Locking cone chassis
OwnerLarry O. Breedeninventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A locking cone chassis and several use methods to eliminate double and triple handling of shipping freight containers. The chassis device comprises two parallel I-beam main rails, a plurality of transverse ribs, a forward cone receiver formed from steel square tubing affixed to a forward end of the main rails, and a similar rear cone receiver affixed to the rear end of the main rails, the only essential difference between the receivers being that the forward cone receiver has an upper flange to guide and to stop a freight container. Each receiver has two box-shaped end portions, which operate like the corner pockets of a freight container—that is, each box-shaped end portion receives a locking cone through an upper surface cone receiving aperture. Each end portion also has access apertures for manually unlocking a cone.
Claims2
A locking cone chassis for accommodating ISO standard inter-modal containers, comprising:
- two parallel I-beam main rails, longitudinally disposed, each of said rails having a forward end, a rear end, a pair of inside edges, and a pair of outside edges;
- a plurality of ribs parallel to one another situated between the said main rails and connecting the said main rails, said ribs connecting the said main rails at right angles;
- a rear cone receiver and a forward cone receiver, each said receiver being positioned parallel to said ribs, said rear cone receiver connecting the rear end of each of said main rails, said forward cone receiver connecting the forward end of each of said main rails;
- each said cone receiver comprising a steel square tube having an upper surface, an outside surface, two opposite end surfaces, and an inside surface;
- each said receiver further comprising two square-shaped opposing end portions disposed slightly outside of a respective one of said outside edges of said main rails, each of said end portions having a cone-receiving aperture on an upper surface, a first access aperture on said outside surface, a second access aperture on each said end surface, and a third access aperture on said inside surface;
- and
- said forward cone receiver further comprising at least one steel guide flange angled upward from said upper surface, proximate said outside surface, between each said inside edge of said main rails;
- wherein, each said cone receiving aperture of said chassis receives a self-locking cone, with provision by each said access aperture for access for manually unlocking said cone;
- and
- wherein said flange on said forward cone receiver serves both as a container loading guide as well as a container stop, operable when a truck applies its brakes while hauling said chassis.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.