US 11,933,101 B1Granted

Window for a trailer or other vessel with a side wall

AssigneeJet, Inc.

InventorsLeon Heider, Scott Heider, Ross Heider, Kevin Heider, Benjamin F. Nedved

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Abstract

A window for a grain trailer, having an oval-shaped stem with a perimeter to fit within a hole of a grain trailer having similar size and shape, the perimeter substantially uniform throughout a length of the window, an integrally-formed flange on one end of the stem, the flange having a perimeter that extends outwardly from the perimeter of the stem, a groove adjacent an end of the window and having a perimeter that extends inwardly from the perimeter of the stem. a bracket to fit within the groove and against an inside wall of the grain trailer to prevent the window from sliding out of the grain trailer, a compressible seal against a surface of the flange that faces toward the groove and seals the hole of the grain trailer such that dust and other particles cannot ingress into an interior of the grain trailer.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A commodity trailer comprising:

a commodity trailer comprising an interior volume, at least one hopper on the bottom of the commodity trailer, and a commodity trailer side wall wherein the commodity trailer side wall comprises at least one material thickness and has an inside surface and an outside surface;
a transparent commodity trailer interior viewing window assembly positioned above the at least one hopper and within the commodity trailer side wall such that the transparent commodity trailer viewing window extends from the inside surface to the outside surface of the commodity trailer side wall, the transparent commodity viewing window assembly comprising:
a stem having a stem length that is larger than its stem width that is a solid unitary component and wherein the stem has a main stem portion having at least one main stem portion side wall and a stem end portion at a first end of the stem with a groove therebetween that is recessed within the stem and is proximate the first end and wherein the stem further comprises a circumferential protruding portion at an opposite end of the stem opposite from the first end of the stem wherein the circumferential protruding portion protrudes beyond the at least one main stem portion side wall circumferentially about the at least one main stem portion side wall and wherein the circumferential protruding portion has a holding flange with a commodity trailer wall engaging surface that faces toward the first end of the stem;
wherein the commodity trailer wall engaging surface of the holding flange engages the outside surface and has a holding flange length that is longer than a length of the main stem portion and a holding flange width that is wider than a width of the main stem portion;
wherein the groove has commodity trailer wall engaging surface a recessed length that is shorter than the length of the main stem portion and a recessed width that is narrower than the width of the main stem portion;
a compressible seal disposed between the holding flange and the outside surface of the commodity trailer side wall;
at least one U-shaped bracket having a bracket inner length and a bracket inner width, and having a bracket outer length and a bracket outer width, the bracket inner width being smaller than a width of the main stem portion and larger than a width of the groove of the stem and the bracket inner length being smaller than the length of the main stem portion and larger than the length of the groove of the stem and wherein the at least one bracket is partially spaced within the groove;
and
wherein the at least one U-shaped bracket is fixed to the commodity trailer side wall.

6 more elements

A transparent commodity trailer interior viewing window assembly comprising:

a transparent stem having a main stem portion having at least one main stem portion side wall and a stem end portion at a first end of the stem with a groove therebetween that is recessed within the stem and is proximate the first end and wherein the stem further comprises a circumferential protruding portion at an opposite end of the stem opposite from the first end of the stem wherein the circumferential protruding portion protrudes beyond the at least one main stem portion side wall circumferentially about the at least one main stem portion side wall and wherein the circumferential protruding portion has a holding flange with a commodity trailer wall engaging surface that faces toward the first end of the stem;
wherein the commodity trailer wall engaging surface of the holding flange engages an outside surface of a commodity trailer wall during use;
a compressible seal disposed adjacent the holding flange and around the main stem portion;
and
at least one U-shaped bracket having a bracket inner length and a bracket inner width, and having a bracket outer length and a bracket outer width, the bracket inner width being smaller than a width of the main stem portion and larger than a width of the groove of the stem and the bracket inner length being smaller than a length of the main stem portion and larger than a length of the groove of the stem and wherein the at least one bracket is partially spaced within the groove during use of the transparent commodity trailer interior viewing window assembly.

2 more elements

A trailer chosen from the group consisting of a belt trailer, a hopper bottom trailer, a seed trailer, a fertilizer trailer, a belly dump trailer, a walking floor trailer, a commodity trailer, a dump body, a dump truck, and an end dump trailer comprising:

a trailer wall comprising at least one material thickness, and having an inside trailer surface and an outside trailer surface;
an oblong, transparent window located in a hole of the trailer wall that passes from the inside trailer surface to the outside trailer surface, the transparent window comprising:
a transparent cylindrical stem having a transparent cylindrical stem perimeter surface defined as the surface along a height of the transparent cylindrical stem, and an inside transparent cylindrical stem base surface that is oriented towards an inside surface of the trailer wall and outside transparent cylindrical stem top surface that is oriented towards an outside surface of the trailer wall;
a holding flange disposed at one of (1) an inside cylindrical stem base surface or (2) an outside cylindrical stem top surface and wherein the holding flange has a holding flange perimeter extending than the stem perimeter;
a groove adjacent to one of (1) the inside cylindrical stem base surface or (2) the outside cylindrical stem base surface and wherein the groove is on a opposite end of the transparent cylindrical stem of the holding flange, the groove having an inner perimeter bottom surface that is below the transparent cylindrical stem perimeter surface and wherein the groove is within the transparent cylindrical;
a compressible seal disposed between the holding flange and the outside surface of the trailer wall;
at least one open-ended bracket having a groove engaging portion and a side wall engaging portion, wherein the groove engaging portion is positioned within the groove and the trailer wall engaging portion is positioned adjacent the trailer wall;
and
wherein the bracket is affixed to the trailer wall.

6 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.