Vehicle fenders – Buffer or bumper type
Reexamination Certificate
2000-03-02
2001-06-12
Dayoan, D. Glenn (Department: 3612)
Vehicle fenders
Buffer or bumper type
C296S050000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06244637
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND
The present invention relates to an improved truck mounted attenuator that includes an adjustable tailgate mount.
Truck mounted attenuators are widely used to decelerate impacting vehicles while limiting deceleration for occupants of the vehicles to safe levels. Such attenuators are positioned on shadow vehicles such as heavy trucks that are parked in front of work zones. The truck protects the work zone against intrusion from a vehicle that has left the roadway, and the highway crash cushion protects the impacting vehicle and the shadow truck during a collision.
June U.S. Pat. No. 5,642,794, assigned to the assignee of the present invention, discloses one highway crash cushion that is mounted to a truck via a support frame that includes articulated arms. An energy absorbing element is disposed in the support frame, which is designed to collapse and to decelerate an impacting vehicle in a controlled manner.
SUMMARY
The preferred embodiment described below can readily be adjusted for use with trucks of different sizes, thereby reducing or even eliminating the need for different tailgate mounts for different trucks. This embodiment includes a frame and a hanger adjustably mounted to the frame such that the hanger is movable to any of a plurality of vertical positions with respect to the frame to adjust the tailgate mount for a specific truck. The hanger is shaped and configured to support the frame at the rear of the truck.
A crash cushion is secured to the frame. This crash cushion can be implemented as described in detail below to provide carefully tailored decelerating loads on the impacting vehicle.
The drawings and detailed description disclose the preferred embodiments in greater detail, along with many of their advantages.
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Tailgate mount assembly No. 3524383-0000, Energy Absorption Systems, Inc., Feb. 1998 (Sheets 1-3).
Buehler Michael J.
Cobb Lincoln C.
Leonhardt Patrick A.
Machado John V.
Brinks Hofer Gilson & Lione
Coletta Lori L.
Dayoan D. Glenn
Energy Absorption Systems, Inc.
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