Patent Publication Number: US-2006011683-A1

Title: Personal watercraft cargo rack

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
      This invention relates generally to a rack that may be mounted to a vehicle such as a personal watercraft for carrying articles such as food and beverage containers, chairs, etc.  
      Many personal watercraft enthusiasts enjoy traveling to remote locations for activities such as picnicking, camping and hiking. Most personal watercraft have a rear deck area where items such as beach chairs, coolers and sports equipment may be secured so that they may be transported. Typically such items are secured with ropes or elastic cords or straps. Merely fastening items to be transported to the deck of the personal watercraft Is an inefficient use of the available space. Some articles are difficult to fasten securely and thus become lost.  
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
      This invention provides a cargo rack that is easy to fasten to a rear deck region of a personal watercraft. The cargo rack according to the invention conveniently holds items that personal watercraft users typically want to carry such as food and beverage containers, chairs, fuel containers, picnic supplies, etc.  
      A cargo rack according to the invention formed to be attached to a deck of a vehicle such as a personal watercraft near an edge of the deck comprises a frame arranged to form a basket having a base arranged to rest upon an upper surface of the deck and a mounting bracket assembly connected to the base. The mounting bracket assembly includes a retainer guide having a passage therethrough mounted to the frame. A retainer rod extends through the passage in the retainer guide such that an upper portion of the retainer rod extends above the retainer guide and a lower portion of the retainer rod extends below the retainer guide and below the base of the frame. The mounting bracket assembly further includes a retainer bracket having a first end connected to the lower portion of the retainer rod and a second end arranged to extend under the deck and a fastener arranged to fasten the retainer rod in the retainer guide so that a portion of the deck is held between the retainer bracket and the base to secure the cargo rack on the deck.  
      The cargo rack according to the invention preferably further comprises a strap arranged for fastening the frame to a portion of the personal watercraft.  
      The frame included in the invention is further arranged to comprise a hanger portion extending upward from the basket.  
      The retainer guide preferably includes a plurality of passages arranged to receive the retainer rod therein.  
      The retainer rod preferably includes a plurality of holes at an upper end portion arranged to receive a pin arranged to hold the retainer rod in a selected position in the retainer guide.  
      The retainer bracket preferably also includes a detent connected to the second end of the retainer bracket for engaging a lower surface portion of the deck to mount the cargo rack securely to the deck. The detent may be formed in a generally cylindrical configuration with a side surface portion thereof being connected to the second end of the retainer bracket.  
      The features of the invention may be understood and appreciated by referring to the accompanying drawings, which are not to any scale, and to the detailed description of the invention. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a cargo rack constructed according to the present invention;  
       FIG. 2  is a perspective view of a frame that may be included in the cargo rack of  FIG. 1 ;  
       FIG. 3  is a front elevation view of the cargo rack of  FIG. 1  that also includes a first strap that may be used in mounting the cargo rack to a vehicle and a second strap that may be used to secure items in the cargo rack;  
       FIG. 4  is a side elevation view of the cargo rack of  FIGS. 1 and 3  showing how the invention may be mounted to a rear deck portion of a personal watercraft;  
       FIG. 5  is a plan view of the frame shown in  FIG. 2 ;  
       FIG. 6  is a plan view of the cargo rack of  FIG. 1 ;  
       FIG. 7  is a partial side elevation view of the invention as shown in  FIGS. 1 and 6 ; and  
       FIG. 8  is a partial cross sectional view showing how the cargo rack according to the invention may be secured to a rear deck portion of a personal watercraft.  
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
      As shown in  FIGS. 1-5 , a cargo rack  10  includes a frame  11  arranged for fastening the frame to a rear deck portion  16  of a vehicle  18  such as a personal watercraft. The frame  11  preferably is of tubular construction using any suitable material such as aluminum, steel, plastic etc.  
      The frame  11  has a base  13  that rests upon the deck portion  16 . The cargo rack  10  preferably is formed to include a basket portion  20  with a hanger portion  22  extending from the basket portion  20 . When the cargo rack  10  is mounted on the vehicle  18 , the hanger portion  22  preferably extends upward from a rear portion  23  of the basket  20 . The base  13  preferably forms a lower portion  28  of the basket  20  and is preferably formed generally a rectangle having rounded corners. The basket has an upper portion  30  that preferably has approximately the same dimensions as the lower portion  28 .  
      The lower portion  28  may be defined by a tubular member  31  that is formed as a rectangle having rounded corners. The lower portion  28  has sides  32 - 35 . The sides  33  and  35  are parallel and have first and second tubular support members  38  and  40  extending perpendicularly therebetween. A third tubular support member  42  may be arranged to extend between the side  32  and the first support member  38 . A fourth tubular support member  44  may be similarly arranged to extend between the side  34  and the second support member  40 . The support members  42 ,  44 ,  103  and  104  with the base  13  form the bottom of the basket  20 .  
      The basket portion  20  may further include a plurality of upright tubular members  46 - 52  extending perpendicularly between the lower portion  28  and the upper portion  30  of the basket  20 . The upper portion  30  preferably is arranged to be generally parallel to the lower portion  28 . The tubular members  50  and  51  are parallel and are arranged to support a front side  54  of the upper portion  30 . The members  49  and  52  support opposite sides  56  and  58  of the upper portion  30 . The tubular members  46 - 48  support a rear side  60  of the upper portion  30 .  
      The tubular members  46  and  47  extend beyond the upper portion  30  of the basket and form the hanger portion  22 . The tubular members  46  and  47  each preferably have straight sections  62  and  64 , respectively, that extend away from the upper section  30  of the basket. The members  46  and  47  preferably have curved portions  66  and  68 , respectively, formed between the upper ends of the vertical straight sections  62  and  64  and straight sections  70  and  72 , respectively. The curved portions  66  and  68  preferably form arcs of about 90° so that the straight sections  70  and  72  are essentially horizontal when the cargo rack  10  is mounted to a personal watercraft. Upwardly curved sections  74  and  76  are preferably formed at the outer ends of the straight sections  70  and  72 , and a horizontal bar  78  extends between the upwardly curved sections  74  and  76 .  
      The straight horizontal sections  70  and  72  are conveniently arranged so that typical beach, lawn chairs (not shown) etc. may be hung from them. Suitable strapping or elastic bands (not shown) may be used to fasten items hanging from the straight horizontal sections  70  and  72  to any of the frame members  46 - 48 .  
      As best shown in  FIGS. 1, 3 ,  4 ,  6  and  7  sleeves  100 - 104  may be placed around portions of the frame members  32 ,  34 ,  35 ,  38  and  40 , respectively. The sleeves  100 - 104  preferably are formed of foam, rubber or other similar substance and are arranged to provide cushioning between the frame  11  and the upper surface of the rear deck  16  of the personal watercraft  18 .  
      As best shown in  FIGS. 1, 4 ,  7  and  8 , the mounting bracket assemblies  106 A and  106 B are connected to the frame near corners  110  and  112 , respectively. The mounting bracket assemblies  106 A and  106 B are preferably essentially identical. Therefore, only the mounting bracket assembly  106 A is described in detail herein. Components of the mounting bracket assembly  106 A are referenced by a number are referenced by a number followed by the letter “B.” 
      The mounting bracket assembly  106 A includes a retainer guide  114 A that is fastened to the frame member  32  by any suitable means such as welding. The retainer guide  114 A is preferably formed of a length of metal tubing having rectangular side surfaces. A pair of preferably rectangular passages  116 A and  118 A is formed to extend through the retainer guide  114 A from the top surface  120 A to the bottom surface  122 A. As shown in  FIG. 8 , the passages  116 A and  118 A are arranged to receive therein a retainer rod  124 A having a plurality of passages  126 A extending through an upper portion  128 A thereof. A retainer bracket  130 A is connected to a lower portion  132 A of the retainer rod  124 A. The retainer bracket  130 A is preferably formed so that in the side elevation views of  FIGS. 4 and 8  it is configured generally  
      As shown in  FIGS. 4 and 8 , when the cargo rack  10  is mounted to a deck  16  of a personal watercraft  18 , the sleeves  100 - 104  contact an upper portion  134  of the deck  16  while the front edge  140 A of the retainer rod  124 A is near the rear edge  142  of the deck  16 . The retainer bracket  130 A extends from the front edge  140 A under the deck  16 . The retainer rod  124 A is positioned in a selected one of the passages  116 A or  118 A so that an outer end portion  144 A of the retainer bracket  130 A contacts the bottom surface  146  of the deck  16 . A pin  148 A may be inserted in one of the passages  126 A to hold the retainer rod  124 A in the proper position in the retainer guide  114 A to hold the retainer bracket  130 A against the bottom surface  146  of the deck  16 .  
      As shown in  FIG. 4 , a strap  150  may be used to secure the bar  54  in the upper portion  30  of the basket  20  to a portion  152  of the personal watercraft  18 . The portion  152  usually is a bar that extends behind the seat (not shown) of the personal watercraft  18 . Additional strapping (not shown) may be used to secure articles such as beach chairs to the cargo rack  10  or to prevent articles from being ejected from the basket  20 .  
      The structures and methods disclosed herein illustrate the principles of the present invention. The invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from its spirit or essential characteristics. The described embodiments are to be considered in all respects as exemplary and illustrative rather than restrictive. Therefore, the appended claims rather than the foregoing description define the scope of the invention. All modifications to the embodiments described herein that come within the meaning and range of equivalence of the claims are embraced within the scope of the invention.