Abstract:
A protector for the rear bumper of a towing vehicle with a hitch ball to prevent damage caused by the concave coupling receiver on a trailer tongue consisting of a resilient panel notched for placement on the draw bar of a towing hitch mechanism. The panel will be provided with notches to fit various classes of towing mechanism as well as an opening for removing and handling the protector.

Description:
[0001]    This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional application Ser. No. 60/965686 (“the &#39;686 application”) filed Aug. 21, 2007. The &#39;686 application is incorporated herein by reference. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The present invention relates to an improvement in protecting the rear bumper of vehicles with a ball type towing hitch. More specifically, the invention relates to protecting the rear bumper of a towing vehicle from damage by the coupler of a trailer during the engagement or disengagement of the trailer to the towing vehicle. 
         [0003]    A typical towing hitch mechanism consists of a hitch ball mounted on the rear of the towing vehicle and a concave coupling receiver mounted on a trailer tongue at the front of the trailer. The coupling receiver fits over the hitch ball and is held in place by a clamp built into the coupling receiver. 
         [0004]    In practice, this hitching method requires that the hitch ball be brought within inches of the coupling receiver to engage the hitch mechanism. Because of the weights involved, the ball is usually brought directly below the coupling receiver, which is then lowered onto the hitch ball by a trailer jack. Once in place on the hitch ball, the coupling receiver is clamped in place. To accomplish this it is usually necessary to back the towing vehicle to place the hitch ball in position below the coupling receiver. Because of the lack of visibility and other factors such as uneven and sloping ground, it is very easy and quite likely that the coupling receiver will hit the towing vehicle bumper adjacent to the hitch ball, causing damage to the bumper or license plate in proximity of the hitch ball. 
         [0005]    It is clearly desirable to have a device to protect the bumper of a towing vehicle and several devices have been developed in an attempt to solve this problem, but these devices are bulky and unsightly. Since towing a trailer is generally a limited activity for most vehicles, it is desirable to provide a device to protect the bumper which can be quickly installed when towing a trailer and quickly removed when not. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0006]    It is a primary objective of the present invention to provide a device for protecting the rear bumper of a towing vehicle from damage caused by the coupling receiver on the trailer tongue where such device comprises a protective resilient panel notched to slide on and off the draw bar of a towing hitch mechanism. 
         [0007]    It is a further object of the invention that the inventive device is quickly installed when needed and quickly removed when not needed, and is of a size and weight that can be easily handled by an individual and stored in the towing vehicle when not in use. 
         [0008]    It is a further object of this invention that it be applicable to various towing load Classes. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0009]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a typical towing hitch mechanism with one embodiment of the inventive vehicle bumper protector. 
           [0010]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of a typical towing hitch mechanism without the inventive vehicle bumper protector. 
           [0011]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of one embodiment of the inventive vehicle bumper protector in place on a towing vehicle. 
           [0012]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of the inventive vehicle bumper protector in place over a draw bar. 
           [0013]      FIG. 5  is an exploded view of the hitch ball portion of a towing hitch mechanism on the towing vehicle. 
           [0014]      FIG. 6  is a perspective view of one embodiment of the inventive vehicle bumper protector. 
           [0015]      FIG. 7  is a cross section of the inventive vehicle bumper protector in place on the towing vehicle. 
           [0016]      FIG. 8  is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of the inventive vehicle bumper protector 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0017]      FIGS. 1 and 2  both depict a typical towing vehicle  3  and a towing hitch mechanism  1  with a hitch ball  2  mounted on the towing vehicle  3 , a concave coupling receiver  4  mounted on the forward end of the trailer tongue  5  extending from a trailer which is not shown. A clamp  6  is shown for clamping the concave coupling receiver  4  to the hitch ball  2 . In  FIG. 1  one embodiment of the vehicle bumper protector  8  is shown in place between the hitch ball  2  and the bumper  7  of the towing vehicle  3 . The exhaust pipe  17  of the towing vehicle  3  is also shown for clarity. 
         [0018]    As shown in  FIG. 1 , the vehicle bumper protector  8  prevents the concave coupling receiver  4  on the forward end of the trailer tongue  5  from hitting the bumper  7  during engagement or disengagement of the trailer to the towing vehicle as would be possible without the vehicle bumper protector  8 , as depicted in  FIG. 2 . 
         [0019]      FIGS. 3 and 4  show perspective views of two embodiments of the inventive bumper protector  8  in place on a towing vehicle  3  between the bumper  7  and the hitch ball  2 . The inventive bumper protector  8  has a top edge  22 , a bottom edge  23 , a right end  20  and a left end  21 . The inventive bumper protector  8  also has an outer surface  15  and a reverse surface  16  not seen in  FIGS. 3 and 4 . As shown in both  FIGS. 3 and 4 , the hitch ball is mounted on an extending bar support  9 . Although shown in a general rectangular shape, it is not intended that the bumper protector  8  be limited to that configuration. 
         [0020]    In  FIG. 4  the extending bar support is shown in position on the draw bar  10  which extends rearward from under the bumper  7  of the towing vehicle  3 . In alternative arrangements of towing hitch mechanisms  1 , the draw bar  10  may extend rearward as an integral part of the bumper  7 . 
         [0021]    On the embodiment of the bumper protector  8  shown in  FIG. 3  a notch  14  of general rectangular shape extends vertically from the bottom edge  23 . In the embodiment of bumper protector  8  shown in  FIG. 4 , a lower notch  14 L of general rectangular shape extends vertically from the bottom edge  23 . However, an upper notch  14 L extends vertically from the top edge  14 T of lower notch  14 L. As can be seen in  FIG. 4 , the lower notch  14 L of vehicle bumper protector  8  allows the vehicle bumper protector  8  to slide vertically both on and off of the draw bar  10 . However, if the draw bar  10  was rated at a lower towing class and hence was of smaller dimension, the vehicle bumper protector  8  would slide vertically on and off the draw bar  10  but in and out of the upper notch  14 U. For example, the upper notch  14 U could be used for Class I and II towing mechanisms and the lower notch  14 L would be used for Class III towing mechanisms 
         [0022]    In common practice, draw bars  10  are typically manufactured from structural steel tubing of square or rectangular cross section. Hence, it is intended the notch  14  be  4842  configured to fit over a standard draw bar  10 . In the embodiment shown in  FIG. 4 , the lower notch  14 L would be configured to fit over a larger standard draw bar such as Class III, while the upper notch  14 U would be configured to fit over a smaller standard draw bar such as for Class I and II. 
         [0023]    Also shown in  FIGS. 3 and 4  is a finger opening  18  for use in removing and handling the vehicle bumper protector  8 , as well as storage. 
         [0024]      FIG. 5  depicts an exploded view of a hitch ball portion of a towing mechanism  1 . The hitch ball  2  has a lower threaded portion  11 , which is inserted into an aperture  13  in the extending bar support  9 . A hitch ball retaining nut  12  is threaded onto the lower threaded portion  11  of the hitch ball  2  to fixedly attach the hitch ball  2  to the extending bar support  9 . The extending bar support  9  is fixedly welded to the draw bar  10 , which extends rearward from the towing vehicle  3 . While not shown, it is understood that the draw bar  10  is fixedly attached to the chassis or frame of the towing vehicle  3  with sufficient strength to match the required towing load. 
         [0025]      FIG. 6  depicts a perspective view of one embodiment of the vehicle bumper protector  8  showing the elements previously shown in  FIGS. 3 and 4 . A vertical notch  14  of general rectangular shape is provided on the bottom edge  23  to allow placement of the vehicle bumper protector  8  over a draw bar  10 . Also depicted in  FIG. 6  is an outer surface  15 , a right end  20 , a left end  21 , a top edge  22  and a bottom edge  23 . An opening  18  is also shown. 
         [0026]      FIG. 7  is a cross sectional view of the vehicle bumper protector  8  in place on the towing vehicle  3  with a typical towing hitch mechanism  1 . The vehicle bumper protector  8  has a reverse surface  16  in contact with the bumper  7 . Other elements of the towing hitch mechanism  1  are depicted to show the draw bar  10 , the extending bar support  9  with the hitch ball  2  fixedly attached by the hitch ball retaining nut  12  threaded on the threaded portion  11 . In place on the hitch ball  2  is the concave coupling receiver  4  mounted on the front end of the trailer tongue  5 . The concave coupling receiver  4  is secured on the hitch ball  2  by a clamp  6 . 
         [0027]    As can be seen in  FIG. 7 , the vehicle bumper protector  8  will prevent the trailer tongue  5  with concave coupling receiver  4  from hitting the bumper  7  during the process of placing the hitch ball  2  in position to receive the concave coupling receiver  4  or moving the concave coupling receiver  4  on the trailer tongue  5  to align with the hitch ball  2 . 
         [0028]      FIG. 8  depicts a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of the vehicle bumper protector  8  showing the elements previously shown in  FIG. 4 . A lower vertical notch  14 L of general rectangular shape is provided on the bottom edge  23  to allow placement of the vehicle bumper protector  8  over a draw bar  10 . Extending vertically from the top edge  14 T of lower notch  14 L is an upper notch  14 U of general rectangular shape. Also depicted in  FIG. 8  is an outer surface  15 , a right end  20 , a left end  21 , a top edge  22  and a bottom edge  23 . An opening  18  is also shown. 
         [0029]    It is intended that the vehicle bumper protector  8  be a resilient panel manufactured of such material that will sustain the impact of a concave coupling receiver  4  on a trailer tongue  5  without damaging the bumper  7  of the towing vehicle  3 . One suitable material would be flat exterior plywood between ⅜ to ½ inch thick. It is contemplated however, that other materials with similar properties may be substituted therefor. 
         [0030]    Towing hitch mechanisms are typically rated according to the towing load as Class I, Class II, Class III, etc., with Class I being the lowest load rating. It is intended that the inventive vehicle bumper protector  8  be adapted to fit various load rated towing hitch mechanisms either singly or in combination. 
         [0031]    In one embodiment of the vehicle bumper protector  8 , the configuration would be rectangular with the distance between the right end  20  and the left end  21  being 24 inches and the distance between the top edge  22  and the bottom edge  23  being 9 inches. The notch  14  would be centered on the bottom edge  23  with a typical vertical height of 2 inches. For Class I and Class II applications, the width of the notch  14  would be 1¼ inches and for Class III applications, the width of the notch  14  would be 2 inches. The hole  18  would typically be 1.75 inches in diameter, vertically centered between the top edge  22  and the bottom edge  23  and approximately 1 inch in a horizontal direction from the left end  21 . 
         [0032]    In an alternative embodiment of the vehicle bumper protector  8 , the configuration would be rectangular with the distance between the right end  20  and the left end  21  being 24 inches and the distance between the top edge  22  and the bottom edge  23  being 9 inches. The lower notch  14 L would be centered on the bottom edge  23  with a vertical height of 2 inches and a width of 2 inches. The upper notch  14 U would be centered at the top of the lower notch  14 L with a vertical height of 1¼ inches and a width of 1¼ inches. The hole  18  would typically be 1.75 inches in diameter, vertically centered between the top edge  22  and the bottom edge  23  and approximately 1 inch in a horizontal direction from the left end  21 .