U.S. patent application number 09/765875 was filed with the patent office on 2002-02-14 for bicycle hub provided with a seal member for preventing entrance of dust cross-reference of related application.
This patent application is currently assigned to Kun Teng Industry Co., Ltd.. Invention is credited to Chen, Hubert.
Application Number | 20020017819 09/765875 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 24543805 |
Filed Date | 2002-02-14 |
United States Patent
Application |
20020017819 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Chen, Hubert |
February 14, 2002 |
Bicycle hub provided with a seal member for preventing entrance of
dust cross-reference of related application
Abstract
A hub includes a hub housing sleeved rotatably on a spindle, and
a tubular end piece sleeved fixedly on the spindle. A tubular
flexible seal member is disposed between the hub housing and the
end piece, and includes an outer ring and an inner ring. The outer
ring has a circular tubular portion with an axial inner end, and an
inward flange that extends integrally, radially and inwardly from
the inner end of the circular tubular portion to abut against a
bottom wall of an annular groove that is formed in an end surface
of the hub housing. The inner ring has a largest-diameter inner end
that is formed integrally with an inner periphery of the inward
flange, and a smallest-diameter outer end portion which is sleeved
around and which is in tight engagement with a frictional outer
surface of an insert portion of the end piece. The inner ring
reduces gradually in inner diameter from the largest-diameter inner
end to the smallest-diameter outer end portion. The
smallest-diameter outer end portion has an inner diameter that is
slightly smaller than outer diameter of the insert portion of the
end piece when removed from the end piece.
Inventors: |
Chen, Hubert; (Taichung
Hsien, TW) |
Correspondence
Address: |
PAUL D. GREELEY, ESQ.
OHLANDT, GREELEY, RUGGIERO & PERLE, L.L.P.
10th FLOOR
ONE LANDMARK SQUARE
STAMFORD
CT
06901-2682
US
|
Assignee: |
Kun Teng Industry Co., Ltd.
|
Family ID: |
24543805 |
Appl. No.: |
09/765875 |
Filed: |
January 19, 2001 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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09765875 |
Jan 19, 2001 |
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09634442 |
Aug 8, 2000 |
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6322155 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
301/110.5 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F16C 2326/20 20130101;
F16C 33/78 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
301/110.5 |
International
Class: |
B60B 027/00 |
Claims
I claim:
1. A hub including a spindle, a tubular hub housing sleeved
rotatably on said spindle, a tubular end piece sleeved fixedly on
said spindle near an end of said hub housing, and a tubular seal
member disposed between said hub housing and said end piece,
wherein the improvement comprises: said hub housing having an end
surface which is formed with an annular groove that is defined by a
side wall and a bottom wall; said end piece having a tubular insert
portion with an annular frictional outer surface, around which said
side wall of said hub housing is disposed; and said seal member
being disposed within said hub housing and including: an L-shaped
cross-sectioned flexible outer ring having a circular tubular
portion with an axial inner end, and an inward flange extending
integrally, radially and inwardly from said axial inner end of said
circular tubular portion and abutting against said bottom wall of
said hub housing, and a generally truncated conical inner ring
having a largest-diameter inner end that is formed integrally with
an inner periphery of said inward flange of said outer ring, and a
smallest-diameter outer end portion which is sleeved around and
which is in tight engagement with said frictional outer surface of
said end piece, said inner ring reducing gradually in inner
diameter from said largest-diameter inner end to said
smallest-diameter outer end portion, said smallest-diameter outer
end portion having an inner diameter that is slightly smaller than
outer diameter of said insert portion of said end piece when
removed from said end piece.
2. The hub as defined in claim 1, wherein said end piece is shaped
as a sprocket-mounting member, which is adapted to permit sleeving
of a sprocket thereon.
3. The hub as defined in claim 1, wherein said end piece is shaped
as a bearing retention cap.
4. The hub as defined in claim 1, wherein said inner ring of said
seal member further has an outer distal end, which has an inner
diameter that is slightly larger than the outer diameter of said
insert portion of said end piece, said inner ring having an inner
diameter that increases gradually from said smallest-diameter outer
end portion to said outer distal end, thereby facilitating
insertion of said insert portion of said end piece into said
smallest-diameter outer end portion of said inner ring of said seal
member during assembly of said end piece and said seal member.
5. The hub as defined in claim 1, wherein said seal member further
includes an L-shaped-cross-sectioned metal ring that is embedded
within said outer ring of said seal member.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE OF RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application is a Continuation-in-Part application of
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/634,442, which was filed on
Aug. 8, 2000.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention relates to a bicycle hub, more
particularly to a bicycle hub that is provided with a seal member
for preventing entrance of dust.
[0004] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0005] Referring to FIG. 1, a conventional bicycle hub is shown to
include a spindle 2 and a hub housing 1 mounted rotatably around
the spindle 2 in such a manner that right and left spindle portions
of the spindle 2 project outwardly from left and right end portions
of the hub housing 1. The housing 1 has an annular groove 101 that
is formed in the left end portion thereof and that is defined by a
side wall 1012 and a bottom wall 1011. A sprocket mounting member 3
is sleeved around the left spindle portion of the spindle 2
adjacent to the left end portion of the hub housing 1. The
sprocket-mounting member 3 includes an inner shell 302 which
extends into and which is coupled securely with the left end
portion of the hub housing 1, and an outer shell 301 which is
rotatably mounted on the inner shell 302 and which is formed with a
circumferential groove 307. A ratchet mechanism is disposed within
the outer shell 301, and is operably coupled with the inner shell
302 so as to permit synchronous rotation of the outer shell 301
with the hub housing 1 only in a forward direction.
[0006] A seal member 4 is disposed between the sprocket-mounting
member 3 and the hub housing 1, and includes a circular tubular
portion 401 that has an inner surface 4011 and that is disposed
within the circumferential groove 307 of the outer shell 301, and
an outward flange 402 which has a proximate inner end 4021
integrally formed with the tubular portion 401 and a distal outer
end 4022 abutting against the side wall 1012 of the annular groove
101 in the hub housing 1, thereby preventing dirt or dust from
entering into the sprocket-mounting member 3 and the hub housing
1.
[0007] Referring to FIG. 2, another conventional bicycle hub is
shown to include a hub housing 5 mounted rotatably around a spindle
6, and a bearing retention cap 7 which is disposed within the left
end portion 501 of the hub housing 5 around the left spindle
portion thereof to prevent removal of a bearing unit from the hub
housing 1. The bearing retention cap 7 has an outer surface 701
that is formed with an annular groove 7011. A seal member 8
includes a tubular portion 801 with an axial inner end 8011
disposed within the annular groove 7011 in the cap 7, and an
outward flange 802 that extends radially and outwardly from the
axial inner end 8011 and that abuts against an inner surface of the
hub housing 5 so as to prevent dirt or dust from getting into an
interior of the hub housing 5.
[0008] Note that in the aforesaid conventional bicycle hubs, the
seal members 4, 8 are disposed fixedly on the sprocket-mounting
member 3 and the bearing retention cap 7, respectively, and have
portions slidably engaged with the inner surfaces of the hub
housings 1, 5. As such, frictional force generated from the hub
housings 1, 5 is relatively high due to the fact that the hub
housings 1, 5 have a relatively large inner diameter that results
in an increase in the interengaging surface area between the seal
members 4, 8 and the elements 3, 7.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0009] Therefore, the object of this invention is to provide a
bicycle hub which includes a flexible seal member of a specific
configuration so as to be able to reduce frictional force generated
due to rotation a hub housing relative to a spindle that is
disposed within the hub housing.
[0010] Accordingly, a bicycle hub of the present invention includes
a spindle, a tubular hub housing, at least one tubular end piece,
and a tubular seal member. The hub housing is sleeved rotatably on
the spindle. The end piece is sleeved fixedly on the spindle near
an end of the hub housing. The seal member is disposed between the
hub housing and the end piece. The hub housing has an end surface
which is formed with an annular groove that is defined by a side
wall and a bottom wall. The end piece has a tubular insert portion
with an annular frictional outer surface, around which the side
wall of the hub housing is disposed. The seal member is disposed
within the hub housing, and includes an L-shaped cross-sectioned
flexible outer ring, and a generally truncated conical inner ring.
The outer ring has a circular tubular portion with an axial inner
end, and an inward flange that extends integrally, radially and
inwardly from the axial inner end of the circular tubular portion
and that abuts against the bottom wall of the hub housing. The
inner ring has a largest-diameter inner end that is formed
integrally with an inner periphery of the inward flange of the
outer ring, and a smallest-diameter outer end portion which is
sleeved around and which is in tight engagement with the frictional
outer surface of the end piece. The inner ring reduces gradually in
inner diameter from the largest-diameter inner end to the
smallest-diameter outer end portion. The smallest-diameter outer
end portion has an inner diameter that is slightly smaller than the
outer diameter of the insert portion of the end piece when removed
from the end piece.
[0011] Accordingly, the seal member is fixed relative to the hub
housing and is slidable relative to the end piece. During rotation
of the hub housing relative to the spindle, because the outer
diameter of the end piece is relatively small, friction force
between the seal member and the end piece is thus reduced.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0012] Other features and advantages of this invention will become
more apparent in the following detailed description of the
preferred embodiment of this invention, with reference to the
accompanying drawings, in which:
[0013] FIG. 1 is a schematic partly sectional view of a
conventional bicycle hub, illustrating how a flexible seal member
is mounted therein;
[0014] FIG. 2 is a schematic partly sectional view of another
conventional bicycle hub, illustrating how a flexible seal member
is mounted therein;
[0015] FIG. 3 is a schematic partly sectional view of the preferred
embodiment of a bicycle hub according to the present invention,
illustrating how two flexible seal members are mounted on opposite
sides of a hub housing; and
[0016] FIG. 4 is an enlarged sectional view of the seal member
employed in the preferred embodiment.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0017] Referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, the preferred embodiment of a
bicycle hub of the present invention is shown to include a spindle
20 with left and right portions 20L, 20R, a tubular hub housing 10,
a left tubular end piece that is shaped as a sprocket-mounting
member 30, a right tubular end piece 40 that is shaped as a bearing
retention member, and two seal members 50.
[0018] As illustrated, the hub housing 10 is rotatably mounted on
the spindle 20 in such a manner that the left and right spindle
portions 20L, 20R of the spindle 20 respectively project outwardly
from the left and right end portions 10L, 10R of the hub housing
10. The hub housing 10 has left and right end surfaces 10F, each of
which is formed with an annular groove 11 that is defined by a side
wall 111 and a bottom wall 112.
[0019] The bearing retention member 40 is sleeved fixedly on the
right spindle portion 20R of the spindle 20, and has a tubular
insert portion 41 with an annular frictional outer surface, around
which the side wall 111 of the hub housing 10 is disposed.
[0020] The right seal member 50 is disposed within the right end
portion 10R of the hub housing 10 and the bearing retention member
40, and includes an L-shaped cross-sectioned flexible outer ring
51, and a generally truncated conical inner ring 52. The outer ring
51 has a circular tubular portion 511 with an axial inner end
(511X), and an inward flange 512 that extends integrally, radially
and inwardly from the axial inner end (511X) of the circular
tubular portion 511 and that abuts against the bottom wall 112 of
the hub housing 10. The inner ring 52 has a largest-diameter inner
end 521 that is formed integrally with an inner periphery of the
inward flange 512 of the outer ring 51, and a smallest-diameter
outer end portion 522 which is sleeved around and which is in tight
engagement with the frictional outer surface of the insert portion
41 of the bearing retention member 40. The inner ring 52 reduces
gradually in inner diameter from the largest-diameter inner end 521
to the smallest-diameter outer end portion 522. The
smallest-diameter outer end portion 522 has an inner diameter that
is slightly smaller than the outer diameter of the insert portion
41 of the bearing retention member 401 when removed from the
bearing retention 40. In this preferred embodiment, the bearing
retention member 40 is mounted threadedly on the right spindle
portion 20R of the spindle 20 to prevent disengagement of a bearing
unit that is disposed within the hub housing 10 inboard to the
bearing retention member 40.
[0021] The inner ring 52 of the seal member 50 further has an outer
distal end 523, which has an inner diameter that is slightly larger
than the outer diameter of the insert portion 41 of the bearing
retention member 40. The inner diameter of the inner ring 52
increases gradually from the smallest-diameter outer end portion
522 to the outer distal end 523, thereby facilitating insertion of
the insert portion 41 of the bearing retention member 40 into the
smallest-diameter outer end portion 522 of the inner ring 52 of the
seal member 50 during assembly of the bearing retention member 40
and the seal member 50.
[0022] Preferably, an L-shaped-cross-sectioned metal ring 513 is
embedded within the outer ring 51 of the seal member 50 so as to
reinforce rigidity of the same.
[0023] The sprocket-mounting member 30 is sleeved around the left
spindle portion 20L of the spindle 20, and includes an outer shell
32 upon which a sprocket (not shown) can be mounted, and an inner
shell 31 that extends into the left end portion 10L of the hub
housing 10 and that is coupled securely with the spindle 20. A
ratchet unit (not visible) can be disposed within the outer shell
32 of the sprocket-mounting member 30 in such a manner to permit
synchronous rotation of the outer shell 32 with the hub housing 10
only in a forward direction. Since the structure of the ratchet
unit is not pertinent to the present invention, a detailed
description of the same is omitted herein for the sake of brevity.
In this preferred embodiment, the left seal member 50 is disposed
within the left end portion 10L of the hub housing 10 and the inner
shell 31. The connection relationship between the inner shell 31
and the left seal member 50 is the same as that between the right
seal member 50 and the bearing retention member 40.
[0024] In this preferred embodiment, because the outer ring 51 of
the seal member 50 is fixed to the hub housing 10, the frictional
force attributed to the inner ring 52 acts on the end piece 30, 40.
Since the diameters of the end pieces 30, 40 are much smaller than
that of the hub housing 10, the frictional force that results
during rotation of the hub housing 10 relative to the end pieces
30, 40 is smaller than that of the conventional hubs, in which the
seal member is securely mounted to an end piece instead of the hub
housing. The object of the present invention is thus achieved.
[0025] With this invention thus explained, it is apparent that
numerous modifications and variations can be made without departing
from the scope and spirit of this invention. It is therefore
intended that the invention be limited only as indicated in the
appended claims.
* * * * *