1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to appliance moving devices, and particularly to a hand truck for appliances that is particularly useful as a dolly for transporting a water heater to a water heater drain pan.
2. Description of the Related Art
Water heaters are common appliances in homes and in commercial businesses. Even when empty and ready to be installed, water heaters are very heavy and, due to their size and weight, cannot be easily transported. Thus, it is necessary to utilize a hand truck, cart, dolly or the like in order to install a water heater.
Typically, a water heater is loaded onto such a cart or dolly, transported to the installation site, lifted off the cart or dolly, and then manually lifted into the water heater drain pan. Typical carts and dollies are not configured so that the water heater can simply be inserted into the drain pan. The water heater must first be unloaded, and then multiple people must manually lift and transport the water heater into the drain pan. It would be far more efficient to provide a moving device that could not only transport the water heater to the drain pan, but also deposit and position the water heater in the drain pan, thus saving the time and energy required to unload the water heater and then manually lift and position the water heater into the drain pan. Thus, a hand truck for appliances solving the aforementioned problems is desired.
The hand truck for appliances is a device for moving a water heater or the like. The hand truck includes a main frame having a pair of wheels mounted on a lower end, with a support plate mounted on spacer bars that project forward from the lower end of the main frame. The main frame is a substantially U-shaped support formed from a pair of tubular members joined together at upper ends thereof. A support arm is pivotally mounted adjacent the upper end of the main frame and is foldable into the plane defined by the pair of tubular members.
The support plate has a front edge and a rear edge, with the rear edge being contoured to be received within a water heater drain pan, the rear edge being positioned adjacent and contiguous to the inner wall of the water heater drain pan. This allows the water heater to be carried on the hand truck, supported by the support plate, and to be placed directly into the water heater drain pan. The support plate is positioned forward of the main frame and is adapted for providing support of the lower wall of the water heater.
A pair of parallel horizontal supports curve rearward across the U-shaped frame. A vertical support rod and an arcuate handle are attached to the horizontal supports and extend rearward from the lower half of the main frame. The wheels of the hand truck are mounted on an axle that is supported rearward from the main frame centrally by the lower end of the handle and laterally by V-shaped supports extending from the main frame.
The hand truck further includes an adjustable strap for securing the water heater to the hand truck.
In an alternative embodiment, the main frame includes parallel spaced apart vertical supports and a generally circular upper frame member attached to upper ends of the vertical supports. The lower ends of the vertical supports are attached medially to spacer bars arranged in a V-shape. A bracket is attached to the vertex of the V-shaped spacer bars, the bracket supporting an axle tube extending rearward of the main frame. Wheels are rotatably mounted at opposite ends of the axle tube. A support plate for lifting the bottom of a water heater is attached to tubes that depend from the front ends of the V-shaped spacer bars so that the support plate is offset forward from the main frame. One or more support arms may pivotally extend forward from the main frame, and may terminate in a concave bar for supporting the upper portion of the water heater. Straps may be provided for securing the water heater to the hand truck.
These and other features of the present invention will become readily apparent upon further review of the following specification and drawings.
Similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistently throughout the attached drawings.
As illustrated in
As shown in
Although the size, shape and materials used in the construction of the hand truck for appliances are dependent upon the needs and desires of the user, in the preferred embodiment, the frame 16 is formed from approximately 1-inch thick steel pipe. Further, pivoting support arm 18, in the preferred embodiment, is approximately nine and one-quarter inches long, and the vertical height between the support surface, such as the ground or floor, and the bottom of the end caps 20 is approximately forty inches.
Pivoting support arm 18 may be folded downwardly so that support arm 18 is folded into the plane defined by the pair of tubular members. This allows water heater 12 to be loaded onto the hand truck for appliances 10 without interference from the support arm 18. Additionally, a crossbar 22 is mounted above support arm 18, and also between the pair of tubular members. Crossbar 22 limits upward movement of pivoting support arm 18 and further provides structural stability to the hand truck 10. In the preferred embodiment, pivoting support arm 18 may be formed from pipe having an inner diameter of approximately one-quarter inch and an outer diameter of approximately one-half inch. Pivoting support arm 18 may be further secured to frame 16 through the addition of washers or other spacing and fastener elements. The central portion of pivoting support arm 18 may be covered with a padding material, such as rubber, to minimize the risk of damage to the water heater 12 when the water heater 12 is loaded on the hand truck or dolly 10 and contacts pivoting support arm 18.
As best shown in
As shown in
V-shaped supports 46 may be secured to axle tube 40 through welding or the like, with the vertices of V-shaped supports 46 being joined to the axle tube 40, as shown in the drawings. In the preferred embodiment, V-shaped supports 46 may be curved metal pipe having a diameter of approximately one inch, and a thickness of approximately one-sixteenth of an inch, though the thickness and diameter of supports 46 may be adjusted as required.
As best shown in
A vertical plate 24 is mounted to the front surface of frame 16, and is positioned substantially centrally thereon. As shown in
A buckle 26, which may be a ratcheting type buckle or the like, is mounted on the rear surface of frame 16, for use with strap 28, as best shown in
A pair of mounting plates 36 are secured to the front surface of frame 16 at the lower end thereof. Respective rear ends of horizontal spacer bars 48 are mounted on mounting plates 36 and project forwardly therefrom. In the preferred embodiment, horizontal spacer bars 48 may be steel pipes having a diameter of approximately one inch, and are welded to mounting plates 36. A pair of downwardly directed plate mounts 50 are fixed to horizontal spacer bars 48, as shown in
As shown in
In use, the user transports the water heater 12 on hand truck 10, as shown in
In the alternative embodiment of
Similarly, hand truck 100 includes a pair of wheels 142, similar to wheels 42. A tube is supported by bracket 130 rearward of the main frame and has axles extending from opposite ends thereof. Wheels 142, with wheel ball bearing assemblies mounted in their hubs, are retained on the axles by split pins, cotter pins, or the like. In the embodiment of
Further, in the embodiment of
It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above, but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/738,996, filed Nov. 23, 2005.
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
1512454 | Cade | Oct 1924 | A |
1790319 | Rall | Jan 1931 | A |
2385514 | Hawkins | Sep 1945 | A |
2439581 | Robins | Apr 1948 | A |
2510676 | Biek | Jun 1950 | A |
D162163 | Hewitt | Feb 1951 | S |
2764420 | Morrissy | Sep 1956 | A |
2780476 | Upchurch | Feb 1957 | A |
2820643 | Cohn | Jan 1958 | A |
3941399 | Peters | Mar 1976 | A |
4902187 | Rousseau | Feb 1990 | A |
5029884 | Maendel | Jul 1991 | A |
5624224 | Brandenburg | Apr 1997 | A |
5667239 | Yang | Sep 1997 | A |
D404877 | Popham | Jan 1999 | S |
6053516 | Ottaway | Apr 2000 | A |
6394471 | Watson | May 2002 | B1 |
6789808 | Yang | Sep 2004 | B2 |
6799769 | Ziolkowski | Oct 2004 | B2 |
7513511 | Chaseateau | Apr 2009 | B2 |
20060082086 | Donaldson | Apr 2006 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country |
---|---|---|
3806754 | Sep 1989 | DE |
2067479 | Jul 1981 | GB |
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
20070114739 A1 | May 2007 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
60738996 | Nov 2005 | US |