Stanchion assembly
A stanchion assembly attached to a vehicle for an article rack includes a support, a cover, and a support flange for connecting the stanchion to a side bar. The support flange is constructed of a higher strength material than the support or the cover to provide a stanchion that reduces weight and is less expensive while providing adequate support for the article rack.
1 . A stanchion of an article rack assembly for attaching a side bar to a vehicle, comprising:
a support, wherein said support is selectively attached to the vehicle and the side bar;
a cover adjacent said support and the side bar, wherein said cover is selectively adapted to bindingly clip into a desired attachment with the side bar; and
a support flange, wherein said support flange is adjacent the side bar and selectively coupled to said cover, said side bar and a cross assembly, wherein said support flange is constructed of a higher strength material than said support and said cover.
2 . The stanchion of claim 1 , wherein said support flange has a higher tensile strength than said support.
3 . The stanchion of claim 1 , wherein said support flange has a higher yield strength than said support.
4 . The stanchion of claim 1 , wherein said support flange is selectively coupled to said cover with a tab/tab receptacle arrangement.
5 . The stanchion of claim 1 , wherein said support flange is selectively coupled to said side bar with a fastener.
6 . The stanchion of claim 5 , wherein said fastener is a screw or a bolt.
7 . The stanchion of claim 1 , wherein said support is selectively coupled to the side bar with a screw or a bolt.
8 . An article rack assembly for a vehicle, comprising:
a side bar;
a support, wherein said support is selectively attached to the vehicle and adjacent said side bar;
a cover adjacent said support and the side bar; and
a support flange, wherein said support flange is adjacent said side bar and selectively attached to said support and to said cover, said support flange is selectively coupled to a cross assembly, said support flange is constructed of a higher strength material than said support, and wherein at least said support, said cover, and said support flange form a stanchion.
9 . The assembly of claim 8 , wherein said support flange is constructed of a higher strength material than said cover
10 . The assembly of claim 8 , further comprising a second support coupled to said side bar.
11 . The assembly of claim 8 , further comprising a rear stanchion coupled to said side bar.
12 . The assembly of claim 8 , further comprising a second front stanchion coupled to a second side bar.
13 . The assembly of claim 8 , wherein said cover is selectively adapted to bindingly clip into a desired attachment with said side bar.
14 . The assembly of claim 8 , further comprising a cross assembly selectively attached to said support flange.
15 . The assembly of claim 14 , wherein said cross assembly includes an alignment clip to position said cross assembly within said article rack assembly.
16 . The assembly of claim 8 , wherein said support flange is selectively coupled to said side bar with a fastener.
17 . A method of assembling a stanchion for an article rack assembly comprising the steps of:
bindingly clipping a cover to a first end of a side bar, wherein the side bar has a bend adjacent the first end and the cover contacts at least more than 180° of a cross section of the side bar;
positioning the cover and the side bar adjacent a support, wherein the support is selectively coupled to the side bar; and
coupling a support flange to the side bar.
18 . The method of claim 17 , wherein said step of coupling the support flange to the side bar includes installing a bolt or a screw.
19 . The method of claim 17 , wherein the support flange has a higher tensile strength than the support.
20 . The method of claim 17 , further comprising the step of coupling the cover to the support.
21 . A stanchion of an article rack assembly for attaching a side bar to a vehicle, comprising:
a support, wherein said support is selectively attached to the vehicle and the side bar;
a support flange, wherein said support flange is adjacent the side bar and selectively coupled to said side bar and a cross assembly; and
a centering assembly, wherein said centering assembly selectively aligns at least a portion of the cross assembly with at least a portion of said stanchion.
22 . An article rack assembly for a vehicle, comprising:
a side bar;
a first support, wherein said first support is selectively attached to the vehicle and adjacent said side bar, and said first support forms at least a portion of a stanchion;
a support flange, wherein said support flange is adjacent said side bar and selectively attached to said first support and to said cover;
a cross assembly; and
an air dam, wherein said support flange is selectively coupled to said cross assembly and at least a portion of said support flange selectively aligns at least a portion of the cross assembly with at least a portion of said stanchion.
23 . The article rack assembly of claim 22 , further comprising a second support, wherein said support flange selectively centers at least a portion of the cross assembly generally between said first stanchion and said second stanchion.