Base rail with bumper guard for a trailer
AssigneeWabash National, L.P.
InventorRodney P. Ehrlich
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A base rail of a trailer includes an upper portion configured to be coupled to the inner surface of a sidewall of a trailer. The upper portion includes a plurality of spaced-apart ridges configured to extend inwardly away from an inner surface of the upper portion and into a storage area of the trailer. The base rail also includes a lower portion configured to be coupled to the floor assembly of the trailer, and a bumper guard coupled to the inner surface of the upper portion and positioned between spaced-apart ridges.
Claims18
A base rail configured to be coupled to a sidewall and floor assembly of the trailer, comprising:
- an upper portion configured to be coupled to the inner surface of a sidewall of a trailer, wherein the upper portion includes a plurality of spaced-apart ridges configured to extend inwardly away from an inner surface of the upper portion and into a storage area of the trailer;
- a lower portion configured to be coupled to the floor assembly of the trailer;
- a bumper guard coupled to the inner surface of the upper portion and positioned between spaced-apart ridges;
- and
- a plurality of rivets coupling the bumper guard to the base rail, wherein a head of each rivet is configured to be positioned adjacent an outside surface of the sidewall of the trailer and an end of each rivet is substantially flush with an inner surface of the bumper guard,
- wherein the bumper guard extends further inwardly into the storage area of the trailer than the spaced-apart ridges, and
- wherein the bumper guard is made from a material that is harder than the upper portion of the base rail.
A base rail configured to be coupled to a sidewall and floor assembly of a trailer, comprising:
- an upper portion configured to be coupled to the inner surface of a sidewall of a trailer, wherein the upper portion includes a plurality of spaced-apart ridges configured to extend inwardly away from an inner surface of the upper portion and into a storage area of the trailer;
- a lower portion configured to be coupled to the floor assembly of the trailer;
- and
- a bumper guard coupled to the inner surface of the upper portion and positioned between spaced-apart ridges,
- wherein the bumper guard includes a plurality of pre-punched apertures formed therethrough, and wherein each pre-punched aperture is tapered from an inner surface of the bumper guard to an outer surface of the bumper guard.
A method of coupling a base rail to a trailer, comprising:
- coupling an upper portion of the base rail to an inner surface of the sidewall;
- placing a bumper guard adjacent an inner surface of the upper portion between two raised ridges of the upper portion of the base rail, wherein the bumper guard includes pre-punched apertures;
- drilling holes through the upper portion of the base rail and the sidewall using the pre-punched apertures of the bumper guard as a guide;
- and
- inserting rivets through the drilled holes and pre-punched apertures from outside the sidewall to position the head of the rivet adjacent an outside surface of the sidewall.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.