Abstract:
A single-lock, multi-weeder rack for storing and securing weedeaters. The multi-weeder rack can be installed on a truck, a trailer, or in any suitable location. The multi-weeder rack has a rectangular frame with side brackets for each weedeater. The rectangular frame of the multi-weeder rack comprises an inner and outer frame made of welded steel. The inner and outer frames of the multi-weeder are slidably engaged, with the outer frame capable of vertical movement relative to the inner frame which is stationary.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates generally to racks, and more particularly, to a tool rack that can securely hold several weedeaters. Preferably, the multiple weedeater rack of the present invention is mounted on a truck or trailer, however, the multiple weedeater rack can be placed in any suitable location. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     Weed cutting devices, also known as weeders or “weedeaters”, as well as other lawn maintenance equipment are typically transported from one site to another site on a frequent basis. Often the lawn maintenance equipment is damaged because the equipment is not secured within the vehicle and therefore, the equipment is free to be tossed around as the vehicle moves. The damage to the equipment caused by the equipment being thrown around inside the vehicle due to the motion of the vehicle can be costly, for example, there are repair costs, replacement costs, and loss revenue due to a diminished workforce because there is less equipment to use. Therefore, it would be advantageous to have a lawn maintenance equipment storage rack that could be mounted in an appropriate location on a vehicle and onto which elongated, tubular equipment like weedeaters could be stored for transport. 
     Unsecured lawn maintenance equipment like weedeaters can be easily stolen, therefore, it is important to have a convenient means to both readily store and secure such equipment. Any securement means used to secure an elongated, tubular piece of lawn maintenance equipment such as string trimmer should be relatively easy to open and close, and should effectively prevent the unauthorized removal of a piece of equipment. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 1,291,430 issued on Jan. 14, 1919 to H. F. Davenport, U.S. Pat. No. 2,946,452 issued on Jul. 26, 1960 to J. Caloiero et al, U.S. Pat. No. 3,438,506 issued on Apr. 15, 1969 to G. L. Groth, U.S. Pat. No. 3,767,093 issued on Oct. 23, 1973 to M. L. Pinkerton et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,027,798 issued on Jun. 7, 1977 to G. C. Swaim, U.S. Pat. No. 4,132,315 issued on Jan. 2, 1979 to B. Y. Young, U.S. Pat. No. 4,696,405 issued on Sep. 29, 1987 to P. M. Waring, U.S. Pat. No. 5,143,228 issued on Sep. 1, 1992 to W. D. Arnold, U.S. Pat. No. 5,411,191 issued on May 2, 1995 to R. Bunn, Jr, U.S. Pat. No. 5,647,489 issued on Jul. 15, 1997, and German Pat. No. 654,127 published in February, 1937 describe rack assemblies used to store a variety of items. 
     None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singularly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Accordingly, it is a principal object of the invention to provide a lawn maintenance equipment rack that is easy to open and closed. 
     It is another object of the invention to provide a lawn maintenance equipment that sturdy and durable. 
     It is a further object of the invention to provide a lawn maintenance equipment rack that can readily store and secure a multiple number of weedeaters. 
     Still another object of the invention is to provide a lawn maintenance equipment rack that has multiple security features to prevent the unauthorized removal of equipment. 
     It is an object of the invention to provide improved elements and arrangements thereof in a lawn maintenance equipment rack for the purposes described which is inexpensive, dependable and fully effective in accomplishing its intended purposes. 
     To meet the above objectives, the present invention provides for a multi-weeder rack comprising a rectangular frame with side brackets for each weeder. The rectangular frame of the multiweeder rack comprises an inner and outer frame made of welded steel. The inner and outer frames of the multi-weeder are slidably engaged, with the outer frame capable of vertical movement relative to the inner frame which is stationary. 
     The multi-weeder rack of the present invention has a handle mechanism with an open position for inserting and removing a weeder, and a closed position for securing the weeders in place. A pair of hooks supports each weeder and a locking pin associated with each hook prevents the weeder from being removed from inside the hook when the handle mechanism is in the closed position. When the handle mechanism is in the open position, the locking pin is vertically displaced from the mouth of the hook to a distance sufficient to allow easy insertion or removal of a weeder. 
     The multi-weeder rack has security pins that prevent the removal of the outer frame of the rack from the inner frame of the rack. Furthermore, the multi-weeder rack has two configured portions, one on the inner frame and the second on the outer frame, that when aligned allow for the installation of a padlock to prevent the multi-weeder rack from being opened by the handle mechanism. 
     These and other objects of the present invention will become readily apparent upon further review of the following specification and drawings. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is an environmental, perspective view of multi-weeder rack installed in a truck according to the present invention. 
     FIG. 2 is a side view of an empty multi-weeder rack according to the present invention. 
     FIG. 3A is a perspective view of the handle of the multi-weeder rack in the closed position according to the present invention. 
     FIG. 3B is a perspective view of the handle of the multi-weeder rack in the open position according to the present invention. 
     FIG. 4A is a perspective view of an upper corner of the multi-weeder rack with the slide down (closed) according to the present invention. 
     FIG. 4B is a perspective view of an upper corner of the multi-weeder rack with the slide up according to the present invention. 
     FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the portion of the multi-weeder rack where a padlock is placed to secure the contents of the rack according to the present invention. 
     FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the handle mechanism of the multi-weeder rack showing the point of attachment of the linkage segment to the lower brace of the movable outer frame according to the present invention. 
    
    
     Similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistently throughout the attached drawings. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Shown in FIG. 1 is an environmental, perspective view of the multi-weeder rack  100  of the present invention installed in a truck  102 . In a preferred embodiment, the legs  101  of the multi-weeder rack  100  are welded to the floor  103  of the truck  102 . However, any suitable mounting means can be used to mount the multi-weeder rack  100  of the present invention. 
     FIG. 2 is a side view of an empty multi-weeder rack  100  showing the structural features of the rack  100 . The handle mechanism  116  is shown in the closed position. As can be seen in FIG. 2, the multi-weeder rack  100  of the present invention has a rectangular frame comprising a stationary inner frame  112  and a vertically movable outer frame  114 . Symmetrically disposed on the stationary inner frame are paired storage hooks  108  onto which weedeaters  104  are stored, for example, a weedeater  104  is stored on a pair of hooks  108  that are vertically disposed at the same height as depicted in FIG.  1 . 
     Symmetrically disposed on the outer vertically movable frame are paired locking rods  110  that are used to secure the weedeaters  104  within their respective pair of hooks  108  as shown in FIG.  1 . The stationary inner frame  112  has a pair of horizontally disposed braces ( 118 , 120 ) that stabilize the structure  100 . The outer vertically movable frame  114  also has a pair of horizontally disposed braces ( 122 , 124 ) that provide structural integrity to the movable outer frame  114 . In addition, the lower horizontal brace  122  of the outer frame  114  is a part of the opening and closing mechanism of the multi-weeder rack  100 . 
     FIG. 3A is a perspective view of the handle  116  of the multi-weeder rack  100  in the closed position. The handle  116  pivots around its point of attachment  117  to the stationary inner frame  112 . The handle  116  is attached via a connecting means  115  to a linkage segment  119  that is connected to the lower brace  122  of the movable outer frame  114  by a bolt  142  as depicted in FIG.  6 . The handle-linkage segment-brace ( 116 , 119 , 122 ) arrangement forms the opening/closing mechanism of the multi-weeder rack  100 . 
     FIG. 3B is a perspective view of the handle  116  of the multi-weeder rack  100  in the open position. Pushing the handle  116  downward causes the linkage segment  119  to move upward which in turn causes the lower brace  122  of the movable outer frame  114  to move upwards which causes the entire outer frame  114  to move upwards. This upward movement of the outer frame  114  lifts the locking rods  110  away from the mouth  109  of the hooks  108  thereby making the interior  107  of the hooks  108  accessible. 
     FIG. 4A is a perspective view of an upper corner of the multi-weeder rack  100  with the slide  114  down (closed) and FIG. 4B is a perspective view of an upper corner of the multi-weeder rack  100  with the slide  114  up. Security pins  132  disposed in the upper corners of the rack  100  and security pins  106  disposed near the base of the rack  100  ensure that the movable outer frame or slide  114  cannot be accidentally or intentionally removed from the stationary inner frame  112 . The bottom security pins  106  are welded to the movable outer frame  114  and pass through an opening  128  in a square horizontally disposed protrusion  130  in the stationary inner frame  112 . A configured metal piece  126  forms a portion of the security pin  106 . 
     FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the location on the multi-weeder rack  100  where a padlock  138  is placed to secure the contents of the rack  100 . The multi-weeder rack  100  has two interiorly and vertically disposed square protrusions ( 134 , 136 ). Each square protrusion ( 134 , 136 ) has an opening  135 . One square protrusion  134  is on the inner frame  112  and the second square protrusion  136  on the outer frame  114  and when the square protrusions ( 134 , 136 ) are aligned, they allow for the installation of a padlock  138  which prevents the multi-weeder rack  100  from being opened by the handle mechanism. 
     In a preferred embodiment, the multi-weeder rack  100  stands 60 ¼ inches, and 32 inches. The locking rods  110  are 12 inches on center with the uppermost locking rod  110  being disposed 6 inches from the top brace  124 . The spacing between the upper brace  124  and the lower brace  122  is 32 ½ inches. The stationary inner frame  112  is made from 1¼″ square steel tubing, the vertically movable outer frame  114  is made from 1½″×1½″×⅛″ steel angle iron, the horizontal braces ( 122 , 124 ) are from 1½″×1½″×⅛″ steel angle iron, the hooks  108  are made from ¾″× {fraction (3/16)}″ steel with a 2″ depth and 3″ height and have a rubber lining, the handle  116  is from made ¼″×1½″×11½″ steel and has a black vinyl grip, and the locking rods  110  are made from ½″×4× round steel rods. The top security pins  132  are made from ½″×6″ round steel rods and the bottom security pins are made from ½″×6″ round steel rods. The total weight of the multi-weeder rack  100  is approximately 47 lbs. 
     The single lock, single handle access multi-weeder rack of the present invention can be made from any suitable material or materials and can have any suitable dimensions. The multi-weeder rack of the present invention makes it easy and convenient to store and secure lawn maintenance equipment. 
     The preferred embodiments of the present invention disclosed herein are intended to be illustrative only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. It should be understood by those skilled in the art that various modifications and adaptations of the present invention as well as alternative embodiments of the present invention may be contemplated. It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims.