U.S. patent application number 09/780387 was filed with the patent office on 2001-10-25 for inside fender skirts for trailers.
Invention is credited to Scott, Lonnie J..
Application Number | 20010033095 09/780387 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 26888174 |
Filed Date | 2001-10-25 |
United States Patent
Application |
20010033095 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Scott, Lonnie J. |
October 25, 2001 |
Inside fender skirts for trailers
Abstract
Inside fender skirts for deflecting flying road debris away from
a boat or car being transported by a trailer. The inside fender
skirts can be configured to accommodate single and dual axle
trailers with open fenders. Each skirt is bolted to its fender so
that the skirt is disposed between the tire and the trailer in
order to deflect flying debris.
Inventors: |
Scott, Lonnie J.; (Wichita
Falls, TX) |
Correspondence
Address: |
Richard C. Litman
LITMAN LAW OFFICES, LTD.
P.O. Box 15035
Arlington
VA
22215
US
|
Family ID: |
26888174 |
Appl. No.: |
09/780387 |
Filed: |
February 12, 2001 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
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60192551 |
Mar 28, 2000 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
296/198 ;
280/849 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B62D 25/168
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
296/198 ;
280/849 |
International
Class: |
B60J 007/00 |
Claims
I claim:
1. A fender skirt for a single axle trailer with open fenders,
which prevents road debris propelled by the trailers' tires from
damaging the trailer or its hauled contents, comprising: a
detachable unitary semi-circular shaped body that is attached to
the fender of the single axle trailer between the trailer's tire
and the trailer in order to deflect flying debris; and an
attachment means for attaching the fender skirt to an inner side of
the open fender.
2. The fender skirt for the single axle trailer, according to claim
1, wherein the fender skirt is made of high impact-resistant
polyurethane.
3. The fender skirt for the single axle trailer, according to claim
1, wherein said attachment means for attaching the fender skirt to
an inner side of the open fender is a plurality of bolts inserted
into a plurality of holes provided on the inner side of the open
fender.
4. A fender skirt for a double axle trailer with open fenders,
which prevents road debris propelled by the trailers' tires from
damaging the trailer or its hauled contents, comprising: a
detachable unitary trapezoidal shaped body that is attached to the
fender of the double axle trailer between the trailer's tire and
the trailer in order to deflect flying debris; and an attachment
means for attaching the fender skirt to an inner side of the open
fender.
5. The fender skirt for the double axle trailer, according to claim
4, wherein the fender skirt is made of high impact-resistant
polyurethane.
6. The fender skirt for the double axle trailer, according to claim
4, wherein said attachment means for attaching the fender skirt to
an inner side of the open fender is a plurality of bolts inserted
into a plurality of holes provided on the inner side of the open
fender.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Pat.
application Ser. No. 60/192,551, filed Mar. 28, 2000.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention relates generally to inside fender
skirts for trailers with open fenders. The fender skirts prevent
road debris propelled by the trailer's tires from damaging the
trailer or its hauled contents, and can be used for single axle and
double axle trailers.
[0004] 2. Description of Related Art
[0005] Avoiding costly inadvertent damage to valuable, exposed
cargo such as a boat, due to flying road debris propelled by the
tires of the trailer carrying the boat, is very important because
boats frequently need to be transported from one place to another.
The cumulative cost of repairing damage to a boat caused by flying
stones and gravel is very expensive and the repeated repairs
diminish the physical appearance of the boat. Trailers with open
fenders are routinely used to transport boats and cars, however,
the article being transported by the trailer is highly susceptible
to damage caused by flying debris from the wheels of the
trailer.
[0006] The prior art describes a variety of trailer accessories
designed to minimize damage due to rocks hitting the article being
transported by the trailer. U.S. Pat. No. Des. 314,735 issued to
Godbersen, outlines the design of a boat trailer fender.
[0007] Other utility patents are also part of the related art. U.S.
Pat. No. 4,157,200 issued to Johnson outlines the use of a road
debris deflector that attaches to the forward portion of an open
frame boat and deflects road debris thrown rearwardly from the
wheels of a vehicle towing the trailer. The road debris deflector
has a generally trapezoidal shape and is designed to specifically
protect the front portion of a boat trailer or other towing
vehicle.
[0008] U.S. Pat. No. 4,840,400 issued to Greenleaf outlines the use
of a gravel shield for protecting the front lower portion of a
trailer of the type which is hitched to a vehicle via a tongue
member frame. More particularly, the invention relates to a gravel
shield adapted to cooperate with the tongue frame member of a
travel trailer so as to be disposed above and to the sides of the
tongue frame member adjacent to the lower part of the trailer.
[0009] U.S. Pat. No. 4,986,571 issued to Godbersen outlines the use
of a fender guard associated with and protecting the fenders
mounted on a utility type trailer or similar vehicle. The fender
guard includes a plurality of generally parallel, laterally spaced
rails or frame members that overlie the upper surface of a fender
with downwardly and outwardly inclined end portions forming a
continuation of the rails or frame members having an attaching
bracket at the lower end thereof for mounting on the trailer frame
or other rigid component of the trailer.
[0010] U.S. Pat. No. 5,171,037 issued to Thompson et al. outlines
the use of a fender guard associated with and protecting the
fenders mounted on a utility type trailer or similar vehicle. The
fender guards are provided for each of the fenders on a vehicle of
the type having fenders with exposed, upwardly facing surfaces
subject to damage by contact with equipment, loads and by
individuals standing on the fenders and using them as steps.
[0011] U.S. Pat. No. 5,538,315 issued to Dixon outlines the use of
a deflector for reducing rock damage to a trailer having fenders.
The deflector shields are secured to opposed sides of a trailer.
Each shield is angled outwardly and rearwardly from one of the
opposed sides of the trailer to a peripheral edge of a fender. Each
deflector shield is of a height at least as high as a top of the
fender and is situated in front of each fender.
[0012] Canadian patent 300,282 granted to Nicklin outlines the use
of a device for reducing wind resistance of a rapidly moving
trailer attached to an automobile and protecting such a trailer
from being struck by gravel or other loose items on the road. The
device is made of a soft, strong weather resistant material, which
when unfolded and attached to the front wall of the trailer, takes
the form of an open base, four sided pyramid located in a
horizontal position between the trailer and the automobile.
[0013] Each of these patents describe a device that provides some
level of protection to various parts of and types of trailers used
to transport boats and other objects. Although each device is
useful, none can accommodate a wide variety of trailers. That is
what is really needed, a versatile trailer shield or guard that can
be used with a variety of trailer types.
[0014] None of the above inventions and patents, taken either
singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention
as claimed.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0015] The present invention is a configured inside fender skirt
for open fender trailers. The semi-circular fender skirt is
disposed between the exterior side of the wheel fender and the
trailer frame. The inside fender skirt deflects flying road debris
such as stones and gravel away from the article being transported
by the trailer and eliminates flying road debris as a cause of
damage to the article. The inside fender skirt of the present
invention can be configured to accommodate single and dual axle
trailers with open fenders. The fender skirt is configured to fit
the contour of a fender and to provide maximal deflection of flying
road debris. The detachable inside fender skirt is readily secured
and removed from the inside surface of a trailer fender. The fender
skirt is made of a high impact plastic polyurethane that is strong,
durable, and corrosion resistant.
[0016] Accordingly, it is a principal object of the invention to
provide a road debris deflector that eliminates damage to a vehicle
transported by a trailer caused by flying road debris.
[0017] It is another object of the invention to provide a road
debris deflector that can readily accommodate single and dual axle
trailers.
[0018] It is a further object of the invention to provide a road
debris deflector that can be installed and removed with a minimum
amount of effort.
[0019] Still another object of the invention is to provide a road
debris deflector that is strong and durable.
[0020] It is an object of the invention to provide improved
elements and arrangements thereof in a road debris deflector for
the purposes described which is inexpensive, dependable and fully
effective in accomplishing its intended purposes.
[0021] These and other objects of the present invention will become
readily apparent upon further review of the following specification
and drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0022] FIG. 1 is an environmental, perspective view of a trailer
fitted with a fender skirt carrying a boat according to the present
invention.
[0023] FIG. 2A is a perspective view of a first embodiment of a
fender skirt for a single axle trailer.
[0024] FIG. 2B is a perspective view of a second embodiment of a
fender skirt for a dual axle trailer.
[0025] FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional perspective view along line 3-3
in FIG. 1 of a single axle fender skirt mounted on a fender.
[0026] Similar reference characters denote corresponding features
consistently throughout the attached drawings.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0027] The present invention, as depicted in FIGS. 1-3, is an
inside fender skirt 100 for trailers 104 and the like. The fender
skirt 100 of the present invention is designed to be used on
trailers 104 with open fenders 102 such as boat trailers or car
trailers. The fender skirt 100 prevents flying road debris
propelled by the trailer's tires 106 from striking any article 108
carried by the trailer 104, by deflecting any flying road debris
away from the article carried by the trailer 104, thus preventing
costly inadvertent damage to the article 108.
[0028] FIG. 1 shows an environmental, perspective view of a trailer
104 fitted with a fender skirt 100 carrying an article 108. In a
preferred embodiment, the fender skirt 100 is made of durable, high
impact-resistant plastic polyurethane. Therefore, the fender skirt
100 will not shatter due to a high velocity impact with a rock and
the fender skirt 100 will not corrode due to repeated exposure to
the elements.
[0029] In the first embodiment, the fender skirt 100 has a crescent
or semi-circular configuration as depicted in FIG. 2A. FIG. 2A is a
perspective view of the first embodiment of a fender skirt 100 for
a single axle trailer 104. The semi-circular configuration shown in
FIG. 2A is designed to accommodate the single axle (not shown) of a
single axle trailer 104.
[0030] FIG. 2B is a perspective view of a second embodiment of a
fender skirt 200 for a dual axle trailer (not shown). The
semi-circular configuration is modified to accommodate the second
axle (not shown) of a dual axle trailer. The innovative design of
the dual axle fender skirt 200 allows the fender skirt 200 to
efficiently deflect flying rocks and other road debris away from
the boat 108 carried by the trailer 104 without disturbing the
normal motion of the tires 106 of the dual axle trailer 104.
[0031] The fender skirt 100 of the present invention can be sized
up or down to accommodate a specific fender (make of fender) and
the number of axles. The fender skirt 100 can be removed from the
fender of one trailer and attached to the fender of another
trailer, which makes the fender skirt 100 extremely cost effective.
The fender skirt 100 is designed to provide a maximum deflection
area for deflecting road debris without disrupting the normal
motion of the trailer's tires 106.
[0032] The fender skirt 100 is specially configured to provide
maximum protection from impact damage due to flying rocks and other
debris while snugly fitting the contour of a trailer's fender 102,
so not to impede the normal motion of the trailer's tires 106. The
fender skirt 100 can be bolted or securedto the inside surface of
the portion of a fender 102 adjacent to the trailer 104.
[0033] As depicted in FIG. 3, the fender skirt 100 has an
attachment means for attaching the fender skirt to an inner side of
the open fender. The attachment means is a plurality of bolts 110
inserted into a plurality of holes 112 provided on the inside
surface of the lateral portion of the fender 102. The attachment
means could also be metal screws as well. The sturdy attachment
means ensures that the attachment between the fender skirt 100 and
the fender 102 does not loosen because of mechanical vibrations
caused by road travel.
[0034] The preferred embodiments of the present invention disclosed
herein are intended to be illustrative only and are not intended to
limit the scope of the invention. It should be understood by those
skilled in the art that various modifications and adaptations of
the prevent invention as well as alternative embodiments of the
prevent invention may be contemplated.
[0035] It is to be understood that the present invention is not
limited to the sole embodiments described above, but encompasses
any and all embodiments within the scope of the following
claims.
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