Heat-retaining partition for automotive van

Claim 2

In an automotive van having a pair of sidewalls, a front and rear wall, and a top and bottom wall, and having an operator''s seat and a heat-exchanging means disposed in a front portion of said van; heat-retaining partition means disposed to define an operator''s compartment within said van at the front portion of said van and including: a partition wall constructed of a material exhibiting the characteristics of being generally flexible and transparent, said partition wall extending in a generally vertical plane and positioned to form generally right angles with the side walls of said van; said partition wall extending from substantially said top wall to said bottom wall and from substantially one of the sidewalls to the other side wall of said van; first mounting means for attaching said partition wall to an upper portion of said van to thereby generally seal said partition wall to the top wall of said van; and, second mounting means for attaching said partition wall to a lower portion of said van to thereby generally seal said partition wall to the bottom wall of said van in order to substantially prevent the transfer of heat into and out of said compartment.

Claim 3

An apparatus as defined in claim 1 including an elongated beam member extending from said top wall of said van and being positioned in a direction generally parallel to a plane defined by said partition wall, and said first mounting means including locking means disposed between said partition wall and said beam for removably attaching said partition wall to said beam.

Claim 4

An apparatus as defined in claim 2 including generally resilient insulating means disposed between said beam member and said top wall of said van to provide a generally airtight seal between said beam and said top wall of said van.

Claim 5

An apparatus as defined in claim 2 wherein said locking means includes a plurality of locking projections each of a generally hook-shaped configuration, said locking projections being mounted on and extending from said beam member, and means mounted on said partition wall for, upon being pressed against said locking projections, engaging said projections to thereby support said partition wall.

Claim 6

An apparatus as defined in claim 4 wherein said locking means exhibits the characteristic of being generally adhesive.

Claim 7

An apparatus as defined in claim 4 wherein at least a portion of said engaging means is comprised of a fabric for engaging said locking projections.

Claim 8

An apparatus as defined in claim 4 wherein the surface of said engaging means is roughened to engage said locking projections.

Claim 9

An apparatus as defined in claim 4 wherein said partition wall is constructed of substantially clear plastic material.

Claim 10

An apparatus as defined in claim 7 wherein said second mounting means includes a plurality of retaining devices being attached to a lower portion of said partition wall, said retaining devices being of sufficient weight to substantially seal the partition wall agaiNst the bottom wall of said van.

Claim 11

An apparatus as defined in claim 7 wherein said second mounting means includes a plurality of magnetic devices being attached to a lower portion of said partition wall for substantially sealing the partition wall against the bottom wall of said van.

Claim 12

In an automotive vehicle having a pair of sidewalls, a front and rear wall, a top and a bottom wall defining an enclosure, the front portion of the enclosure having an operator''s seat and a heat-exchanging means therein to define an operator''s region, the rear portion of the enclosure having a platform therein to define a load-carrying region, the improvement of a removable heat-retaining partition means disposed between said regions to define an operator''s compartment wherein conditioned air from said heat exchanging means is substantially retained, the partition means comprising a partition wall constructed of a material exhibiting the characteristics of being generally flexible and transparent; said partition wall extending in a generally vertical plane and positioned to form generally right angles with the sidewalls; said partition wall extending substantially from the top wall to the bottom wall and from one of the sidewalls to the other sidewall; and mounting means to support said partition wall within said vehicle and to maintain the positioning of said partition wall adjacent the sidewalls and the top and bottom walls whereby conditioned air from the heat-exchanging means is substantially retained within the operator''s compartment.

Claim 13

In an automotive vehicle having a pair of sidewalls, a front and rear wall, a top and a bottom wall defining an enclosure, the front portion of the enclosure having an operator''s seat and a heat-exchanging means therein to define an operator''s region, the rear portion of the enclosure having a platform therein to define a load-carrying region, the improvement of a removable heat-retaining partition means disposed between said regions to define an operator''s compartment wherein conditioned air from said heat exchanging means is substantially retained, the partition means comprising a partition wall constructed of a material exhibiting the characteristics of being generally flexible and transparent; said partition wall extending in a generally vertical plane and positioned to form generally right angles with the sidewalls; said partition wall extending substantially from the top wall to the bottom wall and from one of the sidewalls to the other sidewall; and mounting means to support said partition wall within said vehicle and to maintain the positioning of said partition wall adjacent the sidewalls and the top and bottom walls whereby conditioned air from the heat-exchanging means is substantially retained within the operator''s compartment.

Claim 14

The apparatus of claim 11 wherein said mounting means includes an elongated beam member extending between said sidewalls at a position in close proximity to the top wall and parallel to said plane of said partition wall, and means for securing said partition wall to said beam member whereby top edge portions of said partition wall are held substantially adjacent the top wall.

Claim 15

The apparatus of claim 12 wherein said partition wall and said beam member are connected by hook-shaped projections.

Claim 16

The apparatus of claim 11 wherein said partition wall is constructed of substantially clear plastic material.

Claim 17

The apparatus of claim 14 wherein said mounting means further includes a plurality of retaining devices disposed along the bottom edge of said partition wall to removably position said bottom edge substantially adjacent the bottom wall.