GB2405846A

GB2405846A - Trailer and cover

Info

Publication number: GB2405846A
Application number: GB0321153A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Michael Joseph Patrick Fahy
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2003-09-10
Filing date: 2003-09-10
Publication date: 2005-03-16
Also published as: GB0321153D0

Abstract

A trailer 1 has an open top and a side adjacent said open top, characterised in that the trailer comprises a cover 10 rotatably mounted at the top of said side along substantially the whole length of said side, the cover being rotatable between an open position wherein it abuts said side, and a closed position wherein it substantially covers the open top of the trailer. There is preferably provided a driving means, such as a hydraulic system 11, to rotate the cover between the open position and the closed position.

Description

Trailer and cover The present invention relates to a cover for a trailer

of the type having an open top.

Trailers having an open top are regularly used for transportation, in particular for the transportation of rubbish. Frequently, when such trailers are transporting a load, they are covered with sheeting in order to prevent the contents from falling out during transportation. Traditionally, the sheeting is simply placed manually over the trailer.

However, this is time consuming.

A recent alternative involves a sheet that can be wound and unwound to cover the top of the trailer. However, this design requires manual winding on the part of the operator.

Accordingly, the present invention aims to provide an alternative cover for an open top trailer.

According to the present invention, there is provided a trailer having an open top and a side adjacent said open top, characterised in that the trailer comprises a cover rotatably mounted at the top of said side along substantially the whole length of said side, the cover being rotatable between an open position wherein it abuts said side, and a closed position wherein it substantially covers the open top of the trailer.

By "trailer" is meant any kind of transportation means used for road or rail transport.

Usually the trailer will be the typical type of trailer, namely a means for road transportation having wheels but which has no engine for propulsion: it requires coupling to a truck. However, the invention is equally applicable to skips, which have no wheels; to lorries, which have an engine for propulsion, and to equivalent rail transportation means. Thus, by the term "trailer" is meant trailer, skip, lorry and the like. However, in each case the trailer must be of the type which has an open top and a side adjacent said open top.

The present invention is ideally suited for use with 40ft rubbish trailers such as are conventionally used for the transportation of rubbish in the UK.

Preferably, the trailer further comprises a driving means to rotate the cover between the open position and the closed position.

The driving means may be an electromechanical driving means, for example a motor which directly, or via a gearing mechanism, communicates mechanically with the cover to rotate the cover between the open position and the closed position.

The driving means may also be a hydraulic driving means. For example, the driving means may comprise a hydraulic ram in mechanical communication with the side of the cover defining the axis of rotation. The mechanical communication is conveniently achieved by a rack and pinion arranged such that reciprocating movement of the hydraulic ram results in reciprocating movement of the rack and thus rotation of the pinion, the pinion in turn communicating via gearing means with a sprocket which is rigidly attached to an end of the cover at the axis of rotation.

The gearing means can conveniently be of the chain and sprocket type. The gearing ratio can be selected by the person skilled in the art to provide the necessary torque taking into account the hydraulic system and the weight of the cover.

The cover will usually require some degree of rigidity in order to be rotatable in the manner set out herein. Conveniently, the cover may comprise a flexible sheet mounted on rigid arms. The flexible sheet may be any conventional material such as tarpaulin, fine mesh net, and the like. In that case, the mechanical communication referred to above may conveniently be achieved via an arm. For example, an arm may be rigidly attached to the sprocket referred to above to rotate with the sprocket.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that, although a single driving means may be sufficient to rotate the cover, it may be convenient to provide two (or sometimes more than two) driving means. For example, a pair of driving means can be employed, in which case it is convenient for one to be located generally towards or at the front of the trailer and one to be located generally towards or at the rear of the trailer. In that case, the cover can comprise a flexible sheet mounted on a pair of rigid arms, and a driving means can be provided for mechanical communication with each arm.

It is envisaged that new trailers can be manufactured with the cover system according to the present invention. However, it is also envisaged that existing open top trailers can be retrofitted to produce a trailer according to the present invention.

Thus, in an alternative aspect, the present invention also provides a kit for providing a cover to a trailer of the type having an open top and a side adjacent said open top, the kit comprising: a cover for being rotatably mounted at the top of said side along substantially the whole length of said side, such that the cover is rotatable between an open position wherein it abuts said side, and a closed position wherein it substantially covers the open top of the trailer; or means to assemble such a cover; and mounting means to mount the cover on said side of the trailer.

For example, the kit may comprise the rigid arms, the flexible sheet, and the mounting means, which are required to assemble a cover of the type that comprises a flexible sheet mounted on rigid arms as set out above.

The kit may also comprise the components of the driving means as defined herein, and means to attach the driving means to the trailer and to the cover such that the driving means can rotate the cover between the open position and the closed position.

The invention will now further be described with reference to a specific embodiment and to the drawings, it being understood that this description of a specific embodiment is not intended in any way to limit the scope of the invention.

In the drawings: Figure 1 shows a trailer according to the present invention with the cover in the open position. (The flexible sheet is omitted for clarity).

Figure 2 shows a trailer according to the present invention with the cover in the closed position. (The flexible sheet is omitted for clarity).

Figures 3 and 4 show the arrangement of the driving means (the cover of the driving means is omitted for clarity).

As can be seen in Figures I to 2, the trailer (1) has a trailer body (2) of conventional design. Two steel box-section arms (3) are attached to opposed ends of the top of one side of the trailer body, by means of hinges (4) welded to the trailer body. Braces (5) are provided for strength. At the hinged end of the arms, a wire (6) extends between the arms supported on supports (7) which are welded to the trailer body. At the other end of the arms, a wire (8) extends between the arms. A flexible sheet (not shown; position indicated as 9) made of conventional material such as fine mesh net extends between the arms, and the wires (6, 8) pass through the sheet, thereby supporting it between the arms.

A driving means is attached to the top of each of the front and the rear of the trailer.

The mechanism is protected by covers (10), made from steel plate.

As can be seen in Figures 3 and 4, each driving means is constructed as follows. A hydraulic ram (1 1) is attached to the top of each end of the trailer by means of a bracket (12) welded to the trailer body. The piston of the hydraulic ram is attached to a second bracket (13) which in turn is welded to the rack (14) of a rack (14) and pinion (15), constructed from 12mm steel plate. The pinion (15) in turn is rigidly axially connected via a shaft (16) to a sprocket (17), which, together with the chain (18) and a second sprocket (19) makes up the gearing system. The second sprocket (19) is rigidly axially attached to the arm (3) at the axis of rotation of the cover via a second shaft (20), and the chain (18) passes between the two sprockets (17, 19) in an endless loop.

The hydraulic ram is powered by the hydraulic system of the truck to which the trailer is attached. The hydraulic ram is connected to the hydraulic system via a spool valve (not shown), which is situated on the front of the trailer. The spool valve is opened and closed by a lever, which operates the ram.

When the hydraulic ram (11) is activated, the piston extends from the position shown in Figure 4, and the rack (14) extends correspondingly. This causes rotational movement of the pinion (15), which is transmitted via the sprocket (17), the chain (18) and the second sprocket (19) to the arm (3), which thus moves from the closed position to the open position. The reverse procedure returns the arm to the closed position.

Claims

1. A trailer having an open top and a side adjacent said open top, characterized in that the trailer comprises a cover rotatably mounted at the top of said side along substantially the whole length of said side, the cover being rotatable between an open position wherein it abuts said side, and a closed position wherein it substantially covers the open top of the trailer.

2. A trailer according to claim 1, further comprising a driving means to rotate the cover between the open position and the closed position.

3. A trailer according to claim 2, wherein the driving means is an electromechanical driving means.

4. A trailer according to claim 2, wherein the driving means is a hydraulic driving means.

5. A trailer according to claim 4, wherein the driving means comprises a hydraulic ram in mechanical communication with the side of the cover defining the axis of rotation.

6. A trailer according to claim 5, wherein the mechanical communication is achieved by a rack and pinion arranged such that reciprocating movement of the hydraulic ram results in reciprocating movement of the rack and thus rotation of the pinion, the pinion in turn communicating via gearing means with a sprocket which is rigidly attached to an end of the cover at the axis of rotation.

7. A trailer according to any preceding claim, wherein the cover comprises a flexible sheet mounted on rigid arms.

8. A trailer according to claim 7 as dependent upon claim 6, wherein an arm is rigidly attached to the sprocket to rotate with the sprocket.

9. A kit for providing a cover to a trailer of the type having an open top and a side adjacent said open top, the kit comprising: a cover for being rotatably mounted at the top of said side along substantially the whole length of said side, such that the cover is rotatable between an open position wherein it abuts said side, and a closed position wherein it substantially covers the open top of the trailer; or means to assemble such a cover; and mounting means to mount the cover on said side of the trailer.

10. A kit according to claim 9, further comprising a driving means as defined in any of claims 2 to 6, and means to attach the driving means to the trailer and to the cover such that the driving means can rotate the cover between the open position and the closed position.

11. A kit according to claim 9 or claim 10, comprising means to assemble a cover as defined in claim 7 or claim 8. s

12. A trailer substantially as defined herein, with reference to the drawings.

13. A kit substantially as defined herein, with reference to the drawings.