Patent Application
20070169976
This invention relates to a support mechanism for a hood which covers a vehicle engine and other components of a vehicle such as an agricultural or industrial tractor.
Agricultural and industrial tractors typically have hoods which cover the engine compartment and extend from the operator's station to the front portion of the tractor. Tractor hoods may include a top panel and left and right side panels that are integral, so that the hood may open as a single unit. Tractor hoods traditionally have been sheet metal, but increasingly are made of molded plastic.
Two types of supports are commonly used to hold tractor hoods open for servicing. One type are gas struts or gas springs that provide assistance in raising the hood and contribute to stability of the hood. Gas struts or gas springs are expensive, are prone to failure due to wear and loss of gas charge, and have a variable force as the temperature varies.
The second type are prop rods that extend between the engine compartment and a raised part of the hood. Prop rods may be difficult to use, at least in part because they do not help raise the hood and may be difficult to engage with the hood. Additionally, prop rods engage the hood away from the center of mass of the hood, so they may result in an unstable and sometimes sagging appearance when the hood is propped open.
A need exists for an economical tractor hood support to securely hold a tractor hood in the open position. A need exists for a tractor hood support that is stable and prevents the hood from sagging when it propped open. A need exists for a tractor hood support that is simple and has a low parts count.
The tractor hood support of the present invention includes a wire loop or bar that pivots between a lowered position and a raised position. In the raised position, the wire loop or bar enters a pocket in the underside of the tractor hood. A spring urges the wire loop or bar to pivot and help move the tractor hood toward the raised position
The tractor hood support securely holds the tractor hood in the open, raised position. The tractor hood support is stable and prevents the hood from sagging when it propped open. The tractor hood support is economical, simple and has a low parts count.
The tractor hood support of the present invention may be used with tractor hood 10 covering an engine compartment of an agricultural or industrial tractor. As shown in
As shown in
In one embodiment, wire loop or bar 21 may be made by bending a cylindrical or non-cylindrical rod into a U-shaped loop. The rod may have a thickness between about ¼ inch and about 1 inch, and a total length between about 1 foot and about 3 feet before bending.
In one embodiment, wire loop or bar 21 may have a pair of ends 33, 34 pivotably mounted to bracket 28. The ends may be pivotably mounted to bracket 28 which is fastened to the engine compartment at a position generally midway or centrally positioned between the left and right panels of tractor hood 10. Wire loop or bar 21 may pivot up when tractor hood 10 is opened to a raised position, and pivot down when the hood is lowered to a stored position. The wire loop or bar may be biased using spring 24 to help urge the tractor hood toward the raised position. When the tractor hood is in the raised position, the wire loop or bar props the hood open, and when the tractor hood is in the lowered or stored position, the wire loop or bar is held underneath the closed hood.
In the raised position, the top 26 of wire loop or bar 21 may detent into pocket 25 under hood top panel 11. Pocket 25 may be located under the hood top panel generally midway or centrally between the left and right panels of the tractor hood, and may have a length of between about 3 inches and about 12 inches between its left and right ends, a width of between about 1 inch and about 12 inches, and a depth of between about ½ inch and about 3 inches. Thus, pocket 26 may have larger dimensions than the top portion 26 of wire loop 21.
In one embodiment, plate 27 may be fastened to the underside of hood top panel 11, and pocket 25 may be a shelf or recess in plate 27. Alternatively, pocket 25 may be a shelf or recess that is integral with the underside of hood top panel 11.
In one embodiment, wire loop or bar 21 may be spring loaded by coil spring 24 to urge it to pivot upward when tractor hood 10 is opened until the wire loop or bar detents into pocket 25. Spring 24 may be a torsion spring which is coiled around the lower end 33 of wire loop or bar 21. Spring 24 may be biased to pivot the wire loop or bar upwardly, thus tending to raise the hood and hold the hood in a raised position.
In one embodiment, wire loop or bar 21 may be generally U-shaped with top portion 26 between a pair of opposing arms 29, 30. The lower ends of arms 29, 30 may be pivotably mounted to bracket 28 by inserting the ends through openings in ears 22, 23 extending from bracket 28. Bracket 28 may be rigidly secured to a frame member in the engine compartment under a second end of hood 10. Bracket also may hold pivot pin 31 that provides a pivot axis and hinge point for the second end of hood 10 to pivot between the open and closed positions.
While the present invention has been described in conjunction with a specific embodiment, it is understood that many alternatives, modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art in light of the foregoing description. Accordingly, this invention is intended to embrace all such alternatives, modifications and variations which fall within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.
The entire right, title and interest in and to this application and all subject matter disclosed and/or claimed therein, including any and all divisions, continuations, reissues, etc., thereof are, effective as of the date of execution of this application, assigned, transferred, sold and set over by the applicant(s) named herein to Deere & Company, a Delaware corporation having offices at Moline, Ill. 61265, U.S.A., together with all rights to file, and to claim priorities in connection with, corresponding patent applications in any and all foreign countries in the name of Deere & Company or otherwise.
