Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to wirecarts and in
particular to a folding wirecart convertible into a float
and handtruck.
BACKGROUND ART
The discovery of electricity and its subsequent reduction
to general use required the installation of large
quantities of differently sized electrical wire.
Current wire installation practice involves the transport
of a wide variety of wire installation tools, as well as
the wire itself, to the work site. The scope of wire
installation may vary all the way from the re-wiring of an
existing structure, through wire installation in new
single-family subdivision or multifamily apartment or
condominium construction, to large commercial and
industrial installations in structures having hundreds of
thousands of square feet in area.
Once the tools and wire are on site, the spools of wire
must be rotatably held in place in order to allow the wire
they hold to be dispensed for installation.
Finally, after the wire installation work is complete, the
tools and remaining wire must be transported back to where
they were stored prior to the job, and the means of
transporting these supplies securely stored.
Transportation of Supplies
Typically, the wire installation tools and wire to be
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installed must be transported from the electrician's work
truck, from large locking gangboxes remotely located from
the wire installation location, or from tool
crib/construction materials semitrailers parked outside the
structure under construction. The distance these heavy
supplies must be moved may range from a few yards to a
quarter mile or more.
The tools to be transported may weigh thousands of pounds
and include wire-pulling ropes, wire-pulling wire, power
tuggers to pull wire, bending equipment kits for pipe and
conduit, lead wire mice, ladders, drills, drill motors,
drill bits, pliers, hammers, screwdrivers, wire cutters,
channel lock pliers, levels, cable cutters, pulleys and
slings to use for pulling wire, mouse-propelling jet air
bottles, extension cords, band saws, fish tapes, wire
lubrication, rags, electrical tape, wire markers, blue
prints, etc..
The materials to be transported may weigh additional
thousands of pounds and include conduit, pipe, connectors,
straps, couplings, light fixtures, electrical wire
typically ranging in size from 8 - 16 gage, multi-strand
data communications and sound system wire, switches,
speakers, electrical receptacles, switch plate covers,
intercom systems, data communications systems, drinking
water, fittings, transformers ranging in size from small
interior transformers to exterior pad or pole mounted
units, switch gear, breaker boxes, breakers, power poles,
etc..
Wire Dispensing
Dispensing the wire during installation is not a trivial
problem.
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Sometimes dozens of heavy wire spools must be rotatably
held in place in order to dispense the different wire sizes
required to complete a job. Wire may range from 8 - 16
gage, from single to multi-conductor, from wire easily
pulled through conduit to wire whose installation requires
the use of a power tugger.
Historical Approaches
Step ladders have been used to support a horizontal axle
bearing wire spools. This method of dispensing wire has a
number of drawbacks: the step ladders tend to fall over,
the step ladders are unusable for other purposes while the
wire is being dispensed and only a limited number of spools
can be accommodated in this manner.
U.S. Pat. 3,990,653 was granted Marcell for a Wheeled Cart
for Carrying and Dispensing Wire. This cart provides only
limited tool and other supplies transportation capability,
cannot accommodate standard wire spools and does not fold
to aid its storage and transportation. In addition, only a
limited number of wire containers can be housed in this
invention.
zimmer was granted U.S. Pat. 3,856,230 for a Wire
Dispensing Cart. No tool and supplies transport capability
is taught, the Cart does not fold for storage and/or
transportation and only a limited number of wire spools can
be accommodated.
U.S. Pat. 3,765,619 was granted Stillman for a Carrying and
Dispensing Device for Box Contained Wire. This Device
cannot accommodate standard wire spools, does not fold, and
no provisions to transport tools and other supplies is
disclosed.
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U.S. Des. 295,100 was granted Talton et al. for an
Electrician's Wire Dispensing Cart and U.S. Des. 269,388
was granted Smith et al. for a Wire Handling Cart. While
both these inventions can accommodate a limited number of
standard wire spools, neither teaches a capability to
transport tools and other supplies or to fold.
Therefore a need exists for a folding wire cart capable of
dispensing wire from a large number of spools, which also
has provisions to transport electrician's tools and
supplies.
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. DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a
folding wirecart convertible into float and handtruck
capable of accommodating a large number of standard wire
spools. Design features permitting the accomplishment of
this object include a plurality of axles, wings capable of
supporting additional wire spools and provisions to mount
axles between two or more folding wirecarts convertible
into float and handtruck positioned side by side. Benefits
associated with the achievement of this object include
reduced setup and wire installation time.
Another object of this invention is to provide a folding
wirecart convertible into float and handtruck capable of
being used to transport electrician's tools and supplies.
Features enabling this object include main wheels and a
handtruck handle permitting the use of the present
invention in a vertical orientation as a handtruck, and
swivel wheels, the use of the wings as a float floor and a
float handle which permits the use of the instant invention
in a horizontal orientation as a float. Benefits
associated with the accomplishment of this object include
reduced transportation time along with the associated
savings in time and money.
It is still a further object of this invention to provide a
folding wirecart convertible into float and handtruck which
may be folded for storage and transportation. Features
allowing this object to be achieved include a cart body
rotatably attached to a cart base. Benefits associated
with the accomplishment of this object include reduced
storage and transportation space requirements, along with
the associated cost savings of reduced cart transport and
cart storage capacity requirements.
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It is a further object of this invention to provide a
folding wirecart convertible into float and handtruck
manufactured of readily available and inexpensive
materials, so as to make the instant invention readily
affordable.
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BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The invention, together with the other objects, features,
aspects and advantages thereof will be more clearly
understood from the following in conjunction with the
accompanying drawings.
Five sheets of drawings are provided. Sheet one contains
figure 1, lA and lB. Sheet two contains figures 2 and 3.
Sheet three contains figures 4, 5, 6 and 7. Sheet four
contains figure 8. Sheet five contains figures 9 and 10.
Figure 1 is a front isometric view of the folding wirecart
convertible into float and handtruck in the wire dispensing
configuration with two wings installed.
Figure lA is a top view of a wing.
Flgure lB is a cut away view of an axle installation with
wlngs .
Figure 2 is a rear isometric view of the folding wirecart
convertible into float and handtruck in the handtruck
configuration.
Figure 3 is a front isometric detail of the end of an axle
and a collar.
Figure 4 is a side view of the folding wirecart convertible
into float and handtruck in the handtruck configuration
with two wings stowed.
Figure 5 is a side view of the folding wirecart convertible
into float and handtruck in the folded position.
Figure 6 is a front isometric view of the body.
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Figure 7 is a front isometric view of the base.
Figure 8 is a front isometric view of the folding wirecart
convertible into float and handtruck in the float
configuration.
Figure 9 is a side view of a folding wirecart convertible
into float and handtruck in the handtruck configuration
being used to transport a load of ten foot sections of
conduit.
Figure 10 is a front view of two folding wirecarts
convertible into float and handtruck positioned side by
side supporting a plurality of wire spools rotatably
mounted on long axles between them.
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BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Referring now to figure 1 we see a front isometric view of
folding wirecart convertible into float and handtruck 2.
The two main components are body 4 rotatably attached to
base 30 at pivot fastener 36.
Referring now also to figure 6, body 4 is rectangular when
viewed from the front, having body sides 5, body top 7 and
body bottom 9. Body front lip 24 is perpendicular to body
sides 5, body top 7 and body bottom 9. Body rear lip 26 is
disposed on the side of body 4 opposite body front lip 24,
and is also perpendicular to body sides 5, body top 7 and
body bottom 9.
Body sides 5 have body punchouts 18 sized to admit passage
to axles 22, body pivot fastener holes 47 and body lock
bolt holes 45. Axles 22 are sized so as to rotatably
accommodate standard wire spools 14.
Set screw collars 16 having set screws 17 slide onto the
ends of axles 22 as depicted in figure 3, and then set
screws 17 are tightened, thus non-frictionally constraining
body sides 5 and wire spools 14 between set screw collars
16.
~ings 12 are attached to body sides 5 in as is illustrated
in figure lA and cross sectional detail figure lB: wings
12 have wing punchouts 3 corresponding to body punchouts 18
in body sides 5. An axle 22 is slid through a wing
punchout 3 in a first wing 12, then through the
corresponding body punchout 18 in body side 5, then through
the corresponding body punchout 18 in the other body side
5, and finally through the corresponding wing punchout 3 in
the second wing 12. Set screw collars 16 are then slid
onto each end of axle 22 and the set screws 17 tightened,
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thereby sandwiching each wing 12 securely between a set
screw collar 16 and a body side 5.
Referring now also to figure 7, base 30 is comprised of
base floor 33, two base walls 40 disposed at opposite ends
of base floor 33 perpendicular to base floor 33, and base
stop 32 disposed between and perpendicular to base walls
40.
Base walls 40 contain main wheel axle holes 39, base lock
bolt holes 43 and base pivot fastener holes 41. Main wheel
axle 21 is installed through main wheel axle holes 39, and
supports main wheels 20 (see figure 2).
Figure 2 is a rear isometric view of folding wirecart
convertible into float and handtruck 2 in the handtruck
configuration. By grasping handtruck handle 34 and tilting
the folding wirecart convertible into float and handtruck 2
backward, the entire weight of folding wirecart convertible
into float and handtruck 2 rests on main wheels 20 and the
folding wirecart convertible into float and handtruck 2 may
be moved (along with whatever load has been placed in it)
simply by pushing or pulling handtruck handle 34.
Wings 12 have been pushed between float load holder 28 and
base floor 33 until butting against base stop 32, thereby
increasing the handtruck floor area available to carry load
while simultaneously storing wings 12.
Reinforcement plate 52 is triangular and may be used to
strengthen the corners of body front lip 24 and body rear
lip 26.
The method of attaching body 4 to base 30 may be seen more
clearly by referring to figures 2, 6 and 7. Each of two
pivot fasteners 36 extends through a base pivot fastener
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hole 41 and a body pivot fastener hole 47, thereby
rotatably attaching body 4 to base 30. Each of two lock
bolts 42 extends through a base lock bolt hole 43 and a
body lock bolt hole 45, and then threads into lock nut 54,
thereby fixing the angular relationship between body 4 and
base 30. Lock nut 54 may be of the butterfly nut variety
to facilitate its removal. Pivot fastener 36 may be a
standard bolt and locknut.
The removal of lock nuts 54 and lock bolts 42 allows body 4
to rotate relative to base 30 into a space-saving storage
configuration, as illustrated by arrow 37 in figure 5.
Referring now to figures 4 and 5, wings 12 may be observed
in the stored position between body bottom 9 and base floor
33, butted against base stop 32.
To return folding wirecart convertible into float and
handtruck 2 into the unfolded configuration depicted in
figures 1 and 2, reverse the steps depicted in figures 4
and 5 by rotating body 4 relative to base 30 opposite the
sense of arrow 37 until body 4 rotationally butts up
against base stop 32. Slide lock bolts 42 through base
lock bolt holes 43 and body lock bolt holes 45, then
tighten lock nuts 54 onto lock bolts 42.
Figure 8 is a front isometric view of folding wirecart
convertible into float and handtruck 2 in the float
configuration. Wings 12 have been positioned within body 4
and are securely supported by body rear lip 26.
Float load holder 28 is rotatably attached to base walls
40, and has been rotated approximately 180 degrees into a
vertical position as indicated by arrow 48. The rotatable
attachment between float load holder 28 and base walls 40
is sufficiently frictional so as to hold float load holder
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28 in.position.
Float handle 10 has been disengaged from float handle
bracket 46 (see figure 5) and rotated approximately 270
degrees into a vertical position as indicated by arrow 50.
The vertical orientation of float handle 10 is maintained
by set screw collars 16 secured on the ends of axles 22
passing through appropriately positioned body punchouts 18.
The folding wirecart convertible into float and handtruck 2
in float configuration may be easily moved about by virtue
of float handle 10, main wheels 20 and swivel wheels 6.
Should it be desired to immobilize folding wirecart
convertible into float and handtruck 2 in float
configuration, a swivel wheel 6 is equipped with a swivel
wheel lock 1 which, when engaged, prevents the rotation of
the swivel wheel 6.
Figure 9 is a front side view of two folding wirecarts
convertible into float and handtruck 2 positioned side by
side supporting a large number of wire spools 14 and one
big wire spool 15 on long axles 60 passing through
corresponding body punchouts 18 (base punchouts 19 may also
be used for this purpose) in the two folding wirecarts
convertible into float and handtruck 2. Additional folding
wirecarts convertible into float and handtruck 2 may be
placed along side those depicted in figure 10, and
additional long axles 60 emplaced, in order to accommodate
more wire spools.
If desired, folding wirecarts convertible into float and
handtruck 2 thus laterally positioned may be moved en masse
by placing a worker grasping the cor.responding handtruck
handle 34 behind each folding wirecarts convertible into
float and handtruck 2, tilting backwards, and pushing the
folding wirecarts convertible into float and handtruck 2 to
14
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the new location in concert.
Figure 10 is a side view of folding wirecart convertible
into float and handtruck 2 in the float configuration being
used to transport lengthy items - in this case a load of 10
foot conduit pipe 56. The pipe rests on float load support
bar 38 and base 30, and is laterally constrained by float
handle 10 and float load holder 28.
A large variety of long materials and tools such as
ladders, lumber, steel pipe, etc. may be transported in
this manner.
Folding wirecart convertible into float and handtruck 2 may
be manufactured of readily available sheet steel and steel
pipe. Main wheels 20 and swivel wheels 6 (including wheel
lock 1) are commercially available. All fasteners are
readily commercially available.
While a preferred embodiment of the invention has been
illustrated herein, it is to be understood that changes and
variations may be made by those skilled in the art without
departing from the spirit and scope of the appending
claims.
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. DRAWING ITEM INDEX
1 wheel lock
2 folding wirecart convertible into float and handtruck
3 wing punchouts
4 body
body side
6 swivel wheel
7 body top
9 body bottom
float handle
12 wing
14 wire spool
large spool
16 collars
17 set screw
18 body punchouts
19 base punchout
main wheel
21 main wheel axle
22 axle
24 body front lip
26 body rear lip
28 float load holder
base
32 base stop
33 base floor
34 handtruck handle
36 pivot fastener
37 arrow
38 float load support bar
39 main wheel axle hole
base wall
41 base pivot fastener hole
42 lock bolt
43 base lock bolt hole
16
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body lock bolt hole
46 float handle bracket
47 body pivot fastener hole
48 arrow
arrow
52 reinforcement plate
54 lock nut
56 conduit pipe
long axles
