AU2006246294A1

AU2006246294A1 - Collapsible truck body

Info

Publication number: AU2006246294A1
Application number: AU2006246294A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Lindsay Alexander King
Original assignee: TRANSKING CORP Pty Ltd
Current assignee: TRANSKING Corp Pty Ltd
Priority date: 2005-05-10
Filing date: 2006-05-10
Publication date: 2006-11-16

Description

WO 2006/119555 PCT/AU2006/000602 COLLAPSIBLE TRUCK BODY Technical Field The present invention relates to a collapsible truck body and in particular to a kit for assembling a truck body for a curtain-sided truck or trailer that can be assembled on 5 standard truck and trailer bases to provide a collapsible truck body. Deficiencies of the Prior Art Truck bodies and trailers for curtain-sided trucks are generally manufactured to order. Accordingly, while trucks can be supplied "off the shelf', the manufacture of the truck body can take months, significantly delaying orders. Truck bodies and trailers are 10 also difficult and expensive to deliver or transport in bulk, due to their size. Object of the Invention It is the object of the present invention to substantially overcome or ameliorate one or more of the disadvantages of the prior art, or to provide a useful alternative. Summary of the invention 15 Accordingly, in a first aspect, the present invention provides a collapsible truck body comprising: a substantially rectangular base having a front edge, rear edge and opposing side edges; a front wall pivotally mounted on the base front edge and pivotable between an 20 upright position, in which the front wall is arranged substantially upright to the base, and a collapsed position, in which the front wall is arranged substantially flat against the base; a rear wall pivotally mounted on the base rear edge and pivotable between an upright position, in which the rear wall is arranged substantially upright to the base, and a collapsed position, in which the rear wall is arranged substantially flat against the base. 25 Preferably, the truck body further comprises a roof adapted to be mounted on the front and rear walls when the front and rear walls are in the upright positions. Preferably, the front wall is mounted on the base via a mounting bracket secured to the base front edge and the rear wall is mounted on the base via two mounting brackets secured to opposite corners of the base rear edge. In a preferred embodiment, the rear 30 wall comprises a frame, having two side posts and a top cross-beam, and a door or doors supported within or by the frame.

WO 2006/119555 PCT/AU2006/000602 2 Preferably, the front and rear walls are adapted to be secured in the upright position. In a preferred embodiment, the walls are adapted to be secured in the upright position by bolts. In a second aspect, the present invention provides a truck body kit, adapted to be 5 assembled on a truck body base, said kit comprising: a front wall assembly comprising a front wall pivotally mounted on a mounting bracket, the mounting bracket adapted to be mounted on a front edge of the base; and a rear wall assembly comprising a rear wall pivotally mounted on a mounting bracket, the mounting bracket adapted to be mounted on a rear edge of the base; 10 wherein, when the mounting brackets are mounted on the base, the front wall is pivotable between an upright position, in which the front wall is arranged substantially upright to the base, and a collapsed position, in which the front wall is arranged substantially flat against the base, and the rear wall is pivotable between an upright position, in which the rear wall is arranged substantially upright to the base, and a 15 collapsed position, in which the rear wall is arranged substantially flat against the base. Preferably, the mounting bracket of the rear wall assembly comprises two mounting brackets secured to opposite corners of the rear edge of the base. In a preferred embodiment, the rear wall comprises a frame supporting a door or doors, the frame having two side posts and a top cross-beam. 20 Preferably, the front and rear walls are adapted to be secured to the base, locking the walls in the upright position. In a preferred embodiment, the walls are adapted to be bolted to the base in the upright position. Preferably, the kit further comprises a roof that is adapted to be mounted on the front and rear walls when the front and rear walls are in the upright positions. 25 Brief Description of the Drawings A preferred embodiment of the invention will now be described, by way of an example only, with reference to the accompanying drawing wherein: Fig. 1 is a side view of a collapsible truck body in accordance with the present invention; 30 Fig. 2 is a side view of a partially assembled truck body according to Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a front view of a mounting bracket of the truck body of Fig. 1; Fig. 4 is an enlarged side view, showing the front wall in an upright position; Fig. 5 is a similar view to that of Fig. 4, showing the front wall in a collapsed position; WO 2006/119555 PCT/AU2006/000602 3 Fig. 6 is a partial front view of the truck body of Fig. 1, with the front wall in the upright position; Fig. 7 is a partial side view of the truck body of Fig. 1, showing the rear wall in an upright position; 5 Fig. 8 is a partial side view similar to that of Fig. 7, showing the rear wall in a collapsed position; and Fig. 9 is a sectional view through Section A-A of Fig. 7. Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments Referring to the drawings, Fig. 1 depicts an assembled truck body 2, in 10 accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The truck body 2 includes a rectangular truck base 4, a front wall 6, a rear wall 8 and a roof 10. The front wall 6 is pivotally mounted on the base 4 via a front mounting bracket 12. The rear wall 8 is pivotally mounted on the base 4 via a pair of rear mounting brackets 14. The truck body 2 is assembled from a kit for a given truck base 4. The kit 15 includes the front wall 6, the rear wall 8, the roof 10, the front mounting bracket 12 and the pair of rear mounting brackets 14. To assemble the truck body 2, the mounting brackets 12, 14 are firstly mounted at the front and rear edges of the base 4, as shown in Fig. 3. The front mounting bracket 12, as depicted in Fig. 2, includes a main plate 16 20 and two pairs of hinge plates 18. The main plate 16 is provided with bolt holes 20 for bolting the bracket 12 onto the front edge of the base 4 and the hinge plates are provided with apertures 22. When mounted, the hinge plates 18 project above the base 4, so that the apertures 22 are located above the base 4. Each of the two rear mounting brackets 14 comprises a plate having bolt holes 25 34, for bolting the bracket 14 onto the base 4, and an aperture 36. Each bracket 14 is bolted into a corner recess 38 at the rear of the base 4. When mounted, the bracket 14 projects above the base 4, so that the aperture 36 is located above the base 4. The next step is the mounting of the front and rear walls 6, 8. As depicted in Fig. 6, the front wall 6 has a frame including a pair of side posts 30 24 and a pair of hinge posts 26. Each hinge post 26 is configured to slot within a corresponding pair of the hinge plates 18 and is provided with an aperture 30 that aligns with the apertures 22 of the corresponding pair of hinge plates 18. A pin 32 is inserted through the aligned apertures 22, 30 of each hinge post 26 and pair of hinge plates 18 to WO 2006/119555 PCT/AU2006/000602 4 pivotally mount the front wall 6. Bolt holes 28 are provided in the side posts 24 and hinge posts 26. Referring to Fig. 9, the rear wall 8 has a frame including a pair of side posts 40. Each side post 40 is configured to slot into one of the two recesses 38, adjacent a 5 corresponding one of the rear mounting brackets 14. Each side post 40 is provided with bolt holes 42 and an aperture 44, which aligns with the aperture 36 of the corresponding bracket 14. A pin 46 is inserted through the aligned apertures 36, 44 of each side post 40 and rear mounting bracket 14 to pivotally mount the rear wall 8. At this stage, the front and rear walls 6, 8 of the partially assembled truck body 10 2, can be pivoted between upright positions, as depicted in Figs. 4 and 7, and collapsed positions, as depicted in Figs. 5 and 8. The truck bodies 2 can be transported with the walls 6, 8 arranged in the collapsed positions. Once delivered, the truck bodies 2 can then be easily fully assembled by raising the front and rear walls 6, 8 to the upright positions, bolting them in place via the bolt holes 28, 42, arranging the roof 10 on the walls 6, 8 and is bolting the roof 10 in place. This process greatly simplifies the construction process for a curtain sided truck or trailer. Further, truck bodies can be assembled quickly from standard truck bases, using prefabricated kits designed for various truck base types. The collapsed, partially assembled, truck bodies occupy less volume and can thus be more economically 20 transported in bulk. Once delivered, the truck bodies can be fully assembled at the destination. In this way, the construction time, construction costs and delivery costs for curtain-sided trucks and trailers can be greatly reduced. Although the invention has been described with reference to a specific example, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the invention may be embodied in 25 other forms.

Claims

1. A collapsible truck body comprising: a substantially rectangular base having a front edge, rear edge and opposing side edges; 5 a front wall pivotally mounted on the base front edge and pivotable between an upright position, in which the front wall is arranged substantially upright to the base, and a collapsed position, in which the front wall is arranged substantially flat against the base; a rear wall pivotally mounted on the base rear edge and pivotable between an upright position, in which the rear wall is arranged substantially upright to the base, and a 10 collapsed position, in which the rear wall is arranged substantially flat against the base.

2. The collapsible truck body of claim 1 further comprising a roof adapted to be mounted on the front and rear walls when the front and rear walls are in the upright positions.

3. The collapsible truck body of any one of the preceding claims wherein is the rear wall comprises a frame and a door or doors supported within or by the frame, the frame having two side posts and a top cross-beam.

4. The collapsible truck body of any one of the preceding claims wherein the front and rear walls are adapted to be secured in the upright position.

5. The collapsible truck body of claim 4 wherein the walls are secured in 20 the upright position by bolts.

6. The collapsible truck body of any one of the preceding claims wherein the front wall is mounted on the base via a mounting bracket secured to the base front edge and the rear wall is mounted on the base via two mounting brackets secured to opposite corners of the base rear edge. 25

7. A truck body kit, adapted to be assembled on a truck body base, said kit comprising: a front wall assembly comprising a front wall pivotally mounted on a front mounting bracket, the front mounting bracket adapted to be mounted on a front edge of the base; and 30 a rear wall assembly comprising a rear wall pivotally mounted on a rear mounting bracket, the rear mounting bracket adapted to be mounted on a rear edge of the base; wherein, when the mounting brackets are mounted on the base, the front wall is pivotable between an upright position, in which the front wall is arranged substantially 35 upright to the base, and a collapsed position, in which the front wall is arranged WO 2006/119555 PCT/AU2006/000602 6 substantially flat against the base, and the rear wall is pivotable between an upright position, in which the rear wall is arranged substantially upright to the base, and a collapsed position, in which the rear wall is arranged substantially flat against the base.

8. The truck body kit of claim 7 wherein the kit further comprises a roof 5 that is adapted to be mounted on the front and rear walls when the front and rear walls are in the upright positions.

9. The truck body kit of claim 7 or 8 wherein the rear wall comprises a frame supporting a door or doors, the frame having two side posts and a top cross-beam.

10. The truck body kit of any one of claims 7 to 9 wherein the front and rear 10 walls are adapted to be locked in the upright position.

11. The truck body kit of claim 10 wherein the walls are adapted to be locked in the upright position by bolting the walls to the base.

12. The truck body kit of any one of claims 7 to 11 wherein the rear wall assembly has two mounting brackets adapted to be secured to opposite corners of the rear is edge of the base.