Patent ID: 8480094

Claim:
A vehicle combination comprising: a vehicle; a long, flexible object; at least one structure on said vehicle providing means for storing said long, flexible object in a stored position, and providing means for operatively attaching a gripping unit near the stored object, said long, flexible object being stored, by said at least one structure, in said stored position on said vehicle with a leading end portion of said object accessible for initiating deployment of said object from said at least one structure; and an alerting system for signaling displacement of said leading end portion of said long, flexible object from said stored position, said alerting system comprising: a mechanical gripping unit comprised of at least two gripping members dimensioned and configured to cooperatively grip therebetween, in direct surface contact, an end portion of said stored, long flexible object; means mounting said gripping members for movement between at least one first position, in which engaging elements of said gripping members are proximate one another, and at least one second position in which said engaging elements are remote from one another and are spaced sufficiently to receive said end portion of said stored object therebetween; and means for biasing said gripping members toward said at least one first position, said end portion of said stored object being gripped between said at least two gripping members of said gripping unit and in direct surface contact of said at least two gripping members with said end portion of said object; signaling means operatively connected for producing at least one alert signal in response to displacement of said gripping members from said at least one second position to said at least one first position; and attaching means operatively connected to said gripping unit and attached to said at least one structure on said vehicle for effectively connecting said gripping unit to said vehicle; whereby, upon displacement of said end portion of said long, flexible object from said at least two members of said gripping unit, said at least one alert sign will be produced by said signaling means.