Safety tie-down roller

A safety tie-down roller having:

• a wheel ramp channel of a generally U-shaped configuration, the wheel ramp channel further having a top surface and a proximal underwall and a distal underwall, each underwall having a proximal side and a distal side;
• a tie-down rod in rotational contact with the proximal underwall and the distal underwall of the wheel ramp channel;
• a pivot axle in rotational contact with the proximal underwall of the wheel ramp channel, the pivot axle having a proximal end and a distal end;
• a tie-down ratchet gear attached to the tie-down rod at the proximal side of the proximal underwall, the tie-down ratchet gear being spaced a select distance from the proximal side of the proximal underwall;
• a tie-down ratchet pawl attached for pivotal movement to the proximal end of the pivot axle, the proximal end of the pivot axle being located outwardly from the proximal side of the proximal underwall at a position which allows contact of the tie-down ratchet gear by the tie-down ratchet pawl;
• ratchet teeth on the tie-down ratchet gear having ratchet abutment relationship to the tie-down ratchet pawl from a top of the tie-down ratchet gear;
• a pawl spring positioned at the distal side of the proximal underwall and having resilience in a rotational direction of travel of the tie-down ratchet pawl towards the top of the tie-down ratchet gear;
• the pawl spring comprising a coil spring positioned co-axially with the distal end of the pivot axle at a select distance from an outside periphery of the pivot axle at the distal side of the proximal underwall;
• a means for transmitting resilient pressure from the pawl spring at the distal side of the proximal underwall to the tie-down ratchet pawl at the proximal end of the pivot axle;
• the means for transmitting resilient pressure from the pawl spring to the tie-down ratchet pawl is attachment of one end of the coil spring to the pivot axle of the tie-down ratchet pawl and attachment of an opposite end of the coil spring to an appendage from the wheel ramp channel in rotational resilient relationship between the said appendage and the coil spring;
• the ratchet pawl having a select width dimension and being normally positioned on the pivot axle of the tie-down ratchet pawl a select distance outwardly from the proximal side of the proximal underwall, said select distance being of an amount to position the tie-down ratchet pawl to overlie and engage the ratchet teeth of the tie-down ratchet gear;
• and
• the select distance between the proximal side of the proximal underwall and the ratchet pawl being at least equal to the select width dimension of the ratchet pawl, means to disengage the ratchet pawl from the ratchet teeth of the tie-down ratchet gear and to place the ratchet pawl in said select distance between the proximal side of the proximal underwall and the tie-down ratchet gear to thereby permit free rotation of the tie-down ratchet gear.