Land vehicles – Wheeled – Articulated vehicle
Patent
1994-06-09
1997-04-15
Hurley, Kevin
Land vehicles
Wheeled
Articulated vehicle
2804915, B60D 160
Patent
active
056201982
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates generally to trailer hitch receivers and, more particularly, to a collar or facing plate for improving the ornamental appearance and protecting the finish of the front face of the hitch receiver box.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
It has long been known to construct towing hitches that are mounted to vehicles in order to allow the towing of trailers or the like. In recent years such hitches have been designed to include a receiver box having a rearwardly directed opening or cavity for the receipt of a hitch or draw bar that carries a hitch ball or other means allowing connection to a trailer. Examples of such a structure include the Insta-Hitch II and Custom Hitch Receiver 35365 as manufactured by Reese Products, Inc. of Elkhart, Ind.. Such a hitch receiver is also disclosed in, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,768,837 to Reese, owned by Reese Products, Inc., the assignee of the present invention.
It is common practice for operators to remove the hitch bar and ball assembly from the receiver box when the vehicle is not being utilized to tow a trailer. A cap or cover is then positioned in the rearwardly directed opening of the receiver box so as to improve the overall appearance and also prevent dirt from collecting therein. Such covers actually function as plugs that must be removed when it is desired to install the hitch bar and ball assembly for towing.
During installation, individuals often accidently and carelessly strike the face of the receiver box with the end of the hitch bar. Depending upon the force and angle of the contact, the painted finish of the hitch box may be scratched chipped or otherwise damaged. This serves to expose the bare metal to air and moisture. Over time this leads to the formation of rust. Not only is the rust unsightly and ugly but if the receiver box is not refinished, rusting could become so extensive as to eventually lead to unacceptable structural damage.
A need is therefore identified for an approach to limit or prevent damage to the finish of the face of the hitch box thereby extending its service life, reducing maintenance requirements and providing an aesthetically pleasing appearance both when the hitch bar is engaged in and removed from the hitch box.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide a collar or face plate for a receiver box of a trailer hitch receiver that is light weight, inexpensive to produce and easy to install.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a collar for a trailer hitch receiver box that provides an aesthetically pleasing appearance both when the hitch bar is engaged in the receiver box and when the hitch bar is removed from the receiver box.
An additional object of the invention is to provide a decorative and protective collar that may be retrofitted on existing receiver boxes and still allow utilization of the standard cap or cover for plugging the hitch bar receiving cavity of the receiver box when the hitch bar is removed.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a protective collar for the face of a receiver box that protects the finish of the receiver box from direct contact with the hitch bar during insertion therein. As a result, scratches, chips or other damage to the painted finish are avoided and unsightly rust spots are substantially eliminated.
Additional objects, advantages and other novel features of the invention will be set forth in part in the description that follows and in part will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon examination of the following or may be learned with the practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and obtained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.
To achieve the foregoing and other objects, and in accordance with the purposes of the present invention as described herein, a collar or face plate is provided for installation on the reinforced face or lip defining
REFERENCES:
patent: 3679231 (1972-07-01), Derr, Jr.
patent: 3694006 (1972-09-01), Good et al.
patent: 3768837 (1973-10-01), Reese
patent: 3782761 (1974-01-01), Cardin, Sr.
patent: 3838872 (1974-10-01), Fullhart
patent: 3911960 (1975-10-01), Flimon
patent: 4040641 (1977-08-01), Riecke
patent: 4509770 (1985-04-01), Young et al.
patent: 4852902 (1989-08-01), Young et al.
patent: 5184840 (1993-02-01), Edwards
patent: 5277448 (1994-01-01), Colibert
Hurley Kevin
Reese Products Inc.
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