Hub assembly for automotive vehicles

A hub assembly for coupling a road wheel to a suspension system component so that the road wheel can rotate about an axis, said hub assembly comprising:

• a hub having spindle and a flange formed integral with the spindle at one end of the spindle, with the flange being configured for attachment of the road wheel to it, the spindle at its other end being provided with a formed end that is an integral part of the spindle and is directed outwardly away from the axis, the formed end having an abutment face that is presented toward the flange:
• a housing surrounding the spindle;
• a bearing located between the spindle and the housing and including an inner race that is formed separate and apart from the spindle and has an inner raceway that is presented outwardly away from the axis and a back face that is presented toward the abutment face on the formed end, the bearing also including an outer raceway carried by the housing and, presented inwardly toward the raceway on the inner race, the bearing further having rolling elements organized in a row between and contacting the inner and outer raceways;
• a seal located between the inner race and the housing beyond the raceways and rolling elements and effecting a dynamic fluid barrier that excludes contaminants from the raceways and rolling elements;
• and
• a slinger located around the spindle where it is captured snugly between the back face of the inner race and the abutment face of the formed end, the slinger being directed outwardly past the seal so that the seal is located between the rolling elements and the slinger, whereby the slinger impedes contaminants from reaching the seal.

In combination with a road wheel and an automotive suspension system component having a bore that opens laterally, a hub assembly for supporting the suspension system component on the road wheel as the road wheel rotates about an axis rotation, said hub assembly comprising:

• a housing attached to the suspension system component and extending into the bore of suspension system component;
• a hub having a flange to which the road wheel is attached and a spindle projecting from the flange into the housing where the spindle is provided with a formed end that is an integral part of the spindle and is directed radially outwardly with respect to th axis;
• an antifriction bearing located between the spindle and the housing for enabling the hub to rotate relative to the housing with minimal friction, the bearing including an inner race that is located around the spindle between the flange and formed end and within the housing such that an annular space exists between the inner race and housing, the inner race having a raceway that is presented away from the axis, the bearing also including an outer raceway that is carried by the housing and is presented inwardly toward the raceway on the inner race, the bearing further including rolling elements arranged in a row between the inner and outer raceways;
• and
• a slinger located around the spindle where it is captured between the inner race and the formed end, the slinger projecting outwardly past the annular space between the inner race and the housing and having its periphery in close proximity to the surface of the bore in the suspension system component, the portion of the slinger toward which the annular space between the inner race and housing opens being oblique to the axis such that the slinger flares away from the inner race and is oblique to the surface of the bore where it approaches that surface.