Steering wheel having inclined leaf spring core

Claim 1

A steering wheel for motor vehicle comprising: a hub; rim having a lower portion, upper portion, and spoke assembly interconnecting the hub with the lower portion of the rim; said lower and upper portions having a flexible outer covering; said upper portion of said rim including a core of a plurality of stacked arcuate leaf springs; each leaf spring being canted forwardly and toward the hub; seat means mounting said leaf springs onto said lower portion of the rim; said seat means comprising said lower portion of the rim having a seat portion in each upper end thereof with a smooth surface abutting one surface of one of the leaf springs; said smooth surface being canted forwardly toward the hub; said seat portions of said lower portion having apertures therethrough; said stack of leaf springs having apertures therethrough aligned with aperture of said lower portions; fasteners extending through the aligned apertures and fastening the leaf springs to the seat portions of the lower portions; a clamp tightly surrounding each seat portion and stacked leaf springs above the fasteners; said upper portion being deformable in response to an impact imposed thereon in a direction parallel to the axis of said steering wheel; said upper portion being constructed to be substantially rigid with respect to a tangential force applied by a vehicle operator to said upper portion for the purpose of turning said steering wheel; said clamp being tubular in shape and having a rear wall with a surface facing the leaf springs and canted rearwardly and toward the hub leaving a wedge shaped gap between the leaf springs and said rear wall which allows a rearwardly directed force parallel to the axis of said steering wheel to flex the leaf springs such that said leaf springs become canted rearward and toward the hub filling said gaps; said leaf springs being constructed to flex back to their original cant when said rearwardly directed force is terminated.