Wheeled vehicle axle suspension system
AssigneeTurner Quick-Lift Corporation
InventorErvin K. Vandenberg
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The wheel hub cavity is used to accommodate a portion of the air bellows in an axle suspension of either the single or tandem drive axle type enabling the air bellows to be located directly over the axle and under the frame. The resulting lightweight, high load carrying capacity structure includes control arms for aligning and stabilizing the suspension and air bellows at both ends of the axle, adjacent the axle housing and extending outboard into the wheel hub cavity.
Claims21
In an axle suspension system for a longitudinally frame membered truck, the system comprising a drive axle having located intermediate its ends a drive axle housing of substantially larger cross-sectional dimension than the ends of said axle and having located at each of its ends a wheel comprising a tire radially extending from a transverse rim and hub of lesser transverse dimension than said tire and rim thereby defining a hub cavity between the axle and the tire and rim, a resilient bellows means, means for locating the bellows in load-bearing relationship to the axle and control arm means for connecting the axle to the frame of the vehicle, the improvement comprising means for connecting one end of the resilient bellows means to a longitudinal frame member of the truck and the other end to and substantially directly above the axle, one side of said bellows being thus located adjacent the enlarged housing of the axle and the opposite side extending into said hub cavity, said resilient bellows means comprising an inflatable and deflatable air bag which expands and contracts dimensionally in the vertical and horizontal direction during operation of the truck axle.
In a truck-tractor having a longitudinally extending frame member on either side thereof, a drive axle for transmitting power from the engine to wheels attached to said drive axle transversely to the longitudinally extending frame members, wherein said drive axle includes intermediate the ends thereof a drive axle housing of substantially larger cross-sectional dimension than the ends of said axle and wherein said wheels include a tire centrally retained upon and extending radially outwardly from a transverse wheel rim and a radially extending hub means for connecting the wheel rim to the axle, the tire and rim having a transverse dimension greater than that of the hub means thereby defining a hub cavity between the axle and the tire and rim, the improvement comprising as said axle suspension system, and on each side of said truck-tractor relative to a respective longitudinally extending frame member, a system comprised of a resilient bellows means connected at its upper end to a frame member and at its lower end to and substantially directly above said axle, one side of said bellows being adjacent the enlarged housing of the axle and the opposite side extending into said hub cavity, a downwardly extending hanger bracket connected at its upper end to the frame member at a spaced distance from said bellows and at its lower end to one of a longitudinally extending lower control arm whose other end is connected to said axle, and wherein said resilient bellows means comprises an inflatable and deflatable air bag which expands and contracts dimensionally in the vertical and horizontal direction during operation of the truck-tractor.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.