Abstract:
A payload transporter, including a truck frame, a body having at least one waste storage tank storage tank, and a vacuum system, wherein the vacuum system is used to remove waste material from a portable toilet, wherein the waste material is stored in the waste storage tank, and wherein the payload transporter transports both the waste and the portable toilet to a preferred location. Special baffles are placed within the compartments to prevent liquid surge during transport and to provide structural support for both the top of the bed when transporting toilets and while the bed is under vacuum. Optionally, fresh water tanks can be included in the payload transporter and used to clean and replenish the portable toilets.

Description:
This application claims the benefit of provisional Ser. No. 60/251,762, filed Dec. 7, 2000. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The invention described herein is a truck body for the combined transport and maintenance of portable chemical toilets. The top surface of the body is similar to that of any other flatbed body for the ease of transporting portable chemical toilets. The bottom surface of the body is boat-shaped and contains compartments for storage of waste removed from portable toilets by applying vacuum to the body. The boat-shaped bottom aids in dumping the waste. Special baffles are provided within the compartments to prevent liquid surge with vehicle motion and to support the top surface while under vacuum. The body can optionally contain a separate compartment for storing fresh water used in cleaning and re-supplying the portable toilet. 
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART 
     Portable chemical toilets are well known. These devices are capable of being set up and maintained in a variety of outdoor locations, including highway rest areas, athletic fields, concert arenas, construction sites and the like. Transportation is frequently achieved by flatbed trucks, which may include hydraulic or electrical lifts to move the toilets between locations. 
     Portable toilets require routine maintenance to remove waste material, clean the internal components and add fresh water and toilet articles. A separate truck is used to maintain and replenish the portable toilet. These trucks are generally self-contained with storage tanks and vacuum/pump systems attached. They typically have separate storage containers for waste and fresh water and these containers range in size to match the service area requirement. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention provides a payload transporter that both transports and removes waste from portable toilets. The instant invention is a flatbed mounted on a truck for the transport of payloads including portable toilets combined with a compartment for wastes and, optionally, a separate compartment for fresh water. The truck bottom has a keel-shaped design to allow solids to gather to the middle for ease of draining. Special baffles are placed within the compartments to prevent liquid surge during transport and to provide structural support for both the top of the bed when transporting toilets and while the bed is under vacuum. When the entire truck bed is used for waste storage, fresh water tank(s) can be optionally attached to the side frame of the truck, as can storage boxes for dry goods. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a cutaway right side view of the truck bed. 
     FIG. 2 is a cutaway left side view of the truck bed. 
     FIG. 3 is a top, rear and front view of the truck bed. 
     FIG. 4 is a top, rear and front cutaway view of the truck bed. 
     FIG. 5 is a detailed view of the specialized baffles found inside the waste and internal fresh water tanks. 
     FIG. 6 is a cutaway left side view of the truck bed showing a side mounted water tank. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     The instant invention is a truck body designed to both transport and maintain portable toilets. It can be self-contained by being mounted to the frame of a truck using standard mounting brackets. The body contains a flat upper or top surface with means to secure the various portable toilets on board and a boat-shaped lower or bottom surface with compartments for storage of wastes and fresh water. The body is also provided with standards for use with side racks, or optionally, for an enclosure over the entire bed. 
     The invention is best described using the attached figures. These figures are not meant to limit the embodiments of the invention, but are provided for descriptive purposes. 
     FIG. 1 shows a cutaway right side view of the body mounted to a truck frame  10  using standard mounting brackets. The truck frame  10  serves as the basis for the invention. Attached to the truck frame  10  is a vacuum pump  12  with accompanying moisture trap  14  and high liquid cutoff valve  16 . The vacuum pump  12  is preferably powered by the truck engine or by a truck PTO. A non-collapsing hose  18  is hooked from the pump  12  to the moisture trap  14  and then to the front of the tank to the high liquid cutoff valve  16 . The cutoff valve  16  provides protection for the pump  12  when liquid levels become too high by preventing said liquids from fouling the components of the pump  12 . The cutoff valve  16  is made automatic when a ball float inside floats too high by excess liquids and is sucked onto the vacuum port  20 , blocking the vacuum port  20  and preventing liquids from entering the vacuum pump. A hose made of a flexible and non-collapsing material is commonly used to remove wastes from a portable toilet. Using common techniques, a suction hose is hooked to the tank at the first end and contains a ball valve and a solid pipe at the second end. The second end of the suction hose is inserted into the holding tank of a portable toilet. With vacuum applied and by opening the ball valve on the suction hose, the waste material is then pulled through the suction hose and into the holding tank  22  of the truck body. Once the toilet is emptied, it can be cleaned and replenished with fresh water from the fresh water reservoir  24  by means of a twelve Volt DC pump. The fresh water reservoir  24  in this embodiment is contained within the truck body. The fresh water reservoir  24  is serviced by a fill port  26  and water is drawn out by connecting to a separate port  28  in the bottom of the truck body. Alternatively, the emptied toilet can be loaded onto the truck bed for transport using a hydraulic or electric lift  30  attached to the body. In a preferred configuration, this lift  30  is attached at the rear of the truck body. 
     The waste tank is emptied at an appropriate site by means of a drain valve  32 . Because of the keel-shaped design of the bottom of the truck body, solid wastes will gather into the bottom center of the waste tank  22  and then drain from the drain valve  32  using a hose. Special baffles  34  are placed in the waste tank  22  and internal fresh water tank  24  to provide support for payloads and to prevent said tanks from collapsing under vacuum or from the weight of payloads. The baffles  34  are provided with a plurality of openings to prevent liquid surge from occurring while the vehicle is in motion, but at the same time will allow solids to properly drain when needed. 
     A storage box  36  for hoses and dry goods such as toilet paper, tissues and hand towels can be attached to the truck bed to make access easier and provide a useful location for their transport. Finally, mounting brackets  44  between the truck body and the truck frame  10  are shown. 
     FIG. 2 is a cutaway left side of the trailer. The body contains the quick disconnect coupling  52 , the waste tank  22  and the internal fresh water storage tank  24 . Baffles  34  are shown to provide the functionality described above. The quick disconnect coupling  52  for the suction hose is visible in this perspective. Using common techniques, this suction hose is hooked to the tank on its first end at the quick disconnect coupling  52  and contains a ball valve and a solid pipe on the second end. The pipe end is inserted into the holding tank of a portable toilet. With vacuum applied, a suction is created throughout waste tank  22  of the body, and by opening the ball valve on the suction hose, the waste material is then pulled through the suction hose and into the holding tank  22  of the truck body. The fresh water fill port  26  and drain port  28  are visible at the rear of the body. Special baffles  34  are placed in the waste tank  22  and internal fresh water tank  24  and a solid divider wall  40  separates the two tanks. The hydraulic or electric lift  30  is shown at the rear of the truck body. The standard mounting brackets  44  are also visible from this side. 
     FIG. 3 is a front, top and rear solid view of the truck body. The top surface is a flatbed for transport of portable toilets. The keel-shaped design of the bottom of the body is clearly visible in the front and rear view. A quick disconnect coupling  52  and the automatic shutoff  16  are shown. A plurality of stake pockets  50  and tie down bars  42  are attached to the sides of the body to provide means of attaching racks, totally enclosing the body, or preferably securing portable toilets or other payloads to the body, which have been loaded onto the bed. The water tank fill port  26  is also shown in the top view. In the rear view, taillights, turn signals, and brake lights  44  are shown to demonstrate the typical nature of vehicular safety apparatus on a truck body. The hydraulic or electric lift is not shown in this perspective. 
     FIG. 4 is a front, top and rear cutaway view of the body. The keel-shaped design of the bottom of the body is clearly visible in the front and rear views. A quick disconnect coupling  52  for the suction hose and the automatic shutoff  16  are shown. A plurality of stake pockets  50  and tie down bars  42  are attached to the sides of the body to provide means of attaching racks, totally enclosing the body, or preferably securing portable toilets or other payloads to the body after said payloads have been loaded onto the bed. The positioning of the plurality of baffles  34  and the opening of the drain  32  for the waste tank  22  is shown in the cutaway view. Any number of baffles  34  can be placed into the waste tank  22  to provide support. In a preferred embodiment, the baffles  34  are placed twenty-four inches apart. The optional internal fresh water tank  24  is shown at the rear of the body and a solid wall divider  40  is placed to separate the internal fresh water tank  24  from the waste tank  22 . The positioning of the fresh water intake  26  and fresh water outlet  28  is shown. 
     In the rear view, taillights, turn signals, and brake lights  44  are shown to demonstrate the typical nature of vehicular safety apparatus on a truck body. Finally, the baffles  34  are provided with a plurality of openings  46  to prevent liquid surge from occurring while the vehicle is in motion, but at the same time will allow solids to properly drain when needed. 
     FIG. 5 is a detailed view of the specialized baffles  34  found inside the waste and fresh water tanks. The baffles  34  provide structural support for payloads and prevent the tank from collapsing while under the influence of vacuum. A plurality of openings  46  in the baffles  34  is shown which help to prevent liquid surge while the vehicle is in motion and to aid solids to drain properly. 
     FIG. 6 is a cutaway left side of the trailer with an external fresh water tank  48  instead of the internal fresh water previously described. The body contains the quick disconnect coupling  52 , the waste tank  22  and the external fresh water storage tank  48 . In this embodiment, the waste tank  22  now extends over the entire length of the truck body. In another embodiment, both a waste tank and internal fresh water tank can be added in combination with the external fresh water tank. Baffles  34  are shown to provide the functionality described above. The quick disconnect coupling  52  for the suction hose is visible in this perspective. A hose made of a flexible and non-collapsing material is commonly used to remove wastes from a portable toilet. This suction hose is hooked to the tank on the first end at the quick disconnect coupling  52  and contains a ball valve and a solid pipe at the second other end. The pipe end is inserted into the holding tank of a portable toilet. With vacuum applied a suction is created throughout waste tank  22 , and by opening the ball valve on the suction hose, the waste material is then pulled through the suction hose and into the holding tank  22  of the truck body. The fresh water fill port and drain ports are integral to the external fresh water tank  48  but where both internal and external fresh water tanks are used, the fill and drain ports are integral to both. Special baffles  34  are placed in the waste tank  22 . The hydraulic or electric lift  30  is shown at the rear of the truck body. The standard mounting brackets  44  are also visible from this side. 
     The preceding examples are provided for descriptive purposes solely and are not meant to limit the embodiments of the invention. Other configurations of the truck will become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art.