Ships – Boats – boat component – or attachment – Sectional
Reexamination Certificate
2000-08-16
2001-09-25
Swinehart, Ed (Department: 3617)
Ships
Boats, boat component, or attachment
Sectional
Reexamination Certificate
active
06293220
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF INVENTION
This invention relates to trailer vehicles for towing behind and by vehicles, including on-road and off-road/vehicles, motorised vehicles such as cars and recreational vehicles, motorcycles and pedal cycles/tricycles; and also to childrens plaything versions of trailer vehicles.
OBJECTS OF INVENTION
One aspect of the present invention is to provide a novel and aesthetically pleasing trailer body unit particularly intended for use as (but not necessarily confined) to an on or off road vehicle trailer body unit, which is lightweight but strong and capable of manufacture at relatively low cost, so as to be competitively priced relative to other trailer body units and complete trailer assemblies formed therewith.
Another object of the invention is to provide a versatile trailer body unit and one or more compatible and complementary components for the formation of at least one but preferably a variety of alternative combination trailer vehicle assemblies; and to provide the purchasing public with a useful trailer assembly choice.
The invention includes complete vehicle trailer assemblies to which the aforementioned trailer body units are fitted.
Other and more particular objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the ensuing description.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a vehicle trailer body unit having a main body including a floor with conjoined upstanding peripheral front and side wall parts all integrally formed by moulding from a durable substantially rigid setting plastics material; said main body being arranged and adapted to be fitted to a separately formed and provided wheeled chassis or sub-assembly for use as an assembled trailer vehicle. The body unit can be arranged for fitment to an existing or standard flat deck or open frame chassis base wheeled trailer, or a custom built base wheeled trailer can be provided; and the body unit can be arranged for detachable mounting to the chassis or base wheeled trailer, to enable independant use of the latter if required.
The trailer main body may be preformed with a rear end opening between the side wall parts, and which opening is closable by a separately moulded tail gate component of a similar plastics materials and subsequently fitted thereto, or alternatively the separate tail gate component can be fitted by hinging to the rear end of the chassis or base wheeled trailer.
The trailer body can be further or alternatively provided with a complementary and mating upper cover component separately formed by moulding as one integral component from the same durable rigid setting plastics material and subsequently detachably and/or hingeably mounted on the main body; said upper cover component including a roof part with integral depending peripheral wall parts, the lower peripheral edge portions of which are arranged for close fitting abutment or engagement with upper peripheral edge portions of at least the upstanding wall parts of said main body.
The upper cover component lower peripheral portions and mating trailer body upper peripheral portions arc provided with catch means for securement of the cover component to the trailer body in the fully closed position; and preferably both the trailer body and upper cover component are of curved exterior streamlined form narrowing to their forward end portions and with the cover component having peripheral wall parts inclined upwardly and inwardly from their lower peripheral edge parts.
In one modification of the invention a supplementary intermediate body component (which can comprise two or more mating parts) is provided for location between the trailer body and the upper cover component to increase the trailer load capacity; said intermediate body component being similarly formed by moulding from the same rigid setting durable plastics material for strength and lightness in weight and having upper and lower peripheral edge parts respectively complementary to and arranged to mate with the upper cover component lower peripheral edges and the trailer body upper peripheral edges; there being lower catch means for positive securement of the intermediate body component to the trailer body unit and upper catch means with which the upper cover component is detachably engageable. The upper cover component may be fixedly attached or fully detachably engageable over said intermediate body component, or mounted for hinged opening relative thereto.
The trailer body unit and in particular the upper cover component thereof may be further adapted to receive and mount an open inverted dinghy; which dinghy is of a size and shape so as to be complementary to the trailer assembly as a whole, and has an open upper periphery and forward end shaped to conform with and, with the dinghy inverted, snugly fit over said upper cover component.
Preferably the dinghy is again formed by moulding from the same durable rigid setting plastics material as is employed for the trailer body and upper cover components.
Other variations and additions to the invention apply.
REFERENCES:
patent: 2256038 (1941-09-01), Woodruff
patent: 3266836 (1966-08-01), Taylor et al.
patent: 5314200 (1994-05-01), Phillips
patent: 7793281 (1981-11-01), None
patent: 2190088 (1974-01-01), None
patent: 2565191 (1985-12-01), None
patent: 9600667 (1996-01-01), None
Swinehart Ed
Volpe and Koenig P.C.
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