Automobile ski and luggage rack

Claim 2

Rack apparatus adapted to be carried by a vehicle comprising: hinge means adapted to be fixedly attached to the vehicle and being movable between a flat stowed position and a raised inclined lifting position, rails means attached to said hinge means and defining a luggage carrying space in the flat stowed luggage carrying position and being movable on said hinge means between the flat stowed luggage carrying position and an inclined raised ski carrying position, and ski-clamping means attached to and carried by said rail means and defining an inclined ski carrying space in the inclined raised ski carrying position.

Claim 3

The apparatus as defined in claim 1 and wherein said hinge means comprises: a base plate portion fixedly mountable on the vehicle, a rail lifting portion pivotally supported at one end on the base plate portion and at the other end on said rail means, and said rail lifting portion being movable between a lowered stowed position and a raised lifting position.

Claim 4

The invention as defined in claim 2 and wherein said hinge means further comprises: a base plate extension portion pivotally connected to one end of said base plate portion and being pivotally movable between an extended position located beyond the one end of said base plate portion and an overlapping position located in parallel relationship above said base plate portion, and said rail lifting portion being pivotally connected at the one end to said base plate extension portion and being located in overlapping relationship thereto in the lowered stowed position.

Claim 5

The invention as defined in claim 3 and wherein said rail lifting portion comprises: a pair of members pivotally connected to each other at one end and the rail means at the other end, the other end of one of said members being pivotally connected to said base plate extension portion and the other end of the other of said members being pivotally connected to the end of said base plate portion opposite said base plate extension portion whereby movement of the base plate extension portion between the extending position and the overlapping position causes movement of the pair of members between a flat lowered position, overlapping the base plate portion and the base plate extension portion, and the raised bridging position.

Claim 6

The invention as defined in claim 4 and wherein holding means are associated with said hinge means to hold said hinge means in the raised lifting position.

Claim 7

The invention as defined in claim 5 and wherein there being additional holding means associated with said hinge means and said rail means to hold said hinge means and said rail means in the stowed lowered positioN.

Claim 8

The invention as defined in claim 6 and said holding means comprising: pin means fastened to and extending upwardly from said base plate portion, said base plate extension portion having aperture means located to receive said pin means in the raised lifting position of said hinge means with said base plate extending portion located in overlapping relationship to said base plate portion, said rail means having aperture means located to receive said pin means in the flat lowered position of said rail means, and fastening means engageable with said pin means in the raised bridging position of said hinge means and said rail means and in the flat lowered position of said hinge means and said rail means to secure the rack apparatus in each position.

Claim 9

The invention as defined in claim 1 and wherein said rail means having hinge cavity means receiving said hinge means in the flat lowered position and hiding said hinge means within said rail means.

Claim 10

The invention as defined in claim 1 and wherein said ski clamping means being removably attached to said rail means.

Claim 11

The invention as defined in claim 1 and wherein said rail means comprising a pair of spaced side rail members and a pair of spaced crossrail members fixedly secured together for movement as a unit between the flat lowered position and the raised inclined position, and defining a luggage carrying space therebetween in the flat lowered position.

Claim 12

The invention as defined in claim 10 and wherein said crossrail members provide lower support bar means for said ski-clamping means having an upper surface for supporting skis.

Claim 13

The invention as defined in claim 11 and wherein said lower support bar means have a rounded upper surface providing substantially line contact with skis supported thereon.

Claim 14

The invention as defined in claim 12 and each of said ski-clamping means further comprising an upper cross bar assembly pivotally movable relative to said lower support bar means and having resilient flexible compressible gripping means aligned with said lower support bar means to grip and hold skis supported thereon.

Claim 15

The invention as defined in claim 13 and said gripping means having a compressible body portion and spaced outwardly inclined gripping finger portions extending from the body portion toward said lower support bar means.

Claim 16

The invention as defined in claim 10 and said ski-clamping means comprising: lower support bar means provided by said cross rail members, upper clamping bar means extending in overlapping relationship above said lower support bar means, pivotal support means at one end of said upper clamping bar means pivotally mounting said upper clamping bar means relative to said lower support bar means for pivotal movement between a closed clamping position in overlapping relationship to the lower support bar means and an open outwardly spaced ski receiving position in spaced relationship to the lower support bar means, and latch means at the opposite end of said upper clamping bar means to releasably latch the upper clamping bar means in the closed clamping position.

Claim 17

The invention as defined in claim 15 and wherein said pivotal support means comprises: pin means carried by said upper clamping bar means, and pin seat means carried by said lower support bar means.

Claim 18

The invention as defined in claim 16 and wherein said latch means comprises: a latch member carried by said upper clamping bar means, and keeper means carried by said lower support bar means.

Claim 19

The invention as defined in claim 17 and wherein said upper clamping bar means comprises: a central clamping bar member, housing means supporting opposite ends of said central clamping bar member, said latch means and said pivotal support means being mounted completely within said housing means in the closed clamping position.

Claim 20

The invention as defined in claim 18 and having connecting means between said Lower support bar means and said pin seat means and said keeper means comprising: separable and removable clamp members having a base portion, each clamp member having clamping flange means extending downwardly from said base portion and defining a clamping cavity having a cross-sectional configuration similar to said lower support bar means and clampingly receiving said lower support bar means therewithin, each clamp member further having upwardly support flange means extending upwardly from said base portion, removable fastening means associated with said clamping members to secure said clamping members in fixedly mounted clamping engagement with said lower support bar means, said housing means receiving said flange means and said removable fastening means in the lowered closed clamping position and preventing removal of said fastening means so as to prevent theft of skis.

Claim 21

The invention as defined in claim 19 and said lower support bar means and said clamping cavity having corresponding pear-shaped cross-sectional configurations, said lower support bar means being tilted so as to receive and hold said keeper means and said pin seat means in a vertical attitude.

Claim 22

The invention as defined in claim 19 and having lock means associated with said latch means to lock said upper clamping bar means in the lowered closed clamping position.

Claim 23

The invention as defined in claim 19 and said pin support means comprising: hook means having a pin slot opening inwardly toward the ski carrying area between said lower support bar means and said upper clamping bar means, a rounded pin seat at the end of said slot, and said pin means being movable through said slot to and from engagement with said pin seat means to permit disassociation of the upper clamping bar means from the lower support bar means.

Claim 24

The invention as defined in claim 22 and said keeper means comprising: keeper hook means having a latch slot opening inwardly toward the ski carrying area between said upper clamping bar means and said lower support bar means, said latch means being movable through said latch slot to and from engagement with said keeper hook means to latch and release said upper clamping bar means relative to said lower support bar means.

Claim 25

The invention as defined in claim 23 and said latch means comprising: a vertically extending body portion centrally pivotally mounted in said housing, a latch hook at the lower end of said body portion and being engageable with said keeper hook means, spring means in said housing engaging the upper end of said body portion and biasing said latch hook toward engagement with said keeper hook means, and release lever means extending from said body portion through said housing for manual manipulation to release said latch hook from engagement with said keeper hook means to permit movement of the upper clamping bar means to the open position.