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US 12,539,923 B2Granted
Half-round cargo container and trailer
AssigneeTitan Trailers Inc.
InventorsChristopher Howard Kloepfer, Michael Kloepfer, Andrew Joseph Maertens
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A half-round cargo container comprises a plurality of curved panels and has a longitudinal axis. Each curved panel has a cross-sectional profile in a plane perpendicular to the longitudinal axis, wherein the respective cross-sectional profiles of the curved panels have curved shapes with a common curvature. Adjacent pairs of the curved panels are joined at respective abutting longitudinal edges parallel to the longitudinal axis to form a semi-cylindrical shell. The half-round cargo container has a top opening.
Claims17
A method of manufacturing a half-round cargo container with a top opening, the half-round cargo container comprising a first half-round shell, the method comprising:
- providing a plurality of longitudinally extended rigid panels comprising a plurality of curved panels, each curved panel having a cross-sectional profile perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the panel, the cross-sectional profile having a curved shape;
- forming the first half-round shell from a first set of the panels;
- forming a second half-round shell from a second set of the panels;
- forming a full-round shell from the first half-round shell and the second half-round shell;
- forming at least one collar conformably encompassing the full-round shell;
- constricting the at least one collar to compress joints formed at abutting longitudinal edges of adjacent pairs of the panels;
- welding the respective joints of the adjacent pairs of the panels forming the first half-round shell without welding the respective joints formed between opposing adjacent panels of the first half-round shell and the second half-round shell;
- and
- separating the first half-round shell from the second half-round shell,
- wherein forming the full-round shell from the first half-round shell and the second half-round shell comprises coupling the first half-round shell and the second half-round shell at opposing longitudinal edges using at least one alignment device operable to maintain alignment or to resist misalignment of pairs of opposing longitudinal edges of the first half-round shell and the second half-round shell, and
- wherein the at least one alignment device comprises at least one clamping jig, the method further comprising using the at least one clamping jig to clamp together the opposing longitudinal edges of the first half-round shell and the second half-round shell.
8 more elements
A method of manufacturing a half-round cargo container with a top opening, the half-round cargo container comprising a first half-round shell, the method comprising:
- providing a plurality of longitudinally extended rigid panels comprising a plurality of curved panels, each curved panel having a cross-sectional profile perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the panel, the cross-sectional profile having a curved shape;
- forming the first half-round shell from a first set of the panels;
- forming a second half-round shell from a second set of the panels;
- forming a full-round shell from the first half-round shell and the second half-round shell;
- forming at least one collar conformably encompassing the full-round shell;
- constricting the at least one collar to compress joints formed at abutting longitudinal edges of adjacent pairs of the panels;
- welding the respective joints of the adjacent pairs of the panels forming the first half-round shell without welding the respective joints formed between opposing adjacent panels of the first half-round shell and the second half-round shell;
- and
- separating the first half-round shell from the second half-round shell;
- wherein:
- the first half-round shell is a first semi-obround shell, the second half-round shell is a second semi-obround shell, and the full-round shell is an obround shell;
- the plurality of longitudinally extended rigid panels further comprises a first set of flat extension panels and a second set of flat extension panels;
- the first set of panels comprises a first set of the curved panels and the first set of flat extension panels;
- and
- the second set of panels comprises a second set of the curved panels and the second set of flat extension panels;
- forming the first half-round shell from the first set of panels comprises:
- forming a first semi-cylindrical shell from the first set of the curved panels;
- and
- laying the first set of flat extension panels atop the first semi-cylindrical shell so as to abut respective longitudinal edges of outermost curved panels of the first set of curved panels and longitudinal edges of adjacent ones of the first set of flat extension panels, wherein the first set of curved panels and the first set of flat extension panels when assembled together form the first semi-obround shell;
- forming the second half-round shell from the second set of panels comprises:
- laying the second set of flat extension panels above and in longitudinal alignment with the first set of flat extension panels so as to oppose respective longitudinal edges of adjacent ones of the first set of flat extension panels and the second set of flat extension panels, and coupling the first set of flat extension panels and the second set of flat extension panels at the respective opposing longitudinal edges of adjacent ones of the first set of flat extension panels and the second set of flat extension panels;
- and
- laying the second set of the curved panels atop the second set of flat extension panels so as to abut respective longitudinal edges of outermost curved panels of the second set of curved panels and adjacent ones of the second set of flat extension panels to form a second semi-cylindrical shell atop the second set of flat extension panels, wherein the second set of curved panels and the second set of flat extension panels when assembled together form the second semi-obround shell;
- and
- the method further comprising coupling opposing longitudinal edges of abutting ones of the first set of flat extension panels and the second set of flat extension panels, so as to couple the first half-round shell and the second half-round shell at opposing longitudinal edges using at least one alignment device.
22 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.