Land vehicles – Wheeled – With worker's support or shade
Reexamination Certificate
2000-08-07
2001-03-13
Camby, Richard M. (Department: 3618)
Land vehicles
Wheeled
With worker's support or shade
Reexamination Certificate
active
06199877
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a mechanic's creeper, and more particularly to a mechanic's creeper which is transformable between a horizontal creeper and an upright seat.
During the performance of maintenance on automobiles and the like, it is often required that the mechanic be able to work under the chassis of the automobile. In the past, it has been known to use flat surfaces on wheels, known as creepers, enabling the mechanic to lie in a supine position and survey and work underneath the automobile. Additionally, it is known to use work bays where cars may be placed on hydraulic lifts and elevated to a position above an upright mechanic. Furthermore, mechanics sometimes use seats when working about the exterior of an automobile.
The problem has arisen in that to work on an automobile, the mechanic uses a creeper for work underneath the automobile's chassis, and a seat for work around the automobile's exterior. The use of two separate work platforms instead of one is an added expense to the mechanic. When considering that many automotive shops work on several cars at the same time, the redundancy in work platforms greatly increases the cost necessary to work on the automobiles. Furthermore, the work area around the automobile quickly becomes congested considering that several tools are used on an automobile; such as computer aided diagnostics and general hand held tools, along with replacement parts lying around the work area. Accordingly, depending on the work activity, either the seat or the creeper is not being utilized and merely takes up space around the work area, further congesting the work area and making it more difficult for an orderly work place to be maintained by the mechanic.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,692,636 shows a combination automobile mechanic's creeper and stool. The creeper and stool disclosed by U.S. Pat. No. 2,692,636 utilizes coil spring members which connect a left and right platform to a center platform. The springs collapse the left and right platforms inward to convert the creeper into a stool. Lock bolts lock the device into the stool and creeper position. Consequently, this apparatus in its natural state can be used neither as a creeper nor a stool and the coil spring members in action create a potentially dangerous work environment.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,611,417 shows a combination mechanic's creeper and stool which has leg units. The creeper uses cumbersome finger tabs for retracting rods which release the leg units enabling the legs to be pivoted rendering the creeper into a stool. The unclasping of the finger tabs is very cumbersome and requires the mechanic's creeper to either be laid on its back or to be lifted thereby exposing the finger tabs. Furthermore, when the creeper is in a stool position, the legs of the stool abut the ground and do not provide the creeper with mobility.
U.S. Pat. No. Re.35,732 discloses a transformable mechanic's creeper having a “Z” configuration which has been successful in the marketplace wherein the wheels for mobility in a creeper mode are carried on the seat assembly. U.S. Pat. No. 5,707,067 discloses a transformable mechanic's creeper wherein a center section of the creeper platform pops up to make a seat. A shelf for tools and the like may be provided under the seat. While highly successful, the transformable creepers have been fairly limited in providing tool shelf space which is also mobile, particularly in the case of end platform/seat creepers.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a transformable mechanic's creeper which can be transformed between a horizontal mechanic's creeper and an upright seat having increased mobility in either position.
Additionally, it is an object of the present invention to provide for a transformable mechanic's creeper which is simple to use and easy to manufacture having increased mobile tool support space.
Furthermore, it is an object of the present invention to provide for a transformable mechanic's creeper which is transformable between a creeper and a seat wherein a roller frame is extended in a creeper position, and retracted in a seat position to provide mobility.
Additionally, it is an object of the present invention to provide for a transformable mechanic's creeper, which is transformable between a mechanic's creeper and a seat, which provides a utility shelf for tools and the like when utilizing the device in the seat position with the roller frame extended.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The above objectives are accomplished according to the invention by providing a transformable mechanic's creeper having an elongated creeper frame which includes a base assembly and a seat assembly interconnected by a connector frame assembly in the creeper frame. The connector frame assembly has a first pivot position in which the seat assembly is positioned generally in horizontal alignment with the base assembly for defining a creeper position. The base assembly and seat assembly are disposed near opposing ends of the elongated creeper frame when the elongated creeper frame is in the creeper position. Furthermore, the connector frame assembly has a second pivot position in which the seat assembly is positioned generally in vertical alignment and coextending with the base assembly such that the seat assembly and the base assembly support a worker in an upright seating position. An extendable roller frame assembly is slidably carried by the creeper frame assembly having a retracted configuration when the connector frame assembly is in the first pivotal position defining the seat position. The roller frame assembly has an extended configuration when the connector frame assembly is in the second pivotal position defining the creeper position wherein the roller frame assembly supports the seat assembly in the creeper position. At least one wheel carried by the roller frame assembly providing mobility for the creeper in the creeper position. The roller frame assembly includes at least one support carried by the frame, and a slide element which slides relative to the support on which the castor is carried. Preferrably, the roller frame assembly includes a plurality of supports carried by the base assembly, and a plurality of the slide element slidably carried by the supports wherein the slide elements may form a support for a tool tray and the like when the roller frame assembly is in the extended configuration and the creeper is in the seat position.
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Camby Richard M.
Flint & Kim, P.A.
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