U.S. patent number 3,722,766 [Application Number 05/114,771] was granted by the patent office on 1973-03-27 for ladder rack.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Southern Cross Industries, Inc.. Invention is credited to Wade H. Barrineau, Anthony Osborne.
United States Patent |
3,722,766 |
Barrineau , et al. |
March 27, 1973 |
LADDER RACK
Abstract
Capable of handling 24 ft. or 28 ft. extension ladders on top of
a telephone truck the present ladder rack is easily assembled and
installed without special modification of the vehicle by attachment
of a pair of bow supports secured to the vehicle rain gutter on
each side. Longitudinal ladder support members are attached to the
bow supports and a movable ladder rung finger catch arrangement is
operated by a spring steel handle which latches in place to move
and clamp the ladder tightly in place on the rack. Ladder abuttment
feet have curved faces which are reversed from one another to
assist in removing the ladder from the truck and from placing it
thereon while standing alongside. To assist in positioning the
ladder the spring steel handle is operated to push the ladder
rearward against the fixed feet by means of the rung engagement
fingers and then the handle is relatively shiftable to be spring
biased into a notch, or without the ladder the fingers are
retracted against the vehicle top spring tensioned by the
handle.
Inventors: |
Barrineau; Wade H. (Atlanta,
GA), Osborne; Anthony (Atlanta, GA) |
Assignee: |
Southern Cross Industries, Inc.
(Atlanta, GA)
|
Family
ID: |
22357326 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/114,771 |
Filed: |
February 12, 1971 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
224/324; 224/323;
224/331; 224/917.5 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B60R
9/0485 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
B60R
9/00 (20060101); B60R 9/048 (20060101); B60m
009/00 () |
Field of
Search: |
;224/42.1R,42.1D,42.1E,42.1F,42.1G,42.1H,29,42.45 ;248/361 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Forlenza; Gerald M.
Assistant Examiner: Forsberg; Jerold M.
Claims
What is claimed:
1. In a ladder rack which may be removably installed on top of a
vehicle such as a van truck:
a. spaced, stationary supports for stationary mounting to support a
ladder thereon as for example for engagement on the rain gutter on
the opposite sides of the vehicle,
b. a longitudinal frame attached to and extending across the
stationary support means,
c. stop means on one support near one end of said longitudinal
frame and engageable by one of the ladder rungs when the ladder is
pushed thereagainst,
d. movable ladder drive and rung securing means mounted on the
longitudinal frame for motion relative to the longitudinal frame,
and including a finger member for engaging a ladder rung,
e. and manually operated handle means for operating said finger
member against said ladder rung to drive said ladder against said
stop means, and said handle being latched in place to secure said
ladder.
2. The device in claim 1:
f. spring means biasing said securing means in place against said
ladder when in place and said spring means biasing said securing
means out of place when said ladder is not installed.
3. The device claimed in claim 2:
g. said securing means being at least one finger member and being
mounted on a pivot means,
h. said means for operating including handle means connected to
said finger member.
4. The device in claim 3:
there being lost motion between said means for operating and said
finger member to bring said finger member flat against a surface
such as the vehicle top.
5. The device in claim 3: said pivot means being a shaft and said
finger member being mounted thereon; said handle means being
connected to said shaft.
6. The device in claim 5: said handle means being bendable spring
material such as spring steel and being bendable in place to
provide spring tension.
7. The device in claim 1: said stationary support means being a
pair of spaced, transverse members having attachment means thereon
for attachment to a vehicle rain gutter; said longitudinal frame
means being a pair of spaced members attached to said spaced
transverse members.
8. The device in claim 1:
said ladder rung securing means being movable on said support means
to engage a rung of the ladder in one position of ladder
installation and then when operated by said manually operated
means, to drive said ladder in place; said securing means then
being operable by said manually operated means to secure said
ladder in place by locking against a rung.
9. The device in claim 8: said securing means being a
longitudinally mounted finger member pivotally connected to said
longitudinal frame support means.
10. The device in claim 9: said finger member being mounted on a
pivot shaft and said manually operated means including a handle
manually operable for rotating said shaft to move said finger
member.
11. The device in claim 10: said finger member being mounted on
said pivot shaft for limited movement thereon when retracted to
stored position whereby there is lost motion to permit said handle
to be moved.
12. The device in claim 11: said handle member being made from a
spring material such as spring steel and being bendable when said
finger member is in place against said ladder rung to spring bias
same in place.
13. The device in claim 12: there being a first notch means
corresponding to the latched position of said finger member against
said ladder rung and said handle being bendable for a limited
amount to bend and drop into said notch to spring bias said ladder
in position; there being a second notch spaced from said first
notch in the position of retraction and storing of said finger
member and said handle being operable to retract said finger member
and to bend for a limited amount to drop into said notch to spring
bias said finger member into retracted, stored position.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
Racks and supports and especially ladder racks and supports.
Vehicle top carriers, racks and supports.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The prior art includes numerous vehicle ladder rack supports. Some
are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,080,527; 2,733,039; 2,746,628;
3,043,398 and 3,105,667. Many utility and service companies use
ladder racks and supports on the trucks and some of these comprise
essentially transverse supports relative to the top of the truck
and screw operated or toggle operated or some other type of
mechanical operation for fastening the ladder in place. Such
devices are relatively more costly to build and install than the
present device and constitute permanent modifications of the truck
which can only be done at a special repair facility. Furthermore,
the assembly of those devices is more involved and must be
performed by specialized personnel. The placement of the ladder on
the top of the truck is not easy in view of the weight of a 28 ft.
wooden extension ladder moved by a small person and it is not so
easy to get up on a truck to place brackets in position and then
tighten them or operate the mechanism to hold the ladder in place.
Some of the prior art devices are not durable and rust readily
because of the type of construction necessary from the way it is
built and the clamping mechanisms will work loose and must be
repaired or replaced.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
By utilizing pre-assembly parts plus permanent but removable
installation with nuts and bolts and similar fasteners it is
possible to install the present transverse bow supports in the rain
gutters of practically any vehicle such as the telephone and other
utility van type trucks which are quite common. The attachment of
the bow supports resembles the attachment of some car top carriers
through the use of screw operated pressure brackets that tighten on
the rain gutters. In lieu of any extensive or weighty framework the
present device utilizes only a pair of longitudinal rod members
bolted to the transverse bow supports and one of the rod members is
formed with an upstanding leg which prevents the disengagement of
the ladder from the ladder support sidewise after installation.
Clamp members like fingers move the ladder into place on the rack
by pushing upon operation of the handle which spring biases into
place when the ladder is clamped. The clamp fingers are retracted
by the handle and held in place from rattling.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a perspective assembly or exploded view of the present
ladder rack.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the top of a van type truck with
the present ladder rack installed thereon.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the ladder rung latching mechanism
including the latching fingers and a portion of the handle.
DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The entire ladder rack of the present invention is referred to by
reference numeral 10 and comprises a pair of vehicle support
members designated generally by reference numeral 12 and 14 which
are for transverse installation on a typical side edge rain gutter
16 found on most vehicles such as the one 18 shown in FIG. 2. The
vehicle support members are made from lightweight metal channel
having pre-punched therein a number of openings to receive assembly
and latching elements to be described hereinafter. Each vehicle
support member 12, 14 has attached to one end thereof a rain gutter
support plate assembly 20 also made from lightweight metal channel
and having a protruding plate 22 in which there is a threaded
opening receiving a threaded stud 24 attached to a bottom plate 26.
As shown in FIG. 1, rain gutter support plate assemblies 20 are
attached in place in the various openings 28 by fasteners 30 which
may be screws or any other type of fastening element into a rigid
assembly which is attached onto the rain gutter 16 in the manner
shown in FIG. 2.
A pair of longitudinal ladder support members 34, 36 may be made
from metal tubing. Member 36 is bent at one end into an upstanding
leg 38 which is used to try to prevent unwanted sidewise
displacement of the ladder which is shown in places in whole or in
part by dotted lines 40. Leg 38 also serves as a guide and stop to
engage one end of the ladder during placement or removal. The
ladder 40 includes conventional transverse ladder rungs 42.
Vehicle support member 14 has welded or otherwise attached thereto
a pair of ladder abuttment feet 44, 46 respectively. Foot 44 has
the bend 45 reversed in direction from the same bend 45 in foot 46
in the manner shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 to assist in the sidewise
installation and removal of the ladder by turning the ladder rung
42 and sliding same up foot 46 at the straight side to allow the
ladder to swing outwardly or inwardly against leg 38 when held by
the workman standing on the ground alongside the vehicle 18.
The longitudinal ladder support members each have installation
studs 50 thereon for insertion in pre-punched openings 51 in the
respective vehicle support members 12, 14 for installation securely
and permanently but removably thereon.
For the purpose of discussion, the feet 44, 46 are considered to be
at the rear or the bottom of the bracket assembly 10 and for this
reason this is referred to as the rearward direction or the bottom
of the entire assembly wherever discussion refers to the ladder
installation and removal. However, it is obvious that the entire
assembly may be assembled in either direction and either end may be
on one or the other of the vehicle 18.
Near one end of the entire assembly 10 which for the sake of
discussion is referred to as the front end there is a ladder
latching arrangement which is designated generally by reference
numeral 52 and comprises a pair of ladder latching fingers 54 of
identical construction made from bent metal plate in the general
shape apparent from the figures of the drawings, and connected by a
cross-bar member 55. The ends of members 54 may be coated with
rubber or vinyl to cushion same and to provide durability. Likewise
portions of the feet 44, 46 may be coated with rubber or plastic
for the same reason and to make the installation tighter and to
absorb shock better and reduce noise from rattling and the like.
Members 54 have inner ends formed from the metal bent into a
tubular shape 56 and are mounted permanently on a metal rod shaft
58 by means of lugs 60 attached to shaft 58 and extending through
elongated slots 62 in the tubular portions 56.
As seen in FIG. 1, shaft 58 is mounted in bushings 64 inserted in
openings in support plates 66 attached to the underside of the
respective ladder support members 34, 36 and support plate 66 on
member 36 is part of a latching bracket assembly designated
generally by reference numeral 70 and comprising an elongated plate
72 with notch plates 74 at each end thereof having notches 76 in
which is positioned under tension a spring steel handle member 80
which has one end 82 bent inwardly for loose attachment in an
opening 84 in one end of shaft 58 as shown in the figures of the
drawings, especially FIG. 3. Handle 80 has a plastic or rubber grip
member 86 thereon. Thus, the handle 80 is operated to turn shaft 58
in either direction and as seen readily in FIG. 2 when the handle
is rotated in the same direction as the desired movement of the
fingers 54 the fingers will engage the next adjacent ladder rung 42
and push the ladder rearward against feet 44, 46 until the ladder
rung 42 at that end engages the feet 44, 46 and cannot move
further. Then the handle may be swung slightly because of the lost
motion in the slot 62 of the lug 60 and the handle pivoted slightly
to be brought into position just below the notch 76 and then bent
slightly to bias into place in the notch holding the handle 80
securely in place and tightening on the fingers 54 against rung 42
thereby securing the ladder 40 tightly in place under tension and
with cushioned engagement.
When the ladder 40 has been removed from the truck 18, which as
mentioned previously can be done by standing alongside the vehicle,
then releasing the handle 80 from its position in the rearward
notch 76 and then swinging the handle around to bring the fingers
54 forward to the dotted line position shown in FIG. 3 whereat the
handle 80 may then be moved slightly to be brought into the other
notch 76 and spring biased therein to hold the fingers 54 tightly
in place and to prevent movement or rattling when the ladder is not
in place. In doing this retraction of the fingers 54, the lugs 60
drive the fingers 54 simultaneously from shaft 58 towards the top
of the vehicle 18 until the fingers 54 strike the top and lie
thereagainst at which time there is lost motion in the slots 62
while the lugs 60 travel to the other end of slot 60 at which point
the handle is rearward (dotted lines in FIG. 2) and has been bent
slightly into the notch 76 to spring bias the fingers 54 against
the flanged edge of support 12 on the top of vehicle 18 thereby
securing the fingers 54 from rattling and placing them for ready
use when the ladder is installed. As the ladder is installed as
previously mentioned the lugs 60 travel back to the end of slot 62
to again drive the fingers 54 against the ladder rung 42.
SUMMARY OF OPERATION
A ladder 40 is removed by unlatching the handle 80 from notch 76
and rotating and swinging the handle 80 to where the fingers 54 are
against the support 12. Then the ladder may be grasped by hand,
shifted while standing on the ground about and against the feet 44,
46 and the end being held lowered to the ground. To replace the
ladder 40 on top of vehicle 18, the ladder 40 is lifted to place
one end against feet 44,46 (substantially reversing the procedure
of removal) and then the other end is lowered on top of support 12
with the fingers 54 inside the ladder 40, as seen in FIG. 2. This
places the fingers 54 between ladder rungs and by swinging the
handle 80 the fingers 54 are driven, as described previously in the
description of the fingers 54, against the rung 42 and the ladder
40 is pushed firmly against the feet 44,46. The handle 80 is bent
slightly in place, being spring steel as described previously, and
while bent and under tension is placed in the notch 76 thereby
maintaining pressure on the ladder 40.
While I have shown and described a particular embodiment of this
invention together with a suggested use thereof this is by way of
illustration only since there are various alterations, deviations,
combinations, additions, removals, integrations, combinations,
additions, substitutions, and other departures which may be made in
the embodiment shown and described without departing from the scope
of my invention as defined by a proper construction of the appended
claims.
* * * * *