Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
  • B60B—VEHICLE WHEELS; CASTORS; AXLES FOR WHEELS OR CASTORS; INCREASING WHEEL ADHESION
  • B60B33/00—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors
  • B60B33/0036—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors characterised by type of wheels
  • B60B33/0042—Double or twin wheels
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
  • B60B—VEHICLE WHEELS; CASTORS; AXLES FOR WHEELS OR CASTORS; INCREASING WHEEL ADHESION
  • B60B33/00—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors
  • B60B33/0002—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors assembling to the object, e.g. furniture
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
  • B60B—VEHICLE WHEELS; CASTORS; AXLES FOR WHEELS OR CASTORS; INCREASING WHEEL ADHESION
  • B60B33/00—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors
  • B60B33/0002—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors assembling to the object, e.g. furniture
  • B60B33/0005—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors assembling to the object, e.g. furniture characterised by mounting method
  • B60B33/001—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors assembling to the object, e.g. furniture characterised by mounting method by snapping, clicking or latching in
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
  • B60B—VEHICLE WHEELS; CASTORS; AXLES FOR WHEELS OR CASTORS; INCREASING WHEEL ADHESION
  • B60B33/00—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors
  • B60B33/0002—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors assembling to the object, e.g. furniture
  • B60B33/0015—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors assembling to the object, e.g. furniture characterised by adaptations made to castor
  • B60B33/0021—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors assembling to the object, e.g. furniture characterised by adaptations made to castor in the form of a mounting pin
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
  • B60B—VEHICLE WHEELS; CASTORS; AXLES FOR WHEELS OR CASTORS; INCREASING WHEEL ADHESION
  • B60B33/00—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors
  • B60B33/0047—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors characterised by details of the rolling axle
  • B60B33/0049—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors characterised by details of the rolling axle the rolling axle being horizontal
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
  • B60B—VEHICLE WHEELS; CASTORS; AXLES FOR WHEELS OR CASTORS; INCREASING WHEEL ADHESION
  • B60B33/00—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors
  • B60B33/0047—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors characterised by details of the rolling axle
  • B60B33/0057—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors characterised by details of the rolling axle the rolling axle being offset from swivel axis
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
  • B60B—VEHICLE WHEELS; CASTORS; AXLES FOR WHEELS OR CASTORS; INCREASING WHEEL ADHESION
  • B60B33/00—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors
  • B60B33/006—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors characterised by details of the swivel mechanism
  • B60B33/0065—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors characterised by details of the swivel mechanism characterised by details of the swivel axis
  • B60B33/0068—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors characterised by details of the swivel mechanism characterised by details of the swivel axis the swivel axis being vertical
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
  • B60B—VEHICLE WHEELS; CASTORS; AXLES FOR WHEELS OR CASTORS; INCREASING WHEEL ADHESION
  • B60B33/00—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors
  • B60B33/006—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors characterised by details of the swivel mechanism
  • B60B33/0065—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors characterised by details of the swivel mechanism characterised by details of the swivel axis
  • B60B33/0073—Castors in general; Anti-clogging castors characterised by details of the swivel mechanism characterised by details of the swivel axis the swivel axis being symmetrical to wheel or wheels

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a self-orienting caster for moving pieces of furniture and the like.
• Self-orienting casters particularly of the so-called twin type, constituted by two wheels mounted so that they can rotate about a shaft, are known.
• the shaft is supported in a seat that is formed in a supporting structure that lies between the wheels and often comprises a sort of semi- cylindrical housing that covers the wheels in an upper region.
• a vertical cylindrical recess is formed in the supporting structure, is open upward and axially offset with respect to the shaft, and acts as a rotation seat for a vertical pivot for the self-orientation (pivoting) of the caster, which is designed to be inserted and retained in a seat of the piece of furniture on which the wheel is to be fitted.
• Self-orienting casters of the described type have the drawback that the pivot for self-orientation of the caster can often cause excessive and unpleasant noise, particularly when the caster runs over a rough surface or if the seat of the piece of furniture intended to receive the pivot is formed inside a metallic body. This is observed especially in chairs or armchairs that are provided with a metallic pedestal with radial arms, in which the casters are fitted at the ends of the arms.
• This drawback, which is present even with new casters, due to the inevitable plays of the pivots in respective recesses of the pedestal, is increased when the plays, due to use, tend inevitably to increase. Disclosure of the Invention
• the aim of the present invention is to obviate the above-mentioned drawbacks of known self-orienting casters by providing a simple and effective solution that does not entail substantial changes to the structure of currently commercially available casters and is therefore economically advantageous.
• a self-orienting caster constituted by at least one wheel, which can rotate on a shaft that is driven horizontally through the seat of a support that is provided with a vertical cylindrical recess, which is open upward and offset axially with respect to the shaft and in which a caster pivoting pivot can rotate with a first portion and is provided with a second portion that can be inserted in a seat of the piece of furniture on which the caster is to be fitted, characterized in that said second portion has an end stem that has a reduced diameter so as to form a shoulder, a bush being fixed axially on said stem and forming, together with said shoulder, an annular groove for accommodating, without axial play, an elastic ring that is suitable to press by expanding against the wall of said recess.
• Figure 1 is a perspective view of a self-orienting twin caster provided with the innovation according to the invention
• Figure 2 is a side elevation view of the caster of Figure 1;
• Figure 3 is a front elevation view of the caster of Figure 1;
• Figure 4 is a plan view of the caster of Figure 1;
• Figure 5 is a view of the pivot for the pivoting of the caster;
• Figure 6 is an exploded view of the pivot of Figure 5;
• Figure 7 is a sectional view of the pivot of Figure 5;
• Figure 8 is an axial view of the pivot of Figure 5;
• Figure 9 is a perspective view of a pivot according to another embodiment
• Figure 10 is an exploded view of the pivot of Figure 9;
• Figure 11 is a sectional view of the end of the pivot. Ways of carrying out the Invention
• the reference numeral 1 generally designates a generic twin caster of the self-orienting type, which is composed of a supporting structure 2 for two wheels 3 mounted so that they can rotate on a common shaft S that has a horizontal axis A and is driven through a seat of the structure 2.
• the structure 2 is made of plastics or metallic material and has a recess 4, which has a vertical axis, lies between the wheels 3, and accommodates a pivot 5, by means of which the caster is pivotably fitted to a piece of furniture, for example a chair provided with a pedestal with radial arms, at the ends of which seats for fitting the casters are provided.
• the pivot 5 for the pivoting of the caster is structurally cylindrical and comprises a lower portion 6 and an upper portion 7, which are mutually separated by an annular flange 8.
• An annular groove 9 is provided in the lower portion 6, and a conical cavity 10 is provided in the end of the portion 6.
• the portion 6 is inserted in the recess 4, where in order to retain the pivot 5 axially there is an internal collar, which engages the slot 9 by forcing.
• a steel ball (not shown) is conveniently arranged in the bottom of the recess 4, and by engaging in the concavity 10 acts as a supporting point for the load that bears on the caster.
• the upper portion 7 of the pivot 5 comprises, proximate to the annular flange 8, a conical connecting region 11, which is flared toward said flange, and a region having a reduced diameter, which forms an end stem
• the end stem 12 is separated from the remaining part of the portion 7 by a shoulder 13. Further, a dead end hole 14 is formed axially in the free end of the stem 12 and is surrounded by an annular lip 15.
• a bush 16 made of plastic material is applied to the stem 12, and its length is such as to produce, together with the shoulder 13, once it is arranged on the stem 12, an annular groove 17.
• An open and elastic (i.e., elastically expanding) metallic ring 18 is arranged in the groove 17, has a circular cross-section, and has, in the expanded condition, an outside diameter that is slightly larger than the diameter of the portion 7 and an inside diameter that is at least equal to the diameter of the stem 12.
• the ring 18 is locked in the groove 17 by the bush 16, which in turn is retained on the stem 12 by an annular ridge obtained by folding outward the lip 15.
• the bush 16 is applied to the stem 12 with slight interference, and its position is set so that the ring 18 has no axial play in the groove but at the same time is capable of closing radially on the pivot when said pivot is inserted in its seat of the piece of furniture (chair).
• the locking of the bush 16 on the stem 12 is assisted by the retaining action performed by the lip 15, so as to ensure, even with extended use and in more unfavorable operating conditions, the noise- reducing effectiveness of the caster.
• the noise-reducing action of the ring 18 occurs both radially and axially.
• the ring 18 by way of its larger radial dimensions, presses against the wall of said seat, so as to contrast the transverse vibrations that are transmitted from the pivot to the pedestal by means of the caster.
• the bush 16 by way of the locking effect performed axially on the ring 18 (which is locked by the lip 15 against the shoulder 13), prevents any axial movement thereof and consequently prevents the onset of vibration.
• the elastic ring 18 may have a square, rectangular or elliptical cross-section.
• the elastic ring 18 has opposite ends (which form its gap) that are mutually axially offset, so that once the ring has been inserted in the groove 17 one of its ends presses against the bush 12 and the other end presses against the shoulder 13.
• Figures 9 to 11 illustrate an embodiment of the caster in which the stem 12 is not provided with a dead end hole 14 and the lip 15 for retaining the bush 16 is obtained by heading the outer edge of the stem 12 so as to form a collar that protrudes outward from the stem 12 and, by acting axially on the bush 16, keeps the ring 18 compressed.

Landscapes

• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Legs For Furniture In General (AREA)
• Pivots And Pivotal Connections (AREA)

Priority Applications (6)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=35501609

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (5)

Cited By (3)

Families Citing this family (1)

Citations (4)

Family Cites Families (8)

• 2005
  • 2005-04-26 BR BRPI0520194A patent/BRPI0520194B8/pt active IP Right Grant
  • 2005-04-26 CA CA2605814A patent/CA2605814C/en active Active
  • 2005-04-26 JP JP2008508089A patent/JP2008540200A/ja active Pending
  • 2005-04-26 MX MX2007013299A patent/MX2007013299A/es active IP Right Grant
  • 2005-04-26 WO PCT/EP2005/051878 patent/WO2006114131A1/en active Application Filing

Patent Citations (4)

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