Cargo bed structure comprising fiber reinforced polymer components
AssigneeMartin Marietta Materials, Inc.
InventorGreg Solomon
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The invention provides a cargo bed structure comprising a sub-floor assembly comprising a plurality of cross members in spaced relation and a cargo bed defined by a longitudinally extending load-bearing deck overlying the sub-floor assembly and comprising a plurality of interlocking fiber reinforced polymer decking planks extending in a direction perpendicular to the cross members; an upwardly extending bulkhead assembly comprising at least one fiber reinforced polymer panel; a tailboard opposing the bulkhead and spaced apart therefrom; and two opposing upwardly-extending sidewalls, wherein each of the sidewalls and the tailboard comprise at least one fiber reinforced polymer panel pivotally mounted to the load-bearing deck.
Claims27
A cargo bed structure, comprising:
- a sub-floor assembly comprising a plurality of cross members in spaced relation;
- and
- a load-bearing deck overlying said sub-floor assembly and comprising a plurality of interlocking fiber reinforced polymer decking planks extending in a direction perpendicular to said cross members, said decking planks comprising:
- a first planar section having a load-bearing surface and an opposing surface and two opposed longitudinally extending edges;
- at least one support rib projecting from said opposing surface of said planar section, said support rib comprising a planar portion adapted for interfacing with said cross members;
- a first interlocking panel projecting from said opposing surface at one of said two opposed longitudinally extending edges of said planar section, said first interlocking panel comprising a longitudinally extending channel and a planar portion adapted for interfacing with said cross members;
- and
- a second interlocking panel projecting from said opposing surface at the other of said two opposed longitudinally extending edges of said planar section, said second interlocking panel comprising a longitudinally extending protrusion adapted for insertion into said longitudinally extending channel such that two adjacent decking planks are interlocked together and a planar portion adapted for interfacing with said cross members.
A cargo bed structure, comprising:
- a sub-floor assembly comprising a plurality of cross members in spaced relation;
- and
- a cargo bed comprising:
- a longitudinally extending load-bearing deck overlying said sub-floor assembly and comprising a plurality of interlocking fiber reinforced polymer decking planks extending in a direction perpendicular to said cross members;
- an upwardly-extending bulkhead assembly comprising at least one fiber reinforced polymer panel;
- a tailboard opposing said bulkhead and spaced apart therefrom;
- and
- two opposing upwardly-extending sidewalls;
- wherein said bulkhead assembly and opposed tailboard are positioned substantially perpendicular to said opposing sidewalls, and wherein each of said sidewalls and said tailboard comprise at least one fiber reinforced polymer panel pivotally mounted to said load-bearing deck such that said sidewalls and said tailboard can be pivoted between a first position extending upwardly and substantially perpendicularly from said load-bearing deck and a second position extending outwardly from said load-bearing deck in substantially the same plane as said load-bearing deck.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.