Roll-up car cover

Land vehicles: bodies and tops – Tops – Cover

Reexamination Certificate

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Details

C150S166000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06513858

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to car covers and in particular to a roll-up car cover with a two-way spring-loaded roller that has an elongated canvas that hooks over the trunk lock inside the trunk at one end and under the edge of the hood at the other end with a centrally positioned roller and spaced tension bar that maintains the cover elevated above the roof of the car.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Motor vehicles which are not garaged are subject to the harsh outdoor conditions including bright sun overheating the interior and bleaching out the paint job, snow and frost collecting on the windshield and rear window creating hazardous viewing conditions, hailstorms causing major damage to window surfaces and metal painted exterior surfaces.
Many attempts have been made to provide protection for motor vehicles in the form of fabric easily storable coverings. Both complicated and non-complicated means have been devised to protect vehicles from the detriments of the environment. Namely, the sun, dust and dirt, and frozen precipitation. The lack of widespread use of such coverings can be attributed to an inadequate balance of affordability, convenience, adaptability, and performance to make them practical for everyday use.
Simple fabric coverings can be difficult and time consuming to apply for one person. Also adaptability to fixed antennas is often not considered. The user who is faced with removing an antenna to apply a cover is likely to balk at using a cover of this type on a daily basis.
Some covering arrangements create their own problems by changing the outside appearance of the vehicle, even when it is not in use. This is disastrous for acceptability.
Most of the prior art in this classification do not attempt to provide an airspace between the cover and the surfaces of the motor vehicle. Without an airspace and means for cross ventilation, motor vehicle coverings do not address the problem of heat and moisture build-up. Excess interior heat and mildew are the negative results.
Without the use of an airspace, frozen precipitation, such as hail, can damage a motor vehicle even though it is covered. Furthermore, without an airspace the covering is of no use in preventing frozen precipitation from accumulating and bonding to the covering and motor vehicle.
Daily use of covers means that a few seconds can separate a convenient process from an inconvenient process. Much of the prior art falls into the category of inconvenience; making them unacceptable for the daily user.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,012,759, issued Jan. 1, 2000 to Adamek, provides a retractable vehicle cover comprising at least one cover reel and at least one extension line reel disposed within a housing. The cover reel and the extension line reel are biased in a retracted position. Each cover reel contains a cover, and each extension line reel contains an extension line. At least one cover leading edge extends from the housing, and at least one extension line extends through each cover leading edge. An extension line cover stop allows the extension line(s) to extend a cover, and an extension line end stop prevents extension line retraction into the housing. The housing is aerodynamically shaped to reduce drag on a vehicle upon which the retractable vehicle cover is mounted. Each cover leading edge is equipped with a cover strip magnet which holds the cover in an extended position. In the alternative, the cover strip magnet may be adhered to a ferromagnetic strip on the housing, which securely holds the cover leading edge in a retracted position. The housing may comprise a housing strip magnet by means of which the retractable vehicle cover may be removably mounted on a vehicle.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,516,181, issued May 14, 1996 to Thompson, reveals a roll-up covering for motor vehicles comprised of a rectangular main section
10
and side flaps
14
with antenna slits
18
,
20
in either to accommodate antennas. A cylinder
16
is fixed perpendicular to the length of the main section and located between the main section and the top of the vehicle while in use. The side flaps
14
partially cover the side of the vehicle while in use and fold over the top of the main section for removal. Combined, the covering rolls around the cylinder for compact storage. Rear adjustable straps
26
anchor the covering in the rear compartment of the vehicle for theft prevention and as a means of changing the fit of the covering. Front elastic straps
11
and side elastic straps
12
, in conjunction with the rear adjustable straps and the cylinder, tension the main section and side flaps to provide an airspace
34
. The airspace between the covering material and the majority of the top vehicle surfaces provides for insulation and ventilation.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,929,016, issued May 29, 1990 to Kastanis, enables a protective covering for a vehicle selectively mountable on an exterior surface of a vehicle. The protective covering includes a pair of extendable and retractable, flexible, sheet-like covering means movable between a full extended position for covering a selected portion of the vehicle and a retracted position for storage. Each covering means is coupled to a means for winding the covering means about an axis and a housing supports the pair of winding means relative to one another such that the winding means are closely adjacent and their winding axes are in substantially parallel relation to one another. Means are provided for selectively securing the housing to an exterior surface of the vehicle and for selectively securing the covering means in their extended positions, to the vehicle to be covered.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,022,700, issued Jun. 11, 1991 to Fasiska, shows a portable automatic cover for an object, which automatically extends over the object and retracts into a storage position. The cover has one end attached to a roller which is rotatably attached to the object. A number of adjustable brackets are positioned along the upper and side surfaces of the object. Guide elements are attached to the cover and slidably and interlockably connected to the brackets. When the cover is extended over the object, the adjustable brackets automatically unfold, raising the cover upward and extending the flaps sideways to protect the object. For military purposes, when an air compressor or a liquid pump is actuated, the double layer of the cover and the flaps are filled with air or any liquid of desired temperature, thus, providing instant automatic camouflage and also protective covering against enemy detection and attack by heat seeking missiles.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,925,234, issued May 15, 1990 to Park, indicates a length adjustable, trunk stowable protective car cover device is formed from an elongated sheet of flexible weatherproof material having a front end portion releasably connectable to the front end of an automobile, a longitudinally intermediate portion adapted to overlie and shield essentially the entire upper side surface of the automobile, and a rear end portion adapted to extend into the trunk between the rear trunk lid edge and the opposing trunk wall portion which it closes against. Closure of the trunk thus clamps a back end of the cover sheet in place to firmly anchor the cover sheet in place in its operative position. An elongated longitudinal slot in the rear end portion of the cover sheet permits the hook portion of the trunk latch to extend through the cover sheet to permit unimpeded locking and unlocking of the trunk. A fastening structure is provided to adjustable secure the rear end portion of the cover sheet within the trunk in a manner permitting selective variation in the effective covering length of the sheet. The sheet may be conveniently stowed in a longitudinally folded orientation within the trunk and then unfolded over the top of the automobile. To facilitate such folding and unfolding, a grab bar is transversely secured to the front end of the sheet and a spaced series of transverse stays are suitably secured to a longitudinally intermediate portion thereof.
U.

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