Plastic wheel assembly
AssigneeOccidental Chemical Corporation
InventorLeon G. Meyer
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Disclosed is a method of making a wheel assembly such as a pulley with a bearing. A wheel is molded from a material that shrinks when its temperature falls from a temperature above 100.degree. F. to room temperature. The wheel has a circular opening at its center suitable for holding a circular bearing. The diameter of the circular opening when the wheel is at a temperature above 100.degree. F. is greater than the diameter of the circular bearing and is less than the diameter of the circular bearing when the wheel is at room temperature. The bearing is positioned inside the opening when the wheel is at a temperature above 100.degree. F. The wheel is cooled to room temperature and shrinks around the bearing, thereby fixing the bearing to the wheel. Also disclosed is a wheel assembly made by this method.
Claims20
A method of making a wheel assembly comprising
- (1) molding a wheel from a material that shrinks when its temperature falls from a temperature above 100.degree. F. to room temperature, said wheel having a circular opening at its center suitable for holding a circular bearing, where the diameter of said circular opening is greater than the diameter of said circular bearing when said wheel is at a temperature above 100.degree. F. and is less than the diameter of said circular bearing when said wheel is at room temperature;
- (2) positioning said bearing inside said opening when said wheel is at said temperature above 100.degree. F.;
- and (3) cooling said wheel to room temperature.
A method of making a pulley assembly comprising
- (A) molding a pulley from a phenol-formaldehyde resin that shrinks when it is cooled to room temperature from an elevated temperature between about 250.degree. F. and about 300.degree. F., said pulley having a circular opening at its center, said opening having a flange on one side and a circumferential protuberance on the other side;
- (B) when said pulley is at said elevated temperature, pressing into said opening a circular bearing having an outside diameter
- (1) greater than the inside diameter of said protuberance at said elevated temperature,
- (2) less than the inside diameter of said opening at said elevated temperature, and
- (3) sufficiently greater than the inside diameter of said opening at room temperature to fix said bearing to said pulley at room temperature, but not so much greater as to cause distortion of said bearing;
- and
- (C) cooling said pulley to room temperature.
A wheel assembly comprising a circular wheel having a circular aperture at its center made from a moldable material that shrinks when its temperature falls from a temperature over 100.degree. F. to room temperature, heat shrunk over a circular bearing placed inside said circular opening.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.