Shopping cart wheel with adjustable friction
OwnerJimmy L. Hicksinventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An improved shopping cart wheel having one or two friction disks which rub against the hub to cause sufficient drag to prevent shopping carts from freewheeling and causing damage or injury. In a preferred design, the amount of friction is adjustable by tightening a nut along the axle of the wheel.
Claims12
A shopping cart wheel of the type having a hub with a pair of inner bearing races, a plurality of ball bearings, a pair of outer bearing races and an axle supported on a yoke said bearing races and ball bearings creating a first amount of friction against turning, wherein the improvement comprises:
- a hub friction surface on at least one of said hub;
- and
- at least one friction disk supported so that it does not rotate with respect to said yoke in normal use, said friction disk having a friction surface which contacts said hub friction surface as the wheel is turned with respect to the yoke, said friction disk being integral with at least one of said inner bearing races, whereby the turning of the wheel creates additional friction against turning over that caused by the bearing races and ball bearings.
A shopping cart wheel assembly of the type which is held between the first and second arms of a yoke and having an axle supported by said first and second arms of said yoke, said axle supporting first and second inner bearing members including first and second inner races and having a plurality of ball bearings held against said first and second inner races and a pair of outer bearings each having outer races, said outer bearings being supported by a hub having a tread on an outer periphery thereof and said hub being symmetrical about a central bisecting plane, wherein the improvement comprises:
- first and second friction disks held so they do not rotate with respect to said arms of said yoke as the hub turns in said yoke, said first and second friction disks having first and second friction surfaces and said first friction disk is integral with said first inner bearing and said second friction disk is integral with said second inner bearing;
- and
- first and second hub friction surfaces held by said hub so that the friction surfaces on said friction disks contact said hub friction surface and causes a drag against the turning of the hub in said yoke.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.