Land vehicles – Wheeled – Convertible
Reexamination Certificate
2000-12-21
2001-08-07
Mar, Michael (Department: 3619)
Land vehicles
Wheeled
Convertible
C280S414200, C280S652000, C280S047260, C280S047330, C280S047331, C280S292000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06270092
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a portable cart, for use in camping, hunting, search and rescue, and other outdoors activities.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Various carts exist for carrying canoes and small boats by hand. Other outdoors-oriented carts exist for carrying game. In addition, wheelbarrows and small carts are used for transporting gear at outdoors locations. However, none of the existing carts can be converted to a versatile portable cart which can interchangeably function as a portable canoe or boat cart which can be folded down and transported within the canoe or boat, as a game cart for transporting game over long, rough terrain, or as a gear cart, all of which can broken down into a carrying position, by hand or by back.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a universally adaptable carrier cart.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide a cart for carrying canoes and small boats by hand.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide an outdoors-oriented cart for carrying game or injured parties.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a small cart with a well for transporting gear at outdoor locations.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide a versatile portable cart which can interchangeably function as a portable canoe or boat cart which can be folded down and transported within the canoe or boat, as a game cart for transporting game over long, rough terrain, or as a gear cart, all of which can be broken down into a carrying position, by hand or by back.
It is yet another object to provide a portable cart which is either backpackable or which can be carried by hand.
It is further another object to provide a portable search and rescue cart adapted to carry a stretcher or other carrier for an injured person such as what is referred to in the industry as a Stokes-type basket or other medical rescue equipment.
It is yet another object to provide a carrier for transporting military equipment and ordance.
It is yet another object to provide a cart-hauling clamp for pulling the portable cart behind a bicycle while resisting tipping over of the cart during directional change of the cart-hauling bicycle.
It is also an object of the present invention to improve over the disadvantages of the prior art.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In keeping with these objects and others which may be apparent, the present invention relates to a portable cart, for use in camping, hunting search and rescue operations and other outdoors activities for carrying canoes and small boats by hand. It may also carry game, injured parties or be used for transporting gear at outdoors locations. It is a versatile portable cart which can interchangeably function as a portable canoe or boat cart which can be folded down and transported within the canoe or boat, as a carry cart for transporting game or injured parties over long, rough terrain, or as a gear cart, all of which can be broken down into a carrying position, by hand or by back.
The portable cart is under thirty (30) pounds, preferably twenty two (22) to twenty eight (28) pounds, so that it can be carried by hand or within a backpack over rough terrain. It is collapsible, so that it can be disassembled and carried in a canoe or small boat, and then reassembled at another destination along the canoe or boat's journey.
To prevent flat tires, its wheels are preferably solid core tires which cannot get flat, with stainless steel bearings, over which the wheels rotate. A typical wheel has two press fit bearings adjacent to an integrally molded hub. While the typical wheel is about 2-3 inches wide, for transporting cargo or game on sand or granular terrain, the wheels may be wider, such as 4-6 inches in width.
For hardiness, the material of the structural frame components is preferably a lightweight but strong material, such as, for example, 60-61 T6 fully anodized aluminum, or stainless steel.
The portable cart can hold up to 500 pounds, and for manual pulling easily pulls 300 pounds. The portable cart is durable to carry heavy weight over rough terrain, such as rock-strewn dirt trails or sloping riverbank surfaces.
To carry a canoe or boat, two horizontal load supports optionally include support cushions upon which the canoe or boat rests. The position of the horizontal load supports can be varied to accommodate various widths of the canoe or boat.
To function as a game or rescue cart, a frame, such as a pair of U-shaped rails which are joined end to end, is provided upon the horizontal load supports to form a rounded rectangular frame, over which a taunt, but slightly stretchable, bed of fabric is placed, such as canvas or other flexible material, i.e., plastic or netting. The bed includes sewn loops through which portions of the U-shaped rails of the frame are inserted. Other fabric fasteners such as clips, zippers or eyelets can be also used.
In an alternate embodiment, the boat support cushions are removable from the horizontal load supports and are replaced by a two piece clamp, which attaches by at least one fastener, such as a pair of screws, to the horizontal load supports of the cart. Conventional stretchers or personal rescue carriers, such as Stokes-type baskets, are clamped to the cart within the clamps on each respective horizontal load support. In this embodiment, the boat support cushions are attached to a thin plate, such as of ⅛ inch aluminum or otherwise, which has at least one fastener such as a pair of threaded studs, insertable with the respective hole or holes in the horizontal load supports, so that the boat support cushions can be removed and replaced by the stretcher-bearing clamps.
To function as a wagon cart with a well for carrying gear, a hollow fabric well, such as of canvas, is draped between said horizontal load members and over and around the front and rear U-shaped brackets. A cover may be provided to cover the gear therein. The well and cover can also be made of other suitable flexible materials, such as plastic, netting or canvas.
Kickstands may be optionally provided to stabilize the portable cart during rest or during loading of contents thereon.
In yet another embodiment, an anti-tipping bicycle attachment is provided to attach the cart to a bicycle while preventing the cart from turning over during transportation.
Furthermore, the cart of the present invention can be disassembled and broken down for hand held or back pack transport and it can easily be assembled for its varied uses. Moreover, when a boat or canoe is carried, the cart has a precision balance feature that rotates the wheels to maintain the cart in a horizontal stable position.
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Mar Michael
Walker Alfred M
LandOfFree
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