Patent Publication Number: US-2019193641-A1

Title: Fisherman&#39;s Gear Box

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This invention claims priority back to Provisional Application for Patent No. 62/595,341, filed Dec. 6, 2017 and Provisional Application for Patent No. 62/713,031, filed Aug. 1, 2018. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to fishing and, more particularly, to a safe way to protect fishing gear from damage and/or theft. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art 
     Fishermen typically drive from where they reside to their favorite fishing hole. The trip may be a short distance or a long distance. The cost of the fishing gear is getting to be very expensive. A good rod and reel can easily cost one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) or more. A tackle box containing weights, lines, hooks, flies and assorted fishing gear, may have several thousand dollars&#39; worth of fishing gear. 
     Most serious fishermen 1  have more than one rod or reel. A serious fisherman may take a half-dozen rods and reels when going on a fishing trip. 1 The term “Fisherman” is used generically to include both men and women, young or old. 
     If the fisherman stops for breakfast or a cup of coffee, the fishing gear remains in the vehicle, such as in the back of a pick-up truck. Many times, fishing gear has been stolen from unattended vehicles when in transit to or from the fishing location. 
     In the past, fishing rod and reel holders have been designed to be mounted on the back or front of a vehicle. However, these fishing rod and reel holders do not prevent someone from walking by and taking one or more of the rods and/or reels. If the tackle box is handy, it can also be taken. 
     Upon arriving at the fishing location, typically the fisherman will take some, but not all, of the fishing gear to their fishing spot. This leaves the vehicle that may contain the remainder of the fishing gear unattended. The unattended fishing gear can again be stolen if not secured. 
     Most fishermen drive a vehicle that has a trailer hitch, especially those that drive pick-up trucks. While devices have in the past been designed to fit on a trailer hitch to carry fishing equipment, none of these devices are lockable and capable of storing all of the fishing gear, including rods and reels and tackle boxes. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     An object of the present invention is a fisherman&#39;s gear box to prevent theft of fishing gear. 
     A further object of the present invention is to prevent fishing gear from being stolen while in transit to or from the fishing location. 
     It is still a further object of the present invention to prevent rods and reels from being stolen off the vehicle. 
     It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a locked container secured to a vehicle, which locked container will contain the fishing reels and tackle boxes with only a portion of the rod showing. 
     It is still a further object of the present invention to provide a fisherman&#39;s gear box that can be carried on the trailer hitch of a vehicle, which fisherman&#39;s gear box is lockable with only part of the rods extending there from. 
     It is a further object of the present invention to provide a fisherman&#39;s gear box which mounts on the trailer hitch of a vehicle, which fisherman&#39;s gear box has a compartment for the tackle box plus holders for the fishing rods and reels. The fisherman&#39;s gear box can be locked shut and locked on the trailer hitch to prevent theft there from. 
     It is a further object of the present invention to have a fisherman&#39;s gear box with vertical cylinders therein in which rods and reels can be located with a slot there above to allow the rods to extend through the slots in the top of the fisherman&#39;s gear box. 
     It is a further object of the present invention to have a fisherman&#39;s gear box that is totally lockable to keep the fishing gear contained therein from being stolen. 
    
    
     
       DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a fisherman&#39;s gear box made in accordance with the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a top view of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is a front view of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 4  is a top view of  FIG. 1  with the lid on the fisherman&#39;s gear box being open. 
         FIG. 4A  is a cross-sectional view of  FIG. 4  along section lines  4 A- 4 A. 
         FIG. 5  is a bottom perspective view of a fisherman&#39;s gear box. 
         FIG. 6  is a cross-sectional view of  FIG. 4  taken along section lines  6 - 6 . 
         FIG. 6A  is a partial sectional view of the lock shown in  FIG. 6 . 
         FIG. 7  is a perspective environmental view of the present invention. 
         FIG. 8  is a perspective view of an alternative fisherman&#39;s gear box made in accordance with the present invention. 
         FIG. 9  is a top view of  FIG. 8 . 
         FIG. 10  is a front view of  FIG. 8 . 
         FIG. 11  is a top view of  FIG. 8  with the lid of the fisherman&#39;s gear box being open. 
         FIG. 11 a    is a cross-sectional view of  FIG. 11  along section lines  11 - 11   a.    
         FIG. 12  is a partial sectional view. 
         FIG. 13  is a lower perspective view of the alternative fisherman&#39;s gear box made in accordance with the present invention. 
         FIG. 14  is a perspective environmental view of the alternative fisherman&#39;s gear box. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring to  FIG. 7 , a perspective view of the Fisherman&#39;s gear box  10  is shown attached to the trailer hitch  12  of a truck  14 . The fisherman&#39;s gear box  10  has a rectangular box  16  with a lid  18 . The lid  18  has slots  20  on the forward side thereof. Piano hinge  22  connects the lid  18  to the rectangular box  16 . The rods  24  extend through slots  20  into the fisherman&#39;s gear box  10 . 
     Referring now to  FIGS. 1, 2 and 3  in combination, the fisherman&#39;s gear box  10  has lid  18  on the top of rectangular box  16 . The slots  20  are formed in the forward part of lid  18 . A rubber edge  26  prevents the sides of the slots  20  from damaging the fishing rods  24 . The handles  28  mounted on either end of the rectangular box  16  provides a way for someone to pick up the entire fisherman&#39;s gear box  10 . 
     Tongue  30  extends from under the fisherman&#39;s gear box  10  and is received in the trailer hitch  12  (see  FIG. 7 ). Holes  32  can receive a locking pin (not shown) therein when received inside of the trailer hitch  12 . The locking pin will prevent someone from taking the entire fisherman&#39;s gear box  10 . Locking pins are sold under several names, such as a Trimax Universal Receiver Lock or a Reese Towpower Professional Towing Receiver, Model #7070700. 
     Referring to  FIG. 5 , the underside of the fisherman&#39;s gear box  10  is shown. The tongue  30  connects to cross-braces  34  and  36 , which are welded to the bottom  38  of the fisherman&#39;s gear box  10 . Cross-braces  34  and  36  ensure there is an adequate support under the bottom of the fisherman&#39;s gear box  10 . 
     Referring to  FIGS. 4 and 4A  the inside of the fisherman&#39;s gear box  10  is shown. In  FIG. 4 , the lid  18  is open to show the inside of the rectangular box  16 . The handles  28  are shown mounted on either end of the rectangular box  16 . 
     Contained inside of the rectangular box  16  is a dividing wall  40 . Behind the dividing wall  40  is a compartment  42  in which the tackle box or other assorted fishing gear can be inserted. In the front of the dividing wall  40  is compartment  44  which has cylindrical rod holders  46  vertically mounted therein. The cylindrical rod holders  46  are located immediately below the slots  20  (see  FIGS. 1 and 2 ). The cylindrical rod holders  46  have slots  48  to better receive some brands of fisherman&#39;s reels therein. Horizontal bars  50  provide additional support for mounting the cylindrical rod holders  46 . 
     Drain holes  52  are provided in the bottom of the fisherman&#39;s gear box  10  as can be seen in  FIGS. 4 and 5  to prevent any accumulation of water therein. 
     Referring to  FIG. 6 , which is a cross-sectional view of  FIG. 4  along section lines  6 - 6 , the inside of the fisherman&#39;s gear box  10  can be better shown. The lid  18  on the rectangular box  16  can swing all the way open as illustrated in  FIG. 6 . The dividing wall  40  extends up from the bottom of the rectangular box to almost the lid  18 . Mounting of the cylindrical rod holders  46  on the horizontal bars  50  is illustrated. The cross-braces  34  and  36  below the rectangular box  16  are shown. 
     Referring to  FIG. 6A , which is an enlarged partial sectional view of  FIG. 6  at section lines  6 A, a locking bar  54  is attached to side  55 . Extending through the lid  18  of the rectangular box  16  is a locking cylinder  56 . By inserting a key (not shown) into the keyhole  58  of the locking cylinder  56 , (see  FIG. 1 ), the locking cylinder  56  may be turned. The turning of the locking cylinder  56  turns the rotating bar  60  which is rotated under locking bar  54 . The turning of the rotating bar  60  under the locking bar  54  will lock the lid  18  shut so that someone cannot get inside of the fisherman&#39;s gear box  10  to steal any of the fishing gear. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 14 , there is shown an alternative fisherman&#39;s gear box  64 . The alternative fisherman&#39;s gear box  64  has a rectangular box  66  mounted on a bar support  66  that connects into a trailer hitch  70 . 
     The fisherman&#39;s gear box  64  has a lid  72  on top of the rectangular box  66 . The lid  72  is connected to the rectangular box  66  by piano hinge  74 . On each end of the rectangular box  66  are handles  76 . 
     Extending up through slots  78  and lid  72  are rods  80 . The fisherman&#39;s gear box  64  as shown in  FIG. 14  is narrower than the fisherman&#39;s gear box  10  as shown in  FIG. 7 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 8 , a perspective view of the fisherman&#39;s gear box  64  is shown. The bar support  68  has holes  82  therein to receive a locking pin for the trailer hitch  70 . The rod  80  extends out of one of the slots  78  in an upward direction. Edges of the slot  78  are covered with rubber  84  to prevent damage to the rods. The lid  72  is held closed by locks  86  in a manner as will be described subsequently. 
       FIG. 9  is a top view of  FIG. 8 .  FIG. 10  is a front view of  FIG. 8 . To raise the fisherman&#39;s gear box  64  higher behind the truck  14 , bar support  68  has a raised section  88 . The top of the raised section  88  is connected to a horizontal support bar  90 . 
     Referring now to  FIGS. 11 and 11   a,  the inside of the fisherman&#39;s gear box  64  is shown. The same numbers as applied to  FIGS. 8 through 10  apply to  FIGS. 11 and 11   a.  In  FIG. 11 , which is a top view of the fisherman&#39;s gear box  64 , the lid  72  is open. Inside of the fisherman&#39;s gear box  64  towards the front thereof are cylindrical rod holders  92 . The cylindrical rod holders  92  have slots  94  cut in the top thereof so that the rod and reel will slide into place. Horizontal bars  96  provide additional support for the cylindrical rod holders  92 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 12 , the lock  86  is shown in further detail. A locking cylinder  100  is held in place by nut  102  on the underside of lid  72 . By the turning of the locking cylinder  100 , locking tab  104  extends under locking bar  106  that is attached to side  108 . Locks  86  are located in each corner of the fisherman&#39;s gear box  64  as shown in  FIG. 8 . The locking bar  106  is also shown in  FIGS. 11 and 11A . 
     A bottom view of the fisherman&#39;s gear box  64  is shown in  FIG. 13 . The bar support  68 , which has the holes  82  therein to be received in the trailer hitch  70  (see  FIG. 14 ) connects to the raised section  88 . The raised section  88  in turn connects to a rearward bar  98 , which in turn connects to the horizontal support bars  90 . This provides sufficient support for the fisherman&#39;s gear box. Holes  110  are provided in the bottom  112  of the rectangular box  66  so that any water that may be therein can drain out. 
     In the fisherman&#39;s gear box  64  that is shown as an alternative, space for the fishing tackle is not provided. In this alternative, fisherman&#39;s gear box  64  is anticipated that a separate tackle box will be used by the fisherman.