A lifting apparatus for a vehicle wheel comprising a wheel support which is selectively movable in order to lift or lower a vehicle wheel which is positioned thereon. An actuator group is connected to the wheel support in order to actuate the lifting and lowering thereof. A control unit is operationally connected to the actuator group in order to control the actuation. A lifting sensor member is provided to detect the height of the wheel support. At least one actuation instruction brings about the actuation of the actuator group in order to lift the wheel support from a lowered rest position to a predetermined lifting position, which is detected by the lifting sensor member.

A lifting system operably associable with a tire changing machine having a rotatable wheel holder and an arm, the arm having an implement disposed at a distal end thereof. The lifting system comprising first and second selectively extendable actuators configured for placement below the rotatable wheel holder of the tire changing machine and a controller communicatively coupled to the first and second actuators. When the lifting system is operably associated with the tire changing machine having a wheel mounted to the rotatable wheel holder and a tire disposed about the wheel, the controller is configured to extend the first actuator such that at least a portion of the tire is lifted relative to the wheel and the implement of the tire changing machine engages at least a portion of the tire.

A robotic wheel gripper unit that is configured for gripping and transporting a wheel to a predetermined position during an assembly operation with a tire is disclosed. The robotic wheel gripper unit comprises a selectively moveable arm that includes a gripper tool connected thereto. The gripper tool further includes a plurality of gripper fingers and at least one sensor. The gripper fingers are configured for selectively engaging a portion of a wheel. The sensor is configured to detect a predetermined element on the wheel, such as a TPMS valve stem, to assist in placement of the wheel during an assembly operation.

A tire changing machine includes a frame, a rotatable turntable for holding a wheel assembly, a bead breaker assembly engaging the wheel assembly, and a lifting assembly movably attached to the frame. The lifting assembly comprises a lift, a support platform connected to the lift, and a roller assembly movably linked to the support platform. The machine facilitates efficient tire changing operations by providing a stable platform for wheel manipulation and lifting mechanisms for easy access to the wheel assembly, enhancing the overall tire changing process.

A tire changer machine having a wheel lift mechanism (100) including a lifting structure (102) adapted to rest generally flush with a floor surface in a lowered position. The wheel lift mechanism is coupled for linear movement with a wheel supporting spindle assembly (202) and driven by a linearly-actuating cylinder (112) coupled to a linkage assembly (104). Extension of the linearly-actuating cylinder operates the linkage assembly to elevate the lifting structure towards a wheel mount location on the wheel supporting spindle assembly while maintaining the lifting structure in a generally horizontal orientation.

A handling robot includes an articulated arm movable in three directions, which carries a gripper at its free end for gripping and holding pneumatic tires. The pneumatic tire is held on its running surface by the gripper, taken from a provision position and moved to an optional wetting station for wetting the pneumatic tire with lubricant. The wetted pneumatic tire is then moved to an assembly station with a clamping device for releasably holding a wheel rim, which comprises a handling device with an assembly head equipped with assembly tools that can be guided along between the tire bead and the wheel rim flange. Here, the pneumatic tire is mounted on the wheel rim by a coordinated movement of the handling robot and the assembly head.

A system for disassembling a tire-wheel assembly includes a dismount stand, a robot, a first assembly, and a second assembly. The robot is disposed adjacent to the dismount stand. The first assembly is configured to detachably connect to the robot and engage the tire-wheel assembly. The first assembly and the robot are configured to retrieve the tire-wheel assembly from an initial location and position the tire-wheel assembly on the dismount stand. The second assembly is detachably coupled to the robot and is configured to disengage a tire of the tire-wheel assembly from a wheel of the tire-wheel assembly.

A wheel and tire assembly (WTA) balancing system configured to transport a WTA within a defined perimeter may include a robot including a selectively movable arm and an end effector connected to the movable arm and configured to selectively engage a portion of a WTA, and a controller configured to provide instructions to the robot to selectively move the WTA to at least one of a plurality of stations within the perimeter.