Adapter, valve stem, tire parameter monitoring system, and method of mounting a tire parameter monitoring system onto a wheel rim

Abstract

A tire parameter monitoring system has an electronic module with a fitting for a snap-in valve, an adapter with first lamellae couplable to the fitting, a valve stem for a clamp-in valve with second lamellae that are interleavable with the first lamellae, and a pin. The first lamellae have a first hole extending substantially perpendicularly to a major surface of the first lamellae and the second lamellae have a second hole extending substantially perpendicularly to a major surface of the second lamellae. The first and second holes are aligned when the first and second lamellae are interleaved. The pin is inserted into the first and second holes to secure the adapter and the valve stem together and to allow rotational movement of the adapter and the valve stem around a longitudinal axis of the pin such that the valve stem is positionable at different angles to the electronic module.

Claims

1. A tire parameter monitoring system, comprising: an electronic module with a fitting for a snap-in valve; an adapter configured for coupling to said fitting, said adapter having a number of first lamellae; a valve stem for a clamp-in valve, said valve stem having a number of second lamellae configured for interleaving with said first lamellae; said first lamellae being formed with a first hole extending transverse to a major surface of said first lamellae; said second lamellae being formed with a second hole extending transverse to a major surface of said second lamellae; and said first and second holes being aligned with one another when said second lamellae are interleaved with said first lamellae; and a pin for insertion into said first hole and said second hole to secure said adapter and said valve stem to one another and to allow rotational movement of said adapter and said valve stem about a longitudinal axis of said pin, to enable a positioning of said valve stem at different angles relative to said electronic module.

2. The tire parameter monitoring system according to claim 1, further comprising a nut, a washer, and a seal, wherein a position of said valve stem with respect to said electronic module is fixed by securing said nut, said washer, and said seal onto the interleaved first and second lamellae, with said seal and said washer providing an inwardly acting force on the interleaved first and second lamellae to prevent a relative movement about the longitudinal axis of said pin.

3. The tire parameter monitoring system according to claim 2, wherein said seal and said washer have inner diameters to prevent a rotational movement of said first lamellae and said second lamellae about the longitudinal axis of said pin when said seal and said washer are secured by said nut onto the interleaved first and second lamellae.

4. The tire parameter monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein each of said first lamellae has a shape of a flat plate that protrudes from a common base and each of said second lamellae has a shape of a flat plate that protrudes from a common base, and wherein said flat plates are sized, shaped, and spaced apart such that said second lamellae are interleavable with said first lamellae.

5. The tire parameter monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein said adapter comprises a connection stem to be coupled to said fitting said electronic module.

6. The tire parameter monitoring system according to claim 5, wherein said fitting is formed with an aperture and said connection stem extends through said aperture.

7. The tire parameter monitoring system according to claim 5, wherein said connection stem is formed with an inner thread and is securable to said fitting by a screw meshing with said inner thread, said screw being positioned at said fitting opposite from said connection stem.

8. The tire parameter monitoring system according to claim 7, wherein said fitting comprises a mounting plate formed with said aperture and one or more lateral gusset plates.

9. The tire parameter monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein said electronic module accommodates a tire pressure sensor unit.

10. An adapter for mounting a clamp-in valve on a snap-in electronic module of a tire parameter monitoring system with variable positioning of the clamp-in valve with respect to the snap-in electronic module, the adapter comprising: a number of first lamellae and a connection stem, the connection stem being configured to be secured to the snap-in electronic module; said first lamellae extending from the adapter and each being formed with a first hole extending transverse to a major surface of said first lamellae, said first lamellae being configured to be interleavable with a number of second lamellae extending from a valve stem for a clamp-in valve, enabling the adapter to be positioned at different angles relative to the valve stem.

11. A valve stem for a clamp-in valve, the valve stem comprising: a number of second lamellae, said second lamellae extending from the valve stem and each being formed with a second hole extending transverse to a major surface of said second lamellae; said second lamellae being configured to be interleavable with a number of first lamellae extending from an adapter for a snap-in electronic module, and enabling the valve stem to be positioned at different angles relative to the adapter.

12. A method of mounting a tire parameter monitoring system to a wheel rim, the method comprising: providing an adapter having a number of first lamellae and a connection stem, wherein the first lamellae are formed with a first hole extending transverse to a major surface of the first lamellae; interleaving the first lamellae with second lamellae of a valve stem, wherein the second lamellae are formed with a second hole extending transverse to a major surface of the second lamellae; aligning the first and second holes; inserting a pin through the first and second holes and securing the adapter and the valve stem to one another so to allow rotational movement of the adapter and the valve stem about a longitudinal axis of the pin, enabling the valve stem to be positioned at different angles relative to the electronic module; securing the connection stem to a snap-in electronic module; inserting the valve stem into a hole in an outer surface of the wheel rim; placing a nut over the valve stem; and securing the valve stem to the rim by tightening the nut.

13. The method according to claim 12, further comprising: placing a seal and a washer over the valve stem positioned on an outer surface of the wheel rim and onto the interleaved first and second lamellae; and securing the nut onto the washer and the seal such that the seal and the washer provide an inwardly acting force on the interleaved first and second lamellae that prevents a relative movement about the longitudinal axis of the pin and fixes a position of the valve stem with respect to the electronic module.

14. The method according to claim 12, which comprises securing the connection stem to the snap-in electronic module by a screw connection.

15. The method according to claim 14, which comprises inserting the connection stem into an aperture in the snap-in electronic module and meshing an inner thread of the connection stem with a screw positioned on an opposing side of the aperture.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING

(1) FIG. 1 illustrates an exploded view of the parts of a tire parameter monitoring system according to an embodiment of the invention;

(2) FIG. 2 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the assembled tire parameter monitoring system of FIG. 1;

(3) FIG. 3 illustrates a perspective view of the assembled tire parameter monitoring system of FIG. 1;

(4) FIG. 4A illustrates a side view of the tire pressure monitoring system with a first angle between the valve stem and the electronic module; and

(5) FIG. 4B illustrates a side view of the tire pressure monitoring system with a second angle between the valve stem and the electronic module.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

(6) Referring now to the figures of the drawing in detail, FIG. 1 shows an exploded view of the components of a tire parameter monitoring system 2, in particular a tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS), according to an embodiment of the invention. FIG. 2 illustrates a cross-sectional view and FIG. 3 illustrates a perspective view of the assembled tire parameter monitoring system 2 of FIG. 1.

(7) The tire parameter monitoring system 2 includes an electronic module 4 which includes a fitting 6 for a snap-in valve, an adapter 8 that can be coupled to the fitting 6 and, therefore, to the electronic module 4 and a valve stem 10 for a clamp-in valve 12. The electronic module 4 includes a housing in which the electronics for a sensor for the tire parameter monitoring system are positioned. The sensor may be a tire pressure sensor.

(8) The adapter 8 has a connection stem 14 which is adapted to be connectable to the fitting 6 of the electronic module 4. In this embodiment, the connection stem 14 has an elongate rod shape and has an outer diameter such that the connection stem 14 can be inserted into an aperture 36 of the fitting 6. The adapter 8 further includes a plurality of first lamellae 16 that extend from the opposing end of the adapter 8 to the connection stem 14.

(9) Each of the first lamellae 16 has the form of a flat plate 50 that extends from a common base to form a plurality of straight teeth or tines that are spaced apart from one another. The major surfaces 18 of the flat plates 50 are substantially parallel to one another and include a first hole 20. The first holes 20 of each of the first lamellae 16 are aligned on a common axis and together form a bore for accepting a pin 48 of a pin joint. The distal ends of the first lamellae 16 may be rounded and have a concave shape and the base of the adapter 8 between adjacent first lamellae 16 may have a convex shape.

(10) The valve stem 10 has a substantially elongate shape and includes a plurality of second lamellae 22 at its inner end that are spaced apart from one another and connected to the valve stem 10 at the base. The clamp-in valve 12 is inserted into the opposing end of the valve stem 10. The second lamellae 22 also have the form of a flat plate 24 each including a second hole 26 in a major surface 28. The second holes 26 are aligned on a common axis and together form a bore for accepting the pin 48 of the pin joint. The distal ends of the second lamellae 22 are rounded, for example concave, and the base of the connecting portions between adjacent second lamellae 22 may have a convex shape.

(11) The first lamellae 16 have a width w.sub.1 and a spacing d.sub.1 between adjacent first lamellae and the second lamellae 22 have a width w.sub.2 and a spacing d.sub.2 between adjacent second lamellae. The width w.sub.1 of the first lamellae 16 is less than the spacing d.sub.2 between adjacent second lamellae 22 and the width w.sub.2 of the second lamellae 22 is less than the spacing d.sub.1 between adjacent first lamellae 16 so as to enable the first lamellae 16 and the second lamellae 22 to be alternatively interleaved to form a stack of alternate first and second lamellae 16, 22.

(12) The tire parameter monitoring system 2 also includes a washer 30, a seal 32 and a nut 34 which are adapted to fit over the valve stem 10.

(13) In some embodiments, the fitting 6 of the snap-in electronic module 4 includes an aperture 36. In some embodiments, the fitting 6 includes a mounting plate 44 which may be supported by one or more lateral gussets 46. The aperture 36 may be positioned in the mounting plate 44. The connection stem 14 is aligned with, and may extend through, the aperture 36 at an outer side 38 of the fitting 6. The connection stem 14 may include an inner thread which is coupled to a screw 40 positioned on an opposing inner side 42 of the fitting 6 in order to secure the adapter 8 to the electronic module 4 and fix the position of the adapter 8 with respect to the electronic module 4.

(14) As is illustrated in the assembly views depicted in FIGS. 2 and 3, the valve stem 10 may be mechanically coupled with the adapter 8 by inserting the second lamellae 22 between the first lamellae 16 of the adapter 8 such that the first and second lamellae 16, 22 are interleaved and such that the first holes 20 are aligned with the second holes 26 to form a common bore having a longitudinal axis. The pin 48 can be inserted into the common bore such that the first and second lamellae 16, 22 and consequently the valve stem 10 and the adapter 8 are rotatable about the longitudinal axis L of the pin 48. The pin 48 can be secured within the common bore by use of caps having at least one dimension which is greater than the diameter of the common bore.

(15) The joint provided between the first and second lamellae 16, 22 by the pin 48 enables the angle between the valve stem 10 and the electronic unit 4 to vary, as indicated by the arrow 52, thus enabling the tire parameter monitoring system 2 to be used on different types of wheel rim. In operation, the electronic module 4 and a base portion of the connection stem 14 are positioned on an inner surface of the wheel rim and within the tire. The valve stem 10, washer 30, seal 32 and nut 34 are positioned on the outer surface of the wheel rim.

(16) The first and second lamellae 16, 22 may each have a length such that when the first and second holes 20, 26 are aligned, the distal end of the first lamellae 16 is spaced apart from the base extending between the second lamellae 22 and vice versa. In some embodiments, the curved shape of the distal end may be formed such that a mechanical stop function is provided which limits the extent of the rotation around the longitudinal axis L of the pin 48.

(17) The tire parameter monitoring system 2 enables the clamp-in valve 12 and valve stem 10 to be mounted at an adjustable angle on a wheel rim by means of the pin joint formed between the first lamellae 16 of the adapter 8 and the second lamellae 22 of the valve stem 10. The angular position between the valve stem 10 and the electronic module 4 is variable about the longitudinal axis L of the pin 48, as indicated by the arrow 52. The clamp-in valve 12 can be mounted on the wheel rim at a convenient angle for the best fitment due to the variable positioning of the valve stem 10.

(18) FIG. 4A illustrates the electronic module 4 coupled with a valve 10 with a first angle of approximately 10° between the longitudinal axis of the valve stem and the upper surface of the electronic module 4. FIG. 4B illustrates the electronic module 4 coupled with the valve stem 10 at a second angle of approximately 40° between the longitudinal axis of the valve stem and the upper surface of the electronic module 4. The angle about the longitudinal axis L of the pin 48 that is variable is indicated by the double arrow 52.

(19) Since the electronic module 4 has not been modified and includes a fitting of the snap-in type, it can be used for a snap-in valve as well as a clamp-in valve by means of the adapter 8 and valve stem 10 disclosed herein, thus reducing the number of parts which are required to produce both types of system. Additionally, the clamp-in valve stem 10 can be mounted at different angular positions with respect to the electronic module 4 so that the tire parameter monitoring system 2 can be used with different wheel rims with a clamp-in valve.

(20) The tire parameter monitoring system 2 is mounted on the wheel rim by placing the washer 30 and the seal 32 onto the valve stem 10 and coupling the adapter 8 with the valve stem 10 and with the electronic module 4 to form an assembly. The valve stem 10 of the assembly is inserted into a hole in the wheel rim.

(21) The adapter 8 is secured to the electronic module 4 by securing the connection stem 14 to the snap-in fitting 6 of the electronic module 4 positioned on an inner surface of the wheel rim. This may be performed by inserting the connection stem 14 into the aperture 36 in the fitting 6 and engaging the screw 40 with the inner thread of the connection stem 14 to secure the connection stem 14 and the adapter 8 to the outer side 38 of the fitting with the head of the screw 40 being engaged with the inner side 42 of the fitting 6.

(22) The adapter 8 may be coupled to the valve stem 10 by interleaving the first lamellae 16 of the adapter 8 with the second lamellae 22 of the valve stem 10 so that the first and second holes 20, 26 are aligned. The pin 48 is inserted into the common bore formed by the first and second holes 20, 26. In this partially assembly state, the arrangement allows rotational movement of the adapter 8 and the valve stem 10 around a longitudinal axis L of the pin 48 as indicated by the arrow 52 such that the valve stem 10 is positionable at different angles to the electronic module 4.

(23) The valve stem 10 is inserted to the hole in the wheel rim, the nut 34 is placed over the valve stem 10 and tightened to mount the tire parameter monitoring system 2 to the wheel rim. This tightening of the nut 34 exerts an inwardly acting force onto the interleaved first and second lamellae 16, 22 so that further rotation around the longitudinal axis L of the pin 48 is prevented and the angle between the valve stem 10 and the electronic module 4 is fixed.

(24) The following is a summary list of reference numerals and the corresponding structure used in the above description of the invention:

(25) 2 tire parameter monitoring system

(26) 4 electronic module

(27) 6 fitting

(28) 8 adapter

(29) 10 valve stem

(30) 12 clamp-in valve

(31) 14 connection stem

(32) 16 first lamella

(33) 18 major surface

(34) 20 first hole

(35) 22 second lamella

(36) 24 flat plate

(37) 26 second hole

(38) 28 major surface

(39) 30 washer

(40) 32 seal

(41) 34 nut

(42) 36 aperture

(43) 38 outer side

(44) 40 screw

(45) 42 inner side

(46) 44 mounting plate

(47) 46 lateral gusset

(48) 48 pin

(49) 50 flat plate

(50) 52 arrow

(51) d.sub.1 spacing between first lamellae

(52) d.sub.2 spacing between second lamellae

(53) w.sub.1 width (thickness) of first lamellae

(54) w.sub.2 width (thickness) of second lamellae