US20100263698A1

US20100263698A1 - Car-top tent

Info

Publication number: US20100263698A1
Application number: US12/635,718
Authority: US
Inventors: Chao Hsiung Chiu
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2009-04-17
Filing date: 2009-12-11
Publication date: 2010-10-21
Also published as: TWM368688U

Abstract

A car-top tent includes a top cover and a bottom base and is mounted to the top of a car. The tent can be folded on a rear portion of the car roof. The top cover forms an opening, which, when the tent is opened, is put in alignment with a sunroof of the car. When the top cover is opened, the tent is driven to expand so that when the top cover is moved to an angular position to be substantially flush with the bottom base, the tent is completely expanded on the car top. A sleep mat composed of multiple pieces is received in recesses defined in the top cover and the bottom base and is adjustable in angular position thereof. The tent can be accessed directly from inside the car through the sunroof so as to offer enhanced safety and be suitable for entertainment, vocation, and exercise.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention generally relates to a structure of car-top tent, and more particularly to a car-top tent comprising a top cover that forms an opening, which when the top cover is opened, is put in alignment with a sunroof of the car to allow access to the tent through the sunroof, so as to realize folding of the tent on the car roof.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART

A car-top tent is a common and popular recreational product. As shown in FIG. 1 of the attached drawings, a foldable tent 2 is mounted to the roof 11 of a car 1 with bottom of the tent fixed to the car roof 11. The use of the tent is shown in FIG. 2, where a ladder 21 that is provided on a side of the tent 2 is pulled off to expand the tent 2 and the ladder 21 is then positioned on ground to allow a user to enter and leave the tent through the ladder 21. Although it works, it still shows drawbacks:
(1) When the tent is put on the car top and not in use, the tent does not match the appearance of the car, making the car look ugly and further, when the car is traveling, the tent causes a great wind resistance and is susceptible to vibration, so that it increases the consumption of fuel.
(2) Using the ladder 21 to move in and out of the tent 2 may cause undesired safety problems for a user may get fallen off the ladder.
(3) Using the ladder 21 to move in and out of the tent 2 allows any unauthorized person to access the tent and this is extremely dangerous in a wild area.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention aims to provide a car-top tent that comprises a top cover and a bottom base. The bottom base is mounted to a rear portion of the roof of a car. The top cover forms an opening, which, when the tent is opened, is put in alignment with a sunroof of the car. An expandable canopy is arranged between the top cover and the bottom base. When the top cover is opened, the canopy is pulled and expanded. With the alignment of the opening of the top cover with the sunroof, the tent can be accessed through the sunroof. This enhances the safety and eliminates the potential risk of undesired accident. The top cover and the bottom base, when opened, form an accommodation space therebetween in which a sleep mat composed of multiple pieces is received. The sleep mat is formed so as to be adjustable in the angular position thereof, which besides serving as a bed for a user to lie down thereon can function as a deck chair allowing a user to sit or lie thereon for watching sunrise and sunset or enjoy sight seeing of the surrounding landscape to realize the purposes of vocation, entertainment, or exercise.
The foregoing objectives and summary provide only a brief introduction to the present invention. To fully appreciate these and other objects of the present invention as well as the invention itself, all of which will become apparent to those skilled in the art, the following detailed description of the invention and the claims should be read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Throughout the specification and drawings identical reference numerals refer to identical or similar parts.
Many other advantages and features of the present invention will become manifest to those versed in the art upon making reference to the detailed description and the accompanying sheets of drawings in which a preferred structural embodiment incorporating the principles of the present invention is shown by way of illustrative example.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a conventional car-top tent in an un-expanded condition.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the conventional car-top tent in an expanded condition.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a car-top tent according to the present invention mounted to a roof of a car.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the car-top tent of the present invention in an expanded condition on the car roof.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the car-top tent according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematic view showing the car-top tent of the present invention in a fully expanded condition.

FIG. 7 is a top plan view of the car-top tent of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is an exploded view of the car-top tent of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a schematic view illustrating inclination of a sleep mat of the car-top tent of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a side elevational view showing the car-top tent of the present invention mounted to the car roof.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing a ladder of the car-top tent of the present invention in an extended condition.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The following descriptions are exemplary embodiments only, and are not intended to limit the scope, applicability or configuration of the invention in any way. Rather, the following description provides a convenient illustration for implementing exemplary embodiments of the invention. Various changes to the described embodiments may be made in the function and arrangement of the elements described without departing from the scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.
Referring to FIG. 3, which is a perspective view showing a car-top tent according to the present invention mounted to the top of a car, the car, which is generally designate at 1, comprises a roof 11 in which a sunroof 10 is mounted. The car-top tent of the present invention, generally designated at 3, comprises a bottom base 32 that is mounted and fixed to the car roof 11 and a top cover 31 that, when not in use, is folded to overlap atop the bottom base 32. When the tent is put into use, a user may climb through the opening of the sunroof 10 to the car roof 11 and lift and turn the top cover 31 over to be substantially flush with the bottom base 32 and expand a sleep canopy 30 (as shown in FIG. 4).
Referring to FIG. 5, which shows a perspective view of the car-top tent 3 according to the present invention, the tent 3 is composed of a top cover 31 and a bottom base 32. The bottom base 32 is fixed to a roof of a car and is rotatably jointed to the top cover 31 by a pivot device 33 to allow the top cover 31 to be foldable with respect to the bottom base 32. The top cover 31 forms an opening 310, which, when the top cover 31 is opened to an operation position, corresponds in position to the sunroof of the car, and which is normally closed by a lid 312. The top of the top cover 31 also forms raised ribs 311, whereby when the top cover is opened, the ribs 311 are positioned against the car roof 11. The ribs 311 are respectively provided with centrally located resilient strips 3110, which realize tight engagement with the car roof 11 and ensure the top cover 31 be positioned substantially flush with the bottom base 32.
In use, as shown in FIG. 6, after the top cover 31 is opened, the sleep canopy 30 are connected to and supported by a plurality of support frames 34. Each support frame 34 is coupled to the pivot device 33, whereby when the top cover 31 is being opened, the support frames 34 are consecutively pulled open to eventually fully expand the sleep canopy 30. At this time, the sunroof 10 of the car is in alignment with the opening 310 of the top cover 31 (as shown in FIG. 7) to allow a user to move between the car and the tent by way through the sunroof 10 without getting off the car, which enhances personal safety of the user.
Further, a sleep mat 35 is arranged between the top cover 31 and the bottom base 32, as shown in FIG. 8. The bottom base 32 forms a recess 320 delimited by opposite side walls that form the pivot device 33. The sleep mat 35 is composed of a plurality of blocks that is separable from each other. One block 351 of the sleep mat 35 is received and retained in the recess 320 and another block 352 of the sleep mat 35 that is adjacent to the mat block 351 is angle adjustable by being selectively supported at a desired angle by a stop mechanism 350, whereby the mat block 352 can be set at any one of a plurality of different inclination angles. To set the mat block 352 horizontal, the mat block 352 is angularly moved forward to exceed a predetermined limit position, where the stop mechanism 350 is released to allow the mat block 352 to angularly move backward to the horizontal position.
To mount the car-top tent 3 to the car roof, with reference to FIGS. 8 and 10, the bottom base 32 is provided with mounting seats 36 on opposite side portions thereof and the bottom base 32 is further provided with position-adjusting members (not shown) that can hook the bottom base to the car respectively at front and rear ends and opposite sides for selective adjustment of the position of the bottom base 32 with respect to the car. In this way, the car-top tent 3 can be securely fixed on the car roof. If desired, the mounting seats 36 are provided with a slide chute 360 on the top thereof for receiving a ladder 37 therein in a collapsible/extendible form. This is provided for cars without sunroof, wherein a user may use the ladder 37 to get into and out of the car-top tent 3. When the ladder 37 is not in use, the ladder 37 can be stowed inside the mounting seats 36 so as to occupy no extra space. Besides being collapsible for stowage, the ladder 37 also comprises a stepping board 370 that is pivotally connected to a top end of the ladder 37. The stepping board 370 provides an extra space to help the user to enter and exit the tent without accidentally falling down. In the instant embodiment, the ladder 370 is of the form of extension ladder and is further provided with extendible legs 371 (as shown in FIG. 11) to suit the needs for different heights of various models of car.
As compared to the conventional designs, the present invention offers several advantages as follows:
(1) When mounted to the top of a car, the present invention shows a beautiful streamlined configuration and exhibits an effect of inducing turbulent flow and reducing wind resistance, so that no vibration and wind shear sound will be caused during the travel of the car.
(2) The present invention allows a user to get in and out of the tent through the car sunroof without exiting the car through the car doors so that personal safety of the user is enhanced.
(3) The present invention enhances the user's safety by allowing entrance and exit through the car sunroof for damage occurring to a user due to fall in climbing up and down a ladder is avoided and unauthorized access of the tent through the ladder that is often arranged outside the car can be prevented.
(4) For car models having no sunroof, the present invention allows for addition of an extension ladder 37 that can be stowed under the mounting seats 36 of the tent 3 and provides a stepping board 370 to prevent accidental fall of the user.
(5) The present invention provides a multi-piece sleep mat 35, which allows for adjustment of angular position, whereby besides for being used in sleep, it can also serve as a deck chair.
To summarize, the present invention allows for access to the tent through a car sunroof so that a user does not need to leave off the car, which may cause certain potential risk of damage and accidents and the sleep mat is made in a form of multiple pieces to allow for adjustment of angular position.
While certain novel features of this invention have been shown and described and are pointed out in the annexed claim, it is not intended to be limited to the details above, since it will be understood that various omissions, modifications, substitutions and changes in the forms and details of the device illustrated and in its operation can be made by those skilled in the art without departing in any way from the spirit of the present invention.

Claims

1. A car-top tent comprising a bottom base and a top cover, to which a sleep canopy is attached, characterized in that the bottom base is adapted to mount to a rear portion of a roof of a car and the top cover forms an opening that is selectively positioned to align with a sunroof the car, whereby when the top cover is opened, the sleep canopy is expanded and a user is allowed to get into and out of the tent through the sunroof.

2. The car-top tent according to claim 1, wherein the top cover forms raised ribs each of which is provided with a centrally set resilient strip.

3. The car-top tent according to claim 1, wherein the top cover and the bottom base are provided with a pivot device to which the sleep canopy is coupled and supported by a plurality of support frames that is movable for collapsing and expanding.

4. The car-top tent according to claim 3, wherein the support frames are coupled to the pivot device.

5. The car-top tent according to claim 1, wherein the top cover and the bottom base are provided with a sleep mat, which is angle adjustable.

6. The car-top tent according to claim 1, wherein the bottom base is provided with mounting seats for supporting the bottom base on the car roof and forming a space for stowage of a ladder.

7. The car-top tent according to claim 1, wherein the ladder is provided with a stepping board at a top end thereof.