Patent Publication Number: US-2023158965-A1

Title: Bike Rack

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     The present application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63/281,446, entitled “Bike Rack” and filed Nov. 19, 2021, the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference herein. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     Motorcycle racks and carriers that are connected to vehicles by hitch receivers are well known in the art. Traditionally, a hitch mounted carrier consists of a single 2″ steel or aluminum main support member. A single ⅝″ hitch pin is generally used to secure the carrier to the receiver. The standardized Class III receiver and 2″ materials allow for minor amounts of play. The resulting affect is rotational motion when the vehicle is traveling. Rough terrain or simple potholes can create unwanted movement or even loss of motorcycles or other items being carried. 
     SUMMARY 
     Disclosed is an improved carrying rack and attachment system for motorcycles and like vehicles. An extender with a main support and two arms is affixed to a tow hitch and horizontal cross bar of a vehicle. The three points of contact achieved provide rigidity to the overall system. Support arms interconnect with the extender and interface with stiff-backs that hold a vehicle storage tray configured to receive the stowed vehicle. A guide ramp is affixable to the vehicle storage tray so that a vehicle can be raised up and secured in the vehicle storage tray, preferably via a wheel chock and a wheel stop. The extender permits the use of spare tire and other storage configurations on the backs of vehicles while still permitting the carrying of a motorcycle. The stiff-backs provide modularity to the system and may be switched out to accommodate expansion of the system. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate various exemplary embodiments and together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the disclosed embodiments. 
         FIGS.  1 A-B  depict an assembled and blown-up view, respectively, of an embodiment vehicle carrying rack. 
         FIGS.  2 A-G  depict plan vs of a second embodiment vehicle. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Now with reference to  FIGS.  1 A-B , an embodiment vehicle storage rack  101  includes an extender  102  that provides stabilization and improved weight loading over previous designs. The extender includes a main beam  103  which is configured to be connectable to standard automotive tow hitches. In the embodiment, the extender is connected to parallel extender arms  104  via perpendicular connector arms  105 . Each of the extender arms include a bracketing clamp  106  that, in the embodiment, is two horizontal plates with holes configured to receive bolts that when locked in place clamp to a horizontal cross bar of the host vehicle. This provides improved base stability to the vehicle storage rack  101  over existing designs. 
     In certain manufactured embodiments, the extender includes one 2″-½″×¼′ square A500 steel main support beam with laser cut 21/32″ holes on the two vertical faces for specification of class III OEM and aftermarket receiver hitch pins. The main beam is connected by structural filet welds to two perpendicular 2″-½″×¼″ square A500 steel connector arms. The outer 2½″×¼″ square A500 steel extender arms are parallel to the main beam embodiment and welded to the connector arms by structural filet welds. The bracketing clamps are made from A500 steel and effectively squeeze clamp the horizontal cross bar and are structurally filet welded to the extender arms. 
     Support arms  107  are interconnected with the parallel extender arms  104 . In certain embodiments, both the parallel extender arms  104  and the support arms  107  are square profile hollow rails, with the support arms  107  are preferably undersized relative to the parallel extender arms  104  such that they readily slide within the parallel extender arms while being sized to closely fit therewithin. 
     In certain manufactured embodiments, the support arms  107  are formed from 2″×¼″ square A500 steel. Each is approximately 36″ in length and has four (4) laser cut ⅝″ holes which are spaced to specification to accept additional elements. 
     Stiff-backs  108  are interconnected to the support arms  107 . The stiff-backs  108  are in certain embodiments two rounded rectangular plates connected via a section of square profile tubular metal. The stiff-backs  108  each include a connection interface  109  configured to receive a vehicle storage tray  110 . A wheel chock  111  and a wheel stop  112  serve to secure a motorcycle or like device within the vehicle storage tray  110 . A ramp  112  is connectable to the vehicle storage tray  110  via a hinged connection plate  113 . The ramp  112  may be made to be stowable with the stiff backs  108  via bolts or other similar securement devices, or may be stored separately when not in use. In certain manufactured embodiments, bolts  113  are 8″×½″ bolts, nuts  114  are ½″ nyloc nuts, bolts  115  are 4½″× 5/16″ bolts and nuts  116  are 5/16″ nyloc nuts. 
     The stiff-backs in certain manufactured embodiments consists of dual ¼″ 6061 aluminum laser cut plates. Each embodiment is joined by structural weld using 1.5″×¾″ aluminum tubing in two locations to create the required spacing needed to attach each stiff-back to the support arms. The vehicle tray is a single ⅛″ 6061 aluminum sheet. This embodiment is laser cut to specification and machine bent at 90-degree angles to create rigidity and strength. Attached to the tray are two aluminum mechanisms deemed a wheel chocks and wheel stop which are formed from ⅛″ 6061 aluminum. These items are also laser cut and bent to form concave structures which receive and cradle the front wheel of the motorcycle. The final element is an accompanying accessory ramp. This is used for the loading and unloading of the carried motorcycle. In certain manufactured embodiments it is built from ⅛″ 6061 aluminum which is laser cut and mechanically bent to 90-degree angles to achieve rigidity and strength. 
       FIGS.  2 A-G  depict plan views of a second embodiment having a vehicle storage tray  201 , a ramp  202 , stiff-backs  203 , support arms  204  and an extender  205 . 
     One advantage of the present disclosure is to increase the safety and stability of motorcycle hitch mounted devices. The weight distribution is improved by spreading the load across three points of contact and reinforcing the mechanism with engineered materials tested and certified by steel manufacturers. The invention decreases the rotational movement and provides a substantial improvement to previous designs. 
     Forming the extender and support arms from steel provides excellent rigidity to the overall system while forming the stiff-backs, storage tray and guide ramp from aluminum reduces the overall weight of the system. The stiff-backs being selectively detachable from the support arms allows the storage tray and ramp system to be modular and expandable without needing a complete new system or the uninstallation of the extender and support arms. For example, stiff-backs supporting multiple motorcycles may be easily installed.