GB2224981A

GB2224981A - Wheel changing accessory

Info

Publication number: GB2224981A
Application number: GB8922353A
Authority: GB
Inventors: John Smith
Original assignee: SAFETY STUD ENGINEERING LIMITE
Current assignee: SAFETY STUD ENGINEERING LIMITE
Priority date: 1988-11-22
Filing date: 1989-10-04
Publication date: 1990-05-23
Also published as: GB8922353D0; GB8827200D0

Abstract

An accessory provides a temporary locating means for a road wheel 14 when wheel-changing and comprises a screwthread stud 10 with a slot (16, Fig 3) in which a turnkey 18 is pivotally located, the turnkey being rotated into alignment with the stud to enable a road wheel to be located on the stud until bolts for holding the wheel in position can be inserted in other bolt holes. <IMAGE>

Description

Motorists accessory.

The invention relates to a motorists accessory.

It is a particular problem that when changing a road wheel of a modern motor car there is nothing to adequately locate the wheel centre on the hub.

This is because the hub is usually not provided with projecting studs on which wheel nuts are fitted. Instead the hub is generally provided with screwthreaded holes in which bolts can be screwed.

The wheel centre may be located on a central flange of the hub but such a flange may be very shallow and the spare wheel is unlikely to be able to be safely hung on it whilst the wheel bolts are fitted. There is in any case no way in which the motorist can readily align the bolt holes of the wheel centre with the screwthreaded holes of the hub. In particular if the motorist is a lady driver, and/or if the operation of changing the wheel is being carried out on a dark night, the job can be extremely difficult if not almost impossible.

The object of the invention is to - provide a motorists accessory by the use of which the difficulty referred to can be at least alleviated.

According to the invention, a motorists accessory is constituted by a screwthreaded stud with a slot in which a turnkey is pivotally located, the arrangement being such that to provide a temporary location for a road wheel on a wheel hub of the kind provided with a plurality of screwthreaded bolt holes the stud can be screwed into one of said holes with the turnkey projecting laterally from the stud, the turnkey then being turned so that it extends axially of the stud to enable one of the bolt holes of the wheel centre concerned to be passed over it, the stud then locating the road wheel in position until bolts for holding the wheel in position can be inserted into the other bolt holes.

In order that the invention may be fully understood and readily carried into effect, the same will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which Figure 1 is a sectional view which illustrates a motorists accessory embodying the invention in use when changing a road wheel, Figure 2 is a part-sectional view on the line 2-2 in Figure 1, Figure 3 is a view in the direction of arrow 3 in Figure 1, and Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 3 when the device has been adjusted for the attachment of a spare wheel.

Referring now the drawings, the device there illustrated is a screwthreaded stud 10 which is shown in Figure 1 to have been inserted in one of the screwthreaded bolt holes of a wheel hub 12.

Inserted in this way (preferably in an uppermost one of the screwthreaded holes in the hub), the stud serves as an auxilliary location for the wheel centre 14 of a spare wheel. It will be understood that the hub has a central flange 13 on which the wheel centre is centralised but this does not locate the bolt holes of the wheel centre with the screwthreaded bolt holes of the hub. The central flange is in any case usually very shallow and a spare wheel can consequently fall off it very easily unless held in place by the person fitting the wheel, that is until a first one of the wheel bolts has been fitted.

When using the device illustrated, the spare wheel can be held in position by the device until at least one of the bolts for holding the wheel in position can be inserted into the other bolt holes.

The location of one of the bolt holes of the wheel centre on the stud 10 automatically aligns all the remaining holes of the wheel centre with the respective screwthreaded holes of the hub.

Referring to Figure 2, it will be seen that the stud 10 has a slot 16 in which a turnkey 18 is pivotally located by a rivet 20. The arrangement is such that when the spare wheel has been located on the wheel centre, with the stud projecting through one of the bolt holes in the wheel centre, the turnkey can be turned from its initial position in which it extends axially of the stud to a position in which it projects laterally from the stud as shown in full lines in Figure 1. It will of course be understood that the stud may be inserted into the screwthreaded bolt hole of the hub using the laterally projecting turnkey to obtain purchase, but of course this may not be necessary if the thread of the stud is an easy fit in the screwthreaded bolt hole of the hub. No severe strain is to be imposed on the stud.There is therefore no necessity for the stud to be screwed very far into the bolt hole of the hub. As shown in Figure 2, a wavy spring washer 22 is provided on the rivet 20 alongside the turnkey 18.

This retains the turnkey in a position to which it has been moved by the user, that is to say it retains it in the position in which it is shown in chain-dotted lines in Figure 1 to enable a wheel centre bolt hole to be passed over it, and it retains it in the position in which it is shown in full lines when the wheel has been positioned on the hub.

Thus there is provided a relatively simple and easy to use device by means of which the difficulty referred to above can be completely overcome. It can be included in a motorists tool kit as a loose accessory or perhaps more conveniently screwed into a threaded hole provided for receiving it in, for example, the car jack or wheel brace. In this way it will be ensured that the device is always at hand when required, i.e., where the car has been jacked up for the replacement of one of the road wheels.

Claims

CLAIMS:

1. A motorists accessory constituted by a screwthreaded stud with a slot in which a turnkey is pivotally located, the arrangement being such that to provide a temporary location for a road wheel on a wheel hub of the kind provided with a plurality of screwthreaded bolt holes the stud can be screwed into one of said holes with the turnkey projecting laterally from the stud, the turnkey then being turned so that it extends axially of the stud to enable one of the bolt holes of the wheel centre concerned to be passed over it, the stud then locating the road wheel in position until bolts for holding the wheel in position can be inserted into the other bolt holes.

2. A motorists accessory according to claim 1, in which a wavy spring wash is provided on the pivotal location alongside the turnkey, the washer being provided so that it retains the turnkey in a position to which it has been moved by the user.

3.. A motorists accessory constructed, arranged and adapted to be used substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated by the accompanying drawings.