IP Library Patent Application 11387604
Patent Application
App. No. 11/387,604

Knuckle and bearing assembly and process of manufacturing same

Loading inventors, assignments & file history…
Monitor This Case
Get email alerts when status or documents change.
Order Certified Copies
Most orders are placed with the USPTO same day — all within 24 business hours.
Order via The Patent Place →
Pre-filled with this patent's details
Quick Facts
Patent No.
US None
App. No.
11/387,604
Filed
Mar 23, 2006
Art Unit
3656
USPC
384/537
Abstract

A knuckle-bearing assembly for a vehicle comprises a knuckle having an aperture, a bearing press-fit into the aperture of the knuckle, and a plurality of hard particles mechanically deployed on the aperture or the bearing or both to increase a coefficient of friction between the knuckle and the bearing.

Claims (30)

1 . A knuckle-bearing assembly for a vehicle comprising:

a knuckle having an aperture;

a bearing press-fit into said aperture of said knuckle; and

a plurality of hard particles mechanically deployed on said aperture or said bearing or both to increase a coefficient of friction between said knuckle and said bearing.

2 . The knuckle-bearing assembly of claim 1 , wherein said hard particles mechanically deployed on said aperture or said bearing or both comprises said hard particles being inlaid on said aperture or said bearing or both.

3 . The knuckle-bearing assembly of claim 2 , wherein said hard particles inlaid on said aperture or said bearing or both reduce movement of said bearing relative to said knuckle under running conditions of said vehicle.

4 . The knuckle-bearing assembly of claim 3 , wherein movement of said bearing relative to said knuckle under running conditions of said vehicle is reduced to approximately between 0.01 mm to 0.035 mm.

5 . The knuckle-bearing assembly of claim 3 , wherein said hard particles inlaid on said aperture or said bearing or both result in a higher press-in force to press-fit said bearing into said knuckle.

6 . The knuckle-bearing assembly of claim 5 , wherein said hard particles inlaid on said aperture or said bearing or both result in a higher press-out force to disassemble said bearing from said knuckle aperture.

7 . The knuckle-bearing assembly of claim 6 , wherein said press-in force to press-fit said bearing into said knuckle and said press-out force to disassemble said bearing from said knuckle aperture is approximately between 50 kN and 170 kN.

8 . The knuckle-bearing assembly of claim 7 , wherein said hard particles are inlaid by sandblasting.

9 . A knuckle-bearing assembly comprising:

a knuckle;

an aperture located within said knuckle, said aperture having a surface;

a bearing press-fit into said aperture; and

a plurality of hard particles inlaid on said surface of said aperture increasing a coefficient of friction between said knuckle and said bearing.

10 . The knuckle-bearing assembly of claim 9 , wherein said hard particles inlaid on said surface of said aperture of said knuckle reduces movement of said bearing relative to said knuckle.

11 . The knuckle-bearing assembly of claim 10 , wherein said bearing further comprises an outer surface, said outer surface having a plurality of hard particles inlaid thereon.

12 . The knuckle-bearing assembly of claim 11 , wherein said hard particles are Corindon.

13 . The knuckle-bearing assembly of claim 12 , wherein said inlaid hard particles are sandblasted onto said surface of said aperture and said outer surface of said bearing.

14 . A method of assembly a knuckle-bearing for a vehicle comprising:

providing a knuckle having an aperture;

inlaying a plurality of hard particles onto said aperture of said knuckle; and

press-fitting a bearing into said aperture to increase a coefficient of friction between said knuckle and said bearing.

15 . The method of claim 14 , wherein inlaying said plurality of hard particles onto said aperture of said knuckle comprises sandblasting said plurality of hard particles onto a surface of said aperture of said knuckle.

16 . The method of claim 15 , further comprising sandblasting a plurality of hard particles onto an outer surface of said bearing.

17 . The method of claim 16 , further comprising adjusting force required to press-fit said bearing into said aperture to control said coefficient of friction to reduce slippage or movement of said bearing related to said aperture during running conditions of said vehicle.

18 . The method of claim 17 , further comprising controlling said coefficient of friction between said bearing and said aperture during press-fitting through adjusting parameters of sandblasting said hard particles.

19 . The method of claim 18 , wherein at least one of said parameters comprises: material of said hard particles, application distance, air pressure, application time, density of hard particles into air, and dimension of hard particles.

20 . The method of claim 19 , wherein said parameters comprise: said material of said hard particles being Corindon, said application distance being less than 150 mm, said air pressure being approximately 6 bar, said application time being approximately 20 seconds, said density of said hard particles into air being approximately 2 mg/m 3 , and said dimension of said hard particles being a diameter of between 0.17 mm and 0.21 mm.

Assignments (26)
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Dec 14, 2011
From: BARCLAYS BANK PLC
To: DMI EDON, LLC
Reel/Frame 027385/0120 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Dec 9, 2011
From: WELLS FARGO CAPITAL FINANCE, LLC (F/K/A WACHOVIA CAPITAL FINANCE CORPORATION (NEW ENGLAND))
To: DMI EDON, LLC
Reel/Frame 027361/0359 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST AT 023731/0327 Recorded Nov 29, 2011
From: CARLYLE STRATEGIC PARTNERS, L.P.
To: METALDYNE CHASSIS PRODUCTS, LLC
Reel/Frame 027289/0570 →
SECURITY AGREEMENT SUPPLEMENT Recorded Dec 10, 2010
From: DMI EDON LLC; DIVERSIFIED MACHINE MONTAGUE, INC.; DIVERSIFIED MACHINE, INC.
To: BARCLAYS BANK PLC, AS COLLATERAL AGENT
Reel/Frame 025605/0448 →
SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded Jun 15, 2010
From: DMI EDON LLC; DIVERSIFIED MACHINE MONTAGUE, INC.; DIVERSIFIED MACHINE, INC.
To: WACHOVIA CAPITAL FINANCE CORPORATION (NEW ENGLAND), AS COLLATERAL AGENT
Reel/Frame 024539/0319 →
TERMINATION AND RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST OF PATENTS AT REEL/FRAME NOS. 023625/0778 AND 023687/0509 Recorded Jun 15, 2010
From: GE BUSINESS FINANCIAL SERVICES INC.
To: METALDYNE CHASSIS PRODUCTS, LLC
Reel/Frame 024539/0335 →
CORRECTIVE LICENSE TO CORRECT THE ADDRESS OF THE ASSIGNEE. DOCUMENT PREVIOUSLY RECORDED AT REEL 024406 FRAME 0683. ASSIGNOR(S) HEREBY CONFIRMS THE ADDRESS SHOULD BE 28059 CENTER OAKS CT. WIXOM, MI 48393 Recorded Jun 9, 2010
From: METALDYNE CHASSIS PRODUCTS, LLC
To: DIVERSIFIED MACHINE, INC.
Reel/Frame 024537/0359 →
LICENSE Recorded May 19, 2010
From: METALDYNE CHASSIS PRODUCTS, LLC
To: DIVERSIFIED MACHINE, INC.
Reel/Frame 024406/0583 →
SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded Jan 5, 2010
From: METALDYNE CHASSIS PRODUCTS, LLC
To: CARLYLE STRATEGIC PARTNERS, L.P.
Reel/Frame 023731/0327 →
CORRECTIVE ASSIGNMENT TO CORRECT THE ASSIGNOR NAME - "METALDYNE CHASSIS PRODUCETS, LLC" SHOULD BE "METALDYNE CHASSIS PRODUCTS, LLC - PREVIOUSLY RECORDED ON REEL 023625 FRAME 0778. ASSIGNOR(S) HEREBY CONFIRMS THE PATENT SECURITY AGREEMENT. Recorded Dec 21, 2009
From: METALDYNE CHASSIS PRODUCTS, LLC
To: GE BUSINESS FINANCIAL SERVICES INC. (FORMERLY KNOWN AS MERRILL LYNCH BUSINESS FINANCIAL SERVICES INC.), AS ADMINISTRATIVE AGENT
Reel/Frame 023687/0509 →
BANKRUPTCY COURT ORDER RELEASING ALL LIENS, INCLUDING THE SECURITY INTEREST RECORDED AT REEL/FRAME 018861/0910 Recorded Dec 18, 2009
From: JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, N.A., AS COLLATERAL AGENT
To: METALDYNE CHASSIS PRODUCTS, LLC
Reel/Frame 023674/0873 →
BANKRUPTCY COURT ORDER RELEASING ALL LIENS, INCLUDING THE SECURITY INTEREST RECORDED AT REEL/FRAME 018866/0181 Recorded Dec 18, 2009
From: DEUTSCHE BANK AG, NEW YORK BRANCH, AS COLLATERAL AGENT
To: METALDYNE CHASSIS PRODUCTS, LLC
Reel/Frame 023674/0925 →
BANKRUPTCY COURT ORDER RELEASING ALL LIENS, INCLUDING THE SECURITY INTEREST RECORDED AT REEL/FRAME 018350/0097 Recorded Dec 18, 2009
From: JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, N.A., AS COLLATERAL AGENT
To: METALDYNE CHASSIS PRODUCTS, LLC
Reel/Frame 023674/0800 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Dec 9, 2009
From: WILMINGTON TRUST FSB
To: METALDYNE CHASSIS PRODUCTS, LLC
Reel/Frame 023630/0434 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Dec 9, 2009
From: WILMINGTON TRUST FSB
To: METALDYNE CHASSIS PRODUCTS, LLC
Reel/Frame 023629/0940 →
SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded Dec 9, 2009
From: METALDYNE CHASSIS PRODUCETS, LLC
To: GE BUSINESS FINANCIAL SERVICES INC. (FORMERLY KNOWN AS MERRILL LYNCH BUSINESS FINANCIAL SERVICES INC.), AS ADMINISTRATIVE AGENT
Reel/Frame 023625/0778 →
SECOND LIEN SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Oct 23, 2009
From: METALDYNE, LLC; METALDYNE CHASSIS PRODUCTS, LLC; METALDYNE TUBULAR COMPONENTS, LLC; METALDYNE BSM, LLC
To: WILMINGTON TRUST FSB, AS COLLATERAL AGENT
Reel/Frame 023409/0512 →
FIRST LIEN SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Oct 22, 2009
From: METALDYNE, LLC; METALDYNE CHASSIS PRODUCTS, LLC; METALDYNE TUBULAR COMPONENTS, LLC; METALDYNE BSM, LLC
To: WILMINGTON TRUST FSB, AS COLLATERAL AGENT
Reel/Frame 023409/0063 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Oct 21, 2009
From: METALDYNE CORPORATION; METALDYNE COMPANY LLC; METALDYNE SINTERED COMPONENTS, LLC; NC-M CHASSIS SYSTEMS, LLC; METALDYNE TUBULAR PRODUCTS, INC.; METALDYNE MACHINING AND ASSEMBLY COMPANY, INC.
To: METALDYNE CHASSIS PRODUCTS, LLC
Reel/Frame 023401/0203 →
PATENT RELEASE Recorded Feb 2, 2009
From: THE BANK OF NEW YORK MELLON TRUST COMPANY, N.A.
To: METALDYNE COMPANY, LLC
Reel/Frame 022177/0969 →
PATENT RELEASE Recorded Feb 2, 2009
From: THE BANK OF NEW YORK MELLON TRUST COMPANY, N.A.
To: METALDYNE COMPANY, LLC
Reel/Frame 022177/0956 →
SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded Mar 5, 2007
From: METALDYNE COMPANY LLC
To: THE BANK OF NEW YORK TRUST COMPANY, N.A.
Reel/Frame 018951/0651 →
SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded Mar 5, 2007
From: METALDYNE COMPANY LLC
To: THE BANK OF NEW YORK TRUST COMPANY, N.A.
Reel/Frame 018951/0668 →
SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded Feb 7, 2007
From: METALDYNE COMPANY LLC
To: DEUTSCHE BANK AG, NEW YORK BRANCH, AS COLLATERAL AGENT
Reel/Frame 018866/0181 →
SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded Feb 7, 2007
From: METALDYNE COMPANY LLC
To: JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, N.A., AS COLLATERAL AGENT
Reel/Frame 018861/0910 →
SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded Oct 5, 2006
From: METALDYNE COMPANY LLC; METALDYNE CORPORATION; METALDYNE MACHINING AND ASSEMBLY COMPANY, INC.; NC-M CHASSIS SYSTEMS, LLC; METALDYNE TUBULAR PRODUCTS, INC.; METALDYNE SINTERED COMPONENTS, LLC
To: JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, N.A. AS COLLATERAL AGENT
Reel/Frame 018350/0097 →