Land vehicles: bodies and tops – Bodies – Camper
Reexamination Certificate
2001-02-05
2001-12-04
Gordon, Stephen T. (Department: 3612)
Land vehicles: bodies and tops
Bodies
Camper
C296S026040, C296S026050, C296S026060, C296S160000, C296S164000, C296S165000, C296S168000, C296S172000, C296S173000, C296S175000, C296S176000, C296S099100
Reexamination Certificate
active
06325447
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to mini-campers in general. More specifically to a top for a van that is raised or lowered by the use of the electrical system of the van itself.
BACKGROUND ART
Previously, many types of lifting systems have been used in endeavoring to provide an effective means to raise or lower a top on a van that has been converted or built by the original equipment manufacturer to function as a camper. This type of lifting operation has, in the past, been limited to hand cranks, spring loaded panels, opposed hinge struts lifted by hand or hydraulic systems added to the vehicle.
A search of the prior art did not disclose any patents that possess the novelty of the instant invention, however the following U.S. patents are considered related:
Patent Number
Inventor
Issue Date
3,981,529
Bontrager
Sep. 21, 1976
4,201,413
Rowe
May 6, 1980
4,362,258
French
Dec. 7, 1982
4,630,627
Windows et al.
Dec. 23, 1986
4,981,319
Gerzeny et al.
Jan. 1, 1991
Bontrager in U.S. Pat. No. 3,981,529 teaches a camper that has a wheeled body and a top that is shiftable between collapsed and elevated positions, relative to the body. A crank mechanism is used to raise and lower the top. In one direction of rotation the crank is interlocked to prevent opposite rotation when the top is raised. Reverse rotation of the crank releases a ratchet to permit lowering the top.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,201,413 issued to Rowe teaches a folding apparatus for expandable top camper bodies including lifting and supporting apparatus. Each panel has a bi-fold panel consisting or two foldable panel sections hinged to each other and to the lateral wall of the camper the hinges are spring loaded to self actuate and push the top up to its expanded position and retain its placement. Resilient side stays having pre-formed crimps induce folding and guide the flexible fabric siding of the camper during folding to prevent wrinkling.
French in U.S. Pat. No. 4,362,258 discloses an add-on roof assembly for use in converting a van into a camper. The invention is adapted to be installed as a unit and includes a mounting base for fitting snugly over the rim of the van top. A pop-up top nests with the base when in a lowered position. The top is of two-ply construction providing ventilation between the plies.
Windows et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 4,630,627 teaches a collapsible frame structure that has a upper frame section connected to a base frame section using hinged struts. Both the upper frame and the base frame have a pair of rigid frame members pivotally connected by opposed rigid frame members. The hinge members fold inwardly and collapse outward to expand the section. A pair of winches mount to the base and connect to the struts extending the struts to raise the frame. Stabilizing members are mounted to an upper portion of the struts to balance the weight of the upper section enabling the struts to extend easily.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,981,319 issued to Gerzeny et al. is for a hydraulic lifting system for use in raising and lowering a top covering an opening in a vehicle roof The system includes a number of lifting linkages that are slideably attached to the support structure such that at least pair of linkages are attached to opposing support structure and also each lifting linkage is pivotally attached to the top. A number of hydraulic cylinders are mounted on the structure and interface with each pair of lifting linkages. Actuation of the hydraulic device urges the shafts to move in a push-pull relationship with the lifting linkages raising and lowering the top. It will be noted that hydraulic systems are subject to leakage and if one of the cylinders bypasses only a small amount of fluid the roof will not be raised in unison and could cause catastrophic results.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
Prior art has attempted to raise a roof on a camper conversion van in a number of ways, however, if it is achieved manually it requires a degree of physical strength and personal height to reach the mechanism without the help of a stool or some other means to extend ones reach. In an attempt to solve this problem of raising the roof easily many have used levers, cranks, winches and even hydraulics. While these techniques have proven somewhat successful in accomplishing this task they are all rather complicated and expensive.
It is therefore a primary object of the invention to utilize two pairs of lifting arms of equal length actuated by electrical motor driven worm gears using the on board electrical power. The motor driven worm gear is commonly used as a automobile seat adjuster and as such is small, compact and yet it has a high reduction ratio that produces considerable output torque for its size. The motor driven worm gear drives are mounted under the roof with two pairs of lifting arms that have their lower ends attached to the top of the vehicle. The lifting action of the arms is accomplished by thread engagement between the worm gear threaded shaft and carriers that are attached to the upper ends of the arms in the same manner as used in a conventional screw drive garage door opener. The upward force required to lift the roof varies with their angular positions due to mechanical leverages therefore the force is smaller when the roof is retracting and greater when it is elevating. In order to compensate for this disparity, compression springs are used that have compressive forces nearly equal to the roof weight when the roof is in the fully retracted position. This balance of forces permits reduced electrical power to start the motor and as the roof is elevated the springs compressive force decreases however simultaneously the mechanical leverage of the lifting arms increases allowing the motor to easily complete the lifting action. In order to minimize the electrical power requirements the springs are made as long as possible on their free lengths.
Since there is thread engagement between the carriers and the worm gear threaded shaft the lifting arms are self-locking creating a safety feature that prevents the roof from collapsing by its own weight if there is an inadvertent electrical power interruption. This feature eliminates the necessity of an external lock since, when the shaft is stationary, there is no way to rotate it without the use of the motor. As the attachment to raise or lower the roof uses a rack gear the locking mechanism is integrally formed within the mechanical linkage itself
Bisecting struts are attached to the pair of front lifting arms to ensure that the lifting action will support the uneven load on the roof and maintain the roof level at any height. The length of the bisecting struts is exactly one half of the length of the arms. It should be emphasized that all of the components are mounted above the top of the vehicle without encroaching on any usable space.
An important object of the invention is that since the use of this particular motor driven worm gear, that has already been developed and in use by many vehicle manufactures, the economies of number make it very inexpensive relative to other gearmotors. Furthermore the ideal shape and capacity of motor may be selected from a large array of equipment developed by the various original equipment and aftermarket manufacturers.
Another object of the invention is that no major modification is required to the vehicle electrical system as only a single connection needs to be made into a power circuit and a conventional switch added for control. This type of addition is common and power is readily available in the accessory circuits of the conventional vans now in common use.
Still another object of the invention is that the control is extremely simple as it only involves a two position momentary electric switch commonly used for an automobile seat adjuster. The operator simply pushes and holds this momentary switch in the up position until the roof is raised and reverses the action to accomplish lowering. Since this type of control is common to positioning seats it is understood almost universally.
A further object of the invention is that the syste
Anderson Gordon K.
Coletta Lori L
Gordon Stephen T.
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