Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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~ACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to new and useful
improvements in floating assemblies for house trailers
and the like.
S While amphibious vehicles have been known,
nevertheless it is not feasible to adapt a conventional
house trailer or the like, to a vehicle which can be
pulled along the highway, or alternatively, can
be launched and used as a boat or the like ma~ly
because of the 8' width restrictions on the highways.
Also it i8 extremely difficult to completely seal
the underside of a trailer and to provide sufficient
flotation in the conventional construction. Further-
more, it is difficult to supply a source of power to
such a vehicle without having an inboard engine
assembly or the equivalent. -
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention over comes these
di~advantages by providing a flotation assembly
which can be carried either within or upon the house
trailer or within or upon the vehicle towing same.
It can then readily be assembled on a supporting
surface such as a boat launching ramp, beach, or
dock whereupon the trailer can be engaged within
the flotation assembly by the towing vehicle and
can be supported by the flotation assembly readily
and easily.
One aspect of the invention consists of
a method of mounting a house trailer and the like
upon a pontoon assembly which includes a pair of
spaced and parallel pontoons, a rear transverse
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member extending between said pontoons at least
two longitudinally extending members pivotally
secured by one end thereof to said rear transverse
member and extending forwardly and downwardly
between said pontoons, said method comprising the
steps of backing the trailer between said pontoons
at the front end thereof, engaging the rear bumper
of said trailer with said longitudinally extending
members whereby said longitudinally extending members
act as ramps to elevate the rear end of said
trailer as it is backed between said pontoons, then
elevating the front of said trailer removing the
longitudinally extended members and using them as
transverse members across said pontoons, then lowering
the front of the trailer onto said transverse members
and detachably clamping said trailer to said pontoon
assembly.
Another aspect of the invention consists
o a floating assembly for house trailers and the like
which are detachably connectable to a towing vehicle
and include a transverse rear bumper and a forwardly
extending front hitch assembly for detachable connection
to said towing vehicle; said floating assembly
including a pair of pontoon components, means detachably
secured to adjacent the rear ends of said pontoon
components in a spaced and parallel relationship
when assembled, longitudinally extending ramp means,
detachably pivoted by one end thereof to said means
spanning said pontoon components and extending forwardly
between said pontoon components when in a trailer ramp-
ing position, and movable from a trailer ramping
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pOSition when said pontoon components are upon a
solid supporting surface, and a trailer supporting
position and vice-versa, said longitudinally extending
ramp members being movable to a transverse position
across said pontoons and constituting means detachably
secured between said pontoon components towards the
f ront ends thereof and spanning said pontoon components,
and means to detachably secure said ramp means to said
last mentioned means, by the other ends of said
ramp means, when said ramp means are in the trailer
supporting position.
Another aspect of the invention consists
of a fLotation assembly as hereinbefore defined, which
can be decked in for and aft of the trailer to provide ~-~
a complete deck to this pontoon assembly and which
furthermore can utilize a conventional outboard motor
on the rear side thereof, for propulsion purposes.
A yet further aspect of the invention consists
of an assembly which is easily assembled and disassemblea
and carried either by the trailer or by the towing
vehicle.
Another aspect of the invention consists
of utilizing conventional house trailer or the like
upon a flotation assembly so that it may be launched
2S upon a body of water whereupon the house trailer can
act as living and sleeping quarters due to the
provision of the services normally available to the
occupants of a house trailer.
A further aspect of the invention consists
3G of a device which is simple in construction, economical
in manufactureand otherwise well suited to the purpose
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for which it is designed.
With the foregoing in view, and other
advantages as will become apparent to those skilled
in the art to which this invention relates as this
specification proceeds, my invention consists
essentially in the arrangement ana construction of
parts all as hereinafter more particularly described,
reference being had to the accompanying drawings
in which:-
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Figure 1 is a side elevation of the assembly
~with a house trailer mounted thereon.
Figure 2 is a top plan view of Figure 1.
Figure 3 is a view similar to Pigure 2, but
with the trailer and deck panels removed for clarity.
Figure 4 is a side elevation of the assembly
with one pontoon removed for clarity, showing the trailer
upon the ramps and having been elevated to the level
position.
Pigure 5 is a view similar to Figure 4 but
showing the ramps in the trailer supporting position
and the longitudinal ramp members placed as transverse
supports .
Figure 6 is a side elevation of one of the
pontoons per se.
Figure 7 is an isometric fragmentary view
showing one means of connecting the ramps to the
cross member.
Figure 8 is a cross sectional view of one
of the pontoons showing the method of engagement
of the transverse members to the pontoons.
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Figure 9 ~ a fragmentary top plan view of the
rear of the pontoons with the rear deck in position.
Figure 10 is a view similar to Figure 9, but
showing the front deck in position.
Figure 11 is a fragmentary cross sectional
view of the rear bumper of the trailer showing means
to detachably clamp same to the transverse member.
In the drawings like character of reference
indicate corresponding parts in the different figures.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION
In the accompanying description and drawings,
a conventional house trailer 10 is illustrated and
described, but of course it will be appreciated that
other forms of vehicles could readily be adapted for
~15 use with the flota~on assembly collectively designated
11.
The house trailer illustrated includes a
transversely extending rear bumper 12 and a forwardly
extending hitch assembly 13 by which the trailer
may be connected to a conventional towing vehicle
such as a truck or automobile (not illustrated).
Also incorporated in conventional front
hitches 13, is a jack assembly 14 consisting of a
rotatable handle 15, jack tube 16 and an extending
or retracting lower stem 17. It is conventional that
this jacking assembly is used to support the front
end of a trailer upon a block 18 or the like, in a
substantially level position, when the towing vehicle
is disconnected and the trailer is parked.
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DETAILED DESCRIPTION
. _
In detail, the floating or flotation assembly
11 consists of a pair of pontoons, each collectively
designated 19 and preferably manufactured with a
plurality of compartments 20 from glass fibre or the
like and then skinned with a glass fibre outer shell
21 as shown, for example, in Figure 8.
The individual flotation compartments 21
may, if desired, be filed with a synthetic plastic
foam 22 for additional flotation purposes or to prevent
the ingreæs of water in the event that the outer skin
i8 penetrated inadvertently.
In the present embodiment, each of the float
components 19 is provided with a substantially planar -
upper surface 23, a substantially vertical inner
and outer side wall 24 and 24' respectively and a lower
keel portion 25. If desired, a trimaran configuration
may be given to the underside of the pontoon components.
A plurality of transversely extending apertures
26 are formed through the upper portion 22 of the pontoon
components and are lined with sleeves 27 of glass fibre
material or the like, for strengthening purposes.
In the present embodiment, a rear aperture 27A is
provided, a front aperture 27B and a central aperture
27C.
Means are provided adjacent the rear of the
pontoon components to maintain same in substantially
~; spaced and parallel relatlonship when assembled, said
means taking the form of a rear frame member 28 which,
in this embodiment, takes the form of an I-beam. How-
ever, other configurations can be utilized.
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This rear transverse member is provided
with angle member stops 29 transversely situated
inboard of the ends 30 thereof and upon the upper
and lower flanges 31 and 32 respectively, and the .
portions of the I-beams between these stops 29
and the outer ends 30, slidably engage through t~e
rear apertures 27A in the pontoon components 19, thus
maintaining at least the rear ends of the pontoon
components in spaced and parallel relationship when ~;
assembled.
Means are provided to detachably secure the
transversely extending frame member 28, in the desired
position and in this embodiment, a small plate or
nut 33 is secured to each end of the vertical web
34 of the member 28 and is provided with a screw threaded
aperture 35 as clearly shown in Figure 7.
When inserted through the sleeve 27A, this
plate 33 is situated substantially flush with
the outer end of the sleeve 27A as shown in Figure 8,
whereupon a plate 36 is engaged by screw threaded
bolt 37 which in turn screw threadably engages the
screw threaded aperture 35 in plate 33 thus clamping
the assembly together at each end of the transverse
frame member 28.
Means are provided to ramp the trailer into
position between the pontoon assemblies 19, said means
taking the form of a ramp assembly collectively
designated 38.
In this embodiment, the ramp assembly includes
two spaced and parallel I-beams 39 which are detachably
pivotally secured to the front side of the rear
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transverse frame member 28 and extend forwardly
between the pontoon components when in the position
shown in Figure 4.
One method of pivotally connecting the ramp
S members to the rear transverse frame member 28, is
shown in Figure 7 although it will be appreciated
that any conventional pivotal connection can be
used as desired.
A pair of tubes 40 are welded or otherwise
secured to the front portion of the lower flange 32
of the member 28 and a central tube member 41 extends
from the rear end 42 of the ramp member 39 and engages
between the tube members 40 whereupon the pivot pin
in the form of a nut and bolt assembly 43 may engage
through the tubes 40 and 41 and pivotally connect
the ramp members 39 to the transverse frame member
28 as described.
This pivotal connection of the ramp members
39 enables the ramp members to extend forwardly
and downwardly between the pontoons and rest upon
- the solid supporting surface 44 when the device is
- being assembled. This portion is defined as the "trailer
ramping positionn.
~owever, when in the trailer supporting
~5 position shown in Figure 5, these ramp members 39
are removed from the front transverse frame member
and are slidably engaged through sleeves 27B and
27C in the pontoon components and secured in position
by means of plate 36 and bolts 37 as hereinbefore
described. Once these transverse frame members are
in position, they may support the trailer as shown
in Figure 5.
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Before describing the remainder of the
structure it is believed desirable to explain the
function of the invention to this point.
When it is desired to mount the trailer 10
upon the floating or flotation assembly 11, the two
pontoons 19 and the rear transverse frame member 28
are assembled as hereinbefore described and the
longitudinally extendinq ramp members 39 are pivotally
conn~ted by the rear ends thereof to this transverse
rear frame member 28 so that they extend forwardly
and downwardly between the pontoons in a position
substantially as indicated in Figure 4. The pontoons
are then launched rearwardly until approximately two-
thirds of the length thereof is in the water.
The house trailer 10 is then backed up by the
towing vehicle (not illustrated) with the rear end of
the trailer 10 entering between the front ends l9A of
the pontoons. This causes the transverse rear bumper
12 together with guide plates 12A, to engage the ramp
members 39 so that as the trailer is backed between
the pontoon components, the rear of the trailer is
elevated by the ramping action of the members 39 upon
the rear bumper 12. Theguide plates 12A are welded
to and depend downwardly from the front side of the
bumper and engage outer surfaces of the ramp members
19 thus guiding the trailer up the ramp.
Thetrailer is backed to the position shown in
Figures 1, 4 and 5 so that the rear bumper is directly
over member 28 whereupon the jack assembly 14 is
engaged upon blocks 18 by rotation of handle 15 (or
electrically if such a unit is provided). As soon as
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the weight ofthe front of the trailer is taken ,
by the jacking assembly 14, the towing vehicle is
disconnected and removed whereupon the jacking
assembly is utilized to raise the trailer to the
substantially horizontal position illustrated
in Figure 4.
When the trailer has been positioned so
that the rear bumper is directly over the rear
transverse member 28 it is stopped by two bumper
I0 guide plates 12A welded transversely to the front
bottom edge of the trailer transverse bumper. These
plates act as guides on the longitudinal members 39
as the trailer is backed up the ramp. When the trailer
is against the stops the front end is elevated by
the conventional jacking assembly 14. The longitudinal
members 39 are removed by removing nut and bolt
assembly 43. The longitudinal members now become
tranqverse members and are engaged through the sleeves
27B and 27C of the ponto~ns and below the frame of
the camper. The jacking assembly 14 is then reversed to
elevate the stem 17 from the blocks 18 and to lower
the trailer frame upon the transverse members 39.
~he trailer is then cla.mpe~ to the forward transverse
member 39 and the rear transverse member 28 by NJ--
bolt 48. These transverse members 39 and 28 are secured
in the desired position by plates 36 and bolt 37.
It will be noted that the lower side 47 of the
trailer is substantially level with the upper surface
22 of the pontoon components 19.
It is then desirable to clamp the trailer
in position upon the frame members and in this connect-
ion, reference should be made to Figure 11 in which a
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"J" bolt 48 is used. This "J" bolt 48 is provided with
a short leg 49 and an elongated screw threaded leg
50. The short leg engages around the lower flange
39A of the longitudinal frame member 39 and the
S elongated screw threaded leg engages through an
aperture 51 formed through the longitudinally
extending frame member 52 of the trailer just
inboard of the transverse bumper 12 which is attached
to the rear ends of the frame members. A nut 54 then
is engaged upon the leg 50 and clamps the "J" bolt
in position thus holding the trailer firmly to the
flotation or floating assembly.
A similar "J" bolt is used on the other
side corner of the rear of the trailer and a similar
lS assembly may be used adjacent the front of the trailer
between the hitch 13 and the transverse front frame
member 39.
Once clamped into position, the front and rear
decking may be engaged upon the pontoon components
and in this regard, reference should be made to s
Figures 9 and 10 of the drawings.
A substantially rectangular deck panel 55 is
provided with a transverse, substantially rectangular
cross sectioned member 56 which is secured under the
rear o the panel 55. The deck panel 55 is preferably
made from plywood, but of course other materials can
be used.
The cross beam S~ is provided with ends which
extend beyond the sides 57 of the deck panel and these
side edges 57 of the deck panel rest upon the upper
surfaces of the pontoons as illustrated in Figure 9.
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~olts 58 or similar fastening means, extend throuqh
the cross beam 56 and into screw threaded bolt
receiving receptacles 59 are provided within the ends
of the upper surfaces of the pontoon components 19.
The front edge 60 of the deck panel 55 preferably
engages under the rear bumper 12 so that no gap is
left at this point.
The front deck panel 61 is also a rectangular
panel spanning between the under surfaces of the
pontoon components 19 and also having a cross beam
62 similar to cross beam 56 hereinbefore described.
It is also attached to the upper surfaces of the
pontoon components adjacent the front ends thereof,
by means of bolts 63 in a manner similar to that
hereinbefore described. This front deck component
also maintains the front ends of the pontoons in the
spaced and parallel relationship desired.
The rear edge 64 of the front deck panel 61
terminates adjacent the front of the trailer
hitch component 13 and fill in panels 65 may be
secured to the front edge 64 by straps 66 or
equivalent means and also these fill in panels rest
upon the upper surface of the pontoons 19.
The rear beam 56 reinforced by the attachment
of the panel 55 thereto, may be used to support a
conventional outboard motor shown schematically in
Figure 1 by reference character 66 thus providing
propulsion to the assembly once it is launched.
The front and rear deck panels 55 and 61
together with the relatively wide upper surfaces 22
of the pontoons provide adequate walking space around
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the trailer which of course can be used in the
conventional manner once the assembly has been
launched on the beach or dock upon which it has been
assembled, and it will also be observed that the
S underside of the trailer is kept clear of the
water with only perhaps the underside of the
lower portion of the wheels becoming wet thus -
preventing any undesirable effects of water upon
the trailer.
Since various modifications can be made in
my invention as hereinabove described, and many
apparently widely different embodiments of same
made within the spirit and scope of the claims :~
without departing from such spirit and scope, it
is intended that all matter contained in the :
accompanying specification shall be interpreted as
illustrative only and not in a limiting sense.
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