DE2753051A1 - Tyre pressure indicating appts. - has first position in which piston registers pressure and second position for acting as adaptor for external pressure source - Google Patents

Abstract

The indicating apparatus is for measuring the pressure in a tyre and includes a housing adapted to be mounted on the tyre valve assembly. A plunger is supported within the housing for movement between an inoperable position where the tyre valve is closed and a first operate position wherein the valve is opened to permit fluid from the tyre to enter the housing. An indicator piston is supported within the housing for movement to register the pressure and is exposed to view through the housing. The apparatus further provides for movement of the plunger to a second operate position wherein the valve is opened to permit pressure from n external source to be transmitted to the tyre through the apparatus without having to remove the apparatus from the tyre valve assembly.

Description

Dipl.-Ing. J. SCHMIDT-EVERS PATENT LAWYERS

JOHN ARVAN

137 Irving Avenue

Port Chester

Westchester, New York, 1o573 / V.St.A.

Display device for measuring the fluid pressure in a container

The invention relates generally to a display device for measuring the pressure of a fluid in a container, and more specifically, a display device which is set up for attachment to a valve of a motor vehicle tire, to measure the air pressure in the tire, if necessary, when the pressure is in a predetermined pressure range. The device also allows pressure to be transmitted from an external source to the tire through the housing without the device needs to be removed from the tire valve.

It is well known that a tire that is too weakly or too heavily inflated causes harmful effects. To get the tire pressure measure, it is common to drive to a gas station and use a conventional tire pressure gauge. Because this pressure gauge are not accurate, no true reading is available, and the unnecessary drive to the gas station is a waste of gasoline .

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Various proposals have been made as to a pressure warning device to be provided for a motor vehicle tire) the is suitable for attachment to the tire valve and to be left in its mounted position. For example, in the U.S. Patent 3,889,530 discloses a device which provides visual color information regarding the air pressure in the tire provides. The device is attached to the tire valve tube and has a transparent housing. One through a spring biased piston is mounted within the housing and has a special color code information that is indicated by the transparent housing can be visually observed through and relative to the position of the piston in the longitudinal direction to the housing is determined. When the air pressure is below the predetermined pressure, the piston does not move, and a different color code can be observed through the housing. The piston can also be moved into a position in which compressed air can be filled into the tire through the housing without disconnecting the device from the tire valve tube must be removed.

The inventive advantage over the prior art is achieved by the applicant's device, which the! Measures air pressure in the tire when it is in a predetermined range, for example 0.04-0.05 kg / m ² (28-32 psi). This is not possible with the known device described above, which only provides a visual color-coded indication of whether the air pressure in the tire is above or below a predetermined or selected range. The operation of the known device is essentially analogous to that of an incandescent lamp which is either "on" or "off". There is no intermediate range in which the pressure can be read and considered acceptable if it is within a predetermined range.

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In addition, the applicant's device provides that the piston rod is mounted so that it can move back and forth in a tube with clamped ends, which are used to hold sections of the housing in a fixed position to one another.

To this end the invention consists in providing a display device for measuring the pressure of a fluid in a fluid Container. The device comprises a housing, one end of which is for attachment to a housing in communication standing valve is arranged, and which contains a fluid inlet chamber for admitting the fluid from the container. That Housing also has a scale marking from a minimum to a maximum value indicating the fluid pressure in the container indicates in a predetermined pressure range. A collar piece with an opening is attached to the other end of the housing. A tube is supported within the housing, the opposite ends of which extend outwardly and Flanges of the housing or the collar piece overlap and clamp in order to the collar piece in an embedded position in the housing to fix. A piston rod is mounted in the tube so that it can move back and forth to move it between a rest position, in which the valve of the container is closed, and a working position in which the piston rod closes the valve contacts and opens to provide a path for the fluid to flow from the container into the housing. The piston rod has one end accessible through the opening in the collar piece. An indicator is stored within the housing for shifting the fluid from a non-indicating position to a indicating position when the fluid pressure is above a predetermined one Value lies. The indicator can be moved relative to the scale mark in order to display an indication between the minimum and to provide the maximum value indicative of the fluid pressure in the container when the pressure is within the predetermined Pressure range. The housing also has a passage for directing the fluid to the indicator when the piston

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Rod is in its working position, and besides that, it shows Housing has a transparent wall section for observing the indicator in its display position

The invention is also that the housing with a Sinstr flow chamber for admitting fluid from an external source is passed and the tube is the fluid inlet chamber with the Inflow chamber connects. The piston rod is also mounted for displacement into a second working position in which it contacts the valve and opens and a path for flow of fluid from the external source is created into the inflow chamber of the housing. The piston rod has a sealing ring provided, which seals the inflow chamber when the piston rod is in its first working position, and the the inflow chamber does not seal when the piston rod is in its second working position to allow fluid from the inflow chamber to direct through the housing to the container

An exemplary embodiment of the invention is based on the following of the drawings. It shows:

Figure 1 is a side view of a display device according to the invention, which is mounted on a valve of a container;

2 shows an ^egg Enlarged elevation view, partially in section, of the display device shown in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a cross-section on line 3-3 in Figure 2; Figure 4 is a cross-section on line 4-4 in Figure 2; Figure 5 is a cross-section on line 5-5 in Figure 2;

Figure 6 is a view similar to Figure 2 showing the position of the device when measuring fluid pressure in the Represents container;

Figure 7 is a view similar to Figure 2 showing the position the device for transferring fluid from an external source through the device and into the Represents container;

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FIG. 8 shows a perspective view of the piston rod of FIG

Contraption;
FIG. 9 shows a perspective view of the collar piece of the device with a scale marking applied thereon;

and
FIG. 10 shows a side view, partly in section, of another embodiment of the seal which is formed in one piece with the indicator of the device.

With reference to the drawings and in particular to FIGS. 1 to 6, 8 and 9, one is constructed according to the invention Display device 1o shown. The device 1o has a housing 12, which is for mounting on a valve 1 / f a container 16 is set up, which is a pressurized Contains stagnant fluid. In the specific application described here, the container 16 is conventional Automobile tire that can be inflated to a selected pressure; however, it will be understood that the device is not limited to use with such tires, but for measuring fluid pressure in "any other." Container can be used.

The housing 12 has a cylindrical shape and is preferably formed with a lower opaque portion t8 and an upper transparent portion 2o. The cylindrical shape of the housing 12 is for illustration only and is not to be regarded as a limitation of the invention. The lower end 22 of the housing section 18 is formed with a fluid inlet chamber 2k for admitting compressed air from the tire. The fluid inlet chamber 2k is provided with an internal thread 26 for engagement with an external thread 28 usually provided on the valve I ^. The distal end of the fluid inlet chamber 2k has a shoulder Jo for receiving a seal 32, if necessary, the \\\ contacts the free end of the sealing valves, as the lower Gehäuee-

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section 18 is attached to the valve. An annular flange 3k is located adjacent the shoulder 3o and is provided with a pair of diametrically spaced apart enlarged openings 36 to permit the transfer of fluid from the tire through the device. A pair of diametrically spaced arcuate supports 38 project upwardly from the flange 3k to limit the downward movement of an indicator piston, as will be detailed in connection with the description of the operation of the device.

The structure of the valve does not belong to the invention and is only described below in order to create the basis for an understanding of the invention. The valve 14 thus has a valve core ifC which is attached by means of a thread and in which a spring-loaded pin k2. is stored. The pin is normally moved by the action of a spring (not shown) into the position shown in Figure 2, which represents the closed position of the valve. To open the valve, a force must be applied to pin Zf2 to move it inward and create a path for fluid to flow either out of or into tire 16, depending on the use of device 1o, as described below.

The upper end of the housing section 2o is adapted to receive a collar piece kk , which is provided with a downwardly directed annular flange 46 of reduced diameter, which is received in the upper end of the housing. The flange 46 is formed with an elongated annular neck portion 48 which protrudes downward, as shown in FIG. The neck portion 48 is spaced inwardly from the upper housing portion 2o and its distal end extends beyond the clear area of the housing portion. In the lower surface of the collar piece kk , a plurality of spaced apart grooves 5o are formed which extend

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along the recessed side surfaces of the annular flange 46 extend downward to form a plurality of passage openings when the device is in operation. The collar piece 44 furthermore has an upwardly projecting annular flange 52 with a reduced diameter, which is set back in a Surface that defines a pipe section 54.

The housing 12 also has a mounting ring 56 with a recessed inner surface to protrude downwards to define annular rim 58 adapted to seat on annular flange 52. The arrangement is made so that, when the collar piece 44 and the Aufsetzring 56 are assembled, the pipe section 54 of the flange 52 to the recessed inner surface of the Aufsetzringes 56 adjoins. The Aufsetzring 56 is by means of cement or the like. In held its seat on the collar piece 44. The recessed section of the attachment ring 56 projects radially inward into the housing 12 beyond the inner surface of the tube section 54 to define a shoulder 6o, as in FIG Figure 6 and noted in more detail in connection with the description of the operation of the device.

The collar piece 44 and the Aufsetzring 56 define a Inflow chamber 62 for introducing air pressure from an external source such as a conventional gas station air pump, or a compressor. A description of the operation of the apparatus which enables the transfer of fluid from a allowing external source through the device into the tire will be discussed in detail in connection with the description given in FIG.

In the housing 12 is mounted a tube 64 which is the fluid inlet chamber 24 connects to inflow chamber 62 to form a path for fluid to flow between them. How out. a description of the assembly of the device can be seen

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is, the opposite ends 66 of the tube 6k are bent radially outward in an overlapping position to portions of the annular flange 3 * f or the collar piece kk in order to fix the collar piece kk in an embedded position in the housing 12. In the tube 6 * f there is a piston rod. 68 reciprocally mounted, which is provided for the displacement between a rest position in which the pin Zf2 of the tire valve is closed and a first working position in which the lower edge of the piston rod 68 contacts the valve pin Zf2 and moves it into its open position to provide a path for flowing compressed air from the tire into the fluid inlet chamber 2k . If desired, as indicated in the drawings, the upper edge of the valve pin k & can have a spherical shape, and the bottom side of the piston rod 68 can be formed with a complementary recess to accommodate the spherical head of the valve pin Z * 2 when the piston rod 68 in to take up their working position.

The upper end of the piston rod 68 is provided with an enlarged head 7o which protrudes beyond the attachment ring 56. At the lower portion of the head 7o is a flange 72 which extends radially outward from the head. The transverse extent of the flange 72 , as can be seen in FIGS. 2 and 6, is greater than the corresponding inner dimension of the attachment ring 56, whereby the flange 72 is able to contact the shoulder 60 of the attachment ring 56 in order to displace the piston rod 68 to the outside limit beyond their rest position. A plurality of spaced apart grooves are formed in the side surfaces of the flange 72 to permit the flow of fluid from the external source to the inflow chamber 62 when the device 10 for transferring fluid from the source to the tire 16 is through the housing 12 is used. In the outer surface of the head 7ο an annular groove 7k is formed, approximately halfway between its free end and the flange 72, which has a sealing ring

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76 receives the inner wall of the attachment ring 56 when the piston rod 68 moves back and forth between its rest position and contacted her first job. The piston rod is normally biased to its rest position by a spring (not shown) usually associated with the tire valve when the device is inoperative.

In the housing 12, a generally designated by the reference numeral 78 indicator is mounted, which is for displacement by the air pressure in the tire is determined in a display position which indicates the air pressure. The indicator 78 preferably has a piston 8o of generally cylindrical shape with a flange 82 at its lower end, which with an annular flange 84 is provided, which protrudes radially outward beyond the flange attachment 82. The arrangement is such taken that the piston 8o is positioned between the tube 64 and the inner wall of the housing 12.

The indicator 78 also has a seal, generally designated 86, which consists of a seal body 88 and a Approach 9o is formed. The approach 9o has a recessed annular groove 92, which serves the purpose of the annular flange 84 below To absorb friction to mount the seal 86 on the piston 8o for common displacement therewith. The outside surface the seal 86 is beveled outwardly from its top edge to the bottom edge, and the inner wall surface of the central opening is beveled from the upper edge to the lower edge of the sealing body 88 inward. Hence the ^ diverge The outer and inner surfaces of each other so that the radial dimension of the sealing body 88 is larger at its lower edge is. The lower edge is also spaced apart in the circumferential direction downwardly projecting walls 94, 96 which define a channel 98 between them. The seal exists made of resilient material with resilient walls 94, 96 which are arranged diverging from one another.

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The indicator 78 also has a compression spring 1oo which wrapped around the tube 64 and between the flange attachment 82 of the piston 8o and the annular flange 46 of the collar piece 44 is arranged. The compression spring Too pushes the piston 80 further down to its normal rest position or non-indicating position. Accordingly, the piston 80 can be reciprocated mounted in the housing 12 for shifting between a non-indicative position, as in FIG Figure 2 shown, and a display position as shown in Figure. In this regard, the lower opaque one serves Section 18 of housing 12 for concealing piston 80 when in its non-indicating position.

Fluid communication between the tire 16 and the indicator 78 is established by means of the enlarged openings 36 in the flange 34 obtained, whereby fluid from the fluid inlet chamber 24 after can flow up through the openings 36 and exert a pressure on the bottom of the seal 86, around the piston 80 upwards against the force of the compression spring I00 in its display position to move. It will be appreciated that to ensure measurement accuracy, the lower wall surfaces of the sealing body 88 sliding and sliding opposite surface portions of the tube 64 and housing 12 upon displacement of the piston 80 contact sealing. In order to avoid blocking the openings during the downward movement of the piston 80, the upwardly projecting supports 38 of the flange 34 are also designed to be received in the channel 98 of the seal 86, to limit the downward movement of the piston 80 and thus its rest position or non-indicating position define.

In the preferred embodiment are on the inner wall of the Transparent housing section 2o appropriate markings or other display marks 1o2 attached to the observation are released through the housing. The mark 1o2

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is shown as a scale marking which, after calibration of the device and its components, is intended to indicate a range of kg / m * (psi) displays. In operation, the upper edge of the piston 80 may be colored to provide a sharp contrast between it and the dial mark, the extent to which the piston 80 moves upward relative to the housing portion 20 indicative of the pressure in the tire 16. Alternatively, the scale marking can be applied to the neck section of the collar piece kk , as shown generally in FIG. 9 with the reference symbol 102 '. In this regard, the piston 80 is adapted to slide between the neck portion 1 + 8 and the upper housing portion 2o, whereby the upper edge of the piston and the scale mark 1o2 on the neck portion 48 are exposed through the transparent housing portion 2o. Both the upper edge of the piston 80 and the scale marking 1o2 can consist of fluorescent marks in order to enable the device to be used at night or in poor lighting.

When assembling the device, the tube 6k, in which only the lower end 66 is bent, as indicated in the drawings, is pushed into the housing 12 through the bottom opening of the housing section 18. The housing is then mounted in an upright position on a suitable mounting frame, bearing in mind that at this point the body of the tube 6 ^ is cylindrical in shape over its entire upper longitudinal extent. The piston 80 and the seal 86 are now connected to one another in order to form an assembly part and are pushed through the upper opening of the housing section 2o into the housing 12 and over the upper end of the tube 6k . Then, the compression spring is pushed I00 over the upper end of the tube 6k, whereupon the collar piece kk its place on the housing portion 2o placed with its neck portion / + 8 between the compression spring I00 and the inner wall of the piston is located 80th A spreading tool or the like can now be used

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in order to bend the upper end of the tube 6 * t into the position shown in the drawings, and thus to fix the collar piece IfZf in an embedded position in relation to the housing 12. The piston rod 68 is then inserted into the tube 6k , whereupon the fitting ring 56 is pushed over the head 7o and cemented in place on the collar piece kk. The assembled © device can now be attached to the tire valve Uf, as shown in FIG.

Except for the seals 32 and 86 and the sealing ring 76, which are formed from rubber or other suitable resilient material are, as well as the compression spring loo, which is made of metal, all components of the device are molded from plastic material. The overall length of the device is less than 5 »1 cm (2 inches) so that it can be conveniently left on the tire valve. when not in use.

When operating the device 1o for measuring the air pressure In the tire 16, reference is made to Figure 6, in which manual force, represented by the outline of a finger, on the piston rod head 7o is exerted to the piston rod 68 against the force of the spring in the tire valve down to move to a first working position. This shift serves to open the tire valve and the compressed air in the tire 16 to allow flow into the fluid inlet chamber. The air mainly passes through the flange openings 36, whereby a force is exerted on the seal 86 to move the piston 8o upwards against the force of the compression spring loo to move to its display position when the pressure is above a predetermined value. It can be seen that, when the piston rod 68 is in its first working position, the sealing ring 76 provides fluid communication between the inflow chamber 62 and closes the outside air. Furthermore, the sealing contact of the downwardly protruding walls 9 ^, of the seal 86 with the opposing surface areas

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of the tube 64 and the housing 12 to avoid the flow of air around the piston 8o, which would affect the accuracy of the measurement. The movement of the piston 8o to its display position is not impaired by fluid pressure above the seal 86 and between the tube 61+ and the housing 12 in view of the grooves 5o formed in the bottom surface and the side surface of the collar piece l \ l \ and the flange / f6, respectively . The extent to which the piston 8o moves relative to the scale marking 1o2 is observed through the transparent upper housing section 2o and indicates the pressure in the tire 16. When the force is removed from the piston rod head 7o, the corresponding parts "'... :: ■ assume their normal or rest position shown in FIG. 2 again.

The invention also enables pressure from an external source to be transmitted to the tire through the device 10 without removing the device from the tire valve. Assuming that a measurement of the pressure in the tire 16 shows that it is underinflated, then referring to FIG. 1 oJf a conventional air pump or a compressor at a gas station pushed over the attachment ring 56 and placed on the collar piece kk . The mouthpiece 1oif can be provided with a sealing ring 1o6 and equipped with a needle valve 1o8, which makes contact with the head 7o when it is put on. During operation, a manual force exerted on the mouthpiece, as indicated by the top arrows in FIG serves to create a path for fluid to flow from the external source to the inflow chamber 62 through the flutes 73. A fluid connection between the tire 16 and the inflow chamber 62 is established by means of the tube Sk. It's closed

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note that because of the larger inner diameter of the ring flange 52 compared to the corresponding diameter of the attachment ring 56, the sealing ring 76 is rendered ineffective and the inflow chamber 62 does not close when the piston rod 68 is in its second working position. Thus, air can flow from the external source into the inflow chamber 62 and down through the tube 6k to the fluid inlet chamber 2Zf and into the tire. Figure 7 also shows that some of the air flowing through the tube 6k initially flows back through the flange openings 36 and displaces the piston 8o upwards. However, once the piston 8o has reached its maximum advance, predominantly all of it from the external source into the device incoming air flows into the tire. After removing the mouthpiece 1oty, a further pressure measurement can be carried out and, if satisfactory, the components resume their> corresponding rest positions shown in FIG.

Figure Io represents another embodiment of the seal, the generally designated 11 o and in one piece with the piston ^ er Device is formed. In other words, the seal 11 could o instead of the combination of the piston 8o with the Seal 86 can be used to reduce the number of components in the device. The seal 11 ο consists that is, from a lower sealing body 112 and an upstanding one Display section 11 / f. The lower end is also in shape spaced in the circumferential direction downwardly projecting walls 116, 118 formed, which define a channel 12o between them. The walls 116 are from the sealing body 112 to The bottom edge is beveled outwards, while the walls 118 are beveled inwards. The seal 11 o is made of resilient material with resilient walls 116, 118, which are relatively diverge from each other.

"old

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Claims (10)

DIpI-In ₉ . H. MITSCHERLICH , · |, ',, »' . ·. , ·. ' Q / ⁸⁰⁰⁰ MONKS 22 DI pi, -1 ng. K. GUNSCHMANN Steinsdorfstrasse 10 «. ... ^ -Anae-n Φ (089) '29 66 84 Dr. r * r. not. W. KORBER ** Dlpl.-lng. J. SCHMIDT-EVERS PATENT LAWYERS November 28, 1977 JOHN ARVAN 137 Irving Avenue Port Chester Westchester, New York, 1o573 / V.St.A. Expectations: • 1. Display device for measuring the fluid pressure in a ^ * container, with a housing, one end of which is adapted to be attached to a valve communicating with the container, and which has a fluid inlet chamber for admitting the fluid from the container, with a in the housing reciprocating piston rod for displacement between a rest position in which the valve of the container is closed and an operating position in which the cube rod contacts the valve and opens to create a path for the fluid to flow from the container into the Provide housing, with an indicator mounted in the housing, which is displaced by the fluid into a display position when its pressure is above a predetermined value (~), the housing having a passage to direct the fluid to the indicator when the piston rod is in its working position, and also a viewing section for observing the indicator in its display position g, characterized in that the housing (12) has a scale marking (1o2,1o2 ^! ) has from a minimum to a maximum value which indicates the fluid pressure in the container (16) in a predetermined pressure range, that at the other end of the housing (12) a collar piece (Mf) with an opening is attached, and that within the housing (12) a tube (6 * f) is journalled with opposite ends (66) extending outward and flanges 909822/0333 (34,46) of the housing (12) or the collar piece (44) overlap and clamp in order to the collar piece (44) in embedded Position in the housing (12) to be fixed, whereby the piston rod (68) stored in the tube (64) and its one end (7o) is accessible through the opening in the collar piece (MO, and wherein the indicator (78) from a non-indicating position into its display position relative to the scale marking (1o2,1o2 ') is movable to provide an indication between the minimum and maximum values, which indicates the fluid pressure in the container (16) indicates when the pressure is within the specified pressure range. 2. Display device according to claim 1, wherein the housing is provided with an inflow chamber for admitting fluid from an external source, characterized in that the tube (64) the fluid inlet karamer (24) with the inflow chamber (64) connects that the piston rod (68) is mounted for displacement into a second working position in which it the valve (14) contacts and opens to create a path (73) for fluid to flow from the external source into the Provide the inflow chamber (62) of the housing (12) so that the piston rod (68) is provided with a sealing ring (76), which seals the inflow chamber (62) when the piston rod (68) is in its first working position, and which seals the inflow chamber (62) does not seal when the piston rod (68) is in its second working position to allow fluid from the inflow chamber (62) through the housing (12) to the container (16) to steer. 3. Display device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that that the collar piece (44) has a downwardly directed neck portion received within the housing (12) (48), on which the scale marking (1ο2 ·) is attached, and through the viewing section (2o) of the Housing (12) is observable. 909822/0333 4. Display device according to claim 1, 2 or 3> "in the the housing has inner walls, characterized in that the indicator (78) is located between the tube (64) and the inner Walls of the housing (12) is arranged. 5. Display device according to claim 4 »characterized in that the indicator (78) has a seal (86,11o) for common Movement therewith, one end of the seal (86,11o) having a pair of spaced apart, downwardly directed Walls (94,96; 116,118) is provided that slide and sealingly contact opposing surfaces of the tube (64) and an inner wall of the housing (12). 6. Display device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by a stop (38) within the housing (12) to contact and limit the displacement of the indicator (78) to its non-indicating position define. 7. Display device according to claim 5 and 6, characterized in that that the spaced, downwardly directed walls (94,96; 116,118) of the seal (86,11o) have a groove (98,12ο) define between them, and that the stop (38) has a projection which is received in the groove (98,12o), when the indicator (78) is in its non-indicating position. 8. Display device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the indicator (78) is used to shift between the non-indicating position and the indicating position bearing piston (8o), which marks a mark! carries through the visible section (2o) of the housing (12) look through it to read the scale markings (1ο2,1ο2 ·) is released when the piston (8o) is in its display position 909822/0333 is, and that a compression spring (1oo) is provided, which in is mounted on the housing (12) and preloads the piston (8o) in its non-indicating position when the piston rod (68) is in its rest position. 9. Display device according to claim 5 and 8, characterized in that that the seal (86,11o) is attached to the piston (8o) for joint movement therewith. 10. Display device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the visible section (2o) of the housing (12) has a transparent wall (2o) and the indicator (78) is exposed to view through the transparent wall in its display position. 909822/0333