U.S. patent number RE28,788 [Application Number 05/566,838] was granted by the patent office on 1976-04-27 for load restrainer.
Invention is credited to George R. Williamson, III.
United States Patent |
RE28,788 |
Williamson, III |
April 27, 1976 |
Load restrainer
Abstract
A unitary load retainer or restrainer system for a vehicular
load carrying container or the like, including a supporting sheet
of material suspended from a horizontal rod that rides in tracks so
that the restraining system may be moved fore and aft within the
container as desired, the supporting sheet material being provided
with a plurality of horizontally extending slots that receive load
restraining belts having fasteners at either end that are
connectable to openings in logistic rails that extend along the
interior of the container, the slots in the supporting sheet of
material permitting vertical adjustment of the horizontal belts to
accommodate for different locations of the logistic rails within
different vehicular containers, there being also provided means for
loosely holding the belts within the slots so that the belts may
not be inadvertently removed from the supporting sheet of material
and lost, there being also provided a draw strap having a plurality
of slots that receive the belts and a portion which extends up over
the horizontal sliding rod at the top of the container with a
fastener at the end thereof that may be fixed in any one of the
logistic rails as desired to draw the entire supporting sheet and
belts to the top of the vehicular container during non-use or
loading of the container.
Inventors: |
Williamson, III; George R.
(Richton Park, IL) |
Family
ID: |
26965932 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/566,838 |
Filed: |
April 10, 1975 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
Issue Date |
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Reissue of: |
289955 |
Sep 18, 1972 |
03782758 |
Jan 1, 1974 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
410/118;
160/84.01; 410/132 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B60P
7/14 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
B60P
7/14 (20060101); B60P 7/06 (20060101); B60P
007/00 () |
Field of
Search: |
;280/179R,179A
;105/369R,369B,376 ;62/329 ;16/87.6 ;160/368G ;49/177 ;119/11 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Wood, Jr.; M. H.
Assistant Examiner: Schrecengost; R.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Lettvin; Norman Geren; Gerald
S.
Claims
I claim:
1. A load restrainer, comprising: vertically extending support
means adapted to be supported within a container, a plurality of
horizontal restraining belts engaging said support means, fasteners
on each end of said restraining belts cooperating with fasteners
means adapted to be mounted on the container walls, and means
permitting vertical adjustment of the belts with respect to the
support means to accommodate different location fasteners within
the container.
2. The load restrainer of claim 1, said support means having a
guide bar at the top thereof, track means adapted to be mounted to
the container side walls, said guide bar being slidable in said
track means.
3. The load restrainer of claim 1, wherein said fastener means
includes a plurality of rails having apertures therein.
4. The load restrainer of claim 1, wherein said support means
includes a flexible sheet of material, horizontal slots in said
support sheet for receiving the belts.
5. The load restrainer of claim 4, including means loosely holding
the belts in said slots.
6. The load restrainer of claim 1, including means for drawing the
support means to the top of the container for storage.
7. The load restrainer of claim 6, said means for drawing the
support means including a draw strap, said draw strap having a
fastener at the end thereof connectable with one of the fasteners
within the container.
8. The load restrainer of claim 1, including side tracks adapted to
be mounted to the container side walls for supporting said support
means for horizontal movement, and means for preventing removal of
the support means from the side tracks.
9. A load restrainer, comprising: fastener means adapted to be
permanently fixed within a container, tracks adapted to be mounted
within the upper section of such container, a support rod slidable
in said tracks, a flexible support sheet suspended from said rod
and having a plurality of horizontally extending slots therein, a
plurality of horizontal belts extending through said slots, said
belts having fasteners on the ends thereof adapted to be connected
to fasteners in the container, means loosely fixing the belts
within the slots to prevent their loss, and means for drawing the
support sheet and belts to the top of the container for
storage.
10. A load restrainer, comprising: a plurality of permanent
fasteners, a support means adapted to be suspended from the top of
a container, said support means including an endless belt of
flexible material adapted to be extended a substantial distance
across the container, said flexible belt having horizontal straps
where the sides of the belt are fixed together forming horizontal
pockets in the support belt, and a plurality of horizontal
restraining belts in the pockets.
11. The load restrainer of claim 10, wherein said belts have
fasteners at each end thereof.
12. The load restrainer of claim 10, wherein said support belt is
canvas.
13. A load restrainer, comprising: a sheet of flexible support
material suspended from the upper reaches of a container, a
plurality of horizontally disposed belts carried by said support
means, fasteners at each end of said belts, a vertically extending
strap for pulling the support and the belts to the upper reaches of
a container, said strap having a fastener at the end thereof for
attachment to the container.
14. The load restrainer of claim 13, wherein said strap has loops
that fit around each of said belts.
15. The load restrainer of claim 13, wherein said strap is loosely
fixed to the belts. .Iadd. 16. A load restrainer for use in a
lading-carrying vehicle having longitudinal side, top and bottom
walls enclosing a lading-containing space; said load restrainer
comprising, in combination:
a plurality of vertically spaced fastener means positioned along
the side walls of the vehicle;
mounting means extending transversely of said lading-containing
space adjacent the top wall of the vehicle and movable
longitudinally within said space;
support means of flexible material suspended from said mounting
means and extending a substantial distance across the width and
height of the lading-containing space between the spaced side walls
and spaced top and bottom walls of the vehicle;
a plurality of vertically-spaced, flexible, horizontal load
restraining belts carried upon said mounting means; and
fastener members at the ends of each of said belts for selective
connection to the vertically spaced fastener means along the side
walls of the vehicle. .Iaddend. .Iadd. 17. The load restrainer of
claim 16, wherein said support means includes means defining a
plurality of horizontally extending pockets, each for receiving one
of said flexible horizontal belts. .Iaddend..Iadd. 18. The load
restrainer of claim 16, wherein said fastener means comprises a
plurality of pairs of longitudinally extending rails with one of
each pair being mounted on each of the side walls, and each pair
adapted to cooperate with the fasteners on the ends of a belt.
.Iaddend..Iadd. 19. The load restrainer of claim 16, wherein said
flexible material is foldable and said support means is retractable
from the extended position, so that said support means can be
selectively folded for placement in a stored-away position leaving
the lading-containing space substantially unobstructed. .Iaddend.
.Iadd. 20. The load restrainer of claim 16 which includes means for
tensioning the load restraining belts between the fastener means.
.Iaddend..Iadd. 21. The load restrainer of claim 16, wherein said
support means includes a horizontally extending loop of said
flexible material along one edge of said support means for
receiving said mounting means and suspending said support means
from said mounting means. .Iaddend.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE PRESENT INVENTION
The present invention relates to load dividers and restrainers for
vehicular containers that serve either to separate portions of the
load within the container or restrain part or all of the load
within the container. Most vehicles are specially constructed to
receive various types of load restraining or dividing devices. One
such special adaptation includes a plurality of horizontally
extending "logistic rails" fixed to the sides of the container and
extending fore and aft therein. These "logistic rails" include
metal channels that have a plurality of slots therein. These slots
receive fasteners that are fixed to the ends of bars or flexible
belts that extend across the inside of the container.
The use of these belts or bars has raised serious problems in the
transportation industry.
In the transportation industry, it is quite common to transfer
loads or partial loads from one carrier to another carrier in the
goods route to their destination. Such a transfer involves the
unloading of one vehicle, such as a railroad car, and the
subsequent loading of the removed goods onto another vehicle such
as a semi-trailer. During such transfers, it is very common for the
restraining belts or bars to be inadvertently, or sometimes
intentionally through theft, removed from one of the vehicles. This
is a considerable problem because of the significant cost of
continually replacing the belts or bars which are normally assigned
to a specific vehicle or container.
While there has been no attempt in the past to solve the problem of
restraining belt and bar loss, there have been provided several
forms of partitions or restrainers in vehicular containers that
require some comment. One such retainer consists of a rigid wall
mounted toward the rear of the vehicular container and swingable
from a downward lower position to an upward loading position. For
holding the rigid panel in the retaining position, a hydraulic jack
mechanism is provided that engages the sides of the container. This
structure is extremely costly, subject to constant malfunction, and
difficult for freight handlers to operate properly. Moreover, the
structure is extremely expensive and when damaged is very costly to
replace or repair.
The Jeffrey U.S. Pat. No. 980,789, issued Jan. 3, 1911, shows a
chain network separator for an animal shelter. The problem of belt
or bar loss is not presented in the animal shelter environment,
which no doubt is on a farm, and moreover, the horizontal chains
must be aligned with the enclosure side boards to provide maximum
load restraining capabilities.
The Falk U.S. Pat. No. 3,638,450 shows a flexible curtain that
separates a container and rolls up for storage at the top of the
container, but fails to teach any novel manner of attaching the end
of the draw cord to the container side walls.
The Singer U.S. Pat. No. 3,376,599 shows an axially movable
bulkhead for a refrigeration container, but the curtain is
transversely foldable for loading and unloading and provides an
extremely complicated and expensive structure.
It is a primary object of the present invention to minimize the
problems set forth in the prior art.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with the present invention, a load divider and
restrainer is provided for a vehicular container that is unitary in
construction and carries a plurality of restraining belts that may
not be removed from the vehicle. The load restrainer is axially
slidable on horizontally extending tracks of the top of the
container from one end of the container to the other to separate
the load or restrain the load wherever desired in the vehicle. If
desired, more than one load divider restrainer may be provided in
the same set of tracks to restrain or divide the load at multiple
points.
Toward this end, a horizontal rod having guides slidable in the
track supports a looped piece of canvas hanging vertically within
the container almost to the floor thereof. A plurality of
horizontal sew lines, fixing the sides of the looped canvas sheet
together define horizontal slots which each receive a conventional
restraining belt with logistic clips fixed to either end thereof.
These belts serve the conventional restraining function and very
importantly, the slots in the looped canvas support for the belts
permit the belts to be vertically adjusted to accommodate logistic
rails at varying heights. This is extremely important, since the
height of the logistic rails in one vehicle may vary widely from
the height of the logistic rails in another vehicle, and thus, the
present load restrainer and divider system is adaptable to
different vehicular containers with differently positioned logistic
rails.
To prevent the loss or removal of the belts from the canvas
support, straps are provided between the looped canvas support that
are fixed to the support and also fixed to the belts, but these
straps do not inhibit the vertical positioning of the belts within
the looped canvas pockets.
To facilitate loading and unloading of the vehicle, the present
restrainer system is retractable to a position at the top of the
container by straps at each side of the canvas support which are
looped over the top bar and have fasteners at the end thereof which
clip into the logistic side rails within the vehicular
container.
Thus, the primary purpose of the present system is to function as a
cargo holding or dividing device. It is primarily designed to
maintain the vehicular container's load of cargo safely supported
or divided to prevent damaged freight and to afford segregation of
cargo while in transit between or within shipping or receiving
facilities.
The present system is practically maintenance free; there are only
11 component parts and of these only two parts, the buckles and the
fitting, have removable parts. Both of these parts are readily
accessible and inexpensive. The belts and the buckles can also be
adapted to existing equipment without special or new rails or new
tracks being installed.
Another advantage is that the present system eliminates costly
blocking and bracing and provides a dependable consistent carrier
with a liability claim prevention device.
The forward and the backward strength of the unit may approach
40,000 pounds of direct force and accommodates most all types of
loaded cargo.
Because of the short axial length of the present system, or
thinness thereof, every slot in the logistic rails in the container
side walls may be employed.
Moreover, the system adds extra protection to the most vulnerable
area of the trailer or container near its rear doors.
Still further, another advantage of the present invention is that
minimal educational processes are required for the freight handlers
in order to operate the same.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a perspective view, partly broken away, illustrating a
semi-trailer with the present load divider and restrainer;
FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross section of the semi-trailer shown in
FIG. 1 taken generally along line 2--2 of FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is a fragmentary top view of the draw strap mechanism taken
generally along line 3--3 of FIG. 2;
FIG. 4 is a cross section taken generally along line 4--4 of FIG. 2
illustrating the canvas support loops; and
FIG. 5 is a cross section taken generally along line 5--5 of FIG. 2
illustrating the interconnection between the straps and the
logistic side rails of the container.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring to the drawings and particularly FIGS. 1 and 2, a
semi-trailer 10 is illustrated having slidable therein a load
divider and restraining system 12 according to the present
invention. The load restraining and dividing mechanism 12 may be
employed to divide one load from another load when multiple
shipments are carried, using one or more of the systems 12, or may
simply be used as a load restrainer holding the load securely in
position when less than a full container is required to receive the
load.
The container 10 includes a bottom wall 14, side walls 15 and 16,
front wall 17, top wall 18 and a rear door 19.
Mounted on the side walls 15 and 16 are logistic rails 20, 21, 22
and 23 on wall 16 and rails 24, 25, 26 and 27 on wall 15. As seen
in FIG. 4, the logistic rails have a plurality of I-shaped slots 30
therein that receive and hold clips 32 as shown in FIGS. 1 and
5.
It should be understood that the dividing and restraining system 12
may be used with fastening devices other than the logistic rails
20, etc. For example, the rails may be vertically positioned rather
than horizontally positioned as shown in the drawings.
For the purpose of permitting the load restrainer and divider 12 to
be positioned at any location throughout the length of the trailer
10, channel-shaped tracks 36 and 37 are provided at the top inside
of the side walls 16 and 15, respectively. These tracks 36 and 37
are easily roll formed and inexpensive in construction, and are
connected by suitable threaded fasteners to the walls 16 and 15.
This simple attachment of the tracks 36 and 37 permits the present
load retaining system 12 to be easily incorporated into existing
vehicle containers, as well as being an original equipment
installation.
To slidably support the restrainer system 12 within the tracks 36
and 37, a horizontally disposed steel rod 40 is provided having
circular discs 42 and 43 fixed to the ends thereof and slidable in
the channel-shaped tracks 36 and 37, respectively.
Suspended from the rod 40 is a wide loop of canvas 47 that extends
double fold substantially the height of the interior of the
container 10 and also substantially across the width of the
container. As seen more clearly in FIG. 4, the canvas supporting
web 47 has sew lines 49, 50, 51, 52, 53 and 54 that extend
horizontally completely across the supporting canvas 47 defining
slots 60, 61, 62, 63, 64 and 65 between the sides of the canvas
member 47. The slot 60 receives the rod 40, the slot 62 receives a
restraining strap 70, the slot 63 receives a restraining strap 72,
the slot 64 receives a restraining strap 74, and the slot 65
receives a restraining strap 76.
The restraining straps 70, 72, 74 and 76 serve primarily as
retaining and restraining elements which carry the main portion of
the load in restraining the load and holding it in position.
However, the canvas 47 between the straps also serves a dividing
and restraining function.
The belts 70, etc., have buckle assemblies 78 that permit the belts
to be tightened or loosened to their proper position. At each end
of the belts 70, 72, 74 and 76 are fixed fastening clips 32 which
fit into the I-shaped slots 30 in the logistic side rails 20, etc.,
as described above.
To assure a maximum load carrying capability of the belts 70, 72,
74 and 76, they are vertically positionable with respect to the
supporting canvas 47. Toward this end, the belts are freely movable
vertically between the sew lines, such as 50, 51, in the canvas 12.
This permits the belts to remain horizontal in their load carrying
position, and thus, they have their maximum load carrying
capability, which of course they would not have if they were not
substantially horizontal throughout the length thereof.
For the purpose of preventing removal of the belts 70, 72, 74 and
76 from the supporting canvas 47, a strap 80 is sewn between the
canvas loop 47 at points 82, 84, 86, 88 and 90. The strap 80 is
fixed to the belts 70, 72, 74 and 76 by sew points 92, 94, 96 and
98. The loops 100 in the strap 80 between the sew points at the
canvas 47 and the belts permit the free movement of the belts
vertically within the pockets between the canvas 47, but prevent
the complete removal of the belts from the supporting canvas
47.
During unloading and loading, or when the restrainer system 12 is
not in use, it is stowable at the top of the container 10. Toward
this end, straps 106 and 107 are provided at each side of the
canvas 47. In a similar fashion to the canvas, the straps 106 and
107 are double folded and have sew points as indicated at 110, 111,
112, 113 and 114 defining loops which receive the belts 70, 72, 74
and 76. The straps 106 and 107 are folded across the top of the rod
40, and have buckle assemblies 120 for the purpose of raising and
lowering the restraining system 12. At the end of each of the
straps 106, 107 is a clip 124, similar to clips 32 which fits in
one of the logistic rails 23 to hold the straps in position. To
raise the straps 106 and 107, the buckle assemblies 120 are
released and the straps pulled up until the canvas 47 bunches at
the top of the container carrying the belts 70, 72, 74 and 76
therewith.
During use, after the entire load or the desired portion of the
load is placed within the container 10, the buckles 120 are
released lowering the canvas 47 and the canvas 47 and rod 40 are
slid within the container until adjacent the rear end of the load.
Thereafter, the clips 32 are fixed to the side rails adjacent the
end of the load and the buckles 78 are cinched pulling the straps
70, 72, 74 and 76 tightly against the load along with the canvas
47. It should be understood that the canvas 47 in addition to
performing a dividing function also performs some restraining
function on the load. Moreover, when the restraining device 12 is
employed with small goods, such as small boxes, the canvas 47
serves the function of preventing small boxes or goods from
slipping between the belts 70, 72, 74 and 76.
As seen in FIG. 4, the ends 150 of the side rails 36, 37 are
overturned to prevent removal of the discs 42, 43 and thus, prevent
the removal of the entire load retainer 12 from the vehicle
container 10.
* * * * *