Cab fairing mounting for truck

• US 5,054,799 A
• Filed: 03/02/1990
• Issued: 10/08/1991
• Est. Priority Date: 08/25/1989
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: PACCAR Incorporated
• Original Assignee: PACCAR Incorporated
• Inventors: Fingerle, Robert F.
• Primary Examiner(s): Focarino, Margaret A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Hoge, Gary C.
• Application Number:
  US07/488,602
• Time in Patent Office: 585 Days
• Field of Search: 280/833, 280/834, 280/163, 280/164.1, 280/166
• US Class Current: 280/164.1
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 15/067 Mounting of tanks
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 3/00 Arrangements of steps or ladders facilitating access to or on the vehicle, e.g. running-boards construction of steps for railway vehicles B61D23/00 ; ladders E06C
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 35/001 For commercial vehicles or tractor-trailer combinations, e.g. caravans

Abstract

An assembly for mounting a cab skirt fairing panel over a truck'"'"'s fuel tank region. The panel is attached to a cab step at the front end of the fuel tank and a step arrangement at the back end of the fuel tank. The cab step, and thus the panel, is supported by a V-shaped structure which remains rigid vertically, but flexes horizontally. Similarly, the connection for the step arrangement, and thus the panel, includes bolting assemblies with flexible members which provide rigid vertical support, but flex in response to pressures in the horizontal direction. Thus, the panel is able to support weight and at the same time, flexibly withstand destructive counteractive forces imposed upon it. An additional feature of the invention is that a number of mounting positions are provided for securing the step arrangement to the truck. This feature enables a minimal number of embodiments of the step arrangement to uniformly accommodate a single panel which can cover all fuel tank sizes.

Claims

1. A step assembly for mounting to a fuel tank brace member supporting a truck'"'"'s fuel tank, said brace member being mounted to a longitudinal main frame of said truck in any one of a plurality of longitudinal positions long said main frame as determined by the size of the truck'"'"'s fuel tank, said step assembly comprising:

a step member formed for support of a human foot thereon;

step mounting means connected to said step member and a including a plurality of longitudinally spaced mounting positions, said step mounting means mounting said step member to said brace member in a selected one of said plurality of longitudinally spaced mounting positions relative to said brace member to mount said step member in a fixed location relative to said main frame and thereby permit a standard cab skirt fairing panel having step depressions located in predetermined spaced apart locations to be mounted over said step member.

2. A step assembly for mounting to a fuel tank brace member supporting a truck'"'"'s fuel tank, said brace member being mounted to a longitudinal main frame of said truck in any one of a plurality of longitudinally positions along said main frame as determined by the size of the truck'"'"'s fuel tank, said step assembly comprising:

a mounting bracket mounted to said brace member;

a step member formed for support of a human foot thereon;

a step arrangement mount carrying said step member and formed for mounting to said mounting bracket; and

one of said mounting bracket and said step arrangement mount including a plurality of longitudinally spaced apart apertures for fastening to the other of said mounting bracket and said step arrangement mount, said step arrangement mount being mounted to said mounting bracket by means of a selected one of said apertures to mount said step member to said brace member in a selected one of a plurality of longitudinal locations relative to said brace member, said step member being mounted in a fixed location relative to said main frame, thereby permitting a standard cab skirt fairing panel having step depressions located in predetermined spaced apart locations to be mounted over said step member.

3. The step assembly as defined in claim 2 wherein:

said step arrangement mount is formed with said longitudinally spaced apart apertures, and said longitudinally spaced apart apertures are arranged in at least three columns of two vertically aligned apertures.

4. A step assembly as defined in claim 3 wherein:

said plurality of longitudinally spaced apart apertures are formed proximate a right end of said step arrangement mount.

5. A step assembly as defined in claim 3 wherein:

said plurality of longitudinally spaced apart apertures are formed proximate a left end of said step arrangement mount.

6. A fuel tank fairing and step assembly for mounting on a truck having a longitudinally extending main frame, and a fuel tank mounted to said main frame along a side thereof by brace members fixed to said main frame at longitudinal positions determined by the size of said fuel tank, said fairing and step assembly comprising:

a cab step assembly mounted to said main frame by a mounting bracket proximate a front end of said fuel tank;

a tank step assembly mounted to a brace member for said fuel tank by tank step assembly mounting means;

a fuel tank fairing having a cab step receiving depression and a tank step receiving depression, said cab step receiving depression and said tank step receiving depression being spaced apart by a fixed longitudinal distance independence of the longitudinal position at which said brace member carrying said tank step assembly is mounted to said main frame; and

said tank step assembly mounting means being formed with a plurality of longitudinally spaced mounting positions, and said tank step mounting means mounting said tank step assembly to said brace member at a selected one of said plurality of longitudinally spaced mounting positions to align said tank step assembly with said tank step depression.