Abstract: A jack for lifting a camper from the bed of a pick-up truck includes a ram with a foot which is normally disposed in a retracted position spaced above the ground to provide clearance during travel of the truck. After the foot has been lowered into contact with the ground, a hand crank is turned and rotates a ball screw which coacts with a ball nut to cause the ram to lift the camper from the truck. By releasing a latch, the retracted foot may be lowered quickly into contact with the ground without turning the crank and simply by stepping on and pushing downwardly against the foot to effect turning of the ball screw.

Abstract: A parking brake control in which a spiral spring is loaded between a sector and a pedal and unwinds to take up slack in the cable of a vehicle parking brake and tension the cable when a locking pin is removed following installation of the control and connection of the cable to the sector. A pawl coacts with the same sector to hold the sector in its brake-applied position and to enable release of the brake by pushing on the pedal. A cam is carried by the pedal and acts against the cable to produce a mechanical advantage which progressively increases as the brake is progressively applied.

Abstract: A machine tooling system is provided, comprising a tooling machine having a plurality of adjustable cutting units installed at various locations therein, a collet for holding a workpiece to be tooled, and a presetter machine for adjusting the adjustable cutting units to within prescribed specifications when the adjustable cutting units are detached from the tooling machine. Each of the adjustable cutting units may be precisely positioned to contact the workpiece to be tooled, and each is provided with an identification device attached thereto. The identification devices provide (i) location information identifying a particular location on the tooling machining for which the cutting unit is precisely adjusted and (ii) adjustment information including the adjustment parameters at which the adjustable cutting unit is preset. A cutting unit identification subsystem reads and stores the location information and the adjustment information provided by the identification devices.

Abstract: The track assembly of a seat adjuster is formed by upper and lower tracks of inverted U-shaped cross-section with the lower track being nested in the upper track and with the rear end portion of the upper track serving as an anchor for a seat belt. A tubular sheath of anti-friction material is located between the tracks to promote gliding of the upper track on the lower track. Crash bars with longitudinally spaced teeth on their lower edges are housed within and anchored to the lower track. If the vehicle is involved in a frontal crash, load exerted by the seat belt on the upper track causes the rear end portion of the upper track to buckle upwardly and bring a latch on the lower side of the upper track into latching relation with the teeth of the crash bars for purposes of locking the upper track against upward and forward movement relative to the lower track.

Abstract: Runners extend along the junctions of the interior side panels and the headliner of the van and define plenums for conditioned air supplied by the auxiliary heat exchanger of a climate control system, the heat exchanger being mounted beneath the floor of the van. Air distribution outlets are mounted in the runners and discharge conditioned air downwardly into the interior of the van. Conditioned air is supplied to one of the plenums by a first hose extending upwardly from the heat exhanger, along the outboard side of one of the interior side panels and into one of the runners. A second hose extends upwardly generally alongside the first hose but crosses over the van between the roof and the headliner and leads into the other runner to supply conditioned air to the other plenum.

Abstract: A track assembly of a vehicle seat adjuster includes an upper track secured to the seat and adjustable back and forth along a lower track which is anchored to the vehicle floor pan. Friction between the tracks is reduced by load-bearing rollers located between the tracks at the center thereof and by spherical balls located between the tracks along the sides thereof. The rollers travel independently of the balls to prevent possible binding of the rollers, the balls along each side of the track being held in fixed longitudinally spaced relation by a strip-like retainer.

Abstract: The latch of a seat adjuster is pivotally mounted on a latch mounting bracket which, in turn, is secured rigidly to the upper track of the seat adjuster. The latch mounting bracket is formed with a weakened area in proximity to the pivot for the latch. In the event of a frontal crash, the weakened area deforms to enable the mounting bracket to move forwardly relative to the latch and clamp the latch in its latched position, thereby preventing the latch from pivoting to its unlatched position. A second bracket underlies the latch mounting bracket and coacts with the other latching elements to force the latching tooth of the latch to fail in shear rather than by bending. An anchor for a seat belt may be carried by the second bracket.

Abstract: A jack is mounted on a trailer tongue by a swivel connection to pivot between a vertically disposed active position and a horizontally disposed stowed position. The swivel connection includes a spacer sandwiched between a bracket on the tongue of the trailer and a bracket on the housing of the jack and rotatably received in a hole in the tongue bracket. The spacer serves to hold the two brackets out of contact with one another. A bolt extends through the housing bracket and the spacer with a non-rotatable fit and causes the housing bracket and the spacer to turn in unison relative to the tongue bracket. A nut and washer on the inner end of the bolt clamp the brackets together while allowing the housing bracket to pivot relative to the tongue bracket. The tongue bracket may either be clamped to the tongue by bolts or may be bolted to still another bracket which is welded to the tongue.

Abstract: A hinge for mounting a vehicle door for swinging between open and closed positions on a vehicle body. The hinge includes a door section adapted to be attached rigidly to the door, a body section adapted to be attached rigidly to the body, and an intermediate section pivotally connected to the door section and detachably connected to the body section in order to enable the door to be quickly removed from and re-installed on the body. To facilitate such removal and re-installation, the intermediate section of the hinge carries a pin which is adapted to fit in a notch in the body section in order to locate the door as it is being re-installed. The body section and the door section of the hinge carry components of a plunger-type hold-open mechanism which releasably holds the door in partially open and nearly fully open positions and which operates relatively silently as the door is opened and closed.

Abstract: A defrost diffuser in the dash plate of a motor vehicle includes an inlet sleeve for receiving conditioned air and includes laterally spaced outlet slots for distributing the air upwardly toward and laterally across the windshield of the vehicle. A center outlet slot is in vertical registry with the inlet sleeve and is located between two outboard slots. Relatively large volume pods are spaced from opposite sides of the sleeve and communicate therewith by way of restricted channels. The pods define static regain chambers to reduce the velocity effect of the airflow toward the outboard outlet slots and to promote a more even distribution of the airflow from the center slot and the outboard slots. For economy of manufacture, the diffuser is made as an integral one-piece molded plastic unit.

Abstract: A hinge for mounting a vehicle door for swinging between open and closed positions on a vehicle body. The hinge includes a door section adapted to be attached rigidly to the door, a body section adapted to be attached rigidly to the body, and an intermediate section pivotally connected to the body section and detachably connected to the door section to enable the door to be quickly removed from and re-installed on the body. To facilitate such removal and re-installation, the door section of the hinge carries a pin which is adapted to hang in a notch in the intermediate section to support, locate and stabilize the door as it is being removed and re-installed. The body section and the intermediate section of the hinge carry components of a plunger-type hold-open mechanism which releasably holds the door in partially open and nearly fully open positions and which remains in its entirety with the vehicle body when the door is removed.

Abstract: An automobile trunk lid is mounted for swinging on the automobile body between closed and open positions with respect to the trunk compartment. Each hinge includes a slotted hinge arm attached to the underside of the lid and a slotted body bracket attached to the body adjacent one side of the trunk compartment. A follower on the hinge arm projects into and is adapted to travel along the slot in the body bracket while a follower on the body bracket projects into the slot in the hinge arm. As the lid is opened, the followers and slots coact to first elevate the forward portion of the lid away from the body and then to allow the lid to swing open about an instantaneously changing axis. A spring, a cam and a cable coact to apply a spring-assist to the lid during opening, the cam and cable acting to compensate for the spring rate of the spring as the lid moves and its center of gravity changes in space.

Abstract: A fifth wheel hitch is attached releasably to the bed of a pickup truck by brackets which resemble the parts of a swinging door hinge and which are connected by removable pins. The hinge-type brackets with the removable pins enable the hitch to be quickly and easily removed from and re-installed in the truck.

Abstract: A hitch adapted to be installed in the bed of a pickup truck and adapted to interlock with the kingpin of a fifth wheel trailer in order to couple the trailer to the truck. The hitch includes a pivoted latching plate for securing the kingpin, a reciprocating locking bolt for holding the latch in a latched position and a pivoted detent link for holding the locking bolt in an unlocked position when the trailer is uncoupled from the truck. When the trailer is subsequently re-coupled to the truck, the latch automatically trips the detent link to allow the locking bolt to shift automatically to a locked position holding the latch in a latched position.