GB2348619A

GB2348619A - Wheel brace and jack handle

Info

Publication number: GB2348619A
Application number: GB9907573A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Phillip Jarrett
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1999-04-06
Filing date: 1999-04-06
Publication date: 2000-10-11
Anticipated expiration: 2019-04-06
Also published as: GB2348619B; GB0000247D0; GB9907573D0

Abstract

A wheel brace for use with vehicles of various kinds, providing means 19 to loosen and tighten the wheel nuts and means 17 to remove the wheel trim and for use as a drive handle or the vehicle lifting jack. For loosening or tightening a nut via socket 19, the wheel brace body 20 is gripped along the drive arm connected to ring 17. For removing the wheel trim, the rounded thin side of the permanently attached disc-like ring 17 (located in slot 21) is used as a lever to prise off the trim. For driving the vehicle lifting jack, the ring 17 is attached to the hook drive of the jack. The jack attachment and trim remover may be formed as detachable items and fitted to a drive head on the tool (Fig 1 not shown). In other arrangements the tool can be formed as a spider and also may have a telescopic or folding handle (Figs 10, 11 and 12, not shown).

Description

MULTI-PURPOSE WHEEL BRACE The present invention relates to a multi-purpose wheel brace, for use with vehicles of various kinds.

It is sometimes necessary to change a wheel and replace with a spare, for example, due to a puncture of the tyre, or, other wheel/tyre damage. In order for this to be accomplished by the vehicle driver, it is customary for the manufacturer of the vehicle to supply a wheel brace to loosen and subsequently tighten the wheel nuts. In addition, the vehicle manufacturer normally supplies a lifting jack, often of the mechanical screw-drive"scissors"type along with a separate hand-operated cranked drive handle. The latter normally has a hooked end which is inserted into the drive ring integrally attached to the lifting jack and thus the hook and ring provide a simple universal joint for driving the lifting jack. In other words, in addition to the lifting jack, as minimum, the vehicle manufacturer normally provides two separate tools, namely, the wheel brace and the jack drive handle. In addition to the foregoing, a further chisel-like tool is sometimes provided by the vehicle manufacturer to remove the wheel trim, prior to changing the wheel.

The main objective of the present invention is to combine the functions of the wheel brace and jack drive handle and wheel trim remover into one integrated tool, namely, to provide a multi-purpose wheel brace. This offers the vehicle manufacturer some potential cost savings during production along with vehicle weight and boot space saving benefits. For the driver, the invention has the advantage of speeding up the wheel changing process, given it is only necessary to locate (within the boot) and subsequently use and store only one tool.

Although some vehicle manufacturers have previously combined the wheel brace and trim removal functions into one tool, the additional integration of the jack drive handle has not taken place, given that the hand tools typically supplied by the vehicle manufacturer do not obviously lend themselves to the latter. For example, the arms of the wheel brace normally supplied make an angle of around 120 degrees; also, the addition of a hook (for engaging the drive ring on the lifting jack) would require the complete displacement of the integral wheel trim removal.

According to the present invention, there is provided a wheel brace suitable for multi-purpose use, providing means to loosen and tighten wheel nuts and to remove the wheel trim and for use as a drive handle for the vehicle lifting jack.

Several specific embodiments of the present invention will now be described, as examples, with reference to the accompanying drawings: Fig 1 shows one embodiment comprising an"L"type wheel brace with, at the one end, a male drive socket suitable for alternative female socket attachments; Fig 2 shows one view of a wheel trim removal attachment for the wheel brace shown in Fig 1 ; Fig 3 shows another view of the wheel trim removal attachment shown in Fig 2; Fig 4 shows a second embodiment comprising an"L"type wheel brace with, at the one end, both a male drive socket suitable for alternative female socket attachments along with an integral wheel trim removal tool; Fig 5 shows one view of a hook-type jack drive attachment for the wheel brace shown in Fig 4; Fig 6 shows one view of a ring-type jack drive attachment for the wheel brace shown in Fig 4; Fig 7 shows a third embodiment comprising an"L"type wheel brace with, at the one end, an integral ring-type jack drive and wheel trim removal tool; Fig 8 shows the view underneath the"L"type wheel brace shown in Fig 7; Fig 9 shows a fourth embodiment comprising an"S"type wheel brace with, at the one end, an integral ring-type jack drive and wheel trim removal tool; Fig 10 shows a fifth embodiment comprising a"spider"type wheel brace with, at one extremity, an integral hook-type jack drive tool and, at another extremity, an integral wheel trim removal tool ; Fig 11 shows a sixth embodiment comprising a"T"shaped wheel brace with, at one extremity, a hook-type jack drive attachment and, at another extremity, an integral wheel trim removal tool; Fig 12 shows a seventh embodiment comprising a wheel brace incorporating a hinge, when used for driving the vehicle lifting jack, or, for nut running purposes; Fig 13 shows another view of the wheel brace shown in Fig 12, when used for loosening and tightening wheel nuts; Fig 14 shows the view underneath the wheel brace shown in Fig 13.

Referring to Fig 1, the wheel brace body 2 might be made from a solid forging, or, from cold drawn tube (to provide a weight saving), with the two adjacent arms of the wheel brace disposed at a right angle. At the end of one arm of body 2 is located an integral socket 1 for engaging the wheel nut and, at the end of the other arm of body 2, a square male drive is provided for the fitting of alternative attachments. However, it should be noted that other drive arrangements are possible, for example, an hexagonal or more customised male drive might be used.

In Fig 1, the attachment shown is a hook 3 permanently attached to a female socket 4; item 3/4 being suitable for engaging the drive ring on the vehicle lifting jack typically supplied. The latter can then be operated by hand rotating socket 1 around the longitudinal axis of the jack drive.

Figs 2-3 show an alternative attachment, comprising a female socket 5 and a permanently attached chisel-like tool 6. For removing the wheel trim prior to loosening the wheel nuts, the chiselled end of the tool 6 is inserted between the wheel trim and the wheel and then a twisting or levering action is applied via the wheel brace body 2.

For the loosening and subsequent tightening of the wheel nuts via socket 1, the wheel brace is hand gripped near the male socket end, allowing the maximum hand leverage to be applied to the nut.

Referring to Fig 4, the wheel brace body 7 (with integral socket 10) is similar to already described with reference to Fig 1 ; except, at the end of one arm, in addition to a male square drive 8, an integral wheel trim removal tool 9 has been incorporated.

Figs 5 and 6, respectively, show two types of attachment suitable for driving a vehicle jack.

The attachment shown in Fig 5 has a hook 12 as normally provided for the vehicle lifting jack.

However, Fig 6 shows an alternative form of jack drive comprising a ring for engaging a hooked jack drive end; in other words, the locations of the typical hook and drive ring have been reversed. In both cases, integral female square drives are shown as items 11 and 13, respectively, both having an elongated clearance hole for accommodating the cross-section of the wheel trim removal tool 9.

Further variations (not shown) on the embodiment as described with reference to Fig 4 are possible, for example, Fig 6 could be permanently attached to the vehicle jack drive ring, during manufacture of the jack. Alternatively, a different type of jack might be supplied with the vehicle (such as an hydraulic jack, or, an Hi-Lift"sheepherder's type jack) which requires an up/down drive handle movement, instead of a rotational drive. In the case of an up/down drive being required, the square drive 8 might be replaced by the round section of the wheel brace body, with the jack drive hole being elongated axially (similar to 11 and 13) to provide sufficient clearance for the wheel trim removal tool 9.

Referring to Figs 7 and 8, the wheel brace body 16 (with integral socket 15) is similar to already described with reference to Fig 1 ; except, at the end of one arm, a disc-like component 17 has been permanently attached to body 16 via, for example, a location slot 18 and welded or brazed into position.

The disc-like component 17 serves two functions: firstly, to remove the wheel trim by inserting its thin and rounded side between the trim and the wheel and then twisting or levering the wheel brace body 20; secondly, it provides a drive ring for attaching to a hooked jack drive end.

Referring to Fig 9, the"S"shaped wheel brace body 20 effectively has two parallel drive arms: one is connected to the socket 19 for engaging the wheel nut; the other is connected to the integral trim remover/drive ring 17 located in slot 21.

For loosening and tightening wheel nuts, the wheel brace body 20 is gripped along the drive arm attached to the trim remover/drive ring 17 so that a hand leverage can be applied to the wheel nut. Alternatively, after connecting to the vehicle lifting jack, the wheel brace body 20 is gripped along the drive arm attached to the socket 19 and the arm is rotated by hand about the longitudinal axis of the jack drive.

Referring to Fig 10, the"spider"type wheel brace has been formed from bars 24 and 25 disposed at a right angle and joined at their respective mid-points, for example, by a friction weld. Wheel brace bar 24 has, at the end of each of its arms, a socket for engaging the wheel nut, each socket being of a different commonly used size. On the other hand, wheel brace bar 25 has, at the end of its arms, an integral wheel trim remover 26 and an integral vehicle lifting jack drive hook 27, respectively. As alternative (not shown), the jack drive hook could, for example, be replaced by male drive for attaching a hook 3/4 (as shown in Fig 1). Also, the male drive could optionally be used to attach another size of socket (different to the sizes integrally provided) for engaging a wheel nut. Again, in Fig 10, a hook (not shown) similar to 3/4 in Fig 1 but provided with a male hexagonal socket could be inserted into integral sockets 22 or 23 for the purpose of driving a vehicle lifting jack.

Referring to Fig 11, a lever bar 32 forms the"top"of a"T"shaped assembly and might be forged from a single bar (as shown). At the end of one arm of lever bar 32, there is provided a male drive suitable for attaching socket 29 for engaging a wheel nut. At the end of the other arm of lever bar 32, there is a chisel shaped wheel trim removal tool 38.

With hook 30/31 fitted as shown in Fig 11, the vehicle jack can be driven by hand rotating lever bar 32 about the longitudinal axis of torque bar 34.

Again, with reference to Fig 11, torque bar 34 is attached to lever bar 32 via a location hole near the mid point of bar 32 and retained in the hole by pin 33. For the purpose of compact storage, pin 33 might optionally be removed allowing torque bar 34 and lever bar 32 to be dis-assembled, with the two bars then laid adjacent and parallel to one another.

As shown in Fig 11, torque bar 34 has an outer tube 35 which (when hook 30/31 has been removed) can be slid along torque bar 34, in a direction away from the longitudinal axis of lever bar 32. This tends to increase the leverage which can be applied via socket 29 (when fitted as shown) which is helpful when undoing stubborn over-tight wheel nuts. The movement of outer tube 35 is ultimately limited by the reduced diameter portion 36 of tube 35 being restricted by collar 37 formed near the end of torque bar 34.

To prevent subsequent over-tightening of a wheel nut and potential damage to the stud and nut threads, the driver needs to takes care to fully retract the outer tube 35 over bar 34. As a further variation (not shown) on the embodiment as described with reference to Fig 11, one or more one-way hinges could be incorporated along the axis of torque bar 34 (similar to described in GB 9813729.2) thus limiting the maximum tightening leverage which can be applied.

Referring to Figs 12-14, the wheel brace shown comprises two main body component 40 and 41, respectively, which are joined by hinge 43. The hinge, for example, could be formed from female lugs 45 at the one end of 40 and the male lug 46 at the one end of 41 ; the components 40 and 41 are held together by a double-headed rivet forming the pivot point of the hinge 43.

The other ends of body components 40 and 41, respectively, have an integral socket 39 for engaging a wheel nut and a trim remover/drive ring 47 located in the slot 42. The ring 47 has tapered sides making it suitable for prising off the wheel trim remover (in addition to optionally driving the vehicle lifting jack).

In Fig 12, the wheel brace is shown in its"fast crank"configuration for driving the lifting jack (if gripped at the arm adjacent to socket 39), or, as used for nut running purposes (if gripped at the arm adjacent to trim remover/drive ring 17) In Figs 13 and 14, the wheel brace is shown in its"high torque"configuration, namely, for the loosening or tightening of a wheel nut, when gripped at the end of the arm adjacent to the trim remover/drive ring 17.

Some further variations (not shown) on the embodiment as described with reference to Figs 12-14 are possible, in order to introduce a greater degree of stiffness into hinge 43, making the alternative"fast crank"and"high torque"configurations more stable from the user viewpoint.

For example, a suitable spiral or Belleville spring washer could be included within the assembly of hinge 43, increasing the frictional resistance by exerting a force along the axis of the riveted hinge pin. As alternative, a high friction washer of the"Nyloc"or similar type could be included, avoiding the need for a high axial load. On the other hand, the female end of bar 40 could be fitted with a spring-loaded housing (of the type commonly used to locate socket end fittings) with the male end of the adjacent bar 41 having two indentations at a right angle to one another. This latter arrangement is similar to the one shown in Fig 6 of GB 9813729.2.

For wheel nut tightening and loosening purposes, the various wheel brace embodiments described might typically provide a hand leverage (excluding any increase due to a sliding outer tube) of 150mm to 650mm to the wheel nut, depending on the type and size of vehicle.

Claims

CLAIMS 1. A wheel brace suitable for multi-purpose use, providing means to loosen and tighten wheel nuts and to remove the wheel trim and for use as a drive handle for the vehicle lifting jack.
2. A wheel brace suitable for multi-purpose use, providing means to loosen and tighten wheel nuts and for use as a drive handle for the vehicle lifting jack.
3. A wheel brace as claimed in Claims 1 or 2 with, at one extremity, a drive head or socket head for engaging the wheel nut and, at another extremity, a drive head for attaching an attachment suitable for engaging the drive of the vehicle lifting jack and for optionally attaching a wheel trim removal tool.
4. A wheel brace as claimed in Claim 1, at one extremity, a drive head or socket head for engaging the wheel nut and, at another extremity, both an integral wheel trim removal tool and an integral drive head for attaching an attachment suitable for engaging the drive of the vehicle lifting jack.
5. A wheel brace as claimed in Claim 1 with, at one extremity, a drive head or socket head for engaging the wheel nut and, at another extremity, both an integral wheel trim removal tool and an integral drive head for directly engaging the vehicle lifting jack.
6. A wheel brace as claimed in Claim 1 with, at one or more extremities, a drive head or socket head for engaging the wheel nut and, at another extremity, an integral wheel trim removal tool and, at a further extremity, an integral tool suitable for engaging the drive of the vehicle lifting jack.
7. A wheel brace as claimed in Claim I with, at one extremity, a drive head or socket for engaging the wheel nut and, at another extremity, an integral wheel trim removal tool and, at a further extremity, a drive head for attaching an attachment suitable for engaging the drive of the vehicle lifting jack or for attaching a socket for engaging the wheel nut.
8. A wheel brace as claimed in Claims 3,4,6 or 7 where the attachment or integral tool suitable for engaging the drive of the vehicle lifting jack comprises a hook for engaging a ring permanently fixed to the drive of the lifting jack.
9. A wheel brace as claimed in Claims 3,4,6 or 7 where the attachment or integral tool suitable for engaging the drive of the vehicle lifting jack comprises a ring for engaging a hook permanently fixed to the drive of the lifting jack.
10. A wheel brace as claimed in Claim 5, where the integral drive head for directly engaging the drive of the lifting jack comprises a drive socket for a jack of a type requiring a square, hexagonal, or other suitable end capable of transmitting a rotational drive handle movement to the jack.
11. A wheel brace as claimed in Claim 5, where the integral drive head for engaging the drive of the lifting jack comprises a drive socket for a jack of a type requiring a round-ended or similar drive handle capable of transmitting an up/down drive handle movement.
12. A wheel brace as claimed in Claim 5, where the integral wheel trim removal tool and integral drive for engaging the lifting jack comprises a thin disc-like ring with rounded sides, suitable for both wheel trim removal and for engaging a hook permanently fixed to the drive of the vehicle lifting jack.
13. A wheel brace as claimed in Claim 5, where the integral wheel trim removal tool and integral drive for engaging the lifting jack comprises a ring with tapered sides, suitable for both wheel trim removal and for engaging a hook permanently fixed to the drive of the vehicle lifting jack.
14. A wheel brace as claimed in Claim 13, where the hinge incorporates means to increase its stiffness, so that the alternative wheel brace configurations are more stable from the user viewpoint.

14. A wheel brace as claimed in Claim 3, substantially as described herein with reference to Figs 1-3 of the accompanying drawings.

15. A wheel brace as claimed in Claims 4 or 5, substantially as described herein with reference to Figs 4-6 of the accompanying drawings.

16. A wheel brace as claimed in Claim 5, substantially as described herein with reference to Figs 7-8 of the accompanying drawings.

17. A wheel brace as claimed in Claim 5, substantially as described herein with reference to Fig 9 of the accompanying drawings.

18. A wheel brace as claimed in Claim 6, substantially as described herein with reference to Fig 10 of the accompanying drawings.

19. A wheel brace as claimed in Claim 7, substantially as described herein with reference to Fig 11 of the accompanying drawings.

20. A wheel brace as claimed in Claim 5, substantially as described herein with reference to Figs 12-14 of the accompanying drawings.

21. A wheel brace as claimed in any of the claims 1-20 where, excluding any increase due to a sliding outer tube, the wheel brace is capable of applying a hand leverage of 150mm to 650mm to the wheel nut, depending on the type and size of vehicle.

Amendments to the claims have been filed as follows 1. A wheel brace suitable for multi-purpose use with, at one extremity, a socket head for engaging a wheel nut and, at another extremity, an integral wheel trim removal tool and, at or near the same extremity as the trim removal tool, means for co-operating with or engaging the drive of the vehicle lifting jack.

2. A wheel brace as claimed in Claim 1, where the means for co-operating with the drive of the vehicle lifting jack comprises a drive head for attaching a suitable jack drive attachment.

3. A wheel brace as claimed in Claim 2, where the jack drive attachment comprises a hook for engaging a ring permanently fixed to the drive of the vehicle lifting jack.

4. A wheel brace as claimed in Claim 2, where the jack drive attachment comprises a ring for engaging a hook permanently fixed to the drive of the vehicle lifting jack.

5. A wheel brace'as claimed in Claim 2, where the jack drive attachment comprises a ring inter-linked with another ring permanently fixed to the drive of the vehicle lifting jack.

6. A wheel brace as claimed in Claim 1, where the means for engaging the drive of the vehicle lifting jack comprises an integral jack drive head.

7. A wheel brace as claimed in Claim 6, where the integral jack drive head comprises a drive socket for a jack of a type requiring a round-ended or similar drive handle capable of transmitting an up/down drive handle movement.

8. A wheel brace as claimed in Claim 6, where the integral jack drive head comprises a ring suitable for both wheel trim removal and for engaging a hook permanently fixed to the drive of the vehicle lifting jack.

9. A wheel brace as claimed in Claim 8, where the ring is thin and disc-like with rounded sides.

10. A wheel brace as claimed in Claim 8, where the ring has tapered sides.

11. A wheel brace as claimed in any of the Claims 1-10, where the wheel brace takes the form of a"L"type wheel brace.

12. A wheel brace as claimed in any of the Claims 1-10, where the wheel brace take the form of a"S"type wheel brace.

13. A wheel brace as claimed in Claim 12, where there are two main body components joined via a hinge, allowing the wheel brace to be alternatively configured as a"L"type or as a"S"type wheel brace, depending upon the relative angular dispositions of the body components.