Emergency vehicle shelter

Abstract

An emergency vehicle shelter including an inflatable bladder configured for nested engagement with a vehicle for covering exterior surfaces thereof (excepting the underside) . Interior of the bladder is a compressed gas supply with valve means for rapid inflation of the bladder upon actuation of exteriorly accessible actuation lanyard or the like.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0001] 1. Field of The Invention [0002] The present invention relates to vehicle covers. [0003] 2. Background Information and Summary of the Invention [0004] A variety of vehicle covers are available for protecting vehicles from, among other things, hail. There are, of course, the conventional, single ply covers which merely protect a vehicle's paint from acid rain, bird droppings, etc. [0005] Examples of a variety of car covers can be found by reference to U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,699,192; 4,294,483; 4,807,922; 5,050,925, and 5,242,206. [0006] A hail shield described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,401,074 to Timerman, includes several strips of thick foam rubber spaced apart on a cloth cover. The thick foam strips keep the cloth cover spaced from the surface of the car provide a buffer space to absorb the energy of the falling hailstones. This design also may provide reasonable protection, but is not easily collapsed for storage due to the thickness of the foam strips. [000...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0011] Another object of the present invention is to provide an inflatable vehicle cover which may provide protection from the force of impacting foreign objects, such as hail stones.

[0012] Still another object of the present invention is to provide an inflatable vehicle cover which may be quickly and easily installed on a vehicle for use in emergency situations.

[0013] The present invention provides an inflatable vehicle cover for protecting the body of a vehicle from damage from the force of impacting foreign objects, such as hail. The cover is configured as an inflatable bladder which, when inflated, substantially defines a negative impression (on one side) of the vehicle to be protected. The cover is ideally constructed of polyester, propylene, acrylics, nylon, or such other light weight material as will render the cover an easily manageable size and weight.

[0014] Integrated within the cover of the present invention is a gas cylinder-based inflation system which, upon actuation, rapidly inflates the cover, thereby providing nearly immediate protection and obviating the need for air compressors, or even resort to deflating one's tires, as in the Heck invention.

[0016] The inflatable vehicle cover of the present invention thus may be used in a variety of emergency situations where immediate protection of the vehicle is required, such as in a severe thunderstorm or hail storm. The present invention thus provides a solution to a long-unsolved problem, that of providing emergency protection for the body of a vehicle.

Problems solved by technology

This design also may provide reasonable protection, but is not easily collapsed for storage due to the thickness of the foam strips.

The use of heavy materials in constructing a vehicle cover results in a vehicle cover which provides protection, but which is bulky and difficult to install on a vehicle.

Therefore, this type of vehicle cover is not suitable for providing the emergency covering of the vehicle body, especially if the vehicle operator is not exceptionally strong.

However, Farris is not designed for use in an emergency situation as it is inflatable only through use of an air compressor, which is not commonly found in a vehicle.

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