Gooseneck or fifth wheel trailer hitch alignment and safety system

• US 8,976,246 B1
• Filed: 04/03/2012
• Issued: 03/10/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 04/03/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Michael E. Rappuhn
• Original Assignee: Michael E. Rappuhn
• Inventors: Rappuhn, Michael E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Perungavoor, Sath V
• Assistant Examiner(s): Le, Peter D
• Application Number:
  US13/437,979
• Time in Patent Office: 1,071 Days
• Field of Search: 348/148
• US Class Current: 348/148
• CPC Class Codes: B60D 1/36 for facilitating connection, e.g. hitch catchers , visual guide means, signalling aids B60D1/465 takes precedence; vehicle signalling in general B60Q; optical arrangements specially adapted for viewing trailer-hitches B60R1/003
• CPC Class Codes: B60D 1/62 involving supply lines, electric circuits, or the like

Abstract

The gooseneck or fifth wheel trailer hitch alignment and safety system includes a reverse camera and at least one proximity sensor to provide alignment of a hitch to a hitch ball located inside of a truck bed. The reverse camera is positioned on or around a third brake light, and is aimed at the truck bed so as to provide visualization inside of the truck bed. The proximity sensor(s) detects the presence of a respective hitch located inside of the truck bed, and emits different colored alarms that in concert with the visualization of the reverse camera provide alignment means to a respective driver of said truck.

Claims

1. A gooseneck or fifth wheel trailer hitch alignment system comprising:

a reverse camera positioned adjacent a top, rear edge of a pickup truck cab, and which is aimed downwardly at a truck bed so as to provide video footage to a monitor located inside of said truck cab and in view of a driver;

wherein at least one proximity sensor is located on an internal side surface of said truck bed, and which is able to detect the presence of a gooseneck hitch or fifth wheel kingpin inside of said truck bed, and which relays a series of colored alarms on said monitor to provide means of alignment of the gooseneck hitch or fifth wheel kingpin to a gooseneck hitch ball or fifth wheel coupling mounted on said truck bed;

wherein the reverse camera is mounted on or adjacent to a third brake light;

wherein the monitor produces a triangularly-shaped zone on the video footage of the reverse camera, and which works in conjunction with the colored alarms to provide alignment means on said monitor;

wherein the triangularly-shaped zone correlates a spatial relationship of the gooseneck hitch or the fifth wheel kingpin with respect to the gooseneck hitch ball or the fifth wheel coupling in order to provide alignment thereto;

wherein the colored alarms produced via the proximity sensor include a plurality of individual and uniquely colored circles located on the monitor;

wherein only one of the colored circles may be illuminated at a given time, and works in conjunction with the triangularly-shaped zone to provide spatial information for purposes of aligning the gooseneck hitch or fifth wheel kingpin with respect to the gooseneck hitch ball or the fifth wheel coupling, respectively.