Floating Floor And Spring Retaining Clamp Therefor

Abstract

A lightweight floating floor construction for use in a moving vehicle which includes a plurality of parallel supports connected in spaced apart side-by-side fashion by transverse connections and supported above an underneath floor by a plurality of extensible and compressible springs interposed between the underneath floor and spring retaining plates recessed between the supports and mounted on the transverse connections. A spring retaining clamp for mounting the ends of a spring to a spring retaining surface and including a center hub, oppositely disposed arms extending outwardly from the center hub and having convexly curved ends, and helically extending protuberances at different heights extending across the opposite ends of the arms.

Description

This invention relates to a lightweight floor construction. Although it has general application, it is particularly suited for use in vehicles, such as vans and trucks, which accelerate, decelerate and travel over rough ground and in which the floating floor is subject to downward, upward and lateral forces.

The floating floor construction is composed of a plurality of lightweight, parallel, hollow supports which are connected in spaced apart side-by-side fashion by a plurality of connections to form a relatively lightweight, rigid floating platform. The platform, in turn, is supported for upward, downward and lateral movement by a plurality of compressible and extensible springs which are isolated for deflection in all directions. The springs are anchored at their upper ends to spring retaining plates accommodated between the parallel supports and connected to the transverse connections. At their lower ends the springs are anchored to an underneath surface or floor.

A feature of the invention is a novel spring retaining clamp by means of which the spring is anchored to another surface. The spring retaining clamp has a center hub which can be attached to another surface, oppositely disposed arms extending outwardly from the center hub and having convexly curved ends and helically extending protuberances spaced at different heights extending across opposite ends of the arms. The spring retaining clamp is readily inserted in the compressed or dead ends of the spring where it engages and retains diametrically opposed portions of the spring coils while the center hub of the spring retaining clamp is anchored to another surface.

For a complete understanding of the invention reference can be made to the detailed description which follows and to the accompanying drawings in which

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a portion of the floating floor construction of the present invention;

FIGS. 2 and 3 are sectional views taken along the lines 2-2 and 3-3 respectively, of FIG. 1; and

FIGS. 4, 5 and 6 are plan, side elevation and end views, respectively, of the spring retaining clamp.

The floating floor 10 of the present invention is supported on a plurality of studs 11 upstanding from a lightweight floating under floor construction composed of hollow, parallel supporting beams 12 of rectangular cross section and made of sheet metal. The hollow beams are connected side by side by a plurality of spaced apart transversely extending plate connections 13.

The floating under floor construction is supported by a plurality of compressible and extensible springs 14 above an underneath floor 15 of the vehicle. Each spring passes through an enlarged opening in one of the plate connections 13 and is interposed between the underneath floor 15 and a spring retaining plate 16 which, in turn, is recessed between the supporting beams 12 and adjustably connected to the respective transverse plate connection 13. The spring retaining plates 16 are connected to the transverse plate connections 13 by adjustable bolts 17 and nuts 18 which determine the spacing between the spring retaining plates and the transverse plate connection and hence the height of the floating floor. The spacing between the spring retaining plates and the transverse plate connection 13 is determined by the adjustment of set screws 19 depending from the spring retaining plate and engaging the upper surfaces of the transverse plate connection.

The springs are anchored to the undersides of each spring retaining plate 16 and to the underneath floor 15 by upper and lower spring clamps 20 and 21, respectively. The upper spring clamp 20 is connected by a screw 22 to the underside of the spring retaining plate 16. The spring retaining clamp 20 carries an upstanding pin 23 which engages a hole in the spring retaining clamp to prevent the clamp from rotating. Similarly, the clamp 21 is connected by a bolt 24 to the underneath floor 15, and it carries a depending pin 25 which engages a hole in the underneath floor to prevent the spring clamp from rotating.

Each of the spring clamps 20 and 21, as best shown in FIGS. 4 through 6, has a circular center hub 26 having a threaded center hole 27 and a pair of oppositely extending arms 28 and 29, the arm 28 being slightly lower than the higher arm 29. The extreme ends 28a and 29a of the arms 28 and 29 are convexly curved and have helical teeth or protuberances 28b and 29b formed along their outer ends.

The length of the spring clamp from the end 28a to the end 29a is approximately the internal diameter of the spring which it is to retain. The protuberances project beyond these surfaces and extend between adjacent coils at the compressed or dead ends of the spring, so that the length of the clamp from protuberance to protuberance exceeds the internal diameter of the spring. The protuberance 29b is higher than the protuberance 28b by the amount of the pitch of the spring. The surfaces directly above and directly below the protuberances are concave and generally complementary to the outer surfaces of the coils of the spring which they engage.

The upper and lower faces of the center hub 26 are flat, so that the clamp can be fixed against the flat surfaces of the underneath floor 15 or the spring retaining clamp 16. The spring clamps are readily forced into the ends of the spring which they are to retain, and it is unnecessary to screw them into the ends of the spring. When properly inserted, the face of the center hub having the projecting pin 23 will be disposed beyond the respective end of the spring for attachment to another surface.

The invention has been shown and described in a single preferred form or embodiment, and many modifications and variations can be made therein within the spirit of the invention. The invention, therefore, is not to be limited to any specified form or embodiment except insofar as such limitations are expressly set forth in the appended claims.

Claims

I claim:

1. A spring retaining clamp for a floating floor comprising a central hub, central opening therein, arms oppositely extending from the central hub, convexly curved ends on said arms to engage the inner periphery of a coiled spring, and a helically extending protuberance on each of said convexly curved ends extending outwardly to be interposed between adjacent coils of the said spring to retain the spring.

2. A spring retaining clamp as set forth in claim 1 in which the surfaces of the outer ends of the arms directly above and below the protuberances are concave to engage the adjacent coils on the spring.

3. A spring retaining clamp as set forth in claim 1 in which the protuberances on the oppositely extending arms are spaced at heights which differ by half the pitch of adjacent coils of the ends of the spring.

4. A spring retaining clamp as set forth in claim 1 in which the central hub is circular and has a flat surface to engage a surface to which it is to be affixed, and in which the arms are at different heights on the hub.

5. A spring retaining clamp as set forth in claim 4 including a protruding pin extending from said flat surface.

6. A lightweight floating floor structure comprising a plurality of spaced apart, parallel, hollow supports, transversely extending plates connecting the supports in spaced apart side by side side fashion, spring retaining plates interposed between the supports and connected to and spaced above the transverse plates, compressible and extensible springs interposed between each spring retaining plate and a surface from which the floating floor is supported, means defining openings in the transversely extending connecting plates to accommodate the springs and spring retaining clamps anchoring the upper end of the spring to the underside of the spring retaining plate and the lower end of the spring to said floor supporting surface, each spring retaining clamp including a center hub having at least one flat end, a central opening therein, means passing through said opening to connect said hub to an adjacent surface, oppositely disposed arms extending laterally from the outer periphery of the central hub, convexly curved ends of said arms to engage the inner periphery of a coiled spring and a helically extending protuberance on each of said convexly curved ends extending outwardly to be interposed between adjacent coils of the said spring to retain the spring, the protuberances on the oppositely extending arms being spaced at heights which differ by half the pitch of adjacent coils of the ends of the springs.

7. a floating floor as set forth in claim 6 including a pin interlocking said clamp with the surface adjacent the flat end of the hub to prevent relative rotation therebetween.

8. A floating floor as set forth in claim 6 in which the heights of the arms are offset vertically with respect to each other.