Abstract:
A windshield which may be removably attached to an all-terrain vehicle to shield a rider on the ATV from wind. The windshield includes a base portion having notches for receiving various frame elements on the front frame of the ATV and a windshield panel extending upwardly from the base portion.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to accessories for all-terrain vehicles (ATVs). More particularly, the present invention relates to a windshield which may be removably fitted on the front rack of an all-terrain vehicle. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     In recent years, all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), particularly four-wheelers, have exploded in popularity. ATVs are particularly well-suited to traversing rough, off-the-road terrain. Outdoor sports enthusiasts such as hunters frequently use ATVs for transportation from a base camp to remote hunting sites, and also, to transport game carcasses from the hunting sites for dressing at another site, for example. In addition, ATVs may be used by police or firefighter personnel to reach buildings, houses or cabins in rural areas which are considered inaccessible by conventional vehicles. 
     Most four-wheeled ATVs include a frame or chassis having handlebars for steering the front wheels, in addition to front and rear racks to facilitate the attachment of camping equipment or hunting equipment such as a deerstand on the ATV, or for securing a game carcass onto the ATV. During operation of the ATV, the ATV rider is directly exposed to rushing wind since the ATV is typically not equipped with a windshield or other enclosure which would otherwise serve to block the wind. While this may be invigorating in cool or warm weather, cold weather conditions present a difficult and uncomfortable riding experience to the unshielded driver. 
     Various shields or enclosures are known in the art for mounting on an ATV in order to eliminate or reduce the wind load on an ATV rider. One type of windshield mounts on the handlebars of the ATV. Other types of ATV shields and enclosures are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,950,017; 5,174,622; 5,203,601; 5,961,175; 6,206,446; 6,402,220; and 6,416,108. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention is generally directed to a windshield which may be removably attached to an all-terrain vehicle to shield a rider on the ATV from wind. The windshield includes a base portion having notches for receiving various frame elements on the front frame of the ATV and a windshield panel extending upwardly from the base portion. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: 
     FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a four-wheeled all-terrain vehicle, with an illustrative embodiment of the ATV windshield of the present invention mounted on a front rack of the ATV; 
     FIG. 2 is an enlarged view, taken along section line  2  in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 3 is an enlarged view, taken along section line  3  in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 4 is a right side view of the ATV windshield, removed from the ATV; 
     FIG. 5 is a front view of the ATV windshield; 
     FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view, taken along section lines  6 — 6  in FIG. 5; 
     FIG. 7 is a top view of the ATV windshield; 
     FIG. 8 is a front view of an ATV, with the ATV windshield mounted on the front rack of the ATV; 
     FIG. 9 is a bottom perspective view of the ATV windshield, removed from the ATV; 
     FIG. 10 is a rear perspective view of the ATV windshield; and 
     FIG. 11 is a side view of an ATV, with the ATV windshield mounted on the front rack of the ATV. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Referring initially to FIGS. 4-7,  9  and  10  of the drawings, an illustrative embodiment of the ATV windshield of the present invention is generally indicated by reference numeral  1 . The ATV windshield  1  includes a base portion  2 , typically having a front base panel  3  and an adjacent rear base panel  4  attached to each other typically using multiple, spaced-apart panel fasteners  5 . Each of the panel fasteners  5  may be a rivet, for example, and extends through registering fastener openings (not shown) provided in the front base panel  3  and the rear base panel  4 , respectively. It is understood that the front base panel  3  and the rear base panel  4  may be secured to each other using alternative techniques known by those skilled in the art, or alternatively, molded together in one piece. When the ATV windshield  1  is viewed from above, as shown in FIG. 7, the base portion  2  has an elongated, generally actuate configuration. Typically, the front base panel  3  and the rear base panel  4  are ABS plastic, although alternative materials of construction known by those skilled in the art may be used. 
     As shown in FIG. 5, an elongated front base notch  8  is provided in a bottom edge  6  of the base portion  2 . The edges of the front base notch  8  are typically substantially equidistant from respective rear edges  7  (FIG. 4) of the base portion  2 . As particularly shown in FIG. 6, an elongated clamp sleeve  9 , which may have a generally C-shaped configuration in cross-section, extends from the base portion  2  at the front base notch  8 . The clamp sleeve  9  typically includes a front sleeve segment  10  which extends from the front base panel  3  and a rear sleeve segment  11  which extends from the rear base panel  4 . While one or both of the front sleeve segment  10  and the rear sleeve segment  11  may have a generally arcuate cross-sectional configuration, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 6 the rear sleeve segment  11  typically has a straight or non-arcuate configuration while the front sleeve segment  10  has an arcuate configuration, as shown. As shown in FIG. 5, a sleeve gap  13  is defined between each edge of the front base notch  8  and each corresponding end of the clamp sleeve  9 . A pair of rear base notches  15  is provided in the base portion  2 . Each rear base notch  15  is provided at the junction of the bottom edge  6  with the rear edge  7  of the base portion  2 . 
     A generally curved, rectangular windshield panel  17  extends upwardly from between the front base panel  3  and the rear base panel  4  of the base portion  2 . As shown in FIG. 6, the bottom edge portion  17   a  of the windshield panel  17  is typically secured between the front base panel  3  and the rear base panel  4  using windshield fasteners  18  such as rivets, each of which windshield fasteners  18  extends through registering openings (not shown) provided in the front base panel  3 , the windshield panel  17  and the rear base panel  4 , respectively. The windshield panel  17  may be a transparent plastic such as LEXAN (trademark), although alternative transparent plastics known by those skilled in the art may be used instead. As shown in FIG. 7, when viewed from above the windshield panel  17  has a generally elongated, arcuate configuration which substantially matches that of the base portion  2 . 
     Referring next to FIGS. 1-3,  8  and  11  of the drawings, the ATV windshield  1  is adapted to be removably mounted on an ATV  20  such as a four-wheeler, as hereinafter described. The ATV  20  may be conventional and typically includes a frame or chassis  21  having a pair of rear wheels  23  and a pair of front wheels  22 i which front wheels  22  are steered by handle bars  24  mounted on the chassis  21  in front of a seat  25  for seating a rider or riders. A rear rack  26  is typically provided on the chassis  21  behind the seat  25 , and a front rack  27  is typically mounted on the chassis  21  in front of the handle bars  24  and above the front wheels  22 , to facilitate the tying of hunting equipment, camping equipment, game carcasses or the like to the ATV  20 . 
     As shown in FIG. 1, the front rack  27  of the conventional ATV  20  is typically generally rectangular in shape and includes a pair of spaced-apart, generally parallel side frame members  28  which are joined by a front frame member  29  and a parallel rear frame member  30 . A pair of spaced-apart, parallel middle frame members  31  extends between the front frame member  29  and the rear frame member  30 , between and in parallel relationship to the side frame members  28 . A transverse frame member  32  extends between the side frame members  28 , in intersecting and perpendicular relationship to the middle frame members  31 . 
     The ATV windshield  1  is removably mounted on the front rack  27  as follows. As shown in FIG.  1  and detailed in FIG. 3, the clamp sleeve  9  receives the segment of the transverse frame member  32  which extends between the middle frame members  31 , with the front sleeve segment  10  and the rear sleeve segment  11  (FIG. 6) engaging opposite sides of the transverse frame member  32  of the front rack  27 . As further detailed in FIG. 3, each sleeve gap  13  defined between the corresponding end of the clamp sleeve  9  and adjacent edge of the front base notch  8  receives the segment of the corresponding middle frame member  31  that extends rearwardly from the transverse frame member  32 . As shown in FIG.  1  and detailed in FIG. 2, each rear base notch  15  receives the rear frame member  30 . Accordingly, when the ATV windshield  1  is so mounted on the front rack  27 , the flexible base portion  2  is slightly constrained by and bowed between the side frame members  28  and the transverse frame member  32 . This secures the ATV windshield  1  in place and prevents the ATV windshield  1  from inadvertently snapping out of place on the front rack  27 . It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the windshield panel  17  of the ATV windshield  1  covers substantially the entire area corresponding to the width of the front rack  27  in front of the handlebars  24 , and this substantially shields a driver (not shown) from wind load directed against the front surface of the windshield panel  17  as he or she sits on the seat  25  and rides the ATV  20 . The ATV windshield  1  is removed from the front rack  27 , as desired, simply by disengaging the clamp sleeve  9  from the transverse frame member  32 ; disengaging the front base notch  8  from the parallel middle frame members  31 ; and disengaging the rear base notches  15  from the rear frame member  30 . 
     Referring again to FIGS. 1-3, it is understood that the exact spacings between the parallel middle frame members  31 , between the front frame member  29  and the transverse frame member  32 , between the transverse frame member  32  and the rear frame member  30 , and between each side frame member  28  and the middle frame members  31  of the front rack  27  varies by manufacturer. Accordingly, the clamp sleeve  9 , the front base notch  8 , and the rear base notches  15  may be sized according to those dimensions depending on the particular manufacturer of the ATV  20 . 
     While the preferred embodiments of the invention have been described above, it will be recognized and understood that various modifications can be made in the invention and the appended claims are intended to cover all such modifications which may fall within the spirit and scope of the invention.