Wheel inspection apparatus

Claim 1

WHEEL INSPECTION APPARATUS COMPRISING IN COMBINATION WITH A WHEELED VEHICLE, MEANS FOR LIFTING SAID VEHICLE TO FREE THE WHEELS THEREOF FROM FLOOR CONTACT PERMITTING THEIR FREE ROTATION ON SAID VEHICLE, A CONTAINER HAVING A LIQUID THEREIN, SAID CONTAINER BEING OPEN AT THE TOP, MEANS FOR RELATIVELY MOVING SAID CONTAINER AND SAID VEHICLE TO POSITION A WHEEL OF SAID VEHICLE IN SAID CONTAINER, WITH THE LOWER PORTION OF SAID WHEEL IMMERSED IN SAID LIQUID, AN ULTRASONIC TRANSDUCING MEANS OPERATIVE TO GENERATE AND TRANSMIT WAVE ENERGY IN SAID LIQUID FOR INSPECTING SAID WHEEL, RECEIVER TRANSDUCING MEANS COUPLED TO SAID LIQUID FOR RECEIVING SAID ULTRASONIC ENERGY AFTER PASING THROUGH PART OF SAID WHEEL. MEANS COUPLED TO SAID RECEIVER TRANSDUCING MEANS FOR INDICATING CHARACTERISTICS OF THE INTERNAL STRUCTURE OF SAID WHEEL, AND WHEEL ROTATING MEANS MOUNTED WITHIN SAID CONTAINER IN A POSITION TO FRICTIONALLY ENGAGE THE SURFACE OF A WHEELED MOUNTED ON A VEHICLE AND INSERTED INTO SAID CONTAINER AND TO ROTATE SAID WHEEL WHEREBY A CIRCUMFERENTIAL PORTION OF SAID WHEEL MAY BE SCANNED BY SAID TRANSDUCING MEANS.