GB2489911A

GB2489911A - Fastening strap

Info

Publication number: GB2489911A
Application number: GB1105384.0A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Richard Francis Rodgers
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2011-03-30
Filing date: 2011-03-30
Publication date: 2012-10-17
Also published as: GB201105384D0

Abstract

A fastening strap 100 suitable for fastening a rotatable member which may optionally be a wheel 120 of a casualty vehicle 170 to a base member which is preferably a towing dolly 140. The strap 100 has a first and a second end which can be attached to a base member 140 and at least a portion of the strap has means to adhere the strap 100 to the rotatable member. The means may be magnetic or may be formed from a material which will adhere to the surface of the rotatable member 120. The adhering means is such that if the strap 100 were laid on a surface and the rotatable 120 member rolled over the strap 100 at least some of the strap 100 would adhere to some of the member 120. A method is disclosed of laying the strap 100 on a surface and rolling the rotatable member 120 over the strap from a first end towards a second end. Optionally the second end is attached to a base 140 before rolling the rotating member 120 over the strap 100.

Description

A fastening strap The present invention relates to an apparatus and associated method for fastening a rotatable member to a base member. Particularly, but not exclusively, it relates to a magnetic strap for use in attaching the wheels of a vehicle to a towing dolly.

When motor vehicles break down and cannot easily be fixed by the side of a road then they need to be transported to a garage or similar location where they can be more easily repaired. Such motor vehicles may be towed using a recovery and transportation apparatus, known in the art as a towing dolly. An example of a known towing dolly is disclosed in 0B24 16336.

A towing dolly is essentially a two wheeled trailer. In use, two ramps are provided for loading a casualty vehicle onto the dolly and the two front wheels of a casualty vehicle are drawn up the ramps onto the dolly. Once on the dolly, each of the two front wheels of the casualty vehicle is fastened thereto by means of an adjustable strap. One end of the strap is attached to the dolly and the other end is passed over the wheel of the casualty vehicle by an operator and then fastened to the dolly.

With such an arrangement, whilst an operator is filling a strap to the offside wheel of the casualty vehicle they must stand on the offside of the casualty vehicle.

This places the operator in a potentially hazardous position as they may be standing in the path of oncoming traffic.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a solution that at least partially overcomes or alleviates the above problems.

According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a fastening strap suitable for fastening a rotatable member to a base member compri sing a first end and a second end, wherein both the first and second ends can be attached to the base member and characterised in that at least a portion of the strap is provided with a means to adhere it to a rotatable member so that if the strap is laid on a surface and a rotatable member is rolled over the strap from the first end towards the second end thereof at least a portion of the strap adheres to the rotatable member and the strap swaps around the at least part of the circumference of the rotatable member.

With such an arrangement the strap can be easily arranged around a rotatable member for ease of attachment to the base member by simply rolling the rotatable member over the strap. One end of the strap can be attached to the base member and the strap laid out substantially flat on a surface prior to rolling the rotatable member over the strap. This allows for a particularly simple fastening of the rotatable member to the base member.

The base member may comprise a towing dolly. The rotatable member may comprise a wheel. The wheel may be one of the wheels of a casualty vehicle it is desired to tow with the towing dolly.

The strap according to the first aspect of the present invention is particularly suited for fastening the wheel of a casualty vehicle to a towing dolly since it would allow an operator to fasten the wheels to the dolly without standing to the side of the casualty vehicle. Therefore, advantageously, the operator does not need to stand in the path of oncoming traffic to fasten the wheels to the dolly.

Any suitable means to adhere the portion of the strap to a rotatable member mechanism may be used as desired or required. The strap may comprise a magnetic element and the rotatable member may comprise a metallic element so that the adhesion is magnetic. The magnetic element may comprise a permanent magnet. The magnetic element may be of any suitable form and may comprise a flexible magnetic material, such as magnetic tape or flexible rubber magnets, or a plurality of magnets set in the flexible strap. As an example of a plurality of magnets set in the flexible strap the strap may be formed from a material with a plurality of pockets each of which contains a magnet. Alternatively, the strap may be provided with an adhesive coating.

In addition to the portion of the strap which is provided with the means to adhere it to a rotatable member, the strap may comprise one or more additional portions. The one or more additional portions may or may not be provided with a means to adhere them to a rotatable member. For example, the strap may comprise three portions with only one portion being provided with a means to adhere it to a

rotatable member.

The strap may be formed from any material suitable material. In particular, the portion which is provided with the means to adhere it to a rotatable member may be formed from a material which will adhere to the surface of the rotatable member.

Alternatively, it may be formed from a composite material wherein one or more elements of the composite material allow the strap to adhere to the rotatable member.

Preferably, the other elements of the composite material are chosen for other attributes, for example, tensile strength.

Preferably, the strap is sufficiently flexible that at least part of it can adopt substantially the same shape as the rotatable member as the rotatable member is rolled over the strap.

The strap may be adjustable. Advantageously, this will allow the same strap to be used for a range of different circumferences of rotatable member. The strap may be provided with a rigid adjuster plate to facilitate adjustment of its length. 3 -

The first and second ends of the strap may be attachable to the base member in any suitable way. For example, each end of the strap may be provided with a rigid member. The rigid members may be attachable to the base member in such a fashion so as to be free to rotate relative thereto. Alternatively, each end of the strap may engage with the base member. For example, the base member may be provided with a ratchet buckle or similar means for securing the end of the strap.

In a particularly preferred embodiment, the strap comprises an adjustable webbing strap portion, which is provided with: a first rigid member at its first end; a second rigid member at its second end; and a rigid adjuster plate to facilitate adjustment of the length of the strap. The second rigid member is provided with a suitable attachment means so that it can be rotatably attachable to a base member. The first rigid member is attached to another webbing strap portion of fixed length and a flexible magnetic strap portion, which is generally parallel to the webbing strap portion of fixed length. The fixed length webbing strap portion is operable to engage with a ratchet buckle on the base member.

According to a second aspect of the present invention there is provided a towing dolly comprising a base member and a fastening strap according to the first aspect of the present invention.

The second aspect of the present invention may incorporate any or all of the features of the first aspect of the present invention as discussed above.

The towing doIly may comprise a second fastening strap according to the first aspect of the present invention so as to allow the two front wheels of a vehicle to be fastened to the dolly.

According to a third aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of wrapping a fastening strap according to the first aspect of the present invention around at least part of a rotatable member comprising the steps of: laying the strap out on a surface; and rolling the rotatable member over the strap from the first end towards the second end.

The method allows the fastening strap to be arranged around the rotatable member so that the rotatable member can be easily attached to a base member, The method of the third aspect of the present invention may incorporate any or all of the features of the apparatus of the first and second aspects of the present invention as discussed above.

The method may further comprise the additional step of attaching the second end of the strap to the base member prior to laying it out on the surface. Alternatively, the second end of the strap may already be attached to the base member.

The method may further comprise the additional step of attaching the first end of the strap to the base member once the rotatable member has been rolled over the strap. This attachment may be achieved by way of the first end of the strap cooperating with a ratchet buckle, or similar device, disposed on the base member.

The surface may comprise an inclined ramp portion to allow the rotatable member to roll up onto the base member. The method may frirther comprise the step of attaching an inclined ramp to the base member prior to laying the strap out.

In order that the invention can be more clearly understood embodiments thereof are now described further below> by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which: Fig. I is a plan view of an adjustable fastening strap according to the present invention attached to a towing dolly; and Figs. 2a-2f show how the wheel of a vehicle can be attached to a towing dolly using an adjustable fastening strap according to the present invention, Referring to Fig. 1, a fastening strap 100 according to the present invention S comprises a first end 101 and a second end 102. The fastening strap 100 comprises: a first webbing strap portion 110 disposed at the first end 101; and a second webbing strap portion 130 disposed at the second end 102. The first webbing strap portion 110 is connected to the second webbing strap portion 130 at a point 103 between the first end 101 and the second end 102. The fastening strap 100 further comprises a flexible magnetic strap portion 120 which is attached to the second webbing strap portion 130 at point 103 and which extends in a direction generally parallel to the first webbing strap portion 110 along part of the length of the first webbing strap portion 110.

The magnetic strap portion 120 comprises at least a magnetic element. Said magnetic element may comprise a permanent magnet and may comprise either a 1.5 flexible magnetic material, such as magnetic tape or flexible rubber magnets, or a plurality of magnets set in the flexible strap. The magnetic element provides a means to adhere the magnetic strap portion 120 to any rotatable member which comprises a corresponding metallic element.

The second webbing strap portion 130 is provided with a rigid member 131, 132 at each end. One of the rigid members 131 is disposed at the second end 102 of the fastening strap 100 and can be rotatably attached to a towing dolly 140. The other rigid member 132 is attached to the magnetic strap portion 120 and the first webbing strap portion 110 using any suitable attachment means. The second webbing strap is provided with a with a rigid adjuster plate 133 to facilitate adjustment of its length.

In use, as shown, the second end of the fastening strap 100 is attached to a towing dolly 140 and the fastening strap 100 is laid out on a surface extending away from the towing dolly 140. The surface may comprise an inclined ramp 150 (see Fig. 2a).

S As will now be described with reference to Figs. 2a2f, with the strap 100 disposed in this position, the wheel 160 of a casualty vehicle 170 is rolled over the strap 100 from the first end 101 towards the second end 102. As the wheel 160 rolls over the magnetic strap portion 120, the magnetic element is attracted towards the steel banding in the tyre of the wheel 160. Therefore, the magnetic strap portion 120 adheres to the wheel 160 and the strap 100 wraps around the at least part of the circumference of the wheel.

Once the wheel 160 passes the second end 102 (see Fig. 2e), the strap 100 is wrapped around a sufficient part of the circumference of the wheel that an operator cart reach the first webbing strap portion 110 of the strap 100 from the front 142 of the dolly 140. The first webbing strap portion 110 can be passed through an aperture 141 on the towing dolly 140, attached to the towing dolly 140 via a ratchet buckle (not shown) and pulled taut securing the wheel to the towing doily 140.

As will be obvious to one skilled in the art, the towing dolly 140 may be provided with two fastening straps 100 according to the present invention arranged so that two wheels 160 of a casualty vehicle 170 can be fastened to the towing dolly 140.

Furthermore, an operator 180 would be able to secure both of the wheels 160 from the front 142 of the doIly 140. This is particularly advantageous since the operator 180 does not need be in either of the potentially hazardous position on either side of the vehicle whilst attaching it to the dolly.

It is of course to be understood that the invention is not to be restricted to the details of the above embodiments which have been described by way of example only.