Bedroom slide out actuator with adjustable height

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/132,397 filed on May 4, 1999 and a continuation in part of U.S. Application No. 08/823,170 filed on Mar. 25, 1997, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,116,671, which is a continuation in part of U.S. Application No. 08/563,043 filed on Nov. 27, 1995, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,758,918.

Not Applicable

This invention relates to vehicles having expandable room sections, and more particularly to an improved actuator for moving a bedroom slide out between an extended and retracted position relative to the vehicle.

In order to increase the available interior space of recreational vehicles or trailers, it is known to provide a bedroom slide-out as part of the structure of the vehicle or trailer. A bedroom slide out is a raised platform, which can be used as a sleeping platform and is enclosed on all but one side. During transit, the slide-out section is retracted and stored in the interior of the vehicle or trailer, with the exterior wall of the slide-out room section approximately flush with the exterior of the vehicle or trailer. To use the slide-out section, the vehicle is first parked and leveled. The slide-out room section is then slid outward from the vehicle to an extended position, increasing the interior space of the vehicle.

In prior art constructions, the mechanism for moving the slide-out section relative to the stationary room section is fixed to the vehicle body, and pushes the bedroom slide-out away from the vehicle when extending the slide-out room, and pulls the slide-out section towards the vehicle when retracting the room. In addition, the mechanism is designed for a particular application having specific dimensional requirements which define particular aspects of the mechanism, such as the mechanism height. A vehicle which does not conform to the original mechanism application requirements, must be modified, or a different mechanism must be used.

The present invention provides a vehicle including a bedroom slide out having a platform which is movable laterally relative to a vehicle having a stationary floor. An operating mechanism laterally moves the platform relative to the stationary room section between a retracted position and an extended position.

The operating mechanism has a height adjustable frame with overlapping side members which are slidably moveable relative to each other and fastenable at two or more discrete heights. The frame includes opposing sides which slidably support the movable platform. Each side includes a first plate fixed to the vehicle which extends toward the platform. A second plate overlaps said first plate, and is slidably movable relative to said first plate. At least one hole is formed in one of the plates, and a plurality of linearly aligned holes is formed in the other of the plates, the hole formed in the one plate is alignable with two or more of the holes formed in the other plate, wherein alignment of the one hole in the one of the plates with one of the two or more of the holes formed in the other plate defines a first side height, and alignment of the one hole in the one of the plates with another one of the two or more of the holes formed in the other plate defines a second side height. A fastener inserted into the aligned holes fixes the height of the frame side.

A general objective of the present invention is to provide an operating mechanism which is not limited to specific dimensions of a particular application. This objective is accomplished by providing an operating mechanism having a height adjustable frame.

The foregoing and other objects and advantages of the invention will appear from the following description. In the description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings which form a part hereof, and in which there is shown by way of illustration a preferred embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 1 is a side view of a vehicle stationary floor having a slide-out section incorporating the present invention mounted thereon;

FIG. 2 is a side view of the slide out actuator of FIG. 1 in a lower position;

FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view of the slide out actuator along line 3 — 3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view of the slide out actuator along line 4 — 4 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a side view of the slide out actuator of FIG. 1 in an upper position;

FIG. 6 is a cross sectional view of the slide out actuator along line 6 — 6 of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a cross sectional view of the slide out actuator along line 7 — 7 of FIG. 5;

FIG. 8 is an exploded side view of the operating mechanism of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 9 is an exploded end view of the operating mechanism of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 10 is an exploded side view of an operating mechanism with an actuation mechanism coupled to a synchronization mechanism.

The present invention provides an expandable bedroom slide out attached to a known trailer or recreational vehicle which provides distinct advantages over the prior art as will be described and appreciated hereafter. In the preferred embodiment, the trailer or recreational vehicle (generally referred to as the vehicle) is equipped with a slide-out section used to provide additional interior room space. However, it should be understood that the invention can also apply to expandable sections or compartments provided on other vehicles for use in construction, military, medical, education, mobile broadcast and other applications, to expand the inside volume of the vehicle.

Referring now to FIG. 1, a bedroom slide out 10 is mounted to a vehicle stationary floor 11 . The bedroom slide out 10 has a movable platform 12 , such as suitable for use as a bed base, mounted to each end of a U-shaped channel 14 . The U-shaped channel 14 is slidably mounted in an actuator 16 which forcibly moves the platform 12 between extended and retracted positions. The actuator 16 is rigidly mounted to the vehicle stationary floor 11 , and extends and retracts the movable platform by forcibly sliding the U-shaped channel 14 with a rack and pinion drive. The moveable platform 12 is disposed above the actuator frame 18 , and is mounted to both ends of the U-shaped channel 14 .

The channel 14 is slidably disposed in the actuator frame 18 which simultaneously pushes and pulls the platform 12 to provide a smooth transition between the extened and retractedd positions. The U-shape channel 14 has a top surface 38 , bottom surface 32 , and the two ends 33 , 35 . A rack 40 mountes to the U-channel bottom surface 32 emgages a pinion 42 rotatably mounted in the actuator 16 to urge the channel 14 in the desired direction.

As shown in FIG. 1, the slide out actuator 16 has a frame 18 mounted to the vehicle floor 11 . Looking particularly at FIGS. 3, 4 , 6 , and 7 , the actuator frame 18 includes opposing sides 20 joined by a top plate 22 and a bottom plate 24 . Each side 20 is formed from a pair of vertical slidably movable overlapping inner and outer plates 26 , 28 . The top plate 22 is fastened to the inner side plates 26 by methods known in the art, such as welding to form a frame upper assembly 17 which supports frame operating components, such as rollers 34 , the pinion 42 , a motor mount 50 , a shaft 44 , and the like. The bottom plate 24 is similarly mounted to the outer side plates 28 to form a frame lower assembly 19 , and is mounted to the vehicle to secure the actuator 16 to the vehicle floor 11 .

The inner side plate 26 is substantially rectangular, and can be cutout to reduce the plate material required. The outer side plate 28 is substantially rectangular, and has upstanding legs 31 . The outer plate 28 is open between the legs 31 to provide room for the a shaft 44 and mount 50 . Holes 30 are formed in the upstanding legs 31 , and are in substantially the same plane as holes 30 formed in the inner plate 26 to allow alignment between a hole 30 in each plate 26 , 28 .

The height of the frame 18 is adjusted by slidably moving the overlapping plates 26 , 28 to obtain the desired height. Bach frame side 20 has a lower position, shown in FIGS. 2-4 and 8 , and an upper position, with intermediate positions in between. The lower position is accomplished by aligning the lowest hole in the outer overlapping plate 28 on each side of the frame 18 with the lowest hole in the corresponding inner overlapping plate 26 , and then pinning the plates 26 , 28 together using a pin, such as a bolt 37 . The upper position is accomplished by aligning the highest hole in the lower overlapping plate 28 on each side of the frame 18 with the lowest hole in the upper overlapping plate 26 , and then pinning the plates 26 , 28 together. Intermediate positions, such as the position shown in FIGS. 5-7 and 9 , are accomplished by aligning various combinations of the holes 30 , and fastening the plates 26 , 28 together.

The height of the actuator 16 is fixed by aligning at least one of the holes 30 in the inner plate 26 with a hole 30 in the outer plate 28 , and then fastening the plates 26 , 28 together. Preferably, bolts or pins are secured in at least one pair of aligned holes 30 to fix the height of the actuator 16 . Advantageously, the height adjustable frame 18 provides an easily adaptable actuator 16 for a plurality of applications.

The frame upper assembly supports the channel 14 and the pinion 42 for urging the channel 14 between the extended and retracted positions. In the preferred embodiment, the frame upper assembly includes two pairs of rollers 34 rotatably mounted to the plates 26 on opposing sides of the pinion 42 . The rollers 34 engage the U-channel bottom on opposing sides of the rack 40 to support the channel as it slides through the frame. Each pair of rollers 34 are rotatably mounted to the inner plates 26 of the upper frame assembly on opposing sides of the pinion 42 .

The pinion 42 is mounted to a rotatable shaft 44 , jounalled to the plates 26 , and driven by an electric motor (not shown). The electric motor is mounted to mount 50 , which is welded to plate 52 . Plate 52 is bolted to plate 26 , and shaft 44 extends through plate 26 and terminates in an end 54 which is engageable by the drive means. The opposite end of the shaft 44 may extend through the plate 26 on the opposite side of the frame 18 , and have end 56 to be engaged, for example, by a shaft 60 that connects to the pinion 62 of a second slide out actuator 64 , acting as a synchronization mechanism, having a frame 66 , shaft 68 , rollers 70 , channel 72 and rack 74 , spaced laterally from the unit 16 as illustrated in FIG. 10, so as to synchronize the two units 16 and 64 . Although an electric motor is disclosed, the shaft may be driven by other methods known in the art, such as manually.

A low friction block 36 , such as UHMW, is mounted to the frame top 22 , and engages the U-channel top 38 to keep the pinion 42 engaged with the rack 40 . Advantageously, the block prevents the U-channel 14 from pivoting on one of the roller pairs 34 when the channel is substantially fully extended or retracted. Although a block is disclosed, other methods for maintaining the engagement of the rack with the pinion can be used, such as by using rollers, without departing from the scope of the present invention.

While there has been shown and described what are at present considered the preferred embodiment of the invention, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made therein without departing from the scope of the invention defined by the appended claims. Therefore, various alternatives and embodiments are contemplated as being within the scope of the following claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter regarded as the invention.