Abstract:
A trailer for off-road vehicles that can be loaded and unloaded easily by one person without the need for ramps having side-by-side beds that independently tilt while the trailer is hitched to the tow vehicle, and locked in the horizontal position for transportation. The beds are balanced so that they gently tilt back when they are not locked. A coverall can be provided to protect the vehicles during transportation.

Description:
BACKGROUND  
       [0001]     1. Field of the Invention  
         [0002]     The invention relates to trailers for transporting off-road vehicles behind a tow vehicle.  
         [0003]     2. Description of the Related Art  
         [0004]     General duty cars and trucks are easily capable of pulling trailers on which two off-road vehicles are parked side-by-side. Examples of off-road vehicles include, without limitation, snowmobiles, ATVs, ATCs, and motorcycles. Some trailers presently in existence require the user to use a separate ramp to drive the vehicle onto the trailer. Such ramps are hazardous to use because the ramps are flimsy, do not store well on the trailer or the tow vehicle, and the vehicle can tip easily while traveling up the ramp.  
         [0005]     The other method to load the trailer is to unhitch the trailer from the tow vehicle and tilt the trailer backward for loading. This is a difficult maneuver that cannot be done by one person.  
         [0006]     As they are typically used, two or more people will take off-road vehicles out for trail riding. However, they may not arrive back at the tow vehicle at the same time at the end of the day. Sometimes, one of the riders makes a wrong turn and must be picked up elsewhere. Often, one vehicle will break down, or run out of gas, and need to be picked up by the tow vehicle. Loading and unloading a vehicle with one person can be difficult or even impossible. What is needed, therefore, is a trailer for off-road vehicles that can be loaded and unloaded easily, by one person, that does not require separate ramps.  
       SUMMARY  
       [0007]     A trailer for off-road vehicles that can be loaded and unloaded easily by one person without the need for ramps is a trailer having side-by-side beds mounted on a frame that independently tilt while the trailer is hitched to the tow vehicle, and locked in the horizontal position for transportation. The vehicles can be covered for transportation by a coverall. These and other features and embodiments of the invention will be made clear in the following drawings, description, and claims 
     
    
     DRAWINGS  
       [0008]      FIG. 1  is a side elevation of a split tilting trailer and coverall according to the present invention.  
         [0009]      FIG. 2  is a plan view of the frame assembly.  
         [0010]      FIG. 3  is a plan view of the bed assembly.  
         [0011]      FIG. 4  is a plan view of the bed assembled to the frame.  
         [0012]      FIG. 5  is a plan view of the bed assembly with decking and non-skid surface applied.  
         [0013]      FIG. 6  is a cutaway section of axle and hinge assembly. 
     
    
     DESCRIPTION  
       [0014]     A trailer for off-road vehicles that can be operated by one person has a tongue and wheel frame hingedly connected to two side-by-side beds and latch mechanisms.  FIG. 1  is a side view of the trailer  10  with the right side bed  16  tilted for loading and unloading. The left side bed  14  remains horizontal. Both beds are secured with a hinge, not shown in this view, to a tongue and wheel frame  18 . Standard trailer landing gear  20  is shown at the tongue of the frame  18 .  
         [0015]     An optional coverall  48  can be provided hingledly attached to the frame  18  by a hinge means  44 . The coverall  48  is preferably a rigid, unitary cover, but it can be split in a way corresponding to the beds  14 ,  16 . The coverall  48  is shown tilted upward and supported in that position by a coverall support means  46 . The coverall support means  46  can be a gas strut assembly, or a rigid member. Note that the right side bed  16  can be tilted toward the unloading position and not interfere with the coverall  48 . The coverall  48  is preferably provided with a coverall hatch  50  that provides access to the vehicles when the hatch  50  is opened. The hatch  50  can be supported in an open position by a hatch support means  52 . The hatch support means  52  can be a gas strut assembly, or a rigid member.  
         [0016]      FIG. 2  is an overhead view of the tongue and wheel frame assembly  18 . A standard ball receiver assembly  36  is mounted on the tongue, to which the other frame hardware is attached. Opposite the tongue is an axle assembly  28 , to which the right and left tires  22   a  and  22   b  are attached. Axle assemblies can be purchased as a complete unit. The preferred embodiment uses a DURA-FLEX rubber torsion axle from QDS/Henschen, Inc. The axle assembly  28  is bolted or welded onto the frame. Braces  34   a ,  34   b  may be provided to stabilize the frame and add strength.  
         [0017]     The right and left sides of the frame  18  each have two hinge supports  24   a ,  24   b ,  24   c , and  24   d  (together referred to as  24 ) attached to the axle assembly  28 . Through the hinge supports  24  are secured independent hinge rods  26   a ,  26   b  on the right and left sides axially aligned with the axle assembly  28 . Details of this arrangement are shown in Section  6 - 6  and  FIG. 6 .  
         [0018]     At the forward corners of the square portion of the frame assembly  18  is at least one latch mechanism for each side. The latch mechanisms are designed to hold each side of the bed in a horizontal position for transporting the trailer. The latch mechanisms comprise a frame latch block  30   a ,  30   b  attached to the frame  18 , preferably by welding. A hole is provided in each frame latch block adapted to accept a pin  32   a ,  32   b  that will engage a latch mechanism on the beds.  
         [0019]      FIG. 3  is an overhead view of the right side bed  16  and left side bed  14 . The beds should have some sort of a deck on them to enable them to carry an off-road vehicle. The decks are not shown in this figure to make it easier to view the complete assembly. At least one bed latch block  40   a ,  40   b  is attached to the forward edge of the bed, and is provided with a hole adapted to receive the pins  32   a ,  32   b  from  FIG. 2 . The bed latch blocks  40   a ,  40   b  have holes inside that are designed to align with the holes in the frame latch blocks to receive the pins.  
         [0020]     At least two hinge blocks  38   a ,  38   b ,  38   c ,  38   d  are provided for each bed  16 , 14 . The hinge blocks each have holes in them adapted to receive the hinge rods  26   a ,  26   b . The hinge blocks are secured to bed support members  42   a ,  42   b , which in turn support the beds and the vehicles that are transported upon them.  
         [0021]      FIG. 4  is an overhead view of the beds  14 ,  16  assembled on top of the frame  18 . In this view, the latch blocks are pinned together to keep the beds in the horizontal position. The right bed  16  and left bed  14  are not secured to each other. Each is free to rotate on its hinge on the frame  18 . A helpful design consideration is to mount the beds  14 ,  16  so that their balance points are slightly behind the hinge point. This way, when the pins  32   a ,  32   b  are released when the beds are not supporting a vehicle, the back end of the bed will gently tip so that the back end of the bed is touching the ground. A snowmobile or ATV can simply climb the back end of the bed without assistance. When the balance point of the bed plus vehicle passes over the hinge, the bed will tip back to horizontal.  
         [0022]      FIG. 5  is a plan view of the beds with decking disposed on top. The decking on each side  54 ,  56  is preferably plywood, but other materials like sheet metal, expanded metal, and fiberglass can be used. Optionally disposed on top of the decking  54 ,  56  is a non-skid layer on the left side  58  and the right side  60  extending from the rear end of the trailer to approximately the middle, and about the width of a typical snowmobile track. The purpose of this layer is to provide a snowmobile with traction for loading and unloading under its own power. A non-skid layer is also disposed along substantially the entire length of the left side  62  of the left bed  14  and of the right side  64  of the left bed  14 . Likewise, a non-skid layer is also disposed along substantially the entire length of the left side  68  of the right bed  16  and of the right side  70  of the right bed  16 . The purpose of these layers is to provide traction to a user during loading and unloading, and while mounting and dismounting a vehicle. Another benefit of this arrangement is that snowmobile skis will slide along the decking surface without contacting a non-skid surface. The non-skid surface in the middle of the beds only needs to extend as far as a snowmobile&#39;s track. Only a user&#39;s feet and snowmobile tracks need to contact a non-skid surface, which is what this invention provides.  
         [0023]      FIG. 6  is a cross section of the frame hinge assembly mounted on the axle assembly  28 . The preferred embodiment of the axle members, as well as the other parts of the trailer, is that they are constructed of square structural tubing as shown. The hinge supports  24  are attached to the axle assembly  28 , preferably by welding. A hole is provided in the hinge supports  24  to receive a hinge rod  26 . The hinge rods  26  and hinge supports  24  must be designed to support the weight of the beds and the vehicles they carry during transportation, plus an adequate safety margin.  
         [0024]     To load the trailer with an off-road vehicle with the trailer hitched, the single operator would first raise the coverall  48  and release the pin  32  for a bed  14 ,  16  of the selected side of the trailer. Because the beds are weighted heavier at the back end, or else the pivot point is forward of the center of mass, the back end would then gently pivot on the hinge rod  26  until the back end of the bed rests on the ground. The operator can then drive the vehicle up the bed from the back. When he reaches the pivot point, the bed and vehicle will automatically tip forward to the horizontal position. The operator would dismount from the vehicle and replace the pin  32  to lock the bed  14 ,  16  in the horizontal position. The vehicle would be further tied to the trailer to prevent movement during transportation, and the coverall  48  would be lowered. Unloading the vehicle is simply the reverse of loading.  
         [0025]     While there have been described what are at present considered to be the preferred embodiments of this invention, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the invention and it is, therefore, aimed to cover all such changes and modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.