Wheel-loss can be beaten
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• Wheel-loss accidents could become a tragic memory if a new wheel-stud from a British inventor lives up to its claims.
John Hirst says his prototype stud indicates when it is about to fail to any driver who glances at it. It would add little to the cost of lorry wheels. Hirst's design is based on the same principle as some food jars, which "pop" their lids when air enters or if they are tampered with. If Hirst's hollow stud cracks, a stainless steel diaphragm at the top pops out—alerting drivers of the risk of the stud's failure.
Hirst is looking for a manufacturer for the design. "Manufacturers should install it in at least the front wheels," Hirst says, "and offer it as a replacement."
He claims the stud costs little more to make than a conven tional stud and that the cost would fall if it were manufactured in quantity. Hirst came up with the idea after spending 15 years work ing on the engineering problem of installing conventional studs to the correct tension.
Hirst can be contacted at his company, Exotech, Carnegie Road, Warley, West Midlands 865 8BY. Tel: 0121 561 5705