VEHICLE-MOUNTABLE GUIDELINE PAINTING APPARATUS AND METHOD

Abstract

A vehicle-mountable guideline painting apparatus and method. The apparatus has an arm with a first end mountable to a vehicle. A holder is operably supported at a second end of the arm at a desired elevation above a roadway. The holder is configured to receive an aerosol paint canister in a position with its nozzle oriented in a direction to spray paint onto the roadway. An actuator is disposed to actuate the nozzle upon receiving an electrical signal from a power source causing paint to be sprayed onto the roadway.

Description

BACKGROUND

During road construction, it is often necessary or desirable to paint guidelines on the roadway surface for purposes of diverting and directing traffic, to make a guideline to be followed by road construction equipment or for other purposes. One method of painting guidelines on roadway surfaces typically employed by road construction crews is to have two crewmembers hold a stringline while a third crewmember sprays the guideline along the stringline using aerosol paint. Such a process is not cost effective because it is performed on foot and therefore it is not only slow but it requires multiple crewmembers resulting in excessive manhours to perform. It also exposes multiple crew members to traffic thereby increasing the risk of personal injury.

Accordingly, there is a need for a simple, effective and inexpensive way to paint guidelines on a roadway which can be performed by a single worker, which can be performed using a vehicle so it is faster and safer because the worker is not on foot and is not exposed to traffic, and which does not require the investment in specialized roadway stripers or other specialized equipment.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of a vehicle-mountable guideline painting apparatus.

FIG. 2 is an elevation view of the vehicle-mountable guideline painting apparatus of FIG. 1 shown mounted to a trailer hitch receiver of a vehicle.

FIG. 3 is a detailed view showing an embodiment in which the actuator is mounted to the top of the post of the guideline painting apparatus of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is side elevation view the guideline painting apparatus of FIG. 1.

FIGS. 5, 6 and 7 are partial bottom plan views of different embodiments of the paint can holder for the guideline painting apparatus of FIG. 1 showing different nozzle trigger configurations.

FIG. 8 is another embodiment of a vehicle-mountable guideline painting apparatus.

DESCRIPTION

Referring now to the drawings, wherein like reference numerals designate identical or corresponding parts throughout the several views, FIG. 1 illustrates one embodiment of a vehicle-mountable guideline painting apparatus 10. The apparatus 10 is mountable to a vehicle 12 (FIG. 2) such as a pickup truck or any other suitable vehicle, preferably utilizing the vehicle's trailer hitch receiver 14 (FIG. 2) or other suitable mounting point. The apparatus 10 includes an arm 20 that preferably supports a vertically adjustable post 30 having a holder 40 disposed thereon for receiving an inverted aerosol paint canister 50 preferably of the type that is specially adapted for painting marks on a roadway 16. As used herein, the term “roadway” should be understood to mean any surface on which a vehicle may be driven where it may be desirable to paint guidelines for any purpose.

The arm 20 is preferably L-shaped with a first leg 22 received into the trailer hitch receiver 14 while the second leg 24 preferably extends laterally to position the post 30 and holder 40 to the side of the vehicle 12 so that it can be viewed by the driver of the vehicle 12 through a side mirror (not shown). It should also be appreciated, that the arm 20 could be straight or could include a pivot pin or hinge (not shown) so that the second leg 24 is pivotable with respect to the first leg 22.

The second leg 24 of the arm 20 is preferably telescoping to provide for lateral positioning of the post 30 and holder 40 with respect to the vehicle 12. The second leg 24 preferably includes a slide arm 26 that is received within a fixed arm 28. An adjustment bolt 29 is preferably provided on the fixed arm 28 which can be rotated for engaging the slide arm 26 to frictionally hold it in position relative to the fixed arm 28 once the desired lateral position of the slide arm 26 is achieved. Alternatively, a pin (not shown) may be provided that is receivable within predefined spaced holes in the slide arm 26 for adjustably pinning the slide arm 26 in the desired position with respect to the fixed arm 28. Any other suitable means of positioning the slide arm 26 relative to the fixed arm 28 may also be used. Also as shown in FIG. 2, a spring or other resilient member 32 is preferably disposed between the post 30 at the end of the second leg 24 so as to allow the post 30 to deflect if the post 30 or holder 40 encounters an obstruction such as uneven terrain, thereby minimizing damage that may occur if the post or holder was rigidly connected to the arm.

In a preferred embodiment, the post 30 and holder 40 assembly are preferably adapted from a commercially available hand held marking wand, such as a Krylon® “Hand Held Wheeler Marking Wand” (UPC 7-24504-07096-2) incorporated herein by reference, which is available from various retailers and on-line outlets. It should be appreciated, however, that rather than modifying a commercially available marking wand, the post and holder may be fabricated from or comprise any suitable components or materials as recognized by those of skill in the art. The post 30 is preferably vertically adjustable with respect to the arm 20 for positioning the paint canister 50 received within the holder 40 at the desired elevation from the roadway or ground surface to be marked. A bracket 34 is preferably mounted to the spring or resilient member 32 or to the end of the second leg 24 of the arm 20. The bracket 34 preferably slidably receives the post 30. An adjustment bolt 36 is preferably provided on the bracket 34 which can be rotated for engaging the slidable post 30 to frictionally hold it in position relative to the bracket 34 once a desired position of the post 30 is achieved. Alternatively, a pin may be provided that is receivable within predefined spaced holes in the post 30 for pinning the post 30 in the desired position relative to the bracket 34. Any other suitable means of positioning the post 30 relative to the bracket 34 may also be used.

The holder 40 is configured to receive the inverted aerosol paint canister 50 such that the nozzle 52 (FIG. 4) of the canister 50 is oriented toward the roadway to be marked. Positioned at the bottom of the holder 40 is a nozzle trigger 42 which is configured to actuate the canister nozzle 52 to cause paint to spray from the nozzle 52. As shown in FIGS. 5-7, the nozzle trigger 42 may be configured to push on the nozzle 52 (FIG. 5) or hooked to pull on the nozzle 52 (FIG. 6) or, as shown in FIG. 7, the trigger 42 may include a circular opening through which the nozzle 52 is inserted, such that the trigger 42 may be pushed or pulled to actuate the nozzle 52. The holder 40 also preferably includes a foot 44 or other protective component, such as a wheel, to protect the canister nozzle 52 from damage.

Referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, an actuator 60, such as a solenoid, is secured to a bracket 62 at the top of the post 30. A turnbuckle 64 couples the solenoid stem 63 to a vertical rod 66 that extends through the post 30. A horizontal rod 68 is connected to the bottom of the vertical rod 66 by a pivotable L-shaped rocker 67. It should be appreciated that the vertical displacement of the solenoid stem 63 upon actuation of the solenoid actuator 60 will result in a corresponding vertical displacement of the vertical rod 66 coupled thereto. This vertical displacement of the vertical rod 66 is converted to a horizontal displacement of the trigger 42 via the pivoting L-shaped rocker 67 that links the vertical rod 66 and the horizontal rod 68 of the trigger 42. The turnbuckle 64 permits any necessary adjustment of the linkage between the solenoid 60 and trigger 42 so that the vertical displacement of the solenoid stem 63 effects the desired actuation of the nozzle 52. It should be appreciated that the foregoing description is but one of many configurations that may be used to convert the vertical movement to a horizontal movement for actuation of the nozzle 52, including for example, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,485,206 and 3,796,353 and in Publication No. U.S. 2006/0185179 each of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference.

In a preferred embodiment, the actuator 60 is electrically coupled to the vehicle's electric system using a wiring harness 70 having a connector 72 that is received within trailer light plug 74 adjacent to the trailer hitch receiver 14. Thus it should be appreciated that if the actuator 60 is electrically coupled to the left or right vehicle turn signal through the trailer light plug, the solenoid 60 will be actuated by turning on the vehicle's turn signal causing paint to be sprayed intermittently in sequence with the blinking or flashing of the vehicle's turn signal. Alternatively, or in addition, if the actuator 60 is electrically coupled to the vehicle's lights through the trailer light plug, the solenoid can be activated and de-activated, by turning the vehicle lights on and off. It should also be appreciated that rather than utilizing the vehicle's electrical system, a separate battery or other electric power source may be provided along with a switch for activating or deactivating the actuator 60.

FIG. 8 illustrates an alternative embodiment in which the solenoid 60 is mounted such that the linear displacement of the actuator is in the horizontal direction thereby eliminating the need for the vertical rod 62 and the rocker 67. In this embodiment the solenoid stem 63 acts directly on the horizontal trigger rod 68.

Based on the foregoing it should be appreciated that in a preferred embodiment, a single operator may quickly mount the guideline painting apparatus 10 to a trailer hitch receiver 52 of a vehicle 50, plug the wiring harness 54 to the vehicle's trailer light plug, insert the paint canister into the holder 40, and then adjust the position of the canister holder 130 to the desired elevation. The operator can then position the vehicle on the roadway and simply actuate the system to begin the guideline spraying process by turning on the vehicle's left or right turn signal to produce intermittent guidelines as the operator drives forwardly, or a continuous guideline by turning on the vehicle's lights. When the guideline is complete, the marking system is turned off or deactivated by turning off the vehicle's turn signal or lights. When the paint canister is empty or a different color or type of marking paint is desired, the operator can stop and replace the canister with another one, then continue with the guideline marking process as just described.

Accordingly, the vehicle-mountable guideline painting apparatus 10 provides a simple and effective way for a single worker to paint guidelines on a roadway or other surface quickly and from within the safety of a vehicle thereby minimizing exposure of the worker to vehicle traffic on the roadway. The vehicle-mountable guideline painting apparatus 10, and which does not require the investment in specialized roadway stripers or other specialized equipment.

The foregoing description is presented to enable one of ordinary skill in the art to make and use the invention and is provided in the context of a patent application and its requirements. Various modifications to the preferred embodiment of the apparatus, and the general principles and features of the system and methods described herein will be readily apparent to those of skill in the art. Thus, the present invention is not to be limited to the embodiments of the apparatus, system and methods described above and illustrated in the drawing figures, but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. A vehicle-mountable guideline painting apparatus, comprising;

an arm having a first end mounted to a vehicle;

a holder operably supported at a second end of said arm at a desired elevation above a roadway, said holder configured to receive an aerosol paint canister and to support said canister in a position with its nozzle oriented in a direction to spray paint onto said roadway;

an actuator electrically connected to a power source, said actuator disposed to actuate said nozzle upon receiving an electrical signal from said power source causing paint to be sprayed onto said roadway.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said first end of said arm is received within a trailer hitch receiver mounted to said vehicle.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein said power source is the vehicle's electrical power source.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 further including a wiring harness electrically coupled to said actuator at one end and having a connector adapted to be received by a trailer light plug on said vehicle.

5. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein said actuator is actuated by turning on one of said vehicle's turn signals, whereby intermittent guidelines are painted on said roadway in sequence with blinking of said turn signal.

6. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein said actuator is actuated by turning on said vehicle's lights, whereby a continuous guideline is painted on said roadway until said vehicle lights are turned off.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said holder is supported by a post that is vertically positionable with respect to said arm.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said holder is horizontally positionable with respect to said vehicle.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said holder is operably supported by a resilient member at said second end of said arm.

10. A vehicle-mountable guideline painting apparatus, comprising:

an arm having a first end adapted to be received within a trailer hitch receiver of a vehicle;

a holder operably supported at a second end of said arm at a desired elevation above a roadway, said holder configured to receive an aerosol paint canister and to support said canister in a position with its nozzle oriented in a direction to spray paint onto said roadway;

a wiring harness having a connector at one end adapted to be received by a trailer light plug on said vehicle;

an actuator electrically connected at another end to said wiring harness, said actuator disposed to actuate said nozzle upon receiving an electrical signal from said vehicle through said wiring harness causing paint to be sprayed onto said roadway.

11. The apparatus of claim 10 wherein said actuator is actuated by turning on one of said vehicle's turn signals, whereby intermittent guidelines are painted on said roadway in sequence with blinking of said turn signal.

12. The apparatus of claim 10 wherein said actuator is actuated by turning on said vehicle's lights, whereby a continuous guideline is painted on said roadway until said vehicle lights are turned off.

13. The apparatus of claim 10 wherein said holder is supported by a post that is vertically positionable with respect to said arm.

14. The apparatus of claim 10 wherein said holder is horizontally positionable with respect to said vehicle.

15. The apparatus of claim 10 wherein said holder is operably supported by a resilient member at said second end of said arm.

16. A method of painting guidelines on a roadway, comprising:

securing a first end of an arm to a vehicle;

operably supporting a holder at a second end of said arm at a desired elevation above a roadway;

placing an aerosol paint canister into said holder with its nozzle oriented in a direction to spray paint onto said roadway;

operably coupling an actuator to actuate said nozzle;

electrically coupling said actuator to said vehicle's electrical system;

electrically actuating said actuator to actuate said nozzle causing paint to be sprayed onto said roadway.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein said first end of said arm is received within a trailer hitch receiver of said vehicle.

18. The method of claim 16 wherein said actuator is electrically coupled to said vehicle's electrical system through said vehicle's trailer light plug.

19. The method of claim 16 wherein electrically actuating said actuator includes turning on one of said vehicle's turn signals, whereby intermittent guidelines are painted on said roadway in sequence with blinking of said turn signal.

20. The method of claim 16 wherein electrically actuating said actuator includes turning on said vehicle's lights, whereby a continuous guideline is painted on said roadway until said vehicle lights are turned off.