Patent ID: 7959180

Claim:
A tow bar for connecting a towing vehicle to a vehicle to be towed, the tow bar comprising: (a) a towing hitch member secured to the towing vehicle, the towing hitch member including a pintle hitch; (b) a towed vehicle hitch member secured to the vehicle to be towed; (c) a head member; (d) a lunette ring connected to the head member and structured to releasably connect the head member to the pintle hitch; (e) a pair of tow bar legs, each tow bar leg having: (1) a proximal end including a hollow outer member with a distal end and a first axis, and (2) a distal end including an inner member with a proximal end telescopingly displaceable longitudinally within the outer member, and a second axis colinearly-aligned with the first axis; (f) fore leg connector mechanisms connecting proximal ends of the tow bar legs to the head member wherein the proximal end of at least one of the tow bar legs is pivotally connected to the head member; (g) aft leg connector mechanisms secured to the distal ends of the tow bar legs, the aft leg connector mechanisms being structured to releasably connect the tow bar legs to the towed vehicle hitch member; and (h) a latching mechanism including a locking portion secured to the outer member of each of the tow bar legs near the distal end of the outer member, the locking portion structured to automatically and releasably lock the respective tow bar leg in a deployed configuration, each locking portion including: (1) a housing having a slot, (2) an orifice through a wall of the respective hollow outer member, (3) a latch device having a distal end, the latch device being slidingly mounted in the slot, (4) a biasing mechanism structured to bias the latch device radially inwardly and through the orifice of the respective outer member wherein the distal end of the latch device extends into the path of the respective inner member, and (5) a cammed release mechanism.