Wheel covers

Details Wheel covers Wheel covers

2000-07-28

2001-10-30

Morano, S. Joseph (Department: 3617)

Land vehicles: wheels and axles

Wheel

With wheel cover

C301S037420, C040S587000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06309027

ABSTRACT:

This invention relates to wheel covers, and in particular to detachable decorative wheel covers that can fit over different types of vehicle wheels where the covers have removable portions that allow protrusions such as air valve stems, and center raised hubs to pass therethrough. The invention is related to U.S. Pat. No. 5,931,543 to Smith, the same inventor of the subject invention, which is incorporated by reference.
BACKGROUND AND PRIOR ART
Wheel covers for vehicles such as automobiles and trucks have generally been restricted to plastic and metal type hubcaps having bendable insertable edges for covering and protecting wheel hubs. See for example: U.S. Patents Des. 170,114 to Dieterich; Des. 370,198 to Starr, Sr. et al.; 2,124,789 to Lyon; 2,279,704 to Davenport; and 5,457,886 to Fuller. While these patents show some decorative exteriors, all of the exterior shapes and forms require engraving onto the metal hubcap itself so that the hubcap becomes a permanent fixture on the vehicle's wheels, and do not allow for having removable openings for allowing raised members such as valve stems and raised wheel portions to pass therethrough.
Other types of hub caps and trim covers have also been used over the years, and have included an opening for valve stems. See for example, U.S. Pat. No. 1,406,945 to Dunlap et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 1,446,561 to Harris; U.S. Pat. No. 3,397,918 to Aske, Jr. et al; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,344,654 to Apezynski. However, each of these devices is restricted to having a single fixed opening location for the valve stem and do not allow for passing different sized valve stems at different locations therethrough, nor for allowing for other raised wheel protrusions such as a raised hub member to pass therethrough.
Some types of external removable covers have been proposed for vehicle wheels. See for example: U.S. Pat. No. 4,792,191 to Farmer and U.S. Pat. No. 4,955,670 to Koller. However, both of these patents are temporarily shields that are primarily used when the vehicle is stationary and allow the tires and cars to be cleaned and detailed. The Farmer '191 patent has a some small holes about a central portion of their cover but they are only used as finger holes for physically holding the cover, and not for allowing fixed protrusions such as valve stems or other raised wheel members to be able to protrude therethrough. Likewise, Koller has a central through-hole that is only used for holding the cover, and not for allowing fixed protrusions such as valve stems or other raised wheel members to protrude therethrough. Furthermore, these devices cannot be used when the vehicle is in motion.
Other types of removable covers have been proposed as decorative wheel covers. See for example: U.S. Pat. No. 2,548,070 to Ryan and U.S. Pat. No. 5,316,376 to Defreitas. However, none of these references allow for openings that would allow raised wheel protrusions such as valve stems and raised wheel members to pass therethrough.
The above devices referenced in the patents could also be dangerous in some wheel applications where internal wheel components such as brakes on many large vehicles such as buses, and trucks need to have air flow about the wheels in order to constantly air cooled. The above devices described in the patents by covering up most of the outside surface of the wheel hub areas inside of the tires could result in overheating components such as brakes in some types of vehicles.
None of the prior art patents has portions of the wheel cover that can be removed as desired for allowing various raised portions of the wheel such as different sized valve stems, raised wheel hub type members, and the like, to be able to pass therethrough. Also, none of the prior art addresses the problems of restricting the air flow to wheel brakes, by allowing the user to selectively punch out portions of the wheel cover as needed.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A primary objective of the invention is to provide a decorative wheel cover for moving vehicles having at least one perforated portion that can be selectively removed by the user.
A secondary objective of the invention is to provide a decorative wheel cover for moving vehicles having different areas that can be removed to allow for raised protrusions on the wheel such as different sized air valve stems, raised center hubs, and the like, to pass therethrough.
A third objective of the invention is to provide a decorative wheel cover for moving vehicles having at least one portion that can be removed for allowing internal wheel components such as brakes to be cooled as needed.
A preferred version of the removable decorative wheel cover for covering wheel hubs on moving vehicles includes a thin rigid and pliable plastic disc for substantially covering an existing wheel hub of a vehicle. The novel discs can each have a diameter of approximately 13 inches to approximately 18 inches for vehicles such as cars and pickups, and approximately 18 to approximately 36 inches for large vehicles such as tractor trailers, semis, and the like The disc can have a thickness of approximately {fraction (1/32)} of an inch to approximately ½ of an inch. A continuous closed line of perforations in the disc allows a user to remove a small portion of material from the disc to form a through-hole therein. The decorative design/indicia on the cover does not overlap into the area bounded by the line of perforations. Fasteners such as hook and loop fasteners, snaps, and peel and stick tape allow the disc to removably attached to the existing wheel hub of the vehicle as needed.
The continuous closed line of perforations form perforated patterns of different shapes such as substantially rectangular shape, a substantially circular shape, other shapes, and the like.
Users can selectively punch out one or more of the perforated patterns to create through-hole(s) in order to allow different sized raised protrusions on the wheel such as a valve stem, and a center raised hub member to pass therethrough. Additionally, through-holes can be selectively punched out to allow components that generate heat such as breaks to be air cooled by the through-hole opening(s).
The continuous lines of perforations can form a ring of individual perforated closed patterns adjacent to an outer perimeter of the disc, wherein individual openings can be spaced approximately ¼ of an inch to approximately 2 inches from the perimeter of the disc. The ring can include approximately 4 to approximately 8 individual perforated closed patterns. Using 4 to 6 closed patterns would allow each of the openings to have individual diameters of approximately 1 to approximately 2 inches. Using approximately 7 to approximately 8 individual perforated closed patterns would allow each of the openings to have individual diameters of approximately ½ to approximately 1 inch. The ring can include individual openings having non uniform diameters so that wheels having larger valve stems can be used with the disc.
The disc can also include a substantially central located closed pattern of perforations within the ring, which has a diameter of approximately 2 to approximately 4 inches.


REFERENCES:
patent: D. 105054 (1937-06-01), Ficks
patent: D. 170114 (1953-08-01), Dieterich
patent: D. 370198 (1996-05-01), Starr, Sr. et al.
patent: D. 438835 (2001-03-01), Maschino
patent: 1406945 (1922-02-01), Dunlap et al.
patent: 1446561 (1923-02-01), Harris
patent: 1952708 (1934-03-01), Gruenberg
patent: 2124789 (1938-07-01), Lyon
patent: 2279704 (1942-04-01), Davenport
patent: 2548070 (1951-04-01), Ryan
patent: 2558423 (1951-06-01), Dobrosky
patent: 2621081 (1952-12-01), Mann
patent: 3397918 (1968-08-01), Aske, Jr. et al.
patent: 3847443 (1974-11-01), Laurion
patent: 3854448 (1974-12-01), Kromanakar
patent: 3900652 (1975-08-01), Uraya et al.
patent: 4344654 (1982-08-01), Apezynski
patent: 4431196 (1984-02-01), Kutnyak
patent: 4792191 (1988-12-01), Farmer
patent: 4874206 (1989-10-01), Sampson
patent: 4955113 (1990-09-01), Rajala et al.
patent: 4955670 (1990-09-01), Koller
patent: 5077870 (1992-01-0

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