Safety device for venting aircraft tires

A safety device for mounting within an aircraft wheel to vent a tire of overpressure within the wheel/tire assembly generated by heat during high energy braking comprising in combination:

• a cylindrical housing received within the wheel defining an axial bore which extends from the outside to the inside of the wheel/tire assembly;
• a eutectic material plug coaxially mounted within and filling the bore toward the outside end thereof and adapted to melt at a predetermined temperature of the wheel;
• and
• valve means coaxially mounted and completely contained within the bore toward the inside end thereof, said valve biased in a position to close off the bore under normal tire pressure and also maintained in the closed position by the presence of the eutectic plug within the bore;
• said eutectic plug being melted out of the housing bore when the wheel temperature reaches a predetermined high limit to allow operation of the valve means wherein the valve means is opened by overpressure within the tire which overcomes the bias to vent the overpressure axially through the bore to the outside, said valve means being returned to the closed position when the tire pressure drops to a value insufficient to overcome the bias on the valve means.