JPH0788121B2 - Wheel cover mounting device - Google Patents

Description

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a wheel cover for a vehicle, particularly a passenger car, and more particularly to a device for mounting a wheel cover made of plastic on a wheel.

[Conventional technology]

The plastic wheel cover can be freely and easily set in shape design, and it has many features such as rust-free, light, and good durability, but on the other hand, it is stressed as a characteristic of plastics. Since there is a secular change (creep) in the shape, there is a problem in keeping it pressed on the wheel by its elasticity. Therefore, a means for additionally mounting a metal spring is also adopted, but the engagement between this spring and the plastic mounting portion has always been very complicated.

One of the complexity of this engagement is that it requires the spring to be machined into a complex shape, and its assembly is difficult and therefore expensive, and one is that the spring is relatively With a simple shape, the plastics mounting part becomes complicated,
There is a problem that it causes difficulty in molding, or the engagement is incomplete, and the reliability against spring-off is reduced.

Examples of the former are JP-A-56-16390 and JP-B-54.
-13052 and the like. An example of the latter is Japanese Patent Laid-Open No.
There is a 4-72824 publication.

[Object of the Invention]

With respect to the above problems, the present invention has a simple shape for both the spring and the mounting portion of the plastics, but the engagement is easy and sure, and therefore the reliability is high and the cost can be reduced. Another object of the present invention is to provide a wheel cover mounting device having a good wheel cover mounting property.

[Example I]

FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 are a perspective view and a sectional view showing an essential part of the first embodiment. In this embodiment, the mounting portion 1 and the decorative portion 2 of the wheel cover are integrally formed of resin. The mounting portion 1 is provided on the back surface of the decorative portion 2 and extends in a ring shape along the circumferential direction of the decorative portion 2, and a circumferential direction of the reinforcing annular belt 18, etc. It is continuous with the reinforcing ring 18 at the minute position but has an opening 181 with the rear surface of the decorative portion 2.
Form a plurality of bridges 182 separated by. At the edge of the bridge 182 opposite to the opening 181, a crimp block 10 including a crimp piece 11 and locking pieces 12 on both sides of the crimp piece 11 which are spaced apart in the circumferential direction of the wheel cover is formed. It is formed integrally with the contact 182.

Then, the annular spring 3 is sandwiched between the crimping piece 11 and the locking piece 12, but a notch 101 is formed between the crimping piece 11 and the locking piece 12 to lock the crimping piece 11 and the locking piece 12. It is formed so that it can be flexibly deformed between itself and the piece 12, and by utilizing this deformation, the above-mentioned annular spring 3 is made into a crimp piece 11 and a locking piece.
It can be easily installed between the 12 and each other.

By the crimping piece 11 and the locking piece 12, the annular spring can be strongly bitten with high stiffness, and the annular spring 3 cannot be easily kept from the cover. Moreover, since the crimping piece 11 and the locking piece 12 are integrated and have high compliance, the crimping piece can be securely crimped to the hump portion by smoothly adapting to the pressing force of the annular spring. Therefore, the wheel cover does not come off from the rim. Also, crimping piece 11 and locking piece
The reference numerals 12 and 12 are torsional flexures of the cross section 141, and can be opened slightly with high stiffness, but the annular spring 3 can be mounted and locked by this slight opening. Further, since the inclined surfaces 113 and 123 that intersect with the axle in the depth direction are provided at the tips of the crimping piece 11 and the locking piece 12, the annular spring 3 is crimped using the inclined surfaces 113 and 123. , Can be easily and easily pressed into the locking piece.

Further, the feature of this embodiment is that the slide type opening 181 is used.
By forming the outer peripheral surface of the crimping piece 11 and the locking piece 12, the molding die of the wheel cover can be remarkably simplified and mass production becomes possible.

Example II

3 to 5 are a perspective view and a sectional view showing an essential part of a second embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the mounting portion 1 and the decorative portion 2 of the wheel cover are integrally formed of resin. The mounting part 1 is continuous with the reinforcing ring band 17 which is erected on the back surface of the decoration part 2 and the reinforcing ring band 17 which is equally divided in the circumferential direction of the reinforcing ring band 17. A bridge 172, which is separated from the rear surface of the decorative portion 2 by an opening 171, is formed. One end of a cantilever 173 having a U-shaped side surface is integrally formed on the bridge 172 so as to project in the radial direction of the wheel cover.
Further, a pressure-bonding block 10 composed of a pressure-bonding piece 11 and a locking piece 12 that are spaced apart in the circumferential direction of the wheel cover is integrally formed on the free end of the cantilever 173.

Then, the annular spring 3 is sandwiched between the crimping piece 11 and the locking piece 12, but a notch 101 is formed between the crimping piece 11 and the locking piece 12 to lock the crimping piece 11 and the locking piece 12. A flexural deformation is generated between the crimping piece 11 and the locking piece 12, and the annular spring 3 can be easily mounted between the crimping piece 11 and the locking piece 12. .

The crimping piece 11 is urged in the centrifugal direction by the elastic force of the annular spring 3, and the crimping piece 11 is crimped to the hump portion 41 of the wheel 4 (see FIG. 4). Crimping piece 11 in this crimped state
The deformation of (and the locking piece 12 also moves, but does not contact the hump portion) is not only in the expansion of the U-shaped cantilever 173 but also in the twisting of the bridge 172, which results in high compliance (easy deformation). Characteristics). On the other hand, the crimping piece 11 and the locking piece 12 are only the mutual bending due to the notch 101, so that they have a high stiffness (characteristic that is difficult to deform), and on the other hand, both pieces are integrally supported because they are supported for high compliance. Movement, and therefore the locking constraint of the annular spring 3 is complete during the entire handling of the entire wheel cover. Of course, the function of the annular spring 3 is also fully exerted.

The general cross section of the reinforcing ring band 18 and the reinforcing ring band 17 in Examples I and II is the rectangular cross section 14 as the simplest example. Crimping block provided in the center of the upper part of the assembly section
10 is the U-shaped cantilever 173 in addition to the torsional bending of this section.
High compliance with the expansion power of. Thus, when the wheel cover is mounted, both ends of the bridge provided with the crimping block 10 are joined to the decorative portion 2, so that the crimping piece and the locking piece integrally deform like a torsion bar. So its elasticity is high compliance. Therefore, the crimping piece can be reliably crimped to the hump portion by smoothly adapting to the pressing force of the annular spring, and the wheel cover does not come off from the rim.

6 and 7 show the shape of the annular spring 3 applied in each of the above embodiments. FIG. 6 shows a simple true circular annular spring, and is an example in which the number of crimping blocks 10 is four. In the figure, the annular spring 3 is a perfect circle, so one end on the circumference of the tightly coiled coil is cut in the direction perpendicular to the axis, and butt welded.
By doing so, it can be mass-produced at low cost, and is generally sufficient in terms of function. In the case of this shape, the shape of the flexure at the time of mounting the wheel cover is as shown by 3 ', and the positional relationship between the tire and the air valve 8 is as shown in the drawing, and there is no problem in this respect. However, since the attachment / detachment of the wheel cover is directly operated by human hands, the feeling of touching when attaching / detaching is also an object of evaluation of the value of the product, so the spring constant is small and the crimping force can be maintained with a large displacement. In some cases, there are demands, and Fig. 7 responds to this demand. The illustrated one is an example in which four crimp blocks 10 are provided, and the annular spring 3 is provided with the same number (4) of inward concave portions 32. When the wheel cover is mounted, the flexure shape is as shown in 3 ″, and the spring constant is reduced so that the flexure amount is large. In this case, the air valve 8 is deformed as shown in FIG.
It is set to be located outside of. in this case,
Although it is a little more complicated than that shown in FIG. 6 and the number of manufacturing steps is increased, a large increase in cost can be avoided because a two-dimensional figure on the same plane is sufficient.

8 to 10 show another embodiment of the annular spring which can be used in the present invention.

The annular spring material is generally a metal, which is a safe choice, but in addition to the drawbacks of being heavy and rusting, the annular body of the present invention has the drawback of requiring joining. There is also a big advantage in adopting various plastic materials.

Also, the shape of the annular spring is an annular body,
As the P, it is general that the reinforcing fiber is constituted by filament winding and a high quality fiber can be obtained, but it is also a fact that it tends to be expensive. Therefore, as an application of the present invention, as shown in FIGS.
It is also possible to make a spring by injection molding a long-fiber, high-content thermoplastic FRP. In this case, the cross-sectional shape can be changed freely, but the cross-sectional shape can be set according to the stress distribution. It is possible to realize a lightweight, highly functional annular spring that can be freely made.

The wheel cover of each of the above-described embodiments has the following effects.

a. Since the annular spring can be strongly bitten with high stiffness, the annular spring does not come off from the cover. Also crimp pieces
Since the 11 and the locking piece 2 have high compliance, they can smoothly adapt to the pressing force of the annular spring, and the crimping piece can be securely crimped to the hump portion.

b. Mass production.

c. Highly versatile with little interference between the air holes in the wheel and the air valve.

d. Regardless of the decorative part, the existence of the reinforcing ring band makes it possible to obtain a wheel cover that is not easily deformed near the outer circumference.

〔The invention's effect〕

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY As described above, the present invention is a wheel cover of a type that is fitted into a hump portion of a wheel rim of an automobile and mounted,
On the rear surface of the decorative portion of the wheel cover, there is provided a reinforcing annular band which is erected upright with respect to the rear surface and which is formed in an annular shape along the circumferential direction of the decorative portion. A plurality of bridges are formed on the bridge, and a crimp block composed of a crimping piece and a locking piece that are spaced apart from each other in the circumferential direction of the wheel cover is provided on these bridges. The locking pieces are adjacent to each other in the circumferential direction and have high compliance, so that the crimping pieces can be reliably crimped to the hump portion of the wheel by adapting to the pressing force of the annular spring. As a result, the wheel cover can be attached to the wheel smoothly and reliably, and the wheel cover and the rim can be stably connected without the wheel cover easily coming off the rim.

At the same time, the annular spring is strongly engaged and locked between the two pieces having high stiffness.

This restraint, when mounting the wheel cover to the wheel,
In both cases of removal and removal, the annular spring is never detached from the crimping block during handling of these and the mounting of the wheel cover on the wheel can be reliably completed.

Mounting of the annular spring on the crimping block can be done by arranging the annular spring between the both pieces of each crimping block and simply pressing the annular spring between the both pieces. Can be done very easily and easily.

In addition, since the annular spring 3 is injection-molded by using a thermoplastic material having a high content of long fibers, a work process for joining both ends of the wire material is not required, so that the economical efficiency is improved and the durability is high without rusting. Is obtained.

[Brief description of drawings]

1 and 2 are perspective and side sectional views of a main part of a first embodiment of the present invention, and FIGS. 3 to 5 are perspective views and a side sectional view of a main part of a second embodiment of the present invention. FIGS. 6 and 7 are plan views of respective annular springs, and FIGS. 8 to 10 are plan views showing other embodiments of the annular spring. 1 …… Wheel cover mounting part, 2 …… Wheel cover decorative part 3 …… Annular spring, 30 …… Joint part 32 …… Inward recess, 4 …… Wheel 41 …… Hump part, 8 …… Air valve 10 …… Crimping block, 12 …… Locking piece 101 …… Notch, 11 …… Crimping piece 17 …… Reinforcing ring, 171 …… Opening 172 …… Bridge, 173 …… U-shaped cantilever 18 …… Reinforcing ring , 181 …… Opening 182 …… Bridge

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A plastic wheel cover using an annular spring (3) of a type to be fitted and mounted in a hump portion (41) of a wheel rim of an automobile, wherein a rear surface of a decorative portion (2) of the wheel cover is Reinforcing ring band (1
8) is provided integrally with the above decorative portion, and the reinforcing ring (18)
Reinforcement annulus (18) at multiple positions equally divided in the circumferential direction of
The bridge (182) formed by the opening (181) separating the space and the decorative portion (2) is provided, and each bridge (182) includes
A wheel cover mounting device comprising a crimping block (10) including a crimping piece (11) and a locking piece (12) which are spaced apart from each other in the circumferential direction of the wheel cover. 2. A plastic wheel cover using an annular spring (3) which is fitted and mounted in a hump portion (41) of a wheel rim of an automobile, wherein the back surface of the decorative portion (2) of the wheel cover is: Reinforcing ring band (1
7) is provided integrally with the decorative portion, and the reinforcing ring (17)
Reinforcement annulus (17) at multiple positions equally divided in the circumferential direction of
The bridge (172) formed by the opening (171) separating the space and the decorative portion (2) is provided, and each bridge (172) includes:
A cantilever beam (173) is provided which projects in the radial direction of the wheel cover and is bent into a U-shaped side surface, and the free end portion of this cantilever beam (173) is spaced in the circumferential direction of the wheel cover. Crimping block (10) consisting of a crimping piece (11) and a locking piece (12)
An apparatus for mounting a wheel cover, characterized in that: 3. An annular spring (3) sandwiched between a crimping piece (11) and a locking piece (12) is obtained by injection molding a long fiber high content thermoplastic material in a tangential direction of the annular spring shape. The wheel cover mounting device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein: 4. The inclined surfaces (113) and (123) intersecting with each other in the direction parallel to the axle are provided at the tips of the crimping piece and the locking piece. Alternatively, the wheel cover mounting device according to the second aspect. 5. The wheel cover mounting device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the crimping piece and the locking piece are crimping blocks each composed of one pair. 6. The wheel cover according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the crimping piece and the locking piece are crimping blocks each composed of one and two pairs. Mounting device.