FIELD OF INVENTION

This invention relates to storage containers and more particularly to storage containers for use with motor vehicles such as cars and utilities.

BACKGROUND ART

The amount of effectively useable freight or luggage space provided within most motor vehicles is indeed limited and thus a wide variety of roof bars, roof racks and luggage containers are available and in constant demand on the market.

These prior proposals, however, do not provide an effective, efficient, practical system for storing or carrying goods that is strong, weatherproof, versatile, variable, easy to attach and remove, and completely secure. Apart from fulfilling those requirements, there is a need for a storage system that is adjustable in roof clearance height and still allows easy access to enclosed space whilst providing the facility to secure goods, baggage, ladders, conduit, surfboards or other items which are too long, large or awkward to carry within it, above and outside it.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

According to one aspect of the invention there is provided a storage system comprising a body portion having a plurality of compartments and clamping means for securing the body portion to a vehicle.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

In order that the invention may be more readily under¬ stood and put into practical effect, reference will.now be made to the accompanying drawings in which:-

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a storage system according to one embodiment of the invention mounted on a utility- vehicle.

Fig. 2 is an exploded view of the body portion of the storage system shown in Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 is a partly broken away enlarged view of the body portion of the storage system shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a partly cut away perspective view from beneath the body portion of the storage system shown in Fig. 1,

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a clamping means according to one embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 6 is an exploded view of the clamping means shown in Fig. 5,

Fig. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the clamping means shown in Fig. 5,

Fig. 8 is an exploded view of locking means for retaining additional roof bars on the storage system shown in Fig. 1, and.

Fig. 9 is a cross-sectional view of the clamping means of Fig. 8.

The storage system shown in Fig. 1 has two main components, a body 10 and clamping means 11. Horizontal bars 12 support the body 10 which defines an enclosed area in which goods may be locked in or secured to and the clamping means 11 support and secure the horizontal bars 12 to the gutter 13 of the vehicle 14. In this instance, the

system is connected to a utility and thus an additional support frame 15 is used. When connected to a car, all the clamping means 11 would be secured to the gutter.

As best shown in Fig. 2, the body 10 consists of six basic components; they are: the shell 16, the internal walls 17 and 18, floor 19, doors 20, door locks 21, and central locking bars 42.

The shell 16 is a bottomless rectangular box with one or more door openings in its side faces 27 and the top 22 has a short wall 23 traversing both its sides and its front to facilitate the location and securing of extra items. The wall 23 is, in this instance, continuations of the front and sides of the shell 16. Holes or hooks 24 are placed in or on the wall 23 above the top 22, to allow for more luggage to be secured. The front 25 of the shell 16 is sloped upwards and backwards at an appropriate angle for aerodynamic purposes and meets the side walls 27 at that angle which thus dictates the shape of the front door 21a and its opening. The shell 16 may or may not have a back shelf 26 with side sloping walls 27 which are common with the side walls 27 of the shell and which may have holes, or hooks 24 for the locating and securing of extra items as well. The side walls of the shell 27 have a slight inclination towards the top centre of the shell (being necessary for its manufacture) with the result that the top 22 is slightly narrower than the bottom.

Inside the shell 16, there are slots 28 (see Fig. 3) in the two side walls as well as the front and back walls for receiving the internal walls 17 and 18. A weather seal 30 of soft or compressible material, is located around the door opening 29. A similar weather seal is located inside and all the way around the walls 27 of the bottom opening of the shell 16 below the bottom level of the door openings 29 and above the holes 31 for the horizontal bars 12 so that when the floor 19 is fitted this opening is also sealed.

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The internal walls 17 and 18 are of a shape and size to fit neatly between the underside of the top platform 22 of the shell 16 and the top of the floor 19, and, by sliding them into the slots or guides 28 provided in the walls inside the shell 16, and fitting the floor 19 into place, they are held securely into position either along or across (or both) the enclosed area of the shell 16. In this instance there is one longitudinal internal wall or divider 17 and a plurality of transverse walls 18. The walls 17, 18 have slots 32 so that they may be inter-connected.

The floor 19 effectively fills the bottom opening of the shell 16 and when the weatherseal 30 in the bottom of the shell 16 is compressed against the walls 34, 35 of the floor 19, the holes 33 provided for the horizontal bars 12 in the wall 34 of the floor 19 are aligned with those in the walls of the shell. Thus, the horizontal bars 12 support both the body 16, and the floor 19, while holding the floor 19 to the seal 30.

The floor 19 has a downwardly extending wall 34 which is at least as high as the outside diameter of the central locating bar 12 plus the thickness of the floor 19 and has the same angles as the walls of the shell. Thus, when the unit is converted to floor 19 only by the removal of the rest of the body 10 except central locating bar 42, the front or leading edge 35 maintains the angle dictated by the aerodynamics of the shell 16.

The doors 20 are hinged to the shell 16 on one edge and are locked to shell 16 or floor 19 on the opposite edge and may be provided with a catch to hold it in open position if hinged from the top, and/or a handle or handgrip to assist in opening. In this instance, the doors 20 have locks 36. The tongue of the locks 36 engage in a recess 37 in the floor 19. The locks 36 are key operated.

Each central locating bar 42 is a hollow, thick walled tube that just fits between the inside surfaces of the side walls 34 of the floor 19 and has an internal diameter that will allow the outside diameter of the horizontal bar 12 to

fit neatly inside. One or more threaded holes 43 is placed towards each end of the central locating bar 42 to accommodate the securing screw 44 which passes into the horizontal bar 12 and thus arrests any travel of the body 10 on the bar 12.

The clamping devices 11 shown in Figs 5, 6 and 7 consists of seven basic parts; they are: a U bolt 50, security casing 51, main support plate 52, keyway guide 53, gutter clamping plate 54, front cover 55, and lock 56. One clamping device 11 is used for each end of each horizontal bar 12 and the casing 51 of each device 11 is secured in position by a U bolt 50, washers 57 and nuts 58.

The security casing 51 is not only the support and securing point of the horizontal bar 12, but also forms the back and sides of the enclosure of the clamping device 11.

With the keyway guide 53 inserted through the hole 59 in the back wall 60, the clamping device 11 and the security casing 51 acquire their pivot weight transfer and locking points. The sides 61 of the securing casing have a channel 62, which facilitates arcuate movement of the active clamping plates 52, 54.

Adjustment as to height (i.e. the distance between the gutter 13 and the horizontal bar 12) is made by removing the U bolt 50 and installing a replacement of an appropriate length. A spacer of the same dimensions as the top of the security casing 51 would also be used. The U bolt may have a cover that, when the nuts 58 are tightened, would be held in place and create a more aesthetic and 'clean-lined' unit. The U bolt 50 may be replaced by a combination clasp and cover that would be secured with bolts inserted from inside the security casing 51 and up into the threaded clasp.

The main support plate 52 has a lever arm 63 pivotally connected thereto and together they not only support the security casing 51 as well as the load but also supply the leverage by which the gutter clamping plate 54 is firmly secured to the gutter 13. The main support plate 52 is

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narrower and thinner than the security casing 51 so as to fit inside the security casing 51 and may pivot about the keyway hole 59.

The gutter clamping plate 54 is attached to a hinge plate 63 by means of arms 63a which rest in a hinge cradle 64 and has a hole 65 which is aligned with the keyway hole 69 of the main support plate 52 when in the 'engaged' position. A number of hinge cradles 64 are provided to allow the clamped distance to be adjusted. This adjustment is achieved by placing the arms 63a of the gutter clamping plate 54 in the hinge cradle 64 that produces the required ^• bite*. The hinges 64 are sufficiently strong so as to allow for an adequate amount of pressure to be applied to the lever arm in reaching 'engaged' position, so achieving that required 'bite'.

The keyway guide 53 supports the security casing 51 on the main support plate 52 and at the same time it positively locks the arc of travel of the main support plate 52 at the pivot point. The guide 53 provides a barrell for a lock 66, the barrell is in the form of a blind hole with circumferential grooves that act as a keyway for the active locking pins 66a of the lock 66.

The gutter clamping plate 54 is lifted by the hinge plate 63 and its angled feet 67 are pressed to the underside of the gutter 13 to apply enough pressure between them and the feet 68 of the main support plate 52 on the top of the gutter 13 to prevent movement. The arms 63a are so shaped to allow the opening through which they pass to be smaller than the inside diameter of the carrying cradle 64, thus when the lever arm 63 is raised they are held securely.

The front cover 55 provides a closure for the clamping device 11 and is effectively held in place by the lock 66 to prevent access to or removal of the fasteners and parts inside the security casing 51. Locating grooves or retaining clips may be used to assist in attaching the front cover 55.

The locking device 70 shown in Figs 8 and 9 has a body portion 77 that receives a U bolt 78 that clamps a roof bar 79 or another horizontal bar 12 thereto. The body 77 has a downwardly depending plate 80 which has a keyway guide 81 that passes through an aperture in the wall 23. A cover plate 82 is retained on the body 77 by lock 83.

Thus, the preferred embodiment of the invention provides a storage system which:-

(a) constitutes a safe, weatherproof, enclosed space for the storage and cartage of items of luggage above the roof of a motor vehicle.

(b) is designed to be attached to the gutter of the vehicle and secured in place in such a manner as to prevent it or the enclosed goods being easily stolen, whilst allowing the unit to be easily attached and removed as required or stored when not.

(c) may be clamped to the gutter or water channel of the vehicle in such a manner that it is adjustable in thickness of clamp 'bite' , and in the distance between the gutter and the storage unit so as to accommodate curves in gutters and roofs of vehicles while maintaining a horizontal or required positioning and securing of the storage unit.

(d) has securing points for additional freight and/or freight securing devices to be carried or attached on to and outside the storage system.

(e) allows the insertion of internal walls that would divide the enclosed space into a number of compartments as required; the size and number of compartments being determined by the number of internal walls inserted or removed, and each having an external key lockable and weatherproof door.

(f) in order to accommodate a wide variety in shape and size of goods, the storage unit is convertable to a flat 'platform* on which larger or flat items may be secured.

Various modifications may be made in details of design and construction without department from the scope and ambit of the invention. For example, an alarm system could be incorporated as a deterrent to a would-be thief interfering with the storage system or its contents.

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