U.S. patent number RE31,013 [Application Number 06/151,479] was granted by the patent office on 1982-08-17 for calibrated replacement torque rod.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Gulf & Western Manufacturing Company. Invention is credited to Joseph E. Smith, Jr..
United States Patent |
RE31,013 |
Smith, Jr. |
August 17, 1982 |
Calibrated replacement torque rod
Abstract
A torque rod replacement assembly which includes ball joint
assemblies, each having a projection arm, one of which telescopes
into the other, weld slots .Iadd.or windows .Iaddend.being provided
for permanent assembly, and graduation being provided on the
telescoping parts to facilitate accurate adaptation to a vehicle
being serviced.
Inventors: |
Smith, Jr.; Joseph E.
(Birmingham, MI) |
Assignee: |
Gulf & Western Manufacturing
Company (Southfield, MI)
|
Family
ID: |
26848673 |
Appl.
No.: |
06/151,479 |
Filed: |
May 19, 1980 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
Issue Date |
|
Reissue of: |
848944 |
Nov 7, 1977 |
04146340 |
Mar 27, 1979 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
403/27;
280/93.507; 280/93.51; 403/180; 74/586 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B62D
7/20 (20130101); B60G 2206/11 (20130101); B60G
2206/111 (20130101); B60G 2206/1112 (20130101); Y10T
403/20 (20150115); Y10T 403/36 (20150115); Y10T
74/2151 (20150115) |
Current International
Class: |
B62D
7/20 (20060101); B62D 7/00 (20060101); B62D
007/16 () |
Field of
Search: |
;403/56,180,181,122,46,13,14,76,77,271,272,27 ;74/586
;280/95A,95R |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Kundrat; Andrew V.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Hauke and Patalidis
Claims
What I claim is:
1. A vehicle rod replacement assembly comprising:
(a) a pair of movable joint assemblies,
(b) a hollow tube permanently secured to and extending from one of
said joint assemblies.Iadd., said hollow tube .Iaddend.having an
axial bore,
(c) a rod permanently secured to and extending from .[.said.].
.Iadd.the .Iaddend.other .Iadd.of said .Iaddend.joint
.[.assembly.]. .Iadd.assemblies .Iaddend.having a series of lineal
graduations thereon, said rod having in assembly a freely slidable,
unrestrained fit .[.with.]. .Iadd.within .Iaddend.the axial bore of
said tube, and
(d) welds at adjoining surfaces of said tube and rod to secure said
.[.parts.]. .Iadd.tube and rod .Iaddend.in a permanent longitudinal
relationship at a selected dimension whereby said joint assemblies
are properly spaced for assembly into a vehicle suspension
system.
2. A vehicle rod replacement assembly comprising:
(a) a pair of movable joint assemblies,
(b) a hollow tube permanently secured to and extending from one of
said joint assemblies.Iadd., said tube .Iaddend.having an axial
bore.[., said tube having axial slots.]. .Iadd.and at least one
window .Iaddend.in walls .[.thereof.]. .Iadd.of said tube
.Iaddend.positioned .[.toward.]. .Iadd.proximate .Iaddend.the
distal end,
(c) a rod permanently secured to and extending from .[.said.].
.Iadd.the .Iaddend.other .Iadd.of said .Iaddend.joint
.[.assembly.]. .Iadd.assemblies and .Iaddend.having a series of
lineal graduations thereon visible through said .[.axial slots.].
.Iadd.window.Iaddend., said rod having in assembly a freely
slidable, unrestrained fit with the axial bore of said tube,
and
(d) welds extending through said .[.slots.]. .Iadd.window
.Iaddend.to secure adjoining surfaces of said tube and rod in a
fixed and permanent longitudinal spaced relationship at a selected
dimension whereby said joint assemblies are properly spaced for
assembly into a vehicle suspension system.
3. A fixed dimension replacement rod assembly for field replacement
in vehicles which .[.comprises:.]. .Iadd.consists of .Iaddend.
(a) a first movable joint having a first containing body and a
fastening stud extending axially therefrom movable relative to the
body and a first elongate member permanently secured .[.at a
proximal end.]. .Iadd.at an end .Iaddend.to and extending radially
from the containing body,
(b) a second movable joint having a second containing body and a
fastening stud extending axially therefrom movable relative to the
body and a second elongate member permanently secured .[.at a
proximal end.]. .Iadd.at an end .Iaddend.to and extending radially
from the second containing body,
(c) said first and second elongate members being dimensioned to
have in assembly a freely slidable unrestrained axial telescoping
relation, the outer of said members .Iadd.being tubular and
.Iaddend.having .Iadd.at least .Iaddend.one .[.or more axial
slots.]. .Iadd.window .Iaddend.through the wall thereof .[.spaced
from.]. .Iadd.proximate .Iaddend.the .[.digital.]. .Iadd.other
.Iaddend.end thereof, and
(d) welds to secure said elongate members in a permanent fixed
predetermined longitudinal relationship to establish a permanent
lineal dimensional spacing between said movable joint bodies to
accommodate to a particular vehicle suspension application
.[.comprising an.]. .Iadd.consisting of a single
.Iaddend.encircling weld between the end of the outer of said
telescoping members and the inner member, and a puddle weld in said
.[.slot.]. .Iadd.window .Iaddend.welding said outer member to the
outer surface of said inner member in an area spaced from said
encircling weld. .Iadd.4. A vehicle rod replacement assembly
consisting of
(a) a pair of movable joint assemblies;
(b) a single tube permanently secured to and extending from one of
said joint assemblies, said tube having an open end and an axial
bore of constant diameter from end to end;
(c) a single rod permanently secured to and extending from the
other of said joint assemblies, said rod having in assembly a
portion introduced in said tube through said tube open end disposed
in freely slidable unrestrained fit within the axial bore of said
tube;
(d) at least one aperture through a wall of said tube, said
aperture being disposed proximate the open end of said tube;
and
(e) a puddle weld in said aperture welding said tube to said rod
and a single encircling weld between the open end of said tube and
a corresponding peripheral surface area of said rod. .Iaddend.
Description
This invention relates to a Calibrated Replacement Torque Rod and
more particularly to an assembly which can be utilized to replace
torque rods of varying lengths.
Reference is made to copending application of Donald R. Gaines, Jon
M. Smallegan, and William H. Trudeau on a "Replacement Torque Rod
Assembly," Ser. No. 787,667, filed Apr. 15, 1977, .Iadd.now Letters
Patent No. 4,189,249, .Iaddend.and assigned to a common
assignee.
The present device is an improvement in torque rod assemblies which
are used for replacement and repair. Because of the large variety
of motor vehicles in today's market and the size differentials from
mini-cars.[.,.]. to large off highway equipment, it has been
difficult for garages to stock the large number of torque rods
necessary to fit each particular model. The object of the present
invention is the provision of a torque rod assembly which can be
readily used by mechanics without special training.
A further object is a simplified device having just two parts, one
being calibrated to assist in attaining the proper length of rod,
and the other being apertured to allow a welding operation which
unifies the parts in a solid member.
Other objects of the invention will be apparent in the following
description and claims in which the invention is set forth together
with details to enable those skilled in the art to practice the
invention, all in connection with the best mode presently
contemplated for the invention.
Drawings accompany the disclosure and the various views thereof may
be briefly described as:
FIG. 1, an assembly view of the invention.
FIG. 2, an enlarged sectional view on line 2--2 of FIG. 1.
FIG. 3, an assembly illustrating a shorter length assembly and the
welding slots.
With reference to the drawings, in FIG. 1.[.,.]. a ball joint
assembly at the left includes a body 10 and a ball stud 12.
Extending outwardly of the body 10 is a solid rod 14 disposed
normal to the ball stud. The rod has lineal graduations with inch
or metric dimensional marking to facilitate exact lengths when the
assembly is being adapted to a particular vehicle.
At the right side of FIG. 1 is a second ball joint assembly having
a body 20 with a double ended straddle ball 22. Extending outwardly
of the body 20, normal to the studs of the double ended straddle
ball 22, is a hollow tube 24 having slot windows 26 extending
axially near the distal end. The rod 14 has a sliding fit
.[.with.]. .Iadd.within .Iaddend.the bore of the tube 24.
As one example, the assembly in FIG. 1 has a center-to-center
length of about 31" and the rod 14 is welded to the tube 24 through
the windows 26 at 28 and also at the end of tube 24 at 30. As
another example, the assembly in FIG. 3 is moved to a
center-to-center dimension of 24". The windows 26 of FIG. 3 are not
yet welded in so it will be seen that the graduations can be
observed therethrough as the part is moved to a measured length.
The measurement is, of course, from the end of the tube 24. The
overall center-to-center dimension, as one example, can vary from
40" to 24" which will permit installation on most passenger
vehicles and trucks in the present market.
* * * * *