Paul Thomas Carter
Engineers in Sandy, UT
License number
Utah 4872977-2202
Issued Date
Sep 13, 2001
Expiration Date
Mar 31, 2017
Category
Engineer/Land Surveyor
Type
Professional Engineer
Address
Address
Sandy, UT
Education
UNIVERSITY OF UTAH, Mar 16, 1989
Professional information
Connector Assembly
US Patent:
5326123, Jul 5, 1994
Filed:
Sep 3, 1992
Appl. No.:
7/940284
Inventors:
Vaughn W. Guest - Farmington UT
Paul T. Carter - Sandy UT
Paul T. Carter - Sandy UT
Assignee:
Eaton-Kenway Inc. - Salt Lake City UT
International Classification:
B62D 5312
US Classification:
280434
Abstract:
A connector assembly for interconnecting a vehicle and a trailer having a hitch element includes a gripper assembly which is operable to engage the hitch element. The gripper assembly includes a plurality of jaws which are pivotally connected with and are disposed in a circular array on a base. A rotatable ring circumscribes the circular array of jaws. A motor is connected with the ring and is operable to rotate the ring in a first direction to pivot the jaws toward each other. The motor is operable to rotate the ring in a second direction, which is opposite to the first direction, to pivot the jaws away from each other. The ring and jaws are interconnected by a plurality of links. The motor is connected with the ring by a drive chain. A hitch element detector detects when the hitch element is positioned in the gripper assembly.