Patent Application
20150246774
The invention relates to techniques for hauling initially free, unbundled matter and more particularly to moving yard items and other matter utilizing a sheet of material such as a tarpaulin.
Bundled objects such as hay bales or graspable objects such as logs or blocks of ice have been directly engaged by hooks, tongs or other tools for centuries. Features have been added to simple hooks, such as the combined hook and hammer disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 542,178 by Tillett et al., which serves as a grab-hook for “all kinds of bales, boxes, baggage, barrels, and bundles of every nature and description having any considerable bulk and weight . . . ”. A quick-release hay hook with a pivoting handle is described by Penington et al. in U.S. Pat. No. No. 931,339 as useful for handling commodities placed in bales, sacks or bags.
There are many situations in which a person desires to gather and transport initially free, unbundled or unconstrained matter such as mulch, fallen leaves, clippings, twigs and branches, debris or other matter. The initially free matter often is gathered by raking the matter onto a flexible sheet of material such as a tarpaulin, commonly referred to as a tarp, typically having dimensions of six feet by eight feet, seven feet by nine feet, or larger sizes. The person using the tarp must then grasp one or more corners and/or edges of the tarp to control matter lying loosely on the tarp, and then pull on the grasped corners and/or edges to drag or lift the loaded tarp directly to a place for final disposal or to a transport vehicle for subsequent disposal.
If the grip of the user becomes overly relaxed or fatigued while hauling the tarp, or if the user slips, one or more edges of the tarp may drop to spill the gathered matter. Spillage delays the process and can frustrate and further tire the user.
It is therefore desirable to have an improved method of hauling yard items and other matter.
An object of the present invention is to provide an improved and more reliable method of hauling initially free matter such as yard items placed on a sheet of material.
Another object of the present invention is to reduce fatigue of a person hauling the matter.
Yet another object of the present invention is to increase control of and minimize spillage of matter placed on the sheet.
This invention results from the realization that leaves and other initially free matter can be hauled more effectively utilizing a tool which engages multiple positions on a tarp, preferably “streamlining” the tarp relative to the ground over which it will be hauled.
This invention features a method of hauling matter, including selecting a tool having a handle attached to a hook, and placing matter onto a sheet of material. The sheet is engaged with the hook in at least three positions, and the handle is pulled to haul the sheet with matter thereon.
In some embodiments, the handle is pivotally attached to the hook, with at least one degree of freedom of movement, and the handle preferably includes an ergonomic, cushioned grip of a resilient material having a higher coefficient of friction than the material of which the handle is made. In one embodiment, the handle is formed of a metallic material and the grip is formed of a polymeric material. The grip facilitates grasping of the handle by a hand of a user.
This invention may also be expressed as a method of hauling yard items such as mulch, leaves or twigs by selecting a tool having a handle pivotally attached to a hook, the hook having a tip that is sufficiently small to pass through an eyelet commonly found in tarpaulins. The method further includes gathering the yard items onto a tarpaulin having at least four corners and at least four edges extending between the corners, at least first and second corners each having a first corner eyelet and a second corner eyelet, respectively. At least a first edge extends between the first and second corners and has a center edge eyelet disposed approximately at a center of that edge between the first and second corner eyelets. The tarpaulin is engaged with the hook through at least the center edge eyelet and through at least the first and second corner eyelets with the yard items placed on the tarpaulin. The handle is then pulled to haul the tarpaulin with yard items to another location for disposal of the yard items.
In what follows, preferred embodiments of the invention are explained in more detail with reference to the drawings, in which:
This invention may be accomplished by an improved technique of hauling matter on a sheet of material utilizing a tool that increases control of the sheet and reduces user fatigue. The tool is selected to have a handle attached to a hook, which is fixed in some constructions and, in other constructions, is pivotable with at least one degree of freedom relative to the handle. At a first location, matter such as fallen leaves or other yard items is placed onto a sheet of material such as a tarp. The sheet is engaged with the hook in at least three positions on the sheet, and the handle is pulled to haul the sheet with matter thereon to another location.
In one method according to the present invention, a novel tool 10,
Materials utilized to form tool 10 preferably are durable and weather-resistant for repeated outdoor use. In one construction, handle 12 is a six-inch section of round steel stock 12a, approximately one inch in diameter and either solid or hollow, to which is welded a smaller-diameter, solid steel rod 13 to establish a rectangular bracket 15 that extends approximately three inches down from the bottom of the handle 12 and runs almost the entire length of stock 12a. The bottom of this rectangular bracket 15 in turn features a centered eye-strap 17, also of welded solid steel rod, and supports freely articulating, round steel hook 14.
As illustrated, the hook 14 is freely movable up and down in the directions illustrated by solid arrow 40, which represents a first degree of freedom. In this construction, hook 14 is also movable side-to-side in the directions illustrated by dashed arrow 42, representing another degree of freedom for hook 14, as provided by curved portion 19 of hook 14 that is bent around eye-strap 17.
In this construction, steel stock handle 12 is coated with a foam material 30 that preferably is somewhat resilient to provide a comfortable, secure grip and to lessen fatigue during extended use. It is also preferable for material 30 to have a higher coefficient of friction than that of stock 12a to reduce slippage in a hand of a user. A series of projections and indentations 32.
In addition to selecting a suitable tool, one method according to the present invention further includes gathering, such as by raking, and placing matter such as yard items 52,
In a technique 100 according to the present invention as depicted in
Although sheets have been described above as having multiple edges, this is not a limitation of the invention. For example, a suitable sheet 120,
Although specific features of the present invention are shown in some drawings and not in others, this is for convenience only, as each feature may be combined with any or all of the other features in accordance with the invention. While there have been shown, described, and pointed out fundamental novel features of the invention as applied to one or more preferred embodiments thereof, it will be understood that various omissions, substitutions, and changes in the form and details of the devices illustrated, and in their operation, may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, it is expressly intended that all combinations of those elements and/or steps that perform substantially the same function, in substantially the same way, to achieve the same results be within the scope of the invention. Substitutions of elements from one described embodiment to another are also fully intended and contemplated. It is also to be understood that the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, but that they are merely conceptual in nature.
It is the intention, therefore, to be limited only as indicated by the scope of the claims appended hereto. Other embodiments will occur to those skilled in the art and are within the following claims.
This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/947,322 filed 03 Mar. 2014. The entire contents of the above-mentioned application is incorporated herein by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61947322 | Mar 2014 | US |
