Abstract:
A mechanic&#39;s creeper composed of two separable sections. One of the sections is configured to be used as a seat, but is otherwise coupled with the other section to form the creeper. The separable sections are coupled in a manner that enables the sections to be coupled and uncoupled while a user remains seated on the seat portion. The creeper is also adapted to accommodate attachments that can be interchangeably coupled to the seat portion.

Description:
The present invention generally relates to creepers of the type used by mechanics to work around and beneath vehicles. More particularly, this invention is directed to a two-piece creeper that is adapted to support a user in a prone position and also easily disassembled so that one portion of the creeper may be used separately as a seat. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Creepers are used to provide support for users in a variety of applications, an important example of which is the use of creepers by mechanics to provide mobile support while working on the underside of vehicles. Creepers generally include wheels attached to the lower side of a unitary panel or assembled body. The wheels are adapted to provide multidirectional mobility to the creeper while supporting the user, and enable the user to work in environments with low vertical clearances. For a creeper to perform as intended, it must have an adequately rigid and strong construction to support the entire weight of the user. Yet, creepers that are constructed with a one-piece design are often cumbersome and awkward to store due to their size. 
     Several prior art creepers have been suggested that provide the necessary support to the user while and are capable of being collapsed for efficient storage. For instance, both U.S. Pat. No. 4,580,799 to Quinonez and U.S. Pat. No. 4,889,352 to Chamberlin, Jr. et al. disclose creepers formed by two hinged sections. These creepers can be folded in order to reduce their overall size when not in use. A mechanic using such a creeper must remove himself or herself from the creeper before collapsing the creeper. 
     Other prior art creepers have been suggested that are composed of two sections that can be separated. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 5,022,670 to Cote et al. discloses a creeper that is constructed of two separable panels. The separability of the creeper is intended to enable the creeper to enter a confined space, particularly an attic. Notably, the panels are connected such that they are not coplanar, but are instead joined at an angle of less than 180 degrees. This aspect of the creeper is essential to allow the user to move the creeper over uneven surfaces, such as ceiling joists in an attic. The two panels are coupled by a pair of bars that are bent at an angle. The bars are secured to one panel and receivable within a pair of channels formed in the second panel. Each bar is secured to a respective channel by a locking pin that is accessible through a lower surface of the creeper. The creeper is supported by a number of small wheels located along each side of the creeper, with the wheels being adapted to permit mobility in only the longitudinal direction of the creeper. 
     The creeper to Cote et al. is designed to address the difficulties of working on uneven surfaces. Although composed of separable panels, the creeper does not allow the panels to be easily separated while in use, since the locking pins are located on the lower surface of the creeper inboard of the wheels. The separability of this creeper is further complicated by its wheels, which necessarily have small diameters and are closely spaced to facilitate mobility over uneven surfaces. The small diameter wheels reduce the clearance beneath the creeper, making it essentially impossible to gain access to the locking pins while the user is seated on the creeper. 
     Another separable creeper is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,297,809 to Chen. The purpose of Chen&#39;s separable creeper is to allow easy portability, packing and shipment. According to Chen, two panels are joined by use of a dovetail mortise and holes attached perpendicularly to a first of the panels, and a dovetail tenon and posts attached perpendicularly to the second panel. The panels are attached by engaging the dovetail tenon into the dovetail mortise and the posts into the corresponding holes extending through the second panel. Consequently, the method by which the panels are connected and separated is rather difficult. Furthermore, the design requires a manufacturing process by which each post and its corresponding hole are fabricated within relatively close tolerances, such that the fit between each post-hole combination contributes stiffness to the creeper and thereby provides adequate support the weight of the user. Similarly, the dovetail mortise and the dovetail tenon must also be close-fitting. Notably, assembly and disassembly of this creeper require the panels to be separated by moving one of the panels in a perpendicular direction relative to the plane of the creeper. Therefore, if the user desires to disassemble the creeper while remaining seated, the panel with the posts must be raised perpendicular to the creeper with sufficient force to disengage the posts with their holes and the disengage the dovetail tenons with their dovetail mortices, a rather difficult operation to perform while seated. Accordingly, Chen&#39;s creeper cannot be easily assembled and disassembled while supporting the user. 
     From the above, it can be seen that it would be desirable to have a creeper composed of separable portions that can be readily disassembled, even if the user remains seated on one of the portions. It would be further desirable if such a creeper was more versatile than prior art creepers, so as to enable use of the creeper under a wider variety of circumstances. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is an object of this invention to provide a separable creeper whose individual sections can be readily separated. 
     It is another object of this invention that such a creeper is adapted to be separated while the user remains seated. 
     It is yet another object of this invention that at least one section of the creeper is specifically configured to serve as a seat for the user. 
     In accordance with this invention, a creeper is provided composed of separable sections that are capable of being easily separated while the user remains seated on one of the sections. Generally, the creeper of this invention includes a seat portion joined in a longitudinal direction to a back portion, such that the seat and back portions are approximately coplanar. The seat and back portions are configured to be joined in the longitudinal direction by use of an uncomplicated coupling member. When the coupling member is adapted to provide that the seat and back portions are coupled and decoupled by moving the seat and back portions relative to each other in the longitudinal direction. A locking member secures the coupling member when engaged. The locking member is disposed along the lateral sides of the creeper, and is operable in the transverse direction such that the user has access to the coupling member while seated. 
     As can be seen from above, an advantageous aspect of this invention is that the seat and back portions are separable, a feature that is particularly useful when it is desirable to store the creeper in a vehicle or other location where space is constricted. Furthermore, the ease with which the seat and back portions are separated is promoted by the type of coupling member used, by which the seat and back portions are separated by relative movement in the longitudinal direction. Yet another advantage of this invention is that the user can assemble and disassemble the creeper while remaining seated on the seat portion. This aspect of the invention increases the versatility of the creeper by enabling the user to quickly uncouple the seat portion from the back portion while seated on the seat portion, such that the creeper is quickly converted from a reclining creeper to a seat creeper. This capability is the result of the locking member being purposely located where it will be readily accessible to the user, even while the user remains seated. For instance, a mechanic working on a vehicle using the creeper of this invention may couple the seat portion to the back portion so that the user can lie in a prone position and, when it is desirable to work around the vehicle while sitting up, the user may quickly separate the seat portion from the back portion by unlocking the locking member and uncoupling the seat portion from the back portion. An additional advantage resulting from this aspect of the invention is that an attachment, such as a tool tray, can be readily coupled to the seat portion in place of the back portion, thereby further promoting the versatility of the creeper. 
     Other objects and advantages of this invention will be better appreciated from the following detailed description. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The above and other advantages of this invention will become more apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: 
     FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a mechanic&#39;s creeper composed of two separable sections in accordance with a preferred embodiment of this invention; 
     FIG. 2 is a partial perspective view of the first section of the creeper of FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 3 is a partial perspective view of the second section of the creeper of FIG. 1; and 
     FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a tool tray that can be coupled with the first section shown in FIG. 2. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     As can be seen with reference to FIG. 1, a two-piece creeper 10 is provided that includes a seat portion 12 and a back portion 14. As shown in FIG. 1, both the seat portion 12 and the back portion 14 are each equipped with a support panel 34 and 36, respectively. In addition, the seat and back portions 12 and 14 have side frames 18 and 22, respectively, disposed parallel to each other in a longitudinal direction, as more readily seen in FIGS. 2 and 3, respectively. Preferably, the side frames 18 of the seat portion 12 are shorter in the longitudinal direction relative to the side frames 22 of the back portion. With further reference to FIGS. 2 and 3, the seat and back portions 12 and 14 include a pair of parallel cross-members 24 and 26, respectively, disposed in a transverse direction. The side frames 18 of the seat portion 12 include a pair of sleeves 16 oriented in the longitudinal direction. The sleeves 16 are sized to receive a corresponding pair of posts 20 that extend from the side frames 22 of the back portion 14 in the longitudinal direction. By mating the posts 20 with their corresponding sleeves 16, the seat portion 12 is coupled with the back portion 14 at an angle of approximately 180 degrees, i.e., the seat and back portions 12 and 14 are approximately coplanar. This aspect of the invention minimizes the amount of vertical space the creeper 10 occupies while in use. 
     As shown in FIG. 1, the seat portion 12 is secured to the back portion 20 with a pair of locking pins 32 that are accessible to the user while in use. More particularly, each sleeve 16 has a hole 38 formed therein and each corresponding post 20 has a hole 40 formed therein, the holes 38 and 40 being complementary and extending in the transverse direction of the creeper 10. As such, each locking pin 32 can be simultaneously inserted through the holes 38 and 40 of a mated pair of the sleeves and posts 16 and 20, respectively. The locking pins 32 are inserted from the lateral exteriors of the sleeves 16, i.e., the lateral sides of the creeper 10, thus providing easy access to the locking pins 32 by the user, even while the user remains seated on the creeper 10. 
     The creeper 10 of this invention further includes wheels 28a, 28b and 30 attached to the side frames 18 and 22 to provide both stability and mobility to the creeper 10. Preferably, the wheels 28a, 28b and 30 are castor wheels that facilitate mobility both in the longitudinal direction and in the transverse direction. In a preferred embodiment, two pairs of the wheels 28a and 28b are oppositely disposed on the side frames 18, while the single pair of wheels 30 are located on the back portion 14 opposite the posts 20. The wheels 28a and 28b are specifically located on the side frames 18 to provide maximum stability to the seat portion 12 when disassembled from the back portion 14. The wheels 28a and 28b are also preferably located at the extreme comers of the seat portion 12, so as to reduce the likelihood of the seat portion 12 tipping or flipping when separated from the back portion 14. Finally, the wheels 28a nearest the sleeves 16 are preferably adapted to be locked, such as castors having a locking feature of a type known and commercially available in the art, to render at least one of these wheels 28a selectively immobile when desired. As such, the stability of the seat portion 12 is further promoted when used as a seat apart from the back portion 14. 
     Shown in FIG. 4 is a tool tray 114 adapted to be readily coupled to the seat portion 12 in place of the back portion 14, and thereby promote the versatility of the creeper 10. As with the back portion 14, the tray 114 is shown as being formed to include a support panel 136, side frames 122 and cross-members 126. The side frames 122 of the tray 114 include a pair of posts 120 that, as with the posts 20 of the back portion 14, are sized to be received within the sleeves 16 of the seat portion 12, and cause the tray 114 to be cantilevered from the seat portion 12. As such, the tray 114 can be readily interchanged with the back portion 14 while the user remains seated on the seat portion 12. Transverse holes 140 extending through the posts 120 enable the tray 114 to be locked to the seat portion 12 with the locking pins 32. 
     As can be seen from the above, the creeper 10 of this invention has several important advantages, one of which is that the seat portion 12 is readily separable from the back portion 14. This aspect of the invention allows the seat portion 12 to be stored separately from the back portion 14, which is particularly useful when storage space is limited. More notably, the seat portion 12 is separable from the back portion 14 even when the user remains seated on the seat portion 12. Furthermore, separation of the seat and back portions 12 and 14 yields a seat creeper that can be used completely independently of the back portion 13. For example, while sitting on the seat portion 12, the user can easily separate the back portion 14 from the seat portion 12 by removing the locking pins 32 that are accessible from the lateral sides of the creeper 10, and then sliding the back portion 14 away from the seat portion 12 in the longitudinal direction. The shorter length of the seat portion 12 relative to the back portion 14 increases the mobility of the seat portion 12 when detached from the back portion 14, and placement of the wheels 28 at the comers of the seat portion 12 promotes its stability. Suitability of the seat portion 12 as a seat is further promoted by the ability to lock the wheels 28a, which provides the user with a more stable platform from which to work. Finally, attachments such as a tool tray 114 can be readily coupled to the seat portion 12 in place of the back portion 14, a capability that greatly promotes the versatility of the creeper 10 of this invention. 
     While our invention has been described in terms of preferred embodiments, it is apparent that other forms could be adopted by one skilled in the art, such as by incorporating the novel features of this invention with other similar creepers that differ in appearance from that shown in the Figures, or providing various other types of interchangeable attachments in place of the tool tray shown in the Figures. Accordingly, the scope of our invention is to be limited only by the following claims.