Railways: surface track – Portable track – Traction mats
Reexamination Certificate
2003-03-20
2004-08-24
Morano, S. Joseph (Department: 3617)
Railways: surface track
Portable track
Traction mats
Reexamination Certificate
active
06779738
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vehicle traction mat for use in connection with mats for use under wheels of vehicles. The vehicle traction mat has particular utility in connection with traction mat that is capable of folding while assembled.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Vehicle traction mats are desirable for use to help dislodge a motor vehicle that is stuck in a rut of ice, mud, sand or snow. The device would save the motorist time and effort by enabling a drive wheel to regain traction for return to the roadway. It would also eliminate the high cost of an emergency road service truck for winching the stranded vehicle from a slippery hole or rut. A need was felt for a traction mat that could be folded while assembled.
The use of mats for use under wheels of vehicles is known in the prior art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,439,171 to Fruend discloses a traction mat for vehicles has panels of flexible resilient material interconnected by sets of overlapping links which enable the panels to be folded in a stacked arrangement. Recesses or slots in the upper faces of the panels provide grip for a vehicle's tires and holes in the panel enable the panel to be pushed down through mud to a solid surface. However, the Fruend '171 patent does not have interchangeable hinge-like hooks that may allow the traction mat to be folded while assembled.
Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 5,538,183 to McGee discloses a vehicle traction mat that consists of a plurality of hinged panels including side rails where the panels on each end are shorter in length than the panels between them. The panel on one end is shorter in length than the panel on the other end. Both end panels are tapered in thickness and in with. The top surface is covered with projects forming rectangular cavities with the top of the long sides higher at the ends than in the mid-section. The bottom surface includes fasteners for removably attaching cleats for gripping slippery surfaces. A variety of cleats are proposed for securing the mat under different conditions. Bracing arms are provided to support the mat in an upright position when it is used as a highway warning marker. The mat is brightly colored for daytime use and the side rails and bracing arms are covered with light reflective material for use during the hours of darkness. The panels are so hinged that one half will fold over the remaining half without interference for storage. However, the McGee '183 patent does not have interchangeable hinge-like hooks that may allow the traction mat to be folded while assembled.
Lastly, U.S. Pat. No. 2,479,760 to Merrick discloses a traction device comprising a rectangular plate curved transversely to provide a concave upper face and convex under face. A series of longitudinal and transverse intersecting ribs formed integral with the upper face of said plate. A series of spaced transverse ribs formed integral with the under face. The lower edges of the last mentioned ribs are disposed in a horizontal plane. However, the Merrick '760 patent does not have interchangeable hinge-like hooks that may allow the traction mat to be folded while assembled.
While the above-described devices fulfill their respective, particular objectives and requirements, the aforementioned patents do not describe a vehicle traction mat that allows traction mat that is capable of folding while assembled. The Fruend '171, McGee '183 and Merrick '760 patents make no provision for interchangeable hinge-like hooks that may allow the traction mat to be folded while assembled.
Therefore, a need exists for a new and improved vehicle traction mat which can be used for traction mat that is capable of folding while assembled. In this regard, the present invention substantially fulfills this need. In this respect, the vehicle traction mat according to the present invention substantially departs from the conventional concepts and designs of the prior art, and in doing so provides an apparatus primarily developed for the purpose of traction mat that is capable of folding while assembled.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known types of mats for use under wheels of vehicles now present in the prior art, the present invention provides an improved vehicle traction mat, and overcomes the above-mentioned disadvantages and drawbacks of the prior art. As such, the general purpose of the present invention, which will be described subsequently in greater detail, is to provide a new and improved vehicle traction mat and method which has all the advantages of the prior art mentioned heretofore and many novel features that result in a vehicle traction mat which is not anticipated, rendered obvious, suggested, or even implied by the prior art, either alone or in any combination thereof
To attain this, the present invention essentially comprises a plurality of hooks and at least one mat having a top surface and a bottom surface. The mat top surface has a plurality of dimples therein. The mat has a plurality of mat connection holes therethrough. The hooks are disposed within the mat connection holes. The hooks are hingedly connected to the mat. The mat is capable of folding while the hooks are disposed within the mat connection holes. A plurality of spikes are connected to the mat bottom surface.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the invention in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated.
The invention may also include a leading edge bevel, a storage case, a flashlight and a roadside flare. There are, of course, additional features of the invention that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims attached.
Numerous objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon a reading of the following detailed description of presently preferred, but nonetheless illustrative, embodiments of the present invention when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. In this respect, before explaining the current embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of descriptions and should not be regarded as limiting.
As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception, upon which this disclosure is based, may readily be utilized as a basis for the designing of other structures, methods and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the present invention. It is important, therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent constructions insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved vehicle traction mat that has all of the advantages of the prior art mats for use under wheels of vehicles and none of the disadvantages.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved vehicle traction mat that may be easily and efficiently manufactured and marketed.
An even further object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved vehicle traction mat that has a low cost of manufacture with regard to both materials and labor, and which accordingly is then susceptible of low prices of sale to the consuming public, thereby making such vehicle traction mat economically available to the buying public.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a new vehicle traction mat that provides in the apparatuse
McCarry, Jr. Robert J.
Morano S. Joseph
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