Safety tire and take-apart wheel construction

A wheel rim and disc assembly for use in a safety tire and wheel assembly which includes a pneumatic tubeless tire, said wheel rim and disc assembly comprising:

• an inboard rim part including a rim base and an inboard tire bead retaining flange integrally carried at an inboard edge of said rim part, said inboard rim part having a generally cylindrical band terminating at an outboard free edge of said rim base remote from said inboard flange of said inboard rim part,
• a wheel mounting ring having an outer marginal axially extending flange telescoped into and secured to said cylindrical band, said ring having a radially inwardly extending flange having an outer surface extending generally co-planar with said inboard rim part free edge,
• a demountable outboard rim part comprising a central wheel mounting portion and an outboard tire bead retaining flange integrally projecting from an outboard edge of said wheel mounting portion,
• annular resilient sealing means disposed between three sealing surfaces comprising an outboard sealing surface of said wheel mounting ring, an inboard sealing surface of said outboard rim part and a radially inwardly facing sealing surface on said rim base band free edge of said inboard rim part,
• and means for axially clamping said outboard rim part on said inboard rim part with said sealing means being captured in compression between said aforementioned three sealing surfaces so as to seal against air leakage from the internal cavity of a tire when mounted on said wheel rim and disc assembly,
• said wheel rim and disc assembly having air bleed means normally sealed from the tire cavity by said sealing means, said clamping means being constructed and adapted to engage and exert clamping stress on said outboard rim part over a range of relative movement therebetween in the axial direction of said inboard rim part which is sufficient to permit loss of sealing pressure at said sealing means prior to loss of clamping engagement at said clamping means to thereby permit air leakage past said sealing means through said air bleed means to atmosphere within said range or relative movement,
• said first, second and third sealing surfaces when juxtaposed to sealably compress said sealing means thereby defining an annular cavity which in radial cross-section generally defines a triangle, said sealing means being bodily movable along said mounting ring sealing surface axially of said wheel assembly by tire internal cavity air pressure upon mutual separation of said sealing surface of said outboard rim part from said mounting ring and inboard rim part sealing surfaces in response to said relative separational movement of said rim parts,
• and means for inflating said tire cavity comprising an inflation valve coupling member operably coupled in air sealing relation to the one of said first and second rim segments facing outboard of said assembly when mounted on a vehicle, said member and said one rim segment each having a through passageway and being cooperable to together form an interior air passage adapted to communicate tire inflation means with the inflation chamber cavity of a tubeless tire when mounted on said rim and disc assembly, at least one of said through passageways being permanently connected to said one rim segment and having a cross sectional configuration adapted to prevent passage therethrough of an air inflation valve provided on an inner tube of sufficient size to fit within the tire cavity and capable when inflated of rendering said wheel and tire assembly normally operable for supporting its normal vehicle load in a run-mode of the vehicle whereby such inner tube valve cannot be inserted through said one through passageway.

A take-apart wheel rim assembly for use in a safety tire and wheel assembly which includes a pneumatic tubeless tire having a tire inflation chamber cavity, said wheel rim assembly comprising:

• rim base means including a rim base, a tire bead retaining flange integrally carried at an inboard edge of said rim base and a cylindrical band at a flange-remote edge of said rim base,
• demountable disc and flange means including a wheel mounting disc adapted to be detachably received from an axially outboard direction against vehicle wheel mounting structure and outboard bead retaining flange means integrally projecting from an outer peripheral edge of said disc,
• annular resilient sealing means disposed between said sealing surface of said demountable disc and flange means and an opposing sealing surface of said rim base means,
• means for axially clamping said demountable flange and disc means on said rim base means with said sealing means being captured in compression between said sealing surfaces so as to seal against air leakage from the tire inflation chamber cavity of a tubeless tire when mounted on said rim assembly,
• air bleed passage means in said band outboard of sealing means and normally sealed from the tire cavity by said sealing means, said clamping means being constructed and adapted to engage and exert clamping stress on said demountable flange means over a range of relative movement therebetween in the axial direction of said rim base means which is sufficient to permit loss of sealing pressure at said sealing means prior to loss of clamping engagement at said clamping means and thereby permitting air leakage past said sealing means through said air bleed passage means to atmosphere within said range of relative movement, and means for inflating said tire cavity comprising a safety inflation valve coupling member operably coupled in air sealing relation to said demountable disc and flange means and facing outboard of said assembly when mounted on a vehicle, said member and said disc and flange means each having a through passageway and being cooperable to together to form an interior air passage for communicating tire inflation means with said tire cavity, at least one of said through passageways being permanently connected to said disc and flange means and having a cross sectional configuration adapted to prevent passage therethrough of an air inflation valve provided on an inner tube of sufficient size to fit within said tire cavity and capable when inflated of rendering said wheel and tire assembly normally operable for supporting its normal vehicle load in a run-mode of the vehicle whereby such inner tube valve cannot be inserted through said one through passageway.

A method of constructing a take-apart wheel rim assembly for use in a safety tire and wheel assembly which includes a pneumatic tubeless tire having a tire inflation chamber cavity, said wheel rim assembly comprising:

• rim base means including a rim base, a tire bead retaining flange integrally carried at an inboard edge of said rim base and a cylindrical band at a flange-remote edge of said rim base,
• demountable disc and flange means including a wheel mounting disc adapted to be detachably received from an axially outboard direction against vehicle wheel mounting structure and outboard bead retaining flange means integrally projecting from an outer peripheral edge of said disc,
• annular resilient sealing means disposed between said sealing surface of said demountable disc and flange means and an opposing sealing surface of said rim base means,
• means for axially clamping said demountable flange and disc means on said rim base means with said sealing means being captured in compression between said sealing surfaces so as to seal against air leakage from the tire inflation chamber cavity of a tubeless tire when mounted on said rim assembly,
• air bleed passage means in said band outboard of sealing means and normally sealed from the tire cavity by said sealing means, said clamping means being constructed and adapted to engage and exert clamping stress on said demountable flange means over a range of relative movement therebetween in the axial direction of said rim base means which is sufficient to permit loss of sealing pressure at said sealing means prior to loss of clamping engagement at said clamping means and thereby permitting air leakage past said sealing means through said air bleed passage means to atmosphere within said range of relative movement, and means for inflating said tire cavity comprising a safety inflation valve coupling member operably coupled in air sealing relation to said demountable disc and flange means and facing outboard of said assembly when mounted on a vehicle, said member and said disc and flange means each having a through passageway and being cooperable to together to form an interior air passage for communicating tire inflation means with said tire cavity, at least one of said through passageways being permanently connected to said disc and flange means and having a cross sectional configuration adapted to prevent passage therethrough of an air inflation valve provided on an inner tube of sufficient size to fit within said tire cavity and capable when inflated of rendering said wheel and tire assembly normally operable for supporting its normal vehicle load in a run-mode of the vehicle whereby such inner tube valve cannot be inserted through said one through passageway, said method comprising the steps of:
• (1) providing said one rim segment with an imperforate flat portion located in a zone to communicate with the inflation chamber cavity of a tubeless tire to be mounted on the wheel rim assembly,
• (2) providing an inflation coupling member preform comprising a cylindrical solid body having a flat end face at one end thereof,
• (3) forcing said flat end face of said preform against a flat outboard surface of said flat portion of said one rim segment,
• (4) applying resistance welding current and pressure through said preform and said flat portion of said one rim segment to resistance weld said preform to said flat portion of said one rim segment, and
• (5) thereafter forming a hole in aid one rim segment through said flat portion thereof and forming a counterbore in said coupling member to thereby provide said safety inflation valve coupling means wherein said rim segment hole defines said cross-sectional configuration and said portion of said interior air passage and said preform is finished into a coupling sleeve.

A take-apart safety tire and wheel assembly comprising a vehicle wheel including a wheel rim having axially spaced bead flanges and a rim base adapted for receiving thereon a pneumatic tubeless tire having axially spaced bead toes and a circumferential tire tread spaced radially outwardly of said rim base to define a tire inflation chamber cavity;

• said wheel rim comprising a first rim segment including one of said bead flanges, a second rim segment including the second of said bead flanges adapted to be axially assembled to said first rim segment, annular sealing means adapted to be disposed between opposing portions of said first and second rim segments and means for releasably clamping said second rim segment onto said first rim segment with said annular sealing means captured in compression between said portions of said rim segments for sealing said tire cavity, and means for inflating said tire cavity comprising a safety inflation valve coupling member operably coupled in air sealing relation to the one of said first and second rim segments facing outboard of said assembly when mounted on a vehicle, said member and said one rim segment each having a through passageway and together forming an interior air passageway for communicating tire inflation means with said tire cavity, at least one of said through passageways being permanently connected to said one rim segment and having a safety control cross sectional configuration adapted to prevent passage therethrough of an air inflation valve provided on an inner tube of sufficient size to fit within said tire cavity and capable when inflated of rendering said wheel and tire assembly normally operable for supporting its normal vehicle load in a run-mode of the vehicle whereby such inner tube valve cannot be inserted through said one through passagway.