Cooler and folding chair holder for a vehicle
A cooler is mounted on a carrier over the rear wheel of a bicycle or other vehicle and held in place by a folding stool placed over it. The stool frames or legs are adapted to releasably engage in a mount secured to the carrier and are resiliently urged into contact therein by a tensioning device which forces the legs of the stool apart and tensions the seat secured therebetween.
This invention relates to a holder for carrying a picnic cooler and a folding chair on a bicycle, or other vehicle.
BACKGROUND OF INVENTIONWhen travelling to the beach, river bank, or other outdoor location by bicycle, or other vehicle such as a tricycle, all terrain vehicle, motor cycle, or snowmobile, it is frequently desirable to transport a picnic cooler, containing refreshments and the like, as well as some portable seating to be used upon arrival at the outdoor location for picnicking, fishing, ice fishing or similar activities. It is necessary, therefore, to provide some sort of carrier on the bicycle to which a cooler may be secured for safe passage. Several patents have been granted for such carriers, and attention is directed to U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,527,153; 5,024,359; 5,282,554 and 5,687,894, all of which describe different forms of carriers for picnic coolers and the like. These carriers are all relatively complex, bulky and expensive structures and not without their disadvantages. Thus, there is a need for a simple structure to mount a cooler on a standard bicycle carrier, which is generally, but not essentially, mounted over the rear wheel of a bicycle and which includes provision for securing the cooler to the carrier using a folding chair as part of the securement.
OBJECT OF INVENTIONAn object of the present invention is to provide a simple and inexpensive mount which can be secured to a carrier frame on a bicycle and to which a picnic cooler and a folding chair may be secured.
BRIEF STATEMENT OF INVENTIONBy one aspect of this invention there is provided a cooler, folding stool and mounting means combination for detachable mounting of said cooler and folding stool to a carrier mounted on a vehicle frame, comprising:
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- a folding stool having a pair of pivotally interconnected rectilinear frame members having a flexible seat means secured therebetween, adapted to be moved between an open operative position wherein said seat means is substantially planar and a closed inoperative position in which said rectilinear frames are in substantially parallel overlying relationship;
- a substantially rectangular cooler adapted so as to fit under said seat means and between said pair of interconnected rectilinear frame means when said folding stool is in said open position;
- mounting means, mountable on said carrier and adapted to releasably engage a portion of each of said pair of rectilinear frame members when said stool is in said open position, so as to hold said folding stool on said carrier; and
- tensioning means to urge said rectilinear frame members into releasable engagement with said mounting means.
In
In operation, a conventional, substantially rectangular, foam insulated, picnic cooler 20 (
Claims
1. A cooler, folding stool and mounting means combination for detachable mounting of said cooler and folding stool to a carrier mounted on a vehicle frame, comprising:
- a folding stool having a pair of pivotally interconnected rectilinear frame members having a flexible seat means secured therebetween, adapted to be moved between an open operative position wherein said seat means is substantially planar and a closed inoperative position in which said rectilinear frames are in substantially parallel overlying relationship;
- a substantially rectangular cooler adapted so as to fit under said seat means and between said pair of interconnected rectilinear frame means when said folding stool is in said open position;
- mounting means, mountable on said carrier and adapted to releasably engage a portion of each of said pair of rectilinear frame members when said stool is in said open position, so as to hold said folding stool and said cooler on said carrier; and
- tensioning means to urge said rectilinear frame members into releasable engagement with said mounting means.
2. A combination as claimed in claim 1, wherein said mounting means comprises a pair of spaced apart parallel members, each having ends adapted to releasably engage a respective said portion of each of said pair of rectilinear frame members.
3. A combination as claimed in claim 2, wherein said pair of spaced apart parallel members is mountable transversely on said carrier.
4. A combination as claimed in claim 2 including releasable means to secure said parallel members to said carrier.
5. A combination as claimed in claim 1 wherein said tensioning means is selected from adjustable strap means and an elastic cord means.
6. A combination as claimed in claim 1 in further combination with a vehicle upon which said carrier is mounted.
7. A combination as claimed in claim 6 wherein said vehicle is selected from the group consisting of pedal driven vehicles, motor cycles, all terrain vehicles and snowmobiles.
8. A combination as claimed in claim 7 wherein said pedal driven vehicle is a bicycle.
9. A combination as claimed in claim 8 wherein said mounting means is mounted transversely on said carrier which is mounted behind a seat of the bicycle and over a rear wheel of the bicycle.
Type: Application
Filed: Apr 12, 2004
Publication Date: Oct 13, 2005
Inventor: Robert Rak (Picton)
Application Number: 10/821,953