Land vehicles: wheels and axles – Wheel – Dual wheels
Reexamination Certificate
1999-11-09
2001-06-26
Stormer, Russell D. (Department: 3617)
Land vehicles: wheels and axles
Wheel
Dual wheels
C301S035623, C301S111040
Reexamination Certificate
active
06250722
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a hub extension for attaching a dual wheels to a tractor front axle with mechanical front-wheel drive and in particular to a twopiece hub extension.
2. Description of the Related Art
Non-articulated, four-wheel drive agricultural tractors with a mechanical front-wheel drive (MFWD), where a steering axle is provided with drive capability, have become common place. Recently, dual front wheels have been added to the front axle the by attaching a hub extension to each axle hub and mounting a second wheel on each side of the tractor. The advantages of dual front wheels are improved traction and reduced soil compaction by decreasing the weight carried by each tire. A typical hub extension is a single piece structure or weldment that is generally barrel shaped, having a sleeve like body portion with an in-turned radial flanges at each end. One flange is bolted to the inner wheel and the axle hub so that the extension projects horizontally outward. The dual wheel is bolted to the outer flange of the hub extension. Since the radial flanges of the extension are in-turned, it is necessary to provide access openings in the extension body to reach bolts and nuts inside the extension. Installation and removal of the dual wheels and re-torquing of the bolts are difficult and cumbersome due to poor access to the nuts and bolts.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The hub extension of the present invention is of a two-piece construction having an inner extension ring that surrounds the final drive cover of the front axle and an outer extension member. The inner extension ring has inner and outer flanges like the above mentioned single piece hub extensions but only extends outward enough to clear the final drive cover of the axle. The inner ring is mounted by bolts that extend through both the outer and inner flanges and into the axle hub. As a result, the bolt heads are external of the inner ring and can be easily reached. The inner extension ring has cutout portions to provide clearance for a pair of diametrically spaced wheel mounting bolts that are used to first attach a wheel disc to the axle hub. This enables the inner wheel to be mounted to the axle hub first, before the extension is mounted.
The outer extension member has an axially inner mounting flange and an axially outer wheel flange. These flanges both project radially outward from the tubular body of the outer extension member. The mounting flange is scalloped to provide clearance for the bolts that mount the inner extension ring to the axle hub. Long bolts extend through the mounting flange of the outer extension member, through the inner extension ring and into the hub to attach the outer extension member to the axle hub. The dual wheel is mounted to the outer wheel hub.
It is an advantage of the two piece construction that all bolts are accessible without reaching into the interior of any of the extension components. Furthermore, the smaller diameter body of the outer extension member provides a greater clearance for crops between the inner and outer tires. In addition, the overall diameter of both the inner extension ring and the outer extension member is small enough to allow full use of multi-position wheels on the front drive axle.
REFERENCES:
patent: 2635012 (1953-04-01), Rappaport
patent: 4214792 (1980-07-01), Hardwicke et al.
patent: 4333688 (1982-06-01), Lemmon et al.
patent: 5100205 (1992-03-01), Hardwicke
patent: 3145101 (1988-06-01), None
Case—IH Hub Extension (MX240 & MX 270) (No Date).
Deere & Company
Stormer Russell D.
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