 |
Description  |
|
|
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to cover assemblies for truck bodies and the
like of the type employing a roller bracket lengthwise along both sides of
the body, and in particular relates to such cover assemblies which provide
for easy access for cleaning such brackets.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Sand, gravel and similar materials present a serious road hazard if hauled
about in open truck bodies. Legislation in many states now requires truck
owners and operators to cover such loads so as to prevent spillage. In
many cases, these covers are simple tarpaulins which are manually tied
down over the open truck body. But the implacement of these manual devices
is time consuming and hazardous and is therefore not feasible for
commercial trucking operations. It is therefore desirable to employ means
for implacing an appropriate cover which the truck operator may quickly
and easily utilize, and which may be moved back and forth over the truck
body as the uses of the vehicle dictate.
There have been several arrangements suggested in the prior art. Of
interest, Richard in U.S. Pat. No. 3,014,104, Greenburg in U.S. Pat. No.
3,310,338 and Reese in U.S. Pat. No. 3,012,813 all teach arrangements in
which a flexible cover is folded in an accordian-like manner and
thereafter drawn across the truck body. Other arrangements are taught in
the following U.S. Pats. Nos.: 3,416,834 to Morse; 3,488,087 to Cox;
3,511,408 to Hughes; 3,498,666 to Harrawood; 3,549,198 to Cappello;
3,138,399 to Hughes; and 3,416,835 to Ohle. Further backgrounds in this
area is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,898,147 to Horner; 2,997,967 to
Malbert; 2,967,733 to Amerine; and generally in Patent Office Class 296
subclass 100 among others.
In addition to those teachings described above, a number of patented prior
art references teach a roll-up type cover fabricated from sheet metal or
plastic. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,472,548, Comisac discloses a slatted
arrangement which may be rolled up at the upper forward end of the truck
body. A similar arrangement is taught in U.S. Pat. No. 3,774,958 to
Thorpe, as well as in U.S. Pat. No. 2,594,910 to Germann. In U.S. Pat. No.
3,298,732 Openshaw discloses a movable canvas truck body cover employing a
bracket which is open faced in a direction away from the side of the
truck, and L-shaped support rods extending over the open face of the
bracket and carrying a canvas cover.
On of the primary difficulties with truck body covers of the types
disclosed in all of the above references is that each includes some
slatting mechanism for rolling or drawing the cover over the truck body.
However, if the slatting mechanism is subjected to blowing sand, gravel
and other material, it tends to stick and prevent easy movement of the
cover across the truck bed. It is therefore desirable to provide means for
allowing easy access to the roller bracket or similar means, such that
this bracket can be easily cleaned to avoid the difficulties just
described.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention contemplates a truck body cover which avoids this
problem, and constitutes a cover for a truck body of the type including
two substantially parallel sides and comprising two brackets, each fixed
to one of the sides adjacent the upper edge thereof and including a
substantially flat surface extending normal to the corresponding one of
the sides and outward therefrom. The cover assembly further includes a
plurality of support rods movably positioned over the sides, each rod
including a U-shaped bend near one extremity thereof, such that the rod
extends outward away from the side and bends back toward the side and the
flat surface. A plurality of bearing means, such as rollers or skids, is
each coupled to one of the rods at the extremity near the bend and is
carried by the flat surface. A cover is positioned between the upper edges
of the two sides and is movably supported by the rods.
In use, the U-shaped rod allows easy access to the bearing means support
surface, in order that it might be easily cleaned if sand or other
material provides an impediment for the movement of the bearing means back
and forth across the support surface.
THE DRAWING
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a truck body cover assembly in accordance
with the present invention.
FIG. 2 comprising FIG. 2a, 2b and 2c is a perspective view, partially in
cross section of the bracket assembly and bearing means shown in FIG. 1.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the roller bearing and cover assembly of
the arrangement of FIG. 1.
FIG. 4 is a top perspective view of another embodiment in accordance with
the present invention.
FIG. 5 is a front perspective view of the apparatus of FIG. 1.
FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a portion of the apparatus shown in FIG. 5.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
A first embodiment of a truck body cover in accordance with the present
invention will be now described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2.
The truck body, referred to generally as 10, includes two parallel side
walls 12 and 14 defining a truck body enclosure 16 used for hauling sand,
rock, aggregate and other loose material. A cover assembly in accordance
with the present invention includes two brackets 18, 20, each of which is
fixed adjacent the upper edge 22, 24 of the respective sides 12, 14. As
shown in detail in FIG. 2, each bracket 18, 20 comprises a U-shaped member
fixed to the respective side 12, 14 adjacent the upper edge 22, 24
thereof, the two arms 26 and 28 of the U-shaped members 18 and 20
extending substantially perpendicular to the respective side 12, 14, the
lower arm 28 having an inner surface 30 which defines a flat support
surface. Each of the arms 26, 28 of the U-shaped bracket 18, 20 further
includes a depending rim 32, 34, each rim extending perpendicular to the
respective arm and inward in a direction toward the other arm.
In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a plurality of
support rods 36 movably positioned over the truck body 16 and over and
across the upper edges 22, 24 of each side 12, 14. Each support rod 36
includes a U-shaped bend 38 near one extremity thereof, such that that
extremity of each rod extends outward away from each side 12, 14 of the
truck body 10 and then bends back toward that side and the corresponding
U-shaped bracket 18, 20. The cover assembly further includes a plurality
of bearing means, for example rollers 40, each of which is rotatably
coupled to the one extremity of the support rod 36 near the U-shaped bend
38. As shown in FIG. 2, each of these rollers 40 are supported by the flat
surface 30.
A cover is positioned between the upper edges 22, 24 of the truck body
sides 12, 14 and is movably supported by the rods 36. In accordance with
another aspect of the present invention, this cover comprises a plurality
of slats 46, each slat coupled to one of the rods 46 and hinged at each
edge to adjacent slats. As will be clearly understood by those skilled in
the art, when the rearward most slat 46 is drawn toward the rear of the
truck, the rollers 40 are carried along the flat surface 30, and the slats
are then made to lie flat and thereby cover the enclosure 16. An alternate
bearing means is shown in FIG. 2c and comprises a skid 42 having a leading
edge 44 adapted to clear the flat surface 30 as the cover is moved back
and forth over the enclosure 16.
Reference is now made to FIGS. 5 and 6. In accordance with yet another
aspect of the present invention, there is provided an enclosure 62 at the
forward end 63 of the truck body 10. Means are also provided for drawing
the slats 46 into the enclosure 62, and folding the slats 46 one on
another. In this embodiment, such drawing means comprises a shaft 64
extending through the enclosure 62 crosswise with respect to the truck
body 10. Pulleys 66 are fixed to the shaft 64, and a second pulley is
positioned at the rear 65 to the truck body 10. An endless cable 70 loops
the first and second pulleys and is coupled to at least the rearward
extreme slat 46, so as to allow the cover to be drawn into and out of the
enclosure 62 responsive to the rotation of the pulley 66 and 68 responsive
to rotation of the shaft 64. The shaft 64 may be rotated manually, or
alternatively a variety of driving mechanisms may be provided.
An alternate embodiment of the truck body cover in accordance with the
present invention is shown in FIG. 4 and referred to generally as 50. In
this embodiment, the sides 52, 54 of the truck body 50 are provided with a
slope 53 at the rear extremity thereof, and the U-shaped brackets 56 and
58 corresponding to the brackets 18 and 20 of FIG. 1 are likewise provided
with a slope such that the slats 46 may be drawn to the lower rear edge of
the truck body 50. A spring loaded fastener 60 or equivalent hardware is
provided to latch the rearward slat 46.
A variety of other modifications and arrangements may likewise be employed
with the above described truck body cover without departing from the
spirit and scope of the present invention. For example, canvas or a
similar flexible material may be employed in lieu of the slats described
above. Further, it will be understood that other varying support forms may
be employed in place of the U-shaped bracket described above; for example,
an L-shaped bracket might be employed.
The cover assembly of the present invention allows easy access to the
bearing surface 30, which in turn allows this surface to be quickly and
easily cleaned in the event that the material being shipped or road or
grit material prevent easy movement of the cover.
* * * * *
|
|
 |
|
 |
Description |
|
