Patent ID: 6964445

Claim:
An arrangement for assisting with opening and closing the tail gate of an open trailer, comprising: an open trailer, including a frame defining a front, rear, left, right, top and bottom; a hinge mounted on said frame, said hinge having a horizontal axis of rotation; a tail gate having first and second ends, said first end being mounted to said hinge so that said tail gate pivots relative to said trailer about said horizontal axis of rotation from a substantially vertical closed position to a substantially horizontal open position; an upright post mounted near the rear of said frame and projecting upwardly above the elevation of said hinge; and an elastic member having first and second ends, said first end being secured to said upright post and said second end being secured to said tail gate, wherein said elastic member defines a straight line and extends downwardly from said first end to said second end at all the positions of said tail gate, from said closed position to said open position, so that said elastic member elongates continuously as said tail gate moves from its closed position to its open position.