U.S. patent application number 12/760404 was filed with the patent office on 2010-11-18 for offroad whip mount.
Invention is credited to Scott D. Shaffstall, Steven J. Shaffstall.
Application Number | 20100288905 12/760404 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 43067746 |
Filed Date | 2010-11-18 |
United States Patent
Application |
20100288905 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Shaffstall; Steven J. ; et
al. |
November 18, 2010 |
Offroad Whip Mount
Abstract
An offroad whip mount as disclosed includes a mounting element
that may be secured to a standard mounting location on any suitable
vehicle. A closure plate is secured to the mounting element using a
tongue, sized and dimensioned to engage a corresponding groove in
the mounting element and the closure plate is secured to the
mounting element with a threaded fastener. The mounting element and
the closure plate each have two corresponding half-cylindrical
grooves that form two independent whip receptacles. The engaging
tongue and groove combined with the threaded fastener serve to
clamp one or two whips into the whip mount.
Inventors: |
Shaffstall; Steven J.;
(Trabuco Canyon, CA) ; Shaffstall; Scott D.;
(Trabuco Canyon, CA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
CROCKETT & CROCKETT, P.C.
26020 ACERO, SUITE 200
MISSION VIEJO
CA
92691
US
|
Family ID: |
43067746 |
Appl. No.: |
12/760404 |
Filed: |
April 14, 2010 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
61216041 |
May 13, 2009 |
|
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
248/540 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B62J 11/00 20130101;
F16M 13/02 20130101; G09F 17/00 20130101; G09F 21/04 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
248/540 |
International
Class: |
F16M 13/00 20060101
F16M013/00 |
Claims
1. An apparatus for securing a whip to a vehicle comprising: a
mounting element having a top surface and an L-shaped profile with
a base as the foot of the L and an engagement portion as the
vertical element of the L extending from the base to the top
surface, the base having an upper surface and a lower surface and
including a groove in the upper surface, the engagement portion
having a face with a first cavity and two parallel semi-cylindrical
channels extending from the top surface to the first cavity, the
mounting element also including a threaded bore extending into the
engagement portion; a closure plate having a top, a bottom, an
outer surface, an engagement face and a tongue extending from the
bottom of the closure plate, the tongue sized and dimensioned to
engage the groove in the base, the engagement face including a
second cavity and two parallel semi-cylindrical channels extending
from the top to the second cavity, the second cavity corresponding
to the first cavity in the face of the mounting element such that
when the closure plate is secured to the mounting element the first
cavity and the second cavity align to form an interior space to
accommodate a broken butt end of a whip, and the semi-cylindrical
channels in the closure plate align with the semi-cylindrical
channels in the mounting element to form cylindrical channels sized
and dimensioned to frictionally engage a whip; a mounting fastener
for securing the mounting element to a vehicle, the mounting
fastener engaging the lower surface of the base; and a fastener for
releasably securing the closure plate to the mounting element.
2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the fastener is a bolt.
3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the fastener is a cam lock.
4. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising: a vibration
resistant insert in the threaded bore.
5. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising: a hinge secured
between the bottom surface of the closure plate and the base of the
mounting element.
6. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the mounting fastener is a
bolt.
7. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the mounting fastener is a
threaded stud extending from the base.
Description
RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional
Patent Application 61/216,041 filed May 13, 2009.
FIELD OF THE INVENTIONS
[0002] The inventions described below relate to the field of
accessories for off highway motorsports and more specifically to
the field of whip mounts for off highway motorsports.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONS
[0003] In off-road or off highway areas throughout the United
States, any person riding or driving an off highway vehicle (OHV),
including all terrain vehicles (ATVs) and motorcycles, must mount a
safety flag on a flexible whip to the OHV when in use. Safety flags
provide a necessary safety feature, allowing pedestrians, emergency
personnel, and other riders to locate an ATV and rider more easily
and avoid collisions or other incidents.
[0004] ATV safety flag whips are often made of fiberglass and vary
in size, but two diameters commonly used are 1/4 inch and 5/16
inch. ATV safety flag whips are often mounted by forcing the bottom
or butt end of the fiberglass whip into a bored out 1/2 inch bolt,
which then mounts in a 1/2 inch diameter receptacle usually found
on a vehicle's rear bumper or grab bar and is further secured by a
1/2 inch nut.
[0005] As often happens with off highway use or accidents, these
whips break. Being made of fiberglass, a break is never clean. The
broken ends of the whip are frayed, to one degree or another, often
in dozens or even hundreds of razor-sharp and hair-thin shards
protruding from the broken sections.
[0006] In order to remount such safety flags, conventional whip
mount designs require removing the 1/2 inch nut and mounting bolt
from the ATV and cutting off the shattered whip shards with a knife
or other cutting utensil and forcing the broken butt section out of
the mounting bolt. Once trimmed, the whip is then forced back into
the mounting hole; often a tight fit and sometimes only possible
with the use of a hammer or other tools not easily carried on an
ATV.
SUMMARY
[0007] An offroad whip mount as disclosed below includes a mounting
element that may be secured to a standard mounting location on any
suitable vehicle. A closure plate is secured to the mounting
element using a tongue, sized and dimensioned to engage a
corresponding groove in the mounting element and the closure plate
is secured to the mounting element with a threaded fastener. The
mounting element and the closure plate each have two corresponding
half-cylindrical grooves that form two independent whip
receptacles. The engaging tongue and groove combined with the
threaded fastener serve to clamp one or two whips into the whip
mount.
[0008] The offroad whip mount enables a rider with a broken whip to
open the whip mount with a standard wrench and remount a broken
whip without the need to trim the broken end. Designed with
elements that can open and close tightly around a new or broken
whip via a single threaded fastener and a corresponding tongue and
groove feature, the offroad whip mount simplifies the flag mounting
process by requiring fewer steps and needed tools; it also
decreases the time needed to mount a safety flag to an ATV. The
offroad whip mount includes parallel channels to accommodate the
two most popular sizes of whips sold; 1/4 inch and 5/16 inch.
[0009] An offroad whip mount can easily accept damaged and frayed
whip ends which are accommodated in a cavity in the base of the
mounting element and a corresponding cavity in the closure plate
that provides space within the whip mount to accommodate uneven and
or frayed ends. This cavity is especially valuable when, due to an
accident or other incident, a flag whip breaks and the rider is
without the proper cutting utensil to correctly trim and remount
it.
[0010] Another process that the offroad whip mount simplifies is
the removal of the broken whip section that is often stuck within
the whip mount after an accident. Conventional whip mounts require
the broken butt section to be punched out with tools such as a
hammer and punch. The butt end of a broken whip may be removed from
an offroad whip mount by removing the threaded fastener and
separating the closure plate from the mounting element. The broken
butt section is easily removed by hand. The offroad whip mount can
accomodate up to two whips simultaneously. In the event that the
rider or a fellow ATV rider loses or damages a whip beyond repair,
a spare is available.
[0011] As ATVs make up a majority of the OHV market, all references
made in referring to ATVs will generally apply to all off highway
vehicles having two, three, four or more wheels including
motorcycles. Any suitable mechanism for achieving clamping force
between the closure plate and the mounting element may be used,
such as a threaded bolt or screw, or a cam lock mechanism.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0012] FIG. 1 is a side view of an ATV with an offroad whip
mount.
[0013] FIG. 2 is a side view of an offroad whip mount.
[0014] FIG. 3 is a side view of the whip mount of FIG. 2 with
closure plate open.
[0015] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the mounting element of the
whip mount of FIG. 2.
[0016] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the closure plate of the
whip mount of FIG. 2.
[0017] FIG. 5A is a perspective view of an alternate tab
configuration for a closure plate.
[0018] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of an alternate offroad whip
mount with a hinged closure plate.
[0019] FIG. 7 is a side view of another alternate offroad whip
mount with a rounded tongue.
[0020] FIG. 8 is a perspective view of an offroad whip mount for
mounting on a bumper or fender.
[0021] FIG. 9 is a perspective view of an offroad whip mount for
securing on a motorcycle.
[0022] FIG. 10 is a perspective view of an offroad whip mount
incorporated into a motorcycle fender.
[0023] FIG. 11 is a perspective view of an offroad whip mount
incorporated into a side guard plate of a motorcycle.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTIONS
[0024] ATV 10 of FIG. 1 includes offroad whip mount 12 for securing
whip 13 to the ATV. Whip 13 is generally cylindrical and formed of
any suitable material such as metal, wood, fiberglass, graphite or
any suitable combination. Butt end 13B is secured in whip mount 12
which is secured to any suitable component of an offroad vehicle
such as mounting tab 10A.
[0025] Offroad whip mount 12 of FIGS. 2 and 3 includes mounting
element 15 and closure plate 16 secured together by fastener 17 and
the engagement between tab, tang or tongue 16A and slot or groove
15S. Mounting element 15 is generally L-shaped as shown in the side
view of FIG. 2. Mounting element 15 includes base portion 15B as
the foot of the L and engagement portion 15A as the vertical
portion of the L. Lower surface 15L of base 15B may be secured to
any suitable vehicle using mounting fastener 18 extending into base
15B or a mounting element such as threaded stud 19 may be included
into base 15B to engage a corresponding nut.
[0026] Whip mount 12 includes two channels, channels 20 and 21 for
engaging the butt end of a whip to be mounted. Channel 20 is sized
to frictionally engage whips having a butt diameter of 5/16 inch,
and channel 21 is sized to frictionally engage whips having a butt
diameter of 1/4 inch. Fastener 17 engages threaded bore 14 in
mounting element 15 and may be any suitable releasable fastener
such as a bolt or screw or a quick release mechanism such as a cam
lock.
[0027] Referring now to FIG. 4, mounting element 15 includes slot
or groove 15S formed in upper surface 22 of base 15B. Slot 15S is
parallel to face 23 of engagement portion 15A. First cavity 24A is
formed in engagement portion 15A to accommodate broken or
splintered portions of the butt end of a whip that had been broken.
Two semi-cylindrical channels, channel 20A and channel 21A are
formed in face 23 and extend from top 15T into cavity 24. Threaded
bore 14 may include a malleable insert such as insert 14A to reduce
the likelihood of vibration loosening of fastener 17. Insert 14A
may be formed of any suitable material such as Teflon.RTM..
[0028] Referring now to FIG. 5, closure plate 16 includes top
surface 16T, bottom surface 16B, inner surface 16X and outer
surface 16Y. Tongue 16A extends from bottom surface 16B and is
sized and dimensioned to removably engage groove 15S. Second cavity
24B is formed in inner surface 16X to accommodate broken or
splintered portions of the butt end of a whip that had been broken.
Two semi-cylindrical channels, channel 20B and channel 21B are
formed in inner surface 16X and extend from top surface 16T into
cavity 24B. When closure plate 16 is secured to mounting element 15
semi-cylindrical channels 20A and 20B form cylindrical channel 20
and semi-cylindrical channels 21A and 21B form cylindrical channel
21. Fastener bore 11 extends through closure plate 16 from inner
surface 16X to outer surface 16Y to permit fastener 17 to engage
threaded bore 14.
[0029] In use, whip mount 12 is secured to a vehicle such as ATV
10. Fastener 17 is loosened allowing closure plate 16 to be
separated from mounting element 15 as illustrated in FIG. 3. Butt
end 13B of a whip is inserted into an appropriately sized channel
between closure plate 16 and mounting element 15 with tongue 16A
engaging slot 15S and fastener 17 tightened to maintain the
relative positions of the elements and secure the whip. If a whip
is broken, fastener 17 is loosened allowing closure plate 16 to be
separated from mounting element 15. The broken stub of the whip is
removed from the whip mount. The broken end of the whip is placed
into the appropriately sized channel between closure plate 16 and
mounting element 15 with the splintered end of the whip extending
into cavity 24 formed by first cavity 24A and second cavity
24B.
[0030] Referring now to FIG. 5A, closure plate 26 may include one
or more tabs such as tabs 27A and 27B.
[0031] Referring now to FIG. 6, whip mount 30 includes hinge 31
securing the bottom of closure plate 32 to mounting element 34.
Releasable fastener 35 is a cam lock.
[0032] Referring now to FIG. 7, whip mount 40 includes mounting
element 41 and closure plate 42. Tab or tongue 43 is rounded to
enable rotation of closure plate 42 about tongue 43 without
disengaging tongue 43 from slot 44 in upper surface 45 of base 41B.
Upper surface 45 may also be radiused to further enable rotation of
closure plate 42 about tongue 43.
[0033] Referring now to FIG. 8, offroad whip mount 50 is configured
to mount to vehicles without using a conventional whip mounting
bracket. Mounting element 51 is configured with first portion 51A
and base 51B for engaging closure plate 52 to form parallel whip
mounting channels 20 and 21 which extend into cavity 24 as
discussed above. Upper portion 51A includes upper mounting arm 53
and lower mounting arm 54 extending perpendicular to upper portion
51A. The relative orientation of upper mounting arm 53 and lower
mounting arm 54 creates channel 55 for engaging any generally
planar element of a vehicle, such as a fender or bumper, which may
be used for securing offroad whip mount 50. Any suitable means of
engaging the planar vehicle element such as clamp 56 may be
used.
[0034] Referring now to FIG. 9, offroad whip mount 60 is configured
for motorcycles. Mounting element 61 includes base 61B and first
portion 61A oriented for generally horizontal mounting. First
channel 62A and second channel 63A are formed in base 61B, and
groove 64 is formed in first portion 61A with groove 64 being
parallel to first and second channels 62A and 63A. Closure plate 65
is formed with first channel 62B and second channel 63B formed
parallel to tongue 66.
[0035] Referring now to FIG. 10, motorcycle fender whip mount 67 is
formed with mounting element 68 integrated into fender 69.
[0036] Referring now to FIG. 11, offroad whip mount 70 may be
integrated into side guard plate 71 of a motorcycle.
[0037] While the preferred embodiments of the devices and methods
have been described in reference to the environment in which they
were developed, they are merely illustrative of the principles of
the inventions. Other embodiments and configurations may be devised
without departing from the spirit of the inventions and the scope
of the appended claims.
* * * * *