GB2529836A

GB2529836A - Improvements in or relating to utility vehicles

Info

Publication number: GB2529836A
Application number: GB1415553.5A
Authority: GB
Inventors: James John Alexander Dowle; Ian Salsbury
Original assignee: NORMAN TRUST
Current assignee: NORMAN TRUST
Priority date: 2014-09-03
Filing date: 2014-09-03
Publication date: 2016-03-09
Anticipated expiration: 2034-09-03
Also published as: CN105383329A; CN105383329B; GB201415553D0; BR102015021148A2; GB2529836B

Abstract

A vehicle 2, typically a truck or utility vehicle, has a load space 6 over rear wheels 18 and comprising a floor 10 having an upwardly extending protuberance 20 above a wheel 18. A removable planar board 26 is attachable at one end to protuberance 20, and can be supported at another end to be substantially horizontal. Board 26 may be usable as a sand ladder, and can have a grid surface on a non-smooth face. Board 26 may comprise a glass fibre composite material. Board 26 typically extends along a side wall 12 of load space 6, and separate boards 26 can be provided for each side wall. Board 26 may be provided with a cushion for use as a seat, and may also have legs (52, Figure 4) allowing use as a table or seat when removed from the vehicle.

Description

Improvements in or relating to Utility Vehicles

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to utility vehicles, and seeks to make them more able to traverse inclement terrain.

BACKGROUND ART

A common problem when driving off-road is to become stuck in soft ground such as sand or mud. There are a range of techniques for dealing with this, one of which is to place something with more grip under and/or in front of the driven wheels. This then allows them to gain traction and draw the vehicle out.

Drivers planning to go off-road in potentially difficult circumstances therefore often carry suitable equipment such as mats and the like. So-called "sand ladders" are available, which are rigid boards, usually of a metallic material, with ridged apertures to provide grip both with the tyres and the soft ground beneath. These are somewhat bulky and are often therefore attached (releasably) to the side of the vehicle.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Sand ladders attached to the vehicle add additional dead weight to the vehicle, as their use is (hopefully) relatively infrequent but they must be carried at all times. The present invention therefore provides a vehicle comprising a load space situated over at least a rear pair of wheels, the load space having a floor which includes an upwardly-extending protuberance above a wheel, further comprising a removable planar board attachable at one end to the protuberance and at another end to support the board substantially horizontally.

Accordingly, the sand ladders can be repurposed during normal use as seats within the load space. Assuming that such seats would have been provided in any case, this means that the sand ladders are provided without any weight penalty at all.

The board is preferably made of a glass-fibre composite material, to further reduce the weight of the vehicle as a whole. Ideally, it has at least one non-smooth face, which (especially in the case of a glass-fibre composite material) can be done by forming the board with a grid surface. This provides grip between the ladder and the tyres and/or the ground.

The load space will usually be bounded by side walls on either side, by a cabin (to the front), and by a tailgate (to the rear). The board, when attached, can extend alongside a side wall, thus extending longitudinally with respect to the vehicle, in order to provide a useful bench seat. A cushion can also be provided, shaped to fit over the board and protect sitting occupants from any non-smooth faces. The surface of the cushion may be configured so that, when it is placed on the board, it engages with the non-smooth surface of the board to prevent the cushion from sliding over the board.

The floor and/or side panels of the load space can have a retaining channel, adapted to accept an edge of the board. This allows the board to be used as a load space divider when not required as a seat.

The protuberance often has a substantially flat upper surface, so we prefer that the board, when attached, is level with this so that the useful seating area can extend over the protuberance in addition to the board.

Usually, there will be a protuberance over each of the rear wheels, so the most convenient arrangement is for there to be a pair of boards, one attachable to each protuberance. This then provides a pair of sand ladders, for insertion under a wheel on each side of the vehicle.

One or more of the boards may have a plurality of extendable legs, to enable it to be supported above the ground when removed from the vehicle. In this way, depending on the context and the length of the legs, it can be used as a seat, small table, or shelf.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

An embodiment of the present invention will now be described by way of example, with reference to the accompanying figures in which; Figure 1 shows a perspective view of a vehicle according to the present invention; Figure 2 shows the board and its attachment points; Figure 3 shows the board repositioned as a load space divider; Figure 4 shows an alternative form of the board, in a collapsed state; and Figure 5 shows the alternative form of the board, in an erect state.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Figure 1 is a perspective view from the rear of a vehicle 2 which has a cab 4 and a load space 6 defined generally by the rear 8 of the cab 4, a floor 10, side walls 12, 14 and a tailgate 16. The vehicle is shown as having four wheels 18 (only 3 are visible in Figure 1); the floor of the load space above the rear wheels 18 is shaped into two protuberances 20, 22 on the right and left hand sides of the vehicle respectively. The protuberances 20, 22 project upwardly into the load space from the load space floor 10, forwardly from the rear of the vehicle, and inwardly from a respective side wall 12, 14. A rail 24 extends horizontally across the rear 8 of the cab 4. Together, the rail 24 and the forward edges of the protuberances 20, 22 provide mounting points for attaching boards 26 along the side walls 12, 14 of the load space 10 to act as seats.

Figure 2 shows a board 26 in greater detail, together with the brackets (which are fixed to the vehicle) by which it is mounted as a seat. There is a bracket 28 shown at one end of the board which is adapted to be mounted to the rail 24 (or to the rear of the cab) and which has a lip 29 upon which the lower surface at the end of the board rests. Also shown is a second bracket 30 at the other end which is mounted to the forward edge of a protuberance 20/22. The bracket 30 has a lip 33 upon which the lower surface at the end of the board rests. There are also three lugs 31 which project upwardly from the lip and are adapted to engage through holes at the end of the board 26, thus holding the board in place. The board is generally symmetrical along its length, so that the board may be fitted to either the left or right side of the vehicle, and it is shown as having a square matrix of holes running through its depth -these provide friction when the board is removed from the load space 6 to be used as a sand ladder. The boards are preferably made of a composite material, such as glass-fibre, because this is cheap and easy to make, and sufficiently rigid and strong to act as either a seat or a sand ladder. The brackets 28, 30 are fixed to the board 26 (they may be releasably fixed) and are made of a composite material, or formed of metal or an alloy, and have holes 32 for passing bolts or other suitable fasteners (not shown) through so as to releasably mount them to the rail 24 or to the leading edge of a protuberance 20, 22 as appropriate.

Figure 3 shows the vehicle 2 of Figure 1 with the boards 26 removed from their position as seats and repositioned so as to run transversely across the load space 6 to divide the load space into two separate areas. The lowermost board seats in a horizontal retaining channel (not shown) running across the floor 10 of the load space, with the end brackets on each board being releasably secured to the load space side walls 12, 14. Additionally or alternatively, one or more pairs of vertical retaining channels (not shown) may be provided along the side walls 12, 14 of the load space for the boards to slot into to provide a releasable mounting for the boards to be used as load space dividers.

Figures 4 and 5 show an alternate form for the board 50. This retains the same square matrix of holes to provide friction when the board 50 is removed from the load space 6 to be used as a sand ladder. Brackets 28 are not illustrated but may be added to the board 50 as required in order to assist in fitting the board 50 within the load space 6 of the vehicle, as described in relation to figures 1 and 2. In addition, on the underside of the board 50 there are a set of four extendable legs 52, one in each corner. Each leg 52 is in the form of a rigid section profile, in this case a fiat profile but other sections such as an angle profile, a circular section or a box section could be used. The section is hingedly attached to the underside of the board 50 via a hinge 54 consisting of a hinge pin which extends horizontally through the leg 52 and a vertical part of an angle bracket fixed to the underside of the board 50. This is oriented so as to allow the leg 52 to move between an extended position (figure 5) in which it extends substantially perpendicularly downwardly from the board 50, and a retracted position in which it lies alongside the undersurface of the board (figure 4). In the retracted position, the board 50 can be fitted in the vehicle as described above, and in the extended position the board can be used as impromptu seating outside the vehicle.

To secure the legs 52 when they are in the extended position, a folding brace strut 56 is provided for each leg 52. This is attached to the leg 52 halfway along its length and to the underside of the board 50 to define a triangular bracing structure for the leg 52 in its extended position. In conventional fashion, the brace strut 56 has a hinge 58 halfway along its length, and hinged attachment points at either end with the leg 52 and the board 50, to allow it to IbId away when the leg 52 is folded into the retracted position.

With the legs 52 extended, the board 50 can be used as shown in figure 5 as a bench seat. Longer legs 52 would allow it to be used as a small table or as a shelf.

It will of course be understood that many variations may be made to the above-described embodiment without departing from the scope of the present invention. For example, the holes may extend completely through the board as shown in Figure 2, or the board may be formed with an intermediate sheet generally parallel to the surface of the board to close off the holes towards their centre; such boards can be suitable for use as load space dividers when a fiowable material such as sand or grain is to be carried in the load space, or when the board is to be used as a sand ladder on fine sand or snow. The holes may be any shape other than square -holes which are hexagonal, round or any other shape may have advantages in certain applications. The holes may be of a certain size and/or shape on one side of the board and of another size and/or shape on the other side of the board so as to be suitable for different types of ground and/or tyres, to provide the vehicle with boards having up to four different sizes and/or shapes to give a range of different sand ladders suitable for different types of ground and/or tyre, and/or to make the board more comfortable in use as a seat. More than one channel may be formed/provided in the floor of the load space so that the load space can be divided into differently sized areas. One board may be used as a load space divider and the other board used as a seat.

When used as load space dividers the boards can be placed in separate retaining channels so as to subdivide the load space into three separate areas, albeit with a lower division between them. There may be more or fewer lugs than as shown, and lugs may be provided on either bracket or on both brackets for holding the board when in use as a seat.

Furthermore, where different variations or alternative arrangements are described above, it should be understood that embodiments of the invention may incorporate such variations and/or alternatives in any suitable combination.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A vehicle comprising a load space situated over at least a rear pair of wheels, the load space having a floor which includes an upwardly-extending protuberance above a wheel, further comprising a removable planar board attachable at one end to the S protuberance and at another end to support the board substantially horizontally.
2. A vehicle according to claim 1 in which the board is of a glass-fibre composite material.
3. A vehicle according to claim 2 in which the board has at least one non-smooth face.
4. A vehicle according to claim 3 in which the non-smooth face is provided by forming the board with a grid surface.
S. A vehicle according to any one of the preceding claims in which the load space is bounded by side walls on either side.
6. A vehicle according to any one of the preceding claims in which the load space is bounded to the front by a cabin.
7. A vehicle according to any one of the preceding claims in which the load space is bounded to the rear by a tailgate.
8. A vehicle according to any one of the preceding claims in which the board extends longitudinally with respect to the vehicle.
9. A vehicle according to claim 8 in which the board, when attached, extends alongside a side wall.
10. A vehicle according to any one of the preceding claims in which at least one of the floor of the load space and a side wall bounding the load space has a retaining channel adapted to accept an edge of the board.
11. A vehicle according to any one of the preceding claims further comprising a cushion shaped to fit over the board.
12. A vehicle according to any one of the preceding claims in which the protuberance has a substantially flat upper surface with which the board, when attached, is level.
13. A vehicle according to any one of the preceding claims with a protuberance over each of the rear wheels and a pair of boards, one attachable to each protuberance.
14. A vehicle according to any one of the preceding claims in which at least one board has a plurality of extendable legs.
15. A vehicle substantially as herein described with reference to and/or as illustrated in the accompanying figures.