Patent Publication Number: US-2003226867-A1

Title: Trailer hitch-mounted transporting device for lawn mowers and landscaping tools

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001] This invention relates in general to lawn mowers. In particular, the invention relates to a vehicle trailer hitch-mounted transporting device comprising a number of rails and retaining devices to allow the user to transport one or more lawn mowers and landscaping tools.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002] Without limiting the scope of the invention, its background is described in connection with the transportation of lawn mowers and landscaping tools.  
       [0003] Walk behind lawn mowers are the most popular means of cutting lawn grasses. These lawn mowers are typically powered by gasoline engines and cut a path in the grass about 21 inches wide. Commercial landscape companies utilize these mowers in great numbers, and usually transport them on specially-built trailers. Smaller landscape companies often cannot afford a trailer and transport their mowers in the back of pickup trucks.  
       [0004] In the course of a workday, a landscape crew may load and unload their mowers over 30 times. If they are using a trailer, the trailer&#39;s tailgate will usually form a ramp when lowered, allowing the mowers to be loaded and unloaded by pushing them up and down the ramp. Each time the mowers are unloaded, two pins must be removed to allow the ramp to be lowered. The ramp is then lowered by hand. Since the ramps are made of steel, they are very heavy. Often two workers are needed to control the fall of the ramp.  
       [0005] The mowers are held in place on the trailer during transport by straps or ropes. These must be undone in order to move the mowers off of the trailer. Some careless operators do not restrain their mowers during transport. These mowers move around on the trailer and often damage themselves or other equipment being transported.  
       [0006] When the mowing is done, the mowers are pushed back up the ramp on to the trailer, the straps or ropes are re-attached, the heavy ramp is lifted and the two pins replaced.  
       [0007] Landscape companies that transport their mowers in the backs of their trucks have to physically lift the mowers into and out of the truck. These mowers typically weigh about 100 pounds, making this a heavy lift for one person.  
       [0008] A significant percentage of a landscape crew&#39;s daily time and effort is expended just loading and unloading the lawn mowers.  
       [0009] As such, a need exists for a relatively inexpensive device to allow landscape crews to easily and quickly load, restrain during transport, and unload lawn mowers without heavy lifting.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0010] The present invention provides for a trailer hitch-mounted transporting device for lawn mowers and landscaping tools.  
       [0011] Disclosed in one embodiment is a trailer hitch-mounted transporting device for lawn mowers and landscaping tools.  
       [0012] A typical lawn mower is shown in FIG. 2. The relevant features are the deck that forms the frame of the mower, the front wheels, rear wheels, and the handle.  
       [0013] The transporting device as shown in FIGS. 1, 3,  4 ,  5 ,  8 ,  9 , and  11  comprises a front cross member connected to a rear cross member by a plurality of rails at substantially right angles to both the front cross member and the rear cross member. These rails are located such that the space between each pair of their vertical flanges will accommodate the width to the outside of the wheels of the lawn mower. A front wheel retainer assembly is located at the front of each pair of rails. Each front wheel retainer assembly consists of a main shaft on to which the short roller arm and the long roller arm are mounted. The main shaft passes through the holes for main shaft in the lawn mower front wheel stop assembly. The main shaft is free to rotate inside the holes in the lawn mower front wheel stop assembly. The rotation of the main shaft is limited in the upward direction by the short roller arm rotation stop and in the lower direction by the long roller arm rotation stop. The long roller arm rotation stop incorporates the long roller arm stop lock hole. This long roller arm stop lock hole corresponds with the long roller arm lock hole when the long roller arm is at rest on the long roller arm rotation stop.  
       [0014] Each long roller arm and short roller arm has a roller shaft located on its inner surface. Each roller shaft has a roller mounted coaxially on it. The rollers are made of a low friction material and are a loose fit on the roller shafts so that they are free to rotate. Each roller is held onto its roller shaft by a cotter pin, e-clip or similar fastener. The roller shafts are located such that the flat springs are partially deflected by the front wheels when the long roller arm is against the long roller arm rotation stop but not so close to the main shaft that the front wheel is jammed against the main shaft during the downward rotation of the front wheel retainer assembly.  
       [0015] The two outboard roller shafts extend through the long roller arms to form a long roller arm coil spring mount. A front cross member coil spring mount is attached to the front of the two outboard rails. A tension spring stretches between the long roller arm coil spring mount and the front cross member coil spring mount.  
       [0016] The relationship between the front cross member coil spring mount, long roller arm coil spring mount, and the main shaft is critical for the proper operation of the front wheel retainer mechanism. The tension spring must pull the front wheel retainer assembly downward towards the long roller arm rotation stop when the long roller arm is on the long roller arm rotation stop. The tension springs must also pull the front wheel retainer assembly upward when the short roller arm is against the short roller arm rotation stop. The tension spring can satisfy these requirements by being mounted so that as the long roller arm rotates, the long axis of the tension spring moves from one side of the center line of the main shaft to the other.  
       [0017] Each front wheel stop assembly has its upper front flange bent forward to form a front wheel stop assembly flat spring mount. Each front wheel stop assembly flat spring mount has a flat spring bolted onto it. The flat spring consists of one or more flat pieces of spring steel narrower than the lawn mower front wheels and long enough to span the distance between the front wheel stop assembly flat spring mount and the main shaft. The angle of the front wheel stop assembly flat spring mount is such that the flat springs will be deflected by the front wheels when the lawn mower is pushed forward on the rails as the long roller arm and short roller arm rotate downward. The flat springs also serve to push the front wheels against the rollers when the retainer assembly is against the long roller arm rotation stop, reducing any relative motion between the lawn mower  19  and the transporting device.  
       [0018] The holes in the lawn mower front wheel stop assembly are located closer to the rails than is the centerline of the front wheels so that as long roller arm and short roller arm rotate downward, the rollers pass over the center of the front wheels. When the rollers are at the centerline of the front wheels, the flat springs are deflected to their maximum position. As the rollers continue downward past the centerline of the front wheels, the deflection in the flat springs is lessened as the front wheel moves slightly away from the front wheel stop. This over-center action combines with the pull of the tension spring to hold the front wheel retainer assembly against the long roller arm rotation stop, securely retaining the lawn mower on the transporting device.  
       [0019] The lawn mower front wheels are prevented from moving up away from the lower flange of the rails by front wheel vertical restraints. These front wheel vertical restraints are members affixed to each front wheel stop assembly at a substantially right angle to the long axis of the front wheel stop assembly, approximately parallel to its corresponding rail. The distance between the front wheel vertical restraints and the lower flange of the rails is slightly larger than the diameter of the lawn mower front wheel.  
       [0020] The lawn mower rear wheels are prevented from moving up away from the lower flange of the rails by a rear wheel vertical restraint. These rear wheel vertical restraints consist of a member adjacent to each lawn mower&#39;s left rail at a substantially right angle to the long axis of both the rear cross member and the left rail, and another member at a substantially right angle to it, approximately parallel to its corresponding rail. The distance between the rear wheel vertical restraints and the lower flange of the rail is slightly larger than the diameter of the lawn mower rear wheel. Only one rear wheel vertical restraint is used per lawn mower, and it is located on the left side of the mower because the designs of most lawn mowers utilize a higher lawn mower deck on the right side that would interfere with a rear wheel vertical restraint on that side.  
       [0021] Each long roller arm has a handle mounted on it to facilitate operation of the retainer assembly without requiring the operator to put his fingers in between any members of the transporting device. These long roller arm handles are D-shaped metal loops affixed to the outside face of the long roller arms near the end farthest away from the main shaft.  
       [0022] Each long roller arm rotation stop has a long roller arm rotation stop lock hole to correspond with a similar long roller arm lock hole. The long roller arm rotation stop lock hole and long roller arm lock hole line up when the long roller arm is against its long roller arm rotation stop, and facilitate the use of a padlock to protect the lawn mower from theft when the operator is away.  
       [0023] Most pickup trucks, sport utility vehicles and some automobiles are equipped with a trailer hitch receiver as shown for reference in FIG. 6. This trailer hitch receiver utilizes an industry-standard configuration to allow a variety of trailer hitches and other accessories to be attached to vehicles so equipped. The most common trailer hitch receivers utilize a hollow square steel tube bolted to the rear frame of the vehicle, with the open end of the tube at the centerline of the vehicle pointing directly to the rear. A trailer hitch or other accessory is inserted into the hollow tube. A hole is drilled at a right angle to the long axis of the hollow tube to facilitate the insertion of a pin to retain the trailer hitch or other accessory.  
       [0024] A hitch adaptor as shown in FIG. 5 connects the transporting device to the trailer hitch receiver. The hitch adaptor consists of a horizontal member and a vertical member joined at substantially right angles to each other. The horizontal member&#39;s cross section allows it to slide inside the trailer hitch receiver. This horizontal member has a hole that facilitates the use of a retaining pin through the corresponding hole in the hitch receiver to hold the hitch adaptor in place in the hitch receiver.  
       [0025] The vertical member has a similar cross section to the horizontal member and has a plurality of holes equally spaced along its length.  
       [0026] A pair of flanges is located at the center of the long axis of the front cross member. The distance between these flanges corresponds to the width of the vertical member of the hitch adaptor. A plurality of holes are drilled in the flanges in such a way as to allow a bolt to pass through two or more of the holes as well as the hitch adaptor at the same time, connecting the transporting device and the hitch adaptor. The plurality of holes allows the hitch adaptor to be bolted to the flanges in several configurations, providing a way to alter the height of the transporting device from the ground.  
       [0027] A plurality of auxiliary equipment rack mounts are attached to the front cross member and the rear cross member at substantially right angles to the front cross member and the rear cross member. These auxiliary equipment rack mounts are intended to provide a mounting location for auxiliary equipment transporting racks provided by the end user that are not part of this transporting device. The configuration and location of these auxiliary equipment rack mounts will vary depending on the auxiliary equipment racks to be installed by the end user. FIG. 1 shows one such configuration that has auxiliary equipment rack mounting flanges located such that one auxiliary equipment rack mount is incorporated into a rear wheel vertical restraint and another auxiliary equipment rack mount is located so that strength is gained by its attachment to both the rear cross member and the rail.  
       [0028]FIG. 11 shows user-supplied auxiliary equipment holding racks for string trimmers and an auxiliary equipment holding racks for leaf blowers installed for reference on the transporting device.  
       [0029] The geometry of the transporting device is such that is visually obvious to the user when the lawn mower is securely retained on the transporting device. In any condition other than when the lawn mower is properly retained, the short roller arm will be against the short roller arm rotation stop and the long roller arm will be at an angle to the rails of approximately 45 degrees. When the lawn mower is properly retained, the long roller arm will be substantially parallel to the rails. The action of the tension springs prevents an unsafe in-between condition where the long roller arm is in such a position that the rollers are merely resting on the lawn mower front wheels. In this case, the tension springs will rotate the main shaft so that the short roller arm will be against the short roller arm rotation stop, visually indicating that the lawn mower is not safely retained on the transporting device.  
       [0030]FIGS. 7 a  and  7   b  show a lawnmower being placed in the transporting device. In FIG. 7 a , the lawn mower is partially in the transporting device, with the lawn mower front wheels resting on the rails. At this point, the front wheel retainer assembly is in its open position with the short roller arm against the short roller arm rotation stop. FIG. 7 b  shows the lawnmower fully retained on the transporting device. The front wheel retainer assembly is in the closed position, and the long roller arm is against the long roller arm rotation stop. In FIG. 7 b , the flat springs are pushing the lawnmower front wheels against the rollers, eliminating any front-to-back motion of the lawn mower on the transporting device.  
       [0031]FIG. 8 shows a detail of the relationship between the lawn mower front wheel and the transporting device when the lawnmower is retained on the transporting device.  
       CONCLUSIONS, RAMIFICATIONS, AND SCOPE  
       [0032] Advantages of the transporting device include how easy it is to place a lawn mower into the transporter and how easy it is to remove the lawnmower from the transporter. Other advantages include the positive way that the lawn mowers are retained on the transporter and the visual confirmation to the operator that the lawn mowers are properly retained.  
       [0033] The alternate embodiment could be constructed so as to carry only one mower, not two as shown.  
       [0034] The preferred embodiment could be constructed without the space shown between rails  28   b  and  28   c  so as to make it narrow enough to fit compact vehicles.  
       [0035] A box or metal basket could be attached to the transporter between rails  28   b  and  28   c  on the preferred embodiment so as to provide a means of carrying incidental items such as gasoline cans, trash bags, etc.  
       [0036] A similar transporting device could be used to transport items other than lawn mowers, such as scooters for the mobility-impaired, golf club carts, and pavement paint striping machines. The retaining device could be mounted on a truck bed or trailer instead of the transporter&#39;s front cross member and be used to retain wheeled equipment and vehicles.  
     
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
     [0037]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the preferred embodiment of the transporting device.  
     [0038]FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a lawn mower for reference.  
     [0039]FIG. 3 is a detail perspective view of the mower wheel retainer mechanism.  
     [0040]FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the front wheel retainer mechanism.  
     [0041]FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the hitch adaptor.  
     [0042]FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a vehicle trailer hitch receiver for reference  
     [0043]FIGS. 7 a  and  7   b  are perspective views of the preferred embodiment of the transporting device in use.  
     [0044]FIG. 8 is a detail view of the preferred embodiment of the transporting device in use.  
     [0045]FIG. 9 is a detail perspective view of a rear mower wheel vertical locator.  
     [0046]FIG. 10 is a perspective view of an alternate embodiment of the transporting device.  
     [0047]FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the preferred embodiment of the transporting device showing auxiliary equipment racks installed for reference.  
                               Reference Numerals Used In Drawings                                                18   Transporting device, preferred               embodiment           19   Lawn mower (for reference)           20a, 20b   Lawn mower rear wheel (for               reference)           21a, 21b   Lawn mower front wheel (for               reference)           22   Lawn mower deck (for reference)           24   Lawn mower handle (for reference)           26   Trailer hitch Receiver (for               reference)           27   Vehicle rear bumper (for reference)           28a-d   Rails           30   Trailer hitch adaptor           32a, 32b   Trailer hitch adaptor flanges           34a-d   Holes in trailer hitch adaptor               flanges           36           38   Front cross member           40   Rear cross member           42a, 42b   Front wheel retainer assembly           44a, 44b   Main shaft           46a, 46b   Short roller arm           48a, 48b   Long roller arm           50a-d   Roller shaft           52a-d   Roller           56   Vertical member           58   Horizontal member           60   Hole in Horizontal member           62a-f   Holes in vertical member           64a, 64b   Tension spring           66a, 66b   Front coil spring mount           68           70           72           74   Long roller arm coil spring mount           76a,76b   Long roller arm handle           78   Long roller arm lock hole           80a-d   Front wheel stop assembly           82a-d   Front wheel vertical locator           84a-d   Hole in front wheel stop assembly           85a, 85b   Short roller arm rotation stop           86a, 86b   Rear wheel vertical restraint           88a-d   Front wheel stop assembly flat               spring mount           89 a-d   Front wheel stop assembly flat spring           mount hole           90a-d   Flat spring           92a-d   Flat spring hole           94a, 94b   Long roller arm rotation stop           96a, 96b   Long roller arm rotation stop lock hole           98a-d   Auxiliary equipment holding rack mount           102a,   Auxilinry equipment holding rack for           102b   string trimmers (for reference).           104   Auxiliary equipment holding rack for               leaf blowers (for reference).           106   Transporting device, alternate               embodiment, side loading                      
 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERED EMBODIMENTS  
     [0048] The present invention provides for a trailer hitch-mounted transporting device for lawn mowers and landscaping tools.  
     [0049] Disclosed in one embodiment is a trailer hitch-mounted transporting device for lawn mowers and landscaping tools.  
     [0050] A typical lawn mower  19  is shown in FIG. 2. The relevant features are the deck  22  that forms the frame of the mower, the front wheels  21   a  and  21   b , rear wheels  20   a  and  20   b , and the handle  24 .  
     [0051] The transporting device  18  as shown in FIGS. 1, 3,  4 ,  5 ,  8 ,  9 , and  11  comprises a front cross member  38  connected to a rear cross member  40  by a plurality of rails  28   a - d  at substantially right angles to both the front cross member  38  and the rear cross member  40 . These rails  28   a - d  are located such that the space between each pair of their vertical flanges will accommodate the width to the outside of the wheels of the lawn mower  19 . A front wheel retainer assembly  42   a ,  42   b  is located at the front of each pair of rails  28   a - d . Each front wheel retainer assembly  42   a ,  42   b  consists of a main shaft  44   a ,  44   b  on to which the short roller arm  46   a ,  46   b  and the long roller arm  48   a ,  48   b  are mounted. The main shaft  44   a ,  44   b  passes through the holes for main shaft  89   a - d  in the lawn mower front wheel stop assembly  80   a - d . The main shaft  44   a ,  44   b  is free to rotate inside the holes in the lawn mower front wheel stop assembly  84   a - d . The rotation of the main shaft  44   a ,  44   b  is limited in the upward direction by the short roller arm rotation stop  85   a ,  85   b  and in the lower direction by the long roller arm rotation stop  94   a ,  94   b . The long roller arm rotation stop  94   a ,  94   b  incorporates the long roller arm stop lock hole  96   a ,  96   b . This long roller arm stop lock hole  96   a ,  94   b  corresponds with the long roller arm lock hole  78   a ,  78   b  when the long roller arm  48   a ,  48   b  is at rest on the long roller arm rotation stop  94   a ,  94   b.    
     [0052] Each long roller arm  48   a ,  48   b  and short roller arm  46   a ,  46   b  has a roller shaft  50   a - d  located on its inner surface. Each roller shaft  50   a - d  has a roller  52   a - d  mounted coaxially on it. The rollers  52   a - d  are made of a low friction material and are a loose fit on the roller shafts  50   a - d  so that they are free to rotate. Each roller  52   a - d  is held onto its roller shaft  50   a - d  by a cotter pin, e-clip or similar fastener. The roller shafts  50   a - d  are located such that the flat springs  90   a - d  are partially deflected by the front wheels  21   a ,  21   b  when the long roller arm  48   a ,  48   b  is against the long roller arm rotation stop  94   a ,  94   b  but not so close to the main shaft  44   a ,  44   b  that the front wheel  21   a ,  21   b  is jammed against the main shaft  44   a ,  44   b  during the downward rotation of the front wheel retainer assembly  42   a ,  42   b.    
     [0053] The two outboard roller shafts  50   a - d  extend through the long roller arms  48   a ,  48   b  to form a long roller arm coil spring mount  74   a ,  74   b . A front cross member coil spring mount  66   a ,  66   b  is attached to the front of the two outboard rails  28   a - d . A tension spring  64   a ,  64   b  stretches between the long roller arm coil spring mount  74   a ,  74   b  and the front cross member coil spring mount  66   a ,  66   b.    
     [0054] The relationship between the front cross member coil spring mount  66   a ,  66   b , long roller arm coil spring mount  74   a ,  74   b , and the main shaft  44   a ,  44   b  is critical for the proper operation of the front wheel retainer mechanism  42   a ,  42   b . The tension spring  64   a ,  64   b  must pull the front wheel retainer assembly  42   a ,  42   b  downward towards the long roller arm rotation stop  94   a ,  94   b  when the long roller arm  48   a ,  48   b  is on the long roller arm rotation stop  94   a ,  94   b . The tension springs  64   a ,  64   b  must also pull the front wheel retainer assembly  42   a ,  42   b  upward when the short roller arm  46   a ,  46   b  is against the short roller arm rotation stop  85   a ,  85   b . The tension spring  64   a ,  64   b  can satisfy these requirements by being mounted so that as the long roller arm  48   a ,  48   b  rotates, the long axis of the tension spring  64   a ,  64   b  moves from one side of the center line of the main shaft  44   a ,  44   b  to the other.  
     [0055] Each front wheel stop assembly  80   a - d  has its upper front flange bent forward to form a front wheel stop assembly flat spring mount  88   a - d . Each front wheel stop assembly flat spring mount  88   a - d  has a flat spring  90   a - d  bolted onto it. The flat spring  90   a - d  consists of one or more flat pieces of spring steel narrower than the lawn mower front wheels  21   a ,  21   b  and long enough to span the distance between the front wheel stop assembly flat spring mount  88   a - d  and the main shaft  44   a ,  44   b . The angle of the front wheel stop assembly flat spring mount  88   a - d  is such that the flat springs  90   a - d  will be deflected by the front wheels  21   a ,  21   b  when the lawn mower is pushed forward on the rails as the long roller arm  48   a ,  48   b  and short roller arm  46   a ,  46   b  rotate downward. The flat springs  90   a - d  also serve to push the front wheels  21   a ,  21   b  against the rollers when the retainer assembly is against the long roller arm rotation stop  94   a , b, reducing any relative motion between the lawn mower  19  and the transporting device  18 .  
     [0056] The holes in the lawn mower front wheel stop assembly  84   a - d  are located closer to the rails  28   a - d  than is the centerline of the front wheels  21   a ,  21   b  so that as long roller arm  48   a ,  48   b  and short roller arm  46   a ,  46   b  rotate downward, the rollers  52   a - d  pass over the center of the front wheels  21   a ,  21   b . When the rollers  52   a - d  are at the centerline of the front wheels  21   a ,  21   b , the flat springs  90   a - d  are deflected to their maximum position. As the roller  52   a - d  continues downward past the centerline of the front wheels  21   a ,  21   b , the deflection in the flat springs  90   a - d  is lessened as the front wheel  21   a ,  21   b  moves slightly away from the front wheel stop  80   a - d . This over-center action combines with the pull of the tension spring  64   a ,  64   b  to hold the front wheel retainer assembly  42   a ,  42   b  against the long roller arm rotation stop  94   a ,  94   b , securely retaining the lawn mower  19  on the transporting device  18 .  
     [0057] The lawn mower front wheels  21   a ,  21   b  are prevented from moving up away from the lower flange of the rails  28   a - d  by front wheel vertical restraints  82   a - d . These front wheel vertical restraints  82   a - d  are members affixed to each front wheel stop assembly  80   a - d  at a substantially right angle to the long axis of the front wheel stop assembly  80   a - d , approximately parallel to its corresponding rail  28   a - d . The distance between the front wheel vertical restraints  86   a - d  and the lower flange of the rails  28   a - d  is slightly larger than the diameter of the lawn mower front wheel  21   a ,  21   b.    
     [0058] The lawn mower rear wheels  20   a ,  20   b  are prevented from moving up away from the lower flange of the rails  28   a - d  by a rear wheel vertical restraint  86   a ,  86   b . These rear wheel vertical restraints  86   a ,  86   b  consist of a member adjacent to each lawn mower&#39;s  21  left rail  28   a ,  28   c  at a substantially right angle to the long axis of both the rear cross member  40  and the left rail  28   a ,  28   c , and another member at a substantially right angle to it, approximately parallel to its corresponding rail  28   a - d . The distance between the rear wheel vertical restraints  86   a ,  86   b  and the lower flange of the rail  28   a ,  28   c  is slightly larger than the diameter of the lawn mower rear wheel  20   a ,  20   b . Only one rear wheel vertical restraint  86   a ,  86   b  is used per lawn mower  21 , and it is located on the left side of the mower  21  because the designs of most lawn mowers utilize a higher lawn mower deck  22  on the right side that would interfere with a rear wheel vertical restraint  86   a ,  86   b  on that side.  
     [0059] Each long roller arm  48   a ,  48   b  has a handle  76   a ,  76   b  mounted on it to facilitate operation of the retainer assembly without requiring the operator to put his fingers in between any members of the transporting device  18 . These long roller arm handles  76   a ,  76   b  are D-shaped metal loops affixed to the outside face of the long roller arms  48   a ,  48   b  near the end farthest away from the main shaft  44   a ,  44   b.    
     [0060] Each long roller arm rotation stop  94   a ,  94   b  has a long roller arm rotation stop lock hole  96   a ,  96   b  to correspond with a similar long roller arm lock hole  78   a ,  78   b . The long roller arm rotation stop lock hole  96   a ,  96   b  and long roller arm lock hole  78   a ,  78   b  line up when the long roller arm  48   a ,  48   b  is against its long roller arm rotation stop  94   a ,  94   b , and facilitate the use of a padlock to protect the lawn mower  21  from theft when the operator is away.  
     [0061] Most pickup trucks, sport utility vehicles and some automobiles are equipped with a trailer hitch receiver as shown for reference in FIG. 6. This trailer hitch receiver utilizes an industry-standard configuration to allow a variety of trailer hitches and other accessories to be attached to vehicles so equipped. The most common trailer hitch receivers utilize a hollow square steel tube bolted to the rear frame of the vehicle, with the open end of the tube at the centerline of the vehicle pointing directly to the rear. A trailer hitch or other accessory is inserted into the hollow tube. A hole is drilled at a right angle to the long axis of the hollow tube to facilitate the insertion of a pin to retain the trailer hitch or other accessory.  
     [0062] A hitch adaptor  30  as shown in FIG. 5 connects the transporting device  18  to the trailer hitch receiver  26 . The hitch adaptor consists of a horizontal member  58  and a vertical member  56  joined at substantially right angles to each other. The horizontal member&#39;s  58  cross section allows it to slide inside the trailer hitch receiver  26 . This horizontal member  58  has a hole  60  that facilitates the use of a retaining pin through the corresponding hole in the hitch receiver  26  to hold the hitch adaptor  30  in place in the hitch receiver  26 .  
     [0063] The vertical member  56  has a similar cross section to the horizontal member  58  and has a plurality of holes  62   a - f  equally spaced along its length.  
     [0064] A pair of flanges  32   a  and  32   b  is located at the center of the long axis of the front cross member  38 . The distance between these flanges corresponds to the width of the vertical member  56  of the hitch adaptor  30 . A plurality of holes  34   a - d  are drilled in the flanges  32   a  and  32   b  in such a way as to allow a bolt to pass through two or more of the holes as well as the hitch adaptor  30  at the same time, connecting the transporting device  18  and the hitch adaptor  30 . The plurality of holes allows the hitch adaptor  30  to be bolted to the flanges  32   a ,  32   b  in several configurations, providing a way to alter the height of the transporting device  18  from the ground.  
     [0065] A plurality of auxiliary equipment rack mounts  98   a - 98   d  are attached to the front cross member  38  and the rear cross member  40  at substantially right angles to the front cross member  38  and the rear cross member  40 . These auxiliary equipment rack mounts  98   a - 98   d  are intended to provide a mounting location for auxiliary equipment transporting racks provided by the end user that are not part of this transporting device  18 . The configuration and location of these auxiliary equipment rack mounts  98   a - 98   d  will vary depending on the auxiliary equipment racks to be installed by the end user. FIG. 1 shows one such configuration that has auxiliary equipment rack mounting flanges  98   a  and  98   d  located such that auxiliary equipment rack mount  98   a  is incorporated into the rear wheel vertical restraint  86   a  and auxiliary equipment rack mount  98   d  is located so that strength is gained by its attachment to both the rear cross member  40  and the rail  28   d.    
     [0066]FIG. 11 shows user-supplied auxiliary equipment holding racks for string trimmers  102   a ,  102   b  and an auxiliary equipment holding racks for leaf blowers  104  installed for reference on the transporting device  18 .  
     [0067] The geometry of the transporting device  18  is such that is visually obvious to the user when the lawn mower  19  is securely retained on the transporting device  18 . In any condition other than when the lawn mower  19  is properly retained, the short roller arm  46   a ,  46   b  will be against the short roller arm rotation stop  85   a ,  85   b  and the long roller arm  48   a ,  48   b  will be at an angle to the rails  28   a - d  of approximately 45 degrees. When the lawn mower 19  is properly retained, the long roller arm  48   a ,  48   b  will be substantially parallel to the rails  28   a - d . The action of the tension springs  64   a ,  64   b  prevents an unsafe in-between condition where the long roller arm  48   a ,  48   b  is in such a position that the rollers  52   a - d  are merely resting on the lawn mower front wheels  21   a ,  21   b . In this case, the tension springs  64   a ,  64   b  will rotate the main shaft  44   a ,  44   b  so that the short roller arm  46   a ,  46   b  will be against the short roller arm rotation stop  85   a ,  85   b , visually indicating that the lawn mower  19  is not safely retained on the transporting device  18 .  
     [0068]FIGS. 7 a  and  7   b  show a lawnmower  19  being placed in the transporting device  18 . In FIG. 7 a , the lawn mower  19  is partially in the transporting device, with the lawn mower front wheels  21   a  and  21   b  resting on the rails  28   c  and  28   d . At this point, the front wheel retainer assembly  42   b  is in its open position with the short roller arm  46   b  against the short roller arm rotation stop  85   b . FIG. 7 b  shows the lawnmower  19  fully retained on the transporting device  18 . The front wheel retainer assembly  42   b  is in the closed position, and the long roller arm  48   b  is against the long roller arm rotation stop  94   b . In FIG. 7 b , the flat springs  90   c  and  90   d  are pushing the lawnmower front wheels  21   a ,  21   b  against the rollers  52   c  and  52   d , eliminating any front-to-back motion of the lawn mower  19  on the transporting device  18 .  
     [0069]FIG. 8 shows a detail of the relationship between the lawn mower front wheel  21   a ,  21   b  and the transporting device  18  when the lawnmower  19  is retained on the transporting device  18 .  
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF ALTERNATE EMBODIMENTS  
     [0070] One alternate embodiment is shown in FIG. 10. This alternate embodiment has the rails  28   a - d  parallel to the front cross member  38 . The lawnmower  19  is then loaded and unloaded from the side, rather than from the rear as in the preferred embodiment. This design has an advantage in that the distance from the rear of the vehicle to the rearmost point of the transported equipment is less than that of the preferred embodiment. The torque on the trailer hitch adaptor  30  is increased, however, because the center of gravity of the two mowers is moved to the rear.