Gap accessary device for elevated roller rails

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10946965-B2
Application number	US-201916448251-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 21, 2019
Priority date	Jun 21, 2019
Publication date	Mar 16, 2021
Grant date	Mar 16, 2021

Abstract

The invention is a gap accessary device for elevated roller rails disposed on a platform floor. The device includes a housing, fingers, tangs, roller support structures, rollers, a first curved truncated inclined plane, and a second curved truncated inclined plane. The device allows cargo to enter a platform without catching on the platform threshold and requires less effort to load cargo onto a platform with elevated roller rails.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A gap accessory device for elevated roller rails disposed on a platform floor of a platform, each elevated roller rail having a roller rail end lip and elevated roller rail rollers for moving cargo on the platform floor, the platform floor including a platform threshold and a threshold lip, the device comprising:
a housing with a top portion, a bottom portion, a forward end, and a rear end, the bottom portion including a bottom face that interfaces and corresponds to the platform threshold;
fingers extending from the housing at the forward end and attached to the housing such that the fingers when engaged with the elevated roller rails end lip prevent vertical movement and forward longitudinal movement of the gap accessory device;
tangs disposed at the forward end, proceeding aftward, and attached to the housing, the tangs attachable to the threshold lip such that when the tangs are attached to the threshold lip the tangs prevent vertical movement, lateral movement, and aft longitudinal movement of the gap accessory device;
roller support structures disposed at the top portion and attached to the housing;
rollers, the rollers disposed within the roller support structures such that the roller support structures hold the rollers in place and allow circular motion of the rollers in same direction as the elevated roller rail rollers;
a first curved truncated inclined plane located at and attached to the rear end of the housing, such that when the gap accessory device is in use the first curved truncated inclined plane prevents moving cargo pallets that are placed into the platform from catching on the roller rail end lip; and,
a second curved truncated inclined plane located at and attached to the forward end of the housing, such that the second curved truncated inclined plane allowing cargo pallets to roll onto the elevated roller rails.

Assignees

• Hamm David
• Hoefer Michele
• Jackson Michael
• Myres Bennett
• Us Navy

Inventors

• Hamm David
• Hoefer Michele
• Jackson Michael
• Myres Bennett

Classifications

• B65G13/11

  Roller frames · CPC title

• B64D9/00 Primary

  Equipment for handling freight; Equipment for facilitating passenger embarkation or the like · CPC title

• B65G39/18

  for guiding loads · CPC title

• B64D2009/006

  Rollers or drives for pallets of freight containers, e.g. PDU · CPC title