US-12616893-B2 - Wheel assembly having a light up wheel hub

US12616893B2US 12616893 B2US12616893 B2US 12616893B2US-12616893-B2

Abstract

A wheel assembly configured to be rotationally engaged with a supported structure, the wheel assembly having a light up wheel hub having a light up ring, the light up ring having at least one light emitting device and a generator body configured to be in electrical communication with each light emitting device and an outer shell configured to be engaged with the light up ring, such that each light emitting device is enclosed within the outer shell, wherein the rotation of the light up wheel hub about a wheel rotational axis is configured to generate electrical energy to power each light emitting device. Thus an advantage is that each light emitting device may be sealed within the outer shell, protecting it from debris, fluids and other hazards. The light up wheel hub may be configured to engage with sinusoidally shaped wheel rims through selective adjustment of light emitting device positioning.

Inventors

Zack Fleishman
Todd Smith

Assignees

SHARK WHEEL, INC.

Dates

Publication Date: 20260505
Application Date: 20230811

Claims (19)

1 . A wheel assembly configured to be rotationally engaged with a supported structure, the wheel assembly comprising: a light up wheel hub having: a light up ring comprising: a ring body; a plurality of light emitting devices configured to be engaged with the ring body; and a generator body configured to be engaged with the ring body and in electrical communication with the plurality of light emitting devices; and an outer shell configured to be engaged with the light up ring, such that each light emitting device of the plurality light emitting devices is configured to be enclosed within the outer shell; wherein the generator body of the light up ring is configured to be rotationally engaged with the supported structure, such that rotation of the light up wheel hub about a wheel rotational axis is configured to generate electrical energy to power the plurality of light emitting devices; and a sinusoidal wheel rim configured to surround and engage with the light up wheel hub, the sinusoidal wheel rim having: a plurality of sinusoidal ridges configured to be engaged with an outer radial perimeter of the light up wheel hub, wherein a corresponding sinusoidal valley is disposed between each adjacent pair of sinusoidal ridges; wherein each sinusoidal ridge of the plurality of sinusoidal ridges is configured to reciprocate around the outer radial perimeter of the light up wheel hub, such that each sinusoidal ridge of the plurality of sinusoidal ridges forms a continuous sinusoidal pattern around the outer radial perimeter of the light up wheel hub.
2 . The wheel assembly of claim 1 , wherein each light emitting device of the plurality of light emitting device is configured to be engaged with the ring body by a corresponding light clip, wherein a lateral offset of each light emitting device of the plurality of light emitting devices is configured to be selectively modified by adjusting a corresponding light clip.
3 . The wheel assembly of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of sinusoidal ridges comprises three sinusoidal ridges, wherein each sinusoidal ridge of the plurality of sinusoidal ridges is in phase with the other sinusoidal ridges of the plurality of sinusoidal ridges.
4 . The wheel assembly of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of light emitting devices comprises six light emitting diodes equidistantly spaced along a cylindrical outer surface of the ring body.
5 . The wheel assembly of claim 1 , wherein the outer shell is made of a translucent material.
6 . The wheel assembly of claim 1 , wherein the outer shell has a toroidal shape.
7 . The wheel assembly of claim 1 , wherein the sinusoidal wheel rim is made of polyurethane.
8 . The wheel assembly of claim 1 , wherein the wheel assembly is configured to be engaged with the supported structure by a magnetic bearing.
9 . The wheel assembly of claim 1 , wherein the wheel rim has a variable thickness as a result of its plurality of sinusoidal ridges and each corresponding sinusoidal valley, wherein light emitted from the plurality of light up devices appears most intense within each sinusoidal valley of the sinusoidal rim.
10 . A wheel assembly configured to be rotationally engaged with a supported structure, the wheel assembly comprising: a light up wheel hub having: a light up ring comprising: a ring body; a light emitting device configured to be engaged with the ring body; and a generator body configured to be engaged with the ring body and in electrical communication with the light emitting device; and an outer shell configured to be engaged with the light up ring, such that the light emitting device is configured to be enclosed within the outer shell; wherein the generator body of the light up ring is configured to be rotationally engaged with the supported structure, such that rotation of the light up wheel hub about a wheel rotational axis is configured to generate electrical energy to power the light emitting device; and a wheel rim configured to surround and engage with the light up wheel hub, the wheel rim having: a sinusoidal ridge configured to be engaged with an outer radial perimeter of the light up wheel hub, wherein the sinusoidal ridge is further configured to reciprocate around the outer radial perimeter of the light up wheel hub, such that the sinusoidal ridge forms a continuous sinusoidal pattern around the outer radial perimeter of the light up wheel hub.
11 . The wheel assembly of claim 10 , wherein the light emitting device is configured to be engaged with the ring body by a light clip, wherein a lateral offset of the light emitting device is configured to be selectively modified by adjusting the light clip.
12 . The wheel assembly of claim 10 , wherein the wheel rim and light up wheel hub are coaxially aligned with the wheel rotational axis.
13 . The wheel assembly of claim 10 , wherein the outer shell is made of a transparent material.
14 . The wheel assembly of claim 10 , wherein the outer shell comprises a main body portion having a right circular cylindrical shape and a tapered end portion engaged with the main body.
15 . A wheel assembly configured to be rotationally engaged with a supported structure, the wheel assembly comprising: a light up wheel hub having: a light up ring comprising: a ring body; a light emitting device configured to be engaged with the ring body, wherein the light emitting device is configured to be engaged with the ring body by a light clip, wherein a lateral offset of the light emitting device is configured to be selectively modified by adjusting the light clip; and a generator body configured to be engaged with the ring body and in electrical communication with the light emitting device; and an outer shell configured to be engaged with the light up ring, such that the light emitting device is configured to be enclosed within the outer shell; wherein the generator body of the light up ring is configured to be rotationally engaged with the supported structure, such that rotation of the light up wheel hub about a wheel rotational axis is configured to generate electrical energy to power the light emitting device.
16 . The wheel assembly of claim 15 , wherein the outer shell is made of polyurethane.
17 . The wheel assembly of claim 15 , wherein the outer shell is configured to protect the light emitting device from debris, fluids and impacts.
18 . The wheel assembly of claim 15 further comprising a wheel rim, wherein the wheel rim is configured to allow the light emitted from the light emitting device to be emitted into an external environment beyond the wheel assembly.
19 . The outer shell of claim 15 comprising a main body portion and a light pocket engaged with and protruding from the main body portion, wherein the light pocket is configured to surround and protect the light emitting device.

Description

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The invention relates generally to wheels and specifically to wheel assemblies having light-up wheel hubs configured to secure and protect housed lighting elements. 2. Description of the Related Art The inclusion of lighting elements on the wheels of a supported structure or vehicle may help to provide said supported structure or vehicle with a variety of benefits, both functionally and aesthetically. The inclusion of lights may provide the supported structure or vehicle with a unique and desirable appearance, that also makes the supported structure or vehicle more noticeable, particularly in low light conditions. As such, structures and vehicles that utilize lighting elements within their wheels may remain visible to others, even in the dark, thus helping prevent collisions between the structure/vehicle having said lighting elements and pedestrians or other vehicles. These lighting elements may be provided in a variety of positions, including the hubs of said wheels, wherein the hub itself may be described as a light up wheel hub. However, currently available light up wheel hubs may have several issues and limitations that limit their implementation and longevity. Depending on how the lighting elements are implemented into the light up wheel hub, said lighting elements may not be suitably protected by the surrounding structure of the wheel or wheel hub, and thus may be exposed to water, dirt, and other debris. This may negatively influence the longevity of the lighting elements, which may be damaged by exposure to these materials. Furthermore, for embodiments having exposed portions of the lighting elements, physical impacts to the wheel may also damage the lighting elements, potentially leading to premature failure of the lighting elements. Additionally, currently available light up wheel hubs may not be configured to be implemented within wheel assemblies with alternatively shaped rims, such as sinusoidally shaped wheel assemblies (e.g., wheels having rims that reciprocate back and forth sinusoidally around the outer surface of the wheel), due to their lack of adjustability. This in turn may limit the potential applications and use-cases for said light up wheel hubs to applications in which standard, non-sinusoidal wheel shapes are utilized, which may be undesirable for certain applications. Therefore there is a need to solve the problems described above by proving a wheel assembly having a light up wheel hub, wherein said light up wheel hub is configured to provide protection for each lighting element of the light up wheel hub, while being compatible with both conventional and sinusoidal wheel rims. The aspects or the problems and the associated solutions presented in this section could be or could have been pursued; they are not necessarily approaches that have been previously conceived or pursued. Therefore, unless otherwise indicated, it should not be assumed that any of the approaches presented in this section qualify as prior art merely by virtue of their presence in this section of the application. BRIEF INVENTION SUMMARY This Summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a simplified form that are further described below in the Detailed Description. This Summary is not intended to identify key aspects or essential aspects of the claimed subject matter. Moreover, this Summary is not intended for use as an aid in determining the scope of the claimed subject matter. In an aspect, a wheel assembly configured to be rotationally engaged with a supported structure is provided, the wheel assembly comprising: a light up wheel hub having: a light up ring comprising: a ring body; a plurality of light emitting devices configured to be engaged with the ring body; and a generator body configured to be engaged with the ring body and in electrical communication with the plurality of light emitting devices; and an outer shell configured to be engaged with the light up ring, such that each light emitting device of the plurality light emitting device is configured to be enclosed within the outer shell; wherein the generator body of the light up ring is configured to be rotationally engaged with the supported structure, such that rotation of the light up wheel hub about a wheel rotational axis is configured to generate electrical energy to power the plurality of light emitting devices; and a sinusoidal wheel rim configured to surround and engage with the light up wheel hub, the sinusoidal wheel rim having: a plurality of sinusoidal ridges configured to be engaged with an outer radial perimeter of the light up wheel hub, wherein a corresponding sinusoidal valley is disposed between each adjacent pair of sinusoidal ridges; wherein each sinusoidal ridge of the plurality of sinusoidal ridges is configured to reciprocate around the outer radial perimeter of the light up wheel hub, such that each sinusoidal ridge of the plurality of sinusoidal ridges forms a