Supports – Brackets – Specially mounted or attached
Reexamination Certificate
1999-11-01
2001-03-06
Ramirez, Ramon O. (Department: 3632)
Supports
Brackets
Specially mounted or attached
C248S292120, C296S100040, C296S167000, C074S089140, C074S425000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06196507
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
This invention relates generally to land vehicles, bodies and tops and, more particularly, to clamp assemblies for releasably securing a topper to a pick-up truck.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
In recent years, pick-up toppers have become popular and appear on the market in a variety of different shapes, models and designs, such as campers, caps and cabs. These units are lifted onto the truck bed and anchored to the truck box by clamp assemblies or other types of holddown brackets.
Pick-up truck boxes include a bottom wall, sidewalls, an end wall and a tailgate with the wheel wells projecting into the box. The tops of the sidewalls extend inwardly toward each other, thus forming opposing transverse flanges which are disposed over the bottom wall of the truck box. The design of the sidewalls and the transverse flanges for each manufacture, however, are different, thus necessitating a plurality of different clamp assemblies or holddown brackets to supply the market.
A clamp assembly for securing a topper onto the pick-up truck box must be robust to prevent the topper from bouncing off the truck box while travelling on rough terrain, sliding off the box when travelling up a hill, or from sliding or slamming into the end wall and cab of the truck when travelling downhill or in the event of a sudden stop. The clamp assembly is also expected to be simple for operating, easily accessible for securing the topper to or releasing it from the pick-up truck box because the pick-up truck may be used for other purposes.
Prior art has focused on those objects and various types of clamp assemblies, holddown brackets or locking devices have been created. U.S. Pat. No. 3,503,647, entitled CAMPER HOLDDOWN BRACKET and issued to Gostomski on Mar. 31, 1970, for example, describes a universal camper holddown bracket for securing a camper to the bed of a pick-up truck having lipped sidewalls. In response to a movement of a slidable rod, an arm is pivotable from a non-locking engagement to a locking engagement with the lip, and enabled to be locked in the locking engagement position. The slidable rod, however, is operated from the outer side of the camper. This is somehow a disadvantage in respect to security considerations.
Another example is described by Thibault in his Canadian Patent No. 2,083,300 which is entitled QUICK-RELEASE LOCK FOR PICK-UP TRUCK TOPPER and issued Feb. 3, 1998. Thibault describes a pivotal handle bar assembly including a removable pivotable handle, projecting inside the topper enclosure, and a fulcrum end with an elastomeric pad to frictionally anchor the topper to the truck box. Release of the handle bar lock is possible only from within the topper enclosure. The elastomeric pad, however, is not durable and too soft to firmly secure the topper to the truck box, particularly under vibration and impact when the vehicle travels on rough terrain. Another disadvantage relates to the manner and structure for adjusting the distance from the fulcrum end to the pivot pin in order to fit in with the needs of vehicles of different makes and models. A telescoping tubing structure with locking pin is used to adjust the length of the pivotal handle bar, which has to be manually down before the assembly is installed to the topper.
Practically, a topper is usually anchored onto the pick-up truck box at four points, that is, a front place and a rear place at each side. Four identical clamp assemblies are used and operated individually one after another to lock the topper to the truck box. The structural rigidity of the topper and the pick-up truck box are different since the topper is usually an enclosure structure such as a cab or camper, while the truck box is an open structure. When the vehicle travels on rough terrain, the pick-up truck box may be instantly twisted to an extent that the relatively rigid cab or camper cannot follow the instant deformation of the pick-up truck box and, therefore, tension is resulted to break the clamp assemblies.
There therefore exists the need for continuous improvements of clamp assemblies for use in such applications.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide a clamp assembly mountable on a self-enclosed topper for securing the same to a pick-up truck box, which enables a single operator to easily and quickly install or remove the topper, yet preventing unauthorized release therefrom.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a clamp assembly which is adaptable, without modification to various sizes and makes of pick-up trucks.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a clamp assembly used for securing a self-enclosed topper to the pick-up truck box, which includes master and slave assemblies and enables more than one place to be secured in one operation.
It is yet a further object of the present invention to provide a clamp assembly which secures a self-enclosed topper to a pick-up truck box at securing points with different rigidities to permit the topper and the truck box to instantly deform differently while reliably securing features are maintained.
In accordance with one aspect of the invention, a clamp assembly is provided for releasably securing a topper to a pick-up truck box having sidewalls each with an inwardly extended flange, the topper including sidewalls having transverse offset sections to extend over the sidewalls of the pick-up truck box respectively, wherein the clamp assembly comprises: a first elongate engagement member adapted to be pivotally mounted to either one of the sidewalls of the topper so that the first engagement member is pivotable between an operative position in which a free end of the first engagement member extends beneath the inwardly extended flange and forcibly abuts a undersurface of the flange, and an inoperative position in which the free end of the first engagement member clears the flange; a rotating device operatively connected to the first engagement member to convert a rotation about an axis substantially perpendicular to a pivotal shaft of the first engagement member to a pivotal movement of the first engagement member between the operative and inoperative positions; and a locking device to lock the first engagement member in the operative position.
The abutment of the first engagement member against the flange is preferably achieved through an abutment member. The abutment member is pivotally mounted to the free end of the engagement member and adapted to be adjustably guided between an inner surface of the sidewall of the pick-up truck box and a downwardly suspending edge of the flange into a position to properly abut the undersurface of the flange when the first lock member is pivotally moved into the operative position.
In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the clamp assembly comprises a master and a slave assembly. Each of the master and slave assemblies include a elongate engagement member pivotable between the operative position and the inoperative position. The elongate engagement members of the master and slave assemblies are adapted to be pivotally mounted to the same transverse offset section of the topper and spaced-apart from each other. The first lock member of the slave assembly is operatively connected to the pivotal shaft of the engagement member of the master assembly so that the engagement member of the slave assembly is manipulated between the operative and inoperative positions, locking and unlocking conditions following the performance of the master assembly when the engagement member of the master assembly is driven by a rotating device, and locked and unlocked by a locking device.
In a more specific term in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention, the clamp assembly comprises a master assembly and a slave assembly. Each of the master and slave assemblies includes base plates adapted to be mounted to an undersurface of the transverse offset section of the same sidewall of the topper, and spaced-apart from each other. The master assembly further includes a worm and a worm
Morey Kenneth J.
Morin Yvon
Ramirez Ramon O.
Swabey Ogilvy Renault
Szumny Jon
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