Flexible side wall construction for cargo vehicles
AssigneeUtility Trailer Manufacturing Company
InventorTerry F. Horton
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A flexible side wall construction for cargo vehicles that can be slidably opened by a sliding cargo door providing access to the cargo area of the vehicle. The flexible side wall may be compactly folded increasing the user's access to the cargo area of the vehicle. A plurality of connected panels of the flexible side wall include a series of primary poles, horizontally spaced along the flexible side wall. These panels further include upper and lower spring loaded intermediate poles affixed within intermediate pockets which are biased to cause the flexible side wall to fold in an orderly, pleated fashion. The pleated arrangement allows a weather sealing pelmet to properly function when the flexible side wall is fully lengthened or in a compacted position.
Claims7
A flexible side construction for a cargo vehicle having at least one open side providing access to the cargo area of said vehicle with a flexible side wall for closing at least a portion of said one open side and having at least one end attached to a slidable door, said flexible side wall including a plurality of horizontally spaced primary pole pockets with each containing a primary pole extending from the top of said flexible side wall to the bottom of said flexible side wall with a panel of the flexible side wall located between each pair of said primary poles, the improvement comprising:
- an upper intermediate pocket and a lower intermediate pocket located within said panel;
- an upper intermediate pole positioned within said upper intermediate pocket;
- a lower intermediate pole positioned within said lower intermediate pocket;
- and
- a biasing spring means affixed to and extending between said upper intermediate pole and said lower intermediate pole and biased to urge said upper intermediate pole inward toward said cargo area and to urge said lower intermediate pole outward.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.