Wheel with motor and vehicle braking device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10047808-B2
Application number	US-201415106729-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 18, 2014
Priority date	Dec 20, 2013
Publication date	Aug 14, 2018
Grant date	Aug 14, 2018

Abstract

A wheel assembly for a vehicle includes a wheel rim suitable to rotate around an axis of rotation (a-a), defining an axial direction (A-A) parallel or coincident with the axis of rotation (a-a), an orthogonal radial direction (R-R), and a circumferential direction locally coincident with a tangential direction (T-T) orthogonal to the axial direction (A-A) and the radial direction (R-R), the wheel rim having a radially outer side, opposite the axis of rotation (a-a), and a radially inner side facing the axis of rotation (a-a), the rim being suitable to receive externally a tire, and wherein the wheel rim forms internally a cylindrical chamber of the rim delimited radially from the inner side; a motor comprising a rotor and a stator; the rotor being supported, free to rotate, on the stator; said stator being fixed to a stator support; the motor being housed in the cylindrical wheel rim chamber of the wheel rim; the rotor is selectively, removably and rigidly connected to the inner side of the wheel rim, avoiding the interposition of elastic members or damping members.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. Wheel assembly for a vehicle, comprising:
a wheel rim suitable to rotate around an axis of rotation, defining an axial direction parallel or coincident with said axis of rotation, an orthogonal radial direction, and a circumferential direction locally coincident with a tangential direction orthogonal to the axial direction and the radial direction, said wheel rim having a radially outer side, or outer side, opposite the axis of rotation, and a radially inner side, or inner side, facing the axis of rotation, said rim being suitable to receive externally a tyre, and wherein said wheel rim forms internally a cylindrical chamber of the rim delimited radially from said inner side;
a motor comprising a rotor and a stator; said rotor being supported, free to rotate, on said stator; said stator being fixed to a stator support; said motor being housed in the said cylindrical wheel rim chamber of said wheel rim;
said rotor being selectively and removably connected rigidly to the inner side of said wheel rim, avoiding the interposition of elastic members or damping members between said rotor and said wheel rim;
said assembly also comprising a braking device, said device comprising a disc brake disc having a radially outer edge and a radially inner edge, said braking device further comprising a disc brake caliper selectively and removably connected, directly or indirectly, to said stator support, said disc brake caliper being placed with an active part astride the inner edge of said disc brake disc; wherein
said wheel rim is made in two parts selectively and removably connected to each other to form a wheel rim body, each of said two parts forms an annular holding edge, said holding edges cooperate with each other, when the two parts are connected to form the wheel rim body, forming in the radially outward direction, a channel for holding the tyre; and wherein
one of the two parts of said wheel rim forms in a single piece at least one spoke that protrudes radially towards the axis of rotation; and wherein
said disc is connected with its outer edge to said at least one spoke.

2. Assembly according to claim 1 , wherein in said at least one rim:
a portion of said at least one spoke forms at least one axial guide defining at least one guide surface having at least one portion that extends along the axial direction; and/or wherein
said at least one axial guide defines at least one guide surface having at least one portion that extends along the radial direction; and/or wherein
said disc is removably connected with its outer edge to said at least one spoke; and/or wherein
said disc is connected slidingly with its outer edge to said at least one spoke; and/or wherein
said disc comprises on said outer edge at least one guide counter-surface that cooperates with said guide surface to allow said disc to slide in the axial direction, said guide counter-surface cooperating with said guide, creating a support that extends in the axial direction for the free sliding of the disc brake disc; and/or wherein
said disc, comprises, on said its outer edge, at least one guide counter-surface that cooperates, with at least one of its portions, with a portion that extends along the radial direction; and/or wherein
said guide counter-surface, cooperates with said guide and creates a support in tangential or circumferential direction; and/or wherein
a portion of said at least one spoke forms at least one axial guide defining at least one guide surface directed along the axial direction; said disc being geometrically coupled with its outer edge with said axial guide to make said disc slidable or floatable in axial direction and, at the same time, to abut said outer edge of the disc against abutment surfaces provided in said guides for the tangential support of the disc during the braking action; and/or wherein
said disc comprises in said its outer edge, at least one geometrical-coupling radial extension with at least one seat forming guide surface provided in said at least one spoke; and/or wherein
said disk comprises at least one radial extension that protrudes radially away from said axis of rotation, said at least one radial extension forming a guide counter-surface that extends in the axial direction and in radial direction, or a direction parallel to the radial direction, forming an abutment counter-surface or tangential stop, said at least one spoke comprises at least one groove that forms at least one guide surface that extends in the axial direction and in radial direction, or a direction parallel to the radial direction, forming an abutment surface or tangential stop, said at least one extension is received in said at least one groove so as to face said guide counter-surface to said guide surface, so that during a braking action, said guide counter-surface goes in abutment or stops against said guide surface; and/or wherein
said at least one spoke are a plurality of spokes, preferably, but not necessarily, distributed circumferentially; and/or wherein
said at least one guide surface are a plurality of guide surfaces and said at least one guide counter-surface are a plurality of guide counter-surfaces, preferably, but not necessarily, circumferentially distributed; and/or wherein
said at least one guide surface are a plurality of opposing guide surfaces and said at least one guide counter-surface are a plurality of guide counter-surfaces, preferably, but not necessarily, circumferentially distributed; and/or wherein
a portion of said at least one spoke forms at least one axial guide coupled geometrically with the outer edge of said disc for the sliding or floating movement along an axial direction of said disc, said axial guide comprising at least one axial end-of-stroke stop, and/or wherein said axial end-of-stroke stop forms an annular surface extending radially to form an axial stop for the annular portions of the side walls of the outer edge of the disc; and/or wherein said at least one axial end-of-stroke stop is obtained with a retaining ring, partially received in an annular radial groove formed in said at least one axial guide; and/or wherein
between said disc and said spoke is interposed a spring; and/or wherein
said at least one spoke are a plurality of spokes circumferentially distributed in such a number as to allow guiding, without jamming, the floating movement of the disc brake disc and/or limiting, within pre-defined values, the stress per unit of area transmitted from the brake disc to the wheel rim during the braking action; and/or wherein
said two parts, or outer half-rim and inner half-rim, are selectively and removably connected to each other to form a rim body, each forming a single annular holding edge extended substantially circumferentially; and/or wherein
said tyre has circumferential shoulders for coupling to the rim and said two parts, or outer half-rim and inner half-rim, selectively and removably connected to each other to form a rim body, each forming a single holding edge to hold the shoulders of said tyre; and/or wherein
each of said two parts form an opposite annular holding edge, said opposed edges cooperate with each other, when the two parts are connected to form the body of the wheel rim, forming in radially outward direction the channel for holding the tyre; and/or wherein
a gasket is interposed between said two parts, selectively and removably connected to form a rim body, to allow the use of tires without tube, or tubeless, and prevent the escape of pressurized gases from the chamber formed between the channel of the rim and the inside of the tyre; said gasket is an O-ring arranged between two circumferentially and axially extended surfaces of said two parts of the rim overlapping one another in the radial direction so as to create a seal between these two parts but avoid the gasket being excessively stressed by tightening

Assignees

• Freni Brembo Spa

Inventors

• Szewczyk Beniamin
• Sala Paolo
• Arrigoni Riccardo
• Crippa Cristian
• Milanesi Andrea
• Ciotti Alessandro

Classifications

• B60L2220/44

  Wheel Hub motors, i.e. integrated in the wheel hub · CPC title

• B60B25/004

  one rim part comprising the wheel disc · CPC title

• B60K2007/0092

  the motor axle being coaxial to the wheel axle · CPC title

• B60K7/0007 Primary

  the motor being electric · CPC title

• F16D2065/1384

  to wheel hub · CPC title