GB2220621A - Curtainsider freight-transporting road trailer - Google Patents

Abstract

At least one intermediate support post (28) is slidable along the trailer body to facilitate access for loading and unloading. To enable the intermediate support post to be fixed in position in a convenient and safe manner, a socket element (31) capable of being engaged with the post is housed for vertical movement in a cavity (32) in a side rave (26) of a deck structure (10). This arrangement permits easy refitting of the support post in position should sagging of the roof occur whilst the support is in the displaced position and also permits safe release of the post from its travel position. <IMAGE>

Description

Curtainsider freight-transporting road trailer.

The invention relates to a curtainsider freighttransporting road trailer.

Curtainsider trailers have van bodies with at least one side wall closable by a slidable curtain suspended from the roof of the body. Means are usually provided for tensioning the curtain both longitudinally and vertically, the means for tensioning it vertically usually being constituted by a plurality of horizontally spaced and vertically extending straps associated with the curtain, each strap having a tensioning device capable of being connected to a deck portion of the body.

The roof structure of a curtainsider trailer body extends between front and rear frames but since such trailer bodies tend to be quite long (i.e. 12 metres or more in length) it is usual to provide intermediate support posts along the or each side wall closable by a slidable curtain. In order that such intermediate support posts do not obstruct loading and unloading of the body, it is usual for said posts to be slidable longitudinally of the body, being fixed in pre-determined positions before the curtain is drawn along the side wall concerned and appropriately tensioned for road travel.

The intermediate support posts in an arrangement as just described are usually suspended on rollers guided in a track extending along the roof structure, the lower ends of said posts being capable of being connected to or disconnected from the deck structure.

This kind of arrrangement generally works quite well but is prone to certain problems. Briefly the most serious of these can be said to result from the stresses imposed on the structure during road travel and the danger to an operative when the built up stresses are suddenly released on disconnection of the lower ends of the support posts from the deck structure. In addition, the sagging of the roof structure which can occur in service can cause the operative considerable difficulty when he comes to re-connect the support posts to the deck structure because, in effect, he must raise the roof structure by manual effort as he operates the toggle action two part intermediate support posts which have previously been provided.

The invention has for its object to at least alleviate these problems.

According to the invention, there is provided a curtainsider freight-transporting road trailer having a body with a deck structure; a roof structure extending between front and rear frames upstanding from the deck structure; at least one curtain for closing a side wall of the body; and at least one intermediate support post slidable longitudinally of the body so that it can be displaced from a road travel position to a position in which it does not obstruct loading and unloading of the body when the curtain has been drawn back, means whereby the lower end of said at least one intermediate support post is capable of being connected to or disconnected from the deck structure including a socket element housed for vertical movement in a cavity in a side rave of said deck structure, there being interengagement of the upper end of said socket element with the lower end of said support post and screw means for raising or lowering said socket element. The screw means for raising or lowering the socket element will preferably be manually operable. The screw means may be constituted by a vertically extending screwthreaded shaft rotatably mounted but axially fixed within the cavity in the side rave of the deck structure, said screwthreaded shaft engaging a nut carried by a plate which extends across the lower end of the socket element.

In order that the invention may be fully understood and readily carried into effect, the same will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of a curtainsider freight-transporting road trailer embodying the invention, Figure 2 is a perspective view of a slidable post forming a part of the structure, and Figure 3 is a part-sectional scrap view, on the line 3-3 in Figure 2, and drawn to a larger scale than Figures 1 and 2.

Referring now in particular to Figure 1, the road trailer body there illustrated has a deck structure generally indicated 10 and a roof structure generally indicated 12 extending between front and rear frames 14 and 16 upstanding from the deck structure.

The side walls of the body are closable by respective slidable curtains 18 suspended from respective rails 20 which extend along the side edges of the roof structure. The upper edges of the curtains are connected to a series of so-called travellers (not shown) which engage respective tracks of the rails 20. The curtains can therefore very easily be drawn on to close the side walls of the body or drawn back to open the side walls when the body is to be loaded or unloaded. Means are provided for tensioning the curtains both longitudinally and vertically for road travel. The means for tensioning the curtains longitudinally are not shown because they form no part of the present invention.

The means for tensioning the curtains vertically are constituted by a plurality of horizontally spaced and vertically extending straps 22 associated with the respective curtains (such straps being seen in the curtain shown drawn on in Figure 1). Each strap has a tensioning device (not shown) capable of being connected to the deck structure, that is to say to respective hooks 24 projecting downwardly and inwardly from respective side raves 26 of said deck structure.

Considerable downward force is imposed on the roof structure by the means for tensioning the curtains vertically when the curtains have been drawn on for road travel. Consequently, a number of intermediate support posts 28 (only one of which is shown in Figure 1) are provided to support the roof structure, said support posts being slidable longitudinally of the body so that they can be displaced from their road travel positions to positions in which they do not obstruct loading and unloading of the body when the curtains have been drawn back. At their upper ends the intermediate support posts are slidably suspended from a track 30 extending longitudinally of the roof structure, being mounted on rollers 29 (see Figure 2) engaging said track. At their lower ends said posts are capable of being connected to or disconnected from the deck structure.

Referring now to Figures 2 and 3, the means whereby the lower end of each intermediate support post is capable of being connected to or disconnected from the deck structure include a socket element 31 of generally rectangular cross sectional shape which is housed for vertical movement in a cavity 32 of similar shape in the side rave 26 of the deck structure. The lower end of the socket element is closed by a plate 34 which has a nut 36 at its centre, said nut engaging a screwthreaded shaft 38 upstanding from an anchorage plate 40 which closes off the lower end of the cavity in the side rave. The upstanding screwthreaded shaft 38 is rotatably mounted but axially fixed relative to the anchorage plate. A projecting lower end of said shaft is provided with a handle 42 by means of which it can be rotated to raise or lower the socket element 30.

The arrangement is such that when the respective support post 28 has been brought into overlying relationship with the socket element 31, the latter can be raised into engagement with the lower end of said post. The support post has a lower end portion of the same generally rectangular cross sectional shape as the socket element 30 and has a downwardly projecting tapered tongue portion 44 which enters the upper end of said socket element as the latter is raised.

In the operation of the trailer, when freight has been loaded into the body the intermediate support posts can be returned to their normal positions for road travel and the respective socket elements can be raised to engage the lower ends of said posts and to lift them through some initial distance to bring the previously sagging roof structure to a substantially level position. The side curtain or curtains can then be drawn on and tensioned, following which the socket elements can be raised through a second increment of movement to bring the roof to an upwardly bulging position and tensioning the tensioning straps 22 still further. (It will be understood that the socket elements will not all be raised by an equal amount but by appropriate amounts to suit the very slight convex curvature to which the roof structure can be brought).

Thus there is provided a curtainsider freighttransporting road trailer with slidably mounted intermediate support posts which can be operated without undue effort by the operative.

Various modifications may be made. For example, other means could be devised for raising and lowering the socket elements 30. The road trailer may have a curtain closing only one side of the body. The or each open side may have any appropriate number of intermediate support posts from one upwards according to the length of the body.

Claims (4)

CLAIMS:-

1. A curtainsider freight-transporting road trailer having a body with a deck structure; a roof structure extending between front and rear frames upstanding from the deck structure; at least one curtain for closing a side wall of the body; and at least one intermediate support post slidable longitudinally of the body so that it can be displaced from a road travel position to a position in which it does not obstruct loading and unloading of the body when the curtain has been drawn back, means whereby the lower end of said at least one intermediate support post is capable of being connected to or disconnected from the deck structure including a socket element housed for vertical movement in a cavity in a side rave of said deck structure, there being interengagement of the upper end of said socket element with the lower end of said support post and screw means for raising or lowering said socket element.

2. A curtainsider freight-transporting road trailer according to claim 1, in which the screw means for raising or lowering the socket element is manually operable.

3. A curtainsider freight-transporting road trailer according to either one of the preceding claims, in which the screw means are constituted by a vertically extending screwthreaded shaft rotatably mounted but axially fixed within the cavity in the side rave of the deck structure, said screwthreaded shaft engaging a nut carried by a plate which extends across the lower end of the socket element.

4. A curtainsider freight-transporting road trailer constructed, arranged and adapted to operate substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated by the accompanying drawings.