Wheel with a damper for an automobile and a method for manufacturing the same

A wheel with a damper for an automobile comprising:

• a rim;
• a disk radially spaced from said rim;
• and
• a damper disposed between said rim and said disk, said damper having a rubber member having a spring constant,
• wherein said spring constant of said rubber member of said damper is determined such that a first natural frequency of a vibrational system comprising a spring of said rubber member and a mass of said automobile is in a range of approximately 6-12 Hz;
• and
• wherein said rubber member of said damper includes a second portion which is brought into contact with an opposing member to act as a stopper when said rim and said disk cause a greater relative displacement to each other in a vertical direction than a gap between said second portion and said opposing member, and
• wherein a space is provided between said second portion of said rubber member of said damper and an opposing member which said second portion opposes, a size of said space in a radial direction of said wheel is selected to be 2d+α, where d is a deflection of said damper when a gravitational force of said automobile acts on said damper, and α is a value in a range of approximately 0-1 mm.

A wheel with a damper for an automobile comprising:

• a rim;
• a disk radially spaced from said rim;
• and
• a damper disposed between said rim and said disk, said damper having a rubber member having a spring constant,
• wherein said spring constant of said rubber member of said damper is determined such that a first natural frequency of a vibrational system comprising a spring of said rubber member and a mass of said automobile is in a range of approximately 6-12 Hz;
• and
• wherein said damper comprises:
• a rim side member immovable relative to said rim;
• and
• a disk side member immovable relative to said disk, and
• wherein said damper includes a first portion having opposite ends, said first portion being fixed to said rim side member at one of said opposite ends and to said disk side member at the other of said opposite ends, and
• wherein a smallest diameter of said rim side member is smaller than a largest diameter of said disk side member so that said rim side member and said disk side member are impossible to separate from each other in an axial direction of said wheel;
• and
• wherein said rim side member includes two sub-members, one sub-member of said two sub-members being pressed against said rim without being welded to said rim, the other sub-member of said two sub-members is welded to said rim.

A method for manufacturing a wheel with a damper for an automobile, wherein said wheel with said damper includes:

• a rim;
• a disk radially spaced from said rim;
• and
• a damper disposed between said rim and said disk, said damper having a rubber member having a spring constant,
• wherein said spring constant of said rubber member of said damper is determined such that a first natural frequency of a vibrational system including a spring of said rubber member and a mass of said automobile is in a range of approximately 6-12 Hz,
• said method comprising:
• casting a rim and disk integral product;
• cutting said product into two parts to obtain said rim and said disk;
• and
• mounting said damper between said rim and said disk to obtain said wheel with said damper.