Back to results
US 4,359,911 AGranted
Non-welded steering wheel and method of manufacture
AssigneeGeneral Motors Corporation
InventorsKenneth B. Eubanks, Clifford E. Loeb
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Loading patent…
Loading patent…
AssigneeGeneral Motors Corporation
InventorsKenneth B. Eubanks, Clifford E. Loeb
Estimating the term…
A steering wheel includes a stamped body portion including a hub and a pair of spoke members having terminal portions integrally riveted to a split rim member and wrapped thereabout. One of the terminal portions is secured to the split portion of the rim member and the other is secured to an unsplit portion. The steering wheel is manufactured by forming the terminal portions with an intermediate flange and a terminal flange, locating the rim member at the juncture of the flanges, with the split of the rim member within the extent of one of the terminal flanges, piercing the terminal flange to either side of the split, piercing the other terminal flange, extruding portions of the rim member into the pierced openings to integrally rivet the rim member to the terminal portion and wrapping the terminal flanges over the recesses in the rim member resulting from the extrusion to clamp the rim member and terminal portions to each other.
A non-welded steering wheel comprising, in combination, a split generally circular rim having a solid cross-section, a body portion including at least one spoke having an integral generally planar intermediate flange and an angularly related integral U-shape terminal flange including spaced openings in a portion thereof, said intermediate and terminal flanges forming an integral one piece unit with said spoke, the portions of the rim on each side of the split seating against the intermediate flange and against the portion of the terminal flange including the spaced openings, the terminal flange being wrapped around the portions of the rim on each side of the split, the terminal flange and intermediate flange substantially encircling such portions of the rim and clamping such portions to the intermediate flange and terminal flange, the portions of the rim on each side of the split being extruded from one side thereof through the rim and outwardly of an opposite side thereof, and completely within the openings of the terminal flange to provide integral rivets which integrally rivet such portions of the rim to the terminal flange and cooperate with the clamping of such portions to the intermediate flange and terminal flange in securing the rim to the spoke in a non-welded manner.
A non-welded steering wheel comprising, in combination, a split generally circular rim having a solid multi-face cross-section, a body portion including at least one spoke having an integral generally planar intermediate flange and an angularly related integral U-shape terminal flange including spaced openings in a portion thereof, said intermediate and terminal flanges forming an integral one piece unit with said spoke, the portions of the rim on each side of the split seating against the intermediate flange and having one face thereof seating against the portion of the terminal flange including the spaced openings, the terminal flange being wrapped around the portions of the rim on each side of the split, the terminal flange and intermediate flange substantially encircling such portions of the rim and clamping such portions to the intermediate flange and terminal flange, the portions of the rim on each side of the split being extruded from another face thereof through the rim and outwardly of the one face thereof, and completely within the openings of the terminal flange to provide integral rivets which integrally rivet such portions of the rim to the terminal flange and cooperate with the clamping of such portions to the intermediate flange and terminal flange in securing the rim to the spoke in a non-welded manner.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.