Method and system for tire/whell disturbance compensation

Abstract

The invention is directed to a method for introducing a compensating material into a tire/wheel assembly by providing at least one self-contained batch of a compensating material having a predetermined amount of such material and being selectively transferable into a tire. The at least one batch of material remains substantially self-contained for shipping and handling. The at least one batch is then transferred into the tire, and the tire is thereafter mounted onto a vehicle for operation or otherwise rotated wherein the at least one self-contained batch of material disperses the material within the tire upon rotation.

what is claimed is:  
     
         1 . A method for introducing a compensating material into a tire/wheel assembly comprising the steps of: 
 providing a tire;    providing at least one self-contained batch of compensating material;    transferring said at least one self-contained batch of compensating material into an interior of said tire; and    mounting said tire on a wheel to form a tire/wheel assembly; 
 wherein compensating material is released from said at least one self-contained batch such that said compensating material is able to freely flow within said tire/wheel assembly.  
   
     
     
         2 . The method of    claim 1   , wherein said compensating material is a particulate material.  
     
     
         3 . The method of    claim 2   , wherein said particulate material comprises a polymer.  
     
     
         4 . The method of    claim 2   , wherein said particulate material comprises urea formaldehyde resin and cellulose filler.  
     
     
         5 . The method of    claim 2   , wherein said particulate material comprises a metallic material.  
     
     
         6 . The method of    claim 2   , wherein said particulate material comprises an inorganic material.  
     
     
         7 . The method of    claim 1   , wherein said compensating material comprises at least in part a liquid material.  
     
     
         8 . The method of    claim 1   , wherein said self-contained batch is provided in at least one device to contain said material, wherein said device is destroyed to release said material.  
     
     
         9 . The method of    claim 8   , wherein said at least one device to contain said material is at least one bag.  
     
     
         10 . The method of    claim 9   , wherein said at least one bag is a paper or plastic bag.  
     
     
         11 . The method of    claim 8   , wherein said at least one device is adapted to release said compensating material after positioning thereof inside said tire and upon rotation of said tire/wheel assembly.  
     
     
         12 . The method of    claim 8   , wherein said device is made of a material which will break down upon being rotated within said tire/wheel assembly to release said compensating material.  
     
     
         13 . The method of    claim 9   , wherein said bag has a plurality of perforations therein.  
     
     
         14 . The method of    claim 9   , wherein said bag has a primary seal and a secondary seal, wherein said primary seal is a relatively stronger seal than said secondary seal.  
     
     
         15 . The method of    claim 14   , wherein said primary seal is removed prior to introduction of said bag into a tire.  
     
     
         16 . The method of    claim 1   , wherein said self-contained batch comprises an agglomerate.  
     
     
         17 . The method of    claim 16   , wherein said agglomerate is selected from the group consisting of pellets, briquettes, and extrudates.  
     
     
         18 . The method of    claim 16   , wherein said agglomerate is comprised of particles which are self-adhesively held together.  
     
     
         19 . The method of    claim 16   , wherein said agglomerate is comprised of particles held together with a binder.  
     
     
         20 . The method of    claim 16   , wherein said agglomerate is comprised of particles held together using an exterior coating surrounding said particles.  
     
     
         21 . The method of    claim 1   , wherein said transferring step is selected from the group consisting of manual transfer and machine transfer.  
     
     
         22 . A method of compensating for radial and lateral force variations at the tire/road footprint of a tire/wheel assembly comprising the steps of: 
 providing a predetermined amount of compensating material in at least one self-contained batch in a form preventing said compensating material from freely flowing apart from self-contained batch,    putting said self-contained batch into an interior of said tire,    mounting said tire on a wheel to form a tire/wheel assembly,    mounting said tire/wheel assembly on a vehicle, 
 wherein said compensating material is released from said self-contained batch and disperses within said tire/wheel assembly to provide compensation of said force variations.  
   
     
     
         23 . A method for introducing a compensating material into a tire/wheel assembly comprising the steps of: 
 providing a tire;    providing at least one self-contained batch of compensating material, said at least one self-contained batch comprising at least one bag containing a predetermined amount of said compensating material, placing said at least one bag into an interior of said tire;    mounting said tire on a wheel forming a tire/wheel assembly; and    mounting said tire/wheel onto a vehicle; 
 inflating said tire/wheel assembly whereby said at least one bag becomes ruptured to release said compensating material within said tire/wheel assembly; 
 wherein said predetermined amount of said compensating material is directly related the size of said tire.