Patent Application
20230415662
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The disclosure relates to mounting devices and more particularly pertains to a new mounting device for mounting a winch to an All-Terrain Vehicle (ATV). The present invention discloses a mounting device that is easily mounted to a frame of the ATV, allowing a user to winch loads onto a bed of the ATV.
The prior art relates to mounting devices, which may comprise rotatable mounts and frames for mounting winches to a front wall truck beds, between sidewalls of truck beds, and to front ends and rear ends of vehicles. What is lacking in the prior art is a mounting device comprising a bracket, which is mountable to a frame of an All-Terrain Vehicle (ATV) so that the bracket is positioned at a front end of a bed and behind a seat of the ATV. A winch is mountable to the bracket, positioning a user to attach a cable of the winch to a load and to winch the load into the bed
An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented above by generally comprising a bracket, which is configured to be mountable to a frame of an All-Terrain Vehicle (ATV) so that the bracket is positioned at a front end of a bed and behind a seat of the ATV. The bracket also is configured for mounting of a winch, positioning a user to attach a cable of the winch to a load and to winch the load into the bed.
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 bracket 12 comprises a first plate 28 and a second plate 30, although the present invention anticipates brackets of a variety of configurations. The first plate 28 is sized to extend between an upper crossmember 32 and a lower crossmember 34 of the frame 14 of the ATV 16. Each first hole 36 of a plurality of first holes 36 is positioned in the first plate 28 proximate to an upper end 38 or a lower end 40 of the first plate 28. Each first hole 36 and an associated crossmember hole 42 of a plurality of crossmember holes 42, which is positioned in the upper crossmember 32 and the lower crossmember 34, are configured for insertion of a respective article of mounting hardware 44 of a plurality of articles of mounting hardware 44 to attach the first plate 28 to the upper crossmember 32 and the lower crossmember 34. The mounting hardware 44 may comprise bolts, nuts, and washers, as shown in
The second plate 30 is attached to and extends substantially perpendicularly from the first plate 28, proximate to the upper end 38 of the first plate 28. A plurality of second holes 48 is positioned in the second plate 30. Each second hole 48 is alignable with a respective plate hole 50 of a plurality of plate holes 50, which is positioned in a mounting plate 52 of the winch 24. The second hole 48 and the respective plate hole 50 are configured for insertion of a respective article of mounting hardware 44 to attach the winch 24 to the second plate 30. The present invention also anticipates the winch 24 being welded to the second plate 30.
The bracket 12 also may comprise a strut 54, which is attached to and which extends between the first plate 28 and the second plate 30. As shown in
The bracket 12 also may comprise a third plate 56, which is attached to and which extends substantially perpendicularly from the second plate 30 distal from the first plate 28. As shown in
A pair of third holes 58 is positioned in the third plate 56, with the third holes 58 bracketing the opening 46. Each third hole 58 is alignable with a respective mounting hole 60 of a pair of mounting holes 60, which is positioned in a mounting bracket 68 of the winch 24. The third hole 58 and the respective mounting hole 60 are configured for insertion of a respective article of mounting hardware 44 to attach the winch 24 to the third plate 56.
The winch mounting device 10 enables a method of mounting a winch to an ATV 62. The method 62 comprises a first step 64 of mounting a bracket 12 of the winch mounting device 10 to the frame 14 of the ATV 16 so that the bracket 12 is positioned at the front end 18 of the bed 20 behind the seat 22 of the ATV 16. The first step 64 of mounting the bracket 12 to the frame 14 of the ATV 16 may entail insertion of a respective article of mounting hardware 44 through each first hole 36 and its associated crossmember hole 42.
A second step 66 of the method 62 is mounting the winch 24 to the bracket 12, positioning a user for attaching the cable 26 of the winch 24 to a load and for winching the load into the bed 20. The second step 66 of mounting the winch 24 to the bracket 12 may entail insertion of a respective article of mounting hardware 44 through each second hole 48 and its associated plate hole 50. The second step 66 of mounting the winch 24 to the bracket 12 also may entail insertion of a respective article of mounting hardware 44 through each third hole 58 and its associated mounting hole 60.
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 element is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be only one of the elements.
