Decking And Shoring Beam

Abstract

A decking and shoring beam for use in load carrying containers provided with anchor members, such as apertured tracks, punched support posts or the like, mounted to opposite inside walls of the containers. The beam is of adjustable length and is adapted to be releasably connected at either end to said tracks or side posts. A combination of such beams may be positioned within a container to provide a support for a load over the upper surfaces of the beams.

Description

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates generally to decking and shoring equipment and in particular to a decking and shoring beam, for use in trailers, vans, railway cars, freight containers, and the like.

The decking and shoring beam of the invention is particularly adapted for use in trailers, vans or other containers provided with anchor members, such as apertured tracks or punched side posts, mounted to opposite walls thereof, the beam being releasably connected at either end with said tracks or sideposts. The beam is made adjustable in length enabling it to be fitted in containers having different inside measurements between the tracks or side posts. A plurality of such beams may be fitted within the container and a deck of plywood or other suitable material may be disposed over the upper surfaces of the beams to form a load supporting platform. By varying the spacing between the beams the load bearing capacity of the platform may of course be varied.

A general object of the present invention is to provide a decking and shoring beam which provides maximum strength while keeping the weight thereof to a minimum.

Another object of the invention is to provide a decking and shoring beam in which the total weight supported by each beam is distributed at each end between two apertures in the supporting tracks or side posts.

A further object of the invention is to provide a decking and shoring beam which enables a full or partial extra deck to be quickly assembled prior to loading and dismantled as unloading of the container proceeds thereby ensuring maximum utilization of the available space within the container.

A still further object of the invetion is to provide a decking and shoring beam which provides an adequate margin of safety, even under extreme conditions, for loads supported thereon.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide a decking and shoring beam which may be simply and positively installed by one man without the use of any tools.

In accordance with the foregoing and other objects, the present invention contemplates the provision of a decking and shoring beam, which comprises an elongated rectangular hollow beam constituting a platform supporting member and a pair of inner members adapted to fit within said beam, at least one of said inner members adapted for longitudinal movement within said beam, each of said inner members provided at its outer end with spaced apart protrusions adapted to be received in apertures formed in oppositely disposed tracks or wall brackets.

The decking and shoring beam according to the present invention preferably includes means for locking said movable inner member with its end protrusions engaged in said apertured tracks or wall brackets. In a preferred construction the inner movable member comprises a flat plate interposed between a pair of channel shaped side plates, said flat plate provided at one end with both a rectangular and a generally hook-shaped protrusion, which protrusions are adapted to be inserted within adjacent apertures in a track or wall bracket, each of said side plates formed with two protrusions extending from the outer end thereof, the overall dimensions and position of each of said side plate protrusions corresponding with those of said middle plate protrusions and being in register therewith when the middle plate is assembled within and rigidly secured to said side plates.

Other features which may be included in accordance with the invention will be described hereinafter and referred to in the appended claims.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will now be more particularly described with reference to the accompanying drawings which show an exemplary embodiment of the invention and in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing one end of a decking and shoring beam according to the invention;

FIG. 2 is a top plan view and FIG. 3 is a side view in elevation, partially cut away, of the same end of the beam as is shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a side elevation and FIG. 5 is an end elevation of the middle plate of the end connector member shown in FIGS. 1 to 3;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the other end of the beam and its manner of connection to a fixed anchor member consisting of an apertured track;

FIG. 7 is an end elevation showing the construction of the outer end connector member;

FIGS. 8, 9 and 10 are, respectively, end elevation, side elevation, and partial top plan views of a side plate, for the end connector member shown in FIG. 6; and

FIG. 11 is a perspective view, partially cut away, showing a decking and shoring system embodying the present invention and installed in a trailer unit.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring to the drawings, the decking and shoring beam generally designated 2 consists of an elongated hollow rectangular box beam 4 adapted to have inserted therein at opposite ends thereof end connector members generally designated 10 and 12 respectively. Each of the end connector members 10 and 12 may be mounted within the beam 4 for longitudinal movement therein although preferably only one of these end connectors members is movable relative to the beam with the other being fixedly secured within the beam. The end connector member 10, best seen in FIGS. 1 to 5, comprises an assembly of two channel shaped side plates 14 and 16 having a flat plate 18 interposed therebetween. The plate 18 is provided at its outer end with a rectangular protrusion 20 and a generally hook-shaped protrusion 22 and the upper edge of plate 18 is cut away to form with the side plates 14 and 16 a recess 24 adapted to accommodate a locking or latch member 26 when the three plates are secured together. The locking member 26 is formed at its forward end with a protrusion 28 which overlies and extends along the upper end of the rectangular protrusion 20 and has a downwardly depending shoulder 32 adapted to abut against the shoulder 34 of recess 24 when the locking device is in its extreme forward position thereby restraining further forward movement thereof. The locking device 26 is normally biased toward its extreme forward position by means of a coil spring 36 opposite ends of which are engaged in notches 38 and 40 formed in the plate 18 and in the rearward inclined edge 42 of the locking device 26, respectively. In an alternative form of the invention the spring 36 may be replaced with a V-shaped spring (not shown) the end portions of which would be adapted to engage in the notches 38 and 40. Also it will be appreciated that the biasing means need not necessarily be a spring but may be constituted by any suitable resilient means. The locking device 26 may be moved from its extreme forward position to a position whereat the protrusion 28 is substantially flush with the forward end edges of the side plates 14 and 16 by exerting pressure on the finger grip 44 and urging the locking device in a direction to compress the spring 36. In the position whereat the end connector member is full retracted within the box beam 4, longitudinal sliding movement of the finger grip is accommodated by the slot 46 formed in the edge of the top wall of the box beam.

The protrusions 20 and 22 are adapted to be inserted in apertures formed in an anchor member such as an apertured track or side post mounted, for example, on the inside wall of a truck, van or other container and securely locked in position therein by the locking device 26 with the protrusion 28 of which in its normal position, is adapted also to project into the same aperture in the anchor member as the protrusion 20 thereby to securely wedge the end connector member 10 in engagement with the anchor member. To disengage the end connector member 10 from the anchor member it is merely necessary to move the locking device out of engagement with its associated aperture whereupon the end connector 10 may be displaced upwardly thereby releasing the hook-shaped protrusion 22 from its engagement with the edge of its associated aperture and enabling the end connector member to be disengaged.

The longitudinal movement of the end connector member 10 within the box beam 4 is limited to a range determined by a pin 50 which extends through the beam 4 and is secured to the top and bottom walls thereof and which is adapted to engage the end walls of slots 52 and 54 formed in the top and bottom flanges 56 and 58 respectively of the channel shaped side plate 16 thereby limiting the travel of the end connector member 10 through the beam 4.

The other end connector member 12 consists of an assembly of two channel shaped plates 60 and 62 having a flat plate 64 interposed therebetween. The plates 60 and 62 are each formed at their outer ends with two half-rounded protrusions 66, 68, and 70,72, respectively, which are adapted to fit within adjacent apertures 74 and 76 formed in a suitable anchor member such as the track 78 which is mounted on the inside wall of the container opposite to that of the track engaged by the end connector member 10. The flat plate 64 is of generally similar configuration to the plate 18 of end connector member 10 and is provided with a rectangular protrusion 80 and a generally hook-shaped protrusion 82 similar to the corresponding protrusions 20 and 22, respectively, of the plate 18. The half-rounded protrusions 66, 68 and 70, 72 have overall dimensions and are positioned in correspondence with the protrusions 80 and 82 in the plate 64 and are in register therewith when the plate 64 is assembled between and rigidly connected to the side plates 60 and 62. The side plates 60 and 62 and the plate 64 are rigidly secured together to form a unitary assembly as, for example, by means of rivets 84 and 86 although the three plates may be secured together by any other suitable means.

The end connector member 12 may either be rigidly secured within the box beam 4 or, as shown, may be longitudinally slidable therein in which case movement thereof is limited by the provision of a pin (not shown) and slot (88) arrangement similar to that previously described with reference to the end connector member 10. Also the end connector member 12 is provided with a latching device generally designated 90 which may be of the same design and may operate in the same manner as the locking device 26 previously described with reference to the end connector member 10. As with end connector 10, the end connector member 12 is adapted to engage in adjacent slots 74, 76 in the track 78 to provide a twin suspension through the engagement of the rectangular protrusion 80 and associated half-rounded protrusions 66 and 70 in the upper most aperture and engagement of the hook-shaped protrusion 82 and the associated half-rounded protrusion 68 and 70 in the aperture 76 and to be secured in the engaged position by means of the latching device 90. This engagement of end connector 12 from the track 78 is readily effected by releasing the locking member 90 thereby enabling the end connector to be displaced in the vertical plane to release the hook-shaped protrusion from the lip of the aperture 76 whereupon subsequent movement of the end connector 12 in the horizontal plane serves to disengage it from the track.

The decking and shoring beam according to the invention may be used in association with trailers, vans, railway cars or other containers which are provided with anchor members, such as apertured or slotted tracks or side posts secured to opposite walls thereof and which are adapted to accommodate the end protrusions formed in the end connector members. A typical application of the present invention is illustrated in FIG. 11 which shows a trailer unit 100 having slotted track members secured to opposite side walls 104, 106 thereof and in which a plurality of decking and shoring beams generally designated 108, according to this invention are fitted across the width of the trailer unit. A deck 110 formed of any suitable material such, for example, as plywood is placed over the beams 108 to form a platform for supporting a load such as the crates 112, the latter being secured against movement during transit by means of adjustable shoring poles 114 and restraining straps 116.

Whilst in the foregoing certain embodiments of the invention have been described by way of example it will be appreciated that many variations in detail can be envisaged without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Claims

I claim:

1. A decking and shoring bar comprising an elongated rectangular hollow beam constituting a platform supporting member and a pair of inner members adapted to fit within said beam, at least one of said inner members being adapted for longitudinal movement within said beam and each of said inner members being provided at its outer end with spaced-apart protrusions adapted to be received in apertures formed in oppositely disposed apertured tracks or wall brackets, said movable inner member comprising a flat plate interposed between a pair of channel-shaped side plates, said flat plate provided at one end with both a rectangular and a generally hook-shaped protrusion which protrusions are adapted to be inserted within said track or wall bracket apertures, each of said side plates formed with two protrusions extending from the outer end thereof, the overall dimensions and positions of each of said side plate protrusions corresponding with those of said middle plate protrusions and being in register therewith when the middle plate is assembled within and rigidly secured to said side plates.

2. A decking and shoring bar as claimed in claim 1 including means for locking said movable inner member with its end protrusions engaged in said apertured tracks or wall brackets.

3. A decking and shoring bar as claimed in claim 1 wherein the upper edge of said middle plate is formed with a recess inwardly of the outer end thereof, said recess adapted to accommodate a locking device.

4. A decking and shoring bar as claimed in claim 3 wherein said locking device is movable longitudinally of said middle plate through said recess and is normally biased in a direction urging it outwardly of the middle plate by means of a spring, said spring connected at one end to said middle plate and at its other end to said locking device.

5. A decking and shoring bar as claimed in claim 4 wherein said locking device is formed adjacent its rear end with a downwardly depending projection adapted to engage an abutment formed in said middle plates whereby to limit forward travel of said locking device through said recess.