CA2442048A1

CA2442048A1 - Vehicle traction mat

Info

Publication number: CA2442048A1
Application number: CA002442048A
Authority: CA
Inventors: Trevor Jones
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2002-09-25
Filing date: 2003-09-22
Publication date: 2004-03-25
Also published as: US20040056107A1

Abstract

A vehicle traction mat for aiding in traction of a vehicle drive tire on ice is provided. The traction mat comprises a sheet of expanded metal of generally rectangular shape and has a plurality of openings formed threrethrough. The sheet is adapted to be wedged between an iced surface and the drive tire along the leading edge of the drive tire and the sheet includes anti-skid projections on opposing surfaces of the sheet to engage the iced surface and the tire. The projections on one surface of the sheet are for penetrating the ice to retain the sheet in a non-sliding relationship with the ice and the projections on the opposite surface are for engagement with the tire providing traction thereto. In addition, a kit is provided having at least two traction mats for use with different degrees of surface conditions.

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Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Field of the Invention [001] The present invention relates generally to a traction mat for a vehicle.
More particularly, to a traction mat for use on low coefficient of friction surfaces, such as ice that has been subjected to a hard freeze.
Description of the Prior Art

[002] In the past a number of traction devices for use with vehicles have been proposed and constructed to improve the traction of the driving wheels of the vehicle.
These devices include chains which are wrapped around and secured to the drive wheels for providing additional traction.
Rigid frames having surface gripping elements which are placed upon the ground so that the drives wheels can be driven over the frames. Mats formed of chain mesh of varying size have been proposed and constructed for placement on the ground to provide for an anti-skid surface for the vehicle to traverse. Metal reinforced sheeting has been employed including an abrasive or grit-like coating to provide traction between the sheeting and the vehicle wheel.
Segmented mats having a number of mats aligned end to end and connected by bands, links, rings or otherwise fastened together have been provided in many different configuratians. The configurations range from mats that are very flexible to conform to the surface to rigid mats including wedge-shaped devices that are adapted to be driven into soft ground adjacent the underside of drive wheels for frictional contact therewith to provide a greater degree of traction.
-page 2 of 15-Docket No.: TJONES-001 First Named: Trevor T.M. Jones

[003] An example of a vehicle traction mat present in the art is disclosed in U.S. Patent 4,265,399 to Covington. 'This patent discloses an anti-skid device comprising several frames arranged end to end and connected together to form an elongated track of iron mesh for a vehicle to traverse across.

[004] Similarly, U.S. Patent 2,667,502 to Denker et al. discloses a traction device for extricating automobiles immobilized in snow banks and mud holes or on ice. 'The device includes a flexible open mesh mat of expanded metal which is placed against the leading edge of a drive wheel of the immobilized automobile. 'The edges of the mat are folded back onto itself to provide for a higher degree of grip with the surface it is placed upon.

(005] The U.S. Patent 3,786,989 to Haynes, also discloses a traction mat for placement beneath the driving wheel of an automobile disabled on an ice, snow or mud covered road.
The traction mat is constructed from expanded metal and includes a plastic coating applied to the edges thereof for preventing injury to a user.

[006] Lastly, United States Patern 2,443,319 to Mack discloses a traction mat for extricating a vehicle bogged down in mud, stuck in snow or ice that has a multiple segments of light or medium gage expanded metal attached together end-to-end by rings. The segments are of relatively short length between eight to six inches and are flexible so that the device is able to conform to irregular surfaces.

[007) While the above-described devices fulfill their respective, particular objectives and requirements, the aforementioned patents have reduced usability on icy surfaces which have been subjected to a hard freeze. The traction mats of the prior art are directed towards providing a single traction mat for use in extricating vehicles that have become immobilized in mud, stuck in snow or on ice. While this may add to a user's convenience by providing a single traction mat that is usable in all of the above conditions efficiency, of the mat in a particular condition is sacrificed to provide a -page 3 of 15-Docket No.: TJONES-001 First Named: Trevor T.M. Jones mat that is useable in all conditions. As such, the prior art devices have not been designed for use only on iced surfaces and therefor do not provide a high degree of traction that is other wise attainable in icy conditions subjected to hard freezing.

[008] While ice is relatively hard with respect to snow or mud surfaces the actual hardness of ice varies substantially with temperature and as such the hardness of ice is detemlirted by how easily an object can penetrate it. The hardness of ice can vary from a value of 1.5 at 0°C to 7 at -40°C on the Mohs Scale of hardness. Although it is very unlikely that ice having a hardness value of 7 will ever be encountered by a motorist it is very likely for a motorist to encounter ice having a hardness from 1.5 in temperate winter climates to 3.0 or higher in more extreme winter climates.

[009] Therefore, a need exists for a new and improved vehicle traction mat that can be used for extricating a vehicle immobilized on ice that has endured a hard freeze. In this regard, the present invention substantially fulfills this need.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

(010] In accordance with the present invention, a vehicle traction mat for aiding in traction of a vehicle drive tire on ice is provided. The traction mat comprises a sheet of expanded metal of generally rectangular shape and has a plurality of openings formed threrethrough. The sheet is adapted to be wedged between an iced surface and the drive tire along the leading edge of the drive tire and the sheet includes anti-skid projections on opposing surfaces of the sheet to engage the iced surface and the tire. The projections on one surface of the sheet are Ibr penetrating the ice to retain the sheet in a non-sliding relationship with the ice and the projection.S on the opposite surface are for engagement with the tire providing traction thereto. The vehicle traction mat is most efficiently used with iced surfaces having ice thereon with a Mohs hardness from about 1.5 to about 3Ø

[011] Hardness is measured in a number of ways, all of them empirical methods.
The first, and -page 4 of 15-Docket No.: TJONES-001 First Named: Trevor T.M. Jones oldest, method is that of scratch testing where if material A can scratch material B, then material A is harder than B. The Mohs Hardness Scale is a system of reference materials against whose hardnesses a sample is compared.

[012] In accordance with an additional aspect of the present invention, a vehicle traction mat kit for aiding in traction of a vehicle drive tire on ice is provided 'The kit is intended to be used in emergency situations and includes at least two traction mats comprised of expanded metal of generally rectangular shape and have a plurality of openings formed therethrough. The sheets are adapted to be wedged between an iced surface and the drive tire along the leading edge of the drive tire and the sheets include anti-skid projections on opposing surfaces of the sheets to engage the iced surface and the tire. The kit is provided having at least two sheets of expanded metal with different mesh sizes, thereby affording different degrees of traction to provide a user with a choice of sheets for use on various surface conditions. The mesh size is expressed in open area percentage.

[013) 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.

[014) 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 prefen ed, 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 -page 5 of 15-Docket No.: TJONES-001 First Named: Trevor T.M. Jones phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of descriptions and should not be regarded as limiting.

[015] 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.

[016] The principal object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle traction mat for aiding in traction to a vehicle drive tire on ice.

[017] Another object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle traction mat which has superior degree of traction on iced surfaces.

[018] Still a further object of the present invention is to provide a veMcle traction mat kit which provides a user with traction mats to chose from for use in different conditions.

[019] Yet an additional object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle traction mat which is portable in size and is easily handled.

(020] Lastly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a vehicle traction mat and method of operating the same 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 traction mat economically available to the buying public.

[021] These together with other objects of the invention, along with the various features of novelty that characterize the invention, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a -page 6 of 15-Docket No.: TJONES-001 First Named: Trevor T.M. Jones part of this disclosure. For a better understanding of the invention, its operating advantages and the specific objects attained by its uses, reference should be had to the accompanying drawings and descriptive matter in which there is illustrated preferred embodiments of the invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[022] The invention will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:

[023] Figure 1 is a perspective view of the preferred embodiment of the vehicle traction mat constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention.
(024J Figure 2 is a top plan view of the vehicle traction mat of the present invention.
[025] Figure 3 is an enlarged side view of a section of the vehicle traction mat of the present invention.
[026] The same reference numerals refer to the same parts throughout the various figures.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[027] Referring now to the drawings, and particularly to FIGS. I-3, a preferred embodiment of the vehicle traction mat of the present invention is shown and generally designated by the reference numeral 10.
[028] In Figures 1,2 and 3 a new and improved vehicle traction mat 10 of the present invention for extricating a vehicle immobilized on ice that has endured a hard freeze is illustrated and will be described. More particularly, the vehicle traction mat 10 comprises a sheet 12 of raised expanded -page 7 of 15-Docket No.: TJONES-001 First Named: Trevor T.M. Jones metal which is generally rectangular in shape. The sheet 12. includes closely spaced openings 14 which are defined by strands 16 which are connected together by bonds 18. The strands 16 form the sides of the openings 14 and the bonds 18 are where the stands intersect.
In other words, the bond 18 is where each opening 14 is connected with the next opening. The openings 14 are generally diamond shaped and can be described by four measurements taken across the dimensional diamond shaped opening.
[029] The first measurement is the Short Way of the Diamond (SWD), which is the distance from the middle of the bond on one side to the middle of the bond on the opposite side.
The second measurement is the bong Way of the Diamond (LWD), which is the distance across the largest dimension of the diamond measured halfway between the diamonds. The third measurement is the Short Way of the Opening (SWO), which is the width of the opening of the shortest side of the diamond. The SWO does not include the strand width, where the SWD does. The fourth measurement is the Long Way of the Opening (LWO), which the length of the opening of the longest side of the diamond. LWO does not include the strand width, where the LWD does.
[030] The number of openings 14 per unit area is defined as the Open Area (OA). The OA is the total area of the openings divided by the total area of the sheet and expressed in as a percent. In other words, OA describes how much of the expanded metal sheet is open space.
For example, if the expanded metal sheet has a 60 percent OA, then 60 percent of the expanded metal is open space and 40 percent is material.
[031] Gauge or thickness of the expanded metal sheet is the measurement from the top surface to the bottom surface of the sheet before expansion. Gauge is the most common measurement, but thickness can also be measured in fractional inches and converted into gauge.
All references made to gauge herein is made towards the American Wire Gauge (AWG) standard.
-page 8 of 15-Docket No.: TJONES-001 First Named: Trevor T.M. Jones [032] The strands 16 and the bonds 18 form ideal anti-skid projections on opposing surfaces of the sheet 12, such that when the traction mat 10 is laid upon an iced or hard compacted snow surface the projections on one face of the sheet dig into the surface and the projections on the other surface provide traction to the vehicle tire. The sheet 12 is flexible to conform to surface irregularities.
[033] Through experimentation by varying the aforementioned dimensions of the openings 14 and the sheet 12, it was found that a SWD length from about inches 0.1875 to about 0.75 inches and a LWD length from about 0.375 to about 2.00 inches provided the best grip with an iced surface having an ice hardness from about 1.5 to about 3.0 on a Mohs Scale.
Preferably, the SWD is about 0.1875 and the LWD is about 0.375.
[034] In the preferred embodiment, the rectangular sheet 12 is of a length from about 24 inches to 60 inches and a width from about 4 inches to about 16 inches, which is small enough for a user to easily handle and position the sheet for use, while retaining a superior working surface area for the sheet to engage and grip the iced surface. Preferably, the sheet 12 is about 24 inches in length and 8 inches in width and a gauge from about 14 AWG to about 22 AWG. In addition, to maximize efficiency of the traction mat 10, the sheet 12 can have from about 40 to about 60 percent OA. Furthermore, the sheet 12 is manufactured from a material having a Mohs scale number greater than 3, preferably from low carbon steel, stainless steel or the like.
[035] The sheet 12 can be cut from a larger sheet of expanded metal to the desired size. Preferably, the sheet 12 is cut from a larger sheet of expanded metal by bond shearing.
Bond shearing is where the material is cut on or near the center of the bond to eliminate prongs or jagged edges, thereby reducing the chance of injury to a user or damage of property by the jagged edges. Refernng to Figure 1, the sheet 12 must be cut so that the length of the sheet is parallel to the SWD direction and so that the width of the sheet is parallel to the LWD direction.
gage 9 of 15-Docket No.: TJONES-001 First Named: Trevor T.M. Jones (036] It is contemplated to provide a kit of traction mats 10 having different dimensional properties suited for use with different degrees of ice hardness. The kit may include at least 2 sheets 12 with each sheet having different SWD, LDW lengths and of different gauges. In one example, a kit can be provided including one sheet 12 with a SWD of about 0.1875, and LWD of about 0.375, and a gauge of 22 AWG, this sheet would be well suited for use on ice having a higher degree of hardness, or hard ice. The second sheet 12 can be provided with a SWD of about 0.75 inches, and a LWD of about 2.0 inches, and a gauge of 16 AWG, this sheet would be well suited for use on ice have a lower degree of hardness, soft ice. A kit can be provided with any number of sheets 12 having a SWD from about 0.1875 to about 0.75, a LWD from about 0.375 to about 2.00 and a gauge from about 14 to about 22, and the sheets 12 can have from about 40 to about 60 percent OA. The sheets 12 are flexible to conform to surface irregularities.
[037] In use, it can now be understood that a vehicle traction mat 10 is selected having a suitable mesh size defined by the SWD and LWD dimensions for ease with the current surface condition.
The mat 10 is positioned and is adapted to be wedged between the leading edge of the slipping drive tire of the vehicle and the iced surface along the axis of the SWD
direction. Upon applying power to the slipping drive tire, the mat is slightly pulled between the tire and the surface whereby the projections on the lower surface of the mat dig into and grip the surface while the projections on the upper surface provide traction to the drive tire. Additional mats 10 may be placed end to end with the first tire engaging mat to provide for a temporary roadway to get the vehicle back upon a drivable surface. If more than one drive tire is slipping a traction mat 10 may be positioned to provide traction for each slipping tire.
[038] While a preferred embodiment of the vehicle traction mat has been described in detail, it should be apparent that modifications and variations thereto are possible, all of which fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention. With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of the invention, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily -page 10 of 15-Docket No.: TJONES-001 First Named: Trevor T.M. Jones apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by the present invention.
[039] Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention.
Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention.
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Claims

I claim:

1. A vehicle traction mat for aiding in traction of a vehicle drive tire on a surface, such as ice or snow comprising:

a sheet of expanded metal of generally rectangular shape defining a plurality of openings extending therethrough, and said sheet having anti-skid projections on opposing surfaces, the projections on one surface for penetrating the ice to retain said sheet in a non-sliding relationship with the ice and the projections on the opposite surface for engagement with the tire providing traction thereto.

2. The vehicle traction mat in accordance claim 1, wherein the traction mat is for use on ice having a Mohs hardness from about 1.5 to about 3Ø

3. The vehicle traction mat in accordance claim 1, wherein the openings are generally dimond shaped and each opening having a SWD length from about 0.1875 to about 0.75 inches and a LWD length from about 0.375 to about 2.00 inches.

4. The vehicle traction mat in accordance with claim 1, wherein said sheet is formed from a material having a Mohs hardeness greater than 3Ø

5. The vehicle traction mat in accordance with claim 1, wherein said sheet is cut from a larger sheet of expanded metal by bond shearing so as to provide non-jagged edges.

6. A vehicle traction mat for providing traction to a vehicle drive tire slipping on an iced surface, comprising:

a sheet of expanded metal of generally rectangular shape that is adapted to be wedged between the iced surface and the drive tire along the leading edge of the drive tire, said sheet having strands and bonds which define a plurality of openings through said sheet, the strands and bonds providing for projections on opposing surfaces of said sheet, the projections on one surface for penetrating the iced surface to retain said sheet in a non-sliding relationship with the iced surface and the projections on the opposite surface for engagement with the tire providing traction thereto.

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7. The vehicle traction mat in accordance with claim 6, wherein the traction mat is for use on ice having a Mohs hardness from about 1.5 to about 3Ø

8. The vehicle traction mat in accordance with 6, wherein the openings are generally diamond shaped and each opening having a SWD length from about 0.1875 to about 0.75 inches and a LWD length from about 0.375 to about 2.00 inches.

9. The vehicle traction mat in accordance with claim 6, wherein said sheet is cut from a larger sheet of expanded metal by bond shearing so as to provide non-jagged edges.

10. The vehicle traction mat in accordance with claim 6, wherein said sheet has a length from about 24 inches to 60 inches and a width from about 4 inches to about 16 inches.

11. A vehicle traction mat kit for aiding in traction of a vehicle drive tire on ice comprising in combination:

at least two sheets of expanded metal of generally rectangular shape defining a plurality of openings extending therethrough;
said sheets having anti-skid projections on opposing surfaces, the projections on one surface for penetrating the ice to retain a said sheet in a non-sliding relationship with the ice and the projections on the opposite surface for engagement with the tire providing traction thereto; and said sheets each having a different open area percentage.

12. The vehicle traction mat kit in accordance with claim 11, wherein the openings defined by said sheets are generally diamond shape;

a first sheet having a SWD length of about 0.1875 inches and a LWD length of about 0.375 inches; and a second sheet having a SWD length of about 0.75 inches and a LWD length of 2.00 inches.

13. The vehicle traction mat kit in accordance with claim 11, wherein said sheets are cut from larger sheets of expanded metal by bond shearing so as to provide non-jagged edges.

14. The vehicle traction mat kit in accordance with claim 11, wherein said sheets are selected for use on ice having a Mohs hardness from about 1.5 to about 3Ø

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15. The vehicle traction mat kit in accordance with claim 11, wherein said sheets have a length from about 24 inches to 60 inches and a width from about 4 inches to about 16 inches.

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