EP0089520A2 - Process for manufacturing metal rims for vehicle wheels and products so obtained - Google Patents
Process for manufacturing metal rims for vehicle wheels and products so obtained Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- EP0089520A2 EP0089520A2 EP83102016A EP83102016A EP0089520A2 EP 0089520 A2 EP0089520 A2 EP 0089520A2 EP 83102016 A EP83102016 A EP 83102016A EP 83102016 A EP83102016 A EP 83102016A EP 0089520 A2 EP0089520 A2 EP 0089520A2
- Authority
- EP
- European Patent Office
- Prior art keywords
- rims
- pipe
- vehicle wheels
- wheels
- alloy
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Withdrawn
Links
- 238000000034 method Methods 0.000 title claims description 19
- 238000004519 manufacturing process Methods 0.000 title claims description 9
- 229910052751 metal Inorganic materials 0.000 title abstract description 7
- 239000002184 metal Substances 0.000 title abstract description 7
- 229910000838 Al alloy Inorganic materials 0.000 claims abstract description 8
- 239000011159 matrix material Substances 0.000 claims description 10
- 239000000463 material Substances 0.000 claims description 7
- 229910045601 alloy Inorganic materials 0.000 claims description 4
- 239000000956 alloy Substances 0.000 claims description 4
- 239000007769 metal material Substances 0.000 claims description 3
- 229910018134 Al-Mg Inorganic materials 0.000 claims description 2
- 229910021365 Al-Mg-Si alloy Inorganic materials 0.000 claims description 2
- 229910018467 Al—Mg Inorganic materials 0.000 claims description 2
- 229910018571 Al—Zn—Mg Inorganic materials 0.000 claims description 2
- 229910018569 Al—Zn—Mg—Cu Inorganic materials 0.000 claims description 2
- 238000007493 shaping process Methods 0.000 claims 3
- 230000001747 exhibiting effect Effects 0.000 claims 1
- 238000003466 welding Methods 0.000 description 4
- 238000009966 trimming Methods 0.000 description 3
- 238000005520 cutting process Methods 0.000 description 2
- 230000009467 reduction Effects 0.000 description 2
- 238000005096 rolling process Methods 0.000 description 2
- 239000012530 fluid Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000000047 product Substances 0.000 description 1
- 239000011265 semifinished product Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000004904 shortening Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000005482 strain hardening Methods 0.000 description 1
Images
Classifications
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B21—MECHANICAL METAL-WORKING WITHOUT ESSENTIALLY REMOVING MATERIAL; PUNCHING METAL
- B21D—WORKING OR PROCESSING OF SHEET METAL OR METAL TUBES, RODS OR PROFILES WITHOUT ESSENTIALLY REMOVING MATERIAL; PUNCHING METAL
- B21D26/00—Shaping without cutting otherwise than using rigid devices or tools or yieldable or resilient pads, i.e. applying fluid pressure or magnetic forces
- B21D26/02—Shaping without cutting otherwise than using rigid devices or tools or yieldable or resilient pads, i.e. applying fluid pressure or magnetic forces by applying fluid pressure
- B21D26/033—Deforming tubular bodies
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B21—MECHANICAL METAL-WORKING WITHOUT ESSENTIALLY REMOVING MATERIAL; PUNCHING METAL
- B21D—WORKING OR PROCESSING OF SHEET METAL OR METAL TUBES, RODS OR PROFILES WITHOUT ESSENTIALLY REMOVING MATERIAL; PUNCHING METAL
- B21D26/00—Shaping without cutting otherwise than using rigid devices or tools or yieldable or resilient pads, i.e. applying fluid pressure or magnetic forces
- B21D26/02—Shaping without cutting otherwise than using rigid devices or tools or yieldable or resilient pads, i.e. applying fluid pressure or magnetic forces by applying fluid pressure
- B21D26/053—Shaping without cutting otherwise than using rigid devices or tools or yieldable or resilient pads, i.e. applying fluid pressure or magnetic forces by applying fluid pressure characterised by the material of the blanks
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B21—MECHANICAL METAL-WORKING WITHOUT ESSENTIALLY REMOVING MATERIAL; PUNCHING METAL
- B21D—WORKING OR PROCESSING OF SHEET METAL OR METAL TUBES, RODS OR PROFILES WITHOUT ESSENTIALLY REMOVING MATERIAL; PUNCHING METAL
- B21D53/00—Making other particular articles
- B21D53/26—Making other particular articles wheels or the like
- B21D53/30—Making other particular articles wheels or the like wheel rims
Definitions
- This invention relates to a simplified process for manufacturing metal rims for vehicle wheels, in particular tire rims of aluminium alloy for wheels of motor vehicles, preferably weldless.
- the aluminium alloy tire rims for motor vehicle wheels are presently manufactured starting from a flat plate which is caused to assume the tire rim shape by means of the following operations :
- the resulting tire rim is ready for assembly by welding to the disc-wheel.
- metal tire rims preferably weldless, for vehicle wheels, particularly weldless tire rims of aluminium alloy for motor vehicle wheels.
- a hydroforming process which consists in imparting the desired shape to the wall of a metal pipe cut down size, preferably of the extruded type, by applicating to the inside of said pipe - previously inserted into a female die-matrix having inner walls profiled according to the shape to be imparted to the desired tire rim - a hydraulic pressure, by means of a press of conventional type, thus obtaining a rough profiled tire rim ready for the final finish (trimming by turning and the like).
- Particularly suited materials to be employed for the manufacturing of tire rims according to the process of the present invention are the aluminium alloys of the Al-Mg type of the known Series AA 5000, the Al-Mg-Si alloys of the known Series AA 6000, and the Al-Zn-Mg or Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloys of the known Series AA 7000.
- the process forming the object of the present invention is particularly utilized for tire rims of wheels for motor vehicles; it is employable with technical-economical advantages also for manufacturing rims and tire rims for the most different types of vehicles, also in connection with the fact that the process itself can be practiced to obtain, instead of one rough rim only for each individual hydroforming operation, a plurality of rims (or tire rims), in this case starting from a pipe having a length proportioned to the desired number of rough rims to be obtained for every single forming operation, and utilizing, for said operation, a "multiple" die-matrix, i.e. having a plurality of "impressions", namely as are required to obtain the desired number of rims.
- Cut-trimming operations to be carried out after the above-described multiple hydroforming, permit to obtain the finished rims.
Landscapes
- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
- Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
- Fluid Mechanics (AREA)
- Shaping Metal By Deep-Drawing, Or The Like (AREA)
Abstract
Shaped metal rims for vehicle wheels, particularly tire rims of aluminium alloy for wheels of motor vehicles, obtained by hydroforming of a tubular section either extruded or of another type, said section being significantly smaller in diameter than said rims.
Description
- This invention relates to a simplified process for manufacturing metal rims for vehicle wheels, in particular tire rims of aluminium alloy for wheels of motor vehicles, preferably weldless.
- As is known, the aluminium alloy tire rims for motor vehicle wheels are presently manufactured starting from a flat plate which is caused to assume the tire rim shape by means of the following operations :
- - cutting from a plate the material cut down size neces- saty for the tire rim to be obtained;
- - roller leveling said cut down size to assume the shape of an open flat (i.e. non-shaped) cylinder;
- - welding the edges of the cylinder so obtained to obtain a not yet shaped tire rim;
- - rolling said tire rim to impart the desired shape to it;
- - final trimming.
- The resulting tire rim is ready for assembly by welding to the disc-wheel.
- The process schematically described hereinabove is operatively complex due to the number of single operations involved and - chiefly - leads to the obtainment of tire rims with weld, such weld representing, as is known,a solution of continuity of the metal structures in general and of the tire rim in the particular case in question.
- Thus, it is an object of the present invention to provide a simplified process suited to manufacture metal tire rims, preferably weldless, for vehicle wheels, particularly weldless tire rims of aluminium alloy for motor vehicle wheels.
- The abovesaid object and still other ones which will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the following description, is achieved, according to the present invention, by a hydroforming process which consists in imparting the desired shape to the wall of a metal pipe cut down size, preferably of the extruded type, by applicating to the inside of said pipe - previously inserted into a female die-matrix having inner walls profiled according to the shape to be imparted to the desired tire rim - a hydraulic pressure, by means of a press of conventional type, thus obtaining a rough profiled tire rim ready for the final finish (trimming by turning and the like).
- More particularly, the process and the relevant device are described in detail hereinafter, according to a preferred but non-exclusive embodiment thereof, making reference to the annexed (only) table of drawing.
-
- - Figure 1 shows - in median longitudinal section - a pipe cut down size ready for the hydroforming operation;
- - figure 2 shows - in median longitudinal section and schematically - the die-matrix and the pipe already shaped as a rough tire rim;
- - figure 3 shows - in median longitudinal section - the finished tire rim.
- Referring to such figures, the above process consists of the following steps:
- a) cutting, from a metal pipe either extruded or of another type, a cut down
size 1 having a length proportioned to the shaped surface of the tire rim to be obtained (plus the proper allowance) and hydroforming thereof in die-matrix 2 by means of the hydraulic pressure of afluid 4 which causes the pipe wall to expand against the wall of said die-matrix and thereby causes said pipe to assume the same shape of the die-matrix. The outside diameter of said cut down size may be significantly smaller than the minimum inside diameter of die-matrix 2, because during the subsequent hydroforming operation the pipe undergoes a radial expansion and a longitudinal creep (with relevant shortening): that permits to render the strain-hardening of the pipe material little important, since it is evident that the stretching ensuing from the radial expansion is substantially compensated by the longitudinal creep. Therefore the material retains, after forming, its ultimate elongation characteristics substantially unchanged or in any case poorly modified, such characteristics proving to be superior to those of the same material deformed by rolling. - It is clearly understood that, although a sensible increase in the diameter of the pipe (in the shaped form) is obtained, the pipe thickness undergoes substantially no reductions or insignificant reductions, thus having the technical-economical advantage of utilizing, as a starting semifinished product, a pipe with a diameter significantly reduced as compared with the one of the finished tire rim;
- b) trimming-finish of the edges of rough tire rim 3 (obtained in the above-illustrated step, and removed from the die-matrix) by mechanical working, for example by turning, till assuming the height sizes of finished
tire rim 5, ready for the successive assembly to the disc-wheel, accomplished e.g. by means of welding. - Particularly suited materials to be employed for the manufacturing of tire rims according to the process of the present invention are the aluminium alloys of the Al-Mg type of the known Series AA 5000, the Al-Mg-Si alloys of the known Series AA 6000, and the Al-Zn-Mg or Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloys of the known Series AA 7000.
- It is apparent, however, that the process is applicable to many other metal materials, suitable for manufacturing rims for vehicle wheels, and it is applicable in any case to tubular sections types different from the extruded type (e.g. drawn tubular sections or pipes obtained from plate by welding).
- The process forming the object of the present invention is particularly utilized for tire rims of wheels for motor vehicles; it is employable with technical-economical advantages also for manufacturing rims and tire rims for the most different types of vehicles, also in connection with the fact that the process itself can be practiced to obtain, instead of one rough rim only for each individual hydroforming operation, a plurality of rims (or tire rims), in this case starting from a pipe having a length proportioned to the desired number of rough rims to be obtained for every single forming operation, and utilizing, for said operation, a "multiple" die-matrix, i.e. having a plurality of "impressions", namely as are required to obtain the desired number of rims.
- Cut-trimming operations,to be carried out after the above-described multiple hydroforming, permit to obtain the finished rims.
- The advantages offered by the present invention can be therefore summarized as follows :
- - process simplification : in fact, the process substantially consists in a single hydroforming operation, to be carried out also with a multiple die;
- - obtainment of tire rims starting from an extruded pipe or from another type of pipe having a significantly smaller diameter than said tire rims (and therefore of common manufacture).
- . The process and the relevant products or articles as described hereinbefore and claimed hereinafter may be carried out and obtained, respectively, with technically equivalent elements, all falling however within the scope of the present invention.
Claims (5)
1. A process for manufacturing shaped rims of metal material for vehicle wheels, particularly tire rims of aluminium alloy for wheels of motor vehicles, characterized in that it consists in causing the wall of a pipe, preferably of the extruded type, to expand and to adhere, by means of hydraulic pressure exerted in the inside of said pipe, to the inner face of a female die-matrix exhibiting a shaping like the one to be obtained for said rims, the radial expansion of the pipe material being accompanied by a longitudinal creep of said material.
2. The process according to claim 1, characterized in that said pipe has a diameter which is significantly smaller than the diameter of said rims.
3. The process according to claim 1, characterized in that said female die-matrix has, on its inner wall, a plurality of shapings suited to lead to the forming of a multiple-shaping pipe for the simultaneous manufacture of a plurality of rims.
4. Shaped rims of metal material for vehicle wheels, particularly tire rims for wheels of motor vehicles, characterized in that they are obtained by the process according to one or more of the preceding claims, in which the starting pipe is a weldless extruded pipe and is made of an aluminium alloy.
5. Tire rims for motor vehicle wheels, characterized in that they are obtained by the process according to one or more of the preceding claims, in which the starting pipe is made of an aluminium alloy, preferably selected from an Al-Mg alloy Series AA 5000, an Al-Mg-Si alloy Series AA 6000 and an Al-Zn-Mg alloy or an Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloy Series AA 7000.
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
IT20244/82A IT1150477B (en) | 1982-03-18 | 1982-03-18 | PROCEDURE FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF METALLIC WHEELS FOR VEHICLE WHEELS AND PRODUCTS SO OBTAINED |
IT2024482 | 1982-03-18 |
Publications (2)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
EP0089520A2 true EP0089520A2 (en) | 1983-09-28 |
EP0089520A3 EP0089520A3 (en) | 1984-03-21 |
Family
ID=11165089
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
EP83102016A Withdrawn EP0089520A3 (en) | 1982-03-18 | 1983-03-02 | Process for manufacturing metal rims for vehicle wheels and products so obtained |
Country Status (2)
Country | Link |
---|---|
EP (1) | EP0089520A3 (en) |
IT (1) | IT1150477B (en) |
Cited By (3)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
DE4142325A1 (en) * | 1991-12-20 | 1993-06-24 | Bayerische Motoren Werke Ag | METHOD FOR PRODUCING CHASSIS CARRIERS |
DE19727599A1 (en) * | 1997-06-28 | 1999-01-07 | Volkswagen Ag | Method for producing metal wheels |
CN110834176A (en) * | 2018-08-17 | 2020-02-25 | 浙江金固股份有限公司 | Rim manufacturing method and wheel manufacturing method |
Citations (6)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
DE2165985A1 (en) * | 1970-03-21 | 1972-10-26 | Dunlop Holdings Ltd., London | Wheel rim. Eliminated from: 2113693 |
DE2432300A1 (en) * | 1973-07-06 | 1975-01-23 | Dunlop Ltd | METHOD OF PRESS FORMING A BLANK FROM DEFORMABLE MATERIAL AND MOLDING PRESS |
DE2440725A1 (en) * | 1974-08-24 | 1976-03-11 | Berg Kg | Tube cold forming appliance - sectional forming mould, with apertures, sealed pressure tight |
EP0002032A1 (en) * | 1977-11-17 | 1979-05-30 | Wilhelm Heinrich Schroth | Method and apparatus for making multiple-groove pulleys |
DE2844803A1 (en) * | 1978-10-11 | 1980-04-17 | Mannesmann Ag | Explosively formed automobile wheel rim - uses die formed by inner and outer rings with annular explosion chamber |
DE3107887A1 (en) * | 1981-03-02 | 1982-11-11 | Stahlschmidt & Maiworm GmbH & Co KG, 5980 Werdohl | Process for the production of a light-alloy rim ring |
-
1982
- 1982-03-18 IT IT20244/82A patent/IT1150477B/en active
-
1983
- 1983-03-02 EP EP83102016A patent/EP0089520A3/en not_active Withdrawn
Patent Citations (6)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
DE2165985A1 (en) * | 1970-03-21 | 1972-10-26 | Dunlop Holdings Ltd., London | Wheel rim. Eliminated from: 2113693 |
DE2432300A1 (en) * | 1973-07-06 | 1975-01-23 | Dunlop Ltd | METHOD OF PRESS FORMING A BLANK FROM DEFORMABLE MATERIAL AND MOLDING PRESS |
DE2440725A1 (en) * | 1974-08-24 | 1976-03-11 | Berg Kg | Tube cold forming appliance - sectional forming mould, with apertures, sealed pressure tight |
EP0002032A1 (en) * | 1977-11-17 | 1979-05-30 | Wilhelm Heinrich Schroth | Method and apparatus for making multiple-groove pulleys |
DE2844803A1 (en) * | 1978-10-11 | 1980-04-17 | Mannesmann Ag | Explosively formed automobile wheel rim - uses die formed by inner and outer rings with annular explosion chamber |
DE3107887A1 (en) * | 1981-03-02 | 1982-11-11 | Stahlschmidt & Maiworm GmbH & Co KG, 5980 Werdohl | Process for the production of a light-alloy rim ring |
Cited By (5)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
DE4142325A1 (en) * | 1991-12-20 | 1993-06-24 | Bayerische Motoren Werke Ag | METHOD FOR PRODUCING CHASSIS CARRIERS |
EP0548859A1 (en) * | 1991-12-20 | 1993-06-30 | Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft | Method of making support elements for vehicles |
DE19727599A1 (en) * | 1997-06-28 | 1999-01-07 | Volkswagen Ag | Method for producing metal wheels |
DE19727599B4 (en) * | 1997-06-28 | 2007-08-02 | Volkswagen Ag | Method for producing metal wheels |
CN110834176A (en) * | 2018-08-17 | 2020-02-25 | 浙江金固股份有限公司 | Rim manufacturing method and wheel manufacturing method |
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
IT1150477B (en) | 1986-12-10 |
IT8220244A0 (en) | 1982-03-18 |
EP0089520A3 (en) | 1984-03-21 |
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Legal Events
Date | Code | Title | Description |
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PUAI | Public reference made under article 153(3) epc to a published international application that has entered the european phase |
Free format text: ORIGINAL CODE: 0009012 |
|
AK | Designated contracting states |
Designated state(s): CH DE FR GB LI SE |
|
PUAL | Search report despatched |
Free format text: ORIGINAL CODE: 0009013 |
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AK | Designated contracting states |
Designated state(s): CH DE FR GB LI SE |
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17P | Request for examination filed |
Effective date: 19840727 |
|
STAA | Information on the status of an ep patent application or granted ep patent |
Free format text: STATUS: THE APPLICATION HAS BEEN WITHDRAWN |
|
18W | Application withdrawn |
Withdrawal date: 19860304 |
|
RIN1 | Information on inventor provided before grant (corrected) |
Inventor name: GRIMALDI, PIERO |