Sidekit panel for truck or trailer
AssigneeCarter Associates, Inc.
InventorsAlan T. Carter, Kirk A. Myers
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A sidewall panel for securement between posts associated with a truck bed. The panel is defined by a generally rectangular ringlike frame having generally parallel top and bottom edge rails which are rigidly joined together by vertically extending edge rails. Corner members couple the horizontal and vertical edge rails together. The interior of the frame is occupied by a sheet of stiffening material, such as a rigid plastic foam sheet. Opposite sides of the panel are defined by thin covering sheets of hard material, such as rigid plastic.
Claims21
In a bed structure for a truck or trailer having a load-supporting bed which defines thereon a horizontally upwardly facing loading surface, said bed having peripheral edges, and a sidewall structure mounted on and projecting upwardly from said bed structure adjacent at least one of the peripheral edges of the bed, said sidewall structure including a plurality of upright support posts which are mounted on and project upwardly from said bed in generally cantilevered relation, said posts having vertically elongate panel-receiving grooves formed therein, and a plurality of removable and vertically-oriented side panels cooperating with said posts for defining an upright wall which projects upwardly relative to said loading surface, said panel extending horizontally between a pair of adjacent said posts and having vertically-extending end edges which are accommodated within the grooves of said posts for horizontally securing said panel relative to said pair of posts, the improvement wherein said panel comprises:
- a generally rectangular ringlike frame defined by generally parallel top and bottom edge rails which are horizontally elongate and are rigidly joined together by a pair of generally parallel side edge rails which are vertically elongate and extend substantially perpendicularly between said top and bottom rails, each of said side edge rails having upper and lower ends which are disposed adjacent ends of the top and bottom rails respectively and are respectively disposed at upper and lower corners of the side panel, the frame having an interior defined by said edge rails;
- said frame including a set of four rigid corner members, one said corner member being located adjacent each corner of said side panel and being joined to adjacent ends of two said edge rails which effectively meet at said corner;
- each said corner member being of a generally L-shaped configuration and including a blocklike corner part which abuts and substantially closes off the end of one of the two said edge rails which meet at said corner, said blocklike part having generally parallel and enlarged outer and inner walls with said inner wall being positioned substantially in abutting engagement with said end;
- said corner member having a first securing leg fixed thereto and projecting generally perpendicularly outwardly in cantilevered relationship away from said inner wall, said first securing leg projecting longitudinally into said one edge rail from the end thereof for snug engagement therewith to fixedly secure said one edge rail to said corner member;
- said corner member having a second securing leg projecting outwardly in cantilevered relation from said blocklike part in generally perpendicular relationship to said first securing leg, said second securing leg projecting longitudinally into said other edge rail from the end thereof at said corner for creating a snug and fixed engagement with said other rail, and the enlarged outer wall on said corner member being substantially flush and coextensive with an outer wall defined on said other rail;
- a core structure disposed within and substantially filling the interior of said frame;
- and
- a pair of cover members one fixedly secured to each side of said frame and extending coextensively across the interior of said frame for enclosing the core structure between the pair of cover members, said cover members defining exterior side surfaces of the side panel.
A vertically-oriented side panel for cooperation with upright posts which are mounted on and project upwardly from a truck or trailer bed for defining an upright wall which projects upwardly relative to the bed, said side panel comprising:
- a generally rectangular ringlike rigid frame defined by generally parallel top and bottom edge rails which are horizontally elongate and are rigidly joined together by a pair of generally parallel side edge rails which are vertically elongate and extend substantially perpendicularly between said top and bottom rails, each of said side edge rails having upper and lower ends which are disposed adjacent ends of the top and bottom rails respectively and are respectively disposed at upper and lower corners of the side panel, the frame having an interior defined by said edge rails;
- said frame including a set of four rigid corner members, one said corner member being located adjacent each corner of said side panel and being joined to adjacent ends of two said edge rails which effectively meet at said corner;
- each said corner member being of a generally L-shaped configuration and including a blocklike corner part which abuts and substantially closes off the end of one of the two said edge rails which meet at said corner, said blocklike part having generally parallel and enlarged outer and inner walls with said inner wall being positioned substantially in abutting engagement with said end;
- said corner member having a first cantilevered securing leg projecting longitudinally into said one edge rail from the end thereof for snug engagement therewith to fixedly secure said one edge rail to said corner member;
- said corner member having a second cantilevered securing leg projecting longitudinally into the other rail from the end for creating a snug and fixed engagement with said other rail;
- a core structure disposed within and substantially filling the interior of said frame;
- and
- a pair of cover members one fixedly secured to each side of said frame and extending coextensively across the interior of said frame for enclosing the core structure between the pair of cover members, said cover members defining exterior side surfaces of the side panel.
In a bed structure for a truck or trailer having a load-supporting bed which defines thereon a horizontally upwardly facing loading surface, said bed having peripheral edges, and a sidewall structure mounted on and projecting upwardly from said bed structure adjacent at least one of the peripheral edges of the bed, said sidewall structure including a plurality of upright support posts which are mounted on and project upwardly from said bed in generally cantilevered relation, said posts having vertically elongate panel-receiving grooves formed therein, and a plurality of removable and vertically-oriented side panels cooperating with said posts for defining a upright wall which projects upwardly relative to said loading surface, said panel extending horizontally between a pair of adjacent said posts and having vertically-extending end edges which are accommodated within the grooves of said posts for horizontally securing said panel relative to said pair of posts, the improvement wherein said panel comprises:
- a generally rectangular ringlike frame defined by generally parallel top and bottom edge rails which are horizontally elongate and are rigidly joined together by a pair of generally parallel side edge rails which are vertically elongate and extend substantially perpendicularly between said top and bottom rails, each of said side edge rails having upper and lower ends which are disposed adjacent ends of the top and bottom rails respectively and are respectively disposed at upper and lower corners of the side panel, the frame having an interior defined by said edge rails;
- said frame including a set of four rigid corner members, one said corner member being located adjacent each corner of said frame and being joined to adjacent ends of two said edge rails which effectively meet at said corner;
- each said corner member being of a generally L-shaped configuration and including first and second securing legs which are fixed to one another and project generally perpendicularly outwardly in cantilevered relationship away from one another;
- each of said edge rails being defined by generally parallel sidewalls which are sidewardly spaced apart and rigidly joined together by an outer wall which extends therebetween and defines an outer peripheral edge of said frame, each of said edge rails also including an internal flange structure which is fixedly secured to and projects generally perpendicularly inwardly from at least one of said sidewalls, said flange structure extending longitudinally of the rail in spaced but generally parallel relationship with said outer wall to define a longitudinally elongate guide groove therebetween;
- each said securing leg of said corner member projecting longitudinally into the elongate guide groove of one of the edge rails defining the corner and being snugly accommodated within the respective guide groove;
- a panel-like laminate member stationarily supported on said frame and extending across the interior thereto for closing off said interior, said laminate member including a platelike core member constructed of a rigid foamed plastics material having a thickness which constitutes a majority of the sideward spacing between the opposed sidewalls of said rails;
- and
- said laminate member also including relatively thin sheetlike facing sheets fixedly secured to and coextensively covering opposite side faces of said core member, each of said facing sheets being constructed of a hard plastic material and having a thickness which is a small fraction of the thickness of said core member.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.