Patent Application
20220118794
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The disclosure relates to traction assemblies and more particularly pertains to a new traction assembly for use in freeing a stuck vehicle.
The prior art relates to traction assemblies, which may comprise hingedly interconnected treaded plates, plates with treads on opposing faces, and mats having spikes extending therefrom. What is lacking in the prior art is a pair of traction plates having elongated handles, which can be used to position the plates and also to engage the plates together for stowage when not in use.
An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented above by generally comprising a plate having a plurality of ridges engaged thereto and extending from a first face thereof. The plate is configured for a second face thereof to be positioned upon a surface proximate to a drive wheel of a vehicle to increase traction of the drive wheel relative to that of the drive wheel directly upon the surface.
A handle is engaged by a pivot pin to the second face of the plate proximate to a first end thereof. The pivot pin is biased toward a first terminus of the handle. The handle is rotatable between a deployed configuration, wherein a second terminus of the handle is positioned distal from the plate, and a stowed configuration, wherein the handle extends between the first end and a second end of the plate.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the disclosure in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the disclosure that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.
The objects of the disclosure, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the disclosure, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure.
The disclosure will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:
With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to
As best illustrated in
The plurality of ridges 14 comprises from three to twelve ridges 14. The plurality of ridges 14 may comprise four ridges 14, as shown in
The plate 12 is configured for a second face 26 thereof to be positioned upon a surface, proximate to a drive wheel of a vehicle, to increase traction of the drive wheel relative to that of the drive wheel directly upon the surface.
A handle 28 is engaged by a pivot pin 30 to the second face 26 of the plate 12 proximate to the first end 22. The pivot pin 30 is biased toward a first terminus 32 of the handle 28. The handle 28 is rotatable between a deployed configuration, wherein a second terminus 34 of the handle 28 is positioned distal from the plate 12, and a stowed configuration, wherein the handle 28 extends between the first end 22 and a second end 24 of the plate 12. The handle 28 in the deployed configuration can aid in positioning of the plate 12 proximate to the wheel.
The handle 28 is dimensionally longer than the plate 12 so that, in the stowed configuration, the first terminus 32 and the second terminus 34 of the handle 28 protrude from the first end 22 and the second end 24 of the plate 12, respectively. A pair of connectors 36 is engaged to the handle 28 and is positioned singly proximate to the first terminus 32 and the second terminus 34. The connectors 36 are selectively mutually couplable.
The plate 12 is one of a pair of plates 12. Each plate 12 is configured to be positioned on the surface proximate to a respective drive wheel of the vehicle to increase traction of the respective drive wheel relative to that of the respective drive wheel directly upon the surface. The plates 12 are nestable with the first faces 16 are facing and the first ends 22 are opposingly positioned. With each handle 28 in the stowed configuration, the connectors 36 of one of the handles 28 are positioned to selectively engage the connectors 36 of the other of the handles 28 to mutually engage the plates 12 for stowage thereof, as shown in
Each connector 36 comprises a hole 38, as shown in
In use, the pair of plates 12 is removed from storage when required to increase traction of the drive wheels of a stuck vehicle. The plates 12 are separated by removing the fasteners 40 from the holes 38. The handles 28 are used to position the plates 12 on the surface proximate to each of the drive wheels of the vehicle. The vehicle then can be driven over the pair of plates 12 to solid ground.
With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of an embodiment enabled by the disclosure, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by an embodiment of the disclosure.
Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the disclosure. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the disclosure to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the disclosure. In this patent document, the word “comprising” is used in its non-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article “a” does not exclude the possibility that more than one of the elements is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be only one of the elements.
