
a movable support that is rotatable about a rotation axis parallel to said reference axis or slidable along a slide line that extends in a plane transverse to said reference axis;
a plurality of filling chamber members that each respectively have a first opening and a second opening at opposite ends thereof and that respectively have different diameters of said second openings;
a plurality of axial slide carriages and support brackets that axially slidably connect said filling chamber members to said movable support so as to be axially slidable parallel to said reference axis;
and
at least one biasing spring device acting on said axial slide carriages and/or said support brackets to axially bias said filling chamber members parallel to said reference axis in a direction away from said support arrangement;
wherein said movable support is adapted to rotate about said rotation axis or slide along said slide line so as to move any selected filling chamber member of said filling chamber members selectively into an operating position coaxially centered on said reference axis between said support arrangement and said air feed and pressing member, and wherein said active powered drive device is adapted to drive said air feed and pressing member toward said support arrangement with said selected filling chamber member received between said air feed and pressing member and a second side surface of the wheel-tire combination opposite the first side surface, and with said air feed and pressing member pressed and sealed onto said first opening of said selected filling chamber member and said second opening of said selected filling chamber member pressed and sealed onto the second side surface of the wheel-tire combination.

7 more elements

A method of filling air into a wheel-tire combination including a tire mounted on a wheel rim, said method comprising the following steps:

a) supporting and air-tight sealing a first side surface of said tire of said wheel-tire combination;
b) moving a tire filling ring into an operating position concentrically centered on a wheel axis of said wheel-tire combination adjacent to a second side surface of said tire opposite said first side surface thereof;
c) moving a tire filling plate axially along said wheel axis toward said wheel-tire combination so as to press and seal said tire filling plate against a first end of said tire filling ring and to press and seal a second end of said tire filling ring against said second side surface of said tire, such that said tire filling plate and said tire filling ring together form a tire filling bell bounding a tire filling bell chamber;
d) pressing said second end of said tire filling ring against said second side surface sufficiently to open an annular air gap between said wheel rim and said second side surface of said tire;
and
e) filling pressurized air via said tire filling bell chamber through said annular air gap into an interior of said tire.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.