Television Antenna For Motor Home With Collapsible Support

Abstract

A retractable television antenna assembly is provided for vehicles, such as motor homes, or the like, which may be retracted and locked in a stowed position when the vehicle is in motion; which is constructed so that the antenna exhibits negligible wind resistance when it is in its stowed position; and which is constructed so that the antenna may be extended to an operative position above the roof when the vehicle is parked. The antenna assembly includes a vertical pole which is slidably mounted in appropriate mounting brackets on the rear wall of the vehicle. As the pole is moved from a lower to an upper position, appropriate antenna dipoles, which are coupled to the pole through a linkage assembly, move upwardly with the pole, and turn outwardly into a horizontal extended position.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The antenna assembly of the invention is intended to provide the motor home traveler with a full-sized television antenna by which he can optimize television reception wherever he happens to be; and which may be simply and conveniently retracted and locked in a stowed position when the vehicle is in motion.

The television assembly of the invention has a feature in that it is solid and durable in its construction, and it may be rigidly mounted on the vehicle. The assembly may be completely locked and stowed in place on the rear of the vehicle when the vehicle is traveling, and when so stowed the assembly offers negligible wind resistance. When the antenna is to be used, the assembly may be conveniently extended to a position in which antenna dipoles are positioned above the roof of the vehicle, and may be turned to a position for maximized television reception.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of an antenna assembly constructed to incorporate the concepts of the invention and showing the assembly mounted on the rear wall of a vehicle, such as a motor home, the representation of FIG. 1 illustrating the assembly in its retracted, stowed position;

FIG. 2 is a view like FIG. 1, but taken from the rear, rather than the side of the vehicle;

FIG. 3 is a view, like FIG. 1, but showing the assembly in its extended and operative position;

FIG. 4 shows the antenna assembly in its partially extended position;

FIG. 5 is a top plan view of the assembly, showing its dipole antenna elements in their angularly extended operative position; and

FIG. 6 is fragmentary representation of a locking mechanism for the assembly, by which the assembly may be turned and locked in any adjusted angular position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE ILLUSTRATED EMBODIMENT

As illustrated in the drawings, the assembly of the invention includes, for example, an upper mounting bracket 10 and lower mounting bracket 12, the mounting brackets 10 and 12 being mounted on the rear wall of a motor home, 14, with the upper mounting bracket 10 being located adjacent the roof of the motor home. The antenna assembly includes a pole 16 which is slidable in the mounting brackets 10 and 12 between a lower retracted position shown in FIG. 1, through an intermediate position shown in FIG. 4, to the upper fully extended position shown in FIG. 3. A hand-grip 18, formed of rubber, or the like, is mounted on the lower end of the pole 16.

A rod 20 is mounted to the pole 16 by means of a hub 24 which is attached to an intermediate position on the pole. The rod 20 is bolted to the lower bracket 12 by means of a removable bolt 22.

When the assembly is in its lower position, as shown in FIG. 1, the bolt 22 extends through a hole in the upper end of the rod 20 to hold the assembly locked in its lower position. To move the assembly to its upper position, the bolt 22 is removed, and the pole 16 pushed upwardly to the position shown in FIG. 3. The bolt 22 is then bolted through a hole in the lower end of the rod 20 to hold and lock the assembly in its uppermost position.

The pole 16 is rotatable in the hub 24, so that the antenna can be turned to any desired angular position, when the structure is extended, as shown in FIG. 3. A mounting bracket 30 is mounted to the upper end of the pole 16, and an elongated bracket 32 is pivotally coupled at one end to the bracket 30. A pair of antenna dipole elments 36 is mounted on the elongated bracket 32 by means, for example, of insulating members 38 which may be formed of fiberboard, or other appropriate insulating material. The dipole elements are pivotally mounted on the insulating members 38, and are received in grooves in the upper surface of each of members.

The dipole elements may be turned to an aligned position with respect to the bracket 32, as shown, for example, in FIGS. 1 and 2, when the antenna is in its retracted position. However, before the antenna is elevated to its operative position of FIG. 3, the dipole elements may be turned out to, for example, a 45.degree. operative inclination with respect to the bracket 32, as shown in the plan view of FIG. 5.

The elongated bracket 32 is coupled to the upper mounting bracket 10 by means of a link 50. The link 50 is pivotally mounted at its lower end to the mounting bracket 10, and it is pivotally mounted at its upper end in slot 52 in the elongated bracket 32. A second link 54 is pivotally mounted to the bracket 30 and to an intermediate point on the link 50. The links 50 and 54 form a linkage which causes the elongated bracket 32 to turn in a vertical plane from the vertical angular position shown in FIG. 1 to the horizontal angular position shown in FIG. 3, when the pole 16 is pushed by the hand-grip 18 from its lower position to its upper position.

A locking sub-assembly 60 is provided between the pole 16 and the hub 24. The sub-assembly 60, as shown in FIG. 6 includes a lower member 62 which is welded, or otherwise affixed to the hub 24, and upper member 64 which is welded, or otherwise affixed to the pole 16. The member 64 has a plurality of radial serrations which adjustably receive a projection on the member 62, so that the pole 16 may be held locked in any desired angular position.

The pole 16 may be turned, by grasping the hand-grip 18 and pushing the assembly upwardly so as to separate the member 64 from the member 62, by then turning the assembly to a desired angular position, and by then allowing the pole 16 to drop until the projection on the member 62 engages a corresponding serration on the member 64, so that the assembly is held locked in the selected angular position.

It will be apparent that in order to adjust the antenna assembly from its stowed and locked position of FIG. 1, to its operative position of FIG. 3, the first step is to unfold the dipoles 36 from their aligned position of FIG. 1 to their operative inclined positions of FIG. 5. Then, the bolt 22 is removed to permit the hole 24 to be pushed upwardly from the position of FIG. 1 to the position of FIG. 3 by means of the hand-grip 18. The bolt 22 is then re-inserted through the lower hole of the rod 20, so that the assembly is locked in its upper position. The hand-grip 18 is then pushed upwardly to release the members 64 and 62 of the sub-assembly 60, permitting the antenna to be turned to any desired angular position for maximum television reception. The hand-grip 18 is then released, allowing the antenna assembly to lock in the set angular position.

It will be appreciated that when the antenna assembly is in its lower retracted position of FIG. 1, it is securely locked in that position, and it is sheltered behind the mobile home, and below the roof, so as to offer negligible wind resistance. Then, when the assembly is set to its operative position of FIG. 3, it is again locked securely in that position, and with an angular orientation of maximized television reception.

It wil be appreciated that although a particular embodiment of the invention has been shown and described, modifications may be made. It is intended in the claims to cover all the modifications which come within the spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A television antenna assembly for use in conjunction with a vehicle, such as a motor home, or the like, said assembly comprising: bracket means for mounting the assembly on the vehicle, said bracket means comprising a lower mounting bracket attached to the rear wall of the vehicle and an upper mounting bracket attached to the rear wall of the vehicle in vertical spaced relationship with respect to the lower mounting bracket; a vertically-extending pole slidably mounted in said bracket means; an elongated support bracket pivotally mounted to the upper end of said pole for angular movement in a vertical plane between a vertical angular position adjacent and parallel to the axis of the pole and a horizontal angular position essentially perpendicular to the axis of the pole; linkage means interconnecting said elongated support bracket and said upper bracket for turning said support bracket between its vertical and horizontal angular positions as said pole is moved vertically in the bracket means between a lower and an upper position; and antenna means mounted on said support bracket.

2. The television antenna assembly defined in claim 1, in which said antenna means includes at least one pair of elongated dipole elements mounted on said support bracket, said dipole elements being pivotally adjustable thereon between a first position in which said dipole elements are aligned with the axis of said elongated support bracket and a second position in which said dipole elements each extends at an angle to the axis of said elongated support bracket.

3. The television antenna assembly defined in claim 1, and which includes means coupled to said pole permitting said support bracket to be turned in a horizontal plane to a selected angular position when the pole is in its upper position, and for locking said support bracket in said selected angular position.

4. The television antenna assembly defined in claim 3, and which includes a hand-grip mounted at the lower end of the pole to move the pole to its upper position, and for turning the pole and the support bracket to the selected angular position.

5. The television antenna assembly defined in claim 1, and which includes means for locking the pole at its upper position and at its lower position in said bracket means.