Wheel balancer with variation measurement

A wheel balancer comprising:

• a shaft adapted for receiving a wheel/tire assembly, said shaft having a longitudinal axis and being rotatable about said axis so as to rotate the wheel/tire assembly removably mounted thereon;
• a sensor assembly for measuring rotation of the shaft about said longitudinal axis;
• a vibration sensor assembly for measuring vibration of the wheel/tire assembly as the wheel/tire assembly is rotated;
• a motor operatively connected to the shaft for rotating said shaft about said longitudinal axis, thereby to rotate the wheel/tire assembly;
• a sensor for detecting at least one condition selected from the group consisting of wheel/tire assembly radius, and wheel/tire assembly diameter;
• and
• a control circuit responsive to the detecting of said condition to provide information relating to the condition to a user.

A wheel balancer comprising:

• a shaft adapted for receiving a wheel/tire assembly, said shaft having a longitudinal axis and being rotatable about said axis so as to rotate the wheel/tire assembly removably mounted thereon;
• a sensor assembly for measuring rotation of the shaft about said longitudinal axis;
• a vibration sensor assembly for measuring vibration of the wheel/tire assembly as the wheel/tire assembly is rotated;
• a motor operatively connected to the shaft for rotating said shaft about said longitudinal axis, thereby to rotate the wheel/tire assembly;
• a load roller for applying a generally radial force greater than 150 pounds to the wheel/tire assembly during rotation of said wheel/tire assembly;
• a sensor for detecting at least one condition selected from the group consisting of lateral force, wheel/tire assembly radius, and wheel/tire assembly diameter, said condition having a tendency to cause a vehicle on which the wheel/tire assembly is mounted during use to deviate from a straight line path;
• and
• a control circuit responsive to the measured vibration of the wheel/tire assembly to determine wheel imbalance, and responsive to the detected condition to provide information relating to the condition to a user.