Wheel support arrangement

Abstract

 A device comprising at least a first flat base (4; 9) intended for attachment to a wall, a second base (7; 12; 19) parallel to said at least a first flat base and at least one stem (11; 13; 14) connecting all of said first and second bases is used to removably support a wheel or a tire at a distance from said wall for storage purposes.

Description

[0001] The present invention refers to a support, i.e. hanging arrangement for wheels, which is intended to hang to a vertical surface, such as a wall, as far as it is capable of bearing the weight thereof, a complete wheel or a part which the same wheel is comprised of, i.e. the rim and the tire. The wheel support arrangement is constituted by a structure that, on a side thereof, is attached to the wall by means of screw anchors and, on the other side thereof, enables a wheel to be secured thereto by means of a bolt

[0002] No such support arrangement specifically intended for storing wheels is available on the marketplace, actually. Available there is rather a general "all-purpose" support, the technical and design specifications and features of which do not have the specific purpose-oriented characteristics of the arrangement of this invention.

[0003] Furthermore, the innovatory feature of the wheel support arrangement of the invention is corroborated by the universality and flexibility thereof from an utilization point of view: it can in fact be used to support wheels, rims and/or tires of any kind, which can most conveniently and easily be hung there and firmly secured to the support. The utilization of the inventive support arrangement makes sure that the wheel, or even the sole rim or tire thereof, does not rest either on the floor or the wall. This practically enables the suspended item to retain its original shape, while at the same time guarding it against the effects of humidity. It further enables the use of available space to be optimised.

[0004] The use of such support for the purpose of storing a wheel, a tire or a rim at a distance from a wall is claimed in this patent

[0005] The enclosed drawings are perspective views of various embodiments and variants of the invention, the said non exclusive embodiments and variant being herebelow described.

[0006] Figure 1 is a perspective view of a first support arrangement, with a wheel shown as a cross-sectional view thereof secured thereto. The wheel support arrangement is comprised of two brackets 6, each of them being bent into a U-shaped configuration so as to provide at first end portion a first flat base 4, a second base 7 parallel to the first base 4 at a second end portion thereof and a flat stem 11 connecting the bases. The first bases 4 are to be attached to the wall by means of screws while a disc 3, which the rim of the wheel is then going to be secured to, are attached to the second bases 7 so as to keep the wheel spaced away from the wall.

[0007] Close to the two holes provided in the disc 3 for the bolts 1 and 5, there are provided some convex segments 8. These segments serve the purpose of acting as guiding/locating means to facilitate the correct, unequivocal placement of the disc 3 on the respective resting bases 7. The bolt 1 passes through one of said two bases provided for the disc 3 to rest thereagainst. This bolt is to be inserted in the hole specially provided in the disc 3 and forms the stud on which the rim of the wheel rests. The same rim of the wheel must eventually be secured with the nut 2 thereto. On the other resting base 7 for said disc 3, the same disc 3 is on the contrary secured by means of a bolt 5 that has such a length as to not protrude beyond the surface of the same disc 3, in order to prevent it from knocking against the rim of the wheel when it is hung and then secured thereto.

[0008] In order to hang up the wheel, either complete or without its tire, on the support arrangement, the same wheel is lifted and the rim thereof is put on the disc 3 in such a manner that the bolt 1 is caused to fit into one of the holes which all rims are normally provided with in order to enable the wheel to be secured to the motor-vehicle. Thereupon, the nut 2 is screwed on the bolt 1 so as to firmly secure the wheel to the related wheel support arrangement.

[0009] Should on the contrary the sole tire, without the rim, be hung on to the support arrangement, the scheme illustrated in Figure 2 is followed. In fact, by simply attaching the sole two brackets 6 in a different manner to the wall, a support arrangement is obtained for the tire, which is not only stable and convenient to use, but also proves most suitable to a correct storage of the tire, which does not undergo any deformation in this way. In practice, the first bases 4 of the brackets 6 are attached to the wall at a distance from each other that is lower than the diameter of the tire to be suspended there, while the inclination of the two brackets 6 is so selected as to enable their stems 11 to ensure the largest possible resting surface to the periphery of the tire they are intended to support.

[0010] In the embodiment shown in Figure 3, the wheel support arrangement is constituted by a single bracket 16, which is bent into a Ω-like configuration and results from the combination into a single piece of two first bases 4 attached to a wall by means of screws, a single second base 12, parallel to the first ones, and a couple of flat connecting stems 13. To said second base 12 there is leant the inside of the rim, for it to be sustained by the bolt 1 and secured with the nut 2.

[0011] Figure 4 shows another embodiment of the arrangement according to the present invention. The difference, as compared with the embodiment shown in Figure 3, lies in the fact that again a disc 18 is used in this case. The disc 18 is attached to the second base 12 of the Ω-shaped bracket 16 by means of the two bolts 1 and 5, so as to ensure greater stability to the rim, or the wheel complete with rim, that is intended to be supported there. The rim is then secured to the support arrangement with the nut 2.

[0012] Figure 5 illustrates a further embodiment of the present invention. Also in this case, the support arrangement consists of a pair of parallel bases and a connecting stem. More precisely, a first disc 9 is for attachment to the wall by means of screws; a second disc 19 parallel to the first disc 9 constitutes the resting base for the wheel rim, as provided with its own tire or not; a cylindrical stem 14 connects the discs 9 and 19. The bolt 1 sustains the rim and enables it to be secured to the support arrangement by means of the nut 2.

[0013] To summarize the advantages of the invention one can say that the embodiments illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 represent the most complete and versatile kind of support arrangement, which can be used to sustain complete wheels, rims or tires alone.

[0014] Figures 3, 4 and 5 illustrate different embodiments of the inventive support arrangement, which can only be used for complete wheels or rims and have the advantage of being less expensive to manufacture.

[0015] Other embodiments of the invention are possible within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. Use of a device comprising at least a first flat base (4; 9) intended for attachment to a wall, a second base (7; 12; 19) parallel to said at least a first flat base (4) and at least one stem (11; 13; 14) connecting all of said first (4; 9) and second bases (7; 12; 19) in order to removably support a wheel or a tire or a rim at a distance from said wall for storage purposes.

2. Use of a device according to claim 1, wherein at least a bolt (1, 5) and an associated nut (2) secure the rim of the wheel to said second base (7; 12; 19).

3. Use of a device according to claim 2, wherein a plate (3; 18) preferably disc-shaped is arranged between said rim and said second base (7; 12).

4. Use of a device according to claim 3, wherein said plate (3) is provided with convex segments (8) acting as guiding/locating means for the correct placement of said disc (3) on said second base (7).

5. Use of at least two devices according to claim 1, wherein their stems (11) act as supporting surfaces of the periphery of the wheel or rim.

6. Use of at least two devices according to any of the preceding claims, wherein said device consists of a disc-shaped first flat base (9), a disc-shaped second base (19) and a cylindrical stem (14).

Drawing