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US RE46,663 E1Granted
System and method for partitioning cargo areas
AssigneeFG Products, Inc.
InventorsRoger Nelson, Chad Nelson
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An improved bulkhead and partition system in which at least two panels are independently attached to mounting members such that each panel can be moved independently. In a preferred embodiment, two bulkheads or panels are slidably attached to separate pairs of ceiling-mounted rails in a refrigerated trailer such that each bulkhead or panel can be independently slid toward the front of a trailer or toward the rear of a trailer to define, in cooperation with a removable center partition wall, a plurality of different cargo areas to be maintained at different temperatures. Alternatively, two bulkheads or panels may advantageously operate without a partition wall such that the panels may be placed side-by-side and fastened together to make a full-width bulkhead.
Claims55
An apparatus for separating spaces in a cargo trailer, comprising:
- first and second half-width bulkhead panels that are mountable in an interior space of the trailer, wherein when the panels are mounted in the trailer, the first and second half-width bulkhead panels are releasably securable together in a side-by-side abutting configuration to form a full-width bulkhead that extends between opposing sidewalls of the trailer;
- a plurality of straps and buckles arranged on rearward faces of the first and second half-width bulkhead panels so as to releasably secure the first and second panels together in the side-by-side abutting configuration when the panels are mounted in the trailer, the plurality of straps and buckles including at least one upper strap that engages an upper buckle and at least one lower strap that engages a lower buckle;
- and
- a mounting system to movably support the first and second half-width bulkhead panels in the trailer, the mounting system attachable to at least one of a wall or a ceiling of the trailer, wherein when the panels are mounted in the trailer, the mounting system provides each of the first and second half-width bulkhead panels with a first degree of freedom to convey the panels in a longitudinal direction independently of one another and that provides each of the first and second panels with a second degree of freedom to raise the panels independently.
1 more element
An apparatus for separating spaces in a cargo trailer, comprising:
- first and second half-width bulkhead panels that are mountable in an interior space of the trailer, wherein when the panels are mounted in the trailer, the first and second half-width bulkhead panels are releasably securable together in a side-by-side abutting configuration to form a full-width bulkhead that extends between opposing sidewalls of the trailer;
- and
- a mounting system to movably support the first and second half-width bulkhead panels in the trailer, the mounting system attachable to at least one of a wall or a ceiling of the trailer, wherein when the panels are mounted in the trailer, the mounting system provides each of the first and second half-width bulkhead panels with a first degree of freedom to convey the panels in a longitudinal direction independently of one another and that provides each of the first and second panels with a second degree of freedom to raise the panels independently, the mounting system comprising
- a first longitudinal rail assembly comprising at least a first longitudinal rail and a second longitudinal rail assembly comprising at least a second longitudinal rail, wherein the first longitudinal rail assembly and the second longitudinal rail assembly are mountable in the trailer,
- an end rail mountable proximate to rear ends of the first longitudinal rail and the second longitudinal rail along the ceiling of the trailer to extend generally laterally between opposing sidewalls of the trailer, and
- a first lift mechanism to raise a lower edge of the first panel to a stowed position proximate the ceiling when the first and second panels are mounted in the trailer, at least a portion of the first lift mechanism being mountable to the end rail when the end rail is mounted along the ceiling of the trailer, and a second lift mechanism to raise a lower edge of the second panel to a stowed position proximate the ceiling when the first and second panels are mounted in the trailer, at least a portion of the second lift mechanism being mountable to the end rail when the end rail is mounted along the ceiling of the trailer.
3 more elements
An apparatus for separating spaces in a cargo trailer, comprising:
- first and second half-width bulkhead panels that are mountable in an interior space of the trailer, wherein when the panels are mounted in the trailer, the first and second half-width bulkhead panels are releasably securable together in a side-by-side abutting configuration to form a full-width bulkhead that extends between opposing sidewalls of the trailer;
- a plurality of straps and buckles arranged on rearward faces of the first and second half-width bulkhead panels so as to releasably secure the first and second panels together in the side-by-side abutting configuration when the panels are mounted in the trailer, the plurality of straps and buckles including at least one upper strap that engages an upper buckle and at least one lower strap that engages a lower buckle;
- and
- a mounting system to movably support the first and second half-width bulkhead panels in the trailer, the mounting system attachable to at least one of a wall or a ceiling of the trailer, wherein when the panels are mounted in the trailer, the mounting system provides each of the first and second half-width bulkhead panels with a first degree of freedom to convey the panels in a longitudinal direction independently of one another and that provides each of the first and second panels with a second degree of freedom to raise the panels independently, wherein when the first and second half-width bulkhead panels are mounted in the trailer, an upper edge of the first half-width bulkhead panel is movable forwardly in the trailer as a lower edge of the first half-width bulkhead panel is hingedly moved rearwardly in the trailer.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.