The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jun. 12, 2001
Filed:
Sep. 24, 1999
Timothy V. Hess, Smithville, OH (US);
The Boler Company., Itasca, IL (US);
Abstract
A movable subframe or slider for a semi-trailer is modified to provide a storage bay between the slider and semi-trailer for accommodating a walk ramp and its carrier hardware. A reinforced elongated spacer cap is mounted on the uppermost surface of each main member and associated cross members of the slider. The spaced-apart parallel caps provide sufficient clearance between the bottom surface of the trailer body and the uppermost surface of the slider cross members, for mounting a walk ramp and its carrier hardware on the underside of the trailer body. The pins and coil springs of the retractable locking pin mechanism of the slider are relocated upwardly into the spacers. Rail guides and low frictions strips also are relocated from the slider main members to the spacer caps. This relocation enables the modified slider to be mounted on standard body rails of a semi-trailer, which are mounted on and depend from the underside of the trailer body. The modified slider thus can be efficiently retrofitted on semi-trailers adding a walk ramp but having a prior art slider and standard body rails, merely by replacing the prior art slider with the modified slider, and can also be used on newly manufactured semi-trailers incorporating a walk ramp.