Patent ID: 6050588
Filing Date: 2000-04-18
Classification: B60D

Abstract:
A fifth wheel ball hitch latching assembly, comprising:(a) a housing mounted to a trailer tongue and defining an interior cavity with an open lower end and a longitudinal axis;(b) a funnel mounted within said housing and having an open top end and an open bottom end disposed adjacent to said open lower end of said housing, said funnel defining a guide passage converging from said open bottom end to said open top end so as to guide movement of a ball hitch of a towing vehicle into said funnel through said open bottom end toward said open top end as said housing on the trailer tongue is lowered onto the ball hitch, said funnel having at least one slot defined therethrough between and spaced from said open top and bottom ends;(c) an elongated shaft mounted in said interior cavity of said housing to undergo movement along said longitudinal axis of said housing between raised and lowered positions, said shaft having a lower end extending through said open top end and into said guide passage of said funnel;(d) means biasing said shaft toward said lowered position;(e) at least one latch dog having opposite upper and lower ends and extending through said slot of said funnel and being slidably movable away from and toward said longitudinal axis of said housing between retracted and extended positions; and(f) a linkage pivotally interconnecting said shaft with said latch dog such that movement of said shaft between said lowered and raised positions causes said latch dog to correspondingly move between said retracted and extended positions such that insertion of the ball hitch through said open bottom end of said funnel brings the ball hitch into contact with said lower end of said shaft causing said shaft to move from said lowered to raised position and thereby cause said latch dog to move from said retracted to extended positions such that said lower end of said latch dog moves under a portion of the ball hitch thereby capturing the ball hitch within said funnel and coupling the ball hitch to the trailer tongue.