Truck trailer body with sliding nestable canopies

A truck trailer body system with sliding nestable canopies for selectively covering and protecting cargo, comprising:

• an elongated towable trailer having a bed and a frame supporting the bed and having at least one rear axle and a pair of wheels, the bed being at least about twenty feet in length and having a width of about at least six feet;
• a first movable canopy, comprised of a substantially rigid material, and having a roof and a pair of opposed, downwardly depending side walls spaced at least about six feet apart from one another and being at least about four feet high;
• a pair of first track members rigidly connected to the trailer;
• a plurality of first roller mechanisms connected to the walls of the first canopy, the first roller mechanisms engaging the first track members;
• a second movable canopy, comprised of a substantially rigid material, and having a roof and a pair of opposed downwardly depending walls spaced at least about five feet apart from one another and being at least about three feet high, the second canopy being configured to be telescopically receivable by and slidably disposed substantially within the first canopy;
• a pair of second track members rigidly connected to the trailer;
• a plurality of second roller mechanisms connected to the walls of the second canopy, and the second roller mechanisms engaging the second track members;
• a third movable canopy, comprised of a substantially rigid material, having a roof and a pair of opposed downwardly depending walls spaced at least four feet apart from one another and being at least about two feet high, the third canopy being configured to be telescopically receivable by and slidably disposed substantially within the second canopy;
• a pair of third track members rigidly connected to the trailer;
• and
• a plurality of third roller mechanisms connected to the walls of the third canopy, and the third roller mechanisms engaging the third track members,
• whereby the first, second and third canopies are selectively movable back and forth along the trailer bed on their respective roller mechanisms and elongated track members.

A truck trailer body system for trailers which are used on highways, the trailer body system being provided with nestable canopies for selectively covering and protecting cargo, the trailer body systems comprising:

• a trailer bed having a front and a rear and elongated sides and at least one load-bearing surface for cargo between the front and rear, the trailer bed being greater in length than in width;
• a substantially rigid first canopy having a roof and a pair of opposed side walls and a substantially open front and rear area between the side walls and below the roof;
• first means operably associated with the first canopy for enabling the first canopy to be selectively moved forwardly and backwardly along the trailer bed without removing the first canopy from the trailer bed;
• a substantially rigid second canopy having a roof and a pair of opposed side walls and a substantially open front and rear area between the side walls and below the roof, the second canopy being sized and arranged to be disposed substantially within the first canopy;
• and
• second means operably associated with the second canopy for enabling the second canopy to be selectively moved forwardly and backwardly along the trailer bed without removing the second canopy from the trailer bed.

A truck trailer body, for use on highways, with sliding nestable canopies for selectively covering and protecting cargo disposed on an associated trailer, comprising:

• a cargo-protecting enclosure system, the system being comprised of a plurality of substantially rigid enclosure sections mountable in selectively movable relation to a trailer having a front end and a rear end, the enclosure sections being configured to be substantially nestable within one another near the front end of the trailer and near the rear end of the trailer, whereby cargo is loadable and unloadable at various locations on the trailer;
• a transport system for enabling the individual enclosure sections of the enclosure system, once disposed on the trailer, to be moved relative to the trailer and one another when the trailer is at rest, the transport system including a plurality of support elements associated with each enclosure section;
• a mounting system, operably associated with the transport system and fixedly positionable with respect to the trailer, upon which the transport system is mounted to permit the enclosure sections to be moved back and forth along at least most of the length of the trailer;
• and
• a securing system for selectively securing each enclosure section in a desired substantially fixed position relative to the trailer, whereby the enclosure sections of the enclosure system are able to remain in their respective fixed position during use of the trailer equipped with the enclosure system on highways.

A method for selectively covering, and for selectively providing substantially unfettered access to, cargo on the bed of an elongated truck trailer to be used for transporting cargo on highways, the method comprising the steps of:

• providing at least first, second and third movable nestable substantially rigid enclosure sections, each of the sections having generally vertically depending side wall portions interconnected by a roof portion, the enclosure sections each being interconnectable to adjacent enclosure sections and each being selectively movable along a longitudinal path between the front and rear ends of an elongated trailer bed, and arranged so that up about two-thirds of the trailer bed may be uncovered as desired;
• and
• moving at least the first and second enclosure sections in a front-to-rear direction along the trailer bed, without removing the enclosure sections from the trailer, in order to load or unload cargo from the front half of the elongated trailer bed,
• moving the first and second enclosure sections in a rear-to-front direction to cover cargo loaded onto the front half of the trailer bed;
• and
• moving at least the second and third enclosure sections in a rear-to-front direction along the trailer bed, without removing the second and third enclosure sections from the trailer, in order to load or unload cargo from the rear half of the elongated trailer bed;
• and
• moving the second and third enclosure sections in a front-to-rear direction to cover cargo loaded onto the rear half of the trailer bed.