Rail system for vehicle shelving and canopies

Abstract

A vehicle rail system has a frame mountable to a vehicle, the frame having a plurality of support legs, the support legs interconnected via support beams. One or more fixed rails are mountable to the support frame, each fixed rail comprising a plurality of bearings thereon and configured to receive a sliding rail, the sliding rail having a plurality of grooves for receiving the bearings of the fixed rail so as to be slidable thereon. The bearings are located along regular intervals of the fixed rails on each non-mounted side. The sliding rail is then able to slide along the bearings of the fixed rail, extending to the exterior of the frame mounted in the vehicle.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A rail system to aid in the removal and replacement of shelving in a vehicle, the system comprising:
 a vehicle rail system comprising:
 a vehicle frame mountable in the cargo area of a vehicle, the frame comprising a support leg having a first end adapted to attach to the vehicle, and 
 a vehicle fixed rail mounted to the vehicle frame, the vehicle fixed rail comprising front, top, and bottom faces; 
   a cart comprising:
 a cart frame mounted to the cart, the cart frame comprising a base frame and a support frame connected with the base frame, and 
 a cart fixed rail mounted to the cart frame, the cart fixed rail comprising front, top, and bottom faces that functionally correspond to the front, top, and bottom faces of the vehicle fixed rail; and 
   a shelving unit comprising:
 a sliding rail engaging the vehicle fixed rail and slidably mounted on the vehicle fixed rail for longitudinal movement relative to the vehicle fixed rail, 
 wherein the sliding rail moves from a retracted position in which it engages and is supported by the vehicle fixed rail to an extended position in which it engages and is supported by the cart fixed rail. 
   
     
     
         2 . The rail system of  claim 1 , the sliding rail moves from a retracted position in which it engages and is supported by the vehicle fixed rail to an intermediate position in which it engages and is supported by the vehicle fixed rail and the cart fixed rail and then to an extended position in which it engages and is supported by the cart fixed rail. 
     
     
         3 . The rail system of  claim 1 , wherein the cart comprises an actuator to adjust the alignment of the cart fixed rail to align the cart fixed rail with the vehicle fixed rail. 
     
     
         4 . The rail system of  claim 1 , wherein the vehicle fixed rail further comprises a plurality of bearings mounted to one or more faces of the vehicle fixed rail. 
     
     
         5 . The rail system of  claim 4 , wherein the cart fixed rail further comprises a plurality of bearings mounted to one or more faces of the cart fixed rail. 
     
     
         6 . The rail system of  claim 1 , wherein the sliding rail comprises a securing mechanism. 
     
     
         7 . The rail system of  claim 6 , wherein the securing mechanism prevents the shelving unit from being inadvertently removed from the vehicle rail system. 
     
     
         8 . The rail system of  claim 6 , wherein the securing mechanism prevents the shelving unit from being inadvertently removed from the cart. 
     
     
         9 . The rail system of  claim 1 , wherein the sliding rail comprises a locking bolt. 
     
     
         10 . The rail system of  claim 1 , wherein the shelving unit comprises a shelf configured to hold a package. 
     
     
         11 . The rail system of  claim 10 , wherein the shelf is not accessible to a user when the shelving unit is in the retracted position. 
     
     
         12 . The rail system of  claim 10 , wherein the shelf is not accessible from an interior of the vehicle. 
     
     
         13 . The rail system of  claim 10 , wherein the shelf comprises a bin. 
     
     
         14 . A method for removing a shelving system from a vehicle, comprising:
 providing a shelving unit comprising a sliding rail;   positioning the shelving unit in a vehicle supported by a vehicle rail system, the vehicle rail system comprising a vehicle frame mountable in the cargo area of a vehicle and a vehicle fixed rail mounted to the vehicle frame, the vehicle fixed rail engaging the shelving unit sliding rail;   moving the shelving unit from a retracted position in which it engages and is supported by the vehicle rail system to an extended position in which it engages and is supported by a cart, the cart comprising a cart frame mounted to the cart and a cart fixed rail mounted to the cart frame, the cart fixed rail engaging the shelving unit sliding rail.   
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 14 , further comprising moving the shelving unit from the retracted position to the extended position by transitioning through an intermediate position in which the sliding rail engages both the vehicle fixed rail and the cart fixed rail. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 14 , further comprising a step of securing the sliding rail from being inadvertently removed from engagement with the vehicle fixed rail when the shelving unit is in the retracted position. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 14 , further comprising a step of securing the sliding rail from being inadvertently removed from engagement with the cart fixed rail when the shelving unit is in the extended position. 
     
     
         18 . A method of loading packages onto a vehicle, comprising:
 positioning a shelving unit on a cart, the cart comprising a fixed rail, and the shelving unit comprising a sliding rail that engages the cart fixed rail;   sorting a plurality of packages;   placing one or more of the sorted packages onto a shelf of the shelving unit;   positioning the cart adjacent to a vehicle, the vehicle comprising a vehicle rail system that comprises a vehicle fixed rail;   transferring the shelving unit from the cart to the vehicle by engaging the sliding rail with the vehicle fixed rail and disengaging the sliding rail from the cart fixed rail;   accessing the one or more sorted packages by slidably extending the shelving unit from the vehicle without completely disengaging the sliding rail from the vehicle fixed rail.   
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 18 , further comprising the step of adjusting the cart fixed rail so that it aligns with the vehicle fixed rail. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 18  wherein extending the shelving unit comprises activating a motor to extend the shelving unit.