Patent Application
20120255625
The present invention relates to a hose reel and, more specifically, a hose reel having a strong frame assembly because the frame assembly is configured so as to not be deformed during the manufacturing process.
Complex devices, e.g. devices formed from a plurality of other components, are typically designed in view of their manufacturing/assembly process. That is, the device is not simply designed to perform a function, but also designed so that it may be easily assembled. Such a design process may, however, result in components that favor one aspect over the other. That is, a component that is made to be easily assembled may result in reduced performance. Conversely, a component designed for the best performance may be difficult to assemble. For example, hose reels are constructs structured to rotatably support a hose. More specifically, a hose reel has a frame assembly and a basket assembly. There are other assemblies as well, such as, but not limited to, the water conduit assembly, but those are not relevant to the present disclosure. The basket assembly includes a barrel about which a hose is wound. The frame assembly is structured to rotatably support the basket assembly. Such hose reels are subjected to wear and tear both when the entire hose reel is moved about a yard and when the hose is being wound/unwound about the basket assembly. Such wear and tear is exacerbated when the hose reel components are not held in place. As such, it is generally desirable for hose reels to be fairly rigid.
Hose reel frame assemblies are, typically, made from either tubular metal members or molded plastic members. Metal frame assemblies tend to be more expensive and are prone to rust. Thus, many hose reels are made from plastic. Such hose reels typically have two side frames coupled by a plurality of cross members. That is, the frame assembly is generally divided by a vertical, longitudinal plane wherein the elements on opposing sides of the plane are mirror images of each other. It is further noted that the more cross members that are provided, the more rigid the final frame assembly. The basket assembly, which includes a barrel, two radial flanges, and an axle, is disposed between the two side frames and structured to rotate about the axle. The hose is wrapped about the barrel and disposed in the space defined by the two flanges and the outer surface of the barrel.
From a performance perspective, that is, looking at strength, durability, cost, etc. of the plastic frame assembly, it would be generally more desirable to have a single unitary body. Such a frame assembly would require a reduced number of molds and could be designed to be substantially rigid. Further, there would be very few parts to track during the assembly process. There are several problems with such a design, however. For example, the basket assembly must be inserted between the two side frames. The basket assembly axle extends through openings in the side frames. Thus, the basket assembly is wider than the space between the two side frames. To insert such a basket between a rigid frame would require that the frame be spread apart. This action would weaken the frame assembly. Further, larger molds are expensive and difficult to make as well as difficult to use.
From an assembly perspective, that is, looking at how to make the hose reel easy to assemble, it is generally more desirable to have a multi-part frame assembly. This configuration allows the frame assembly to be built around the basket assembly thereby avoiding the problem of bending the rigid plastic frame members. There are, however, several disadvantages to this configuration as well. First, it is often difficult to couple plastic components in a rigid manner. Metal fasteners, e.g. nuts and bolts or screws threaded into plastic bores, are typically more rigid than the material to which they are connected. Moreover, the more cross members there are, the more fasteners that must be used to assemble the frame assembly. The more cross frame members and fasteners required, the more components there are to track during the assembly of the hose reel. Further, such the metal components may wear on the plastic components, thereby increasing wear and tear during use.
The disclosed and claimed concept relates to a hose reel having a frame assembly with a horizontally split frame. That is, the frame assembly includes a handle assembly and a lower frame assembly. Unlike the prior art, however, the lower frame assembly includes two side frame assemblies and a base assembly. The base assembly can be made as a unitary body and includes members extending longitudinally, i.e. along both lateral sides of the frame assembly as well as at least one cross member extending in a lateral direction. In this configuration, the base assembly has the advantages of a single piece frame, e.g strength and reduced number of components and is small enough that molding the part is not difficult. The side frame assemblies are structured to be coupled to the base assembly as well as being structured to rotatably support the basket assembly. Thus, the basket assembly may be rotatably coupled to the side frame assemblies and then the side frame assemblies can be coupled to the base assembly. In this configuration, neither the side frame assemblies nor the base assembly are spread or otherwise deformed during the coupling of the basket assembly to the frame assembly.
This configuration provides the advantages of both configurations discussed above, without the disadvantages. That is, the unitary base assembly is strong and rigid and does not require fasteners to couple the cross members to the side members, while the separate side frame assemblies allow for easy coupling of the basket assembly to the frame assembly.
A full understanding of the invention can be gained from the following description of the preferred embodiments when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:
As used herein, “coupled” means a link between two or more elements, whether direct or indirect, so long as a link occurs.
As used herein, “directly coupled” means that two elements are directly in contact with each other.
As used herein, “fixedly coupled” or “fixed” means that two components are coupled so as to move as one while maintaining a constant orientation relative to each other. The fixed components may, or may not, be directly coupled.
As used herein, the word “unitary” means a component is created as a single piece or unit. That is, a component that includes pieces that are created separately and then coupled together as a unit is not a “unitary” component or body.
As used herein, “temporarily coupled” means that two components are coupled in a manner that allows for the components to be easily decoupled without damaging the components.
As used herein, “correspond” indicates that two structural components are sized to engage each other with a minimum amount of friction. Thus, an opening which corresponds to a member is sized slightly larger than the member so that the member may pass through the opening with a minimum amount of friction. This definition is modified if the two components are said to fit “snugly” together. In that situation, the difference between the size of the components is even smaller whereby the amount of friction increases.
As used herein a “handle” is an element that is generally structured to be grasped by a user and not an element that is merely capable of being grasped. For example, a wheelbarrow frame assembly may have a plurality of elongated members that may be grasped, but only the handles are structured, i.e. positioned and sized, to be grasped by the user.
As used herein, a “grip” is the portion of a handle structured to be gripped by a user. A “grip” includes a portion of a handle having a sufficient, substantially straight length of handle to accommodate the width of four fingers, and may also include a textured surface on the handle and/or a padded portion of the handle. A “grip” must be distinguishable from other portions of the handle. For example, a smooth, straight broomstick is a handle without an identifiable grip because no portion of the handle is different than any other portion.
As used herein, “plastic” is limited to polymers and do not include metal materials.
As is known, a hose reel 10, discussed below, is commonly mounted on fixed orientation wheels (i.e. the wheel assembly does not include a vertical axis similar to an office chair caster). When a basket assembly 200, discussed below, is disposed in a fixed orientation to a frame assembly 20, discussed below, the axis of rotation of the basket assembly 200 typically extends horizontally and perpendicularly to the direction of travel of the hose reel. Accordingly, as used herein, the “longitudinal axis” of the hose reel 10 extends in the direction of travel of the hose reel 10; that is, generally perpendicular to the wheel's horizontal axis of rotation. Further, the “lateral axis” of the hose reel 10 extends generally perpendicular to the “longitudinal axis” in a generally horizontal plane.
As described below, there are several components of the hose reel that have similar corresponding components, often a mirror image component. It is understood when two components are being described, subsequent pairs of reference numbers relate to the respective components. For example, as set forth below, the first and second side frame assemblies 26, 28 each include a forward support member 40, 42. This means that the first side frame assembly 26 includes forward support member 40 and the second side frame assembly 28 includes forward support member 42.
As shown in
The frame assembly 20 is made from plastic components and, as detailed below, preferably from a plurality of elongated members which include at least one closed, extruded member 21. As shown in
The base assembly 29 includes a first base member 48 and a second base member 50, which extend longitudinally along each lateral side of the base assembly 29, as well as one or more cross members 30. In a preferred embodiment, the base members 48, 50 are shaped as upwardly extending arches. On each base member 48, 50 there is a front frame coupling 52, 54, and a rear frame coupling 56, 58. Each frame coupling 52, 54, 56, 58 includes a post 53 and a lug 55. Each frame coupling 52, 54, 56, 58, and more specifically each post 53, extends generally upwardly. Each lug 55 is disposed at the distal end of the associated post 53 and each lug 55 is sized and shaped to snuggly correspond to the lower ends of the support members 40, 42, 44, 46. The side frame assemblies 26, 28 are coupled, as described below, to the upper side of the base assembly 29 to form the lower frame assembly 24. In this embodiment, the first side frame assembly 26, the second side frame assembly 28, and the base assembly 29 are each formed as a unitary body.
Further, a wheel 45, 47 (
The side frame assemblies 26, 28 are structured to rotatably support the basket assembly 200. That is, the basket assembly 200 includes a cylindrical barrel 202. At each end of the barrel 202 there is a radially extending flange 204, 206. The space about the barrel 202 and in between the two flanges 204, 206 define the basket 208 which is the space in which the hose reel hose (not shown) is disposed. That is, the hose reel hose is wrapped about the barrel 202. As is known, a portion of the water conduit assembly 300 extends through one axle 212 (
The frame assembly 20 may include various types of members, e.g. solid, hollow, closed extrusion, etc. In this disclosure, at least one frame member is an elongated closed extrusion member 31, as shown in
The at least one closed extrusion member 31 is positioned with the outer side 35 oriented to be highly visible. That is, the at least one closed extrusion member 31, or a substantial portion of the at least one closed extrusion member 31, outer side 35 faces generally forward and/or upward. Conversely, the at least one closed extrusion member 31, inner side 33 faces generally backward and/or downward. In this configuration, a user or observer will typically see the smooth outer side of the at least one closed extrusion member 31.
A closed extrusion member 31 may further be supported by one or more ribs 51. The ribs 51 are disposed on the inner side 33 of a closed extrusion member 31. The ribs 51 are planar members 68 having an inner edge 64 and an outer edge 66. The rib inner edge 64 is, preferably, directly coupled to the inner side of a closed extrusion member 31 and may be formed as a unitary body therewith. Thus, the rib inner edge 64, preferably, corresponds with the shape of the closed extrusion member 31. That is, if the closed extrusion member 31 is a narrow, rectangular channel, as shown in
The ribs 51 may extend generally perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the closed extrusion member 31 or may extend at an angle generally less than perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the closed extrusion member 31. Typically, when the ribs 51 have a curved outer edge 66, the ribs 51 extend generally perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the closed extrusion member 31. Ribs 51 in this configuration resemble the inner side of a canoe. Ribs 51 having a straight outer edge 66 typically extend at an angle generally less than perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the closed extrusion member 31. Further, such ribs 51 typically cross over each other creating a pattern similar to “X's”, as shown in
Preferably, each of the frame members forming the side frame assemblies 26, 28, and the base assembly 29 are closed extrusion members 31. That is, each support member, 40, 42, 44, 46, and each base member 48, 50 is elongated and has a lateral width, i.e. a width normal to the plane of the side frame assemblies 26, 28. The support members 40, 42, 44, 46 each descend from the associated hub 32, 34 with the forward support members 40, 42 extending toward the hose reel front side 12 and the rear support members 44, 46 extending toward the hose reel rear side 14. The distal ends of each support member, 40, 42, 44, 46 have a rib 51 spaced therefrom. That is, each distal end of each support member, 40, 42, 44, 46 forms a pocket (not shown). As noted above, base members 48, 50 may be upwardly arched so that, when the side frame assemblies 26, 28 are coupled thereto, the two lateral sides of the frame assembly 20 generally resemble a capital “A” with the hub 32, 34 at the vertex of the support members, 40, 42, 44, 46. In this configuration, a user, and more specifically a user's eyes, will typically be disposed above the side frame assemblies 26, 28 and the base assembly 29. Thus, to reduce the chance of the user seeing the closed extrusion member inner side 33, the closed extrusion members inner sides 33 face generally downwardly. It is noted that, at the back end of the arched base members 48, 50, the closed extrusion members inner sides 33 face forwardly and, as such, could be seen by a user standing directly in front of the hose reel 10. Typically, however, the other elements of the side frame assemblies 26, 28, notably the forward support member 40, 42, will block the user's view of the forward end of the arched base members 48, 50. Only when a user is standing to one side of the hose reel 10 will the user be able to see some small portion of the arched base member closed extrusion member inner side 33. This is noted as the disclosed concept does not require that the entire closed extrusion member inner side 33 face backwardly and/or downwardly, but rather that a substantial portion of each closed extrusion member 31 face backwardly and/or downwardly.
Further, the base assembly cross frame members 30 may also be closed extrusion members 31. The cross frame members 30 are, preferably, arcuate closed extrusion members 31 having longitudinal sidewalls. The closed extrusion member cross frame members 30 may have ribs 51 disposed on the inner side. The closed extrusion member cross frame members 30 face substantially downwardly. In this configuration, a user cannot typically see the inner side of the closed extrusion member cross frame members 30. It is noted that, while the closed extrusion member outer side 35 is typically smooth, the closed extrusion member cross frame member 30 disposed at the front side 12 of the hose reel 10 may include a textured step 23. The textured step 23 is disposed on the same lateral side as the barrel crank 214. In operation, the user may stand on the textured step 23 while using the crank 214.
To assemble the hose reel 10, the basket assembly 200 is coupled to the two side frame assemblies 26, 28. That is, the basket assembly axle 210, 212 is rotatably coupled to the first and second side frame assembly hubs 32, 34. The two side frame assemblies 26, 28 are then coupled to the base assembly 29 at the frame couplings 52, 54, 56, 58. That is, the pockets located at the distal ends of each support member 40, 42, 44, 46 correspond to the lugs 55 and, more specifically, the lugs 55 snuggly correspond to the pockets. Preferably, the posts 53 have an outer surface with substantially the same dimensions as the support member 40, 42, 44, 46 coupled thereto. In this configuration, there is an essentially seamless transition between the outer side 35 of each support member 40, 42, 44, 46 and the associated coupling 52, 54, 56, 58. Further, in this configuration, the base assembly 29, which, as noted above, is preferably a unitary body, does not have to be spread, or in any other way be significantly deformed in order to couple the basket assembly 200 to the base assembly 29.
The reason the base assembly 29 does not have to be deformed, e.g. spread, is because the basket assembly 200 is not directly coupled thereto. Another feature of this configuration is that the basket assembly 200 axis of rotation does not pass through the base assembly 29. More specifically, when the basket assembly 200 axis of rotation extends generally horizontally, the basket assembly 200 axis of rotation does not pass through the base assembly 29. That is, even if one were to configure a hose reel 10 so that the basket assembly 200 was not directly coupled to a base assembly 29, e.g. by having a basket assembly 200 that is coupled to a bearing which is coupled to the base assembly 29, a unitary body base assembly 29 would still be spread apart in order to position the basket assembly 200 within the base assembly 29. In this embodiment, the base assembly 29 is not deformed because the basket assembly 200 is not disposed within the space defined by the base assembly 29. This may be conveniently expressed by noting that the axis of rotation of the basket assembly 200 does not pass through the base assembly 29.
The frame assembly handle assembly 22 also includes closed extrusion members 31. As shown in
That is, the handle assembly 22 may move between an upper first position (
When the handle assembly 22 moves between the first and second positions, the first and second arms 72, 74 also move between an upper first position and a lower second position. It is noted that, unlike the prior art, wherein it is known to move the handle to the front of the hose reel 10 in the lower position, in this embodiment when the first and second arms 72, 74 are in the first position, the handle assembly body 70 extends toward the lower frame assembly 24 rear side 14, and when the first and second arms 72, 74 are in the second position, said handle assembly body 70 extends toward said lower frame assembly 24 rear side 14 as well.
As noted above, the handle assembly arms 72, 74 are preferably closed extrusion members 31. The handle assembly arms 72, 74 are positioned with the inner side 33 of the closed extrusion members 31 facing generally backwardly when in the first, upper position, and substantially downwardly when in the second, lower position. As before, the handle assembly aims 72, 74 may be any embodiment of a closed extrusion member 31, as discussed above, but are preferably arcuate closed extrusion member 31 having tangential sidewalls. The handle assembly arms 72, 74 preferably include ribs 51 having a straight outer edge 66 extending at an angle generally less than perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the closed extrusion member 31. That is, the handle assembly arms 72, 74 preferably include ribs 51 which cross over each other creating a pattern similar to “X's”, as shown in
The handle member 76 may also be a closed extrusion member 31, but more preferably is formed of a series of exposed, closely spaced, parallel ribs 51, thereby forming the grip 78. A shell 79, e.g. a semicircular tube, may be disposed over a portion of the exposed ribs 51 forming the grip 78.
While specific embodiments of the invention have been described in detail, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that various modifications and alternatives to those details could be developed in light of the overall teachings of the disclosure. Accordingly, the particular arrangements disclosed are meant to be illustrative only and not limiting as to the scope of invention which is to be given the full breadth of the claims appended and any and all equivalents thereof.
