Abstract:
A crane includes: a base for being disposed in or on a cargo box of a utility terrain vehicle (UTV) and for fastening to a bed of the cargo box; a boom rotatable relative to the base between a deployed position and a stowed position; a boom hoist operable to swing the boom between the positions; and a load hoist operable to lift cargo located adjacent to a rear end of the UTV when the boom is in the deployed position and operable to carry the cargo toward the UTV as the boom is swung to the stowed position, thereby loading the cargo into the cargo box.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE 
     1. Field of the Disclosure 
     The present disclosure generally relates to a utility terrain vehicle mounted crane. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     Utility terrain vehicles (UTVs) are a type of all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) with truck-like features whose use is focused on doing work around a home, garden, ranch, or farm. The use of these vehicles for work not only saves the user time, but also prevents back and muscle injuries due to overexertion. Accessories are available, for example, to mow lawns, aerate lawns, transport materials, and plow snow. 
     SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE 
     In one embodiment, a crane includes: a base for being disposed in or on a cargo box of a utility terrain vehicle (UTV) and for fastening to a bed of the cargo box; a boom rotatable relative to the base between a deployed position and a stowed position; a boom hoist operable to swing the boom between the positions; and a load hoist operable to lift cargo located adjacent to a rear end of the UTV when the boom is in the deployed position and operable to carry the cargo toward the UTV as the boom is swung to the stowed position, thereby loading the cargo into the cargo box. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       So that the manner in which the above recited features of the present disclosure can be understood in detail, a more particular description of the disclosure, briefly summarized above, may be had by reference to embodiments, some of which are illustrated in the appended drawings. It is to be noted, however, that the appended drawings illustrate only typical embodiments of this disclosure and are therefore not to be considered limiting of its scope, for the disclosure may admit to other equally effective embodiments. 
         FIG. 1  illustrates a crane for mounting onto a utility terrain vehicle (UTV), according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. 
         FIGS. 2A and 2B  illustrate adjustment of the crane for different length cargo boxes.  FIGS. 2C and 2D  illustrate adjustment of the crane for different width cargo boxes. 
         FIGS. 3A-3D  illustrate operation of the UTV-mounted crane. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       FIG. 1  illustrates a crane  10  for mounting onto a utility terrain vehicle (UTV)  1  ( FIG. 2A ), according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The UTV  1  may include a cab  5 , such as a single, side by side, or crew cab. The cab  5  may or may not have a roof and/or rollover protection structure. The UTV  1  may further include an engine (not shown), such as a gasoline, diesel, hybrid, or natural gas or an electric motor driven entirely by batteries. The front portion of the UTV  1 , especially the engine, may serve as a counterweight for the crane  10 . The cab  5  may further include a steering wheel, a driver&#39;s seat, such as a chair or bench, a gear shifter, a mode shifter, an accelerator pedal, a brake pedal, and other instruments and controls. The UTV  1  may further include a cargo box  2  mounted on a chassis  3  thereof. Alternatively, the UTV may have a flat cargo bed instead of the box. The UTV  1  may further include a transmission, such as a continuously variable transmission, a drive shaft, a front and/or rear differential, and two or more axles. The UTV  1  may further include four or more wheels  4 . The UTV  1  may be front, rear, or four wheel drive. 
     The crane  10  may include a boom  11 , a boom hoist  12 , a load hoist  13 , and a base  14 . The crane  10  may have a load capacity corresponding to a cargo capacity of the UTV  1 , such as greater than or equal to one-eighth, one-quarter, one-half, or three-quarter ton. The boom  11  may include one or more structural members, such as a pair of beams  18   a,b  and a crosstie  19 . The base  14  may include a frame  16   a,b  for each beam  18   a,b , and a controller  15 . Each frame  16   a,b  may include a respective post  21   a,b , a rail  22   a,b , and a boom stop  23   a,b.    
     The boom  11  may be made from a high strength metal or alloy, such as steel or aluminum (including alloys thereof). The steel may be plain carbon, low alloy, high strength-low alloy or stainless. The aluminum alloy may be an automotive, cycling, or aerospace alloy. The structural members  18 ,  19  may be rectangular (i.e., square) tubing or other structural shapes, such as C, L, I, or pipe. Each frame post  21   a,b  and rail  22   a,b  may have a channel shape and be made from any of the boom materials. Each stop  23   a,b  may have a forked shape made from welded plate of any of the boom materials. One of the posts  21   a,b  may be extended for receiving the controller  15 . 
     Each beam  18   a,b  may be pivoted  11   p  to a respective frame rail  22   a,b  using fasteners and bearings or bushings. The pivots  11   p  may be located adjacent to a rear end of the base  14 . The boom  11  may further include gussets  20   a,b  connecting the respective beams  18   a,b  to the crosstie  19 . Each gusset  20   a,b  may be connected to an end of the respective beam  18   a,b , such as by fasteners or weld. Each gusset  20   a,b  may have a passage formed therethrough for receiving the crosstie  19 . The crosstie  19  may have sets of one or more holes  19   h  formed adjacent each end thereof and spaced therealong and each gusset  20   a,b  may have one or more slots  20   s  formed laterally therethrough. A width W ( FIGS. 2C and 2D ) of the base  14  may be adjusted to suit a particular cargo box  2  by moving each gusset  20   a,b  along the crosstie  19  and inserting fasteners into aligned holes  19   h  and slots  20   s  of the crossties and gussets  20   a,b . A length of the crosstie  19  may range from four to six feet and the width W may range from four to six feet. A length of the base  14  may range from three to five feet. 
     The boom  11  may be rotated about the pivots  11   p  relative to the base  14  by the boom hoist  12 . The boom hoist  12  may include a pair of linear actuators  12   a,b  for the respective beams  18   a,b . Each linear actuator  12   a,b  may include a rotary electric motor and lead screw or linear electric motor. The motor may be compatible with the UTV&#39;s accessory power system. A rear end of each linear actuator  12   a,b  may be pivoted  12   p  to the respective beam  18   a,b  and a front end of each linear actuator may be pivoted  16   p  to the respective frame post  21   a,b . Extension of each linear actuator  12   a,b  may swing the boom  11  to a deployed position and retraction of each linear actuator may swing the boom to a stowed position. Alternatively, each linear actuator may be a hydraulic piston and cylinder assembly. 
     Each beam  18   a,b  may include a bend  11   b  and the respective actuator pivot  12   p  may be located at the bend. Each bend  11   b  may be located adjacent to the boom pivot  11   p . Each beam  18   a,b  may rest on a respective boom stop  23   a,b  in the stowed position. A bumper may be fastened to each stop  23   a,b  to cushion landing of the boom  11 . Each rail  22   a,b  may have sets  22   h  of one or more holes formed laterally therethrough and spaced therealong and the respective stop  23   a,b  may have a set  23   h  of one or more holes formed laterally through plates thereof. A location of the stops  23   a,b  may be adjusted to suit a length of a particular cargo box  2  by moving the stops along the respective rails  22   a,b  and inserting fasteners into aligned holes thereof. Adjusting the position of the stops  23   a,b  may adjust a stop angle A ( FIGS. 2A and 2B ) of the boom  11 , thereby adjusting a stopped height of the boom to accommodate positioning of the base  14  into or onto a particular cargo box  2 . A front end of each rail  22   a,b  may also be pivoted  16   p  to the respective post  21   a,b  and a width of each linear actuator  12   a,b  may correspond to, such as being slightly less than, a width of a cavity formed in the respective rail  22   a,b.    
     Alternatively, the boom stops  23   a,b  may be omitted and the controller  15  relocated such that the linear actuators  12   a,b  are received into the rail cavities in the stowed position and the boom  11  is horizontal and flush or nearly flush with the sides of the cargo box  2  in the stowed position. 
     Each frame  16   a,b  may further have one or more mounts  17   f,r  for installing the base  14  into the cargo box  2 . Front mounts  17   f  may be formed in lower ends of the posts  21   a,b . Rear mounts  17   r  may be formed in the rear ends of the rails  22   a,b  adjacent to the pivots  11   p . Each mount  17   f,r  may have one or more holes formed therethrough for alignment with holes formed in a bed of the cargo box  2 . The base  14  may be fastened to the cargo box bed by insertion of fasteners into the aligned holes. 
     Alternatively, extensions (not shown) may connect each mount  17   f,r  to the cargo box bed to elevate the base  14  to a top of the cargo box sides. In this alternative, the width W may be equal to a width of the cargo box  2 , thereby minimizing intrusion of the crane  10  into the cargo box. 
     The load hoist  13  may be a winch fastened to the crosstie  19  by a bracket  24 . The winch may include a load line  25  ( FIG. 3A ), such as wire rope, a drum having the wire rope wrapped there-around, a housing, a motor, and a brake. The wire rope may be made from a high strength metal or alloy, such as high strength-low alloy steel, tool steel or spring steel. Alternatively, the wire rope may be made from polyamide or carbon fiber. The motor may be electric and compatible with the UTV&#39;s accessory power system. Alternatively, the motor may be hydraulic. A lifting hook (not shown) may be fastened to an eye splice formed in an end of the load line  25 . 
     The crosstie  19  may have another set of one or more holes (not shown) formed laterally therethrough and spaced therealong and the bracket  24  may have a set of one or more holes. A location of the load hoist  13  may be adjusted to suit particular cargo  50  by moving the bracket  24  along the crosstie  19  and inserting fasteners into aligned holes. 
     The controller  15  may include a driver-operable interface, such as levers or buttons, for selectively operating the hoists  12 ,  13 . The controller  15  may plug into and be compatible with the UTV&#39;s accessory power system. The controller  15  may be located at a front end of the base  14  so that the driver may stand clear of the cargo  50  as it is being hoisted and loaded. Wires (not shown) may be routed through the rail  22   a  and the boom  11  to provide electrical communication between the controller  15  and the hoists  12 ,  13 . Additionally, the crane  10  may further include a floodlight (not shown) fastened to the crosstie  19  and in electrical communication with the controller  15 . 
       FIGS. 3A-3D  illustrate operation of the UTV-mounted crane  10 . The cargo  50  may include one or more items, such as hay bails, animal carcasses, or crates. Once the driver has backed the UTV  1  into proximity of the cargo  50 , the driver may park the UTV  1 . The driver may then exit the UTV  1  and access the controller  15 . The driver may then swing the boom  11  to the deployed position by operating the boom hoist  12 . Deployment of the boom  11  may place the load hoist  13  at a position to lift the cargo  50  located adjacent to a rear end of the UTV  1 . The driver may then operate the load hoist  13  to lower the load line  25  to the cargo  50 . The driver may then fasten the load line  25  to the cargo  50 . The driver may then operate the load hoist  13  to lift the cargo  50  such that a bottom of the cargo is aligned with the chassis  3  or cargo box bed. 
     The driver may then operate the boom hoist  12  to swing the boom  11  to the stowed position. As the boom  11  rotates about the pivots  11   p  toward the stowed position, the load hoist  13  may carry the cargo  50  forward along an arcuate path toward the cab  5  until the cargo rests on the cargo box bed and the boom  11  seats onto the stops  23   a,b , thereby also loading the cargo onto the UTV  1 . The load hoist  13  need not be operated during swinging of the boom  11  to the stowed position (note that the payed out length of load line  25  constant in  FIGS. 3B-3D ). The load hoist  13  may rest at a position adjacent to a rear end of the cab  5  in the stowed position. Once in the stowed position, the driver may secure the cargo  50  to the cargo box  2 . The load line  25  may be left connected to the cargo  50  and serve as a back-up should the cargo break-free of tie-downs. The driver may enter the UTV  1  and transport the cargo  50 . Once reaching the destination, the driver may unload the cargo by reversing operation of the crane  10 . 
     Alternatively, the crane may be used with a compact or half-ton pickup truck instead of the UTV  1 . 
     While the foregoing is directed to embodiments of the present disclosure, other and further embodiments of the disclosure may be devised without departing from the basic scope thereof, and the scope of the invention is determined by the claims that follow.