Mounting assembly for school bus mirror

A mounting assembly for a school bus mirror is provided. The mounting assembly is particularly designed for a front view mirror wherein the driver can have visual access to the area in front of the bus hood which is hidden from direct view. The mounting assembly includes one upright, generally Z-shaped tubular arm and one tubular brace. A lower leg of the tubular arm is frictionally mounted on the side of the bus fender by two one-piece brackets. The tubular brace has one end mounted on the front of the bus and has a slot at the other end which is frictionally connected to an intermediate leg of the main arm by a brace clamp. The configuration of the main arm enables the mirror to be in a position to provide the necessary front visual access. The slotted brace and bracket arrangement enable the main arm to yield and swing rearwardly in the event an object is encountered. The mounting assembly is adaptable for a variety of bus configurations, is relatively inexpensive, and comprises relatively few pieces.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
This invention relates to a mounting assembly for a school bus mirror. 
A number of mounting assemblies for rear view mirrors for vehicles 
including buses are known in the art. The mounting assembly in accordance 
with the invention is particularly designed for convex mirrors to provide 
a driver with visual access to the area in front of the school bus, 
particularly to determine whether the area is clear of children. The 
mounting assembly includes one upright, generally Z-shaped tubular arm and 
one tubular brace. The generally Z-shaped arm includes an upright lower 
leg or portion, an intermediate leg or portion extending forwardly and 
upwardly from the lower leg, and an upper portion extending upwardly and 
rearwardly. Two one-piece brackets frictionally mount the lower leg of the 
upright arm on the side of the bus fender. The tubular brace has one end 
mounted on the front of the bus, usually on the front of the fender above 
the headlight. The other end of the brace is slotted and is frictionally 
connected to the intermediate leg of the main arm by another bracket or 
clamp. The slotted end of the brace is frictionally held by that bracket 
so that if the mounting assembly encounters an object, the brace can 
separate from the intermediate leg and arm can swing rearwardly, pivoting 
about the two brackets in which the lower leg is frictionally held. 
The mounting assembly according to the invention is adaptable for a number 
of different bus designs or configurations. Further, with only one tubular 
arm and one tubular brace, and with the mounting brackets for the main arm 
being of one-piece construction, relatively few parts are involved and the 
mounting assembly is relatively inexpensive. 
It is, therefore, a principal object of the invention to provide a mounting 
assembly for a mirror for a school bus which enables the bus driver to see 
the area in front of the bus otherwise hidden from direct view. 
Another object of the invention is to provide a mirror mounting assembly 
for a school bus which can yield and swing back in the event an object is 
encountered. 
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a mirror mounting 
assembly for a school bus which can be mounted on a variety of buses. 
Still another object of the invention is to provide a mirror mounting 
assembly which is less expensive and involves fewer pieces. 
Many other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from 
the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment thereof, 
reference being made to the accompanying drawings, in which:

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
Referring to FIG. 1, a school bus indicated at 10 has a hood 12 and front 
fenders 14 and 16. The hood 12 causes a large area in front of the school 
bus to be hidden from direct view by the driver. Heretofore, children have 
been killed or injured when in this area and the bus moves forwardly. 
Mirror mounting assemblies 18 and 20 are mounted on the fenders 14 and 16, 
respectively. The mounting assembly 18 has a rear view mirror 22 mounted 
thereon. The mounting assembly 20 has a rear view mirror 24 similarly 
mounted thereon and a front view mirror 26 with a convex reflecting 
surface. The mounting assemblies 18 and 20 are specifically designed for 
the front view mirror to position it so that the driver can see the hidden 
area in front of the bus. The various mirrors can be angularly adjusted to 
some extent by known pedestal posts having spherical heads received in 
central sockets in the backs of the mirrors with the pedestal posts having 
threaded shanks at the other ends. 
Referring to FIGS. 2-5, the mounting assembly 18 includes a main upright, 
generally Z-shaped tubular arm 28 and a tubular brace 30. The tubular arm 
28 has a lower upright leg or portion 32, an intermediate leg or portion 
34 extending forwardly and upwardly, and an upper leg or portion 36 
extending upwardly and rearwardly. The intermediate leg 34 forms an 
included angle of about 105.degree. to about 135.degree. and preferably 
about 120.degree. with the lower leg 32. The upper leg 36 forms an 
included angle of about 75.degree. to about 105.degree. and preferably 
about 90.degree. with the intermediate leg 34. The upper leg 36 has an 
upper flattened end 40 with a central hole 42 therein which can receive 
the threaded shank of the pedestal post which can be fixed thereto by 
suitable nuts and washers. 
The lower upright leg 32 of the main arm 28 is affixed to the fender 14 by 
two one-piece mounting brackets 42. The brackets 42 are identical with the 
upper bracket 42 being shown in FIG. 3. It is made of one strip of metal 
and includes end flanges 44 and 46, parallel webs or shanks 48 and 50, and 
a partially cylindrical, intermediate portion 52. A bolt 56 extends 
through openings in the shanks 48 and 50 and receives a nut 58. When the 
nut 58 is tightened, the partially cylindrical intermediate portion 52 of 
the bracket frictionally engages the upright leg 32 of the main arm 28 to 
hold it in place. Bolts 60 extend through the flanges 44 and 46, through 
rubber washers 62, through the fender 14, through additional rubber 
washers 54 and through metal washers 66 where they threadedly receive nuts 
68. This arrangement provides a secure attachment for the brackets 42 even 
when the fender 14 is of thinner fiber glas-reinforced plastic 
construction. 
The tubular brace 30 has a flattened end 70 which can be mounted on a front 
portion of the fender 14 above a head-light or in a similar location. The 
flattened end 70 has a hole receiving a bolt 72 which extends through a 
rubber washer 74, the fender 14, another rubber washer 76, and a metal 
washer 78, threadedly receiving a nut 80. The other end of the tubular 
brace 30 also has a flattened end 82 which is generally perpendicular to 
the flattened end 70, in this instance. The flattened end 82 has a slot 84 
extending longitudinally from an end edge of the flattened end 82 to an 
intermediate portion thereof. As shown in FIG. 5, a one-piece bracket or 
clamp 86 has end webs 88 and 90 located on the sides of the flattened end 
82 and has an intermediate partially cylindrical portion 92. The latter 
portion extends around part of the intermediate leg 34 of the main arm 28 
at a suitable location along its length. A bolt 94 extends through the web 
88, the slot 84 of the flattened end 82, the web 90, and a metal washer 
96. It threadedly receives a nut 98 which along with the bracket 86 
connects the brace 30 to the main arm 28. The brackets 42 and 86 provide a 
secure connection for the mounting assembly 18 or 20 during normal 
operation. However, if the main arm 28 should encounter an object, it can 
yield to avoid injury. In such an instance, the slot 84 in the brace 30 
enables the arm 28 to be separated from the brace 30. Since the brackets 
42 frictionally engage the upright leg 32 of the main arm 28, the main arm 
can swing back to minimize possible injury. 
As can be seen from above, the mounting assembly according to the invention 
is extremely adaptable and can be located on buses of various contours or 
designs. The mounting assembly can also be mounted on either the left or 
right fender. The brackets 42 can be mounted in various locations along 
the lower leg 32. The brace 30 likewise can be positioned at various 
locations along the intermediate leg 34 of the main arm 28 and the brace 
30 can be pivoted to be mounted in various positions along the front of 
the bus. With the employment of only the main arm 28 and the one brace 30, 
and with the one-piece brackets 42 and 86, the number of pieces required 
for the mounting assembly are held to a minimum and also reduce the cost 
of the mounting assembly. 
Various modifications of the above-described embodiment of the invention 
will be apparent to those skilled in the art and it is to be understood 
that such modifications can be made without departing from the scope of 
the invention, if they are within the spirit and the tenor of the 
accompanying claims.