GB2540554A - A wheel hub cover - Google Patents

Abstract

Wheel hub covers for aircraft wheels protect the hub when the wheels are not attached to aircraft. Known covers are heavy, cumbersome and bulky. A wheel hub cover 10 is disclosed comprising first (Fig.1, 12) and second (Fig.1, 14) parts; each part including a cylindrical or tubular portion 20, 30, each cylindrical portion including a flange (Fig.1, 40, 42) extending radially away therefrom, the two cylindrical portions arranged to interlock together telescopically through the central aperture of the wheel hub 120 such that, in use, one flange substantially covers the central aperture of the wheel hub at one end thereof and the other flange substantially covers the central aperture at the other end. The interlocking mechanism may include a thread (Fig. 2, 80) on one portion and a set of teeth (Fig. 2, 70) on the other portion. The portions can be locked by applying an axial or radial force to one portion relative to the other.

Description

A wheel hub cover

The present invention relates generally to a wheel hub cover and a method of installing a wheel hub cover and finds particular, although not exclusive, utility in protecting aircraft wheels when not attached to aircraft landing gear.

Aircraft wheels include a tyre installed on a wheel hub. The wheels are relatively expensive. The hubs allow the wheels to be attached to aircraft landing gear; therefore any damage to the hubs can be expensive and is best avoided. Accordingly, wheel hub covers are known which cover the entire hub. Unfortunately, these hubs are heavy, cumbersome, and bulky and project axially outwardly from the wheels. They are also time-consuming to install and remove, and often require tools and more than one person to handle them.

When not in use it is known to stack aircraft wheels in racks. As the wheels are sometimes relatively large stored wheels can occupy a lot of space. It is therefore advantageous to stack the wheels as close to one another as possible. However, present wheel hub covers prevent this due to their size and axially projection.

It is desirable to have a new wheel hub cover which addresses these issues. In a first aspect, the invention provides a wheel hub cover comprising first and second parts; the first part including a cylindrical portion and a flange extending radially away therefrom, the second part including a tubular portion and a flange extending radially away therefrom, the cylindrical portion and the tubular portion arranged to interlock together telescopically through the central aperture of the wheel hub such that, in use, one flange substantially covers the central aperture of the wheel hub at one end thereof and the other flange substantially covers the central aperture at the other end.

In this way the flanges lie over the axial ends of the aperture in the wheel hub and protect them from dust, grit, water and knocks. Such wheel hubs may include bearings and the provision of the covers protects them too.

The two portions may be arranged to be interlocked by either an axial or a radial force being applied to at least one of the portions relative to the other portion.

The cylindrical portion of the first part may be tubular.

One of the portions may comprise a thread on either its inner surface or its outer surface, and the other portion may comprise a set of teeth on either its outer surface or its inner surface, wherein the locations of the teeth and thread are selected so that they interact to permit the portions to interlock together.

The set of teeth and the thread may be configured such that they are able to pass over each other during installation of the cover on a wheel by the axial pushing of the two portions together. In this respect, the profiles of the teeth and thread may be selected to enable this. For instance, the teeth and/or thread may comprise substantially triangular shapes (in cross-section) each having a steep side and a shallow side, the teeth and threads arranged such that the shallow sides slide over one another during the axial pushing of the two portions together so that the teeth “jump” over the teeth.

The wheel hub cover may include a locking mechanism, and the set of teeth and the thread may be configured such that they are restricted from passing over one another by the application of an axial force pulling the two portions apart. In this respect, the same teeth and thread as described above may provide this configuration.

The locking mechanism may be a ring located around the circumference of the tubular portion to prevent it from expanding. In this regard, the ring may restrict the tubular portion from expanding radially outwardly.

This is provided because it may be that the steep sides “jump” over one another, if relative axial forces are applied to the portions to pull them apart, if the material comprising the portions is relatively deformable, such as some plastics. Therefore, the ring may restrict such deformation preventing the teeth and thread from jumping over one another.

The ring may comprise nylon.

The wheel hub cover may further comprise a seal located on the side of each flange nearest the end of the portion which interlocks with the other portion.

The seal may comprise a foamed material or a rubber material. It may have a thickness of approximately 5 to 12mm, more preferably 6 to 10mm.

The seal may be medium density and may be black close-cell sponge.

The cylindrical portions may each comprise plastics and may have a length of approximately 200 to 350mm, and a wall thickness of 1.1mm.

Each part of the cover may include a gripping portion for applying axial or rotational forces thereto. The gripping portion may be one end of each portion. Each flange may be an annulus through which the portion projects.

The wheel hub cover may be configured such that, with the cover installed on a wheel hub, said wheel hub including an installed tyre having a maximum axial thickness, no part of the wheel hub cover extends axially outside of the said maximum axial width of the tyre.

Each portion may be configured to have a diameter substantially equal to the bore of the wheel hub aperture. In this regard, the cover may be designed for a particular aircraft wheel which may have bore/aperture having a unique dimension.

In use it is preferable to have the portions having a size to substantially fill the bore so that the flanges do not move away from the axial end of the hub thus exposing portions of it. By contrast prior known hub covers have used a relatively thin bar to connect each side (for example, threaded bar having a diameter of only 10 to 20mm). Accordingly, the bar has been known to move inside the bore.

The diameter of each portion may be approximately 180mm in one version.

The wheel hub cover may be arranged to be installed and removed by a single person without the need for tools. In this regard, if the cover comprises plastics it will be relatively lightweight. Furthermore, since the two portions need to be merely pushed together a single person may stretch his arms around each side and hold the two portions simultaneously.

In a second aspect, the invention provides a method of installing a wheel hub cover according to the first aspect, comprising the steps of inserting one portion into one end of the bore of a wheel hub aperture, inserting the other portion into the other end of the bore of the wheel hub aperture, and axially pushing the two portions together to thereby interlock telescopically such that each flange is pushed close against its respective axial end of the wheel hub.

The method may further include the step of rotating one portion relative to the other portion to more firmly interlock the two cylindrical portions.

The above and other characteristics, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which illustrate, by way of example, the principles of the invention. This description is given for the sake of example only, without limiting the scope of the invention. The reference figures quoted below refer to the attached drawings.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a wheel hub cover in an assembled state but not installed onto a wheel;

Figure 2 is an elevational view of the cover in a disassembled state;

Figure 3 is an elevational cut-away view of wheel including an installed and assembled cover; and

Figures 4 and 5 are schematic views of a set of teeth and a thread during assembly and disassembly of the cover.

The present invention will be described with respect to certain drawings but the invention is not limited thereto but only by the claims. The drawings described are only schematic and are non-limiting. Each drawing may not include all of the features of the invention and therefore should not necessarily be considered to be an embodiment of the invention. In the drawings, the size of some of the elements may be exaggerated and not drawn to scale for illustrative purposes. The dimensions and the relative dimensions do not correspond to actual reductions to practice of the invention.

Furthermore, the terms first, second, third and the like in the description and in the claims, are used for distinguishing between similar elements and not necessarily for describing a sequence, either temporally, spatially, in ranking or in any other manner. It is to be understood that the terms so used are interchangeable under appropriate circumstances and that operation is capable in other sequences than described or illustrated herein.

Moreover, the terms top, bottom, over, under and the like in the description and the claims are used for descriptive purposes and not necessarily for describing relative positions. It is to be understood that the terms so used are interchangeable under appropriate circumstances and that operation is capable in other orientations than described or illustrated herein.

It is to be noticed that the term “comprising”, used in the claims, should not be interpreted as being restricted to the means listed thereafter; it does not exclude other elements or steps. It is thus to be interpreted as specifying the presence of the stated features, integers, steps or components as referred to, but does not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps or components, or groups thereof. Thus, the scope of the expression “a device comprising means A and B” should not be limited to devices consisting only of components A and B. It means that with respect to the present invention, the only relevant components of the device are A and B.

Reference throughout this specification to “an embodiment” or “an aspect” means that a particular feature, structure or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment or aspect is included in at least one embodiment or aspect of the present invention. Thus, appearances of the phrases “in one embodiment”, “in an embodiment”, or “in an aspect” in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment or aspect, but may refer to different embodiments or aspects. Furthermore, the particular features, structures or characteristics of any embodiment or aspect of the invention may be combined in any suitable manner, as would be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art from this disclosure, in one or more embodiments or aspects.

Similarly, it should be appreciated that in the description various features of the invention are sometimes grouped together in a single embodiment, figure, or description thereof for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure and aiding in the understanding of one or more of the various inventive aspects. This method of disclosure, however, is not to be interpreted as reflecting an intention that the claimed invention requires more features than are expressly recited in each claim. Moreover, the description of any individual drawing or aspect should not necessarily be considered to be an embodiment of the invention. Rather, as the following claims reflect, inventive aspects lie in fewer than all features of a single foregoing disclosed embodiment. Thus, the claims following the detailed description are hereby expressly incorporated into this detailed description, with each claim standing on its own as a separate embodiment of this invention.

Furthermore, while some embodiments described herein include some features included in other embodiments, combinations of features of different embodiments are meant to be within the scope of the invention, and form yet further embodiments, as will be understood by those skilled in the art. For example, in the following claims, any of the claimed embodiments can be used in any combination.

In the description provided herein, numerous specific details are set forth. However, it is understood that embodiments of the invention may be practised without these specific details. In other instances, well-known methods, structures and techniques have not been shown in detail in order not to obscure an understanding of this description.

In the discussion of the invention, unless stated to the contrary, the disclosure of alternative values for the upper or lower limit of the permitted range of a parameter, coupled with an indication that one of said values is more highly preferred than the other, is to be construed as an implied statement that each intermediate value of said parameter, lying between the more preferred and the less preferred of said alternatives, is itself preferred to said less preferred value and also to each value lying between said less preferred value and said intermediate value.

The use of the term “at least one” may mean only one in certain circumstances.

The principles of the invention will now be described by a detailed description of at least one drawing relating to exemplary features of the invention. It is clear that other arrangements can be configured according to the knowledge of persons skilled in the art without departing from the underlying concept or technical teaching of the invention, the invention being limited only by the terms of the appended claims. A wheel hub cover 10 is depicted in Figure 1 comprising of a first upper part 12 and a second lower part 14. The first upper part 12 comprises a cylindrical portion 20 having at its upper end a hexagonal shape 55 slightly larger than the diameter of the cylindrical portion 20. The hexagonal portion is not essential and is present merely because the portion is formed that way for other unrelated purposes. The cylindrical portion in this instance may comprise blown-moulded plastics. The cylindrical portion 20 has a diameter in the range 100mm to 200mm and may be solid, tubular, or hollow. A flange 40, in the form of a disc having an external diameter in the range 200 to 400mm, is located at the far end of the first upper portion 12 and may be glued to the hexagonal portion or riveted thereto. The flange 40 has a thickness of approximately 5 to 10mm, although other dimensions are contemplated, and may comprise of plastics. A handle 60, in the form of a disc having a smaller diameter than the flange 40, is arranged centrally on the upper part of the flange 40 such that it may be grasped by a user. It may be riveted or adhered to the flange 40. The handles may take other forms such as a rod-like member extending away from the flanges 40 parallel to the wheel’s rotational axis. A seal 50 is arranged on the underside (opposite from the handle end) of the flange 40. This may comprise close-cell sponge rubber. It also has a thickness in the range 5 to 10mm although other dimensions are contemplated. It has a similar external diameter to that of the flange 40 and is an annulus (although a disc could be used instead) having its internal diameter slightly larger than the external diameter of the hexagonal portion 55. It is adhered to the underside of the flange 40. A set of teeth 70 is arranged on the external surface of the cylindrical portion 20 and in this instance are moulded with the wall of the cylindrical portion 20. The teeth 70 are in the form of elongate rectilinear portions raised from the surface of the cylindrical portion 20 by approximately 2 to 6mm. They each lie such that their long axes are parallel with the radius of the cylindrical portion and perpendicular to its longitudinal axis running along its bore. Each has a length, measured around the circumference of the cylindrical portion 20, lying in the range of 15mm to 50mm, although other lengths are contemplated, and in one example the teeth 70 may extend completely around the circumference of the cylindrical portion 20 in the form of ridges.

The second lower part 14 has a cylindrical tubular portion 30. In this example, one axial end of the tubular portion 30 is closed and has a flange in the form of a disc 42 adhered to it. The disc 42 has a thickness and diameter approximately equal to the flange 40 on the upper portion. A handle, not shown, is then adhered to, or integral with, the underside of the disc 42, on the opposite side from the tubular portion 30. A seal, not shown, in the form of an annulus is arranged on the upper side of the disc 42 having an external diameter approximately equal to the diameter of the disc 42, and of a similar thickness. The seal is adhered to the upper side of the flange 42 in a similar manner to that described above with reference to the first upper part 12.

The lower tubular portion 30 is hollow having a wall thickness of approximately 0.5 to 3mm. It includes a thread 80 arranged on its inner surface. There may be more than one thread intertwined. The pitch, angle and size of the thread 80 is complimentary to the teeth 70 such that with one end of the upper cylindrical portion 20 placed inside the open end of the lower tubular portion 30 and rotated relative thereto the teeth and thread will move the upper, inner, cylindrical portion 20 telescopically inside the lower, outer, tubular portion 30.

In this way, the distance between the two flanges 40, 42 may be adjusted such that they lie against either outer face of a wheel hub with the cover installed, as will be described in more detail below. A locking ring 90 in the form of a band having an axial width of approximately 50mm and a bore, or inner diameter, slightly larger than the external diameter of the lower, outer, tubular portion 30 is shown on the lower tubular portion 30. In this

Figure, the band is not in the correct place for operational purposes. This is so that the thread 80 is visible, but in normal use the band 90 will be placed axially in the region of the thread, thus obscuring it.

The band helps prevent the teeth and thread from jumping over one another; which otherwise may permit the two portions to be disengaged by axial force only. This is due to the thinness/resilience of the plastics comprising the cylindrical and tubular portions 20, 30.

The band may have a wall thickness of approximately 2 to 6mm and may comprise plastics.

Figure 2 depicts a slight variation 10A from the device shown in Figure 1. Namely, the hexagonal shaped portion at the upper end of the first part 12A is missing. However, the other details are the same as Figure 1 but with the two parts 12A, 14A shown unconnected and with the locking ring 90, shown in broken lines and in the correct operational position, radially around the thread 80.

In Figure 3, the wheel hub cover 10 is shown installed on awheel 100. The hub 120 has a tyre on it 110. The illustration is a cut-away view looking that at the wheel 100 from behind (or in front) and in line with its radius. In other words the portion of tyre 110 which would obscure the hub 120 and cover 10 has been omitted. The hub 120 is shown transparent so that the cover 10 may be seen clearly.

The two interlocked portions 20, 30 are seen within the bore of the hub 120. The locking ring 90 is shown around the middle of the two interlocked portions. The two flanges 40, 42 and seals 50 are visible at either end of the portions 20, 30 arranged such that the seals 50 are slightly pressed against either axial end of the hub 120. A handle 60 is visible at either axial end of the portions 20, 30 for gripping each portion during installation and removal.

As is shown, the axial ends of the cover 10 do not project beyond the sides of the tyre 110 or wheel 100. In this way the cover may be described as being “low-profile”. This allows the close stacking of tyres in a rack, thus occupying less space than otherwise.

With reference to Figures 4 and 5, some of the set of teeth 70 and a portion of the thread 80 are schematically shown in cross-section. The teeth 70 on the inner cylindrical portion 20 have a triangular cross-sectional shape; each tooth having a steeply inclined side 72 and a shallowly inclined side 74. In the example shown the steep sides are on the right hand side of each tooth and the shallow sides are on the left hand side of each tooth.

The thread 80 on the outer tubular portion 30 also has a triangular cross-section having a steep side 84 and a shallow side 82. However, the steep side is on the left and the shallow side on the right. In this way the two shallow sides are adjacent one another as the two cylindrical portions 20, 30 are pushed axially together as indicated by arrows “A”. Due to the slightly flexibility of the material comprising the two portions and teeth/thread the thread 80 and teeth 70 will jump over one another as the two portions 20, 30 are continually moved axially towards one another. This may occur even with the locking ring 90 in place.

However, by contrast, if an opposing axial force (referenced “B” in Figure 5) is applied to try and pull the two parts 12, 14 apart, the steep sides on each of the teeth and thread will abut against one another, as shown in the figure. No sliding of the two may be possible if at least one of the thread 80 and teeth 70 has steep sides 74, 84 which are substantially vertical (i.e. arranged perpendicularly from the surface of the respective portion 20, 30).

The locking ring 90 further helps to prevent this from occurring.

Accordingly, during fitting of the wheel hub cover a person may telescopically push the two portions 20, 30 together through the centre of the wheel allowing the teeth and thread to jump over one another. When they can be moved no further axially, and to fully tighten the cover, one of the parts 12, 14 may be twisted relative to the other one such that the thread pulls the teeth in slightly. Alternatively, a person may engage them together by only rotating one part 12, 14 relative to the other.

To remove the cover one of the parts 12, 14 needs to be rotate relative to the other one until the teeth 70 and thread 80 disengage completely.

It may not be necessary for both the teeth and thread to include steep sides. Rather, it may be possible to only have one of the teeth 70 and thread 80 including a steep side with the other having a more rounded profile. This may be enough to prevent disengaging of the two parts 12, 14 by application of an axial force only.

In one version it is contemplated that the locking ring is movable relative to the outer 30 tubular portion for positioning as required.

It is possible that the thread 80 is located on the outer surface of the inner part 12 and the teeth 70 are located on the inner surface of the outer part 14.

The flanges 40, 42 may be selected in size such that their diameter is just sufficient to cover the apertures at each end of the wheel hub 120 so that they are kept as small as possible.

The portions, flanges and seals may be non-metallic to reduce the risk of damage to the wheel hub during installation and removal.

Claims (17)

1. A wheel hub cover comprising first and second parts; the first part including a cylindrical portion and a flange extending radially away therefrom, the second part including a tubular portion and a flange extending radially away therefrom, the cylindrical portion and the tubular portion arranged to interlock together telescopically through the central aperture of the wheel hub such that, in use, one flange substantially covers the central aperture of the wheel hub at one end thereof and the other flange substantially covers the central aperture at the other end.

2. The wheel hub cover according to claim 1, wherein the two portions are arranged to be interlocked by either an axial or a radial force being applied to at least one of the portions relative to the other portion.

3. The wheel hub cover according to claim 2, wherein one of the portions comprises a thread on either its inner surface or its outer surface, and the other portion comprises a set of teeth on either its outer surface or its inner surface, wherein the locations of the teeth and thread are selected so that they interact to permit the portions to interlock together.

4. The wheel hub cover according to claim 3, wherein the set of teeth and the thread are configured such that they are able to pass over each other during installation of the cover on a wheel by the axial pushing of the two portions together.

5. The wheel hub cover according to any one of claims 2 to 4, including a locking mechanism, and wherein the set of teeth and the thread are configured such that they are restricted from passing over one another by the application of an axial force pulling the two portions apart.

6. The wheel hub cover according to claim 5, when dependent directly or indirectly on claim 3, wherein the locking mechanism is a ring located around the circumference of the tubular portion to prevent it from expanding.

7. The wheel hub cover according to any preceding claim, further comprising a seal located on the side of each flange nearest the end of the portion which interlocks with the other portion.

8. The wheel hub cover according to claim 7, wherein the seal comprises a foamed material or a rubber material.

9. The wheel hub cover according to any preceding claim, wherein the portions each comprise plastics.

10. The wheel hub cover according to any preceding claim, wherein each part includes a gripping portion for applying axial or rotational forces thereto.

11. The wheel hub cover according to any preceding claim configured such that, with the cover installed on a wheel hub, said wheel hub including an installed tyre having a maximum axial thickness, no part of the wheel hub cover extends axially outside of the said maximum axial width of the tyre.

12. The wheel hub cover according to any preceding claim, wherein each portion is configured to have a diameter substantially equal to the bore of the wheel hub aperture.

13. The wheel hub cover according to claim 12, wherein the diameter of each portion is approximately 180mm.

14. The wheel hub cover according to any preceding claim arranged to be installed and removed by a single person without the need for tools.

15. A method of installing a wheel hub cover according to any preceding claim, comprising the steps of inserting one portion into one end of the bore of a wheel hub aperture, inserting the other portion into the other end of the bore of the wheel hub aperture, and axially pushing the two portions telescopically together to thereby interlock such that each flange is pushed close against its respective axial end of the wheel hub.

16. The method according to claim 15, further including the step of rotating one portion relative to the other portion to more firmly interlock the two portions.

17. A wheel hub cover substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.