US3392945A

US3392945A - Adjustable mailbox support

Info

Publication number: US3392945A
Application number: US556313A
Authority: US
Inventors: Andrew J Graham
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1966-06-09
Filing date: 1966-06-09
Publication date: 1968-07-16
Anticipated expiration: 1985-07-16

Description

July 16, 1968 GR H M 3,392,945 ADJUSTABLE MAILBOX SUPPORT Filed June 9, 1966 Andrew J Graham INVENTOR.

United States Patent 3,392,945 ADJUSTABLE MAILBOX SUPPORT Andrew J. Graham, General Delivery,

Todd, N.C. 28684 Filed June 9,1966, Ser. No. 556,313 6 Claims. (Cl. 248124) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The roadside support shown enables one, the mail carrier for example, to readily adjust the mailbox on the post so that it will assume a suitable and safe level for carrier vehicles of varying types. It comprises a vertical stationary post, a generally horizontal elongated arm having an outer end portion on which the mailbox is mounted. The inward end portion of the arm is slotted and readily attachable to and detachable from the post. Upper edges of the longitudinal sidewalls of the slot are provided with paired keeper seats which are selectively alignable with grooves provided in the rear side of the post. The arm and post assembling, adjusting and holding means comprises a linking and shackling device made up of spaced parallel links straddling the slotted portion of the arm. Upper and lower bolts connect the upper and lower ends of the links together and these bolts are retentively cooperable with the keeper notches and grooves.

This invention relates to a roadside stand-type support for a conventional-type rural mailbox and, more particularly, to an improved post and arm structure which is unique in that the mailbox can be readily installed and removed, adjusted to assume and maintain a desired vertical level or height, adjusted toward and from the margin of the road orditch, as the case may be, and otherwise expeditiously handled.

Briefly, the invention comprises a vertical post, a box suspending arm which is horizontal and projects at right angles relative to the post. The inward end portion of the arm is slotted and readily attachable to and detachable from the post. It follows that the arm can he slid up or down, can be adjusted in or out to locate the box in an accessible place, and can be forcibly tilted upwardly to operate a simple twin bolt-equipped assembling and adjusting device which is carried by and functions to unite the arm with the post and, in addition, provides manually controllable adjusting and arm position establishing and holding means.

The construction herein disclosed is advantageous in a number of significant ways. It enables a user, a mail carrier or resident owner for example, to readily and reliably adjust the mailbox on the post so that it will assume a level suitable and safe for carrier vehicles of varying types. The box suspending arm can be adjusted in a horizontal plane toward and from the post to enable the carrier to cope with ever changing weather, road and highway conditions involving, wash-outs, snowdrifts, and similar difficulties. The box suspending arm can be removed without tools when cleaning or reconditioning ditch surfaces adjacent the post. Because of the adjustment possibilities all boxes bordering a particular route can be levelled to requisite height to insure uniformity in appearance and an acceptable roadside delivery and pickup services. It follows that mail carriers can and do save valuable time, economize on fuel, encounter less physical effort and attending stress and strain and, in so doing, safeguard hands and arms and guard against hazards and injuries such as are chargeable to mailbox supports currently in use.

In addition to the above, it is likewise evident that needless friction and complaints involving patrons and postmasters will also be reduced to an acceptable minimum. Then, too, the height of the box can be regulated and positioned as desired if and when the road surface is graded and its elevation is thus changed. The carrier is at liberty to make such adjustments as are deemed to comply with his individual needs; that is, while he is on the spot, so to speak. Furthermore, with the construction and arrangement herein revealed, erection is practical and easy because, as is clear, the depth of the post hole, or over-all length of the post does not establish the level of the mailbox, as is the case with non-adjustable and stationary box mounting stands and supports commonly in use. With the construction in use, all that the carrier has to do is to apply upward force to disengage the boltequipped arm holder and then move the arm and box to the desired setting.

These together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of an adjustable mailbox support constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention and showing the mailbox mounted for use thereon.

FIG. 2 is a view in side elevation of the adjustable mailbox support illustrated in FIG. 1 with portions of the box broken away and a portion of the upright or post broken away.

FIG. 3 is a view observing the structure of FIG. 2 in a direction from left to right with a portion of the box supporting arm appearing in section.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view fragmentarily shown with parts appearing in section and elevation and taken approximately on the plane of the section line 4-4 of FIG. 1.

And FIG. 5 is a horizontal section taken approximately on the plane of the section line 5-5 of FIG. 4.

The relatively stationary part of the over-all construction is denoted by the numeral 8 and is here described as a vertical post, that is, a post whose lower end portion (not detailed) is suitably anchored in the ground adjacent the margin of a ditch or road as is customarily done. This post is of an appropriate vertical height and is made of suitable material and may be made of wood such as locust, cedar or a suitably treated wood such as can be procured in the locality of installation and produced with a minimum of machinery or skilled labor. The post is preferably rectangular or square in cross-section and comprises a fiat or planar front vertical side 10, diametrically opposite fiat sides 12 and a rear side 14 whose upper end portion 16 is provided with horizontal or transversely disposed open-ended selectively usable grooves 18 usable in a manner to be hereinafter described. The rural mailbox, which may be conventional, is denoted by the numeral 20 and is appropriately mounted and fixed in place on the outer end portion of acomposite wooden or equivalent horizontally elongated suspension arm 22. As is per haps best evident from FIG. 1 the over-all arm is made up of a pair of opposed side by side wooden or equivalent rails 24 with a filler block 26 interposed and secured therebetween and of approximately one third the length of the over-all arm. A somewhat smaller filler block of suitable shape and size and denoted at 27 is interposed between the rearward end portions 28 of the side members or rails. The ends of these filler blocks are spaced apart whereby that portion of the arm therebetween is provided with a clearance and adjusting slot which is denoted generally at 30 in FIG. 1. It would be within the purview of the invention to use a one piece arm in which case the arm is said to have an outer end portion to support the attached mailbox, a solid inner end portion and an intermediate slotted portion, the upper notched end portion of the post extending through and upwardly beyond the slot. The slot is also described herein as being suitably elongated and having side wall portions conveniently denoted at 32 which straddle and thus extend at right angles to and cross the supporting post. The upper edges of these side walls are provided with longitudinally spaced notches all of which are denoted by the numeral 34. The notches are arranged in pairs and opposite each other for selective use in the manner shown particularly in FIGS. 1, 2 and 4. These notches are also referred to as keeper seats and they are alignable with the selectively usable grooves 18.

The means for assembling and adjustably connecting the slotted portion of the arm 22 with a notched portion of the post 8 is denoted, generally speaking, by thenumeral 36. This means comprises a first or lower nutequipped or carriage bolt 38 (FIG. 4) which is at a level below and parallel with a companion upper bolt (also a nut-equipped carriage bolt) 40. These bolts are linked into paired cooperating relationship by a pair of flat metal straps 42 of suitable length which are also described as links. The links or straps are of a length that they extend diagonally across the exterior surfaces of the notched walls of the slotted portion of the arm 22. The lower ends of the links are connected with the bolt 38 thus providing a sort of a stirrup with the bolt 38 extending underneath the slotted portion of the arm and resting against the surface of the post. The upper extending or left hand end portions of the links as shown in FIG. 4 are provided with a plurality of boltholes 44 to accommodate the insertable and removable and therefore adjustable bolt 40. In practice the bolt 40 is located in the holes so that it will be in proper relationship to the bottom bolt 38 and the oblique-angled links to provide the arm assembling, connecting and adjusting unit or device 36.

As is evident from the views of the drawing the box supporting arm 22 is of suitable horizontally elongated extent and when the slotted portion is fitted adjustably over the grooved portion 16 of the post 8 the user can adjust the box toward and from the front vertical surface 10 of the post 8 as is obvious. It follows that the box can be positioned relative to the margin of the rod or ditch (as the case may be) to achieve the feature of horizontal adjustment which is important in case of snow, thawing, wash-outs and the like. Furthermore, and as previously mentioned, the slotted arm plus the assembling and linking device 36 with its upper and

lower bolts

40 and 38 permits the arm 22 to be either completely removed and replaced, or adjusted up or down and then locked in place in the manner shown. To take care of the adjustment this can be done by merely raising the forward or righthand half portion of the horizontal arm 22, angling it in a manner to disengage the upper bolt from the grooves and notches, then lowering the same and seating the bolt 40 in the then selected groove and coincidin g keeper seats or notches 34.

It will be evident that the invention well serves the pur- 4 poses for which it is intended. Accordingly, a more extensive description is deemed to be unnecessary.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention as claimed.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. A support for a conventional rural mailbox comprising, in combination, a vertically elongated post adapted to assume an upright position when erected for use, a horizontally elongated suspension arm complemental to and disposed in a plane at right angles to said post, said arm having an outer end portion atop which said mailbox is adapted to be fixedly and accessibly mounted, and an inner end portion provided with a slot of predetermined length and of a width just slightly greater than the transverse section of said post, the upper portion of said post extending upwardly through and beyond said slot, and arm and post assembly, connecting and arm adjusting and holding means comprising an arm linking and shackling device embodying a pair of spaced parallel links straddling and firmly embracing opposite exterior surfaces of the slotted portion of said arm, and upper and lower bolts connecting corresponding upper and lower ends of said links together, said bolts bridging and adjustably and retentively engaging front and rear surfaces of said post.

2. The support according to claim 1, and wherein said slot is of a length appreciably greater than the crosssection of said post and of a width that the opposed flat interior surfaces of the lengthwise walls of the slot have snug fitting but slidingly shiftable contact with the flat side surfaces of said post.

3. The support according to claim 1, and wherein said post is square in cross-section and embodies flat f-ront, rear and side surfaces, said front and side surfaces being uninterruptedly smooth and flat, said rear surface having transverse vertically spaced open-ended grooves therein, the upper bolt being removably seated in a selected one of said grooves, said lower bolt resting firmly against and slidingly bridging said front surface.

4. The support according to claim 3, and wherein the upper lengthwise edges of the sidewalls of said slot are provided with opposed pairs of notches defining keeper seats, and said keeper seats being selectively alignable and communicable with said grooves and said upper bolt being engageable in selected ones of said keeper seats.

5. The support according to claim 4, and wherein said links comprise flat-faced elongated straps of a length that they extend diagonally exteriorly across said sidewalls, said straps being of a length that the lower ends are in a plane below the bottom of said arm, the upper ends projecting to a position above said arm and having a plurality of registrable bolt holes for selective reception and retention of said upper bolt.

6. A support for a conventional rural mailbox comprising a vertically elongated post, a horizontally elongated suspension arm disposed at right angles to the vertical axis of said post, said arm having an outer end portion and an inner end portion, a mailbox mounted on said outer end portion, said inner end portion being provided with a slot of a predetermined length and of a width just slightly greater than the transverse section of said post, the upper portion of said post extending upwardly through and beyond said slot, said slot embodying opposed flat interior surfaces having snug fitting but slidingly shiftable contact with cooperating side surfaces of said post, and arm and post assembling, adjusting and arm retaining means comprising an arm linking and shackling device embodying a pair of spaced parallel links straddling the cooperating side surfaces of the slotted inner end portion of said arm, said post having a rear surface provided with transverse vertically spaced open-ended grooves, upper and lower bolts connecting respectively cooperable upper and lower end portions of said links, said lower bolt resting firmly but slidingly against and bridging a cooperating front surface of the post, said upper bolt bridging the slot in said arm and being releasably and selectively engageable in said grooves, the upper lengthwise edges of the sidewalls of said slot being provided with opposed pairs of notches defining keeper seats and said keeper seats being selectively alignable and communicable with said grooves, said upper bolt being engageable in selected ones of said keeper seats.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 90,344 5/1869. Dare 248-125 XR 5 878,455 2/1908 Carter 248-246 1,488,300 3/ 1924 Thompson 248-125 XR 2,453,863 11/1948 Salisbury. 2,584,310 2/ 1952 Weinberg 248-l25 10 JOHN PETO, Primary Examiner.